In the highly competitive indie-wrestling scene throughout the midwest there is a young new face that has arrived in the business. Meet Matt Jones, who goes by the wrestling nickname "Matt Kenway." Matt entered the indie-wrestling business in November 2015 and began his training at the age of 18. When he entered the business he already had a hefty portion on his plate. He was a full-time university student, full-time employee, dedicated athlete and committed member of his family. Matt had always been a lifetime fan of professional wrestling watching various matches from WWE, ECW, Ring of Honor and New Japan Professional Wrestling (NJPW). He is also a huge fan of UFC and other professional fighting companies. It had been a childhood dream of Jones' to get into the business and have the opportunity to entertain the masses.
As a native of the south city area of St. Louis, he attended St. Mary's High School where he participated in football, track and field and student council. During high school he became a fitness junkie and has been a consistent weight-lifter and athlete for over two years now. Once he reached college, Matt had gotten himself into terrific shape and made the decision to go down a new path in his life; professional wrestling. In an interview with Matt I asked what made him make the final leap in the professional wrestling industry and he responded with:
"I was watching El Generico vs. Kevin Steen (Now Kevin Owens) in a ladder war match at Final Battle '12 for Ring of Honor and I saw how invested the crowd was in this phenomenal match and how they were reacting to everything. It clicked to me that if I was ever going to chase my dream of entertaining people and being a professional wrestler that it was the time." -Matt Jones
Matt Kenway with Mike Outlaw in a headlock
He began his training at the South Broadway Athletic Club in St. Louis in November and within weeks he quickly found himself in the action. At a show just after New Years in Memphis, Tennessee, Matt was a referee for a match. Matt worked various matches as a part of the "ring crew" and did whatever he could do to lend a helping hand. Matt made his debut as "Matt Kenway" in Memphis on January 26th. From February to April Matt was competing in often two matches a weekend from the stretches of Eastern Illinois, Western Missouri, Northern Mississippi, Middle Tennessee and the Memphis area. Matt is seemingly the youngest trained wrestler in the STL area and is a rising star among other young STL-area wrestlers. Matt looks up to other wrestlers in the indie-scene such as St. Louis area wrestlers KLD, Danny Adams and Brandon Aarons who give him advice and help him out a lot. Matt made his St. Louis home debut in South Broadway Athletic Clubs' monthly MMWA show on March 12th. He has since then been on the card for South Broadway's monthly MMWA shows every month since and even has taken place in a co-main event. Matt has become a "fan-favorite" throughout the midwest according to High Risk Wrestling. Matt is "flattered [at the attention he's been garnering] but is no 'rising-star'. I am a guy looking to make a 'foothold.'"
After his South Broadway show in early May, Matt took a short break from competing to focus more time into finishing up his first year of college. He has also began providing color commentary for the previous MMWA show at South Broadway. Now with summer fully in swing Matt, now 19 years old, has already made his rounds throughout the midwest and has several shows in the coming months. He will be competing at High Risk Wrestling on June 25th and at South Broadway Athletic Club in St. Louis on July 9th. Matt said the one thing he is looking forward to is "to be a lot more active [in the business]" and that he is looking to "work 2-3 matches a weekend in great places."
