New WWE signing, Fergal 'Prince' Devitt, is currently in the process of becoming a global phenomenon. Having sensationally left New Japan Pro-Wrestling at the start of the year despite being tipped to become their first ever simultaneous IWGP Jr and Heavyweight Championship belts holder, Devitt was last month signed to a WWE developmental deal and his debut on their NXT show, that showcases the stars of tomorrow, seems imminent.
Last week RTÉ announced their autumn schedule and it will feature a documentary charting Devitt's final days in Japan. 'Smack Em Up' takes Fergal from training in Ireland's Main Stage Wrestling gym right through to Japan as he talks of his old 6,000-mile commute in search of a dream. The documentary is produced by Ronan McCloskey (who previously covered wrestling in Ireland with The Fit Finlays documentary) and will air in the coming months. RTÉ are believed to have been attracted to cover pro-wrestling having witnessed the success of 'The Notorious' documentary on Conor McGregor (which was also announced for a 6-episode follow-on series) and it's great to see such a huge market finally get attention from the national broadcaster.
Below is the official press release for the project:
The eagerly awaited Prince Devitt documentary will soon be hitting the screens! The story of one of the world’s greatest living wrestlers. Originally from Bray, Ireland Fergal has been working the Japanese and independent circuit for years. In this documentary we follow him on his last tour of Japan before ending months of online speculation and signing with the WWE.
And check out an exclusive teaser clip which will give you an idea of what to expect:
Of course, not to go full hipster, but we at balls.ie have been covering Fergal before he was such a global superstar and profiled his story shortly before his signing to WWE, telling the story of how he nearly - but never - wrestled Sheamus as the two came up in the same crop of Irish talent. You can also listen to parts 1 and 2 of our exclusive interview with him below. We'll be covering this story more in-depth on this week's edition of the 'Low Blows' podcast, so stay tuned for that.
[soundcloud url="https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/151578172" params="color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false" width="100%" height="166" iframe="true" /]
[soundcloud url="https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/152690567" params="color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false" width="100%" height="166" iframe="true" /]
