Richard Holliday is reintroducing himself to the pro wrestling world.
WrestleZone recently spoke with Richard Holliday, who is best known for his work in MLW and on the independent scene. Holliday went on a sabbatical last year because he was in treatment for Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Holliday announced he completed treatment in February 2023, and was in remission in April.
He has since returned to the ring, competing for Northeastern-based companies like GCW and ISPW. Holliday was asked about his return to the ring and what the experience has been like for him so far.
“Excellent. Honestly, excellent. It’s been a lot, it’s been a whirlwind,” Holliday said. “but I’m busy and that’s just how I would want it. When I came back, I was thinking, ‘Let me just get as busy as possible and hit the ground running,’ and that’s what I’ve done. It’s been great.”
The right platform
Holliday’s MLW departure came as a surprise to many. No one knew the severity of his health issues at the time, so the exit felt abrupt in some ways. Holliday became a free agent during his treatment, but remains on good terms with MLW. He agreed with the timing, and said that now he’s focused on finding the right platform to reintroduce himself to the pro wrestling world.
“‘Abrupt’ is kind of an appropriate word for what happened. It came seemingly out of nowhere, right? Because there was time left on [my contract] and then obviously everything happened,” Holliday explained, “so it was just best for both parties to let it go. For the most part, the thing about what we were doing in MLW, is that we weren’t restricted from independent bookings, and they kind of encouraged it.
“Really, it was just getting back on the indies without MLW, and then what could be the biggest platform that I could use to accelerate my career or get back out there. I kind of felt like it was a reintroduction, a lot of people didn’t know who I was, obviously,” Holliday noted. “I wanted to treat it like a reintroduction back into wrestling. So, just so many different promotions reached out and I made tons of debuts, like you mentioned. GCW, that’s one of them. Just getting back out there and hitting the ground running.”
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