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Until this day, his bitter feud against Big Tiger Steele, whom he eventually beat to win the Heavyweight Title, is remembered as one of the reasons why ACW filled the venues at that time. After matches including I Quit rules and a Texas Bullrope, bringing no decision, Schwarz beat his nemesis to win the gold in their third encounter in September 2002. He was able to hold on to that title for more than a year but eventually lost it to Doug Williams, with whom he later had a classic Iron Man Rematch which took place only three days after Schwarz was involved in a
serious car accident. "They already drew good crowds before I came in, I just advised them and protected them from cheap criticism. I am so happy about the fact that I was part of the biggest feud they ever had against Big Tiger Steele. It's a shame the quality of the tapes weren't as good as today; my matches with Doug Williams and Michael Kovac, for example, would still pass the test."
WORkING FOR WWE MEANT A LOT TO ME. THAT’S WHy I bECAME A WRESTLER
At German Stampede Wrestling’s (GSW) International Impact in October 2004, he faced Chris Hero and beat him in a show stealer which put him in a good position to become the first GSW Heavyweight Champion. But he lost his semi-final match against his friend Michael Kovac at the next event. Nevertheless, he didn't have to wait much longer for his first title in GSW. Four months later he was able to win the Tag Team Title teaming with Michael Kovac against Swiss Money Holding, consisting of Claudio Castagnoli and Marc Roudin. Schwarz and Kovac would later go on to have a hatred filled feud, but you can read about that in issue
seven. "It was very important for me to be part of GSW. I really liked working for them but didn't have too many great matches there, except for the ones against Hero and the Streetfight with Kovac. It didn't help my career since they never really knew what to do with me. You lose your motivation if they just use you to build up other guys while not
44 WoRlDWiDe WReStlinG MAGAZine tWP
giving you the respect you should get for doing that."
Meanwhile, WWE took notice of him and invited him for try outs during their tv tapings in England. In addition to that, he was able to prove himself in matches on World Wrestling Entertainment’s televised Heat, where he teamed with Domino against The Heart Throbs in 2005 and together with Andy Simmonz against Snitsky and Goldust in 2006. "Working
for WWE meant a lot to me. That's why I became a wrestler in the first place. I slept in a tiny car at temperatures way below zero just to be there the next day all suited up. I guess the fact that I am married with children and being thirty at that time didn't make it easy for them to hire me. Actually at one
eric Schwarz vs Michael Kovac, Streetfight
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