Rough-and-tumble wrestling may come to UAE

The razzmatazz of professional wrestling could become a regular fixture in the UAE next year.
Former professional tennis player Uday Shetty wants to establish a wrestling circuit in the Gulf - comprising Dubai, Abu Dhabi and possibly Sharjah - using professional wrestlers brought from the U.S.

The Beverly Hills-based Indian businessman works as a consultant for the World Wrestling Federation which has staged wrestling matches in India through its affiliation with the National Wrestling Association in the U.S.

The association has wrestlers Van Vader, Tatanka, Barbarian, Public Enemy, Candy De Vine and Robbie Rage on its books, and Shetty wants to bring them to the region in April or May.

"Wrestling is watched by over a billion people worldwide and each day the number is increasing," he said. "It's showbusiness for the whole family, but when you see it live it's totally different from watching it on television."

Shetty, who was involved in marketing the Miss World pageant in India in 1996, said he believes the Gulf will welcome the extreme sport. "We have been doing wrestling tournaments in India for four years and just did three shows in Bangalore, Hyderabad and Cochin which were attended by an average of 10,000 people each.

"Based on the success of these shows, we had quite a few enquiries about doing something similar in the Gulf.

"We are looking on a long-term perspective to have a circuit of the Gulf and India which would include Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Muscat, Doha, Kuwait and possibly Sharjah, Dhahran, Riyadh and Jeddah, and at least half a dozen major cities in India." Shetty is in Dubai to talk to promoters interested in hosting the shows in the UAE.