Jack Dullahan Interview- PWDownunder Talks To The All-Star Eastern States Champion

(Photos: Marc K’Nell)

All-Star Wrestling Australia is one of NSW’s most prominent wrestling promotions, and a key part of that success is Jack Dullahan, who currently reigns as its Eastern States Champion. Dullahan is a powerhouse, tearing through opponents in impressive fashion, and he currently boasts a streak of going over 1100 days without being pinned or submitted.

Dullahan has a major spotlight coming up- a Champion vs. Champion, Winner Take All match against the All-Star Heavyweight Champion, Keegan Brettle. This high stakes battle takes place on June 14th, at Night To Remember 6- their biggest show of the year- at the Padstow RSL. This past weekend, I sat down with Jack Dullahan to get his thoughts on the match, Brettle as champion, and to learn a bit about the enigma that is the Eastern States Champion. Here are some highlights:

Mick Robson: What would it mean to you to become All-Star Wrestling Heavyweight Champion?

Dullahan: It’d mean a lot, aye. It’s been a long journey- I’ve been in All-Star coming up six years now. Lot of ups and downs, so it’d be awesome to take the top spot and really show everyone what I’ve got.

MR: What are your thoughts on Keegan Brettle as an opponent?

Dullahan: Yeah, nothing but respect for the bloke. A lot of people don’t know this, but he was there day one since the day I walked into the doors of professional wrestling. Top bloke, top competitor as well, there’s a reason why he’s holding that belt, and a reason why he’s on top. You keep knocking him down a million times, he’ll keep getting back up- whether it’s the VB helping him or what- he’ll get right back up and bring the fight to ya.

MR: You’ve been undefeated for over 1000 days. When I see you wrestle, there’s a sense of- I think the kids call it “aura”. What would you say Jack Dullahan brings to the table?

Dullahan: That’s the thing, I walk through that curtain and try and bring that “aura”. I take it seriously, it’s a physical sport. I try and muscle around my opponent and dominate every time I step in that ring. It’s a hard task, y’know, I try to bring that energy with me. I live by that on a day-to-day basis as well, I try to bring that with everything I do, my training, my work, all that stuff as well. So I wanna walk out- I want my opponent to fear me, I want to win the match before it even starts. Just to let them know, I mean business and I’m here to cause some pain. Win by any means necessary, and I know Keegan’s all about that as well.

MR: Just more on you, because you’re a bit of an enigma- before this undefeated streak and all that, what’s your background in wrestling?

Dullahan: Uh, hard to say- I walked in the doors of APWG back then. Australian Pro Wrestling Gym, run by Jay Law, another competitive wrestler on the All-Star scene there as well. It goes back way before then as well, y’know, always loved it as a kid. I was never too much of a fanboy of the mainstream wrestlers, I was always into the ones who would take it more seriously with their fitness and their performance, always trying to perfect their craft. I always looked at that side of things. So when I started at APWG, it was all about getting physically fit, physically conditioned, I had a point to prove as well, trying to prove yourself. I was just trying to work my ass off to get my debut match, and I guess the rest was history from there.

MR: You’ve held that Eastern States title for a while now. What does that title and this title reign mean to you?

Dullahan: When I first saw that title I was like wow, something different, that’s a nice title. Means a lot to keep it in Australia- you know Chris Masters was the last person to hold before I won it off him in Cootamundra. He was heading back to the States, so who knows what would’ve happened.

The first reign was a good one, a lot of title defences, a lot of days holding that belt. Until I lost it in a ladder match to another great competitor, Aries. I was a different Jack Dullahan then too, the first title reign, ego kicks in. This title reign was a bit different, more like “this title needs a real champion”. Just to hold it, and bring that prestige to the title- I guess it’s known as my title, and I’d like to keep it that way come Saturday, and I want to add to that collection as well. As important as the heavyweight title is, I think the Eastern States title is just as important, if not more important to me, because it’s a very special title to me and my first ever title as well.

MR: Now to talk about All-Star in general as a promotion- the event’s happening at the “iconic” Padstow RSL. What makes that place iconic?

Dullahan: It’s a no-brainer- it’s the fans, they make it, they turn out in numbers, they’re rowdy, they’re loud. They love ya, they hate ya, they always let you know. We’ve been fortunate enough to always get some big numbers, so it’s always great to see the fans behind you, behind everyone, behind what we do in that ring as well. They can see we do take it seriously, we do put our bodies on the line. It’s a good area, good seating as well, but yeah, it’s the fans who make it iconic.

MR: Awesome. And for any fans coming for the first time, what can they expect from All-Star Wrestling?

Dullahan: Expect a lot of fun, a lot of good laughs, but a lot of competitive wrestling as well. You’re gonna see a lot of brutal matches, a lot of hard-hitting matches. A lot of athletic matches, y’know- there’s guys I butt heads with in the locker room, guys I don’t always get along with, like Jimmy Zero. He’s a shit-talker but he backs it up in the ring with his athletic ability. Aries as well. You got the big guys, you got the tag team champions, The Belief- their experience is second to none. They’re gonna put on a show as well and really dominate that ring. All our wrestlers walk in with a point to prove, which makes for great wrestling and a great show.

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In the full interview, Dullahan goes into more detail on his background, setbacks and history with Keegan Brettle, among other things. Make sure to subscribe to the PWDownunder YouTube channel for more great interviews and exclusives, including my chat recently with Robbie Eagles, and Imogen’s interview with Rita Stone.

Tickets to All-Star Wrestling’s A Night To Remember 6 on Saturday June 14 are still available at https://www.allstarwrestlingaustralia.com.au/all-star-wrestling-australia—a-night-to-remember-6-14062025.html