Tensions Rise at Pro Wrestling Africa Press Conference
Things got hectic in Yaoundé yesterday. Pro Wrestling Africa held a press conference for their upcoming Battle of Yaoundé event at the Safari Hotel. With ten of Cameroon’s top media houses in attendance at the event, the PWA Heavyweight Champion Power Lee and his opponent on Friday, Michel Noudem, almost came to blows.
Our chief correspondent in Africa and the Secretary General of Pro Wrestling Africa, Olusesan Olukoya, was in attendance to watch the high tension unfold. Olukoya reports that things were going smoothly until the press conference began to wind down after an about an hour.
Present at the press conference was, seated left to right, PWA Heavyweight Champion Power Lee, PWA Secretary General Olusesan Olukoya, PWA Vice President Captain Emmanuel Ndo, heavyweight challenger Michel Noudem, PWA Middleweight Champion The Wolf NDA, and the referee that will handle the duties in the Power Lee/Michel Noudem championship bout
The press conference started off very smoothly, with Pro Wrestling Africa Vice President Captain Emmanuel Ndo addressing the gathered media in French and thanking them all for attending while briefing them on what he termed “the fight of the decade.” Ndo invited Cameroonian fans to come out in the thousands to support the Battle of Yaoundé and thanked them for their support as well as the support that has been received from the Ministry of Sports in Cameroon.
Defending PWA Heavyweight Champion Power Lee then spoke, stating that Michel is the attacker in this situation and that he is simply the defender, doing what it takes to defend the title that belongs to him. Power Lee let his confidence shine through as he spoke, noting that he isn’t the “best” wrestler or a “better wrestler” but simply an excellent wrestler that is so good that the words better and best can not begin to describe him. He closed his statement by letting the gathered media know that he was won big matches in Cameroon already and that he will win on Friday and will again any other time he visits Cameroon.
It was around this time when the challenger, “Le Matrequeur” Michel Noudem stood up from his chair and began to speak. Noudem boasted that he has trained and prepared so much for this fight than he has over trained and that nothing will keep him from defeating Power Lee. Power Lee soon rose to his feet to meet the challenger and threw water in his face while exclaiming that Noudem “talks too much.”
Power Lee and Michel Noudem confront each other during the PWA Battle of Yaoundé press conference
To keep the two competitors from coming to blows at the press conference, Olusesan Olukoya intervened, reminding the two that this is something that can only be decided in the ring, quickly diffusing the situation before an all out brawl erupted before the media in attendance.
An interesting note, Cameroonian wrestler Kirikou was also seated by Power Lee’s side and the two seem to have developed an alliance of some sort. Kirikou rose to his feet in defense of Power Lee as Noudem rose to his and the two were spotted together at the conclusion of the press conference in the exclusive video obtained by WrestleMap below.
While Noudem and Power Lee didn’t come to blows at the press conference, the tension in the air in Yaoundé is getting thicker as Friday approaches. Power Lee is willing to do whatever it takes to keep his title and it appears as if Michel Noudem is willing to do whatever it takes to take it away. Friday afternoon in Yaoundé is going to be very interesting!
While WrestleMap was not able to obtain footage of the confrontation between Michel Noudem and Power Lee, you can see in the press conference video right before it cuts out that tensions were rising in the room.
Following the press conference, the Nigerian contingent in Cameroon, as well as The Wolf NDA and PWA officials including Captain Emmanuel Ndo, paid a visit to the Nigerian High Commission in Cameroon to meet with the Nigerian ambassador to Cameroon, Lani Remawa.
Ambassador Lani Remawa shared with the wrestlers and staff that she had just recently been reassigned to this position the day before and that her first official meeting was with the members of Pro Wrestling Africa.
Olusesan Olukoya presents the Nigerian Ambassador to Cameroon, Lani Remawa, with a Battle of Yaoundé t-shirt
As a gift to Pro Wrestling Africa, the Nigerian High Commission produced several shirts and ball caps featuring the Nigerian flag and a photo of Power Lee. These will be provided to Nigerian fans wishing to attend the Battle of Yaoundé. Power Lee and Olusesan Olukoya were also given caps and shirts as a generous gift from the embassy.
Ambassador Lani Remawa displays the shirts that the Nigerian High Commission has produced in support of Power Lee and his title defense
On the topic of Nigerian fans, Power Lee shared with the Ambassador that prior to his last match in Cameroon, he was feeling worn down and defeated before his match. But after walking out to the ring and feeling the energy from all of the Nigerian fans in attendance, it helped to propel him to a win. Ambassador Lani Remawa assured Power Lee and the rest of the PWA staff on hand that the embassy would permit as many Nigerian fans that would like to attend the event to do so. In order to accommodate them, Captain Emmanuel Ndo offered free tickets to all Nigerians that would like to attend, no matter how many that is.
It has been an eventful few days in Yaoundé, Cameroon in the lead up to the Battle of Yaoundé. But tomorrow is the big day that we’ve all been waiting for. Stay tuned to WrestleMap for coverage of tomorrow’s massive PWA double championship event, the Battle of Yaoundé!
