In Meltham there is an ambitious young wrestler who wants to make it to the very top and wrestle in the biggest competition in the world, WWE. His name is Kaine Taylor and he’s just 18-years-old.
Kaine has been wrestling since the age of four and currently holds two belts in which he is the current champion. However Kaine’s drive, determination and mindset is all focusing towards a career in pro-wrestling.
On his dream, Kaine said: “All I have ever wanted to do is wrestle. I want to make it to the very top, I want to wrestle in WWE. There are lots of ways I can make it to that level. I just need to keep working hard and doing shows and hopefully someone will spot me.”
Kaine’s dad Aaron named his son after the famous American wrestler Kane who now fights with WWE. The young Yorkshireman clearly has talent and he has developed this from a young age and has fought wrestlers older than him. Having watched his first wrestling match at Huddersfield Town Hall when he was just four years old Kaine recalls how he became hooked.
He said: “I remember being as close to the ring as you can get and the loud atmosphere inside the town hall. I remember watching the bad guys come on and thinking I’m really into this.
“Ever since seeing that show I just got more into it. I watched WWE on the TV when it was on, as I got older and wrestling got bigger it was easier to find platforms to watch it on.”
Kaine, who goes to college in Barnsley, wants to focus on his dream. He said: “It’s good I’m getting some qualifications but I’m just focusing on wrestling and making my dream a reality.
“You get paid by the show and so the more you do the more I get paid. I train really hard and try to keep myself as healthy as I can to achieve what I want to do.”
Kaine is currently UK Wrestling’s TV champion and is also the inaugural winner of the Squared Circle Championships. Kaine’s career started to get serious at the age of 11 when he came under the coaching guidance of Marty Jones a former British wrestler who had himself won the British Heavyweight Wrestling Championships in his own career.
On that time in his life Kaine said: “We found it difficult to find people to wrestle because I was a 6ft tall, 14st 11-year-old. I was just destroying anyone my age.
“My dad contacted Marty and since then he’s been my coach. He could tell I had the physical attributes to do well but Marty worked with me on the skill and tactics you need to be a successful wrestler.
“We went down to Stoke for a competition and although it was for over 18s, Marty asked the organiser if I could have a go even though I was just 12. I beat a bloke who was in his 30s in the first round. Although I got knocked out in the second round I was proud of myself.”
Kaine continued to enter shows and improve his skills. However at the start of 2019 the youngster fell seriously ill and was admitted to hospital. Having caught flu, double pneumonia and a staphylococcus infection all at the same time he was nearly put on a ventilator. Kaine was in hospital for a whole month and off school for three months as this all happened when he was just 15-years-old.
On that period he said: “I was really ill and found it difficult to do anything. I was in the hospital for a month. It was serious but as a kid you don’t realise how scary it is at the time.
“I was off school and even when I came out of hospital it took me a bit to recover. By the time July came around I was getting my fitness back and wrestled against a mate of mine in Holmfirth. It was a good show and it gave me some confidence back.”
After regaining his health and confidence Kaine’s progress was halted by the Covid-19 pandemic as gyms closed and shows were cancelled.
“The last two years has been hard for everyone but we’ve got through it,” said Kaine. “There were opportunities to do shows and I managed to retain my UK Wrestling TV belt which I’ve held since 2019.”
Despite its growing profile, wrestling is still seen by some as “fake” entertainment and not a “proper sport.”
Kaine thinks that’s unfair and said: “If people think it’s fake they obviously have never been inside a ring. Some of the injuries can be quite nasty and very real. I think wrestlers do put their bodies on the line and so we should be respected for the show we put on.”
Kaine’s future seems to be bright in the wrestling world and he believes he can go all the way.
He said: “I’ll keep going and see where I can get to, I have a dream and I’m determined to succeed.”
Gallery of images by: SEAN DOYLE
