The most fortunate event to ever happen to Mark Payne had to be the day he was hired by Speed Racer. Speed Racer and Mark Payne has known each other through several co-fed events. Payne placed a call seeing if Speed had a job for him. Speed has always had an eye for talent and something about Payne made him offer that contract. Payne was there immediately and in true Payne fashion he acted as only he could. The Blonde Bastard immediately started cutting interviews two weeks before he even stepped foot in an AGW ring, and people soon found out that Mark Payne had an ego a mile wide. Many of the veterns behind the curtains complained about him and the attention he was getting. He was cutting promo after promo and the fans wanted to see more of Mark Payne. Mostly to see him get his ass kicked, but the important part remains that Speed recongized it for what it was: Mega heel heat and excellent ratings for a rookie.

Payne made his debut and started out better that most. Wins over Sebastian Cage, who was Cruiserweight Champ, and numerous other mid-carders established him right away. But Mark Payne's first big splash in the AGW would happen at the July PPV: AGW Sizzler. The setting was a Battle Royal with forty of the AGW's top superstars. The winner would recieve a World Title shot against then champion, Terrance M. Garvin. It came down to Mark Payne and Hunter Hearst Hemsley. Payne dumped Triple HHH over the ropes and just like that...Within a month of his arrival he was already the number one contender.

If fans thought his ego was big before, then they were in for it. Immediately Payne claimed himself the next World Champion. He badmouthed main eventers left and right. But, this would prove to be a foolish move for Mark Payne. He went on a losing streak that destroyed his credibility. With losses to Most Holy and Mark Starr, his confidence was shattered before his match was Garvin. When the match happened, it was a twelve miniute war, that actually saw Mark Payne almost win the title numerous times. But Garvin was clearly the better man and finished him off with a small chain shot to the head in just over twelve minutes.

At this time Payne disappeared just as the AGW went on hiatus for about a month. No one really knows where he went. Some say he went back to his indy roots for that month, while others say he just went home and thinked things through. Then after the AGW had been back for about a week, Mark Payne returned, as arrogant and cocky as ever. He proceeded to go on a tremondous winning streak which saw him win the Television Title from Brad Steel. In retrospect it can be said that this is how Payne catapulted himself to fame. The AGW TV Title opened gateways that would lead him to top of this business.

Payne ,in his style, immediately called the title a piece of worthless trash that he would bring respect back to. Now at the time the TV belt was never held for longer then 14 days. It was widely considered to be the worst title in the AGW. All that was about to change. Card in and card out Mark Payne defended his title. He defeated any and all comers, and even defended the title twice in one PPV in a singles and triangle match. The rumors started to circle that Payne would get another World Title shot.

At this time Chocolate Thunder was the World Champion, and there was no clear cut number one contender. So CDogg set up his own tournament...Himself, Speed Racer, Smooth Operator, "The Professional Bastard" Blackhawk McKnight, Terrance M. Garvin, Shawn Michaels, Most Holy, and "The Survivor" Tom Tennant. Mark Payne was the only title holder left out. Thunder deliberately snubbed him and Payne was infuriated. The tournament came and went and Chocolate Thunder ended up defending successfully against the winner, Most Holy. So now Mark Payne made his move. He beat the right people and placed the right calls and boom: Mark Payne was named number one contender by Speed Racer himself, due to all the other current main event stars falling short in the tournament.

Payne responded by throwing down the TV Belt before a scheduled defense against Vengeance in order to assure that there would no legal blockages of his rise to the World Title.. Before the big match at Ultimate Survivor, Thunder and Payne got into brawls numerous times and bad blood became evident. Finally the big night came...The match was a cage death match, which ment the winner had to pin the other man three times in succession. Mark Payne shocked everyone by getting the first two pinfalls. Thunder fought back and what proceeded was a back and forth exchange that saw both men trade numerous pinfalls. But it was obvious that Payne was wearing Thunder out. Thunder couldn't mount anything in the end as Payne recorded three pinfalls in a very short timespan all with his finisher The Last Rites. Thunder never did quite recover from that loss in his career and the rest of his days were rather uneventful.

Mark Payne was now the world champion of the AGW. People couldn't quite believe it, and Payne took full advantage by laying the verbal smackdown on many superstars. And he backed his words up. He got another win over Chocolate Thunder, defeated Jimmy Crush, Sebastain Cage, and a victory over the most feared SOB in the AGW at the time Blackhawk McKnight. But during Payne's reign something unexpected happened...In two different ways. One the clique was reformed, and two Mark Paris returned. But before I get to that you should know that a superpower was formed by Mark Payne and Speed Racer.

Yes, The Corporation was reborn. Mark Payne, The Legendary Pretty Boys, Speed Racer, Lollipop, Black Knight, Bolo Yeung, "The Corporate Enforcer" Goldberg, Moonspell, and Amethyst. They were a power unlike ever seen although there are some who would say it was a rip-off and what not. Mostly that is the talk of bitter man who couldn't fathom that their time had gone and that a new breed of wrestler had taken over. The Corporation at one time held all three world titles, which is an amazing geat for a federation as competitive as the AGW was.

With Mark Paris returning the inevitable feud ensued and it saw an exhange of attacks and words for weeks. Then at the PPV , AGW Meltdown, it was CDogg vs. Most Holy vs. The Champion, Mark Payne in a title triangle match. Payne was in very bad shape because of his match ealier; a 20 minute bloody war with fellow AGW Hall of Famer, Extremely Hardcore Brawler, a match he was victorious in. Paris, during the match, came down to ringside and clocked Payne with a chair and Thunder rolled him up and pinned him. Payne was no longer the champ but he got his shots in before he left leaving both The Mostest and CDogg layed out. In the end Most Holy would emerge as the World Champion, but the win was tainted by the actions of Mark Paris.

So Payne's reign was over...However things continued on. The Corporation continued on. Payne got his rematch for the title at Big Brawl. A miscue by his stablemate Black Knight cost him his chance at the belt which sent Payne in a rage. Immediately after Speed and Payne fired Goldberg, Black Knight, Bolo Yeung, Amethyst, and Moonspell from the Corporation. That left just Speed Racer, Mark Payne, and Lollipop. It should be noted around this time Payne and Speed Racer won the AGW Anything Goes Tag Titles

After that Most Holy, still the champion, had to pick a contender to the world title...He picked, much to the shock of the world, the owner of the AGW Speed Racer. The match was a classic that tore down the house, but in the end it saw Speed Racer emerge as the champion. This was quite the predicament...Speed had a title he didn't want, but wouldn't lose on purpose...So he needed someone he knew might be able to beat him and take the title. Around this time Payne also almost killed Brad Steel and put him into a coma for a little while. It was quite the brutal accomplishment for the Blonde Bastard. As things progressed it became clear that Speed needed an opponent.

Mark Payne was that man...The AGW was in financial downfall and was closing, but it had one more mega-PPV to run. So it was set: Stable-Mate vs. Stable-Mate. It was another AGW classic match that lasted twenty plus minutes, but in the end we saw Mark Payne become a TWO time AGW World Championm, defeating Speed Racer and solidifying himself as one of the greatest AGW wrestlers of all time.

With the AGW closed Mark Payne had no home. Payne wouldn't go to the other big league, the UWL, and he thought himself above Indy feds now. So he trained and worked out making sure he was ready when the call came for him to return...And that call did come, from a upstart federation that had a new TV Deal called the VWA. They had already signed alot of old AGW talent like Shawn Michaels, Speed Racer, Terrance M. Garvin, Most Holy, The Xtreme Killers and others. So Payne signed a nice one year contract for a undisclosed amount and took his show to the Victory Wrestling Alliance, not really knowing what would come of it

Unfortunately this fed was doomed from the start, backstage politics and other things made it a horrible place to work and a horrible place to be. Payne stayed till the end, winning there Anything Goes Title from a man fans would come to know very well in the future, "The King of The Rotten" Monarch. But the VWA lasted only a month before it went under, and once again the best wrestlers the business had ever seen were once again out of work.

What happened next was very interesting. Speed Racer ,seemingly out of nowhere, resurrected the old AGW and got things off with a bang...Payne of course joined up, but struggled early, until he decided he needed to go in a whole new direction. The Blonde Bastard took a couple weeks off, and came back with a brand new arensel of high impact moves, a new move he called The Superstar Superkick, and a end to his "Minister" gimmick, and a beginning to "The Blonde Bastard" Mark Payne gimmick, which had been his real persona all along. Payne went on a 13 match winning streak culiminating with him beating Monarch and Mark Paris in a three way dance to get a World Title shot against "Mr. Main Event" Alex Star. Unfortunately Payne lost, and it was not a clean loss. Star had been hedging his bets all along in his championship reign, and Payne was his last opponent before he was found out. Star dropped the belt to "The Hardcore Revolutionary" Mark Paris soon after in a coup that saw Star's days as a AGW main event superstar come to a crashing halt..

Payne continued to dominate his opponents but was pushed down from the main event to give room for stars like Monarch and Tom Tennant a chance to shine...And indeed they did. Tennant won numerous titles and really claimed AGW fame for the first time. Monarch went on to win the AGW World Title, and like the monster he was, destroyed everyone in his site...Paris, Star, Tennant, Cage, Shawn Michaels, Joshua Gardner, and even Mark Payne all fell to him...The AGW once again closed due to personal problems in the life of Speed Racer around September of 2000, and Monarch held the belt even then...Payne had ;however, been considered one of the best there, and work was not going to be in short supply.

Payne for about three months did a tour of Japan then with the Xtreme Killers, Baine Clark, and Cedric Donahue. They were well recieved there, and all the of them got a lesson in what true HARDCORE wrestling is all about while they traveled the Orient...During their tour a man named James Crawford, better known as Creepy Old Fart from his AGW days, placed a call to Mark Payne telling him about a federation he would be opening. Anyone who knows anything about the Blonde Bastard knows this fed all to well.

Full Contact Wrestling. The FC F'n W, the federation where Mark Payne made the biggest statements of his career.