One of the most replayed clips from Seth Rollins’ years as Tyler Black on the independent wrestling circuit has long looked like a moment of complete chaos. In the footage, Rollins and Matt Sydal spill out toward the crowd during an IWA Mid-South match. Fans move away from their chairs as the fight comes close, only for Rollins to use the chest of a fan positioned against a ring post as a platform before launching into a moonsault onto Sydal.
The visual has circulated for years and has understandably prompted questions about whether the fan was prepared for what was about to happen. Rollins has now made clear that the spectacular spot was not an impulsive interaction with a random audience member. It was planned in advance, and the man involved was someone he knew well: Timothy Regal, who now works as a live commentator for SCW Pro.
Discussing the clip on The Kittle Things, Rollins recalled the setting with some uncertainty over the precise location. He identified the promotion as IWA Mid-South and placed the event in the Midlothian, Illinois, and Hammond, Indiana, area.
“It was in Midlothian, Illinois, working for IWA Mid-South — it might have been Hammond, Indiana — I can’t remember. Somewhere in there.”
For more background on this topic, read Bully Ray Questions Crown Jewel as the Final Stage for Cody Rhodes vs. Randy Orton.
While the exact building may have faded from memory, the identity of the fan certainly has not. Rollins explained that Regal was not merely somebody seated in the front rows who happened to become part of the action. The two had known each other for years, and their shared connection to SCW Pro remains especially notable. The promotion is co-run by Marek Brave, who also operates the Black and Brave Wrestling Academy with Rollins.
Rollins described Regal as a larger man with a particular build that helped inspire the idea. In Rollins’ recollection, Regal’s stomach had a flat, stable surface, leading the future WWE World Heavyweight Champion to wonder whether he could use it as a secure step for a moonsault. The key, however, was making certain Regal would not move when Rollins made contact.
“This guy’s not an ordinary big guy. If you look at the shape of his body, his belly kind of has a plateau. It’s like a mesa… He’s a friend of mine. I’ve known him for years. Speaking of SCW, small world, he does live commentary at the SCW shows. His name is Timothy Regal.”
A Spot Built Around Positioning
What makes the old clip appear so wild is precisely the element Rollins says was most important to control: Regal’s placement. In a wrestling environment, ringside brawls often send spectators moving away from the immediate area. Rollins used that familiar crowd reaction as part of the setup. Rather than asking Regal to remain among moving chairs and fans, he instructed him to shift to the ring post once the brawl came his way.
The purpose was straightforward. Regal needed to stand flat and flush against the post, creating a stationary base for Rollins to step onto. Rollins knew the maneuver would be unsafe if Regal was able to rock backward or lose his footing, and his explanation underlines that the spot depended on more than simply jumping toward a fan and hoping for the best.
“For some reason I was like, I think I can do a moonsault off of your belly. But I need you to be stationary. I designed this idea where we’d go to the outside and if you fight near the fans, they usually scurry from their chairs. So I was like, ‘Let’s fight near you, but when you get up, just move yourself around to this ring post. Position yourself flat, flush against the ring post, so that when I jump off of you, you don’t move.’”
Rollins added that balance was a major concern. He did not want Regal to topple over under the impact of the step before the moonsault. The ring post was therefore not incidental to the visual. It served as a brace, allowing Regal to stay rooted in place as Rollins climbed up and rotated backward toward Sydal.
That explanation adds a different layer to a moment that has frequently been viewed in isolation online. The crowd brawl, the suddenly involved spectator, and the dramatic flip all combine to create the impression of an unscripted gamble. Rollins’ account instead presents it as a compact piece of pre-match planning, built around a trusted acquaintance, a known location at ringside, and a specific physical requirement.
Only Part of the Move Was Practiced
Rollins did not rehearse every aspect of the sequence. He said he and Regal worked on the basic platform during the day, with Rollins essentially testing whether he could jump onto Regal’s stomach and establish that the height and stability were workable. The moonsault itself was not rehearsed.
At the time, Rollins was 19 years old, an age he now associates with feeling fearless and unconcerned with the potential consequences. His description is a candid reflection on the mentality of a young wrestler willing to take a significant risk for a memorable moment. While he tested the launch point, he decided the actual flip would have to wait for the match.
“I practiced it a little bit during the day, in the sense that I was like, ‘Okay, stand here,’ and I kind of box jumped onto his belly, and I’m like, ‘Alright, I can do this.’ I never practiced the flip. I was 19. I didn’t care. I was like, ‘If I land on my head, who cares?’ I was impervious to pain so yeah, we practiced it a couple times in the day and then, at the hour, we put him there and here we are, 20-some years later still talking about it.”
That final observation gets to the lasting appeal of the footage. The clip was created in the mid-2000s, before short-form video and social-media circulation became central to wrestling fandom. It did not become an immediate viral sensation in the modern sense. Instead, it initially moved through the trading culture that defined much of independent wrestling at the time, with DVDs serving as a key way for fans to discover matches and unusual moments from promotions outside the national spotlight.
Timothy Regal’s Excitement Over the DVD Moment
Rollins said Regal did not have much to say at the exact moment of the stunt, but he was thrilled afterward at the prospect of appearing on the event’s DVD. For Regal, being involved in such a distinctive spot was an opportunity to become a memorable part of the show long before the clip found a much wider audience online.
Rollins explained that the excitement came during a period when DVD distribution was helping independent wrestling reach fans far beyond a single venue. The clip’s later resurgence allowed an entirely new audience to revisit it, but Regal had already understood that the sequence could make him recognizable among the fans who got hold of the recording.
“He didn’t say anything in the moment but later on, as happy as he’s going to be, because we mentioned him on this podcast, he was so ecstatic that day because DVD was going viral at that point. This was pre-internet so, the clip only came back later when people started to look because it was 2005, so people were still just trading DVDs. He was like, ‘Oh, when the DVD goes out, I’m gonna be famous.’ He was so excited to be a part of it.”
For Rollins, the clip is another reminder of the experimentation and ambition that marked his independent career as Tyler Black. The move was undeniably risky, but it was also calculated around the people and surroundings available to him. Regal’s continued presence in SCW Pro further turns the clip into a small-world wrestling story: a fan-turned-platform in an enduring highlight now works commentary for a promotion connected to Rollins through Marek Brave and the Black and Brave Wrestling Academy.
Rollins was last seen on WWE programming in August 2026, when he was defeated by Roman Reigns in a World Heavyweight Title match on night two of SummerSlam. He returned to in-ring action in September during WWE’s South America house show tour. Even with his WWE career now spanning championships, major stadium events, and some of the industry’s biggest rivalries, the old IWA Mid-South footage continues to hold a place in wrestling conversation—and Rollins’ explanation confirms that its most unbelievable detail was a deliberate plan years in the making.
Darryl Polo
Darryl Polo is a passionate wrestling fan covering WWE, AEW, TNA and beyond. He loves great rivalries, breakout stars and the moments that keep fans talking long after the bell. How we work.