New England Championship Wrestling
New England Championship Wrestling logo | |
Acronym | NECW |
---|---|
Founded | 2000 |
Style | American Wrestling |
Headquarters | Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts, United States |
Founder(s) | Sheldon Goldberg |
Owner(s) | Sheldon Goldberg (2000-current) |
Sister | World Women's Wrestling |
Website | NECWwrestling.com Template:Myspace |
New England Championship Wrestling (NECW) is an independent professional wrestling promotion based in the Northeastern United States. It has been owned and operated by promoter Sheldon Goldberg since 2000 and is one of the top promotions in the New England- area along with rival promotions Chaotic Wrestling, the Millennium Wrestling Federation and Yankee Pro Wrestling.
Its roster has, at one point, included independent wrestlers Antonio "The Promise" Thomas, Slyk Wagner Brown and Rick Fuller as well its women's division World Women's Wrestling which includes some of the most prominent female wrestlers in the country such as Ariel, Sumie Sakai, Alere Little Feather, Riptide, Nikki Roxx, Lexxus, April Hunter, Malia Hosaka and Mercedes Martinez. [1] Ricky Vasquez, former official photographer for the NECW, is involved with Slamtech Wrestling University, a wrestling facility based in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. [2]
World Wrestling Entertainment wrestlers Kofi Kingston, John Cena, Kenny Dykstra and "Hurricane" John Walters also competed in the promotion during their early careers. Former WWE announcer Kevin Kelly was also involved at one time as a booker for the promotion.
History
Former editor of the Mat Marketplace newsletter, Sheldon Goldberg had been involved with promoters Tony Rumble and Paul Heyman in bringing Michinoku Pro to the United States during the late-1990s. [3] By September 2000, Goldberg himself began holding professional wrestling events in the Boston-area, successfully selling out local venues such as Good Time Emporium in Somerville and the Quincy Armory. Over the next several years, the promotion developed a strong following based on its traditional "family-friendly" style of professional wrestling as an alternative to the adult themed sports entertainment adopted by World Wrestling Entertainment.
In 2004, the promotion became the first to produce a weekly wrestling TV show specifically produced for distribution on the Internet through its affiliate NECW.tv website. Its weekly internet broadcasts eventually grew to an average of over 20,000 viewers per week in over 40 countries around the world. Its exposure was further increased through DVD releases of yearly supercards such as the popular Iron 8 Championship Tournament. [4]
In March 2006, New England Championship Wrestling merged with PWF Mayhem. On August 16, 2006, the merged companies unified their championship titles in an interpromotional event in Quincy, Massachusetts. The event saw PWF Mayhem Tag Team Champions The Canadian Superstars (J-Busta & Dave Cole) defeat The Wild Boys (Billy King & Mike Lynch) for the NECW Unified Tag Team Championship, PWF Mayhem Junior Heavyweight Champion "The Talent" T.J. Richter defeated "Big Guns" Frankie Arion for the NECW Unified Television Championship and PWF Mayhem Heavyweight Champion "The Human Nightmare" Evan Siks defeated D.C. Dillinger for the NECW Undisputed Triple Crown Championship.
Also in March 2006, the company launched World Women's Wrestling, an all female off-shoot of the main NECW promotion.
Roster
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Championships
Championship | Current champion(s) | Previous champion(s) | Date won | Location |
---|---|---|---|---|
NECW Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion | Max Bauer | Rick Fuller | April 26, 2008 | Quincy, MA[5] |
NECW Television Champion | Handsome Johnny | Vacant | June 1, 2008 | East Boston, MA[6] |
NECW Tag Team Champions | PRIDE | Chase Del Monte & Fred Curry, Jr. | July 12, 2008 | Quincy, MA[7] |
World Women's Wrestling Championship | Ariel | Lexxus | March 9, 2008 | Somerville, MA[8] [9] |
Iron 8 Championship Tournament | "The Golden Greek" Alex Arion | Eddie Edwards | May 31, 2008 | Quincy, MA |
Iron 8 Championship Tournament
The Iron 8 Championship is a trademark annual event hosted by NECW. Eight wrestlers are selected from inside and outside of NECW to compete in four single elimination matches, in which the winners of the four matches would compete in a forty-five minute ironman match to crown an Iron 8 Champion.
Year | Name | Date | Location |
---|---|---|---|
2004 | "Revolution" Chris Venom | August 22, 2004 | Somerville, MA |
2005 | "The Pinnacle" Paul Lombardi | October 15, 2005 | Framingham, MA |
2006 | "Die Hard" Eddie Edwards | June 23, 2006 | Quincy, MA |
2007 | "Die Hard" Eddie Edwards | June 9, 2007 | Brockton, MA |
2008 | "The Golden Greek" Alex Arion | May 31, 2008 | Quincy, MA |
The Toxic Waltz
The Toxic Waltz is an annual event that originated in PWF Mayhem. The Toxic Waltz is a ten man gauntlet in which the winner would receive a Triple Crown Championship match at the winter showcase; Genesis. The match begins with two men in the ring, and contrary to a traditional gauntlet, the loser of each fall picks the winner's next opponent. The last man standing would be the winner.
Year | Winner | Date | Location |
---|---|---|---|
2005 | "The Human Nightmare" Evan Siks | September 16, 2005 | Quincy, MA |
2006 | "Straight Edge" Brian Fury | September 30, 2006 | Quincy, MA |
2007 | Max Bauer | December 28, 2007 | Quincy, MA |
References
- ^ Kahn, Joseph P. (2006-06-10). "Glam Slam: Taking Their Place In The Ring, These Women Are Winning Devoted Wrestling Fans". Boston Globe.
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(help) - ^ Malcolm, Tim (2008-02-29). "Local wrestlers training as athletes, entertainers: Watch Videos". Norwich Bulletin.
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(help) - ^ Williams, Scott E. Hardcore History: The Extremely Unauthorized Story of the ECW. Champaign, Illinois: Sports Publishing L.L.C., 2006. (pg. 117) ISBN 1-59670-021-1
- ^ Smartschan, Adam (2007-07-07). "LIKE OL' TIMES - Local circuit tries to recapture glory days of wrestling". The Patriot Ledger.
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(help) - ^ "N.E.C.W. Triple Crown Heavyweight Title". Puroresu Dojo. 2003.
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(help) - ^ "N.E.C.W. Television Title". Puroresu Dojo. 2003.
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(help) - ^ "N.E.C.W. Tag Team Title". Puroresu Dojo. 2003.
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(help) - ^ "N.E.C.W. Women's Title". Puroresu Dojo. 2003.
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(help) - ^ "World Women's Wrestling Title". Puroresu Dojo. 2007.
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