Mid-Eastern Wrestling Federation

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Mid-Eastern Wrestling Federation
Details
Acronym MEWF
Established August 2, 1991
Style American Wrestling
Location Essex, Maryland (1991-current)
Founder(s) Dennis Wippercht
Tim Burke
Owner(s) Dennis Wippercht (1991-2002)
Tim Burke (1991-2002)
Donna M. Burke (2002-2004)
Website MEWF.com

The Mid-Eastern Wrestling Federation was a Mid-Atlantic independent professional wrestling promotion based in Essex, Maryland. Founded by promoter Dennis Wippercht and wrestler Tim Burke (competing under his ringname Lucifer) in 1991, the MEWF was one of the leading independent promotions on the East Coast during the 1990s rivaling promotions such as East Coast Wrestling Association, Jersey All-Pro Wrestling and Maryland Championship Wrestling.

Among its roster included Extreme Championship Wrestling regulars such as Raven, [1] Stevie Richards, The Blue Meanie, [2] Damien Kane, Pit Bull #2, referee "Judge" Jeff Jones [3] and Bad Breed (Ian & Axl Rotten) as well as some of the leading independent wrestlers such as Johnny Gunn, Max Thrasher, Devon Storm, Morgus the Maniac, Boo Bradley, Jimmy Cicero, Bob Starr, Ruckus, Dino Casanova, Corporal Punishment, Bad Crew and Darkside (Glen Osborne & Rockin' Rebel).

Former World Wrestling Federation wrestlers such as Barry Horowitz, Road Warrior Hawk, Jim Neidhart, The Honky Tonk Man and The Headbangers as well as World Championship Wrestling veterans "Jumping" Joey Maggs [4] and Disco Inferno also had short stints in the promotion.

Contents

[edit] History

[edit] Early history

Dennis Wippercht, after promoting several wrestling events during 1990, joined Tim Burke in establishing the Mid-Eastern Wrestling Federation holding its first card in Pasadena, Maryland on August 2, 1991; during the event, the Lords of Darkness (Pain & Agony) would defeat Cream Team (Dino Casanova & Rip Sawyer) to become the first MEWF Tag Team champions.

During its early years, the promotion featured such wrestlers as Jim Neidhart, Road Warrior Hawk, The Honky Tonk Man and Jake "The Snake" Roberts, however, their cruiserweight division gained a considerable following with The Lightning Kid and Jimmy Jannetty feuding over the Light Heavyweight Championship during early 1993.

On July 8, 1995, the promotion held an event at the National Guard Armory in Annapolis, Maryland which featured Corporal Punishment, Axl Rotten, Mad Dog O'Malley and the debut of Pat Patterson, Jr. (the storyline "son" of Pat Patterson); the card was the first professional wrestling event ever held in Annapolis. [5] Expanding outside the Baltimore-area, the promotion regularly appeared at the Secret Cove, a popular restaurant and bar in southern Fairfax County, Virginia. [6]

During the next several years, some of the top lightheavyweight wrestlers appeared in televised matches for the promotion including Mark "the Shark" Shrader, Earl the Pearl, Steve Corino, [7] Danny Doring, [8] Quinn Nash, Adam Flash and Joey Mercury [9], who with Christian York feuded with The Hardy Boyz, [10] as well as participated in the ECWA's Super 8 Tournament during the late 1990s.

[edit] Rivalry with Maryland Championship Wrestling

In 1998, following a dispute with MEWF management and wrestlers over creative control and payment disagreements, [11] Corporal Punishment and Mark Shrader left the promotion taking half of its roster with them to form Maryland Championship Wrestling. After a nearly 5 year rivalry, the two promotions began working together in October 2002 and eventually co-hosted Maryland Championship Wrestling's final event at Michael's Eighth Avenue in Glen Burnie, Maryland on July 16, 2003. [12]

During this interpromotional card, the MCW Championship titles were merged with Mid-Eastern Championship Wrestling most notably the Christian York winning the Shane Shamrock Memorial Cup as well as the MCW/MEWF Cruiserweight Championship defeating Joey Matthews, Reckless Youth, Qenaan Creed, Jay Briscoe and Crash Holly in a six-way elimination match. The event also featured Headbanger Thrasher, Gillberg and Van Hammer. [13]

[edit] Later years

In early 2002, Donna Burke took over day to day running from her husband Tim and began promoting shows twice a month at Essex's North Point Flea Market [14] [15] and held a memorial show for Dino Casanova on June 20, 2002.

The following year, Burke promoted a show with Ring of Honor in Glen Burnie, Maryland on January 29 [16] and World Wrestling Entertainment in Fair Hill, Maryland on July 31. [17] However, the promotion was unable to keep the fanbase of Maryland Championship Wrestling and, within several months, the promotion became inactive after its last card at Hunter's Sail Barn in Rising Sun, Maryland on October 30, 2004; this was the first wrestling event ever held in the building. [18]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Raven Match Results Archive: July 1995. TheRavenEffect.com (2007-08-17).
  2. ^ Schwann, Brett (2001). Ten Questions With ... the Blue Meanie. WrestlingClothesline.com.
  3. ^ Epstein, Jack (March 1999). The Jack Epstein Interview: Jeff Jones. JackEpstein.com.
  4. ^ Oliver, Greg (2006-10-16). SLAM! Wrestling: Joey Maggs dead at age 37. SLAM! Sports.
  5. ^ Gallagher, Mary Grace. "Wrestle Mania". The Capital. 02 Jul 1995
  6. ^ Robberson, Tod. "Wrestling, With Reservations; Fairfax County Supervisor Says Restaurant's Wrestling Ring Is Not What Route 1 Needs". The Washington Post. 12 Jan 1997
  7. ^ Corino, Steve (2007-08-17). Steve Corino: Bench Press champion. Steve Corino's LiveJournal.
  8. ^ Wojcik, Alan (2007-11-01). Wojcik Interview with Danny Doring. WrestlingClothesline.com.
  9. ^ Milner, John M. (2005-12-18). SLAM! Sports: Joey Mercury. SLAM! Sports.
  10. ^ Hardy, Matt and Jeff. The Hardy Boyz: Exist 2 Inspire. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 2003. (pg. 253) ISBN 0-06-052154-6
  11. ^ Shady, Chunk (2004-03-29). The Inside Credle Report: Entertainment, Honey's and Wrestling from the Bad Boys of Baltimore!. BelowTheBeltShow.com.
  12. ^ Snyder, Ron. "Wrestling fans bid adieu to MCW". Maryland Gazette. 19 Jul 2003
  13. ^ Pro Wrestling Illustrated (2007). Pro Wrestling Illustrated: Wrestling History. PWI-Online.com.
  14. ^ Maryland State Athletic Commission, Minutes - Thursday, August 28, 2003. Maryland State Athletic Commission (2003-08-28).
  15. ^ Maryland State Athletic Commission, Minutes - Thursday, December 18, 2003. Maryland State Athletic Commission (2003-12-18).
  16. ^ Maryland State Athletic Commission, Minutes - Thursday, February 26, 2004. Maryland State Athletic Commission (2004-02-26).
  17. ^ Maryland State Athletic Commission, Minutes - Thursday, July 29, 2004. Maryland State Athletic Commission (2004-02-26).
  18. ^ Maryland State Athletic Commission, Minutes - Thursday, September 30, 2004. Maryland State Athletic Commission (2004-02-26).

[edit] External links