Author: DJ Jarka

Empire State Wrestling continues its annual tradition of hosting a benefit for the East Shelby Volunteer Fire Department this Saturday when it holds Spring Smash 3 at Medina High School. This will be the third consecutive year a ESVFD wrestling fundraiser will be held at the local high school. Prior charity events were held at the Orleans County 4-H Fairgrounds located in Albion, N.Y. The first of these was held in 2018. “This is the 5th year (excluding the COVID years) that we’ve had the privilege of hosting this fundraiser with ESW,” said ESVFD event organizer Ryan McPherson. “They’ve done…

Empire State Wrestling will hold its first New York State event of the year this Saturday. “Tough Luck ‘25” will occur at the Frontier Fire Hall in Niagara Falls. Tough Luck 25 “I’m excited to bring ESW action back to our regular stomping grounds,” said ESW promoter Brett Stymus. “I think all our fans are in for a real treat with the action-packed night we have in store for them.” Tough Luck ‘25 will see  newly crowned ESW champions in action. Among those will be ESW Interstate Champion “The Holy Hand Grenade” James Sayga. After chasing the title over the…

Empire State Keystone presents Crisis. Empire State Wrestling will hold its first event of 2025 this Saturday. The event will be under its Keystone brand in Erie, Penn. at the Saga Club. The event, called “Crisis”, will feature a mix of Erie-based wrestlers and wrestlers from ESW’s main roster. However, this event will also be a last. Upon news that the Saga Club was acquired by new ownership, this will be the final ESW Keystone event held there. The closing occurs nearly one calendar year since ESW expanded into Pennsylvania by buying the previous home promotion at the venue, Pro…

Hello, everybody! It’s been a long time since I sat down and punched out a blog. This past year was busier than I expected not just in the wrestling world but outside it, too. With a lull in family and wrestling activities after the holiday season, I caught up with things and reached a point where I could write about my referee journey again. The last event I blogged about was Buffalo Championship Wrestling’s February 2024 event WrestleSunday II. A full year of events occurred that I did not write about. There is no way I can do separate blogs…

This is the fourth part of the series on the history of ESW with Empire State Wrestling Part IV. As we continue to look at the history of Empire State Wrestling, the year is 2014. As 2014 began, so did a new era for Empire State Wrestling (ESW). Following up upon the first-ever Ilio DiPaolo Cup match at the previous year’s WrestleBash event, ESW events began to transition more toward a style of wrestling that was utilized by many of the major stars on the independent scene and less emphasizing of the heavy character/story-based product that ESW traditionally exhibited. Empire…

This is the third installment of a four-part series on The History of Empire State Wrestling. Here is Empire State Wrestling Part III. Mid-way through 2009 proved to be another watershed mark in Empire State Wrestling’s history. This is where we begin Empire State Wrestling Part III. After terminating their relationship with Next Era Wrestling, Mednik and Puma were able to reincarnate the name that they and the rest of the ESW core kept alive in spirit over these last several years: Empire State Wrestling officially returned. Empire State Wrestling Part III – The Brand is Back Although the Empire…

This is the second of a three-part series on “A Brief History of Empire State Wrestling”. Part one of a brief history of Empire State Wrestling could be read here. Here is Empire State Wrestling Part II. Through the first several years since its inception, Empire State Wrestling (ESW) exhibited substantial growth among its fan base. However, whatever progress the relatively young promotion incurred did not prove to be enough for its owner, Ray Erway, to remain involved with ESW. This is Empire State Wrestling Part II. During the beginning months of 2006, Erway disassociated himself with ESW. Although the…

This is the first of a four-part series on “A Brief History of Empire State Wrestling Part 1. Since 2002, Empire State Wrestling (ESW) began carving out a niche of its own in the Western New York independent wrestling scene. Over the last several years, it blossomed into the premier wrestling promotion in the region and also started garnering international attention. However, ESW’s ascension is one that did not occur overnight and with its story being born about 17 years ago. The promotion also went through several phases that helped shape ESW into its current being. These phases can be…

Empire State Wrestling makes a star-studded return to Niagara Falls on Saturday in an event that will feature two major returns to its ring. All-Elite Wrestling’s Danhausen and TNA Wrestling star “Speedball” Mike Bailey come back to ESW for Evil Empire at the Frontier Fire Hall for the promotion’s first event of the fall. Danhausen will team with ESW Women’s Champion “Courageous” Christina Marie as a tag team called “Courageoushausen”. The duo will face The Production (Katie Arquette and Derek Dillinger). The match came about after Marie was jumped from behind by The Production in Erie, Penn. Watch the clip…

A new chapter will open within the Erie independent wrestling scene on Saturday when the first-ever Empire State Wrestling Keystone event occurs at the Saga Club, as ESW Keystone Presents New Again. The first announcement of New Again came at Changing The Game in June, the final Pro Wrestling Rampage event. After making a surprise appearance and defeating Price Purgold, ESW stalwart Vince Valor revealed to the crowd the official rebranding that would occur. ESW Keystone Presents New Again “A name change was something I considered for some time after I bought PWR,” said ESW promoter Brett Stymus. “Eventually, I…