Madhouse Wrestling Debuts March 26th: Embrace the Chaos
“We all go a little mad sometimes” – Norman Bates (Psycho, 1969)
In just a few short weeks, the Iowa independent pro wrestling scene is about to get a little nuts. You see, on Saturday, March 26th, Madhouse Wrestling makes their debut. Emanating from the Countryside Wedding and Events Center in Knoxville, Iowa, this show has the potential to be one of the wildest of 2022.
From the maniacal mind of Malice, Madhouse Wrestling is the opportunity for wrestlers to embrace their inner extreme and really let loose. Most fans know Malice as the “Monster of the Midwest,” a wrestler never afraid of going to the extreme.
However, few know that Malice has aspirations to run his own promotion. Like most wrestling fans, Malice has long used his imagination when it came to how he would book his very own wrestling show.
Madhouse Wrestling brings that dream to fruition.
“This is an idea that’s been in the works for a while. I started commissioning the artwork a couple of years ago,” Malice said. “My nerdom with pro wrestling goes back to wrestling simulators where you run your own company. I logged a lot of hours playing with those when I was younger, and this is something I’ve wanted to do for a while now.”
Having little experience of actually running a wrestling promotion, Malice turned to a mentor of his own in Impact Pro Wrestling promoter Troy Peterson. Receiving guidance, especially when it comes to the business side of independent pro wrestling, was something Malice was eager to receive.
Peterson even helped him narrow down the venue to host his first-ever pro wrestling show. Joining Malice in this descent into madness is his long-time friend Luke Raven. A man who has held an assortment of positions within the world of independent pro wrestling ranging from reporter and commentator to being part of a creative team.
Growing up together in the small town of Corydon, Iowa, Raven and Malice shared a love of pro wrestling, and that has been part of their long-standing friendship. Running different backyard wrestling promotions in their younger days helped set them up for what would become Madhouse Wrestling.
“Malice and I share a similar vision with Madhouse being a place for creativity. It’s somewhere that talent can try new things. It’s a big reason for the lack of defined rules within Madhouse,” Raven said.
What’s In a Name
After deciding to pursue the dream of running a promotion, it came time to give said promotion a name. Needing a name that would immediately catch the eye of fans and garner intrigue, Malice turned to his love of horror movies for an eye-catching title.
“I’m a huge B-Horror movie freak, and Madhouse was inspired from Joe Bob Briggs’ MonsterVision and Last Drive-In shows,” Malice said. “Originally, this was going to be a one-off event called Malice’s Midnight Madhouse, and I would present a wrestling card full of balls to the wall chaos.”
With two notebook pages full of possible names to choose from, Malice and Raven continuously circled back to Madhouse Wrestling as the best choice. It was a name suitable for a spiritual successor to the original ECW and one that embodies the experience they want to bring to the fans.
“Every show should have something for everyone: technical, high flying, comedy, hardcore, drama, etc.,” Raven said. “Our goal is to create an environment where fans and talent alike walk away saying, “Goddamn. That was fun!” I know that with the talent we’ve accumulated and the matches we’ve announced, we will meet and exceed that goal.”
With a name decided on, the time came for the duo to begin putting together a match card, and the first and most crucial decision was a main event worthy of an inaugural show.
Madhouse Wrestling Debuts March 26th – Embrace the Chaos
A Champion Will Be Crowned
A promotions very first show needs a main event that can set the course of what the promotion could become. The first WrestleMania changed the course of WWE history. It provided a blueprint for the showcase of the immortals with a main event featuring the sports biggest star in Hulk Hogan and the mainstream appeal of Mr. T.
ECW’s Barely Legal 1997 featured a double main event. Sabu and Taz finally came to blows after months of intense build-up, along with the legendary Terry Funk closing the show as ECW Champion. It was a glimpse into what was to come for ECW.
More recently, Chris Jericho was crowned AEW’s first every champion at their first pay-per-view Double or Nothing (2019) before Jon Moxley made his paradigm-shifting debut. Like these shows before them, Madhouse Wrestling has a game-changing main event on tap for their fans.
A four-person tournament will be held to crown the inaugural Madhouse Wrestling Heavyweight Champion. Awaiting the winner is a beautifully crafted championship belt. Competing in the Madhouse Wrestling Championship tournament are the cream of the crop in the midwest.
The opening round contests are 1 Called Manders taking on “The Monarch” Jeremy Wyatt and James Jeffries versus AJ Smooth.
“There were only a handful of guys we were considering for the tournament, and these four guys are all legitimate contenders,” Malice said. “The best thing about the level of talent in our tournament is our first-round matches could very well be the finals.”
In Manders versus Wyatt, you have a true contrast in styles.
Manders, the hard-hitting, chew spitting, tough as country dirt cowboy going against a guy in Jeremy Wyatt, who many feel is the best technical wrestler on the independent wrestling scene.
Madhouse Wrestling Debuts March 26th: Embrace the Chaos
“We all go a little mad sometimes” – Norman Bates (Psycho, 1969)
In just a few short weeks, the Iowa independent pro wrestling scene is about to get a little nuts. You see, on Saturday, March 26th, Madhouse Wrestling makes their debut. Emanating from the Countryside Wedding and Events Center in Knoxville, Iowa, this show has the potential to be one of the wildest of 2022.
From the maniacal mind of Malice, Madhouse Wrestling is the opportunity for wrestlers to embrace their inner extreme and really let loose. Most fans know Malice as the “Monster of the Midwest,” a wrestler never afraid of going to the extreme.
However, few know that Malice has aspirations to run his own promotion. Like most wrestling fans, Malice has long used his imagination when it came to how he would book his very own wrestling show.
Madhouse Wrestling brings that dream to fruition.
“This is an idea that’s been in the works for a while. I started commissioning the artwork a couple of years ago,” Malice said. “My nerdom with pro wrestling goes back to wrestling simulators where you run your own company. I logged a lot of hours playing with those when I was younger, and this is something I’ve wanted to do for a while now.”
Having little experience of actually running a wrestling promotion, Malice turned to a mentor of his own in Impact Pro Wrestling promoter Troy Peterson. Receiving guidance, especially when it comes to the business side of independent pro wrestling, was something Malice was eager to receive.
Peterson even helped him narrow down the venue to host his first-ever pro wrestling show. Joining Malice in this descent into madness is his long-time friend Luke Raven. A man who has held an assortment of positions within the world of independent pro wrestling ranging from reporter and commentator to being part of a creative team.
Growing up together in the small town of Corydon, Iowa, Raven and Malice shared a love of pro wrestling, and that has been part of their long-standing friendship. Running different backyard wrestling promotions in their younger days helped set them up for what would become Madhouse Wrestling.
“Malice and I share a similar vision with Madhouse being a place for creativity. It’s somewhere that talent can try new things. It’s a big reason for the lack of defined rules within Madhouse,” Raven said.
What’s In a Name
After deciding to pursue the dream of running a promotion, it came time to give said promotion a name. Needing a name that would immediately catch the eye of fans and garner intrigue, Malice turned to his love of horror movies for an eye-catching title.
“I’m a huge B-Horror movie freak, and Madhouse was inspired from Joe Bob Briggs’ MonsterVision and Last Drive-In shows,” Malice said. “Originally, this was going to be a one-off event called Malice’s Midnight Madhouse, and I would present a wrestling card full of balls to the wall chaos.”
With two notebook pages full of possible names to choose from, Malice and Raven continuously circled back to Madhouse Wrestling as the best choice. It was a name suitable for a spiritual successor to the original ECW and one that embodies the experience they want to bring to the fans.
“Every show should have something for everyone: technical, high flying, comedy, hardcore, drama, etc.,” Raven said. “Our goal is to create an environment where fans and talent alike walk away saying, “Goddamn. That was fun!” I know that with the talent we’ve accumulated and the matches we’ve announced, we will meet and exceed that goal.”
With a name decided on, the time came for the duo to begin putting together a match card, and the first and most crucial decision was a main event worthy of an inaugural show.
Madhouse Wrestling
On the other side, you have James Jeffries versus AJ Smooth, two of the most underrated wrestlers in the midwest.
This match has taken place numerous times within Impact Pro Wrestling, but no matter where on the card, it always delivers the goods. When considering the winners of these matches will square off to become the first-ever Madhouse Wrestling Champion, you can see why the excitement for this event grows by the day.
An event that could be the launching pad for a promotion that will play by its own rules and carve a legacy of action-packed chaos. Full card preview coming Friday, March 25th.
