| Acronym | JCW |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1999 |
| Style | Hardcore wrestling |
| Headquarters | Novi, Michigan |
| Founder(s) | Joseph Bruce Joseph Utsler |
| Owner(s) | Joseph Bruce Joseph Utsler |
| Formerly | Juggalo Championshit Wrestling Juggalo Championshxt Wrestling |
| Website | JuggaloWrestling.com |
Juggalo Championship Wrestling (JCW) is an American independent professional wrestling promotion founded in 1999 by Joseph Bruce and Joseph Utsler, better known as the hip-hop duo Insane Clown Posse. JCW currently runs shows throughout the country. The video games Backyard Wrestling: Don't Try This at Home and Backyard Wrestling 2: There Goes the Neighborhood feature numerous independent wrestlers from the promotion.
The style of JCW is largely based upon hardcore wrestling. Bruce and Utsler refer to Extreme Championship Wrestling as the major influence on the company's style as well as their unique camera angles, which they compare to that of the movie Natural Born Killers; "fading in and out, and turning all over."[1]
JCW records the majority of its shows and releases them in episodes of SlamTV! and on DVDs, which are sold on its online store. In 2010, the promotion announced plans to run tapings of SlamTV! every other week as well as one additional show a month in Novi, Michigan at their newly purchased arena called "The Juggalo Arena."[2] The same year, the promotion also launched the JCW Wrestling School with Kevin Canady as head trainer.
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In 1997, Insane Clown Posse released a VHS entitled ICP's Strangle-Mania, which featured a compilation of death matches from the Outrageously Violent Wrestling from Japan video collection, overdubbed with their own humorous commentary.[3] Following the release, the duo, along with local booker Dan Curtis, hosted the event "ICP's Strangle-Mania Live" at the sold out St. Andrew's Hall.[3] One year later, after Insane Clown Posse's three month stint in WWF, Curtis and the group coordinated another "Strangle-Mania Live" show, which would be followed by an eighty-city "Hellfire Wrestling" tour.[4] Curtis booked the talent and wrote the scripts. "Strangle-Mania Live" sold out the Majestic Theater in Detroit.[4] Two days after the show, Curtis was found dead in his apartment, due to a sudden diabetic problem. The "Hellfire Wrestling" tour was subsequently canceled.[4]
On December 19, 1999, Insane Clown Posse held the first "Juggalo Championshit Wrestling" event. It was booked by 17-year-old wrestling referee Brian Gorie and wrestling manager/commentator Dave Prazak. The event took place in Detroit at the sold out St. Andrews Hall, and was filmed for release. Russ Redmon, who also wrestled in the promotion as Mr. Meaner/Big Flame, and Brian Gorie produced the film in Hollywood. In January 2000, Prazak left the company over money issues, leaving Gorie to solely book the company. On May 9, 2000, JCW Vol. 1 was released onto VHS. The video lasted 38 weeks on the Billboard Sports and Recreation Top Sellers list[5] and charted as high as #2.[6]
In April and May 2000, Gorie booked a highly successful 15-city "Strangle-Mania Live Tour" which spanned from Detroit to Denver. JCW Vol. 2 was filmed during tour stops in both Cleveland and Milwaukee, and was released on VHS on July 23, 2001. The video charted as high as #8 on the Billboard Sports and Recreation Top Sellers list.[7] In July 2000, at Insane Clown Posse's 1st annual Gathering of the Juggalos in Novi, Michigan, JCW held multiple matches. Shortly after the Gathering, Gorie left the company. From that point on, Insane Clown Posse began booking the events themselves.
One of the major mainstream highlights for the company came in an angle on the nationally televised WCW Monday Nitro. On August 21, 2000, WCW wrestler Vampiro, who at the time was the JCW Heavyweight Champion, brought the title out with him on Nitro. He proceeded to proclaim that the JCW Heavyweight Championship was the only world title that meant anything to him. Tank Abbott was then given a shot at the title, in a match which Shaggy 2 Dope and Violent J called under their "Gweedo" and "3D" personas, but lost after interference by the duo.[8][9]
Insane Clown Posse set plans to record matches for their third wrestling video, JCW Vol. 3, in 2003 at the fourth annual Gathering of the Juggalos. Due to the amount of injuries sustained by the wrestlers, and the rowdiness of the fans, the footage was scrapped. Another event was scheduled and filmed for the video. On November 11, JCW Vol. 3 was released on DVD. Two weeks later, JCW Vol. 1 and JCW Vol. 2 were both individually re-released on the DVD format.
On November 18, 2006, Violent J appeared in Pro Wrestling Unplugged to team up with Corporal Robinson, the then JCW Heavyweight Champion and PWU Hardcore Champion, to go against Mad Man Pondo and Chuck Wagon. During the match, Violent J turned on Robinson, prompting a series of matches between JCW and PWU.[10] One month later, on December 16, Pro Wrestling Unplugged hosted the event entitled "PWU vs JCW". The O’Doyles defeated The Bosom Buddies, and after the match, Insane Clown Posse attacked The O’Doyles.[10] In the main event, Team PWU (The Backseat Boyz and Corporal Robinson) defeated Team JCW (2 Tuff Tony, Violent J, and Dyson Pryce). After the match, Raven appeared, wearing a JCW jersey. PWU owner Tod Gordon then announced a War Games match for the next show.[10]
On January 20, PWU hosted "Cuffed & Caged: Last Man Standing", which again pitted themselves against JCW. In the main event War Games match, Team PWU (Trent Acid, Corporal Robinson, Johnny Kashmere, "The Complete” Pete Hunter , and “The Pitbull” Gary Wolfe) took on Team JCW (Nosawa, 2 Tuff Tony, Violent J, Mad Man Pondo, and Raven).[10] By the end of the match, it was down to 2 Tuff Tony and Violent J against Corporal Robinson. When Raven came down to the ring, he betrayed his teammates and hit them both with his Even Flow DDT.[10] Raven then hit Corporal Robinson with the same move, before declaring that he was the biggest star in the building and that he was on neither team.[10] All members of Team PWU and Team JCW then joined forces and proceeded to attack Raven.[10]
The following month, on February 17, PWU hosted an event entitled "Raven’s Revenge?".[10] The event again featured matches with PWU wrestlers against JCW wrestlers, but the (kayfabe) animosity between the promotions had died, leaving only friendly competition. The friendship between JCW and PWU continued, as Tod Gordon allowed multiple PWU wrestlers to compete for JCW in their next planned tour.
In March 2007, Insane Clown Posse planned a twenty-two city tour entitled "The Tempest Release Party". The concert also featured JCW wrestling, which was filmed for JCW's first ever internet wrestling program. SlamTV!, as it would be called, began airing on April 7, 2007. The program leads up to the wrestling event Bloodymania, which is held at the Gathering of the Juggalos.
At the 2008 Gathering of the Juggalos, Insane Clown Posse stated that Juggalo Championship Wrestling will hold a "JCW Legends Show" in 2009. Thus far, the only confirmed wrestler for the event is Evil Dead.[11] On May 23, 2009, JCW held its first women's wrestling match at Hatchet Attacks 2009 in Mesa, Arizona.[12] On August 9, 2009, at Bloodymania III, both The Rude Boy and Evil Dead are scheduled to make their return to JCW.[13]
In January 2010, it was announced that JCW would go full time with shows held at the Juggalo Arena in Novi, Michigan. The shows will be taped for Slam TV broadcasts and DVD release.
| SlamTV! | |
|---|---|
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| Also known as | Slam TV |
| Format | Internet Wrestling Show |
| Created by | Insane Clown Posse |
| Starring | stars of JCW |
| Opening theme | "Tear It Down" by Motown Rage |
| Composer(s) | Insane Clown Posse Motown Rage |
| Country of origin | |
| Language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 2 (still running) |
| No. of episodes | 21 (still running) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Insane Clown Posse |
| Editor(s) | Akuma Robert Gammons Mike Fortunato |
| Camera setup | Multi-camera setup |
| Running time | approx. 40 minutes to 60 minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original run | April 07, 2007 – present |
| External links | |
| Official website | |
| Production website | |
SlamTV! is an internet wrestling show, broadcast by the Insane Clown Posse's wrestling promotion Juggalo Championship Wrestling. It features color commentary by "Handsome Harley 'Gweedo' Guestella" (Shaggy 2 Dope) and "Diamond Donovan '3D' Douglas" (Violent J),[14] with "Luscious" Johnny Stark (Twiztid's Jamie Madrox) filling in whenever needed. Its initial run was 20 episodes, taped on a nationwide tour entitled "The Tempest Release Party".[15] Until its creation, aside from three initial DVDs, the only way to view JCW was in person or home videos.
Vampiro was originally scheduled to be part of the tour, but was pulled out at the last minute due to SlamTV! being scheduled for a national release on DVD, which would have violated his WSX contract.[16] Season 1 was filmed from February 25-March 20, 2007. A pair of "Free Pay-Per-Views" were held; the first, named West Side Wars,[17] was held in Long Beach, California, and was broadcast on June 20, 2007, and the second, called East Side Wars, was held in Philadelphia and broadcast on July 28. It also hosted a it's premier wrestling event at ICP's annual “Gathering of the Juggalos” convention entitled Bloodymania.[18]
Tracy Smothers debuted in JCW by cutting a series of promos in which he insulted the company, the owners (Insane Clown Posse), and the fans. Tracy ran ramped on JCW, having matches which mostly ended with Tracy choking opponents out. In the sixth episode, during 2 Tuff Tony's match, Tracy attacked Tony and caused him to be (kayfabe) carried out on a stretcher. With Tony out of action, Tracy continued to terrorize the JCW roster. Just days before Tony's return on episode 8, Tracy Smothers was (kayfabe) arrested and dropped from the rest of the tour, leaving Tony with no way to seek revenge.[19]
In the early episodes of SlamTV!, Zach Gowen expressed his (kayfabe) dislike of JCW. As he continued to wrestle, Gowen began to appreciate the fans as they appreciated him.[19] By the twelfth episode, two fan favorites Zach Gowen and Human Tornado teamed up to form the "Pimp and Gimp Connection". The two new faces of JCW made a successful team, which earned them a spot in the 8 Team Tag-Team Elimination match for the JCW Tag Team Championship at Bloodymania.[20]
Long-time JCW wrestlers Mad Man Pondo and Necro Butcher teamed up, and after several matches, the tag team proved a success. Animosity grew between the two, though, as miscommunication cost both members multiple matches. In a match which pitted Necro Butcher against Nosawa, Mad Man Pondo interfered to perform his finisher, but pushed Nosawa aside and intentionally hit Necro with the Stop Sign Smash. The following two weeks saw the duo break out into (kayfabe) fist fights, which lead to a series of matches between the two.[19] The team reunited however at East Side Wars, and in the following weeks the duo earned themselves a spot in the 8 Team Tag-Team Elimination Match for the JCW Tag Team Championship at Bloodymania.[20]
Nicknamed "The Japanese Juggalo Sensation", Nosawa has always been a fan favorite. He started out his SlamTV! career with a five episode losing streak. Nosawa received a letter from his mentor The Great Muta in the sixth episode, which stated that Muta was coming to JCW to check up on his pupil. Wanting to impress his mentor, Nosawa stepped up his game, and began a winning streak.[19] At East Side Wars, Muta arrived in JCW to team with his student and defeated the newly reunited Mad Man Pondo and Necro Butcher. The next week, Muta left. During his match that week, Nosawa was attacked by Justin Credible. A match was set for Bloodymania; Justin Credible and 2 Cold Scorpio against Nosawa and The Great Muta.[20]
Debuting in the first episode, "Holy" Trent Acid soon emerged as a major heel. Winning by any means necessary, Acid quickly moved up in the ranks. By the fourth episode, he won a 10 Man Battle Royal to become the number one contender for the JCW Heavyweight Championship. On the seventh episode, Acid faced off against the champion, Corporal Robinson, with the title on the line. During the match, Acid (kayfabe) temporarily blinded Robinson with holy water, causing the ref to end the match. At West Side Wars, Trent Acid got a rematch, and after using the belt as a weapon, Acid became the new JCW Heavyweight Champion. At East Side Wars, Corporal Robinson received his rematch against Trent Acid in a Steel Cage Match. Robinson pinned Acid after a Diving leg drop through a table off the top of the cage to regain the JCW Heavyweight Championship.
SlamTV! Part 1 (featuring episodes 1-9 including West Side Wars) became available on DVD on September 18, 2007, and SlamTV! Part 2 (featuring episodes 10-15 including East Side Wars and Bloodymania) became available on October 30.
On October 6, 2007,[21] an unaired event entitled Evansville Invasion took place in Evansville, Indiana.[22] The event marked the debut of the Juggalo World Order (JWO), consisting of Scott Hall, Violent J, and Corporal Robinson.[22] On October 31, at Hallowicked After Party Detroit, an episode of SlamTV! was recorded. It was released in the post-season on November 17.[23] At the beginning of the show, Shaggy 2 Dope was introduced as a member of the JWO. After the main event of the night, special guest referee Nosawa ripped off his referee shirt to reveal that he was the newest member of the JWO.[22]
On December 21, Juggalo Championship Wrestling held an event called Big Ballas' X-Mas Party. The main event featured The JWO (Violent J, Nosawa, and Scott Hall) vs. The Thomaselli Brothers. This match marked Scott Hall's first wrestling appearance since no-showing the TNA PPV Turning Point and several WWC shows.[24]
Season 2 was filmed on the "Slam TV Tour 2008" from April 23-April 27.[25] During the tour, on April 25[26], Human Tornado tore his ACL and dislocated his kneecap.[27] While Tornado was entering the ring by jumping over the rope, he landed wrong causing the injury.[27] On May 17, 2008, Psychopathic Records hosted the event Hatchet Attacks. Along with performances by the entire label, JCW wrestling was also included.[28]
The first episode of Season 2 aired on June 16, 2008. It was announced that due to Necro Butcher signing with Ring of Honor, making him unable to compete in JCW, he and Mad Man Pondo had been stripped of the JCW Tag Team Championship. Eight teams were introduced to participate in the "SlamTV! Tag Team Title Tournament." The final two teams would face each other at Bloodymania II. The Weedman and Billy Bong defeated The Bumpin Uglies, The Bloody Brothers (Ian and Lane Bloody) defeated The Ring Rydas,[29] The Bashums defeated Leatherface and Jason, and Zach Gowen and Conrad "Lights Out" Kennedy defeated The Thomaselli Brothers (Vito and Brandon Thomaselli) all to advance to the semi-finals.[30] The Weedman and Billy Bong defeated The Bashums,[31] and The Bloody Brothers defeated Zach Gowen and Conrad Kennedy to advance to the finals at Bloodymania II.[32]
When the new team of Zach Gowen and Conrad Kennedy was announced, Human Tornado was (kayfabe) disappointed that the "Pimp and Gimp Connection" weren't competing.[29] In the second episode, Human Tornado saw heel manager Scott D'Amore leaving Conrad Kennedy's dressing room, and grew suspicious.[30] After Gowen and Kennedy lost their match with The Bloody Brothers, Kennedy attacked Gowen. Human Tornado ran into the ring to save him, and Kennedy retreated to the stage, where Scott D'Amore met with him. Backstage, D'Amore proclaimed the he was going to create a stable, starting with the members Conrad Kennedy and Kowabata, which is going to reform JCW.[32] A match was set for Bloodymania II; Pimp and Gimp Connection against Conrad Kennedy and a mystery partner.[33]
One feud was carried on from the first season; that of 2 Tuff Tony and Tracy Smothers. In the first episode of season two, both men faced off in a match which saw Tracy win after a fast count by the referee, who was later revealed as (kayfabe) Tracy's illegitimate daughter, Isabella.[29] In the third episode, Scott D'Amore served 2 Tuff Tony with a (kayfabe) restraining order from Tracy Smothers and his daughter. Backstage, Tracy caught Isabella listening to Boondox, the rapper who sings 2 Tuff Tony's entrance music.[31] 2 Tuff Tony violated the restraining order in the fourth episode by attacking Tracy Smothers after his match. Once arriving backstage, Tracy Smothers assaulted Boondox after catching Isabella (kayfabe) engaging in sexual actions with him.[32] In the final episode of the season, Tracy Smothers challenged Boondox to a tag team match at Bloodymania II; Tracy and Isabella against Boondox and anybody Boondox chooses. Boondox accepted Tracy's challenge, and named 2 Tuff Tony as his partner.[33]
In the second episode, Corporal Robinson put his JCW Heavyweight Championship on the line against Sexy Slim Goody. When Robinson attempted to hit his finishing move, Boot Camp, the lights shut off. When they turned back on, Raven appeared in the ring and hit Robinson with his Evenflow DDT, before stealing the JCW Heavyweight Championship belt.[30] In the third episode, Raven, along with Sexy Slim Goody, cut a promo in the ring before Corporal Robinson interrupted and demanded his title back. Sexy Slim Goody (kayfabe) knocked Robinson out with a steel chair shot. Raven pulled out hair clippers and began to shave Robinson's afro. Sabu appeared from out of the crowd and scarred Raven off, leaving Robinson with a half shaved afro.[31] The tag team of Raven and Sexy Slim Goody had a match against Corporal Robinson and Sabu in the following episode. Sabu, who had legitimately injured his hip recently, could only perform stomps, punches, and chair shots, but still managed to cause Raven to flee the match with the stolen JCW belt.[32] The end of the final episode featured Raven and Corporal Robinson cutting promos about their match at Bloodymania II.
On October 31, at the Hallowicked After Party in Detroit, the Juggalo World Order (Scott Hall, Shaggy 2 Dope, Violent J, and Corporal Robinson) interfered in the opening match, beating up both wrestlers as well as the referee.[34] Violent J got on the microphone and called 2 Tuff Tony down to the ring. He then asked 2 Tuff Tony to join the JWO, before Tony responded by explaining that he was a one man team. Mid sentence, Tony stopped and exclaimed, "Fuck That! I Wanna roll with the JWO!"[34] Violent J then gave 2 Tuff Tony a Hallowicked version of the JWO jersey, before announcing him as an official member of the Juggalo World Order.[34]
On November 9, the Juggalo World Order (Scott Hall, Shaggy 2 Dope, Violent J, 2 Tuff Tony, and Corporal Robinson) "invaded" Total Non-Stop Action's Turning Point PPV by seating themselves in the front row.[35] The group also showed interest in "invading" WWE at its 2009 Royal Rumble PPV (which happened in their hometown Detroit, Michigan), but were unable due to filming commitments for Big Money Rustlas in Los Angeles.[36] The group stated that they still want to "invade" the WWE, Ring Of Honor,[36] and Ultimate Fighting Championship.[34]
On December 21, 2007, "JCW 2007 Year End Awards"[37] voting started on the official website. The winners were announced on the Jan. 10 edition of the internet radio show 'The Main Event' hosted by Violent J and Corporal Robinson.[38]
Winners:
Best Tag Team of 2007:
Best Face of 2007:
2007's Most Hated:
Best JCW Show of 2007:
Best Wrestler of 2007:
Best Feud of 2007:
At the 2008 Gathering of the Juggalos, Juggalo Championship Wrestling presented a wrestling event called Oddball Wrestling on August 8, the day before Bloodymania II.[39] The event focused around abnormal matches, mostly deathmatches. Weapons such as broken glass, light tubes, barbed wire, and thumbtacks were used. Other match types included midget wrestling.[40] The matches featured lesser-known wrestlers from the indy scene as well as Mad Man Pondo.[40] The main event of the night was a barbed wire light tube match.[40]
Oddball Wrestling will return on August 7 at the 2009 Gathering of the Juggalos.[41] In addition to the lesser-known performers, other wrestlers include Ian Rotten, Drake Younger, and 6 foot 10 inch female wrestler Miss Isis.[41] The event will feature a Woman's Deathmatch, a 4 Corners of Pain match, a Juggalos Submit the Weapons match, and an Electric light tube match in which all lights will be turned off and the wrestlers will use plugged in light tubes as weapons.[42] Also confirmed for the event are midget wrestlers and animals. [42]
Bloodymania is JCW's annual premier wrestling event, much like WWE's WrestleMania. It is held on one day of the Insane Clown Posse's 4-day music festival, Gathering of the Juggalos.[43] As stated by Violent J, "It is the biggest event JCW has ever held, and [...] feature[s] a shit load of talent."[38] The first Bloodymania took place at midnight on August 12, 2007 at Hog Rock in Cave-In-Rock, Illinois.[44] It was recorded for a DVD release, and, on October 30,[43] was released in a variety of stores including Hot Topic, making it the first wrestling DVD ever sold at the entire Hot Topic chain.[45] Bloodymania II took place at midnight on August 10, 2008 at Hog Rock in Cave-In-Rock, Illinois.[39]
Hallowicked After Party occurs every October 31 in Detroit, after Insane Clown Posse's Hallowicked concert. The event serves as an after party to the concert, occurring in an entirely different venue. The wrestling matches are usually held in-between each act performing that night.
Big Ballas' X-Mas Party is held within the week of Christmas in Detroit. The event serves as both a wrestling show and a concert. The wrestling matches are usually held in-between each act performing that night.
| Championship | Current champion(s) | Date won |
|---|---|---|
| JCW Heavyweight Championship | Corporal Robinson | March 14, 2007 |
| JCW Tag Team Championship | The Thomaselli's (Vito & Pauly) | October 31, 2009 |
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