The Mid-Eastern Wrestling Federation was a Mid-Atlantic independent

professional wrestling promotion A professional wrestling promotion is a company or business that regularly performs shows involving professional wrestling. "Promotion" also describes a role which entails management, advertising and logistics of running a wrestling event. Within ...

based in

Essex, Maryland Essex is an Unincorporated area#United States, unincorporated community and census-designated place in Baltimore County, Maryland, Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. Essex history dates back to 1909. The population was 40,505 in the 2020 ...

. Founded by promoter Dennis Wippercht and wrestler Tim "Lucifer" Burke 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 East Coast Wrestling Association (ECWA) is an American professional wrestling promotion, founded in 1967 by promoter Jim Kettner. It is home to the annual Super 8 Tournament, one of the longest-running independent wrestling tournaments in the co ...

Jersey All Pro Wrestling Jersey All Pro Wrestling (JAPW) was an independent wrestling promotion based in New Jersey, United States. History 1997 Jersey All Pro Wrestling was an independent wrestling promotion that was founded by "Fat" Frank Iadeavia and Angel Surit ...

and

Maryland Championship Wrestling MCW Pro Wrestling (formerly known as Maryland Championship Wrestling) is a regional independent wrestling promotion based in Joppa, Maryland. It has regularly run events in the Mid-Atlantic region since the late 1990s. History Maryland Champions ...

. Among its roster included

Extreme Championship Wrestling Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) was an American professional wrestling promotion that was based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and operated by its parent company HHG Corporation. The promotion was founded in 1992 by Tod Gordon as Nationa ...

regulars such as

Raven A raven is any of several large-bodied passerine bird species in the genus '' Corvus''. These species do not form a single taxonomic group within the genus. There is no consistent distinction between crows and ravens; the two names are assigne ...

Stevie Richards Michael Stephen Manna (born October 9, 1971), better known by his ring name Stevie Richards, is an American retired Professional wrestling, professional wrestler and media personality. Since June 2024, Richards has hosted ''#The Stevie Richard ...

The Blue Meanie Brian Heffron (born May 18, 1973), better known by his ring name The Blue Meanie, is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with Extreme Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation between 1995 and 2 ...

Damien Kane Edward Bazzaza (born April 16, 1960), known by his ring name Damien Kane, is an American retired professional wrestling, professional wrestler and Manager (professional wrestling), manager. He is best known for his appearances with the Philadelph ...

, Pit Bull #2, referee "Judge" Jeff Jones, and

The Bad Breed The Bad Breed was the professional wrestling tag team of Axl Rotten with his storyline brother/real life protégé Ian Rotten. The team achieved their greatest fame in the Philadelphia professional wrestling promotion Extreme Championship Wrestlin ...

(

Ian Ian or Iain is a name of Scottish Gaelic origin, which is derived from the Hebrew given name ( Yohanan, ') and corresponds to the English name John. The spelling Ian is an Anglicization of the Scottish Gaelic forename ''Iain''. This name is a po ...

and

Axl Rotten Brian Knighton (April 21, 1971 – February 4, 2016), better known by the ring name Axl Rotten, was an American professional wrestling, professional wrestler. In the early 1990s, he was a part of the tag team The Bad Breed with Ian Rotten. He had ...

) as well as some of the leading independent wrestlers such as

Cueball Carmichael Chris Jackson (born June 10, 1960) is an American professional wrestler, Personal trainer, trainer and promoter (entertainment), promoter, known by his ringname Cueball Carmichael, who competes in the Mid-Atlantic United States, Mid-Atlantic and ...

Johnny Gunn Thomas Brandi (born July 9, 1966) is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances in the World Wrestling Federation from 1996 to 1998 under the ring name Salvatore Sincere and Tom Brandi. Brandi is also known for his ap ...

Max Thrasher Philip Andrew "Phil" Livelsberger (born February 7, 1962), better known by the ring name Max Thrasher, is an American retired professional wrestler, promoter and trainer. He is best known for his tenure in Eastern Championship Wrestling, as one-h ...

Devon Storm Christopher Ford (born March 4, 1974) is an American professional wrestler, best known for his tenure in World Championship Wrestling under the ring name Crowbar, where he was a one time Hardcore Champion, a one time World Tag Team Champion w ...

, Morgus the Maniac,

Boo Bradley Jonathan Rechner (April 11, 1972 – April 12, 2016), better known by his ring name Balls Mahoney, was an American professional wrestler best known for his appearances with Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) and World Wrestling Entertainment ...

Jimmy Cicero Matthew Bowman (born January 2, 1969) is an American professional wrestler, best known by his ring name "Wiseguy" Jimmy Cicero, who has worked for the United States Wrestling Association, Extreme Championship Wrestling, the World Wrestling Feder ...

, Hollywood Bob Starr, Ruckus,

Dino Casanova David Mark DiMeglio (February 8, 1967 – March 1, 2002) was an American professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Dino Casanova. He competed in independent promotions in the Northeastern United States including Eastern Championship W ...

Corporal Punishment A corporal punishment or a physical punishment is a punishment which is intended to cause physical pain to a person. When it is inflicted on Minor (law), minors, especially in home and school settings, its methods may include spanking or Padd ...

The Bad Crew The Bad Crew was an American professional wrestling tag team consisting of Jake Kemmerer (who wrestled as Bad Crew #1, Dog, or Jake) and Paul Olsek Jr. (who wrestled as Bad Crew #2, Rose, or Paul). The Bad Crew competed in North American regional ...

and Darkside (Glen Osborne and

Rockin' Rebel Charles Williams (January 13, 1966 – June 1, 2018) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Rockin' Rebel. He was best known for his appearances on the U.S. independent circuit with promotions such as Eastern Ch ...

). Former

World Wrestling Federation World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is an American professional wrestling promotion. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority-owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. A global integrated media and entertainment company, ...

wrestlers such as

Barry Horowitz Barry Horowitz (born March 24, 1959) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler, best known for his time in the WWE, World Wrestling Federation (WWF). Early life Horowitz attended Florida State University, where he studied spo ...

Road Warrior Hawk Michael James Hegstrand (January 26, 1957 – October 19, 2003) was an American professional wrestler. He was best known as Road Warrior Hawk, one half of the tag team known as the Road Warriors (or the "Legion of Doom"), with Road Warrior Anima ...

Jim Neidhart James Henry Neidhart (February 8, 1955 – August 13, 2018) was an American professional wrestler known for his appearances in the 1980s and 1990s in the World Wrestling Federation as Jim "the Anvil" Neidhart, where he was a two-time WWF Tag ...

The Honky Tonk Man Roy Wayne Farris (born January 25, 1953) is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenure in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) from 1986 to 1991, where he performed under the ring name The Honky Tonk Ma ...

and

The Headbangers The Headbangers are a professional wrestling tag team consisting of Mosh (Charles Warrington) and Thrasher (Glenn Ruth). They are currently signed to WWE as ambassadors. As the name of the team implies, their gimmick is that they are a pair of ...

as well as

World Championship Wrestling World Championship Wrestling (WCW) was an American professional wrestling promotion founded by Ted Turner in 1988, after Turner Broadcasting System, through a subsidiary named Universal Wrestling Corporation, purchased the assets of National W ...

veterans "Jumping" Joey Maggs and

Disco Inferno "Disco Inferno" is a song by American disco band the Trammps from their 1976 studio album of same name. With two other cuts by the group, it reached No. 1 on the US ''Billboard'' Dance Club Songs chart in early 1977, but had limited mainstream ...

also had short stints in the promotion.

History

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 Pasadena is a census-designated place (CDP) in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, United States. The population was 24,287 at the 2010 census. The areas of Lake Shore, Riviera Beach and Pasadena are collectively referred to as Pasadena by residen ...

on August 2, 1991; during the event, the Lords of Darkness (

Pain Pain is a distressing feeling often caused by intense or damaging Stimulus (physiology), stimuli. The International Association for the Study of Pain defines pain as "an unpleasant sense, sensory and emotional experience associated with, or res ...

and

Agony Agony may refer to: Concepts * Agony, a terminal state of the body before death *Suffering of intense degree, relating to physical or mental suffering *Agony in the Garden, Christ's agony in the Garden of Gethsemane Comics * ''Agony'' (book), ...

) would defeat Cream Team (

and Rip Sawyer) to become the first MEWF Tag Team champions. Three months later, the MEWF held a fundraiser for the North Carroll High School in

Hampstead, Maryland Hampstead is a town in Carroll County in the U.S. state of Maryland. The population was 6,323 at the 2010 census. History Between 1736 and 1738, Robert Owings was assigned to "cut a new road as Christopher Gist had marked it" south from Conewag ...

to help purchase

computer software Software consists of computer programs that instruct the Execution (computing), execution of a computer. Software also includes design documents and specifications. The history of software is closely tied to the development of digital comput ...

for its business department. The card included stars such as

"Hot Stuff" Eddie Gilbert Thomas Edward Gilbert Jr. (August 14, 1961 – February 18, 1995) better known by his ring name "Hot Stuff" Eddie Gilbert, was an American professional wrestler, and booker. Gilbert started his wrestling career for the Continental Wrestling As ...

A.C. Golden Mark Kevin Frear (February 1, 1970 - May 11, 2014) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name A. C. Golden, who competed in Mid-Atlantic and Southern independent promotions during the late 1980s and 1990s. He was a lon ...

, Morgus the Maniac,

, The Cream Team (

& Rip Sawyer), female wrestlers Rusty "The Fox" Thomas and MEWF Women's Champion

Heidi Lee Morgan Heidi Lee Morgan (born June 29, 1967) is an American retired professional wrestler who competed in the World Wrestling Federation, International World Class Championship Wrestling, Ladies Pro Wrestling Association, and National Wrestling Federa ...

, and midget wrestler Haiti Kid. Max Thrasher wrestled

in the main event. During its early years, the promotion featured such wrestlers as Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart,

and

Jake "The Snake" Roberts Aurelian Smith Jr. (born May 30, 1955) better known by the ring name Jake "the Snake" Roberts, is an American actor, podcaster and retired professional wrestler. He is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he performs as the on-screen man ...

, however, their cruiserweight division gained a considerable following with

The Lightning Kid Sean Michael Waltman (born July 13, 1972) is an American retired professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE under a legends contract. He is best known for his appearances for the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) under the ring names 1– ...

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 Annapolis ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland. It is the county seat of Anne Arundel County and its only incorporated city. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east ...

which featured Corporal Punishment, Axl Rotten, Mad Dog O'Malley and the debut of Pat Patterson, Jr. (the

kayfabe In professional wrestling, kayfabe (pronounced ) is the portrayal of staged events within the industry as "real" or "true", specifically competition, rivalries, and relationships between participants. The term has evolved to become a code word ...

"son" of Pat Patterson); the card was the first professional wrestling event ever held in Annapolis. Expanding outside the Baltimore-area, the promotion regularly appeared at the ''Secret Cove'', a popular restaurant and bar in southern

Fairfax County, Virginia Fairfax County, officially the County of Fairfax, is a County (United States), county in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia. With a population of 1,150,309 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the most p ...

. 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 Vernon Earl Monroe (born November 21, 1944) is an American former professional basketball player. He played for two teams, the Baltimore Bullets and the New York Knicks, during his career in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Both teams ...

Steve Corino Steven Eugene Corino (born May 29, 1973) is a Canadian professional wrestling trainer and former professional wrestler. , he works for the American professional wrestling promotion WWE as a trainer at the WWE Performance Center and as a produ ...

Danny Doring Daniel Morrison (born February 19, 1974) is an American professional wrestling, professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Danny Doring. He is best known for his appearances with the professional wrestling promotion Extreme Championsh ...

Quinn Nash Quinn may refer to: People * Quinn (soccer) (born 1995), Canadian soccer player and Olympic gold medalist * Quinn (given name) * Quinn (surname) * Quinn (musician) (born 2004), American musician Places in the United States * Quinn, Kentucky, an u ...

Adam Flash Douglas Adam Becker (born on October 22, 1971) is an American retired professional wrestler better known by his ring name Adam Flash. Over his career, he has worked for various independent promotions, including Maryland Championship Wrestling, ...

and

Joey Mercury Adam Birch (born July 18, 1979), better known by the ring name Joey Mercury, is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenures in WWE and Ring of Honor. Birch was trained by fellow wrestler Jimmy Cicero and made his wrestl ...

, with whom Christian York feuded with

The Hardy Boyz The Hardy Boyz are an American professional wrestling tag team consisting of brothers Jeff Hardy, Jeff and Matt Hardy. They are both signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), where they are former three time TNA Tag Team Championship, TNA ...

, as well as participated in the ECWA's

Super 8 Tournament The Super 8 Tournament is an annual professional wrestling tournament held by the East Coast Wrestling Association. The tournament is contested by eight wrestlers in a one-night single-elimination format. History The ECWA Super 8 Tournament was ...

during the late 1990s.

Rivalry with Maryland Championship Wrestling

In 1998, following a dispute with MEWF management and wrestlers over creative control and payment disagreements, Corporal Punishment and Mark Shrader left the promotion taking half of its roster with them to form

. 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 Glen Burnie is an unincorporated town and census-designated place (CDP) in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, United States. It is a suburb of Baltimore. The population was 72,891 at the 2020 census. History In 1812, Elias Glenn, a district attorn ...

on July 16, 2003. During this interpromotional card, the MCW Championship titles were merged with Mid-Eastern Championship Wrestling most notably the

Christian York Jason Spence (born April 13, 1977) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Christian York. He is best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling, Extreme Championship Wrestling ...

winning the Shane Shamrock Memorial Cup as well as the MCW/MEWF Cruiserweight Championship defeating

Joey Matthews Adam Birch (born July 18, 1979), better known by the ring name Joey Mercury, is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenures in WWE and Ring of Honor. Birch was trained by fellow wrestler Jimmy Cicero and made his wrestl ...

, Reckless Youth, Qenaan Creed,

Jay Briscoe Jamin Dale Pugh (January 25, 1984 – January 17, 2023), known by his ring name Jay Briscoe, was an American professional wrestler. He was known for his time with his brother Mark Briscoe as the Briscoe Brothers in Ring of Honor, where he was ...

and

Crash Holly Michael John Lockwood (August 25, 1971 – November 6, 2003) was an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He was best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) / World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) f ...

in a six-way elimination match. The event also featured Headbanger Thrasher, Gillberg and

Van Hammer Mark Ty Hildreth (born November 11, 1959) is an American retired professional wrestler, best known for his tenures in World Championship Wrestling under the ring names Van Hammer. Early life Before becoming a wrestler, Hildreth joined the Unite ...

Later years

In early 2002, Tim's wife, Donna Burke took over day-to-day running began promoting shows twice a month at Dundalk's North Point Flea Market and held a memorial show for Dino Casanova on June 20, 2002. The following year, Burke promoted a show with

Ring of Honor Ring of Honor (ROH) is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Jacksonville, Florida. The promotion was founded by Rob Feinstein on February 23, 2002, and was operated by Cary Silkin from 2004 until 2011; the promotion was subs ...

on January 29 and

World Wrestling Entertainment World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is an American professional wrestling promotion. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority-owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. A global integrated media and entertainment company, ...

Fair Hill, Maryland Fair Hill is an unincorporated community in Cecil County, Maryland, United States. Fair Hill is located at the intersection of Maryland routes 213 and 273, north of Elkton. It is home to the Fair Hill Natural Resources Management Area, a 5,613 a ...

on July 31. The promotion was unable to keep the fanbase of Maryland Championship Wrestling, however, and, within several months, the promotion became inactive after its last card at ''Hunter's Sail Barn'' in

Rising Sun, Maryland Rising Sun is a town in Cecil County, Maryland, United States. The population was 2,781 at the 2010 census. History The town which became known as Rising Sun was located in the disputed “Nottingham Lots” along the border between colonial P ...

on October 30, 2004; this was the first wrestling event ever held in the building.

Former personnel

Championships

* MEWF Heavyweight Championship * MEWF Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship *

MEWF Cruiserweight Championship The Mid-Eastern Wrestling Federation (MEWF) Cruiserweight Championship was the primary Cruiserweight singles title in the Mid-Eastern Wrestling Federation. The title was created when Ricky Blues defeated Adrian Hall at an event held in Pasaden ...

* MEWF Light Heavyweight Championship *

MEWF Tag Team Championship This is a chronological list of MEWF tag team champions. The MEWF Tag Team Championship is the oldest championship title in the Mid-Eastern Wrestling Federation having been established when the Lords of Darkness (Pain and Agony) defeated Cream Tea ...

References

External links

Wrestling-Titles.com: Mid-Eastern Championship WrestlingCageMatch.de - Mid-Eastern Championship Wrestling
{{Professional wrestling in the United States American independent professional wrestling promotions based in Maryland Essex, Maryland Defunct professional wrestling promotions