86-849: The CWA Tag Team Championship is the primary wrestling tag team title in the Century Wrestling Alliance . Double Trouble (Tony and Val Puccio ) were the first team to win the titles by defeating The Interns in Wakefield, Massachusetts on September 23, 1993. The title was renamed as the NWA New England Tag Team Championship when the CWA joined the National Wrestling Alliance and became NWA New England in January 1998. The tag team title returned to its original name when
172-472: A 20-man battle royal for the vacant NWA New England Brass Knuckles title in Milford, Massachusetts . In December 2001, Fuller assaulted then-referee Barry Ace during a match after he had unintentionally caused Fuller to mistime a wrestling move. This incident caused some controversy and NWA New England Vice President Vinnie Capelli later issued a public statement which accepted full responsibility explaining that Ace
258-1046: A brief appearance to co-present the Slammy Award for "Trending Superstar of the Year." On April 10, 2012, Atlas made an appearance on SmackDown : Blast from the Past . In 2014, Atlas was a regular cast member on the WWE Network original reality show, Legends' House . ATLAS: Too Much...Too Soon was released in 2010. White was born in Roanoke, Virginia , where he attended Patrick Henry High School . He now lives with his wife Monika in Auburn, Maine . With his ex-wife Joyce, he has one daughter named Nikki. White has been open about what he calls his non-sexual shoe fetish , which involves paying women to step on him. He stated in an interview, "I, Tony 'Mr. USA' Atlas, WWE Hall of Famer, am free to be me. And there
344-470: A continuing series of matches and skits of a wrestler impersonating wrestling " dirt sheet " writer Dr. Mike Lano. He was a self-claimed NWA World Heavyweight Champion but that his belt "was upstairs in the penthouse getting buffed by the Lano-ettes". The skits followed Lano as he attempted to convince Jim Cornette to become his manager. When Lano finally tracks down Cornette, who is seen stealing crackers from
430-487: A few seconds later a scuffle ensued, followed by two groans, loud enough for the entire locker room to hear. Atlas ran to the shower and saw Brody bent over and holding his stomach (Mantel came after him). Atlas and Mantel then looked up at González and saw him holding the knife. When the paramedics arrived, Atlas carried Brody downstairs to the waiting ambulance, as, due to Brody's enormous stature, paramedics were unable to lift him. González, who always maintained his innocence,
516-653: A hotel kitchen, he is challenged to a wrestling trivia duel. Following this, the skit ends with Lano going upstairs to the penthouse where he is attacked by Mae Young and the Fabulous Moolah . The promotion was mostly dominated by ex-IWCCW stars, and on occasion former WCW and WWF veterans, during its early years. Between 1993 and 1995, the CWA Heavyweight Championship was traded between The Iron Sheik , Vic Steamboat, Tony Atlas and Kevin Sullivan. Similarly,
602-511: A legends contract in mid-2012. Atlas started wrestling in 1974 for the National Wrestling Alliance World Wide/Mid Atlantic area. His debut, on July 10, was a tag team match with Bob Bruggers against Art Neilson and The Blue Scorpion. The match finished with Atlas winning the fall for his team with a sleeper hold on The Blue Scorpion. Throughout his career he worked for World Championship Wrestling (WCW),
688-471: A local high school in Thomaston, Connecticut , promoted by Ellen Magliaro. Tony Rumble had volunteered to manage Gary Steele but turned on him during the match, hitting Steele with his helmet, and allowing Ogawa to win the match with a choke-hold and regain the title. Ogawa, as well as Steele, were upset by his interference. A "visually upset" Ogawa challenged Rumble claiming he "didn't need his help" to win back
774-421: A longtime personality and having some limited promoting experience, Ellen Magliaro attempted to hire others to take on Rumble's role as head promoter and booker. None were able to recreate Rumble's success however and, within six months of his death, business had declined significantly. Sheldon Goldberg resigned from the promotion after a few months and six months after his death, Goldberg resigned his position with
860-588: A match that aired on November 17. Upon his return, Atlas was shunted to the mid card in the WWF and was undefeated against competition that included Mr Fuji , The Spoiler , The Iron Sheik , and Moondog Rex . He scored a win against Bob Orton and a non-title victory over WWF Intercontinental Champion Greg Valentine at the Steel Cage Turmoil round robin tournament in Hartford, CT on November 23, 1984 (a predecessor to
946-653: A one match return on August 28, 1987, when he teamed with The Junkyard Dog to defeat Kamala and Sika at the WWF Paul Boesch Retirement Show. Two months later Tony joined the Texas-based World Class Championship Wrestling where he adopted the moniker of "The Black Superman". He made his initial appearance on November 11, 1986, and defeated Tim Brooks in Fort Worth, TX. On December 1, Atlas defeated Crusher Yorkoff to win
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#17329088823801032-1063: A return to Puerto Rico's WWC defeating Dutch Mantel on July 16, 2000, at WWC 27th anniversary event. On November 19, 2005, Atlas defeated Tracy Smothers at CCW A Tribute to Starrcade in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Since 2006 he has made occasional appearances for Big Time Wrestling and Top Rope Promotions both in New England. He teamed with Bushwhacker Luke to defeat Eric Johnson and Thad Hairy Howett at UCW in Kentville, Nova Scotia, on April 28, 2018. On May 25, 2018, he defeated Nathan Banner by disqualification in Pembroke, Ontario, for Great North Wrestling. On May 17, 2019, he teamed with Frankie Flow to defeat Gene Snitsky and Salvatore Sincere Managed by Lance Profit at East Coast Pro wrestling in Manville, New Jersey. On March 25, 2023, Atlas and Bob Orton Jr. won
1118-678: A shot at the titles and won by disqualification. Ten days later he teamed with Jim Brunzell for another shot at the Road Warriors, but this time was defeated. His final match with the promotion was a victory against Tom Scott on October 28, after which he returned to the World Wrestling Federation. One day after departing the AWA, Atlas returned to the WWF at a TV taping for All Star Wrestling in Hamilton, Ontario, and pinned Rene Goulet in
1204-578: A small wrestling promotion, the Century Wrestling Alliance, with his wife Ellen Magliaro. Many of its stars chose to leave the Savoldi's for his new promotion including The Pink Assassin , "Surfer" Ray Odyssey , Vic Steamboat and "Mr. USA" Tony Atlas , then IWCCW Heavyweight Champion . As the IWCCW declined during the early 1990s, Rumble was able build up the CWA and eventually succeeded the former as
1290-915: A three-way match in Sanford, Maine for the NWA New England Division X Championship. On 20 November, Gino Martino was awarded the NWA Colonial title after winning the annual 20-man battle royal at the 2004 Tony Rumble Memorial in Bellingham, Massachusetts . He later surrendered the title after winning the NWA New England Heavyweight title three months later. Just a week earlier, the Millennium Wrestling Federation had held its Tony Rumble Memorial battle royal at their Soul Survivor 2004 supercard held at Shawsheen Tech . The event
1376-631: A three-way match with the Big Islanders (Makua & Ka Hoku). The third and final night had an interpromotional match between Jason Rumble and NWA UK Hammerlock's Conscious in Nashville. On 25 November 2005, NWA New England held the 6th annual Tony Rumble Memorial Show at the Ringside Entertainment Complex in Revere, Massachusetts . Celebrity wrestler Robby Ellis took part in the event. In
1462-570: A tournament final for the then vacant NWA New England Television title in Everett, Massachusetts . At the same event, Damien "Pitbull" Vachon and Pierre "The Beast" Vachon defeated The Rough Ryders (Nyxx and Devin Raines) in a three-way match with The Big Islanders (Kahoku and Makua) to win the NWA New England Tag Team titles. The Vachons, who had recently debuted in the promotion, are the sons of
1548-488: A tournament to crown a new United States Heavyweight Champion following the vacating of the title by an injured Rick Rude . Atlas pinned Van Hammer in the quarterfinals. In the semi-finals he fell to Dustin Rhodes. Atlas also became part of a storyline where a bounty had been placed on rookie Erik Watts head; Atlas entered a house show series in January 1993 with the young Watts but was winless. He made an appearance on Clash of
1634-432: Is an American bodybuilder, powerlifter , and professional wrestler who has held multiple titles and championships in each sport. He is also known by his bodybuilding title, " Mr. USA " (a distinction he earned three times) , the nom de guerre the " Black Superman ", as well as an alter ego named Saba Simba . He returned as an on screen manager for WWE , appearing on its now-defunct ECW brand. He re-signed with WWE on
1720-437: Is nothing greater on this Planet Earth than to get kicked and punched in the face by a big-footed girl." White was once a frequent co-host of the popular YouTube wrestling interview channel Boston Wrestling MWF. However, following his co-host bringing up the controversial wrestler New Jack , White responded negatively and later left the show. The next episodes were co-hosted by New Jack, who criticized White. This promotion
1806-538: The 1991 Royal Rumble , where he was eliminated by Rick Martel . After the Royal Rumble, he was taken off TV and was inactive with the company. His last match was on September 13, 1991, at a house show in Allentown, Pennsylvania, filling in for Jim Neidhart , losing to Irwin R. Schyster as Saba Simba. After he left the WWF he returned to IWCCW shortly thereafter facing Tito Santana and Vic Steamboat . He would regain
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#17329088823801892-533: The Mat Marketplace newsletter, collaborated on a working agreement with Michinoku Pro Wrestling to bring its stars to perform in the United States. In February 1997, the groups efforts paid off when Michinoku owner and main star, The Great Sasuke , brought a group of wrestlers with him to Boston where they appeared in exhibition matches at an ECW television taping and a house show for the CWA. The latter show
1978-860: The NWA World Tag Team Championship , as well as the NWA New England titles, while with the promotion. World Championship Wrestling 's Harley Race , Barry Windham , Kevin Sullivan , The Rock 'n' Roll Express ( Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson ) and the World Wrestling Federation 's Steve Keirn (wrestling as Doink the Clown ), Jake "the Snake" Roberts , Jimmy Snuka , King Kong Bundy , The Honky Tonk Man and The Iron Sheik also made frequent appearances. In 1989, veteran wrestler and longtime on-air IWCCW personality Tony Rumble opened
2064-472: The World Wrestling Federation on October 23, 1979, defeating Johnny Rodz at a Championship Wrestling taping. One of his first feuds was with Jesse "The Body" Ventura , over who had the better physique. In 1983, he teamed with Rocky Johnson as The Soul Patrol to defeat The Wild Samoans for the WWF World Tag Team Championship , becoming the company's first black champions. After losing
2150-546: The 8th annual Tony Rumble Memorial Show , was held in Saugus, Massachusetts on 17 November 2007, and has been inactive since that time. NWA New England has held an annual tribute show in memory of founder Tony Rumble since the year of his death, the Tony Rumble Memorial Battle Royal being introduced the following year. It is typically an "over-the-top" battle royal , at times using Royal Rumble rules, in which
2236-550: The August 19, 2008, episode of ECW against Hardy. At Unforgiven , Henry lost the title to Hardy. On the December 9 edition of ECW , Atlas wrestled in a WWE ring for the first time in 17 years (along with Mark Henry) in a tag team match, where they defeated Finlay and Hornswoggle . He also wrestled Evan Bourne on the June 9, 2009, episode of ECW in a losing effort. Henry was then traded to
2322-468: The Battle Royal at Wrestlemania 2 being eliminated by William Perry . He was also used as a jobber to the stars, putting over newly arriving talent like King Kong Bundy and Harley Race , as well as a series of matches with other muscle bound strongmen such as Hercules and "The Worlds Strongest Man" Ted Arcidi , the latter of which in an infamous match at Boston Garden where both men were booed by
2408-562: The CWA Light Heavyweight Championship was dominated by Ray Odyssey and The Pink Assassin, and Double Trouble (Tony & Val Puccio ) were the first tag team champions, followed by Ray Odyssey and Vic Steamboat. Rumble himself would hold the CWA New England Heavyweight Championship a record 3-times during a five-year period before his wife, and then CWA President, stripped him of the title when
2494-734: The CWA withdrew from the NWA on March 10, 2007. Silver areas in the history indicate periods of unknown lineage. Century Wrestling Alliance The Century Wrestling Alliance , formerly known as NWA Cold Front and NWA New England , was a New England–based American independent wrestling promotion located in Boston, Massachusetts . It was founded by Tony Rumble in 1989, a retired wrestler and manager in International World Class Championship Wrestling , and included much of its roster prior to and following its close during
2580-513: The Champions XXII in Milwaukee, WI on January 13, 1993, and lost an arm wrestling contest to Vinnie Vegas . Following a match with Steve Regal on February 5, Atlas left the promotion. Atlas returned to IWCCW in the fall of 1993 and faced Tommy Dreamer , Johnny Gunn , Tito Santana, and Primo Carnera III . He also wrestled for the CWA ( Century Wrestling Alliance ) in 1994, and in 1995 joined
2666-568: The IWCCW title. He defeated Jimmy Snuka on an independent show on June 28, 1992, in Wallingford, CT. He later left IWCCW which left the IWCCW title vacant. Teaming with The Barbarian , Atlas made his debut as a heel for WCW on the October 10, 1992, with a victory over Jeff Daniels and TA McCoy. They were immediately programmed by WCW Vice President Bill Watts into a feud with Barry Windham and Dustin Rhodes . He suffered his first pinfall when he
CWA Tag Team Championship (New England) - Misplaced Pages Continue
2752-778: The King of the Ring tournaments that were held later in the decade as annual house show events), but suffered his first defeat on his comeback when he lost to David Schultz . This would be his only loss for several months, as he would not be pinned again until losing to Paul Orndorff on Prime Time Wrestling on March 19, 1985. At this point Atlas began to transition to a mid-card performer and would lose several matches, including bouts with Bret Hart , Greg Valentine, Don Muraco , and Roddy Piper . The company also programmed him into several short-lived tag-teams with Ivan Putski, Lanny Poffo and George Wells. Atlas made his PPV debut in 1986 when he appeared in
2838-633: The NWA New England developmental league Impact Independent Wrestling. At the NWA 54th Anniversary show , held at the WrestlePlex in St. Petersburg, Florida on 26 October 2002, Jason Rumble defeated Rocky Reynolds in an interpromotional match between NWA New England and NWA Tri-State . The match was to decide the number one contender to the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship . His victory
2924-550: The NWA New England heavyweight title from beat Beau Douglas by submission via the Boston crab . The match was dedicated to late Tony Rumble. In June, Jason Rumble represented NWA New England in the 2002 J-Cup tournament in Elizabeth, New Jersey , but lost to Scoot Andrews in the opening rounds. Rick Fuller, then touring the Northeast independent circuit after his departure from WCW, returned to NWA New England and, on 9 June 2001, won
3010-590: The NWA's Jim Crockett Promotions , the World Wrestling Council (WWC), World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW), the American Wrestling Association (AWA), and the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). Among his regular partners were Tommy Rich (as "TNT"), Dick Murdoch , and Rocky Johnson . He was also the first man to press slam and pin Hulk Hogan though Hogan's foot was on the rope and
3096-596: The Raw brand on June 29, quietly ending their alliance. Atlas would continue to appear on ECW during The Abraham Washington Show as Abraham Washington 's sidekick, until ECW went off air in February 2010. Atlas was released from his WWE contract on April 30, 2010. However he still made sporadic appearances with the company; he made a brief appearance on the Old School Raw episode on November 15, 2010. On December 12, 2011, he made
3182-772: The SICW Tag Team titles defeating the LA Hustlers - Bradley Driggs and Lamonte Potts in St. Louis, Missouri. As of 2024, at age 70 Atlas still wrestlers 50 years later. Atlas made a surprise return to the WWF on the March 10, 1997, edition of Monday Night RAW . Following a victory by Intercontinental Champion Rocky Maivia over Tony Roy, Atlas came out of the crowd to congratulate the son of his former tag-team partner Rocky Johnson . One week later he appeared on RAW again, this time holding Maivia back from attacking The Sultan . At Wrestlemania 13 he
3268-524: The Saba Simba character with saving his life as he was homeless and living on a park bench before getting a phone call from McMahon. He played a warrior of a Ugandan tribe and was intended to feud with Akeem , but the feud never took place after Akeem departed from the promotion. Atlas was kept at midcard status, losing to Dino Bravo & The Barbarian. The gimmick has been described by one writer as "unpopular at best, and racist at worst." He participated at
3354-616: The WWF where he wrestled as "Saba Simba" for the remainder of 1990 and into January 1991. He made his first appearance in his comeback on August 4, 1990, when he pinned Haku at a house show in Augusta, GA. On August 28 he participated in a taping for WWF Superstars and Prime Time Wrestling. In his first televised appearance as Simba, Atlas's history in the company was quickly acknowledged, but Vince McMahon claimed Atlas had "rediscovered his roots by legally changing his name". On December 13, 2010, Tony appeared on Right After Wrestling and credited
3440-613: The WWF; this represented a swing in the opposite direction and Atlas received a push upon joining the promotion. He was undefeated against "Mr Electricity" Steve Regal , Larry Zbyszko , and Jake Milliman in July before finally being defeated by King Kong Bundy on August 11 in Indianapolis, IN. This and a disqualification loss to Nick Bockwinkel were Atlas' only defeats in singles competition. On October 10, 1984, he teamed with The Crusher and faced AWA Tag-Team Champions The Road Warriors for
3526-664: The World Class World Television Championship. In January 1987, Atlas competed in a tournament to crown the Texas Heavyweight Champion, beating Tim Brooks in the opening round but falling to Matt Borne in the quarter-finals. In the summer of 1987 he had almost instant success when he teamed with Skip Young to win the World Class Texas Tag Team Title. Following a match that went to a time limit draw against Al Perez , Atlas left
CWA Tag Team Championship (New England) - Misplaced Pages Continue
3612-618: The backbone of the CWA's success, had become more difficult to promote as the ex-NWA/WCW and WWF stars from the 1970s and 80s began retiring or had died. All these contributed to the promotions slow decline during the next several years. NWA New England was again present at the NWA 52nd Anniversary Show held at the Nashville Fairgrounds in Nashville, Tennessee . Among the NWA-affiliate promotions included NWA East (PWX), NWA Mid-South , NWA Mississippi, NWA Nashville, NWA New Jersey, NWA New York, NWA Ohio , NWA Southwest, NWA West Virginia and NWA UK Hammerlock. The main event saw Jason Rumble win
3698-454: The brass knuckles title in Somerville, Massachusetts on 22 June 2000. Although the promotion was primarily known as NWA New England, or sometimes NWA Cold Front, it ran under its original name when holding events outside New England itself such as an 25 April house show in Ogdensburg, New York . This was partly due to contractual obligations agreed to with the NWA and did not affect its regular shows elsewhere in New England. NWA New England
3784-487: The card were Wagner Brown and King Kong Bundy . Two days later, Knuckles Nelson and Dukes Dalton regained titles from The Public Enemy in Dorchester, Massachusetts . Jeff Mangles also defeated Jay Jaillet to win the NWA New England Junior Heavyweight title. Earlier that year, the promotion was profiled by the ESPN series Outside the Lines . On 2 October, NWA New England hosted an NWA World Heavyweight title defense between Gary Steele and challenger Naoya Ogawa at
3870-406: The company in 1988. On July 16, 1988, Atlas was appearing at a WWC event in Bayamón (a city near San Juan), Puerto Rico, where he was one of the 2 witnesses, the other being Dutch Mantel to the fatal assault on wrestler Bruiser Brody . José Huertas González a.k.a. the Invader, a fellow wrestler and booker, asked Brody to go into the shower to discuss business. Brody entered the shower stall and
3956-403: The company to start his own promotion, New England Championship Wrestling . Magliaro finally turned the promotion over to Jason Dellagatta, an NWA New England wrestler known as Jason Rage, and helped develop his character "Boston Bad Boy" Jason Rumble, the kayfabe son of Tony. Although the promotion stabilized for a time, Dellagatta was never able to match the success that Tony Rumble had with
4042-409: The crowd and mocked by commentators Gorilla Monsoon & Lord Alfred Hayes for their poor performances. Atlas began to be shunted further down the card, losing to Big John Studd , Iron Sheik, Dory Funk Jr. , and Harley Race . His final match was a loss to Adrian Adonis in a bout that took place in Madison Square Garden and which aired on September 8, 1986, on Prime Time Wrestling. Tony made
4128-533: The dominant independent promotion in the Greater Boston area. With help from personal friends such as World Wrestling Federation manager Jim Cornette and World Championship Wrestling booker Kevin Sullivan , he was able to bring in a number of wrestlers from both organizations throughout the decade. Rumble also developed a collection of local wrestlers as unique or entertaining " gimmick workers ", referring to them as his personal "whack pack". He also displayed an ability to pick up "sold shows", events in which
4214-458: The early 1990s. The promotion eventually replaced IWCCW as the dominant independent promotion in the Greater Boston area and, in 1997, became an affiliated territory of the National Wrestling Alliance . Among the wrestlers who followed Rumble to the CWA included The Pink Assassin , "Surfer" Ray Odyssey , Vic Steamboat and "Mr. USA" Tony Atlas . As with IWCCW, several future stars of Extreme Championship Wrestling spent their early careers in
4300-499: The first CWA Light Heavyweight Champion defeating Flexx Wheeler in a tournament final in Windsor Locks, Connecticut and, three years later, The Public Enemy ( Rocco Rock & Johnny Grunge ) won the CWA Tag Team Championship. They would eventually lose the titles to The Extremists ( Ace Darling & Devon Storm ) in Worcester, Massachusetts on 24 July 1996. It was around this time that Rumble began working with then ECW promoter Paul Heyman and Sheldon Goldberg, then editor of
4386-412: The following year and continued in later shows held by both NWA New England and the Millennium Wrestling Federation two years later. This would be one of the last events ever held in the Wrestleplex and it closed at the end of the month. The venue had not only been a home area for NWA New England but of several other local wrestling promotions including PWF Northeast, High Impact Championship Wrestling and
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#17329088823804472-446: The legendary Paul Vachon and mainstays of NWA: Extreme Canadian Championship Wrestling . At the 3-day NWA 57th Anniversary show in Springfield, Tennessee , NWA New England Tag Team Champions Damien & Pierre Vachon defeated NWA Green Mountain Tag Team Champions Really Sensational ("Real Deal" Jay Davis & "Sensational" Sean Reed) on 6 October. On the second night, they lost the titles to Sonny Roselli & Larry Huntley in
4558-545: The main event. The promotion had been experiencing trouble booking events and had been on hiatus for the last seven months. While there were indications for a planned comeback during the summer, the promotion remained inactive for the remainder of the year. The promotion resumed running events again, with new arrivals Chad Merchant and Chad Peters, hired by Ellen Magliaro to take over promotion and booking duties. Two new titles were introduced that year. On 19 June 2004, Cameron Matthews defeated Shawn Styles, Gina Marie and Psycho in
4644-430: The management of The Duke (not Pete Doherty) won the ICW Heavyweight title from Joe Savoldi . Atlas lost the belt to Vic Steamboat in Middletown, NY. But after a few months, he regained the belt from Steamboat. That match became infamous because of the number of times it was shown on the IWCCW syndicated show. Afterwards he was inactive from wrestling due to being homeless for a year and a half. In 1990 Atlas returned to
4730-428: The match. At the end of the night, Rumble walked away holding three championship titles. Prior to 2007, Chad Merchant and Chad Peters had left NWA New England to start their own promotion in Vermont , NWA Green Mountain (later NWA Addicted). On 10 March 2007, Beau Douglas defeated Jason Rumble for the NWA New England Heavyweight title in Saugus, Massachusetts , ending Rumble's third reign as champion. Douglas had lost
4816-440: The program. A local car dealership, Atlantic Toyota, initially agreed to sponsor the show but pulled out at the last minute. Several weeks later, on 13 November 1999, Tony Rumble died of a massive heart attack. His wife Ellen took over the promotion, as well as his seat on the NWA Board of Directors, choosing to continue running NWA New England. Rumble's death greatly disrupted the independent wrestling scene in New England. Though
4902-499: The promotion including Tommy Dreamer , The Tazmaniac and The Public Enemy ( Rocco Rock and Johnny Grunge ) as well as established Northeastern independent wrestlers such as Amanda Storm, April Hunter , LuFisto , Alex Arion, Juggernaut , Metal Maniac, Al Snow , Tom Brandi , Handsome Johnny , Dan Quirk , Rick Fuller , Wagner Brown , The Extremists ( Ace Darling & Devon Storm ) and The Brotherhood (Erich Sbraccia and Knuckles Nelson ). Sbraccia and Nelson later won
4988-622: The promotion is hired by a school or private organization, and then continuously promote upcoming events from these shows. Within a few years, Rumble had carved out a sizable territory and was promoting shows throughout New England. While Rumble had already been a highly recognizable personality from his years in IWCCW, he also started a Public-access television show, Mass Madness , produced by Pat Doyle. The series had fairly high quality production and featured not only televised wrestling events but also comedic "wrap-around segments". One of these segments, "Tony Rumble's Mike Lano Chronicles", featured
5074-403: The promotion joined the National Wrestling Alliance. Rumble, having seen them perform in IWCCW, had also used future Extreme Championship Wrestling stars The Tazmaniac and Tommy Dreamer . In fact, Dreamer became the promotion's first heavyweight champion when he defeated Tony Atlas in a tournament final in Wallingford, Connecticut on 5 November 1992. On 3 January 1993, The Tazmaniac became
5160-541: The promotion's website, wrote and designed arena programs, posters and tickets. Sheldon was very well-connected due to his newsletter and his position on the Board of Directors of the Cauliflower Alley Club. He proved a valuable addition to the company and was especially involved in the promotion's association with the NWA. Sheldon would later become close friends with its president Howard Brody. Other important members were Patrick Doyle, television producer of Mass Madness , and Boston radio personality Jeff Katz. The promotion
5246-421: The promotion. His inexperience, both as a wrestler and businessman hindered Dellagatta's efforts as well increased competition from rival promotions desperate to take the promotion's top spot in New England. Another factor was the rapidly changing business during " the Attitude Era " instigated by Extreme Championship Wrestling, and later imitated by the World Wrestling Federation. The "sold shows", which had been
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#17329088823805332-457: The referee did not see it. During his time with the NWA, Atlas captured the NWA Georgia Tag Team Title with Tommy Rich. He later teamed with Mr. Wrestling II , Thunderbolt Patterson , Kevin Sullivan , and Rocky Johnson. In 1982, he wrestled for New Japan Pro-Wrestling . From 1982 to 1983 he wrestled for Bill Watts 's Universal Wrestling Federation . Then from 1983 to 1984 he returned to Georgia and wrestled in St. Louis. Atlas debuted in
5418-436: The referees while Rumble snuck back in and eliminated the last man Beau Douglas. Rumble ended up winning the match making Ortiz submit to an Elevated Boston crab . At the start of the match, the referee was seen taking money from Johnny Fabulous in exchange for a priority mail envelope alleged to have medical records related to an injury Ortiz had recently suffered. He was also observed making deliberate "slow counts" throughout
5504-477: The rival promotion at this event. On 25 November 2006, in Saugus, Massachusetts , the 7th annual 2006 Tony Rumble Memorial featured several independent stars such as Wagner Brown, Scott Grimes and Millennium Wrestling Federation manager Johnny Fabulous, father of WWE wrestler John Cena . In the opening bout, Rumble had also won the Cruiserweight and X-Division titles in a five-way match between TNT, "Black Lotus" Matt Ledge, Paul Hudson and Cameron Matthews. On
5590-549: The semi-main event, Luiz Ortiz defeated Beau Douglas for the vacant NWA New England Championship. During the annual battle royal, the veteran members eliminated the newer NWA members then stopped the battle royal to address the crowd with their fondest memories of Tony Rumble. At the conclusion of the night's events, Rumble's grandson Hunter was invited to the ring where he was given a baseball cap by Bull Montana. The MWF also held theirs weeks earlier, in association with AWA Superstars of Wrestling , at MWF Soul Survivor 2005 and which
5676-407: The title to Adrian Adonis and Dick Murdoch and missing shows due to drug addiction, Atlas' final match was on May 16, 1984, in Lacey Township, New Jersey. Two months after departing the World Wrestling Federation, Atlas resurfaced in Verne Gagne 's AWA . He made his debut on July 13 at a house show in Denver, Colorado, and defeated Chris Markoff . At the time the AWA was being raided for talent by
5762-448: The title to Rumble six years before in Nashville, Tennessee . Matt Ledge also won the NWA New England Cruiserweight title in a five-way elimination match against Legion Cage, Paul Hudson, Cameron Matthews and Scotty Vegas. That same day, it was announced that NWA New England was leaving the National Wrestling Alliance after nearly a decade under its banner, returning to its original Century Wrestling Alliance name. Its last advertised event,
5848-424: The title. Steele also threatened Rumble in a post-match interview, "promising to return to New England in the near future for revenge". During 1999, Mass Madness was eventually shown on regular broadcast television via independent UHF television station WNDS, out of Derry, New Hampshire . The show changed its format and, after 16 weeks, the station wanted to change the arraignment and be paid in order to air
5934-463: The undercard, Antonio Thomas defeated "Future Legend" Luke Robinson. Earlier in the night, two different matches were held to determine the opponents of NWA New England Heavyweight Champion Louis Ortiz in the main event. Wagner Brown defeated Beau Douglas and Scott Hanson in a triple threat match, and "Boston Bad Boy" Jason Rumble won a Royal Rumble-styled battle royal. Although Rumble had been eliminated, along with Todd Hanson, Johnny Fabulous distracted
6020-414: The undercard, saw The Brotherhood (Erich Sbraccia & Knuckles Nelson ) defeat NWA World Tag Team Champions NWA All-Star 's The Border Patrol (Agent Gunn and Agent Maxx) in an interpromotional four corners match with NWA Southwest's Team Extreme (Kit Carson and Khris Germany) and special guests Tully Blanchard and Dr. Tom Prichard . Barry Windham was originally scheduled to team with Blanchard but
6106-407: The upstart American Wrestling Federation (AWF). He teamed with Koko B Ware to face Greg Valentine and Tommy Rich for the vacant AWF Tag-Team Championship. Apart from his AWF appearances Atlas wrestled primarily with the CWA in 1995 through 1997. On July 11, 1999, he teamed with Tito Santana to defeat Salvatore Bellomo and Jay Love at WXW Sportsfest 1999 in Allentown, Pennsylvania. He made
6192-607: The vacant title at the supercard Extreme Revenge in Bellingham, Massachusetts. The title was eventually merged with the NWW Heavyweight Championship when Bidondi failed to arrive for a match against NWW Champion Beau Douglas at another supercard, Summer Blackout , in Attleboro, Massachusetts on 20 August, which ended the working partnership between the two promotions. The previous month, Adam Booker beat Beau Douglas in
6278-501: The victory. Atlas then announced Henry the winner of the bout, although the official result was a double countout. This is also the first time since his brief stint in WCW in 1992 that Atlas has worked as a heel , as he would then become Henry's manager. Atlas helped Mark Henry retain his title at SummerSlam by disqualification, attacking Matt Hardy once a win by Hardy appeared to be imminent. Atlas also helped Henry retain his championship on
6364-527: The winner receives a match against the NWA New England Heavyweight Champion in the main event. This event should not be confused with a separate version held by the Millennium Wrestling Federation which, although is also held as a tribute to Tony Rumble, has no connection to NWA New England and is held at their supercard Soul Survivor . Tony Atlas Anthony White (born April 23, 1954) better known by his ring name Tony Atlas
6450-532: Was also featured in Ringside Wrestling . On 24 January 1998, the Century Wrestling Alliance became an official affiliate for National Wrestling Alliance and renamed NWA New England, as was its titles. The secondary CWA New England title, previously held by Tony Rumble, would be merged with the main CWA Heavyweight title to create a new NWA New England Heavyweight Championship. The Light Heavyweight title
6536-550: Was assisted by outside interference from A.J. Styles and Mortimer Plumtree on Reynolds' behalf which backfire allowing him the victory. On 6 April 2003, NWA New England held a fundraiser at Riverside Middle School in Riverside, Rhode Island for victims and families of the Station nightclub fire , the proceeds later being donated to related charities. The event also featured Jonah from WWE Tough Enough 3 who wrestled Jason Rumble in
6622-592: Was defeated by Tom Zenk in Chicago, IL on October 31, 1992. Atlas entered the King of Cable tournament but was defeated by Big Van Vader in the quarterfinals. On the house show circuit he continued his partnership with the Barbarian and received title matches against Ricky Steamboat and Shane Douglas , but were unsuccessful in obtaining the NWA/WCW Tag-Team Championship. On January 2, 1993, Atlas entered
6708-406: Was headlined by Kevin Sullivan, still a booker at WCW, and had held the heavyweight title for the past two years. He would eventually be stripped of the title after losing a Loser-Must-Retire match against Chris Benoit on 14 July 1997. Rumble was so impressed by Goldberg that he offered him a position as the official CWA Commissioner. Goldberg oversaw merchandise sales at house shows, but also ran
6794-523: Was initially charged with first-degree murder but was later reduced and tried for involuntary homicide. Both Atlas and Mantel appeared in 2019's Dark Side of the Ring episode on Bruiser Brody and explained what actually happened. Atlas said that he was asked to be in the trial but never got a call back because the case was already finalized. Atlas then moved on to Southern Ontario area in late 1988. He joined International Championship Wrestling (owned and operated by Mario Savoldi) where he turned heel and under
6880-741: Was not a fully trained referee at the time. Fuller remained in the promotion during the next year eventually winning the heavyweight title from Beau Douglas in Woonsocket, Rhode Island on 13 July 2002. On 22 November 2002, the first annual Tony Rumble Memorial Show was held at the Wrestleplex in Woonsocket, the first of several tribute shows held in Tony Rumble's memory during the next five years. The "Tony Rumble Memorial Battle Royal won by 2nd Generation Brotherhood Member BIG DA The DarkAngel" would be introduced
6966-616: Was present at the NWA 50th Anniversary Show , held at the Cherry Hill Hilton's "Crystal Ballroom" in Cherry Hill, New Jersey , on 24 October 1998. The first match was a three-way dance between Tre, Ray Odyssey and The Inferno Kid for the NWA New England Junior Heavyweight Championship which lasted a little over 12 minutes and ended by count-out, allowing Tre to retain the title. The second match, part of
7052-655: Was renamed as an NWA cruiserweight championship. In addition, several new titles were introduced including the Brass Knuckles and Women's titles. Tournaments were held for several of these new titles. On 17 January 1998, Erich Sbraccia defeated Vic Steamboat to win the NWA New England Heavyweight title in Southbridge, Massachusetts . Violet Flame defeated Amanda Storm for the women's title in Bridgeport, Connecticut on 15 October 1999, and Mike Johnson defeated Trooper Gilmore for
7138-694: Was spotted in the crowd and cheering for Maivia. Atlas was shown on RAW once more, again cheering for Maivia on the March 31 edition when Maivia wrestled Bret Hart . Atlas was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2006 by S. D. Jones . Atlas appeared on the July 8, 2008, airing of ECW where Theodore Long appointed him the special guest ring announcer for the main event featuring Tommy Dreamer with then-babyface, Colin Delaney in his corner against then-heel, ECW Champion Mark Henry . Atlas attacked Delaney, which in turn distracted Dreamer, allowing Henry to gain
7224-541: Was unable to attend. Rumble had been the manager and cornerman for both events. The Brotherhood continued to defend the World titles, as well as the NWA New England versions, and included other members, most notably Dukes Dalton and Rick Fuller , who substituted for Sbraccia when he was injured. Fuller and Knuckles Nelson eventually lost the titles to The Public Enemy at a house show in Bolton, Massachusetts on 17 June 1999. Also on
7310-587: Was won by Ox Baker . On 30 July 2006, NWA New England was subjected to an "invasion" by Collision Pro Wrestling (now ACID Wrestling) after inviting promoter Brian Reese and the CPW roster to promote their organization at an event held at Sanford Sound's 10th Annual Bikini Car Wash in Sanford, Maine. Reese and his roster mocked the promotion announced their intention to "destroy NWA New England". Three NWA New England members, two of which were Gino Bauer and Barry Ace, defected to
7396-469: Was won by CWA alumni Bull Montana by eliminating The Outpatient. Montana had been Rumble's best friend and best man at his wedding. During 2004 and early 2005, NWA New England became affiliated with another local promotion, New World Wrestling, and had together co-promoted the tribute show. The Colonial title was soon being defended in both promotions. On 5 February 2005, "Bionic" Dan Bidondi defeated Chris Blackheart, "Gorgeous" Donny Rotten and Don Vega for
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