CWA wrestling returns to Spa City
Over a year since their last show, Championship Wrestling of Arkansas is back, and this time they are crowning a state champion. CWA will return to the Hot Springs Convention Center on Oct. 12, for CWA Loyd’s Rumble, and tickets go on sale this Friday.
Three matches have been announced for the event. The feature bout will see Barrett Brown face Elijah “The Pope” Burke of WWE and Impact Wrestling fame. A grudge match between Arkansas’ own Matt Riviera and five time WCW World Tag Team Champion Buff “The Stuff” Bagwell has also been set. The other announced match is a battle royal featuring 15 wrestlers. The winner will be crowned the CWA Arkansas
Heavyweight Champion.
Other wrestlers set to appear include former NWA Worlds Heavyweight Champion, and fellow Arkansan, Tim Storm, Matt Boyce, Lily and Greg Anthony. WWE Hall of Famer (and WWE Champion Randy Orton’s father) “Cowboy” Bob Orton is also scheduled to make a “special guest appearance.”
Created in 2017, CWA produced five charity wrestling shows and raised over $20,000 for a variety of good causes before running their final show in May of 2018. Revived as a “fullfledged live event wrestling promotion,” as their website states, the company is back to present Arkansas quality wrestling in a family friendly environment.
Promoter Johnny Morton said all the wrestlers are glad to bring wrestling back to Arkansas and stressed this will be a family friendly event. There will be no alcohol at the show.
Morton described the promotion as “old school.” He said while the promotion will feature “some new school guys” - meaning more acrobatic, high flying wrestlers - Morton said they try to keep the promotion as old school as possible. This includes creating a state championship.
In the days before WWE went nationwide, wrestling had territories. While there was a national champion who would travel to each territory, each territory also had their own champion. “To be able to (crown) a CWA Arkansas Champion (is a) heck of a feeling,” Morton said.
By having an Arkansas Heavyweight Champion, they hope to be able to bring in even more talent from all over the country to challenge for the belt, he said.
One of the people fighting for the belt is former NWA World Tag Team Champion Riviera, who will be wrestling two matches that night. Riviera said he intends to leave Hot Springs with the belt and he is looking forward to his bout with Buff.
Riviera said he and Bagwell are “no strangers,” having faced each other several times across the mid-south. He said the most recent time they faced each other, Riviera “defeated him in Tennessee and I plan to do it again on Oct. 12.”
This will be Bagwell’s second appearance with CWA after he appeared at the first event. “The Stuff” said he is looking forward to the event, calling CWA one of the best independent wrestling promotions in the country.
“I’m excited to be back,” Bagwell said, noting he wanted to come back to CWA because he wants to help the people running the show. He said the company is run by “really good guys.”
On his match with Riviera, he said he is looking forward to facing Riviera once again, noting, “He’s a really good talent, he really is. I enjoy working with him.”
CWA, Riviera said, chose Hot Springs as the location of their return because the city was supportive of them in the past. “We were welcomed with open arms … Hot Springs has just been great for CWA,” Riviera said.
The event will be held at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 12. Tickets go for sale at 9 a.m. on Friday at https://www.cwatix.com.