Mid 20th Century
45-548: The FMW/WEW Hardcore Championship was a hardcore wrestling championship contested in Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling . Hardcore wrestling 1970s and 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s and 2020s Hardcore wrestling is a form of professional wrestling where disqualifications, count-outs, and all other different rules do not apply. Taking place in usual or unusual environments, hardcore wrestling matches allow
90-680: A feud between Colón and Flair, which included a skit where the NWA champion criticized Capitol's title claiming that he was the only "real world champion", leading to a steel cage match to determine the "undisputed champion of the Universe". The encounter headlined an event held in Bayamón on December 18, 1983. Colón won cleanly, and the WWC World Heavyweight Championship was renamed to Universal Heavyweight Championship as
135-585: A referee was present to make the pinfall . The OVW Hardcore Championship had a trashcan passed from wrestler to wrestler rather than a belt. The GHC Openweight Hardcore Championship had a unique stipulation in that if a challenger who was outweighed by the champion survived 15 minutes, he won the match and the title. Carlos Col%C3%B3n, Sr. Mid 20th Century 1970s and 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s and 2020s Carlos Edwin Colón González Sr. (born July 18, 1948)
180-408: A rematch the following month. At Aniversario 2013 he teamed with Stacy Colón and defeated José Huertas González and "La Tigresa" Soldelina Vargas. Colón announced another short-lived retirement. He returned at Lockout 2013, resuming this feud by losing to Huertas González in an ambulance match, with both wrestling a no contest at Euphoria 2014. Colón's name began being rumored as a possible inductee to
225-611: A result. In subsequent interviews, Flair has stated that the NWA title was not on the line for this match because an official unification was proposed, but he vetoed it. On January 24, 1993, Colón made a one-night return to the WWF, then known by the abbreviated name World Wrestling Federation, making an appearance in the Royal Rumble . After this, he decided to temporarily retire from professional wrestling, choosing to help train his sons, Carly , and Eddie , who have followed Colón into
270-681: Is a Puerto Rican wrestling promoter and retired professional wrestler, better known as Carlitos Colón or simply Carlos Colón . He is, along with Victor Jovica , an owner of the Puerto Rican wrestling promotion World Wrestling Council (WWC), where he has held the WWC Universal Heavyweight Championship a record 26 times. He is the patriarch of the Colón wrestling family, composed of his sons Carlos and Eddie , daughter Stacy and nephew Orlando . In 2014, he
315-468: Is also the father of his nephew and fellow wrestler, Orlando Colón , known by the ring name of Epico. Colón's career has left him with over 70 scars on his forehead. He has publicly stated that he exhibits them with pride, considering them the proof that reflects the arduous work done during all of the bloody bouts in which he has been involved. Colón is WWE's representative in Puerto Rico, promoting
360-427: Is often separated into distinct "levels" based on the graphic nature of the match: Hardcore matches tend to emphasize the use of certain weapons, the brutality of the attacks, moderate brawling techniques, and the extreme physical toll on the wrestlers, and thus many euphemisms for these matches are employed. The almost kayfabe -breaking accessibility of some of these weapons—often under the ring—to wrestlers has led to
405-776: The Texas and Florida territories, dating from the 1950s. (The Texas title was taken by World Class Championship Wrestling when it split away). Brawling continued to evolve and grow in popularity in America through the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. The Detroit territory was home to The Sheik , Abdullah the Butcher and Bobo Brazil , and featured long, bloody brawls. The Puerto Rico territory featured Carlos Colón , The Invader and Abdullah, and introduced fire as an element of violence. The Memphis territory featured Jerry Lawler , Terry Funk , Eddie Gilbert and Bill Dundee and introduced
450-491: The WWE Hall of Fame in late 2011. Despite expressing joy at the idea of accompanying Pedro Morales , he dismissed this as a rumor and noted that WWE personnel had not formally contacted him. Ultimately, the 2012 Class did not include him. The following year, Eddie and Orlando Colón noted that they supported a potential induction. On March 11, 2014, Colón was officially announced as part of that year's class. He considered it
495-546: The "realization of a dream" and admitted that at one point, he began to doubt that he was ever being inducted. This class was completed by The Ultimate Warrior , Jake Roberts , Lita , Paul Bearer , and Mr. T . He was inducted by his sons Eddie and Carly, and nephew, Orlando in the official ceremony held at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Louisiana . Colón became the third Puerto Rican inducted,
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#1732798053105540-495: The American South. New match types were devised that resembled street fighting , such as matches which were held in a cage , Texas Deathmatches which incorporated weapons, and Lights Out matches which were 'unsanctioned' and took place after the rest of the scheduled card, once the house lights had briefly been turned off to signify the end of the event. The National Wrestling Alliance had brass knuckles championships in
585-816: The Hardcore-style matches that emphasize the spirit of JCW. Other euphemisms, such as the Good Housekeeping match and Full Metal Mayhem, emphasize the use of certain foreign objects as being legal (the former with kitchen implements and the latter with metallic objects). In a Fans Bring the Weapons match, wrestlers fight with "weapons" that members of the audience bring to the venue (most often brought are standard kitchen household appliances, like frying pans, toasters, or rolling pins, although its not unusual that fans occasionally bring in items that are far more improbable, like an artificial leg or LEGO); this
630-576: The Japanese promotions. A new gimmick , breaking wooden tables , was introduced to ECW through Sabu , nephew of The Sheik. Sabu had developed a gimmick of throwing himself through a propped-up table in Japan in order to entertain the crowd and get his character over as a wild and possibly insane man. He then started to put opponents through tables, a relatively safe spot which looked and sounded devastating. He brought it with him to ECW, where it became
675-507: The NWA, the company changed its name to Extreme Championship Wrestling, and became the leading independent hardcore wrestling federation in North America. ECW coined the term "hardcore wrestling", but its usage there was slightly different from how it is used today. In ECW, 'hardcore' referred to a strong work ethic , high levels of effort, dedication to the fans, and lack of fluff or filler. Their level of violence rarely equaled that of
720-481: The Puerto Rican Sports Hall of Fame (Spanish: Pabellón de la Fama del Deporte Puertorriqueño) in 2023, a number of athletes from other sports supported his inclusion, including baseball player Yadier Molina , judo Panamerican champion Luis Martínez , basketball players Julio Toro and Ricardo Dalmau and Olympic medalist Jaime Espinal . All of them justified his inclusion by suggesting that while
765-535: The United States, two independent promotions had brief but significant runs, serving as prototypes for Extreme Championship Wrestling. The Philadelphia-based Tri-State Wrestling Alliance held occasional supercards that featured big name stars among their own local talent, and showcased wild bloody main event brawls with Abdullah the Butcher, The Sheik, Jesse James Sr. and others. The National Wrestling Federation (formerly known as Continental Wrestling Alliance)
810-589: The World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment, ladder matches , which had become more common, were now combined with tables and weapons matches to create Tables, Ladders, and Chairs matches . ECW influenced wrestling organizations such as Xtreme Pro Wrestling , International Wrestling Syndicate , IWA Mid-South , Combat Zone Wrestling , and Juggalo Championship Wrestling , which carried on ECW's violent style after it went defunct. Hardcore wrestling has fallen out of favor in
855-439: The advent of the now common "no holds barred" match marked the beginning of what is now known as hardcore wrestling. Methods were devised for wrestlers to make themselves bleed purposefully as part of their performance. During the 1950s and 1960s wrestlers such as "Wild Bull" Curry , "Classy" Freddie Blassie , Dory Funk, Sr. and Giant Baba were among those who introduced the bloody brawling style which caught on in Japan and
900-406: The belt back in a phantom title change that took place on January 23, 1983. Later that year, Colón required hospitalization due to injury following a match against Bruiser Brody. This loss was publicized and made the covers of El Nuevo Día and El Vocero , both of which are mainstream newspapers. Two weeks later, Colón defeated Brody in a rematch. In December 1983, Capitol Sports Promotions began
945-483: The empty arena match and fighting among the crowd into the concession stands , improvising attacks with whatever appliances could be found. More specialties such as ladder matches , scaffold matches and Dog Collar matches were introduced. The NWA eventually instituted a World Brass Knuckles Championship , which was active in the Tennessee territory from 1978 to 1980. In 1989, Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling (FMW)
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#1732798053105990-503: The first being Morales and the second being New York-born Johnny Rodz . WWC held a series of homages, the first of which was held by his immediate family. A more formal ceremony was held on March 30, 2014, and included the participation of long-time rival Chicky Starr, who participated in a skit where he expressed his respect and ended their animosity. The promotion went on to announce a Puerto Rico-wide tour, "La Despedida de Carlitos Colón", which would mark Colón's final retirement. Colón
1035-620: The focus of a feud involving multiple teams. The table spot became a staple of ECW events, and has become so commonplace that it is now incorporated into otherwise non-hardcore matches in almost every promotion. In Japan, hardcore promotions sprang up around the country, including Wrestling International New Generations W*ING , the International Wrestling Association of Japan and Big Japan Pro Wrestling . New elements included fluorescent light tubes, scattered thumb tacks , flaming ropes and live piranhas . In
1080-480: The following three years, with Montreal as his place of residence. Feeling homesick and noticing a void in the Puerto Rican wrestling scene, Colón returned to Puerto Rico in 1973. Colón and Croatian-born wrestler Victor Jovica founded a promotional company, Capitol Sports Promotions , which aired wrestling television shows each Saturday and Sunday on WAPA-TV . He wrestled during a time where local stars such as Barrabas, Black Georgie, and Miguel Pérez Sr. shared
1125-424: The heel faction, Colón joined Gilbert Cruz and Ray González in a three-on-three match against his son, López and Germán Figueroa , but his team lost. On February 9, 2013, he lost to Savio Vega in a match for WWC's ownership. This evolved into a feud with the heel faction, while a secondary storyline involved a legal battle over the promotion. Colón defeated José Huertas González to recover ownership of WWC, but lost
1170-592: The house shows held by the company there. He has appeared on WWE programming, including the December 24, 2009, episode of WWE Superstars where he supported Eddie, known as Primo in WWE. Afterward, Colón made another appearance for WWE, attending its 2012 WWE Hall of Fame ceremony. He attended as a guest of his son and nephew, who held the WWE Tag Team Championship at that time. Colón's main interest
1215-689: The major American promotions; the last major hardcore title was the WWE Hardcore Championship , which merged into the Intercontinental Title in 2002. However, WWE still features a yearly pay per view event based around hardcore wrestling called WWE Extreme Rules . In 2006, the MTV -affiliated promotion/show Wrestling Society X featured hardcore wrestling, but was cancelled after one season. The main rule behind hardcore can have various connotations. Thus, hardcore wrestling
1260-714: The mid-1990s, FMW eventually held female hardcore matches at the suggestion of Megumi Kudo . The first one was held between Megumi Kudo and Combat Toyoda as a deathmatch where the ring ropes were replaced with electrified barbed-wire with explosives. After the match, many female wrestlers had various brutal and bloody deathmatches in FMW with barbed-wire ropes, barbed-wire barricades, exploding barbed-wire barricades, electrified/exploding barbed-wire ropes, broken glass, or mixtures of any and all these. These matches often included various dangerous weapons such as barbed-wire wrapped chains, flaming barbed-wire baseball bats, and sickles . Most of
1305-928: The noun "plunder" in reference to them. For example, Street Fights and Bunkhouse Brawls are hardcore-style matches which emphasize that wrestlers need not be in typical wrestling gear when they are battling, while the No Holds Barred match emphasizes the no-disqualification rule, the "HardKore X-Treme matches are the version of hardcore rules match except weapons include flaming tables, flaming chairs, flaming weapons, razor wire, sheets of glass, and weapons that are covered in barbed wire, and Deathmatches that emphasize fluorescent light tubes, panes of glass, barbed wire, fire, thumbtacks, razor blades, gusset plates, syringes, needles, explosives, bed of nails, staple guns, concrete blocks, alive piranhas and all other foreign objects to provoke extreme and heavy bleeding. In WWE , Extreme Rules matches are hardcore-style matches that emphasize
1350-604: The occasional wrestling match. His first bout occurred in Boston, Massachusetts , on February 16, 1966, when he wrestled Hobo Brazil. Colon was paid US$ 15.00 for his participation in his first match. He eventually became an itinerant wrestler in the eastern states of the United States and in Canada, including 1 match in the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF) in December 1967, and several in 1968. Over
1395-421: The outcomes of professional wrestling matches is predetermined, it still requires physical exertion and conditioning, general athleticism and at least a basic knowledge of actual grappling. Basketball coach Wilhelmus Caanen considered Colón “Tito Trinidad before Tito Trinidad”, in reference to former boxing world champion Félix Trinidad , whose wins would often gather impromptu celebrations on a massive scale during
FMW/WEW Hardcore Championship - Misplaced Pages Continue
1440-413: The ridiculousness they involved. Hardcore contrasts with traditional mat-based wrestling, where solid technical skills are preferred over hardcore's stuntworks, blood, sweat, gore, and severe shock value . As professional wrestling entered the mid 20th century, promoters and performers looked for ways to heighten audience excitement. Blood , while initially taboo , was found to be a significant draw, and
1485-483: The spirit of its former competitor, Extreme Championship Wrestling . Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW) dubs the Hardcore match as " Ultraviolent Rules " match, the hardcore-style matches that could involve and emphasize ladders, tables, chairs, thumbtacks, barbed wire, light tubes, glass boards, fire, staple guns, and the spirits of Combat Zone Wrestling . In Juggalo Championship Wrestling (JCW), " Juggalo Rules " match,
1530-714: The sport. Carlos Colón appeared on the September 11, 2006, episode of WWE Raw from Madison Square Garden in the audience cheering his son Carly, known as Carlito in WWE. He also negotiated a deal for his other son Eddie Colón to work for World Wrestling Entertainment. Colón held a retirement ceremony at Aniversario 2008 , which was organized in the José Miguel Agrelot Coliseum on July 19, 2008. However, Colón left this retirement on September 8, 2012, defeating Félix "Barrabás" López in his return. After Carly Colón turned on him and gained control of
1575-440: The spotlight with international wrestlers such as Argentine-born Rocca, Cuban-born Huracán Castillo and others. He set the stage for local stars such as Los Super Médicos, Los Invaders and Chicky Starr to develop. His wrestling company was also responsible for inviting major American wrestling stars such as Randy Savage , Ric Flair , Bruiser Brody , Stan Hansen and others to wrestle in Puerto Rico. The nemesis of Colón's character
1620-596: The use of numerous items, including ladders, tables, chairs, thumbtacks, barbed wire, light tubes, shovels, glass, baseball bats (sometimes wrapped in barbed wire) and other improvised weapons used as foreign objects . Although hardcore wrestling is a staple of most wrestling promotions, where they are often used at the climaxes of feuds , some promotions (such as Big Japan Pro Wrestling , International Wrestling Syndicate , IWA-MS , Game Changer Wrestling , Combat Zone Wrestling ) specialize in hardcore wrestling, with many matches performed in this manner. Hardcore wrestling
1665-569: The wrestlers who competed in these deathmatches, including some non-FMW rosters such as Shinobu Kandori , Lioness Asuka , and Mayumi Ozaki , were sent to the hospital afterwards. ECW's popularity led to the major American promotions of the 1990s, World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Federation , creating divisions devoted exclusively to "hardcore" wrestling (which mostly amounted to no-disqualification weapons matches). The divisions were at first largely centered around ECW alumni such as Mick Foley , Terry Funk, Raven and Sandman . In
1710-509: Was Abdullah the Butcher , with whom he staged a long-standing feud which lasted almost two decades. Colón is quoted as saying: "Eighty percent of the blood I've shed in the ring I've shed because of Abdullah." On January 6, 1983, Colón defeated Ric Flair in a match for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship . However, the outcome of this match was not made official or aired on NWA television. Flair received
1755-471: Was based in New York state. Both TWA and NWF featured Larry Winters and D. C. Drake , who engaged in a long blood feud. The two promotions ended about the same time, and National Wrestling Alliance Eastern Championship Wrestling took their place, with many of the same wrestlers and venues. Eddie Gilbert was the initial booker, and was replaced a few months later by Paul Heyman . After splitting off from
1800-577: Was born in the Jauca Ward of Santa Isabel an agricultural community in southern Puerto Rico. One of seven children, he emigrated to Brooklyn, New York in 1961 along with the rest of the family led there by his mother, Esther González. Colón is married to a Canadian national named Nancy, who is the mother of his children, Carly , Eddie , Stacy, and Melissa. He is the brother of accountant José Colón, who has made several non-wrestling appearances in WWC and
1845-542: Was first acknowledged as a major wrestling style in Japan with promotions such as Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling and W*ING . It then became successful in America with Extreme Championship Wrestling . The World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment capitalized on the success and introduced the WWF Hardcore Championship in the 1990s. The WWF soon began to turn the matches into comedy skits, illustrating
FMW/WEW Hardcore Championship - Misplaced Pages Continue
1890-503: Was founded in Japan, the first promotion dedicated largely to the wild brawling style. In the early 1990s, the Puerto Rican promoter Víctor Quiñones arrived in Japan, being invited to FMW as the special manager. FMW escalated the violence to legitimately dangerous new levels, with barbed wire ropes, timed C4 explosives , exploding wire ropes, and " land mines ", known as "deathmatch". The federation featured many future North American stars, and became very popular worldwide. Soon after, in
1935-508: Was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame and the following year into the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame . Due to his admiration for wrestlers Antonino Rocca and Miguel Pérez , Colón became a member at the gym they trained at in New York, practicing wrestling moves and cleaning the place occasionally to pay his dues. His dedication and affability helped him gain the respect of his peers, as well as
1980-534: Was popularized in the United States by ECW and is now a specialty in CZW. Below is a list of some common weapons. In promotions where Hardcore wrestling is present, a Hardcore title may come into existence. This form of title is defended under hardcore rules, and title changes are frequent. Some hardcore titles may have their own unique rules. For example, the WWE Hardcore Championship was defended under 24/7 rules, meaning it could be defended and won at any time, provided
2025-483: Was to see the inductions of Yokozuna and Mil Máscaras , both of whom worked for him in Capitol Sports Promotions. Colón was in the building the night that Bruiser Brody was killed. Colón testified on behalf of José González , who had killed Brody during a dressing-room altercation, and continued to employ him for many years after the event. When Colón was first nominated for induction into
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