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Wrestling for a Cause

Wrestling for a Cause

Posted: Aug 8th 2017 By: Max Brian, hotsr.com

A charitable wrestling event will make its way into the Spa City next month.

Wrestle Raise III, an event put on by Championship Wrestling of Arkansas, aims to draw wrestling fans from across the region to Hall D of the Hot Springs Convention Center on Sept. 16. This year's event, which gives 100 percent of its net profit to a disadvantaged individual or family each year, will be the first one held in Hot Springs.

Matt Riviera, one of the featured wrestlers in the event, said that he and other CWA wrestlers created Wrestle Raise to bring live wrestling to their home state and raise money for people in need. The first Wrestle Raise event benefitted a girl with leukemia; the second, a family that had lost their house in a fire.

"It's a win-win," Riviera said. "We get to do what we love to do and entertain people, and raise money for someone who truly needs it."

Wrestle Raise III will benefit Abby McKenzie, a 10-year-old girl from East End with a rare PI3K pathway disease. The event will feature a headlining match between Tim Storm and Jerry "The King" Lawler, as well as matches between CWA wrestlers such as Riviera and Chavo Guerrero Jr.
The initial two Wrestle Raise events were held in the Maumelle Event Center in North Little Rock. Riviera said that the move to Hot Springs was a strategic one.

"We like to take these shows to destination cities," he said. "We have fans that usually attend these things from out of state. Some fans will drive six or seven hours. Well, they can bring their family and make this a complete day of entertainment. They can go do things in the city during the day -- Magic Springs, so forth -- and then they can come to our event at night."

Riviera described the Wrestle Raise events as entertainment that is "fun for the entire family," and serves to promote this concept by not serving alcohol. He also said that Wrestle Raise has grown in popularity due to where their net profits go.

"The fans feel like they're already part of the cause because every ticket that is purchased goes toward raising that money," he said.

Riviera said that he and his fellow wrestlers decided to raise money for McKenzie after a woman approached him and told him about the possibility of supporting her through the event.

"She said, 'Do you guys have someone for your next event, for the funds to go to?' I said, 'No, ma'am, we don't.' She said, 'Well, I know a young lady from East End, Ark., that I think would be perfect,'" Riviera said. "The rest is history."

McKenzie's mother, Michelle, said that her daughter is one of only 36 people in the world with her kind of PI3K pathway disease. She said that the disease keeps her daughter's immune system from producing antibodies or remembering how to fight viruses. She said her lymph nodes grow rapidly under certain conditions, leading to blockage of her respiratory airways.

Because of her disease, Abby McKenzie has had 30 surgeries and is currently unable to attend school.

Michelle McKenzie said that CWA's interest in putting on the event was "completely humbling."
"It was a surprise, to say the least," she said.

Riviera describes Abby McKenzie as a bright girl with a quick wit. He was enthusiastic about raising money for her.

"This little girl has more charisma than most wrestlers I know," he said.

Michelle McKenzie hopes that the event helps acknowledge her daughter and children like her, who have what she called an "invisible illness." She also hopes that her daughter can enjoy the event, as she is unable to attend many like it.

"I hope she just has fun," Michelle McKenzie said. "She doesn't get to go out a whole lot, she doesn't get to meet a lot of people, especially in crowded places, because we take a chance with her getting sick."

Riviera hopes that many others will enjoy Wrestle Raise III, as well. He said that the event will bring excitement not experienced outside of a live setting.

"There's a lot of things nowadays that could keep you at the house, but I assure you that if you leave your home and you come out and you buy this ticket, you will not regret it," he said.

 

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Spotlight in History

  • 1974 Fritz Von Erich def. The Texan for the WCCW American Heavyweight Champion
  • 1981 The Grappler & The Super Destroyer became the MSW Mid-South Tag Team Champion
  • 1998 The Texas Outlaws (Bobby Burns & Dan Wilder) def. Generation X (Ian St. James & Zane Morris) for the OPW Oklahoma Tag Team Champion
  • 2004 Ty Magnus def. Bernie Donderwitz for the ACW Hardcore Champion
  • 2004 Li'l Joe def. Ty Magnus for the ACW Hardcore Champion
  • 2009 Sage became the OECW Cruiserweight Champion
  • 2021 Blade [2nd] def. Drake Gallows for the AIWF National Champion
  • 2021 Los Loco Moscas/Rejecs LM (Elijah Sparks & El Greengo Loco/Doctor Corvus) def. DNR (Drake Gallows & Revan) for the EPW Tag Team Champions
  • 2021 Kevin James Sanchez def. Double D for the EPW Heavyweight Champion

Week of Sun 04-14 to Sat: 04-20

  • 04-14 1959 Frankie Kovacs & Gino Angelo became the TSW Louisiana Tag Team Champion
  • 04-14 1980 Toru Tanaka def. Bruiser Brody for the WCCW Texas Brass Knuckles Champion
  • 04-14 1989 Jerry Lawler def. Kerry Von Erich for the WCCW World Champion
  • 04-14 2006 Al Farat became the AACW Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-14 2006 Trailer Park Trash (J. C. & K. C.) became the AACW Tag Team Champions
  • 04-14 2007 Slam Shady became the NWA-U Oklahoma Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-14 2007 Justin Lee def. Shane Morbid for the NWA-U X Division Champion
  • 04-14 2018 Spyder def. Ray Martinez for the BPW Oklahoma Champion
  • 04-14 2018 Blue Thunder & The Unknown def. Big Smooth & Zakk Sinizter for the NAW Tag Team Champions
  • 04-14 2019 Marti Belle became the WCR Diamond Division Champion
  • 04-14 2023 Roll Modelz (Malik Mayfield & Olivier Vegos) def. Urban Dominance (Drake Gallows & Skylar Slice) for the CPW Tag Team Champions
  • 04-15 1955 Mike Clancy became the TSW Oklahoma Junior Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-15 1958 Fritz Von Erich def. Bull Curry for the WCCW Texas Brass Knuckles Champion
  • 04-15 1977 Bruiser Brody & Mike York def. Jose Lothario & Cien Caras for the WCCW Texas Tag Team Champion
  • 04-15 2005 Dirty Harry Sanchez def. Luc Lapointe for the SRPW Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-15 2012 Jerry Bostic def. Javi Hernandez for the UWF06 Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-15 2012 K-Ro became the UWF06 Texhoma Champion
  • 04-15 2016 Revolution (Seth Allen & Dane Griffin) def. The Sons of Texas (Moonshine Mantell & Killer McKenzie) for the NWA-TXO Tag Team Champions
  • 04-15 2016 Killista def. Skylar Slice for the ComPro Oklahoma X Division Champion
  • 04-15 2016 Nathan Estrada def. Killista for the ComPro Oklahoma X Division Champion
  • 04-15 2017 Poder Oriental became the BMLL Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-15 2022 Derek James def. Tommy Dean for the BPW Lion Heart Champion
  • 04-15 2022 Revolution (Seth Allen & Dane Griffin) def. Doz Camachos (Onyx Camacho & Zarek Camacho) for the TexPro Tag Team Champions
  • 04-15 2022 Johnny Bedlam def. Adam Asher for the TexPro Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-15 2023 Olivier Vegos def. Evelyn Carter for the NCWO Women's Champion
  • 04-15 2023 Luke Richmond def. Jamie Holley for the NCWO United States Champion
  • 04-16 1983 Junkyard Dog became the MSW North American Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-16 2004 Brian Lakewood def. AWOL for the TPW Oklahoma Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-16 2005 John O'Malley became the NWA-U Oklahoma Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-16 2005 Dexter Hardaway became the NWA-U X Division Champion
  • 04-16 2005 Gary Gram became the NWA-U X Division Champion
  • 04-16 2005 Kevin Northcutt def. Tejas for the NWA Texas Champion
  • 04-16 2005 Tribal Force (Tim Warcloud & Tejas) def. The New Orleans Fight Club (Kevin Northcutt & John Saxon) for the NWA North American Tag Team Champion
  • 04-16 2021 Father Padge def. Shadow Gemini for the EPW Internet Television Champion
  • 04-17 1959 Dory Funk became the TSW Oklahoma Junior Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-17 2009 Texas, Inc. (Tim Rockwell & Bernard Funk) def. The Innovators (Anarchy [2nd] & Fuel) for the TAP Tag Team Champions
  • 04-17 2009 Seth Allen def. Carnage for the GPCW Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-17 2011 Double D became the MSWA Mid-South Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-17 2021 Space Age Cowboys (Jason Jones & Paul Puertorico) def. The Real Dirty Brawlers (Brawler Morrison & Thrash) for the WFC Tag Team Champions
  • 04-17 2021 Tommy Dean became the WFC Prime Champion
  • 04-18 1974 Fritz Von Erich def. The Texan for the WCCW American Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-18 1981 The Grappler & The Super Destroyer became the MSW Mid-South Tag Team Champion
  • 04-18 1998 The Texas Outlaws (Bobby Burns & Dan Wilder) def. Generation X (Ian St. James & Zane Morris) for the OPW Oklahoma Tag Team Champion
  • 04-18 2004 Ty Magnus def. Bernie Donderwitz for the ACW Hardcore Champion
  • 04-18 2004 Li'l Joe def. Ty Magnus for the ACW Hardcore Champion
  • 04-18 2009 Sage became the OECW Cruiserweight Champion
  • 04-18 2021 Blade [2nd] def. Drake Gallows for the AIWF National Champion
  • 04-18 2021 Los Loco Moscas/Rejecs LM (Elijah Sparks & El Greengo Loco/Doctor Corvus) def. DNR (Drake Gallows & Revan) for the EPW Tag Team Champions
  • 04-18 2021 Kevin James Sanchez def. Double D for the EPW Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-19 1957 Don Leo Jonathan def. Pepper Gomez for the WCCW Texas Brass Knuckles Champion
  • 04-19 1987 Bubba Rogers def. One Man Gang for the UWF Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-19 2008 New Canada (The Canadian Luchadore & The Canadian Red Devil) def. La M (El Choppo & Jesus Rodriguez) for the ComPro Tag Team Champions
  • 04-19 2008 The New Age Syndicate (Scott Sanders & Shawn Sanders) def. Nathan Sensation for the IZW Tag Team Champions
  • 04-19 2013 Bree Ann def. Barbi Hayden for the NWA-TXO Rose Champion
  • 04-19 2014 Aaron Anders def. Michael Wolf for the OWA Junior Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-19 2014 Jake O'Brien def. Brian Breaker for the OWA Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-19 2014 Tim Rockwell def. Jon Cross for the UWE Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-19 2014 Randy Price def. Drake Gallows for the IZW Impact Division Champion
  • 04-19 2014 Miss Diss Lexia def. Paige Turner for the IZW Queens Champion
  • 04-19 2014 Erica def. Miss Diss Lexia for the IZW Queens Champion
  • 04-19 2014 Brandon Groom def. Warhammer for the BPPW Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-20 1980 Toru Tanaka def. Kevin Von Erich for the WCCW American Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-20 2013 The Canadian Red Devil became the OWA Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-20 2013 Daemon Storm def. Justin Dynamic for the UWE United States Champion
  • 04-20 2018 Jack Swagger def. MVP for the IWR Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-20 2019 B. M. F. (Kareem Sadat & Maniac Mike) became the EmpCW Tag Team Champions
  • 04-20 2019 Double D became the EmpCW Heavyweight Champion
04-18
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  • Red Rojas Apr 18th Today!
  • Hillbilly Apr 19th
  • Bubba Sutton Apr 19th
  • Berto Del Rayo Apr 19th
  • John E. Stone Apr 19th
  • Jesse White Apr 19th
  • Seth Allen Apr 19th
  • Jeff Starchild Apr 19th
  • Ox Baker Apr 19th
  • Colt Storm Apr 20th
  • Guy Sterling Apr 20th
  • Vicki Williams Apr 21st
  • Jay Hollywood Apr 21st
  • Angelo Savoldi Apr 21st
  • Terry Gordy Apr 23rd
  • Tony Atlas Apr 23rd
  • Blade [2nd] Apr 23rd
  • Lou Thesz Apr 24th
  • Ethan Price Apr 24th
  • Lance Von Erich Apr 24th
  • Crash Davis Apr 25th
  • Walker Stewart Apr 25th
  • Bobby Joe Bristow Apr 25th
  • Zack Zilla Apr 25th
  • Eric Roberts Apr 25th
  • Brett Stopp Apr 25th
  • Carl Fergie Apr 25th
  • Justin Dynamic Apr 26th
  • Havoc Apr 26th
  • Karl Kox Apr 26th
  • Yasu Fuji Apr 27th
  • Siva Afi Apr 28th
  • Chance Snodgrass Apr 28th
  • Ichiban [2nd] Apr 28th
  • Sunshine Apr 29th
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  • Dustin Tibbs Apr 30th
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