A.J. Styles
ECWA puts on an annual tournament to determine who the best lightweight in North America is. Everyone watches this tournament for it's fast paced Super J style wrestling. Former winners of the tournament are Ace Darling, Simon Diamond, Steve Bradley, Christopher Daniels, and Low Ki. This event will take place on March 2, 2002 in Newport, DE. Read on for information on a New York City bus trip to this great independent event.
NOTABLE PAST ECWA SUPER 8 COMPETITORS
American Dragon, Billy Kidman, Christian York, Crowbar, Inferno Kid, Jeff Hardy, Jet Jaguar, Matt Hardy, Mike Quackenbush, Mike Sullivan, Reckless Youth, Scoot Andrews, Scotty Too Hotty (Scott Taylor), Shark Boy, Spanky Malone, Tony Kozina, and Trent Acid
THIS YEAR'S COMPETITORS
A.J. STYLES
Height: 5'9
Weight: 202lbs.
From: Atlanta, GA
Years Pro: 3
What are his aspirations?
"I would like to gain more experience by wrestling in Japan and other countries. I would also like to use the talent that GOD has given me to touch the lives of those who don't know him."
Resume: NWA Wildside, XWF, NWA Nashville, IPW Hardcore Wrestling, CWF, OMEGA, APW, WCW, WWF.
BOBBY RUDE
Height: 6'1
Weight 232lbs.
From: Toronto, Canada
Years Pro: 4
"The Natural" has the distinction of being the first ever Super 8 competitor from Canada. Trained by WWF superstar Val Venis and Shawn Sewell, Rude brings a technical mat-wrestling style to the table while finishing off opponents with the legendary Rude Awakening. A member of the SLAM! Wrestling Canadian Hall of Fame, Bobby Rude has held the Real Action Wrestling Heavyweight title four times and Atlantic Grand Prix's tag titles. In addition to those two Canadian promotions, Rude has worked for the WWF, WCW and the World Wrestling Council in Puerto Rico. Inspired by his trainer Venis, as well as Ric Flair and Curt Hennig, Bobby Rude aspires one day to work for the World Wrestling Federation but first looks to conquer the indies with a victory in the 6th Annual Super 8 Tournament.
Resume: RAW, AGPW, BCW, WWC, WCW, WWF.
DONOVAN MORGAN
Height: 6'0
Weight: 210lbs.
From: San Francisco, CA
Years Pro: 5
Trained by Michael Modest, "The Future Legend" Donovan Morgan is a veteran of the All-Pro Wrestling organization in his home state of California, having held their Heavyweight, Tag Team and Internet titles. He also served as Head Instructor at the group's Boot Camp Wrestling School in Hayward, CA from 1999 until 2001 and is currently an owner and instructor at Pro-Wrestling IRON with Modest in the same city. In addition to APW and various other promotions up-and-down the coast of California, Donovan Morgan has competed in the WWF, World Championship Wrestling and for Mitsuharu Misawa's Pro-Wrestling NOAH, located in Japan. It is there he hopes to one day capture tag team gold with his IRON co-owner. Morgan has feuded with the likes of 2000 Super 8 Champion Christopher Daniels and the WWF's Crash Holly, then known as Erin O' Grady. He has used the "Sayounara" finisher, a chicken wing pile driver, en route to numerous wins and was ranked in the 176th spot in this year's PWI 500.
Resume: APW, UPW, NAW, UWA, MCW, Pro Wrestling NOAH, WCW, WWF.
JAMIE KNOBLE
Height: 5'7
Weight: 180lbs.
From: Hanover, WV
Years Pro: 8
What are his aspirations?
"To become the WWF Light Heavyweight Champion and one day wrestle at Wrestlemania."
Resume: HWA, IPW Hardcore Wrestling, CCW, NWA Wildside, NWA Nashville, WPW, APW, WCW, WWF.
MATT STRYKER
Height: 5'10
Weight: 195
From: Cincinnati, OH
Years Pro: 4
Matt Stryker was trained by Les Thatcher and is a veteran of his promotion, Heartland Wrestling Alliance. He has held the group's Lightheavyweight championship on two occasions. Stryker offers a combination of aerial and mat wrestling and has feuded with 1999 Super 8 wrestler Chad Collyer, in addition to Pepper Parks, a member of this year's tournament roster. Ohio Valley Wrestling in Kentucky, Main Event Championship Wrestling in Illinois and the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling have all seen Matt Stryker grace their rings. Ranked number 286 in the PWI 500, Matt is inspired by Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, D'Lo Brown and Brian Adams.
What are his aspirations?
"To one day land a job with the WWF and to not only get there but to stay there. To be considered half as good as Chris Benoit would be an honor. To help a new generation of wrestlers with the same kind of guidance I received."
Resume: HWA, OVW, MECW, WCW, WWF.
PEPPER PARKS
Height: 5'10
Weight: 195lbs.
From: Buffalo, NY
Years Pro: 2
Like Matt Styker, Pepper Parks was also trained by Les Thatcher and competes in the HWA, where he is a former Cruiserweight and Tag team champion. A high-flying aerial specialist, Parks was ranked at number 500 in this year's PWI 500 and uses a devastating top rope neckbreaker to finish off opponents. He has also competed in OVW and was inspired by former WWF Champions Randy Savage, Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels. It will be interesting to see if a past feud with fellow Super 8 competitor Matt Stryker is rekindled in the tournament.
Resume: HWA, OVW.
RED
Height: 5'6
Weight: 147lbs.
From: Brooklyn, NY
Years Pro: 2
Trained by former ECW Heavyweight champion Mikey Whipwreck, the S.A.T.'s Red made his ECWA debut in stunning fashion this past September, winning a Three Way Dance over fellow Spanish Announce Team members Joel and Jose Maximo. In the following months, the young high-flyer has continued to dazzle audiences with his aerial mastery. In his short two year career, Red has competed up and down the East Coast indies, winning titles in three different states along the way, including the ICW (Impact Championship Wrestling) and HWA (Hardcore Wrestling Alliance) Heavyweight titles in New York, as well as the PWF Lightheavyweight belt in Pennsylvania and Championship Wrestling Federation's Hardcore Title (New Jersey). In addition, he has competed in Memphis and Puerto Rico. Ranked number 445 in this year's PWI 500 ranking, Red aspires to be the very best at his craft of pro-wrestling.
What are his aspirations?
"To Be the very best at what I do." "One day wrestle in the WWF."
Resume: ECWA, PWF, PCW, MCW, TCW, HWA (Hardcore Wrestling Alliance), USA Pro Wrestling, ICW, NWA New Jersey, PCW, JAPW, JCW, CZW, CWF, IWA Puerto Rico.
XAVIER
Height: 5'9
Weight: 205
From: Queens, NY
Years Pro: 4
Xavier is a relative newcomer to the East Coast Wrestling Association but is looking to make a quick name for himself in the promotion by winning this year's Super 8. An indy sensation in New York, Xavier has captured numerous titles throughout the state including the Heavyweight and Northeastern titles of the Impact Championship Wrestling promotion and USA Pro-Wrestling's Heavyweight belt. He has also competed on occasion in the World Wrestling Federation. Trained by Tony DeVito, Xavier tries incorporating a combination of various styles in his matches and often relies on backgrounds in Tae-Kwon-Do and Jujitsu. The 450 Splash finisher has led Xavier to many victories, and he finished at the ranking of the same number in the 2001 PWI 500.
What are his aspirations?
"To be the best in anything and everything I do."
Resume: ECWA, NEW, JAPW, JCW, ICW, USA Pro Wrestling, MWF, WWF.
NYC BUS TRIP TO THE SUPER 8
By POPULAR DEMAND, One of A Kind Tours is proud to announce we are invading the state of Delaware for our first ever adventure to the East Coast Wrestling Association as they present the Sixth Annual Super 8 Tournament! This trip has been set up thanks to your continued requests!
A single elimination tournament, The Super 8 has become a legendary event in the world of independent wrestling as some of the greatest Cruiserweight performers in the world have competed in the event on the way to their stardom in wrestling. Past competitors include such standouts as Crowbar, Matt and Jeff Hardy, Simon Diamond, Low Ki, American Dragon, Billy Kidman, Chris Daniels, Scotty Too Hotty, and more! Be sure you are there to see the next stage of pro wrestling's top talent on the biggest night of their careers!
This year's field of competition is nothing short of phenomenal as the ECWA has again searched down and booked the top performers internationally to compete. This year's combatants include:
*Red of the SATs
*Donovan Morgan of Pro Wrestling NOAH in Japan
*Pepper Parks of the Heartland Wrestling Alliance
*New York Independent star Xavier
*The HWA's Matt Stryker
*Canadian star Bobby Rude
*NWA Wildside standout AJ Styles
*Jamie Knoble
Our luxury bus will leave promptly at 1:30 PM on March 2nd from the Modells behind the Queens Center Mall, giving us tons of time to travel to Wilmington, Delaware for dinner, the show and all the great surprises we have in store for you. Belltime will be a prompt 7 PM!
After the Super 8 ends, we will travel back to Queens, New York. Due to interest, we may add pickup points in Brooklyn and New Jersey based upon requests - If you are in those areas, please email us, ASAP!
Beyond the Super 8, ECWA Heavyweight champion "The Black Nature Boy" Scoot Andrews will defend his championship in a Ladder Match against Billy Fives in a return match from their last ECWA encounter.
The show will also feature the "Annual ECWA Summit" in which the promotion's regular stars compete in a once a year Royal Rumble. Among the stars scheduled to appear are the SATs, Low Ki, Stryker, The Cheetah Master, Prince Nana, Slyk Wagner Brown with April Hunter and more! If you are a fan of any of these NYC favorites, you can cheer them on in person as they take on the best competition in the ECWA!
For those who love excellent athletic professional wrestling, this is THE SHOW for you as the Super 8 is considered to be one of THE Independent showcases of the year!
The cost of the trip, which will include your ticket to the ECWA Super 8, round-trip transportation on our luxury bus complete with a bathroom and video monitors playing the best professional wrestling action all the way back and forth to New York, as well as all the SPECIAL surprises that come up along the way will be just $40!
Please email ECWLegacy@aol.com in advance to reserve how many spaces you need for the bus as space is EXTREMELY limited and we have been forced to turn away a good amount of fans for our last several trips. You must let us know in advance how many spaces you need. SPACE IS EXTREMELY LIMITED!
Special Note: If you are attending our Ring of Honor trip on 2/23, you are more than welcome to pay for the Super 8 trip then, but you still must email us to reserve spaces. We look forward to seeing YOU on the bus to the Sixth Annual Super 8 Tournament!
Perhaps the most diverse lineup in the tournament's storied history, this year's Super 8 includes three past or current ECWA competitors, with the remaining five all making their debuts in the promotion. Les Thatcher's Heartland Wrestling Alliance in the Midwest is represented, as is the Southeast region of America, while the West Coast will certainly have a chance to grab the spotlight, as well. And, of course, our neighbors to the North will be sending their first ever Super 8 competitor to the fold on March 2nd. The evening is shaping up to be quite memorable, and the East Coast Wrestling Association looks forward to presenting the best Super 8 tournament yet.
If you would like to learn more about the Super 8 Tournaments from the past, visit East Coast Wrestling Association
The Super 8 tournament is over. Don't read past the next horizontal line if you are waiting for a tape and ddon't want the results.
Tournament Matches
Red d. Bobby Rude
Donovan Morgan d. Pepper Parks
Jamie Knoble d. Matt Stryker
A.J. Styles d. Xavier
A.J. Styles d. Red
Donovan Morgan d. Jamie Knoble
(2002 Super 8 Tournament Final) Donovan Morgan d. A.J. Styles
(Battle Royal) Prince Nana wins.
(ECWA Heavyweight Championship; Ladder Match) Scoot Andrews d. Billy Fives