Since its inception in 2000, the CWF has
prided itself on producing quality performances featuring
top-notch athleticism and exciting storytelling. Our aim is
to draw fans into a world that serves as an escape from
reality for a few hours on some Friday or Saturday night.
But every now and then, that
very same reality can smack the wrestling world right in the
face and send it reeling. On Sunday, July 15, 2007, it
smacked our CWF family right in the face, with the news of
the untimely passing of one of the biggest names in CWF
history, Devil Bhudakahn.
DEVIL BHUDAKAHN: THE WRESTLER
Inside the squared circle, few, if any performers, in
Western Pennsylvania wrestling can boast the resume that
Devil Bhudakahn had. He performed with a number of
organizations, but it can be said that h e had the most
success in the seven-plus years he spent with the CWF, a
span that started with
Devil’s main foray into the tag team ranks with his role in
the notorious Hellfire Club, along with Super Hentai.
The Hellfire Club made an indelible impression on the CWF in
2000, as they were voted by the fans as the CWF Tag Team of
the Year. The accolade was not unwarranted, as the Hellfire
Club won the tag belts in a memorable ladder match against
No Limits (Scott Venom and Orion) in October of that
year. That match, which saw all four superstars give
everything they had and then some was also honored by the
CWF fans as the Match of the Year for 2000 in the year-end
poll. They would go on to hold the CWF titles for a few
months before losing them in February of 2001.
Soon after, Devil decided to seek out new challenges on his
own, and though he tagged up with fellow CWF superstars on
oc casion, he looked to make his name among the top
contenders of the CWF’s solo titles. His main focus was on
the Keystone title, and he fought a venerable “Who’s Who” of
CWF Keystone contenders through the years in the journey to
reach his goal. Along the
way, he created even more memories in the eyes of the CWF
fans, as witnessed by his Keystone Title match with champion
Justin Idol at Unfinished Business IV in February of 2004.
It was a back-and-forth affair between arguably the
two greatest Keystone division wrestlers in CWF history, and
though Devil came up short on that night, it was a match
that stuck in the fans’ minds ten months later, as CWF fans
voted that match the Match of the Year in the 2004 year-end
poll.
Almost two years after Devil’s epic encounter with Justin
Idol, his long, arduous journey towards the CWF Keystone
title reached its destination, as he defeated longtime
nemesis Scot ty Venom at Holiday Wishes in December of 2005
to finally claim the Keystone title. It was a title he
successfully
defended for eight months before losing it in July of 2006.
Not satisfied with winning the belt once, Devil continued
his chase for the Keystone gold throughout the rest of 2006
and well into this year. As part of that chase, he
participated in what many CWF fans are calling the greatest
match in CWF history, a four-way ladder match for the title
at Unfinished Business VII in February, where he, along with
Jason Gory, Mantis, and eventual winner Justin Idol tore the
Schooner Center down to the foundation with a performance
for the ages. The crowd gave the four men a three-and-ahalf
minute standing ovation.
After a few more unsuccessful shots at the CWF Keystone
belt, he refocused his CWF career on the biggest prize of
them all, the CWF Heavyweight title. Many questioned D
evil’s thought process at this juncture, saying that
his size and his style were primarily suited for the
Keystone Division, and that
the CWF Heavyweight belt was out of his league. But, given
the opportunity he had long wanted at “Mass InSINity” in
May, Devil proved all the critics wrong with what, sadly,
may end up being a career-defining performance. Devil beat
three top-flight CWF opponents (Scottie Gash, Justin Idol,
and Steve Flash) in one night, pushing his CWF win total to
37 (second most in CWF history), to win the “Zubov
Invitational Tournament” for the right to face Zubov in a
one-on-one match for the CWF title.
That match would have taken place on July 28, 2007, thirteen
days after Devil Bhudakahn’s death.
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