Wrestling champions slam Aylmer crowd with big show

J-D Potié

Aylmer was treated to a night of spectacle wrestling, January 19. Some 200 people from Aylmer and beyond packed the Aydelu Centre, as professional wrestlers from across the globe faced off in Mystery Wrestling 13.

In front of a packed audience that included some standing, the event consisted of an eight-man single elimination tournament for “All the Marbles”, as the victor would be named the inaugural Mystery Wrestling Champion.

Featuring a noteworthy array of well-known professional wrestlers from around the world, including former WWE and WWF World Tag-Team Champion Scotty 2 Hotty, current Undisputed British Heavyweight Champion Michael Oku, and Canadian independent-circuit sensation Stu Grayson, the show got running with a 25-minute match where Grayson defeated Oku. That got the crowd going wild - laughing, heckling, chanting, and cheering from start to finish.

Additionally, on hand with the lively crowd, the event featured Canadian wrestler and Mystery Wrestling co-founder Evil Uno alongside American wrestler Nyla Rosa, as live commentators, with more fans tuning in worldwide via the internet.

Also in the first round, Krüle demolished Cecil Nyx in a quick and comical display of destruction; London Lighting won his match despite have his pants hanging down to his ankles; and lastly, Psycho Mike took down Scotty 2 Hotty as the referee distracted the former World Tag-Team champ just as he was set to execute his famed finishing move “The Worm” for which the crowd let out a loud appalling roar.

In the second round, Psycho Mike defeated the long-haired London Lighting after body slamming him about a dozen times in a row, and Krüle stoically triumphed over a hobbling Stu Grayson in the second match.

In the final, Psycho Mike took down the towering Krüle to take home the championship belt and a purple bag full of marbles, as the first ever Mystery Wrestling Champion.

Noting that Psycho Mike received a particularly booming response from local fans despite his note-worthy reputation as the heel, Mystery Wrestling Co-Founder Evil Uno told the Aylmer Bulletin that it was simply fitting to see him go home with the belt and all the marbles.

Tied with the organization’s free-spirited brand of wrestling, Boivin believes that what makes Mystery Wrestling particularly appealing is that anything can happen on any given night because who’s going to be featured is kept secret until the wrestlers enter the ring.

“That’s the great uniqueness of it,” Boivin said, noting that fans can also access Mystery Wrestling on demand on Patreon. “There are a lot of surprises. And it can be anything. It can be traditional wrestling and some of the best matches you’ve ever seen. Or it can be a mad match between characters, or there can even be well-known wrestlers that we see on TV. So, it’s the surprise aspect that provides its uniqueness.”

Noting that Mystery Wrestling events are live streamed on Twitch, Boivin explained that the show is at once a live podcast, an online wrestling broadcast, and a live performance for the fans in attendance.

“They salute us from the United States,” Boivin said. “They salute us in the UK; they salute us in Japan. So, it really allows us to reach a wider audience all while illuminating our town.”

Stating that the events usually attract between 2,000 and 3,000 viewers from around the world while also bringing many local people together to celebrate their shared love of wrestling, Boivin believes mystery wrestling’s unique brand and identity are important factors in what makes it particularly appealing in the eyes of wrestling fans.

For 23-year-plus veteran wrestler James Stone, who featured in a special three-person tag-team match that took place before the final, Mystery Wrestling has been an effective platform to promote professional wrestlers and a great way to bring people in the community together in the name of wrestling. He believes one of the best aspects of the organization is that its events provide something for everyone in the audience to resonate with, from silliness to dramatic flair, to more technical wrestling.

“We get to take people out of their real lives for a couple of hours a night,” he said, “and while some wrestling shows are more serious, this show has a bit of everything, which is cool. So, there’s literally something for everybody. If you love wrestling, you’re gonna see a good wrestling match. If you like comedy, you’re for sure going to see comedy.”

Looking toward to Mystery Wrestling 14, scheduled for March 2. Stone says it will be a must-see event.

“You won’t want to miss it,” he said. “I can’t tell you why, because it’s a mystery.”