Game Changer Wrestling

Game Changer Wrestling (GCW) is an independent professional wrestling promotion based in New Jersey, U.S.A, active since 1999. It is currently owned by independent referee Brett Lauderdale.

Game Changer Wrestling

Acronym	GCW
Founded	January 1999 September 2013 (revival)
Defunct	2004 (revived in 2013)
Style	Hardcore wrestling Shoot wrestling Comedy
Headquarters	New Jersey, U.S.
Founder(s)	Ricky Otazu
Owner(s)	Brett Lauderdale Danny Demanto
Formerly	Jersey Championship Wrestling (1999–2015)

The promotion was founded by wrestler Ricky Otazu in 1999 as Jersey Championship Wrestling. It was renamed Game Changer Wrestling in 2015, and has transformed itself from a small regional promotion into a nationally popular company that has toured all over the United States, as well as internationally in places like Japan. The company predominantly features hardcore wrestling, and incorporates a shoot style hybrid of mixed martial arts and professional wrestling in some events.

Some of GCW's most popular annual events include Bloodsport, Joey Janela's Spring Break, Backyard Wrestling, Tournament of Survival and Nick Gage Invitational.

History

1999–2004: Early history as Jersey Championship Wrestling

Jersey Championship Wrestling (JCW) was founded by independent wrestler Ricky Otazu, also known by his ring name of Ricky O,[1] in January 1999 in New Jersey.[2][3] JCW ran their first show on January 29, 2000 in Lyndhurst, New Jersey.[4] Later that year, JCW hosted the inaugural Jersey J-Cup, which featured some of the top unsigned wrestlers of that period.[5] They would continue to host the tournament until 2004, when JCW was sold to rival company National Wrestling Superstars (NWS).[6] The promotion would remain dormant for nearly a decade.

2013–2015: Revival

In September 2013, after the closure of National Wrestling Superstars,[7] Otazu reclaimed the rights to JCW and reopened the promotion.[6] In April 2014, JCW opened its own training school in North Bergen.[8] Later that year, JCW would return to hosting the Jersey J-Cup.[9]

2015–2017: Rebranding as Game Changer Wrestling

In June 2015, Jersey Championship Wrestling rebranded itself to Game Changer Wrestling[3] after being purchased by Brett Lauderdale and Danny Demanto.[10] After the buyout, GCW began to predominantly feature hardcore wrestling and continued to enjoy success in the New Jersey Wrestling scene, producing several tournaments that boasted high-level independent wrestlers, including the Nick Gage Invitational Ultraviolent Tournament,[11] the Tournament of Survival[12] and the Acid Cup.[13]

2017–present: Expansion

In March 2017, GCW produced the critically well received Joey Janela's Spring Break show in Fern Park, Florida.[14] This would become an annual tradition for the company.[15] GCW would continue to expand throughout the United States and hosted its first show in Los Angeles in November 2018, titled To Live and Die in LA.[16] In April 2018, GCW partnered with Matt Riddle to produce Matt Riddle's Bloodsport, a show that fused professional wrestling and mixed-martial arts rules.[17] Bloodsport would take place twice more in 2019, this time with the partnership of Josh Barnett.[18][19][20][21] GCW also entered a partnership with video-streaming service FITE TV to exclusively stream GCW events.[22] In August 2019, GCW embarked on a two-day tour of Japan.[23]

Roster

Game Changer Wrestling's roster consists mainly of independent freelancers.

Male Wrestlers

Ring name	Real name	Notes
1 Called Manders	Steve Manders
Ace Austin	Austin James Highley	Signed to Impact Wrestling
ACH	Albert Christian Hardie, Jr	Signed to Major League Wrestling
AJ Gray	Unknown
Alex Colon	Unknown
Alex Zayne	Unknown
Atticus Cogar	Unknown
Benjamin Carter	Unknown
Blake Christian	Christian Hubble
Calvin Tankman	Unknown	Signed to Major League Wrestling
Chris Dickinson	Unknown	Acid Cup 2020 winner
Ciclope	Jhonny Serrano Yedra	GCW Tag Team Champion
Cole Radrick	Unknown
Effy	Unknown
Eric Ryan	Unknown
Facade	Michael Cichowicz
G-Raver	Brandon Graver	Inactive; nerve injury
Gregory Iron	Gregory Allen Smith
Gringo Loco	Charles Santo	Signed to Major League Wrestling
Isami Kodaka	Unknown	Signed to Pro-Wrestling Basara
Jimmy Lloyd	Unknown
Joey Janela	Joseph Janela	Signed to All Elite Wrestling; Host of Joey Janela's Spring Break; current Ironman Heavymetalweight Champion
Jordan Oliver	Jordan Oliver Jr	Signed to Major League Wrestling
Josh Barnett	Joshua Lawrence Barnett	Host of Bloodsport
Kikutaro	Mitsunobu Kikuzawa
KTB	Unknown
Lee Moriarty	Unknown
Logan Stunt	Logan Nelms
Mance Warner	Unknown	Signed to Major League Wrestling
Markus Crane	Unknown
Masashi Takeda	Masashi Takeda
Matt Tremont	Matthew Tremont
Matthew Justice	Matthew Hannan
Miedo Extremo	Jonathan Uriel Gijon Perez	GCW Tag Team Champion
Nate Webb	Unknown
Nick Gage	Nicholas W. Wilson
Orin Veidt	Boone Winkler
Rickey Shane Page	Unknown	GCW World Champion
Pinkie Sanchez	Unknown	Also wrestles as "Sanchez"
Shane Mercer	Unknown
Shlak	Unknown
Tony Deppen	Unknown
Tre Lamar	Unknown
Yoshihiko	—	A blow-up doll signed to DDT Pro-Wrestling

Female Wrestlers

Ring name	Real name	Notes
Allie Kat	Alison Woodard

Championships

Championship	Current champion(s)	Previous champion(s)	Date won	Event	Location	Days held
GCW World Championship	Rickey Shane Page	AJ Gray	December 12, 2019	Long. Live. GCW	Nashville, Tennessee	251+
GCW Tag Team Championship	Los Mazisos (Ciclope and Miedo Extremo)	The Rejects (John Wayne Murdoch and Reed Bentley)	May 13, 2018	The Untouchables	Villa Park, Illinois	825+

Former championships

Championship	Final champion(s)	Previous champion(s)	Date won	Date retired	Event	Location	Days held
GCW Extreme Championship	PCO	Tony Deppen	September 8, 2018	December 29, 2018	GCW Nick Gage Invitational 3: Thy Kingdom Come	Villa Park, Illinois	112[lower-alpha 1]
GCW Women's Championship	Deonna Purrazzo	Sonya Strong	June 3, 2016	June 3, 2016	GCW at Wood-Ridge	Wood-Ridge, New Jersey	0[lower-alpha 2]
JCW Light Heavyweight Championship	Kahagas	Shawn Sheridan	April 10, 2004	April 10, 2004	JCW at Pinellas Park	Pinellas Park, Florida	0[lower-alpha 3]
JCW Six Man Tag Team Championship	CJ Brock, Crazy Ivan and Dave Greco	N/A (inaugural)	November 4, 2001	November 4, 2001	Payback Time	Lodi, New Jersey	0[lower-alpha 4]
JCW Television Championship	Moondog Wenzel	Jay Lethal[lower-alpha 5]	February 22, 2004	February 22, 2004	JCW at Garfield	Garfield, New Jersey	0[lower-alpha 6]

Championship history

GCW World Championship

GCW World Championship
Details
Promotion	Game Changer Wrestling (GCW)
Date established	April 14, 2000
Current champion(s)	Rickey Shane Page
Date won	December 8, 2019
Other name(s)
Jersey Championship Wrestling (JCW) World Championship (2000–2004, 2013–2015)
Statistics First champion(s) Andrew Anderson Most reigns All titleholders (1 time each) Longest reign Nick Gage (722 days) Shortest reign AJ Gray (<1 day) Heaviest champion Don Montoya (299 lbs) Lightest champion Low Ki (176 lbs)

Key

No.	Overall reign number
Reign	Reign number for the specific champion
Days	Number of days held
+	Current reign is changing daily

No.	Champion	Championship change			Reign statistics		Notes	Ref.
		Date	Event	Location	Reign	Days
	Jersey Championship Wrestling (JCW)
1	Andrew Anderson	April 14, 2000	JCW TV Taping in Garfield	Garfield, New Jersey	1	8	Defeated Nick Maddox in a tournament final to become the inaugural champion.	[24]
2	Low Ki	April 22, 2000	JCW TV Taping in Elmwood	Elmwood Park, New Jersey	1	181		[25]
3	Reckless Youth	October 20, 2000	Battle at Becton	East Rutherford, New Jersey	1	379		[26]
—	Vacated	November 3, 2001	—	—	—	—	Reckless Youth vacated the title due to inactivity.
4	Inferno	November 3, 2001	Mayhem	South River, New Jersey	1	322	Inferno was awarded the vacant title.	[27]
5	Crowbar	September 21, 2002	It's the Big One	Elizabeth, New Jersey	1	28		[28]
6	Lance Diamond	October 19, 2002	JCW TV Taping in Elizabeth	Elizabeth, New Jersey	1	141	Lance Diamond was also Television Champion during this reign.	[29]
7	Don Montoya	March 9, 2003	Skin To Win	Paramus, New Jersey	1	112		[30]
8	Ace Darling	June 29, 2003	For Family And Friends	Paramus, New Jersey	1	147		[31]
9	Slyck Wagner Brown	November 23, 2003	Crazy 8	Garfield, New Jersey	1	217		[32]
10	Homicide	June 27, 2004	Jersey J-Cup (2004)	Garfield, New Jersey	1	187		[33]
—	Deactivated	December 31, 2004	—	—	—	—	Homicide was no longer listed as the JCW World Champion after the company shut down in 2004.
11	Damien Darling	November 9, 2013	Playas Club Collide	Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey	1	209		[34]
12	QT Marshall	June 6, 2014	JCW event at Barnegat High School	Barnegat Township, New Jersey	1	168		[35]
13	Joey Janela	November 21, 2014	JCW event in Howell	Howell Township, New Jersey	1	204		[29]
Game Changer Wrestling (GCW)
14	Tama Tonga	June 13, 2015	JCW Six Flags event	Jackson, New Jersey	1	182	During Tama Tonga's reign, Jersey Championship Wrestling was renamed Game Changer Wrestling in July 2015, so their respective championships were also renamed.	[36]
—	Vacated	December 12, 2015	—	—	—	—	Tama Tonga vacated the title due to inactivity.
15	Kyle the Beast	March 12, 2016	To Crown A Champion	Howell Township, New Jersey	1	350	Defeated Joe Gacy, Joey Janela and Pinkie Sanchez to win the vacant championship.	[37]
16	Matt Tremont	February 25, 2017	The New Face Of WAR	Howell Township, New Jersey	1	294		[38]
17	Nick Gage	December 16, 2017	Ready To Die: The 2nd Anniversary	Howell Township, New Jersey	1	722		[39]
18	AJ Gray	December 8, 2019	Long. Live. GCW.	Nashville, Tennessee	1	<1		[40]
19	Rickey Shane Page	December 8, 2019	Long. Live. GCW.	Nashville, Tennessee	1	251+		[40]

Combined reigns

Former and longest-reigning champion, Nick Gage

†	Indicates the current champion
+	Indicates the reign is changing daily
<1	Indicates that the reign lasted less than one day.

As of August 15, 2020.

Rank	Wrestler	No. of reigns	Combined days
				1	Nick Gage	1	722
2	Reckless Youth	1	379
3	Kyle the Beast	1	350
4	Inferno	1	322
5	Matt Tremont	1	294
6	Rickey Shane Page †	1	251+
7	Slyck Wagner Brown	1	217
8	Damien Darling	1	207
9	Joey Janela	1	204
10	Homicide	1	187
11	Tama Tonga	1	182
12	Low Ki	1	181
13	QT Marshall	1	168
14	Ace Darling	1	147
15	Lance Diamond	1	141
16	Don Montoya	1	112
17	Crowbar	1	28
18	Andrew Anderson	1	8
19	AJ Gray	1	<1

Notes

1. The championship has been inactive since December 29, 2018.
2. The championship has been inactive since June 3, 2016.
3. The championship has been inactive since April 10, 2004.
4. The championship has been inactive since November 4, 2001.
5. Lethal later vacated the title. Moondog Wenzel won the vacant championship by winning a battle royal.
6. The championship has been inactive since February 22, 2004.

References

1. "Ricky O". January 6, 2020.
2. "Jersey Championship Wrestling - History". Jersey Championship Wrestling. Retrieved January 6, 2020 – via Wix.com.
3. "Game Changer Wrestling (GCW)". Cagematch.net. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
4. "JCW @ Lyndhurst - January 29, 2000". Wrestlingdata. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
5. Tanabe, Hisaharu. "2000 Jersey J-Cup". NYProWrestling.com. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
6. "Jersey Championship Wrestling is back!". Jersey Championship Wrestling. September 14, 2013. Retrieved January 6, 2020 – via Wix.com.
7. "National Wrestling Superstars". Cagematch.net. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
8. "JCW Wrestling school opens in April". Jersey Championship Wrestling. March 14, 2013. Retrieved January 6, 2020 – via Wix.com.
9. "2014 Jersey J-Cup". Cagematch.net. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
10. Greer, Jamie (August 11, 2018). "Game Changer Wrestling Continues to Change The Game". Last Word on Pro Wrestling. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
11. "Nick Gage Invitational Ultraviolent Tournament". Cagematch.net. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
12. "Tournament of Survival". Cagematch.net. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
13. "Acid Cup". Cagematch.net. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
14. "GCW Joey Janela's Spring Break". Cagematch.net. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
15. Peeples, Jeremy (April 5, 2019). "JOEY JANELA'S SPRING BREAK 3, PT. 1 LIVE RESULTS". Figure Four Online. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
16. Andrew (February 9, 2018). "Game Changer Wrestling to debut in Los Angeles in November". SoCalUncensored.com. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
17. "Matt Riddle's Bloodsport results: Matt Riddle vs. Minoru Suzuki". WON/F4W - WWE news, Pro Wrestling News, WWE Results, UFC News, UFC results. April 5, 2018.
18. "Josh Barnett's Bloodsport results: Minoru Suzuki vs. Barnett". WON/F4W - WWE news, Pro Wrestling News, WWE Results, UFC News, UFC results. April 4, 2019.
19. Benjamin, Andrew (April 2, 2019). "Josh Barnett's Bloodsport Preview and Predictions".
20. "Frank Mir making pro wrestling debut at Josh Barnett's Bloodsport". WON/F4W - WWE news, Pro Wrestling News, WWE Results, UFC News, UFC results. January 11, 2019.
21. "GCW Josh Barnett's Bloodsport 2". Cagematch.net. September 9, 2019.
22. "Gamechanger Wrestling Channel". FITE TV. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
23. "GCW Worst Behavior 2019". Cagematch.net. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
24. "JCW TV Taping in Garfield". Cagematch.net. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
25. "JCW TV Taping in Elmwood". Cagematch.net. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
26. "JCW Battle at Becton". Cagematch.net. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
27. "JCW Mayhem". Cagematch.net. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
28. "JCW It's The Big One". Cagematch.net. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
29. "JCW HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE HISTORY".
30. "JCW Skin To Win". Cagematch.net. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
31. "JCW For Family And Friends". Cagematch.net. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
32. "JCW Crazy 8". Cagematch.net. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
33. "JCW Jersey J-Cup 2004". Cagematch.net. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
34. "JCW Playas Club Collide". Cagematch.net. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
35. "JCW @ Barnegat". Cagematch.net. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
36. "JCW Six Flags Event". Cagematch.net. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
37. "GCW Finals To Crown A Champion". Cagematch.net. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
38. "GCW The New Face Of WAR". Cagematch.net. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
39. "GCW Ready To Die: The 2nd Anniversary". Cagematch.net. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
40. "GCW Long. Live. GCW". Cagematch.net. Retrieved February 18, 2020.