Ever since US indie breakout wrestler AJ Gray announced he was hosting an event over WrestleMania Week for Game Changer Wrestling (GCW) called For The Culture, there’s been a buzz around an event that puts a spotlight on minority wrestlers of color. They’ve released a massive amount of names and in the past week, they’ve finally revealed the first three matches of the event.
Will Hobbs vs. Calvin Tankman
A hoss match featuring two big men. Will Hobbs is a West Coast veteran who began out of California’s All Pro Wrestling (APW), where he debuted in 2009. A 3x APW Tag Team Champion and 3x APW Worldwide Internet Champion, he’s also begun working for West Coast Pro Wrestling (WCPW) out of San Francisco. “Indestructible” Calvin Tankman is still in the early stages of wrestling, but the 380 lb. Tankman has been on a steady rise since debuting a few years ago. A mainstay with IWA Mid South since 2016, and a former IWA Mid South Heavyweight Champion, Tankman has been a wrecking crew throughout the US indies, with the likes of Absolute Intense Wrestling (AIW), EMERGE Wrestling, Paradigm Pro Wrestling, and Bizarro Lucha, where he’s the current reigning BL Luchaversal Champion.
Faye Jackson vs. Tasha Steelz vs. Marti Belle vs. Willow Nightingale
A huge four way match at For The Culture featuring three women who are making moves in the US indies. Faye Jackson is a 6-year pro from Toldeo, Ohio, but is already emerging as an international star. She joined Ring of Honor in 2016, where she was part of the Women of Honor for two years. A regular with BriiCombination Wrestling (BCW), Women’s Wrestling Revolution (WWR), QOC, and more, she made her European debut in 2019 with Germany’s Westside Xtreme Wrestling (wXw) and England’s Pro Wrestling EVE. The reigning BCW Women’s Champion and Pro Wrestling Magic Women’s Champion. One of the indie scene’s most coveted young stars, Tasha Steelz had a WWE tryout back in December of 2018, and in 2019 worked special events for Ring of Honor and IMPACT Wrestling. She even spent some time on the road with WWE/NXT this past fall. A 4-year pro, the New Jersey native has been a regular with the likes of Beyond Wrestling, Women’s Wrestling Revolution (WWR), Chaotic Wrestling, RISE Wrestling, and Battle Club Pro. Marti Belle is currently seen on NWA Powerrr on Tuesday nights, but this veteran of the US indies has been a star with the likes of IMPACT Wrestling, SHIMMER, Shine Wrestling, and many more, including participating in the inaugural WWE Mae Young Classic in 2018. Willow Nightingale is a 4-year pro from New York who has been a huge presence in the NY/NJ indie scene, breaking out with NYWC in 2016. Debuted with RISE in 2017 and in 2018 debuted with SHIMMER, as well as being a star with CHIKARA and Beyond Wrestling the past year, following creating the tag team The Bird & The Bee with Solo Darling. Suffered a broken neck in early 2019 and missed 6 months, making her return recently.
40 Acres (Tre Lemar & PB Smooth) vs. Cryme Tyme (Shad & JTG)
40 Acres is a stable in the Midwest featuring AJ Gray, Tre Lemar and PB Smooth, and at For the Culture, two thirds of the squad are going into battle. The hot young prospect Tre Lamar, a trainee of NXT’s Johnny Gargano and Candice Larae, has exploded in the Midwest, where’s also in the Blood Diamond stable alongside Jake Lander and Kobe Durst. The 22-year old is a regular with AIW, IWA Mid South, and Black Label Pro, where he’s a former BLP Tag Team Champion with Lander. PB Smooth is a mountain of a man and the muscle in 40 Acres. The 6’9″ PB Smooth is also a student of Gargano, and has been a force in AIW, where he’s a former AIW Absolute Champion. He’s not just Ohio based, as he’s bringing his stature to the likes of Glory Pro, Pennsylvania’s International Wrestling Cartel (IWC) and Canada’s Alpha-1 to name a few. Best remembered for there run in WWE from 2006 through 2010, JTG and Shad Gaspar reunited in the indies in 2014 and continue to work together in various indies, including one in Haiti. While their WWE run as Cryme Tyme was marred with controversies around his stereotypical portrayal of African-Americans as hip hop “gangsters” and thieves, the two have embraced their gimmick on the indies as a symbol of empowerment and return to action at For The Culture.
Stay tuned to the Last Word on Pro Wrestling for more on this and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world. No announcement of how to watch For The Culture live on video, but GCW usually runs on FITE.tv
