NM Ice Wolves crash Duke City Championship Wrestling match

RIO RANCHO — Enrique Calderon lay helpless on the mat. His opponent, Ricky Rebel, stood over him, arms raised, gloating in victory.

But Mr. Rebel’s victory lap was short-lived.

With a roar, nearly two dozen members of the Albuquerque-based hockey team the New Mexico Ice Wolves charged through the metal barrier surrounding the ring, pushed past the referee and jumped onto the mat.

The Wolves immediately surrounded Calderon and took up defensive positions atop the turn buckles. Rebel had no choice but to flee in fear, tail tucked between his legs.

The Ice Wolves gave Calderon the belt, hoisted him on their shoulders and carried him out of the ring. Of course, the win didn’t stand. The belt and the victory were given to Ricky Rebel.

That was just one of the ten outrageous, spectacular, action-packed and thrilling matches that took place last Thursday night at the Rio Rancho Events Center as Duke City Championship Wrestling (DCCW) returned to the City of Vision after a two-month hiatus.

“[This has been a] long time coming. It’s almost like a figurative itch you can’t scratch. Over the last two months, [I was] just creating new ideas, creating new ways to implement the community, and we did that tonight with the New Mexico Ice Wolves,” said DCCW promoter Fred Slow. “As far as young adults who know how to scrap [go], hockey players are it.”

The night’s entertainment was filled with big matchups, plenty of debuts, a wonderfully unruly crowd, fistfuls of free candy and numerous title belts in play.

From Valak Vile hitting Johnny Magna with his signature confetti-blast, to Thunder’s surprise victory over DCCW veteran Sidney Porter, to Mr. Happy’s controversial title defense, DCCW brought it hard.

All of the action led to the grand finale, a stunning victory for DCCW crowd favorite and defending champion Hobo Hank over the hapless challenger, Babathunder.

After taking two months off, DCCW is now back on its monthly rotation. The next event, “Bosque Blizzard,” takes place Dec. 28 at the El Rey Theater in Albuquerque. Doors open at 6 p.m.

Slow said it was worth the wait just to see all of the kiddos enjoying the show.

“All the first timers were really a highlight. There’s a lot of youngbloods out here,” said Slow. “You know, with COVID, this is the first time for a lot of them to see pro wrestling. We are fortunate to be a core memory for all those kids.”

For more information, visit dukecitychampionshipwrestling.com

{span class=”print_trim” style=”text-decoration: underline;”}DCCW – No Way Around (result)

Tag Team Match — Jaden Monroe & Stanley Logan (w/Jerry Kirby Jr.) defeat Jakob East & RJ Wylde

Singles Match — Valak Vile defeats Johnny Magna

Tag Team Match — 4Sale (Ronin & Sale) (w/Matthew Roblez) defeat El Pirata de la Muerte & Manny Lemons

Singles Match — Ricky Rebel defeats Enrique Calderon

Singles Match — Chuey Martinez defeats The Bounty Hunter

Singles Match — Thunder defeats Sidney Porter

Tag Team Match — Turbo Test (Tommy Test & Turbo Tony) defeat Sky High (Mondo Avion & Robby Avion)

DCCW Route 66 Title Match — Mister Happy defeats Bryan Idol (w/Matthew Roblez) by DQ

Tag Team Match — Adrian Myscira & Taylor Yorke defeat Eliza Haze & Zamaya

DCCW Heavyweight Title Match — Hobo Hank defeats Babathunder (w/Matthew Roblez){/span}