Timmy Lou Retton Enters ECWA Super 8
The 25th annual tournament takes place May 1.
The Wrestling Estate has learned the fifth name slated for the 25th annual ECWA Super 8.
Timmy Lou Retton is scheduled for the one-night tournament on May 1 at The Jersey Dugout in Morganville, NJ. Already announced for the 25th annual Super 8:
WWE Hall of Famer Ricky Morton
“Weapon X” Matt Makowski
“Airborne” Alex Anthony
Killian McMurphy
Timmy Lou Retton returns to the Super 8 after being knocked out in the 2017 quarter finals by Joe Gacy. Since that time, the North Carolina native went on to have a successful run with White Mike as The Gym Nasty Boyz, collecting Tag Team Titles throughout the indie scene. Now Retton is hellbent on blazing his own path, starting with redemption on May 1.
“It means the world to me to get another chance to not only participate, but win the Super 8 tournament,” Timmy Lou Retton told The Wrestling Estate. “I fell on some rough times and had to sell my first Super 8 medal. It broke my heart, but thanks to a great fan named Defoy Harris I was able to get my medal back. I don’t take this second chance lightly. I have a lot to prove and I’m ready to do it.”
For a quarter century, the ECWA Super 8 Tournament has become a launching pad for undiscovered, up-and-coming talents to get noticed throughout the industry. Previous winners include former NXT Champion Tommaso Ciampa, former MLW World Heavyweight Champion Low Ki, former ROH World Champion Christopher Daniels, seven-time WWE Tag Team Champion Xavier Woods and many other notable names.
In recent years, the Super 8 has propelled participants into MLW. Richard Holliday won the 2018 tourney and the Von Erichs competed in the Legacy tourney, which featured all second and third-generation wrestler. Even if you don’t take home the trophy, an impressive showing in the tournament can raise your stock. A who’s who of wrestling luminaries have competed in the event, such as Daniel Bryan, AJ Styles, the Hardy Boyz, and Sami Callihan.
“This year’s ECWA Super 8 is the 25th annual edition – think about that for a minute,” says Joe Zanolle, who took over ECWA in 2019. “In the tumultuous world of professional wrestling and the ever-changing landscape, the Super 8 remains. It’s the oldest and longest-running tournament in pro wrestling in the United States, period. Times have changed and there have been tweaks here and there, but at the core the Super 8 has always been about excellence in professional wrestling.
Now it’s about history and tradition. Current talent grew up on the tournament, reading about it in the pages of Pro Wrestling Illustrated, hoping one day to compete in it. The Super 8 didn’t invent the pro wrestling tournament, but it’s safe to say it popularized it and set the standard. The greatest compliment is that other wrestling promotions across the country have hosted and patterned their own tournaments after the Super 8. It’s this impact that is the ultimate legacy of the Super 8 in the wrestling business.”
The Wrestling Estate has been the go-to media source for ECWA Super 8 coverage for the past three years. In addition to live event reports, we’ve broken the news on the participants, as we will this year, too. In late April, we’ll be publishing a comprehensive history of the tournament, featuring comments and memories from many past participants.
The 25th Annual Super 8 takes place Saturday, May 1, at The Jersey Dugout in Morganville, NJ.
For tickets and more information, visitecwaprowrestling.com.
You can also watch live on IWTV.
You can also join theECWA Pro Wrestling Facebook group for the latest news, match announcements, promos and more.
Check back with The Wrestling Estate for live coverage of the 25th annual ECWA Super 8.
About Author
