Daniel Garcia Returns To Empire State Wrestling
He’ll defend against Davey Richards on Oct. 10 in Buffalo.
Daniel Garcia, the fastest-rising talent in AEW, comes home to Buffalo this weekend for Empire State Wrestling’s “4th and Gold.”
Winning the ESW Heavyweight Championship from Brandon Thurston in June 2019, Garcia’s last defense came in January 2020 against Sean Carr. Now that the promotion has resumed operations following the COVID-19 outbreak, “Red Death” will put the gold on the line against Davey Richards this Sunday. Richards, who previously competed in ESW four years ago against Pepper Parks (now known as Braxton Sutter), will aim to even the score after losing to Daniel Garcia in September at AAW Destination Chicago.
“It’s real exciting to have Daniel Garcia back in the fold, especially for a helluva matchup,” says referee David Jarka, who’s been full-time with the promotion since 2016.
Garcia wasn’t at ESW’s return show in July, which drew about 600 fans to Buffalo Riverworks, right in line with management’s expectations. By comparison, Ring of Honor drew about 600 attendees for its War of the Worlds event in the same venue in 2019, according to Lavie Margolin’s report of the Wrestling Observer’s numbers.
“People were hungry to see live wrestling again,” Jarka says. “Everybody on the roster was just as hungry to perform.”
However, Garcia’s return won’t be limited to those in attendance at Buffalo Riverworks because ESW will be streaming live on IWTV for the first time. “Doing a live stream is something we have been looking forward to ever since we joined the IWTV family,” Jarka says. “It will allow out-of-town ESW fans to still be a part of the live experience. Hopefully, we’ll also gain new viewers of our product abroad.”
For ESW’s event this Sunday, Garcia and Richards aren’t the only notable names returning. Impact Wrestling’s Ace Romero will collide with former ESW Heavyweight Champion “Big Time” Bill Collier. Of course, ESW holds a special place in Romero’s heart, hosting the moment that made him go viral in 2018.
A couple of tag teams will make their ESW debut this Sunday. The Maine State Posse (Aiden Aggro and DangerKid) – Limitless Wrestling favorites who were originally booked for an ESW show that was canceled due to the pandemic – will meet To Infinity & Beyond, comprised of former Ring of Honor talent Cheech and Colin Delaney, best known for his brief run in WWE’s version of ECW.
Meanwhile, The Mane Event (Duke Davis and Ganon Jones Jr.), a duo based out of Pittsburgh’s International Wrestling Cartel, takes on High Seas, consisting of former Ring of Honor talent Cloudy and “Your Captain” Nick Ando.
TJ Crawford, an indie standout who was a fixture of defunct Synergy Pro Wrestling, comes back to ESW for the first time since February 2020. Initially slated to face St. Louis native Everett Connors, now he’ll be wrestling another Limitless regular: Alec Price.
“I’m excited to be back in front of an ESW crowd for the first time in a year and a half and even more excited to knock Alec’s lights out,” Crawford says. “We are 1-1 this year: he picked up a win at Limitless and I got the win at Blitzkrieg. A win here solidifies myself as the undisputed future of professional wrestling. I hope Buffalo is ready for a classic.”
4th and Gold takes place Oct. 10 at Buffalo Riverworks in Buffalo, NY.
For tickets and more information, visit eswwrestling.com. First and second row tickets are sold out.
The start time for “4th and Gold” will be earlier than typical ESW events as it will lead into the Buffalo Bills-Kansas City Chiefs game later in the evening. Doors open at 1:30 p.m. with a bell-time of 3:00 p.m.
If you’re unvaccinated, you need to wear a mask.
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