Local wrestling company Inter Species Wrestling is planning an epic comeback event in Williamstown after last year’s following was nearly wiped out by COVID.
“We had our biggest year ever in 2019 and put on the biggest show we have ever put on in Jersey City, but any momentum we gained died because COVID hit,” said Inter Species Wrestling owner Michael Woods. “We figured that if we were going to come back in 2021, we were going to come back in a big way.
“The best way to do it was to put together the biggest and craziest show we could.”
Inter Species Wrestling was created by Woods and a group of his closest friends in 2005 to help them stand out from the usual wrestling crowd. The group decided to take notes from other backyard wrestlers who incorporate items like lightbulbs and thumb tacks into their fights, and add colored, interlocking building bricks to their scene.
“We decided to use [colored bricks] because they are the most painful thing in the world as is and it would look good visually,” Woods explained. “I brought the blocks into the pro-wrestling world in 2006, and since then, it is what we have become known for.”
After COVID halted all the company’s shows and events, Woods started planning the ultimate comeback to help regain the following earned in 2019. He decided there was no better way to bring in a crowd than to do what his company did best in 2006: bringing in a million colored bricks and a group of characters to wrestle with them.
“This one million block thing is a goal that a lot of people are saying is unreachable, but I am not convinced,” said Woods. “It is the biggest way we can come back and it is the thing we have been known for, which has since been done all over the world.”
The event will be held at H2O Wrestling Center in Williamstown, but dates are still undetermined. According to Woods, there are plans to bring in tables and weapons made out of the bricks, along with structures that will be smashed throughout the event.
In order for the show to go on, Woods has started a Kickstarter campaign to raise money for the blocks and other amenities that will be needed. Anyone interested in participating can buy different tiers that give them access to items that include sticker packs and T-shirts and replicas of championship belts. The campaign has so far raised $4,023 out of the $7,061 needed for the event, with 47 days left for donations.
“Right now, with COVID … something like this is allowing a fan to contribute to the show while getting something cool out of it and helping the show go on,” Woods noted. “Something like this just helps us get back on our feet and start running shows and entertaining people again.”
Fans interested in contributing to the Kickstarter campaign can visit DumbestKickstarter.com. To learn more about Inter Species Wrestling, visit its Facebook page.
