FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Mike Salas, program supervisor Phone: (626) 813-5245, Ext. 310 E-mail: [email protected]

Wrestlers draw nostalgia, large crowds to Morgan Park

BALDWIN PARK, Calif. (January 31, 2015) – Joshua Duke made the trek to the Esther Snyder Community Center last weekend to instill in his son a tradition he once shared with his own father: a passion for wrestling. “My son’s a big wrestling fan and I’ve been looking for local shows [to follow] for a while,” said Duke, 41, of Glendora. “This is the first one I’ve been to, and it’s awesome.” Duke and his son, 11-year-old Derek, were among the more than 700 people who filled the gymnasium at Morgan Park last Saturday for a Wrestling Extravaganza. The event that featured “Lucha Libre” wrestling was the first of its kind for the city, according to Mike Salas, program supervisor for Baldwin Park. Salas and event organizers anticipated as many as 500-600 people Saturday night, but they found themselves shuffling in additional seats as a standing-room only audience filled the venue. “We thought to just have a small show and felt it would be a good cultured event, something new, something fresh that’s never been done before,” said Salas. He added this organizers’ original target audience was “tweens,” or those ages 13-17, so the city even gifted a slew of students from the local elementary and junior high school with complimentary tickets to the show. Despite the initial excitement from these groups, however, many residents also caught wind of the event and helped heightened attention for the entertainment event. Jesse Hernandez, a promoter for Empire Wrestling Federation, which presented the Saturday’s event at Morgan Park, said entertainment wrestling shows have been making a comeback among all ages for the last several years. “People want to see the old style and the old professional wrestling. These kinds of shows bring the grassroots of wrestling to the community so that this generation could enjoy it as our grandparents and parents watched it on the black-and-white tube,” Hernandez said. “This is a lost art of wrestling that is slowly coming back and putting on shows.” Hernandez added that his group has specialized in professional-style wrestling entertainment since 1996. Empire Wrestling Federation – dubbed the “School of Hard Knocks” after being featured on CNN – has also been a training ground for many wrestlers, both male and female, who have gone on into the professional and international circuits throughout the years, according to Hernandez. Saturday’s event at the community center brought about 14 wrestlers into the ring as onlookers cheered, jeered, and even heckled the featured wrestlers while each of the six matches, including a six-man tag team, unfolded on the wrestling platform. Fanfare escalated in the gym when additional wrestlers were brought in for a special “battle royal” near the end of the show. The “battle royal” is a multi-competitor match in which wrestlers are eliminated until one is left and declared winner. Ivan Real, 7, shared he’ll often “play wrestle” with his cousins, jumping on the bed and pushing each other off. But Saturday’s show was like nothing he’s seen ever before. “They throw them on the ground and then bounce up and jump on the wrestlers. This is cool,” said Ivan. Derek Duke was also elated that he could share in the excitement first-hand. After all, he owns more than 500 wrestling action figures – and uses them to make action videos on his own YouTube channel – according to his dad. The 11-year-old said he’s also viewed professional wrestling matches in the past, but the local event had a different flair. “The wrestlers are big and strong, and they’re slamming each other on the floor. “It’s a lot louder here,” he said. Empire Wrestling Federation will return to Baldwin Park on Saturday, March 14, for a 7 p.m. show at Sierra Vista High School, 3600 N. Frazier St. For more information about the recent event, call (626) 813-5245, Ext. 310.

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