Live Wrestling Return to Memphis, February 14th, 2021

Two years ago the United Wrestling Network ventured into the Memphis Wrestling Market. David Marquez partnered with Dustin and Maria Starr to create a localized version of Championship Wrestling from Hollywood. The show would feature Hollywood programming with Dustin and Maria as hosts in the CW30 Studios. To make it specific to Memphis, the Starrs would introduce matches and segments. , specific to the Memphis Market. The pairing has been fruitful, as it has led to today’s announcement of live television tapings happening in Memphis.

What is Championship Wrestling Memphis?

With the hope that it would lead to a stand-alone product, Championship Wrestling Memphis was a collaboration between David Marquez, Dustin, and Maria Starr. A similar formula was used to introduce Championship Wrestling from Arizona. By adding hosts Maria and Dustin from the CW30 Studios in Memphis, the show felt more local and appealed to local sponsors.

Why Now?

This launch was supposed to take place last year as a celebration of the program’s one-year anniversary. On April 25th, The Birthday Bash at Autozone Park was going to include a Vip Meet and Greet and the first set of television tapings. But, due to Covid-19 restrictions, the show got canceled. David Marquez said “Memphis is always ready for Memphis Wrestling! But kidding aside, we tested Championship Wrestling on CW30 for 2 years to great success. The ratings and local interaction proved to us what we already knew. I feel regional talent will bring an authentic feel to the show and draw people who may not be into the syndicated matches. This is part of the reason the show was never called “Championship Wrestling from Memphis” until now.” On Halloween, they presented their first live event, Drive-In Spooktacular.  They made those matches available on YouTube. That show featured; Watts, Cece Channel, Will Allday, and AEW talents Marko Stunt and “The Librarian” Peter Avalon.

“Dreams come true, my friend,” is how the excited Dustin Starr responded when I asked him about bringing live pro-wrestling back to Memphis. The wrestler turn host Dustin Starr along with his wife Maria Starr has been a part of the Memphis Wrestling scene for the past 15 years. Dustin wrestled in many of the top promotions in Tennessee. Starr had competed in Global Force Wrestling, Impact Wrestling, Memphis Championship Wrestling, and has worked matches with the WWE.

Who Will Make The Roster?

Championship Wrestling from Hollywood offers a robust roster, but this show will create its own roster. “There will be [talents from Hollywood], but others too. It’ll be a mixture,” Dustin Starr added. Talents that have previously Watts, CeCe Chanel, Will Allday, Derrick King, Alan Steel, Humongous, The Posse, and LA Hustlers. It might be safe to assume that the United Wrestling Network Television Champion Levi Shapiro may be on hand to defend his championship.