By Khalid Mohamed/Sahan Journal

Midwest All-Star Wrestling fills a niche for up-and-coming talent and fans who seek accessible venues. The promoter also cultivates a diverse roster of talent.

A crowd of 1,000 flooded into the North High School gym on Saturday, some dressed in Halloween costumes and all ready to see pro wrestlers flying off the ropes.

Midwest All-Star Wrestling’s Grand Slam VII delivered spectacle — fog machines, mood lights, chokeholds and body slams — but beneath that was a serious purpose.

The annual event is also a fundraiser for Women of Nations, a nonprofit that runs a shelter for Native women in St. Paul.

For David Amitrano, co-owner of the Native-owned wrestling promoter, that marriage of entertainment and service is intentional. Amitrano said he bought 50% of MAW after a successful fundraiser for the St. Paul-based women’s shelter, where he is the CFO.

He said MAW has generated over $175,000 for the shelter since he came on board, money that has helped build a playground at the shelter, support housing for clients, and purchase school and Christmas items for families in need.

“Without wrestling fans helping us raise funds for victims of domestic violence, we wouldn’t be able to serve the community,” he said at Saturday’s Grand Slam event.

MAW books more than 200 pro wrestling events a year, most in Minnesota and Wisconsin, but the owners have recently added events in North Dakota and Iowa.

The events are primarily at smaller venues, including a match in St. Francis in late September and the Grand Slam in North St. Paul last week. But they have also booked venues as large as the Mayo Civic Center in Rochester, which has an arena capacity of 7,200, according to MAW co-owner Brian Sager.

Amitrano, who was born in Ely and is from the Bois Forte Band in Nett Lake, said that MAW also incorporates Native wrestlers into its diverse roster.

Sager said that the wrestling promotion business began in 2017 and is still in its beginning stages despite running for the past eight years and making money. Sager, a teacher and former wrestler, described MAW as a passion project, and that their passion separates them from other wrestling companies in Minnesota.

“I want [fans] to feel like when they come to an MAW show that they get their money’s worth and then some,” he said.

Sager, who said that events can run from $1,500 an hour and higher based on show size, said that MAW tries to give back to the community, involve its fanbase and try to be as diverse as possible with promoting events and bringing in wrestlers and fans from different backgrounds.

MAW booked lucha libre wrestlers for a St. Paul Mexican Independence Day celebration in September after the West Side Boosters reached out to them. MAW owners would like to do more events like that, Sager said.

Two wrestlers who have appeared in MAW bouts say the company fills a need for smaller, more accessible venues in the pro wrestling ecosystem.

A luchador from Faribault who goes by “El Muerto” or Muerto Gonzalez, said MAW is a great company for younger wrestlers to work with.

“If you ask, they’ll book you,” he said.

Gonzalez said he had his eye on MAW before he even started wrestling, as the company posted Facebook ads featuring WWE and TNA wrestlers like Kurt Angle. The wrestler, who asked to keep his first name anonymous to maintain the illusion of the mask, he’s grown close to the wrestlers he has trained and performed with during his time working with MAW.

Damon Luken, who goes by the wrestling name Richard Powers, competed in MAW’s Friday Night Fight on Sept. 26 at Tasty Pizza Bar & Bowl in St. Francis.

It was a retirement match for Luken, a firefighter and Harley-Davidson salesman, who said his seven-year career had been enjoyable, but his injury history made him decide to retire.

He got the owner of Tasty Pizza Bar in contact with Amitrano to book the fight in his hometown.

“In the end, I decided what better place to finish than my hometown,” Luken said. “With the head injuries and the ability to wrestle in my hometown, I thought it was a good time to call it a career.”

Wrestling fan Irvin Gonzalez showed up at the St. Francis match and also came to Saturday’s Grand Slam in North St. Paul. The Otsego resident, said he heard about MAW through word of mouth while watching a Total Nonstop Action.

He was effusive after Saturday’s Grand Slam.

“Great event! I’d say the card was very stacked. It was great seeing so many guest appearances,” he said. “This was easily a 10 out of 10.”

Sahan freelancer Chris Juhn contributed to this story.