Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) was an American professional wrestling promotion that was based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and operated by its parent company HHG Corporation. The promotion was founded in 1992 by Tod Gordon as National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) affiliate Eastern Championship Wrestling. The following year, businessman and wrestling manager Paul Heyman took over the creative end of the promotion from Eddie Gilbert. Under Heyman, the promotion was rechristened as Extreme Championship Wrestling.
ECW became known for its hardcore style, frequently incorporating weapons into matches. Sabu (putting Rhino through a table in this picture) especially was connected with this practice.
The former ECW Arena as it appeared in 2010. The former "Bingo Hall" was ECW's primary venue for the majority of its existence.
The Sandman held the ECW World Heavyweight Championship a record five times
Paul Heyman appears with ECW security guard Ronnie Lang in 1998
SmackDown (WWE brand)
Videos
SmackDown is a brand of the American professional wrestling promotion WWE that was established on March 25, 2002. Brands are divisions of WWE's roster where wrestlers are assigned to perform on a weekly basis when a brand extension is in effect. Wrestlers assigned to SmackDown primarily appear on the brand's weekly television program, Friday Night SmackDown, also referred to simply as SmackDown. It is one of WWE's two main brands, along with Raw, collectively referred to as WWE's main roster. The brand extension was discontinued between August 2011 and July 2016.
WWE Hall of Famer Theodore Long served as SmackDown General Manager twice, lasting a combined six years
Image: Cody Rhodes with his Undisputed Championship (Birmingham UK, April 2024) (3) (cropped)
Image: Alexa Bliss vs. Bayley 2017 05 12 22 17 58 ILCE 6500 DSC05420 (34569288882) (cropped)