SCOTTISH wrestling phenomenon ICW is on course to pin down two sell-out years at the SSE Hydro before the first bout has even begun.
Insane Championship Wrestling has grown from city nightclubs to UK tours in a few short years, packing out a 4,000 capacity hall at the SECC in Glasgow last year.
Starring fan-favourite Grado, current heavyweight champion Wolfgang and painted “Iron Man” Joe Coffey, the smash hit fight club attracts hundreds of thousands of fans worldwide with a series of TV shows, with up to 300,000 people tuning in each week in Italy alone.
Earlier this year founder Mark Dallas told The National how a November date at the world-renowned Hydro arena could be make or break for the brand, which he started from his Glasgow home.
The venue, which can hold up to 13,000 people, is the world’s second busiest live entertainment site and has been used by international A-listers including Beyonce and Adele. Now the ex-swimming pool lifeguard says the event is on track to be a major success, with ticket sales ahead of projections.
Around 5,000 briefs have been snapped up, including all of the most expensive ringside areas, meaning the show will at least break even. A total of 500 VIP passes were gone in just one day.
Dallas predicts a flurry of interest next month could see every seat sold and is now in talks to repeat the “Fear and Loathing” event in November 2017. Drawing comparisons with big-budget shows run by US wrestling house WWE, he said: “This is going to be the UK’s version of Wrestlemania. The biggest rush for tickets will come in the last month. We’re planning major promotion, with moving billboards, PR and TV.
“Booking this was a big risk. I’ve already started talks to have another one next year – where else is there to go? We’re not at the point where we can sell out football stadiums, but I think it will one day. It’s baby steps, but this is a big one.”
Dallas quit his job at a leisure centre run by Glasgow Life to turn his hobby into a full-time career, aiming to support his partner and son. The decision has taken him from living in the notorious Red Road Flats to a home with a garden in the city’s west end. The operation has also grown to employ several staff and run its own training centre, dubbed The Asylum, and support a number of TV shows for foreign markets, with Dallas currently in discussions with US and French networks about further deals.
He said: “It’s an incredible amount of work. We don’t have any off-season, we can never sit and dwell on anything – you sell out a show, then you wake up and realise you’ve got to sell the next one.
“From when I wake up in the morning to when I go to bed, my phone’s always ringing. I went away for a couple of days up north and I chose it because I knew I wouldn’t get a signal. One year we went to Blackpool and I just threw my phone in the sea because it never stopped.
“I make a better living than I did working for the council. I used to look out of my window to a view of a brick wall, now I’ve got a really nice house in the west end – it’s better for my wean.”
The Hydro show will feature US wrestler and Olympic gold medal winner Kurt Angle, while veteran Mick Foley acts as the evening’s “commissioner”.
However, Dallas says ICW’s homegrown performers show real talent, with Israeli-Scot Noam Dar recently signed by WWE. The 22-year-old began working with Dallas at the age of 15.
He said: “He’s away to the big time. It’s brilliant to see him grow as a performer. I think of myself as a football manager, I’m there to help get the best out of them.”
A spokesperson for The SSE Hydro commented: “ After the success of last year’s event in the SECC we can’t wait to welcome them (ICW) to The SSE Hydro In November.”
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