UWA Marking Out: That Ontario Fed
Written by Mark Guilherme
That Ontario Fed: How Canada’s Top Fed Stepped into the Spotlight
At St. John’s Hall in Mississauga, there comes a Friday in every month when the sounds of the building turn from church hymns to body slams.
Close to 500 wrestling fanatics cram the Lithuanian Martyr’s church to witness Ontario’s hottest wrestling action.
UWA Hardcore was first established in 1998 in the Caledon, Ontario backyard of brothers Joe E. Slick and Osiris.
Joe never expected their labor of love to garner this much attention, but Osiris on the other hand, looked forward to the day that the UWA would bring in this many fans.
“The first show I ever promoted I handed out 10,000 flyers personally. I went insane; I thought there were going to be 2000 people there. And then we had 250 and I was depressed. [Joe]’s the realist and I’m optimistic,” laughed Osiris.
It’s the action packed shows which UWA Hardcore produces that keeps the fans coming back.
“I went to one show and now I’m hooked,” said UWA fan Joanne DiCarlantonio. “Every show gets better and better. You can really tell that they’re out there to entertain the fans and send them home happy”
Most of the wrestlers are young guys either catching their first break into the business, or working their way up the ladder, gaining attention locally before getting a shot at going international.
“The style that most of the wrestlers work is a style that is considered to be reckless by most, but it’s still a surprise how many of them aren’t injured. You have wrestlers such as Christopher Bishop and Blade going out there and really doing some death-defying spots in their matches,” said Allan Cajilig, a fan who’s been to every UWA show since its inception.
Joe takes pride in the fact that many of the wrestlers he has given a shot have attracted followings and gained popularity among the fans of UWA Hardcore.
“I just love in general seeing guys that we’ve taken; who couldn’t get their start in the Ontario indy scene. We got to take them and elevate them. I love bringing in guys from the U.S., and with the MDogg20 vs. Josh Prohibition match, it’s always been a dream of mine to see those guys wrestle and to see them do it in my promotion has been amazing,” said Joe E. Slick. 
MDogg20 and Josh Prohibition are just two of the top American independent talents that the UWA has brought in to perform in front of local fans who would otherwise not get a chance to see them live.
Another wrestler who was brought in recently by the brothers is Austin Aries, champion of the Pennsylvania based Ring of Honor promotion. Aries, a very popular independent wrestler from across the border, enjoyed his time in Ontario and hopes to be back soon.
“I had a lot of fun, it was very professionally run, and there are a lot of good fans with a lot of energy. They’re respectful and appreciative of all the effort that everyone comes out and puts forth,” said Aries.
One of the more important aspects of UWA Hardcore that fans may not see is the contributions that the brothers have made to various charitable causes.
“Every year we do a big Christmas party where we invite the fans, and we have bands playing, and in the end we donate the money to charity,” said Osiris. ‘Last year we raised about $700. We just try to give back.”
“We finally got to fulfill one of our dreams,” adds Joe. “A little kid who had surgery actually wanted us to visit him in the hospital, which was amazing; just the fact that it made him happy. I don’t think of myself as someone at that level, but if it made a kid happy, that’s amazing,” emphasizes Joe.
“Well, if we follow my dream of merchandising,” said Osiris, “hopefully fans will love us enough to want to buy Osiris’ cane or have an auction and give the money to charity, or buy a broken garbage can from the show. We can start merchandising like that on eBay and just donate to charity and try to use our names to benefit someone else.”
As for where the promotion is headed, Osiris and his brother have an optimistic outlook on where they want this dream of theirs to go.
“I’d like to keep working on it and maybe one day turn it into a living,” said Osiris. “Be able to pay these guys so they can make a living and go on the road and become maybe a smaller version of WWE or maybe become the next ECW. That’s my dream to be able to wrestle as a job and continue to do what I love.”
“My dream has already been fulfilled,” comments Joe. “People are coming out and enjoying something that not just my brother and myself, but all of the guys, all of our friends, and family, have created. Just people coming out and spending their hard earned money is a dream come true for me. Everything else is icing on the cake.”
