What to know
- Three shows daily: Classic Championship Wrestling runs at 1 p.m., 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. at North Bandshell Park.
- Included with admission: There’s no additional charge to watch the wrestling once you’re inside the CNE.
- Familiar faces: Greg “The Hammer” Valentine, Joey Janela, Gangrel and Luigi Primo are among this year’s scheduled wrestlers.
- Get there early: Rudy Blair says the grandstand seating can fill quickly, with some shows drawing upwards of 1,000 spectators.
If you’re a wrestling fan, there’s an increasingly popular attraction happening daily at the Canadian National Exhibition free with admission.
Located in the North Bandshell Park, Classic Championship Wrestling cards take place at 1 p.m., 3 p.m. and 6 p.m., drawing upwards of a thousand spectators.
Featured wrestlers include Greg “The Hammer” Valentine (Aug. 28-30), Gangrel (Sept. 4 – 6), Luigi Primo (until Sept. 7), Briyante RB (until Sept. 5), Joey Janela (until Aug. 31), and others.
While Classic Championship Wrestling is family fun, the athleticism is top-notch, says Rudy Blair, a longtime Toronto entertainment reporter who has emceed the CNE matches for the past three years, invited by CCW owner Mike Clark.
“These are indie professional wrestlers who are not just from Canada, but from the U.S., Mexico and Europe,” he says. “The wrestlers are incredible at what they do, especially when they are wrestling that many times during the day. It shows what their stamina is. People don’t realize how hard it is to wrestle for 10, 15 minutes in that ring and then come back and do it again, and then come back again the next day and do it all over again.”
Blair says each card — a lineup of matches — runs for about 45 minutes. “There could be three matches. There could be four matches. There could be five matches. They could be tag team. They could be singles matches. They can be men. They can be women. They can be three-man matches.
The connection between Blair and Clark goes back decades, to the early days of Blair’s radio career at CKO. Clark had worked for the late Jack Tunney during the days of the WWF, when its Canadian operation was based across from Maple Leaf Gardens on Compton Street.
Clark founded Classic Championship Wrestling in 2009, bringing “old-school action with new-school energy” to audiences across Ontario, and describes itself as Ontario’s longest-running wrestling promotion and a family-friendly entertainment option.
“The bonus at the CNE is there’s usually a legend from wrestling that’s there,” says Blair. “For example, this time around, they had Rhyno and Greg “The Hammer” Valentine. In the past, they’ve had [wrestling manager] Jimmy Hart. They’ve had [The Million Dollar Man] Ted DiBiase. They’ve had [tag team] Demolition. These are all wrestlers in the past who have become Hall of Famers and known worldwide.”
For anyone approaching wrestling from the outside, there is an obvious question: How much of it is real? Blair’s answer is essentially don’t worry about that. “I’m going to say it to you that way. It’s family fun.
“Nobody’s going to get bladed or anything like that,” he says, referring to the intentional cutting of skin sometimes used by wrestlers for dramatic effect. “But the action is really great. The fans get into it.”
He says the grandstand-style seating can fill quickly, so get there early. Admission is
just $13 weekday evenings after 5 p.m. and Presto Perks offers discounts too.
