C.W. Bergstrom (born February 24, 1957) is an American semi-retired professional wrestler who was active in North American regional promotions during the early 1990s including a memorable stint in the
United States Wrestling Association
The United States Wrestling Association (USWA) was a professional wrestling promotion based in Memphis, Tennessee. The company was founded when the Memphis-based Continental Wrestling Association merged with the Dallas-based World Class Wrestlin ...
(USWA) as Principal Bergstrom. He was one of the last major stars in
Don Owen's
Pacific Northwest Wrestling during its final years and was the last wrestler to hold the
NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship
The NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship sanctioned by the National Wrestling Alliance and defended in its member promotion Pacific Northwest Wrestling, which promoted shows in the U.S. states of ...
.
Career
Pacific Northwest Wrestling
Born and raised in
Portland, Oregon
Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the list of cities in Oregon, largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, Columbia rivers, Portland is ...
, C.W. Bergstrom made his debut in
Pacific Northwest Wrestling in December 1988, losing to
Art Barr
Arthur Leon Barr (October 8, 1966 – November 23, 1994) was an American professional wrestler. While he wrestled briefly for World Championship Wrestling, he found his greatest success in Mexico's Asistencia Asesoría y Administración promotio ...
in his very first match. A month later, he took part in a joint show with
World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. (WCW) was an American professional wrestling promotion founded by Ted Turner in 1988, after Turner Broadcasting System, through a subsidiary named Universal Wrestling Corporation, purchased the assets of Nati ...
, losing to Mike Golden at the
Kaiser Convention Center
Kaiser Convention Center is a historic, publicly owned multi-purpose building located in Oakland, California. The facility includes a 5,492-seat arena, a large theater, and a large ballroom.Ward, Jennifer Inez (June 28, 2011)"Historic Kaiser Conve ...
in
Oakland, California
Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...
on January 14, 1989. In March 1989, he began teaming up with
The Grappler and defeated Scott Peterson and Billy Two Eagles on March 12. He and Denton lost to The Southern Rockers (
Steve Doll and
Scott Peterson
Scott Lee Peterson (born October 24, 1972) is an American convicted murderer. In 2004, he was convicted of the first-degree murder of his wife, Laci, who was pregnant at the time, and the second-degree murder of their unborn son, Conner, in Mod ...
) the next month.
On April 21, he and
Scotty the Body
Scott Levy (born September 8, 1964) is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name, Raven. He is known for his appearances with professional wrestling promotions including Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), World Champions ...
entered the championship tournament for the then vacant
NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship
The NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling championship sanctioned by the National Wrestling Alliance and defended in its member promotion Pacific Northwest Wrestling, which promoted shows in the U.S. states of O ...
but were eliminated by The Southern Rockers (Steve Doll & Scott Peterson) who also defeated Al Madril and Joey Jackson and
Colonel DeBeers
Edward Wiskoski (born January 10, 1945) is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances in the American Wrestling Association under the ring name Colonel DeBeers from 1985 to 1990.
Early life
Wiskoski was the fi ...
and
Nord the Barbarian
John Eric Nord (born October 18, 1959) is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the American Wrestling Association and World Class Championship Wrestling in the 1980s as Nord the Barbarian and Yukon ...
to win the tournament. He also acted as a special guest referee in a televised match between Al Madril and Jeff Warner on January 27, 1990. Warner was disqualified when he attempted to use a foreign object that Madril had brought to the ring.
Bergstrom lost to Denton twice later that year, including a disqualification loss in
Salem, Oregon on October 19, and lost to him in a tag team match with
Bill Francis against Denton and
Brian Adams in Portland on December 23, 1989. During the next year, he would lose to Denton on June 23 and, in a tag team match with Craig Valeri, lost to Denton and
The Equalizer on December 29, 1990. Throughout 1991, he faced Denton and the Equalizer with several tag team partners including Larry Oliver and
Bart Sawyer
Steven Stewart (born November 30, 1965), known by his ring name Bart Sawyer, is an American retired professional wrestler, color commentator, and occasional actor. He is best known for his time in Championship Wrestling USA and the United States ...
and also defeated Denton in
Estacada, Oregon
Estacada is a city in Clackamas County, Oregon, United States, about southeast of Portland. The 2020 population is estimated to be 3,700. According to the 2010 census, the population in 2010 was 2,695. It is the 89th largest city in Oregon and ...
on May 22.
On June 22, Bergstrom fought
"Pretty Boy" Doug Masters to a time-limit draw. During the match, Bergstrom suffered a serious knee injury attempting a leapfrog. When color commentator
Jimmy Jack Funk
Ferrin Barr Jr. (born April 14, 1959) is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with Championship Wrestling from Florida under the ring name Jesse Barr and with the World Wrestling Federation under the ring ...
attempted to help Bergstrom leave the ring, he was attacked by Masters as well causing Funk to enter the match on Bergstrom's behalf until medical personnel were able to take Bergstrom back to the dressing room. Bergstrom was Master's second opponent of the night, the first being
Mike Winner
Mike may refer to:
Animals
* Mike (cat), cat and guardian of the British Museum
* Mike the Headless Chicken, chicken that lived for 18 months after his head had been cut off
* Mike (chimpanzee), a chimpanzee featured in several books and document ...
. Later that year, he and
Mike Winner
Mike may refer to:
Animals
* Mike (cat), cat and guardian of the British Museum
* Mike the Headless Chicken, chicken that lived for 18 months after his head had been cut off
* Mike (chimpanzee), a chimpanzee featured in several books and document ...
lost to Len Denton & Don Harris and, in
Vancouver, Washington
Vancouver is a city on the north bank of the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington, located in Clark County. Incorporated in 1857, Vancouver has a population of 190,915 as of the 2020 census, making it the fourth-largest city in Was ...
on December 29, 1991.
The following year, Bergstrom captured the
NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship
The NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship sanctioned by the National Wrestling Alliance and defended in its member promotion Pacific Northwest Wrestling, which promoted shows in the U.S. states of ...
from
Ron Harris on April 21, 1992 and held the title until the promotion folded three months later.
United States Wrestling Association
After PNW's closure, Bergstrom arrived in the
Memphis
Memphis most commonly refers to:
* Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt
* Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city
Memphis may also refer to:
Places United States
* Memphis, Alabama
* Memphis, Florida
* Memphis, Indiana
* Memp ...
-based
United States Wrestling Association
The United States Wrestling Association (USWA) was a professional wrestling promotion based in Memphis, Tennessee. The company was founded when the Memphis-based Continental Wrestling Association merged with the Dallas-based World Class Wrestlin ...
where he had a brief but memorable run as Principal Bergstrom. In one of his earliest matches in the promotion, he lost to
Jeff Gaylord
Jeff Gaylord (born October 15, 1958) is a retired American professional wrestler who competed in North American regional and independent promotions including Bill Watts' Universal Wrestling Federation, World Class Championship Wrestling and the ...
via disqualification in a "
strap on a pole" match at the
Mid-South Coliseum
Mid-South Coliseum is an indoor arena in Memphis, Tennessee. The facility was opened in 1964, and became known “The Entertainment Capitol of the Mid-South” due its significance in hosting events such as concerts, sports games and professio ...
on May 24, 1993. Losing to
Jerry Lawler
Jerry O'Neil Lawler (born November 29, 1949), better known as Jerry "The King" Lawler, is an American color commentator and professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, although he has not performed as a full-time commentator since Ap ...
on May 31, he continued to feud with Jeff Gaylord beating him on June 14 and
Danny Davis on June 21. Defeating Jeff Gaylord on July 5, he and Melvin Penrod, Jr. defeated USWA Tag Team Champions
New Jack
Jerome Young (January 3, 1963 – May 14, 2021) was an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name New Jack. He was best known for his time with Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), where he became notorious for his willingnes ...
and
Homeboy for the titles later that night.
They successfully defended the titles for several weeks, including a title defense against Well Dunn (
Rex King and
Steve Doll) on July 12, and defeated
Jeff Jarrett
Jeffrey Leonard Jarrett (born July 14, 1967) is an American professional wrestler and promoter. He is currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he also serves as Director of Business Development.
Beginning his career in his father ...
and
The Moondogs (
Moondog Spike
William Smithson (May 31, 1950 – March 21, 2013) was a professional wrestler who wrestled as Moondog Spike during the early 1990s with Moondog Spot from 1991 to 1992 and Moondog Cujo from 1992 to 1993 as part of The Moondogs.
Professional w ...
&
Moondog Cujo) in a 6-man tag team match with
USWA Southern Heavyweight Champion The Vampire Warrior on July 26. They eventually lost the tag team titles to The Moondogs at the Mid-South Coliseum on August 2. Splitting up immediately after losing the titles, Bergstrom defeated Melvin Penrod in a "
Loser Leaves Town" match a week later. After another loss to Jeff Jarrett, Bergstrom left the promotion wrestling his last match against Colin Scotts on September 13, 1993. He was later involved in talks with the
World Wrestling Federation
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and var ...
to bring in his character to feud with
The 1-2-3 Kid
Sean Michael Waltman (born July 13, 1972) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE under a legends contract. He is best known for his appearances for the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) under the ring names 1–2– ...
as The Principal, but nothing ever came of it. The WWF would later use
Shane Douglas
Troy Allan Martin (born November 21, 1964) is an American professional wrestler and promoter, better known by his ring name Shane Douglas. He is best known for his tenures in Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), World Championship Wrestling (W ...
in a similar
in-ring persona during his
second stint with the company.
On June 22, 1994, he appeared at a wrestling show for
Art Barr
Arthur Leon Barr (October 8, 1966 – November 23, 1994) was an American professional wrestler. While he wrestled briefly for World Championship Wrestling, he found his greatest success in Mexico's Asistencia Asesoría y Administración promotio ...
teaming with
Billy Jack Haynes
William Albert Haynes III (born July 10, 1953) is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Billy Jack Haynes.
Professional wrestling career
Early career (1982–1984)
Haynes started wrestling in 1982 at the ...
and
Rey Misterio, Jr. in a 6-man tag team match against
Psicosis
Dionicio Castellanos Torres (born May 19, 1971) is a Mexican professional wrestler, better known by the ring names Psicosis (sometimes Anglicised as Psychosis) and Nicho el Millonario. He is best known for his appearances with the promotions Luc ...
,
Ryuma Go
(March 23, 1956–October 18, 2009) was a Japanese professional wrestler who worked for All Japan Pro Wrestling, New Japan Pro Wrestling, Wrestle Association-R and the National Wrestling Alliance. He won the WWF Junior Heavyweight Championship ...
and Col. DeBeers. This card was organized as a sort of reunion show featuring former PNW stars as well as Mexican
luchadores
Lucha libre (, meaning "freestyle wrestling" or literally translated as "free fight") is the term used in Latin America for professional wrestling. Since its introduction to Mexico in the early 20th century, it has developed into a unique form ...
of
Asistencia Asesoría y Administración
Antonio Peña Promotions, S.A. de C.V. d/b/a Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide is a Mexican Lucha Libre ( professional wrestling) promotion based in Mexico City, Mexico. Commonly referred to as simply AAA (pronounced "triple A"; an abbreviation of its ...
.
Semi-retirement and the independent circuit
Bergstrom would remain inactive during much of the 1990s, but returned to action in local independent promotions in the old Pacific Northwest territory. In July 1999, he headlined a wrestling event for promoter John Skinner at the Medford Armory losing to Steve "The Gigolo" Rizzano. This was the first wrestling event held in
Medford, Oregon
Medford is a city in and the county seat of Jackson County, Oregon, in the United States. As of the 2020 United States Census on April 1, 2020, the city had a total population of 85,824 and a metropolitan area population of 223,259, making the M ...
in nearly a decade. Returning to Eugene four months later, he teamed with Lou Andrews and Big Daddy Thunder in a 6-man tag team match fighting to a double-disqualification against Len Denton, Bruiser Brian and Billy Two Eagles on November 13, 1999.
On October 23, 2005, Bergstrem defeated Governor Wilson Kaine to win the CPW Heavyweight Championship. He also defeated Critter at an event for
Sandy Barr
Ferrin Charles Barr (January 21, 1938 – June 2, 2007) was an American professional wrestler, referee, promoter and trainer who spent his career mostly in the Western United States and Canada. Under the name as Sandy Barr, he was best known for h ...
's IGA Wrestling in
Prineville, Oregon
Prineville is a city in and the seat of Crook County, Oregon, United States. It was named for the first merchant located in the present location, Barney Prine. The population was 9,253 at the 2010 census.
History
Prineville was founded in 187 ...
on December 10. He spent the next two years with Championship Pro Wrestling and NWA Oregon winning the NWA Oregon Heavyweight title three times. He won the NWA Oregon Heavyweight Championship from Colossus at the
Benton County Fairgrounds in
Corvallis on January 6, 2007. On January 31, Bergstrom defeated Heavyweight Champion Dr. Kliever at the Chehalem Armory Center in
Newberg. This was a fundraising event for the
Newberg High School
Newberg High School is the only public high school in Newberg, Oregon, United States.
History
The current campus is Newberg High School's third location.
The first campus (1911-36)
The original high school, a three-story building that opened in ...
water polo
Water polo is a competitive sport, competitive team sport played in water between two teams of seven players each. The game consists of four quarters in which the teams attempt to score goals by throwing the water polo ball, ball into the oppo ...
teams and, according to the Chehalem Park and Recreation District's Jim McMaster, this was the first wrestling event to be held in the city in over twenty years.
That same year, he competed for BAW Championship Wrestling. Although losing to "Big Ugly" JD Bishop on April 20, he beat Drake Frost and
Alexis Smirnoff, Jr. during the summer. While in New Revolution Wrestling, he and Ritchie Magnett feuded with the NRW Tag Team Champions the Pacific Coast Blondes (Cameron Starr & Hearthrob Hanson) facing them in a series of matches during the summer, including a
Canadian Lumberjack match in June 2007. Bergstrom defeated Tod Ruhl who submitted to a
cross arm breaker at the "Final Friday" supercard in
Gresham, Oregon
Gresham ( ) is a city located in Multnomah County, Oregon, in the United States of America, immediately east of Portland, Oregon. It is considered a suburb within the Greater Portland Metropolitan area. Though it began as a settlement in the mid ...
on July 27, 2007. When Ruhl's valet Megan Nicole Desire attempted to distract the referee, Bergstrom pulled her into the ring. Bergstrom was immediately attacked by the Pacific Coast Blondes and Tod Ruhl, but was saved by Pete Storm who helped Bergstrom clear the ring.
Championships and accomplishments
*Championship Pro Wrestling
**CPW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
*
NWA Oregon
**NWA Oregon Heavyweight Championship (3 times)
*
Pacific Northwest Wrestling
**
NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship
The NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship sanctioned by the National Wrestling Alliance and defended in its member promotion Pacific Northwest Wrestling, which promoted shows in the U.S. states of ...
(1 time) - last champion
*
United States Wrestling Alliance
The United States Wrestling Association (USWA) was a professional wrestling promotion based in Memphis, Tennessee. The company was founded when the Memphis-based Continental Wrestling Association merged with the Dallas-based World Class Wrestlin ...
**
USWA Tag Team Championship
The USWA World Tag Team Championship was the primary professional wrestling tag team championship promoted by the Memphis, Tennessee-based United States Wrestling Association (USWA). The Continental Wrestling Association and World Class Wrestling ...
(1 time) - with Melvin Penrod, Jr.
*Portland Wrestling
**Portland Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
**Portland Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship (3 times) - with Lou Andrews (2) and Big Daddy Thunder
*
Pro Wrestling Illustrated
''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American internationally sold professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publi ...
**PWI ranked him # 97 of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the PWI 500 in 1993
References
General
*Rodgers, Mike. ''"Interview with C.W. Bergstrom."''
Ring Around The Northwest. 2004.
Specific
External links
Online World of Wrestling profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bergstrom, C.W.
1957 births
Living people
American male professional wrestlers
Professional wrestlers from Oregon
Sportspeople from Portland, Oregon
USWA World Tag Team Champions