CEW Brings Oskaloosa Connections and Wrestling Legends to Bridge City Slam VIII

Road Dogg, Billy Gunn, “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan, and other wrestling stars are scheduled to appear at Central Empire Wrestling’s Bridge City Slam VIII on Saturday, Oct. 3, 2026, at the Bridge View Center in Ottumwa. The Legends Fan Fest begins at 4 p.m., followed by wrestling at 7 p.m. Tickets start at $25 and include fan fest admission. Some autograph and photo opportunities cost extra.

OSKALOOSA, Iowa – Austin Bayliss grew up seeing Road Dogg and Billy Gunn rise to fame on national television and on October 3rd, he is bringing them to southeast Iowa for an event which links wrestling’s past with wrestlers who are still establishing their careers.

Central Empire Wrestling will be holding Bridge City Slam VIII on Saturday, October 3rd, at the Bridge View Center in Ottumwa; the Legends Fan Fest will take place from 4 to 7 p.m. and the wrestling event will then follow at 7 p.m.

The tickets cost from $25 and cover admission to the fan fest. The event is suitable for all ages.

In his interview with the Oskaloosa News on September 14, Bayliss talked about the guest speakers, the matches, and the Oskaloosa links, which are still a part of CEW as the organization recruits talent from all over the country.

As Bayliss said, we have been putting on shows all over Iowa since 2007, including a number of them in Oskaloosa.

CEW is an independent promotion in the field of professional wrestling which puts on its own events and combines wrestlers from the various regions with those who are well known nationally.

Bayliss’s recollection began with some of the events held in an old school gym in West Chester, Iowa, and later on the promotion extended its operations to include well-known television personalities at the Bridge View Center.

Oskaloosa has stayed a regular stop.

CEW has organized events at the Nelson Pioneer Farm, and on its website it lists Oskaloosa as the place where its anniversary celebrations and its annual Hall of Fame inductions take place. The organisation set up the Hall of Fame in 2018 with the aim of acknowledging individuals whose contributions, both in the ring and behind the scenes, had helped in the promotion’s development.

The same connections are also evident in the October 3rd lineup.

Bayliss intends to team up with Storm Thomas in a match for the CEW tag team titles; he refers to Thomas as a former resident of Oskaloosa, a graduate of William Penn, and a former football player.

The fact that they are partners means that local fans will be able to identify with the program, since it also includes performers coming from other parts of the country.

Bayliss stated that the earlier events organized by CEW had featured a number of wrestlers from Oskaloosa, and the forthcoming show will combine these regional links with wrestlers coming from places like Georgia and Ohio.

Among long-time fans of wrestling, the names listed on the poster will remind them of watching the matches on television.

Road Dogg and Billy Gunn gained widespread recognition as the New Age Outlaws in the late 1990s; the duo won a number of WWE titles and were included in D-Generation X, which was commonly referred to as DX.

The band’s rebellious image, the involvement of the audience, and their regular appearances on television helped establish it as a significant element of the Attitude Era in wrestling, and Road Dogg and Gunn were inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame as part of DX in 2019.

At Bridge City Slam VIII the two are advertised as VIP ringside guests and take part in the autograph opportunities during the fan fest.

For Bayliss, the fact that he booked performers whom he had followed when he was a young fan has personal significance.

I never thought that those people would be working for me now, he said.

“Hacksaw” Jim Duggan is a representative of a different generation in wrestling television, the fans becoming familiar with him because of his American flag, his characteristic two-by-four, and the crowd chants of “U.S.A.”

Duggan won the first Royal Rumble match in 1988 and was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2011. Bayliss stated that Duggan will have two-by-fours available for autographs at the event.

Marty Jannetty gained fame together with Shawn Michaels as the Rockers, due to the fact that their quick matches and acrobatic moves distinguished them from a great many of the bigger wrestlers of the late 1980s and early 1990s.

When the team split, Jannetty won the Intercontinental Championship in 1993; Bayliss stated that Jannetty also recalls having wrestled in Ottumwa earlier in his career, which thus links his forthcoming visit to the area’s wrestling history.

Tony Atlas first gained a reputation as a result of his participation in bodybuilding and strength competitions before turning to a career in professional wrestling.

In 1983 Atlas and Rocky Johnson became the first black team to win the World Tag Team Championship in the promotion which was then called the World Wrestling Federation, now known as WWE. Atlas was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2006.

Bayliss stated that Atlas is set to take part in a six-man tag team match at Bridge City Slam VIII.

Heath Slater was made known to WWE viewers as a member of groups such as the Nexus and 3MB, and later formed a team with Rhyno as a result of becoming the first SmackDown Tag Team Champions.

According to Bayliss, Slater will compete against Rory Fox, the CEW champion, in the main event on October 3rd.

The team also has a wrestler from Iowa whose national career is still in its early stages.

Maggie Lee from Cedar Rapids has gone from competing in the independent wrestling circuit to appearing on national television with TNA Wrestling, and TNA currently has her listed as M By Elegance, its Knockouts Television Champion.

Bayliss recalled that Lee had earlier worked a Fourth of July program for CEW and described her as a former volleyball player who was at that time beginning to find her position in professional wrestling.

Lee received his training at the Black and Brave Wrestling Academy in the Quad Cities, and the academy has as its trainers WWE star Seth Rollins, Marek Brave and Matt Mayday.

Mayday also establishes a link between CEW and the next generation of wrestlers; since he has been a performer in the independent circuit, he joined Black and Brave’s training staff in 2015.

Bayliss stated that experience enables wrestlers to pass on what they have learned and thus helps younger wrestlers get ready for chances that go beyond local performances.

Lee has a wrestling match scheduled against Blair Onyx at Bridge City Slam VIII. Six women will be taking part in the event, one of them being Josie Valentine, who is from Burlington.

JT Energy is also set to make a return to CEW after a number of years’ absence. Bayliss stated that he anticipates the show will feature about seven to nine matches.

Before the matches start, the three-hour fan fest will give people the opportunity to meet the wrestlers and browse the tables run by vendors, who will be offering wrestling toys, trading cards and other souvenirs.

Bayliss stated that some of the meet-and-greet opportunities would be free whereas others would have separate fees. Although admission to the fan fest is included with a show ticket, it does not cover all the photographs and autographs.

The prices given on the event poster are $50 for a photograph or autograph of Road Dogg, Billy Gunn and Jim Duggan, and $80 for a photograph and autograph combined for each wrestler.

The price listed for Jannetty, Atlas, Lee, and Slater is $30 for either a photograph or an autograph, or $50 for both.

The price for a photo or autograph of a New Age Outlaws package consisting of Road Dogg and Gunn is $80, or $150 if both a photo and an autograph are wanted.

The event listing at Bridge View Center says VIP ringside tickets in the first two rows include a free autograph from both Road Dogg and Billy Gunn as part of the fan fest.

Bayliss also stated that tickets for the $60 table rate include a drink at the beginning of the wrestling show and another one after the interval.

You can obtain tickets via Ticketmaster, by using the ticket link on Central Empire Wrestling’s website, or at the Bridge View Center box office. Bayliss stated that buying the tickets at the box office will help customers avoid the online ticketing fees.

The Bridge View Center is located at 102 Church Street in Ottumwa, and inquiries regarding tickets should be sent to the venue at telephone number 641-684-7000.

The advertised lineup may change.

For Bayliss, the appeal spans generations, since those who remember the Rockers, Duggan or DX are able to share the experience with younger members of their family at the same time as they get the opportunity to see the regional wrestlers who are still helping to build CEW.

He said people now have their grandchildren watching it, just as they did when they were children.