Behind the curtain before Saturday's show, Rafael Acosta shared why he believes Extreme Dwarfanators Wrestling (EDW) is special.
“This kind of entertainment brings people joy,” the Miami Beach, Florida, native said, explaining why he does it. “There's a lot of depression going on in this world, so we just want to make people laugh and happy. And, to show these kids out here that — even though we look different — we can always still put a smile on people's faces.”
In front of the hearty Fort Calhoun crowd at Longhorn Bar & Grill, though, Acosta took on a different tone. As Doomsday, he tore down Nebraskans, noting how ugly their wives and kids were with hard digs and colorful language.
It worked.
The bad guy drew the intended boos, causing fans to cheer his opponent, Rey Sable. Acosta didn't stay bad for long, though, voicing many of the introductions and amping up the crowd alongside his fellow EDW luchadors — Tsuky, Octagoncito, Espectrito and Caveman.
The crew arrived in Fort Calhoun thanks to Andy and Linda Faucher, the owners of the Longhorn. Andy, who stood in the ring after the event and accepted free-will donations for Fort Calhoun Boy Scout Troop 114 and tornado victims, said the idea for the show came from a friend, James Kubes. When the Fauchers purchased the bar in 2022, Kubes and he spitballed what kind of events they could host in the large parking lot off of Monroe Street.
Wrestling was an option.
“The next day, I got online. I researched a whole bunch of companies, and these guys had the best reviews and really supported the event,” Faucher said. “To get a Saturday night, it almost took us a year and a half.”
The Longhorn, in turn, promoted the event for months.
“Everybody's excited. Everybody,” the owner said before Saturday's festivities. “We've been having the bartenders and servers mention it to people, just to keep spreading the word, and everybody's like, 'That's a thing?'”
It is, and a crowd showed up for Doomsday and EDW.
“Did I think I'd do anything like this? No, but they say we should expect about 700 people tonight,” Faucher said.
Acosta, meanwhile, started performing on shows like Fort Calhoun's about five years ago. He's a longtime professional wrestling fan inspired by The Rock.
The Dwarfantors saw the wrestler on YouTube and signed him up.
“From there, 5 years ago, I took off and never looked back ever since,” Acosta said. “I fell in love with wrestling.”
The athletes travel with the promotion for about six months each year.
“We probably have, like, what? Two to three days off in a month,” Acosta said. “It's pretty good money, but some of us don't do it for the money. We do it for the culture.”
Their sizes aren't a hindrance at all.
“There's a lot of little people out there that don't like to be in the middle of the scene being looked at as midgets,” Acosta said. “But we look at it as an opportunity. We look at it as a blessing.”
Doomsday may have talked down the people of Fort Calhoun for the show, but the man behind the character believes his colleagues and he prove that little people can achieve a lot.
“God is good and God is No. 1,” Acosta said. “And always remember, believe and pray and never ever, ever give up.”
Tsuky didn't, winning the EDW title to close out the show.
