Since making his DEFY Wrestling debut in 2018, BC’s Artemis Spencer has become one of the most well-known pro wrestlers on the independent scene. While his work with the Vancouver-based ECCW was more than enough to earn him a reputation as one of the most talented individuals in the Pacific North West, his run with DEFY has truly been remarkable. Not only has he faced and defeated the likes of Schaff, Rey Fenix, MJF, and Christopher Daniels with the promotion, but on December 14, 2018, Spencer defeated Shane Strickland to capture the DEFY World Championship for the first time.
While by no means was Spencer a stranger to winning titles by that point, but even he’s the first to admit that reaching the apex with DEFY meant something special.
“You wrestled for ECCW for pretty well your entire career, [where] DEFY is a bit more of a recent addition to the repertoire for yourself, but you’ve been the heavyweight champion of both promotions,” I noted. “Do they perhaps mean a little bit differently for you? How do they sort of equate for you, or what are the different feelings you have between both of those championship wins?”
Spencer took a second to mull the question.
“I’m kind of a down-to-earth kind of guy,” he began. “I’ve won lots of championships, like in ECCW or around Vancouver. I’ve won lots of belts over the year and I’m just like, I’ve never been, ‘Oh, yeah, it’s just kind of a prop. It’s fun, whatever.'”
“But, when I had that DEFY Championship, I really felt like it meant something,” he beamed. “When I got that, a bunch of doors opened up for me and that’s when I started to believe the belts can kind of mean something. I’ve never been a belt guy, and never been all about the championship, but I can’t deny that that DEFY Championship got a lot of eyes on me from a lot of people. I’d say that DEFY World Championship means a lot to me.”
It was far from the first time a guest has sung the praises of DEFY Wrestling. Though DEFY has just barely scratched the four-year mark of existence, the Seattle-based promotion has earned a reputation for its incredible in-ring action, raucous fan base, and, most importantly, treatment of people involved.
“What is it about DEFY specifically as a promotion?” I asked him. “You’ve brought it up, Ravenous Randy’s brought it up, [and] anyone I’ve spoken to who’s even worked there fleetingly has brought up just the amount of love that they have for working for DEFY Wrestling.”
“What else is there about DEFY Wrestling that really draws Artemis Spencer and his heart to it?”
AS: “You said love, and love is it,” he espoused. “You can tell like everyone from the top, the promoters [and] booker’s [that] they love wrestling. And the wrestlers, they love wrestling, and the fans love it just as much. It’s just the kind of the perfect mix. Everybody in that building is just on the same page and just want good wrestling.”
“It’s – I don’t want to say magical, but there’s something going on there.”
Please credit Spencer Love/Love Wrestling with any of the above quotations.
