Steve Maclin has been suspended indefinitely by Boca Raton Championship Wrestling and stripped of the BRCW World Heavyweight Championship, gutting the main event of the promotion’s biggest summer show with less than two weeks to go.
BRCW announced the suspension on August 5, citing conduct detrimental to the organization, including violations of company policy covering workplace conduct, insubordination and harassment. The championship was declared vacant effective immediately.
The promotion traced the discipline to a surprise appearance by Maclin on the Matthew Mania podcast, where it said his conduct toward BRCW management fell short of company standards. BRCW says the full episode will be released shortly.
“Effective immediately, Steve Maclin is no longer recognized as the BRCW World Heavyweight Champion of Boca Raton, and the championship has been declared vacant,” said Matthew H. Maschler, the promotion’s Chairman and CEO.
Fatal Four-Way Now Headlines Summer Smash
Maclin had been booked to defend against Matt Riddle at Summer Smash on Sunday, August 16 at The Studio at Mizner Park in Boca Raton. That match is off.
In its place, BRCW has announced a Fatal Four-Way for the vacant championship between Riddle, Stallion Rogers, Matt Taven and Fulton. Bell time is 5:00 p.m.
The change pulls two other advertised bouts apart. Taven and Rogers had been set for a singles match, while Fulton was booked in tag team action with Bull James against Big Tito Lincoln and A.J. Francis. BRCW hasn’t said whether either match survives the reshuffle.
Riddle earned his shot by beating Joe Coffey at BRCW Vegas Vacation during WrestleMania week. Maclin’s last successful defense came against Taven at Birthday Bash on March 1. He’d held the title since taking it from Ricky Morton at Summer Smash 3 last August.
Reading The Announcement
BRCW framed all of this in the language of a real corporate disciplinary action and closed by saying the matter is settled with no further comment. The surrounding details point somewhere else. The incident happened on a podcast Maschler himself co-hosts, the audio is being packaged for release, and the fallout turns a one-on-one title defense into a four-way with a new champion crowned in front of a paying crowd.
Maclin has been a free agent since TNA granted his release in June, ending a five-year run. He later explained that he asked out over creative frustration, and said the company went public with the news without consulting him first. AEW and Maclin have since had preliminary contact.
The BRCW title was the most visible championship he held as a free agent. Tickets for Summer Smash are on sale at BocaRatonWrestling.com.
