Photo courtesy of Jake Rhodes
Jeanette's Jake Rhodes (left) gave Softground Wrestling a big boost with a recent GoFundMe
It started with Bloomfield’s Bruno Sammartino, who sold out arenas from sea to shining sea during his 2,803-day reign as World Heavyweight Champion. Mt. Lebanon’s Kurt Angle conquered both the combat and theatrical aspects of the sport throughout his Hall of Fame career. Matthew Polinsky, aka Corey Graves, from Monroeville, and Pat McAfee of Plum, incorporate a bit of Pittsburghese when speaking to audiences tuning into World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) programming.
You can add Jeanette’s Jake Rhodes to that shortlist of Yinzer wrestling royalty. Through the power of social media, the 17-year-old high school junior has managed to do the unthinkable. He has united the typically toxic and tribalistic internet wrestling community around a common cause: an upstart independent promotion in Uganda.
“I follow this one account where they share a highlight reel of matches, and it was Softground Wrestling (SGW),” said Rhodes. “Kappeka versus Anoa. I saw it and thought, ‘Wow, this is great.’ I went to their YouTube channel, started watching a bit more, and just got hooked on it.” Rhodes was not alone. Hundreds of thousands of people stopped scrolling to watch the intense competitors and hard-hitting action taking place inside a ring made of dirt with simple wire rope tied around bamboo corners.
Inspired by the passion of the performers, Rhodes reached out to the email listed on the YouTube channel to let the SGW wrestlers know he loved their work and wanted to help their cause in any way he could. It turned out this fledgling promotion was more than backyard wrestling in East Africa; it was a place for wayward youths and young adults to escape and express themselves. However, the organization was finding itself in some dire straits.
33-year-old Bumba Daniel Sedrick is the founder, booker, and trainer at Softground Wrestling. Attracted to the drama, bumps, and flips of pro wrestling as a child, Sedrick has been a lifelong fan. So much so, he landed a job translating wrestling television for his community of Mukono, about 13 miles east of Uganda’s capital Kampala.
“I never get agitated when people think wrestling is fake. Rather, [I] encourage them to get invested in it and see its glory,” Sedrick wrote in an email.
As a wrestler, Sedrick is known as Bumbash Daniel. To his students, he is “Papa.” He started SGW as a place to “uplift” and provide necessities like food and clothing to youths who were unable to finish their education or had no place to call home.
“We lay different foundations to educate and elevate their [spirits] through informative activities like learning how to write [and] read. Training them in basic skills like hygiene and discipline,” wrote Sedrick. “The small thing you do for one boy or girl is priceless. They are very appreciative.” The wrestlers work their matches on the streets for tips or, as seen in their viral videos, on a patch of land they are renting for about $200 USD/month. SGW was at risk of losing the land. When Rhodes heard that, he suggested and started a GoFundMe.
A $10,000 goal was set to acquire the land, a real ring and some new equipment. Within an hour, fans had contributed $1,000. Wrestlers like Daniel Garcia and Jordynne Grace pitched in and spread the word. The biggest boost came from one of wrestling's biggest stars, All Elite Wrestling’s Will Ospreay, who donated $2,000.
Within four days of announcing the fundraiser, the $10,000 goal was met. “I am proud because it’s all God,” wrote Sedrick on the swell of support. “Without him, I don’t even know where these kids would be.”
By sharing the GoFundMe with popular wrestling accounts on social media and connecting Sedrick to interviews like this, Rhodes has stumbled into a new job as the US Brand Ambassador for Softground Wrestling. He and Sedrick have launched a merchandise store with a Florida-based apparel company, ForUrWear.com. They also plan to work with a Ugandan marketing company to hype future events and potentially put on SGW shows at local schools.
“I am still kind of processing it because it’s so insane to think about all of this,” said Rhodes. “I don’t know why everyone has trusted me, but I’m glad they did.”
With this promotion’s new lease on life, Softground Wrestling is preparing for its biggest show to date, Pearlmania (Uganda is nicknamed the Pearl of Africa). On April 7, Kapeeka will fight Jordan for the Undisputed SGW Championship. The company’s top prize will be a new belt created by Dan Van Alst, who has designed championships for many combat sports promotions and pro sports teams.
“They have found a way to put their own style into it. It’s unique, it’s different. You can see the passion,” said Rhodes. “There are talented people all over the world. Some don’t even know it yet. These people are finding their talent. That’s the most appealing thing, watching people find their talent in real-time.” You can stay up to date on SGW’s road to Pearlmania by following them on YouTube, TikTok, or Twitter.
