LEWISTON, Maine — Randy Carver the state’s most successful, homegrown professional wrestling promoter, is a big guy. Still, he looked small standing at center ice inside the dark, deserted Colisee last week. The sports and entertainment venue can hold almost 4,000 people, but Carver had the silent space all to himself.
He’s hoping for a different vibe come Aug. 17. That’s when Carver will try and fill every seat with rabid, rowdy wrestling fans eager to watch the greatest grappling spectacle he’s ever staged.
The Colisee is, by far, the largest arena Carver has ever tried to fill, and the biggest business gamble he’s ever taken. Professionally and financially, it’s the equivalent of a wrestler leaping off the top rope, hoping to nail an outstretched opponent lying helpless on the canvas. If Carver lands the stunt, it could lead to even bigger events and more success.
If not, he could take a financial bath and lose the momentum he’s built up in recent years. “This is going to be the biggest risk I’ve ever taken with this organization,” he said of his company, Limitless Wrestling . “We’ve gotta fill the place.
” Carver, 27, who also runs a wrestling training school in Brewer, started his sports entertainment empire at age 18 with a savings account and $700 borrowed from his mom and dad. Since then, the Lagrange native has built his business on high-flying, professional-quality wrestling extravaganzas. Carver said trying the Colisee feels like a solid .
