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Gino Martino

John Ferraro is an American professional wrestler and strongman, best known by his ring name Gino Martino. He has wrestled for Chaotic Wrestling, the Millennium Wrestling Federation, New England Championship Wrestling, NWA New England, Ultimate Ring Wars and Paulie Gilmore's New World Wrestling. Although based in the Northeast, competing most often in the New England region, Ferraro has wrestled in other parts of the US as well as in Canada and Europe.

Early life
John Ferraro was born in Revere, Massachusetts. He was a fan of pro wrestling growing up and followed the World Wide Wrestling Federation during the late 1970s and early 80s. Superstar Billy Graham, The Samoans, and managers Freddie Blassie and The Grand Wizard were among his favorites. He started weightlifting during his teenage years and eventually became a collegiate Bench Press and olympic-style weightlifting champion. As a powerlifter he benched 565 lbs.and lift 350 lbs. in the behind the neck press. He also had a background in martial arts, namely judo, and was also a power breaking champion. Ferraro was later employed as director of sales and marketing at Patriot Plastics in Woburn, Massachusetts, and remained with the company throughout his pro wrestling career. Ferraro eventually became interested in a pro wrestling career. He considered attending Killer Kowalski's wrestling school in Malden, Massachusetts but decided against it due to the high tuition fees. He was instead trained by Jeff "Bruiser" Costa, Rip Morrison, Dan Petiglio, and Paul Zine among others. Zine specifically helped develop his in-ring persona and getting him bookings in his early career. He also received additional training from Tony Rumble, Ox Baker, and The Iron Sheik and adopted versions of their finishers as homages to the latter two. ==Professional wrestling career==
Professional wrestling career
Early career in the New England independents (1996–1999) Ferraro made his professional debut in November 1996 and wrestled for the first six months of his career as "The Golden Gorilla". He started his career in Jeff Costa's World Independent Wrestling promotion in New Hampshire Four months later, he defeated Universal Soldier for the PLW Heavyweight Championship at St. Anthony's Parish Center in Pawtucket. Ferraro was subsequently stripped of the title after awarding it to his manager Scott Knight. That same year, he received an award for "Best Newcomer" (1998). Over the next two years, he won titles in numerous promotions on the New England independent circuit. NWA New England (1999–2000) It was during this period that Ferraro got his first big break wrestling for Tony Rumble and the NWA New England promotion in Boston, Massachusetts. He appeared on its inaugural event held at the Good Times Emporium in Somerville, Massachusetts where he teamed with Joel Davis and Trooper Gilmore in a 6-man tag team match against The NY Posse (Ron Zombie, Curtis Slamdawg, and Jay Kobain). He began competing regularly for the promotion the following year scoring victories over "Brutal" Bob Evans and Alex Arion in the fall of 1999. On July 20, 2000, he and Ali Mohammed won the NWA New England Tag Team Championship from (Luis Ortiz, Slyk Wagner Brown, and Jason Rumble). They dropped the belts to Luis Ortiz and Jason Rumble a month later in Somerville; earlier in the show, Martino defeated Trooper Gilmore, Nemesis, Jaime Paine and Zach Mason in a five-way match to win the NWA New England Brass Knuckles Championship. Prior to losing the tag team belts, he was the first wrestler to hold both the NWA New England Tag Team and Brass Knuckles titles at the same time. At one point, he was managed The Pink Assassin and was walked to the ring with a dog collar. Also that summer, a cage match between Ferraro and John Kronus ended in a no-contest. The two met again in September three months later for a UCW show at Johnson and Wales College. Their hardcore match went to a 20-min. draw before referees stopped the match. The infamous "Blood Bath Street Fight" became the "Most Requested Match of the Year" on Joe Bruins' Hardcore Wrestling show aired on Cox Cable in Rhode Island. The Millennium Killaz also defended the PCW Tag Team Championship against one-time ECW World Tag Team Champions The Pitbulls (Pitbull #1 and Pitbull #2), a bout which ended in a double-disqualification. At the end of the month, Martino faced his tag team partner in a three-way thumbtack match with Jamie Paine for the NWA New England Brass Knuckles title on September 28, 2000. That same year he was one of several wrestlers featured in the 2000 pro wrestling documentary "Ringmasters: Pro Wrestling in New England", a special presentation by New England Sports Network which later aired on Spike TV. Chaotic Wrestling (2000–2001) Ferraro began wrestling for Chaotic Wrestling in late 2000. On October 20, 2000, he defeated Jay Jaillette for the Chaotic Wrestling Heavyweight Championship in Worcester, Massachusetts. In his seven-month championship reign, Ferraro successfully defended the title against some of the top wrestlers in the Northeast. On January 12, 2001, he defeated John Kronus in a "Revere Street Fight" involving a bed of nails. He also faced El Mascarado (February 9), "Mr. USA" Tony Atlas (February 23), and Ronnie D. Lishus (April 6), the latter match being officiated by special guest referee Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat. Another notable opponent was his tag team partner, Ali Mohammed, who he defeated in a Razor Chain match. Ferraro finally lost the belt to Rick Fuller A few weeks later, he entered the 2001 King of Chaos tournament and made it to the finals where Ferraro lost to Ali Mohammed in a four-way match with Jamie Paine and Nemesis. This was the first-ever "hardcore" match held in New England to use a no-rope barbed wire ring, light tubes, fire, a bed of nails, thumbtacks, and foreign objects. On June 23, he also teamed with Short Sleeve Sampson in a losing effort against The One Night Stand at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Methuen, Massachusetts. Ferraro regained the heavyweight title from Fuller In August, the then reigning Chaotic Wrestling champion was interviewed by Boston Magazine in which he discussed the difficulties of being an independent wrestler. His second reign lasted for a little over two months before he was dethroned by The One Night Stand's Ronnie D. Lishus in Lawrence, Massachusetts on September 7, 2001; he had defeated Aaron Stevens in a match lasting 47 seconds earlier that same night. Two weeks later, Ferraro defeated Jimmy Cash in a Tables match. His last match was against Scarecrow on December 14, 2001, which ended in a disqualification. Suffering a serious neck injury in his bout with Ronnie D. Lishus, he took three months off to recuperate and lost 30 pounds by the time he returned to action early the next year. Independent circuit (2002–2003) Prior to the end of his first run with Chaotic Wrestling, Ferraro returned to Rhode Island where he and Ali Mohammed regained the PCW Tag Team Championship from The Mutilators on October 4, 2002. On January 18, 2003, in Ultimate Championship Wrestling, he also defeated Travis Funk in a Strap match to win the UCW Heavyweight Championship. and Rocky Raymond's Empire Professional Wrestling, the latter running events at Whalom Park and Thompson Speedway. Although primarily based in the Northeast and New England region, Ferraro eventually wrestled in other parts the country, such as for Bill Behrens in Georgia and Bert Prentice in Tennessee, as well as in Canada and Europe. When Hanson pinned the Executioner, Ferraro was blamed for the loss since he was the team captain. He started trading blows with Kamala and his former stablemates turned against him. Eventually, Todd Hanson and his team returned to the ring on Ferraro's behalf. The show ended with Ferraro shaking hands with his long-time rival. Return to NWA NE (2004–2005) Ferraro returned to NWA New England in the summer of 2004. On June 4, he won a 12-man taped fist battle royal to regain the NWA New England Brass Knuckles Championship. He briefly lost the title to Osirus on August 4 but regained it six days later in a "Buxton Barroom Brawl" in Buxton, Maine. The bout was voted the best match of the year for New Wrestling Horizons by the Freaks of Wrestling website. Ferraro followed this up with successful title defenses against Johnny Curtis, Craig Stratton, Brian Black, and Jason Rumble. In addition to the NWA New England-New Wrestling Horizons interpromotional shows, Ferraro also wrestled solely for NWH shows where he feuded with Larry Huntley. On September 28, Ferraro also pinned Jason Rumble in a match to decide the number one contender for the NWH Heavyweight Championship. He later teamed with Danny Dangerous to win the NWH Tag Team titles from The Elite (Larry Huntley and Sonny Roselli). He also defended the title in New Wrestling Horizons and NWA Green Mountain that same month. On November 4, 2004, Ferraro won the 2nd annual Tony Rumble Memorial "Rumble" Battle Royal, co-promoted by NWA New England and Paulie Gilmore's New World Wrestling, and was awarded the NWA New England Colonial Heavyweight Championship; also during the show he successfully defended the NWA Brass Knuckles title in a Broken Glass Death match against Dave Donavan winning via submission. Two weeks later, Ferraro defeated Beau Douglas at NWA New England's 2004 Tony Rumble Memorial Show. He spent the rest of the year making Brass Knuckle title defenses in NWA Green Mountain, NWA USA Pro Wrestling, and NWA Wildside. On February 4, 2005, Ferraro beat The Outpatient and Apocalypse in a Triple Threat match to win the NWA New England Heavyweight Championship. As a result of this victory, he became the only wrestler in NWA New England history to simultaneously hold the promotion's heavyweight, colonial, and bass knuckles championships. One day after his victory, Ferraro defended the NWA New England Brass Knuckles title at New World Wrestling's "Extreme Revenge" against Pierre Vachon in a barbed-wire chain death match. On March 3, Ferraro won a hardcore battle royal in the All Star Wrestling Federation by pinning Jose Perez via a fireball. Two weeks later in NWA New England, he and the 7'2" 550 lbs. Bull Moose Calhoun fought to a no-contest in a Dog Collar match. He defended the belt against The Outpatient in a Falls Count Anywhere match on October 22. Another title defense at MWF's "Soul Survivor III", against The Missing Link, defeating The Outpatient in a Cape Cod Collision match on November 11 and Makua in Falls Count Anywhere match on December 4, 2005. CWA Montreal (2006) At the start of 2006, Ferraro traveled to Canada to join CWA Montreal, one of two Canadian affiliates for AWA Superstars. On January 16, 2006, he retained the AWA Brass Knuckles Championship in a Bloodbath match against Pierre "The Beast" Vachon, however, he soon allied with The Vachon Brothers (Pierre and Damien Vachon) to form The Alliance of Violence. He and Pierre Vachon entered a Tag Team Turmoil championship tournament; they defeated Karnage and Abdul Hannish in the opening round (March 5), The Hellraisers (Pain and Mizery) in the semi-finals (March 19), and Necro Butcher and SeXXXy Eddy in the finals (April 8) to become the first-ever CWA Montreal Tag Team Championship. Ferraro briefly returned to New England where he was awarded the NWW Undisputed Brass Knuckles title on May 6, 2006. He also entered a championship tournament for the NWW U.S. Heavyweight Championship. He defeated Dave Showtime in the opening round (May 6) but was eliminated in the semi-finals (May 7) by Eric Shred via disqualification. He also teamed with Ron Zombie to defeat Justin Credible and The Sandman He also defended the NWW Brass Knuckles Championship against Moondog Maximus, losing to Maximus in a non-title match on October 7, before dropping the belt to Headshrinker Samu Two months later, Ferraro wrestled Doink the Clown for USWF Championship Wrestling at the Irish American Club in Malden, Massachusetts. Ultimate Ring Wars (2006-2007) During 2006 and 2007 Ferraro worked with and performed many strongman feats with URW in the New England area. He wrestled several times in hardcore matches with Pierre the Beast Vachon. Big Time Wrestling (2006–2007) At the end of 2006, Ferraro joined the then recently revived Big Time Wrestling under Terry Allen. On December 1, he defeated Mister T.A. at The Castle of Knights in Chicopee, Massachusetts for the BTW United States Heavyweight Championship. Ferraro was the first wrestler to hold the belt in nearly three decades. During the next few months under manager Johnny Fabulous, he defended the title against Purty Kurty Adonis, Doink the Clown, On January 19, 2008, he and Big Business lost to Don and Savio Vega in a Street Fight match. That fall, he defeated Spike Dudley in a Chain match. On September 26, 2009, he wrestled both New Jack Ferraro also had a brief stint in Maine's NWA On Fire. He made his first appearance on the February 21st 2009 edition of "NWA On Fire TV" as a guest on "Tommy's Corner" with host Tom Savoldi. He wrestled two matches for NWA On Fire TV, against "Boston Bad Boy" Jason Rumble and "Jivin" Jimmy Capone respectively, and remained undefeated during his time in the promotion. Ferraro formed a successful tag team with former rival "Mr. T.A." Terry Allen in late 2009. Together they defeated Bam Bam Delfonso and Scott Ashworth (October 14), Balls Mahoney and were joined by A.J. Mitrano in a 6-man tag team match against "Superfly" Jimmy Snuka, Spike Dudley, and Lone Star (November 20). The following night, the two were defeated by Snuka and Doink the Clown in Palmer, Massachusetts. On January 23, 2010, Ferraro teamed with Jimmy Cash and Kurt Von Schmidt in a six-man tag match and were defeated by Hacksaw Jim Duggan, Nikolai Volkoff, and Jay Jaillette in Worcester, Massachusetts. A year later, he and Tommy Mack also won the promotion's tag team titles from The Untouchables. Return to CW (2010) At Chaotic Wrestling's "Cold Fury 9: The Never-ending Chase" Ferraro was inducted into the Chaotic Wrestling Hall of Fame. The following month at "Cold Fury: Fallout" he had an in-ring confrontation with fellow CW Hall of Famer Demon Ortiz which ended with Ferraro knocking Ortiz to the mat with a headbutt to the sternum. On April 30, he and Ortiz met in the opening rounds of Chaotic Wrestling's Tournament of Champions which saw Ferraro defeat Ortiz in a No Holds Barred match. He then defeated Elia Markopoulos in the second round (May 21) before being eliminated by Handsome Johnny in the semi-finals (June 18) at "Breaking Point". A week earlier he had also lost to "The Golden Greek" Alex Arion via disqualification. On July 16, he was scheduled to wrestle his old rival Rick Fuller at the Polish American Veterans Club in Lowell, Massachusetts, however, this match never took place due to the interference of Max Bauer. Ferraro eventually joined Demon Ortiz to form a new version of The Alliance of Violence later that year. On November 12, Ferraro was in Ortiz' corner in his match against Rick Fuller. They challenged Julian Starr and Matt Logan for the Chaotic Wrestling Tag Team Championship in Hudson, Massachusetts the next day, but were unable to win the belts. On December 3, 2010, The Alliance of Violence and Chase Del Monte & Rick Fuller battled to a double-countout at CW's "Fan Appreciation Night" in Lowell, Massachusetts. He was also a guest on the Canadian internet radio show Rope2Rope Radio where he discussed the independent scene in the Northeast, promoting Chaotic Wrestling and a few other New England promotions, as well as his own wrestling career. Independent Wrestling Entertainment (2010) Ferraro spent the winter of 2010 in Maine working for Independent Wrestling Entertainment where he formed Primer Inc. with Johnny Primer. Second return to CW (2011–present) On January 21, 2011, Ferraro defeated Psycho at "Rival's Choice" in Lowell, Massachusetts. A month later at "Cold Fury X", he was the first entrant in the Royal Rumble-style "Classic Chaotic Countdown" and the first to be eliminated. This was done via outside interference from color commentator Rick Fuller, who Ferraro had been taunting, by pulling down the top rope and allowing Elia Markopoulos, Kid USA and Donnie Rotten to throw him out of the ring. He and Ortiz also took on Chaotic Wrestling Tag Team Champions The Logan Brothers (Bryan and Matt Logan) at Cold Fury: Fallout on March 4. but lost the match. He promoted an upcoming interpromotional show for Independent Wrestling Entertainment and NWA on Fire during the show, where he was to face former tag team partner Johnny Primer, as well discussed his recent appearances on Italian television and Stan Lee's Superhumans on the History Channel. After a five-year absence, Ferraro was also ranked #500 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the 2011 PWI 500. In early 2012, Ferraro also wrestled shows for Powerhouse Wrestling and UFO Wrestling. On April 20, 2012, Ferraro (with B.A. Tatum) defeated "The Sure Thing" Mark Shurman at the Elks Lodge in Woburn, Massachusetts. The next night in Gray, Maine, he defeated Larry Zbyszko to win the All Out Mayhem Heavyweight Championship after interference from John Cena Sr. ==Strongman career==
Strongman career
Outside of professional wrestling, Ferraro is a real-life performing strongman. His demonstrations have included bending steel bars and breaking iron bars over his head, and headbutting and snapping a Louisville slugger in half with his skull. His specialty, however, is using his head to break various hard or heavy objects. Ferraro first discovered this ability as a teenager when, while chasing younger brother around the house during an argument, crashed head first into a large oak door. Ferraro was studied by Harvard Medical School which determined through an MRI that his skull measured 16mm thick, over 2.3 times more than the average human skull, He also won the Chinese Martian Arts Association Iron Skills title in Long Island, New York. In an interview later that year he revealed he has been in negotiations to perform in Europe (France, Germany, and Poland) and Southeast Asia (Malaysia) and was also considering putting together an act for ''America's Got Talent and The X-Factor''. ==Championships and accomplishments==
Championships and accomplishments
All Star Wrestling Federation • ASWF Hardcore Championship (1 time) • AWA SuperstarsAWA Brass Knuckles Championship (1 time) • Big Time Wrestling • BTW United States Championship (1 time) • Chaotic WrestlingChaotic Wrestling Heavyweight Championship (2 times) • Chaotic Wrestling Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Joe Poe • Chaotic Wrestling Hall of Fame (Class of 2010) • Feud of the Year (2000) • Match of the Year (2000) • Wrestler of the Year (2001) • Best Moment of the Year (2001) • Match of the Year (2001) • Best Theme Music (2001) • CWA Montreal • CWA Montreal Heavyweight Championship (1 time) • CWA Montreal Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Pierre VachonInternational Independent Wrestling • IIW Street Fight Championship (1 time) • IIW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Ali Mohammed • IIW Tag Team of the Year (2000) – with Ali Mohammed • Independent Wrestling Alliance • IWA Heavyweight Championship (1 time) • Independent Wrestling Entertainment • IWE Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Johnny Primer • IWE Heavyweight Champion (1 time)*** • New England Informer • Wrestler of the Month (November 2000) • New England Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame • Class of 2009 • NWA New EnglandNWA New England Heavyweight Championship (1 time) • NWA New England Colonial Heavyweight Championship (1 time) • NWA New England Brass Knuckles Championship (3 times) • NWA New England Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Ali Mohammed • Tony Rumble Memorial Rumble winner (2004) – co-winner with The Dungeon Master • New World Wrestling • NWW Undisputed Brass Knuckles Championship (1 time) • NWW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Ali Mohammed • New Wrestling Horizons • NWH Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Danny Dangerous • Powerhouse Wrestling • Powerhouse Wrestling Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Tommy Mack • Power League Wrestling • PLW Heavyweight Championship (1 time) • PLW Award for Best Newcomer (1998) • Primal Conflict Wrestling • PCW Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Ali Mohammed • Pro Wrestling Illustrated • Ranked No. 460 of the top 500 wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2002 • Ultimate Championship Wrestling • UCW Heavyweight Championship (1 time) • UCW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Ali Mohammed • Unified Championship Wrestling • UCW Heavyweight Championship (1 time) • UCW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Ali Mohammed • World Independent Wrestling • WIW Heavyweight Championship (2 times) • Wrestling Attic • Most Dangerous Wrestler In New England • Other titles • ASIATIC Heavyweight Championship (1 time) • AWF Hardcore Championship (1 time) == References ==
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