[7.0] "I think Zandig accomplished exactly what he wanted to do in pro wrestling, have memorable, extremely violent matches while running his own promotion, which filled a void in indie wrestling in its own, unique way. In the process he managed to be one of the most unintentionally hilarious wrestlers in history that provided many hilarious moments throughout his career that everyone who watched him will recall fondly, even if they didn't particularly care for his work."
[10.0] "Giving Zandig a 10/10 feels like it needs a lot of explanation, but it's hard to write an essay on something so simple. I could list a lot of flaws - a LOT - but, they're already summarized neatly in previous comments. At the end of the day, there's a strong case no one has done more for Deathmatch wrestling in North America than Zandig. I understand that that is a bold statement, and many will disagree - and I'm sure those people have valid points. Deathmatches may not be your thing and maybe you find it as a way of masking sub-par talent, and that's fine, but when looking at a Deathmatch wrestler's career, you have to rate them according to their niche. Zandig as a promoter, booker, and wrestler has cultivated some of the most memorable Deathmatch moments in history."
[6.0] "I love John Zandig's work, he's definitely one of the most craziest wrestlers ever, and what he did for the Deathmatch Wrestling scene and him making CZW a very influential promotion is great, but also even though he was one of the greatest Deathmatch wrestlers of all time he wasn't really that great of a wrestler at all, sure he's able to hit some impressive moves but there were some points where he was kinda sloppy in the ring, also (From what I heard) I'm pretty sure he skipped some of his training just for him to become a trainer himself, but I guess if he did finish his training we probaly wouldn't have gotten a CZW because his training school was just Combat Zone Wrestling until someone told him that it would be a good idea to start doing some shows."
[8.0] "Zandig gets an 8 from me. The main reason is because he created CZW (one of my favorite promotions ever). He is also someone who I can always watch if I'm feeling like I wanna see some insane shit in matches. He's thrown Mondo off a roof, got hung up from meat hooks (twice), and just does so much insane shit. He had a great mind for the business. Yes I know everyone will say Zandig is stupid but he helped make guys like Jon Moxley, Nick Gage, Sonjay Dutt, etc. He can be a narcissistic bitch sometimes but I love him."
[9.0] "Come on, it's mother effin ZANDIG. There's a reason that he can still make any deathmatch crowd pop huge just by coming out for an appearance with a trophy. Probably the biggest aura guy in modern American deathmatch history. The famous, insane spots with Mondo and Janela will continuously be discovered and have basically cemented THE GOD ZANDIG's place in the wrestling history books. Even in 2025, guys are going up for high spots to hit the bomb and paying homage to Zandig. The very concept of what Zandig is and represents is very awesome to me"
[6.0] "I really don't know if I like him or not. He's dedicated to the business, but it is real easy to mix that dedication up with pure stupidity. Zandig was hardcore, and is the only man willing to be hung on a meat hook for entertainment."
[6.0] "Zandig is the best of the worst, I have always had a problem because of his way of being a Booker, everything that happens in CZW was until he arrives, when everything comes he becomes heavy, searching and very overwhelming. Because he always has to succeed, everything has to be treated on him. His character... He doesn't have, all he did was say "Hey, you and I are going to have a match", his matches are good (to be generous), and could give a promo, just a promo, I am not saying it is good or bad, they are a point between them."
[10.0] "Zandig is an underappreciated genius. Insane booking for one, the only person who could have seen the genius in putting the belt on Lufisto despite being on the same team as the champion. Sometimes, you just need some random bullshit, and Zandig was Random Bullshit: The Wrestler. Speaking of Zandig as a wrestler, he might not be your Bryan Danielson or your Shawn Michaels. He's better. Sometimes you just wanna see a fat dude bleed, and when you get that craving, there's no better place to go than Zandig."
[7.0] "Every feels differently about zandig, obviously because nobody has given zandig this score yet. There are a lot of particular figures in american hardcore and deathmatch wrestling who have done so much for pushing an outcasted side of wrestling further, but also are blabbering idiots that really truly know nothing about wrestling. Zandig is one of these people, but i cant deny how entertaining he is"
[8.0] "As polarizing and vulgar as the scene he helped shape, anybody who knows of Zandig likely feels either one way or the other about him. Despite not being as traditionally 'entertaining' to watch like Big Dealz stablemates Sick Nick Mondo and Wifebeater, he was instrumental in the development of the American deathmatch scene both in the ring and behind the curtain. You could also make the argument that he was the first person to really see what everyone would eventually come to see in Jon Moxley."
[0.0] "The total and complete personification of backyard mud show all star. He couldn't wrestle and with the exception of yelling "JEEEZUS" in a bizarre, humorous manner, couldn't cut a promo either. When you can only do death matches, you can't wrestle. Granted, not everyone can just from a building into a pick up truck and nearly kill themselves, but when you're actually talented you don't have to. He's not someone worth studying or emulating and in my years of fandom and training I've never once heard of someone using him as an inspiration for anything."
[3.0] "I love some crazy deathmatch shite, but Zandig was able to do little else than swing objects and attempt to kill Nick Mondo, a deathmatch wrestler who actually had ability to... you know, wrestle, unlike Zandig. Credit where credit is due, he's certainly got an aura..."
[0.0] "Yeah throwing people off roofs in backyards isn't wrestling despite what guys like Jon Moxley and Nick Gage say. Promotes a culture where people become addicted to alcohol and drugs due to the ridiculous pain they end up in for doing ridiculous bumps and without the money or success to show for it."
[3.0] "I am a big deathmatch fan and I have to say that I just do not get the hype around Zandig. I didnt get it 20 years ago and I still dont. I know he did a lot for deathmatch and I do appreciate that. But that said hes just not very good by any stretch."
[1.0] "Glorfied backyarder with little to none talent comparing to Mick Foley is an insult . Below average booker as well (even tho CZW have some succes )"
[8.0] "I know a lot of fans don't like hardcore wrestling but this man was great. He founded CZW which is still around and the only hardcore promotion left. He founded the company just before ECW folded. As a booker he may not be the best but as a wrestler he is great. As promoter he has done his best."
[8.0] "'The boss' regularly and stupidly made mistakes when it came to booking and furthering storylines but you could never question his heart or intentions. The beatings and punishment Zandig put himself through for his company was monumental. There was nothing he would ask somebody to do that he hadn't already taken or was willing to take himself. This is what makes Zandig so polarizing to me ? he'd do everything for the company and that ended up being too much. Perhaps it was his ego but John continually put himself in spots that would have gone much better had they been planned better and set up for some of his better talent to fill. Zandig always seemed to want to do good by his boys, leading to overbooked and terribly long shows that would have been much better with a number of fluff matches being cut out. All of that aside there is a reason Zandog is the 'Icon' -- he pioneered a revolution to provide some of the best (if underappreciated) content in the wrestling sphere in the early 2000s. The world could have been 'the dub's' oyster from 2002 onwards, such a shame the company could never grow to what it possibly should have been. JEEEEEEEEEEEEZUSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!"
[2.0] "I don't really know how to rate Zandig. Sometimes I think his booking for matches and storylines are so Insane that I personally think he's a secret genius. But In reality, they are kinda foolish and dumb at the same time being reckless like putting the end to Sick Nick Mondo's career by basically body-slamming him to a roof on to the concrete floor (those tables and fluorescent lights did not help at all). I know a lot of people blame Mondo for it but who even thought that was a great idea and was agreed upon in the first place? What am I even rambling about of course CZW thought that it was a great idea. And without a doubt, Zandig is insanely crazy (Who makes themself get hanged in a meat hook? )."
[4.0] "Zandig is one the most highly polarizing guys in wrestling: his detractors will mantain he brought nothing to the table but his willingness to do stupid stunts, his admirers that he's the second coming of Mick Foley, Atsushi Onita and Terry Funk all rolled into one. The reality is a bit more nuanced. Zandig was a quite capable promoter, albeit his choice to cater almost exclusively to the more bloodthirsty part of the freshly orfaned ECW crowd limited his promotion to a certain style of wrestling. Never did he try to offer a more complete approach to wrestling like BJW has been doing, mixing hardcore matches with comedy and technical wrestling. This gained him the adoration of ECW orphans, but also raised the suspicion Zandig was pulling a Heyman, meaning using hardcore matches to mask the weakness of his roster. While we may debate this point until the cows come home it was beyond obvious Zandig used hardcore matches to mask his own weaknesses: in the ring he was garbage, pure and simple. He was the kind of hardcore wrestler purists rant about, often with reason: without the "Did you see that? It was sick! " factor his in-ring work amounted to little or nothing. His promos were originally perfectly suited to his hardcore icon persona but quickly devolved into screaming rants, kinda like New Jack promos devolved from tough street thug talk into obscenities-laced tirades. Both men were just giving what the fans asked, and apparently quite happy to deliver. As the saying goes, don't shoot the messenger: Zandig was just delivering what fans were asking for."
[8.0] "Legend, He wasn't very good in ring, but his spots ruled, and his moves were hella awesome also a great promo, and i think people are a bit harsh on him."
[0.0] "John Zandig was a truly awful wrestler, with no skill or ability; he couldn't wrestle a lick, his interviews were filled with mindless swearing, and he looked like a drunk hobo who panhandles for change to make a living."
[9.0] "John Zandig. American deathmatch legend, a great intense promo guy, founder of CZW and the the guy who gave opportunities to several young talent. As fan of the American DM-scene, i have to rate him high for hes contributions. He didn´t have a ton of matches in hes career but in those matches he did, he was able to establish himself. He kissed no ones ass and did hes own thing. As the owner of CZW 1999 to 2009 - he put up some of the most memorable shows on US indies. Had eye for hardcore. As a worker Zandig was very intense. He had a very no nonsense-straight forward-high impact style, that at best, made hes deathmatches explosive and exiting. Hes psychology of timing was really good. He nailed the spots at the right time. Huge guy who combined power moves with deathmatch carnage. Hes highlights would be hes time in Japan with BJW as a great heel foreigner. Also hes matches in CZW with Lobo and the Wifebeater and the Cage Of Death -matches he had. Especially The barbed wire match between Zandig and Lobo from Deja Vu 2002, The Wifebeaters retirement match from Night of Infamy 2002, the Cage of Death IV match between Zandig and Lobo & Necro vs Zandig from TOD 6. Always connected with the fans. There hasn´t been another DM-worker like Zandig "The Ultraviolent Icon" since. That wnb-Cornette wrestling purist BS is so tiring. People sticking their nose in to something that they don´t know or don´t have anything productive to say about is what truly drags this site down."
[0.0] "Unerträgliche On-Air-Persona, im Ring eine Beleidigung für jeden echten Deathmatch-Wrestler, jede Deathmatch-Wrestlerin. Arrogant, selbstgefällig, egozentrisch, sturköpfig, eingeschränktes Sichtweise über die Hardcore- und Deathmatch-Szene, einfach ein trauriger Fleck für das Wrestling allgemein. CZW unter ihm fand ich erbärmlich, gerade wenn er es nötig hatte, sich in den Vordergrund zu stellen."
[0.0] "Just a no talent hack who as the saying goes could not tell a wrist lock from a wrist watch. Because he had as much wrestling talent in the ring as I do he decided to make a career out of risking his life & the lives of his opponents by performing bullshit hardcore crap. Listen I know there are some that love that crap but it is not wwrestling & this clown is no wrestler. If I could give him a score lower than zero I would."
[8.0] "I think Zandig is a pretty good promoter, and an alright wrestler, and he set the standard for hardcore, death match and ultra violent wrestling."
[10.0] "I have a whole lotta' love for Zandig. The good ol' CZW days is because of him, whether you want to believe that or not. He brought up the big names in deathmatches. (Most of them) He is a pure ass kicker, and hell to pay kind of guy. Wanna see some hardcore? Watch some of his matches.. You'' regret not being or watching CZW when it was in it's main deathmatch prime."
[9.0] "It's almost as if this guy's character isn't really MEANT to be a wrestler so much so as being more of a "legit" pure ass-kicker instead. I'll be the first to openly admit that he's fun to watch sometimes. Hell, his run in Japan wasn't all that bad either."
[4.0] "Klar er ist eine Ikone im UV , , Wrestling´´ und kann auch viel einstecken aber desshalb kann man keine 10 Punkte geben den im Ring kann er halt nichts außer einstecken und austeilen mit Technik oder Promos ist nichts und sein Schei* Ego muss auch immer durchgesetzt werden. Denn er kriegt den CZW World Title 5x mal so oft wie keiner anstatt diesen Jungen Talenten zu geben die sich für nichts zu schade sind. Er kriegt von mir 4 Punkte da er eine Ikone+Gründer der CZW ist"
[1.0] "Ich frage mich wirklich, wie man auf die Idee kommt einem Deathmatchwrestler kaum punkte zu geben, wenn man kein Deathmatchwrestling mag. WO IST DA DER SINN? Ich mag z. B Deathmatchwrestling, trotzdem ist Zandig schlecht, aber Deathmatchwrestling gleich schlecht zu machen und jemanden zu bewerten, weil er diesen Stil wrestelt grenzt schon an Dummheit. Ich gucke doch auch kein Baseball, wenn Ich Baseball nicht mag. Kommen wir zu Zandig. Ja, was soll man zu ihm bloß sagen? Er ist definitiv ein tougher Kerl, der schon einiges Einstecken kann. Wrestlerische Qualitäten fehlen Ihn aber, genauso wie eine Promotion zu booken. Dazu hat er sich schon unglaublich viele Antisympathien gesammelt für die Scheiße was er bei BJW gemacht hat."
[5.0] "Fünf Punkte bekommt er, weil er CZW geschaffen hat, und sich im wahrsten Sinne des Wortes den Arsch dafür aufgerissen hat. Dafür Respekt. Ansonsten war er nur als Deathmatch Wrestler halbwegs zu gebrauchen, auch wenn ihn viele seiner eigenen Gezüchte um Meilen überholt haben. Gerade sein böser Höhenflug hat ihn sehr unsympathisch gemacht. Nicht ganz so ein Penner wie Ian Rotten, aber ein Penner nichtsdestotrotz. Fünf Punkte für sein Kind (CZW) und einige coole Deathmatches."
[4.0] "Als Promoter eine Katastrophe und als Wrestler eine Katastrophe und bekommt viel zu viel Anerkennung für irgendwelche sicken und dummen Bumps, z. B. den mit Nick Mondo. Die 4 Punkte bekommt er für CZW und die jungen Talente die er hervorgebracht hat."
[3.0] "Sehr abstoßend, sowohl als Promoter, als auch als Wrestler. Der Promoter Zandig bekommt von mir für sein Machwerk noch drei Punkte. Auch wenn sein Konzept und die dahinter stehende Vorstellung von Wrestling verachtenswert ist, haben dort einige talentierte Worker ihre Brötchen verdient über die Jahre. Ist ja zum Glück nicht alles nur Knüppel und Blutsoße bei CZW. Der Wrestler Zandig hingegen, kann in diesem Leben keine Punkte mehr für sein Geschiebe im Ring erwarten."
[10.0] "Ich habe schon viele Deathmatches und Deathmatchwrestler gesehen und John Zandig könnte es mit jedem aufnehmen. Der vielleicht brutalste und krankeste Mann, den die Szene je gesehen hat"
[9.0] "John Zandig als Wrestler versteht sein Gimmick. Allein das macht ihn 3x besser als einen Großteil der Indyworker, denen tolle "Skills" nachgesagt werden. Zandig ist ein Powerhouse, eine Deathmatchikone im amerikanischen Wrestling. Wenn man diesen Stil nicht mag, wird man nicht viel mit ihm anfangen können. Mag man aber dieses Wrestling-Genre, ist man mit Zandigmatches bestens bedient: Er kann immer eine aufregende und wutentbrannte Stimmung erzeugen, seine Bumps sind spektakulär und er ist ein verdammt harten Knochen. Seine Entscheidungen als Boss von CZW kann man angreifen; andererseits lässt sich schwer beurteilen, wie kompliziert das Leiten einer Indypromotion ist, ohne finanzstarken Investor."
[6.0] "Kranker Deathmatch-Wrestler, der zwar wrestlerisch schwach ist, aber dennoch gute Deathmatches zeigt. Als Promoter von Combat Zone Wrestling hat er etwas Kultiges geschaffen, was mir persönlich in der letzten Zeit aber nicht wirklich sehr zusagt!"
[4.0] "Labert ziemlich viel scheiße, hat sich für seine Promotion aber auch den Arsch aufgerissen. Was man sonst noch positives vorheben kann weiß ich nicht."
[4.0] "Man kennt ihn als Promoter der CZW, dort sehr umstritten und kontrovers, entweder sieht man ihn als Gott oder Geisteskranken an. Mein Fall ist er zwar auch nicht, aber es gibt Schlimmere."
[2.0] "Als Promoter schwach, auch wenn er eine interessante Liga geschaffen hat. Als Wrestler genaugenommen ein Backyarder den man aus der DB werfen sollte."
[0.0] "Für mich der letzte Penner! Toll, er hat CZW aus der Taufe gehoben und? Macht ihn das gleich zum Gott oder was? Er ist uncharismatisch, kann rein garnix und labert eigentlich nur Müll..."
[6.0] "Scheint seine Rolle wohl etwas zu ernst zu nehmen. Im Deathmatch Ring ganz okay, nichts was man vorher noch nie gesehen hat. CZW hat seit Ewigkeiten eine Krise und diese hat letztens den absoluten Höhepunkt erreicht, aber im Endeffekt fällt die Betonung zum Projekt CZW am größten aus, weshalb es auch eine 3 ist."
[4.0] "Auch wenn gerade er Combat Zone Wrestling aus vielen Gründen geprägt hat, sehe ich ihn als Wrestler überhaupt nicht gern. Da kann er noch so viele kranke Bumps nehmen. Ich will auch gar nicht in Frage stellen, daß er einer der "besten" Death Match-Worker sein mag, aber trotzdem... - Ich schaff's nicht, mich wirklich mit ihm anzufreunden."
[4.0] "Ich danke ihm für die CZW und seine kranken Ideen. Hat Wrestlingmässig leider gar nichts drauf. Viel zu schwerfällig, steht nur im Ring rum und seine Moves scheinen lustlos ausgeführt. Hatte aber auch einige riskante Bumps!"
