He grew up watching Jeff Hardy and Raven. He was also a big fan of Chris Jericho and always dreamt of becoming a professional wrestler.
After growing up in Dauphin, Steven Stashko moved to Winnipeg and started training to become a wrestler in 2019. One year later in August of 2020, under the name Bryce Bentley, he was in the ring for his first match.
While it didn't go the way he would have hoped as he lost the match and was slammed through a table, Steven was thrilled to achieve his lifelong dream of being in the ring.
"Having all my friends and family there was sweet, the energy was insane, I remember being so nervous," said Stashko. "It was such a surreal experience to have. To see it finally come true after all of the hard work and what I was working towards, was special."
Steven has now been wrestling for five years and is a part of the main roster for Winnipeg Pro Wrestling. He also competes in Canadian Wrestling Elite (CWE) and has travelled all across the country to show off his talents to wrestling fans.
During his early days in the ring, Steven was part of a tag team with Sammy Peppers who he called his best friend at the time. Bentley felt stuck and felt he wasn't being recognized enough and all of a sudden, a great friendship and long-time partnership turned into two guys who hated each other.
Bentley drop-kicked Sammy Peppers to send a message.
"I wanted everyone to know who was the star of that tag team, it was me," said Stashko.
That led to the biggest match for Stashko to date. He went up against Sammy on October 24 at the Burton Cummings Theatre in Winnipeg as a part of the Rumble in the Burt.
Steven came out on top in front of more than 1,300 fans, the most that he has ever wrestled in front of.
"This is exactly how I thought it was going to go, I knew it was going to go that way," continued Stashko. "I'm the Star, I knew that I was going to win and proved it to everyone."
Not tied down to a partner anymore, Steven is riding solo and he wants everyone to know that he is on a mission to the top.
"I am proving to everyone in all of Winnipeg that I am the best Winnipeg wrestler that there is," ended Stashko. "Not even just Winnipeg, in all of Canada."
Steven also says he is the guy that you like to boo ring-side.
"You wish you could be me, you wish you could look like me and have the aura like me," ended Stashko. "You wish you could have the great smile I have, the hair I have, and the arms that I have."
Wrestling under Bryce Bentley 'The Star' you can see the Dauphinite in action on November 16 during CWE's Rumble to Remember and on December 6 for the WPW's Stooged event at the West End Cultural Centre.
