ECW Original Passes Away

image © ECW

It was announced on July 19^th that the close friend of independent wrestler Tony Chini and wrestler on the original ECW roster Paul Bykow, who wrestled as “The Equalizer”, has passed away. The exact age of Bykow as of his passing or any details surrounding it are not yet known.

The news was originally broke by Mike Johnson on PWInsider.com.

His close friend, Tony Chini, made the announcement about his friend’s passing in a tweet on “X”:

“Heartbroken. I just saw Paul a week ago. It was an honor to grow up watching him, become his friend, and even share the ring with him. Rest in peace, The Equalizer.
https://youtube.com/@ecwstheequalizer2170  @ECWEqualizer”

Tony Chini also released a post on Instagram with a more heartfelt eulogy:

“Paul. I just saw you one week ago. Seeing this news really hurts today. Pauly was a one of a kind individual. He had amazing stories and he loved to share them. I’m so happy Noah got to formally introduce us. Last month I got to have a great conversation with you where I told you how much it meant to have gotten to grow up watching you and then become your friend and even share the ring with you. He always wanted to help, he would always tell me about how @housekatcalledfran slapped him so hard in their match and he was so happy about it lol R.I.P. to The Equalizer. You will be so missed. I wish we got to watch those tapes together. Spend more time with people.
Also a few years back I helped Pauly take some of his matches he had on CD’s and put them on a YouTube channel. Watch a match or a promo for him today.
https://youtube.com/@ecwstheequalizer2170?si=FIyvarYTVG937df_”

A New Jersey native, Bykow was close friends with Chris Candido and Tammy “Sunny” Sytch, who helped him make his debut for ECW in 1998 as a bodyguard for manager Lance Wright. He also worked as a part of Danny Doring’s entourage.

After departing ECW, Bykow worked for several New Jersey promotions such as National Wrestling Superstars (NWS) in the 2000s. He last made a public appearance just a few weeks ago, visiting peers at a Game Changer Wrestling (GCW) Backyard Wrestling event.

On behalf of BSB and all of his fans, we extend our condolences to the family and friends of “The Equalizer” Paul Bykow.