Doug Flex

Doug Yasinsky was born in Andreas, West Penn Township, Pennsylvania in 1964. After graduating from Tamaqua High School in 1982, he attended Penn State where he met his future tag team partner Brick Bronsky. Having a mutual interest in both bodybuilding and professional wrestling, they eventually entered the business with Yasinsky making his debut in 1988. They won the Canadian International Tag Team Championship in 1988 and 1989, the Galaxy Wrestling Federation Tag Team Championship in 1990 and the North American Wrestling Federation Tag Team Championship in 1991.[1]

Yasinsky himself won singles titles in a number of various independent promotions during the first three years of his career. Among these included the U.S. Heavyweight Championship in 1989 and the Galaxy Wrestling Federation Heavyweight Championship in 1990. He also scored impressive victories over Sgt. Slaughter, Ken Patera, Nikolai Volkoff and Bam Bam Bigelow on the independent circuit. By the end of 1991, Yasinsky had wrestled in Japan, Canada and almost every state in the United States.[1]

During this time, both Yasinsky and Bronsky became known for their volunteer work with local youths in Lehighton area and counseled high school students across the United States about the dangers of drug and steroid abuse. The two would typically lecture at the local high schools of wherever they were wrestling and would donate to a local charity if the promoters received a fee for their appearance. They had both used steroids for several years before serious health risks and side effects forced them to stop. Yasinsky was also a volunteer for Carbon County Special Olympics and a counselor for juvenile delinquents in Carbon County.[1]

On April 13, 1991, Yasinsky beat the "California Darling" Mr. Anthony in a fundraising event for Colonial Championship Wrestling at Lehighton High School with the proceeds going to the Carbon County Special Olympics. The event was attended by about 1,200 people and featured Bam Bam Bigelow, Dusty Wolfe and The Super Destroyers (Doug Stahl & A. J. Petrucci).[4] His bout against Mr. Anthony was preceded by a verbal altercation while speaking at a Lehighton Area Chamber of Commerce function to promote the event. When Yasinsky made comments about the flamboyant Californian wrestler's pink ring attire, Anthony responded by calling his opponent a "country bumpkin".[5] He faced Mr. Anthony in a battle royal later that night and slammed him into a door.[6] Two months later, Yasinsky broke his ankle and would not be able to wrestle until the following year.[1]

In December 1991, he and Bronsky became the owners and operators of the Lehighton Recreational Complex in Lehighton, Pennsylvania. Hoping to encourage teenagers to take up bodybuilding, they offered karate lessons, dance classes, weight training and a power-lifting team. Their partner George Harris, a former commissioner for the Lehighton Recreational Adult Basketball League, ran the gym while Yasinsky and Bronsky continued wrestling.[1]

In early 1992, Yasinsky and Bronsky began promoting amateur boxing from their Lehighton gymnasium called The Racquet and Fitness Factory. On April 9, 1992, their first card featured the Twin Mountain Boxing Club of Bowmanstown as well as similar clubs from Lebanon, Shenandoah, Scranton, Bethlehem, Allentown and Reading, Pennsylvania for 9-12 bouts. It was the first boxing matches held in the area since October 1984.[7]

On March 22, Yasinsky and Bronsky held a wrestling show at The Racquet and Fitness Factory to raise money for the Carbon County Association of Retarded Citizens. Yasinsky faced Satanic Warrior while Brick Bronsky wrestled Morgus the Maniac. The card also featured wrestlers from the Wrestling Independent Network and independent wrestlers including The Cheetah Kid, J.T. Smith and Cream Team (Dino Casanova & Rip Sawyer).[8]

That summer, he and Bronsky became involved in a local zoning controversy involving their gym. On August 17, local building inspector Peter Kropf sent a certified letter to Keith Boyer and the four people leasing the building that the building had numerous violations and that Boyers had 45 days to bring it into compliance with state and local codes or face daily fines of up to $1,000. Kropf also claimed that Boyer never secured a necessary permit when he opened a gym in the former silk mill in 1983. The three-story brick building housed a furniture-stripping business as well as the gym. Town officials raised concerns that the building may be unsafe, such as the absence of proper fire exits, to accommodate the hundreds of people that the gym was bringing in on the weekends. Yasinsky was the first to sign and acknowledge the town's letter.[9]

Within a few years, Yasinsky was running wrestling events with Ed Zohn. Although based in Pennsylvania, they were holding shows on the East Coast and in New England. Among the wrestlers who appeared at their shows included Don Montoya and a young Reckless Youth who made his first Connecticut appearance with the promotion.[10] On May 20, 1995, Yasinsky teamed with The Public Enemy (Rocco Rock & Johnny Grunge) in a 6-man tag team match at a show for Extreme Championship Wrestling at The Flagstaff in Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania. They defeated Stevie Richards & The Pitbulls (Pitbull#1 & #2)[11][12] when Yasinsky pinned Richards.[13][14]

Sidelined by a serious knee injury, Yasinsky would not return to wrestling full-time until 1996. By that time, he and Bronsky had started their own Harrisburg-based promotion, International Pro Wrestling, where they formed the heel stable "The Brat Pack" with manager G.Q. Bronsky.[2][3][15] On January 11, 1997, he lost to 911 at a show for the Century Wrestling Alliance at The Sports Palace in New Britain, Connecticut.[16] Five months later, he met 911 in a rematch at an IPW event at Flagstaff Hall in Jim Thorpe. Their match was part of a triple main event including a match between Bam Bam Bigelow and Glen Osbourne, and IPW Heavyweight Champion Brick Bronsky defending his title against Frank Stalletto. A cruiserweight match between Reckless Youth and Julio Sanchez was featured on the undercard.[17]

On December 5, 1997, Yasinsky faced Cueball Carmichael wrestled Doug Flex at Flagstaff Mountain Park in Jim Thorpe. One of the biggest IPW shows of the year, the event raised money for the United Cerebral Palsy of Carbon County organization. The event also included many top independent stars including 911, Glen Osborne, Reckless Youth, Julio Sanchez, Mike Quackenbush, Jimmy Cicero and King Kong Bundy. Gene Snisky, a future WWE star, also made his Pennsylvania debut.[18]

During the next year, according to independent wrestler Tommy Idol, Yasinsky and booker Ed Zohn stopped running shows in the Lebanon area following a dispute with rival promoter Larry Brown allowing his Lethal Wrestling Federation to take over the "open town".[19] Prior to his official ranking in the 1998 PWI 500, he put out an open challenge to any wrestler rated higher than him (#433) to meet him in IPW.[3]

Yasinsky brought in many high-profile wrestlers into IPW during the next few years. On March 31, 2001, he wrestled George "The Animal" Steele in Bushkill, Pennsylvania.[20][21] He also appeared with Adam Flash at an event for Future Wrestling Alliance in Reading on October 13, 2001. The event was covered by Smart Mark Video and was commentated by Reckless Youth and Jeff Gorman.[22]

Prior to its close, Yasinsky wrestled Hosaka Sato at an IPW show in Summit Hill, Pennsylvania on March 19, 2004. Later that night, he served as IPW Heavyweight Champion Salvatore Sincere's bodyguard in his match against The Hungarian Barbarian. Also on the card were Julio Dinero, Mike Quackenbush, The Patriot, Eddie Kingston, Gran Akuma, Hallowicked, Sonjay Dutt, Ruckus, Bobcat, Al Snow and Jerry "The King" Lawler.[23][24] Yasinsky continued to promote sporting events, mostly boxing and mixed martial arts, in Pennsylvania during the 2000s. He also collaborated with screenwriter Dale Schneck to create a drama television series based around professional wrestling.[25]