Paul Bykow has sadly passed away at the age of 58. He was best known as "The Equalizer" during his tenure with Extreme Championship Wrestling, aka ECW.
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"A New Jersey native, Bykow was extremely close with Chris Candido and Tammy Sytch," PW Insider reports. "They were his conduit into the company, where he appeared in 1998, often as a bodyguard for manager Lance Wright. He also worked as a part of an entourage for Danny Doring early in Doring's ECW tenure."
When news of Paul's passing became public, independent wrestler Tony Chini paid tribute with a post on Instagram.
"Paul. I just saw you one week ago," Chini wrote. "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 becoming 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."
Chini then continued by stressing how much Paul will be missed.
"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 matches he had on CD's and put them on a YouTube channel. Watch a match or promo for him today."
Fans Share Their Condolences for Paul Bykow
Following Chini's post on Instagram, fans began to share their own condolences.
"Thank you for this beautiful note about my dad; he was the best," Paul's daughter, Victoria, replied.
"No freaking way... Unbelievable... RIP to the Equalizer," another user wrote. "We'll miss him"
"Paul Bykow was a groundbreaker in ECW during a transformative era. His impact on professional wrestling history will be remembered," a user wrote on X. "RIP."
Currently, there's limited information regarding what led to Paul's death. Furthermore, no information has been shared regarding an impending funeral or celebration of life.
