“Rev” Ron Hunt and tag team partner, “The Regent” Joshua Kavod. Photo by Tim Steiner
by Thomas Leturgey
“Rev” Ron Hunt raced over to the famed WWF tag team champions Ax and Smash, Demolition. Moments earlier, Hunt, and his tag team partner, “The Regent” Joshua Kavod, defeated Dan Murphy and Harley T. Morris for Pittsburgh’s Keystone State Wrestling Alliance (KSWA) tag team championships.
The KSWA tag team match was one of four title contests at the KSWA’s annual FanFest/Toy Drive, which was held for the first time at Langley American Legion post in the Sheraden neighborhood within the city of Pittsburgh.
Ronnell Hunt, 29, and Kavod (soon to be) 29, have tagged together all over Western Pennsylvania, first as members of “Jesus Club” and now “The Apex.” While other wrestlers have been in and out of the stable of athletes, Hunt and Kavod are the most prominent.
The KSWA tag team gold is the first for popular Hunt, who has won and continues to hold championship belts in regional promotions as far away as Altoona and West Newton. For shrewd fans of the wrestling game, Hunt was featured as a hype man for former Western Pennsylvania mainstay Shane Taylor on Ring of Honor television broadcasts. Hunt is the Vice President/C.O.O. of Shane Taylor Promotions. Taylor, who was a television champion for the ROH brand, once worked in several Western Pennsylvania groups and was most recently seen on AEW wrestling on TNT.
This is Hunt’s first championship win for Pittsburgh’s professional wrestling organization.
“Rev” Ron Hunt and “The Regent” Joshua Kavod at the KSWA after party.
Fans have taken to Hunt since his first KSWA appearance in 2019. At first, he was a dastardly villain, but along the way he became a beloved fan favorite. At Brawl Under the Bridge 7 on July 16 in Homestead, a crowd of nearly 900 gave Hunt one of the loudest ovations of the evening.
He also drew applause during September’s Millvale Days when he jumped from the top of rental truck during his ring entrance on Friday night and then again Saturday afternoon.
When Kavod was attacked by the now-former KSWA tag team champions on November 19 at the Mt. Washington Community Center, “The Regent” was told to “find a partner” for FanFest. He immediately dialed up Hunt, who was eager to make it back to Pittsburgh.
Hunt–no relation to Studio Wrestling legend Bobby “Hurricane,” Hunt–is a resident of Monroeville. He works as a Community Education Specialist at The Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank. He previously worked in television news, including a few years in Ohio. But he got tired of that grind and wanted to come home. He finds the Food Bank position rewarding.
It’s interesting to note that both Hunt and Kavod share a devotion to faith and do their part to share the Gospel with friends in-and-out of the professional wrestling business. Hunt calls himself a “Hope Dealer” who is legitimately a 32nd degree Freemason. He has done extra and voice actor work locally and continues to work for positives in his life.
At Saturday’s FanFest, the crowd exploded for Hunt and Kavod. The duo made their way through the standing room-only crowd and went directly to Bill Eadie and Barry Darsow to greet the former champions. The duo went to ring and waged war against Morris and Murphy. At the conclusion of the match, Hunt heaved the 300-plus-pound Murphy onto his shoulders, and Kavod kicked him down and made the pin. The Apex were the new tag team champions and they raced over to share the moment with Demolition.
Hunt and Kavod were mobbed by young fans as they made their way to the locker room.
“The reaction was much louder than we even expected,” said Hunt following the win. “That was great.”
As 2022 turns a corner, “Rev” Ron Hunt and “The Regent” Joshua Kavod look forward to a new year, as champions.
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