New Jack, real name Jerome Young, has died at age 58. PWInsider is reporting that New Jack has sadly passed away earlier this afternoon following a heart attack in North Carolina.
After starting his career in wrestling on a whim, Jerome Young plunged into the sports entertainment for over a quarter-century, winning multiple titles in a career that took him all over the country, his greatest success coming in both singles and tag team action in Extreme Championship Wrestling for much of the 1990s.
He is best known for his time with Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), where he became notorious for his willingness to take dangerous bumps and his stiff hardcore wrestling style, often taking high risks and “shooting” on opponents, including in the infamous 1996 Mass Transit incident.
His most recent match was on a ICW show in Tampa, over WrestleMania weekend, Six Man Tag Team Match The Carnage Crew (DeVito & Loc) & New Jack defeat The Rejects (John Wayne Murdoch & Reed Bentley) & Neil Diamond Cutter. He was featured on Dark Side of the Ring just last year.
New Jack would become synonyms with “Natural Born Killaz”, as the theme song would play loudly over most of his matches in ECW.
TWM’s thoughts and prayers are with his family, friends and those affected.