The Wrestling Thread

[JamieStevenson]

Nice to see WWE ruining Summerslam's main event and who is winning on Sunday.

Had a feeling it would pan out that way anyway.

[Waffelz]

What's the chat here?

Amazon released the Summerslam poster earlier this week, but no one knew if it was fake or not, 'coz how could we? But WWE have now went and release it and it gives away the Main Event.

[Shuggie_Murray7]

What the f**k is this Stardust pish?

[Ira Gaines]

PWG Battle of Los Angeles 2013 Night One

The Battle of Los Angeles is an annual tournament that PWG hold with 16 guys. They alternate between 16 and 8 men in it, but most of the time, it's a 16 man format, with some of the best indy talent on the planet.

Every match on night one is a Round One battle, with the exception of the main event.

Chuck Taylor vs. Kevin Steen ( ***1/2 )
Tomasso Ciampa vs. Brian Cage ( *** )
Willie Mack vs. Johnny Gargano ( **** )
Roderick Strong vs. AR Fox ( ***1/2 )
Joey Ryan vs. Drake Younger ( **3/4 )
ACH vs. Anthony Nese ( **1/4 )
Kyle O'Reilly vs. Trent? ( **** )
Michael Elgin vs. Rich Swann ( *** )
Forever Hooligans and TJ Perkins vs. The Young Bucks and Adam Cole ( ****1/4 )

Chuck Taylor vs. Kevin Steen

Steen and Taylor do some crowd pandering. Taylor does a Standing Moonsault on a cap. PACKAGE PILEDRIVER ON THE CAP !!! I have no idea what is going on here but the fan gets his cap back anyways. The fans seem that the best match of the year. Taylor goes to do commentary for the next match as well. Right, we're all back in the ring now and we have a match on the go. Waistlock from Steen and Taylor finds his way to the ropes and we get... something of a clean break from there. Lockup and Steen with the Waistlock again and a wee pat on the arse from Steen. Steen with a Waistlock Takedown, and then he says he's gonna f**k Taylor up. We past the pleasant stuff then? Steen with the Shoulder Tackle and into the ropes. He lands a second one. Taylor with the three point stance and he gets charged down again. Taylor with a running shot in the corner. Springboard and then Taylor runs into the eye poke from Steen. HUGE chop now from Steen and now we're off. Hard Irish Whip and a stomp to the back from Steen. Chop and down goes Taylor. Running Back Elbow gets a two count for Steen. Steen with the chop and then Taylor into the corner and Steen runs into the boot and Taylor to the top rope. Cross Body misses. SENTON DOWN ACROSS THE BACK FROM STEEN !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Kicks to the gut from Taylor and then Steen with a kick to the balls. Choke with a boot and then more choking with a boot. Back Drop Suplex and that gets a two count for Steen. Steen runs into an elbow and then Taylor with the Dropkick off the second and he's back in this one. Forearms from both men now. Poke to the eyes from Taylor and then one from Steen. Rake to the eyes from Taylor and a BIG eye poke from Steen. Dropkick from Taylor and Steen is in the rope. Jumping knee and Steen is now on the floor here. THE SOMERSAULT PLANCHA OVER THE TOP ROPE FROM TAYLOR !!! Taylor goes and does commentary and complains about a sore arse. We now have Steen and Taylor doing commentary. What the f**k is going on here! EXCALIBUR WITH THE DOUBLE EYE POKE AT THE COMMENTARY TABLE !!! That'll settle the argument. Kick to the gut. POWERBOMB ON THE APRON FROM STEEN !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Steen is now heading for the top rope. SWANTON BOMB ... HITS THE KNEES OF TAYLOR !!! STO FROM TAYLOR !!! MOONSAULT ... MISSES !!! Taylor landed on his feet and now holds on. SMALL PACKAGE FROM TAYLOR !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOUT !!! DROPKICKS FROM TAYLOR !!! THE MOONSAULT FROM TAYLOR !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOUT !!! SLEEPER SUPLEX FROM STEEN !!! ONE ! TWO ! THR ... KICKOUT !!! PACKAGE PILEDRIVER ... countered. TAYLOR ROLLS THROUGH TO THE SINGLE LEG CRAB !!! Steen escapes. BIG POWERBOMB FROM STEEN !!! PACKAGE PILEDRIVER !!! ONE ! TWO ! THREE !!!

The shenanigans in this match was expected given the guys in it, and as you'd expect, it was a lot of fun. The actual wrestling wasn't horrible either. All sorts of fun to be had here. ***1/2

Tomasso Ciampa vs. Brian Cage

Expect plenty of power moves here. DROPKICK OVER THE REFEREE !!! HOLY SHIT !!! Stomps in the corner from Ciampa and then he works over Cage in another corner. He has the knee pad down. THE KNEE RIGHT IN THE FACE OF CAGE !!! REPEATED RUNNING KNEES !!! Cage to the floor. Cage avoids a Powerbomb on the floor and back to the feet. POWERBOMB INTO CHAIRS !!! That looks a bit dangerous that. The referee goes out to check on Cage now. It is pretty clear that something is wrong here, and there's total silence in the audience here. Cage is fighting to his feet here and this is not exactly the smartest thing for a wrestling to do. Cage gets his arse back into the ring here. Ciampa slaps Cage around and lands a forearm. Kick to the gut from Ciampa and a Small Package and that gets a two count. Ciampa goes to the floor and down across the back of Cage. The fans seem a bit uneasy about the whole thing here. POWERBOMB INTO THE RINGPOST FROM CAGE !!! Ciampa into a corner and the IED from Cage and that gets a two count for him. Cage gonna look for the Superplex on Ciampa. THE SUPERPLEX INTO THE RING FROM THE APRON FROM CAGE !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! DISCUS LARIAT FROM CIAMPA AND A KNEE TO THE BALLS !!! ONE ! TWO ! THR ... KICKOUT !!! Both men with shots to each other. GERMAN SUPLEX LANDS CAGE ON HIS FEET AND CAGE WITH ONE OF HIS OWN !!! THESE GUYS ARE INSANE !!! CAGE WITH THE LAST ONE !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! BRUTAL LARIAT FROM CIAMPA !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! DISCUS LARIAT FROM CAGE !!! ONE ! TWO ! THR ... KICKOUT !!! CIAMPA WITH THE AVALANCHE AIR RAID CRASH !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOUT !!! Reversals from both men. Big knee from Ciampa. DISCUS LARIAT FROM CAGE !!! POWERBOMB BACKBREAKER AND ANOTHER DISCUS LARIAT !!! ONE ! TWO ! THREE !!!

Erm... this is an odd one to rate. Mainly because of the injury to Cage which is very real. The effort from Cage after that was mental and the fans were right behind him after that. It's definitely engrossing stuff but not a great match by any means. ***

Willie Mack vs. Johnny Gargano

Gargano picks up the Mack t-shirt and it might be a bit big for him. Headlock Takedown from Mack as both men have the t-shirt of the other on. Gargano with a nice stepover and he goes with another Headlock and the fans liked that there. Takeover reversal from Mack and we have a stalemate here. Gargano wants a test of strength here. Kick to the gut and a Headlock from Gargano. Shoulder tackle and Mack is just like "nah". Gargano hits the ropes a second time and is just as successful. Back Elbow works a bit better and he hits the ropes again and Mack with a Shoulder Charge. Mack pulls the t-shirts off now and Mack whips Gargano with his shirt and then to the feet they go and the Suplex now from Mack and a nice one there gets a two count for him. Forearm from Mack and then into the corner. Kick to the head sends Mack to the floor. SUICIDE DIVE FROM GARGANO ... Mack cuts him off with an elbow. Mack winds up on the floor. Back in. THE SLINGSHOT SPEAR FROM GARGANO !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Gargano is now looking for the Tequila Sunrise, but not before doing some work on the fingers. A big knee to the head from Mack to escape there. Kicks to the gut from Gargano and a chop against the ropes from Gargano. More attempts and Mack stops. SHORT ARM ENZIGURI FROM MACK !!! Gargano avoids a move and both men with rope runs here. THE FUCKING POUNCE AND GARGANO WINDS UP ON THE FLOOR !!! MACK WITH THE SOMERSAULT PLANCHA OVER THE TOP ROPE !!! Back into the ring they now go and Mack is in control of this one here. Mack runs into the boot of Gargano here. MOUNTAIN BOMB AND THE STANDING MOONSAULT FROM MACK !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Mack heads for the top rope here. Mack misses a move. BASEMENT GAMENGIRI FROM GARGANO !!! Mack is in the corner now here. Gargano on the apron. SLINGSHOT DDT FROM GARGANO !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Back to the feet now and Mack into the ropes. Enziguri from Gargano and then a back elbow. Kick to the head from the Mack. SUPERKICK FROM GARGANO !!! BASEMENT SUPERKICK !!! RUNNING ROUNDHOUSE FROM MACK !!! BOTH MEN DOWN !!! Back to the feet now with Gargano. Avalanche in the corner from Mack and a forearm from Gargano. Awkward spot... INTO THE GARGANO ESCAPE HERE !!! GARGANO REACHES THE ROPES !!! Onto the apron they go now and Mack into the ring. THE SPINNING FLATLINER BRINGS GARGANO INTO THE RING !!! ONE ! TWO ! THR ... KICKOUT !!! Both guys battle up top and Gargano sent down. SPIRAL TAP FROM MACK ... MISSES !!! THE IED FROM GARGANO !!! THE LAWN DART FROM GARGANO !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOUT !!! BASEMENT SUPERKICK FROM GARGANO !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOOOUUTTTTTT !!! GARGANO ESCAPE !!!

A good match here. Mack has always been popular in PWG despite being booked as an afterthought after he got his title match at one of their bigger shows. He got a big chance to see him at his best here though against a great opponent. It was also Gargano's first singles showing and a great showing it was. ****

Roderick Strong vs. AR Fox

For some reason, this match on paper doesn't appeal to me as much as it would in the past. Strong takes down Fox and goes to the Wristlock. Headlock from Fox and then some more reversing from both guys and then we have a stalemate. Dropkick from Fox puts an end to the nicey nicey stuff for this one. Front Slam for Fox and then the Split Legged Moonsault and that gets a two count. Shoulders in the corner and then Strong onto the corner. Knee sends Strong to the floor. THE KICK FLIP MOONSAULT OFF OF THE RINGPOST FROM FOX !!! Back into the ring they go. Leg Drop from Fox and that gets a two count. Kick to the face from Strong and then he runs into a boot and then Strong just pushes him over the top rope. Chops from Strong on the floor from Strong and then he charges Fox into the ringpost and around the ring they go. Chest slammed into the ring apron and back into the ring and now the stomps to the chest. HALF NELSON BACKBREAKER FROM STRONG !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Back to the feet now and Strong stretches Fox here. Snap Suplex and that gets a two count and then the Body Scissors from Strong and Fox is trying to get his way out of this here. Fox tries to find his way to the ropes here and Strong gets a two count from a pin. Fox tries a comeback and then we have some taunting from Strong. HUGE chop from Strong and then kicks in the corner from Strong. Standing Dropkick hits Fox right in the face and that gets a two count. Cross Arm Camel Clutch from Strong and Fox tries to get out of this. Strong goes right back into the move here. Fox with an overly convulted reversal into a Bulldog. Clothesline in the corner and then Skin the Cat Dropkick from Fox. THE SHOOTING STAR CANNONBALL FROM FOX !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Counter now and Fox with a Stunner. AR FOX WITH THE TWISTER !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Strong on the apron now. TOP ROPE LEG DROP FROM FOX ON THE APRON !!! Strong does a runner here and this won't end well. THE HEAT SEEKING MISSILE !!! THE SUICIDE DIVE !!! THE SOMERSAULT PLANCHA !!! Into the ring. SWANTON BOMB FROM FOX ... HITS THE KNEES !!! High Knee in the corner. THE OLYMPIC SLAM FROM STRONG !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Strong runs into the boot but then lands a shot. TOP ROPE SUPERPLEX FROM STRONG !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! THE STRONG HOLD !!! FOX ESCAPES !!! Reversals now from both. THE CORONATION FROM FOX !!! SPRINGBOARD CODEBREAKER FROM FOX !!! ONE ! TWO ! THR ... KICKOUT !!! ONE MAN SPANISH FLY ... BLOCKED !!! Kicks from Strong. THE RODDY STRONG GUTBUSTER AND THE SICK KICK !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOOOUUUTTTTTT !!! DISCUS LARIAT ... MISSES !!! Big strikes now from both men here. SPRINGBOARD BACK DIVE ACE CRUSHER FROM AR FOX !!! 450 SPLASH FROM FOX !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOUT !!! Strong to the floor here and what the hell is he doing. HOT SHOT INTO THE APRON NOW FROM STRONG !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! BACKSLIDE FROM FOX !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOUT !!! SUPLEX BACKBREAKER FROM STRONG !!! ONE ! TWO ! THREE !!!

Roderick Strong is one of those guys where you kinda take for granted how good he is. As you'd expect, he's as solid as you'd want here. AR Fox is fun when he's not over the top with his spots. We see his most annoying tendencies here though. It's very much unspectacular stuff before he starts busting out the madness and thus is stands out as OTT. So... you can enjoy this one for what it is, which is a fun midcard match, and AR Fox might well amaze for first timers. ***1/2

Joey Ryan vs. Drake Younger

Aww f**k. I don't want to see Ryan. Ryan with right hands getting us going here and Drake in the corner here. Into the corner and Drake with right hands of his own and the PWG fans love the guy. Hiptoss out of the corner and then Ryan crotches himself on the ringpost. Manhattan Drop and an Atomic Drop. Arm Drags from Drake and then he dumps Ryan to the floor. Ryan into the ring but he takes the Cross Body and that gets a two count. Snap Suplex from Drake and that gets a two count. Northern Lights Suplex gets a two count for Drake. Headbutt from Drake and then into the corner he goes. Running Neckbreaker from Drake and that gets a two count. Arm Capture Suplex from Ryan changes the course of the match here. Choke with the boot in the corner from Ryan and now more choking from Ryan and he's working over Drake here and that gets a two count and now he goes to the Neck Twist on Drake and then he goes with the move there. He does that for the hard-cam now. Nice Dropkick from Ryan when Drake tries to build some momentum. Drake runs into a shot and then Clotheslines from Drake. He looks for the DVD and it gets blocked. BELLY 2 BELLY INTO THE CORNER FROM DRAKE !!! LEAPING SWINGING DDT !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! DRAKE'S LANDING ... avoided. SPINEBUSTER FROM RYAN !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! HALF NELSON SUPLEX FROM DRAKE !!! TIGER DRIVER FROM DRAKE !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Drake now has a weapon here. CANDY IS OUT OF THE BAG !!! They try for moves into the Jolly Ranchers. POWERBOMB ONTO THE JOLLY RANCHERS FROM RYAN !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOUT !!! You have to appreciate the madness here. Ryan is now heading for the floor and goes to the back. He has a bag of his own. FUCKING LEGO !!! THEY'RE USING FUCKING LEGO !!! THAT'S FUCKING EVIL !!! SUPERKICK FROM RYAN !!! SAMOAN DROP INTO THE FUCKING LEGO !!! DRAKE'S LANDING INTO THE LEGO !!! ONE ! TWO ! THREE !!!

Moves onto lego? That's mental. Anyways, until the more nutty stuff, that was decidedly average, but it was stepped up a wee notch. **3/4

ACH vs. Anthony Nese

A match which is more intriguing than anything else on paper. Nese goes to the Hammerlock on ACH and then we have a nice escape to the Wristlock. Headlock now from ACH. ACH with the Running Rana and Nese ends up on the floor. ACH fakes the dive. They now circle each other and we have a crowd that are a bit more lively after that exchange of action there. School Boy gets a one count and now the Front Facelock and now the Wristlock from him there. Rana from Nese and ACH ends up on the floor and Nese fakes the dive and that is a wee bit of a shot at ACH there. Clotheslines now from Nese when ACH gets into the ring. Nese is not gonna make many daft errors like ACH just made there. Roll through from Nese and then he locks in a vicious submission here. More reversals now coming from both men as neither man can seem to gain a full advantage in the match. Stalemate now. Nese with a Headlock now. Shoulder Charge and down goes Nese. ACH winds up on the apron and then a big forearm and then ACH flips off of the apron. NESE WITH A HANDS FREE MOONSAULT OVER THE TOP ROPE !!! Nese seems to be a bit hurt out there now and he lands a chop. I wonder if this is a match that's going to be hit hard by an injury. I hope not. ACH looks like he might work on it. Snap Suplex from ACH and that gets a two count. Knee to the back of the head now from ACH and then the elbow and then he goes with the press ups. Nese comes back with shots now. Cross Body but ACH rolls through. REVOLUTION BACKBREAKER AND AN EXPLODER FROM ACH !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Shots to the gut and then the face from Nese. Face Buster and a kick from Nese and then the Spinning Heel Kick. Nese runs into an elbow. Kick to the gut and then he takes a slap. Running Dropkick from Nese. Nese and ACH with shots and then ACH dumped onto the apron here. ACH then sends Nese to the floor here. ACH LANDS HIS SPRINGBOARD SOMERSAULT PLANCHA OVER THE TOP ROPE !!! SWINGING ACE CRUSHER ... countered by Nese. PUMP HANDLE BOMB INTO THE DOUBLE LEG LOCK FROM NESE !!! ACH finds the ropes. Kick to the head. SLINGSHOT SWINGING ACE CRUSHER FROM ACH !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Into the corner where Nese lands a big shot. Running Knee to the face from Nese and that gets a two count. Nese now heads for the top rope. ACH gets sent back in and Nese jumps over him. POWERBOMB INTO THE BUCKLES FROM NESE !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! THE FLASH KICK FROM ACH !!! SERIES OF KICKS !!! THE CRADLE DDT FROM ACH !!! ONE ! TWO ! THREE !!!

Another match seemingly effected by injury this one. Again, you need to commend the effort of both men for trying to get something out of this match. The injury of Nese seemed to be a bit too much for them to overcome though. **1/4

Kyle O'Reilly vs. Trent?

Trent? is of course Trent Berretta of WWE... erm... fame. Lockup and Trent takes over Kyle and then goes to the Head Scissors. Kyle then escapes and has the legs locked and Trent finds the ropes. Trent with the Waistlock takedown and then some grinding of his own and Kyle isn't happy with that. Headlock from Trent. Shoulder Charge and down goes Kyle. Hiptoss but then Kyle kicked down. Same the other way and then more reversals with the two men in there and we have a stalemate and this is the sort of thing that can get the fans behind you in short order. They lock hands and both men jockey for some sort of position. Northern Lights Suplex from Kyle and they keep the hands locked but then break and more reversals from the two men and Kyle transitions to a Hammerlock and then the Wristlock and he works on the hand here. Hammerlock and then Trent sent into the corner by the shoulder and then into the opposite corner where Kyle jumps over Trent. THE MINORU SPECIAL FROM KYLE !!! Trent turns it into a pin and Kyle breaks. Knee to the gut and the kick to the back from Kyle. Kyle then stretches the arms of Trent now. Crucifix gets a two count for Kyle. Another kick to the back and then kicks to the chest. A kicking in the corner here. Trent runs into a boot but then gets sweeped off of the middle buckle and his head lands on the top buckle there and that gets a two count. Back Drop Suplex from Trent and that gets a two count. Trent with the big chop now and he charges with the High Knee and hits the ropes and a nice Savage Clothesline and it gets a two count for him and now the Chinlock from Trent. And then to the apron. Trent slingshots in and Kyle is not happy and lands Uppercuts. Don't piss off Kyle. Kyle hard into the corner now. Chinlock from Trent now. Onto the apron he winds up from that again where Kyle lands some shoulders. GUILLOTINE LEG DROP SENDS KYLE TO THE FLOOR !!! That was Jerry Lynn style there. SOMERSAULT PLANCHA OVER THE TOP ROPE FROM TRENT !!! Into the ring and then the Dropkick from Trent. IED FROM TRENT ... MISSES !!! Trent winds up on the floor from that. KYLE FLIES OFF OF THE APRON WITH THE RUNNING DROPKICK !!! Back into the ring now and both men are doing battle on their knees. Kicks from Kyle and then a knee and then a sweep from Kyle and down goes Trent. Kicks to the chest now from Kyle and then he hits the ropes. Forearm from Trent and he hits the ropes but eats a knee and then the cheap slap to the face. Running Forearm in the corner. Rolling Butterfly Suplexes... INTO THE CROSS ARMBREAKER !!! TRENT FINDS THE ROPES !!! He found those ropes in quick order there. THE MUSHROOM STOMP OUT OF THE CORNER FROM TRENT !!! That is a brutal move to come back into the match. PRAWN HOLD COUNTERED FROM TRENT !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOUT !!! HUGE DDT FROM TRENT !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOUT !!! Into the corner and Trent lands the chops. Trent looks for the Superplex consistently but Kyle stops him over and over again. TOP ROPE BELLY 2 BELLY SUPLEX FROM TRENT !!! THE BUSAIKU KNEE STRIKE FROM TRENT !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOUT !!! Kick to the head from Kyle. Roundhouse. JAWBREAKER LARIAT FROM KYLE !!! POWERBOMB FROM KYLE AND THEN THE GUILLOTINE CHOKE !!! TRENT SENDS BOTH MEN TO THE FLOOR TO BREAK !!! GUILLOTINE CHOKE ON THE FLOOR ... countered. THE FUCKING JIG N TONIC FROM TRENT ON THE FLOOR !!! Trent wants a count out now. KYLE BEATS THE COUNT !!! BASEMENT SUPERKICK FROM TRENT !!! CRADLE PILEDRIVER ... COUNTERED TO THE TRIANGLE SLEEPER !!! RUNNING SOCCER KICK SWINGING DDT !!! BRAINBUSTER !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOOOUUUTTTT !!! CROSS ARMBREAKER !!! TRENT TAPS !!!

While not the best match you'll ever see, this is a proper battle between these two guys. It felt like a war between two guys desperate to win. It's the sort of match that makes the tournament feel like a big deal and it also did a good job of giving Trent? a bit of credibility. ****

Michael Elgin vs. Rich Swann

Swann wants a test of strength to get us going. Elgin seems amused here. He then does some taunting and then some dancing. ELGIN DOES THE WORM !!! That sends the Reseda crowd into a meltdown right there. School Boy gets a two count for Swann and then Elgin has Swann. Rana from Swann and Elgin winds up on the floor. TWISTING PLANCHA OVER THE TOP ROPE FROM SWANN !!! Into the ring and Swann into the ropes and he kicks Elgin and lands a Dropkick and that gets a two count. Elgin runs into a boot. Tornado DDT is blocked but Swann avoids the Oklahoma Stampede. Swann avoids the Superplex and sends Elgin crashing down and heads for the top rope but Elgin then catches him. Elgin then climbs the buckles with Swann on his shoulders. SUPER FALLAWAY SLAM FROM ELGIN !!! Elgin then goes with the Stalled Vertical Suplex. LOOOONG time before Elgin finally lands the move and we have a two count for that. Crossface from Elgin and Swann escapes and lands a kick. Slaps from Elgin and he's naw impressed. Swann comes back with more shots, but Elgin with another of his own. SPINNING BACK FIST FROM ELGIN !!! PUSH AND A DOUBLE STOMP FROM SWANN !!! Swann takes an elbow and then a Spin Kick. LEAP UP FAME ASSER FROM SWANN !!! LEAP UP RANA AND THEN THE TUMBLING SPLASH !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! The fans with some singing to try and get behind their man. THE NORTHERN LIGHTS BOMB FROM ELGIN !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! DEADLIFT GERMAN SUPLEX FROM ELGIN !!! ONE ! TWO ! THR ... KICKOUT !!! BUCKLE BOMB ... the escape from Swann and a kick misses. HURRICANE KICK FROM SWANN !!! Tilt-a-Whirl Head Scissors gets a two count from Swann. Swann is now crotched on the top rope. Kick to the back from Elgin. THE SPLASH MOUNTAIN ... COUNTERED TO THE RANA FROM SWANN !!! FROG SPLASH !!! ONE ! TWO ! THR ... KICKOUT !!! Swann heads for the top again. Move misses. BRUTAL STO FROM ELGIN !!! THE SUPLEX SLAM FROM ELGIN !!! ONE ! TWO ! THR ... KICKOUT !!! Elgin now has Swann on his shoulder and he gets off. HANDSPRINGS RIGHT INTO THE FUCKING LARIAT FROM ELGIN !!! BUCKLE BOMB !!! THE SPIRAL BOMB !!! ONE ! TWO ! THREE !!!

This is a bit of an awkward one. It had it's moments, but both guys will probably look back at it and be pretty disappointed given that they seemed to be going for some sort of epic high flying vs. strength story which ended up falling a bit flat. ***

Forever Hooligans and TJ Perkins vs. The Young Bucks and Adam Cole

Rocky Romero and Alex Koslov are the Forever Hooligans. It's Koslov to get us going with Cole, who is the current PWG champ. The fans aren't really convinced by Koslov here. Waistlock from Koslov and Cole with the reversal to the Wristlock and then the takeover from Koslov and he works on the arm here. Kick to the gut from Cole and then Koslov with chops. Koslov into the ropes and some reversing and Koslov stops Cole and Koslov gets a "Russia" chant going, and there's a lot of booing. Suddenly a "USA" chant breaks out. Dropkick from Koslov and then Cole into the ring and a Drop Toe Hold sends him into the balls of Cole. Both men wind up on the floor. Nick wants into the ring. Romero comes in to meet him. Lockup and a Headlock from Romero and a shot to the gut from Nick and he gets charged down. Running Dropkick and down goes Nick and he backs into the corner. Kick to the gut from Romero and then a big chop against the ropes. Romero with the Lady of the Lake here and he offers the arm. Nick isn't sure of how to approach this. Stomp him on the balls! Romero takes over Nick and then goes with the Rings of Saturn. I hate that people still fall for that in wrestling matches. Matt into the ring now. Perkins in there to meet him. CHRISTO FROM PERKINS !!! He lets that one go and then Cole runs in and we have reversals on everyone here and Perkins is showing off here. Romero into the ring now. Forever Hooligans and TJP seem to be having a bit of miscommunication here until they all hug it out. Romero now has Matt and they land forearms on each other here. Atomic Drop from Romero and theh into the corner. Back Elbow from Nick out of nowhere and Romero is in trouble from that. Face rake with the boots and then the choke over the middle rope and then Matt adds his own choking to that. Back Rake now from Nick and then into the corner they go and the head into the boot of Cole. Snap Suplex from Cole and that gets a two count. Hard Irish Whip sends Romero into the corner and back into the corner where Nick comes in with a kick to the gut. Romero attempts a fight back now. Rake to the eyes from Nick and then Romero tries to fight out of the corner here. Cole and Matt crotch Romero on the ringpost now and then back into the ring where Perkins breaks the pin and gets sent to the apron. DOUBLE DROPKICK SENDS PERKINS TO THE FLOOR !!! That landed flush right there. Kicks to the side and the chest from Romero and now into the corner where Matt lands some shoulders. THE RAZZLE DAZZLE BACK RAKE FROM MATT !!! Kick to the gut from Cole and then the Snapmare and he hits the ropes and puts in the Chinlock. Nick adds leverage to that and then Perkins in the ring and he breaks the move again. Romero avoids a Suplex. Inverted Enziguri and he has the chance to get out of this match here... AND TAGS !!! SPRINGBOARD CROSS BODY FROM KOSLOV !!! Head Scissors and in come the other guys. Tilt-a-Whirl BAckbreaker on Nick. Enziguri on Matt and Koslov is the house on fire. RUSSIAN DANCE KICKS FROM KOSLOV AND DOUBLE STOMP TO THE HEAD !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Cole into the ring now and in comes Perkins. Double Cross Body from Perkins. Nick in there now. He misses the charge. LEG LIFT SITDOWN POWERBOMB FROM PERKINS !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Hooligans in there with Matt now. High Knee from Koslov. Front Suplex into the top rope. DOUBLE STOMP FROM ROMERO !!! PERKINS WITH THE MODIFIED TEXAS CLOVERLEAF ON MATT !!! KOSLOV WITH THE TARANTULA !!! Nick comes in and breaks the holds but takes some shots from Romero. Assisted Knees. SUPERKICK FROM NICK TO ROMERO !!! ASSISTED SLICED BREAD AND THE RUNNING KNEE !!! Perkins into the ring now. SUPERKICKS AND THEY ARE ABSOLUTELY BRUTAL ON PERKINS AND ROMERO !!! Alex Koslov in the ring. THE SLINGSHOT X-FACTOR INTO THE MOONSAULT !!! ALL SORTS OF DROPKICKS TO THE FLOOR FROM EVERYONE !!! WHEELBARROW SUPLEX INTO THE RING APRON FROM COLE !!! KOSLOV WITH THE SOMERSAULT PLANCHA OVER THE TOP ROPE !!! KOSLOV SPRINGS RIGHT INTO THE SUPERKICK FROM MATT !!! Matt now has the hat. He then mockingly kicks Koslov. Enziguri. SUPERKICK FROM NICK !!! Romero in the ring now. High Knee. THE SUPERKICK FROM COLE !!! THE GO 2 SLEEP FROM PERKINGS !!! THE SUPERKICK FROM MATT TO PERKINS !!! MORE BANG FOR YOUR BUCK FROM THE BUCKS ... STOPPED !!! DOOMSDAY KNEE FROM THE HOOLIGANS !!! WHEELBARROW LUNGBLOWER FROM THE PERKINS !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... THE SAVE IS MADE !!! Koslov kicked off of the apron now and we have Cole, Matt and Perkins in the ring. RUNNING POWERBOMB INTO THE KICKS FOR THE BUCKS !!! THE PANAMA DESROYER AND TRIPLE SUPERKICK !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KOSLOV AND ROMERO MAKE THE SAVE !!! KOSLOV WITH THE TORTURE RACK ON NICK !!! DOUBLE SUPERKICK ON KOSLOV !!! SUPERKICKS INTO THE STRAIGHT JACKET GERMAN FROM ADAM COLE !!! ONE ! TWO ! THREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE !!!

Six man tags in PWG. Instant goodness. And the Hooligans and Bucks know each other quite well through their NJPW meetings so they just needed the other guys to catch up and they did so admirably. So this is an all action thriller between the six men and a great main event. ****1/4

Night one was a solid wrestling show. If you take it by PWG's standards, they have done much better before, and a night later, they put on one of the greatest indy wrestling shows ever. So there may have been an element of holding back from some. It's still a very good wrestling show though, topped off by a terrific main event. Night two comes next, and things take a hell of a step up.

Edited June 28, 2014 by NewDomDom

[Tamdunk]

When people talk about no selling, wanna know who always gets forgotten and absolutely shouldn't? HAWK! He no sold every Piledriver he every took. A fucking head drop!

"f**k it, my neck is made of iron."

Hawk was always the first who I'd think of when it came to no selling. The bounce up from the piledrive is one of his signature moves.

[Kujabi_Kujabyou]

PWG Battle of Los Angeles 2013 Night One

Chuck Taylor vs. Kevin Steen ( ***1/2 )

Let's go Chuck Taylor you're the greatest Wrestler in the world you're in way better shape than Kevin Steen.

[Ira Gaines]

Dolph Ziggler vs. Cesaro tonight on Main Event.

Pleasing.

[TheGreenMonster]

Dolph Ziggler vs. Cesaro tonight on Main Event.

Pleasing.

Will Cesaro be taking part ?, he injured his eye on Raw last night and its being treated over the next couple of days by the WWE doctors just to make sure everything is ok.

[Ira Gaines]

Will Cesaro be taking part ?, he injured his eye on Raw last night and its being treated over the next couple of days by the WWE doctors just to make sure everything is ok.

Well, WWE said earlier today that it was happening, so I'd assume they're good to go!

[stumigoo]

Maybe with an eye patch? They said he had to wear one earlier.

[Ira Gaines]

The entire 24 man field for PWG Battle of Los Angeles 2014 is out, and it looks quite good...

Kenny Omega

Ricochet

Adam Cole

Tommaso Ciampa

Roderick Strong

Chuck Taylor

Chris Hero

AR Fox

AJ Styles

Cedric Alexander

Trent Berretta

Rich Swann

Zack Sabre Jr.

ACH

Brian Cage

Kyle O'Reilly

Biff Busick

Michael Elgin

Brian Myers ( Kurt Hawkins )

Johnny Gargano

Chris Sabin

Trevor Lee

Drew Gulak

Matt Sydal ( Evan Bourne )

[Ira Gaines]

Finally finishing my PWG review tomorrow. I keep getting distracted by new stuff coming online, including a whole batch of old ROH shows which I've been getting tore into. Forgot how shite the commentary was. "BOTH MEN LANDED ON THEIR HEADS!!!" This comes from a Canadian Destroyer.

Jesus.

[Ira Gaines]

Santino Marella has been forced into retirement because of neck injuries.

[Ira Gaines]

PWG Battle of Los Angeles 2013 Night Two

And this is it. The finale to the night before and what a finale it is.

Drake Younger vs. Brian Cage - BOLA Quarter Final ( ***1/4 )
Johnny Gargano vs. Kevin Steen - BOLA Quarter Final ( ****1/4 )
Michael Elgin vs. Roderick Strong - BOLA Quarter Final ( *** )
ACH vs. Kyle O'Reilly - BOLA Quarter Final ( ****1/2 )
Best Friends vs. Willie Mack, B-Boy and Tommaso Ciampa ( **** )
Michael Elgin vs. Johnny Gargano - BOLA Semi Final ( **** )
Kyle O'Reilly vs. Drake Younger - BOLA Semi Final ( **** )
The Young Bucks and Adam Cole vs. AR Fox, Rich Swann and Candice LaRae ( ****1/2 )
Michael Elgin vs. Kyle O'Reilly - BOLA Final ( ***3/4 )

Drake Younger vs. Brian Cage - BOLA Quarter Final

Drake wastes NO time sending Cage to the floor with a Dropkick and heads for the top rope. MOONSAULT PRESS TO THE FLOOR ONTO CAGE !!! Drake gets a bunch of chairs ready on the floor and Cage blocks a Suplex and Drake onto the apron. Cage has him. ATTITUDE ADJUSTMENT INTO THE CHAIRS FROM CAGE !!! Cage breaks the count and then brings Drake around the ring a wee bit. POWERBOMB INTO THE RINGPOST FROM CAGE !!! SHORT ARM LARIAT IN THE RING !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Chinlock now from Cage. Drake back up and shots to the gut and he hits the ropes. Tilt-a-Whirl Backbreaker and another gets a two count for Cage. Drake charged into the corner and then the Sitdown Alabama Slam gets a two count for Cage. Drake tries to chop his way back. POWERBOMB BACKBREAKER FROM CAGE !!! TEXAS CLOVERLEAF !!! Drake comes back into the match and then Cage escapes the move. RELEASE GERMAN SUPLEXES FROM CAGE !!! PUMP HANDLE INTO THE X-FACTOR FROM CAGE !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! DEATH VALLEY DRIVER FROM DRAKE !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! DRAKE'S LANDING ... countered. DISCUS LARIAT FROM CAGE !!! ONE ! TWO ! THR ... KICKOUT !!! Superplex is blocked by Drake and he's on top. DRAKE WITH THE SMALL PACKAGE !!! ONE ! TWO ! THREE !!!

All action opener to get the crowd into things. The best thing for Cage who never took many big bumps on the bad neck. Big moves from start to finish and a hot crowd. ***1/4

Johnny Gargano vs. Kevin Steen - BOLA Quarter Final

This is a match which you see on paper and think "these two guys are capable of something". The fans get behind Gargano and Steen decides to just slap him. This is going to get aggressive here. Forearms from both men now and they're not fucking about here. Headlock from Steen now. Gargano tries to bring Steen down to a knee here. He eventually manages it and escapes the move and then steps over and gets a Hammerlock. Steen to the feet now and lands some back elbows and then a Hammerlock of his own. Gargano looks to get out of this and it doesn't work. Headlock Takedown and then we have a stalemate between the two men here. Steen with a big chop and that one looked like it hurt and then he lands a second one of those and the fans love it. Forearms and more chops from Steen and these definitely hurt. Forearms now from Gargano and he hits the ropes. GARGANO ESCAPE IS LANDED !!! Steen finds the bottom rope quickly and gets himself to the floor. Steen takes some time on the floor to get himself fit here. He then breaks the count and takes more time on the floor. Gargano misses a Baseball Slide. SLINGSHOT SPEAR ... RIGHT INTO A STEEN KNEE !!! THE SENTON ACROSS THE BACK OF STEEN !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Kick to the back from Steen and then he lands another of those big chops and those definitely look like they hurt. To the feet now and a Body Slam from Steen and that gets a two count and then he rubs the elbow in the back of the head and then into the back. Falling Headbutt into the back and then a brutal kick to the gut and he is definitely a bit more aggressive than usual here. He has his eyes on that trophy and he lands more chops in the corner now. One of the chops knocks down Gargano. Right hands from Steen and Gargano is looking a bit punchy. Steen runs into a boot and then is sent to the floor and suddenly Gargano is ready. Gargano gets sweeped on the apron now and Steen has him ready here. POWERBOMB ON THE APRON ... blocked. THE AIR GARGANO CONNECTS !!! Steen is sat on a chair and Gargano lands some left hands and then he gets into the ring. SUICIDE DIVE ... STEEN CATCHES HIM !!! THE F 5 INTO THE RINGPOST !!! Into the ring... SWANTON BOMB FROM STEEN !!! ONE ! TWO ! THR ... KICKOUT !!! Reversals from the two men as we seem to be heading into the stretch. BASEMENT KICK FROM GARGANO !!! BRUTAL RANA FROM GARGANO AND THE BIG BUZZSAW KICK FROM GARGANO !!! ONE ! TWO ! THR ... KICKOUT !!! HURTS DONUT ... Steen with the escape. Clothesline knocks down Gargano. THE CANNONBALL FROM STEEN !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! TAKEDOWN INTO THE GARGANO ESCAPE !!! Steen finds the rope and then heads for the floor. To the middle rope with the two men. TORNADO DDT ON THE APRON ... countered. Kick from Gargano. Gargano with the boxing elbows to the head of Steen. GARGANO SENDS BOTH MEN TO THE FLOOR WITH THE SPEAR !!! HOLY SHIT !!! Back into the ring with Steen. THE SLINGSHOT DDT FROM GARGANO !!! ONE ! TWO ! THR ... KICKOUT !!! THE GARGANO ESCAPE !!! STEEN FINDS THE ROPES !!! Into the corner now. THE IED FROM GARGANO !!! THE IED AGAIN !!! THE LAWN DART FROM GARGANO ... COUNTERED TO THE SLEEPER SUPLEX FROM STEEN !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOUT !!! PACKAGE PILEDRIVER ... escaped. SUPERKICK FROM GARGANO AND A SECOND ONE !!! STEEN SPITS AT HIM AND LANDS THE POWERBOMB !!! PACKAGE PILEDRIVER ... COUNTERED INTO THE GARGANO ESCAPE !!! AMAZING COUNTER !!! HE TAPS !!!

This is a match which delivered in practice what it promised on paper. A cracking battle between the two, helped along by Steen being aggressive as f**k, in contrast with his more light hearted demeanor. Gargano has been a standout for Dragon Gate USA and EVOLVE and he just picks up where he's left off in this. That ending is fantastic as well. ****1/4

Michael Elgin vs. Roderick Strong - BOLA Quarter Final

Lockup and into the corner they go and we have a clean break out of there. Lockup again and into the corner they go here and a clean break there. That was a bit apprehensive from Strong though. He looked like he wanted to slap Elgin there. Waistlock from Strong and he's got him here. Hammerlocks from both men now over and over again. Wristlock from Elgin and he gets taken over and the Front Facelock from Strong. Strong gets a two count from a Rollup and this is cautious stuff so far. Wristlock from Strong and Elgin rolls through and then he sweeps down Strong and gets a Jacknife Pin for a two count. Headlock from Strong and then he takes over Elgin and has the Side Headlock locked in here. Elgin rolls over and back to the feet he goes. Headlock from Elgin now. Elgin into the ropes and he catches Strong in the leapfrog, but Strong escapes and hits the ropes and runs right into the Shoulder Charge from Elgin and down he goes. Clubbing shots to the chest from Elgin. Shots to the gut in the corner from Elgin and then into the corner and Strong gets over Elgin and lands a nice Leg Lariat and down goes Elgin. Stomps to the back from Strong and he's just going to work here. Into the corner now and Strong decides to go with the chops in the corner and Elgin wants more of this and Strong is happy to give him what he wants here. The fans are also happy to see it. Into the corner where Elgin lands a series of chops of his own. Kicks to the chest and the face from Strong puts the bigger man down. Elgin runs into a boot but then catches Strong and then throws Strong into the Vertical Suplex position and that was really nicely done there. Body Slam from Elgin and the fans mock the grunting of Elgin here. Clubbing shots from Elgin down across the chest while Strong is laid on the apron. Guillotine Leg Drop from Elgin on the apron. Back into the ring and Elgin gets the two count from that. Strong avoids a Suplex and lands a lovely Dropkick right to the face of Elgin. Running knees in the corner but then Elgin looks for the Chaos Theory and the escape. Crucifix gets a two count for Strong and then Elgin with forearms and then Lariats against the ropes. DEADLIFT GERMAN SUPLEX FROM ELGIN !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Into the corner and Elgin misses a Short Arm Lariat and Strong with a knee to the gut and then he ends up on the apron and the fans get the f**k out of there. BACK DROP SUPLEX ON THE APRON FROM STRONG !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Strong hits the ropes and lands some running elbows but then runs into one. THE ANGLE SLAM DROPS ELGIN ON HIS HEAD !!! ONE ! TWO ! THR ... KICKOUT !!! Knees to the head from Elgin and then he hits the ropes. Strong with the knee and then Elgin with a big boot. THE AIR RAID CRASH FROM ELGIN !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Back to the feet and Elgin with an elbow down across the back of the head. TKO GUTBUSTER FROM ELGIN !!! ONE ! TWO ! THR ... KICKOUT !!! To the top rope goes Elgin. Strong stops him up there and lands some right hands. Kick to the head from Strong and then to the top we go. TOP ROPE SUPERPLEX FROM STRONG !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Forearms from Strong and then a big one. BRUTAL LARIAT FROM ELGIN !!! Into the corner but Elgin runs into kicks. THE SUPLEX SLAM FROM ELGIN !!! ONE ! TWO ! THR ... KICKOUT !!! Sunset Flip avoided. High Knee from Strong. THE RODDY STRONG GUT BUSTER !!! THE SICK KICK FROM STRONG !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOUT !!! GIBSON DRIVER !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOUT !!! THE STRONG HOLD !!! ELGIN ESCAPES AND GETS THE CROSSFACE !!! STRONG TAPS !!!

This was a deliberately paced match and given the two matches before, you can understand why they went down that route. Strong is such a brilliant wrestler when it comes to those types of matches. I think it's main flaw was that it was too long for what they were going for. ***

ACH vs. Kyle O'Reilly - BOLA Quarter Final

ACH didn't have the best of nights the previous, having a poor match with Anthony Nese although that was mainly brought on by an injury to Nese which killed the momentum that they had going. We're going to get a shake of hands between the two men and here we go. ACH looking to land the kicks here. Cautious opening here. Kyle with the Waistlock and now we're going with the opening reversals between the two men. Kyle gets the better of that exchange and ACH has to use the ropes to escape from the Front Facelock. Nice Low Ki style escape from the Wristlock from ACH and then he does a bit of mocking to follow that. ACH hits the ropes and does some flipping and then lands an Arm Drag and another and hits the ropes and then fakes the dive and the fans are enjoying the work of ACH at the moment. Wait until he actually starts wrestling, they'll be absolutely stunned. Kyle brings the Sleazy Kyle out of the woodwork there. They now lock hands and lets see what happens here. ACH bridges Kyle back. ACH tries to bring down Kyle and he is not going down. Kyle back to the feet and he wants to bridge back ACH now. Kyle sweeps the legs and gets a two count. ACH kips up now and then onto the feet and Kyle into the ropes. KYLE LOOKS FOR THE CROSS ARMBREAKER !!! ACH COUNTERS AND GOES WITH THE TEXAS CLOVERLEAF ON O'REILLY !!! Kyle finds his way to the bottom rope to escape and we can see he's ready to exchange moves here. Knee to the back from ACH and then a Snapmare and a knee to the back and that gets a one count for him and so he looks for the Head Scissors. Kyle with an escape and he goes with the Bow and Arrow Hold on ACH but that's countered for the two count. Arm Drag and the Arm Bar from ACH. He lets go and lands a Body Splash on the arm and then chops Kyle. Kyle and ACH now landing the uppercuts on each other here. Big knee from Kyle and then the cheeky slap and he's definitely bringing the sleaze here. Kick to the gut knocks ACH into the corner now. More kicks to the chest but then ACH comes back with chops. Kyle with more kicks in the corner. ACH runs into the boot and then he blocks one. Sweep from Kyle. Kyle has the arm of ACH and he tries a fightback, but Kyle just lands an Arm Breaker and then twists on the wrist of ACH. A version of the Kimura now from ACH and then has him in a cradle here. Nice Snap Suplex with the arm behind the back from Kyle and ACH heads for the apron to try and get some rest from the beating that he's been getting here. Kyle hits the ropes. RUNNING KNEE TO THE ARM FROM O'REILLY !!! Kyle then rams the arm of ACH into the ringpost. ACH with a chop and he's not staying out of this match just yet. Face first into the apron goes ACH here. Back into the ring now they go. ACH with a big slap and forearms from Kyle and this is an absolute war here. Kick to the leg and then a high knee from Kyle and a kick to the chest. THE LEG DROP TO THE BACK OF THE HEAD FROM ACH TO COUNTER THE SWEEP !!! ACH comes back with kicks now but he can't whip Kyle here. BEAUTIFUL Dropkick from ACH and now Kyle in the corner. Running forearm in the corner now. THE BASEMENT FLYING CLOTHESLINE FROM ACH !!! That's a cracking move. ACH then heads for the top rope here. ACH over Kyle now and he ends up on the apron. Big elbow to the face from ACH. Arm Breaker over the top rope from Kyle. Kyle runs into the shoulder. SLINGSHOT DOWNWARD SPIRAL FROM ACH !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! To the top rope with both men and Kyle blocks the Superplex. THE SUPER DIVORCE COURT AND NOW THE ELEVATED SHOULDER STRETCH !!! ACH escapes. THE ROLL OF THE DICE FROM ACH !!! ONE ! TWO ! THR ... KICKOUT !!! Kicks and chops now from ACH and over Kyle. Knee to the gut from Kyle. THE REGAL PLEX FROM O'REILLY !!! ONE ! TWO ! THR ... KICKOUT !!! ACH is now on the apron. Forearm to ACH on the apron from Kyle and then a second one. Kyle now hits the ropes. He runs into the kick. THE SLINGSHOT SPINNING ACE CRUSHER FROM ACH !!! ONE ! TWO ! THR ... KICKOUT !!! Kyle with a counter. KICK TO THE BACK OF THE HEAD !!! ROARING ELBOW FROM O'REILLY !!! THE KICK AND THE STUNNER FROM ACH !!! O'REILLY COMES BACK WITH THE JAWBREAKER LARIAT !!! BOTH MEN ARE DOWN !!! O'REILLY GOES TO THE CROSS ARMBREAKER AND ACH IS IN TROUBLE !!! ACH COUNTERS TO THE TEXAS CLOVERLEAF ... KYLE COUNTERS !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOUT !!! School Boys countered. KICKS TO THE FACE !!! THE SPIRIT BOMB ... COUNTERED TO THE GUILLOTINE CHOKE FROM O'REILLY !!! ACH IS IN TROUBLE !!! ACH IS ALIVE ... COUNTERED TO THE CRADLE DDT ON O'REILLY !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... FOOT ON THE BOTTOM ROPE !!! Kyle heads for the floor now. Baseball Slide from ACH. ACH WITH THE MENTAL SOMERSAULT PLANCHA OVER THE TOP ROPE !!! ACH TO THE TOP !!! THE FROG SPLASH ... COUNTERED TO THE FUCKING TRIANGLE CHOKE !!! ACH TAPS OUT !!! FUCKING AMAZING !!!

Absolutely sensational match here between two standouts of independent wrestling in the last couple of years. ACH in particular is going to go really far. Kyle O'Reilly has now surpassed his mentor, Davey Richards, at his own game. O'Reilly seemed to be in total Malenko mode, and ACH was willing to sell the arm as if it wasn't attached to his body. ****1/2

B-Boy, Tommaso Ciampa and Willie Mack vs. Best Friends

Joey Ryan joins the Best Friends team. Ryan and B-Boy are gonna get this match going. Lockup and into the corner they now go. Lockup and into the corner and... A HAIRTOSS WITH THE CHEST HAIR !!! That is a fairly brutal move. Lockup and a Headlock from Boy and shots to the gut from Ryan and then into the ropes and Boy charges down Ryan and hits the ropes. Down come the trunks of Ryan. Atomic Drop and then crotched on the top rope and now some rubbing of the balls on the top rope. Ryan gets into the corner and that was a cracking wee opening to the match there and Chuck tries to come into the ring with the chair down the back of his trunks. Mack into the ring with him and the Waistlock from Mack and Taylor looks for the escape here. Mack sweeps down Taylor and then a nice Arm Drag and he hits the ropes. Running Knee from Mack. Mack runs into an elbow and then the Belly 2 Belly Suplex from Taylor and he's happy enough with himself. Ciampa and Trent now in the ring. Ciampa with the Pump Kick and then into the corner and the Running Forearm. Snapmare and a kick in the back from Ciampa. To the feet now. Rana from Trent now and then a big chop. Worth noting Trent has big chops. BRUTAL LARIAT FROM CIAMPA !!! Head Scissors and then he slams the head of Trent into the canvas and then he rolls over again. Ryan into the ring and he adds a Head Scissors to this. B-Boy and Chuck come in with them. Mack turns them all over... BOSTON CRAB !!! Taylor into the corner and Mack runs into the boot. Dropkick to Mack and to Ciampa as well. Taylor is the house on fire in there. Mudhole Stomps to everyone. STINGER SPLASH FROM MACK !!! B-BOY WITH THE DROPKICK AND CIAMPA WITH THE KNEE !!! LOADS OF KNEES !!! SUPERKICK FROM TRENT !!! SWINGING DDT FROM TRENT TO CIAMPA !!! TRENT SENT INTO THE ELBOW FROM MACK !!! Ryan into the ring here. T-Bone Suplex on Mack and a Spinebuster on B-Boy gets a two count. Right hands from Ciampa and Ryan now. EYE POKES TO THE REFEREE !!! EYE POKES ALL OVER !!! CHUCK TAYLOR HAS A GRENADE !!! GRENADE IN THE TRUNKS OF CIAMPA !!! ATOMIC DROP AND IT WIPES EVERYONE OUT !!! Anthony Nese into the ring and he's gonna referee the match now. RYAN SPEARS B-BOY TO THE FLOOR !!! MACK WITH THE SOMERSAULT PLANCHA TO THE FLOOR !!! TAYLOR FUCKS THE DIVE !!! Trent heads for the top rope. SUPERPLEX TO THE FLOOR ONTO EVERYONE !!! Nese is in the ring and he's giving the count to the men on the floor. I think he's probably gonna dive at some point during this count. Mack and Ryan into the ring now. Fireman's Slam now and Mack rolls through and does more of the same here. Ryan avoids another and a counter from Mack. SUPERKICK FROM RYAN TO MACK !!! Boy into the ring. ACE CRUSHER FROM B-BOY !!! THE BUSAIKU KNEE FROM TRENT TO B-BOY !!! JIG N TONIC FROM TRENT !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... SAVED !!! PROJECT CIAMPA !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... RYAN SAVES !!! Ryan onto the apron now and sent to the floor and now Ciampa hits the ropes. Ciampa now sets chairs for that spot. Everyone in the ring asking him not to do that move to Joey Ryan. Brian Cage is now on the floor. CAGE WITH THE POWERBOMB INTO THE CHAIRS ON CIAMPA !!! THE AWFUL WAFFLE OUT OF THE CORNER FROM TAYLOR !!! ONE ! TWO ! THREE !!!

One of them fun multi-man tags that you usually get from the openers of the big shows with PWG, but now they are a staple of tournaments like this, and they make cracking wee interludes through it. ****

Michael Elgin vs. Johnny Gargano - BOLA Semi Final

Gargano charges. GARGANO ESCAPE ON ELGIN ... ELGIN COUNTERS TO THE CROSSFACE ... Gargano escapes that move. Boxing elbows from Elgin now. No time wasted here. The Stalling Vertical Suplex from Elgin. Gargano trying to knee his way out of the move and manages it and then sends Elgin to the floor and hits the ropes. THE SUICIDE DIVES FROM GARGANO TO ELGIN !!! Gargano hits the ropes again and lands another. Into the ring we now go. Elgin raises the boot and then hits the ropes. THE STO FROM ELGIN !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Hard Irish Whip sends Gargano into the buckles. Clubbing blows now to the chest of Gargano and then a BRUTAL Irish Whip into the corner and deary me, that looked like it done some serious damage there. Gargano struggling here and he lands the Jawbreaker and hits the ropes. Flapjack now from Elgin and this is going to be a long night for Gargano here. Two count for Elgin from that move. The Stalling Vertical Suplex from Elgin and this time, we have a the move landing. ELGIN DOING FUCKING SQUATS BEFORE LANDING THE SUPLEX !!! That gets a two count and then he goes with a Chinlock. Gargano with shots to the ribs but then he runs right into the Dropkick from Elgin. Into the corner. THE TARANTULA IN THE ROPES FROM GARGANO !!! That will do some work to get back into the match. BASEMENT ROUNDHOUSE KICK FROM GARGANO !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Into the corner they now go. Lariat in the corner and then a shot there. THE BLACK HOLE SLAM FROM ELGIN !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! DEADLIFT GERMAN SUPLEX !!! ONE ! TWO ! THR ... KICKOUT !!! Gargano is doing his best to avoid taking a Powerbomb here. Forearms from both men now. Right hand from Elgin and then Gargano tries to come back with shots of his own. Enziguri from Gargano and then he takes a kick in the face. BRUTAL LARIAT FROM ELGIN !!! ONE ! TWO ! THR ... KICKOUT !!! SUPERKICK FROM GARGANO AND NOW THE GARGANO ESCAPE !!! ELGIN COUNTERS WITH THE STAMPEDE !!! To the top rope and Gargano with something of a fightback here. SUPER RANA !!! ONE ! TWO ! THR ... KICKOUT !!! BASEMENT SUPERKICK !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOUT !!! GARGANO ESCAPE !!! Elgin finds the bottom rope. Elgin into the corner. Gargano on the apron now. Dropkick sends Gargano onto the apron. SUPERPLEX FROM THE RING APRON INTO THE RING !!! ONE ! TWO ! THR ... KICKOUT !!! THE BUCKLE BOMB !!! Victory Roll countered from Elgin. THE SWINGING FLATLINER OUT OF THE CORNER !!! Both men countering. ELGIN WITH THE CROSSFACE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE RING NOW !!! GARGANO FINDS THE BOTTOM ROPE !!! Elgin signals for the end now. Gargano goes behind. SUPERKICK NOW FROM GARGANO !!! SUPERKICK AND A PUMP KICK AND THE ROARING ELBOW AND THE BACKFIST !!! BUCKLE BOMB !!! GARGANO WITH THE COUNTER !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOUT !!! BUZZSAW KICK NOW FROM GARGANO !!! Elgin in the corner. IED FROM GARGANO !!! ANOTHER ONE !!! Gargano now sets Elgin on the top rope but can't land it. THE SUPER BOMB FROM ELGIN !!! ONE ! TWO ! THREE !!!

I think it was a mistake having the two guys have a match this intense at this stage in the tournament. They both seemed to be going for a show stealer and they didn't seem to have it. It was still a really good match though, as these two guys are still terrific wrestlers. ****

Kyle O'Reilly vs. Drake Younger - BOLA Semi Final

These two guys are probably the two most popular guys in PWG at the time. Bell rings and we are underway for this match. Lockup and into the corner and then Kyle gets out of the way of the chop. The fans want the rest to shoosh. Against the ropes they go and Drake avoids the kick of Kyle. Lockup and now a Headlock and into the ropes goes Drake and he blocks a kick. Both guys with an exchange and we have a stalemate after that exchange. Lockup and neither man can seem to get out of this, so they break. Snapmare and the kick to the back. Chop to the back from Drake. Forearms from both men now. The fans are well into this forearms. Kyle hits the ropes and eats an elbow. High knee from Kyle and then a cheaky slap to the face. Drake didn't like that. PILEDRIVER FROM DRAKE !!! Don't mock Drake is the moral of that story. Drake has a chair. CHAIR BODY SLAM ON THE FLOOR FROM DRAKE !!! Around the ringside area we go now and they head to the back where Kyle gets his head slammed into the wall and then lands a chop and now Kyle back into the match. Drake sends Kyle into the ringpost and the fans are just making sure they stay out of the way here. THE DDT FROM KYLE ON THE FLOOR !!! Kyle then puts chairs on Drake. What's the idea here. THE SLINGSHOT HILO TO THE FLOOR ONTO THE CHAIRS AND ONTO DRAKE !!! That was a nasty ride for anyone right there. Drake with the chair down across the back of Kyle. Back into the ring where Drake has managed to get some control and lands a Flapjack and rolls straight through to a Muta Lock. Northern Lights Suplex from Drake gets a two count. Drake into the corner and Drake with the Stinger Splash. THE SCORPION DEATH DROP FROM DRAKE !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Drake is up to something here on the floor and he has a whole bunch of stuff set up. Drake onto the apron... HE GOES FOR THE CANNONBALL THROUGH THE CHAIRS AND HITS NOTHING !!! KYLE WITH THE FLYING DIVING DROPKICK TO DRAKE ON THE CHAIR !!! HOLY SHIT !!! Back in and Kyle goes up but Drake is up and stopping him from doing anything here. THE TOP ROPE SUPERPLEX ... O'REILLY GETS A REVERSAL !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOUT !!! BELLY 2 BELLY SUPLEX INTO THE ROPES FROM DRAKE !!! THE DEATH VALLEY DRIVER INTO THE FUCKING CORNER !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOUT !!! Body Slam and Drake heads to the top rope. Drake is crotched on the top rope. TOP ROPE BACK DROP SUPLEX FROM O'REILLY !!! THE REGAL PLEX FROM O'REILLY !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOUT !!! THE TRIANGLE CHOKE ... COUNTERED !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Forearms from both men now. Kick to the head. THE HALF NELSON SUPLEX FROM DRAKE !!! JAWBREAKER LARIAT FROM O'REILLY !!! DRAKE'S LANDING ... Kyle escapes. O'REILLY WITH THE SCORPION DEATHLOCK !!! Out. THE DRAKE'S LANDING !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOOOUUUTTTTT !!! Some reversals from both men now. STOMP KICK TO THE BACK OF THE HEAD !!! SWINGING DDT INTO THE GUILLOTINE CHOKE FROM O'REILLY !!! DRAKE IS OUT !!!

A nice wee something different in this one. Some weapons involved and they mixed quite a lot of different stuff in this one, which helps keep the fans involved which is some achievement given how hot they had been for what has come before. Another great match here. ****

Adam Cole and The Young Bucks vs. Rich Swann, AR Fox and Candice LaRae

Ah. Six man tag team action. PWG are great at this. Especially when the Bucks are involved. Matt and Fox are gonna get this match going. SPEAR FROM MATT !!! He then unloads big time on Fox and then screams at the crowd. To the ropes goes Matt and a big Dropkick from Fox. THE TWISTER FROM FOX !!! Into the ring now comes Swann. Double Hiptoss, back up and then the Double Dropkick. Jawbreaker from Matt and he tags Cole into the ring here. The fans trying to get behind Swann and Cole wants them to be quiet. Cole won't wrestle until they shut up seemingly. The fans are willing to the call the bluff of Cole here. Cole gets back into the ring and he wants "the whore" in the ring, and Candice wants to get in there, so Swann tags her in. THESZ PRESS FROM CANDICE AND THE FANS GO MENTAL !!! TILT-A-WHIRL REVERSE DDT FROM CANDICE !!! Nick is now tagged into the ring. HUGE slap from Nick and then he works over her in the corner. Rana out of the corner from Candice and then Fox and Swann get shots in. Brutal Bulldog from Candice gets a two count and into the corner and Swann and Fox come into the ring. Slam from Swann and Fox with one on Cole. CRISS CROSS ROLLING THUNDERS FROM SWANN AND FOX !!! Swann is the legal man and he spin kicks Nick in the gut. Swann over Nick and then he kicks Matt. SUPERKICK ON SWANN !!! In comes Fox. DOUBLE DROPKICK TO THE FACE FROM COLE AND MATT TO FOX !!! Swann is now in there with the heel team. Cole into the ring now and now the Body Slam from Cole. Elbows dropped on Swann and Cole is happy to do this. Two count now from Cole and then into the corner and in comes Matt. Stomp to the gut and then a Back Rake from Matt. Swann tries to come back into the match. Snapmare from Matt and then a Slingshot Hilo from Nick and that gets a two count. Kick to the gut from Nick. Stinger Splash misses from Nick and Swann gets a shot from the apron. Lovely kick to the head from Swann and then he tags Fox in. Double Dropkick to the Bucks and then a Dropkick sends Cole to the floor and Candice comes into the ring. THE WALL SAULT OFF OF THE RINGPOST FROM FOX !!! Candice hits the ropes and a Clothesline from Cole changes the momentum of the match. The heels now have the control of Candice here and this isn't good news for her. Stomp to the back from Cole. Suplex and nicely done from Cole and that gets a two count for him. Into the corner and Matt comes into the ring and then the big Back Rake in the corner from Matt and he's well chuffed with this turn of events. Jericho covers from Matt don't get any joy for him. Candice's face thrown into the boots of Nick before he's tagged in. Boot scrapes from Nick and then back to the feet we come. Hair Ringer from Nick and then Cole comes in and does the same and then Matt with it. DOUBLE STOMP TO THE HAIR FROM NICK !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! Into the corner and Cole sends Candice into the corner and hard. Cole then does the crotch chops. THE BRONCO BUSTER FROM COLE ... HITS THE BOOT OF CANDICE !!! BASEMENT SUPERKICK FROM CANDICE !!! In comes Fox now and down goes Nick and Double Dropkicks ahoy for the Bucks here. This match is about to hit the next level. THE SPRINGBOARD DOUBLE ACE CRUSHER !!! HANDSPRING DOUBLE ACE CRUSHER !!! ONE ! TWO ! COLE SAVES !!! SUPERKICK TO THE BACK OF SWANN !!! Lariat ducked and Fox with the kick. Spin Kick from Nick and then Fox to the apron. FOX WITH HIS FUCKING INSANE CORKSCREW PLANCHA TO THE FLOOR !!! TILT-A-WHIRL DDT FROM CANDICE !!! To the top rope she goes. THE MOONSAULT PRESS FROM CANDICE !!! FOX WITH THE SWANTON BOMB IN THE RING !!! ONE ! TWO ! THR ... KICKOUT !!! Fox and Nick now with forearms. Fox hits the ropes and Cole takes him out. WHEELBARROW SUPLEX INTO THE APRON FROM COLE !!! PLANCHA FROM NICK !!! Knee and then... ASSISTED SLICED BREAD AND A BRUTAL KNEE FROM COLE !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOUT !!! CODEBREAKER FROM FOX AND NICK LANDS ON A FAN IN FRONT ROW !!! HURRICANE KICK FROM SWANN !!! MICHINOKU DRIVER FROM SWANN !!! FROG SPLASH ... MISSES !!! Cole now into the ring. GERMAN SUPLEX FROM COLE ... COUNTERED WITH THE PELE KICK !!! Rana from Candice and a counter. FOX WITH A FUCKING INSANE PLANCHA OVER THE RINGPOST ONTO THE BUCKS !!! REVERSE RANA AND THE FROG SPLASH FROM SWANN !!! CANDICE COVERS !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOUT !!! Matt now into the ring. He winds up on the floor here. THE BRONCO BUSTER FROM CANDICE ... SHE RUNS RIGHT INTO THE SUPERKICK OF COLE !!! Cole wants Candice to suck his dick now. THE TESTICULAR CLAW FROM CANDICE !!! DOUBLE SUPERKICK TO THE BALLS !!! BALL PLEX ON THE BUCKS AND THEN THE SUICIDE DDT !!! STEREO 450 SPLASHES !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOOOUUUTTTTTTTT !!! HOLY SHIT !!! LO MAIN PAIN ... COUNTERED TO A FUCKING GERMAN SUPLEX !!! THE POWERBOMBS ON SWANN !!! PANAMA PARADISE FROM COLE !!! Candice is ready to face all three. TRIPLE SUPERKICK !!! STRAIGHT JACKET GERMAN FROM COLE !!! ONE ! TWO ! THREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE !!!

Jesus christ, is this good or what? Absolutely mental match almost from the start, and then when it kicked into another gear it just went absolutely mental. ****1/2

Michael Elgin vs. Kyle O'Reilly - BOLA Final

Handshake between the two men and the two men are cautious to get us going here. Lockup and Elgin just launches Kyle to the floor here. Waistlock now from Kyle and that's an easy escape for Elgin as he just tosses Kyle over. Forearms and elbows from Elgin in the corner now and he's giving Kyle a bit of a kicking early doors. Kyle into the corner and then Elgin runs into a boot and then a second time. Tilt-a-Whirl DDT ... INTO THE GUILLOTINE CHOKE FROM KYLE !!! Elgin just launches Kyle to escape that. ANOTHER GUILLOTINE CHOKE FROM KYLE !!! ELGIN COUNTERES WITH THE SUPLEX SLAM !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! The fans chanting about this being awesome already. I'll give them the benefit of the doubt and assume it's the show. Cross Armbreaker now from Kyle as he's now in complete submission mode. Elgin reaches the ropes now. Forearms from Kyle. Plenty of them as well. SUNSET BOMB OFF OF THE APRON ... misses. BACK DROP SUPLEX ON THE FLOOR FROM KYLE !!! Kyle now onto the apron. RUNNING KICK ... caught. POWERBOMB INTO THE RINGPOST FROM ELGIN !!! THE CORKSCREW SENTON FROM ELGIN !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! THE CROSSFACE FROM ELGIN !!! Kyle finds the bottom rope. Elgin goes up again and he gets stopped. THE SUPERPLEX OF OF THE APRON ... COUNTERED TO THE TRIANGLE CHOKE FROM KYLE ... COUNTERED TO A TOP ROPE POWERBOMB FROM ELGIN !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! THE BUCKLE BOMB !!! THE SPIRAL BOMB ... countered. THE RELEASE DRAGON SUPLEX FROM O'REILLY !!! REGAL PLEX !!! ONE ! TWO ! KICKOUT !!! TRIANGLE CHOKE FROM O'REILLY !!! Elgin tries to simply club his way out of this one. Both guys unloading here. Big kick to the chest now from Kyle and Elgin isn't amused. Elgin then tells Kyle to kick him and he's happy to do so. Kyle then takes a chop. Elgin takes the kick. Forearms from both men now. AXE KICK TO THE BACK OF THE HEAD FROM O'REILLY !!! SPINNING BACKFIST FROM ELGIN !!! BRUTAL LARIAT !!! ONE ! KICKOUT !!! ANOTHER LARIAT FROM ELGIN !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOUT !!! PUMP KICK FROM ELGIN !!! THE CRUCIFIX BOMB FROM O'REILLY !!! SWINGING DDT THROUGH TO THE BRAINBUSTER !!! ONE ! TWO ! THRE ... KICKOUT !!! THE CROSS ARMBREAKER FROM O'REILLY !!! BUCKLE BOMB ... O'REILLY IS HOLDING ON !!! ELGIN BOMB AND O'REILLY IS REFUSING TO GIVE THIS UP AND ELGIN TAPS !!!

Given what these two guys were doing earlier in the night, you can understand some serious signs of fatigue in this match. The effort is still there by the barrel load, and it's a fitting end to a wonderful tournament. ***3/4

You could genuinely make an argument for this as the best indy show ever. I certainly can't think of a better show at the moment. From top to bottom, the show ranged from fun as hell at worst to spectacular at it's best.

Edited July 7, 2014 by NewDomDom

[Sherrif John Bunnell]

Power Slam has printed it's last issue:

http://www.wrestlingnewssource.com/news/35256/Longtime-UK-Wrestling-Magazine-Power-Slam-Finishes-After-20/

I'm sure many of us on here used to read Power Slam before we were able to get online. It was certainly my first exposure to the inner workings of the business, especially during the decline of WCW in 1999 and 2000. Sadly it became nothing more than a vehicle for Fin Martin's bitter rants in recent years. I guess the final cover star is appropriate considering who many of Martin's rants were against.

[Ira Gaines]

I can't say given recent output that this news saddens me very much, especially when there is a higher quality of wrestling magazine in publication.

[Shuggie_Murray7]

Used to be great, haven't read for years as t became the drizzling shits.

Much prefer FSM as it covers my bases for wrestling and MMA, even at that it's been ages since I bought one of them,

To be honest, aside from wrestling on TV and ICW I don't have the time or money to keep track of much else.

Edited July 14, 2014 by Shuggie_Murray7

[Ira Gaines]

CZW had a show at the weekend and released it pretty sharpish called New Heights. It's good to see how CZW has, for the most part, moved away from the stupid violence, and that's mainly thanks to DJ Hyde turning things around when he took over. Focus on stories, the juniors. Obviously they still have an ultraviolent presence on their shows, but it's reduced to a single match these days.

Alex Colon vs. Latin Dragon vs. Lucky tHURTeen: Dragon got booed for essentially being a tubby bloke in a mask, and then won the fans over by doing mental shit. It's a fun three way spotfest to open the show and Alex Colon gives us some fun by being a dickhead, and Dragon brings the mental.

Buxx Belmar vs. Greg Excellent: I seen Belmar once before and he has such a wonderful gimmick. He's a "dirty" wrestler in every sense of the word. Greg Excellent isn't a bad wrestler at all and has been involved in some of CZW's most dramatic matches. This is not in that bracket, but what is it? Entertaining as f**k. If you want your wrestling serious, avoid this. If you want an ultra weird, filthy comedy match, this should satisfy you. It's fairly strange stuff this, but it's great to watch at times. A bit too weird a couple of times, but once they get to the fingering, it goes BEYOND too weird and back into funny again.

Drew Gulak vs. Sozio: Gulak is a guy who has been getting praised as one of the most improved guys on the indy scene in a while. He's got a rather nifty hard hitting no nonsense thing going on here. Outside of a massive spot, this wasn't much more than the standard midcard fare, which made the big nearfall of the match completely unnecessary, and for a promotion that has done so much work to get rid of weaponry on the whole, that's not a good thing. Anyways, reasonable outing.

Blk Jeez vs. Jonathan Gresham: Seen Gresham live a couple of times. Absolutely brilliant wrestler this guy. Blk Jeez is Sabian, who is CZW veteran and certainly no slouch himself, so I had hopes for this match. Really good back and forth action from these two guys as I suspected it would be, with a good clean outcome as well. Definitely the best match of the night so far. Would stick a ***3/4 rating on it if I was doing the ratings. I will be doing them with these if I think there's a match that's worthy of a slight recommendation or more.

The Juicy Product vs. Team Tremendous vs. The Beaver Boys vs. OI4K: I don't know who many of these guys are. I DO know that the last team is Jake and Dave Crist though. Matches like this can either be tremendously entertaining or incredibly messy. They're rarely boring. This falls into the former as the pace is tremendous and there's some cracking moments and some really innovative spots in there, and the OI4K stand out big time. I'd go with the same rating as the last match for this one.

Joe Gacy vs. Alexander James: Gacy is one of the hardcore guys. James isn't, but he apparently did well at the Tournament of Death against Gacy. So Gacy wants to make an example of him again. Gacy brought a barbed wire board out early and the match basically revolved around Gacy wanting to use it, and James wanting to get away from it. So the match wasn't very good, and Gacy went over clean in an extended squash. Not really sure what this was supposed to do for Alexander James, because he looked like shit here.

Shane Strickland vs. Caleb Konley: This was for Strickland's CZW Wired title. This wasn't great. They seemed to be going for epic here, and it just fell flat for me. Too many spots that were just too contrived and many instances where the other guy had to set up the move for the other guy quite clearly, and that sort of shit just annoys me. Kills the momentum of the match stone dead.

Biff Busick vs. "Speedball" Mike Bailey: This match is for Busick's CZW Heavyweight Title. Bailey's a newcomer in this one, so obviously he ain't taking it, and obviously Busick is dominant, but they give Bailey a LOT here, and allow him to get over big time with the CZW crowd and it makes this one interesting at least, even if it can't really be totally involving because of the predictability. They did a good job of the champ vs. serious underdog story though and the fans were into it as a result.

Danny Havoc and Devon Moore vs. Matt Tremont and Ron Mathis - Ultraviolent Tag Team Match: And here's yer proper blood and guts match of the night. Although in saying that, I think this was a bit watered down compared to what they have done in matches like this before. And as such, you don't even get the entertainment of the sheer idiocy of this type of match over and over again, which is what I want from matches like this. Sure, it escalates at the end, but I want more from my deathmatches, and this is just shit.

It's not a bad show this, but I wouldn't recommend it. If the Blk Jeez vs. Jonathan Gresham and four way tag title matches turn up online or something, I'd recommend them.

I'm gonna watch Tournament of Death next to try and make up for what I've just seen.

[#Gary]

What ever happened to Andy Levine, and are they planning another Tough Enough? I really enjoyed that with Stone Cold.

[Sir Kevin Of Kilsyth]

Ive had a good idea for a while about Powerslam. I was unable to renew my paper subscription recently so the writing was clearly on the wall. Issues had also become less frequent.