MV Young’s Outdoor Poly Cult Party July 31, 2020

Yes, I have come out of blogging retirement for one night. I had the chance to watch this show streamed on Twitch (for free) and I have to hand it to them for putting together a show in the Brooklyn heat in the middle of a pandemic.

They introduced the ring announcer and I have to say it is great to live in a world where there are wrestling promoters who create spaces for LGBTQIA+ members of the wrestling community. Representation matters. Period.

Okay, so I’m not going to go too deep into the wrestlers’ in-ring work. I’m not a wrestler and that’s not really my place. I’m also not going to talk about the ring condition. I like to keep things positive. What I will say is that the wrestlers knew that would be an obstacle and found a way to adapt.

First match: LEE MORIARTY vs Ziggy Haim

This was my first time to see both live. Moriarty has a good physique and I like the “Say my name in all caps.” It’s simple, gives you something to remember him by. Haim has a distinguishing look and doesn’t look like every other wrestler out there. I really liked the match itself, some good innovation.

Winner: Haim

Second match: Big Game Leroy vs Pinkie Sanchez

This was a bonus match. I like the gamer gimmick from Leroy. He was introduced first and then came out Pinkie Sanchez to attack from behind. Then came a master class in entertainment from Pinkie. A tweeter responded at me saying he is a national treasure. Our world does not deserve him. If you want to learn the little things, Pinkie is one of the best to watch. The finish happened when Leroy revived the ref with his Switch (My first game console was a 2600 Atari so if I don’t know what the kids are using now, forgive me.) and Pinkie low blowed Leroy. Perfect.

Winner: Sanchez

Third match: Bobby Orlando vs Nick Stapp

So this match was fun to watch. I did not know either of these guys, but it was great to see them work with their personalities. They had some fun and a sense of humor about their match. A scary moment happened when the rope broke mid match so Orlando, improvising, takes the rope and starts choking Stapp. The finish I’m about to write, yes, you did read this. Orlando runs into the house and brings out a bag of Doritos. He opens the Doritos and pours them over the table. If you’re curious if the #1 rule of wrestling applies to Doritos, it does; Stapp reversed and then Orlando went through the table covered with Doritos.

Winner: Stapp

Fourth match: Billy Dixon (c) vs Erica Leigh

This is my first time to see both live. They have a lot of personality and on paper the match seemed kind of odd. I like the story they told and how the battle made sense for a woman of her size taking on a man of his size. There was a moment when it looks like Erica’s nose broke (unofficial diagnosis). A moment that will stay with me is her noticing the blood pouring down her nose and rubbing it all over her face, what the commentators called her war paint. During a ref bump somebody called a Bundertaker came out to attack Leigh. After the ref recovered, Leigh still kicked out. Dixon put her in a submission hold that was too much.

Winner: Dixon

Main event: MV Young vs EFFY

This was my first time to see Young. EFFY, I’m familiar with and is also national treasure. I think it is a matter of time before a big promotion picks him up. This was exactly what you needed in a main event. Two guys just stepping in the ring and releasing themselves to the proverbial dance.

Winner: Young

This was so needed. I hadn’t had a night like this in forever. So the ring wasn’t in perfect shape. The wrestlers adjusted their ring work and created matches around what they had.

One of the MVP’s of the night was the referee. He worked 5 matches in the Brooklyn July heat all while wearing a mask. So credit to him where it’s due. If you need a couple hours to take your mind off what’s going on in the world, have a seat and watch this.

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VIPX Killin’ Da Business-January 31, 2020

Dark match #1 Buddy System vs Bad Boyz

This was for the BTW tag team championship. Because this is the “Extreme” version of VIP, the Buddy System came out to Sandman’s music and paid tribute to the Extreme Icon right down to telling Christi Jaynes she didn’t belong in the main event. (The last part did not happen. Please don’t kill him.) It was a fun hardcore battle to start off the night. It was exactly what the crowd needed to begin.

Winner: Bad Boyz

Dark match #2 ASF vs Byron Anthos vs Nate Collins vs Jaxon Stone

ASF is one of Texas’ top talents. Anthos and Collins have probably been the most successful male students from DFW All-Pro Academy, with respects to The Crew. What surprised me was the chemistry between ASF and Stone. This is my advice for promoters. Book ASF vs Stone. It reminded me of the way that Kurt Angle and Rey Misterio Jr. had that special chemistry of big guy-little guy.

Winner: Anthos

Collins attacked Anthos after. Good for them that they get to have a feud maybe in VIP.

The actual show started and Tony the DFW All-Pro Announcer couldn’t bring himself to cuss (even though he did in the preshow). So out came Reiza Clarke and Korey to put him through a table. Reiza was one of the unsung heroes of the night. She is so good on the mic and should be given freedom to utilize that more before her matches. Hint, hint. With somebody to develop that, we’re onto something.

First match: Lou Gotti vs Warren J

This was originally supposed to be Lou vs JD Griffey but Griffey is busy in somewhere called Mexico City debuting for the longest running wrestling promotion in the world (CMLL) like that’s a big deal or something. (It is, and attend CMLL is what I want to do for my 40th birthday. If you all could convince my wife to do so with me, that’d be great.)

Okay, enough about me. There was an Alex Shelley seminar earlier in the day he chose the replacement for Griffey (the other person chosen from the seminar was Jaxon Stone). Warren J was a very solid choice. He is one half of a tag team called Fly Def out of Booker T’s academy. He has an amazing look and could be a potential star.

There were some moments of this match that clicked really well. These two have not built up their chemistry together well so I think there is more potential in the future. I’d like to see Fly Def maybe against Lou & Angel Camacho.

Winner: Lou

Second match: Killa Kate w/Nástico vs Christi Jaynes

This match was billed as a Tap or Snap match. Kate obviously had the advantage here because of her mat game. I really like how they played the story here. Kate knew she had the advantage and kept trying to come up with a way to come up with a new sneaky advantage. Christi instinctually kept going for a pin much to her frustration. The finish ended with an arm hold on a chair.

Winner: Kate

I’d like to see these two continue. Maybe with a Nástico neutralizer?

Third match: Angel Camacho w/Nástico vs Justin Credible

Wow, so I’ve been avoiding reviewing this show because of this match. I like to be positive. I’m a huge Camacho fan and think he’s one of the Southwest’s best Big Men. This was thankfully not a very long match. Credible got the ECW pop, was going to cut a promo but there were mic issues all night (I think it’s a venue issue because DFW All-Pro in the VFW doesn’t have issues). And not that I expected Heat Wave ’99 (RVD & Jerry Lynn vs Credible & Lance Storm was the main event), but this was not that guy. There was a crowd brawl and we got blood from Credible. Then Camacho with the pin.

Winner: Camacho

So that was that. I would like to see Camacho have a good big guy feud. One that would make money is Black Taurus. Or Mecha Wolf. Maybe Big Daddy Yum Yum. Just putting this out into the universe.

Fourth match: Will Allday vs Isaiah James vs Alex Shelley

I’ve written plenty about how I feel about Allday and James. Both deserve a big name for the spotlight or the chance to work with a top caliber name like Shelley. Probably the most painful moment for me (vicariously) came when Shelley grabbed both by their members. After watching Shelley for years and years in TNA (since the Goldilocks “Baby Bear” days) it was really great to see him live. And there was no phoning it in.

Winner: Shelley

Fifth match: Taylor vs Gage

Story time. Early 2001, I was in a time of transition in my life. Things were not going well for me. I was 20 and didn’t have a lot going on. ECW and WCW had just shut down and the then-WWF’s product was spiraling downward in quality. One of the things that kept me going was this newfound world (for me) of the indies. There was one in particular out of Philly called Combat Zone Wrestling or CZW for short. A lot of guys who are now legends in wrestling came through at that time: Kassius Ohno/Chris Hero, Jimmy Rave, Sonjay Dutt, some dude named CM Punk. Every month I waited for the next VHS tape to come out. And if I got any disposable income I’d use it to get old CZW tapes. It’s one of the things that kept me going through a very dark time in my life I didn’t have a lot to live for. Out of the many regulars, there was a tag team called the H8 Club with a wrestler by the name of Nick Gage. So you see why this match was a big f’n deal for me.

I admire what Shane Taylor has done. He controls his own destiny and owns his own brand. I’m intrigued to see what emerges from this stage of his career. I guess these two haven’t met in the ring before. Taylor began it saying, “This concludes the technical portion of our show.” But I gotta say. It was more technical than I thought it was going to be. There were some incredibly painful looking spots on the chair(s). This was kind of a dream match I didn’t know I needed.

Winner: Taylor

Hey promoters, if you want to book a match that will send the fans home happy, this is one. And if this is just their first match, what can they do with more?

Sixth match: Cryme Tyme (c) vs Gino & Joe Alonzo w/Lance Romance

Now speaking of that 21-year-old kid who discovered CZW, my mother and I did attend our local indy PCW in Arlington. Not faithfully but a few times. I remember 20-year-old me talking to Jazz like she was the second wrestler in my life I’d ever talked to and me dying inside not believing this moment was happening (That would also be nearly 40-year-old me’s reaction speaking to her as well.). There was this one manager with a trench-coat that led the bad guy faction that I always hated. His name was Lance Romance.

Well it’s pretty much 20 years later. Lance doesn’t work as a performer very often. Where he keeps his most value is as a mentor and elder statesmen to the crop of indy workers in Texas (and in some cases beyond). Some of his more recent charges include Austin Theory, Gino and some dude you might see on tv sometimes called Sammy Guevara (and believed in him when literally nobody else in Texas did). When he manages it’s a special experience and you watch him manage like the rest of the world watches Edge wrestle in 2020.

So when Lance chooses you, you are what is known as a Lance Guy™️. Curious to see if I could pick up who the mystery tag partner might be, I was observing, seeing what Lance Guys™️ I could spot in the building. I had spotted two. I really thought this was going to be Brysin Scott. But when it came time for the match, Lance introduced Gino’s tag team partner. It was Joe Alonzo, a guy whose mic work I’ve seen some of thanks to social media. He took a mic and it was gold. In 3 minutes he had the entire crowd hating him and ready for his decapitation.

Cryme Tyme always brings about a very fun atmosphere. Both are so good on the mic with such natural charisma and the crowd loves seeing them. I don’t hear the pop getting quieter like you do with some other acts. A wrestler looking to develop themselves on the mic would be wise to sit at their feet.

The match itself was wild and insane. Or I guess it was. Some of the fighting was close to me. But a lot of it went on in the crowd on the other side of the arena. It was a really fun brawl and fit in perfectly with the VIPX format.

Winner: Cryme Time

Seventh match: Barrett vs Homicide

So while we’re talking about 21-year-old me, I did fall in love with a wrestler’s work once by the name of Homicide. He wrestled a match once I saw on tape that completely blew me away. And hasn’t stopped blowing me away any time I’ve seen him live.

This match itself had a few painful moments but both took them pretty equally. What I liked most about this match was that they had a focus and a purpose. They made it about trying to get the ladder and get the belt. Sometimes in ladder matches they just smack each other around with it like they don’t have a belt to win.

Winner and new champion: Homicide

I didn’t see Homicide winning. This opens up new possibilities. Who gets Homicide first? Shane Taylor? Will Allday? MASADA? (Which will either be the most technical match of all time or the most ultra-violent or perhaps both?)

Seventh match: Ali Bama vs Su Yung

Brief proud moment. I was there for Ali’s literal first match. Here she is taking on Su f’ing Yung. I love Ali’s growth into the competitor that she is now. She’s built herself a reputation as Texas’ Hardcore Queen. And she hasn’t been afraid to mix it up with anybody of any gender, even participating at a Deathmatch event in San Antonio late February. THIS is why Su made the perfect opponent for Ali. Both could have a technical match. But this really wasn’t a “technical match” kind of show. We had quite a bit of blood from Ali. And as Su gave, so she took. Both took some very crazy stage dives. In the end it was Su’s red mist that got the best of Ali.

Winner: Su

Main event: MASADA vs Andy Dalton

This was originally supposed to be New Jack vs Dalton but he had to bow out because of an injury. So I’m not sure if Dalton got any luckier. This match was everything you would expect from a MASADA-Andy Dalton Death Match Fans Bring the Weapons, tarp decorating the ring and all. Dalton bled like crazy, and it put the exclamation point on a very wild night.

Winner: MASADA

All in all… Sometimes I have to remember that not every wrestler will be available for a meet and greet. But when you have 4-5 big names on the show that don’t normally appear, you kind of expect more than one out there. I don’t know whose fault it is and it’s probably an individual case by case basis. Also it’s not a VIP thing. I remember going to a show once hoping I’d get to meet LA Park. And Jack Evans. And Kylie Rae. It happens.

The VIP brand usually has several really solid technical matches. Here if you’re wanting technical matches, really only Allday-Isaiah-Shelley is the only one I’d say to go out of your way to see. However if you like the art of professional wrestling, there are 6 other really solid matches that should be available on the main card.

Sabotage/Lucha Brutál War of the Genders 4-January 25, 2020

We begin the night with Roxy Castillo and Brad Allred. She is great at pumping up the crowd. Then Nastico interrupts and Brad Allred cuts a Texas promo on Nastico.

First match: Prince Adam vs Vert Vixen

Adam understands the comedy. So he told the story he needed to and gave us a few laughs. My first time to see Vixen, I get a Jody Threat vibe from her. Most of the match flowed well and there were some laughs from the crowd. The finish was weird.

Winner: Vixen

Second match: Unholy Family (Isaiah James & The Insidious One) vs Nate Collins & Reiza Clarke w/Kenny Steele

Both the male counterparts and female counterparts have good chemistry together. I would love to see them individually against each other. I was honestly wondering what it was going to take for either team to win. Ian Rayn distracted Isaiah for a DOT Mob win.

Winner: Collins & Clarke

I think a Rayn-James feud would be interesting. Let’s see what Rayn can do with time and space to grow.

Third match: Dave Segan w/Nastico vs Jazzy J Serious vs Veda Scott vs Jenna Lynn vs Will Allday vs Allie Kat

Purely an Allday crowd. I have a rule during scramble matches. There’s no way I can accurately recap those. For the most complete recap watch it. You have 6 insanely talented people. Segan is a very underrated performer. Serious can make anything work. Veda has been one of the most consistent performers for me of the past 10 years and has proven herself as being a top talent. Period. End of sentence. Jenna exudes such an energy and enthusiasm that she makes any match more fun. Will Allday is everywhere in Texas and well-deserved. The vibe I get from him is AJ Styles. That is not a name I use lightly. And I remember when Allie Kat was an AAPW (forgive me if I got the school wrong) student along with Laynie Luck. She has now established herself as one of the top indy talents in North America. She has come so far and I am so proud of what she’s done.

Winner: Allday

Fourth match: Hyan (c) vs ASF

I’m going to go into preacher mode for a bit. So Wrestling Twitter has been all abuzz this week about intergender matches. Here is an example of why they are great. Here are two ridiculously talented wrestlers that previously would have never met in the ring. Now they had a great meeting and the crowd loved it.

My first thought when I saw this was, “Who are we supposed to cheer?” I remember an ASF Corkscrew Plancha onto Hyan. I went to a WWE house show where the big match was Shawn Michaels. Aside from still recovering from my wife’s screaming, there is a story about a guy walking up the stairs on the cell phone talking to his wife, “What do you want? You called me during HBK.”

Well, in the same way, my wife psychically knew Hyan was wrestling and decided to call me during one of my favorite wrestlers because nobody could figure out how to log into my Disney+ so my daughter could watch The Lion King. So I did not have the time to devote to this match I wanted to.

Winner: Hyan

Fifth match: Jordan Len-X w/Nastico & Dave Segan vs Baby D

It was a 3 on 1 match. Nastico has a taped fist and punched Baby D causing Len-X to take a pin while the ref’s back was turned.

Winner: Baby D by DQ

Then authority figure Brad Allred saw the behind the back stuff, he reversed the decision. I don’t like when authority figures do this. This is not a shot at this company. This is a message at wrestling in general. If the authority figure can reverse this, why can’t they reverse decisions when much more grievous infractions happen later on?

Baby D, realizing she is outmatched vowed to return with her tag team partner.

Sixth match Heather Monroe vs Aski

I did not know I needed this match. Aski is an excellent luchador who is a Dallas/Fort Worth mainstay. I remember seeing Heather at the first Austin Sabotage show. I gotta say there is so much intensity in her persona, ring presence and crowd engagement. She is the right match in front of the right person away from a big break. I gotta say maybe one of the top unsigned wrestlers period? This match was definitely worth seeing.

Winner: Monroe

Seventh match: Erica Torres vs Chris Cruz (c)

I’m going to go out on a limb here (one I feel is pretty sturdy) and say Erica is the best heel in the Southwest. Chris Cruz is one of the guys I root for probably the hardest. Not only is he a nurse like my wife, but he is always there, always hungry, always ready. And imagine this. He’s an actual character which a lot of indy guys are not putting in that time and development. It’s one of the reasons I’m happy Lucha Brutál put some investment in him.

Okay, I didn’t like the finish. We had a ref bump and of course a ref could have counted to 1000 while the same authority figure who reversed the Nastico decision earlier stood there and did nothing. There was another ref who could have come out to count the pin. We waited for Erica to recover and miraculously she was able to get the referee to stir and count to 3.

Winner and new champion: Torres

So the authority figure who did something earlier chose to do nothing about this while he was ringside? Again, not a gripe against this company. Just at wrestling in general.

Then ASF’s music hit. He had earned a title shot he could cash in at any moment. This was his moment.

Eighth match Erica (c) vs ASF

This match was everything it needed to be. Both had wrestled already. This was the transition. Welcome to the era of ASF.

Winner and new champion: ASF

Main event: GPA vs Fuego Del Sol vs Alex Gracia vs Kylie Rae

This was for the vacant War of the Genders Championship, originally held by Shotzi Blackheart who is not in a place where she caN eXacTly defend it anymore. So we had 4 giant talents ready to go. I believe GPA is the best unsigned heel. Nobody is more despicable and dastardly. Anybody can do “asshole.” It takes a special kind of talent to take it to GPA’s level. The only thing keeping me from calling Erica Torres Oklahoma’s best wrestler is Fuego Del Sol. It’s usually a tie between those two and which way the wind blows on which is Oklahoma’s best. The first time I saw Alex Gracia I said that she has the look and will be a star once she gets the in-ring work together. She has gotten there and I would go so far as to call her one of the top unsigned talents out there. And then there’s Kylie Rae. I watched her grow from student to national star. By this time it was hard to keep notes. These 4 had amazing chemistry and put on tremendous work together. Watch the match.

Winner: Kylie Rae

I was surprised by the winner here. I honestly thought it would be Alex. I didn’t know we would have Kylie recurring at Sabotage events. It was a good surprise for the crowd who loved Kylie.

All in all… This was a very good match. If you are able to catch a stream, 6 of the matches I would call “must-not-miss.” Lucha Brutál is putting in some good work by focusing on wrestlers other companies don’t. And Sabotage is one of the best tickets in Texas and is why I drive to go see them when they run Austin (when my wife lets me). So I’m out of blog retirement at least for one night.

MPX Wrestling – One Shot 9-29-2018

We opened the night with Dave Segan. Dave Segan has purchased the services of Taylor Blackburn. Maybe Taylor can use that money to purchase the services of hairstylist Rachel Rose.

The Bearly Gentlemen came out and expressed their frustration.

First match: Dmitri Alexandrov vs T-Ray

I haven’t seen Dmitri much. I have no idea if he’s actually Russian or not. I just love this gimmick. T-Ray is a stud. Good heel work. I like both these guys. The goal was to put over Dmitri. All went over well. T-Ray claims to be the best-kept secret in Texas. Her certainly has a claim to being one of the tops, though I think there is some steep competition like Myka Madrid, Jazzy J. Serious, Sebastion Envy, Reiza Clarke, somebody south of the Brazos or West of the Pecos I’m not familiar with yet (sounds like a good idea for a tournament or something, hint, hint).

Winner: Dmitri

Second match: Chandler Hopkins vs Korey Konstantine

My wife was having a difficult time at the house while I was watching this and I said, “Look, it’s Chandler Hopkins without his shirt.” (This is me trying to make up to my wife all the times my jaw drops when I see Machiko.) This was my first time seeing Konstantine. Good gimmick, good matchup. Chandler sure has become one of the top go-to guys for the company. Any spot you need the face to fit in? Put in Hopkins.

Winner: Hopkins

Third match: Sebastion Envi vs BC

I hated this storyline. The loser is fired. I hated it with Bagwell and Hennig. Too much heel GM tonight. I, for one, like Envi in the ring. And do you really want to tell your fans that one of the competitors puts you to sleep? (See Lance Storm) The match was pretty well-worked though.

Winner: BC

Yeah, so Envi is fired. And so was Curt Hennig.

Fourth match: Baby D vs Angel Blue w/Livi la Vida Loca

Livi is totally my homegirl even if she were a villain here. I learned a few weeks ago that if she volunteers to take a picture of you and another wrestler, beware. You may end up with a few selfies of her you have to explain to your wife.

Angel Blue is arguably the best heel in Texas, male or female. The way she is able to tap into a crowd to find hatred. Baby D is my kid’s’ favorite wrestler.

Livi wanted in on the action. 2 against 1? Not so fast as Machiko walked to the ring and made this a tag match. (BTW, I love the red, white & blue hair color.)

Real Fourth match: Baby D & Machiko vs Angel Blue & Livi La Vida Loca

These are 4 workers who are very familiar with each other so it flowed strongly. Blue & Livi did a divide and conquer strategy and it worked.

Winner: Blue & Livi

Machiko & Baby D came to blows after this match.

Post intermission So Cool came out. Very good mic work from Kiefer Bartek, Cam Cole & Rachel Rose. Cole has a very good speaking voice. I could see him transitioning there after the in-ring time is over.

Fifth match: Ryan Remington (c) w/Jamie Oller vs Michael Shafer

I’ve been watching Remington since the beginning of his career. Like, I remember when he used to check the bag of toys I would bring in to keep my little boy occupied as a security guard. Tonight was different for me. I finally saw “it” in him. You know, you always look at a tag team, and you wonder which one is Shawn? Which one is Marty? The Impact Players (2017) may not have a Marty. What if they’re both Shawns? (I sound drunk or high. I’m neither.)

Shafer brought 100% and gave Remington everything. Shafer is a big man. Remington looked so strong after this.

Winner: Remington

Sixth match: Cody Dickson vs Frankie Fisher

Usually I’m more unbiased with the menfolk wrestling. (I will verbally gut you like a fish should you say anything about Thunder Rosa, Hyan or Dalys la Caribeña.) But I think I might have a new favorite male Indy wrestler. Here’s an unstoppable submissions guy who is going to weaken a specific body part until he gets you to tap out. Frankie isn’t a Dean Malenko ring technician. But heel or face, but one thing I’ve found is that he always finds a way to elicit an emotional response. I’m nowhere close to having seen enough MPX matches this year, but I would call this a match of the year contender.

Winner: Frankie

Main Event: So Cool (Kiefer Bartek & Cam Cole w/Rachel Rose) vs Blind Justice (Steven Kirby & Ryker James) vs Impact Players (2017) (Tommy Becker & Dave Segan w/Jamie Oller & Taylor Blackburn) vs DTF (Andy Dalton & Brent McKenzie)

If I wasn’t old enough to be her 16 & Pregnant dad, I’d say Rachel Rose is pretty hot. Now I just make sure she has enough gas in her car and tell her to ask her mother. The fanny pack is pretty awesome. I swooned enough over the duo earlier. Bartek reminds me a lot of Jaxon Stone. Have these 2 met yet?

Ryker James is massive. Kirby is not a small man. And Ryker is a head above him.

At some point Becker and Dalton will have a feud. When it does, the former will become a legend.

For a few seconds, I was wondering what Brent McKenzie was going to do onto the crowd of people. Ryker James left that to the imagination by attacking him.

Winner: So Cool

This was quite the the brawl. Lots of people involved and lots of entertainment.

All in all… A good offering from MPX. The last two matches were very good. We’re watching some guys (and girls) come into their own.

Heavy Metal Wrestling 9-28-2018

So I tried a thing on Twitch. It’s great to see wrestling companies out there doing things with new technology. More companies should try this out.

The show started around 9:30 CST. Wrestling companies, (not just this one), why can you not start when you say you are going to? I’m not saying this like I’m a paying customer; I wasn’t. But there were some who were. One thing I noticed away is there were no ring barriers and no security. Were people even given chairs? This is an extremely dangerous environment for not only the wrestlers but the fans as well. Especially with the first match, which was a battle royal.

First match: Battle Royal

Y’all there were 20-people in this thing and I knew about 5 of them. There was just no way I could make detailed notes watching this thing. There were a lot of guys from the area’s schools. A huge shoutout to the men and women who have trained these guys. I know we had Reality Students, Hybrid, TWA, AAPW and anybody else? Some of the names here sound like they were created by one of those Facebook memes where you take the color of your underwear and the last thing you ate. Think about your names and personas. Look around in the industry for similar-sounding names. Just because the guy is your favorite New Japan wrestler doesn’t mean you should take their last name. I could have also done without the drummer feeling it was his responsibility to hit the symbols anytime anything happened.

What I look for in these battle royals is who stands out? Who do you notice during the match? Who stays with you after? There were a few who stood out, but you can’t always catch everybody in a battle royal situation. Not everybody is going to have that encyclopedic knowledge of who they just saw. Sometimes you won’t catch everybody, but you might find yourself saying, “Oh hey, it’s that guy [or girl]” after a good performance.

Aaron Mercer was a huge standout for me. Give him time. He has potential to go far. Dre Brenner was another name who stood out for me. But the impact came from Moonshine. When Moonshine’s music hit, it was like Kane showing up to the Rumble.

Winner: Moonshine

Moonshine said he wanted Zac Taylor. Now.

Second match: Moonshine Mantell vs Zac Taylor

One thing I have to give Heavy Metal credit for is a certain air of unpredictability. It reminded me a lot of AIW where things can happen any time. I’m not here really to critique matches. There’s vets and stuff out here for that. The two wrestled a good match in front of a really hot crowd.

Winner: Moonshine

May we all have the impact at our workplaces that Moonshine did tonight.

Third match: Bryan Keith vs Johnny Bedlam

So Bedlam was the hometown boy here. Bryan “The Bounty Hunter” Keith was a standout for me here. Guy shows up with the pancho like he’s out of the Old West. This guy is a really good despicable heel you Boo with a smile. Reminds me of GPA.

Winner: Keith

Fourth match: Fly Def vs The Epitome of Wrestling

So there are two up and coming tag teams in Texas. I love the names of both. I’d really like to see Fly Def in a few different environments to see how they adapt. EOW are two guys with the Rick Steiner ear guards. I like the heel gimmick and feel like there’s something there. Fly Def demonstrated some of their mat abilities against the amateur wrestlers.

Winner: EOW

Fifth match: Jazzy J. Serious vs Douki vs Aran Seras vs Kagura vs Ethan Price

I know Douki from his work in the Lucha scene up in Dallas and of course who does not know the work of The Many Evolutions of J. Serious. Aran is hoss. Price is a good villain. He needed to be in a different match. J. Serious is one of the best hidden treasures North of the Brazos River.

Winner: J. Serious

Sixth match: Kody Lane w/Ethan Price vs Ricky Starks

Starks was in total troll mode. Not sure it worked in the Heavy Metal crowd. The man wore a Morrissey t-shirt in honor of his favorite metal artist. I applaud you, Sir. Lane and Starks are so talented. It’s just like watching two artists paint on a blank canvas.

Winner: Lane

What’s with all the dick punches?

Seventh match: Terrale Tempo vs Great Scott

This was a really fun crowd brawl. Terrale is one of Texas’ best all-around workers. Also props to Kiefer Bartak for the run-ins and interference. He is the only man on Earth as far as I’m concerned allowed to sport a manbun. Tempo won with a Texas Clover Leaf outside the ring.

Winner: Tempo

Eighth match: Myka Madrid & Rachel Rose vs Jenna Lynn & Alex Gracia

This was Rachel’s in-ring debut. She came out like she had learned every heel trick in the book. I love Myka whenever I get to see her. Jenna is like Delilah Doom 5 years ago. She’s a sweet kid that never stops smiling (one of the signs I’m getting older is when I see a girl like that and say, “What a sweet kid” rather than “Where have you been all my life?”). And Alex Gracia is one of the people I root for. Not only does she look like she was manufactured in a fitness model factory, she carries herself as a professional and understands the business side of the wrestling business.

Jenna is a lot farther than she should be at her experience level. There was some really excellent work. And it was hard to believe this was only Rachel’s first match. And Myka does not get the credit she deserves.

Winner: Jenna & Alexa

Ninth match: Shigeyuki Kawahara vs Low Rider

Japan vs AAA. I’m familiar with Low Rider with his Lucha work. And I’m not sure if he just now debuted on AAA, but I marked out for seeing him on it. We did the technical in-ring stuff, but this also had a wild crowd brawl.

Winner: Kawahara

After the match, a lady ran into the ring to get her cookie sheet. I shouldn’t have to say this, but that moment should have never happened. There should have been security protecting both the wrestlers and the fans.

Main Event: Thomas Shire vs PCO

Professional wrestling can be a strange place. What if I told you one of the hottest names in 2018 is Pierre of the Quebecers who last peaked in 1994? Somehow he has found a way to reinvent himself as this cyborg badass. Shire is a great opponent for PCO. He’s like the 80’s college wrestler. No flash. No pizzazz. Just wrestling.

Winner: Shire

All in all… I got this show for free so I’m trying to keep that in perspective. Houston, Austin & San Antonio are hotbeds for some great wrestling now.

Jesus “Ricardo” Rodriguez was very good on commentary.

There were some really good matches on the card: Kawahara-Low Rider, Lane-Starks, Tempo-Scott. A really fun night even if it reminded me I’m too old to be up this late.

MPX Wrestling -Once Upon a Time 9-22-2018

2018 is a remarkable time. With it comes a miracle of modern technology. Sitting in the comfort of my living room, I am able to watch archived wrestling shows from my local wrestling promotion. It makes sense for the CZW’s and SHINE’s and EVOLVE’s to have one. MPX, a regional wrestling promotion now has one. While there are a lot of wrestling companies out there, MPX means a lot to me. Both my kids, it was their first indy wrestling show they ever went to, and for my boy specifically, it was the first venue I ever took him to. So, at the very least, I’m invested in this company emotionally. My wife won’t let me go every Saturday night to wrestling. But now this way I don’t ever have to miss a show. I will have my way of gushing and getting emotional. But this will not be the article for it.

Okay, Engage Serious Journalist Mode.

First match: Jason Silver vs Sky de la Crimosa

Jason has one mode. Kamikaze. My question is why did this match happen? What was its purpose? This is like Hawk fighting Animal. I know they’ve had their feuds and have moved on from this. But after a feud like this, why are these guys having an opener? I got the point. Silver had lost last week so he needed a win back. It just seemed like these two could have been given more time.

Winner: Silver

Second match: Cody Dickson vs BC

Cody Dickson is a total stud and I think he has a bright future ahead of him. He fits the Evolve/Japan/Ring of Honor model. BC (or as he’s known in my house, Batman) is one of those guys I root for to succeed. He’s a legitimately good guy with a lot of passion for what he does. Plus, weighing in at tons of swag makes me happy, though I don’t think the DMV will be pleased with me when I try using that on my drivers license.

So the match was pretty entertaining. Dickson uses his MMA skills to attack BC and work on the knee. I just love that kind of wrestling and psychology. Show me a wrestler who goes into his match with a strategy. Treat this like a competitive athletic competition.

Winner: Dickson

After the match, Frankie Fisher came out to the rescue. No longer fun-loving Fisher.

Third match: Impact Players (2017) (Tommy Becker & Ryan Remington w/Jamie Oller) vs Blind Justice (Steven Kirby & Joey Garcia w/Rey Ortiz)

Why is Blind Justice a thing? Like, why are they together? Who do they find their identity through? I’m new to the storyline, so I need some remedial assistance here. I’m very impressed with the Impact Players (2017). Oller on the mic, Becker and Remington being total heat magnets, just a great combination all around. Why were these two fighting? Do they need a face to counterbalance? I’m totally okay with a feud, and I think Garcia-Becker could put on some really good matches. I was very impressed with the work here.

Winner: Blind Justice

Fourth match: Sebastion Envi vs. Prince Kanu

I love Envi. He’s like a little package of fury. The two wrestled for a bit. It was a friendly bout that looked like it might disintegrate. Envi has always been one of my favorite high flyers and a guy I felt didn’t get the credit he deserved. I see Kanu is working as a face for the first time I’ve seen him. I could see him getting some support behind him. He might make a good contender for Segan.

Winner: Kanu

Fifth match: Aron Sykes vs. Byron Anthos

I have watched Sykes since the beginning of his career. I think there might be something there. What’s up with the apron? Not the ring apron. An actual apron. This is going to sound crazy, but here goes. Anthos needs to do a tour of Mexico. He’s such a character, and I think he’d get pretty over in lucha environments. Sykes is a natural face, but the two wrestled a very decent match. He needs more work as a heel. I think the commentary team did a good job to tell us WHY this match was happening. There is a lot of promise for these two. Just keep working on themselves and building their brand.

Winner: Anthos

Sixth match: Dave Segan (c) w/Jamie Oller vs Baby D for the Prospects Championship

I am LOVING what Dave Segan is doing right now. It reminds me of what Gregory Iron did as AIW Intense Champion. The guy has a very talented and expressive face. Another guy he reminds me of is GPA up in Chicago. He is just such a smarmy despicable heel with a very expressive face. The way this Prospects Championship works. After winning it, you have to win 4 consecutive opportunities. Once you do, you have a title shot you can turn in at any moment, much like Money in the Bank. This is Segan’s 4th defense. Big stakes here. If her height were measured by the amount of fight in her, Baby D would be 9’6. After the really excellent feud they had, this is her opportunity to turn spoiler. Except tonight was not her night.

Winner: Segan

Segan now has a title shot. Any time. Any place.

Seventh match: Rey Ortiz vs Andy Dalton vs Simon Grimm

I know that Simon Grimm played the character the WWE wanted him to, but holy crap, where was this worker in NXT/WWE? His mat work with Dalton was excellent. Ignoring the fact he is the heel, I like Ortiz. He’s the Suplex specialist around this part (as long as Nicole Savoy is not around). And Dalton is Dalton. Put him in the ring, he knows how to make a match memorable.

Winner: Dalton

All in all… Much love and kudos to MPX for their network. There is so much talent there and the possibilities for every match is endless. Match of the night was Dickson-BC and performer of the night was Segan.

Dallas Championship Wrestling-What Doesn’t Kill You-September 20, 2018

Hey, I’m back. It’s really been 18 months since I’ve blogged. I tried podcasting and when it comes to wrestling recaps, podcasting was not my ministry. As the great Dusty Rhodes was famous for saying, you dance with the one who brung ya.

The venue was okay. One person working the door made the intake a little difficult. And being outside in the sprinkles made our hair a little difficult. (Thank God for hats, amirite?) The production values are good and the company is ran well.

Dark match: Baby D & Guy with Spartan stuff on his gear vs. Somebody Omega & Somebody Devine

I have no idea who the 3 trainees are. The only one I knew was Baby D. She wasn’t advertised so it was a good surprise. The Spartan guy had a good dropkick and spinebuster. The guys are trainees so I will give them time to develop before I really go all in. I want to see a match stipulation where the only way to win is to put Baby D in a corner.

Winner: D & partner

First match: Steve O-Reno vs. Randy Wayne w/Miranda Gordy (kind of)

I’m familiar with Steve’s matches from his work in Austin. He is an amazing talent. I haven’t gotten to see him doing much heel work so this was fun to see this side of it. Randy Wayne had been attacked by somebody with white shoes. Out came Mr. Sunshine who looks like he shows up at the Comic Con dressed up as Col. Sanders (like Dolph Ziggler must). I am so tired of heel authority figures in wrestling. I want to go back to 1992 Jack Tunney.

I am thinking of a poor young man who becomes smitten with this young, pretty blond and asks her out. She agrees, and they arrange on a time. He pulls up to the house, rings the doorbell and much to his chagrin, the pretty blond’s dad answers. And it’s not just any dad. It’s this guy. There’s like, a top 5 of wrestlers I would least like to see: Tracy Smothers, Haku/Meng, Nikita Koloff, New Jack, and of course Gordy (not in that order). That’s what I think of seeing Miranda. I love what Gordy is doing in Randy Wayne’s corner in general. They have created some legitimate heat with the Von Erich stans. It’s great to watch people be worked in 2018 still. Ms. Gordy was not allowed to be in his corner. She had, however, bought a ticket and was sitting at ringside, ever so innocently drinking her beer.

Randy Wayne was working on one knee for this. A one-kneed Randy Wayne can still out-wrestle most of Texas. When the ref tried to check Wayne for foreign objects and stuff, Wayne flipped him off. That’s our guy. He plays the antihero role well. So the story became how much punishment can the bad knee take? Also, how was Miranda Gordy going to get involved?

Winner: Steve O-Reno

In the end, Steve was too much too handle. It was a strong match. Randy lost the match yet lost nothing. Forgive me if I got the order of events wrong, but at some point the man with the white shoes was revealed to be Tommy Becker, wearing what had to be an Oompa Loompa costume. And then the Impact Players (2017), attacked Wayne, bringing to the rescue the Impact Players opponents.

Second match: Jerome Daniels vs Nate Collins

I remember the first time I saw “The Concrete Cowboy” Nate Collins. It is the perfect gimmick for him. Texas has no shortage of cowboy gimmicks, but none of them look like Collins. The man has a certain likability and charm. He’s bigly over with this crowd. My challenge for him. You’re quite over with your home crowd. The challenge is going to be in finding new ways to get over outside DFW.

I love watching people reinvent themselves. Jerome has made a metamorphosis from a traditional, catch as catch can to a more mat-based wrestler. In a world where everybody is doing Reverse Knife Edge Chops, Suicide Dives and the same flippy dippy, it’s nice to see a wrestler focus his offense on the mat. Also it was good to give Collins the experience of working with an experienced vet on the mat.

Winner: Jerome

A refreshing match, good respect between the two.

Third match: Ashton Jacobs vs Kody Lane

Because I’m narcissistic and think people outside Texas might stumble upon this, if you are not booking Kody Lane, get on it. I believe he was trained by ACH, if not trained, at least mentored. The guy oozes talent. I’m not sure where he is yet, but I think he and his tag partner Zac Taylor are close to becoming one of the top tag teams in Texas, if not THE top. And when it’s time, the two will split and become top main eventing talent. I’m not sure what Jacobs’ goal was in this match. He kept the crowd engaged and served as the heel to Lane’s face.

Winner: Lane

Fourth match: Thunder Rosa & Lacey Ryan vs. Lady Poison & Wesley Crane

It’s going to take me forever to get onto the actual match. Thunder Rosa is my favorite wrestler, and one of my favorite people in the wrestling industry (along with her husband Brian). I try to have my daughter spend as much time around her as I can, even if it’s just watching her in action. Lacey Ryan is now a sentimental favorite for me. When I was a young adult navigating the tape-trading world, the roster of actual women’s wrestlers was pretty small. It was Simply Luscious, Alexis Laree, Alison Danger, Hailey Hatred and a duo known as the Minnesota Home Wrecking Crew, known as Lacey and Rain. I watched these two fight in CZW, IWA Mid South (where they got felt up by Joel Gertner-women’s wrestling has come so far), any promotion that had a women’s match. Now Lacey Ryan is a worker unique to DCW. Lady Poison is the alter ego of Jessica James. I’ve always thought she was one of the best technical wrestlers in Texas. This was my first time to see Lady Poison in person. The ring presence she has with this character is top notch. It’s so different from the work I’ve seen her put in as Jessica. And Wesley Crane. Right now Fuego del Sol is Oklahoma’s top talent in my opinion. But when it comes to awe, mystique, ring presence, Crane might have him slightly beat. The name that comes to mind is Sami Callihan, a name I do not use lightly.

The story here is that Crane was Lady Poison’s tag partner. She has him under her spell. It was a fun match to watch. Would Rosa or Lacey break the spell and overcome their rival?

Winner: Poison & Crane

What an intergender tandem. I think there could be some interesting matches that the two could have.

Fifth match: Jaxon Stone vs. Brent McKenzie

So I remember Jaxon since his early days coming up in the business. He’s had one focus since he’s got started and has gone on to be one of the best unsigned talents in the world. He relocated to Philly to learn from some of the top promotions. He has always been a heel, but as I see him branch out, I see more and more of the depth. He’s had more comedy in this match than I remember him having before. What this match reminded me of was Andy Samberg vs Andre Braugher on Brooklyn 99. McKenzie was no-nonsense and was the perfect straight man for this match.

Winner: Jaxon Stone (Everybody)

Sixth match: Gregory James (c) w/The Insidious Follower vs Andy Dalton

I’ve seen these guys wrestle each other in so many different places and cities. Yet they still find new ways to tell new stories. No, I didn’t take notes. Some things are meant to be enjoyed as a fan and not a blogger. I think the big move everybody will be talking about is the dive onto Greg where he moved and Dalton took one of the sickest bumps I’ve ever seen live. The greatest match I’ve ever seen live was Dalton vs ACH in Inspire Pro in Austin. Every time I see Dalton he seems to want to replace that match with one of his.

Winner and new champion: Dalton

A few months ago, Dalton had suffered a big injury. He had found a way to recover and not only that, he found a way to win the belt. Hence, “What Doesn’t Kill You.”

Main event: The Impact Players (2017) (Tommy Becker, Ryan Remington & Dave Segan w/Jamie Oller) vs The International Playaz Club (Gino, Sammy Guevara & Chandler Hopkins)

Remington has a new singlet. It’s very trimming on him. All 6 of these guys have the potential to be something special (though I guess if you’re a AAA champ you’re a little farther along than the rest). I had the privilege of watching Texas’ future live for a bit. It was a great night to be a fan.

Winner: Impact Players

All in all… It was great to do one of these again. I did miss it. I really like the people running this company so I want them to succeed. Shows on Thursday nights can be kind of iffy for my attendance, but they usually put together good cards for the price you pay.

This card had a lot going for it. Dalton-Greg are always magic, the main event was fun, Thunder Rosa is the G.O.A.T. and incapable of matches that are less than extraordinary and a one-legged Randy Wayne could outwrestle anybody. It was a wonderful night of wrestling.

MPX-Treme 2-18-2017

This was kind of a must-attend event for me. MPX brought in the Innovator of Violence within driving distance. I could write an entire blog of a 17-year-old kid discovering ECW in an Apter mag and wondering who this Tommy Dreamer fellow was. I was somehow first in line to meet Tommy Dreamer. Not only was he so nice and took the time to meet with me, but he took time to meet with every person in line and was very talkative, a true ambassador for the industry.

First match: Jason Silver vs. Richter 5-0 w/ Magnum JA

This was not a very long match. They teased a Richter/Magnum break-up. Poor Magnum took a beating in this match. Silver served as a backdrop to the story at play here. Richter threw some chairs into the ring, recalling us all the #1 rule in wrestling. If you bring a chair into the ring, it will be used against you. Good comedy, nice first match of the night.

Winner: Silver

Later on in the night, we find out Richter 5-0 had passed away. If it weren’t for the Swedish Terror Attack or the Bowling Green Massacre, this would be the #1 story.

Second match: Kyle Hawk vs. Americos

So we have Native American Hawk up against star-spangled patriotic Americos. Knowing my history, not sure why Hawk is the heel. (#justsayin) You’re going to hear me use the word “chemistry” a lot tonight. These two guys have excellent chemistry together. You had 2 high-flyers just going at it and doing their thing. I wrote down “We doing the main event now?” Excellent showing from these two guys.

Winner: Americos

Third match: Frankie Fisher vs. The Jersey Jackass BC

This is the Texas equivalent of Hawk fighting Animal, Ax fighting Smash, Edge fighting Christian. These guys have been a long running tag team, probably one of the top based in the Dallas area. And this is them dissolving. What a brutal match. As lyrical and crisp as Hawk and Americos was, this was savage. I wrote down the words, “Now it begins.” This match could have been the main event.

Winner: BC

Only thing is who am I supposed to be going for. My time is not generous enough to be able to afford every week at MPX. I think Frankie is good, but maybe this is one of them progressive thingies where neither are faces or heels.

Fourth match: Baby D vs. Machiko

Speaking of chemistry, these two have worked together plenty so they knew exactly how to have their short match to further their feud. Baby D is such a tough lady and can hang with anybody in Texas, male or female. Plus I know she continues to work through her injury so I have mad love for her. And I’ve had the biggest crush on Machiko since I first saw her. Not taking anything from her work inside the ring, but she is totally hot and to me is one of the top unsigned wrestlers in Texas. Baby D is a great comedy wrestler and Machiko played a great straight woman for the comedy. Good face, good heel.

Winner: Baby D

Fifth match: Franco D’Angelo vs. Steven Kirby

Sometimes it’s easy to forget how far Franco has come. Remember that 4 years ago, Franco had a debilitating car wreck that should have killed him. For him to be walking, much less in that ring is a small miracle. Also it’s easy to forget how far Kirby has come. Somebody chanted “You lost weight at him.” No s***. I used to attend shows when he was 400 pounds +. Now he’s got to be half that size or better (or at least looks it). It was such a good big man match. And you could really feel the drama. Well-done.

Winner: Franco

The loser of this match is taking the #1 spot in the Texas Rumble. So Kirby has the Ric Flair role of early in the Rumble and does most of the work.

Sixth match: James Johnson vs. Barrett Brown vs. Marcus Rose

Marcus Rose is a heat magnet, and he sure has found a way to parlay it into some bookings. He’s not even in the same galaxy as these two yet, and I think that was the point of this match. Barrett and Johnson have-you guessed it-really good chemistry together. Johnson is now calling himself “The King of Texas Cruiserweights.” He is always somebody who finds a way to reinvent himself. Speaking of reinventing himself, I think Barrett’s hair and beard is one of the best things to happen to his career. I’ve been watching him since he was 16. As he’s grown out the beard and hair, it’s given him a new edge and doesn’t make him look like you need to take him home and feed him. Rose is a slimy, despicable bad guy.

Winner: Johnson

Main event: Tommy Dreamer vs. Michael Shafer

There has been a few times I’ve marked out over entrance music. 1997, seeing the Undertaker. A few weeks ago, hearing Bobby Roode’s “Glorious” live at an NXT show. Hearing “Radioactive” for Cherry Bomb at SHIMMER Vol 80. And last night hearing Alice in Chains’ “Man in the Box.” It took me back to the 17-year-old kid wanting Tommy to beat “Mr. Monday Night” Rob Van Dam. ECW songs always embodied the wrestlers, whether Tommy or Sandman’s “Enter Sandman” or Balls Mahoney’s “Balls to the Wall.”

Now of course Nigel Rabid wasn’t going to let Tommy have a hardcore match. That would be unfair to Shafer. So we had an actual wrestling match. And then Nigel Rabid made the mistake of interfering in this match. Tommy took the mic. “Yeah, you know this crowd wants to see a hardcore match. I’m tired of wrestling owners not giving the fans what they want. We’re doing this my way.” (Ruff paraphrase) Then the match we wanted to see began. They brawled through all the crowd. Tommy used the trash can on Shafer. One of the sweetest things I’ve ever seen at a wrestling event-after the action moved on, the fans picked up the trash to put it back in.

When the action moved back to the ring, Tommy got out his kendo stick. You couldn’t help but smile at the fact you knew what was about to happen. They did the Irish whip and stop just before you went through a table spot. But Tommy used the kendo stick for a Side Russian Leg Sweep followed by a Spicolli Driver (It’s original name before John Cena re-appropriated it as an Attitude Adjuster.) through a table.

Winner: Tommy

After the match, Tommy thanked the fans. He mentioned he was 46, which my first thought was has anybody told HIM that? Of course if you know one of his principal mentors Terry Funk, you know that moment’s not coming for a few years.

All in all… There is an old saying “Never meet your idols.” That is NOT true. I’ve had the chance to meet a few: Dusty Rhodes, Jerry Lynn, Mick Foley, Animal, Dudley Boyz, Cherry Bomb, Nicole Savoy, Athena/Ember Moon (some of those my daughter’s too). With the exception of a few (not mentioned here) they have been rewarding experiences and wonderful people.

Great matches from Hawk-Americos, Brown-Johnson, good matches from Franco-Kirby, Frankie-BC and Machiko-Baby D, but you know I only have one match of the night and that was Tommy Dreamer. Thank you for a very fun night.

VIP Wrestling Love Steel Hurts

A wonderful night of professional wrestling is in the books. We began with the pre-show match. VIP put out a poll and these two finished the highest so they were given the opportunity.

First match: Jaxon Stone vs. Jastin Taylor

Jaxon Stone is close to being the complete package. He pretty much has everything. He is fresh off his stint in wXw. You think he’s a face until he demands silence to take off his coat. Jastin has great athleticism and moves like he’s smaller. (He also looks like Gordon from Sesame Street so I pop for him from an inner toddler level.) You can see the European influence in Jaxon. Not overwhelming but enough to see some changes. The guys really took the most of their opportunity. I wrote, “We doing the main event already?” The story was that neither could beat the other.

Winner: Draw

After the match, ring announcer Keith Roberts asked the guys if they were willing to go into OT. Jaxon refused as he was only being paid for 10 minutes. Perfect. I’d love to see these guys go at it again.

Second match: Steve Anthony vs. Jerome Daniels

We all know that Steve Anthony is one of the most talented complete workers in the South. He looks kind of like Buff Bagwell, but with talent and without calf implants. But he’s even surpassing my expectations in this new incarnation. (BTW, I’m in the living room writing this wearing my Pretty Boy Killers tee, not in my mother’s basement in my underwear.) Anthony was announced as being from “Anywhere but Arlington, forget that, anywhere but the Dallas area, never mind, you all suck.” (Forgive me for misquoting anything.) Jerome is super-over in the area. It was a good match-up to start the night. Both guys were very evenly matched. Something else I didn’t foresee. This match had comedy spots. The Steve Anthony match was the comedy match of the night. I repeat, the Steve Anthony match was the comedy match of the night. Props to the fans when Jerome’s trunks were pulled down and the crowd chanted to fan of CW’s The Flash Jerome “That’s a real flash.” Unfortunately Anthony proved to be too much and took the victory.

Winner: Anthony

Third match: Extr Talent-ED (Ricky Starks & Aaron Solow) vs Vet Club (Tim Storm & Adam Asher) w/ Kristopher Haiden

I liked the mix here. You had Tim Storm with Rick Manning as referee. Tim Storm reminded everybody that he is NWA World Champion, whereby, Ricky Starks said the NWA is about as relevant as a floppy disc. And most wrestling fans fit into these two groups. The story here was “Is Rick Manning corrupt or not?” And they told the tale of “old school” vs “flashy.” Solow had a surprise roll-up pin.

Winner: Extra Talent-ED

Not very happy, the Vet Club took it out on Manning and several security guards. (Poor Michael)

Fourth match: Fuego del Sol vs. Barrett Brown vs. ACH

You have 2 guys who are where ACH was about 10 years ago. Fuego has a lot of buzz around him. Barrett is one of the finest talents in Texas. And ACH was announced as “The Guy Who Pays His Bills With This Shit.” ACH had a heckler (which is really funny because he’s a legend and a god in Texas), and paused to handle her. After he took off his shirt, he made eye contact with her and said, “See, this right here? This is more action than you will get this entire month.” So you had three incredible high flyers going at it. They began with trading superkicks. I literally wrote down “I give up.” This was a recapper’s worst nightmare. One of the things I wrote down was we had 3 simultaneous superkicks. I was just blown away by the work these guys put in.

Winner: Barrett

It was a surprise moment and pin. ACH belongs on a national stage (*cough, cough, 205 Live). I see this as a kind of passing the torch locally. It’s time for Barrett to reach that next stage, whatever it may be.

Fifth match: Delilah Doom vs. Thunder Rosa

I had the chance to meet Rosa before the show. What a wonderful ambassador and representative for her industry. Also you can tell that she puts a lot of work into her physique. And I’ve said this before, but I’d rather my daughter emulate a Thunder Rosa than some Disney starlet who’ll be in and out of rehab for a decade. Also, watch the California independent scene. There is so much talent contained in that one little area. And speaking of things to watch, keep an eye out for Delilah. No lie, I am a huge fan of hers. She is like sunshine in human form. Things are beginning to come together for her on a larger stage. RISE (which is kind of like NXT for SHIMMER) has built a company around her and some other names. This is one of the best matches I’ve seen Delilah have. Both ladies delivered a match of the night contender. Nothing I can say here. Might I say “The Best Women’s Match I’ve Ever Seen Live”?

Winner: Rosa

After the match we had sportsmanship and “Please come back” chants for Rosa. I forget at what part of the night this was, so I’ll just put this right here. The Hip Hop Express came out and we got to hear Kenny Steele spit out some bars. And then when it was Orion Taylor’s turn, we got to hear the secret confession. Taylor is not into Hip Hop that much. He likes country. This was not acceptable for Kenny and BC (the manager). They put the beatdown on Taylor. These two have such a long historic past (some of it which even includes me), I am all about seeing these two go at it in the future.

Sixth match: Sammy Guevara vs. DJ Z

Sammy has all the talent and ability in the world. He is one right audition from signing with a top company. His youth has gotten him in some trouble in the past. But now you can see some more maturity in him and in his work. This was originally supposed to be Matt Cross. But because of an injury, Cross was out and if you can’t deliver Matt Cross, DJ-freaking-Z is a pretty good replacement. I have been a fan of DJ Z ever since I discovered AIW (and he had the huge fro). These two clicked. I wrote down it was like seeing a fight in zero gravity. During the match, DJ Z looked right at my area while he and Sammy were fighting outside and told us to move. Note to self, when he says do that, DO IT. Sammy and DJ Z were fighting right where my chair was. ANOTHER Match of the Night contender.

Winner: Guevara

Yes, that’s right. In the span of a few months, Sammy has defeated Zack Sabre Jr. and DJ Z.

Seventh match: New Jack & Action Jackson vs Certified G’s w/The Thug Syndicate

Okay, so this was a New Jack match. No 450 splashes or anything. But first the Certified G’s put out a challenge. This match was going to be on their terms. They were going to have a real wrestling match with AJ & New Jack. If they could last 10 minutes, they would have a falls count anywhere match. So some poor security guard had to take New Jack’s trash can o’ fun from him. That has got to be in the list of “History’s Worst Jobs.” To nobody’s surprise, this match went the 10 minutes. But the greatest part was the crowd was behind it every second. At the end of the 10 minutes, the match got a “This is wrestling” chant. I repeat a New Jack match got a “This is wrestling” chant. Once the 10 minutes were over, the match deteriorated and went outside. I did not go out there because I didn’t feel like fighting a crowd to see all the goodness.

Winner: Certified G’s

This was the perfect match placement. While that quartet was participating in carnage, the ring crew got to work on the steel cage assembly.

Main event: Pretty Boy Killers (Shane Taylor & Keith Lee (c) ) vs. War Machine (c) (Ray Rowe & Hanson) in a steel cage

I don’t use the word epic very often. This is about as close as I get. The two teams took forever to get in the ring. And even then, it took a while for all 4 to get into the cage. Ray Rowe was the smallest guy in this match. Think about that for a minute. So many “Holy —-” moments. 4 incredible men giving everything. An epic match, an epic feud, 4 epic talents. Hard to take notes when you’re watching a match of this caliber.

Winner: PBK (and new tag champs)

After the match, the 4 had a moment and hearing Ray Rowe on the mic yelling, “Hey, you, stop leaving, you are not going anywhere” was great.

All in all… What an incredible night. So much talent on this card from top to bottom. 4 must-see matches: ACH-Barrett-Fuego, Delilah-Rosa, Sammy-DJ and of course the main event. The MVP of the night was ring announcer Keith telling the guys yelling Sweet on every 2 count that they would be escorted out.

MPX Wrestling-Evolution 9-24-2016

This was my first time to enter the new MPX arena. It is completely night and day compared to the old one. There is this weird new advancement they have at this place called air conditioning. AND they have a new advancement called “family seating.” So you’re in a couch, they bring you some chilled adult beverages (depending on your age) and you enjoy a front seat in style. I dare call it best package wrestling deal in the Dallas area. This is MPX’s building and you can tell they are right at home there.

Kody Kox welcomed us all, hyping the night. The night got off to a rocking start.

First match: Franco D’Angelo w/ James Hawke vs. Nobe Bryant

There is a faction of the more traditional old school wrestlers managed by Hawke. I’ve seen Hawke since the dawn of his career. To see him right now the mouthpiece of a top faction makes me very proud of him. He has turned his heat from X-Pac heat to genuine heat where you boo him with a smile. Between Franco and Nobe, they’ve both wrestled each other so many times. They knew exactly what to do. I’ve seen Franco as heel, face and “it’s complicated.” What I liked about this one is that he had a different heel style than I’ve seen elsewhere. Nobe is a total athletic stud. Nobe usually has the best chops in Texas, but tonight I think Franco might have bested him. This was about them setting up the two of them as qualifiers for the Prospect title. Neither could best the other. It got really intense and they ended up outside too long for the double countout.

Winner: Double countout

Second match: The Faithful (James Johnson and Scott McKenzie) vs. Team FIP (Donovan Danhausen & Jason Cade)

If you are unfamiliar with Full Impact Pro, part of the WWNLive family, here is their site. I would say it’s the place you go to before you go to EVOLVE. Johnson & McKenzie have been in the area forever. They were a good match-up for these guys. I’ve seen Danhausen since his time in DREAMWAVE when they brought him down to Austin to wrestle for Inspire Pro. Guy is insanely good. Danhausen did the face in peril really well for a long time. Cade has a certain fluidity. There is something there to where he would have some good matches with our high flyers here.

Winner: Faithful

Third match: Randy Wayne w/ James Hawke vs. Kenny Steele w/Nigel Rabid vs. Baby D

Intergender matches are really delicate, but handled correctly, they can work. Apparently last week Kenny had some injury where Nigel kept telling everybody he was okay. And it was played to death and then went viral. So after Nigel was done he gave Kenny the mic and Kenny cut one of the greatest promos I’ve ever heard. “I’m ok.” Pop of the night. Baby D has come a long way with her work. This was also a very interesting story on paper. You had country-tough, former marine Randy, gifted, natural athlete Kenny and then Baby D. At first the boys just kind of ignored her. Then she made them acknowledge her. She looked like she belonged in there. Now she was facing the opposite direction. So I’m not sure what exactly happened. Some say she might have kissed Wayne for the 3-count. I’d be more terrified of the repercussions from Mrs. Wayne.

Winner: Baby D

After the match Nigel talked and gave Kenny the mic to reproduce the greatest promo I’ve ever heard, “I’m ok.”

Fourth match: Low Rider vs. Steven Kirby

So Kirby has recently lost the belt and is trying to work his way back up to the top. I’m sure I’ve had to have seen Low Rider wrestle before. Nevertheless I liked what I saw there. Low Rider at first didn’t want to face Kirby. I mean, he had a partially drunken bottle of something alcoholic. I want to say Jack Daniels, but that is not where my specialty is. So Kirby did all his moves while still holding on to the bottle. I liked the match’s concept. Here is the guy on his way back up. He goes against the luchador rudo.

Winner: Kirby

Fifth match: Douki vs. Jerome Daniels w/Jamie Oller

I tried googling the name Douki to translate it. Turns out it’s complicated to translate. Turns out it’s also pronounced “dough-key” and not “doo-key.” However thank you wrestling fans for chanting that at him after we found out that was his name. This is my first time to see Douki. He’s billed as the “Japanese Luchador.” Jerome has reinvigorated his career by adding the MMA moves arsenal. This match had really good mat wrestling. If you like watching mat technicians, this was your match. I’d go so far to call this the sleeper match.

Winner: Jerome

We found out that next week Jerome gets Jigsaw.

Sixth match: Frankie Fisher vs. Kevin Cross w/ Nigel Rabid

Frankie is angry and wanted the 7′ Cross. The story was about trying to take down the massive 7-footer. Angry Frankie means we don’t get to see the comedy, which is one of my favorite parts about him. The climax of the match came when Cross was finally toppled. However when he toppled, it was onto the ref. As expected, the referee was motionless. Then came out Kenny to interfere and cause Cross to win the match.

Winner: Cross

It was then announced we would be seeing Frankie vs. Kenny in a hardcore match, where if Frankie wins, he gets 7 minutes in the ring alone with Nigel.

Main event: Brandon Collins (c) vs. Matt Palmer

This match had so much good one-night build-up. We got to get our pictures with champion Collins in the pre-show. Palmer came out to join him as a surprise because they’re friends, right? Then later on, they were interviewing Collins and Palmer approached him, asking him how he’s doing, how his knee was, which was it again. And then the action began. Palmer was cold, calculating. He took some advantages and was ruthless, going after the bad knee. The onslaught continued. We had a crazy crowd brawl (btw, MPX, a few security guards wouldn’t hurt) where somebody was back body-dropped onto the couch behind me. But whatever Palmer gave Collins, it was not enough. Collins retained.

Winner: Collins

All in all… First of all, I LOVE the new building. A lot of MPX’s problems have been resolved with this venue. I liked Douki & Low Rider. And of course, I loved seeing the guys from FIP. And they raised more questions I need answering. What will become of Frankie vs. Kenny, Jerome vs. Jigsaw? It was great to be part of the family again.