Now, as promised, a special comment about Sunday's High Risk Wrestling show at the Belle-Clair Fairgrounds in Belleville, IL.
DISCLAIMER: I'm biased. Deal with it.
Not the best turnout for HRW, sorry to say. The talent list for the show may not have been on the same level as that of previous events (with the same ticket price). On top of that, the weather forecast called for a lot of snow last night, so people may have been paranoid about driving. On the bright side, the people in attendance were enthusiastic for most of the show.
Your ring announcer was Brian Thompson and your video cmmentators were Brian Thompson and Steve Murphy. Your referees were Brian Stoltz, Nick Ridenour, and Jason Pemberton.
Keon Option vs. Curt Stallion: Stallion is a trainee of Michael Elgin; he teamed with Brandon Espinosa in a recent dark match for Ring Of Honor. This preshow match was essentially face-vs.-face...Stallion had some good mid-match quips about how well he was or wasn't doing. Option won with an axe kick in 7:18.
Mike Outlaw vs. Justin D'Air vs. "The Bosnian Warchild" Spi-Ral: This was the "Fans' Choice Match" where the fans' post-match response would determine each man's future in the promotion. Outlaw and D'Air have wrestled each other a few times in the past, but I don't think either of them had worked with Spi-Ral before. This was fine for what it was...Spi-Ral was taken out of the game long enough for Outlaw to finish D'Air with the High Noon(top-rope elbowdrop) in 4:15. It seemed like Outlaw got the best post-match response while Spi-Ral and D'Air got mixed reactions...but no decision was announced.
Trevor Murdoch vs. "The Obsession" Caleb Konley vs. Blake Edward Belakis, three-way dance: This was an elimination-style match, something that wasn't made clear in the introductions. I hadn't seen Murdoch in several years; he hasn't been as active recently but isn't fully retired. He got his start in the St. Louis area as Trevor Rhodes, primarily working for Harley Race's World League Wrestling. I had seen Konley a few times on NWA Anarchy TV(several years ago), but he's progressed since that time, becoming one-half of the Open The United Gate Champions with Anthony Nese in Dragon Gate USA. Always cool to see Belakis. This match was also unusual in the sense that only two men were legal at once and you had to tag in and out of the match. Konley and Belakis worked together against Murdoch for most of the bout, but that alliance inevitably broke down. Murdoch pinned Konley with his Code Red variation in 8:02...but Belakis blindsided Murdoch with a forearm smash and immediately covered him for the final win in 8:07.
The Bravado Brothers(Harlem & Lancelot)(w/ Magic Man) vs. The New Midnight Express(Bad Brad Charles & Tenacious Tyler Cook)(w/ Beautiful Bobby Eaton & Moose): I hadn't seen the Bravados since their Ring Of Honor days. They used to look similar, but nowadays Harlem has a shaved head and beard in contrast to Lancelot's clean-cut appearance. They had a lengthy reign as DGUSA Open The United Gate Champions until dropping the belts to Nese & Konley. This was a solid tag match with the New Midnights doing a good job of cutting off the ring on Lancelot. Harlem got a hot tag and cleaned house, but Eaton's distraction allowed Bad Brad to roll him up with a handful of tights in 11:46. Presumably that puts them in line for a Tag Team Title shot...no reDRagon on this night, sorry to say.
"Unbreakable" Michael Elgin vs. "The Last Real Man" Silas Young: Elgin was a surprise replacement for Tony Kozina in the only change to the announced lineup. These two had a really strong match on Ring Of Honor TV that boosted Young's credibility in that promotion. Silas is a tremendous heel...'nuff said. They had a really strong matchup that ended out of nowhere with Young tapping out to the Sharpshooter in 10:42. (EDIT: Kozina was working the TNA One Night Only tapings this past weekend.)
Cue Adam Starr Memorial Not-So-Brief Intermission(tm)...the next HRW show will be on Sunday, April 5th. Hope I can plan that around Easter festivities, such as they are.
Bolt Brady(w/ Magic Man) vs. "The Yoga Monster" Mike Sydal(w/ Bobby Eaton & Moose): This stemmed from Sydal turning on Brady during a tag match against the New Midnights. Eaton & Moose attacked Magic Man midway through the bout, prompting an encore appearance by the Bravados with steel chairs in hand. They prevented any further damage from being done, but that left Brady on his own with Eaton and Moose still at ringside. Sydal tried to slow Bolt down but Brady was able to make a short-lived comeback. A cheapshot by Moose gave Sydal the opening for a rollup-with-tights for the tainted win in 8:08...second finish of that nature on the show, though it was from the same stable so you may be able to chalk that up to some degree of continuity for the group.
Cedric Alexander vs. Jonathan Gresham: Have seen these guys a handful of times at area shows. Not sure why Gresham hasn't appeared more for higher-profile independent promotions...though size still does matter in the wrestling game. First saw Cedric when he entered ROH as the tag team partner of veteran Caprice Coleman...they were a rare case of a tag team splitting amicably and pursuing separate singles careers as fan favorites. These two worked pretty well together and I could see a rematch happening down the line. Gresham targeted the leg to ground Alexander, showing off his technical expertise. I noticed a few instances of referees counting REALLY fast on this show and I'm not sure why...I don't even think it was one official in particular. There was some confusion when Alexander got the win with a Michinoku Driver as Gresham appeared to kick out, but the count was fast and the ref called for the bell. Again, I have no idea what was up with the different pin counts here, but Alexander still walked away with the win in 11:17.
"The Sicilian Psychopath" Tommaso Ciampa vs. Moose: It's a little-known fact that Ciampa wrestled for WLW for a short time in his career...I thought his name looked familiar when he started with Ring Of Honor, especially since "Tommaso" isn't a very common name. Ciampa's done pretty well in ROH despite being derailed by a major injury...he held the T.V. Title and has a Heavyweight Title shot at the next iPPV. Reportedly Moose is already on WWE's radar and that's not too surprising...great size, physique, and agility for a guy of his size. If I'm not mistaken, he's still undefeated in ROH. It wasn't stated outright until after the match, but this main event was supposed to set up a future challenger for A.C.H.'s championship...notably, this was the first HRW show that A.C.H. had missed.
This wasn't a technical masterpiece...it wasn't supposed to be and it wasn't expected to be. It was two big guys slugging it out...despite his limited experience, Moose has looked really good so far. Referee Stoltz was bumped by accident and Moose speared Ciampa...Jason Pemberton apparently tripped on his way to the ring(so I was told) but still got to the ring to count the near-fall. Moose quickly disposed of referee number two and brought in a chair, but Ciampa sidestepped a spear and Moose hit the chair. Ciampa rolled up Moose and Nick Ridenour hit the ring to count...two. Ciampa beat HIM up and Pemberton recovered to call for the bell in 12:49, calling it a no-contest on account of attempted reficide. The New Midnights and Sydal hit the ring but didn't do any further damage; they just stood by Moose as everyone sorted things out. Ciampa demanded a restart but the heels backed off...so Tommaso took out his aggression on Stoltz with repeated Panic Attacks in the corner. Ouchie.
As previously noted, the next show is in April with Murdoch vs. Silas already announced...several names from this show will be back for that event as well.
Next Saturday will be very busy around here with three shows that evening: SICW in East Carondelet with James J. Dillon appearing, WLW in Troy MO, and World Powerhouse Wrestling in Collinsville. Choose your destiny, as it were...
Good night, good luck, and #yaywrestling.
P.S. We are all marks.
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