ROH, AAPW, SICW

ROH TV

-Commentators:  Kevin Kelly & Nigel McGuinness.
-Sara Del Rey d. Mia Yim with a standing axe kick after Mia missed a corkscrew moonsault; Mike Bennett ran out to distract Sara after the match so Maria Kanellis could nail her from behind with her loaded boot.  Maria followed that up with a bulldog.
-Rhino(w/ Truth Martini) d. Eddie Edwards in an anything-goes match; the referee stopped the match after Rhino Gored Edwards through a table set up in the corner.
-Kevin Steen(w/ Jimmy Jacobs & Steve Corino) d. Homicide to retain the Heavyweight Title; Steen hit a low blow while Jacobs had the referee distracted, giving him the opening to finish with the F-Cinq.  Rhino & Truth Martini came out after the match as Rhino earned a title shot with his earlier victory...
-Next week:  Caprice Coleman & Cedric Alexander vs. The Young Bucks in the Tag Team Title Tournament, plus a six-way match for a shot at the T.V. Title.

AAPW TV #20

Eventually I'll get around to reviewing the older shows online...but this'll be my first official show recap.

Commentators:  Kevin Hunsperger & Chris Hagstrom.

We start with Jimmy Fish preparing to interview former Heavyweight Champion Edmund "Livewire" McGuire...but we get promoter Sean Chambers instead.  See, Chambers threw in the towel to bring about the title change from McGuire to Mike Masters.  He feels like he made the right move for the company by saving McGuire from permanent injury...the fans don't see it that way.  He does call Livewire out to the ring after his explanation...and Livewire doesn't seem to be buying what Chambers is selling EITHER.  Chambers runs down a list of possible contenders...for some reason that list DOESN'T immediately include McGuire.  Livewire feels like the championship has been tarnished due to the circumstances of that title change...Chambers asked if he could have escaped Masters' submission hold and McGuire simply says that he would have TRIED and it doesn't matter because he's fine with losing to a better man if that was the case.  Chambers says that he saved his career and he'll get one more shot at Masters as a result.  He'll get his rematch on the next TV show...there you have it.

Brandon Espinosa speaks on his match with Matt Cage tonight...tremendous.

Justice vs. Chase King:  Justice is a big biker dude...St. Louis-area fans know Chase King.  Justice had a winning streak going but lost to Bull Bronson at Summer Chaos...he gives his headband to a ringside youngster.  King has trouble dealing with the size disadvantage and stalls outside the ring after taking a fallaway slam...then he takes a cheapshot on the floor and whips Justice into the guardrail.  Back in the ring, King targets the leg of his larger opponent...PSYCHOLOGY~!  King gets a figure-four leglock but Justice is too strong and reverses the hold.  King dropkicks the knee and goes to the top rope...but Justice still makes the catch and turns it into the Black Diamond Slam(swinging uranagi)!  That'll do it.

Tag Team Champion Matt Cage enlightens us on the main event.

LaMarcus Clinton vs. Ax Allwardt(w/ Gaylord Stevens & Jay Wellington Beauregard):  Again, STL-area fans know LMC though he's new to AAPW...Ax is a regular in the promotion.  Allwardt is not amused by the FLIPPIES~!, sorry to say...like Justice, he's looking to rebound from a loss at Summer Chaos(to Heath Hatton).  Beauregard is a new addition to the Gaylord Stevens stable, from the sound of things.  Ax dominates the matchup despite a few flurries of offense by LMC...he finishes with the piledriver in short order.

Quickie up-close interview clip with Shane Rich...he's one of the top talents in AAPW but has been on the shelf for almost a year after a motorcycle accident.  He suffered a setback during his rehab training and doctors aren't sure if he should return to the ring at all...ak.

Kyle Sykes vs. K.C. Jackson, No Limits Tournament Semifinal:  Sean Vincent was scheduled to be in this match but was injured by Jackson's heel hook at Summer Chaos...K.C. gets a bye to the finals, but he issues an open challenge with his tournament spot on the line.  Sykes was a previous participant in this tournament but gets a second chance here.  YAY WRESTLING~!  The commentators do their best to hype the division's slogan:  "There's no reward without the risk."  Sykes hits a modified Chaos Theory for a near-fall but misses a Shining Wizard...then K.C. cuts off a turnbuckle climb and yanks him to the mat.  The heel hook follows for the tapout victory.

Brandon Espinosa(w/ Ace Hawkins) vs. Tag Team Champion Matt Cage(w/ Christian Rose):  Cage is rocking the white hooded robe tonight.  Cage & Rose retained the belts against Espinosa & Hawkins at Summer Chaos but THIS FEUD MUST CONTINUE~! because one of the title belts was involved in the finish.  Rose makes an early cheapshot attempt and Espinosa clotheslines him out of the ring...then Cage goes on the attack only for Espy to get the early advantage.  Cage has a unique counter to a suicide dive, sliding into the ring to take Espy's legs out from under him.  Cage tries to pull Espy to the floor but Espy reverses things by yanking Cage into the ring frame, then gets back in the ring to deliver a baseball slide!  Rose gets involved which brings Ace into the fray and they battle all the way back to the dressing room...

Back in the ring, Espinosa nails the Steamboat Press...for two.  Zak Sawyer comes out to ringside as Cage fights out of a Combover(cobra clutch Stroke) attempt with a thumb to the eye...that'd do it.  Zak seems to be cheering for Cage as he presses his advantage...Cage delivers an impressive run of offense but can't keep Espinosa down.  Espy blocks a corner double-knee and positions Cage for a hanging Ego Trip neckbreaker...somehow only getting a two-count.  Cage fires back and openly wonders about Sawyer's presence at ringside...but that turns into a distraction and Espinosa gets an opportunity to fight back.

Cage stops him with a spinkick to the gut, but jumps off the second rope into an Irish Curse backbreaker...for two.  Cage stalls on the apron and delivers an enzuigiri from that spot, then steps through the ropes and delivers a Diamond Cutter in one motion...nice.  Third floor...Macho Elbow connects!  Cover...but Espinosa gets a hand on the bottom rope to escape defeat.  Cage comes off the ropes to finish but Espy maneuvers him into the Combover out of nowhere...that'll do it!

Next episode(in two weeks):  Mike Masters vs. Edmund "Livewire" McGuire for the Heavyweight Title.

SICW Wrestling Explosion

-Commentator:  Larry Matysik.
-Ricky Cruz d. Dave Vaughn(w/ Travis Cook) to retain the Classic Title; Ken Kasa and Travis both tried to interfere to no avail, but Vaughn nearly won after the spear only for Cruz to kick out of the pin attempt.  Vaughn brought in a chair but Cruz delivered a spinning heel kick to send the chair back into Vaughn's face; he hit the swinging fisherman suplex after that to get the three-count.
-Flashback to November 1980:  Dick The Bruiser & Jesse Barr d. Buzz Tyler & Mike George when The Bruiser pinned Tyler after the big atomic stomp off the second rope.