Dynamo Special Comment

Now, as promised, a special comment about Saturday's Dynamo Pro Wrestling show at the Stratford Inn in Fenton, Missouri.

DISCLAIMER:  I'm biased.  Deal with it.

Advertised as the eighth anniversary show for the promotion, this event only had a few matches set in stone until a few days beforehand.  Attendance rebounded well from the previous Fenton show and the fans were enthusiatic for most of the night.

The show started with the full roster at ringside for a ten-bell salute for "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes.  As someone who didn't start watching wrestling regularly until the early '90s, I may not be the best person to eulogize him.  I mostly saw him in his polka-dotted WWF days and his subsequent commentary stint for WCW.  He played a big role in WWE's developmental system, starting with Florida Championship Wrestling and continuing to the current NXT era.  His charisma, gift of gab, and overall influence on the wrestling business were undeniable...it felt like a true icon of the industry had passed away.  All the best to his family and other loved ones.

Your ring announcer was Chris Roedel, your assistant ring announceer was Luke Roberts, and your referees were Patrick Hook and Richard White.  Match times may not be exact as I had trouble hearing Chris at times.

Executive Director Mark Bland started the show to explain his actions against Mike Outlaw last month.  He had encouraged Mike Outlaw to use Alexander P. Dixon's briefcase as a weapon against Jake Dirden, but Outlaw refused to resort to those tactics.  As a result, Dirden used the briefcase to level Outlaw...the referee wanted to call for a disqualification, but Bland ordered him to make the three-count.  Bland said he wanted to teach the newbie a lesson about taking advantage of opportunities when they present themselves...as you might expect, Outlaw wasn't satisfied with that explanation.  The whole deal brought Dirden out (accompanied by Travis Cook and Dixon), setting up the night's main event and title rematch.

Paloma Starr vs. "The Queen Of Chaos" Lucy Mendez:  These two have battled a few times in recent months, including a match at Southern Illinois Championship Wrestling.  Lucy's in a interesting position as she's a rulebreaker but the fans are way, way too smitten with her to boo her.  I liked this match a bit better than their SICW encounter; things seemed to go smoother this time around.  The result turned out to be the same as Lucy won with a hanging DDT in 9:30.  After the match, Lucy did a personalized introduction for one of the competitors in match number two...

Outtkast vs. "The Filipino Warrior" Elvis Aliaga(w/ Lucy Mendez):  Given the Shorty Biggs-Brandon Espinosa match later in the evening, we seem to be setting up a feud between the Bumrush Brothers and the team of Espinosa & Aliaga.  These two split a pair of bouts in 2014 so this was the rubber match, if you weeeeeul.  These two seem to work pretty well together and the tag matches should be a lot of fun to watch, Maggle.  Elvis distracted the ref as Lucy tripped Outtkast on the top rope, then slapped the taste out of his mouth...that allowed Aliaga to get the dreaded DISTRACTION ROLLUP(tm Solomonster) with a handful of tights in 9:59.

"The King Of Chaos" Ricky Cruz vs. Jayden Fenix(w/ Travis Cook) for the IWRG Rey De Ring Title:  Travis made a big deal out of his Organization controlling all the gold in Dynamo Pro Wrestling, so he challenged Ricky to put the belt on the line.  Cruz said it was OK with him as long as it got Travis to shut up...heh.  Fenix was the heel underdog in this one, but he scored a couple of good near-falls from a Diamond Dust and then a running double-kneedrive(I think the official term for that move is the "Meteora").  Perhaps some more attempted Cheating To Win(tm) would be in order if they ever cross paths again.  Things didn't work out for the Travis Cook Organization for this portion of the evening as Cruz got the tapout win with his modified Anaconda Vice in 12:20...good singles showing for Fenix, at any rate.

Rocket Mapache(w/ Jackal) vs. "The Millenial" Danny Adams:  The Bite Club has been trying to get back on track since Rocket's return from injury; they fell short against the Black Hand Warriors(Dave DeLorean/Jayden Fenix version) at last month's Fenton show, but rebounded to upset the Bumrush Brothers at Off Broadway.  Elgin protege Adams is coming off a full weekend as he appeared at the Ring Of Honor shows in Collinsville and Nashville.  Adams controlled most of the bout by working on the leg; Rocket made El Big Comeback, but he missed a move off the top rope and Adams took advantage.  Adams finished with a flying Codebreaker off the second rope in 10:50.

Intermission~!  Good to see Dynamo getting a few more DVDs out...need to drop them a line about a few shows I've missed.

The Black Hand Warriors(Michael Magnuson & Dave DeLorean)(w/ Travis Cook) vs. Keon Option & Justin D'Air for the Tag Team Titles:  Option & D'Air had a special Straps Down University entrance for the proverbial "big-fight atmosphere".   These guys crossed paths in the six-man tag at Off Broadway last month, plus Option & D'Air have been allies for Mike Outlaw against Jake Dirden and the BHW trio.  Magnuson & DeLorean have got the tag team formula down to a science, making me wonder how the DeLorean/Fenix duo will fare in that department.  For their part, Option & D'Air showed some good continuity...I don't think they had teamed up too often before this(other than the aforementioned six-man tag).  D'Air took a beating, but Option got the hot tag and IT'S BREAKING DOWN IN FENTON~!  D'Air hit a beautiful 450 Splash on DeLorean, but Cook distracted the referee from seeing the potential pinfall.  Magnuson brought a chain into the ring, but D'Air got it away from him and knocked him out with it...then scored the pin in 17:18!  New Tag Team Champions?...not quite.  The heels protested the use of the chain along with their resident attorney Alexander Dixon; alas, the official found it on D'Air's person and that led to a decision reversal.  Ah, ye olde Dusty Finish(some people even started a "Dusty" chant).  Well played...it went over like gangbusters and the rematch will be an even bigger deal as a result.

"The Don Mega" Shorty Biggs vs. "The Elitist" Brandon Espinosa(w/ Lucy Mendez):  Despite their longevity in the St. Louis wrestling scene, these two have rarely crossed paths.  They faced each other at an Off Broadway show, if I remember correctly.  They had a pretty solid contest here...Lucy got involved, as you might expect.  However, the interference finally backfired as Espy knocked Lucy off the ring apron, leading to a Shortcut in 10:20 in what I would consider a bit of an upset.  I immediately rushed to the opposite side of the ring out of concern for Ms. Mendez's well-being, but Shorty beat me to the chivalry by picking her up over his shoulder and carrying her to the backstage area.  Darn the luck.

"Dirdey" Jake Dirden(w/ Travis Cook, The Black Hand Warriors, & Alexander P. Dixon, Esquire) vs. Mike Outlaw(w/ Keon Option & Justin D'Air) for the Heavyweight Title:  Mark Bland was lurking at ringside as well...thus, all of the combustible elements were in the general area of the ring.  It didn't take long for the hammer to fall...Outlaw hit the High Noon(top-rope elbowdrop) at an early point in the match and the Warriors stormed the ring to break up the pin, touching off a huge brawl.  The referee made the decision to eject the extra wrestlers from ringside and allow the match to continue(leaving only Travis Cook and Mark Bland).  They had another really strong David/Goliath bout with Outlaw chopping the big man down...Outlaw managed to hit the High Noon for a second time, but this time BLAND broke up the pin attempt.  He kept shouting about learning from his "experience" and seizing opportunities...the distraction allowed Dirden to rise from the dead and grab Outlaw in the Asiatic Spike from behind.  Dirden powered Outlaw down to the mat, but the challenger refused to surrender...however, Bland ordered the bell to be rung, declaring Dirden the winner by "submission" in 18:48.  I imagine, in his mind, "Outlaw screwed Outlaw"...

The night wasn't QUITE over at that point...as everyone made their way to the backstage area, Dynamo co-promoter Crystal Yount ordered Bland back to the ringside are.  She angrily told him that the fans deserved a better ending to the show than that screwy finish, so she would send them home happy..."YOU'RE FIRED!"  Hmm...works for me.  Bwahahaha...

Afterwards, the group headed over to Denny's for post-show eats:  Myself, Brian Kelley from Missouri Wrestling Revival(*cheap plug*), my SICW broadcast colleague Drew Abbenhaus, & Gary Weiss.  I got a Grand Slamwich, but I wasn't overly hungry so I ended up taking half of it home.  #yayleftovers

Not much time to rest on laurels as Dynamo's back in action on Friday, marking their return to Glen Carbon after a lengthy hiatus.  Already announced:  Outlaw/Option/D'Air vs. Dirden/Magnuson/DeLorean, plus Cruz vs. "The Madman" Paco Gonzalez for the IWRG Rey De Ring Title.

My weekend was a bit more eventful than originally planned...but more on that next time.  Same Pat-Time, Same Pat-Channel.

Good night, good luck, and #yaywrestling.

P.S. We are all marks.