Now, as promised, a special comment about Saturday's Dynamo Pro Wrestling show at the Concordia Turners Gymnasium in St. Louis, Missouri.
DISCLAIMER: I'm biased. Deal with it.
Dynamo's been in limbo for a while, searching for steady venues while trying to find its niche in a suddenly-loaded St. Louis wrestling scene. It wasn't as difficult when there were only a handful of other groups in the region, but nowadays there can be multiple choices in a weekend. On this Saturday, World League Wrestling had a show in Troy, MO and the Mid-Missouri Wrestling Alliance had its monthly offering at the South Broadway Athletic Club in a different part of the STL.
The company experienced the departure of several key players at the end of 2016; Ricky Cruz retired and several wrestlers(Jake Dirden, Kevin Lee Davidson, and Mike Outlaw) departed for the National Wrasslin' League with exclusive deals. On top of that, D-1 Champion Michael Elgin's students haven't been as available as in the past. "The Valedictorian" Keon Option(who happens to be one-half of the current Tag Team Champions) has been M.I.A. for several months, leaving the tag scene up in the air.
Concordia Turners Gym has the potential to be a really good venue for the company; it reminded me a bit of the Wild Acres Gym in Overland, MO where Gateway Championship Wrestling had many key shows. The turnout wasn't that big, but the curse of nice weather(not to mention the other area shows) may have been a factor. Talent availability didn't help as Heavyweight Champion Brandon Aarons was competing in California, meaning no current titleholders were at the event.
Your ring announcers were Chris Roedel & Luke Roberts; your referee was Scott Ramsey.
Nero vs. The Snitch: Nero is a competitor from the Quincy, Illinois area and yes, I had to be the asshole who shouted out "I KNEEEEEW YOU'D COOOOOME!" I hadn't seen him before, but he looked like a solid competitor...hopefully he'll be back. He pulled off some impressive aerial moves, including a somersaulting suicide dive a la Homicide. Snitch used some underhanded tactics to score the win, pushing the ref into the ropes to crotch Nero on the turnbuckles. After that, Snitch got the pinfall with feet on the ropes in 9:02.
Frodo "The Ghost" Meyer vs. Mauler McDarby: I've underestimated Frodo a bit in my short time seeing him, but appearances can be deceiving; he's been putting in the work and competing for several area promotions. McDarby is underrated in his own right and I've been one of the biggest advocates for him and Shawn Santel. It looked like things would play out the same way as they did at Cinco De Mayo with C.J. Shine; the referee confiscated McDarby's shillelagh, only for McDarby to coldcock Frodo with brass knuckles while the referee was getting the original weapon out of the ring. McDarby got the three-count in 5:20, but he made the mistake of hiding the knucks under his arm and they fell to the mat when the official raised his hand. That led to a decision reversal and Frodo got the DQ victory...McDarby attempted to attack his opponent after the bell, only to be dispatched with a wheelbarrow DDT.
Outtkast vs. "The Alternative" Ozzie Gallagher: Gallagher made his return to action at Cinco De Mayo with shorter hair(thanks to a mask vs. hair match with Makaze several months ago); he was hoping to establish himself in the D-1 Title picture by beating the former two-time titleholder. I was sitting with longtime area wrestling fan Tommy Peterson and we recalled Outtkast's days in Gateway Championship Wrestling; while Outtkast is bulkier than he was in his light heavyweight days, he never lost the agility. For whatever reason, he's rarely ventured outside of the St. Louis wrestling scene; he appeared a handful of times for 3XW in Iowa and NWA Wildside in Georgia. It may take some time for Gallagher to get back on the winning track, as he lost to Tag Team Champion Justin D'Air at Cinco De Mayo. He put up a good fight against the former D-1 and Tag Champ, but Outtkast put him away with the Case Study in 9:00.
Intermission~! Official Ben Simon Concession Count(tm): Nachos and a Coca-Cola.
C.J. Shine vs. "The Wind Of Destruction" Makaze: Shine was in his usual party mood, dancing with several ringside fans(I confess to nothing) as well as the referee and ring announcer Chirs Roedel. Makaze wasn't necessarily a "rulebreaker" at Cinco De Mayo, but he was in a surly mood against Frodo Meyer and C.J. Shine. Prior to the bout, Makaze apologized for his previous actions and said he got carried away...but the handshake was marred by a cheapshot by the masked man. He probably hoped to ride the wave of momentum after his win over Ozzie Gallagher, but he came up short against then-D-1 Champion Outtkast...frustration can make anyone resort to excessive measures. Makaze had the big edge in experience, but he made a crucial mistake when he missed a plancha to the floor. Despite that, he recovered enough to deliver his signature Northern Lights fisherman suplex...but Shine surprisingly kicked out at two. Shine managed to rally against his veteran opponent...it seemed like the youngster was overmatched, but he overcame the odds and got the upset win with a springboard dropkick in 9:05! Shine celebrated after the match, even encouraging the referee to do his own cartwheel...all righty then.
"Lights Out" Adrian Surge vs. "The Filipino Warrior" Elvis Aliaga: This match was initially pushed as a top-contenders bout with Heavyweight Champion Brandon Aarons out of town; that put Surge in the odd position of being the fan favorite against Aliaga. It was also the only match that was announced ahead of time...the wrestling talent of the area was spread out across Dynamo, MMWA, and WLW (among other places). Both men had challenged Aarons for his title in recent months; Aliaga came up short against Aarons in February while Surge got a DQ win over the champion at Cinco De Mayo, only to fall to him in a no-disqualification bout later in the day. In front of a fresh audience, Surge had no problem with garnering the fan support against the arrogant Filipino. Aliaga gained the advantage and appeared to be setting up for his T.C.B.(Falcon Arrow) finisher, but Surge double-legged him to the mat and got the flash pin with a jackknife cradle in 15:50!
Since the show wrapped up fairly early, I chatted with a few people before departing and then made my way to the South Broadway Athletic Club...but I only arrived in time to see the final match of the night(Gary Jackson & Brian James vs. A.J. Williams & B.T. Daramola). I had to catch the ladder match on YouTube, but it was a tremendous outing.
The upcoming schedule looks like this:
-Saturday 5/20: Southern Illinois Championship Wrestling in East Carondelet, IL; Wrestling Over Everything in Centreville, IL
-Sunday 5/21: National Wrasslin' League in St. Louis, MO
-Friday 5/26: Glory Pro Wrestling in Alton, IL
-Friday 6/2: Dynamo Pro Wrestling in Grafton, IL
-Sunday 6/4: Ring Of Honor in Collinsville, IL; NWL in St. Louis, MO
-Saturday 6/10: Pro Wrestling Championship Series in Alton, IL; Mid-Missouri Wrestling Alliance in St. Louis, MO
-Sunday 6/11: Wrestling Over Everything in Centreville, IL
-Saturday 6/17: World League Wrestling in Troy, MO; SICW in East Carondelet, IL
-Sunday 6/18: NWL in St. Louis, MO
Sunday 6/25: Pro Wrestling Resurgence in Swansea, IL
That's my special comment for this, the twenty-first wrestling show I've attended in the year 2017. Good night, good luck, and #yaywrestling.
-PB, Watching Wrestling Wrong Since 1991
P.S. We are all marks.
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