Now, as promised, a special comment about last Saturday's Southern Illinois Championship Wrestling show at the Community Center in East Carondelet, Illinois.
DISCLAIMER: I'm biased. Deal with it.
The main story of the night was a packed house and questionable air conditioning, leaving the fans in a rather sweaty environment...by the end of the night, the venue actually ran out of bottled water. The main story on my end was completely forgetting about the earlier start time; since the last time I attended a show in East Carondelet, they had moved their start time from 8 PM back to 7 PM. I realized this fact slightly before 7:00 so I jumped in the car and rushed to East Carondelet as fast as possible...as it turned out, the show began with an extended talking segment so I didn't miss any matches!
Your ring announcer was Drew Abbenhaus; your referees were Shaft, Jay King, and Nick Ridenour.
Promoter Herb Simmons hyped the upcoming shows, including an appearance by Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat in Swansea. Former Classic Champion made his first appearance in East Carondelet since retiring and forfeiting the title, thanking the fans for their support after the death of his father. USA Championship Wrestling promoter Bert Prentice was in the house as the show featured the debut of their Tag Team Champions, The Starr Twins(Nathan & Matthew). As I finally entered the building(fans filled me in on the rest), Herb was interrupted by Bubba Troll who wanted to issue an open bodyslam challenge...Herb made it so.
Keith Smith Jr. vs. Ax Allwardt: I believed these two crossed paths once in the past and wrestled to a time-limit draw. Keith Jr. is using his father's old theme music("Back In Black" by AC/DC). Keith's a big boy, billed at around 280 lbs. These two have similar styles and had a solid opener, ending with Ax's piledriver in 6:16.
Bodily Harm(Bobby D & "The Enforcer" Jimmy D) vs. The Starr Twins(Nathan & Matthews): The Starrs had their championship gold with them; this was my first time seeing them in action. While the low ceiling probably impeded their bigger aerial moves, they had a strong showing in their Midwest debut...I hope to see more of them in the St. Louis area down the line. The finish saw Nathan superkick Bobby D into Matthew's German suplex for the three-count in 10:22...cue post-match mutual respect and all that.
Promoter Herb Simmons interviewed "The Raging Bull" Manny Fernandez about his career...as has become tradition, Travis Cook interrupted in an attempt to make a name for himself. Travis said he had found the true toughest man in Texas, "The New Raging Bull"...the man in question looked suspiciously like Waco with a slightly altered mask. At any rate, the match was set for later in the evening.
Intermission~! Official Ben Simon Concession Count(tm): Two bottles of water, Pepsi, and Mountain Dew. With the conditions of the building, it was a good idea to stay hydrated...
Bubba Troll Open Bodyslam Challenge: Each segment had opening and closing bells as each individual "challenger" stepped up to the plate...you won by successfully bodyslamming the opponent. The Big Texan was the first to step up to the plate...he matched up well with Troll but was unable to slam him. Troll bodyslammed Texan to win that challenge in 0:20. Next up was Keith Smith Jr. who had some height and leverage on Troll, but he wasn't up to the task and Troll slammed him to the mat in 0:13. Ax Allwardt tried to stick and move, but it wasn't enough and Troll powered him down in 0:25. "The Enforcer" Jimmy D gave it a go, but Troll slammed him in 0:15. Last up was "Big Country" Clint Poe...it seemed like he had a decent shot at getting the job done, but Poe's slam attempt didn't quit work out(shenanigans were alleged but I didn't see anything; update as warranted once I see the video on Wrestling Explosion). Troll bodyslammed Poe in 0:21 and that was all she wrote...however, the tension boiled over as everyone ganged up on Troll, leading to Poe successfully slamming Troll! Of course, Troll said that bodyslam didn't count...
"The Raging Bull" Manny Fernandez vs. The New Raging Bull(w/ Travis Cook): I am admittedly unfamiliar with Fernandez's work; he did bring his gear in case he ended up in a match. Manny kept it basic with mat-based holds to control the action...the fans enjoyed the action so that's what counts. Travis got frustrated and tried to interfere, but Fernandez ran the masked man into his manager and got the rollup pin in 5:57. Travis misheard the ring announcement and thought his man had won...he was disappointed to hear the true result.
Flash Flanagan & "Night Train/Gorgeous/Great One" Gary Jackson vs. Cowboy Marc Houston & Johnny Blade(w/ Big Daddy): All four men have recent history, including Jackson's claim that he could escape Blade's figure-four leglock. Jackson had a chance to test that theory as Blade locked him in his signature hold...Gary managed to reverse the hold, but the referee was occupied with Flanagan and Houston on the floor. Big Daddy entered the ring and whacked Gary with his cane, allowing Blade to turn the hold back over...when the official returned to the ring, Gary was down and out so he was counted down for three in 10:41. This issue is far from settled...
Intermission numero dos~! Concessions were half off at this point, but the hamburgers were sold out by the time I decided to go to the table. In the meantime, Manny Fernandez was just chilling in the bar area and chatting with nearby fans...heh. "Your Canadian Hero" Sean Vincent came out for some small talk on the microphone, noting that he was scheduled to face Jayson Khaos but Khaos couldn't make it to the show.
Moondog Rover vs. "Volatile" Curtis Wylde, dog collar match, referee Wyldefyre: After Wyldefyre counted down her man last month(it has been acknowledged that the two are husband and wife), she was appointed as the referee for this match as well. The stipulation dictated that the loser would have to stay away from Wyldefyre. This was the tag-four-corners variety of dog collar match, though Wyldefyre accidentally went to count a pin at one point...whoops. Both competitors ended up bloody by the end of it...we got the now-standard finishing sequence to this style of match with a man tagging the corners behind his opponent until both had tagged three corners. (That applies to any tag-four-corners bout like bullrope, strap, or chain/dog collar...trace it back to the Savio Vega-Steve Austin strap match from 1996.) The two fought before the final corner and Wyldefyre finally had to intervene...by kicking Moondog below the belt. Wylde tagged the final corner, leading to some P.D.A. with his wife before she finally decided to call for the closing bell in 10:44. So ends that particular story...
"Ironman" Ken Kasa vs. "Superstar" Steve Fender(w/ Travis Cook): Classic Champion "The Icon" Chris Hargas, oddly left without a match for the evening, joined the television commentary for the bout...I can only assume this was an unofficial top-contenders' bout. These two have had some really good bouts in the past and this was no different, though I don't think they've fought to a decisive winner yet. Travis got involved(as usual), allowing Hargas to BELT Kasa on the floor...that brought out Flash Flanagan to chase down the champion, but he slipped on the floor and fell badly. He came up clutching his shoulder; he had previously injured his collarbone, if I remember correctly, so I can only hope that he didn't reaggravate it. Fender missed his swandive headbutt and Kasa lined up for his John Wu Dropkick, but Cook blatantly grabbed his foot to intervene and got his man disqualified in 13:30. With Flanagan out of commission, Gary Jackson and Sean Vincent hit the ring to save Kasa from a double-team beatdown by Hargas and Fender. Jackson stepped up to challenge Hargas...I wonder if that was an audible and it was supposed to be Hargas-Flanagan as the next championship match. Ah well, such is life...
As you can tell, I'm extremely far behind on these commentaries...I went to Dynamo Pro last night, but I'll have to miss the National Wrasslin' League show in St. Peters tonight as I'm doing a guest set at Hey Guys Comedy with headliner Josh Blue(former Last Comic Standing winner). There's also Pro Wrestling Championship Series in Alton, IL on Sunday, so it'll be another full weekend.
LAST weekend wasn't quite over for me, but that's another story for another time...tune in next time. Same Pat-Time, Same Pat-Channel.
That's my special comment for this, the forty-third 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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