Now, as promised, a special comment about the Wrestling Over Everything show on Sunday, August 12th at the River's Edge Community Center in Centreville, Illinois.
DISCLAIMER: I'm biased. Deal with it.
This weekend in August was relatively low-key with the Mid-Missouri Wrestling Alliance event the previous night followed by WOE on Sunday. The turnout was slightly better than it had been the previous month, at any rate...only time will tell if the promotion can improve its overall product over time. Mike Outlaw was in attendance at this show as well...cue Rich Swann references...
Your ring announcer was Chris Kaelin; your referee was Jason Pemberton.
"The Infamous" Tyler Copeland vs. "The Canadian Boss" Trystan Brady Shadeux: I think Copeland was wanting to get Benjamin Trust in the ring, but he was denied for the second show in a row...so he issued an open challenge that was answered by Shadeux. Copeland was already frustrated by not getting the opponent he wanted...Shadeux's stalling tactics did not improve his state of mind. The lack of focus may have made the difference for the former Heavyweight Champion, as Shadeux scored the huge upset via superkick in 7:58.
The Big Texan vs. Jake Prater: This HOSS FEUD has been raging for several months...they tried to join forces in the WOE Tag Team Title tournament, but the alliance fell apart after one match. No one goes into a match like this expecting a lot of technical exchanges or aerial maneuvers, nor should they...big dudes are an intergral part of wrestling, particularly when a heroic type needs someone to bodyslam. Rivalries such as this one also lead to particularly intense staredowns in battle royals, though it's up to the discretion of the viewer as to who is the "irresistable force" and who is the "immovable object". In this case, Texan's experience made the different as he won with the big splash in 5:04...he added an exclamation point to his victory by ramming Prater into the ringpost before leaving the ringside area.
The Sabotage Squad(Krispy 2 Pop & John Boi) vs. The Space Cowboys(Brian Valor & Alex Taylor) for the Tag Team Titles: Guess we finally got some competition for the Squad, though they might want to get the license plate number of that face turn that hit them without warning. I'd seen Valor at Wrestling Invades America and WOE in the past; would like to see him in the area more often. While the challengers had the benefit of a team name, some suitable attire(like, say, cowboy hats) would have been nice...to their credit, they stayed in the match until the very end. A slight miscommunication between the partners led to John Boi rolling up Taylor for the pin in 7:08. During and after the bout, the champs found themselves occupied with a pair of interested onlookers in the front row: Sid Holland & J.C.J. of "No Coast", who The Landlord announced as being the recipients of the next tag title shot.
Brandon Espinosa vs. Kevin Zion: The debuting Zion was scheduled to face LaMarcus Clinton, but L.M.C. was absent...Espy has been focused on life matters outside the ring recently and this was his first match in several weeks. (That's saying something, considering how busy he kept himself for most of his career.) Espy didn't look rusty at all and he tends to bring out the best in his opponents, so this was a fine matchup...the match was competitive enough that Espy had to win off a reversal into a jackknife cradle in 12:56.
The Landlord(who may or may not have some degree of power in WOE; I've honestly lost track) brought out The Enforcer...Enforcer had a four-corner match a few months back to earn a WOE contract but was on the losing end of the fall. However, he wanted a second chance...he seemed to be very soft-spoken to the point where Landlord had to repeat his message. Landlord said he could have a match at the following month's show...then punctuated that by delivering a cheapshot with a cookie sheet followed by a Rock Bottom, because why not?
Intermission~! Official Ben Simon Concession Count(tm): Mountain Dew and fruit punch Gatorade.
"The Little Blue Dragon" Tootie Lynn Ramsey vs. Harley James: This was a rematch from July when Tootie scored the victory. This time around, Harley didn't take any chances as she attacked Tootie during her skin-the-cat entrance to the ring. While Tootie agreed to go on with the match, she was at a disadvantage and Harley dominated the action once the bell had sounded. A lot can be said about toughness and heart, but some nights they aren't quite enough to earn you the victory...Harley won with the Flatliner in 3:37, but I suspect the story isn't over yet between these two.
"The Unholy Father" Richard Faith vs. "The Notorious" P.T. Beckham for the Interstate Title: Beckham won a triple threat match with The Big Texan and Jake Prater to earn this shot. Faith had a slight edge in size and experience as well as the traditional champion's advantage, as he had no qualms about using his "good book" or another foreign object. Faith slowed the pace with his power, but Beckham was able to land a rope-handspring Cutter to turn the tide. Beckham paid tribute to the recently-departed Brian Christopher by donning aviator's goggles for his top-rope elbowdrop, but it only got a two-count. Faith nearly caught P.T. in his Blackhole Slam finisher but Beckham countered into a DDT for a very close near-fall (Faith got a foot on the bottom rope). Beckham didn't waste any time, following up with the advanced curbstomp to capture the Interstate Title in 6:57! The new titleholder didn't have much time to celebrate as the hunter had become the hunted...Brady Shadeux(fresh off his big win earlier in the night) hit the ring to drop Beckham with a superkick.
"2.0" Da'Marius Jones vs. "The Incomparable" Deacon Cash for the Heavyweight Title: These two had several strong bouts over the Mid-Missouri Wrestling Alliance Cruiserweight Title...while the scenery and title belt may have changed, the bad blood remained. The two couldn't even wait for the opening bell as they brawled on the floor, ending with Cash landing a blatant kick to the groin...despite the early disadvantage, Jones agreed to go ahead with the match. The opening bell rang and Cash thought he could cruise to victory, but Jones caught him with the Paydirt out of nowhere for an early near-fall! The fight quickly traveled back to the floor, leading to Jones spearing Cash through the entrance doors of the venue...Cash retaliated by putting a nearby metal chair to good use. They made it back to the ring where Jones missed a frog splash and Cash delivered his signature lariat, but it only got him a two-count. Jones stunned Cash with a superkick and then followed up with a chokeslam...for two. Jones set up for another superkick but Cash took his head off with a second lariat...for 2 1/2! However, that kickout turned out to be all Jones had left...Cash lined up and connected with a third lariat and that turned out to be the charm as he finally pinned Jones in 14:17 to become the NEWWWWW WOE Heavyweight Champion! Cash decided to make a post-match statement, laying out the former champ with the belt and a chair before taking his leave...
EDIT: You know, I forgot to put any kind of closing statement here...I do intend to get caught up, honest.
That's my special comment for this, the forty-ninth wrestling show I've attended in the year 2018. Good night, good luck, and #yaywrestling.
-PB, Watching Wrestling Wrong Since 1991
P.S. We are all marks.
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