Indy Wrestling Express

The new Ring Of Honor video wire is up, featuring promos from Roderick Strong, Steve Corino, Jimmy Jacobs, and more! 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O26xLo9BuV4&feature=player_embedded

Chikara have uploaded Podcast-A-Go-Go 279 to Youtube. This is an instalment of their weekly web show. From now on I’ll share episodes on here as soon as they are posted. 

This week’s edition features Joshi Puroresu (Japanese Women’s Wrestling) action with Makoto vs Tsukasa Fujimoto! It is eight minutes long, so it won’t take too much time out of your day. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1VSr-k6r4s&feature=player_embedded

Thoughts: Very good match. I particularly liked Makoto’s handspring knee drop and double underhook suplex. Notice Fujimoto utilising a move very similar to Masaaki Mochizuki’s Sankakugeri. 

I love the 8 minute weekly show format. It’s a great way of keeping interest up between shows, and people don’t have to set aside a lot of time to watch it. 

Thanks to David Anderson from Wrestling Wartribe for sending the video along. You can follow the Wartribe on tumblr here: 

http://wrestlingwartribe.tumblr.com/

This is the last I’m going to post on this issue. Hopefully it will be the last time I ever have to write about Matt Hardy. 

He posted a new youtube video day stating that he was alive and well, and saying this was his “genesis” or some crap. You can view it here: 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mgPPy1fwO1w&feature=player_embedded

He then posted a lengthy explanation for his actions on Twitter. You can read the full transcription here: 

http://www.prowrestling.net/artman/publish/miscnews/article10020486.shtml

He basically admitted it was a publicity stunt, but in no way apologised. Tried to justify it all saying it was the birth of a new character something, and made out like he didn’t think the video looked like a suicide note. 

Thoughts: Ergh. Don’t get me wrong, I’m pleased he didn’t kill himself, but to sink to such lows simply for attention? He worried his friends, family and fans so much, for what? Bastard. 

FayObserver.com posted the following: 

Within an hour of the video being posted and linked on the social networking site Twitter, Moore County sheriff’s deputies received 25 to 30 calls asking for police to check on the 36-year-old at his home in the 300 block of Boys Camp Road in Cameron, said Capt. Henry Marion with the sheriff’s office.

But when Marion and another deputy showed up at Hardy’s home, he said, there were no problems.

“I shook his hand,” Marion said, “and he told me everything is fine.”

I guess I should report on this, since Matt Hardy is technically an independent wrestler now. 

I woke up this morning, to findt that Matt Hardy had posted what was apparently a suicide note on Youtube. The video had since been taken down, but reuploaded by other Youtube users. The video was purely text based, I’ll share the transcription (lifted from prowrestling.net) here: 

“Goodbye, World… My time here is Almost complete… I only have a few hours & minutes… I loved you all… Regardless of how you felt about me… I’ll miss you all… September 23, 1974 - August 31, 2011.”

Later in the night, his sister in law Beth lashed out at him on Twitter, saying the police had arrived at her and Jeff’s house at 11pm. She wrote the following:

“When the cops show up to our house at 11 pm, for a “suicide call” the fucking joke is over @MATTHARDYBRAND. Stop trying to work the Internet”

“I guess you got what you wanted @MATTHARDYBRAND. Everyone is talking about you, again. But it’s not in a good way.”

It was then reported on various sites that the police had received quite a few calls regarding Hardy, to which they responded that he was fine.

Thoughts: The backlash towards Hardy for this apparent publicity stunt has been very heavy so far. I can fully understand why if this is outed as purely a publicity stunt, but there is a chance that Hardy genuinely intended to commit suicide. More worrying still, it is still early on August the 31st. Whatever the case, it is clear that Matt Hardy is a disturbed individual, and his issues seem to have eclipsed those of his brother. I hope his friends and family encourage him to get whatever help he needs.

Mid West Wrestling is a new promotion, starting up in, you guessed it, the mid west (of America. Their debut show will take place in Ohio on January the 20th 2012. They are currently creating a buzz as they slowly announce their roster on Facebook. The roster so far features….

Jake Crist

Johnny Gargano

Sami Callihan

You can “like” them on Facebook at 

http://www.facebook.com/MidWestWrestling

You can also like the new Indy Wrestling Express Facebook page here: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Indy-Wrestling-Express/254735184549480

Rather than cram all the news regarding what will happen in September here, I’ll run another PuroMania later in the week, and dedicate this one solely to All Together.

On Saturday the 27th of August, New Japan Pro Wrestling, Pro Wrestling NOAH and All Japan Pro Wrestling joined forces for a charity mega show, titled All Together (some wrestlers from some other promotions were also featured). The aim of the show was to raise money for victims of the tsunami. Extra seating was made available after the show sold out, and ultimately over 17,000 fans crammed into the Tokyo Nippon Budokan. 

The world champions of all three promotions, Hiroshi Tanahashi (NJPW), Go Shiozaki (NOAH) and Suwama (AJPW) teamed together in the main event to defeat the all star team of Shinsuke Nakamura (NJPW), Takashi Sugiura (NOAH) and KENSO (AJPW).

Kenta Kobashi (NOAH) competed in his second match since his miraculous return from injury, teaming with Keiji Muto (AJPW) to defeat Toru Yano and Takashi Iizuka (both of NJPW). See the bottom of this article for full results. 

The event was a massive success, and a second one was announced. It will take place on the 19th of February 2012, at the Sendai Sun Plaza. 

Thoughts: It sounds like the show was every bit as spectacular as it promised to be. It looks like a hell of a lot of money was raised for the tsunami victims. Pro wrestling is often looked down upon by the outside world, but no one can look at this and think All Together was anything less than a wonderful event. 

Full results from All Together (copied from http://www.puroresufan.com/njpw/ ):

1. ALL TOGETHER Opening Match ~ SUNRISE OF J: Kota Ibushi , Taiji Ishimori , Hiroshi Yamato & BUSHI beat Tiger Mask , Kaz Hayashi , Shuji Kondo & Ricky Marvin (10:05) when Ishimori used a 450 splash on Marvin.

2. FIGHTING FOR FUTURE: Tetsuya Naito , Shuhei Taniguchi & Seiya Sanada beat Mohammed Yone , Yujiro Takahashi & Manabu Soya (11:10) when Sanada used a moonsault press on Takahashi.

3. OVER THE BORDER: Togi Makabe & Akitoshi Saito beat Hirooki Goto & Taiyo Kea (9:55) when Makabe used a King Kong kneedrop on Kea.

4. JUNIOR ONE NIGHT CARNIVAL: Prince Devitt , Ryusuke Taguchi , Kotaro Suzuki , Katsuhiko Nakajima & KAI beat Koji Kanemoto , KENTA , Yoshinobu Kanemaru , Minoru & Genba Hirayanagi (15:07) when KAI used plancha splash on Hirayanagi.

5. ONE NIGHT REUNION: Masakatsu Funaki , Takuma Sano & Jushin Thunder Liger beat Minoru Suzuki, Atsushi Aoki & Taichi (12:47) when Funaki used a standing chickenwing hold on Aoki.

6. Destroyer Cup – ALL TOGETHER Special Battle Royal: Kentaro Shiga won the Battle Royal by eliminating Gedo (11:54). Participants: Hideo Saito , Tomohiro Ishii , Gedo , Takaaki Watanabe , Hiromu Takahashi , King Fale , KUSHIDA , Wataru Inoue , Tomoaki Honma , Super Strong Machine , Jun Nishikawa , Satoshi Kajiwara , Kento Miyahara , Che-Gyong Lee , Takumi Soya , Soshun , Yasufumi Nakanoue , Masanobu Fuchi , Rene Dupree , Joe Doering , BLACK BUSHI , Masao Inoue , Yoshinari Ogawa , Akira Taue , Kentaro Shiga, MAZADA, Zack Sabre Jr.

7. MIDSUMMER ENCOUNTER IN BUDOKAN: Takeshi Morishima , Akebono, Yutaka Yoshie & Ryota Hama beat Yuji Nagata , Hiroyoshi Tenzan , Osamu Nishimura & Wataru Inoue (11:20) when Morishima used a backdrop suplex on Nishimura.

8. NO FEAR! GO AHEAD!: Kensuke Sasaki & Jun Akiyama beat Yoshihiro Takayama & Takao Omori (15:44) when Sasaki used a Northern Light bomb on Omori.

9. BELIEVE THE POWER OF “Prowrestling!”: Kenta Kobashi & Keiji Muto beat Toru Yano & Takashi Iizuka (14:58) when Kobashi used a moonsault press on Iizuka.

10. ALL TOGETHER NOW!: Hiroshi Tanahashi , Go Shiozaki & Suwama beat Shinsuke Nakamura , Takashi Sugiura & KENSO (22:50) when Tanahashi used the High Fly Flow on KENSO.

Thank you http://www.puroresufan.com/njpw ! 

It was announced today that Steve Corino will face El Generico at Death Before Dishonor IX. They had a vicious rivalry last year, and the story is that this is a test of Corino’s “sobriety” (his addiction was, well, being a heel).

Thoughts: Good stuff. I posted the rest of the line up yesterday: 

http://tumblr.com/xk34dzrjuf

NWA Hollywood Television Champion Scorpio Sky won his MMA debut on Sunday. He won in the third round via TKO (the ref called for the bell while he was pounding his opponent on the ground).

(image credit: Scorpio Sky Twitter )

Thoughts: Congratulations Scorpio Sky! Those were the only details he posted on Facebook, I’m don’t know who is opponent was or which promotion the fight took place in. I know it was in California somewhere. 

You can follow him on Twitter @ScorpioSky, and like him on Facebook at 

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Scorpio-Sky/100831133309611

You can also like Indy Wrestling Express on Facebook at: 

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Indy-Wrestling-Express/254735184549480

http://pwinsider.com posted the following:

“WWE has expressed interest in several currently signed Dragon Gate USA talents. DGUSA has noted to PWInsider.com that they will release talents from contracts if it means they will get a WWE deal, but declined to identify the talents WWE is interested in.”

Thoughts: I wonder who. Best of luck to anyone who gets signed by WWE, but I don’t want to see any of them go! 

Indy Wrestling Express is now on Facebook too! Click the following link to “like” it: 

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Indy-Wrestling-Express/254735184549480

Two more matches have been added to Ring Of Honor: Death Before Dishonoy IX (which will be broadcast live on IPPV on September the 17th). 

Shelton Benjamin vs “The Prodigy” Mike Bennett

Charlie Haas vs Michael Elgin 

The Briscoes vs the All Night Express, Eddie Edwards vs Roderick Strong (2/3 falls) and the Young Bucks vs Future Shock vs The Bravados are the other matches that have been announced. 

Thoughts: This will be only the second time each man has worked a singles match in ROH. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Shelton built up as a world title contender. 

* The first set of wrestlers were announced for the next Ring Of Honor TV tapings. View the full list here: 

http://tumblr.com/xk349shnd4

* “Slammed: Inside Indie Wrestling” aired on the National Geographic channel in the USA last week. Did you watch the show? Let me know how it was! 

* It was announced that the Young Bucks will be in a three way elimination tag team match at the next Ring Of Honor IPPV. Full details here: 

http://tumblr.com/xk34ar6e6p

* Johnny Gargano vs Naruki Doi was announced for the Dragon Gate USA show on September the 11th in Milwaukee. 

* DGUSA are allowing the fans to choose the stipulations for two matches for their next set of shows. Click here for details on how to vote: 

http://tumblr.com/xk34az64w6

* Pro Wrestling Guerrilla announced the line up for their next show. Kevin Steen will defend the world title against Davey Richards in the main event. View the full line up here: 

http://tumblr.com/xk34dbq9lo

* Chikara held Young Lions Cup IX on Saturday. It was supposed to take place over two days, but was turned into a one-day supershow because of the hurricane. Osaka Pro Wrestling star Tadasuke ultimately won the Young Lions Cup. Full results here: 

http://tumblr.com/xk34d5i8g4

A video documenting the feud between RJ Singh and El Ligero from FWA, one of the top wrestling promotions in the UK. 

Click the following link to view it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3SYNBx4uh1U&feature=player_embedded>

Thoughts: I’m watching it as I type. Impressive production. Worth checking out wherever you are in the world!

The CZW: Wired TV taping tonight has been postponed due to the hurricane. The event is yet to be rescheduled

The show will take place on September the 10th, at the usual American Legion post in Reseda, California.

PWG World Championship match: Kevin Steen (c) vs Davey Richards

PWG World Tag Team Championship match: The Young Bucks (Matt and Nick Jackson - champions) vs the Dynasty (Joey Ryan and Scorpio Sky)

El Generico vs Rocky Romero

RockNES Monsters (Johnny Goodtime and Johnny Yuma) vs Super Smash Brothers (Player Uno and Player Dos)

Eddie Edwards vs TJP

Willie Mack vs Ryan Taylor

Peter Avalon vs Brian Cage-Taylor

Thoughts: Yet another awesome PWG line up! Ironic that Davey will be in a world title match for PWG, but not ROH in September.

Young Lions Cup day 2 has been cancelled due to the hurricane. Sorry, I would have reported this yesterday, but I missed it on the Chikara Twitter page. 

Luckily, the decision to cancel was made yesterday, so the start time of that show was brought forward and it turned into a super show, featuring the entire tournament

Thoughts: I hope none of our readers have been affected by the hurricane. Keep safe folks! 

I’ll post the results in chronological order: 

Green Ant won the Young Lions Eliminator 1 (vs Kobald vs Robbie Eagles vs Will O The Wisp II)

Jakob Hammermeier won the Young Lions Eliminator 2 (vs Greg Iron vs Chase Owens vs Obariyon)

Matt Jackson defeated Johnny Gargano

Archibald Peck won the Young Lions Eliminator 3 (vs Matt Fitchett vs MK McKinnan vs Milo Shizo)

Tadasuke won the Young Lions Eliminator 4 (vs Nick Jackson vs Sean South vs Mark Andrews)

Hallowicked defeated Sara Del Rey (“12 Large: Summit” tournament match)

Fire Ant defeated Vin Gerard (“12 Large: Summit” tournament match)

INTERMISSION

Green Ant defeated Jakob Hammermeier (Young Lions Cup semi final)

Tadasuke defeated Archibald Peck (Young Lions Cup semi final)

Ultramantis Black defeated Pinkie Sanchez

Icarus defeated Claudio Castagnoli (“12 Large: Summit” tournament match)

The Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson) defeated the Batiri (Obariyon & Kodama)

Tadasuke defeated Green Ant (Young Lions Cup final)

Thoughts: Congratulations Tadasuke! For anyone wondering, he is from Osaka Pro Wrestling (in Japan).

What a loaded show. Hopefully everyone with tickets got the news that the start time was moved, and hopefully everyone who was originally only going to day 2 made it to this show (their tickets were made valid for both). 

If you attended, let us know how it went! indywrestling@hotmail.co.uk

I’ve made a new page dedicated to downloadable matches. You can find it at any time by clicking the “Downloads” tab on the left of this page, or by clicking the following URL:

http://indywrestling.tumblr.com/downloads

The page currently features links to three matches that have been made available for free download by Dragon Gate USA and EVOLVE. I will add any more that become available. 

Do any other promotions have matches available for free download? Let me know and I will share the links here! 

Yesterday, Becky Bayless announced on Twitter (@becky_bayless) that she has left TNA. 

“Good morning booskis! New day & new twitter name…A big thank you to my TNA fam & fans, but it’s time to move on…excited for what’s next!”

In TNA, she worked under the name “Cookie”, in a Jersey Shore inspired duo with Robbie E (Rob Eckos). Former Jersey Shore star Angelina Pivarnick was a member of their group for a short period of time.

Bayless also announced that she will be wrestling at the WSU PPV on November the 19th.

It’s my birthday today so I’m taking the day off! Hopefully no huge news will break while I’m absent. Since I’ve said that, something ridiculous like John Cena walking out of WWE and signing with CZW will probably happen. 

See you tomorrow folks!