Indy Wrestling Express

Thanks very much to Tony from http://www.shiningwizards.com for another great review. This one is from Pro Wrestling Syndicate: Refuse 2 Lose 2012, which took place on Friday the 4th of May. I’ll hand you over to him: 

I went to the PWS Refuse to Lose show in Rahway Friday night with my friend Pete and his nine year old son Pete. Here is what went down.

We arrived at the building around seven or so. There was a line for Bret Hart out the door, which meant he was there, which was a good thing. However, if he wasn’t there I was hoping we could all get his number and call him. But I’m glad he showed up. There were a few wrestlers in the lobby taking photos and selling stuff. Pretty much the same guys from last the show in March…however…there was one…one Wrestler that I didn’t remember seeing at the last show. Surrounded by fans…it was Virgil. This made me happy. For some reason I always got a kick out of Virgil. So that was a treat. Anyway, onto the show.

There were a few Prelim matches with some guys I didn’t catch the names of, but they were all pretty good. Pat Buck was in one of them, I believe it was a tournament match of some sort. He won and slapped little Pete’s hand which made him happy. Later on in the night Bret Hart bopped little Pete in the head which made Pete and I happy.

The REAL show began around 8:15 with Reality Check hitting the ring and Jay Lethal cutting an awesome heel promo. He makes a great heel. However, I thought it would be pretty damn cool if he was Black Machismo King and wore a crown while playing a heel. But either way Jay does the heel bit well. Even Red looked like a cocky arrogant SOB flipping off the crowd. Somewhere in a warehouse Don West Wept.

First match was QT Marshal V. Mike Dennis. Marshal reminded me of an old school heel wrestler you would see in the NWA. And he was a solid wrestler. Dennis picked up the win in a decent match.

Next up, Bret Hart comes out and does a little promo in the ring putting over the PWS and saying how great it was to be in a locker room with guys like Demoliton and Jannetty again. He looked good. Nice Ovation for Bret. Glad he was there.

A Tag Team Gauntlet match was next. Enhancement Talent were out first, and out next were…well the wrong music played first…but then….HERE COMES THE AX HERE COMES THE SMASH!!! Holy crap, the crazy thing is that most of the kids in the crowd were probably not even born yet when Demolition were together. But they were over HUGE. And I’m not going to lie, Ax looked good and Smash looked thinner than the last time I saw him. They made quick work of Enhancement Talent and finished them off with a Hart Attack. Next team was Mark Modest and Mark Matrix. The Demo got themselves DQ’D when they threw the ref around. What is it with these 80′s WWF tag teams hating on PWS ref’s. First the Powers of Pain, then Demolition. It would be funny if they had the Rock and Roll express there next show just kick the ever living crap out of one of the ref’s. Anyway, next team in was the Phat Pack…who were fat. But they were awesome. I like these guys. They take out the Marks and then they quickly destroy a team called Grave Encounters. The right team won this match and the crowd ate it up.

Dan Maff V. Red was next. These two know how to pace a match. Great stuff. Red hits a reverse Frankenstiener (I will always call it that) on Maff and it looked sick. The end saw Kevin Matthews (Who looks like a star) bop Maff on the head with a chair while the ref wasn’t looking. Red gets the win, and Maff looks hurt. Luckily this time he was okay. Unlike in March when he was REALLY hurt.

Here comes my favorite match of the night. Hardy V. Colt…V….TEDDY HART!!! First off, Matt is in great shape. And Teddy Hart! I have never seen this kid work live but I have seen some tapes. A lot of people say he’s hard to work with or whatever, but damn this kid can go. He took some crazy bumps to the outside. One bump looked pretty sick. He landed on the top of the guard rail. And PWS uses these pointy looking guard rails, so it looked pretty painful. Fun match…everyone worked great. Hart gets the win over Colt with the Canadian Destroyer. Looked awesome. Colt has balls to take that move. On a side note, Hardy told Colt to do the flying off the back Hardy splash into the corner. Colt stalled but finally agreed. First time he ran AROUND Matt…second time he jumped on Matt’s back and Hardy just flattened on the mat. Funny stuff.

One Warrior Nation was out next to take on Helter Skeltor. I enjoy OWN. Crowd gives him hell but damn I like the guy. OWN flips off the crowd after a nothing match.

But wait…it’s not over. Here comes the team of Pure Black. One of which is about 500 pounds and looks like Shirley from What’s Happening. This guy is awesome…he hits a top rope moonsault killing Mr. Helter and the crowd just goes nuts. They chant one more time…soooo he hits another in a different corner…the crowd chants again…so he hits a third. At this point, some officials and Teddy Hart scrape up this mess of a wrestler off the mat and take him to the back. The big guy who did the moonsaults is named Lucifer Darkside. How bad ass is that?

Kevin Matthews and Devon Moore are out next to take on the Young Bucks. Jesus, Kevin Matthews looks like a guy you would see on the top of the card in the WWE. He can talk, he has a great look and he can wrestle. And the Bucks are just so fluid with their moves. Good match. Matthews and Moore get the win. I wonder if Pat Buck is related to the Young Bucks.

Jerry Lynn V. Marty Jannetty was next. Marty put in a nice effort, but you can tell that it’s been a long time since he had to try and keep up with someone like Jerry Lynn. The match was decent, and Lynn won with a cross body reversal. After the match, Lynn told the crowd that he asked for this match and he was glad he got it. Thank you Jerry and Marty chants broke out. My buddy Pete had a tear in his eye.

Moving right along, we get Adam Cole, V. Brian XL V. Samuray Del Sol (WHO IS AMAZING!!!! Think Sin Cara but botch free, faster, and flashier) V. Zema Ion (TNA GUY who is fantastic) V. Two guys from Teddy Hart’s wrestling School. So it was a six man match with what I think were Lucha Rules. Anyway…fast paced action and great dive spots. This Del Sol is terrific! Del Sol picks up the win in the end with a springboard rana into a pin. (Like Rey used to do when he…you know, did moves and wasn’t suspended) I believe he pinned Brian XL.

Here come the ladies. Jillian Hall (Who looks to be in great shape) and her partner Reby Sky (Who I believe to be Matt Hardy’s lady friend) V. Maria Kanellis and Brittney Savage. Pretty much the usual Ladies Match. I was busy texting a picture someone took of Virgil and I to a few people so I wasn’t really paying attention.(I have a pretty good Virgil Story I’ll share on the next show) Reby and Jillian get the win.

At this point it was getting pretty late. Pete had to get up at five in the morning for work the next day and his son had to get up at eight for baseball practice, so we left. However Sami Callihan beat Lethal in the Main Event to retain the PWS title in what I hear was a great match.

All in all a much more enjoyable show than the Super Show in March. Hell, I even enjoyed One Warrior Nation. I would have loved to see the main event but people had to get up the next day. People and their stupid responsibilities like work and sports. This show was organized, it flowed, and the matches were great. Nothing pissed me off (Like the hardcore match from the March show). I’ll continue showing my support for these Rahway Rec. Center Shows, and I highly suggest you do the same. Thank you PWS for washing that horrible disgusting taste that the Extreme Reunion Show left in my mouth last week. And it’s always great to sit with Vicious Vin during these shows. Hopefully we will have him on the Shinging Wizards Podcast soon! See ya!

Pro Wrestling Syndicate: Refuse 2 Lose 2012 took place on Friday (the 4th of May) in New Jersey. Thanks to David Anderson for sharing the results, which I believe he obtained from the PWS Facebook page: 

1) Mike Dennis defeated QT Marshall

2) The Phat Pack won a Tag Team Gauntlet match to become #1 contenders to the Tag Team Titles held by The Lone Rangers

3) Amazing Red beat Dan Maff

4) Teddy Hart defeated Matt Hardy and Colt Cabana in a Triple Threat

5) One Warrior Nation beat Hellter Skelter. Post match Black Up (Darksyde & Devious) cleaned house featuring the near 500 pound Darksyde hitting FOUR top rope moonsaults on Hellter

6) Jerry Lynn defeated Marty Jannetty.

7) Reality Check (Matthews/Moore) defeated The Young Bucks

8) Samuray Del Sol won a Suicidal Six Way over Zema Ion, Adam Cole, Brian XL, and two of Teddy Hart’s top proteges from Canada

9) Jillian Hall & Reby Sky defeated Maria Kanellis & Brittney Savage

10) Sami Callihan retained The PWS Heavyweight Championship by submitting Jay Lethal

Thoughts: That looks like a solid card. I’m surprised Hardy/Cabana/Hart went on so early, I thought that would have been the semi main event. If you attended the show, feel free to send a review to indywrestling@hotmail.co.uk and I’ll share it here. 

- Lee

The line up is on the poster, but I’ll write it here too since some of the writing is small. 

PWS Championship: Sami Callihan (c) vs Jay Lethal

Matt Hardy vs Colt Cabana

Jerry Lynn vs Marty Janetty

Young Bucks vs Reality Check

Amazing Red vs Dan Maff

Adam Cole vs Zema Ion vs Samuray Del Sol vs Brian XL

Maria Kanellis & Brittney Savage vs Reby Sky & Jillian Hall

Other names are also advertised for the show, including Bret Hart. 

Thoughts: PWS cards consistently feature a great mix of former WWE/TNA wrestlers, legends and the cream of the indy crop. There’s really something for everyone on these shows. If you attend, feel free to send a review to indywrestling@hotmail.co.uk

- Lee

The next Pro Wrestling Syndicate show will take place in Rahway, New Jersey the 2nd of May. The following matches have been announced:

Sami Callihan vs Jay Lethal

Matt Hardy vs Colt Cabana

Jerry Lynn vs Marty Jannetty

Demolition vs The Dream Team (Greg Valentine and Brutus Beefcake)

Maria Kannelis and Brittney Savage vs Jillian Hall and Reby Sky

Adam Cole vs Brian XL vs Samura Del Sol vs Zema Ion

Bret Hart will be appearing.

Thanks to Rob Hawkins for passing that along. 

Thoughts: Good stuff. I like how they provide a few legends, a bit of former TV talent, and some of the top indy guys. There’s something for everyone, and it exposes wrestlers to audiences that wouldn’t normally see them.

- Lee

The following are a few excerpts from a email that was sent into http://wrestlezone.com yesterday from Pro Wrestling Syndicate co-owner Eric Tapout, explaining the situation regarding Sid ‘Vicious’ Eudy’s no-show at the PWS event on Friday. To read the full email, check out the article here, it’s a great read.

“The way we handled the Sid No Show was definitely a controversial move.  Some will side with it and of course likewise some will be vocal against.  Please understand though this is our third miserable experience with Sid which is what really pushed us over the top. Sid has burned us three times now…”

“…at 10:45am on Friday March 9th PWS received a phone call from Sid which went as follows: 

SID:   “Man I’m not going to make it” 
(awkward pause waiting for him to say ‘hey just kidding’)
PWS:  “What’s wrong are you okay” 
SID:   “Man the thing is, I went into a deli to buy a soda and someone stole my wallet. DAMMIT!” 
PWS:  “Wow that’s really horrible, where are you now” 
SID:    “I’m home and now I gotta waste the day calling to cancel my credit cards”. 
PWS:  “Is there any way possible we can book you on a later flight and get you into New Jersey tonight” 
SID:    “They stole my ID , I can’t do nothing, I’ll talk to you”
-end call-“

“…once again we apologize that Sid was not at PWS on March 9th to wrestle Matt Hardy.  We tried guys, we really did, multiple times.  Balls Mahoney vs Mary Jannetty was added so fans could still experience a match that has never happened before and likely will never happen again.  Jay Lethal was added to wrestle Matt Hardy which ended up being a stellar bout which saw Lethal enter to Sid’s music doing a spot-on Sid impersonation including his own rendition of the infamous “I have half the brain that you do” promo.”

Thoughts: A soundly written letter that, while certainly not justifying Sid’s number being given out to the crowd, definitely makes the situation more understandable. You can definitely sympathise with Eric Tapout, although putting that much faith in a guy who had screwed you over twice before isn’t exactly a stroke of genius.

-Adrian

Pro Wrestling Syndicate: Supercard 2012 took place in Rahway, New Jersey last night. The advertised main event was Matt Hardy vs Psycho Sid Vicious, but Sid missed his flight, apparently due to his wallet being stolen, so the promoter phoned him in the ring at the start of the show, and gave out was supposedly Sid’s phone number to the booing crowd. 

Thoughts: How classy…

Jay Lethal was booked as Sid’s replacement.

Fall Count Anywhere: Balls Mahoney defeated Marty Janetty

Brett Gayika defeated CJ Esparza

Eddie Kingston defeated Kevin Matthews

PWS Tri-State Championship: Tony Nese retained against Alex Reynolds

Matt Hardy defeated Jay Lethal (as Psycho Sid)

Amazing Red won a 6 man match that also featured, AR Fox, Shiima Xion (Zema Ion), Gran Akuma, Devon Moore, Brian XL and Samuray Del Sol

One Warrior Nation defeated Smith James

PWS Tag Team Championship: The Lone Rangers (John Silver & Pat Buck) & The Powers Of Pain went to a no contest

Dan Maff defeated Jerry Lynn

Hardcore match: The Sheik defeated Masada

Source: http://www.2xzone.com

Thoughts: The card was loaded, I imagine this was a good show. If you attended, feel free to send a review to indywrestling@hotmail.co.uk and I’ll post it here. 

- Lee

The card: 

Psycho Sid Vicious vs Matt Hardy

PWS Heavyweight Championship: Sami Callihan (c) vs Colt Cabana

Jerry Lynn vs “The Boricua Beast” Dan Maff

Necro Butcher vs The Sheik with Abdullah The Butcher

The Lone Rangers vs The Powers Of Pain

Anthony Nese (c) vs Alex Reynolds

Eddie Kingston vs Kevin Matthews

Amazing Red vs AR Fox vs Gran Akuma vs Devon Moore vs Brian XL vs Shiima Xion (Zema Ion)

Brett Gakiya vs CJ Esparza

Reby Sky vs Brittney Savage vs Spyra Andover

Abdullah The Butcher, The Godfather, Marty Janetty, The Shockmaster, Angelina Love and Shelly Martinez will also be appearing. 

Thoughts: A good balance of established wrestlers and indy stars, so this one should appeal to a wide audience. If you attend, be sure to send a review to indywrestling@hotmail.co.uk

- Lee

DH Smith/Harry Smith made his first post-WWE wrestling appearance last night, for Pro Wrestling Syndicate, at a show in Long Island, New York. He forced Dan Maff into submission with the Sharpshooter in the main event. He was the most over person on the show according to Ariel, who sent along both the details and the photos (which she took herself). Thanks Ariel!