Indy Wrestling Express

Super Dragon is still out of action due to his recent heel injury, so he and Steen won’t be in the tag tournament, and the championship won’t be on the line either). 

Here’s the line up so far:

PWG Championship: Kevin Steen will issue an open challenge

DDT4 First Round Match:Sami Callihan & Roderick Strong vs El Generico & Willie Mack

DDT4 First Round Match:Future Shock (Adam Cole & Kyle O’Reilly) vs The Dynasty (Scorpio Sky & Joey Ryan)

DDT4 First Round Match:RockNES Monsters (Johnny Yuma & Johnny Goodtime) vs Fightin’ Taylor Boys

DDT4 First Round Match:The Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson) vs Super Smash Bros (Player Uno & Player Dos)

The show will take place on April the 21st, at American Legion Post #308 in Reseda, California.

Thoughts: Looks good. The new tandem of El Generico and Willie Mack is an interesting one. We should have a review up as usual, courtesy of Chad.

- Lee

Thanks very much to Chad for another excellent PWG review! Here it is:

Pro Wrestling Guerrilla “World’s Finest”

17th of March 2012 at American Legion Post #308, Reseda, CA

By Chad Simplicio

Despite the rain, the wind, & the cold, another great crowd gathered for PWG’s 2012 “Reseda Season Opener”. With Super Dragon’s injury during training, the card was redone, but most of the scheduled matches more or less were kept as is.

8 matches, 3 hours

Referees: Rick Knox & Patrick Hernandez

Excalibur’s guests at the commentary table: Rick Knox, Kevin Steen, & Joey Ryan

* Kevin Steen comes out after Excalibur’s introductory speech, mentioning Super Dragon’s injury, and then called out anyone in the back to challenge him. Running in to challenge him? PPA - Pretty Peter Avalon.

1 - Kevin Steen p. Peter Avalon w/ the Package Piledriver. Peter fought on as long as he could, as best as he could, despite taking a tremendous beating, including a series of hard chops to the chest that left their mark on his frame. Fortunately for PPA, he earned the respect of “Mr. Wrestling”.

2 - Brian Cage-Taylor p. Ray (Rrrrrrrrrr)Rosas w/ the big Lariat/Clothesline to the shoulder area in a surprisingly strong match. I wasn’t able to get out of their way quickly enough when I didn’t anticipate Rosas’ lucha-style crossbody from the top rope to the floor. Save for some sore shins, I’m fine. Such is the hazard when you’re sitting in the front row at this place for this kind of show, and I wouldn’t be the only ones that got “incidentally collected” during matches.

* Joey Ryan comes out to cut a promo about women’s grooming, then berated his opponent, Candice LeRae, who jumped him shortly afterwards.

3 - Candice LeRae rolled up & pinned Joey Ryan, countering the Boobplex attempt.

4 - Scorpio Sky made T.J. Perkins tapout to a Rear Naked Choke in a match that featured a great mix of wrestling & MMA-style action.

5 - Triple Threat Tag Team Action—essentially what’s left in the wake of Super Dragon’s injury. The Super Smash Bros. (Player Uno & Stupefied) def. The Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson) and The RockNES Monsters (Johnny Yuma & Johnny Goodtime) when they scored the pin on one of the Jacksons w/ the Fatality. 2nd best match of the night, and the win should give SSB a boost of confidence going into next month’s DDT4.

6 - After intermission, Kyle O’Reilly made Alex Koslov tapout to the Guillontine Choke, and it was quite the long one despite Koslov’s attempts to break out of it, complete w/ a DDT from Kyle. Nice reception from the PWG faithful.

SM - Willie Mack p. Roderick Strong w/ the Piledriver, despite eating the Death by Roderick & Sick Kick combination earlier. Looks like this regional star is getting quite the push, and a title shot should be coming his way soon.

M - As the PWG World Heavyweight Championship match between El Generico & Eddie Edwards got underway, Kevin Steen came out to exercise his rematch clause w/ the approval of the PWG Board of Directors. Crazy Triple Threat match ensued, and in the end, it was Kevin Steen who bided his time when El Generico hit the Top Turnbuckle Brainbuster on Eddie Edwards, grabbing “The Generic Luchador” by the feet, and powerslammed him to the edge of the apron. One cover on “Die Hard” later, Kevin Steen joined an elite club in PWG. The new 2-time PWG Champion now holds both the singles title & the tag team title. “What you can do,” Kevin Steen told El Generico at the end of the show, “I CAN DO BETTER, B****!”

We’ll have to wait and see what Super Dragon’s condition is between now and 4/21, when the American Legion Hall in Reseda, CA becomes the center of the 2012 PWG DDT4 Tournament. Where they go from here in regards to the singles title, is anyone’s guess, but in my opinion, neither of Kevin Steen’s PWG titles are that safe, especially when he still has to contend with El Generico, and any of the tag teams that challenge him & Super Dragon next month in the tourney. Don’t forget about Willie Mack either. He’s continuing his strong push up the singles ladder, and could be a serious threat to the singles title.

* Pro Wrestling Guerrilla posted the following on Facebook: 

“We regret to report that due to an injury during training, Super Dragon will be unable to compete on Pro Wrestling Guerrilla’s World’s Finest event this Saturday. The severity of the injury is unknown at this point, however we will update you when more information becomes available.

As for World’s Finest, we realize there is an extremely high level of quality our loyal fans have come to expect from our events, and we are working hard to meet or exceed that level of quality, even on such short notice. We would like to thank you in advance for your support and understanding.”

* ROH World Champion Davey Richards will also be absent, due to commitments with New Japan Pro Wrestling. Alex Koslov will take his place as Kyle O’Reilly’s opponent.

* Here is the full line up for the show: 

http://indywrestling.tumblr.com/post/17378220405/pwgfinest

Thoughts: Damn. Hopefully Super Dragon will make a swift recovery, and hopefully PWG will be able to provide a good replacement. He was set to team with Kevin Steen in a four way tag match, so Steen’s other partner Akira Tozawa would be ideal, but flying him out at such short notice would be impossible, especially since Tozawa is fully booked with Dragon Gate over the weekend. 

A commenter on Facebook suggested that they should bring in Sami Callihan (who is set to debut at DDT4) as Steen’s partner. That would be pretty cool. 

- Lee

The full list of tag teams has been decided for the Pro Wrestling Guerrilla DDT 4 tag team tournament on April the 21st (at American Legion Post #308 in Reseda California: 

Appetite for Destruction (Super Dragon & Kevin Steen - PWG Tag Team Champions)

The Super Smash Bros. (Player Uno & Stupefied)

The Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson)

Future Shock (Adam Cole & Kyle O’Reilly)

The Dynasty (Joey Ryan & Scorpio Sky)

The RockNES Monsters (Johnny Yuma & Johnny Goodtime)

Roderick Strong & Sami Callihan

The Fightin’ Taylor Boys (Ryan Taylor & Brian Cage-Taylor)

Other non title matches will take place on that show, but are yet to be announced. Thanks to Chad Simplicio for passing that along.

PWG will be in action this weekend with “World’s Finest”. Full line up here: 

http://indywrestling.tumblr.com/post/17378220405/pwgfinest

Thoughts: It’s cool to see some new duos in the mix (Callihan/Strong & Future Shock) along with veteran teams like Appetite For Destruction. 

- Lee

Here is the trailer for Pro Wrestling Guerrilla: Kurt RussellReunion 3. The show took place on the third day of WrestleReunion in Los Angeles (January 29th), and featured the stars of Dragon Gate alongside the PWG regulars. 

The matches:

1. Fightin’ Taylor Boys (Brian Cage-Taylor & Ryan Taylor) vs. Famous B & Chris Kadillak

2. BxB Hulk vs. Jimmy Susumu

3. Davey Richards & Harry Smith vs. The Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson)

4. Naruki Doi vs. Willie Mack

5. “Pretty” Peter Avalon, DEMUS 316, Ray Rosas, & Joey Ryan vs. Cedric Alexander, B-Boy, Candice LeRae, & Mascarita Dorada

6. The Spike Mohicans CIMA & Ricochet) vs. RockNES Monsters (Johnny Goodtime & Johnny Yuma)

7. Masaaki Mochizuki vs. Roderick Strong


8. El Generico, “The Man That Gravity Forgot” PAC, & Masato Yoshino vs. Super Dragon, Kevin Steen, & Akira Tozawa

Thoughts: The card is loaded, the action looks fantastic, this looks like a worthy addition to any DVD collection. You can read Chad’s review (warning: includes results) HERE.

- Lee

Thanks to our regular PWG correspondent Chad Simplicio for this report from last Sunday’s Pro Wrestling Guerrilla show: 

Pro Wrestling Guerrilla “Kurt RussellReunion 3” on 2012 Royal Rumble Sunday

By Chad Simplicio

This was the only event on the WrestleReunion 6 schedule, other than the Breakfast with Champions event. A large Sunday crowd, as well as a few legends who stayed for the show (i.e. Virgil & Fifi the Maid) was on hand for the final show of WrestleReunion 6 weekend, which was also a global affair, w/ the Mexican Minis returning from their Pro Wrestling Superstars encounter, and some of the Dragon Gate stars. Those who had purchased seats on the first 2 rows received a free PWG Classic DVD. 2nd Row ticketholders received an unsigned poster of the event, while front row ticketholders got their own event posters signed.

Referees: Rick Knox & Patrick Hernandez

Excalibur’s guest at the commentary table: Colt Cabana

1 - The Fightin’ Taylor Boys def. Famous B & Chris Kadillak when Ryan Taylor p. Famous B off of the team’s Canadian Destroyer. Strong opener that saw the high spots come late.

2 - Blood Warriors v. Junction III, PWG Style. Junction III member Jimmy Susumu (Yokosuka) p. Blood Warriors member BxB Hulk w/ the Mugen, a Double-Underhook Lift into a Piledriver. Personally, I was wondering how the heck could Jimmy keep on fighting without a concussion after getting kicked or stomped in the head so many times by BxB Hulk. Great match, BTW.

* Davey Richards hit the ring for the next match. As it was, fellow American Wolves partner Eddie Edwards missed his flight to L.A., but Davey did find a replacement partner in Harry Smith (f.k.a. David Hart Smith). Obviously, newfound respect after their Pro Wrestling Superstars encounter.

3 - The Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson) def. Davey Richards & Harry Smith when Nick p. Davey w/ More Bang For Your Buck. Great team action, complete w/ Harry Smith showing moves that I don’t recall seeing him do as part of The Hart Dynasty in WWE. The former WWE Superstar got the “Please come back!” treatment—I personally hope he does come back to do a Reseda show.

4 - Willie Mack p. Naruki Doi w/ the Chocolate Thunderbomb in another great see-saw match.

5 - 8-wrestler tag team action. Candice LeRae, B-Boy, Cedric Alexander, & Mascarita Dorada def. Joey Ryan, Peter Avalon, Ray Rosas, & Demus 316. Great mix of comedy & wrestling action, w/ the minis picking up where they had left off in their PWS encounter. Candice LeRae tipped the scales in her team’s favor after hitting a Reverse Huracanrana on Joey Ryan, who then ate a B-Boy Shining Wizard, leaving him stunned for Candice’s Moonsault for the winning pin.

6 - After intermission, The RockNES Monsters (Johnny Yuma & Johnny Goodtime) def. The Spiked Mohicans (CIMA & Ricochet). Great see-saw action ended when The RockNES Monsters hit their team Death Valley Driver from the middle rope onto Ricochet.

SM - Masaaki Mochizuki p. Roderick Strong w/ a series of kicks to the head, capping it w/ the Sankegugeri(?).

M - The 2nd “Never in your Wildest Dreams” match. PWG Champion El Generico, PAC, & Masato Yoshino def. Akira Tozawa & PWG Tag Team Champions Super Dragon & Kevin Steen (who had actually won the titles in last December’s Guerrilla Warfare match, though it didn’t look that way at the time). This was total madness from the get-go, complete w/ all 6 men fighting all over the place, and plenty of grudges involving El Generico & Akira Tozawa. Match full of high spots ended w/ El Generico hitting the Hallula Kick on Akira Tozawa, followed by the Ground Brainbuster, leaving things open for PAC to hit the Corkscrew SSP for the winning pin. Crowd was just totally hot for this, and that makes this match…..the match of the weekend.

Plenty of intrigue going into the March 17 “Reseda Season Opener”, especially when both PWG titles are held by wrestlers who have a grudge against one another. Jimmy Susumu & Masaaki Mochizuki could be a great draw for a future PWG show, especially this year’s DDT4. Speaking of tag teams, I think The Fightin’ Taylor Boys & The RockNES Monsters could be on another collision course with their winning streaks.

The final day of WrestleReunion (in Los Angeles) was headlined by a Pro Wrestling Guerrilla show, that heavily featured the stars of Dragon Gate. Here are the results: 

The Fighting Taylor Boys (Ryan Taylor & Brian Cage-Taylor) defeated Famous B and Chris Kadillak

Jimmy Susumu defeated BxB Hulk

The Young Bucks defeated Davey Richards & Harry Smith (Harry Smith was filling in for Eddie Edwards, who couldn’t make it due to travel issues)

Willie Mack defeated Naruki Doi

Mascarita Dorada, B-Boy, Cedric Alexander & Candice LeRae defeated Joey Ryan, DEMUS 316, Peter Avalon & Ray Rosas

RockNESS Monsters defeated the Spiked Mohicans (CIMA & Ricochet)

Masaaki Mochizuki defeatedRoderick Strong

PAC, Masato Yoshino & El Generico defeated Kevin Steen, Akira Tozawa & Super Dragon 

Source: http://pwponderings.com

Thoughts: Even in LA, RockNES beating CIMA and Ricochet has to be considered an upset. It was a loaded show, and I can’t wait to pick it up on DVD. Hopefully Chad (who is in attendance for basically every wrestling show in LA) will send a review along.

Steen’s team with Super Dragon is called “Appetite For Destruction”, and his team with Tozawa is called “Nightmare Violence Connection”, so I wonder if the combined team had a name. Perhaps “Appetite For Nightmare Violence Destruction”? 

- Lee

Thanks to our PWG correspondent Chad Simplicio for the line up! The show will take place on the third day of WrestleReunion, the 29th of January.

Super Dragon, Kevin Steen, & Akira Tozawa vs El Generico, PAC, & Masato Yoshino

CIMA & Ricochet vs RockNES Monsters (Johnny Goodtime & Johnny Yuma)

Masaaki Mochizuki vs Roderick Strong

American Wolves (Eddie Edwards & Davey Richards) vs The Young Bucks

Naruki Doi vs Willie Mack

BxB Hulk vs Jimmy Susumu (formerly Susumu Yokosuka)

The legendary Mascarita Dorada will also be in action.

Thoughts: That line up is almost too awesome. It’s pretty much a PWG vs Dragon Gate show. I’ll certainly be picking up the DVD, and I assume Chad will be lucky enough to attend.

Thanks very much to our regular PWG correspondent, Chad Simplicio, for this great report/review from last night’s show, Fear.

12/10/11 PRO WRESTLING GUERRILLA’S “FEAR” RECAP @ AMERICAN LEGION POST #308, RESEDA, CA

By Chad Simplicio

If there ever was an ultimate Christmas present for fans of indie wrestling in the American West Coast, this would be it. A capacity crowd crammed into American Legion Post #308 for the PWG season finale, and despite difficulties with the sound system, everyone got their money’s worth. In fact, Excalibur tried to whip the sound crew into shape, making sure they got the entrance music right.

8 matches, approx. 4 hrs.

Ring announcer: Angelo Trinidad

Referees: Rick Knox, Sparky Ballard, & Justin Borden

Excalibur’s guests at the commentary table: Kevin Steen, Joey Ryan, & Chris Hero

1 - T.J. Perkins v. “The Pretty Boy Pitbull” Kenny King never really got off the ground because Ryan Taylor & Brian Cage-Taylor of The Fightin’ Taylor Boys interrupted the match in the wake of Los Luchas not making it to the show because of a family emergency, then went on to put a beat down on T.J. & Kenny.

1A - The Fightin’ Taylor Boys def. T.J. Perkins & Kenny King. Hard-hitting opener ended when Brian Cage-Taylor “finished getting his stuff in” by pinning Kenny King w/ a team Canadian Destroyer. That is, Brian Cage-Taylor provided the leverage for Ryan Taylor to hit the Canadian Destroyer.

2 - Roderick Strong p. Amazing Red w/ a powerbomb. Amazing Red was able to get in his classic high-flying moves, including the Running Moonsault, but was outdone by Roddy’s chops and backbreaking moves.

3 - 8-wrestler tag team action—“Team Sleaze” (Dynasty duo of Joey Ryan & Scorpio Sky, “Pretty” Peter Avalon, & Ray Rosas—as all wore classic Joey Ryan trunks) vs. Candice LeRae, Chris Kadillak, Famous B, & B-Boy. Wild mix of comedy, crazy wrestling action, & a dash of “mature” content ended w/ The Dynasty getting the win by pinning Candice LeRae w/ their “End Stage” Superkick / Ace of Spades finisher combo.

4 - Willie Mack p. Chris Hero … clean w/ a version of the Tombstone Piledriver. Great, hard-hitting match that saw Hero mic up about not be sure if he would be able to come back or not, mentioning at least his mother that live in Dayton, OH.

5 - The RockNES Monsters (“Rock & Roll Rebel Soul” Johnny Yuma & Johnny Goodtime) def. Future Shock (Adam Cole & Kyle O’Reilly). Johnny Goodtime p. Adam Cole w/ the Frog splash, off of Yuma’s “Sex Factor” DDT w/ the feet. Good match, but it may’ve been the weakest match on the card in the eyes of many.

6 - After intermission, The American Wolves (ROH Champion Davey Richards & his “Final Battle 2011” opponent, Eddie Edwards) def. The Super Smash Brothers (Player Uno & Player Dos/Stupefied). Hard-hitting, see-saw action ended w/ Eddie Edwards making Player Uno tapout to his Modified Boston Crab submission with his right foot stomping his masked head in.. DR & EE may’ve put the duo over, but as their expression & talk showed as they went to the back, things are likely to get serious come ROH “Final Battle 2011”, when the two square off for the ROH World Championship.

SM - Non-title dream match. PWG World Heavyweight Champion El Generico p. Dick Togo w/ the Top Turnbuckle Brainbuster. High-octane action that saw dueling chants from the capacity crowd, complete w/ “We love them both!” chants in between.

M - Non-title Guerrilla Warfare Match between Super Dragon & “Mr. Wrestling” Kevin Steen, & PWG World Tag Team Champions The Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson). 2 tables, 1 trash can, and a bunch of steel & plastic chairs were used in the high-octane, see-saw match that went all over the venue. Super Dragon hit his vintage Curb Stomp on one of the Jackson’s, smashing his head onto the crotch of his brother. Nick Jackson hit a Top Rope Splash to put Super Dragon through 1 of the tables on the floor midway through the match, but it was both Jacksons who took the worst of the highest spots of the match. While Kevin Steen kept Nick Jackson occupied in the ring, it was Super Dragon who put Matt Jackson through the 2nd table on the floor…WITH A PSYCHO DRIVER! With 1 chair used to prop Nick Jackon’s head on it, Super Dragon hit a Top Rope Double-Stomp on the said head, then it was capped with another Top Rope Double-Stomp to amplify the devastating Package Piledriver from Kevin Steen on Nick Jackson. With Kevin Steen getting the winning pinfall on Nick Jackson, that was how my match of the year, & show of the year, ended, at approximately 12:30am PST Sunday Morning.

The final PWG show of 2011, Fear, will take place tonight in Reseda, California. Super Dragon will return to action in the main event, as he teams with Kevin Steen to take on the Young Bucks in a Guerrilla Warfare match. Full details HERE

Thoughts: It’s gonna be a great show. Hopefully Chad will write a review for us. I haven’t asked him yet though.

- Lee