Be sure to check out my Dragon Gate/DGUSA blog.
January 22, 2010 – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Taped November 23, 2009 as Open the Freedom Gate)
Ring announcer Kevin Harvey starts the show by explaining the concept of tonight’s show. Four matches will decide who meets in a four-way elimination main event to decide who the first Open the Freedom Gate Champion (DGUSA singles champ) will be. The four opening round matches each have a theme. The first match’s theme is Generation New, as all six participants in it are lower on the card.
Nick Jackson {W5} vs. Matt Jackson {W5} vs. Lince Dorado {CH} vs. Gran Akuma {TF} vs. Johnny Gargano vs. Hallowicked {I} [Semifinal Match]
Akuma attacks before the bell. Hallowicked kicks Gargano to the floor and hits a suicide dive. Matt Jackson thrust kicks Dorado. Dorado hits a head scissors takedown. Nick hits a spin kick. Gargano hits a spear. He hits the Ace Crusher. The Young Bucks hit a double dropkick. Nick dropkicks Akuma and Dorado to the floor. He and Matt double-team Hallowicked. The crowd gets excited as the Jacksons get ready to fight each other, but Akuma and Gargano attack them both. The Jacksons fight back and get ready to fight each other again, but this time Hallowicked and Dorado hit them with dropkicks. Dorado hits Hallowicked with a hurricanrana for 2. Hallowicked comes back with Go2Sleepy Hallow. He hits the Rydeen Bomb for 2. Dorado hits a shooting star press. Akuma hits an awesome gutbuster for 2. Nick hits a facebuster on Akuma and flies off the apron onto Dorado. Gargano hits Matt with an enziguiri. Matt hits a spear. He and Nick double-team Gargano for 2. They hit a double superkick on Hallowicked. They hit More Bang For Your Buck, getting 2 for Matt when Nick breaks up the pin. We finally get the exchange between them, as they trade forearms. Nick hits an armdrag and a knee kick. Matt hits a superkick. Nick returns the favor. Matt hits a facebuster for 2. Gargano hits a dropkick. Hallowicked hits a big boot. He tries to powerbomb Dorado to the floor but tumbles out himself. Dorado hits an Asai moonsault. Everyone dives to the floor. Akuma hits Gargano with a half nelson suplex. Gargano throws Akuma into the turnbuckle. Akuma kicks him up top and hits a super exploder and a moonsault for the win at 9:31. This was excellent stuff, much more in the mold of the CHIKARA six-man on the first show than the haphazard FRAYs. Everyone brought their A-game, and it paid off with a really hot opener.
Rating: ***¾
BxB Hulk {W1} vs. Brian Kendrick [Semifinal Match]
This was the “Redemption” match, as both guys lost their first match in DGUSA. They go at it on the mat to start. Kendrick goes to the ropes. They fight over a wristlock. Kendrick gets overwhelmed and takes a break on the floor. Back in the ring Hulk flusters Kendrick with an armdrag and a dropkick. He puts on a chinlock. Kendrick gets to the ropes. He shoves Hulk to the floor and whips him into the post. He gets 2 back inside. He hits mounted punches. He puts on a camel clutch and then rolls Hulk over for 2. He throws Hulk neck-first against the ropes. Hulk comes back with a dropkick. He sweeps the leg and hits an elbowdrop (it was supposed to be a senton) for 2. He hits a high kick. He hits an exploder for 2. Kendrick hits a leg lariat. He goes for the Slided Bread #2 but Hulk shoves him to the floor. Kendrick hides in the crowd to avoid being hit by a dive. Hulk drags him back to the ring. Kendrick crotches Hulk up top for 2. He hits an enziguiri for 2. He puts on the Cobra Stretch. Hulk comes back with the Mouse and a clothesline. Kendrick gets a roll up for 2. Hulk hits an enziguiri for 2. He opens up with kicks and hits the EVO for 2. Kendrick counters the FTX to a roll up for 2. Hulk hits a thrust kick and gets la magistral for the win at 12:34. I appreciate Kendrick bringing the classic heel tactics to a Dragon Gate ring, because we don’t see that kind of wrestling very often. This was not the kind of match that people got excited for on Dragon Gate’s first two shows, but it is a classic example of how a WWE influence can make someone a more well-rounded wrestler.
Rating: ***¼
After the match Kevin Harvey tells Kendrick he needs to get out of the ring so the next match can start. Kendrick asks Harvey how his neck is; which scares the ring announcer into thinking he’s coming after it. Kendrick says his own neck does not rest the way a normal neck rests so he’ll take as much time leaving the ring as he wants. He says he wrestles for himself because it’s foolish to try to make people happy through wrestling. I love the character matches the wrestling style. He rambles on and on. Referee Bryce Remsburg comes out to get him to go to the back. He can’t back it up physically so a couple local wrestlers try to help. Some guy I don’t know sneaks in and steals the microphone from Kendrick. He praises Kendrick for manipulating the show so easily, but says he needs to back up his intellect with action. Then he attacks the local wrestlers. Kendrick joins in and they clear the ring. So who the hell was that guy?
CIMA {W5} vs. Mike Quackenbush {CH} vs. Jorge Rivera vs. Super Crazy [Semifinal Match]
The theme of this match is “Salute to Skayde” because he was a trainer at the Ultimo Dragon Gym and Quackenbush goes nuts for him. The commentators make a big deal out of Crazy not bowing to Rivera before the match. CIMA and Quackenbush start. The commentators rewrite history by saying that Rivera trained both of them. They trade holds until CIMA takes a powder. Quackenbush can’t handle Crazy so he bails too. Crazy chops Rivera. He hits a lariat. Rivera hits a head scissors takedown. CIMA gets a roll up for 1. Quackenbush does the same to CIMA, and Crazy to Quackenbush. Everyone goes for a dropkick. Rivera sends Crazy over the top to the floor. Quackenbush misses a senton. CIMA hits a double stomp for 2. Quackenbush hits a crossbody and a dropkick. He hits a springboard elbow. Rivera hits a back elbow. Things get entirely too manic, as nobody is in control for more than five seconds at a time, so the crowd can’t get behind any of the action. After a few minutes of that Crazy thankfully slows things down and works over Rivera’s leg. The story here is that Crazy lost his mask to Rivera when he was 14 and Rivera was under a different gimmick, and he’s still sore about it. Rivera fights back. Old Man Rivera falls while putting on a pendulum. CIMA hits Rivera with an enziguiri. Rivera puts on La Cruceta but Crazy breaks it up. Quackenbush hits a topé con hilo. Rivera goes for a dive but CIMA hits him with a superkick. He gets the Skayde Special for the win at 9:19. The commentary was annoying, mostly because CIMA was trained by Ultimo Dragon. They also harped on the fact that Rivera was the favorite in the match because he didn’t teach CIMA and Quackenbush everything he knew, as though the combined thirty years of experience CIMA and Quackenbush have wouldn’t have taught them anything. That aside the first part of the match was, as I said earlier, far too manic, and the slower second part only lasted two minutes.
Rating: **¾
After the match CIMA and Quackenbush both raise Rivera’s hand. Quackenbush shoves CIMA and says he’s going after the belt regardless of the fact that he lost tonight.
The commentators still have not mentioned who the guy with Brian Kendrick was.
Davey Richards vs. YAMATO {K} [Semifinal Match]
This is the “Next Level” match, I suppose because either of these guys could go on to lead the company with a win here. They fight over a wristlock until Richards kicks the arm. They trade holds on the mat. Richards opens up with kicks. He goes after the arm but YAMATO is in the ropes. Richards stays on the arm. He stomps on the elbow. He hits a hammerlock back suplex for 2. He dumps YAMATO to the floor and whips him into the barricade. He hits a Yakuza kick. Back in the ring Richards hits a leg lariat. YAMATO dropkicks the leg. He puts on a half crab. Richards gets to the ropes. YAMATO dropkicks the leg again. He puts on a leglock. He hits an elbowdrop for 2. He puts on an anklelock. He smacks the sweat off of Richards. Richards tries to come back with a kick but collapses in pain. He catches YAMATO coming off the top with a kick. He hits an overhead suplex. He clotheslines YAMATO to the floor and hits a sick suicide dive. Back in the ring Richards hits a dropkick off the top. He hits a handspring kick for 2. He hits a northern lights suplex for 2. So at this point he’s completely ignoring the injured leg. He puts on the kimura but YAMATO gets to the ropes. YAMATO dropkicks the knee and puts the anklelock on again. Richards misses an enziguiri and YAMATO reapplies the hold. Richards gets to the ropes. They trade forearms until Richards opens up with kicks. He hits an enziguiri. YAMATO hits a back suplex. Richards pops up and hits a lariat. YAMATO hits the running forearm. Richards hits a superplex. YAMATO pops up only to eat the Alarm Clock. Richards hits a lariat and a German suplex for 2. The crowd thought that was it. Richards goes for the shooting star press but YAMATO blocks with his knees. He puts on the sleeper hold but Richards fights out of it. YAMATO kicks the arm and reapplies the sleeper. He hits a sleeper suplex. He punts Richards’s head for 2. He hits a brainbuster for 2. He hits the Galleria for the win at 21:22. I actually wouldn’t have minded all of Richards’s no-selling (and there was a lot of it) as much had he not collapsed after a kick early on. That made the rest of his performance inconsistent. Still, they beat each other absolutely senseless, and I appreciate the brain-cell sacrifice.
Rating: ****
The four participants in the finals are shown shadow boxing backstage. YAMATO is seemingly at a disadvantage, as he’s shown exhausted on the floor in the back.
Naruki Doi {W1} & Masato Yoshino {W1} vs. Shingo Takagi {K} & Dragon Kid {K}
Kid and Yoshino start. Yoshino gets a crucifix pin for 2. Takagi hits Doi with a shoulder tackle. Lenny Leonard earns points by talking about the first meeting between these two teams in 2008. That was one of my top matches of that year. He slugs Doi to the mat. Kid tags in and hits a dropkick with Takagi’s help for 2. He hits another dropkick. A third dropkick has Doi favoring his jaw. Doi hits a bodyslam. Yoshino tags in and double stomps the arm. He hits a backbreaker. Doi tags in and they double-team Kid. Yoshino puts on a Koji Clutch but Kid gets to the ropes. He hits an elevated facebuster for 2. Doi puts on an abdominal stretch and pins Kid for 2. Kid hits an armdrag and a head scissors takedown. Takagi tags in and cleans house. He hits Doi with an exploder. Kid hits the Bermuda Triangle. Takagi hits clotheslines and a DDT on Yoshino. He hits a kneedrop for 2. Takagi dusts off the dead lift suplex. Yoshino hits the Sling Blade. He puts on the From Jungle. Kid puts the Christo on Doi. He and Yoshino slap fight until both release their holds. Doi hits an elbow on Kid. He hits a dropkick in the ropes for 2. Kid hits a stunner for 2. He hits an elevated double stomp. He hits another stunner. Takagi hits the Blood Fall for 2. Doi hits the Rydeen Bomb for 2. Yoshino hits Another Space. He hits the shotgun dropkick/senton combo for 2. Kid hits the stacker hurricanrana for 2. Takagi blocks the From Jungle but gets caught with a sunset flip. That only gets 2. Takagi hits the DVD. Kid hits a hurricanrana for 2. Yoshino hits a powerbomb. Takagi hits the Yo Throw. He hits Doi with a lariat. Doi hits Kid with the Doi 555. He hits the big senton. SpeedMuscle hits the Doomsday Sling Blade for 2. Kid hits the Bible for 2. Yoshino hits a weak Lightning Spiral and Doi hits the Bakatare Sliding Kick for 2. He hits Takagi with the Dai Bosou. Yoshino hits Kid with the Torbellino and puts on the Sol Naciente for the win at 19:59. This was every bit as good as the tag league finals from the year before. These two teams just have amazing chemistry, and they delivered the match of the night. After the match Yoshino wants a handshake but Takagi gets protective of Kid and shoves him.
Rating: ****
Finally the man that aided Kendrick earlier in the show is revealed to be Jon Moxley. He cuts a promo outside the building, saying mostly the same stuff Kendrick said earlier. Still, this dude cuts a great promo and has a really cool voice. I wonder if he can back it up in the ring.
CIMA {W5} vs. YAMATO {K} vs. BxB Hulk {W1} vs. Gran Akuma {TF} [Tournament Finals/Open the Freedom Gate Championship Match]
In a neat touch, each wrestler in introduced as the winner of his particular match by the theme name. YAMATO and Akuma immediately decide to team up. Hulk wants to do the same with CIMA, but CIMA smacks him instead. CIMA wants to gang up with the other two to get rid of Hulk, but they attack him instead. They hit a double slam. They hit Hulk with a double elbow. Hulk comes back with kicks. He hits YAMATO with the uranage. Hulk and CIMA hit Akuma with a double dropkick. CIMA hits Hulk with the Superdrol. Akuma hits CIMA with a super exploder. He hits the moonsault for 2. CIMA dropkicks his butt. He hits a double stomp for 2. YAMATO hits Hulk with an exploder. He blocks a moonsault with his knees. He hits the corner elbow and a spear. He hits a flapjack. Akuma hits a low blow on CIMA and YAMATO rolls him up for the elimination at 5:13. YAMATO and Akuma choke Hulk in the corner. They put on a half crab/chinlock combo. Akuma hits a legdrop. YAMATO puts on the Cross Bone Vanguard while Akuma puts on a leglock. Hulk won’t quit so YAMATO hits an elbowdrop. Akuma elbow YAMATO by mistake. Hulk hits a leg lariat for 2. He hits another and a bodyslam. He springs off YAMATO to hit a moonsault on Akuma. YAMATO elbowdrops Akuma by mistake. Hulk kicks him to the floor. He hits Akuma with a reverse hurricanrana. He hits a phoenix splash for 2 when YAMATO makes the save. Hulk hits Akuma with the FTX (wrongly called the EVO by Leonard) to eliminate him at 11:28. YAMATO hits Hulk with a powerslam. Hulk catches YAMATO up top with a leg lariat. He hits a super powerslam but is slow to cover and only gets 2. They trade elbows until Hulk hits the Mouse and a clothesline. He hits the EVO for 2. He hits a thrust kick for 2. He hits another EVO for the win and the title at 15:54. Another excellent match in a string of them tonight. Hulk was totally on his game, seemingly more motivated by the prospect of winning his first singles title. YAMATO, Akuma and CIMA were all game too, and everything came together in a nice match.
Rating: ***¾
This PPV had much better pacing than the last one. Sure the matches weren’t as good as on Untouchable, but they were still better than anything else you’ll find on PPV, and this didn’t feel half as rushed. Beyond the wrestling, Jon Moxley’s promo was great and has me interested in seeing more of him. Another good effort from DGUSA, with a couple interesting storyline developments and great wrestling all around.
