Lakewood, OH – 1.28.2011
Commentary is provided by Pedro Deluca and Aaron Bauer.
”Guys Night Out” Pre-Show
The Duke vs. John Kermon
Kermon is wearing a shirt for Big O & Dukes, which is an awesome podcast based out of D.C. that all of you need to check out. Kermon elbows his way out a waistlock, but gets knocked down with a shoulder block. Duke knocks him down with another one and then reverses a hip toss. Duke slams Kermon and boots him in the face for two. Kermon rolls to the floor for a breather. Duke goes out after him and tosses him back in the ring. As Duke comes back in, Kermon catches him with a rope-assisted neckbreaker for two. Kermon throws Duke down by his singlet. Duke drops Kermon with a spinebuster. Duke delivers a few clotheslines. He blocks one from Kermon and drops him with a Side Russian legsweep. Kermon connects with a running knee strike for two. Duke drops Kermon with a Rikishi Driver for the pin at 7:49. Solid match overall. Glad to know Kermon’s coming back in the future and I think once Duke officially inducts Lights Out, Mr. RBI, and Kombat Kid into Alpha Beta Duke he’ll have more of substance to do. **
Greg Iron vs. Kobald vs. Justin Lee vs. K. Fernandez vs. AERO! vs. Corey Winters
Many people ringside for this; Hobo Joe, Ben Fruith, Dave The Potato, and Joey The Snake. I believe this Kobald’s professional debut. Iron and Fernandez go back and forth quickly. Fernandez forearms him to the floor. Winters comes in with some hard elbows to send Fernandez out. Fernandez and Winters brawl on the floor. Iron gives Kobald a pair of armdrags. Kobald comes off the top rope with an armdrag. Kobald spears Iron and delivers a diving elbow for to. Iron sends Kobald to the floor. Lee blasts Iron with a yakuza kick. AERO chops Lee in the corner. AERO tries to throw Lee of the top, but Lee catches him with a headscissors. Lee wheelbarrows himself into a backbreaker from AERO. Fernandez boots AERO into a stunner from Winters. Winters and Fernandez keep preventing each other from pinning AERO. Fernandez gives Winters a rope-assisted backbreaker for two. Fernandez ducks a clothesline and flips Winters onto his back. Winters connects with a basement dropkick for two. They spill out to the floor, bringing in AERO and Kobald. AERO delivers a step-up enzuigiri and a legsweep for two. He puts Kobald in a modified Anaconda Vice. Iron breaks the hold. Kobald puts on an abdominal stretch. Kobald switches into a Rings of Saturn type submission, which Lee breaks. Kobald sends Lee to the floor and Lee takes out Fernandez on his way down. Kobald flies out with a tope. Winters dives to the floor with a top rope splash. Iron backdrops AERO to the floor onto the wrestlers out there. Iron then flies out with a springboard plancha (using his knees instead of his feet). Hobo Joe distracts Iron, allowing Lee to forearm him in the back. Joe holds Iron. Iron moves so that Lee accidentally kicks Joe instead of him. Iron rolls through a German suplex for two. Iron hits a fisherman’s suplex for two. Iron drops Lee with Handicap Parking for the pin at 10:19. This moved at a frenetic pace and kept the action constant and exciting throughout. The best part was that enough time was alloted for all six guys to make an impression and look good. ***
Tim Donst vs. Sonjay Dutt
Donst takes Dutt to the mat in a butterfly stretch. Donst turns it into a chickenwing of sorts. Dutt escapes but gets taken over with a fireman’s carry. Dutt trips Donst into a front facelock. Once on their feet, Donst drops Dutt neck first on the top rope. Donst gives Dutt a purple nurple in the corner. Donst traps Dutt in the rope and nails a running back elbow. Dutt connects with a yakuza kick. He kicks Donst whilst using the ropes then legdrops Donst across the second rope. Dutt hits a springboard splash for two. Donst looks for a Gator Roll. Dutt breaks and superkicks Donst. Dutt connects with a dropkick. Donst comes back with a bulldog. Dutt sweeps Donst’s leg and hits a standing shooting star press for two. Donst flips Dutt out of a chokehold. Dutt comes in from the apron with a sunset flip. Donst sits down on it and grabs the ropes to secure the pin at 8:38. This was another really fun match and a unique bout as well. Dutt’s been so-so elsewhere but delivered here. Donst’s reign of dominance continues. ***
Donst kicks Dutt out from the ring, saying nobody wants him there. Donst says he has continued to show outsiders who “the man” in AIW is. He says next month he’ll show Colt Cabana who the man is. He then turns his attention to Mad Man Pondo who is sitting at a nearby merch table. Donst talks some trash which brings Pondo into the ring. Donst challenges Pondo for a match in the near future. Pondo agrees and shakes Donst’s hand. Donst attacks Pondo from behind and gives him a suplex. Pondo drops Donst with a Death Valley Driver. With Donst on the floor, Pondo mentions that AIW is holding some sort of tournament of May 20th. Pondo challenges Donst to face him in the first round.
“Girls Night Out 3”
Chest Flexor makes his way ringside before the opening bout.
Roxie Cotton vs. Allysin Kay
Kay throws Cotton to the corner. Cotton feigns that Kay slapped her in the face as the referee tries to separate them. She then slaps Kay for real and claims Kay slapped her again. Kay trips her into a side headlock. Cotton transitions to a headscissors. Upon escaping, Kay slaps Cotton in the face. She pumphandles Cotton into an armbar. Kay throws Cotton to the floor to break a hammerlock. Cotton tries to do the same, but Kay wisely releases so as to stay in the ring. Kay goes to chop Cotton on the floor but hits her hand on the ring post instead. Cotton brings Kay back into the ring and focuses her attack on Kay’s bad arm. Kay ducks a clothesline and drops Cotton with a neckbreaker for two. Cotton pokes Kay in the eyes to regain control. Cotton smashes Kay with an elbow in the corner. Kay blasts Cotton with a knee strike. She rolls through an Unprettier to roll up Cotton for two. Kay drops Cotton with the Unprettier for the pin at 9:11. Really solid match to start the show. Cotton’s gimmick is really unique, and anyone who uses Frank Zappa as their entrance music gets immediate points from me. Kay and her showed a lot of proficiency in both their wrestling and storytelling, and I certainly wouldn’t mind seeing them become bigger fixtures in the women’s wrestling scene. **1/2
No Disqualification – Falls Count Anywhere
Super Oprah vs. Mickie Knuckles
The stipulation for this bout was added by the referee given Knuckles’ reputation. Oprah’s silliness does not sit well with Knuckles. Knuckles goes low and boots Oprah to the floor. On the floor, Oprah delivers a headbutt to Knuckles. Knuckles shoves a tampon in Oprah’s mouth before whipping her into the guardrail. Knuckles and Oprah brawl in the crowd. Oprah hot shots Knuckles onto the guardrail. Oprah slams a beer into her face. Knuckles throws Oprah into the wall. Oprah’s wig falls off as Knuckles brings her back ringside. Knuckles suplexes Oprah onto the entrance ramp. Knuckles digs the edge of chair into Oprah’s throat. She then uses the chair to sit down into a Boston Crab. Back in the ring, Oprah cracks Knuckles with a chop and a kick. A splash gets Oprah a two count. Knuckles brings Oprah off the top rope with a fisherwoman’s suplex. Knuckles and Oprah trade forearms as they come back to their feet. Knuckles sends Oprah overhead with a German suplex. Oprah hits a Neck-Hanging Tree Slam for two. Knuckles backfists Oprah. Oprah blocks a Samoan Drop and hits a chokeslam backbreaker for the pin at 10:56. This was unlike most woman’s matches you’ll see; violent, hard hitting, and crazy entertaining. They both made the most of the stipulation and had the crowd going nuts from bell to bell. Oprah winning was a pleasant surprise, and I appreciate the effort put in by both participants. ***1/4
Isis the Amazon vs. Jessicka Havok
For those unaware, Isis was the 7 foot tall woman scheduled to be on NXT Season 3 but was cut before the show even began airing. Havok is understanably scared. Isis shoves Havok into the corner with ease. Havok grabs a waistlock, but Isis bumps her away with her posterior. She mows Havok down with a clothesline. Havok goes to the floor. She pulls Isis down throat first on the top rope. Havok tries to take out Isis’ legs, but Isis throws Havok back out to the floor to stop the attack. Isis throws Havok into the ring apron multiple times. Back in the ring, Havok kicks Isis’ legs to block a chokeslam. Isis boots Havok after a pair of clotheslines. Isis chokeslams Havok, but Chest Flexor pulls the referee out of the ring to stop the count. He then pulls Havok out of the ring and brings her to the back. Isis checks on referee Jake Clemons, and he calls for the bell at 6:19. This was all a set-up for Havok to join Flexor Industries, which to me is totally fine. Before that, Isis and Havok had a nice big girl/little girl dynamic going. N/R
Arella Angel comes out for her match. Her opponent, Angella DeBella, has yet to show up at the building. Angel is upset that she drove to this “crap town” for nothing and lays out an open challenge. Answering the call is Mickie Knuckles, who is still hurting from her match with Super Oprah earlier tonight. She tells Angel that she needs to learn some respect and slaps her across the face.
Mickie Knuckles vs. Arella Angel
Angel jumps on Knuckles right away with a Thesz Press and chokes her. Knuckles trips Angel and puts her in a Boston Crab. Angel escapes and drops Knuckles with a neckbreaker. Knuckles headbutts Angel. She give Angel a tornado TKO for the pin at 1:44. That was a pretty fun segment overall. I know Knuckles gets a bad rap sometimes, but her performance and energy shown during this event would silence any naysayer. I look forward to when she returns to AIW. N/R
Madison Eagles vs. Mena Libra
Eagles takes Libra to the mat and works over her left arm. Eagles applies an armbar. Libra gets to the ropes to break the hold. Eagles continues inflict damage to Libra’s arm. Eagles stretches out Libra’s arms while pressing her feet against Libra’s shoulders. Libra escapes and stands off with Eagles. Eagles armdrags Libra over and sends her to the floor with an armdrag. Eagles chases Libra around the ring. Libra brings Eagles back into the ring. Eagles tries to bring Libra in by her hair. Libra cuts her off and gives Eagles a neckbreaker on the middle rope. Libra gives Eagles a Rude Awakening for two. Libra tries another but Eagles blocks it. She snapmares Libra into a running knee strike for two. Libra drops Eagles back first across her knee. Eagles ducks a clothesline from Libra. She stomps Libra on the back and Libra responds with a forearm strike. Eagles connects with a flying clothesline off the second rope. Eagles knocks her down with a running elbow strike. She misses a corner clothesline, allowing Libra to drop her with another neckbreaker. Eagles comes back with a suplex for two. Eagles boots Libra in the legs, and then gives her a devestating kick to the side of the head. Somehow Libra kicks out. Eagles drops Libra with Hellbound to secure the victory at 13:21. The wrestling was good and the storytelling was top notch. I thought the crowd was going nuts after the Knuckles/Oprah match, but these two managed to top that. ***1/2
AIW Women’s Championship
Angeldust (Champion) vs. Sara Del Rey
Sara throws a kick. Angeldust ducks and rolls up Sara for two. Angeldust slips out of a slam attempt and takes Sara down with a satellite headscissors. Sara shrugs off Angeldust’s kicks to her leg. Sara drills Angeldust with a boot. Angeldust takes Sara off her feet. Sara picks up Angeldust in an electric chair. Angeldust victory rolls her for two. Sara assaults Angeldust with forearms in the corner. Sara delivers a series of backbreakers but fails to secure a pinfall. Sara tosses Angeldust across the ring by her hair. She puts Angeldust in a straightjacket choke and leans her back across her knees. Angeldust reverses the choke. Sara backs her into the corner to break. Sara mockingly calls Angeldust “champion” as she beats her down. Sara puts Angeldust in the Gory Special. Sara stretches Angeldust forward. Angeldust escapes and delivers an enzugiri. Angeldust lands a crossbody block for two. Sara blocks the LSD Drop by tossing Angeldust across the ring. Angeldust evades a Koppu Kick. Angeldust connects with the LSD Drop for two. Sara puts Angeldust in a torture rack. She drops down with it and pins Angeldust for two. Sara puts Angeldust back in the Gory Special. Sara slides Angeldust into a leg-capture backslide for two. Angeldust reverses into a cradle for the pin at 10:19. Sara just beat the tar out of Angeldust forever, which was really fun to watch. Angeldust catching Sara off guard was a great way to end the bout and a fine way to close the show. ***
Immediatley after the pin, Jessicka Havok and Chest Flexor hit the ring and attack Angeldust. Isis the Amazon comes out to clear the ring. She takes Flexor to the floor and chokeslams him through a table! Isis hugs Angeldust and puts her up on her shoulders. Angeldust’s holds up the belt to end the show.
Overall: On this DVD you’ll see more good women’s wrestling than you’ll get in 5 year’s of WWE TV. This show is seriously as good as many men’s independent shows. It’s nice to see that even with one-off shows like this, AIW is also able to maintain their storylines and keep things moving forward. Even if you don’t enjoy the women’s wrestling as much as I did, the Guys Night Out pre-show provides some really fun matches as well. AIW is really picking up steam and this is a great place to jump on board, especially if you’re a fan of women’s wrestling. You can pick up from AIW’s website. or from Smart Mark Video.