On August 10, 2013, for the second time in PWF's brief history, an event was held outside of the Corbin Civic Center & held at the London National Guard Armory in London, KY; 15 miles away. Less than 2 miles away an established promotion which has been a developmental program for the 2 largest wrestling companies in the U.S. has visited London once again. For one night, London had a hot wrestling scene. But one had a faithful following.
Despite the Armory feeling like a sauna, customers gave the young company their money because they knew they had an amazing evening to look forward to. With the concession stand in full swing, the buzz was high over what they were to witness that night. As for a recent PWF tradition, there is a pre-show match.
Justin Storm vs. Eddie Young. Young strolls out to the 4 Horsemen theme from the days of WCW with the swagger from the old World Class. Storm comes out for another chance to show the fans what he has to offer. In a match that went back & forth & even had a Canadian Destroyer, the young man who won didn't have that word as a name. Winner: Justin Storm.
In a departure of sorts, John Bullard didn't come out to the ring with announcers Aaron Rose & Russell Ryan. The 2 gave the fans the rundown of the night's festivities & pumped up an already crowd for a night of excitement with not only new faces, a PWF trademark, but the return of a few old ones. Once the Star Spangled Banner finished, Ryan took his seat while Rose remained in the ring as he resumed the role of substitute ring announcer since Brian Sizemore was in the main event.
Sean “Virus” Harddrive vs. Nasty Russ. Once again, PWF starts out with not only a match of the night contender, but a contender for match of the year. For those who don't know, Virus, in January, broke his arm in a match so severely that he had to have surgery which rendered him subject to pat downs at any metal detector he walks through. Nasty Russ went from a virtual unknown in January to being a breakout star & even having a bit of a following. These 2 are very familiar with each other having worked together multiple times in Buckeye promotions. The moves these 2 had, the exchanges the pulled off, & even the way they worked the crowd, was nothing short of impressive. What's really impressive is that Virus showed no signs of ring rust as he was able to execute many of his signature moves. Even though Russ was able to bounce back, it was a sweet return for kid in green. Winner: Sean “Virus” Harddrive.
Dyron Flynn & Shinigami w/Father Fear vs. Team IOU. Before the match begins, the crowd was introduced to the new PWF commissioner, Jimmy Feltcher, who does not look like Juicy but as someone who has a stuffy office job. Fear not only claims that Jimmy is a notorious tightwad, but warms him to stay out of his way. In a match that was very well-balanced with very little filler, every competitor shined. Flynn put on a strong performance, his appearance does remind me of George “The Animal” Steele & Prince Albert though, nothing wrong with it, since we hairy guys have to stick together. Team IOU once again show that they are one of the best young teams on the indie scene with their crispness & fluidity. Especially when they hit The Receipt on Flynn. Winners: Team IOU. Post match, Shinigami (I still can't figure out who he is) confers with Father Fear then rolls back into the ring & proceeds to pommel Flynn which prompts IOU to come to the ring to help out their fallen adversary. This turn of events led to IOU being overcome which led to Nick Iggy being taped to the top rope helpless while Kerry Awful had his arm Pillmanized.
Brian Beech w/ Bobby Blade vs. “Picture Perfect” Jordan Kage- Road to Freedom Match. The Road to Freedom is kind of a cross between WWE's Money in the Bank & Ring of Honor's Proving Ground. The stipulation was that whomever wins gets a briefcase with a title match contract they can cash in at anytime (maybe it's closer to MOIB, but I'm still reminded of ROH's Proving Ground). Beech, being the man who replaced Jason Kincaid, had pledged the case to Flawless when he defeats Kage. Once the bell rang, it was clear why Blade recruited Beech: he's like a grizzly bear that had cybernetic limbs grafted onto its frame, possessed by a demon, & smoked bath salts when he's in the ring. Needless to say, he was a suitable replacement. He proceeds to beat Kage to the point that most men would just say he could have the briefcase & hit the showers. However, Kage stood up to him & even though he took a great deal of punishment, he got the win after hitting the Fuzzy 8×10. Winner: “Picture Perfect” Jordan Kage. Post match featured Flawless giving Kage another beatdown which led to several members of the locker room coming to his aid. Based on personal observation, Beech is someone who I would definitely love to see more in PWF in the future.
After intermission, a returning John Noble comes to the ring with the same bitterness he had in his heart when he left The Primus stating that he was to come to the show because he had a match. As Noble continued to rant, a familiar looking man came out to the ring for the first time since February. Even though he had no music playing (technical issue….it happens), but we were graced by the Bronze God's return
Lennox Norris vs. John Noble. Good way to reintroduce both guys, & it was a good match to have after intermission, but I've seen both guys have better matches. Are they bad workers? Absolutely not! It was a good back & forth matchup. I did find that Norris working as a face was a disappointment. I like him better as a pompous ass who views the fans as peasants. He did come out and pose like a bodybuilder from yesteryear like he did in the past though, so there's a bit of his old persona coming out. I think some guys work better as heels, & he's one of them. Winner: “Bronze God” Lennox Norris.
Menace vs. “The Hood Ninja” Hy Zaya. Here is a matchup that was initially booked for the January show which didn't get to happen for a number of reasons. Many have claimed this was one of those dream matches that wrestling fans go online and say they would love to see. Well, that night people got to see what would happen if both got into the ring together. The match started with both men walking towards the center of the ring facing each other & bowing to the other in a sign of mutual respect (for those who don't know, each man has a martial arts influenced gimmick) before they return to their corners to begin their contest. As they worked their match, it's clear that both men were evenly matched. You've read me say several times in several matches that each man was able to display their skills. This matchup both men were like a binary star going supernova because it was like both men went after each other like 2 combatants in one of those old Kung Fu movies. However, it seems that neither man could put the other away. Winner: 15 minute time limit draw. Post match Commissioner Feltcher comes out & congratulates both men for their effort & asks if they would like a rematch at the anniversary show in a tables, ladders, & chairs match. Both men, still showing great respect for each other, agreed & will see each other on October 5, 2013.
Kyle Matthews vs. “The Modern Day Viking” Shawn Shultz- PWF Championship match. In a rematch from Hour of Sin which Shultz earned after winning at Lethal Lottery. The 2 squared off in a matchup that in my opinion was a better match than the first. Maybe that's because I'm now more familiar with Shultz who impressed me more at the last show than he did at his début. The 2 men squared off trying to gain an advantage as well as find a suitable way to put the other man away. After a notable and hard-fought match, Shultz brought a chair into the ring which the referee quickly struggled away from him. As Matthews was rapidly advancing towards Shultz, he sidestepped & Kyle went headfirst into the chair that the referee was holding, rendering him unconscious! Seizing an opportunity an unexpected opportunity (hey English majors–is this series of events considered irony?), Shultz put Matthews in his own finisher, the Texas Cloverleaf. The referee raised the champion's arm 3 times, 3 times it fell limp upon the mat.
Winner & new PWF Champion: “The Modern Day Viking” Shawn Shultz. Post match Jordan Kage came out attempting to cash in his newly won title opportunity but Flawless immediately intervened.
Flawless w/Bobby Blade vs. Team BFF- London Street Fight w/The Fans Bringing the Weapons- PWF Tag Team Championship- Brian Sizemore Special Guest Referee. Flawless comes out to their usual fare which consists of Cash Flo berating everyone within earshot & some far away as he mentions Adam Pearce. Once Team BFF enters the ring, the battle began. A few notable spots consisted of Brian Sizemore being taken out, Ryan Dookie being hurled off the top turnbuckle onto Mickie Knuckles who was laying face down by chairs, Mickie Knuckles putting a plastic garbage can over Mercer's head & proceeded to hit the can with a baseball bat which had shrapnel inside that cut Mercer who couldn't continue the match in accordance to the laws of the KBWA, & Cash powerbombing Knuckles onto an upright piece of plywood for the win. Winners: Flawless. Post match had Kage coming out to attack Flawless which briefly led to Virus coming out to aid his former foe. Kage formally challenges Flawless for a title match at the September show with Virus as his partner which Flawless accepts.
Once again, great show by Pro Wrestling Freedom who constantly produce an in ring product that rivals many of the top promotions in the U.S. With new faces & returning ones, it'll be interesting to see what matchups come in the future. The next show is on September 14, 2013 titled Out With the Old. As PWF reaches their first anniversary, their future looks brighter as ever.
Now, go check out a local show.
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P.S. As I mentioned in the last review, Jason Kincaid had to withdraw from this show because the NWA decided to book him in a match against Chase Owens for both his NWA Smoky Mountain title, but for Owens's NWA World Junior Heavyweight belt that night. After a match that lasted over 40 minutes, The Gift took the Jr. Heavyweight title back to West Virginia. If you to see him booked in your area, go watch him in action since he is one of the best in the world. Hopefully, he'll return to the PWF ring soon enough so he can amaze the fans here again.