From the weekend of May 22nd through May 24th, from coast-to-coast, the independent wrestling scene was on fire. While the scene was on fire, we saw a ton of titles on the line this weekend, a couple changed hands, while some remained with the star who brought them into the show. From the likes of House of Glory, Freelance Wrestling, Chaotic Wrestling, and ETU Wrestling, these are five must-see matches that every fan of professional wrestling should go back and check out.

5. Charles Mason vs. Joey Silver from House of Glory’s “Waging War”

Kicking off this list, on Friday, May 22nd, House of Glory made their return to the NYC Arena in New York, NY for its big event, “Waging War.” The event saw a ton of great action, including a stellar tag team match as the main event between Matt Hardy & Jeff Hardy, and Stu Grayson & Evil Uno. We also saw “Blackheart” Lio Rush make his return to House of Glory, and Shotzi Blackheart and Lena Kross go to war in a non-title match. However, the match that stood above all of these matches was the HOG World Championship match, which saw Charles Mason put his title on the line against an unlikely foe, Joey Silver. Mason has held the title now for over 350 days, as he closes in on his first anniversary with the title. He first won the belt from Mike Santana at Mike Santana’s Puerto Rican Weekend last year on June 7th. Fast forward a year, and Mason has defended that title against the likes of Carlito, Man Like DeReiss, Dezmond Xavier, Cedric Alexander, Mustafa Ali, Rey Horus, Bryan Keith, Michael Oku, and Jonathan Gresham. This has truly been one of Mason’s best runs of his career, if not the best run of his career. From his character work to his in-ring stuff, Mason is just on a whole other level. When his match against Joey Silver got announced, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I like Silver, but I wasn’t sure if he could hold his own against a major star. Well, Silver did more than just that. He actually made a believer out of me. There were a few times in this one that I thought we were going to see a new champion crowned. Silver looked incredible, Mason continues to look amazing, and this match was truly a must-see contest. Go back and check this one out on TrillerTV+.

4. Bang & Matthews vs. Pretty Empowered from Freelance Wrestling’s “These Final Hours”

Next on the list, also on Friday, May 22nd, Freelance Wrestling returned to the Logan Square Auditorium for their final stop before the big 12th anniversary show next month, “These Final Hours.” This show was absolutely stacked, as it was hosted by the multi-person Freelance Rumble, which saw the winner get to challenge the Freelance World Champion at the 12th anniversary show next month, but more on that later. We also saw an EFFY vs. Billie Starkz match, which absolutely ruled. However, one of the best matches on the show saw Bang & Matthews, Davey Bang & August Matthews, accompanied by James Russo, put their Freelance Tag Team Championships on the line against Pretty Empowered, Kenzie Paige & Kylie Alexa. Bang & Matthews are two-time Freelance World Tag Team Champions, now in their second reign, holding the titles so far for over 330 days. They defeated Home Cooking, Kody Lane & Dan The Dad, for the titles back in June last year. Since then, they have picked up wins over the likes of CJ Martin & Sean Galway, Stone Ambrose & Robbie Reeves, Darin Corbin & RJ Sowa, Sinner & Saint’s Judas Icarus & Travis Williams, Star Struck’s Anthony Greene & Channing Thomas, and much more. They are also the current IWTV Independent Wrestling Tag Team Champions, holding those titles now for over 140 days, so far. They are on another level and are truly cementing themselves as the greatest tag team on the independent scene today. However, they had a tall task in this one as they went up against a team that has been a team since they were born. Kenzie Paige & Kylie Alexa. Pretty Empowered has been one of my favorite teams for a long time now. Both Kenzie Paige and Kylie Alexa are truly incredible as singles competitors, but as a team, they’re simply unstoppable. I will always go to bat for each of these incredible women. They are truly changing the scene for women’s wrestling. Kenzie Paige is someone who has cemented herself as one of the best women’s wrestlers around today, and Kylie Alexa has been showcasing her talents as a singles competitor and carving her own path in the northeast. I truly am so proud to support all four of these competitors. Bang & Matthews are one of the most fun teams to watch today, and Pretty Empowered, whether they’re teaming or not, are two of my absolute favorite singles stars around today. Go back and check this one out on the Freelance Wrestling IWTV VOD channel. More from this show in a bit.

3. Shannon LeVangie vs. Dante Drago from Chaotic Wrestling’s “Boston Brawl V”

Coming in at number three, we saw Shannon LeVangie put her Chaotic Wrestling Pan Optic Championship on the line against Dante Drago at Chaotic Wrestling’s “Boston Brawl V” on Friday night. Friday night was jam-packed with wrestling, and this match just added to it. The card was very fun, including a six-man tag match in the main event between Brad Cashew & Vegan Society’s Seabass Finn & Jiah Jewell, and Armani Kayos & The Breadwinners’ Patrick Wheatman & Cash McGuiness. We also saw Milo Mirra put his Chaotic Wrestling New England Championship on the line against Ichiban, a tag team gauntlet match, and so much more. However, LeVangie and Drago absolutely stole the show. This marked LeVangie’s fourth defense. She won the title a little bit over 110 days ago. She has knocked off the likes of Godrick, Jariel Rivera, & Tony Navarro in her first-ever defense, following this up with wins over Tasha Steelz and B3CCA in singles action. Since returning from her injury that sidelined her for much of 2024 and half of 2025, LeVangie has continued to show that she’s in the best shape of her career. She has had so many tremendous matches, and despite the brutal injury that kept her out of action for roughly 13 months, she has shown that she has absolutely zero ring rust. LeVangie is one of my personal favorites in the northeast today, and her tag team with Paris Van Dale, collectively known as The Bratz, will forever be one of my favorite teams. LeVangie is just an absolute star. Her opponent in this one, Dante Drago, is certainly not a pushover. He may be one of the most underrated stars around today on the independent scene. It’s criminal that he’s not booked more places. He’s so fun to watch and connects with the crowd so easily. He truly can do it all. Go back and check this one out when it’s available on the Chaotic Wrestling YouTube channel.

2. Trevor Outlaw vs. Izzy Moreno from Freelance Wrestling’s “These Final Hours”

Let’s head back to Freelance Wrestling. While Bang & Matthews vs. Pretty Empowered was an outright amazing match, the best match of the night belongs to Trevor Outlaw and Izzy Moreno, in a match that saw Outlaw put his Freelance World Championship on the line against Moreno. Outlaw first won the title just over 60 days ago when he knocked off Devon Monroe by cashing in his Red Star Medallion following his original title shot loss. He won the Freelance World Championship, and love him or hate him, this title win was so rightfully deserved. The amount that Outlaw did/does for Freelance cannot be understated. He and Frank the Clown are so fun to hate and so fun to boo. However, even the fans there can recognize greatness as he’s been starting to get more and more cheers. I cannot say enough good things about Outlaw as a character. He’s so much fun to watch and has grown on me significantly since I first saw him some years ago. We also did a fun interview that you can catch on PWPonderings, from very recently, to promote his match with Moreno. Outlaw is a blast to watch, and his world title win is truly beyond well-deserved, and I cannot stress that enough. As for Moreno, she has shown so much potential as she’s bursting onto the independent wrestling scene. Moreno is someone we feel like we’ve all grown up with, from her days as Bayley-girl in WWE’s NXT back in 2015ish. However, Moreno can absolutely go in the ring. She has put in so much hard work to get to where she is, and she more than deserves her flowers. Moreno has an incredibly bright future in this world, and ten years from now, maybe sooner, who knows, she may be main eventing a WrestleMania against her former idol. That’s a storyline built into the WWE waiting to happen. Moreno has been amazing me lately, and I’m very excited to see how else she continues to develop not only her move set but her character. She’s a sight to see and deserves the adoration and support. Both she and Outlaw put on some magic in the ring together for the top prize in Freelance Wrestling. Go back and check this one out on the Freelance Wrestling VOD Channel on IWTV.

1. Above The Rest vs. Killionaire’s Club from ETU’s “Dead Set”

Coming in at number one on this list, we saw the Killionaire’s Club, J Boujii & PB Smooth, put their ETU Atlantic Tag Team Championships on the line against Above The Rest, Ikuro Kwon & Gabriel Skye. The Killionaire’s Club has held the ETU Atlantic Tag Team Championships for 440 days, becoming the inaugural tag team champions at ETU. They’ve knocked off the likes of Above The Rest, Joshua Bishop & Sam Holloway, The High Flying Star Machine’s BoJack & Diego Hill, Bang & Matthews’ Davey Bang & August Matthews, Latinos Most Wanted’s Koda Hernandez & Sabin Gauge, and Top Team’s Jay Lucas & Terry Yaki. J Boujii and PB Smooth made some magic together. They quickly cemented themselves as one of the top independent wrestling teams in the landscape. Side note, this is J Boujii’s second week in a row taking the number one spot on this list. J Boujii and PB Smooth can absolutely go together. They put on a tag team wrestling clinic whenever they step into the ring, and they deserve their flowers for that. As for their opponents in this one, much of the same can be said about them. Above The Rest’s Gabriel Skye & Ikuro Kwon, much like J Boujii & PB Smooth, are probably independent wrestling’s most underrated performers. They’re not booked nearly as many places as they should be. The talent in all four of these men is truly otherworldly. When I saw this match got announced, I knew we would be in for a barnburner, but even I didn’t know how damn good this one was going to be. ETU knocked it out of the park in this one, as it was a violent, brutal, and bloody affair. This match had it all. The whole ETU show was fantastic, but this match stole the show and left it very hard for any matches after it to follow that up. Go back and check this one out on the ETU Wrestling VOD Channel on IWTV.