From Larry Goodman: The major news flash is that PWA is returning to the Carrollton VFW Fairgrounds starting with their 5th Anniversar...
From Larry Goodman:
The major news flash is that PWA is returning to the Carrollton VFW Fairgrounds starting with their 5th Anniversary show on June 1 featuring a double cage War Games.
The show opened and closed with strong angles. In between, the wrestling ranged from a God awful women's match to ordinary at best. But PWA has never been about quality wrestling. Their fortunes ride on the ability to tell compelling stories and to promote the hell out of the towns they run.
The story aspect is a question mark at this point. It's story singular and that's part of the problem. PWA has precious little going for it except Exotic Ones led by Dave Wills vs. Team PWA led by Noles. Wills is a great talker but four talk segments on the same show? The Exotics (Rick Michaels, Simon Sermon, Tommy Too Much and Stoney Hooker) were running roughshod over the babyfaces (Mike Jackson, Chic Donovan, Joey Kidman and Dusty MacWilliams) and getting nuclear heat. Rather than bolstering a puny babyface side, the heels had been cooled off and cut down to size, although the irrepressible Exotics had a ton of heat on them before the night was over.
Call me crazy, but I'm of the opinion that every wrestling show needs a modicum of really good wrestling. This show had zero, zip, nada.
Call me crazy, but I'm of the opinion that every wrestling show needs a modicum of really good wrestling. This show had zero, zip, nada.
The intermissions, while not kept to the announced 10 minutes, were shorter than before. Still, something is not right when a five match show runs almost 3 hours long.
Attendance was 135. PWA's first Mt. Zion show in March drew over 300 and it's been downhill since. PWA routinely drew over 300 in Carrollton. We shall see if that is still the case or if just maybe the cumulative effects of bad wrestling, weak babyfaces and everlasting intermissions have finally coming home to roost.
New PWA Champion, company owner and admitted non-wrestler Shane Noles said defeating Rick Michaels to win the PWA Heritage Championship was his best night ever in the business. Back at the curtain, Team Exotics (Michaels, Simon Sermon and Tommy Too Much with Wills) were not in a good mood.
Turncoat Commissioner Wills strolled out to the ring with the fans spewing venom. Wills issued a cease and desist order for the "Porky" chants. Wills said Michaels got robbed and was entitled to an immediate rematch. Noles had anticipated Wills' demand and being that he was a fighting champion, he had already drawn up a contract. In typical pro wrestling fashion, Wills hastily signed the contract without reading the fine print. Noles informed Wills that the contract was for PWA 5th Anniversary Show on June 1 AND he was putting the title up in a War Games match --Team PWA vs. Team Exotic Ones AND Wills would have to face him in a loser leaves PWA match where the winning team picked the stipulation. Noles said he was walking away with a contract that was legally binding with the Georgia Athletic Commission and "That's gonna be all folks" for "Porky" Wills on June 1. Wills said the worst thing you want is a man that has nothing to lose, and vowed that Noles would pay for his sins before the night was over.
Mike Jackson did a feel good moment before leading the opening prayer. Jackson was happy that his buddy was the champion instead of that jailbird, but said the great thing that ever happened in his life was Jesus Christ saving his soul.
(1) Dusty MacWilliams defeated Trevor Aeon in 8:30. Aeon said he was going to show the people what a winner is. MacWilliams uses "Save a Horse (Ride a Cowboy)" by Big & Rich as his intro music. I think the song was more over than Dusty, who gave the old ladies cheap thrills with his dancing and hugging routine. Aeon jumped the bell and sold big when Dusty made his comeback. MacWilliams busted out a tope. That was fairly shocking. Aeon dominated the body of the match before MacWilliams won it with a moonsault. A passable opener.
"International French Superstar" Romeo Vezirian did a long introductory promo explaining how the French were superior to Americans -- they have free medicine, don't by guns on every street corner and know how to please women. Vezirian demanded the playing of the French National Anthem and sang it horribly. Vezirian is like a Cirque du Soleil clown playing pro wrestler. The old PCW crowd at the Academy would have appreciated his act. It got nothing but heat in West Georgia.
Noles came out and said that since Stoney Hooker had failed to defend the title in 30 days, the winner of the following match would be the new Georgia Junior Champion.
(2) Romeo Vezirian defeated Nigel Sherrod and Zack Daniels a triple threat match to become the new Georgia Junior Champion in 13:35. It was weird seeing Sherrod as a no nonsense babyface. Daniels has been getting something of a push as a babyface. Vizerian couldn't handle the competition. He spent most of the match outside the ring while Sherrod and Daniels went at it, and took funny bumps when he tried to get involved. In the end, Daniels hit the Air Raid Crash on Sherrod, but Vezirian dumped Daniels out and stole the pin. The crowd was pretty dead. Either they didn't get the story or they didn't care. Vezirian's promo got a much better reaction than the match. PWA now has a buffoon holding one singles title and a non-wrestler holding the other one.
Vezirian celebrated by singing the French anthem again.
(3) "Million Dollar Baby" Brandy Scotch Baker (with Dave Wills) defeated "Blondezilla" Tara Lynn in 10:43. Lynn is not a pretty lady. She was advertised as a 6 footer. She's about 5-8 and fat. Baker is also fat. Watching fat women wrestle is not my idea of entertainment in the first place. In the second place, neither of these women can wrestle their way out of a paper bag. Lynn overpowered Baker. Baker hid behind the ref. Lynn sat the ref on the top turnbuckle, gave Baker a dose of Blondezilla offense and spanked her. Wills distracted Lynn. Baker capitalized with a bulldog, but Lynn got her foot on the ropes. I'm not sure Lynn had the wherewithal to kick out. Lynn tried to stand up with Baker on her shoulders for an electric chair. I think that's what they were going for anyway, but they collapsed in a heap so it was hard to tell. Baker applied a camel clutch of sorts and Wills made an Iron Sheik reference. Baker climbed on the ropes for no particular reason except to let Lynn give her a powerbomb without having to pick her up. Wills got on the apron. Lynn kissed Wills. Baker gave Lynn a stunner for the pin. This match was absolutely hideous. Shame on you PWA.
Wills said he had his Million Dollar Baby, the drink of choice in PWA. "She's not champagne, not cognac, it's all Scotch." I loved the Million Dollar Baby gimmick when Daffney and Robert Fuller did it for Wrestle Birmingham. Wills is good but he ain't Fuller, and Baker's imitation is an abomination.
We got more mic work before the next match. Wills said he was having a bad night. Stoney got screwed out of the title and he got kissed by a fat woman. Wills said he had managed Mr. Hughes all over (true) and he wasn't just his driver (debatable). Wills said Michaels would take him out and get his title back from Noles. Mr. Hughes wasn't happy either. He was supposed to go to his daughter's graduation and instead, he had to come to this stinking town to beat up Michaels. Michaels was REALLY pissed off as in this is not part of the act. Michaels said he had a lot of respect for Hughes, and his beef was with Noles so he was apologizing for what was about to happen.
(4) Mr. Hughes defeated Rick Michaels (with Dave Wills) in 8:34. Michaels wasn't faring so well, so he asked Hughes if they could shake hands and not give these idiots what they want. Hughes crushed Michaels' hand instead. Hughes accidentally punched the post and Michaels purposely posted Hughes' shoulder. Michaels worked the body part for a bit before Hughes hit what passes for his chokeslam these days. The Exotics ran down to the ring. While TTM distracted the ref, Sermon punched Hughes with a chain. Michaels was slow to cover and Hughes kicked out. Hughes hit another "modified" chokeslam for the 1-2-3. Why Michaels would be booked to lose going into the big showdown with Noles at the anniversary event is difficult to fathom. Part of the master plan I guess.
(5) Joey Kidman & Mike Jackson defeated the PWA Tag Team Champions The Exotic Ones (Simon Sermon & Tommy Too Much with Dave Wills) via DQ in 19:38. Jackson was running wild early. The Exotic repeatedly took time out to regroup. The senior superman routine culminated with a double old school ropes walk spot. Picture the ridiculousness of Jackson walking the top rope with both Exotics in knuckle locks. The agony was such that they couldn't yank a 63 year old man who goes maybe 175 pounds off the ropes. The Exotics got heat on Jackson. Kidman made the tag and was cut off almost immediately. Sermon put Wills' cane to good use. A Kidman DDT set up the hot tag to guess who? Jackson pulled the straps down to clean house. A Jackson neckbreaker and Kidman spear had both Exotics down for the count when Michaels hit the ring for the DQ.
The postmatch was wild. Michaels grabbed Noles' father and dragged him into the ring. The Exotics held pops and threatened to beat him with Wills' cane. Shane came to ringside saying his dad wasn't a wrestler. Wills said your not a wrestler either. Wills said that according to his attorney, he couldn't get out of the contract, so he was making a stipulation instead -- Either Shane agreed to start in the War Games or it was curtains for dad. Shane agreed to the stip. Wills ordered the Exotics to hurt dad just for spite. TTM drove the cane into dear old dad's gut before bailing out. Shane and Jackson hit the ring to check on Shane's dad. Jackson said the Exotics had gone way too far. Some of the old ladies in the crowd agreed as they were legit trying to get at the Exotics. Shane threatened to kill them.
Jackson hyped the June 1 show saying that a two ring/two cage War Games had never been done before. Jackson then made the big reveal that PWA was returning to the VFW Fairgrounds.