From Larry Goodman: National Championship Wrestling celebrated the one year anniversary of its amazing revival with “March Mayhem”. ...
National Championship Wrestling celebrated the one year anniversary of its amazing revival with “March Mayhem”.
Alan Angels dethroned AC Mack as the NCW Heavyweight Champion, capping off a show with five title matches. A new NCW Junior Champion was also crowned in the opener.
The event attracted a larger, hotter crowd than the regular NCW events and the production values on the video were several cuts above the recent episodes thanks in no small part to the ringside camera.
Triston Michaels and Steve Martin on commentary....
Triston Michaels and Steve Martin on commentary....
Postmatch- Katie got in the ring to celebrate with Gilbert. The emotion rang true – a pregnant Katie and Gilbert having just come back from a serious knee injury.
Great way to start the show. The postmatch visual of Gilbert and Katie in the ring was tremendous. Heru as a chickenshit heel is perfect casting. Mayot’s confidence and presence belie her lack of experience. Heru as the transition champion (from David Ali to Gilbert) was a fairly brilliant piece of booking.
(2) Johnny Nixx defeated Ashton Starr in 8:49. Nixx turned on Starr, costing them the tag titles in the process. The pairing made strange bedfellows to begin with. Nixx was born to be heel. Referee David Starr barely got one foot in the ring when Nixx booted him to the floor. Starr pulled Nixx out and gave him the beating he deserved. Nixx’s ego was out of control. There’s a newly unhinged quality to his brawling. Starr locked in a sharpshooter. Nixx donkey kicked Starr in the nuts, superkicked him and got the pin using the tights AND the ropes.
To be continued I hope.
(3) Adrian Hawkins defeated David Ali to retain the SFCW Heavyweight Championship in 9:10. Hawkins outfoxed a game Ali for much of the match. Ali came on strong, garnering near falls with a spear, a TKO neckbreaker and cool variation of the powerslam, then went up top. Hawkins evaded and hit the Codebreaker to escape with his championship.
Good match. Ali did everything except beat the champ.
(4) The RedMexicans (Kavron Kanyon & Bobby Flaco) defeated Hoax & Cody McCulley (with Mr. Skinz) to retain the NCW Tag Team Championship in a no DQ match at 6:28. RedMexicans without manager David Garrison. Stilskinz minus Michael Manson. RedMexicans duct-taped McCulley to the guardrail and decked security guy Lou Lou. Hoax hiptossed Kanyon off the apron through a bridged ladder. McCulley DDTed Flaco onto a chair preceded by some of the weakest use of a chair ever. A second Mr. Skinz dressed in black attacked the original. Flaco put McCulley through a steel coffin of chairs (at least that was the idea) with a springboard double stomp and Kanyon made the pin.
The evil Mr. Skinz unmasked revealing Manson. Lights out…”6:05” on the big screen…here came Chris Nelms walking tall to clean house on RedMexicans with his cowboy boot.
Match was crudea throwback to the early Wildside days when the guys that couldn’t wrestle did violent, dangerous stuff because hardcore wrestling was in vogue.
(5) Landmark Heritage Title Match: Champion Kyle Matthews and Billy Buck wrestled to a 15 minute draw. Technique of the Nightmare vs. the shortcut and shenanigans of the wily Buck early on. Lots of nifty counter wrestling down the stretch. Buck was stretching Buck with a grounded version of the Hidaka Lock as the time limit expired.
Solid work as always when these two hook up but they were saving their best stuff for Hardcore Hell and never kicked into that extra gear.
Rick Michaels was interviewing Matthews backstage when an irate Buck interrupted insisting he could beat Matthews and calling his mentor “Home Improvement” Tim Allen. Matthews challenged Buck to a 30 minute Ironman at Hardcore Hell.
(6) Steel Cage Match #1: O’Shay Edwards defeated Bolo in 5:28 with a punch in the mouth followed by Black Hole Slam. Match was OK, just not much to it and the cage wasn’t a factor.
(7) Steel Cage Match #2: Alan Angels defeated AC Mack to capture the NCW Heavyweight Championship in 22:58. Right to max speed. Somebody was going to get their ass beat. Angels took a terrific bump into the cage and got all mangled up. The punishment was registering on Mack as well. Angels double stomped Mack’s chest but had to shake off effects of the recent knee injury. Mack went with a dragon screw into a figure four. Angels’ reversal was classic. Angels got up selling like he was crippled. Mack hit flying double knees with Angels in the tree of woe. Angels insanity in full effect as he applied the figure four but had to give it up because of his knee. Mack had a chance to walk out of the cage but Angels wanted more and Mack couldn’t resist. Angels ducked the kill shot. All-out war ensued. Angels tried to climb out. Mack cut him off and hit a top rope Meteora but Angels kicked out. Mack superkicked referee Darryl Howe and headed for the exit. Angels grabbed Mack’s leg, hit a standing Spanish Fly and was almost out the door. That’s when Edwards showed up at ringside with a baseball bat. Angels went to the top of the cage. Edwards hit Angel’s bum knee with the baseball bat, decked second referee Weakley and helped Mack to the floor. There was no ref to see Mack technically win the match. Angels obliterated Edwards with a drop from the top of the cage and tossed Mack back in for his spinning Ace crusher finisher. Angels was in shock when Mack kicked out. Angels then became the first man in NCW to kick out of the Mack 10. Mack was in panic mode. Angels reversed a second Mack 10 with the spinning Ace crusher and locked in a guillotine choke. Mack tried to fight it off but had to tap.
I loved this match (other than Angels’ stilted death drop from the top of the cage). The chemistry was there. It was intense, like something important was at stake. They sold big for each other, which really adds to the drama in a match like this.
