From Larry Goodman: Georgia Premier Wrestling returned to action at the Canton Village Shopping Center for their second to last even...
Georgia Premier Wrestling returned to action at the Canton Village Shopping Center for their second to last event at the venue. GPW’s run at their new home is ending after just four months.
It was easy to why GPW owners Woody Hullender and Darrell Morris were excited about the new building. The air conditioning, lights, sound and video wall made it a clear upgrade from their former home at the Old Buffington School Gym.
However, building owner Gary Lamb subsequently decided to start his own promotion with Dylan Frymyer (aka Sunny Daze) as booker, running on alternate weekends to GPW. Hullender and Morris decided it was not GPW’s best interest to stay on. Lamb's Southern Honor Wrestling debuts on October 6.
GPW returns to the Old Buffington School Gym in September. The final GPW show at the current venue is August 25. QT Marshall's 1FW hosts the Dusty Rhodes Scholarship event at the building on Sunday, the 26th with Cody and Brandi Rhodes on hand.
The friction between GPW and Frymyer and company extends beyond the venue issue in Canton. In May, GPW announced an Arn Anderson Homecoming show for October 13 in Rome at the Coosa Valley Fairgrounds. In July, a group that includes Shawn Holcomb, Phil Hefner and Frymyer announced a September 22 return of the Superstars of Wrestling Fanfest to Rome after a two year hiatus.
The Superstars of Wrestling event at the Rome Forum is headlined by the Young Bucks and boasts a roster of legends that blows away the GPW event.
The latest development is GPW's booking of “Nature Boy” Paul Lee for the Anderson show. Lee had previously been aligned with the SOS group.
The Superstars of Wrestling event at the Rome Forum is headlined by the Young Bucks and boasts a roster of legends that blows away the GPW event.
The latest development is GPW's booking of “Nature Boy” Paul Lee for the Anderson show. Lee had previously been aligned with the SOS group.
Back to last night, the show was fine. New GPW tag team champions were crowned. Cody Vance earned a shot at GPW Champion QT Marshall. It was rough night for Logan Chase III. His champions lost both of their matches and he suffered the indignation of being locked in a cage.
Attendance was a healthy 240. The crowd was into the show but not super loud. The acoustic ceiling tiles tend to suck up the sound.
Morris was interrupted by Chase with GPW tag champs Mass Destruction. Chase said Morris was drunk with power when he ordered a title defense against a mystery team and demanded to know the identity of their opponents. Morris said Chase cried more than a child freshly born. He would gladly reveal their opponents because that match was happening now.
(1) The Underdogs (Ray Ray & Nate Wylde) defeated Mass Destruction (Cyrus the Destroyer & JP Magnum with Logan Chase III) to win the GPW Tag Team Championship in 8:48. Try as they might, the Lilliputians were unable to sustain any offense against the giants. It was mass decimation for the entire match, especially for Wylde. Tag made. Wylde pulled the ropes down to dump Cyrus and Ray finally got Magnum off his feet. Finish saw Ray mounted on Magnum’s shoulders. Ray turned it into a schoolboy pin with a last second assist from Wylde. Crowd loved this highly improbable outcome.
Postmatch - Cyrus laid Magnum out with a Claymore and walked out with Chase.
(2) “Pale Horse” Josey Quinn defeated “Remarkable” Ryan Rembrandt in 7:00. Quinn punished Rembrandt and got pretty good heat in the process. Quinn hit a great looking back suplex. Crowd was slow to warm to Rembrandt, who is very cut but slight of build. Both men were down after Rembrandt hit a tornado suplex. Rembrandt was hot on the comeback trail when Quinn clocked him with a rude clothesline. Quinn then pinned Rembrandt with an inverted DDT. Match was nothing special. Quinn made a stronger showing at the SCI Futures last weekend and has reinvented himself, physique and character, from the artist formerly known as Andrew Duckworth.
(3) Talon Williams defeated Chip Hazard (with Gabe Walters) in a 2 out of 3 falls Canton Chaos (no DQ) match in 12:33. The war between former partners was the most heated match on the show. Williams totally overwhelmed the evil Hazard and won the first fall with a flatliner variant in just 58 seconds. Williams continued to dominate and came within a hair of taking the match in two straight falls on several occasions. In desperation, Walters tossed a chair into the back of Williams’ head and Hazard pinned him with a low blow at 2:49. Hazard put more plunder to use. Williams blocked a trash can lid and blasted Hazard with it but good. A slugfest on the apron spilled to the floor where Hazard bashed Williams with a hammer. Hazard wedged a chair in one corner and set a ladder up in another. That did not end well for him as he took wicked bumps into both. Walters interjected himself and took a headbutt from Williams. Hazard capitalized with another low blow to set up a double arm DDT but Williams kicked out. Hazard tried for a piledriver. Williams blocked and a double clothesline sent both men down. Moments later, Williams surprised Hazard with a schoolboy for the win. This was one hell of a weapons brawl, albeit with a bland finish for an extreme match. Hazard had to be intact for what was to come.
Postmatch -- Hazard laid Williams out with a piledriver then powerbombed his limp body across two chairs, so this is far from over.
Beautiful Bald Besties (Michael Stevens & Zac Edwards) sashayed to the ring. Edward introduced their beautiful baldness to loud booing. Edwards spotted “redneck trash 1 and 2” otherwise known as the Good Old Boys at the gimmick table and invited them to get their booties in the ring.
(4) Beautiful Bald Besties (Michaels Stevens & Zac Edwards) defeated Good Ole Boys (Cuzin Cletus & Cuzin Shaggy) in 9:50. Waffle House chants abounded for the Boys. They worked over the collective left arms of the Besties. Ref distraction by Stevens set up an uber eye rake on Cletus by Edwards. Referee Jonathan Chastain (much improved from the last time I saw him) missed a legit tag and missed Besties switch with no tag. By this point, Cletus was blinded by eye rakes but managed to fight his way to a tag. The Boys botched a double team. Cletus forced Stevens to kick Edwards in the face. Shaggy had Edwards pinned with a top rope splash but Stevens swapped spots behind the ref’s back and pinned Shaggy. Finish got as much heat on the ref as it did on Besties.
(5) Gil Quest defeated Torque to retain the GPW Cruiserweight Championship in 11:34. Quest was up in Torque’s grill taking trash before the bell. Referee Edwin Sanders was much larger and taller than either of the wrestlers. Not a good visual. Intense see-saw brawl for starters. Torque hit a froggy flying body press and opened a can of whup ass on Quest. Match took a 180 degree turn when Quest backdropped Torque over the top rope straight to the floor. They mixed it up on the comebacks and cutoff so it was fresh and without the usual clichés. Torque had the crowd behind him strong. Quest hit a top rope elbow but Torque kicked out his back cover. Quest hit the Golden Rule (he was trained by Matt Striker). Torque kicked out again so Quest brought the title into the ring. Torque blocked the belt shot and countered big time leading to a brainbuster for a close near fall. Torque used a corner dropkick to set up the 450. He crashed and burned as Quest rolled out of the way. Quest retained with the Golden Rule. The chemistry was right. Best match of the night.
On the video board -- a team of masked luchadores went around asking other wrestlers if they had heard about the hot tag team coming to GPW. Nobody except Big Wood seemed to understand them because they were speaking Spanish. Find out who they are on October 6.
(6) Cody Vance defeated GPW Heavyweight Champion QT Marshall in a non-title match with his manager Logan Chase III locked in a cage (9:52). Morris informed Chase that if Vance won, he would get a title shot on August 25. Fans chanted “lock him up” as Morris did the honors. Like Quinn, Vance is a Marshall disciple. He looks likes a millions bucks and the GPW crowd has taken to him. What better opponent than Marshall? He sold big for Vance’s offense. Vance curled Marshall’s body for five reps before hitting a fallaway slam. Nice. Vance smacked Marshall’s head into the cage and confronted the cowering Chase, Marshall clubbed Vance from behind to take command. Impressive flying back elbow from QT. Vance was starting to feel it after a flapjack that popped the crowd. Back and forth they went until Vance tried to spear Marshall and got the ref instead. Marshall had Vance pinned with a uranage but no referee to make the count. Marshall got Chase’s belt and wrapped it around his fist. Swing and a miss and a spear from Vance. The crowd counted the visual fall. Vance revived the ref just in time for Marshall to nail him with a fistful of belt. Vance kicked out at the last split second. They traded blows. Vance got the better of it and speared Marshall for the win. Good match. It flowed well and built to the finish.
Postmatch – Morris reluctantly released Chase and his fury from the cage.
NOTES: GPW is offering a $5 ticket for the Rhodes Scholarship event to all purchasers of tickets for their August 25 show….Miss Brittany was the ring announcer…Royal sang the national anthem....Edwin Sanders was the second referee.
