From Larry Goodman: WrestleMerica put on a shockingly great show last night in Barnesville, probably their best since Dennis Gale took owner...
From Larry Goodman:
WrestleMerica put on a shockingly great show last night in Barnesville, probably their best since Dennis Gale took ownership of the company in 2017.
Apocalypse was also my favorite live show experience of the year thus far. It had a little bit of everything, not too much of anything and something for everyone, from the sublime to the utterly ridiculous. This was raw entertainment.
Kudos are in order for Gale, matchmaker/GM Ben Masters and entire crew.
Do not be deceived by the plethora of DQ and count outs in the results. They worked in the grand scheme of things. The show had clean finishes were they mattered -- the gimmick matches. All too often at WrestleMerica, the gimmick match have not lived up to the hype. Not this time around. David Ali and Fry Daddy produced a match of the candidate with their IronMan Match. The Boot Camp Match between Joshua Wolverton and Tyler Cullprett was way better than I imagined it could be.
And the pacing of the show was perfect. The running time was in the sweet spot of 2 and 1/2 hours. Nothing on the undercard overstayed its welcome. If the show had dragged, it could have been deadly for a 30 minutes Ironman going on second to last.
Attendance at the Academy Gym was 225. For sustained heat, this crowd could not be beat.
(1) Jacob Johnson defeated Robert Vien via count out in 3 minutes. Johnson is over in Barnesville. The debuting Vien made it easy for the fan to hate him. He went right to the rough stuff, sold big for Johnson's offense and powdered out to cut a promo. Said he didn't sign on to wrestle a guy that wasn't fully trained. They got the point across short and sweet. There's more to come.
(2) Simon Sermon (with Ryan North) vs. Manny Lemons was ruled a double DQ at 6:30. The fans took to Lemons right off. He's got nine years of experience under his belt and knows how to work a crowd. Good look, too, complete with "zest for life" kneepads. Lemons took control of the situation (usually it's the other way around with Simon) and the building was in an uproar in no time flat. Lemons had Sermon and North on the run. Lemons got a hold of "Queen" Sermon's scepter for a "break it" chant. Lemons sat Sermon in a chair and chopped him, then set North in Sermon's lap. You get the drift. Lemons spit lemon juice in Sermon's face and stuck the lemon into his mouth. It was out control so referee Mason Pike had no choice but to throw the match out. Lemons took home Sermon's crown and scepter as trophies.
(3) Samantha Starr defeated Reka Tehaka in 6:03. Tehaka was coming off her AEW debut the night before in Jacksonville (a squash match loss to Jade Cargill) and has loads of potential. She's already big on facial expressions and body language. Tehaka is Polynesian and yes, some ignoramus in the crowd called her Pocahontas. Starr (daughter of "Baby Doll" Nickla Roberts) did fine as a heel. They traded Samoan drops for near falls. Starr raked the eyes and pinned Tehaka with a Jake Roberts DDT.
(4) Joshua Wolverton defeated Tyler Cullprett via submission in a Boot Camp Match (12:06). This match exceeded all expectations and was the easily the best Wolverton match I've seen. They each had a military foot locker filled with plunder in their corner. The crowd was heated. Tremendous fire from Wolverton from the jump. What has gotten into this guy? Baking pans came first and they were walloping each other, sometimes with cymbal claps to the head. Culprett pulled out a cuckoo clock out his box. Sadly, he did not get to use it. Wolverton stuck a bar of soap in Cullprett's mouth. Wolverton mimicked a waterboarding. Cullprett sent Wolverton face first into a bed of mouse traps. Cullprett laced Wolverton in the head with a umbrella that had a chain wrapped around it. Looked great. Wolverton bled. Wolverton applied a cheese grater to Cullprett's face andd he bled a wee bit. Cullprett kicked Wolverton in the groin and DDTed him onto the foot locker. Wolverton evaded Cullprettt's home run swing with his umbrella and crossfaced him with the chain umbrella to force him to tap out. The crowd ate this match up.
INTERMISSION -- WrestleMerica returns to Barnesville on May 8 with Marina Tucker vs. Kinzie Paige, the return of Dax Anthony and Kole Carter announced.
(5) Drew Adler vs. Paul Jordane was ruled a double count out at 10:03. Adler was doing the Top Tier Nutrition gimmick. It never really worked for me....until tonight. The story was Adler wanted to Jordane to drink whatever that stuff is in the shaker cup he brings to the ring. Jordane refused. This led to test of strength wherein Adler poured the drink down Jordane's gullet. I figured that would be it. I figured wrong. Adler's tummy got upset. So did Jordane's. Adler said he needed to poop and started to gingerly make his way towards the bathroom (which is located where everyone can see it). Jordane was right behind him. They ended up fighting to see who could get into the bathroom first. Referee Meade finally counted them out. Adler got into the bathroom and locked the door behind him. Jordane went to the dressing room I guess he had to do his business behind the building. With all eyes on the bathroom door, Adler emerged with toilet paper around his neck and stumbled across the arena to the dressing room.
(6) Brian Brock (Leo Brien) defeated Logan Creed via DQ in 7:33. Hoss fight time and it was a good one. Creed received the loudest entrance pop of the night and a huge "Logan" chant. These were big men doing big men things and making the show look good (I hope Myron Fancher doesn't mind me stealing his line). Referee Mason Pike got knocked down. Brock blasted Creed with his cowbell but there was no referee to make the count. Creed chokeslammed Brock and clocked him with the cowbell. Pike got up just in time to see it and DQed Creed.
Postmatch - Creed choked Brock with the bullrope. They brawled into the seats and Brock fell ass over tea kettle through a row of chairs trying to regain control of the bullrope.
(7) Fry Daddy defeated David Ali 3 falls to 2 in a 30 minute Ironman Match. Dueling chants erupted throughout the match. The Ali fans were few but super vocal and would get the Fry fans fired up. They opened with grappling. Fry locked in a choke submission to take the first fall at 2:43 and Ali tapped quickly to preserve his energy. Ali pinned Fry with what looked to be a powerdrive elbow at 6:15. They fought way up into the bleachers where everyone could see them. Ali KOed Fry with a running knee in the bleachers at 9:33 to go up 2-1. Fry pinned Ali with a Cutline (RKO) on the floor at 11:27 to make it 2-2. Fry connect with a superman punch and superkick for near falls. Some great rubber-legged selling by Ali here. 15 minutes gone. Ali clocked referee Danny Meade. Confusion reigned as Ali called for second ref. By the time Mason appeared, Meade was coming to life. Fry rolled Ali up for an almost three count. Ali did a top rope clothesline at the 20 minute mark. Fry kicked out of the delayed cover. They teased a double 10 count as exhaustion was taking hold. Fry got a kendo stick from a fan and used it on Ali. Ali begged for mercy and capitalized when Fry momentarily lowered his guard. The heat intensified when Masters announced 5 minutes to go. Fry kept working for the choked but was unable to lock it in. Fry kicked out a top rope elbow and Kryptonite Krunch. Ali kicked out of powerbomb with two minutes to go. Fry got the choke applied with less than a minute to go. Ali desperately tried to hang on before tapping out with two seconds to go.
I loved almost everything about this match. These guys make magic. First time I"ve seen an indy Ironman with sustained heat for 30 minutes. The striking exchanges had legitimacy. Having it knotted up at two fall each and making the last half of the match being all about getting that deciding fall was really smart. The crowd was buying the false finishes. They worked such a fast pace for the first 20 minutes so the exhaustion towards the end made sense and built the drama. The return to the choke for the winning fall was a great choice. I wished they had done a ref stoppage due to Ali passing out. My only regret is that with Ali losing and not getting any heat back, this feud appears to be over.
(8) Mikal Judas & Cyrus the Destroyer defeated Neal Koloff & Bozworth (with Aleksandr Koloff & Ryan North & Jaxon Slade) via DQ in 3:06. Match was billed as Judas and mystery partner vs. the Koloffs. Bozworth replaced Aleksandr due to injury (see notes below). North trotted out Slade as a "partner" for Judas. Channeling Jimmy Hart, North said it was his fantasy to see Judas with a great partner so have fun. North is vastly underrated as a manager, mainly because he plies his trade excusively in Middle Georgia. Judas greeted Slade with a choke slam. The number game got to Judas as North's other dudes beat him down. Judas made a stout comeback against the odds when Slade clocked him from behind for the DQ.
The heels swarmed all over Judas and hung him over the rope rope with the Koloffs' chain. The crowd popped for the appearance of the fire breathing monster Cyrus. He was taking on all comers until he got clipped from behind and was beaten down.
North's crew was about to hang Cyrus when Judas hit the ring with chairs. The heels bailed. Judas and Cyrus stood tall holding chairs with heels fretting about what to do. North said not now. I wouldn't lave blamed him if he said not ever.
The heels will have hell to pay. The above sets up a six man tag on May 8 --- Judas & Cyrus & WrestleMerica Champion Pain vs. Neal Koloff & Bozworth & Slade.
NOTES: SFCW owner David Manders, Good Ole Boy Cuzin Cletus and the legendary Charlie Smith were in the house...Scotty Beach and Ravenna Vein were visiting backstage...Mac McMurray was the timekeeper...Aleksandr Koloff is set for surgery next week to reattach his triceps and will be out of action 3-4 months...Lemons and Tehaka relocated from Utah where they wrestled for Devotion Championship Wrestling and are now based out of the Nightmare Factory.
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