Simon Sermon (with Reno) press conference. Regarding the arrest of Pastor Donald Jaykes, Sermon said those were not his cops they were THE cops, otherwise no comment. Sermon denied the accusation CEW was having difficulty getting referees. Sermon said wrestling was dangerous and getting hurt was par for the course. Sermon got testy about the status of Chip Skyler. Had the reporter kicked out and cut the press conference short.
New intro video here. I liked it.
(1) Suge D defeated Hawk Thomas in 9:33. A call back to Suge eliminating Thomas in the Casino Rumble. Suge on the mic referring to Savannah as being ugly ass. He did what a certain president elects could not do with The Wall. He was going to take over CEW. Not based on how you feel just facts.
Hawk abusing Suge with his power and the crowd buying in. Suge blocks the kill shot and takes out Hawk's knee. Suge dons the gloves for ground and pound and wins it with middle rope swanton bomb.
Cut to Simon Sermon handing a water bottle to referee Danny Meade on his way out. Suge too busy running his mouth to see Cornelius Pepperbottom emerge from under the ring.
Mosley out. EY retribution on Suge, who begged off saying he couldn't possibly do another match because he promised mom he'd be home for dinner.
Yeah ok, but CEW fans will get Pepps vs. Suge on February 22.
Supastarz got into a beef with the cops (Sheriff Raines & Chad Skywalker) in the parking lot about playing their music too loud. Supastaz did not take well to that or their beer being confiscated. They fight their way into the building and into the ring.
Skywalker as a ballbusting cop was heaven. Supastarz oozed authenticity as the anti-authority rock 'n rollers. Supastaz v Allen Bros on February 22 is on my radar.
(2) Supastarz (Nikki Eight & Tommy Mars) defeated Sheriff Raines & Chad Skywalker in 11:12. Skywalker and Raines not exactly on the same page. Supastarz over with a lariat/Gori Bomb combo.
As Stephen Platinum would say, Supastarz have the pepper. Raines is always in the right place at the right time.
(3) Hakeem Young defeated Cam Jackson to retain the CEW Chaos Championship in 10:03. Cam's early run built to a cutter to set Young's signature elbow drop but he took too much time and Hakeem got away. Hakeem tore Jackson's arm to shreds. The Thrashing? No. DDT by Cam yes. Jackson elbow drop missed again. The Thrashing forearm to the base of skull by the champion for the three count.
Good match. Jackson had a good run but I had no illusion anybody was taking the title off Hakeem this soon.
Alex Kane appeared and took command of the ring. Hakeem shoved Kane from behind but bolted out of the ring to avoid a face-to-face with the forever MLW World Champion. Grayson Pierce came through the curtain with words for Young.
(4) Alex Kane defeated Grayson Pierce in 6:44. Kane with a trio of germans and a release suplex for icing on the cake.. Grayson grabbed the ropes. Brainbuster coming. Pierce escaped and hit the Skullpiercer. Referee Paul Santos got sick to his stomach. Kane with a german into a powerbomb into a brainbuster into bridging Mark of Kane for the win.
Referee Meade was overcome with gastric distress and made a hasty exit. We can only hope he made it to the bathroom.
Alex Kane rules. CEW got everything they could have possibly hoped for out of this match. Pierce gained in losing. Benefield and Maestro had it dialed in on commentary.
(5) Exotic Youth (Zach Mosley & Cornelius Pepperbottom) defeated Saturday Night Temptations (Karl Hager & CJ Shine) to retain the Turmoil Tag Team Championship in 9:16. Hager did a White Mike-style giant swing front facelock. Referee Paul Santa almost puked up in his hand. SNT got their wires crossed. release german by Mosley and famouser by Pepps to pin Hager.
Mutual respect and cheers all around after the match. Referee Paul Santa sprinted the back in search of a barf bag.
A more serious side of SNT on display in a totally entertaining side quest from the main angle.
Dax Anthony promo. The events in the Casino Rumble pissed him off. Cannon sneaked into the Rumble to cost him CEW gold when he wasn't even medically cleared. Unlike Cannon, he didn't take the coward's route. He set an example with Pepps but there was one member in EY and he was calling Zach Mosley out. That way he could say he had defeated both members of the tag team champions.
Anthony's seething rage beneath a semi-controlled exterior.
Sermon lowered the boom on EY. Sermon said Cannon coming into the ring last month placed CEW in legal jeopardy. Therefore, Mosley has a match with Dax Anthony next month and if loses, Bryce Cannon will never be seen in CEW again. Furthermore, if Pepperbottom loses his match to Suge D, not only will Suge get the rest of his money, Good Hand will earn another shot at the Turmoil Tag Team Championship and get to name the stipulation.
Sermon's cruelty was like a stake in the heart of the CEW faithful.
Mosley said EY runs CEW and they didn't give a damn who knows it.
Taking a page out of Ace Haven's book. I can think of worse things.
(6) Randall Reno III defeated "The Fro" Michael Walker to retain the CEW Championship in 23:58. Referee Danny Meade fell out of the ring, evidently overcome by nausea and was helped to the back. Sermon came out wearing a ref shirt. The building exploded with a "Ref you suck" chant. Reno demanded Sermon check Walker's Afro for foreign objects. Sermon ejected the ridiculously hot bartender in Walker's corner from ringside.
Sermon did everything in the book to help Reno -- blocking Walker from executing moves, holding the challenger down and make pin counts so fast that Walker reacted like he was laying in a frying pan every time his shoulders were on the mat. Benefield bemoaned the absurdity. Reno destroyed Walker's back. At one point, dropping Walker right on his neck with a back drop driver. The chant for Walker's was as robust as the hate chant for Sermon.
Sermon got frustrated with Reno's inability to put Walker away despite the massive help and took matters into his own hands. He tried to hit Walker with the title belt and accidentally clobbered Reno instead. Walker sent Sermon through the rope with a dropkick and hit the frog splash elbow on Reno. The bartender was back in Walker's corner as the crowd counted three. Paul Santa slid and made the official three count. Walker was announced as the new CEW Champion. Sermon shouted STOP! He ordered Santa out of the ring because he was not the referee assigned to the match. Santa stood his ground. Sermon attacked Santa. Reno gave Walker a low blow. Sermon gave Walker the Manchester Driver (same finisher he's been using for 20 years), dragged Reno on top of Walker and made the three count.
Sermon pulled Reno up the hair. Reno jumped into Sermon's arms.
The outrageousness of it all. Incredible heat. The CEW fans believe in Fro. Extraordinary ensemble work by Reno, Fro and Simon and they had an imaginative story to tell. I am amazed by the fertile ground CEW creative has found in the tired old heel owner trope. Reno's commitment to his character is unsurpassed. Walker's ring IQ belies his relatively short career.
