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| Photos by Adrenaline Shots Photography |
From Larry Goodman:
Redemption was the rare, almost pure wrestling show from ProSouth and a pretty damn great one at that, a resounding redemption after last week's show.
It featured a trio of title matches with all three being successfully retained.
After a playfully unserious build, the triple threat match for the All-Out Championship stole the show. Champion DRP and challengers Caeden Ooten and Julian Balderas went out and had ProSouth's best match of the year.
The match that had the most interesting build, the battle between the Christians (Pierce and Garrett), delivered a payoff that lived up to what had been a great story.
The Process's reign of terror picked up steam. They won all four of their matches including Joe Black's win over Brother Azriel to retain the ProSouth Championship
Where does Brother Azriel go from here? He held Big Blue for 21 days before losing it to Joe at Anniversary Supershow. Az again made the ascent to the mountain top, holding the SHW Championship in his hands for a few surreal moments along the way, but came up short Friday night.
The tag team championship soap opera was mercifully concluded with Vougan rejecting Amy Haven's offer to join the Process.
The run time was a slightly under two hours. Generally speaking, ProSouth's sweet spot just north of 90 minutes so they were good there.
Like last week, the size and vocal enthusiasm of the live audience was subpar and negatively impacted the way the show came across on the livestream.
Wicked Nemesis and Mathias Darkthorne was the broadcast team for the duration and they were at their nearly award winning best. The officials were Joseph Void and Becca. Darkthorne ring announced. Katie Lindsey and Emma split the ringside videographer duties.
Cold open -- Uncle Slim from 99.5FM in Mobile did a live performance of the national anthem.
Given the backdrop of political strife and it being the eve of No Kings Day, the timing of this was an interesting choice.
(1) Christian Pierce defeated Christian Garrett two out of three falls in 17:35. Of course Becca was the referee. Pierce swiftly hit Once Bitten (cravate driver) to win the first fall in 15 seconds.
Early in the second fall, Pierce crash landed on the floor and Garrett took over for a stretch. They traded top drawer near falls - Pierce with Black Mass kick, Garrett with a jumping neckbreaker. Pierce used a Cheeky Nandos to tee up a sunset powerbomb. Pierce displayed unbabyface bravado. On the outside, they got into a tremendous slugfest on their knees while hovering over a chair. Back inside, Pierce tried to disassemble the turnbuckle pad. The pad went flying as Garrett delivered a german suplex. As they fought over the chair, Becca got knocked down by an errant back elbow from Pierce. Garrett blasted Pierce with the chair to pin Pierce at 10:53.
Pierce was bleeding from the chair shot. They beat each other silly. Pierce said Garrett hit like a bitch. Pierce planted Garrett with the draping DDT that has won matches for him but eyeballed a chair in the corner. They struggled over of the chair. Becca almost got knocked own again. Pierce got possession of the chair. Garrett covered up and Pierce hit Once Bitten. Becca removed the chair before making the count and Garrett was able to kick out. Pierce laid Becca out with Once Bitten. Garrett hit Glycerine on Pierce and scored a visual fall before Void slid in to count. Garrett collared Void. Pierce pulled Void's legs so that he headbutted Garrett in the jewels. Pierce then pinned Garrett with High Noon (double stomp off the top).
For fans that had followed this month long story, this match was exactly what it needed to be -- rich with call backs that incorporated Becca''s screw ups and the fierice strike battles from their previous matches and a new motif - the steel chair. Between his feud with Balderas and this one, PIerce is having a great 2026. Wherever Garrett goes from here, he's been at a different level starting with hi match with DRP at Valentine's Day Massacre.
(2) Joe Wood defeated Oliver Green in 4:56. Green had early success with evasion manuevers and aerial tactics. I imagine the body slam Green took on the floor covered with what Darkthorne described as a suggestion of padding could not have been fun, ditto the replay-worth knee to the face he ate. Wood was making ridiculously nonchalant covers. Green got Wood off his feet with a shotgun dropkick and did a kneeling senton off the ropes ala Chad Sky Walker. As Green dove off the ropes, Wood caught him in midair with a cutter to begin the end. Wood had Green lapsing into unconciousness with the Salvation (full nelson). Rather than allow Green's arm to drop for the third time, Wood finished him off with the Woodchipper.
As David and Goliath matches go, this was surprisingly good. Green was stupidly resilient. Wood was murderously heelish. The finish was sadistic.
(3) Brandon Whatley defeated Neji Ichiban (with Stella Randy) in 7:02. Ichiban was aggressive on the attack right from the jump, as well he should have been after what the Process did to Dark Passion Assassins the last two weeks. When Ichiban slipped off the ropes on a springboard lariat attempt, Whatley pounced. He He kicked the shit out of Ichiban, choked off his air supply and made his life miserable on the ground. Ichiban fired up. This time around, Ichiban's springboard clothesline found its mark but so did Whatley's spinkick of doom.
Whatley administered his deadly Kawada kicks until Stella Randy got into the ring to protect Ichiban. Whatley gave Randy a series of Kawada kicks. Ichiban recovered enought to kick Whatley in the face for a two count, then called Dante Darko out to tend to Randy. Whatley seized on the opportunity with the Bottomless Pit for the win.
Whatley assaulted Ichiban again after the match. Darko stepped in and knocked Whatley through the ropes.
This is the cold-blooded version of Whatley he needs to be for the Process to be a feared top heel group. If get a DPA vs.The Process tag team match, I'm here for it.
(4) DRP defeated Caeden Ooten (with Harley Haven) and Julian Balderas to retain the All-Out Championship in 7:36. Darkthorne pointed out that if Ooten won the title, he would become a grand slam champion at the age of 22. Three way strikes to open. DRP got sidelined after a failed handspring double stunner. Not be denied, DRP hit the double stunner and tried for pins on both challengers. DRP tried for eye of the hurricane on Balderas and Ooten took his head off with a superkick. C with a slingshot suplex on DRP. Balderas with a full nelson slam on Ooten. DRP hit a poison rana and straight jacket german on Balderas, who tried to pop up and got put down by DRP's enzuigiri. Ooten drilled DRP with an off-the-shoulders powerbomb. Ooten bumped like he'd been shot out of a cannon for DRP's codebreaker. Balderas hit a running burning hammer. Good God. Ooten hit a variaton of the GTS on DRP and was instantly taked down by a spinkick from Balderas. DRP hit Panama Sunrise on Balderas and all three were down. Harley pulled Ooten out of the ring to save him from Balderas' Project Mayhem. Balderas double speared Harley and Ooten on the floor. As soon as Balderas reentered the ring, DRP hit the Waverider for the win.
These guys were cooking. This match was a balls to the walls sprint with all three pulling out killer offensive execution, holding nothing back. For pure in-ring, ProSouth's best of the year. Don't take my word for it, seeing is believing match starts at 1:05.
(5) Tragick (with Amy Haven) defeated Justin McKenzie via submission to retain the YouTube Championship in 8:17. Tragick's mask was glowing green. Amy immediately grabbed McKenzie's leg to give Tragick the upper hand. Ace Haven's music played. Tragick was briefly in distress. McKenzie went on offense but Tragick was unaffected. Scott Adams showed his face at ringside to distract Tragick. McKenzie used Tragick's mask to blind him and dumped him on his head with a huracanana. Adams was now kneeling on the ramp. With the mask down and the light on the mask on the fritz, Tragick collapsed. Yet moments later, Tragick kicked out McKenzie's sliced bread 69 at one. Tragick kicked out of second sliced bread. McKenzie, in turn, kicked out of the Tragick Iron Knee at one. Tragick reversed a third sliced bread attempt with the Captain's Hook and choked McKenzie out.
Amy added insult to injury by wiping McKenzie's face paint off.
What the hell is going on here? Tragick appears to be under the influence of weird opposing forces attempting to possess him. Amy and the Process are clearly enemy number one for Adams but what exactly he was up to was clear as mud.
Amy said Vougan had a decision to make (about Alexandra Quinn's tag team title belt). Quinn (rocking a Skulk t-shirt) came to the ring with Vougan. Quinn admitted she was friends with KJ Valentine but she had always been there for Vougan. They earned the tag team championship and the Process did not deserve them. Vougan snatched Quinn's belt off her shoulder and tossed it to Joe Wood, the kicked Wood in the head. The champions sent Wood and Whatley packing.
Glad this storyline got put to rest. The Vougan heel turn never made sense to begin with. Suffice to say, Vougan and Quinn will not receive Emmy nominatons their acting performances. Tragick did not lift a finger to help Wood and Whatley...hmm.
(6) Joe Black (with Amy Haven) defeated Brother Azriel to retain the ProSouth Championship in 19:51. Black KOed Az from behind and intimidated Void into calling for the bell. Az kicked out of Joe's pin but was already in horrible shape. At five minutes in, Az countered Joe's STO on the apron and planted him with one of his own. Two Joe Black topes left Az on the ramp, flat on his back. Az gave Amy the middle finger salute. Joe went after Az and got german suplexed on the ramp. Both men back in the ring just before the 10 count. Less than 10 minutes in, both mens' bodies were destroyed. They blasted away with forearm shots. Joe was getting the worst of it. Az broke out a Jackhammer for a close near fall. Az shrugged off a knee to the mouth with a smile on his face. Joe dug deep and pulled out the ropes walk cutter that got the 2 and 15/16 call by Wicked. Az decapitated Joe with a clothesline. Az was looking for the Woodgrain. Joe fought it off and speared Az. But a sitting pin attempt was all Joe could muster. Joe missed a diving headbutt. Az missed the diving splash that he won with last week. Joe heard the heartbeat, signifying Ace Haven. Az hit the Woodgrain. Joe barely rolled a shoulder. Amy got in the ring and tried to slap Az. He blocked it so Amy kicked him in the nuts. Joe hit Murder Music (shot to the base of the brain. Game over but no!!! Az started to rise. Joe went for another kill shot. Az ducked. Az rallied. Az for win with a torture rack into the GTS. Joe slipped out of it, incapacitated Az's knee and pinned him with Murder Music.
A war of attrition, stiff, just the way they like it, both selling big. Az extended Joe Black to his absolute limit as he had done before. There is no question about his toughness. It remains to be seen if there a path for Az get another shot at the ProSouth Championship that has eluded him for all but a few fleeting week.
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