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Great Championship Wrestling presented their fourth annual War Games show at the Gr8 Sk8 Plex in Phenix City, Al Thursday night.
A quality event, no doubt about it. GCW routinely has more name talent on their cards than any indie in the Georgia/Alabama area. The booking and the wrestling were solid enough. What was lacking was that big show magic - the feeling that this was something special compared to their usual weekly show.
It didn’t draw any better than their usual shows and may have done worse. There weren’t more than 200 in the building last night. The reported crowds have been in the range of 250 to 300 since the first of the year. The people that were there were very much into the product, but it appears doing a big shows adds zero to their fan base. The promotional war with IWN, the company that has been running GCW’s old Arena in Columbus every Saturday night for the past month, can’t be helping matters any, especially when IWN is giving out a lot of freebies.
Ring announcer Rob Russo hyped the War Games with the victory cup on display in the ring. Russo does a lousy job of generating excitement. He got some better as the night went on.
(1) Randall Johnson & Michael Cook beat Jay Fury & Jonathan Davis in 12:33 when Johnson pinned Fury. Johnson has improved to where he hung with Fury, who was the class of the field. This was a serious match, devoid of any spots involving Cook’s wild and crazy hair. The faces fended off a surprise attack by the heels. Babyface domination. The problem is that Fury really lays his stuff in there, and Davis is so small that his acrobatic offense looks weak by comparison. Nice takeover sequence by the heels – a neckbreaker/powerbomb combo followed up with a double gordbuster. The rudos beat on Davis with double teams. Davis did a realistic almost tag. You don’t see that very often. Johnson hit a butt bomb and floated into a full nelson camel clutch. Innovative finish. Fury got the hot tag and hit the Enzifury on Cook, Davis made the cover but referee Randy Ray was wise to the fact it wasn’t legal. The faces destroyed Cook with double teams for a second illegal pin attempt. Fury and Johnson went at it. The best exchange of the match culminated in a Samoan Drop by Johnson for the three count. The finish did wonders for the Ray’s credibility as a ref.
Wicked Nemesis got on the mic. He goes for the mystical mumbo jumbo. Hey, any promo with the phrase “placid isle of ignorance†can’t be all bad. He said they buried Johnny Slaughter and tonight they were going to kill the 80s Guy. Nemesis introduced his new “merchant of death,†Murder One!!
(2) John Bogie beat Murder One (with Wicked Nemesis) in 6:57. Bogie has the freakiest Mohawk in wrestling. The top of Bogie’s head looks like a suicide blonde patch of fescue that needs mowing bad. M-1’s new is reminiscent of Bad News Allen. M-1 attacked. The crowd as Bogie drover M-1 out of the ring. M-1 unleashed the Dark City gutter offense. Nemesis interfered. The crowd came on strong with the Bogie chants. M-1 missed a middle rope guillotine legdrop Bogie hit his half-assed quebrada for the pin. The people popped for it.
Princeton Charles Gainey III addressed the crowd. The gimmick is hilarious. PCG III is a tiny black guy, whose small stature is accentuated by this ridiculous top hat and a giant-size stogie. So much better than the generic intern character he used to play. Gainey said he didn’t want any jive turkeys touching his $1000 hat or 10K suit. Gainey said Bruiser kept a night light on because the dark was afraid of him.
(3) The Bruiser (with Princeton Charles Gainey III & The Masked Intern) beat Damian Steele in 7:02.Bruiser is a somewhat softer and smaller version of Bruiser Brody, but he’s got the wildness part down. The gimmick works just fine. Most GCW fans are too young to have seen the original. Intern was wearing a Mr. Wrestling II mask atop the body of Kim Chee. Steele was put in the programs with Bruiser when A. J. Steele bolted to IWN. Damian looked good – like he was picking up right where he left off in Deep South. Intern unchained Bruiser who immediately attacked Steele. Fans broke out a “Damian†chant. Big chop by Steele, but Bruiser cut him off with a corner lariat. “Booyah!†said Gainey. Steele hit a bulldog for a one count only, then a hangman neckbreaker, then beat up Bruiser at ringside before turning his attention to Gainey. Steele had Gainey cornered in the ring when Bruiser blindsided him with a high kick to the medulla oblongata for the pin.
(4) Scotty Beach beat Orion Bishop (with Wicked Nemesis) in 10:14. Beach got the longest, loudest entrance pop, and it wasn’t even close. The theme was that Bishop was too smart to fall for Beach’s trademark moves. Bishop countered the Beach Ball with a Sharpshooter. Beach hit a dive and pressured Bishop on the outside. Back inside, Beach tried for the crossface. Bishop had it scouted and scrambled to the ropes. Nemesis tried to distract. Nowadays, Beach isn’t falling for that stuff. He cut Bishop off with a jawbreaker. Bishop took over with power moves and pointed at his brain. A Vader Bomb missed, but Bishop then nailed Beach with one of his trademarks, a stellar league fallaway slam. Bishop applied the Sharpshooter. Ropes break , the odd thing being it was Bishop that ended up in the ropes. Beach didn’t show any effects on the knee. Bishop brained himself on the top buckle and Beach speared him for a double down. Beach on the comeback with the bionic elbows and the Beach Balls. Nemesis up on the apron to interfere. Beach caused Bishop to collide with Nemesis and got the pin with a reverse roll up. Just a so-so finish, but the fans popped huge for Beach winning. A solidly put together match, which could have been even better if Beach had sold the knee.
(5) David Young Alliance (David Young & J-Rod & Tex Monroe & Sonny Siaki with GCW Owner Diane Hewes) beat Michaels Incorporated (Johnny Swinger & Zero Tolerance & Cru Jones & Shaun Banks with Quentin Michaels Esq.) in the War Games when Young made Swinger submit at 23:33. This was what the people came to see. Good match, although not much in the way of spectacular spots. A War Games match with only 2 feet of clearance between the top of the cage and ceiling has its limits. Michaels was rolled out to ringside in a wheelchair. Russo announced the match could be won by submission only. Banks started with Young for the first 3 minutes. It strikes me every time I see him - Banks takes the most awesome bumps around. Young hit a huracanrana and called for a cage shot. Banks escaped. Banks was getting the “crybaby†chant. Wrestlers entered at two minute intervals with Jones being first. It wasn’t made clear how Michaels Inc. earned the man advantage. War Games tradition I guess. Hot Like Lava hit a flapjack and did a lot of dancing. Young was able to make a 1 on 2 comeback. J-Rod entered. The faces whomped and stomped on Hot Like Lava. J-Rod and Jones did some MMA style on the ground. Swinger entered next. He made a big production pulling out a bag of powder. J-Rod ducked and the powder blinded Jones. The faces stayed on the attack. Swinger tried to climb out. Monroe entered. They did a cool spot were J-Rod boosted Monroe over his head for a double dropkick. Swinger took the Flair slam bump off the top. J-Rod used a choke hold on Banks. The MMA stuff works well for him, Zero entered. He went on a search and destroy mission that turned the momentum. Fans chanted “let Sonny in.†Siaki entered with a flying bodypress on Zero. The cage was locked. Siaki gave the heels a round of shots into the fence. Jones gave Banks a gorilla press onto J-Rod, but he got his knees up and also gave Jones a low blow. Zero sent J-Rod’s head flying into the cage. J-Rod bled. Young also got color. Banks bounced Tex’s head off the cage. The intensity picked up bigtime, and it was all out mayhem as the momentum shifted back and forth. Banks missed a guillotine legdrop and took a stalling vertical suplex from Siaki. Michaels miraculously got up out of his wheelchair. Young ended up with Michaels’ walking stick. The finish got over great. Young made Swinger tap by digging the cane into his forehead, while Hewes whipped Michaels into the cage. Huge pop for the finish. The refs put a wrapped Swinger’s head in a towel and rushed him to the back. I didn’t see any blood.
Young’s team was presented with the War Games trophy. Young gave props to his team. Young said they went to war for Hewes. “Without you there is no us.†Young asked for Swinger inside the cage next week with the GCW Title on the line. Michaels accepted. “You’re dead,†Michaels shrieked.
NOTES: Bull Buchanan makes his return to GCW next Thursday 5/1 along with D’Lo Brown, Buchanan’s tag team partner in Japan…GCW has redone their website at www.gcw-action.com. It’s a tremendous improvement…Raven has started a wrestling school in association with GCW…Bill Hewes was at ringside taping the action involving his wife…The GCW television show airs Saturdays at 11 am on East Alabama cable 7.
