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SHOWTIME ALL STAR WRESTLING TV REPORT

Showtime All-Star Wrestling – Episode 96
Airing July 11, 2009
Taped at the SAW Mill in Millersville, Tn

This episode is now available for viewing at [url=www.ProWrestlingWorldwide.TV]ProWrestlingWorldwide.TV[/url].

Opening with highlights from last week’s main event: Hammerjack & Chase Stevens & Flash Flanagan defeating A-Team when Hammerjack used the hammer on Young.

Cut to Michael Graham in the interview area flying solo this week without co-pilot Reno Riggins. He gave the rundown of this week’s matches including an appearance by Stevens. They cut to footage of Stevens and Douglas brawling in the parking lot last week.

1 – VORDELL WALKER vs. SIGMON

Graham called them two of SAW’s best athletes. No lie. Walker hit an overhead belly to belly suplex and Sigmon bailed. Walker tried to bring Sigmon back in the hardway, but Sigmon shoulder blocked from the apron to temporarily suck the wind out of Vordell. Walker answered with a spinning heel kick for two. Sigmon Walker in the eye to gain the advantage and repeatedly grounded Walker with a rear chinlock to cut off the air supply. Walker’s arm came to life on the third drop by ref Jesse Fields. Walker made Sigmon pay for a telegraphed backdrop and hit a bigtime back suplex that left both men down. Walker on fire. He picked Sigmon out of midair for a powerslam. 1..2..No~! Both men slow to rise. Spinning neckbreaker by Sigmon and Walker kicked out. Walker went for trifecta of suplexes. Sigmon blocked number three and nailed Walker with a dropkick right on the button. Walker kicked out at 2 and ¾. Walker cut off Sigmon’s diving headbutt with an enzuirgiri. Walker tried for a superplex. Sigmon fought it off with Walker taking the big back bump. Sigmon went for the diving headbutt, but Walker rolled out of the way and hit a safety-first brainbuster for the pin.

WINNER: Walker in 7:08. Athleticism a plenty. Walker’s offense looks amazingly explosive when it connects, however, it had the usual random off kilter spots that seem to crop up in every Walker match. Nice series of counters leading into the finish.

2 – CHASE STEVENS (with Hammerjack) vs. BAD BOY DIXON

Hammerjack kept an eagle eye on the ramp for A-Team. Dixon got in one forearm shot and acted like it was a major accomplishment. Stevens gave Dixon a release german suplex and pinned him with the fisherman suplex.

WINNER: Stevens in 40 seconds.

Graham interviewed Stevens in the ring. Stevens thanked Hammerjack and Flanagan for having his back. Stevens said he wished it was Douglas in the ring tonight, because he had him beaten in their last match if not for a spinebuster from that sly dog Young. Adams, Douglas and Santel appeared on the ramp. No less than five refs appeared at ringside to keep order and/or stand around and look stupid. Douglas claimed Stevens was running from him last week. Douglas said back in the day, he was the guy that had to win all the bar fights for the Naturals, while Stevens hid behind the bar. Douglas said Stevens would get his fight but not tonight. “That kid almost took you to the limit, and I can tell you’re a little winded, and I don’t want you to have any excuses.” The crowd popped for Stevens calling Douglas a coward. Adams said Douglas would face Stevens on one condition - “Your career is over for good here in SAW.” Stevens asked what Douglas was going to put up if he was going to put up his career. Adams said $10,000. Stevens said he didn’t want Adams’ dirty money. Adams upped the offer to 20 grand. “That’s all my career is worth? No! No!” said Stevens. “All right, this is more than you make in 3 years, Chase Stevens, $30,000.” Stevens said he didn’t want Adams’ money. Stevens said there was one thing it took Douglas a long time to get. Stevens said the reason the Naturals were gone from TNA was because Douglas refused to cut his hair. So they left for WWE. “Andy Douglas, what did you say when they said all we want you to do is cut your hair?” Stevens said if Douglas lost, he wanted him shaved completely bald. Douglas told Adams to offer more cash. “You want my career, Paul, put his hair on the line,” said Stevens. Adams told Douglas he would win. Douglas asked Adams to make sure and whispered something in his ear. They told Stevens he had a deal.

As the next match was getting underway, Graham said the hair vs. career match would take place next week.

3 – SEAN CASEY (with Tiana) vs. HAROLD KNIGHT

Graham said some called Casey “a walking porn picture”. Tiana used her assets to set Knight up for a Pearl Harbor job by Casey. Knight didn’t go up for Casey’s slingshot suplex, so he switched to a vertical suplex and stepped on the Knight’s face. Casey gave the rookie a humiliating hazing. The crowd started a mild “Harold” chant. Knight hit a crossbody for two, fired up, and caught Casey in a sleeper. Casey broke it with a jawbreaker and DDTed Knight. More nonchalant covers ensued. Knight hit a sidewalk slam. After a few horribly lame punches by Knight, Casey mercifully ended it with a superkick.

WINNER: Casey in 3:22. Lousy. Casey shouldn’t have spent more than 60 seconds in the ring with this guy. Knight’s selling is poor and his punches sucked. He’s too green for TV.

Casey did his usual schtick in the postmatch interview. Casey said he was down to one Freak because he wore the other one out.

4 – JESSE EMERSON vs. AM VISION

Graham said Emerson was refusing the challenge issued by Jon Michael Worthington because he was preparing for his title match against Kid Kash. Vision attacked Emerson before the bell. Emerson’s reply was fast and hard. He reeled off a series of moves climaxed with a bigtime atomic drop that sent Vision into orbit. Vision bumped over the top to the floor and came up selling an aching ass. Emerson was in hot pursuit. Vision rolled back inside and cut Emerson off. Not for long. Emerson gave Vision a reverse atomic drop and leveled him with a lariat for his third near fall of the match. Vision used a blatant eye gouge and decked Emerson with a right hand. Emerson rolled to the apron. Emerson reversed Vision’s suplex back to the inside and teased a homicidal suplex to the floor. Vision slid through Emerson’s legs and dropped him head first on the apron edge. (Commercial break) Emerson caught Vision’s springboard crossbody and hit a powerslam for a near fall. Emerson went for a big wind up haymaker. Vision ducked, stunned Emerson with a jawbreaker, and put him down with a clothesline. Emerson kicked out at 2 and ½. Vision followed with a hangman neckbreaker for a near fall. A stiff chop drove Emerson into the corner. Vision hit a clothesline, then a short arm clothesline, but Emerson ducked a third clothesline and planted Vision with a uranage. Both down for five. Crowd chanted “Jesse”. Emerson on the comeback with a lariat, a dropkick and high back bodydrop. Emerson scraped Vision off the mat for a vertical suplex. Vision escaped to landed a roundhouse kick to the temple for a near fall. Vision tried for the Infamy combination. He got the corner splash but Emerson hooked the ropes to block the DDT. Vision was looking for it again, but Emerson had it scouted. Vision clutched the ropes in a desperate attempt to block the Alabama Slam, but Emerson powered out of the corner and hit it for the three count.

WINNER: Emerson in 6:24. Best match of the hour. Back and forth action with strong performances by both men. Emerson looked like a contender.

5 – SHANE SMALLS vs. CHISJEN HAYME

Graham said this would be the deciding match of a series knotted up at 1-1-1. After some spirited trading of holds, they did a series of rapid fire leg sweeps. Hayme made Smalls miss with a basement dropkick and got two with an Oklahoma Roll. Smalls connected with a flying knee. It looked like Hayme got his bell rung. Smalls gave Hayme a beating and sent him to the concrete with a baseball slide. They went back and forth with stiff strikes at ringside. Smalls did a slingshot splash back to the inside, but Hayme was in the ropes. Hayme nailed Smalls with an upkick. They traded shots again. Hayme got two with a sloppy huracanrana. Smalls answered a bridging german suplex for a long two count.(Commercial break) Hayme decked Smalls with a shadow forearm. Hayme on the attack. Hayme with step up enzuigiri. Smalls went limp but kicked out at two. Grahams said it had to be pure instinct. Smalls had the lights are on but nobody’s home look, as Smalls pounded away on him, but Smalls reversed a whip an hit a step up Punk like knee. Hayme crumbled in the corner. Smalls followed with a hesitation dropkick. Hayme grabbed the ropes to prevent a three count. Smalls set up for Poetry in Motion (Last Rites), but Hayme fought it off. Hayme planted Smalls with a killer DDT off the middle rope. Hayme went up top for the 450 splash. Bullseye. 1..2..3.

WINNER: Hayme in 5:48. An all out sprint. Just OK heat, but probably the fasted paced singles match in SAW history, and the best match of their series. Not the smoothest match you’ll ever see, but it had a raw quality to it that was really fun.

CLOSING THOUGHTS: The hair vs. career angle was great stuff. Stevens and Douglas both came across like stars. Douglas, in particular, was great with the facial expressions. There were two things that detracted from the segment – the problem with the level of A-Team’s mic and the geeky looking ref gawking at the hard camera…Going solo gave Michael Graham a chance to show another side of his announcing abilities. He got the stories across well enough, but this show had three action packed matches, and Graham really got into calling them with the intensity of a true sports broadcaster. If WWE hired announcers based on ability instead of looks, Graham and Anarchy’s Greg Hunter might have jobs…Casey's match was the one low spot on the show He's treading water without the High Society gimmick, although they've alluded to Chris Michaels in a way to set up the possibility of his return... This episode had more competitive action and inring athleticism than a typical hour of SAW, and the matches accomplished their intended objectives. Walker got a solid win to show he was fit and ready for DKE. Emerson looked like a legitimate title challenger, and the performance by Vision made me want to see him back as a regular. They finished up the Hayme/Smalls program in a manner to presumably position Hayme for a higher level opponent. Not sure what the future holds for Smalls in SAW after losing his first program. This episode was a clear thumbs up.