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SHOWTIME ALL STAR WRESTLING TV REPORT

EARLIER TODAY…Rick Santel was in front of the Stadium Inn. Paul Adams approached wearing Santel’s ring robe and a goofy beach hat (for added protection). Word cannot do this justice. Adams couldn’t believe where they were. He was freaked out at the prospect of touching anything inside the place. Adams said Santel needed to make a statement on behalf of A-Team. David Young hadn’t won a match in 6 months. And Andy Douglas…Santel wanted to know what was up with Douglas hugging Chase Stevens after their match. “We’re setting him up for something, right?” Adams said he had nothing to do with it. Two girls ran up all gaga about Nature’s Greatest Miracle. Adams headed them off. “You guys should be paying him,” Adams said. They started slugging Adams with their purses. A squad car pulled up. The cops arrested Adams for soliciting prostitution. As Adams was being hauled off to jail, Santel promised to get him out…after his match.   

Reno Riggins and Steve Hall greeted us from ringside. What a pop. Hall gave credit to USWO/ATL Wrestling. Riggins said the Stadium Inn would be the SAW Mill for the night. 

It’s Showtime…and SAW starts NOW! 

Michael Graham on solo commentary, as we open with a great tracking shot of “Nature’s Greatest Miracle” Rick Santel making his entrance.  

1 -- RICK SANTEL vs. LANI KEALOHA 

Early battle of armbars won decisively by Santel with a variation on the Divorce Court. Santel worked the shoulder. Kealoha locked his hands to blocked a cross armbreaker. They cut away from the action (as Santel was about suffer a knee injury) and returned with Santel obviously hurting. Something got lost in the communication, because Kealoha applied a hold to the injured knee, and Santel would have none of it. Kealoha sparked a comeback with a spinning back elbow off the middle rope. Santel blocked a Samoan Drop and hit a weakened version of the Santel Slam for the pin.     

WINNER: Santel in 6:41. Fairly miraculous given the circumstances. Santel suffered multiple dislocations of his kneecap and still gutted out the match.  

Hall was at ringside with USWO Owner Tony Falk, who plugged the weekly USWO shows at the Stadium Inn. Falk had the issue of the Nashville Scene magazine with a [url=http://www.nashvillescene.com/nashville/in-the-shadow-of-lp-field-father-son-wrestling-circuit-united-states-wrestling-organization-has-become-the-citys-latest-underground-cra/Content?oid=1465308]feature story on USWO[/url]. Derrick King and Drew Haskins interrupted. King said the Scene was bogus. Haskins claimed to have made the cover of Tiger Beat, Seventeen and the debut edition of Bling (he just so happened to have a copy with him). LT Falk joined the party. LT said Haskins was jealous, and he still owed Haskins one for selling out to King. LT shoved Haskins. Heated chaos ensued with Reno coming out to help restore order. Reno said he and Falk had known each other for 25 years, and if there was a problem the way to settle it was in the ring. Reno said he would make Falk vs. Haskins for tonight’s main event from the SAW end. Falk said he would leave his decision up to his USWO fans. You know how that goes.    

Next up was footage from Andy Douglas’ retirement speech at the Nashville Fairgrounds Sports Arena after his March 13 cage match with Chase Stevens. Douglas dedicated the night to his grandmother, and said she first got him to watch wrestling as a kid and died before he got in the ring. Stevens thanked Douglas for their seven year partnership.  

Riggins and a guy named Bubba Paris promoted the Bubba’s Bash celebrity softball game to benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation. 

2 -- DERRICK KING (with Drew Haskins) vs. CODY MELTON 

Melton opened with a flurry. King bailed to regroup. Back inside the ring, Melton worked the arm to setup La Magistral cradle for a near fall. King stepped aside and used Melton’s momentum to introduce that sweet, innocent face of his to the turnbuckle pads. A couple of classic rights hands later, King tossed Melton out at Haskins feet. Ahh, that mental prowess. Melton got a near fall with a rolling reverse. Shortly thereafter, Melton walked into a superkick for three count.  

WINNER: 4:07. Fine for what it was. King is so stylish that it’s always a joy to see him in the ring. 

Grumpy’s Bail Bonds Bail Jumper of the Week was an interesting character named Charles Steven Jones II. Jones was known to travel with porn star Nikki Sinn. Despite outstanding warrants, Jones also had a one day job as DJ for the Nashville Party Bus. No criminal background check required apparently. Leah said Jones wasn’t a bad guy. He just needed to see the light. “Let this be over with and we can still be friends,” Leah said.  

Kid Kash returned. This was a different kind of promo. It was shot in tight close up. Kash was talking to the camera but not looking at it head on. No interviewer. No audience. Interesting lighting and just the SAW logo behind him. Kash said he had been on a European tour and hadn’t lost a match. Kash said he would have defended the SAW International Title, if Riggins and SAW hadn’t screwed him out of it. Kash made it clear he was coming back to SAW to make Reno’s life miserable. “There will be no rest and he will be weary of everything I’m about to put on him.” Kash said nobody has, does or ever will get away with screwing him over like that. Kash said Reno was jealous that he never had Kash’s fame, athleticism or look. Kash said Steven Dunn had to carry Reno during his best run, because Reno was a second rate wrestler. “Now you’re trying to be the next Vince McMahon…just like Jeff Jarrett, you’re a second rate promoter.” Kash brought up the old adage: Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Kash said there wouldn’t be a third time. Kash called Stevens a pawn and issued physical threats to Riggins and Stevens. Kash said he was vengeful person. Good thing for his sake that this isn’t TNA. Kash promised that if Reno didn’t give the belt back, all hell was going to break loose.     

Haskins promo. Haskins said he wasn’t used to places like the Stadium Inn, because Derrick King Enterprises only stayed in the finest suites in top flight hotels. “DKE rolls in high class, not some building that should have been condemned years ago.” Haskins gave the Falks credit for turning it into a wrestling venue. Haskins said his career had skyrockted since he blew off LT. He was in the penthouse, and LT was in the outhouse. Haskins said LT would be outclassed tonight. 

Falk said this time he had Haskins in his backyard and Haskins had something coming for all the chaos he put LT’s family through. 

3 – DREW HASKINS (with Derrick King) vs. LT FALK 

Graham provided the back story – Haskins and LT emerged as the winners of the SAW Tag Team Tournament in Butler Bulldog fashion, but Haskins soon turned his back on LT in favor of DKE. Haskins halted a battle of armbars to consult with King. After walking into a dropkick, Haskins rolled out to the floor. LT broke out the arm drags. The tide turned when Haskins stepped aside and LT’s shoulder met the ringpost. Haskins hit single arm DDT and worked over the shoulder with plenty of assistance from King. There was a ridiculous spot where Haskins paused to egg the crowd on before falling back into the laziest cover in wrestling history. Haskins also nailed LT with a picture perfect dropkick. LT hit a DDT out of nowhere, but could not follow up due to the shoulder. LT’s comeback had Haskins in bigtime trouble. Haskins raked the eyes and went for an enzuigiri. LT ducked and wrapped Haskins up with La Magistral Cradle.  

WINNER: Falk in 7:13. Good match. Very heated. They played off the shoulder injury LT suffered in his previous encounters with DKE.  

King and Haskins were just getting warmed up with the postmatch beatdown when that cane-swinging freak Tony Falk made the save for his son. Rudy Switchblade also hit the ring. The closing shot was of King and Haskins pouting at ringside.  ,

THOUGHTS: There are times when timing is everything. Leave it to Riggins to hook up with Falk just in time to ride into the Stadium Inn on USWO’s wave of cult popularity. USWO/ATL got their back scratched as well with plenty of plugs and ads. And why not? In the today’s pro wrestling environment, cooperation makes a lot more sense than competition. This show was taped on the night USWO/ATL drew a record crowd to the Stadium Inn. Graham equated it to the SAW Mill, but rarely did the Bakery in Millersville approach the level of heat in the ringside segments on this show. It was TV studio wrestling at its finest, proof positive that it possible to polish a turd. The only thing that bothered me about the setting was low ring (to compensate for the low ceiling), which gives it a minor league appearance. Well, that, and Hall’s gum chewing. The issue between Falk and Haskins was a loose end, and they told a good short story in the process of closing the loop. Props to whoever came up with the idea of weaving the Nashville Scene article into the mix. The opening vignette was comedy gold. It had Adams’ fingerprints all over it -- poking fun at both the Stadium Inn and himself for being there. The sight of Adams marching around in Santel’s robe was hilarious. The address by Kash was at the other end of the spectrum. Kash was tremendous. He’s an egotistical prick, he’s obsessed with being the champion and he hates Reno’s stinking guts, and I had no problem believing any of it. The atypical presentation added to the seriousness. The wrestling wasn’t great, but it was good enough to get the job done. Santel’s injury didn’t help matters any (he hopes to return in time for May 15  at the Fairgrounds). Neither did working the same body part in matches 1 and 3, or Melton using La Magistral for a near fall before Falk used it to win his match. But it was easy to look past those minor problems, because of the vibe and the stories. Much to my surprise, I highly recommend this show.