DG USA REVOLT! 2014 review

One night after ROH celebrated their twelfth anniversary and one night before WWE presented Elimination Chamber Dragon Gate USA hit the airwaves with REVOLT! 2014. Unlike the other two companies there were significant problems with the announced line-up for Dragon Gate’s show, and the one it would present the night after. CIMA and Ryo Saito had previously been announced for matches on both events but were pulled from the weekend because of injuries. Dragon Gate Japan (rightfully, I think) decided that enduring long plane flights before wrestling in lengthy matches was not the best thing for either man’s health.

As right as the decision was it left booker Gabe Sapolsky in the awkward situation of promoting Dragon Gate USA shows with no actual Dragon Gate talent on them. His response was to make some tweaks to the announced cards, the most significant of which saw CIMA replaced by Trent Barreta in the REVOLT! headline bout. Having to present DG USA shows with no Japanese talent was avoided by Dragon Gate flying over Yosuke Sante Maria. No, he’s not the biggest name they’ve got but he is and authentic Dragon Gate roster member. At short notice I think it was a suitable move.

The venue chosen to host REVOLT! was the Elk’s Lodge. It’s not the ideal venue for a televised wrestling show because it’s difficult to disguise how small time it looks. And because white walls and strong lighting that can’t be dimmed do wrestling no favours. The picture quality was above average though.

Tim Donst v Chris Dickinson faced off in the opener. It was part of the New Talent Initiative, something we’d hear about several times across the weekend. The idea behind it was to introduce some fresh faces to the DG USA roster in a way that didn’t seem incongruous.

At just over fifteen minutes they were out there for too long. The match was good but as neither were regulars and aren't big name outsiders they should have had a shorter match. Less is more and all that. There just wasn’t enough for the audience to react to. Hat the two did was proficient but nothing more. Donst won with a neck breaker.

Manager extraordinaire Larry Dallas hit the ring after that. He told them they were better than opening matches and that if they joined him he'd take them to main events as The New Scene. Donst and Dickinson said no, then left. In kayfabe terms I thought that was a poor business decision by the two of them. They don't even have contracts, so Dallas’s offer was a pretty good one. Lazza looked dejected as he meandered backstage.

Su Yung was accompanied by Mr A and Anthony Nese when she came out for her non-title match with Ivelisse. You may remember her from her impressive performance on TNA’s Gut Check a year or so ago. Instead of signing her they went with Lei’D Tapa. She was good but she wasn’t a patch on Ivelisse. It’s all worked out well for Ivelisse: she’s now the Shine champion… and doing a gangster gimmick.

As showcases go, it was good. They wrestled well and there was an impressive spot which saw Yung cannonball off the apron onto Ivalisse propped up on a chair. It gave a good taste of what Shine is like to watch. Hopefully it will have encouraged some people to buy a Shine show. That was part of the point of promoting it on a more prominent card, and it's a company that deserves to be watched more (I say that having never written about it).

The finish saw Ivelisse survive a(n Orton style) rope hung DDT and then roll up Yung as she charged her in the corner. Nese and Mr A shouted at the referee after the finish. Then Nese gave Yung a mouthful too.

Match three saw Caleb Konley (who has some of the weirdest hair in wrestling) take on Dragon Gate Japan's Yosuke Sante Maria. If you're unfamiliar with YSM his gimmick is basically a cross between a Adrian Street, a transvestite, and Hard Gay Razor Ramon. He's a low card comedy wrestler in Japan and was used as such here. The match was basically an excuse for Yosuke to place himself in various questionable positions. He ended up submitting to a Konley hold. The predictable gags about submissive positions were present and correct.

After that Chuck Taylor and Orange Cassidy of The Gentlemen's Club challenged the Bravado brothers for the Open the United Gate championship. Before the match Harlem reminded everyone that his grandmother had had The Young Bucks suspended and announced that the tag titles would no longer be defended under Dragon Gate rules. People now have to hold the tag rope and there is no longer any leeway for fighting outside the ring.

The match gave us more comedy for the first several minutes but took on a serious tone after Harlem demanded Orange Cassidy take the match seriously. Not only that but the pace picked up. The end of the match was sudden. Moose ran in and speared Taylor then gave Cassidy a GTS. The challengers won by disqualification but the champions kept the belts. Lancelot said that Grandma Bravado had hired Moose as a bodyguard for the Bravados before the heel unit mugged and posed their way backstage. Meanwhile Drew Gulak turned up to help Cassidy backstage.

The first half ended with Rich Swann taking on 'Premier Athlete' Anthony Nese. They played up Nese's power against Swann's speed, throwing in some singing too. That came from both Swann (to Su Yung) and the crowd (All Night Long by Lionel Richie). Easily the most impressive, though unintentionally so, moment was Swann getting back body dropped onto the ring apron and landing directly on his head. Amazingly he was okay. Nese was reckless there.

They also threw in a dragon camel clutch from Swann (which looks like it'll become a regular thing), a tombstone from Nese, and a one arm buckle bomb and a dead lift German suplex to Swann. They ended with Nese getting hurricanranaed from the top rope and Swann pinning him with a moonsault into a 450 splash. The finish was pretty sudden. In hindsight the moves that led up to it seemed designed to ratchet up the tension and draw the crowd in but it didn’t work. This is something I’ve noticed in Swann matches before. He’s very good at performing the mvoes but, like many men who work his style, is less skilled at making it clear his match is reaching its conclusion.

On the subject of Swann seeing him face someone who has the physique of Nese really illustrated how thin he is. I appreciate that he's all about being fast and using flying moves but he could still do everything he's known for with ten pounds more muscle on his arms and shoulders. It would help him to look more like a wrestler and less like a stunt performer. This is a problem with guys like Fire Ant too, but it’s less obvious with them as they have the masks to help disguise their flaws.

After the match Nese announced he was going to put Mr A on a special training programme to become a killer in the ring. He threw in some cheap heat comments about the crowd being overweight too. It was standard heel stuff.

The first match after intermission was supposed to see Fire Ant take on Shane Strickland. The schedule was changed when Nese and Mr A returned to ringside. 'The Premier Athlete' said that A’s training would begin with entering the match and eliminating both Ant and Strickland.

The original opponents worked as a team to take the big man out of proceedings (so he could save his energy) then wrestled one another. Surprisingly Fire Ant was the first man eliminated from the match, falling to a roll up from Strickland. Mr A then pounced 'The King of Swerve' and gave him a crisp spinebuster. Had he won then and there I think the fans would have accepted it and he'd have been on his way to being a dangerous monster. They instead went on to have a competitive exchange which saw Mr A selling far too much. He absorbed a leaping DDT, a sunset flip bomb, and a top role double stomp to the face. Having him take so much from a smaller man didn't do much for him: he should be able to take this sort of punishment from a man smaller than him. That he only managed to hit his match-winning top rope splash after a distraction by Nese didn’t help either.

I like the idea of Mr A being used as a regular wrestler: he's a lot larger than the majority of the roster and that, along with the fact that he wrestles in a shirt and tie, helps to set him apart from everyone else. I also thought he wrestled well. I hadn’t expected him to. I still would have liked to see the original singles match. From the brief exchanges we got they would have had the best match of the evening until that point without Mr A's involvement.

The Style Battle winners match between AR Fox and Drew Gulak (originally set to include Ryo Saito) saw the show finally hit its stride. The only bad thing was that 'The Whole Foxin' Show's' "impromptu" decision to make it a title match gave the result away: there was no way Fox versus Hero the next evening wasn’t going to happen for the title. The spot of the match saw Gulak block a Lo Mein Pain and hit the champion with a Death Valley Driver onto the apron. Unsurprisingly Fox kicked out. He's very much of the RVD school of wrestling psychology: the bigger the dive he takes the more impressive it is when he kicks out. Eventually he did connect with Lo Mein Pain. It got him the victory.

Johnny Gargano and Trent Barreta both being heels could have made their Open the Freedom Gate championship match awkward. Barreta playing the good guy for the evening meant that didn't happen. That change was established when he started the match with a dive onto the cowardly Gargano, before Gargano had even gotten into the ring. In fact it was arguably established even earlier when Barreta was kept apart from his Premier Athlete Brand teammates.

The two fought around ringside for several minutes before Gargano rolled Barreta into the ring and scored with his leaping DDT, officially starting the match with a pinfall that got two. Gargano was on offence for the next several minutes. He used an exploder belly to back suplex and a finger-breaking attempt to wear the challenger down. Barreta eventually levelled the playing field with a double stomp from the corner, an enziguri and a clothesline. A tornado DDT and a top rope double stomp got him a two count.

Gargano blocked a concrete slam with a move that was part hurricanrana, part Canadian Destroyer, and followed up with a lawn dart for another two count. 'Trentylocks' pulled Gargano off the top rope with a run-up belly-to-belly suplex and followed up with a running knee. Gargano came back with a Hurts Donut and the Gargano Escape, but neither brought him the victory he wanted.

Barreta hit a Dudebuster from the top rope and earned himself a three count, but Gargano's foot was on the ropes so the match continued. As Barreta wandered around looking miffed 'The Whole Shebang' made a quick recovery and pulled him down into a Regal Stretch for a successful defence via submission.

The match was the best of the night but would have benefited from another five minutes or so. That’s something that could have been given to them easily considering the surplus time in other matches lower down the card. That was in many ways the story of the show: poor time management. Long matches aren't always good. Good matches aren't always long. The first two bouts on the bill were the most obvious offenders. They both could have had their times halved without losing anything. The show would have started off with a brisker pace which would have helped keep the crowd interested, and there would have been time left free for the main event to go longer. The show as a whole could have been fifteen minutes shorter without being any worse for wear too. It lagged at points.

All that said I think the Dragon Gate USA crew put on as good a show as possible. I think a commendable job was done making up for the lack of CIMA and Saito. Yosuke Santa Maria was a decent last minute replacement who turned out to be very over. Barreta challenging for the Freedom Gate championship was not as big a deal as CIMA doing so but it was making the best of a bad situation. And they turned out a very good match. Most importantly REVOLT! was always intended to be a setup event for the more important Way of the Ronin the following evening. There were no all-time classics, but there was more than enough good for a show of its type.

That Wrestling Podcast Episode 43

That Wrestling Podcast Episode 43 by Dave Hatton on Mixcloud

Remember when JBL was a main event wrestler? We do. And it’s one of the things we discuss in this episode. When he was first given the promotion I wasn’t a fan of the decision. I was used to him as a tag wrestler in the APA and didn’t feel he looked or wrestled like someone who belonged at the top. It didn’t help that he beat Eddie Guerrero for the championship.

By the end of his title reign I’d warmed to him. He still feels like an anomaly on the list of WWE champions but he did produce some enjoyable brawls in the role. What really won me over was his character. The glad-handing phoney inspired by politicians and JR Ewing was gauged just right. Had they not gone far enough, or gone too far, it would have flopped or become incredibly irritating. It ended up a highlight of the often dodgy mid-decade’s WWE output.

The big question is whether Tozawa would keep the mouth guard in NXT

Also discussed are cage matches. Specifically we talk about types of cage matches, our favourite cage matches, and whether the gimmick’s had its day. I also voice my displeasure at wrestlers being able to win cage matches by pin.

The main portion of the episode is given over to a Breaking In segment. Need to be reminded of what that is? We talk about the chances of three wrestlers from another company making it through the WWE system. This episode’s outsiders come from Dragon Gate USA: AR Fox, Akira Tozawa and Chuck Taylor. Want to know if we think they could make it in WWE as well as our general feeling on them? Then you’d better hit that play button, bro!

Evolution of the Wolf

Davey Richards' future gets more interesting by the day. A few weeks ago it was revealed that he was to be part of an extended WWE tryout, wrestling on NXT and SmackDown, alongside his tag partner Eddie Edwards. This in itself was peculiar as it hinted at a new way for wrestlers to potentially enter the company or, at the very least, that WWE were showing uncharacteristic flexibility.

But WWE's hiring policies have been dwarfed by the news that Davey Richards and Ring of Honor have parted ways. The reason for the split is an interview given by Richards to British wrestling magazine-website Total Wrestling (never 'eard of 'em). 'The Lone Wolf' trashed the current direction of the promotion he's called home for seven years, stating that the tag titles "don't mean anything anymore", that the booking of the world title has been "substandard and screwy" leading to the championship's devaluation, and that he doesn't care about the promotion's much discussed iPPV woes.

I agree with most of this. The booking of the world championship <has> been shoddy for a number of years. I'm not sure how long Richards believes this has been the case but I think the belt's dropped a notch since Gabe Sapolsky left. There have been peaks in that time, such as the shock victory of Edwards and the reigns of Kevin Steen and Tyler Black, but mostly the title doesn't mean as much as it once did. I feel Richards was a little too hard on the tag belts. They've dropped in meaning too, but not to the same extent and reDRagon have done a good job of providing a focal point this year.

But as right as Richards is he remains an employee. Wrestlers in these situations have to able to tow the company line. The can tactfully acknowledge that things have been better or that they'd take a different approach but they still need to remain broadly positive. Openly trashing the promotion that pays your wages isn't a smart move, and if Richards doesn't understand that (and this episode indicates that he doesn't) he's going to have a hard time in WWE.

On Tuesday morning Gabe Sapolsky involved himself. He tacked on the question of whether or not he should call Richards to a Dragon Gate USA newsletter, also whacking it up (because he's a social media guru) on Facebook and Twitter. Amongst those to send a positive reply was Wesley 'Davey' Richards.

Future challenger to the Freedom Gate title?

The relationship between these two is made out to be more complex and fraught than it is by many people, but it's complex and fraught enough to warrant a brief recap. When Sapolsky first set up EVOLVE he intended to build it around Davey Richards. 'The Lone Wolf', not then as big a name as he is now but still highly regarded, wrestled on the first EVOLVE show (defeating Kota Ibushi in the main event) but never went back. There are two reasons for this. The first is that he was contracted to Ring of Honor and they decided, as was their right, that they weren't happy with Richards working for Gabe's outfit. The second is that Sapolsky told Richards that he'd set up EVOLVE (and Dragon Gate USA, presumably) to put ROH out of business. Richards, not liking the negativity or the goal of putting people out of work, decided he'd rather not return.

This scenario led to Sapolsky referring to "trust issues" when he asked if he should contact Richards. I can see his point: he'd wanted to build EVOLVE around Richards and only found that he was unavailable after the promotion was up and running. But ultimately the situation was of his own making. He knew Richards had a contract elsewhere and gave pretty questionable reasons for starting his promotion(s).

Things are, of course, different now. Richards is a free agent with some time available before he heads to WWE. EVOLVE has become a known entity in its own right, without regular input from Richards. While it’s not a promotion he’s linked with its one held in high enough regard by fans to be a fitting place for Richards to wrestle his farewell indy match or matches, assuming he goes to WWE and does well enough that he never leaves of course.

Sapolsky would be spoilt for choice when picking opponents for Richards. The obvious name at the top of the list would be Open the Freedom Gate champion Johnny Gargano. He’s the man that Sapolsky pits against any outside talent that comes his way because he’s not only the roster’s greatest US-based all-rounder but also but also because he’s become the wrestler that shows are constructed around. That second fact would add something to a Richards v Gargano match: the man who was going to be the centrepiece against the man who became it naturally.

Akira Tozawa, Chris Hero, Chuck Taylor, CIMA, and Ricochet would all have great, headline-worthy matches opposite Richards too. How many we’d see would depend on how many matches Davey worked in the company. I’m hopeful that it happens. Outside of ROH EVOLVE and Dragon Gate USA are the best option to host Richards’ farewell match(es). In a way it’s a shame that he’s heading to WWE: Richards is just the shot in the arm that Sapolsky’s feds need.

The KO Blow

On 9^th November (a Saturday for those keeping score) it was announced that Kassius Ohno, real name Chris Spradlin, had been released from his WWE developmental contract. For anyone who’d been following his WWE career it shouldn’t have come as a surprise. There had been rumours going around since the summer that key members of the WWE management team were not happy with his appearance and attitude towards hitting the gym.

Whether these rumours were true or not is impossible to say. What can be stated as cold, hard fact is that Ohno was absent from NXT TV tapings for a couple of months and when he returned the weight he’d lost was noticeable. A case could certainly be made for him being taken off of television until he’d got into better shape.

NXT will suffer without this guy

Ohno’s short term future is already shaping up nicely. He’s already been confirmed for a CZW iPPV and, a little more interestingly, a Dragon Gate USA show. The latter will see him wrestle Open the Freedom Gate champion Johnny Gargano. Assuming his WWE contract is the same as everyone else’s he’ll be precluded from appearing on another wrestling company’s television show for three months. That means appearances in TNA or Ring of Honor are unlikely until around next February and he’ll be appearing for indy companies for the time being.

The Kassius Ohno name is, of course, trademarked (or copyrighted, or whatever) by WWE. So he won’t be using that again. Which is fine. The name Chris Hero holds more cache with wrestling fans anyway. Plus it sounds better.

In the long term I expect we’ll see Spradlin head to either ROH or TNA. The choice he makes will be interesting.

In ROH Hero would be a known quantity who could instantly slot into the top of the card and work against established names, either as a fan fave or as a villain. Fans would be delighted to see him back, he’d be more familiar with the locker room, style, and political situation, and he’d have goals to accomplish despite having worked for the league, on-and-off, from 2005 to 2011. Chris Hero targeting the ROH world championship would be something I’d personally love to see in 2014.

In TNA he’d possibly be able to make more money, although tours of Japan would be hard to work out and those would supplement his income nicely in ROH. It’s possible, thanks to his status as a former WWE guy and indy standout, he’d get a strong push as soon as he debuted. Even if he didn’t he could earn himself one with hard work. He’d have far more goals in TNA than he would in ROH and more fresh opponents to wrestle.

If I had to guess I’d say we’ll see Chris Hero in TNA next year. The company is heading back to Orlando for their TV tapings and Hero’s already based in the area from his stint in NXT. The better money and easier travel would probably appeal, as would the fresh set of goals and roster and the potential to earn decent money. The lack of NOAH tours may be balanced by Wrestle-1 tours, thanks to TNA’s supposed working relationship with that league.

Personally I think a move to TNA would be a disappointment. TNA have shown throughout 2013 that they haven’t got any fresh ideas and Hero would almost certainly drift down the card. TNA tend to be pretty good at initial debuts, they just can’t follow up on them. But perhaps things are going to turn around. Perhaps Hero (under whatever new name he’d go with in TNA) would be a part of helping them turn things around. One thing that’s practically certain is that he’d have to come up with a new ring name: as with every other aspect of their business they ape WWE in wanting ownership of ring names. That the best Spradlin could muster for his WWE run was Kassius Ohno (I liked it but it wasn’t the greatest wrestler name ever) doesn’t bode well.

I think WWE made a mistake releasing Spradlin. It’s true he wasn’t the best conditioned guy on the roster but he was never going to be. He doesn’t have the frame for it and throughout his career he’s been a guy that doesn’t have the greatest build. His strength has always been his promos and wrestling ability, with his character, well thought out and consistent to begin with, having become a highlight in 2010.

Basically he’s been good at everything except having the perfect physique. And not everyone on the roster needs to look great. Spradlin had significantly improved his physique throughout the year and is now easily in the best condition of his career. That he’s not built like Antonio Cesaro, David Otunga or Titus O’Neil and didn’t appear dedicated to becoming so could have been overlooked in favour of the multitude of other strengths he has. WWE’s loss is definitely every wrestling fan’s gain.

The Future of North American Wrestling

The current North American wrestling scene is on the cusp of some pretty drastic changes. There are rumours that New Japan is gearing up to attempt some pretty big expansions, which could lead to some shows, perhaps regular ones, in the United States. Meanwhile TNA is floundering. The promotion has already downsized its roster. It’s not impossible we’ll see further cuts from them. Particularly notable is the departure of Hulk Hogan. His paycheque can go into the savings kitty and it’s entirely possible he won’t ever be back.

On the surface Ring of Honor, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla and Dragon Gate USA seems unaffected by what's happening to the big boys. That's true for now, but if some or all of the above happens it could have an impact on them. It could possibly even affect the pool of even smaller indies on offer.

For starters NJPW running shows in the US could see attendance at indigenous shows drop. If New Japan do promote shows in the US I imagine they'll focus on the east coast, because that's where they'll be able to draw best. PWG, who only promote shows at one venue in Northern California, may not see much competition. They rely on a regular audience who are unlikely to desert them for the glitz and glamour of NJPW. I could imagine New Japan putting on shows in California because they could probably get a decent crowd and it's convenient for them logistically. It's just unlikely to affect PWG in any meaningful way.

 

Could Hiroshi Tanahashi lead New Japan to success in North America?

 

Very few people who follow wrestling are able to attend wrestling shows regularly. If New Japan's offering better matches, and chances are they will be, the fans could be faced with choosing between where to spend their dollars. Scheduling conflicts could also be used to affect attendance.

Many US indies may find themselves looking for a new niche if New Japan takes an interest in the country. The last ten years have seen the Japanese style heavily influencing the majority of these companies, both in terms of promotion as well as the presentation of storylines and particularly matches. Perhaps more importantly these influences are also beginning to be felt in WWE, but that's another topic for another time. The point here is that the various indy feds who have relied on this style attracting an audience could soon find themselves in competition with the originators. No matter how good they are a Japanese promotion and its performers will outperform them in these areas with ease.

It's not all bad news. If TNA closes its doors (still bad news for TNA employees admittedly) almost an entire roster of big-by-indy-standards names will become available. It may not even take TNA ceasing to exist for this to happen. They've already parted ways with numerous mid-card talent this year. Anyone coming off of Impact Wrestling will have a little extra cache on the indies, at least for a while.

ROH would be best placed to benefit from this. As the biggest wrestling operation in North America after WWE and TNA they'll be the company most financially capable of bringing in former TNA guys. They've gotten back onto their feet this year after a few years of drifting and they have a presence on television. Nobody else would be able to offer wrestlers that combo. It's unlikely ROH would want (or be able to afford) to scoop up all available talent from whatever TNA failures are heading our way. PWG and Gabe Sapolsky's outfits will probably get a signing or two each if the worst happens.

There’s also the chance that New Japan would sign up numerous guys in the event that TNA collapses. I’m sure they’d go for Styles and men like Samoa Joe, Kurt Angle, Chris Daniels, Bobby Roode and Austin Aries could find themselves with offers too. But even after NJPW had swept up their top picks from a TNA collapse there would be plenty left for North American based companies to hire.

All of which would transform the North American wrestling business. We could potentially see ROH or New Japan become the continent s secondary promotion. A gap is always going to exist between whoever's in this spot and WWE but it's possible the gap could be a little less wide in a couple of years. PWG and DG USA could strengthen their rosters and feasibly be doing better for themselves too. Maybe we could even see some form of collaboration between Sapolsky and New Japan. He's very much a puro guy, I'm sure it's something that'd interest him. It would benefit New Japan by giving them access to an experienced local promoter.

There are other possibilities, of course. As unlikely as I think it is TNA could survive. Or someone with a lot of money and their own TV channel could put together a roster of superb wrestlers and big name free agents. Don't sneer. Ted Turner did it.

The Audio Visual Club

The general feeling is that a large TV presence legitimises a sports or entertainment product. This is as true in wrestling as it is anywhere else. Monday Night RAW is what helped the WWF to survive during the difficulties of the mid-90s. A national TV deal is what Paul Heyman was always chasing to take ECW to a fresh operational level. The lack of TV exposure is what caused Eric Bischoff and his backers to pull out if buying WCW.

There's a strong historical precedent and logical reasoning for television to be a high priority, probably the highest priority, for a wrestling company. Promotions like WWE and TNA do need television. Their sports entertainment approach necessitates a weekly TV show because they present wrestling more as a soap opera than as a sport. Sports entertainment is also built heavily around marketing the product successfully, with a TV deal being a large part of that.

While television will always be important to WWE, times have changed over the last decade and I don't think that having a TV presence is as important as it was for smaller wrestling companies. The internet has created other ways for them to make their product known. Sites such as YouTube and Netflix along with the general watch-on-demand culture that has arisen mean that a promotion has the option of putting out shows at their own pace. If they're capable of efficient creative and financial planning it's possible for a wrestling company to make a profit this way. They simply have to know what their audience wants to see and give it to them, dispersed across shows to keep them coming back.

Gabe Sapolsky's Dragon Gate USA and EVOLVE promotions are using this approach. They run batches of live internet pay-per-views and then upload them to be watched as VOD content. They’re also selling them as DVDs, providing another source of income. I'm not privy to the financial success of those companies but there must be some or the two promotions wouldn't still be around.

This is an environment that the original Ring of Honor approach seemed tailor made for. When ROH launched they would run shows intending to either break even or make a small loss, making their money back flogging DVDs. That approach served the league well for a number of years, both creatively and financially. In 2009 it came to an end when ROH announced they'd gained a TV deal with HDNet.

The HDNet deal saw mixed results for ROH. The weekly show took a long time to hit its stride and arguably never truly got as it could have been considering the roster of the time. That didn't matter too much. In one of the finest traditions of the wrestling business, it was a setup all along: the HDNet deal was something ROH did to gauge the level of interest in their product from a TV audience. Their intention was always to wrangle themselves a better deal with a bigger broadcaster at the earliest opportunity. HDNet gave them the stats and figures they needed to do that.

 

The ROH on SBG roster

 

That superior deal rocked up in 2011 when ROH was bought by the Sinclair Broadcasting Group, a TV network. The purchase came with the announcement of the ROH on SBG show, which begun airing in September that year.

The show was quicker to hit its stride than the HDNet incarnation but it's suffered from its own set of troubles. A poor creative vision throughout 2012 (thanks, Jim) meant the TV show was mostly uninspiring and lacked a meaningful direction. It's gotten better this year thankfully, but it could still be better.

Basically, I don't feel that Ring of Honor is cut out for weekly TV instalments. The promotion's style of presentation has been proven to work better with two or three larger shows clumped together each month. Switching back to their old operational model and focusing heavily on DVD sales and VOD content would allow storyline pacing to be improved and a greater level of experimentation to be employed when putting together cards.

Obviously this is not going to happen. ROH is paid to produce a TV show and it opens them up to a wider audience, who will in theory be keen to attend shows. Had online viewing been as prominent ten years ago as it is now ROH may never have moved to TV. But it wasn’t on they did, and they’re unlikely to leave TV behind now they’re there, because television will always be the holy grail for wrestling promotions.

Gabe Sapolsky Versus Ring of Honor

Usually a hot feud is a good thing for a wrestling company. But they usually take place in the ring as part of the scripted show. When feuds take place in the back, behind closed doors, they’re usually detrimental to the product. Take, for example, the Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart rivalry from the nineties. They had some good matches opposite one another, but imagine how great things could have been had they gotten along and been willing to do things properly, instead of having an unprofessional and childish point scoring, tit-for-tat feud.

A more recent example (and the one that forms the basis of this post) is the ongoing rivalry between Gabe Sapolsky and his former employer Ring of Honor. Gabe was released from booking duties by ROH in late October 2008 and has gone out of his way to take digs and swipes at the promotion, on and off, ever since. ROH staff have always refrained from commenting on Gabe’s career and comments made since the firing.

Gabe’s most famed outburst came after ROH was bought by SBG and they suffered a number of iPPV broadcast problems. Gabe’s point was that Ring of Honor, being owned by a television production company, was well placed to avoid broadcasting issues. He was absolutely right. But when making the point he couldn’t help but come across as a bitter ex-employee, approaching the subject with a tenacity that a neutral bystander would have had no need for. It didn’t help that he never explicitly stated he was talking about ROH. That only served to make him come across as passive aggressive.

It’s unknown whether anyone in ROH still harbours ill will towards the Gabester because, as already mentioned, nobody from the promotion ever comments on him. Which is the professional way of doing things. Personally I think ROH made the wrong call firing Gabe in 2008. They should have told him to take a year off to refresh himself. But that doesn’t mean they were wrong. People get sacked, and Gabe seems unable to come to terms with Ring of Honor letting him go.

 

Gabe wearing some subtle merch

 

If the hatchet were to be buried both Ring of Honor and Gabe’s Dragon Gate USA and EVOLVE promotions would benefit. This would require work on both sides. Gabe may be the more outspoken of the two parties and have a clearer reason to carry the nonsense on but there must be a reason the animosity is still so raw. It takes two to keep something like this running for so long.

At the moment guys wanting to work for either ROH or Dragon Gate and EVOLVE must make a choice and sign with one or the other. If they do appear for the rival organisation clauses in their contract prevent them from working broadcast matches. This means that an ROH guy can appear for Dragon Gate, but ROH has to okay it and the match must be a dark match. Which is great for fans attending the events in question but an irritation for anyone watching at home or buying the DVDs because they miss the appearance of a big star. It’s an annoyance for the companies too, as it limits their selling and marketing options.

An end to the Sapolsky v Ring of Honor hostilities could bring a much needed freshness to the US wrestling scene. With guys not being forced to pick where they have to work a plethora of fresh matches would be opened up.

The Young Bucks are the obvious names to mention here. They got released by ROH as a cost-cutting measure during the summer of 2012, along with TJ Perkins. They’ve since appeared for Dragon Gate and EVOLVE and doubtless helped to improve the product. They probably hold somewhat of a grudge against Ring of Honor themselves, and I don’t blame them if they do, but I’m sure they’d give a return a try for the right amount of cash. The Bucks against reDRagon, the Wolves, C&C, and ACH and Tadarius Thomas would all be solid matches that could help ROH to flog DVDs and iPPVs.

The likes of Johnny Gragano, Chuck Taylor, Sami Callihan, Ricochet, and Samuray Del Sol could all make a similarly exciting impact on the Honor roster. Going the other way I’m sure Gabe would love to work with the Briscoes, Davey Richards, Eddie Edwards, Michael Elgin, and Roderick Strong. He may even be willing to admit that Kevin Steen is a guy worthy of wrestling regular main events now, what with Steen having carved out a headline niche for himself in ROH and all. Considering the history Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish have with Dragon Gate and EVOLVE I think reDRagon would be an interesting combo to give Gabe access to as well.

 

One of the many guys I'd like to see cross over

 

It doesn’t even have to be an overt feud or storyline or anything. It could simply be a working arrangement that lets the wrestlers appear for the other company when they’re not booked with their home promotion. A simple announcement on the relevant websites would be enough to get things rolling.

This isn’t to say that a Ring of Honor versus Dragon Gate programme wouldn’t be nice to see. Booked right I think that could improve iPPV business and live attendance for both groups. The DG USA roster would also benefit from the exposure of ROH’s TV output.

It’s a pipe dream of course. Part of the reason ROH are currently running a SCUM invasion storyline is that it’s a way of presenting an inter-company angle without needing to cooperate with another company. SCUM’s roster contains just enough guys to make it come across as a separate roster. They don’t need Dragon Gate for this story right now. That’s not to say they couldn’t arrange something for a year or two in the future. Getting a working relationship up and running would actually increase the chances of that by establishing a status quo and allowing the feud to develop naturally.

The indy scene simply doesn’t have a deep enough talent roster to sustain this sort of divide indefinitely. Sooner or later something is going to have to change. That’s either going to be the working relationship (which would be best for everyone, especially paying customers), one of the leagues ceasing to exist, or one gradually signing a larger portion of the top talent, leaving the other to struggle on with mid-card level guys in top slots.

While they’re at it ROH should try sorting out their problems with Low Ki. Nah… one thing at a time.

Open the Ultimate Gate 2013 review

I’ve never written about Dragon Gate before. I’m slightly more familiar with the setup than I was with EVOLVE yesterday grab a link here), but it’s still not a promotion I’m intimately familiar with. I knew the main players and the general concept of the promotion and that was about it. Pleasingly it was another card that was very new viewer friendly.

That’s strange when you think about it: the weekend is big for indy wrestling because of WrestleMania, which is probably the least accessible WWE event of the year, and the indy feds produce their most accessible shows of the years to encourage new viewers. Anyway...

 

The show opened with Rich Swann singing his way to the ring to the strains of Lionel Richie. I assume this is modern pro wrestling, specifically Dragon Gate USA's, answer to Sandman entering to Enter Sandman. I think I prefer the ECW version. It’s more manly. His opponent was Brian Kendrick. I am familiar with his work.

Swann was revealed to be pretty over with the crowd once he’d stopped singing. The two men worked a fast pace that was slowed down at various points by Kendrick, playing the veteran who knows that a slower approach suited him against Swann. Kendrick survived a Lethal injection, a frog splash and a standing shooting star press but eventually went down to a spinning jump kick after a failed Sliced Bread Number Two.

Chuck Taylor, the living shoe, joined the defeated Spanky in the ring. Fans briefly chanted for him but started booing as he told Kendrick that the Gentlemen’s Club are better than him. He noted that Kendrick had everything he could have wanted from wrestling and threw it all away, so he’s in no position to lecture anyone. I assume this referred to his spot in WWE rather than his more recent stint with TNA.

Spanky said they'd find out who was better on the next evening’s show. He threw the mic in Taylor's face as he left. Whadda bad boy! Chucky T stayed in the ring for his scheduled six way match. Shane Strickland, Fire Ant, Anthony Nese, Jigsaw, and Arik Cannon came out to join him. The entrances took an age, peculiar when you consider the intimate (read small) size of the venue.

 

This was what you'd expect. Everyone got to go on offence and do a spot of selling, and there was the obligatory series of dives to the outside (which promoted a "Dragon Gate" chant). Strickland earned the ire of the fans when he botched the momentum of his dive. I'm sure he felt foolish.

Anthony 'Don't Call Me Tony' Nese won. Cannon dropped Strickland on his head and 'The Premier Athlete' followed up with a 450 splash. The match was excellent and did a very good job of firing up the audience.

Scott Reed of The Scene and the nondescript Derek Ryze had the difficult task of following that. Sadly, only Larry Dallas was with Reed. I wasn't interested in seeing Caleb Konley but it would've been nice if Trina Michaels had been out there. Dallas screeched into a microphone before the match but I couldn't make out a word he said. I doubt I missed much, although it may have provided a reason for the post match developments.

Reed won a pretty basic match with a swinging inverted DDT. Afterwards Konley appeared in the ring, called Dallas a greaseball and told him to shut up. He informed him that he and Reed were better than The Scene and that they were quitting the stable. They went to leave but Reed swerve turned on Konley. The segment ended up with Marti Belle and Konley laying out Dallas. The point of this, beyond a random face turn for Caleb Konley, eluded me.

Jon Davis was out next to the same half-hearted heat that he'd received at the previous evening's show. Trent?, formerly Trent Barreta of WWE, was his opponent for the evening. Yep, he’s spelling it with a question mark on the end. I'm sure someone, somewhere was excited by this debut. It wasn't me. I'm not happy Barreta got released but I can understand why it happened. He was never going to be a big star in WWE. A spot in Dragon Gate probably isn't going to make him as much money but it will be more creatively rewarding.

Well, it will be if he's given something worthwhile to do. His debut saw him pick up a win via disqualification after receiving a series of headbutts from Davis while slumped in a corner. After that Davis floored the referee with a clothesline and hit Three Seconds Around the World on Trent?. Davis cut another promo saying that he'll make everyone in the promotion miserable because he's miserable.

An open challenge was issued, Davis encouraging fans to chant for their heroes. Cries for Super Dragon and Hulk Hogan (yes, Hulk Hogan) filled the arena. Nobody answered. Not even ‘The Hulkster’, brother.

A more interesting debut was next. Newcomer Tomahawk TT teamed with EITA to take on the Super Smash Brothers. I hadn't heard of either of the Japanese guys but I'm a fan of SSB so I assumed the match would be good. It was.

It was a mixture of comedy spots and solid tag team wrestling. A big deal was made of Tomahawk's stiff chops, with both Players selling them as the most devastating they'd ever felt. Tomahawk kicked out of a 450 splash in what was a convincing false finish. He also scored the win for his team with a version of the Michinoku Driver on Dos after EITA had wiped out Uno with a dive. Fans chanted "That was awesome!" and "Please come back!" afterwards. I agree with the sentiment. Handshakes and hugs ended the star-making segment.

The idea was that TT, who had been billed as CIMA's secret weapon, was being built up for the following evening's six man headliner. I think the mission was achieved handily. Tomahawk TT left looking like a star. That's what a good debut can do for a newcomer. Just ask Fandango.

Match number six was one of the reasons I bought the show. It pitted celebrated high-flyer Ricochet against the fantastic and hilarious Akira Tozawa. The latter is one of my favourite guys on the Dragon Gate roster. Check him out on YouTube or, better yet, buy this event.

Tozawa, who got the streamer treatment when he entered, was accompanied by Christina Von Eerie. That explained the altercation after Ricochet's match at EVOLVE 19. Lenny Leonard did a poor job of explaining that at the time and, indeed, here.

Highlights included: a springboard shooting star press to the outside from Ricochet; a trio of suicide dives from Tozawa; a series of chops from Tozawa that saw him speed up and slow down (which was pretty amusing); a high angle Regalplex from Ricochet, something I hadn't expected to see; a German suplex on the apron from Tozawa to Ricochet; and the match-winning backslide driver-630 senton combo. The two men had a great match and showed why they're a focal point of Dragon Gate USA.

After the match Tozawa spat his mouth guard in Ricochet's face. Bizarrely, Ricochet just accepted that, putting the guard into his own mouth before leaving.

During intermission we were treated to some ads and a video about Uhaa Nation's nine months of physiotherapy. The latter did a pretty good job of emphasising the importance of Nation's return to the ring. The music tried a bit too hard to be tear jerking though. It ended up verging on the humorous.

That return to the ring opened the second half. Uhaa Nation, Goldberg-esque entrance music and all, wrestled Sami Callihan. 'The New Horror' heard plenty of boos as he entered the arena. That was surprising considering his babyface actions following the losing effort he'd entered in the previous evening's main event.

What followed was a pretty even match that was perfectly decent but that I had trouble getting into. I think part if my problem was a slight disinterest in Uhaa Nation. The returnee got the win with a Gorilla press, followed by a standing moonsault and a standing shooting star. Leonard referenced the Uhaa Combination. If that’s the name of this regular series of moves it's very impressive. Callihan limped backstage leaving Uhaa to flex himself silly in the ring.

Second to last for the evening was the Open the United Gate match. Challengers the Young Bucks faced champions CIMA and AR Fox. All four men got very strong reactions when they entered. Sadly Fox wasn't wearing his shiny new EVOLVE belt. I would have liked to see that.

The audience was split in the opening portion of the match but gradually got behind the champions. The reason? Probably something to do with the Bucks' unbridled arrogance. Constant crotch chops and air guitar are apparently very effective ways of turning fans against you.

Fox eventually got cut off from CIMA. The tag out after this sequence was less hot and more luke warm. The champs should've milked the moment far more. I suppose it doesn't matter: moments later ‘The Whole Foxin’ Show’ had forgotten all about selling and was sailing over the top rope to ringside. Indy psychology again.

From there the already fast pace quickened and we were treated to some pretty dazzling double team moves from the champs, most notably an Iconoclasm followed by a Swanton and a surfboard-450 splash combo. Not to be outdone the Bucks hit a double superkick, a buckle bomb-enziguri combo, and a springboard spike Tombstone piledriver. The resultant two count came across as a botched finished after CIMA was late making the save. Ultimately it was the Bucks who won having hit a second double superkick and More Bang for Your Buck on AR Fox.

AR Fox came out to gloat about the 'The Whole Foxin' Show' having lost his tag belt. Meanwhile Nick and Matt left playing air guitar with their new straps. CIMA and Fox he braced in the ring and got a standing ovation from fans. The tag title bout was a great display. A rematch would be good, partly to see if this display can be topped.

Lenny Leonard risked getting blown up by doing the introductions for the main event in the ring. For a guy whose job it is to talk he has a worrying tendency to lose his breath.

The headline bout saw Open the Freedom Gate champion Johnny Gargano defending his title (or is that Gate?) against Shingo. It was Shingo's first Dragon Gate USA appearance in two years and the fans were pleased to see him. Big deal, is he?

Open the Ultimate Poster

 

This was another great match in a weekend full of them. It featured a bit of everything: fast paced exchanges, submission holds, wacky crowd brawling, dives (from Gargano), a blistering closing sequence, and, of course, stiff chops. It was a fitting and enjoyable end to a very strong card.

The story was Shingo's power versus Gargano's speed and, more importantly, need to prove himself. Here Lenny Leonard did a great job (making up for the iffy performances I've mentioned elsewhere), telling of Gargano's start in DG USA and desperation to prove himself the equal of his Japanese heroes. Of course Shingo and Gargano did a solid job of telling this story in the ring too, but Leonard’s additions helped to sell the story. That's what a good wrestling commentator should do.

As the match wore on ‘The Whole Shebang’ stood up to more and more punishment, building to a fantastic exchange which saw both men pelting each other with clotheslines and kicks, bouncing up as soon as they were downed. The story reached its dramatic conclusion when Gargano kicked out of Shingo’s Made in Japan and Pumping Bomber finishers and then, realising he couldn’t beat the man from Japan clean, choked him out with some chord yanked from his trunks.

Having pinned his foe, the presumably-newly-heel Johnny Gargano pinned Shingo to retain his Open the Freedom Gate championship. Fans did not react kindly to the finish. Moments before the pinfall they’d been chanting “Match of the year!” I wouldn’t quite go that far yet, but it was shaping up to be pretty good. The finish dropped it in my estimations. It was still one of the top two matches of the weekend though, along with CM Punk versus Undertaker.

Gargano cut a promo telling the fans to thank themselves and saying that their support was appreciated by everyone in the locker room and their cheers were the greatest accomplishment of his career. I liked that. It’s the sort of promo babyfaces usually cut at the ends of these sorts of events. Ending the broadcast with Gargano expressing this sentiment nicely underlined his turn to the dark side.

EVOLVE 19 review

Before this I'd watched only one EVOLVE event. I can't remember many details although I do recall Chuck Taylor wrestling barefoot and Johnny Gargano being a heel. He possibly wrestled Ricochet but I could be wrong. Arik Cannon was on the card too. I'm not overly familiar with the promotion's current storylines but I know the main players. Be aware of this as you read this review.

Taking place during the biggest wrestling weekend of the year and hosting a tournament to crown an inaugural champion EVOLVE 19 struck me as a pretty good jumping on point. I wasn't wrong. There were various references to past shows and events but they were easy enough to follow. For the most part the wrestlers all did a good job of getting over their characters, which always helps make a show more enjoyable.

The tournament was set up using a seeding system. The top eight competitors in the company were determined by looking at win-loss records. The top two guys were given byes to the semi-finals on opposite sides of the bracket. Seeds three and four tangled in a singles match with the winner progressing to face the favourite. Seeds five to eight wrestled in a four-way match, the winner of which met seed two in the semi-finals. Sound complicated? It wasn't. It was a refreshing approach for a pro wrestling championship tournament.

I didn't watch the show live. If I had I'd have been one of a large number of people unable to view the beginning of the opening contest. Purchasing it as a VOD from the WWN website sadly means you miss this too, although I was aware of that before purchasing. The same can't be said for anyone who watched (or, more accurately, tried to) on Friday.

I'm not going to criticise the people in charge of EVOLVE for this. They've apologised and offered free access to any past event for anyone affected by the streaming failure. I was irritated by the similar problem ROH had during their Friday show but they're a bigger outfit which should make such occurrences less likely. Plus they've got a history of flogging iffy iPPV streams. As this is the first time EVOLVE have failed in this area (that I'm aware of at any rate) they deserve a bit of leeway.

Neither of these two would leave with the new belt

The match already in progress as the show started was a one fall four-way affair. The competitors were Sami Callihan (seed seven), Rich Swann (seed five), Samuray Del Sol (seed six) and Jigsaw (seed eight). The action got a little sloppy in places and for the most part the psychology was awful. Guys would sell during sequences they weren't required for and make a superhuman comeback the moment they were up for a spot. The sequences were pretty good but these flaws detracted from the match.

Sami Callihan was the star. For the most part he avoided those psychology failings and paced himself well. He advanced in the tournament when he got Del Sol to submit to his Stretch Muffler hold.

One man announce team Lenny Leonard entered the ring next. He was there to introduce new signing 'The Premiere Athlete' Anthony Nese. Yep, that guy who used to work for TNA. He cut a heel promo saying that wrestling is no longer about wrestling. It's become about trying to out-brand others. He told us he's going to introduce a support team that will take him to the top... whether we like it or not. I don't know about anyone else but I'm okay with this. His support team have my blessing.

Lenny Leonard was joined by Colt Cabana when he got backstage. This was a blessing: Leonard is awful doing commentary alone. Sadly, Colt didn't stick around for the rest of the show. He did a couple of stints, neither of which took in the main event. That really would have benefited from his input.

Match two was the battle between seeds three and four, AR Fox and Jon Davis respectively. Davis got some boos before the match, though not many. Disappointing for someone who’s meant to be one of EVOLVE's lead antagonists.

'The Whole Foxin' Show' controlled the earliest portion of the match but Davis eventually gained control after turning an attempted springboard attack into a spinebuster. They went outside the ring and AR took a hip toss onto the apron. After some further ringside scuffling they headed back into the ring and AR took further punishment from a Davis Buckle Bomb.

Back on the apron (yeah, they were all over the place in this one) the former Dark City Fight Club member went for a choke slam to the concrete floor. AR countered with a spike DDT onto the apron, following up with a springboard Whisper in the Wind. That was a very impressive move that took a great deal of skill to pull off and was a great risk for Fox. Sadly the audience barely reacted. So many wrestlers perform similar but less risky feats on a regular basis that genuinely impressive moves like this don't get the reactions they deserve. It's the law of diminishing returns.

Back in the ring (again) Fox went for a Swanton but was met with knees. Davis leapt up and kneed his opponent in the face for a close two count. A lively sequence of big move attempts and counters followed that, culminating in Three Seconds Around the World from Davis. Fox kicked out.

A frustrated Davis slipped under the bottom rope and yanked a table out from under the ring. He set it up in the aisle as Lenny Leonard reminded us (or told newcomers like me) about him hitting an Awesome Bomb on someone at a recent show. AR Fox was hoisted into position for the move but the referee made the save.

Yes, the referee made the save. That annoyed the crowd and triggered a "Kill the ref!" chant. Davis was understandably irked and went to take his frustration out with a stiff clothesline on Fox who ducked, Matrix style, and also avoided the second attempt that whistled his way seconds later.

The referee was not so lucky. The ref bump got a massive cheer from the fans who were annoyed that the official had denied them the chance to witness an Awesome Bomb. The bell rung, signalling a David loss, although we were left in the dark as to who had ruled the match over. The timekeeper maybe?

A second ref arrived on the scene to tell Davis he'd be suspended if he continued his angry ways. Davis took a microphone and asked the audience if he should Awesome Bomb the ref and skip the rest of the weekend. They wanted to see that. Davis said they were stupid but he wasn't ,then left to mild heat. Someone needs some sessions with Dr Shelby.

Up next was (The) Brian Kendrick and Dragon Gate USA Open the Freedom Gate champion Johnny Gargano against Gentlemen's Club members Orange Cassidy and Drew Gulak. I liked the Gentlemen's Club. They've been gifted with the always entertaining entourage gimmick. At ringside they had The Swamp Monster (who received one of the loudest cheers of the night) and the Colonel. The former was dressed a monster from a swamp (obvs) while the Colonel was wheelchair-bound and had a US flag draped across his lap. All of this is probably standard stuff for a lot of people reading this but it was a first for me and I thought it was great. I love this sort of stuff in wrestling.

The match started out as a comedy affair but got serious after Kendrick grew tired of the Club's silliness and shouted at them to take a shot at him. They did and the match transitioned into a more serious contest (although they were still some odd moments involving Cassidy and the entourage). Kendrick and Gargano won when Kendrick pinned Gulak off a Sliced Bread Number Two.

The EVOLVE roster has less use for this guy's belt now they have their own

We were back with the tournament next. 'Kentucky Gentleman' Chuck Taylor (seed one) took on Sami Callihan. 'The New Horror' tweaked his knee leaping over the top rope into the ring. It seemed genuine but was revealed to be a work when Chuck Taylor targeted the leg as soon as the bell rung.

The story of the match was that Callihan was disadvantaged because of his tweaked knee and ankle. Taylor targeted the leg on the outside, wrapping it in the crowd barrier and wrenching and kicking on it before throwing Sami back into the ring.

 

Taylor slapped on a figure four. Sami didn’t quit. Taylor went for a moonsault only for Sami to roll out from under it and come back with four belly-to-belly suplexes. Taylor slapped on a single leg Boston crab, one of his finishing moves, but Sami didn’t tap out.

It struck me that this would have been a good finishing point had Chucky T been booked to win. Sami could’ve tried to hang on through the pain, inched his way to the ropes only to get dragged back to the centre of the ring and be forced to tap out to a reapplied hold. Sami would’ve been kept strong in defeat and Taylor’s single leg crab would’ve been given a boost.

But that wasn’t to be. Callihan got the win out of nowhere when he reversed a pin attempt into the Stretch Muffler. Taylor gave up incredibly quickly considering Callihan was injured and he was the number one seed. It made him look pretty weak when, especially when Callihan had endured so much pain with his “injury”. Another case of questionable psychology.

AR Fox v Ricochet (seed two) was up next. We were told they are the top two high fliers in wrestling today. You wouldn’t have guessed from the first half of the bout. Ricochet slapped on a few submission holds and the pace was, for the most part, pretty sedate. Perhaps this was a part of their ongoing dispute but if that was the case Leonard did a lousy job of making new viewers like myself aware of it.

Things picked up considerably in the latter half of the match as the two started diving about all over the place. Eventually Christina Von Eerie showed up at ringside, presumably to continue or start another ongoing story. In the ring Ricochet went for his 630 senton off the top rope. He missed, which allowed AR to roll him up for the match-winning pin.

Ricochet and Eerie exchanged some words in the aisle afterwards, with Eerie turning her back on Ricochet and getting a shove for doing so. Trouble’s brewing there. Mark my words.

Next was another non-tourney bout. Scott Reed entered first, accompanied by fellow members of The Scene Larry Dallas, Trina Michaels and Caleb Konley. His opponent was Arik Cannon. He was a heel on the only other EVOLVE show I've watched but now seems to be a pretty popular face. They had a no DQ match which became a handicap match after a few minutes  thanks to interference from Konley.

Dallas and Michaels got involved after a bit too, prompting the return of Uhaa Nation to. Leonard informed us Uhaa had been out for a year with a neck injury and we would also learn that he doesn’t much care for Arik Cannon. Which sort of begs the question of why he came out to make the save. Strange guy.

Trina Michaels tried to work her charms on Uhaa which prompted Marti Belle (a female wrestler or valet I’ve never heard) to come to the ring for a random catfight. Leonard tried a Joey Styles impersonation. It failed.

Cannon won with a brainbuster. Officially it was a one-on-one match but it was actually the most packed segment on the show. Following the match Cannon had a beer and offered Uhaa a sip (or perhaps the whole can, it wasn’t clear). Uhaa slapped it into the crowd and dropped Cannon with a belly-to-belly suplex. This was the evidence of them not getting along that I mentioned above.

The penultimate match was the best of the night. A fast, spot-heavy exchange between The Young Bucks and The Super Smash Bros. The crowd, who had been quiet for a lot of the show, came alive during this match. Perhaps they’d been holding out for wrestlers who like to play air guitar all the time. If so they were spoiled rotten by Nick and Matt Jackson.

The SSB won with a Gory Bomb-Blockbuster combo. Afterwards Players Uno and Dos offered handshakes. The Bucks teased that they’d accept (it’s something they never do, apparently) but ended up super kicking the winners instead. They then shouted at the crowd and sneered their way backstage. What heels!

Lenny Leonard neglectfully abandoned his booth again moments before the main event. He was on aisle interview duty. Sami Callihan said he always gives everything in the ring but it’s never enough for the fans. He said he'll be the first EVOLVE champ whether people like it or not. Same sentiment as Anthony Nese earlier in the show really. Deliberate? Probably not.

AR Fox told Leonard that he may not look one hundred per cent but he feels it. He then started screaming and shouting so much that his words became indecipherable because of the shoddy audio. I think the gist was that he, not Mr Callihan, that would be the first EVOLVE champ.

The new belt was held up before the bell was rung. It’s far nicer than WWE’s new championship. Leonard was blown up when he got back to commentary. Yep, a play-by-play guy who gets blown up walking and talking. Extraordinary. That’s the level of quality available to EVOLVE and Dragon Gate.

 

A good-looking slice of belt

 

The audience was split throughout the match. ‘The New Horror’ was on offence early, targeting the damaged neck of AR Fox. Yes, it was his neck that was the worse for wear, even though Jon Davis had been focusing on his back for most of their first round contest.

Fox eventually got some offence in after hitting a cannonball and two running boots into the corner, followed up with an Ace Crusher and a Swanton for two. Callihan went back on offence, undoing his knee pad to cause greater pain to his opponent despite it supposedly being injured. Yeah, there were psychology problems in this match too.

The crowd, who had died down after the excitement of the Bucks v SSB bout, returned to life after Callihan hit a German suplex and a power bomb on ‘The Whole Foxin’ Show’ for two. That was immediately followed up with a Stretch Muffler. As that had taken him to his first two victories of the evening it made for a believable potential finishing sequence.

Ultimately the hold was ineffective. Fox got the win out of nowhere after he hit a Side Effect type move off the top rope to a seated Callihan. The crowd popped like The Swamp Monster had returned. Callihan grabbed the belt from the ref to boos, but redeemed himself by being the one to hand it over to the new champion. That got him a cheer. The two competitors shook hands and hugged. Callihan then left to let the new champ enjoy his moment, but not before he gave some hug action to Lenny Leonard.

Fox told Leonard that he dedicated his win to the “number two high flyer” Ricochet. He put over EVOLVE, saying it’s a company for wrestlers of all styles as long as they work hard. He’s looking forward to meeting guys of all styles, apparently. He also told us the EVOLVE roster shuts up and wrestles. As victory speeches go it was subdued. But that’s fair enough, considering the message it had to get across.

The Young Bucks came out to congratulate Fox and tell him he was going to lose the Open the United Gate championship he held with CIMA. There was no cheap shot, no intense rebuttal from the newly crowned EVOLVE champ, and no run-in from the other United Gate champ CIMA. It was simply an angle tacked on to remind everyone that there was a Dragon Gate USA show scheduled for the following evening. The highlight of the Bucks’ appearances was a fan shouting "Haters gon' hate!" as they left.

AR Fox then went back on the mic to shill for the Dragon Gate show. Personally I think that’s a fairly peculiar thing to have your new champion do. But what do I know? I’m just a member of the paying public.

I’m more familiar with Gabe Sapolsky’s Ring of Honor work so his approach here came as something of a surprise. It still has more in common with the average ROH show than it does with WWE or TNA with the emphasis more on the in-ring action rather than skits and angles. That said he takes a different route to get there, channelling the WWF’s Attitude Era and elements of ECW. Large entourages, random run-ins, ringside brawling and ref bumps anyone?

I thought it was a very enjoyable show and excellent value for money (ten quid for us Brits, fifteen dollars for Americans). Based on this I’ll be tuning in to EVOLVE 20.

Twelve Wrestling Things of Christmas

Are the Twelve Days of Christmas before or after the big day? I'm never sure. It doesn't matter really. In the spirit of The Season I present my Twelve Wrestling Things of Christmas.
 
Twelve... Years Since the Business Changed

2013 will mark the twelfth anniversary of the closure of both ECW and WCW as well as the end of the Attitude Era. That was the last time wrestling was close to being considered cool and popular. Will next year see the beginning of another popularity boom for the business? Don’t get your hopes up…
 
Eleven... Knockouts and X Division Wrestlers

It’s not an exact number but it feels like TNA has about eleven performers spread across two divisions that used to be really good. Kenny King, Zema Ion, Tara, Mickie James and their co-workers are all great but a division will never be entertaining if it doesn’t have a deep roster. TNA should hire more talent and concentrate on resurrecting their once enjoyable leagues.

If it means the likes of Mr Anderson, Hernandez and Sting have to be released from their contracts so be it. TNA needs new marketable names, not the same old ones in slightly different scenarios.

The most exciting thing in this picture is the lighting

 
Ten... Pay-Per-Views a Year

TNA will break from the norm and present ten pay-per-views in 2013. I think this is a good move. It will allow more time to develop stories for the remaining shows and ease the pressure on viewers’ wallets. That should result in increased buy rates for the remaining supercards and a better paced, more enjoyable television product for the team in Orlando.
 
Nine… Shows Confirmed

Between now and May Ring of Honor only has nine shows announced. That’s a worryingly low number for a promotion that used to have a very healthy touring schedule. Of these two are TV tapings and three are internet pay-per-views. If SBG wants ROH to be viewed as America’s number three promotion they need to up the budget to allow more non-televised events to take place. Expanding the roster wouldn’t hurt either.
 
Eight... Months Left

If we’re to believe what’s been said by the man himself in interviews Davey Richards will depart Ring of Honor when his contract expires in August 2013. As one of the company’s most popular stars and talented performers that’s not good news. ROH has eight months to prepare at least one new star to take ‘The American Wolf’s’ place at the top.

The obvious candidate is Adam Cole. He’s popular, talented and young enough to be able to work the speedy Ring of Honor pace for years to come. If this problem is not addressed and Richards leaves with no successor ready to take his lofty spot then I don’t think the promotion will have much of a future.
 
Seven... Performers Deserving More

There are plenty of men and women I’d like to see wrestling in WWE but not all of them are currently in the promotion’s developmental system. Of the ones that are there seven stand out as wrestlers I’d like to see on the main roster in the next twelve months.

Adrian Neville, formerly independent wrestling’s PAC, is a high-flying sensation who could be a huge star in WWE if he were allowed to wrestle the style he’s become known for. Based on the promotion’s well established feelings on cruiserweights there’s no guarantee of that happening, unfortunately.

NXT Diva Charlotte was born Ashley Elizabeth Fliehr-Johnson. She is the daughter of Ric Flair. I’m not interested in seeing her wrestle. I’m interested in seeing how WWE handles her call-up and what storylines she’s placed into when it happens. If you want an NXT Diva who can wrestle look no further than Paige. She’s been a hit with the regulars at the NXT TV tapings and could be the woman to revitalise the Divas division in 2013.

 

Future of the Divas league?

 

I’ve written before that I’m a big fan of the Bray Wyatt character. It works very well in NXT and would translate well to the main roster. I’m not sure the former Husky Harris would survive the call-up without tweaks and alterations being made though. They could potentially ruin a very quirky heel.

Richie Steamboat is another second generation wrestler who is good enough to warrant a spot on the main roster. He doesn’t have an outlandish gimmick or flawless good looks, but not every member of the roster needs those things. Sometimes it should be enough that a guy has talent. Steamboat junior does. He’d make an excellent addition to the WWE mid-card.

Corey Graves wrestles well and has an interesting look. He’s another guy that could provide some substance to the middle card ranks. Finally there’s Kassius Ohno. Formerly one half of the Kings of Wrestling and the man who did the Wade Barrett gimmick before Wade Barrett, Ohno has the height, look, promo and ring skills to attain a top card position in WWE, as long as he’s given a chance to be himself.
 
Six... Solid Tag Team Wrestlers

Specifically Daniel Bryan, Kane, Titus O’Neil, Darren Young, Cody Rhodes and Damien Sandow. Since being put together as a unit and winning WWE’s tag team titles Bryan and Kane, dubbed Team Hell No by the “WWE Universe”, have made the promotion’s doubles league worth paying attention. For the first time in years it’s an entertaining part of WWE programming.

Rhodes and Sandow are easily WWE’s premier heel team, meshing their characters nicely and seeming devoted to getting over as a long term pairing, as opposed to two guys chucked together to work a short programme. Meanwhile the Prime Time Players have blossomed over the last six months into dependable antagonists and stand to inherit the division when the inevitable split of Team Hell No and the Rhodes Scholars occurs.
 
Five... Gooooooooooooooooold Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiings

Um… Yeah.
 
Four... And Oh

Since The Miz made his WrestleMania debut at show number 26 he has not suffered a loss at the event. While this undefeated streak may seem faintly ridiculous when compared to the Undertaker’s more prominent record I have enjoyed ‘The Awesome One’s’ mention of it after previous shows. I want him to pick up his fourth win this year.

If built up for another couple of years, and if he becomes popular enough, Miz could possibly be pitted against ‘The Dead Man’ in a few years’ time in an attempt to fool people into thinking ‘Taker’s Streak will end. Failing that Miz could just be fed wins in an attempt to replicate the run that currently stands at 20-0. It wouldn’t be as special, but it would be something.
 
Three... Never Being Fed
 
Ryback bellowed "Feed me three!" several times over the summer. He progressed to winning two-on-one handicap matches pretty quickly but he never got his wish to beat three fellas at once.
 
It's probably for the best: he's proven he’s not up to the task since The Shield debuted.
 
Two... Promotions I Should Watch More

CHIKARA and Dragon Gate USA. I enjoy both but don’t get to see them as much as I’d like. The only reason for that is that there isn’t enough time. Every show I’ve watched from these companies this year has been very good. Many have been excellent. I intend to try watching more of them next year. You should too.
 
One... Jobbed Out Santa

Heelish