By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
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GCW “Dead On Arrival”
Streamed on FITE TV
June 28, 2022 in Detroit, Michigan at The KOC
This appears to be an armory building; this is not the same night club venue from their last time in Michigan. The crowd is maybe 200.
1. Tony Deppen defeated Jimmy Lloyd, Dark Sheik, Yoya, Alec Price in a five-way scramble match at 8:15. Sheik hit a double Sliced Bread on Lloyd and Deppen early on. Deppen beat up the smaller Yoya. Sheik hit a German Suplex for a nearfall at 4:00. Deppen nailed a hard kneestrike on Yoya’s jaw. Price nailed a dive to the floor. Yoya hit a Canadian Destroyer on Lloyd. Sheik hit a top-rope spin kick, then a punch to the groin on Price. Sheik hit a pump-handle sit-out powerbomb on Yoya. However, Deppen grabbed Sheik, got an inside cradle, and scored the pin. So-so scramble.
2. Blake Christian defeated Chase Burnett at 10:46. I have never seen Chase before. He is much older, with a white beard, and he walked to the ring with a cane. (He is maybe in his 50s but acting like he’s in his 80s.) Blake wore a black mask to the ring and took it off once in the ring; he is showing more confidence (almost arrogance) in recent weeks. Chase complained about how loud the bell was, and this is clearly going to be a lot of silliness. Burnett was holding onto his cane, but Blake whipped him around the ring as they each held onto the cane.
Lots of mat-based reversals early. Burnett is much shorter than Blake, who isn’t that big to begin with. Blake hit a spin kick to the head at 6:00. They brawled to ringside. In the ring, they traded rollup attempts. Blake hit a spinebuster for a nearfall. Chase hit a flying kneedrop on the ring apron, then a top-rope moonsault to the floor at 8:30, drawing a pop. In the ring, Chase hit a piledriver for a nearfall. Blake nailed a flip dive to the floor. In the ring, he hit Moxley’s Paradigm Shift, then Seth Rollin’s stomp, to score the pin. An entertaining final two minutes.
* Blake got on the mic and talked about his upcoming GCW title match later this month against Jon Moxley.
3. Ninja Mack defeated Calvin Tankman at 9:24. Mack is back in his red outfit. This is a massive height and weight difference. Seconds into the match, Mack kicked Tankman, who sold it like it was a low blow. Tankman no-sold a shoulder tackle, and he tossed Mack over the top rope to the floor. They brawled on the floor, with Mack laying in several kicks. He went for a flying move, but Tankman caught him and threw him into the ring post at 4:00, then he slammed him on the ring apron.
Back in the ring, Tankman leveled Mack with a forearm and got a nearfall. Mack came back with a top-rope spin kick, then his handspring-backflip to the floor on Tankman at 7:30. In the ring, Tankman hit a backbreaker over his knee, then a hard clothesline for a nearfall. He hit a standing powerbomb for a nearfall. Mack hit a corkscrew press for a nearfall. Mack nailed a top-rope corkscrew 360 splash for the pin. That was fun, and a mild upset, particularly after Mack’s recent GCW loss to Cole Radrick.
4. Jordan Oliver defeated Nick Wayne and Alex Shelley at in a three-way 17:29. They all shook hands. Shelley and Wayne traded standing reversals as Oliver looked on. Oliver then traded reversals with Shelley, and it is obvious both kids are frustrated that a guy twice their age is outwrestling them. They worked together to stomp on him in the corner. Shelley hit clotheslines on each of them at 3:00 and was fired up. Wayne hit a standing Shooting Star Press on Shelley, and Shelley bailed to the floor.
Wayne and Oliver traded quick offense, with Wayne hitting a huracanrana. Oliver hit a crossbody block. Oliver hit a missile dropkick on Shelley, and Shelley clutched his jaw in pain, at 6:00. Shelley hit double DDTs on his opponents for nearfalls. Shelley hit a flipping faceplant on Wayne for a nearfall and he applied the Border City Stretch, but Wayne reached the ropes at 8:30. Shelley did a duo armbreaker move. He applied the Border City Stretch on Oliver, but Wayne broke it up.
Shelley applied a submission hold on both opponents as they were locked together. Wayne hit a stunner on Shelley, then a fisherman’s suplex, but Oliver made the save, at 11:30, and the younger guys started arguing over who would pin Shelley. Oliver got a rollup for a nearfall on Wayne, and they traded chops and forearms. Shelley got in, but they turned and superkicked him at 13:00. Shelley again applied a Border City Stretch on Wayne. Wayne went for a Swanton Bomb, but Shelley got his knees up to block it. Oliver hit a stunner on Shelley, then his jumping powerbomb on Wayne for a believable nearfall at 14:30. Shelley hit his Shellshock faceplant on Oliver, but Wayne made the save, and everyone was down.
They traded blows from their knees, then from their feet. Everyone was hitting (and no-selling) superkicks. Wayne hit a fall-back stunner on Shelley. However, Oliver grabbed Shelley and scored the pin. That was really, really good, and far, far better than the first three matches on the show. Shelley got on the mic and said Oliver and Wayne were acting like a tag team, but “I have a tag team partner” and the crowd chanted “Motor City!” Sounds like a future matchup of Chris Sabin & Shelley vs. Wayne & Oliver.
5. “The Second Gear Crew” 1 Called Manders, Mance Warner, and Matthew Justice defeated “Team Horror Slam” Malcolm Monroe III, Breyer Wellington, and Tommy Vendetta at 19:41. I don’t know Team Horror Slam, but imagine an older Sami Callihan, a skinnier Jay Briscoe, and a shorter Chris Bey. The SGC brawled for a few seconds and immediately rolled to the floor to drink some alcohol. All six brawled all over the building, away from the ring. They used plastic garbage cans and brooms and beer cans. They suddenly found the ring at 6:00! THS dumped a box of LEGOs in the ring. However, the SGC dropped them on the toys.
The Callihan lookalike slammed Manders from the ring apron and through several open chairs on the floor at 8:00. They once again were all brawling on the floor, and fans are sitting wayyyyyy too close to guys swinging weapons. Lawsuit waiting to happen! Back in the ring, Monroe (the Bey lookalike) hit a Meteora double stomp on Justice as he was lying on a table. The SGC whipped pieces of a door and chairs at their opponents. The SGC got a table from under the ring at 15:00. In the ring, THS hit a team suplex on Manders. Manders powerslammed one guy onto another. Justice then hit a frog splash to score the win. Basic stand-up brawl that the crowd really enjoyed, a lot more than I did.
6. Slade defeated Hoodfoot in a hardcore match via ref stoppage at 1:29. Light tubes and barbed-wire-covered boards. Hoodfoot was immediately bleeding hard on his left arm just above his elbow, and the referee initially tried to put tape on it, but then called for the bell. This was gruesome, but as I always say, this is the danger when dealing with glass. Hoodfoot’s arm was wrapped in a towel. I hope he’s ok.
7. Shane Mercer defeated Akira in a hardcore match at 13:53. More light tubes and barbed wire. Both mens’ backs were bloody as they left the ring.
8. Alex Colon defeated Dale Patricks to retain the GCW Ultraviolent Championship at 13:58. Colon hit a double-arm piledriver move onto a pile of broken glass to score the win.
9. Ciclope defeated Cole Radrick and Miedo Extremo in a three-way hardcore match at 15:05. More glass panes set up in corners of the ring. Wow. This was supposed to be Radrick and Joey Janela vs. Ciclope and Miedo Extremo, but apparently Janela couldn’t make it to the show. Radrick is the James Ellsworth of the indy scene; he looks awkward with no muscle definition, but he’s gaining a cult following. Ciclope put a double armbar on Radrick, who tapped out. Another match with lots of glass covering the ring when they were done.
Final Thoughts: Wow, GCW is such a mixed bag. Two weeks ago, they had a great pair of shows in the northeast headlined by Tony Deppen vs. Jon Moxley on night one, and Will Ospreay vs. Nick Wayne on night two. There were zero hardcore matches between those two shows, no barbed wire boards, no gouging opponents with light tubes. Compare those excellent shows to this, with five straight hardcore, no-rules matches. This event gets a huge thumbs down from me.
This show had one good match. Alex Shelley told a master story, taking on two young up-and-comers and holding his own in a match that frequently felt like a two-on-one handicap match.
Blake Christian is arguably the hottest U.S. cruiserweight not signed to a major deal in 2022. I personally wouldn’t have booked him in a comedy match against a guy who is at least twice his age. It is rare, absolutely rare, that a Blake Christian match isn’t considered for “top three matches” of the show. Looking at the talent available on this show, I would have had him square off with Ninja Mack, or perhaps Tony Deppen. This felt like a squandered opportunity.
I know I’m a broken record but I’ll say it again. I am ok with barbed wire. The cuts aren’t deep, and you have some control over it. You have no such control with glass. Just a few months ago, glass punctured Alex Zayne’s eyeball in a match in California. Here, Hoodfoot’s arm was so severely cut that he couldn’t continue. I understand that indy wrestling has carved out a niche different than WWE — more hardcore matches, more intergender matches, more raunchy chants from the crowd — but just because it’s different from WWE doesn’t make it better. I am sure there are plenty of people who loved this show because it fills that niche.
The show clocked in at more than three hours.
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