By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
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GCW “Sanctified”
Streamed on FITE TV
August 19, 2022 in Charlotte, North Carolina at Cabarrus Arena
This is a large field house, far larger than they need. The crowd is perhaps 250-350. The lights are on, so no challenges with darkness outside the ring.
Dave Prazak and John Mosely provide commentary. I don’t want to be mean… but Mosely added so little here, maybe Prazak should have handled this solo. We have a lot of North Carolina-area wrestlers (Lucky Ali, Diego Hill, BoJack, Andrew Everett, etc.) on this card, mixed in with the GCW regulars.
* Nick Gage came to the ring. Again, last weekend, he challenged Jon Moxley to a title vs. career match on Saturday, then he beat up Matt Cardona on Sunday. He fired up the crowd but added nothing new to either storyline.
1. Andrew Everett defeated Kevin Blackwood at 11:34. Everett, of course, has had a run in Impact Wrestling and a smaller run in Ring of Honor. While he’s of average height, he wears the Andre the Giant one-strap singlet and pretends he’s seven feet tall. Quick reversals to start. Everett tried to springboard off the ropes, but Blackwood caught him with a dropkick. Blackwood nailed a DDT at 5:00. Everett fired back with a Lionsault for a nearfall.
Everett nailed a springboard twisting press for a nearfall, and Blackwood is really selling a rib injury. Blackwood locked in a Texas Cloverleaf, but Everett escaped at 8:00. Blackwood hit a German Suplex, and they were both down. Everett went for the Andre chokeslam, but Blackwood escaped. Blackwood hit a chokeslam for a nearfall, and that popped the crowd. Everett hit a Falcon Arrow for a believable nearfall at 10:00. Blackwood nailed a Death Valley Driver for a nearfall. Everett nailed the chokeslam and his beautiful Shooting Star Press for the pin. Blackwood never seems to win but he always impresses. That was a good match.
2. “Los Macizos” Extremo Miedo and Ciclope defeated Charli Evans and Everett Connors at 13:17. Charli is so much shorter than her male competitors it is just not believable. LM threw Connors into the crowd, and they hit simultaneous dropkicks to Charli’s face just seconds into the match. LM did the Giant Swing and dropkick spot on Connors at 3:30. Charli hit a top-rope huracanrana on Extremo. Connors nailed a flip dive to the floor on LM, and Charli followed that with a top-rope flying crossbody block to the floor on everyone.
In the ring, she traded blows with Ciclope. Ciclope nailed a chairshot over Evans’ head at 7:00. Unnecessary. Ciclope nailed a top-rope superplex on Evans, sending them crashing through four open chairs. Connors nailed a DVD onto a folded chair. Miedo dropkicked two chairs into Connors’ face as Everett was tied upside down in the corner at 9:30. Evans got a door from under the ring. Miedo hit a standing powerbomb and superkick on her. In a dangerous spot, Miedo suplexed Connors off the ring apron and through a table set up on the floor. In the ring, Evans hit a Saito Suplex on Ciclope for a nearfall. They fought on the ropes in the corner, and Ciclope dropped her face-first on a pile of chairs on the mat. He then applied a Crossface hold, and she tapped out. While I object to the man-on-woman violence, this was a well laid-out match, and a rare GCW hardcore match where no one bled.
3. Blake Christian defeated Joe Lando at 13:38. Lando, a UK high-flyer, injured his ankle a week ago and couldn’t compete in other shows that weekend, but he seems ok here. Prazak wondered how the crowd would react to Blake, after he got so heavily booed last weekend in New Jersey, but he mostly got a babyface reaction. Quick reversals to open, and Blake has the slight size advantage, which I’m sure is unusual for him. Blake dropped him with a shoulder tackle. They avoid each other’s big moves and end in a standoff. Lando nailed a dive to the floor that sent Blake into the crowd at 3:30.
In the ring, Blake nailed a half nelson suplex, then he dove through the ropes, barreling into Lando. Blake applied a leglock around Lando’s waist, but Lando reached the ropes at 6:30, and he’s clutching at his injured ankle. Lando nailed a stunner and they were both down. Lando nailed a German suplex with a bridge for a nearfall. Lando’s ankle buckled, allowing Blake to hit a powerslam and a Lionsault for a nearfall at 9:00. Lando fired back with a tornado DDT and a Shotgun dropkick, then a standing Shooting Star Press for a nearfall.
Lando nailed a nice mid-ring huracanrana. Blake lifted Lando above his head and hit a sit-out powerbomb for a believable nearfall. They fought on the ring apron, where Blake hit a rolling DVD, then a springboard 450 splash for a nearfall. They traded superkicks, and Lando hit a twisting suplex for a nearfall at 12:30. Lando hit a top-rope Shooting Star elbow drop for a nearfall. He missed a second Shooting Star Press, and Blake hit a twisting neckbreaker, then his Rollins-style Stomp to the head for the pin. That was really, really good. Blake wrestled as a babyface, but still the smaller Lando got some cheers as the underdog.
4. Ricky Morton, Kerry Morton, and Axton Ray defeated Jordan Oliver, Billie Starkz, and Chris Hamrick at 13:39. I barely remember 55-year-old Hamrick, who had a handful of matches in TNA, WWE and ECW. I also have zero interest in watching 65-year-old Ricky Morton wrestle anymore (Jordan Oliver vs. Axton Ray would be awesome, can we just get that?). Billie and Kerry started with basic mat reversals. Oliver and Axton locked up at 2:30 with intense standing switches. I have said this before, but while Axton looks like a football player, he has a gymnastic background. They end a fast sequence with a standoff and a nice applause. Ricky and Hamrick squared off at 4:00 as the crowd chanted “Rock and Roll!” Hamrick teased bailing from the match.
Ricky hit some armdrags and Hamrick tagged out. Kerry and Jordan exchanged some faster offense. Hamrick tied up Kerry on the mat, and that team took turns working over Kerry. Billie hit a basement dropkick to the face at 10;30. Axton finally made the hot tag but the ref missed it, and Team Hamrick kept working over Kerry. Ricky finally made the hot tag at 12:30, and he dove through the bottom rope onto the floor on three guys. I didn’t expect that. Ricky hit a mid-ring Canadian Destroyer on Billie Starkz for a pop. Axton picked up Hamrick, hit the neckbreaker over his knee, and scored the pin. The match stayed in second gear but was fine, and the crowd enjoyed it.
* Nick Gage joined Prazak on commentary.
5. “Second Gear Crew” Matthew Justice and Mance Warner defeated “The Revolt” Caleb Konley and Zane Riley at 17:14. No “Kaleb with a K” gimmick here; he’s dressed like Stone Cold in black trunks and vest. I don’t know Riley, who is heavier and has a long beard that is turning gray on the edges; he is wearing a Blue Meanie-style half shirt so his gut can hang out the bottom. Caleb and Justice started, then Mance entered to face Riley. Charli Evans walked to ringside with a 12-pack of beer and passed them to the guys in the ring, with Mance and Riley pounding their drinks. They finally started fighting, and Justice dove off the top rope onto everyone on the floor at 5:00.
Caleb hit a dive to the floor. They brawled with chairs and doors. SGC set up a table. Mance threw a chair at Caleb’s head. Justice was put through the table, set up on the floor. Caleb had a bag we thought was thumbtacks, but he dumped it on a table and it was gummy bears. Silly. Justice hit a frogsplash on Riley as Riley was lying on a table in the ring, to score the pin. Decent brawl; I still object to all the chairshots to the head, but no one bled.
6. BoJack defeated Diego Hill, Lucky Ali, White Michael, B-Boy, Jimmy Lloyd in a scramble match at 11:32. I have praised Diego Hill (think Wes Lee) as one to watch. BoJack is a Black man with dreadlocks and is perhaps 400 pounds. My first time seeing White Michael, who wore a red robe and colorful singlet, and he’s a flamboyant character somewhat like Dalton Castle. Everyone attacked BoJack. Hill hit an impressive twisting dive to the floor on four guys. B-Boy nailed his basement dropkick on Michael. Diego hit a dropkick on Lloyd at 3:00. White nailed a Fosbury Flop to the floor on everyone. In the ring, B-Boy hit a brainbuster on Diego for a nearfall.
Michael hit an Angle Slam on B-Boy for a nearfall. BoJack hit a sit-out powerbomb on Michael. BoJack hit a fisherman’s suplex on Lloyd. Diego hit a double-jump moonsault out of the corner on BoJack, and everyone was down at 10:00. Lloyd hit a piledriver on Michael. BoJack attempted a moonsault onto Michael; he barely caught him but still got enough for the pin. That is a big, big man to be trying that move.
7. Effy defeated George South at 10:15. South, now 59, came to the ring holding a barbed wire bat. They both spoke on the mic and stalled a lot. I have zero interest in this one. South spent more time yelling at fans than wrestling. They fought on the floor and Effy used the barbed-wire bat on South, and George was bleeding from the head. I don’t enjoy that in any match, and certainly not from someone who is almost 60. Effy hit a blockbuster move in the ring for the pin.
8. Allie Katch and Dark Sheik defeated “The Ugly Ducklings” Lance Lude and Rob Killjoy in an intergender match at 11:40. The Ducklings look like hillbilly Briscoe characters. Allie knocked down the shorter, older (gray-haired) Lude with a shoulder tackle. The Ducklings worked over Allie. Allie and Sheik worked him over extensively. Killjoy, the taller Duckling, tagged in and hit a snap suplex on Sheik. Sheik hit a top-rope legdrop for a nearfall. Killljoy launched Lude into a corner onto Katch for a nearfall. Katch hit a piledriver as Sheik hit a basement dropkick to the face, to score the pin. I didn’t enjoy this.
* A box of light tubes was brought to the ring. Sigh.
9. Cole Radrick defeated Colby Corino to retain the GCW Extreme Title at 16:02. Colby has become a fixture in NWA, and certainly resembles his father. I always describe Radrick as the James Ellsworth-meets-Gomer Pyle dork. They both bled and there was glass everywhere. I always feel the need to point this out: GCW doesn’t use guardrails, so fans can get far too close to the ring and be in danger of flying glass when these light tubes explode. Cole hit a pump-handle sit-out powerbomb onto a pile of broken light tubes for the pin. Yuck, yuck, yuck.
Final Thoughts: Blake Christian always delivers in the ring, and his match against the relatively unknown Joe Lando was easily best of the show. Too bad that BoJack pretty much missed the finishing moonsault, because that scramble was a fun mix of GCW and local N.C. talent. I will reiterate that Diego Hill is one to watch. The Everett-Blackwood opener was really strong and earned third-best here.
As good as some of GCW’s matches are, the shows are always brought down by too much man-on-woman violence, unnecessary bleeding, and unprotected blows to the head, and all those problems were evident here. Again, GCW knows its audience, and that audience wants something different than what they can see on WWE or AEW, and they provide that hardcore niche. And while I never want to say wrestling should have a mandatory retirement age, I really don’t need to see anyone over the age of 55 in the ring, and there were three men in that 55+ age range here.
The show clocked in at about three hours.
Two things:
>Charli is so much shorter than her male competitors it is just not believable.> While I object to the man-on-woman violence, …<<
Oh for God's sake I literally just threw up a little in my mouth. Can we PLEASE, for the love of all that his holy, stop the "I have to be self-righteous" BS? ITS WRESTLING. I'm fairly sure man-on-woman violence isn't a popular thing in "real life" with many people….