By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
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Deadlock Pro Wrestling
January 14, 2023 in Concord, North Carolina at Cabarrus Arena
Available via DPWondemand.com
Rich Bocchini provided solo commentary. The crowd once again is in the 250-350 range.
1. Labron Kozone defeated Jaden Newman at 8:19. They shook hands before the bell, and Bocchini noted this was Newman’s first singles match in DPW. Newman is white in red and black trunks, and he reminds me a bit of John Skyler with short black hair and beard. Kozone hit a sit-out powerbomb for a nearfall at 6:00. Kozone nailed an enzuigiri, then a second-rope twisting suplex, then a decapitating clothesline for the pin. An extended squash, really.
2. Queen Aminata defeated Jada Stone at 7:04. Stone is a short Black woman with red in her hair and immediately made me think of Tasha Steelz; Bocchini said it is her DPW debut. She is definitely young. Aminata is a full head taller than her; Bocchini said she’s 5’9″ so I’d put Stone at 5’2″. Stone hit a huracanrana in the first minute, and she has the athleticism of a gymnast. Aminata nailed a German suplex at 2:30, then a sliding kick against the ropes that made a sickening sound, and the crowd really reacted to it.
Aminata took control and nailed a snap suplex, then a running buttbump in the corner. Stone fired back with a DDT but she’s selling a rib injury. Stone hit an impressive split-legged moonsault for a believable nearfall. They traded forearm shots. Aminata nailed a swinging neckbreaker and a faceplant for the pin. I enjoyed that a lot; Aminata is so much better than what she’s been able to show off in her handful of AEW Dark/Elevation matches.
3. Alexander Moss defeated “So Fly” Manny Lo at 7:33. Both are young Black men. Moss wore a jacket over his shoulders and is the smug heel, jawing with the fans on his way to the ring. They brawled to the floor, and Moss crotched Lo on the guardrail. In the ring, Moss was in complete control. They traded forearm shots, and Lo hit a flipping neckbreaker for a nearfall at 5:30. They traded rollup attempts, and Moss got his feet on the ropes for leverage to score the pin. OK match.
* A music video aired with competitors from the next match. Labron Kozon joined Rich on commentary.
4. Jay Malachi defeated BoJack, Yoya, and Oliver Sawyer in a four-way at 10:46. I think my first time seeing Sawyer; he’s white, short brown hair and obviously quite young. Yoya is the short Cambodian man, and he might weigh half of BoJack’s weight. Everyone tried to gang up on BoJack at the bell, with Malachi hitting a dive to the floor, but BoJack caught him and slammed him into the guardrail. They all brawled on the floor, over the guardrail, and into the crowd. In a cool spot, Malachi climbed a pillar and leapt about 20 feet onto everyone at 3:00.
In the ring, Sawyer hit a Dragon Suplex on Malachi, then a Northern Lights suplex. BoJack nailed a backbreaker over his knee on Sawyer, then a neckbreaker at 6:00. BoJack nailed a standing powerbomb, then a bucklebomb on Sawyer. Yoya hit an enziguri on Bojack. In a nice spot, BoJack put both Malachi and Yoya on his shoulders, ran across the ring, and did a Death Valley Driver into the corner onto Sawyer! That earned a “this is awesome!” chant.
Sawyer hit a Canadian Destroyer on BoJack. Malachi hit a Blue Thunder Driver on Sawyer. Malachi leapt off the top rope, but Yoya caught him and hit a stunner at 9:30. Malachi hit a top-rope stunner on BoJack for the clean pin. That was some really good action, and a big win for Malachi. BoJack refused to shake hands after his loss and he left the ring.
* Malachi got on the mic; he and Kozne made a challenge for a tagteam match in February.
5. Colby Corino defeated Kevin Ku at 14:35. Bocchini called these two the “pillars of Deadlock Pro.” They traded armbars and standing switches early on, and Ku has a definite height and weight advantage. They brawled to the floor and traded chops in front of the fans at 3:00. In the ring, Ku worked over the left leg and kept Colby grounded. Colby invited Ku to kick him, which seems like a giant mistake, as Kevin hit some stiff kicks. Ku nailed a running knee for a nearfall at 8:00.
Ku missed a top-rope double stomp, but he nailed a brainbuster for a nearfall. Colby hit a flipping senton. Colby hit a Styles Clash on the hard floor at 13:30, drawing a “holy shit!” chant. Bocchini wondered how Ku would recover. The announcer told us one minute remaining in the time limit. In the ring, Colby hit a gutbuster over his knee, then he did a fireman carry swinging move to pin Ku. Strong match.
6. JD Drake defeated Arik Royal and Noah Hossman in a three-way at 10:21. Of these three, I only know JD Drake. Hossman looks like Joey Ryan but a bit heavier. Royal is Black and wore a giant purple/pink gown, and he’s also a bit heavy. Hossman hit a shoulder tackle on Drake, and Bocchini said he’s only 21. Drake nailed a hard chop on Hossman, who returned one, but not as loud. Hossman hit a senton on Drake at 3:30.
Royal hit a head-capture suplex on Hossman for a nearfall. Hossman hit a Northern Lights suplex for a nearfall on Royal. Their heads collided and they were dizzy. Drake rolled back into the ring and began chopping both men. Royal missed a top-rope moonsault, and Drake immediately hit a rolling cannonball in the corner on Royal at 9:30. Hossman hit a rolling cannonball in the corner on Drake. Drake nailed a Moxley-style double-arm DDT to pin Hossman. Solid match; the winner was never in doubt.
* JD Drake got on the mic and he made it clear he and Anthony Henry are going to become Deadlock Pro tagteam champs.
* Another music video aired showing the competitors in this match. Just a reminder that Lucky Ali won the DPW title in a three-way match where he didn’t beat the champion, BoJack.
7. Lucky Ali defeated SB Kento to retain the DPW Title at 21:00. Kento is the Dragon Gate competitor who has been touring the U.S. in recent months; he has blond hair like Kazuchika Okada. Ali is a Black man with a great physique, and he’s had a handful of matches in AEW. An intense lockup to begin the match. Ali rolled to the floor and went to the announce table and grabbed his title belt, teasing he might leave. In the ring, Ali was in charge, and this was fairly methodical as it was clear they were going long. They brawled back to the floor, and Ali slammed Kento rib-first into the guardrail at 9:00.
In the ring, Ali hit a back suplex for a nearfall. The fans began rallying with an “SBK!” chant. Kento nailed a running dropkick in the corner for a nearfall at 12:00. Kento nailed a DDT for a nearfall. Ali dropped Kento stomach-first on a turnbuckle. They traded rollup attempts on the mat. Kento nailed a dive to the floor at 16:00, and they were both down on the floor.
In the ring, Ali hit an “Electric Chair facebuster,” as Bocchini called it, for a believable nearfall. Kento fired back with a huracanrana, then a spinebuster, and he applied a Sharpshooter in the center of the ring, but Ali reached the ropes at 19:00. They each hit an enzigui. Kento hit a German Suplex for a nearfall. Ali nailed a clothesline to the back of the neck for the clean pin. That was a really good match.
* Colby Corino returned and got on the mic, and he wants a title shot. Ali got in the ring, stood toe-to-toe with Colby, and challenged him to put his career on the line to get a title match. Colby accepted and they shook hands. They began to brawl, and Colby hit a gutbuster over his knee, so Ali scampered out of the ring and to the back.
Final Thoughts: This was a big show for Deadlock Pro, as it was a live show; usually their events are released a week or two later. The main event was easily best match, followed by Colby-Ku, with the four-way in third-place.
Top-to-bottom, this wasn’t among the best of the DPW shows, but it certainly wasn’t bad. They gave ring time to some new faces. Of wrestlers I hadn’t seen before, Oliver Sawyer looked good. Jada Stone is super-athletic and showed promise.
The show clocked in at just over two hours. The next show will be Feb. 25 in Raleigh, N.C.
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