By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
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Garden State Pro Wrestling “V”
Available via YouTube.com
February 3, 2023 in Ridgefield Park, N.J. at Phil Sheridan Building
This venue was a gym, and the crowd was perhaps 250-300. Alyssa Marino and Jordan Castle provided live commentary and said this was their first time working together. I’m really impressed with Marino doing play-by-play, while Castle has some Don West-like enthusiasm doing color commentary.
1. Myron Reed defeated Nikeem Avant at 10:26. Reed competed a day ago for PWR in Ohio. My first time seeing Avant; he is a thin Black man with shot dreadlocks, somewhat like Swerve Strickland and he’s apparently been trained by Reed, so they have chemistry. They traded armdrags and had a standoff. Castle noted that Reed is now a free agent and has “something to prove.” They brawled to the floor. Reed dove onto him on the floor at 3:30, catching Avant as Nikeem was runninng on the floor. Cool spot. They fought on the ring apron, where Nikeem hit a spear.
Nikeem hit a dive over the top rope. In the ring, Nikeem hit a Poison Rana at 6:30, then a flip out of the corner for a nearfall. Nikeem applied a Crippler Crossface on the mat. Reed nailed a stunner. Nikeem hit a couple Superkicks. Nikeem leapt off the top rope, but Reed caught him and hit a stunner, then an Air Raid Crash for the pin. Really good opener.
2. Janai Kai defeated Sumie Sakai at 6:15. I love Janai’s kickboxing look and style; she’s leaving this week for a Japanese tour. Sumie jumped her from behind before the bell and applied a sleeper/chokehold, and they rolled to the floor. Sumie whipped Janai at the wall. They got in the ring, but Sumie wrapped Janai’s leg around the corner post. Sumie hit a missile dropkick for a nearfall at 3:00, and she tied up Janai’s legs on the mat.
Kai fired back with some kicks, but she was selling pain in her knees. Sumie bit Janai’s leg! Janai went for a Dragon Sleeper, but Sumie blocked it. Janai hit another kick and applied a Dragon Sleeper on the mat, and Sumie tapped out. Enjoyable action. They hugged afterwards.
3. Davey Richards defeated Austin Luke at 11:43. Alyssa said this was Luke’s first singles match in GSW; he has long curly brown hair and a thick beard, looking somewhat like Cameron Grimes. They immediately went to a test of strength, and Luke has a slight height advantage. Castle noted that Richards has a vast advantage on in-ring action. Richards tied Luke up on the mat, and he went to work on the left ankle. They began trading forearm shots, and Richards dropped him with a spin kick at 4:00.
Richards tied him in the Jamie Noble Trailer Hitch leglock, and he was in complete control. Jordan Castle said Austin Luke “grew up watching Davey Richards.” Luke hit a so-so dropkick into the corner, then a brainbuster for a nearfall at 7:00. Richards nailed a German Suplex. Luke came up short on a spin kick. (They kept going and the crowd was forgiving.) Richards hit a standing powerbomb, but Luke applied a Triangle Choke, and Richards nearly passed out.
Luke connected on a legsweep, but he was selling his knee injury. Richards nailed a dragon screw leg whip from the apron to the floor! In the ring, Richards nailed a top-rope double stomp to the chest for a nearfall. Richards immediately went to an anklelock, but Luke escaped. Richards nailed a high back suplex for a nearfall. Richards nailed a Gotch-Style pump-handle piledriver for the clean pin. Good match; Luke was shaky in a few spots, but Richards is so good he covered the misses well.
4. “America’s Violence Dealers” Masha Slamovich and Akira defeated “Bird Law” Mike Bailey and Veda Scott in an intergender match at 17:11. Bailey and Veda, who are married, also were at PWR a day ago as well. Veda spends more time on commentary these days than in the ring; I don’t recall the last time I saw her wrestle. Masha and Akira attacked before the bell, and they wrestled to the floor. In the ring, Akira hit a shotgun dropkick on Bailey, then a Northern Lights Suplex for a nearfall. Veda hit a top-rope dive to the floor at 3:00.
Veda wallked over and joined the commentary booth! Funny. She put over her dive to the floor, while Bailey and Akira brawled in the ring. She returned to ringside, and Bird Law worked over Akira in the ring. Veda again returned to the booth; I find this humorous, as she’s left Bailey to do the heavy lifting. Bailey applied a half-crab, but Akira reached the ropes at 6:00. Bailey is again calling her over. “Leave me alone!” she shouted back at him. Akira hit a German Suplex, and they were both down.
Veda returned to the corner. Masha nailed a Helluva Kick on Bailey for a nearfall. (These two had an entertaining singles match in GCW last year.) Bailey hit a running Shooting Star Press for a nearfall. Veda tagged in and hit some spin kicks and a clothesline, then a stunner, on Masha for a nearfall. Veda applied a crossface, but Masha reached the ropes. Akira clocked Veda with a forearm shot. Both men put their female opponent across their shoulders and this was a standoff over who would set down their girl first. The girls were set down, but they immediately hit Canadian Destroyers on the men!
Masha hit a series of punches and a German Suplex on Veda, so Veda hit her own German Suplex, and they were both down at 10:30. Bailey hit some spin kicks. Akira nailed a spinning back fist, then a head-capture suplex, and he applied a sleeperhold on the mat. Bailey applied a leglock on the mat on Akira, but Masha bodyslammed Veda onto Bailey to break up the hold. Akira hit a high German Suplex with a bridge on Bailey for a nearfall at 13:30.
AVD set up for a Doomsday Clothesline, but Bailey escaped. Bailey nailed his Triangle Moonsault to the floor on Akira. In the ring, Bailey nailed his tornado kick int he corner, then the Ultimo Weapon summersault kneedrop for a believable nearfall, but Masha made the save, and the crowd chanted, “This is awesome!” Masha caught Bailey with a spin kick to the jaw, then a Death Valley Driver into the corner for a believable nearfall at 15:30. Bailey set up for the Flamingo Driver, but Masha escaped and got a nearfall. Bailey hit a Superkick that dropped Masha. Bailey set up for Ultimo Weapon, but Akira made the save. Akira hit a Doomsday Missile Dropkick on Bailey and scored the pin! That was a blast.
* 20-minute intermission. Luckily, I wasn’t watching live, so I was able to fastforward over the blank screen. Billie Starkz hit the ring. She has an open challenge, and she got on the mic and challenged a guy to come out and face her.
5. Billie Starkz defeated Ruthless LaLa via count-out at 7:40. LaLa is a Black woman and is larger than Billie; she is similary size to Piper Niven. Billie dove to the floor on her to start the match. In the ring, LaLa hit an Abyss-style Black Hole Slam for a nearfall. Billie hit a German Suplex for a nearfall at 4:30. They fought on the ropes in the corner; whatever they had planned, well it didn’t work. LaLa crashed to the mat. Billie went for a Swanton Bomb, but LaLa got her knees up. LaLa hit a spear, then a snap spinning neckbreaker for a nearfall at 6:00.
They fought on the ring apron. Billie hit a Swanton Bomb off the apron onto LaLa on the floor. Jordan Castle noted the thin mat on the floor doesn’t provide much help. LaLa got back to her feet, but was counted out as she tried to dive back into the ring. The crowd booed the finish; I didn’t see that coming.
* LaLa said loudly (no mic) to the crowd that she’s known Billie since she was 14. They hugged, but suddenly LaLa attacked her from behind, and the crowd loudly booed. LaLa nailed a hard clothesline. LaLa jawed at the camera as she headed to the back.
6. KZY defeated Anthony Henry at 11:56. I literally just KZY for the first time at the Muta “Bye Bye” NOAH show a couple weeks ago. KZY (pronounced Kay Zee) is a Japanese man who parties on his way to ringside, and he was wearing light-up rings. Alyssa said this is his U.S. debut. Anthony (the former Asher Hale in NXT) has bright green hair on the top of his head today. They immediately went to intense mat reversals. KZY was being a bit of a goofball and posing. Henry, who is all-business in the ring, was annoyed. KZY hit a flipping neckbreaker at 3:00.
Henry snapped his throat across the ropes, and he took over, applying a straight-jacket chokehold on the mat. Henry nailed a neckbreaker over his knee for a nearfall at 5:30. KZY hit a flip dive to the floor. In the ring, KZY hit a Northern Lights Suplex for a nearfall. Henry nailed a Buckle Bomb into the corner. Henry placed KZY’s feet on the top rope and hit a swinging neckbreaker for a nearfall at 8:30. However, he missed a top-rope doublestomp. KZY nailed a Canadian Destroyer; Henry popped up and hit a clothesline, and they were both down.
KZY hit some forearm shots; Henry fired back with spin kicks, and this is really getting good. KZY nailed a DDT. Henry nailed a piledriver for a believable nearfall, and the crowd chanted, “This is awesome!” KZY hit a double-arm DDT and a diving European Uppercut. KZY nailed a top-rope frogsplash for a nearfall at 11:30. KZY hit a butterfly piledriver for the clean pin. “Absolutely an incredible show…” Alyssa said. Henry is so quietly good.
7. Robert Martyr defeated Big Boss Shimizu at 8:30. Shimizu is also a Dragon Gate wrestler; he is thicker like Great-O-Khan, and he has orange and green streaks in his hair. He wore his tag title belt. Martyr, who has short black hair and a thin mustache, is treated like a star in Garden State Wrestling; I haven’t seen ‘it’ yet that makes him special. Alyssa noted that Martyr is the #1 contender for the GSW title after a win last month. He still has his left shoulder in a large sling. Shimizu easily shoved the smaller Martyr to the mat.
Martyr leapt off the top rope, but Shimizu caught him and hit a Samoan Drop at 2:30. Shimizu stood on Martyr’s chest, and he applied a Crippler Crossface on the mat. Martyr went for a bodyslam, but Shimizu was just too big. Martyr hit a clothesline. Martyr hit a top-rope moonsault to the floor at 5:00. In the ring, Shimizu hit a Sky-high pop-up powerbomb, but he missed a top-rope frogsplash. Martyr applied a Triangle Choke, but Shimizu turned it into another powerbomb.
They got up and traded forearm shots. Martyr nailed a Saito Suplex. Shimizu immediately hit a Rock Bottom uranage. Castle questioned why Shimizu didn’t go for the cover. Martyr got a sunset flip rollup for the pin out of nowhere.
* Martyr got on the mic and declared himself one of the best wrestlers in the world. (He’s not in the top five in that locker room.) He said he would defend his #1 contender’s slot against anyone, but he’s ready to face the champion. “Alan Angels, you’re next,” he said.
8. Ryan Mooney defeated Yoya at 13:31. Yoya is 5’2″ and Cambodian, and he’s much smaller than the red-haired Mooney, who has some similar features to Buddy Matthews or Alex Zayne. Mooney competed a bit in ROH pre-pandemic. I question why this is a second-to-last. Mooney bit at his butt, and Yoya scrambled to get away. They traded mat reversals and rollup attempts, then some deep armdrags. They fought to the floor, and Mooney slammed him back-first on the ring apron at 5:30.
Mooney took control in the ring. Mooney hit a second-rope diving elbow to the back. They hit simultaneous Mafia Kicks and were both down at 9:30. Yoya hit a suplex for a nearfall. Mooney hit an enziguri and a sunset powerbomb into the corner. He hit a Delirious-style Shadows Over Hell frogsplash-to-the-back for a nearfall. Yoya nailed a Michinoku Driver for a believable nearfall at 12:30. They traded multiple rollup attempts. Mooney nailed a running kneestrike to the jaw to score the pin, and the crowd was shocked that the local favorite Yoya had lost.
9. Alan Angels defeated Marcus Mathers to retain the Garden State Wrestling Title at 18:19. Mathers, who has short blond hair, has become a regular on nearly every show I see from the NY/NJ area. Angels is the heel here and he refused to shake hands with fans; he wore a “The Design” T-shirt. The crowd chanted, “New champ!” at Mathers. They locked up and appear to be the same height, as they immediately traded intense mat holds. Angels rolled to the floor to regroup.
In the ring, Mathers hit a dropkick, then a dive through to the floor on Angels. He then hit a top-rope crossbody block for a nearfall. Angels hit a basement dropkick on Mathers’ knee at 4:30, and he immediately began targeting the left leg. He twisted the leg in the ropes. He applied a Figure Four Leglock at 7:30. Mathers hit a suplex at 9:30, and they were both down, with Mathers clutching at his sore left leg. Mathers nailed a Blue Thunder Bomb and a Lionsault and got a nearfall.
Angels went back to an anklelock. Mathers hit a stunner, then a running knee in the corner for a nearfall at 11:30. They fought to the floor, where Angels hit a Dragonscrew Legwhip. They got in the ring, and Angels hit another legwhip. He applied an anklelock that was practically a half-crab, but Mathers reached the ropes at 14:00. Angels hit a half-nelson suplex. Mathers hit a mid-ring Spanish Fly, and they were both down at 15:30. They got up and traded forearm shots, and Mathers hit a standing powerbomb; Angels rolled to the floor to avoid being pinned. So, Mathers hit an impressive flip dive over the top rope to the floor.
In the ring, Mathers nailed a 450 Splash for a ‘pin,’ but the referee immediately noticed Angels had a foot on the ropes and ordered the match to continue. Angels tossed the title belt into Mathers’ arms. But the distraction allowed Angels hit a spin kick to the head to score the pin.
Final Thoughts: The main event was really good, and Angels has had a strong showing across the indy scene since bowing out of AEW, and I’ll give that best match. KZY-Anthony Henry was really good and earns second-best. The entertaining mixed tag was fun, albeit messy at times, but they kept the action going. I really enjoyed how Veda Scott took breaks mid-match, as she isn’t regularly competing anymore and was winded. The opener earned honorable mention.
Shimizu-Martyr was good, but with Martyr having just won the No. 1 contender slot last month, there was no way he was losing here, so that took some of the intrigue away from the match. I don’t mean to sound rude… but I just am not seeing the “it factor” in Martyr in the five or so matches I’ve seen him compete in over the past year.
If I was booking the show, I would have placed Davey Richards in a match against a top-notch wrestler. I think Austin Luke was a bit nervous in that singles match against the indy veteran. Both womens matches were solid, but not really not above-average either.
I did a Google Map check. The drive from Dayton, Ohio, to Ridgefield Park, N.J., is about 9.5 hours. That’s some serious dedication from Bailey, Veda Scott, Billie Starkz, and Myron Reed after working Thursday’s Pro Wrestling Revolver show.
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