By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
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GCW “FSW vs. GCW 2”
Streamed on FITE.TV
May 27, 2023 in Las. Vegas, Nevada at FSW Arena
This co-promoted show took place in the FSW Arena, which is their training center and can probably only seat 200 people. The room is packed; I doubt they’ve had more people in here. Jake Black and Walker Stewart are back on commentary.
* Emil Jay introduced Nick Gage, who thanked the crowd for the energy at Thursday’s show. He did his usual schtick and didn’t say anything newsworthy.
1. “Team FSW” Action Braxton, Ice Williams, Gregory Sharpe, and Bret the Threat defeated “Team GCW” Jimmy Lloyd, Ciclope, Extremo Miedo, and Cole Radrick in an eight-man tag at 8:48. Bret the Threat is white; his teammates are all Black. Of the FSW team, I’ve seen Sharpe a few times, including a showing on at least one New Japan Strong taping. I know I saw Bret at least once on a West Coast Pro show; he dresses and looks like an amateur wrestler. All eight brawled at the bell all over the floor; Walker Stewart noted there isn’t much room for them to go as they are “up against the fire code” in capacity, and I believe that’s true.
Ciclope hit a double Northern Lights. Lloyd hit a superkick on Sharpe. Ciclope hit a frogsplash for a nearfall at 7:00, but team FSW made the save. Radrick hit a stunner. Sharpe hit a dive through the ropes. Ice and Action hit front-and-back kicks on Radrick for the pin. Solid opener. While I’m not a fan of Radrick, I want to point out he’s wrestling here a day after getting quite bloody on his forehead and back in a hardcore match, so kudos to him. FSW 1, GCW 0.
2. Rina Yamashita defeated Mazzarati at 10:03. Speaking of Radrick, right on cue, here is Rina, who got equally bloody in that match. Again, Mazzarati is looking a lot like Kiera Hogan with her blue-and-pink hair. They appear to be roughly the same height and weight. They traded hard chops at 3:30. Rina nailed a superkick and a sliding clothesline for a nearfall at 6:00. Rina got a chair from under the ring and was cheered, but Mazzarati dropkicked the chair into Rina.
Mazzarati hit a Northern Lights suplex for a nearfall at 8:30. Rina placed Mazzarati along her back and hit a piledriver. Rina nailed a decapitating clothesline for another nearfall. Rina hit a frogsplash to finally get the pin. Good energy and the crowd was into this. It appeared they were going to shake hands or hug, but Rina slapped her in the face and gave her the middle finger and left; Mazzarati threw an Alicia Fox-style temper tantrum. FSW 1, GCW 1.
3. Danny Limelight defeated Titus Alexander to retain the No Limits Title at 14:23. I am a big fan of both these guys. I haven’t seen Limelight wrestle in months. He came out first, got on the mic, and was booed. He ripped the GCW fans in the stands. They traded mat holds early on, and Limelight bailed to the floor to regroup at 2:30. They fought in the ring briefly; when Danny went to the floor again, Titus dove through the ropes onto him. In the ring, Limelight hit a running neckbreaker for a nearfall at 5:00.
Titus went for a handspring-back-stunner but Danny caught him and hit a neckbreaker. Titus went for the Chaos Theory rolling German Suplex, but Danny blocked it. Danny hit a mid-ring Spanish Fly for a nearfall, and they were both down at 9:00. Titus hit the handspring-back-stunner for a believable nearfall. Danny hit a running penalty kick, then a swinging sideslam for a nearfall at 11:00.
Danny went for a move off the ropes, but Titus caught him with a dropkick. Titus nailed the Chaos Theory for a believable nearfall; I thought that was it, and we got a “This is awesome!” chant. Titus went to pick up Danny, but Danny was prone on the mat. They got up and traded forearm shots. Titus went for a rearnaked choke. Danny got a low blow mule kick with the ref out of position, then a rollup for the cheap pin. Great match. FSW 2, GCW 1.
4. Alec Price, Jack Cartwheel, and Gringo Loco defeated Bodhi Young Prodigy, Matt Vandagriff, and Damian Drake at 9:33. Four of these guys competed in the “Legends Rise” tournament Thursday for those age 25 and younger. They opened with everyone doing cartwheels; silly fun and the crowd was into it. However, Vandagriff attacked Jack Cartwheel mid-move. Price and Vandagriff traded offense. Price hit a Blockbuster move on Drake at 4:30. BYP hit a huracanrana.
Gringo Loco hit a team powerbomb on BYP. Price hit a plancha to the floor. Loco hit a top-rope stunner, then a flip dive to the floor. Cartwheel hit the Sasake Special cartwheel flip to the floor. Price tossed Cartwheel (his partner!), who hit a Canadian Destroyer. Loco hit a top-rope Canadian Destroyer. Cartwheel hit his top-rope Phoenix Splash elbow drop for the pin. “That may be the most insane finishing sequence I’ve ever seen in a match,” Jake Black said. FSW 2, GCW 2.
5. Jordan Oliver defeated Jakob Austin Young at 12:03. Young has competed a handful of times on New Japan Strong; he looks a bit like Drew Gulak. Oliver brought both his JCW title and the GCW tag belt with him. (Teammate Nick Wayne is competing in England!) An intense lockup to open, but Oliver has the height advantage. Young took an early advantage. The commentators noted that this is Oliver’s fifth match in three days. Oliver hit a plancha at 4:30.
In the ring, Young hit a tornado DDT for a nearfall. Oliver hit a head-capture suplex for a nearfall at 6:30. Young hit a running forearm; Oliver fired back with the Acid Kick. Oliver nailed a mid-ring Spanish Fly for a nearfall at 9:30, and they were both down. Oliver set up for a Clout Cutter but came up short. Young hit a standing bulldog for a nearfall, and they were both down again. They traded superkicks, and Oliver nailed the Clout Cutter for the clean pin. Good match. FSW 2, GCW 3.
6. Starboy Charlie defeated Bad Dude Tito, Robert Martyr, Nic Zander and Remy Marcel in a five-way scramble at 7:49. My first time seeing Zander, who is almost bald on top but has a long colorful braid (think Lance Archer); he is short and scrawny. I’ve heard people compare Tito to a young Dr. Death Steve Williams and that seems appropriate; he’s had a good run in New Japan Strong. My first time seeing Marcel, who has the same look and gimmick of NXT’s Tony D’Angelo. Seconds in, Tito hit a double suplex. He squared off with the much smaller Charlier, who showed no fear.
Charlie hit a running Shooting Star Press on Tito for a nearfall. Martyr hit a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker over his knee on Charlie at 1:30. Marcel hit a Thesz Press, then a Northern Lights suplex. Marcel and Martyr traded forearm shots, and they both applied Boston Crabs on different opponents; they let the holds go so they could brawl some more. Tito put both Martyr and Charlie on his shoulders and he slammed them both to the mat at 5:30. Nice show of strength.
Tito hit a Rikishi Driver piledriver on Zander for a believable nearfall but Marcel made the save. Martyr hit a swinging sideslam on Marcel. Charlie and Zander hit stereo dives to the floor at 7:00; they got back in the ring and traded more forearms. Zander leapt off the ropes, but Charlie caught him with a spin kick for the pin. Great action but far too short. FSW 2, GCW 4.
7. Viva Van defeated Billie Starkz to retain the FSW Women’s Title at 11:56. Both women competed in a womens show in this venue just a few hours earlier. An intense lockup to start. Viva went for a dive, but Billie cut her off. Billie then hit a dive through the ropes onto Viva at 4:00. Viva hit a summersault off the ring apron onto Billie on the floor. In the ring, they traded stiff forearm shots at 7:00. Viva hit an enzuigiri.
Billie hit a superkick and a running knee to the collarbone, then one to the back of the head, then a neckbreaker over her knee for a nearfall at 9:30. Viva hit a Code Red for a believable nearfall. Billie nailed a Gory Bomb for a believable nearfall at 11:00. Viva hit a huracanrana out of the corner and she was fired up. Viva put Billie on her shoulders and hit an Electric Chair slam for the clean pin. That was really good. FSW 3, GCW 4.
8. Alexander Hammerstone defeated Joey Janela at 12:31. Hammerstone got on the mic and said he didn’t want to fight tonight. He complained that Janela just likes to party and doesn’t take the business seriously. Janela hit him to start the match. Hammerstone is much bigger, and he hit a belly-to-belly release suplex at 2:00. They brawled to the floor. In the ring, Hammerstone slowed Janela down on the mat, and he hit a powerslam at 4:30.
They traded punches and Janela took control. Hammerstone hit a German Suplex, then a sit-out powerbomb for a believable nearfall at 9:30. Janela hit a brainbuster. Hammerstone got a chair, but Janela hit a superkick. Janela hit a top-rope doublestomp onto the chair lying on Hammerstone’s chest for a nearfall. Hammerstone tossed Janela onto the open chair, then he hit a swinging sideslam for the pin. Decent match. FSW 4, GCW 4.
Final thoughts: This event was a blast. Sure, it’s a small crowd, but it is a hot crowd in a packed little room. I wouldn’t have expected it going in, but Limelight-Titus Alexander stole the show and earns best match. I’ll go with Oliver-Young for second place, with Starkz-Van for third.
FSW has an afternoon show Sunday, ahead of AEW’s Double or Nothing, so fans can attend both. FSW is one of the newest promotions that has joined Fite+, and I recommend checking them out.
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