By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
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Inspire A.D. “Rule In Hell”
Replay available via IndependentWrestling.TV
August 6, 2023 in Austin, Texas at Empire Control Room
This is my first time checking out this promotion, and I literally only have seen six or seven wrestlers on this show before. This is an outdoor show under a large canopy. Attendance looks to be 200; it is light out as the show began and lighting is good.
1. Brick Savage vs. T-Ray Watford ended in a double count-out at 17:21. Waterford is a big Black man; think Keith Lee. Savage also is big with a thick beard, and he looks somewhat like Bronson Reed. Lot of beef in this opener. Savage hit a sit-out piledriver on the ring apron at 4:00, with Watford collapsing to the floor. They brawled away from the ring and amongst the fans. Watford leaped off a short balcony onto Savage. Watford hit a backbody drop, flipping Savage onto open chairs at 7:00 and they continued to fight on the floor.
They got back in the ring at 10:00 (literally six minutes after leaving it) and continued to brawl. Savage nailed a hard uranage. They fought in the corner, and Watford hit a powerbomb, tossing Savage through a door bridge in the ring at 12:30. Watford immediately nailed an F5 faceplant for a believable nearfall, and the commentators were stunned it didn’t get the pin. Savage slammed Watford stomach-first to the mat for a nearfall. Watford charged at Savage, launching himself over the top rope, and they both crashed through a door bridge set up on the floor. Neither man got up before a 10-count, so this ended in a double count-out. Good big-man match; both men made a good first impression with me.
* Zeke Rose hit the ring. He is a Black man and with his sunglasses on, made me think of Velveteen Dream. He said he’s tired of being a side show, and he said the “Dream Warriors” will be in a tag gauntlet to close out the show. He introduced Nastico, a masked man, who is apparently their new manager.
2. Danny Orion defeated Shimbashi at 10:04. Orion is Latino but everything about the way his hair is done and his cocky strut to the ring is right out of Liontamer Chris Jericho circa 1997. Shimbashi is billed as “The Canadian Dragon,” and he’s Asian with shoulder-length hair. Orion spit on him, so Shimbashi immediately hit a spinebuster and scored a nearfall. They fought on the floor, where Orion hit a snap suplex onto the thin mat. They fought on the ring apron, where Orion snapped Shimbashi’s neck on the top rope at 3:00. Shimbashi hit some stiff kicks to the back, then a backbreaker over his knee. Orion went for a handspring-back-move but Shimbashi caught him and hit a German Suplex at 5:30. Nice.
Shimbashi hit a Lungblower and he immediately applied a rear-naked choke and cranked bak on Orion’s head, but Orion reached the ropes. Orion hit an Asai Moonsault at 8:30. In the ring, Orion hit an enzuigiri in the corner, and he set up for a Frankensteiner, but Shimbashi turned it into a powerbomb. Orion hit a Pedigree for the pin. That was really, really good. Once again, both men made a good first impression.
3. Dimitri Alexandrov defeated Oli Summers to retain the Inspire Pro Pure Prestige Championship at 10:54. Summers came to the ring with a crown of flowers on his head; he has short reddish-orange hair and I immediately thought of Juice Robinson’s NXT gimmick. Dimitri looks like a savage with long black hair and uncombed beard; think a thin Viking Raider Ivar. Dimitri overpowered Oli early on and they brawled to the floor. In the ring, Summers was in charge. He hit a clothesline for a nearfall at 5:00 and a senton for a nearfall, then a German Suplex for a nearfall. Dimitri fired back with some kicks in the corner and a discus clothesline for a nearfall at 8:00. Dimitri hit a fisherman’s suplex for a nearfall.
Oli hit a piledriver for a nearfall, then a clothesline to the back of the neck for a believable nearfall at 10:00. A heel entered the ring and swung at Dimitri but missed, and he was kicked out of the ring. Dimitri hit a standing powerbomb on Oli, and a sideslam to pin Summers. Okay match; not as good as the first two.
4. Will Allday defeated Matt Cross to retain the Inspire Pro Undefinable Championship at 13:42. Cross wrestled a day ago in La Salle, Ill., for Dreamwave Wrestling; check out my thoughts below on that. Cross was also known as M-Dogg 20 in his Ring of Honor run. Allday has shoulder-length black hair and wore a ‘rock star’ jacket; I think I’ve seen him before. Standing switches to start and some solid mat wrestling; this is good but not really descriptive action. Cross hit a bodyslam at 9:00, but he missed a split-legged moonsault. Allday hit a springboard twisting clothesline, then a dive through the ropes onto Cross. In the ring, Allday hit a top-rope elbow drop for a nearfall at 10:30.
Cross fired back with a Mafia Kick for a nearfall. They traded forearms and Allday hit a jumping knee. Cross hit a handspring-back-stunner for a nearfall at 13:00. Cross missed a Shooting Star Press but landed on his feet. However, Allday immediately nailed a superkick and scored the clean pin. Good match.
* A 30-minute intermission, which surprisingly hasn’t been edited out. Luckily, I wasn’t watching live and I was able to fast-forward over it. When we return, it is now dark out but the lighting under the canopy (and in the ring!) is exceptional.
5. Raychell Rose defeated Killa Kate and Emmy Camacho in a three-way to retain the Inspire Pro Championship at 10:02. I’ve liked what I’ve seen of Raychell, who I compare to Britt Baker or Charlotte Flair in the way she presents herself as an elite, top-tier female competitor. I haven’t seen the others before. Kate is of average size and has her hair in a ponytail. I originally thought this was NWA’s Missa Kate, but it isn’t. Emmy Camacho is a thin Latina woman with long, straight hair half-way down her back. Emmy hit a dive to the floor on Kate at 2:30.
In the ring, Emmy hit a snap suplex on Kate at 6:30. Rose, who was injured early in the match, returned to the ring, clutching at her ribs. She hit a backbreaker over her knees on Emmy for a nearfall. Emmy hit a Lungblower for a nearfall at 9:00, but Raychell made the save. All three began trading punches in the ring. Raychell hit a running knee to the back of Emmy’s head and pinned her. OK match, but everyone knew it wasn’t going to end until Raychell returned to the ring. The women I didn’t know are solid, but Raychell is clearly at a level above them.
6. Yuya Uemura defeated Gary Jay at 9:51. Think of Gary Jay as a red-haired Brodie Lee, and he’s a ring veteran who I see his name in a lot of St. Louis-area results. The crowd gave Uemera, the NJPW Young Lion graduate, a hero’s welcome. Intense mat reversals to begin, and they switched to hard chops at 2:30. Gary hit a dive through the ropes. In the ring, Yuya slapped on a cross-armbreaker, but Jay reached the ropes. Jay raked at Yuya’s face and bit his nose at 4:30. Yuya was bleeding under his left eye, so Jay might have dug in a bit too hard. Yuya hit a dropkick at 6:30 and a back suplex for a nearfall, and he went back to a cross-armbreaker, with Jay again reaching the ropes. Jay hit a tornado DDT. They traded more hard forearm shots and this looked intense. Yuya nailed a twisting uranage, then a top-rope crossbody block for the pin. That was really good for the time given.
7. Bryan Keith defeated Francesco Akira at 17:53. This match is the sole reason I tuned in. I’ve only seen Akira fight on shows from the UK and Japan, so it’s interesting to see this rising Italian star in Texas as the commentators say it is his first-ever indy match in the United States. He wore his United Empire jacket to the ring. (For those who don’t know… this is not the Akira who is wrestling in MLW and a lot of Northeast indies; Francesco is in his early 20s with short red hair.) Keith, a Texas native, wore his black hat and Mexican baja jacket. They shook hands at the bell, and Francesco went to work on the left arm. They began shoving each other in the chest at 3:30 as this friendly match got a bit more heated. Akira hit a dropkick that sent Keith to the floor. Akira hit a plancha onto Keith.
They brawled on the floor, with Akira shoving Keith into the ring post. In the ring, Keith hit a kneedrop on the head for a nearfall at 7:00. He set up for a Tiger Driver but Akira blocked it. They began trading hard chops; Akira is fair-skinned and his pale white chest is quickly turning red. Akira hit a jumping knee to the chin and they were both down at 10:30.
Akira hit a top-rope crossbody block for a nearfall, then a running knee to the side of the head for a nearfall at 12:00. Keith set up for an Exploder Suplex but Akira blocked it. Keith hit a neckbreaker over his knee for a nearfall. Keith again went for a Tiger Driver but Akira turned it into a huracarana for a nearfall. Akira hit a snap suplex. Keith hit the Exploder Suplex. They hit simultaneous clotheslines, and Keith caught him with a superkick.
Akira hit a tornado DDT, and they were both down. I can’t imagine these two have ever met in the ring before but these two are absolutely CLICKING and the crowd was hot. They traded more forearm shots with the intensity picking up. Keith hit an enzuigiri at 16:30. Akira countered with a swinging neckbreaker for a believable nearfall. Akira missed with the Fireball running double knees. Keith hit a Flatliner, a Shining Wizard, and the Tiger Driver for the pin. What a match. WOW. Well worth tuning in for! They stood face to face, and they bowed and touched the ring with their foreheads. “Bryan Keith knows he was in a war with one of the best in the world,” a commentator said. I agree.The crowd chanted, “please come back!”
* The main event is described as an “N64 Gauntlet”. No teams are listed, but we’re told it’s two at a time with tornado rules. We have 50 minutes remaining in the show, so I have no idea how many teams are in this.
8a. The Born Haters defeated Roxy Castillo’s Right Hand of Vengeance at 5:23. The Born Haters came out to Shania Twain’s “Man! I Feel Like a Woman,” and they are all wearing high school sports jackets, and the crowd loves them. The RHoV wore masks and they lumbered to the ring. The Born Haters got on the mic .. and talked … and talked … and talked and I’m starting to wonder if this match will ever begin. After an incredibly good prior match, none of these four look good in the ring at all. This match should have gone on first, not last. One of the Born Haters got a rollup to win.
8b. “The Dream Warrors” Zeke Rose and Space Tiger Jr. defeated The Born Haters at 5:53. We saw Zeke Rose and his masked friend (he looks like NJPW’s Tiger Mask) earlier in teh show. Zeke attacked before the bell; Space Tiger Jr. was perplexed. They brawled to the floor, and out of the canopy and onto the sidewalk. STJr. hit a top-rope doublestomp for the pin. Not much better than the prior matchup in this gauntlet.
8c. Houston Hendrix and Kari Jai White defeated “The Dream Warriors Zeke Rose and Space Tiger Jr. at 6:32. Houston is white and really short, maybe 5’2″. Kari Jai White is Black and really thin, like ROH’s Cheeseburger. White hit a neckbreaker over his knee on STJr. but Zeke made the save at 4:30. Hendrix hit a running knee for a nearfall, but Nastico pulled the ref from the ring. Hendrix and White hit a team suplex on Zeke, then simultaneous frogsplashes for the pin. This was VASTLY better than the first two legs of this gauntlet.
* Zeke shoved teammate Space Tiger Jr. in anger after they lost.
8d. Houston Hendrix and Kari Jai White defeated La Cliqua Chris Cruise and Stud Stash at 7:22. Cruise is really short, and Stud Stash looks like an 1800s circus strongman in his mid-40s with a big gut, and they charged into the ring and took control immediately. White rolled up Cruise for the pin. La Cliqua kept attacking after the match.
8e. “Superiority Complex” Exodus Prime and Steven Wolf defeated Houston Hendrix and Kari Jai White at 1:35. The SC are thin Black men and they quickly pinned the babyfaces.
8f. “Superiority Complex” Exodus Prime and Steven Wolf defeated “Fly Def” Zack Zilla and Warren Johnson to win the gauntlet at 8:44. Fy Def are also Black men in identical yellow trunks; I’ve seen them before, and they all brawled at the bell. Fly Def hit a team Lungblower move for a believable nearfall at 6:30. Superiority Complex hit a frogsplash to score the pin to become No. 1 contenders. This was really good and my review doesn’t do it justice because I don’t know the teams.
Final Thoughts: Keith and Akira put on a stellar match, an absolutely stellar match. If you have IWTV and don’t want to watch this entire show, at least carve out 20 minutes to see this one match. Uemera-Jay earns second best, and I liked Orion-Shimbashi for third place, and the final matchup of the gauntlet earns honorable mention.
The footage of the first two rounds of that gauntlet should be edited out, removed and burned. It got substantially better after those opening two teams were both out.
Cross and Keith wrestled in La Salle (90 minutes west of Chicago) on Saturday. I hope they flew down to Austin, because Google maps says it is 1,030 miles (16-hour drive) from one city to the other. I always point out the insane travel schedule of the top-tier indy talent… if they drove… it was probably all night to make it to this show by Sunday evening.
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