By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
We are looking for reports on all WWE, AEW, NXT, Impact Wrestling, MLW, ROH, GCW, and other notable live events. If you attend a show, you are encouraged to send a report or even basic results to dotnetjason@gmail.com
GCW “Crushed Up”
Streamed on FITE+
September 10, 2023 in Brooklyn, New York at Roulette Intermedium
I would contend that perhaps nine of GCW’s top ten wrestlers are on this show. With only Gringo Loco missing, this appears to be a top-notch event. The building seems packed; the lights are low over the crowd but the ring is well-lit. This is an ornate room with a second deck and they’ve used this building before. (I like the NY shows as it automatically means fewer bloody death matches.) Dave Prazak and Veda Scott provided commentary.
1. “Los Macizos” Ciclope & Miedo Extremo defeated “Bussy” Effy & Allie Katch and “Wasted Youth” Marcus Mathers & Dyln McKay and Alec Price & Cole Radrick in a four-way tag match at 7:25. All eight brawled at the bell. Ciclope wore a see-through mesh shirt; that’s new. McKay hit a standing moonsault. Radrick hit a clothesline to the back of Katch’s head at 2:00. Effy hit a double Blockbuster, then a TKO stunner. He hit a top-rope crossbody block onto several guys on the floor. They did some raunchy humor with Effy’s crotch getting slammed onto Katch’s face. Katch accidentally hit Effy.
WY hit a team missile dropkick on Katch at 5:00. McKay hit a German Suplex on Effy. Price hit a tornado DDT. Radrick hit a Swanton Bomb on McKay for a nearfall. Effy hit a chokeslam on Radrick for a nearfall. Los Macizos hit spinebusters on Bussy. Price hit a top-rope crossbody block. Wasted Youth hit a Best Meltzer Driver. Ciclope hit a Doomsday Clothesline to pin Mathers. That was a sprint.
2. Richard Holliday defeated Charles Mason at 12:25. Holliday came out first and it seems like he’s added some muscle mass back since his return to the ring. Mason wore his ugly red vest jacket that makes him look like a 1980s movie theater usher. “F— every one of you poor pieces of garbage!” Mason said on the mic. Mason said he’s been calling Richard — they go to the same country club! — but Holliday hasn’t returned his calls. “You know we are at war against the poor.” They shook hands. Mason dragged a young member of the ring crew into the ring while also holding a folding chair. Holliday took the chair, but he refused to hit the kid. Mason took the chair and swung it at the kid, but Holliday punched Mason and the match was finally underway.
They brawled on the floor, then back into the ring. Mason hity a dropkick for a nearfall at 4:30. Holliday hit a tilt-a-whirl slam for a nearfall at 6:30. Holliday put him in a Torture Rack across his back. Mason hit a running double knees, then a rolling Death Valley Driver for a nearfall. Holliday hit a pair of superkicks. Mason applied a Dragon Sleeper on the mat, but Holliday reached the ropes at 9:30. They traded punches on the ring apron. They fought on the ropes in the corner, and Holliday hit a superplex for the pin. A mild upset, only because Mason is a regular here. Others will have the official time shorter than this, as I start my clock at first contact or the bell, whichever is first.
* Parrow, who has been aligned with Mason for the past year, jumped in the ring and attacked Holliday. He used his metal chain to choke out Holliday. Finally two referees jumped into the ring to stop the assault.
* As a video package aired for Killer Kelly, it’s worth noting that Impact Wrestling was in this region of the country Friday and Saturday, allowing some Impact stars to appear here.
3. Maki Itoh defeated Killer Kelly at 10:44. They stalled a lot at the bell as they sized each other up. Kelly finally grabbed Itoh by the throat and hit some knife-edge chops at 2:30. Itoh hit a Kokeshi falling headbutt and celebrated. Kelly hit a running penalty kick, then a fisherman’s suplex for a nearfall. Maki hit a series of punches in the corner at 6:00, then a running Facewash kick. Kelly hit a butterfly suplex into the corner and a basement dropkick for a nearfall at 7:30. Maki applied a Boston Crab, but Kelly reached the ropes. Itoh hit a tornado DDT at 9:00, then another Kokeshi for a nearfall. Itoh hit a second-rope DDT, then another tornado DDT for the pin. Fun match.
4. “East West Express” Jordan Oliver and Nick Wayne defeated Davey Bang and August Matthews at 14:31. It is unclear to me, now that his AEW contract has kicked in, how much longer we’ll be seeing EWE teaming. The former “Bang Bros” are from Chicago so a bit surprising to see they were brought to New York for this show; they were on ROH TV a week ago. Oliver has his JCW title belt. Wayne and Bang shook hands then opened with standing switches. Oliver and Bang traded friendly reversals but then Bang got angry and shoved Jordan. Wayne hit a huracanrana on August at 2:30. The EWE began working over August. Matthews flipped Wayne onto an opponent.
Bang hit a Doomsday Legdrop on Oliver for a nearfall at 5:30. August hit a dropkick, and they began working over Oliver. Jordan got an O’Connor Roll on Bang for a nearfall at 7:30. Wayne made the hot tag and he hit some dropkicks, then a Sliced Bread on August for a nearfall. Bang hit his moonsault to the floor while August hit a flip dive to the floor. Back in the ring, Bang & Matthews hit stereo doublestomps on Wayne for a nearfall at 10:00, but Oliver made the save. Bang and Matthews went for the Spears Tower but EWE caught him with kicks. They traded superkick and suddenly everyone was down, with the crowd chanting “GCW!” then “This is awesome!”
Jordan and Bang traded slaps while on their knees. Jordan hit an enzuigiri at 12:30. Bang hit the Spears Tower on Oliver for a nearfall. Bang missed a top-rope 450 Splash. They traded rollups. EWE hit double Clout Cutters, with Oliver pinning Bang. That was really fun; I never thought Bang and Matthews were winning here but with Wayne’s future up in the air, I guess it is a possibility. Bang and Matthews refused to shake hands afterward.
5. Joey Janela defeated Alex Coughlin at 14:32. Nick Knowledge replaced Veda Scott on commentary. Coughlin wore his New Japan Strong Tag Title belt. An intense lockup but Coughlin easily tossed Joey to the mat. They started trading chops and Prazak thought it was a bad idea for Janela. Coughlin tied Janela in a Bow-and-Arrow on the mat at 4:00, then he hit a gutwrench suplex for a nearfall. Janela hit a DDT. They got up and traded forearm shots. Coughlin hit a stomach-first bodyslam at 7:30. They traded German Suplexes. Coughlin caught Janela coming off the ropes and he hit a fallaway slam with a bridge for a nearfall. Janela fired back with a Death Valley Driver for a nearfall at 9:30.
They traded slaps to the face, then more chops, with Alex getting the better of the exchange, and Joey’s chest was turning bright red. They fought to the floor where Coughlin was seated on the floor. Coughlin picked up Janela upside down and got to his feet at 12:30 before slamming him on the ring apron. Impressive strength. In the ring, Janela hit a pair of superkicks but Coughlin didn’t go down. Alex hit a clothesline. Joey hit a brainbuster and a package piledriver for a nearfall at 14:00. Janela hit a top-rope doublestomp to the chest for the pin. Every bit as hard hitting as I expected.
* Janela got on the mic and put Coughlin over. He said this year has been “a crazy ride,” and his body is messed up, but he’s not going to stop until he dies. He said that could happen on Oct. 12 in Korakuen Hall, because he challenged Jun Kasai in a death match. Veda Scott tagged back in to commentary, replacing Nick Knowledge.
6. Bobby Flaco vs. Grim Reefer ended in a draw at 4:15. Flaco is the balding dork from the deep south and this was an unadvertised match. Reefer is really showing his age. The crowd was quiet, and I’m not sure why this match is happening when this show already has so many matches. Flaco hit a DDT for a nearfall at 2:30. Reefer lit a joint and hit some punches while puffing away. Suddenly Jacob Fatu rolled into the ring at 4:00 and hit a running Stinger Splash in the corner on Flaco, causing the draw. Fatu hit a Samoan Drop on Reefer. This brought out Fatu’s scheduled opponent, Mance Marner!
7. Jacob Fatu defeated Mance Warner at 14:41. They charged at each other and traded punches as Prazak said this match was scheduled for later in the show. They brawled to the floor and in front of the fans. In the ring, Mance tied Fatu up on the mat, but Fatu reached the ropes at 3:30. Fatu hit a Samoan Drop, and he filled the ring with chairs and doors. He whipped a chair at Mance’s head at 5:30; I hate that. They traded punches and Fatu hit a superkick. Mance hit a clothesline for a nearfall. Fatu hit a Samoan Drop for a nearfall, but he mmissed a Swanton Bomb. Mance immediately hit a running knee to the head for a nearfall, and they were both down at 8:00.
They fought on the ropes in the corner. Mance hit a low blow and chokeslammed Fatu through a door bridge, and they were both down. Fatu hit a handspring-back-moonsault for a nearfall at 12:00. Fatu hit a top-rope frogsplash onto a door bridge more than half-way across the ring for a nearfall at 13:30; I really didn’t think he could leap that far! Fatu hit the Doublejump Moonsault onto door shards lying on Mance’s chest for a believable nearfall. Fatu hit a second Double Jump Moonsault and scored the pin. That topped my expectations; I always cringe when I see Mance wrestle but he didn’t give any violent chairshots to the head today.
* Effy jumped into the ring, making sure that Fatu didn’t keep beating up on Mance after the match. My guess is we have an Effy-Fatu match coming soon…
* A highlight video package aired of El Hijo Del Vikingo vs. Nick Gage from a week ago in Chicago. Truly, this match topped all expectations.
* Matt Cardona and Steph De Lander hit the ring. SDL missed last weekend’s shows so good to see her back. SDL got on the mic first and shouted at the crowd. Cardona got on the mic and asked who is Akira, saying he has learned he is dating Masha. “What kind of man would ride his girl’s coattails?” Cardona said, but he added “Good luck to my hot wife, Chelsea Green” on her Raw match on Monday. Blake and Cardona feuded in 2022, but they hugged here.
8. Masha Slamovich, Akira, and Jimmy Lloyd defeated Blake Christian, Matt Cardona, and Steph De Lander at 10:22. Masha and Akira were announced in advance, but Lloyd was their mystery partner. (Ugh; Lloyd is adequate but GCW should have just announced him in advance. By setting this up as a ‘mystery partner,’ the crowd probably was hoping for Nick Gage, especially after that video package. I can’t help but see Lloyd as a letdown as a mystery partner.) The heels stalled at the bell with no one wanting to be in the ring. Masha and Steph finally started. Akira hit Cardona with a spin kick to the head at 2:30. Blake entered and hit a handspring-back-spin kick on Lloyd, then a Helluva Kick at 4:00.
The heels kept Lloyd in their corner and worked him over. (The babyfaces are in the bottom right corner of the screen so it’s weird seeing Lloyd trying to make the hot tag… 30+ years of watch wrestling has taught me the babyfaces go to the upper left corner.) Masha made the hot tag at 8:00 and she hit a spinning kick on Blake, then she jumped on Cardona’s back, but Steph hit Masha in the head with a title belt. Cardona hit Akira with a belt. Cardona tossed powder but it accidentally went into SDL’s eyes. Blake accidentally hit his Stomp on SDL! Masha put her sleeper on Blake on the mat, and he passed out! Masha finally got some revenge on Blake, but of course, his GCW title was not on the line in a six-person tag.
9. Rina Yamashita defeated Mike Bailey at 22:54. Mike isn’t particularly tall, but he has a clear height and overall size advantage. He immediately hit a Mafia Kick and a brainbuster for a nearfall, then they traded forearm shots. Rina hit a German Suplex, sending Bailey to the floor. She put a trash can over her head, leapt off the ring apron — she can’t see! — but Bailey moved and she crashed into the guardrail at 3:30. Bailey hit a Dragonscrew Legwhip in the ropes, then his Triangle Moonsault to the floor. He slammed the trash can on her ankle as they continued to fight on the floor. In the ring, Bailey hit his Speedball kicks to the ribs at 7:00, and he applied a half-crab.
Rina hit the Trash Compactor piledriver along her back as they fought on the ring apron at 8:30. In the ring, she hit a DDT onto a trash can for a nearfall at 10:00. She tried to grab him in the groin but he blocked it, so instead she hit a low blow punt kick. He immediately hit a dropkick. They traded superkicks. They had a chair duel in the ring with neither landing a blow. Bailey hit a running Shooting Star Press for a nearfall at 13:00, and he set up for the Flamingo Driver, but she fought free. She tied Bailey in the Tree of Woe, put a chair over his head, and she hit that with a chairshot to get a nearfall.
Bailey applied the Trailer Hitch leglock on the mat, but she reached the ropes at 15:00. She hit a brainbuster. He missed a moonsault kneedrop and she immediately hit a sliding forearm for a nearfall. She went under the ring and got some doors. Bailey nailed a top-rope superplex at 18:00 but she hopped to her feet. She hit an Air Raid Crash through a door set up in the corner for a nearfall. She hit a chairshot onto another chair near his head (it clearly didn’t make contact with his head.) Bailey hit a Dragonscrew Legwhip as her leg was caught in a chair. He again hit the Flamingo Driver/modified One-Winged Angel for a believable nearfall at 20:00. Veda immediately said she couldn’t recall the last time someone kicked out of that. He put her on a door bridge; he set up for Ulitma Weapon but she moved and he crashed knees-first onto the door bridge.
Bailey hit a superkick. She got a rollup for a believable nearfall. She hit a short-arm clothesline. It appears Bailey is bleeding from the forehead. She hit another Trash Compator piledriver, then a top-rope frogsplash for a believable nearfall at 22:30. She hit a Razor’s Edge overhead powerbomb onto a folded chair and door debris for the pin.
Final Thoughts: I noted this in a recent review, but I really like when GCW runs in the buildings where they can’t have hardcore, ultraviolent matches. While I’m admittedly not a fan of intergender matches, Bailey-Rina easily stole the show with a compelling back-and-forth match. It had the violence of an Impact hardcore match but didn’t have the unnecessary glass, light tubes, gusset plates, barbed wire, pizza cutters, etc. And while I have criticized Rina (and Mance Warner!) for taking and receiving unprotected chairshots to the head, that didn’t happen here.
I’ll go with Janela-Coughlin for second-best, ahead of EWE vs. Bang/Matthews for third. A strong Mance-Fatu match earns honorable mention. The Cardona six-man tag comes in a bit below expectations. Between the early stalling, then an extended beatdown of Lloyd, neither Masha nor Akira were in the ring much at all. As I noted, just announce Lloyd as part of that match and that’s fine. But to bill it as a mystery opponent sets the expectations bar too high. Anyone who had never seen Blake Christian before would have no idea, based on his limited role in that match, what a truly special talent he is. This show can be viewed at Fite+.
Be the first to comment