By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
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Fight Life “Answer to the King”
Replay available via FITE+
November 8, 2023 in Milldale, Connecticut at Kinsmen Brewing Company
This is a brewery and I’ve seen shows from this building before. Attendance is maybe 200. Lights are low in the building, making the lighting a bit mediocre; I’d prefer the lights were on and avoid the problems with shadows. Also, this ring is shorter, maybe two feet tall, so that could impact any dives to the floor. Veda Scott provided live commentary. Alec Price joined her in the booth for the first match; his Boston accent is so comically thick because I know it’s not exaggerated.
1. “Young Dumb N Broke” Ellis Taylor and Charlie Tiger defeated”The Haven” Shawn Knyte and Jay Onyx in a falls count anywhere match at 15:31. Tiger reminds me of a heavier Cameron Grimes. The Haven hit stereo dives to the floor in the first minute, and they brawled around the building. The Haven held their opponents’ arms and let fans chop their chests. Tiger powerbombed Knyte (think Kofi!) onto the ring apron at 3:00 and they began working over Onyx (think Angelo Dawkins). Tiger picked up Onyx and used him as a Mysterio-style lawn dart into a wall.
Ellis hit a pop-up powerbomb for a nearfall at 6:30. Onyx hit a Lungblower. YDNB got handcuffs and they tied Knyte in the corner around the ring post at 10:00. Tiger hit kendo stick strikes across Knyte’s unprotected abdomen multiple times! Ouch! Ellis took the kendo stick and he choked Knyte with it. Onyx got the key and freed Knyte. They continued to brawl on the floor. Ellis hit a piledriver on Onyx onto a steel table at 14:30; because it’s steel it didn’t break. Tiger hit a Death Valley Driver off the ring apron and through a table on Knyte for the pin. Heckuva brawl.
* Curt Adonis replaced Price, joining Veda Scott in the booth.
2. Richard Holliday defeated Lucas Chase at 8:26. Chase is muscular and has a passing resemblance to the Uso twins, and he dominated early on. Chase hit a spinebuster at 3:00. He stayed in control, but he missed a senton at 5:30 and they were both down. Holliday fired up and hit some clotheslines in the corner, then a stunner and a sit-out powerbomb for a believable nearfall. Chase hit a discus lariat for a nearfall. Holliday hit a powerslam and a twisting neckbreaker for the pin. Good match.
* The crowd sang ‘happy birthday’ to Holliday. Veda Scott then informed us this next match will be Flip Gordon’s final independent match in Connecticut.
3. Jordan Oliver defeated Flip Gordon at 13:31. I am a HUGE fan of Flip and I’m still baffled he’s not had an AEW/ROH match under the Tony Khan banner. No JCW title belt for Oliver tonight. Interesting, the last time he came to the ring without it he lost. They shook hands and I’m pumped for this match. Flip wore his GI Joe-inspired trunks and he has grown his beard back. Veda said there is a lot of speculation about where Flip will be going next; Curt said he likes to work Wednesday nights. (Hinting he’s AEW bound?) Intense lockups and a feeling-out process start to open. Flip did a handstand; Oliver dropkicked him to end the shenanigans at 2:30.
Oliver went for a moonsault but Flip got his knees up. Flip hit a springboard spear. Flip hit a flipping dive to the floor and landed on his feet at 5:00. In the ring, Gordon hit a superkick. Oliver hit his Cleopatra Cutter into the ring and they were both down. Oliver hit a top-rope moonsault for a nearfall at 6:30. Oliver set up for the Acid Bomb but Flip fought free. Flip put Jordan on his shoulders and spun him several times before hitting a reverse Samoan Drop, with Oliver landing stomach-first. Flip applied an STF move, but Oliver reached the ropes at 9:00, and we got a “This is awesome!” chant.
They got up and traded chops. Gordon nailed a Pele Kick. Oliver hit his rolling crossbody block and they were both down. Flip hit a springboard Sling Blade. Oliver nailed the Acid Kick in the corner, and he nailed the Acid Bomb for a believable nearfall at 11:00. Flip came off the ropes but Oliver hit him with an Acid Kick! Oliver nailed a sit-out powerbomb for a believable nearfall; I thought that was it. Flip nailed a 619 and a jumping knee to the jaw, then a pop-up stunner for a believable nearfall at 12:30. These guys are putting on something special here. Flip went for a springboard move but Oliver caught him with a stunner for a nearfall. Oliver hit another mid-ring Acid Kick for the clean pin. WOW WOW WOW.
* Flip thanked the fans and said he’s “very excited for the next chapter of his career and his life.” He said he would see us soon. He did a backflip and celebrated with the fans. Very interesting.
* Mike Bailey hopped on commentary with his wife, Veda, for the next match.
4. Sammy Diaz defeated Alec Price, Shannon Levangie, Juni Underwood, and Dustin Walller in a five-way scramble at 8:45. I have seen Juni just once before in Limitless Wrestling; he has short black hair and appears to be eye-to-eye with Alec Price in height. Everyone hit superkicks early on. Price hit a springboard crossbody block. Shannon hit a huracanrana and a Meteora flying double knees. Juni hit a Northern Lighs Suplex on Shannon at 3:30, then he applied a Boston Crab on her. She hit a Sliced Bread out of the corner. Waller hit a running Shooting Star Press. Price hit his running kneestrikes in the corner, then his flying leg lariat.
Waller hit the Mamba Splash. Shannon hit a twisting frogsplash and suddenly everyone was down at 6:00. Waller hit a dive to the floor. Price hit a dive to the floor. Shannon climbed to the top turnbuckle and dove on the four men. Price hit a rebound lariat. Waller hit a Lethal Injection. Juni hit a Canadian Destroyer. Diaz hit a Sabin-style Cradle Shock to pin Underwood. Good, fast-paced scramble. My usual objection to Shannon’s presence in the match as I find it hard to believe she could stand a chance against these four larger, athletic men.
* Diaz called out Jimmy Lloyd. Jimmy came out and they argued, and we’re having a bonus match … right now!
5. Jimmy Lloyd defeated Sammy Diaz at 1:26. I’ve previously compared Diaz to Trey Miguel. Lloyd hit a slingshot suplex for a nearfall then a piledriver for the pin. Not sure what the point of that was at all. Huge thumbs down to have Diaz win that scramble and be beaten so quickly.
6. JT Dunn defeated Marcus Mathers at 15:02. An intense lockup to open. The last time I saw JT, he had that excellent match with NOAH’s Kaito Kiyomiya in Wrestling Revolver; I always compare him to Tony Nese. Quicker reversals and a standoff at 1:30. Mathers hit a Northern Lights Suplex for a nearfall, then a dive through the ropes to the floor and he was fired up. In the ring, JT took control and he stomped on Mathers elbow. JT targeted the limb and he kept Marcus grounded. Mathers hit a suplex at 7:00 and they were both down. Mathers hit a stunner and a German Suplex. Dunn hit a Michinoku Driver for a nearfall.
They got up and traded forearm shots and chops. Mathers hit a Dragon Suplex at 11:00, then a Canadian Destroyer. Mathers hit a running powerbomb for a nearfall. Dunn nailed a stunner for a nearfall and his Death By Elbow strike for a believable nearfall at 13:00, and he was in disbelief he didn’t win there. Dunn went for a second Death By Elbow but Mathers blocked it. Mathers hit a half nelson suplex and a superkick. Dunn hit a running elbow for the pin. The very good match I’d expect from these two.
* Shannon Levangie hit the ring; she and Marcus have had an on-and-off-again pairing here. She insisted Marcus and Dunn shake hands, which they did.
7. Ichiban defeated Mortar in an anything goes match at 16:13. Again, these two just fought on Monday and they definitely click in the ring, after having fought each other in several Northeast indies. Ichiban came out second and he charged into the ring and attacked. He hit a plancha to the floor, and they brawled at ringside. Mortar (the Rhino clone) hit a chairshot across the back at 3:00. In the ring, Mortar attacked him with a trash can lid. Ichiban nailed a flip dive to the floor at 7:00, then a top-rope crossbody block into the ring for a nearfall. Ichiban nailed a stunner. Mortar nailed a hard clothesline for a nearfall at 9:00.
Ichiban hit a top-rope missile dropkick. Mortar hit a coast-to-coast missile dropkick at 11:30 for a nearfall. Ichiban hit a top-rope superplex through a door bridge for a believable nearfall at 14:00. Ichiban nailed a springboard-back-elbow. He got a door shard and Mortar begged for forgiveness… only to jump to his feet and hit a low blow punt kick. However, Ichiban removed a protective cup from his pants, showing he was not impacted by the blow. He pushed the cup into Mortar’s face, then he nailed his leaping Flatliner for the pin. Good brawl; it never got gross with weapons and nobody bled. (I do always question why a babyface removes the protective cup… why wouldn’t Mortar immediately hit another low blow now that it has been removed?)
* Next up is “Ken Powers first match.” He came to the ring and called himself the Polish Powerhouse. He is definitely thicker than average.
8. Ken Powers defeated Steven Lust at 4:38. Lust has a thick curly beard and looks a bit like Elias. Lust got on the mic and told the crowd how awful the pizza is here, which angered the crowd. Okay… Powers wore a red singlet and he hit some chops; he is taller and thicker than Lust, and he hip-tossed him across the ring for a nearfall. Lust chop-blocked the knee and focused on the left leg. Powers hit a Samoan Drop for a nearfall at 3:30. Powers applied a full nelson and turned it into a swinging faceplant for the pin. Acceptable match, especially if this truly was a debut.
9. Kylon King defeated Kevin Blackwood at 12:20. Really looking forward to this one, too. Standing switches and a feeling-out process to open. King nailed a top-rope superplex at 5:30 and they were both down. King hit an Exploder Suplex, then an Asai Moonsault to the floor. In the ring, King hit a German Suplex for a nearfall, and they were both down at 8:00. Blackwood hit a pump-handle back suplex for a nearfall. Nice. Blackwood hit a brainbuster at 10:30 and a running penalty kick to the chest for a nearfall. Blackwood hit a top-rope doublestomp to the collarbone on a standing King for a believable nearfall. Kylon hit an enzuigiri but Blackwood hit a German Suplex, so Kylon hit a German Suplex. Kylon hit a springboard DDT, then a leaping tombstone piledriver for the pin. A very good match and a mild upset in my eyes.
10. Masha Slamovich defeated Mike Bailey to retain the Fight Life Title at 17:08. Veda noted that when they fought recently in GCW, they literally tore the ring apart. The ref showed the belt to Bailey, then to Masha… but Bailey charged at her and kicked her! He took her to the floor and whipped her into the wall. They got back into the ring and the bell sounded at 1:00 to officially begin the match. She hit a twisting splash to the floor on him. Bailey hit his Triangle Moonsault to the floor. He applied a Boston Crab on the floor, then catapulted her into the ring post at 3:30. Bailey jawed at Gina the female ref and he was booed.
Back in the ring, Bailey was in charge of the offense, and he went back to the Boston Crab, and he again got in the ref’s face. Bailey missed a Vader Bomb-style kneedrop at 5:30. Masha hit a running knee and a spin heel kick for a nearfall. Bailey hit a dropkick. He hit a series of kicks and a running Shooting Star Press for a nearfall at 7:30 and he soaked in the boos. Masha hit a second-rope German Suplex and they were both down. Masha nailed a second-rope missile dropkick. Bailey accidentally kicked the ref! Masha hit a German Suplex for a visual pin at 9:30 but we had no referee! Meanwhile, Bailey got a chair from under the ring.
Bailey flipped the chair at Masha, who caught it, and then he hit a hard kick onto the chair as it was in front of her face. He then wedged the chair in the corner as the crowd chanted, “Wake up, Gina!” Bailey hit a kick to her head as it was against the chair in the corner. She hit a Snow Plow slam onto an open chair and made a cover; a second ref made a two-count at 12:00. Bailey hit a superkick for a nearfall. They traded forearm strikes while on their knees as the crowd chanted “fight forever!” They got to their feet and continued trading blows. She hit a German Suplex, so he hit a German Suplex at 14:00. They traded more German Suplexes and more punches. The ref tried to separate them so they shoved the ref. He tried to separate them again, and they both shoved him to the mat, so he called for the bell.
* Several wrestlers hit the ring to separate them as the crowd chanted “Let them fight!” Gina, the original ref, ordered the match would continue! (I had stopped my stopwatch at 14:31 so I restarted it now). Masha slammed Bailey off the top rope onto all the wrestlers at ringside. In the ring, Masha hit a Northern Lights Bomb for a believable nearfall. Bailey got up and hit a series of kicks. Bailey nailed the Flamingo Driver for a believable nearfall at 16:30. He went for Ultima Weapon but she moved, and she hit a Shining Wizard, then the White Knight Driver/snap piledriver for the pin. That was a blast. My unofficial time is 17:08… but that includes one minute of brawling before the bell and about one minute of brawling from when it appeared we were having a double DQ until the match was restarted.
* Masha got on the mic, noting that the record between her and Bailey is now 2-2 and she’s open to a tiebreaker. She put over Fight Life for growing so fast in its two years and she is “beyond proud to be the face of this company.”
Final Thoughts: Two standout matches. I loved Flip vs. Oliver as they are two of my favorites and I’ll give that best match. I am really intrigued with the hints that Flip has signed a contract somewhere, and the reference that he “likes to work Wednesdays.” I always thought he was an obvious signing for Tony Khan when he purchased ROH, and I’m still stunned he hasn’t appeared there yet. So, we’ll see how this plays out.
Despite my objections to intergender matches, I’ve seen at least three of those four matches between Bailey and Masha, and they just click in the ring. They really put together a great back-and-forth match. A very good Dunn-Mathers is a distant third, with a very good King-Blackwood match at honorable mention. All four matches are standouts.
I’ve seen most of the Fight Life show… by doing mid-week events, they’ve been able to use the very best of the Northeast talents, as shown here. This show gets a huge thumbs up from me, and I wouldn’t argue with anyone who says this was the single best Fight Life show.
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