By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
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C*4 Wrestling (Capital City Championship Combat) “The Revenant”
Replay available via Independent.TV
January 19, 2024 in Ottawa, Ontario at Preston Event Centre
This show debuted on IWTV on Tuesday; they always wait a few days to release a show, allowing for some light edits, such as trimming breaks between matches. This is easily one of my favorite venues in indy wrestling; they always draw around 500-600 fans, including a handful in a second deck, and they are always hot for the action. The room is well light.
1. Kevin Blackwood and Haley Dylan defeated Lufisto and Cecil Nyx at 8:19. Blackwood just lost his C*4 Title to Junior Benito on the last show. Cecil is the heavyset kid who had a really good singles match against Blackwood just a few months ago. Blackwood and Dylan came out first, but the babyfaces attacked from behind, and all four brawled on the floor. Cecil hit a backflip into the ring on Kevin for a nearfall at 2:30. Dylan hit a DDT on Cecil on the ring apron. Lufisto hit a back suplex on Blackwood, then a German Suplex on Dylan, a butbump on Kevin, and a rolling cannonball on Dylan. Nice sequence. She hit an Electric Chair backdrop on Kevin.
Kevin fired back with a running knee on the side of Lufisto’s head. Cecil slid a door into the ring. Haley hit a piledriver on Cecil, and Kevin immediately hit a top-rope doublestomp to his chest for a nearfall at 7:00. In a funny spot, Dylan speared Cecil and he didn’t move an inch. On the floor, Kevin hit a Death Valley Driver through a door bridge on Lufisto! In the ring, Dylan hit a German Suplex on Cecil, dropping him through a door in the corner for the pin. That was fast-paced and furious. Not a big fan of the intergender matches but this was fun. Haley had a bloody nose as she walked to the back.
2. Macrae Martin defeated Franky the Mobster at 10:37. Macrae usually teams with Junior Benito, but with Benito now as the C*4 champion, my guess is both will be seeing more singles action. Franky is older, far more muscular and thicker than Macrae; think WWF’s Warlord. Macrae dove through the ropes onto him to start the match. They brawled in the crowd. In the ring, Franky hit a twisting neckbreaker for a nearfall at 2:30. Franky’s manager got ejected from ringside. Macrae immediately hit a leaping Flatliner and they were both down at 5:30.
Macrae hit a top-rope elbow drop. Franky hit a Frankensteiner and a spear for a nearfall at 8:00. Macrae hit a spin kick for a nearfall. Franky hit a standing powerbomb for a nearfall. Macrae hit his own standing powerbomb. He put Franky on his shoulders and flipped him forward to the mat for the pin. That was really good. Franky is so muscular but it doesn’t seem to limit his mobility.
3. Sexxxy Eddy & Bob Anger defeated “Australian Takeover” Kaz Jordan & Julian Ward and “Triple Dragon” Puf & Pretty Ricky Wildly and Sway Archer & London Lighting in a four-way tag match at 9:06. I don’t know the Australian Takeover team; one wore a white fur jacket and he cackled like a hyena, and the other is bald with a mustache. London has really impressed me throughout 2023. Sexxxy Eddy is the aging male stripper and I’m not a fan; he’s actually wearing shorts that don’t look like a thong tonight. Puf is the 400+ pound man who seems rather unhealthy to me but the fans adore him. and Wildly always reminds me of a young Jimmy Hart. Puf and Wildy are the tag champs but the belts are NOT on the line.
Anger and Eddy worked over Wildly early on. Anger wears a lion’s mask. Ward (IWTV’s website accidentally says “Ware”) is the bald guy in Australian Takeover. Puf easily beat up Ward. Lighting got in and he held Kaz Jordan upside down for several seconds before hitting the delayed vertical suplex at 5:00. Jordan hit a flipping cannonball in the corner on Lighting. Lightning hit a twisting neckbreaker on Anger. Wildly got in and started kissing one opponent after another on the lips, until Eddy slapped Wildy on the face at 8:00. Puf hit some standing powerbombs. Wildly punched Anger in the groin. “The referee is being really lenient in this one,” a commentator said. Ward hit a clothesline, but Eddie shoved Ward out of the way and stole his pin. Okay match; London Lightning remains the “one to watch” on this roster.
4. Gabriel Fuerza defeated Gringo Loco at 16:32. Fuerza has Bret Hart-style wet/greasy black hair. An intense lockup and some quick lucha reversals to open. Fuerza hit a dropkick at 3:00. Loco hit some chops and took control, and he hit a side slam for a nearfall at 5:00. Fuerza applied a half-crab while sitting on the top turnbuckle, and he grounded Loco and twisted his leg. Fuerza did a handstand, walked on his hands over to Loco, and hit a senton at 7:00. Nice! Loco hit a second-rope mooonsault for a nearfall, then a top-rope Clout Cutter for a nearfall at 9:30. They traded forearm strikes on the ring apron, and Loco nailed the Base Bomb/swinging powerbomb onto the ring apron, and they both fell to the floor at 11:00.
Loco vanished to the back; he returned with a door, which he slammed onto Fuerza at ringside, then he set up a door bridge in the ring. Fuerza hit a top-rope moonsault to the floor on Loco at 14:00. In the ring, Fuerza went to the top rope, but Loco threw a chair at his face, and they fought on the top rope, and Loco hit a top-rope Spanish Fly through the door bridge, and this crowd was going nuts. Loco was slow to make the cover and he got a nearfall. They again fought on the ropes, and Fuerza flipped Loco stomach first to the mat. Fuerza nailed a Lethal Injection, then a running Shooting Star Press for the clean pin! A pleasant surprise and a really, really good match.
5. Matthieu St. Jacques and Benjamin Tull defeated Isaiah Broner and Joshua Bishop at 11:50. Broner is a muscular Black man I always compare to Ezekiel Jackson or Ahmed Johnson; he and Bishop make up a large, formidable team. Tull and Matthieu are the heels and they stalled at the bell. Tull (think NXT’s Joe Coffey) hit a clothesline; Broner hit a Death Valley Driver. Matthieu dove through the ropes but Bishop and Broner caught him, so Tull hit a flip dive onto all three, and they brawled on the floor at 4:00. In the ring, Tull and Matthieu hit a team back suplex on Bishop and began working him over. Tull and Bishop traded mid-ring forearms, and Tull nailed a Mafia Kick at 6:30.
Brroner made the hot tag and he nailed several shoulder tackles, then a German Suplex on Matthieu for a nearfall at 8:00. Bishop went under the ring and got a door shard and hit an opponent over the back with it. In the ring, Matthieu picked up Broner and slammed him back-first into a door in the corner at 10:00. Tull nailed a top-rope corkscrew moonsault on Broner for a believable nearfall. There are now chairs in the ring, and the heels swung them at the babyfaces. Bishop got back in the ring and hit the heels over their heads with the door shards. Bishop hit a Black Hole Slam on Matthieu. Tull hit a Sabin-style Cradle Shock slam on Bishop for the pin. The crowd really liked this; a good brawl with just a few hardcore weapons that never got gross. The heels beat up the referee afterwards.
6. Evil Uno and Stu Grayson defeated “Violence is Forever” Kevin Ku and Dominic Garrini at 16:07. These two would square off again the next night for Deadlock Pro Wrestling in North Carolina. They shook hands before the bell. Uno and Garrini opened and they traded shoulder tackles. Stu and Ku entered at 1:00 and traded intense mat reversals. Ku hit a PK kick at 4:30, and ViF began working Grayson over in their corner. Uno got in, but Ku hit a running knee to his chest for a nearfall, so ViF now began working Uno over. Uno finally hit a running neckbreaker on Ku at 9:30. Grayson made the hot tag and hit some flying forearm shots.
Stu hit a belly-to-belly suplex on Garrini, then a German Suplex, then a uranage. He hit a Lionsault for a nearfall, and he tied up Dominic on the mat. Ku got in and traded mid-ring forearm strikes with Stu. Garrini applied a half-crab on Stu, while Uno applied a Sharpshooter on Ku; they let go of the holds so they could strike each other! Suddenly everyone was down at 13:00 and the crowd was chanting “This is awesome!” Grayson flipped Garrini overhead onto Ku in the corner. Uno nailed a Brainbuster for a believable nearfall on Garrini. Garrini hit his assisted Air Raid Crash on Stu for a believable nearfall at 15:00. Uno tied up Ku in a Gory Lock, and Grayson hit a top-rope neckbreaker on Grayson for the pin. That was really good stuff.
* A video package aired for Vaughn Vertigo. He looks a lot like former NXT wrestler James Drake, and he’s pretty talented. He wears red-tinted glasses and a black jacket and looks like a rock star.
7. Mustafa Ali defeated Vaughn Vertigo at 15:57. Vertigo came out first. Ali got a massive pop. “I’ve got chills right now” a commentator said. “This guy has just been selling out shows all over the independents.” They took turns playing to the crowd before locking up. An intense lockup and some quick reversals early on. Ali hit some deep armdrags at 2:30. Ali got a rollup and mockingly yawned, showing he’s not taking his opponent seriously. These two have to be pretty close to same height and weight. Vertigo hit a running kick, and Ali rolled to the floor to regroup at 5:00; a bit surprising to see Ali play the heel after that massive babyface pop when he entered.
Ali backed Vaughn into a corner and hit a back elbow, and the ref barked at Ali for the cheap shot. Vaughn went for a springboard move, but Ai caught him with a dropkick at 7:00, sending Vertigo to the floor. In the ring, Vaughn repeatedly slammed Ali’s head on the top turnbuckle. Ali hit a springboard 450 Splash onto Vaughn’s left arm at 8:30, and he immediately began targeting the damaged limb. Ali hit a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker over his knee, then a Jackhammer, but he went right back to working the arm. He switched to a crossface but Vaughn reached the ropes at 11:00.
Vaughn hit a tornado DDT, then an impressive flip dive to the floor on Ali. In the ring, Vertigo hit an Arabian Press for a nearfall at 13:00. Ali hit a sit-out powerbomb for a nearfall. Vaughn hit a German Suplex, then a Swanton Bomb, then a Shining Wizard for a nearfall, but Ali got a foot on the ropes at 14:30. Ali leapt off the ropes but Vaughn caught him with a kick. Vaughn again went for a Swanton Bomb, but Ali caught him with a kick. Ali then nailed a 450 Splash for a believable nearfall. Ali immediately applied a crossface, and he hit some Moxley-style elbows to the side of the head. He again cranked back on Vertigo’s head until he tapped out. That was really good.
* Ali got on the mic and put over Vaughn. “A guy like this won’t be on the independents very long,” he said.
8. Alexia Nicole defeated James Stone, Brent Banks, and Kristara in a four-way for the C*4 Underground Championship at 10:02. Nicole is under 5’0″. Kristara is a Black woman and I’ve seen the both a few times. Banks is Black with short curly hair. Stone is bald and thick; think WWE’s Oney Lorcan. This match feels out of place as the semi-main event. It can’t be overstated how much bigger these two men are than these tiny women. Kristara and Alexia wisely rolled to the floor at the bell to let the men trade mat reversals. The women jumped in and worked together, with Alexia hitting a missile dropkick on Banks at 2:00. Of course, Kristara then rolled up Alexia for a nearfall, then she hit a leg lariat for a nearfall. Stone hit a backbreaker over his knee on Kristara that looked devastating, then he hit a suplex on her at 4:30.
Stone hit a double suplex on the women. The women clotheslined Stone to the floor. Banks hit a Lionsault Press onto both women, then a Blue Thunder Bomb on Nicole for a nearfall at 6:30. Kristara hit a DDT on Banks for a nearfall. Stone hit a swinging suplex on Kristara for a nearfall. Banks hit a frogsplash on Stone for a nearfall, but the women made the save. Kristara hit a German Suplex on Banks for a nearfall. Nicole hit a running neckbreaker on Kristara for a nearfall at 8:30. Stone kicked Nicole, then hit a Death Valley Driver for a believable nearfall. Banks hit a springboard stunner on Stone. Kristara hit a Canadian Destroyer. Nicole hit a piledriver on Kristara for the pin. This was set up well; the women never stood “toe to toe” and traded forearm strikes with the men; they hit their spots.
* Banks and Stone kept arguing after the bell and began shoving each other, then eventually trading punches.
9. Junior Benito defeated Myung-jae Lee to retain the C*4 Championship at 20:39. This is a babyface matchup. Lee wore white today. Quick reversals to open, and Benito dropped him throat-first on the top rope. They rolled to the floor and Lee chopped Benito as Junior sat on the laps of fans at 2:30. Benito hit a flip dive over the top rope and they landed deep in the crowd. In the ring, Junior hit a bodyslam and a splash for a nearfall at 5:00. Lee hit a top-rope missile dropkick, then he suplexed Junior into the corner for a nearfall, then three German release suplexes.
They got up and traded forearm strikes, and Junior hit a flying forearm at 9:00, then a forward Finlay Roll and a running Shooting Star Press for a nearfall. He missed a frogsplash. Lee hit an awkward Poison Rana, then a flying knee for a nearfall. Lee hit a top-rope splash onto Benito, sending him through a door bridge set up between the ring and a chair on the floor at 13:00. Nice spot. In the ring, Lee struck Benito with a chair on the back and got a nearfall. Lee began tossing several chairs into the ring. However, Benito hit a Spinebuster onto the pile of chairs for a nearfall at 16:00. Lee hit a Frankensteiner, tossing Benito onto the pile fo chairs. Lee then hit a Brainbuster onto a folded chair for a nearfall.
Lee again struck Benito across the back with chairshots. Lee set up a chair structure in the center of the ring. However, Benito hit a top-rope superplex, ddropping Lee onto the double-decker chair structure and they were both down; Benito went for a cover at 20:00 but Lee immediately kicked out. Benito hit a buzzsaw kick, then he powerbombed Lee onto an open chair. Benito then hit a frogsplash, going more than half-way across the ring, landing on a chair on Lee’s chest, for the pin. The crowd went nuts for the finish.
Final Thoughts: I can’t stress enough what a packed, hot crowd does to enhance the quality of a show. This crowd was into everything they saw and it just elevates the quality of the wrestling. I’ll narrowly go with the main event for best match, ahead of Ali-Vaughn, then Uno/Grayson-ViF, with a really good Loco-Fuerza match for honorable mention. Ali is carrying himself like a star everywhere he is going, topping all my (already quite high!) expectations. Stu Grayson is so talented and I just don’t know why Tony Khan resigned him only to completely stop using him since the start of September.
There is just so much to like here. London Lighting remains the rising star to watch, Blackwood shines wherever he is in the lineup, and they have some talented female wrestlers here, too. While I don’t like intergender matches, at least we never had a spot where Alexia Nicole was standing toe to toe and trading equal shots with Stone, because that would have just been comical. My complaints are few — the four-way tag match was a bit messy, and Puf is wisely kept to short stretches in a match as he’s just too big to go for too long. Definitely check out this show.
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