By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
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Wrestling Open “Episode 157”
Streamed on IndependentWrestling.TV
January 2, 2025 in Worcester, Massachusetts at the White Eagle
Paul Crockett, Gabriel Skye, Dustin Waller, and ref Scott Robinson provided commentary over the course of the evening. The crowd was maybe 150-200; they had a show here on Tuesday night so not surprising it’s a bit smaller tonight. Wrestling Open is celebrating its three-year anniversary!
* Tonight’s show features an eight-man tournament, with four first-round matches and a four-way finale. The winner gets a title shot against new champion Ryan Clancy.
1. Gabriel Skye vs. Julius Draeger in a spotlight match. It’s been months since Skye has been here and he got a “welcome back!” chant. Draeger is the Bio Pro rookie Draeger is the one who looks like Simon Gotch; he’s switched to plain red trunks to lessen that similarity. An intense lockup to open. Skye hit some chops and a headscissors takedown, then some armdrags. Draeger got some basic stomps and worked over Skye. Skye hit a crossbody block, then a shotgun dropkick at 4:30. He hit a Northern Lights Suplex and was fired up. He hit a standing powerbomb and applied a Texas Cloverleaf, and Draeger immediately tapped out. Decent opener.
Gabriel Skye defeated Julius Draeger at 5:07.
* The main show opened with highlights from last week’s show with the double cage main event. Crockett and Skye took over commentary here, and Crockett talked about how “things have changed here” since Skye was last in Worcester.
2. Brad Baylor vs. Bobby Orlando in a first-round match. WWE ID prospect Baylor wore his tag title belt. Basic offense early on, and Baylor hit some chops to open. Orlando hit a shotgun dropkick at 1:30. Skye said he’s healthy now (he had separated his shoulder months ago.) Baylor hit a powerslam for a nearfall at 3:00. He hit an Exploder Suplex into the corner. Orlando hit a Lungblower to the back for a nearfall at 5:00. Orlando got an inside cradle out of nowhere to get the pin!
Bobby Orlando defeated Brad Baylor at 6:05 to advance.
3. TJ Crawford vs. “Handyman” Jake Gray in a first-round match. Kayfabe, the rookie Gray should not be in a qualifying match. Crockett noted that Gray had 50 matches his rookie year, which is pretty impressive. Crawford kept Gray grounded early on. He pulled up Gray on a pin attempt at 3:30 to keep beating on him. Crockett wondered what will be the future of Big Business after Brad Hollister lost the title. Cray hit a springboard Slingblade for a nearfall. TJ hit a hard knee lift and a rolling forearm, then the Silver Bullet spin kick to the head, then his Styles Bomb (set up for a Styles Clash but turned it into a powerbomb) for the pin. BEFORE he hit the Silver Bullet, he loudly said, “Welcome to MY Big Business.” Interesting.
TJ Crawford defeated Jake Gray at 5:35 to advance.
* Rich Palladino introduced the new IWTV World Champion, Marcus Mathers! WWE ID prospect Mathers wore his belt but was not dressed to wrestle. Gabriel Skye got up from the booth, got in the ring, and challenged Mathers to a match. Mathers noted he previously beat Skye. They agreed to a future match.
* We had a ‘look back highlight package’ at one year ago, with the feud between Ray Jaz and Pedro Dones. That seems random…
* Brad Baylor now joined commentary.
4. Bryce Donovan vs. Joe Ocasio in a first-round match. WWE ID prospect Donovan is taller; Ocasio is so thick and muscular, they may weigh about the same. An intense lockup. Crockett asked Baylor about appearing on the (taped) NXT episode on Tuesday. Donovan stalled on the floor. In the ring, Donovan threw Ocasio into the ring post at 3:00, and Joe fell to the floor. Donovan was in charge back in the ring and kept Joe grounded. Bryce hit some punches that Ocasio started to no-sell, leading to a “you f—ed up!” chant. Joe hit a running knee, then a running splash to the mat for a nearfall at 7:00.
Crockett noted it was one year ago that Ocasio injured his knee and wound up missing 10 months. A turnbuckle pad was pulled off. Seconds later, Ocasio crashed head-first into the exposed corner. Bryce immediately hit the Black Hole Slam for the pin. Good big-man action.
Bryce Donovan defeated Joe Ocasio at 8:13 to advance.
* A video package aired of the steel cage warfare match last week, where Lucas Chase turned heel and joined the Stetson Ranch. (I noted this last week — when the heels didn’t reveal their fourth man, I assumed someone was turning heel on the babyface team.) Back to the venue, Steven Stetson and Lucas Chase came to the ring. Stetson isn’t dressed to wrestle.
5. Lucas Chase (w/Steven Stetson) vs. Erik Chacha. Chacha is from Ecuador and I’ve seen him on several Fight Life shows, but he’s short and much smaller than Chase. The crowd taunted Chase with a slow “traitor!” chant. Chacha hit some punches and a back elbow that Chase no-sold. Chase nailed a discus clothesline for a believable nearfall, but he pulled up Chacha before the three-count. Chase then hit a Rikishi Driver (sit-out piledriver) for the pin. Baylor praised the dominating performance.
Lucas Chase defeated Erik Chacha at 1:09.
* Stetson got on the mic and belittled the crowd for not realizing the fourth member of the ranch was in front of them all along. He said the Church of Greatness had been holding Chase back. Chase got on the mic and tried to speak but the crowd gave him the “Dominik treatment” and booed loudly every time he tried to speak. He proclaimed he is an equal member in the ranch, but wasn’t in the Church of Greatness.
6. Ricky Smokes vs. Jermaine Marbury (w/Benny the Basketball) in a first-round match. Marbury hit his Euro-step Neckbreaker and some chops, and was in charge early. Baylor sounded a bit nervous. Smokes hit a dropkick for a nearfall at 2:30. Benny led the crowd with a “defense!” chant, and Jermaine got a backslide for a nearfall at 4:00. He fired up and hit some clotheslines, then a stunner. Marbury hit his dunk-the-head slam to the mat for a nearfall at 6:30. Smokes rolled to the floor. He glared at Benny and wasn’t paying attention to the ref, and he got counted out!
Jermaine Marbury defeated Ricky Smokes via count-out at 7:41.
* Promoter Drew “Denver Colorado” Cordeiro joined Crockett on commentary.
7. “Brick City” Julio Cruz and Victor Chase vs. “Miracle Generation” Dustin Waller and Kylon King. No TJ Crawford or Brad Hollister with Brick City. MG lost decisively recently to Swipe Right. Are they going to get back on the right track tonight? Or are they going to spiral downward and lose again? My guess is the latter. Cruz and Waller opened. Crockett said this is now the NINTH time these two teams have squared off, between here and other indy promotions. Kylon got in at 2:00 and hit a rolling cannonball on Chase. BC began working ove Kylon in their corner. Dustin entered at 6:00 and hit a huracanrana on Cruz, a plancha to the floor on Chase, and a running Shooting Star Press back in the ring on Cruz.
Chase distracted Waller; it made Waller miss a Mamba Splash. Kylon hit a German Suplex on Chase. Dustin hit a stunner on Chase for a nearfall, but Cruz made the save. Kylon hit an enzuigiri at 8:00. Waller accidentally superkicked Kylon, who fell to the floor! BC immediately hit the “Business is Booming” team slam and pinned Waller! Kylon, on the floor, was visibly frustrated.
“Brick City” Julio Cruz and Victor Chase defeated “Miracle Generation” Kylon King and Dustin Waller at 8:30.
* Kylon got on the mic and confronted Dustin. “Bro, I’m so sick and tired of this. We can’t keep losing like this. You need to get it together; I need to get it together,” Kylon said. “If we can’t, maybe we shouldn’t be teaming anymore.” Kylon turned and left with no punches thrown. Dustin picked up the mic and said. “You know what? you are right.” He then left.
8. Brett Ryan Gosselin vs. Eye Jack Black. BRG wore his black fur jacket. Black just debuted a week or two ago; he’s also a Bio Pro student and he’s got a great physique. Denver said he just started training in July! He added that Black is the fastest graduate from their school. They locked up, and the bigger Black shoved BRG to the mat. He knocked Gosselin down with a shoulder tackle at 1:30, then a dropkick. BRG took control and kept EJB grounded. BRG hit a spear for a nearfall, and they were both down at 4:30.
Jack threw BRG off the second rope to the mat, then he hit some clotheslines, then a running Bulldog Powerslam for a nearfall at 6:00. BRG hit a low blow punt kick right in front of the ref, and the ref was forced to call for the bell. The crowd chanted “Undefeated!” as I think this makes Eye Jack Black 3-0. He clotheslined Brett to the floor.
Eye Black Jack defeated Brett Ryan Gosselin via DQ at 6:17.
* Another flashback video aired, this one showing Bryce Donovan telling Bobby Orlando that he was dissolving the Shook Crew, and would not be teaming here anymore.
* Back to the venue, Rich Palladino wished ring announcer/wrestler Lauren St. James well in her recovery. Lauren debuted last Thursday in a six-woman tag, and in hitting a clothesline to get a pin to end the match, she snapped her arm! She posted an X-ray of the break on Twitter/X. I watched the show in real time and didn’t realize the severity of the injury. (I went and watched the footage over the weekend, after Lauren posted the image.)
9. Jermaine Marbury vs. TJ Crawford vs. Bryce Donovan vs. Bobby Orlando in a four-way to become No. 1 contender. SO, former teammates Bryce and Bobby are about to fight each other! Jermaine dropkicked Bryce to the floor. TJ stomped on Jermaine. Bobby got in and hit some jab punches on TJ at 2:30. Bobby and Jermaine hit a team flapjack on TJ, then they squared off. Bryce jumped back in and hit a clothesline on Jermaine, then a fallaway slam for a nearfall at 4:00. Jermaine hit some running back elbows on each heel, then a running neckbreaker on TJ for a nearfall.
TJ hit an enzuigiri on Orlando, then on Marbury. (I don’t think Bobby and Bryce have touched yet in this match.) Marbury hit a double palm-slam on the heels, then a dive through the ropes to the floor at 8:30. Bobby hit a bodyslam on TJ, then a sit-out powerbomb for a nearfall, but he missed a top-rope moonsault. Jermaine immediately hit a Stroke faceplant on Bobby for a nearfall at 10:00. Finally we had just Bobby and Bryce in the ring! TJ attacked them both before they touched! Bobby and Bryce hit some team moves on TJ, with Bryce hitting a Black Hole Slam on Crawford! The crowd chanted “Shook!”
Marbury hit a top-rope crossbody block on TJ. Bryce hit a chokeslam on Marbury. Marbury hit his break-the-ankles stunner. Marbury climbed the ropes, but TJ crotched him. TJ then nailed the Styles Bomb to pin Marbury. That was really good, and I loved the Bobby-Bryce tease, but they never did touch.
TJ Crawford defeated Bobby Orlando, Bryce Donovan and Jermaine Marbury at 12:26 to become No. 1 contender.
* New champ Ryan Clancy climbed in the ring, in his street clothes. They pushed their foreheads into each other as Clancy hoisted the belt above his head, as the show came to a close. Excellent ending.
Final Thoughts: I like tournaments, but as is too often the case, all of the first-round matches were kept short so no one had too much overall time in the ring. That’s fine and the action was all decent, but it meant none of the first-round matches really stood out, either. However, that was a really good main event with non-stop action, and as I noted, I loved the tease of Bobby and Bryce having to lock up, possibly trade punches, but they never quite got there.
Eye Jack Black is really polished for a kid with three or so matches under his belt and has been in the ring for just six months.
It feels like we’ve reset storylines after the big shows last Thursday and Tuesday; Mathers is moving on to face Skye. TJ basically declared himself the new leader of Big Business; based on what Brad Hollister posted online this week, he may be taking some time off. (Good for him; he’s been a great champion and carried the title well for a full 14 months.) The cracks in Miracle Generation broke open. A strong show overall. If I had a complaint, I guess it’s the lack of a women’s match tonight. This show should be posted on IWTV by midday Friday.
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