By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
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GCW “The Philly Special”
Streamed on TrillerTV+
April 6, 2025 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania at Harrah’s Philadelphia Casino And Racetrack
This show was held ahead of the AEW PPV. The crowd was maybe 200-250. This is a plain, drab room, probably a convention center or hotel conference room. Veda Scott and Emil Jay provided commentary. I admittedly have not liked the four most recent GCW shows, as they’ve had far too many bloody deathmatches for my taste.
* The show opened with a recap of the feud between Fuego Del Sol vs. Atticus Cogar. In Las Vegas, it will be Fuego’s mask up against Cogar’s career!
1. “Miracle Generation” Kylon King and Dustin Waller vs. “Wasted Youth” Austin Luke and Dyln McKay. Dylan has been largely inactive over the past year so nice to see him in the ring; he has grown a beard! Luke and Kylon opened and traded quick reversals. Dyln tied up with Waller. Kylon hit a Penalty Kick and a senton on Luke for a nearfall at 3:30. MG worked over Luke in their corner. Luke hit a Dragon Suplex on Waller, then a Stomp at 5:30. Dyln got the hot tag and battled Kylon. Dyln hit a twisting brainbuster into the corner on Kylon! Ouch! He hit a Fosbury Flop to the floor on MG, and we got a “GCW!” chant.
In the ring, Luke and Dyln hit a team Tower of London move for a nearfall at 7:30. Kylon hit a half-nelson suplex, and Waller hit a one-man Spanish Fly on Luke. MG hit a team powerbomb on Luke for a nearfall, but McKay made the save. Dyln and Kylon traded forearm strikes. Dyln hit a spin kick. Luke nailed a roundhouse kick on Waller. Luke hit a Rebound Lariat on Kylon! Dyln hit a top-rope Shooting Star Press for the pin! I’ll call that an upset, as Dyln has been so inactive while MGen are so hot in the Northeast indies. Veda called this “a definitive statement.” MG rejected a post-match handshake.
Austin Luke and Dyln McKay defeated Kylon King and Dustin Waller at 10:02.
* A video package aired of the violent death matches in St. Louis last week. Again, not my speed of action.
2. Ashley Vox vs. Zayda Steel. How many Vox matches have I seen in the past week? Five, maybe? Top workers are in demand! WWE ID prospect Zayda had her debut Evolve match air last week. A rare case where it appears Zayda is slightly taller and maybe a bit bigger, and she immediately tied up Vox’ left arm. Cagematch.net indicates these two haven’t fought before. Vox hit a Shotgun Dropkick, then a rolling cannonball in the corner for a nearfall at 1:30. Zayda hit her Lungblower move to the jaw in the ropes, and Ashley collapsed to the floor.
Zayda rolled to the floor and chopped her. Vox tried to get back in the ring, but Zayda met her with a sliding baseball dropkick. They traded forearm strikes at ringside; Vox pushed Zayda into the lap of a fan and chopped her. In the ring, Zayda hit a basement dropkick at 4:30. The lights in the building were turned on; the crowd chanted for them to be turned off. Zayda hurt her knee when she missed a blow in the corner; Ashley hit a missile dropkick and they were both down.
They got up and traded forearm strikes. I’m really liking this one. They had a headbutt that looked vicious for both of them! Ashley hit a discus clothesline for a nearfall at 7:00. Zayda hit a backbreaker over her knee, then a TKO Stunner for a nearfall. Vox nailed a superkick. Zayda nailed a Pedigree, then the Unprettier for the clean pin. That was really good.
Zayda Steel defeated Ashley Vox at 8:20.
* Footage aired of Violence is Forever injuring Cole Radrick in Chicago a week ago. Radrick has an ACL injury; I believe he was slated for surgery on Thursday, so we likely won’t see him again in 2025. ViF then won the tag titles. Back to the venue, Alec Price came to the ring and he called out Violence is Forever, saying “They are a new level of scum.” Dominic Garrini and Kevin Ku (fresh off their role as AEW security in Illinois this week!) came to the ring, title belts around their waists.
Garrini got on the mic and said they are “men of honor and men of respect.” The crowd responded by chanting obscenities at them. He turned down Price’s request for a match. “It’s a hahhd no?” Price said. “You put a man on the shelf for nine months!” (I love Price’s Boston accent because I know it’s not fake.) All three started to brawl! Ku hit a Stomp, sending Price’s face into the title belt! Ku told Alec to find a tag partner and he’ll get a title rematch at Spring Break! Veda wondered who Alec will find! (A returning Jordan Oliver, hopefully?) I liked everything about that segment.
* A video package aired of Jonathan Gresham as well as Marcus Mathers; it’s been a while since Gresham has been here! I’ll point out Mathers (as well as Veda Scott!) were in Chicago about 18 hours earlier for Wrestling Revolver.
3. Marcus Mathers vs. Jonathan Gresham. Veda said this is a first-time-ever matchup. Standing switches and a feeling-out process early on. They went to a knuckle lock; the taller Mathers had the advantage, even though Gresham is visibly thicker. Gresham applied a hammerlock and kept Mathers tied up on the mat. Mathers hit a bodyslam at 5:30 and a back suplex, and he applied a Rings of Saturn double armbar. He hit a second bodyslam at 7:00, and Gresham was visibly frustrated. They got up and traded chops.
Mathers hit a top-rope crossbody block at 10:00 but was selling an arm injury. Mathers hit a fadeaway stunner and a Blue Thunder Bomb for a nearfall. Gresham hit an uppercut on the injured arm; Mathers hit a shotgun dropkick at 12:30 and they were both down. Gresham hit some armdrags, tied up both arms in a seatbelt cover, and scored the clean pin. (I love how Mathers wildly kicked his legs, trying to get free, but Gresham just overpowered him with his raw strength.) A very good mat-based match.
Jonathan Gresham defeated Marcus Mathers at 13:43.
4. Matt Tremont vs. Ruckus for the GCW Ultraviolent Title. I’ve noted that the wide Tremont is really looking more and more like Big Van Vader, and he has a massive size advantage. I guess we’ll see what this building will allow in terms of weapons and violence. Standing switches; Veda and Emil talked about Tremont posting a picture online of him as a fan watching Ruckus wrestle 20 years ago. They brawled to the floor, where Tremont splashed into Ruckus against the ring post at 3:30.
Back in the ring, they sat down across from each other on chairs, but Ruckus kicked him. Tremont did a “Razzle Dazzle” (cartwheel into a back elbow in the corner) which drew a “holy shit!” chant. Emil loved that spot. Ruckus hit a handspring-back-spin kick, then he hit the Razzle Dazzle and a guillotine leg drop for a nearfall at 7:30. Ruckus missed a moonsault kick entirely but he hopped up and hit a basement dropkick. (A very forgiving crowd; no chants taunting him for the airball.)
Tremont hit a powerbomb onto a guardrail bridge for a nearfall. Ruckus hit a DDT at 10:30, then a top-rope moonsault leg drop for a nearfall. They got up and traded forearm strikes. Tremont hit a Death Valley Driver through a board in the corner for the pin. Decent brawl; neither man bled and this didn’t have any disgusting weapons. Tremont told the crowd the story I wrote above — about seeing and meeting Ruckus when he was a kid, and they hugged.
Matt Tremont defeated Ruckus to retain the GCW Ultraviolent Title at 12:28.
5. Jimmy Lloyd vs. Griffin McCoy vs. Wes Barkley vs. Brayden Toon vs. Fuego Del Sol in a scramble. The crowd loudly booed McCoy. Cleveland-based Barkely got a handful of “who are you?” chants. We haven’t seen enough of Toon here lately; I always compare him to Kevin Steen for being so agile considering his size. Barkley was superkicked at the bell. Toon and Fuego superkicked Lloyd to the floor, and those two brawled. Toon hit a running Shooting Star Press on Fuego at 1:30. Lloyd hit a running neckbreaker.
Wes hit a rolling clothesline. McCoy hit a missile dropkick on Fuego at 3:30. Barkley hit a tornado DDT on Fuego and was booed. Toon hit an Air Raid Crash for a nearfall. Jimmy dove through the ropes onto Fuego! The big Toon hit an Asai Moonsault at 5:30 and that popped the crowd. McCoy pretended like he was going to help Wes do a dive, but then he hit a spin kick on him. Fuego hit a top-rope Doomsday Destroyer on Toon at 7:00, earning a “Holy shit!” chant.
Fuego hit a Poison Rana and a tornado DDT on Lloyd. He hit a springboard flip dive onto everyone on the floor. In the ring, Toon set up for a package piledriver, but Fuego escaped. Fuego hit a leaping Stomp on the back of Toon’s head. Fuego then hit the springboard moonsault DDT to pin Toon. That was fun; I’d love to see those two in a singles match.
Fuego Del Sol defeated Jimmy Lloyd, Griffin McCoy, Wes Barkley and Brayden Toon at 8:19.
* Atticus Cogar jumped in the ring and attacked Fuego, and they brawled some more until Atticus cowered and ran. Fuego got on the mic and called him an “f’n pussy.” He told Cogar that he will have to kill him to take his mask.
6. Effy vs. Tony Deppen for the GCW World Title. Joining Emil and Veda on commentary was Allie Katch! We haven’t seen or heard from her since she broke her leg in January at the big Hammerstein Ballroom show. Effy did some gay humor as Allie talked about her recovery; she can walk but has no timetable for any return to the ring. Deppen hit a clothesline on the apron at 2:30, and they fought on the floor. Back in the ring, Deppen hit a running knee in the corner at 5:00 and took control, and he kept Effy grounded. Deppen hit a shotgun dropkick at 7:00. Effy dragged Deppen to the mat by his leg and hit a Blockbuster, then he hit a spear for a nearfall. Deppen hit a Death Valley Driver off the second rope for a nearfall at 9:00.
Effy hit a spear on the apron, and they both landed on the thin carpeting of this ballroom. (No additional mats here.) In the ring, Effy jabbed a chair into Deppen’s gut, then hit him across the back with it. He went for a Whoopee Cushion buttdrop, but Deppen got the chair up into the groin. Deppen locked in an STF at 11:00, and he turned it into a Rings of Saturn-type move with both arms locked behind the back, and he got a nearfall. Effy hit a Fame-asser leg lariat for a nearfall. Deppen hit a low blow and a running knee to the jaw for a nearfall. Deppen now hit a chairshot to the back. Deppen missed a somersault and crashed on an open chair! Ouch! Effy immediately hit another Fame-asser, sending Deppen crashing through a board in the corner for the pin.
Effy defeated Tony Deppen to retain the GCW World Title at 13:16.
* Joey Janela came to the ring; he is not dressed to wrestle, as he is still recovering from arm surgery. He noted that it is just 12 days away until he retires Sabu. He said the match will now be a no-rope barbed-wire match.
7. Richard Holliday vs. Breaker Morant. I don’t know Morant; he is thick, muscular, heavily tattooed and has maybe a two-week growth of hair on his head. Holliday got on the mic and noted that Breaker is a 25-year pro (he definitely looks to be in his early 40s, even though this was his GCW debut.) They traded armbars and we got a (rare) “boring!” chant from several fans. Holliday begged off, and I’m wondering why this match is so late in the show. Breaker hit a spinebuster for a nearfall at 7:00.
Holliday wedged a chair into the corner, but Breaker pushed Holliday head-first into it. He got a rollup for a nearfall. They traded kicks. Holliday hit a stunner for a nearfall. Morant hit a second-rope fisherman’s suplex and they were both down at 11:30. Parrow got in the ring and chokeslammed Holliday! He left. Morant put Holliday on his shoulders and hit a neckbreaker for the pin. A dull match; the crowd was thrilled to see Parrow come out. Emil said he was glad they were able to get one Morant match in before he retires within a couple of months.
Breaker Morant defeated Richard Holliday at 13:07.
8. Bam Sullivan vs. Slade in a hardcore match. Garbage cans and other weapons were set up at ringside. Veda joked about how Slade was just released from prison. They beat each other with guardrails and chairs. Bam slammed him through a door in the corner late in the match, and he clocked Slade multiple times over the head with a chair, and I hate that. Slade picked Bam up, ran him back-first into a barbed-wire board in the corner, and pinned him. Meh; not my thing, and I just cannot stand those unprotected blows to the head.
Slade defeated Bam Sullivan at 11:45.
Final Thoughts: The show started really strong; I think the first three matches were the best of the show, as I’ll go with Mathers-Gresham for best match, Vox-Zayda for second, and the tag opener takes third. Both Effy-Deppen and Tremont-Ruckus were solid. The last two matches didn’t work for me, but at least the last match didn’t get overly disgusting.
Emil watches a lot of wrestling, so I was amused when he talked about wondering if Ashley Vox had ring rust… because I’ve seen so much of her lately and she definitely does not!
This was the final show before the 13-show “Collective: that takes place over WrestleMania weekend, Wednesday through Saturday. It’s an ambitious schedule, and they did a decent job of promoting some of the big matches, specifically Effy vs. Dark Sheik, Joey Janela vs. Sabu and Fuego Del Sol vs. Atticus Cogar, plus adding Violence is Forever vs. Alec Price and his mystery partner.
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