By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
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Wrestling Open RI “Episode 7”
Streamed on IndependentWrestling.TV
May 12, 2025, in Cranston, Rhode Island at Rhodes On The Pawtuxet
Wrestling Open is continuing its Thursday shows in Worcester, Massachusetts, while adding these Monday events, so they are planning to run two shows a week indefinitely. The venue is an attractive two-story, white ballroom, and the lighting is really good. Paul Crockett, Brett Ryan Gosselin, TJ Crawford, and referee Scott Robinson provided commentary over the course of the show. The attendance was maybe 80.
1. Jermaine Marbury (w/Benny the Basketball) vs. Rain Conway in a spotlight match. Ref Robinson and TJ Crawford called this one. Conway blocked a Eurostep-neckbreaker, and he kept Marbury grounded most of the match. Marbury eventually hit the Eurostep-neckbreaker for the pin. Basic but fine.
Jermaine Marbury defeated Rain Conway at 4:23.
2. Bryce Donovan, Jariel Rivera, and “VSK” Vinny Scalise vs. Ichiban, Dustin Waller, and Kylon King. VSK and Ichiban opened. Dustin got in and battled Jariel. Kylon hit a rolling cannonball on Rivera for a nearfall at 3:30. The heels began working over Waller in their corner. Ichiban got a hot tag at 9:30, and he hit his “One!” punches in the corner on Jariel.
Kylon hit a superplex; Kylon hit a frogsplash; Ichiban hit a top-rope elbow drop on VSK for a believable nearfall. Bryce got in and hit some chokeslams. Ichiban hit a stunner on Bryce at 12:00. VSk hit a Lumbar Check on Ichiban for a nearfall. Bryce yelled at Jariel to “finish him!” However, Ichiban got an inside cradle and pinned Jariel out of nowhere! Really good action, and it was just enough of champion Bryce vs. No. 1 contender Ichiban without giving too much away.
Ichiban, Dustin Waller, and Kylon King defeated Bryce Donovan, Jariel Rivera, and “VSK” Vinny Scalise at 13:15.
3. Julius Draeger vs. Brando Lee. Again, I loosely compare Brando to Lee Moriarty, while Draeger reminds me of former Vaudevillain Simon Gotch. Lee hit a dropkick at 2:00 and some armdrags. Draeger began stomping on Lee and kept Brando grounded. He hit some European Uppercuts and a bodyslam. Draeger hit a back suplex at 5:00, then a backbreaker over his knee, and he bent Brando backwards over his knee, and that looked painful! Brando hit a rolling Death Valley Driver, then a top-rope moonsault for the pin. Solid match; Lee continues to impress. Draeger is a solid rookie, too.
Brando Lee defeated Julius Draeger at 7:29.
* On Thursday, Zak Patterson will face WWE ID prospect Aaron Rourke, while Anthony Greene & Channing Thomas will face Wrestling Open Tag Team champions Swipe Right!
4. Nick Battee vs. Bobby Orlando. No side of Gal with Battee tonight. Orlando is absolutely beloved here. Orlando tripped him and threw him face-first into the corner, and was in charge early on. He hit a high back suplex at 2:00. Bobby leapt off the top rope, but Battee dropped him over his knee for a gutbuster, and he seized control. Battee hit an elbow drop for a nearfall at 4:30. Orlando hit a Death Valley Driver for a nearfall. Orlando got a backslide for the pin. Decent action; the winner was never in doubt.
Bobby Orlando defeated Nick Battee at 7:15.
* Jermaine Marbury saved Orlando from a post-match beat-down. He got on the mic and challenged Battee & Gal to a tag match on Memorial Day!
5. “Brick City” Victor Chase and Julio Cruz vs. DJ Powers and Giorgio Lawrence. Again, Brick City and all of Big Business are suddenly babyfaces, which is just bizarre. If you’ve read my reviews, you know I think Powers is an absolute star; he has the heel charisma of a young Johnny Morrison. Kickboxing specialist Lawrence opened against Chase, and Victor easily shoved him to the match, then hip-tossed him across the ring, then Victor hit a powerslam. BC hit a team armdrag. Nice move. Cruz bodyslammed Powers at 2:30. Victor and Powers traded chops.
Lawrence hit some stiff kicks to Chase’s spine, and the heels began stomping on Victor in their corner. Cruz got in and hit a back suplex at 7:00, then a brainbuster on Lawrence for a nearfall. They all continued to brawl in the ring. The exasperated ref finally called for the bell and disqualified both teams. They brawled out the door and to the back, so this isn’t over.
Victor Chase and Julio Cruz vs. DJ Powers and Giorgio Lawrence went to a double DQ at 8:12.
* Juni Underwood got in the ring and demanded he get a match. TJ Crawford got up from commentary and accepted, and we have an impromptu match!
6. TJ Crawford vs. Juni Underwood. TJ was in a T-shirt and camouflage pants, so he wasn’t even dressed to wrestle. He hit a flying kick in the corner, then the Silver Bullet spin kick to the head for the pin! Juni is pretty decent, so he deserved to have a longer match than that!
TJ Crawford defeated Juni Underwood at 1:10.
* Footage aired of the first two matches between Paris Van Dale and Liviyah, which both ended in count-outs. So tonight, they are meeting again… in a lumberjack match! The Lumberjacks are predominantly guys who already wrestled on the show. I see Love, Doug, too.
7. Liviyah vs. Paris Van Dale in a Lumberjack Match. Liviyah hit a dropkick and Paris tried to roll to the floor, but the babyface men were there, so she got back in. Liviyah hit a Mafia Kick, then a Thesz Press, and a series of punches. Paris again rolled to the floor, but the men ordered her back in. (I see Rain Conway at ringside, but no other heels. It appears all the lumberjacks are babyfaces!) Paris hit a Splits Leg Drop across Liviyah’s chest at 2:30. Liviyah rolled to the ring apron, but the men ordered her back in, too. (No man has actually touched a woman; they’ve ‘encouraged’ them to get back in.)
Paris hit a running back elbow in the corner and remained in charge. She choked Liviyah in the corner, but Liviyah flipped her to the mat. Liviyah dove through the ropes and speared Paris, and they were both down at 5:30. Liviyah hit some clotheslines and a faceplant, and a basement dropkick. Liviyah hit a missile dropkick for a nearfall at 7:00. She set up for an Eye of the Hurricane, but Paris avoided it. Moments later, Liviyah hit the Eye of the Hurricane inverted DDT for the pin. Fun match.
Liviyah defeated Paris Van Dale at 7:39 in a Lumberjack Match.
8. Marcus Mathers vs. Timothy Thatcher. Thatcher wrestled Masha Slamovich in JCW in New Jersey about 25 hours earlier, while Mathers lost to Lee Moriarty on that same show. A lockup to open, and Thatcher complained to the ref about Mathers grabbing his ear. Timothy immediately tied up the left arm and targeted it. Thatcher hit a European Uppercut at 1:30, and he tied up Marcus’ legs on the mat. Mathers twisted Thatcher’s ankle as they traded holds on the mat. Mathers hit a top-rope crossbody block at 5:30.
Thatcher hit more European Uppercuts, got a nearfall, and kept Mathers on the mat. They got up, pushed their foreheads together, and traded forearm strikes. Mathers hit a suplex, and they were both down at 8:00. Mathers hit a second-rope fadeaway stunner, then a Blue Thunder Bomb for a nearfall. They fought on the top rope, and Mathers shoved Thatcher to the mat. Marcus immediately hit a top-rope 450 Splash for the pin. A really good match. Mathers is just so incredibly good, and he’s still just 21.
Marcus Mathers defeated Timothy Thatcher at 10:11.
9. “Swipe Right” Brad Baylor and Ricky Smokes vs. “The Shooter Boys” Aaron Ortiz and Anthony Vecchio for the Wrestling Open Tag Team Titles. (Swipe Right already has a title shot lined up on Thursday against much better opponents; I can’t imagine they lose here to the rookies.) Again, the Shooter Boys both wear amateur-style gear and likely have a legit wrestling background. Smokes and the longer-haired Ortiz opened, and Aaron tied him up on the mat, and Smokes rolled to the floor to regroup with Baylor. Back in the ring, Smokes knocked him down with a shoulder tackle. Ortiz hit a Northern Lights Suplex at 2:30.
Baylor got in and hit a shoulder tackle on Ortiz. The SB hit a team armdrag on Baylor and Vecchio now tied up Baylor on the mat. The Shooter Boys hit stereo dropkicks, and SR again bailed to the floor at 5:00. The Shooter Boys followed and they all fought in front of the fans. Back in the ring, the champs began working over Ortiz in their corner. Baylor hit some loud chops in the corner. Smokes hit a hard clothesline. Ortiz hit a suplex on Baylor and he made a hot tag to Vecchio at 10:00.
Vecchio hit a double back suplex, and he was fired up!. He hit a belly-to-belly suplex on Smokes for a nearfall. Vecchio applied a Crossface on the mat on Smokes, but Baylor jumped in to break it up. Ortiz hit a top-rope elbow drop for a believable nearfall. Swipe Right hit a modified Magic Killer for a nearfall on Ortiz at 12:30, and we got a “This is awesome!” chant. The Shooter Boys dropped the heels crotch first on the top rope and shook the ropes. They hit stereo top-rope crossbody blocks for nearfalls. The Shooter Boys hit their team Blockbuster on Smokes, but Baylor made the save. Vinny Scalise appeared at ringside, and he hit Vecchio with a title belt! Smokes covered the prone Vecchio for the tainted pin.
“Swipe Right” Ricky Smokes and Brad Baylor defeated “The Shooter Boys” Anthony Vecchio and Aaron Ortiz to retain the Wrestling Open Tag Team Titles at 14:23.
* Bryce Donovan and Jariel Rivera came to the ring. They got in the ring and were about to beat up Shooter Boys, but Kylon King, Dustin Waller, and Ichiban ran in to make the save. Ichiban hit a dive off the top rope onto the five heels on the floor. Waller got on the mic; he vowed that Ichiban will beat Bryce Donovan for the belt on Memorial Day!
Final Thoughts: A really good tag main event takes best match, with a good mat-based Thatcher-Mathers in second, the Ichiban six-man tag takes third. The women’s lumberjack match was good and gets honorable mention, even if I was hoping to see a bit more from them here. A really good show, top-to-bottom, and I continue to be impressed with how well they are doing booking two shows a week and figuring out how to get so many wrestlers on shows each week.
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