By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
We are looking for reports on all WWE, AEW, NXT, TNA, GCW, MLW, and other notable live events or television tapings. If you attend a show, you are encouraged to send a report or even basic results to dotnetjason@gmail.com
Expect The Unexpected Wrestling “Whatever It Takes”
Replay available via IndependentWrestling.TV
May 18, 2025, in Ridgefield Park, N.J. at The Mecca
Ridgefield is straight west of New York City, so all in that metro area. I’ve seen multiple promotions use this venue for wrestling. The attendance was maybe 150-200, and the lighting was decent. The ring was right next to the entrance/stage; that would matter later in the show. Jack Solomon and Alyssa Marino provided commentary. I’ve seen everyone on this show multiple times.
1. Janai Kai vs. B3cca. Janai came out first, and they brawled on the floor for a few seconds before getting in the ring. B3cca hit a stiff kick to the spine at 3:00, and they traded hard slaps. B3cca hit a snap suplex and a second-rope missile dropkick. Alyssa said that the radio hit “On B3cca, On God” has gone double platinum in Europe. Funny. Kai hit a half-nelson slam for a nearfall at 5:30. B3cca hit a doublestomp to the chest for a nearfall and a superkick. B3cca went under the ring and got a chair; Solomon said this is not a no-DQ match. Janai hit a roundhouse kick on B3cca. Janai hit her with a chair to the back, and the ref called for the bell. Alyssa said B3cca pushed Janai into doing that, and this clearly isn’t over.
B3cca defeated Janai Kai via DQ at 9:10.
2. Gabriel Skye vs. Braydon Toon vs. Ultra Jaguar vs. Conan Lycan in a four-way. I’ve seen the masked Jaguar here before; he’s short but pretty decent (think Ninja Mack). Toon is the guy I compare to a young Kevin Steen because he’s pretty agile for the weight he’s carrying. Conan is the massive guy comparable to Brian Cage or Jake Something for his agility with that muscle mass. Skye is a heel here. Jaguar and Skye opened while the other two were on the apron. Toon and Lycan got in at 1:30 and we got a “Beef!” chant and they responded by trading forearm strikes. Lycan hit a standing Blue Thunder Bomb on Skye.
Lycan popped Jaguar up in the air and he nearly hit the ceiling! Skye choked Lycan. Toon hit a deep armdrag on Skye. Lycan hit a clothesline on Toon. Jaguar hit a huracanrana on Lycan at 3:30. Skye hit a Tombstone Piledriver on Jaguar and he started to work him over. Skye hit an Asai Moonsault onto all three guys on the floor. Toon hit his own Asai Moonsault onto the three opponents at 6:00.
In the ring, Lycan hit a MASSIVE standing powerbomb on the tiny Jaguar. Skye hit a top-rope flying forearm on Lycan. Toon hit a second-rope twisting suplex on Skye, then a running Shooting Star Press. Lycan pushed Toon to the floor and he hit an Ospreay-style Stormbreaker to pin Skye. Lycan and Toon glared at each other; Solomon said Toon thought the win was his after that Shooting Star Press. Really good, fast-paced action.
Conan Lycan defeated Gabriel Skye, Ultra Jaguar, and Brayden Toon at 9:11.
* Backstage, Joseph “A-Game” Alexander is ready to take on Gabriel Skye’s heel faction, and he’s starting with Ikuro Kwon.
3. Ikuro Kwon vs. Joseph “A-Game” Alexander. They appear to be roughly the same height; Kwon is thicker and likely has the weight advantage. Alexander hit some punches to the gut, and they rolled to the floor and continued to fight at ringside. Alexander hit a baseball slide dropkick through the ropes at 3:00. Back in the ring, Kwon flipped Alexander into the turnbuckles and got a nearfall, and he took charge. He hit a sliding knee into the ribs and kept A-Game grounded. A-Game hit some flying splashes into the corner at 7:00, then a running knee for a nearfall.
Alexander hit a brainbuster for a nearfall, and he was fired up. They traded kicks, and A-Game hit a jumping knee to the chin. Kwon hit a pop-up neckbreaker for a nearfall at 10:00. Nice! He tied up Alexander’s neck on the mat. A-Game hit a top-rope fadeaway stunner and a running knee for a nearfall. Gabriel Skye appeared at ringside and the crowd booed. Austin Luke appeared, too. Matt Mako also came out, and he hit A-Game across the back with a kendo stick. Kwon hit a brainbuster and a running Blockbuster for the pin. Good action until the predictable run-in.
Ikuro Kwon defeated Joseph Alexander at 12:31.
* Austin Luke got on the mic and noted that Tommy Vendetta isn’t here. Who will team with MM3? Luke and Mako still had kendo sticks in their hands, as MM3 introduced his mystery partner, Ken Broadway!
4. Matt Mako and Austin Luke vs. “MM3” Malcolm Monroe III and Ken Broadway in a no-DQ match. Broadway has been Midwest-based in recent years, but when I first saw him, he was a regular in New York’s HOG. MM3 is a Michigan guy. MM3 and Broadway charged into the ring, and they all brawled. MM3 hit a flip dive to the floor on the heels. They all brawled through the crowd. MM3 hit Luke across the back with a steel chair several times. They got into the ring, where the heels repeatedly hit MM3 with the kendo stick. Luke broke a kendo stick and jabbed the sharp broken end into Broadway’s forehead at 3:30.
Mako jabbed a chair into Ken’s throat. MM3 fired up and hit chops on the heels. Broadway ran down the ramp, dove over the top rope, and hit a double shoulder tackle on the heels at 7:00! Nice. He hit a Lungblower on Luke, and MM3 hit a top-rope doublestomp on Luke for a nearfall, but Mako broke it up. MM3 hit opponents with a chair. Broadway hit a Michinoku Driver for a believable nearfall at 9:00. Luke hit a frogsplash onto someone lying on a hard chair (not a folding chair). Mako hit a German Suplex on MM3, and he applied a cross-armbreaker, and MM3 quickly tapped out. That was a really good brawl; that’s my idea of a hardcore match.
Matt Mako and Austin Luke defeated Malcolm Monroe III and Ken Broadway at 10:58.
* Intermission was not edited out, which is a bit of a surprise.
5. Kylie Alexa vs. Gabby Forza vs. Aleah James. Gabby and Kylie have already had two recent battles in Wrestling Open in Massachusetts. Former NXT-UK wrestler Aleah has some blue braids in her dark hair. Alexa was pushed to the floor, and the babyfaces traded offense in the ring. Alexa tripped Aleah and pulled her to the floor. In the ring, Gabby hit some chops on Alexa and a bodyslam for a nearfall at 2:00. Alexa hit her own chops.
Kylie hit a mule kick on Gabby while lying on her back at 6:00, and she started stomping on Forza. Aleah had been on the floor for several minutes now. Kylie applied a modified Camel Clutch; Aleah finally got back in to break it up. Alexa hit a suplex on Gabby into the corner, and she traded punches with Aleah. Aleah hit a bulldog on Alexis for a nearfall, then a Lungblower move to Alexa’s chin. Gabby hit a spear on Alexis. Aleah hit a DDT and pinned Gabby! That was good action.
Aleah James defeated Gabby Forza & Kylie Alexa at 8:25.
6. “The Killionaires Club” J Bouji and Pretty Boy Smooth vs. Josh Bishop and Sam Holloway for the ETU Atlantic Tag Team Titles. Bishop (the Sid Vicious clone) just returned from several months off due to an injury. Bishop and Holloway are a massive team! Solomon noted that PB Smooth is used to being the tallest guy in any match, but that might not be the case here, as WWE ID prospect Holloway is a legit 6’7″ or 6’8″. They started shoving each other before the bell. I’ve compared Holloway to Julius Creed in the past, but with how he’s changed up his look, he’s really giving young Matt Morgan vibes.
The bigger guys, PB and Sam, opened up, and Solomon talked about how both had good weekends over Mania in Las Vegas. Solomon noted what I just wrote, about Sam having a new look and more of a heel demeanor. PB slammed teammate Bouji onto Sam. Josh tagged in at 1:30, and he hit a massive fallaway slam on Bouji. The heels beat up Bouji and kept him in their corner. Holloway hit a German Suplex at 5:00. Josh hit a series of chops. PB finally got the hot tag at 6:30, and he slammed Bishop and hit a guillotine leg drop for a nearfall. The heels hit a team back suplex on PB for a nearfall.
Holloway planted a foot in PB’s throat, and the heels now worked him over. PB hit a Mafia Kick at 9:00, and he tagged Bouji back in. Bouji hit a Pele Kick on Sam. He couldn’t lift Sam off his feet, but he hit a German Suplex. He tried to lift him again, and he hit a Samoan Drop for a nearfall! Bishop made an ‘intense’ blind tag that clearly annoyed Sam. Sam tagged himself right back in, and he hit a top-rope frogsplash for a nearfall at 11:00, and the crowd popped for the kickout. Josh made another hard tag-in, and they are clearly no longer on the same page. Sam hit a running shotgun dropkick on PB. Holloway accidentally kicked Josh, and Bishop was down on the stage. PB hit a high back suplex and pinned Holloway! I liked that; it topped my expectations.
J Bouji and Pretty Boy Smooth defeated Josh Bishop and Sam Holloway to retain the ETU Atlantic Tag Team Titles at 12:26.
* Sam and Josh argued some more after the bell, and they began shoving each other in the chest. Sam hit a chokeslam!
7. Marcus Mathers vs. Mike Santana for the ETU Key To The East Championship. The crowd was HOT and split at the bell. Mathers has been champ here for 659 days so I’m presuming we have a screwjob finish and not a clean pin. A lockup and feeling-out process to open. Alyssa talked about how both men have had an intense schedule, so neither is coming in close to 100 percent. Santana knocked him down with a shoulder tackle at 4:00, and they traded armdrags, then traded rollups, and we had a standoff, with applause from an appreciative crowd.
Mathers hit a dropkick and his step-up mule kick for a nearfall at 7:00. He hit some chops that Santana no-sold, and Mike slapped him! Marcus hit repeated knee strikes to the spine and kept Santana grounded. Marcus dropped him throat-first on the top rope and got a nearfall at 9:00. Santana hit a dropkick that sent Mathers to the floor. They brawled to the floor, and the lights went out in the building! The crowd chanted, “We can’t see!” The curtains were immediately opened, and some back-up lights came on, then the rest of the lights. (It was only in the dark 20 or so seconds.) They got back into the ring, and Santana tied a leg lock around Marcus’ neck.
They got up, and Santana hit some chops and forearm strikes. Alyssa noted both men “have gas tanks for days” and don’t get winded. Marcus hit his twisting top-rope crossbody block at 13:30, then some clotheslines, then a fadeaway stunner and a Blue Thunder Bomb for a nearfall. Marcus hit his kip-up stunner for a nearfall at 15:00. Marcus leapt off the ropes, but Santana caught his legs and hit a sit-out powerbomb, and they were both down. Santana unloaded more chops and an enzuigiri. Santana hit his kip-up stunner for a nearfall at 17:00.
Mathers hit an Ospreay-style heel hook kick to the face. Santana hit a sudden Death Valley Driver for a nearfall. This has been insanely good. They traded kicks and Mathers hit his second-rope Canadian Destroyer for a nearfall at 20:30. Santana hit a second-rope superplex, a buckle bomb, and a rolling cannonball into the corner for a believable nearfall, then a sit-out powerbomb for a nearfall, and Mike was in disbelief he didn’t win. Santana set up for Spin The Block, but Marcus collapsed to the mat, and the ref checked on him. They traded rollups for nearfalls, and Marcus got a Code Red for a believable nearfall at 24:00. This has been insanely good.
Mathers hit a fisherman’s buster and a top-rope 450 Splash for a believable nearfall. Do we have a time limit? They might just go for 30 minutes. Mathers went to the top rope again, but Santana rolled to the other side of the ring. Santana gave him double middle fingers; Mathers responded with a series of kicks to the head. Santana hit a clothesline for a nearfall. He hit another clothesline, but Mathers kicked out at 27:00! “There is no quit in them!” Solomon said. Santana nailed the Spin The Block discus clothesline and scored the pin! New champion! WOW WOW WOW.
Mike Santana defeated Marcus Mathers to win the ETU Key to the East Title at 27:15.
* Mathers got on the mic and talked about being a little kid and looking up to Santana. “If it’s going to be anybody, I’m glad it was you,” he said. Mike got on the mic and said that Marcus “just made me feel old.” The crowd responded with a kidding “you still got it!” chant. FUNNY. He vowed that when he comes back to defend the belt, he will be facing someone fresh, someone up-and-coming. He called himself the “mother-f—ing king of New York, and I now hold the Key to the whole East Coast.”
Final thoughts: I don’t write this often — Mathers-Santana is an indy “match of the year” contender. Yes, it was that good. Mathers is moving into a 20-year-old AJ Styles category for me, and I’m not joking. Santana has been on top of his game for more than a year. These two just had a flawless singles match. I was expecting a run-in, and I didn’t care because this was just so good, it wouldn’t have ruined it. But to have a clean win, with a title change… yeah, I can’t think of a better indy match I’ve seen this year.
Overall, a show that was better than it looked on paper. The Killionaires Club tag was good for second, and the four-way was good for third. Both women’s matches were quite good, too. No real complaints at all, other than I’d like to see a clean winner in that Janai-B3cca match. If you have IWTV, you must go and watch the main event, and the whole show is well worth checking out.
Be the first to comment