By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
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GCW “Take a Picture”
Streamed on TrillerTV+
June 22, 2025, in Kansas City, Missouri, at The Truman
The venue is a large tavern, and the crowd was maybe 300. It’s a two-level building, and the lighting was solid; if anything, they are “bathed in light” in the ring. I like this venue. Emil Jay and promoter Brett Lauderdale provided commentary.
* During the day, the Missouri Sports Commission ruled that Miyu Yamashita could not compete today because she doesn’t have a Social Security Number. Lauderdale noted that she has competed in the state in the past, and multiple foreign-born wrestlers have competed in the state recently (who also don’t have a SSN.)
* The show opened with footage of the partnership and feud of Jimmy Lloyd and Matt Cardona. Cardona came to the ring and demanded to be shown some respect. He ripped into Shotzi Blackheart, who has been calling herself the Indy God and Death Match King since she returned to the indy scene. Cardona vowed he is going to beat her in an upcoming match. He then sat on the top turnbuckle, waved his hand at the camera, and said, “Hey, John Cena!” Funny. Lloyd came to the ring, but Cardona attacked him as he got in, and we’re underway!
1. Matt Cardona vs. Jimmy Lloyd. Cardona immediately hit some Broski Boots in the corner. Lloyd hit a Fameasser for a nearfall at 2:00. Cardona hit a low blow uppercut and a Radio Silence flying leg drop, and he made a lazy cover for a nearfall. However, Lloyd hooked both arms, rolled him over, and got the flash pin! Cardona immediately hit Lloyd in the head with his Internet title belt. (I actually thought this could be the main event or co-main, but they opted to go short with this instead.) Jimmy was bleeding from the forehead from those blows from the belt.
Jimmy Lloyd defeated Matt Cardona at 2:56.
2. Joey Janela vs. Jack Cartwheel. Jack hit some quick armdrags and worked the left arm. He hit a satellite head-scissors takedown at 1:30, and he got his unique swinging leg sweep. Joey powerbombed him onto the ring apron, and he took control in the ring and kept Cartwheel grounded. Jack hit his rolling cartwheel for a nearfall at 5:00. He went for a top-rope twisting cartwheel, but Joey got his knees up. Jack hit a slingshot press for a nearfall, earning a “holy shit!” chant. He missed a top-rope Shooting Star Press, and Janela immediately hit a Death Valley Driver for a nearfall at 7:00.
Jack nailed a Crucifix Driver for a nearfall, then a Sasuke Special dive to the floor. In the ring, Janela hit a running powerbomb for a nearfall at 9:30. This has been really good and really sharp. They got up and traded forearm strikes. Jack hit an enzuigiri and a German Suplex with a high bridge for a believable nearfall at 11:30. He hit a Poison Rana; Joey hit a decapitating clothesline, and they were both down. Jack hit a suplex, then a buzzsaw kick. Joey caught Jack doing a Cartwheel, and Joey nailed a Package Piledriver for the pin. That was excellent.
Joey Janela defeated Jack Cartwheel at 12:51.
* Footage aired of the KJ Orso-Sam Stackhouse feud from Friday in Little Rock, Ark.
3. KJ Orso vs. Dan the Dad. A nice pop for Dan and plenty of boos for Orso (f/k/a Fuego Del Sol.) Some basic lockups early on. Dan isn’t doing his cartoonish stuff; no coffee cup in his hand, for instance. Right on cue, he pauses to pick up his coffee cup and tie up while holding it. KJ knocked the cup out of his hand, and it BROKE on the floor at 3:00, and the crowd booed this travesty! KJ took control in the ring and hit a running crossbody block in the corner.
Dan fired up and hit some jab punches and a back-body drop at 6:30. He hit a spinebuster for a nearfall. KJ hit a back suplex and a piledriver for a nearfall. He got in the face of ref Scarlette Donovan; she pushed him to the mat. Dan took off his belt and swatted KJ with it. KJ applied a crossface on the mat, and Dan tapped out. The crowd booed the outcome.
KJ Oros defeated Dan the Dad at 8:55.
* KJ got a chair and was going to swing it, but Sam Stackhouse charged to the ring for the save. KJ swung it, but Sam pushed it away. Sam hit a massive Samoan Drop! Sam challenged him to an ‘I Quit’ match in Dallas!
* A video package aired of highlights from Cage of Survival 4 a few weeks ago.
4. “Buck Nasty” Rob Shit and Buck Skynr vs. Mad Man Pondo and Willie Mack. Pondo and Mack are on ‘Team Juggalo;’ I can’t pretend to care about the JCW feud with the GCW deathmatch guys. Rob and Pondo opened. Pondo threw a stop sign at Rob’s head and got a nearfall. Mack got in and traded chops with Buck at 1:30. Willie hit a flip dive over the top rope onto BN on the floor at 4:00. All four brawled on the floor; Emil jokingly wondered why they bothered to put a ring up.
Willie hit some LOUD chops on Rob as Rob was leaning against the guardrails. (Oh yeah, they have guardrails here! That’s not usual in GCW. Perhaps a requirement of the sports commission?) Mack hit a BIG back-body drop on Rob on the floor at 6:30! Ouch! Meanwhile, Pondo hit a top-rope superplex on Buck for a nearfall. Rob missed a frogsplash, and Willie immediately hit a pop-up forearm strike and a stunner to pin Rob. Not my preferred style of action, but a decent brawl.
Mad Man Pondo and Willie Mack defeated Rob Shit and Buck Skynr at 8:31.
5a. Simon Gotch vs. Jonathan Gresham. This one should be fought almost entirely on the mat. The bell rang and they shook hands, but then Billie Starkz came to the ring! (She was slated to team with Miyu Yamashita, so this is how they are changing up the card.) This is becoming a Triple Threat, and we have a bell to restart.
Simon Gotch vs. Jonathan Gresham never really started.
5b. Simon Gotch vs. Jonathan Gresham vs. Billie Starkz in a three-way. Billie pushed the guys into each other. They did a three-way test of strength. Simon rolled to the floor and sat in the front row. He got back in the ring and he speared Billie at 3:00. Gresham dove onto her and pushed her up against the guardrail. In the ring, Gotch powerbombed Billie onto Gresham, who was tied in the Tree of Woe. Gotch slammed her and got a nearfall. Billie hit a Gory Bomb, dropping Gresham onto Gotch, then she got a nearfall on Gresham at 5:00. The guys were tied up on the mat; Billie hit a top-rope Swanton Bomb onto both of them and pinned them both!
Billie Starkz defeated Simon Gotch and Jonathan Gresham in a three-way at 6:40.
* A video package aired of the new feud between Masha Slamovich and hardcore veteran Mickie Knuckles; that’s coming up later in the show!
* Jordan Oliver and Alec Price came to the ring. They no longer were facing Miyu Yamashita and Billie Starkz, so they made an open challenge. Two top tag teams from the Missouri area both answered the challenge! We have another three-way! I’ve seen The Premier and The New Guys fight each other twice in the past month.
6. “YD&B” Jordan Oliver and Alec Price vs. “The New Guys” Jake Bosche and Scott Stanley vs. “The Premier” SK Bishop and Campbell Myers in a three-way for the GCW Tag Team Titles. Quick action from all six. Campbell beat up Bosche in their corner. TNG hit superkicks on The Premier at 3:30. The champs finally got back into the ring, and they beat up the Premier. Bosche hit a top-rope missile dropkick. He hit a spinning kick to Jordan’s jaw. Bishop hit a frogsplash for a nearfall at 6:00. Price hit a Rebound Lariat, then he dove to the floor on TNG. In the ring, Oliver hit a powerbomb on Bishop for a nearfall. The champs hit their team Blockbuster move to pin Bishop. A high-energy sprint that I wish had gone longer.
“YD&B” Jordan Oliver and Alec Price defeated “The New Guys” Jake Bosche and Scott Stanley and “The Premier” SK Bishop and Campbell Myers in a three-way to retain the GCW Tag Team Titles at 7:52.
7. Effy vs. 2 Cold Scorpio for the GCW World Title. Scorpio looks a bit lighter than the last time I saw him, maybe a year ago. (He’s never exactly been thin, but he isn’t too heavy either.) An intense lockup to open. No silly juvenile, gay humor from Efffy in the early going. He focused on twisting Scorpio’s left arm. The commentators noted they have wrestled in the past. Effy dropped to his knees to make a lewd taunt, but he hit a headbutt to the groin at 4:00. Effy hit a Helluva Kick, and he tied him in a Tarantula at 6:00. Scorpio flipped Effy to the floor.
Effy hit a rolling somersault off the apron onto Scorpio, who was seated on a chair on the floor at 8:00. In the ring, Effy hit a top-rope Blockbuster for a nearfall. He dropped Scorpio stomach-first on a folded chair, then hit some buttdrops on Scorpio’s shoulders and neck and got a nearfall at 9:30. The crowd has been fairly quiet so far. Scorpio got a chair and hit Effy with it. He set up the chair, made the ‘Sabu Pose,’ and launched off the chair and struck Effy at 11:00. Scorpio was clearly winded, struggling to get onto the ropes to hit a guillotine leg drop for a nearfall.
Scorpio hit a second-rope 360 guillotine leg drop, and that popped the crowd. “The distance covered was insane!” Lauderdale said. Effy hit another Helluva Kick and the Under the Rainbow leg-drag to the mat, then a second-rope flying leg drop for a nearfall. Effy went under the ring at 13:30 and pulled out a door and some chairs, and he set up a door bridge. They traded punches. They fought on the ropes, and Effy hit a superplex — with only their legs hitting the door bridge — for the pin. They tried hard… The crowd gave Scorpio a polite applause and a “you still got it!” chant.
Effy defeated 2 Cold Scorpio to retain the GCW World Title at 16:04.
8. Matt Tremont vs. 2 Tuff Tony for the GCW Ultraviolent Title. Lauderdale said, “Somehow this is a first-ever match.” Tony wore his Juggalo Championship Wrestling T-shirt. At about 13:00, Mickie Knuckles ran into the ring and hit a low blow on Tremont, earning boos. Masha Slamovich ran in and hit Tony, and both men rolled to the floor, and the women jawed at each other. The men kept fighting at ringside and to the back, so I guess that is a draw? Maybe Tremont wins via DQ (even though GCW doesn’t have DQs, until they randomly decide they do!) Meanwhile, our next match is now underway!
Matt Tremont vs. 2 Tuff Tony went to a draw/no contest/double count-out at 14:00.
9. Masha Slamovich vs. Mickie Knuckles for the JCW Title. They immediately brawled on the floor. Mickie peeled down the straps of her top, allowing Masha to chop her bare skin; she’s basically wrestling in her bra. They threw chairs at each other. Masha got a kendo stick at 3:00, and she repeatedly struck Knuckles with it. Mickie bit Masha’s breast. “Never in my life have I seen that,” Emil said. Mickie threw a door onto Masha. Masha whipped Mickie into a door at 5:00, and it exploded! Masha repeatedly hit Mickie over her unprotected head with a door. (Those head shots are just so unnecessary.)
Masha suplexed Mickie onto the stairs that led to the stage! Mickie returned with an axe! She pushed the axe handle into Masha’s rear at 7:30. A lot of unique violence in this one! Masha got a chair and struck Mickie across the back a few times. They sat across from each other on chairs and threw punches. Mickie swung the axe and missed, hitting a door against the ring. Masha immediately speared her through the door at 10:00. They finally got back into the ring (for the first time since the bell rang, really), and Mickie hit a pump-handle slam across several open chairs for a nearfall at 12:00.
Masha bit Mickie’s breast, then superplexed her through a door bridge, and they were both down. Meanwhile, Tremont and 2 Tuff Tony brawled back to the ring at 14:30. “How long have these guys been fighting?” Emil Jay asked. They brawled to the back again, having never actually gotten into the ring. Meanwhile, Masha and Mickie traded punches while on their knees. Masha hit a running knee for a nearfall. Mickie hit a Saito Suplex. Masha hit a spin kick. Mickie hit a fisherman’s suplex for a nearfall at 16:30, and she went back to the floor and got the mic cord. Masha grabbed it, wrapped the cord around Mickie’s neck, and choked her out, shouting, “I’m gonna f—en kill you!” The ref called for the bell.
Masha Slamovich defeated Mickie Knuckles to retain the JCW Title at 18:07.
* 2 Tuff Tony returned to the ring and hit a piledriver on Masha. Tremont got back in and brawled some more with Tony. This brought out Willie Mack, who attacked Tremont. This brought out Jimmy Lloyd, then Mad Man Pondo, which brought out Effy, Janela, Price and Oliver. The GCW guys outnumbered the Juggalos, beat them up, and sent them scampering to the back.
Final Thoughts: For my preferred style of matches, Cartwheel-Janela was fantastic. Everything was sharp and crisp. I am so hit-or-miss on Janela, but this was Joey at his best. Easily my pick for match of the night. While it’s not my preferred style, I’ll give the main event second. I met Mickie at my first live IWA-Mid South show in June 2004; she is barely recognizable today from the young woman I met 21 years ago this month, but she has always been a brawler. For fans of GCW’s hardcore, violent matches, I don’t doubt that Mickie-Masha has been a ‘dream match,’ and thus, warranted its main event slot. While it was far too short, the YD&B three-way title match takes third.
The Effy-Scorpio match was slow-paced as expected. Scorpio did pull out that impressive 360 guillotine leg drop but it was otherwise fairly methodical. I want to see Effy start facing some challengers who could legitimately be the GCW champion. Clearly, the best match of his six-month reign was against Manders. And it’s not just because Manders is awesome, it’s because he’s a regular on the roster who had earned a title shot. There was no reason to believe for a second that Scorpio (here) or 75-year-old Mike Jackson (Friday) were beating Effy.
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