By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
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GCW “Emo Fight”
Streamed on TrillerTV+
August 2, 2025, in East Rutherford, New Jersey, at Williams Center
This is the fifth of five shows they promoted or co-promoted. Again, this is the same venue. Effy and Brett Lauderdale, and Marcus Mathers provided commentary. Lighting is good, and considering how late it was, there are maybe 300 fans here.
* First, a word about a show I did NOT watch and review, but I saw the key footage online. Late Friday night, Juggalo Championship Wrestling held a show in this venue. Mickie Knuckles set a table on fire, and John Wayne Murdoch was powerbombed through it. However, his shirt caught on fire, and it did not immediately extinguish. The match — the main event — was stopped less than seven minutes in, as Murdoch was rushed to the hospital. First and foremost, I hope the burns are minor and Murdoch makes a full recovery.
But I am livid at GCW/JCW. They should have been better prepared for this. It is less than a year ago that the exact same thing happened to Joey Janela. He also suffered burns because the shirt he was wearing didn’t go out. I don’t get how you can have a planned spot for fire in the ring and not have a fire extinguisher right there in case it’s needed. I point out their stupidity of having death matches, with glass flying everywhere, while fans are right up next to the ring because they refuse to use guardrails. It’s a lawsuit waiting to happen. I get that some fans love the blood and barbed wire. Well, you can control barbed wire, or a pizza cutter, or a stapler, or a gusset plate. But you can’t control the damage done by chairs thrown in the air, or exploding glass, or flaming tables. Point being, as horrific as this was, it was entirely predictable AND avoidable. Okay, rant over.
* A band was playing in the ring as this show started. I think it began at 11 p.m. EST, after the conclusion of Summer Slam. They got their gear out of the ring. I’m watching Sunday morning, and we’re already 46 minutes into a show that only went 2 hours, 28 minutes.
1. Rullo vs. Mr. Danger vs. Oni King vs. Kevin Ku vs. Terry Yaki vs. Christian Napier vs. Parrow in a seven-way scramble. I haven’t seen Rullo before; he’s a scrawny kid dressed in all black; he’s giving off 18-year-old Jimmy Jacobs vibes. I haven’t seen King before, but at first glance, I thought he was Jay Lethal coming out of the back. Yaki and Napier opened while everyone else was on the floor. Ku hit a back suplex at 1:30 and a butterfly suplex on Napier. A commentator just said it is 11:54 p.m. local time. Danger set up for a dive, but Yaki hit a DDT. Yaki hit a top-rope moonsault to the floor, and no one expected that!
Yaki then hit a springboard dropkick onto Danger in the ring. Ku and King traded chops. Napier hit a hard clothesline on Yaki for a nearfall at 5:30. Parrow lifted the scrawny Rullo and powerbombed him over the top rope and onto four or so guys on the floor. Still in the ring, Parrow powerbombed Rullo onto an open chair at 7:00 for a nearfall; the ref had to stop counting and wait for Danger to fly off the top rope to break it up. Yaki hit a Canadian Destroyer out of the corner on Danger. Ku powerbombed Yaki. Parrow chokeslammed Ku. King hit an Exploder Suplex on Parrow for a nearfall. Rullo splashed onto Parrow and got the pin.
Rullo defeated Mr. Danger, Oni King, Kevin Ku, Terry Yaki, Christian Napier, and Parrow at 8:38 in a seven-way scramble.
2. Brooke Havok vs. Priscilla Kelly. Standing switches to open; they are roughly the same height and overall size. Kelly hit a dropkick that sent Brooke to the floor. Havok hit a baseball slide dropkick through the ropes, then a second-rope dive to the floor onto Priscilla at 2:00. In the ring, Havok hit a missile dropkick for a nearfall. Kelly hit a running buttbump in the corner at 3:30 and lewdly rubbed her butt in Brooke’s face. Kelly hit a pump kick to the chest and got a nearfall, and she kept Havok grounded.
Havok hit a sideslam for a nearfall at 5:00. Kelly hit a sliding German Suplex, then a half-nelson suplex for a nearfall. They got up and traded forearm strikes and slaps. Kelly hit a superkick and a flipping powerbomb for the pin. That was pretty good, as Kelly really brought a fight here, and I have always liked Brooke’s game. Priscilla lewdly touched herself as she celebrated; that got a reaction from the fans and commentators.
Priscilla Kelly defeated Brooke Havok at 7:11.
3. Drew Parker vs. Justin Finn in a studded leather strap match. The strap was connected to their wrists. Finn is the kid I saw face Joey Janela in his first-ever match at Arrival Wrestling last November in this venue. (He had a lot of family and friends at that show, which made for an entertaining and memorable debut.) Parker stomped on him. The commentators talked about how Parker had left wrestling for a bit but is now back and as dangerous as ever. Parker whipped Finn across the back with the strap at 1:30. He hit him repeatedly with the strap. Parker removed Finn’s boots and dropped his bare feet on thumbtacks or glass or whatever was in the ring. Drew hit a running knee for the pin. That was as one-sided as any match I’ve ever seen in GCW.
Drew Parker defeated Justin Finn at 6:10.
4. Nixi XS vs. Janai Kai vs. Emersyn Jayne vs. Lena Kross in a four-way. I’ve seen Nixi compete live in the Twin Cities, and on other shows I’ve watched in the Midwest. This could be her GCW debut? Unless she competed on one of Effy’s Gay Brunch events? Anyhow, she is a fashionista and has improved greatly in just the past year. Kai had an extraordinarily short match at Bloodsport earlier in the day. Jayne, a European, was just in a disgusting deathmatch where a bar dart was pushed through her cheek. Gross. Lena is the 6’1″ Australian who had a match at AEW Collision in Chicago on Thursday, and she also had a taped TNA match this week, too.
They all fought at the bell. Nixi hit a DDT on Jayne. Nixi hit a Russian Leg Sweep for a nearfall. Effy just said this is indeed Nixi’s GCW debut. Lena hit a fallaway slam on Nixi at 1:30, then a side slam for a nearfall, but Jayne made the save. Jayne hit a second-rope crossbody block on Lena for a nearfall, then a baseball slide dropkick through the ropes. Back in the ring, Kai hit a clothesline and a kick on Nixi. Janai hit a Stinger Splash on all three opponents at 4:00.
Three women traded forearm strikes while Janai did her best Raven impression and relaxed, and pouted in the corner. Emersyn hit a Meteora to the back of Lena’s head for a nearfall. Jayne missed a moonsault. Kross immediately clocked her with a running knee. Jayne hit a German Suplex on Nixi. Kross slammed Jayne for a nearfall, but Kai broke it up. Kross powerbombed Janai onto Jayne! Ouch! (I didn’t like how Kai landed high on her neck.) Nixi hit a Lungblower to Kross’s chest. Jayne hit a piledriver along her back on Nixi for the pin. It wasn’t always smooth, but it was non-stop action.
Emersyn Jayne defeated Lena Kross, Nixi XS, and Janai Kai in a four-way at 6:47.
* Another 20-minute break. This show will be well under two hours in length! Glad I wasn’t watching this one live.
5. Bryan Keith vs. Zachary Wentz. If asked for a word to describe Bryan Keith, “Emo” isn’t what comes to mind! Wentz came out second, leapt off the stage, and crashed onto Keith, and I started the stopwatch at first contact, as they brawled through the crowd. An Emo song was still playing in the background. They traded chops. Wentz went to the bar and grabbed two beers! He offered one to Keith, who accepted it, and they drank them and resumed brawling. They still haven’t been in the ring and we still don’t haven’t officially gotten underway.
They got in the ring and the ref signaled for a bell at 2:51, but I didn’t hear it. Keith hit a dropkick to the gut while Wentz was trying a handspring move. They got up and traded chops. Lauderdale and Effy noted how jacked Keith looks. Keith hit an Exploder Suplex at 5:30. Wentz hit a stunner, and they were both down. Wentz hit a German Suplex for a nearfall. They left the ring and got up onto the entrance stage, where Wentz hit a series of Yes Kicks to the chest. This has been really good. Wentz threw Keith off the stage. In a fun spot, he ‘crowd surfed’ over to Keith, grabbed Bryan’s head, and hit a DDT on the floor.
Back in the ring, Wentz hit a Swanton Bomb for a believable nearfall. Keith hit a jumping headbutt in the corner, then a second-rope Exploder Suplex and a running knee to the chest, but Wentz kicked out at one! Wentz hit an enzuigiri. He tried another handspring-back-move again, but Keith hit another leaping headbutt, then a standing powerbomb for a believable nearfall at 9:30 and we got a “This is awesome!” chant. Wentz hit a superkick and a jumping knee. Wentz hit a springboard stunner for the pin. That was a blast.
Zachary Wentz defeated Bryan Keith at 10:24/official time of 7:33.
* Priscilla Kelly came to the ring and passionately kissed Wentz. Keith got back in the ring, and he also kissed Wentz. Zachary acted surprised but also acted like he liked it! Kelly started yelling at him, clearly a bit jealous. Funny, funny post-match segment.
Final thoughts: Yeah this was a really short show, especially if you fast-forward over the band that opened. Both the main event and Kelly-Havok are reasons to tune in. Both the scramble and the women’s four-way were good action but showed some of the unfamiliarity the wrestlers had with each other.
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