By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
GCW “Express Lane”
May 1, 2026, in Joppa, Maryland, at the RJ Meyer Arena
Streamed live on TrillerTV+
The venue is a dark room with a fairly low ceiling. They had lights set up over the ring. There were guardrails! (I think they are required in Maryland.) Veda Scott and John Mosely provided commentary. Google Maps shows that Joppatowne is just northeast of the Baltimore metro area.
* The show opened with a video package of highlights from the Collective events in Las Vegas.
1. “The Heavenly Assassins” Alex Divine and Chris Slade vs. Gringo Loco and Vengador. My first time seeing the Assassins, they are young, Black men. Loco was on Thursday’s ROH taped show. I’ll reiterate that Vengador’s size/build always makes me think of WCW’s La Parka — he’s not a tiny luchador. He opened against Slade, who’s long dreadlocks are a light brown. Slade hit a neckbreaker on Loco. Vengador hit some loud chops on Divine, who also has long curly hair. Vengador hit a running Penalty Kick for a nearfall at 3:00. Slade fired up and hit some chops on Vengador. Vengador hit a spear.
Loco pulled Slade off the apron so he couldn’t tag in. Divine hit a top-rope twisting splash onto Loco and Vengador, and they were all down. Slade got the hot tag at 6:30, and he hit some kicks on Loco. Vengador entered and hit a superkick on Slade. Slade hit a Sunset Flip Bomb for a nearfall, then a frog splash for a nearfall, but Loco made the save. Loco hit a top-rope Spanish Fly on Divine. Vengador hit a Lethal Injection on Slade. Loco hit a powerbomb on Divine. Vengador hit a piledriver on Divine, with Loco making the cover for the pin. Good action.
Gringo Loco and Vengador defeated “The Heavenly Assassins” Alex Divine and Chris Slade at 9:49.
2. Myles Hawkins and “Post Game” Mike Walker and Vinny Talotta (w/Amy Rose) vs. BK Westbrook and “Flyin” Ryan O’Neill and Juni Underwood. I’ve only seen Myles once or twice. I’ve noted before that BK always reminds me of a heel Adam Cole. Veda went through some of BK’s background (Veda called his matches in the now-defunct Deadlock Pro). Juni and Hawkins opened and traded basic reversals. Hawkins hit a dropkick. Walker entered and hit some chops on Juni. BK entered at 1:30 and hit some clotheslines. Juni’s team worked over Walker in their corner.
O’Neill hit a Jeff Hardy-style Poetry in Motion. BK hit a Lionsault for a nearfall at 3:00. Vinny got in and stomped on BK, then hit a stiff European Uppercut, and he put Westbrook in a Torture Rack. Juni tagged back in at 4:30 to battle Vinny, and he hit a half-nelson suplex. Amy Rose hopped on the apron to provide a distraction, as the Post Game team kept Juni trapped in their corner. Hawkins hit a mid-ring Spanish Fly on Juni, then a Lionsault for a nearfall at 6:00. Vinny tied up Juni on the mat. O’Neill got a hot tag, and he cleared the ring.
O’Neill hit a dive to the floor, then a top-rope crossbody block on Walker in the ring at 8:00. Ryan hit a team Blockbuster move for a nearfall, but Talotta made the save. BK hit a suplex. Juni hit a brainbuster. Walker hit a suplex. O’Neill hit a spin kick to Walker’s head. They did the triple suplex spot with everyone down at 10:00. Four guys got up, hit stereo suplexes, and everyone was down again. This has been pretty entertaining! Talotta hit a swinging uranage on BK. Hawkins hit a top-rope flying elbow drop to pin Westbrook. Fun match.
Myles Hawkins and “Post Game” Mike Walker and Vinny Talotta defeated BK Westbrook and “Flyin” Ryan O’Neill and Juni Underwood at 11:13.
3. Vipress vs. Kerry Morton in a street fight. Weapons were set up in the ring. Morton came out to Poison’s “Nothin’ But A Good Time,” which automatically makes him a babyface, right? Kerry had a pretty decent hardcore intergender match in Las Vegas against Mickie Knuckles. (He’s cocky and demeaning to women, making him a good heel choice for this type of match. He got on the mic, but the crowd chanted profanities at him. He demanded that the weapons be removed from the ring. “I’m going to show you what it’s like to whoop a woman’s ass,” he said (Almost the same heel promo he cut before that Knuckles match.)
We got the bell, but he ducked to the floor, and she raced after him. He stomped on her as they entered the ring and got booed. Vipress dove through the ropes onto him at 1:30. He sat her in a chair and hit a knee strike to the chest, and he was in charge. He hit some chops in the corner at 4:00. Vipress fired up and hit her own series of chops. Kerry hit a back suplex for a nearfall. Some boards were placed in opposite corners. They fought on the ropes in the corner, and Kerry hit a second-rope superplex at 6:30, but Vipress popped to her feet!
The crowd chanted, “You f—ed up!” at Kerry, as Vipress hit some punches and a rolling DVD into a corner, then a fisherman’s powerbomb for a nearfall. The ref got bumped against a door in the corner (it didn’t break.) Kerry hit a low-blow uppercut that she completely no-sold, so he tried again. “That’s not how any of that works,” Mosely said. She threw Kerry to the mat, took off her own belt, and spanked Kerry over her knee at 9:00, and the crowd loved that. Vipress speared him through a door!
The ref got up but pointed at Vipress and blamed her for bumping into him, and he called for the bell! (This promotion is not supposed to have DQs!) The crowd loudly booed that decision. Kerry got on the mic and called her a “dumb bitch.” Ring announcer Emil Jay said the referee wants to see a replay of the bump! It aired, but Kerry shouted, “That’s A.I.!” The ref told Emil Jay he had reversed his decision! Kerry threw a temper tantrum in the ring, and the crowd taunted him.
Vipress defeated Kerry Morton via disqualification at 9:37.
4. 1 Called Manders vs. Bojack. Manders has the brass ring around his neck that grants him a match of his choosing, and he’s cashing it in at a show in Des Moines in a couple of weeks. Bojack is the 350-pound beast who was also a regular in Deadlock Pro (and has teamed with BK Westbrook in the past). I’m really looking forward to this one, as it should be hard-hitting! An intense lockup to open, and Veda noted there aren’t many people who can throw around Manders as Bojack can. Bojack hit a shoulder block, but Manders stayed on his feet.
They brawled to the floor at 3:00 with Bojack hitting some chops. Manders fired back with some chops of his own. In the ring, Bojack hit a bodyslam, then a massive senton at 5:30! OUCH! He eventually got a nearfall. Bojack hit a fallaway slam and was dominating. They traded more chops, and Bojack hit another bodyslam. He went for another senton, but Manders moved, but Bojack still splashed him. Manders finally hit a DDT at 9:00, and they were both down. Manders hit a German Suplex for a nearfall, but he missed a moonsault.
Bojack climbed the ropes, and the crowd gasped, but Bojack missed a frog splash and crashed to the mat. They got to their knees and traded chops and forearm strikes, and more while standing. Manders hit a clothesline. Bojack hit a hard clothesline for a nearfall, then a sit-out powerbomb for a nearfall at 12:30. From the corner, Manders hit a Bulldog Powerslam but only got a one-count! Manders hit a series of clotheslines to finally drop Bojack for the pin. Sharp, hard-hitting match. They shook hands, and the crowd chanted, “Both these guys!”
1 Called Manders defeated Bojack at 13:49.
5. Ken Dixon vs. Joey Janela. Dixon appeared in ROH a few times at the end of the Sinclair era; he is looking a lot like Doc Gallows (shiny bald head and long, long beard) but shorter, and with a better physique. Joey is still getting booed coming off his feud with Brodie Lee Jr., and he stalled on the floor at the bell. Standing switches in the ring, and Dixon hit a shoulder tackle and a bodyslam, so Joey rolled to the floor again at 3:00. Dixon followed and chopped Joey on the floor as they looped the ring.
In the ring, they traded chops at 5:00. Janela hit a back suplex, but Dixon hit a series of clotheslines, then a powerslam for a nearfall at 6:30. Joey hit a Death Valley Driver onto the ring apron, and Dixon collapsed to the floor. In the ring, Joey hit a superkick and a snap Dragon Suplex. He hit a second Dragon Suplex for a nearfall at 8:30. They hit stereo discus forearm strikes, and both went down. They got up and traded forearm strikes. Janela hit a clothesline for a nearfall, then a brainbuster for a nearfall at 10:30.
Joey slid some chairs into the ring. He hit a senton onto a chair on Dixon’s chest. Dixon hit a piledriver onto an open chair for a nearfall at 14:00. Joey hit a running stunner. Ken ran Joey back-first through a board in the corner for a nearfall. Joey cracked door debris over Ken’s head. They traded forearm strikes, and Joey hit a DVD onto an open chair! He hit another one for the pin. Solid brawl.
Joey Janela defeated Ken Dixon at 15:39.
6. Greg Excellent vs. “Sturdy” Sal Mistretta. I’ve seen Greg before; his white beard indicates he might be in his early 50s, and he’s quite rotund. (Yikes, his cagematch.net bio says he’s 43!) Sal has appeared on several shows lately; he wears a letterman jacket and carries a football. Sal tried a football tackle, but he’s shorter and much lighter, and Greg didn’t budge. Sal finally hit one that leveled Greg, then a senton for a nearfall at 3:00.
They did some comedy with Sal chasing the football. Greg hit a Black Hole Slam for a nearfall at 4:30; I hoped that was the finish. Sal flipped the ball to Greg and speared him for a nearfall. Ugh, this is bad. Sal hit a Spinebuster. He missed a spear and crashed into the corner. Greg removed his singlet and wore tiny trunks. He hit a rolling cannonball into the corner for the pin. Ugly, ugly match — feel free to fast-forward over this one.
Greg Excellent defeated Sal Mistretta at 6:52.
7. Ruckus and Don Freeze and Ricky Morton vs. KJ Orso and “VNDL 48” Atticus Cogar and Christian Napier. I genuinely don’t understand using Ricky Morton in 2026. KJ’s heel team attacked, and all six brawled. The babyfaces hit stereo back-body drops, and the heels scampered to the floor to regroup. In the ring, Napier hit a back suplex on Ruckus for a nearfall. Atticus (who brought his title with him to the ring) entered and tied up Ruckus’ left arm.
Freeze entered at 3:30 and hit an enzuigiri, then a spear into the corner on Cogar. Orso hit a suplex for a nearfall, and the heels worked Don over. Napier stomped on Don’s elbow at 5:30. The heels worked Freeze over for several minutes. Don finally hit a Spanish Fly on Napier at 8:00, and they were both down. Ricky Morton got the hot tag and hit some punches and clotheslines.
Freeze missed a moonsault. Atticus hit a Lionsault. VNDL 48 and KJ began arguing! They shoved each other! KJ picked up Atticus’s belt. He accidentally hit Napier! Ruckus made KJ and Atticus collide! Morton hit his Canadian Destroyer, and he covered KJ for the pin. A dull, basic match, but we got the intrigue at the end with the heels unable to get along.
Ruckus, Don Freeze, and Ricky Morton defeated KJ Orso and “VNDL 48” Atticus Cogar and Christian Napier at 10:45.
8. Jimmy Lloyd, Lil Sicko, and Nino Extremo vs. Matt Tremont and “The Rejects” Reed Bentley and John Wayne Murdoch. No interest in this match, so I’ll pass entirely. Murdoch hit a brainbuster onto an open chair to pin Lloyd.
Matt Tremont and “The Rejects” Reed Bentley and John Wayne Murdoch defeated Jimmy Lloyd, Lil Sicko, and Nino Extremo at 17:40.
Final Thoughts: An uneven show — Alec Price, Jordan Oliver, and Marcus Mathers were sorely missed from the top of the card. (The ad for this show has a picture of the absent Alec Price.) Manders-Bojack was far and away the best match of the show. The crowd was hot and into it, and it was a good brawl. Manders has been on fire for a year, and I’m eager for his title match later this month. The Juni Underwood six-man tag early in the show takes second, and I’ll go with the Loco/Vengador tag opener for third.
Kerry Morton is one of those heels who is uniquely ideal to take on women, dominate the match, but ultimately lose. However, I cringe when a referee introduces “checking the replay,” because you just can’t be consistent with that. Sometimes, a heel just needs to win via cheating, and the fans and babyface can rightly say, “Why did we have replay in one match but not another??” Likewise, it’s just bad form to have a DQ in a promotion that boasts they don’t have DQs.
Some stuff here I didn’t like, though. GCW has become a super-indy with shows held now in more than 30 states, but Atticus isn’t presented at all like a champion. Just like in Las Vegas, he’s an afterthought on the show and looks nothing like a champion. The title change to Manders on May 17 cannot come soon enough.
We are officially one-third of the way through the year, and the Greg Excellent-Sal Mistretta match is easily in the 10 worst GCW matches of the year so far, and I’ll just leave it at that.
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