By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
wXw held SEVEN shows over three days at their wrestling festival in Turbinenhalle Oberhausen, Germany, between March 5 and March 8, 2026. Three of the shows were the “16 Carat Gold” tournament, which I already reviewed. There is simply no time for me to watch all of the other four shows (10 hours!), so I picked out eleven matches that interested me from three of the shows. These events are available on BOTH TrillerTV+ and IWTV.
Mett Dimassi and Dave Bradshaw provided English commentary.
* I purposely picked out 11 matches that feature nearly all the U.S. talent there, and only one wrestler (Starboy Charlie) is in two matches among them.
Inner Circle 19 (March 5)
This is a really small tavern, and it’s absolutely packed with 300 or so people; this is a different venue than where the 16 Carat Gold shows were held in the following days. Notable this ring appears extra small.
Katsuya Murashima vs. Robert Dreissker. This opened the show (and the weekend of shows!) Murashima was the top of his class in NJPW, and I think this is officially his first match while on excursion. Dreissker is a big, thick guy and a regular here. Murashima wore an ugly red singlet with one strap — he wore this in a different match this weekend. They had an intense lockup and traded chops. Dreissker knocked him down with a shoulder tackle at 2:30, and he hit a bodyslam and a splash to the mat for a nearfall.
The commentator talked about how Yuto-Ice and Oskar spent their excursion here and have returned to NJPW as top-tier stars. Murashima knocked him down with a shoulder tackle at 4:00, and he unloaded some chops. Katsuya hit some rolling sentons for a nearfall. Dreissker hit a second-rope crossbody block for a nearfall, then a snap suplex for a nearfall at 6:00. Murashima hit a suplex that popped the crowd, then a Bulldog Powerslam for a nearfall. Dreissker hit a clothesline. Dreissker hit a fallaway slam, then a Vader Bomb, for the pin. That was really good. Murashima is going to do just fine on excursion here.
Robert Dreissker defeated Katsuya Murashima at 7:52.
“Crush Boys” Starboy Charlie and Titus Alexander vs. “The Grind” Nick Schreier and Laurance Roman. Again, I hadn’t seen much of Titus at all in 2025 as he was working NOAH shows in Japan. Roman and Schreier are the wXw tag champs, but the belts aren’t on the line. Schreier and Charlie opened. Titus and Roman (again, think Karl Anderson!) locked up at 2:00, and Titus hit a dropkick to Roman’s jaw. The Crush Boys hit stereo basement dropkicks, with Charlie getting a nearfall on Laurance.
Schreier hit a series of punches in the corner, with the fans counting along in German, and he got a nearfall on Charlie at 6:30. Charlie hit a double Pele Kick. Titus tagged in and hit a top-rope double crossbody block. He hit a backbreaker over his knee on Roman for a nearfall. Titus hit a stiff kick to Roman’s back, then a second one for a nearfall at 8:30. He hit a back suplex for a nearfall.
Schreier tagged in and hit a tornado DDT on Titus. The Grind hit a spike piledriver for a nearfall at 10:30, but Charlie made the save. Titus nailed a Lethal Injection. Charlie hit a Sasuke Special to the floor! Titus hit a flying knee on Roman for a believable nearfall! Schreier hit a top-rope missile dropkick. The champs hit a team neckbreaker move on Charlie for the pin. That was really, really good.
“The Grind” Nick Schreier and Laurance Roman defeated Starboy Charlie and Titus Alexander at 11:39.
Erick Stevens vs. Luca De Leone. I haven’t seen Luca before. He’s a heel, and the crowd booed him. He has short dark hair, and he doesn’t have Erick’s muscle mass. Erick easily hit a release suplex, then backed Luca into a corner and hit some chops and forearm strikes. The crowd chanted “One more time!” in English, so Erick hit another chop at 1:30. A heel manager grabbed Erick’s feet.
However, Erick dove through the ropes onto both Luca and his manager. He slammed Luca on the apron at 3:00. He hit a clothesline in the corner and a discus forearm strike. The heel manager jumped in, but Stevens hit an Air Raid Crash on him. Stevens then hit a brainbuster on Luca for the pin. That was pretty one-sided, more than I anticipated.
Erick Stevens defeated Luca De Leone at 4:32.
Jane Nero vs. Johnnie Robbie. This was the co-main event. The crowd chanted for Robbie, and it made Nero angry. They locked up and appear to be roughly the same height and weight. Robbie hit some armdrags and got a backslide for a nearfall. She hit a snap suplex at 1:30. Jane hit a neckbreaker out of the ropes for a nearfall. She slammed Johnnie face-first and hit a sliding clothesline. Nero tied her in a full nelson on the mat and kept Robbie grounded.
Robbie hit a Northern Lights Suplex at 5:30. She hit a fisherman’s suplex for a nearfall. Nero hit a DDT, and they were both down. Robbie hit a Meteora in the corner, and she slammed Nero to the mat for a nearfall. Robbie hit a German Suplex, but she missed a Meteora. Nero immediately hit a Matt Hardy-style Twist of Fate for the pin. Really good action; that was a lot of offense in a match that short.
Jane Nero defeated Johnnie Robbie at 8:06.
Dieter Schwartz, Toxin, and Alan Angels vs. Elijah Blum and “Cowboy Way” 1 Called Manders and Elijah Blum. This was the main event. I saw Dieter for the first time this weekend, and he looks a lot like his trainer, Axel Tischer. He opened against the bigger Thomas Shire, and they had an intense exchange and stayed connected. Dieter hit a flying European Uppercut at 2:30, so Shire hit a pop-up European Uppercut! Angels tagged in, as did Blum. Alan hit a dropkick at 4:00, and he planted his knee in Elijah’s throat.
Blum hit his own dropkick. Manders tagged in but jawed at teammate Blum. Angels hit a chop that Manders no-sold. Manders hit a louder chop that dropped Alan. Toxin tagged in at 5:30 to face Manders. The crowd sang to Manders, and that infuriated Toxin. They traded chops. Toxin avoided an Oklahoma Stampede and hit a tornado DDT at 7:30! Nice. Shire got in and beat up Toxin. Angels grabbed Blum’s foot, allowing Toxin to hit a kick and get a nearfall at 9:00. Toxin’s team began working over Blum in their corner.
Toxin tied Blum in a surfboard and cranked back on Elijah’s arms. Angels tagged back in at 11:00 and stomped on Blum. Angels hit a German Suplex for a nearfall. Blum hit a twisting neckbreaker on Alan. Shire got the hot tag at 12:30, and he cleared the ring. He hit a backbreaker over his shoulder on Alan for a nearfall. Alan hit a missile dropkick. Dieter got back in and hit a German Suplex on Shire for a nearfall at 14:00. Toxin hit a Lungblower on Shire. Dieter hit a uranage.
Manders hit a Bulldog Powerslam on Dieter, then a clothesline on Angels, and suddenly everyone was down. Everyone got up and all six brawled. Angels’ team hit stereo superkicks. Angels and Toxin clotheslined Shire to the floor, then they dove on Shire and Manders at 16:30. In the ring, Dieter hit a snap suplex on Blum and a spear into the corner. Blum hit a shotgun dropkick. Manders hit a clothesline on Angels. Blum hit his “Total Depravity” (swinging DVD) to pin Toxin. Manders and Blum glared at each other despite winning the match!
Elijah Blum and “Cowboy Way” 1 Called Manders and Elijah Blum defeated Dieter Schwartz, Toxin, and Alan Angels at 17:34.
* Shire attacked Blum from behind!
Ambition 17 (March 7)
This show was held in the bigger venue where the 16 Carat Gold tournament was held. I know they drew around 1,000 for the tournament shows; not sure if it’s the same for this event, but it certainly looks full.
Kevin Lloyd vs. Joseph “A-Game” Alexander. My first time seeing Lloyd; he is white with short dark hair. A-Game is taller; he peppered Lloyd with some blows to the ribs to open. A-Game still has his shoulder brace on. They traded reversals on the mat early on. Kevin applied a cross-armbreaker, but A-Game fought it off. Joseph nailed a jumping knee at 5:00, then a back suplex, and A-Game was fired up. A-Game hit a German Suplex, then another. Kevin applied a hammerlock out of nowhere, and A-Game tapped out. Solid.
Kevin Lloyd defeated Joseph “A-Game” Alexander at 5:53.
Chihiro Hashimoto vs. Kanji. Kanji is certainly a top-five European female talent; she’s of average size, and I’ll compare her mat skills to Deonna Purrazzo. They immediately tied up on the mat with neither getting much of an advantage. Kanji went to a cross-armbreaker at 3:30. Chihiro hit a standing powerbomb, but Kanji kept it locked on. They got up and traded hard slaps to the face at 6:00. Kanji hit a spin kick to the head, and they were both down.
Kanji hit some hard blows to the back of the head and went to a hammerlock. Hashimoto hit a release German Suplex at 8:30, then more stiff paintbrush slaps to the face. She put Kanji in an ankle lock, and Kanji tapped out. That was really stiff and believable action; my description of the action doesn’t do this justice. The crowd gave Hashimoto a standing ovation, and she bowed to the crowd.
Chihiro Hashimoto defeated Kanji at 9:10.
Minoru Suzuki vs. Danny Jones in an Ambition Superfight. This was the main event. There are no pinfalls; this is a last-man-standing match where you lose if you can’t get to your feet before the 10-count. Jones is several inches taller; he had a handful of NXT-UK matches a few years ago. Standing switches to open, and they fought to the mat. They got up and traded European Uppercuts at 3:30. Suzuki briefly stalled on the floor and tried to get a weapon, but the ref wouldn’t let him bring it into the ring.
In the ring, Jones grapevined the leg at 7:00. They got up and traded chops, and this went on for a bit. Suzuki dropped him with a forearm strike at 9:00. Jones got up, but Suzuki peppered him with punches to the ribs. He applied a sleeper as Jones dropped to his knees. Suzuki hit the Gotch-style piledriver. Jones didn’t get to his feet before the 10-count, so the ref awarded the win to Minoru.
Minoru Suzuki defeated Danny Jones at 10:19.
* Suzuki got on the mic and thanked the German fans.
Independent Wrestling Summit (March 7)
* This event also was in the main venue where all the 16 Carat Gold events were held.
Andrew Cass vs. Starboy Charlie for the West Coast Pro Golden Gate Title. Cass is by far the best rookie in his training class, and I’ve loosely compared him to Jordan Oliver. Standing switches to open. Cass hit a huracanrana at 2:30 and a flying leg lariat for a nearfall. Charlie hit a backbreaker over his knee, and he tied Cass’ arms behind his back.
Charlie hit a basement dropkick for a nearfall at 5:00, and he kept Cass grounded. Cass hit a running Samoan Drop for a nearfall at 7:00. Charlie hit a Pele Kick in the corner, then a Sasuke Special dive to the floor! In the ring, he missed the Shooting Starboy Press. They traded rollups, and Cass got a flash rollup for the clean pin! Good action while it lasted.
Andrew Cass defeated Starboy Charlie to retain the WCPW Golden Gate Title at 8:13.
Nico Angelo vs. Gabriel Fuerza. Fuerza is a regular at C*4 Wrestling in Canada, making his Germany debut, and Nico is a regular in Progress Wrestling in England. They immediately brawled, and Fuerza hit a baseball slide dropkick through the ropes. In the ring, Nico hit an armdrag and tied up Fuerza on the mat. Fuerza hit an armdrag and a dropkick. Nico hit a rolling DVD for a nearfall at 3:00. He hit several chops and was in charge. He hit a bodyslam for a nearfall at 5:00.
They brawled to the floor. Fuerza threw Angelo into the rows of chairs at 7:30. In the ring, Fuerza hit a second-rope superplex and tied Nico in an ankle lock. Nico hit some Buzzsaw kicks. Fuerza applied a half-crab and stomped on Nico’s head! Nico reached the ropes at 9:00. Angelo hit a piledriver along his back on the ring apron, then a top-rope elbow drop in the ring for a nearfall at 11:00.
Fuerza hit a Lethal Injection and a standing Shooting Star Press for a nearfall. Nico put Gabriel on his back and slammed him into the corner. Fuerza hit an enzuigiri in the corner. Angelo hit some running knees, but Fuerza hit a mid-ring Spanish Fly at 14:00, and they were both down, and we got a “This is awesome!” chant. They got up and traded forearm strikes. Fuerza kicked him in the jaw and went for another Lethal Injection, but Nico turned it into a German Suplex. Nico immediately hit a modified powerbomb move for the pin. That was really good and notable.
Nico Angelo defeated Gabriel Fuerza at 15:16.
Jay Joshua vs. Joe Lando. Jay is a big man, and he wore the UK’s Rev Pro title around his neck. Lando is a short, talented high-flyer, so this is quite the size differential. Lando put his arms around Jay’s waist, but Joshua just brushed him off. Joe hit a basement dropkick, then a huracanrana at 2:00. Jay hit a powerslam and a senton. He hit a gutwrench suplex, tossing Lando across the ring at 4:00, then a spinning back suplex for a nearfall. Lando hit a DDT.
Lando hit a German Suplex and a running leg lariat in the corner and a dropkick, then a running Shooting Star Press for a nearfall at 7:00. Jay hit a powerslam and a senton, then a sliding clothesline for a nearfall. Jay hit a thudding headbutt. Lando hit a superkick at 10:30 and a Pele Kick, then a stunner, and they were both down. Lando hit a Falcon Arrow for a nearfall at 12:00. Jay hit a wheelbarrow German Suplex and a sit-out powerbomb for a nearfall.
Joshua hit a clothesline into the corner and set up for a Muscle Buster, but Lando escaped and hit a Canadian Destroyer. Lando dove over the ropes and turned it into a DDT on the floor at 14:00. In the ring, Lando hit a top-rope corkscrew senton for a nearfall. Jay hit another headbutt and a running clothesline for a nearfall, then a sit-out piledriver for the pin. A really good match, and they also got a standing ovation.
Jay Joshua defeated Joe Lando at 15:19.
Final Thoughts: These shows from Germany were all soooo good. What a great setting, great atmosphere, hot crowds, and awesome wrestling. I’ll reiterate that all the shows had English commentary. If you aren’t familiar with the Crush Boys, check out their match against The Grind. I really liked the final two matches of these 11. Kanji-Hashimoto was really good, too.
My only complaint here is that I don’t want to see a match that could have happened in California take place here. Cass and Charlie are undoubtedly regular training partners and could have done that match anywhere. I’d much rather see them face someone here that they might never see in the ring again — to me, that’s the whole point of these international wrestling festivals.
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