Post by lgoodman on Jun 10, 2007 16:51:57 GMT -5
Great Championship Wrestling returned to action at the Gr8 Sk8 Plex Saturday night with a show that was beyond disappointing.
This show was an abomination, easily the worst show I’ve attended in 2007. With tickets going for $12 and $15, it was complete ripoff. Coming off consecutive crowds in the 200 range, their best showing at the boxoffice since the move to Phenix City, attendance was down to 85. And they certainly did themselves no favors with those diehards last night. The overall talent level had plummeted to an all time low. The booking gave the people nothing to sink their teeth into and almost no reason to come back.
Of late, GCW has been going with a unique way of promoting shows, where they usually don’t reveal the card in advance - not at the live shows , not on the posters (they have a generic poster that lists Raven and Shark Boy in the “legends” section), and not on their website, which gets updated once in a blue moon. Nothing was put out in advance for last night beyond A) Raven would be there B) Scotty Beach was the new champion and C) there would be a cruiserweight tournament match.
Ring announcer Billy Roper advised the crowd to stick around for the main event because Raven was getting a title shot. Why Roper revealed this instead of the new commissioner, is another one of those mind boggling mystery about GCW.
(1) Death Row beat Tony Santarelli in 3:13. This match was over before they really got out of the blocks. The man from The Institute for the Criminally Insane showed amazing command of his faculties as he focused his attack on Santarelli’s leg. Santarelli either suffered a groin injury or took a look a the crowd and said f*** this. Death Row won out of nowhere with a quick kick to the face. Too bad. It was a fresh match up, and even with the extra poundage, Santarelli is one of the best wrestlers they have.
Death Row’s keeper was able to inject tranquilizer into his neck. But Death Row fought him off and wobbled back to the dressing room. They do some variation on this perversely entertaining theme every week.
Roper introduced former GCW Heavyweight Champion Johnny Swinger and the CEO of Michaels Incorporated, Quentin Michaels, Esq. The mic work here was the highlight of the first half. Fans chanted “where’s your belt?” at Swinger. Michaels said Swinger’s loss to Scotty Beach was the greatest injustice of all time. “Not in GCW, not in the sport of pro wrestling, but of all time.” Michaels said Swinger was forced into the steel cage (by Commissioner Bo Oates) and robbed of what was rightfully his. Michaels said Swinger was there despite a broken jaw (his jaw was swollen up legit) because of the kind of man he was. Michaels vowed that Swinger would correct the injustice.
Raven came out and made fun of Swinger’s injury. He likened Swinger to a school girl whining about a skinned knee. Raven said the only reason Swinger had the belt was because he wasn’t there and said that was Swinger’s doing. Raven said he would beat Beach and then he was going to beat Swinger into oblivion. Michaels said Swinger couldn’t respond to Raven’s ludicrous accusations because of his injury. Raven said Swinger couldn’t cut a promo worth a crap anyway. “Why don’t you give him mouth to mouth resuscitation? Not that there’s anything wrong with that.”
Swinger called out Commissioner Oates and asked him to do what was right for the business. Swinger said that since he was in no condition to wrestle and didn’t want to go against doctor’s orders, Oates should award him the belt, and he would wrestle the winner of Beach/Raven next week. Oates said no way. The official had ruled that Beach was the first man out of the cage, so he was the champion, and if Swinger wanted a title shot, he needed to get medical clearance. Michaels started to get physical, and Oates told him to lay off. Oates pointed out that Raven lost the title without being pinned or submitted. He named Raven as the number one contender and made Swinger number two. Raven said Swinger should be number four or five, and should have to go through Voodoo Doctor or something to get a shot.
Beach entered for the first time since winning the title to the sound of the Beach Boys’ “Kokomo.” He’s fine as a midcard guy, but a heavyweight champion? Swinger told Beach he would get his next week. Raven said, “What if I win?” With that, Raven smoked Beach with the Raven Effect. Raven said the crowd was down because nobody cared about Beach, and Kokomo was the worst song ever. He hit Beach with the belt and then choked him with it. “I’m not going to take it now, cuz I’m gonna take it later. Quote the Raven, nevermore.”
(2) Randall Johnson beat Chris Serra in 4:37. The crowd noted that poor Serra had a woody. Serra literally got off to a flying start. Johnson offered a phony handshake, and Serra responded with some crappy arm drags. Serra tried to milk the crowd for a pop and was met with dead silence. I hate it when guys beg for a pop, but at least do it after a good move. Johnson worked over Serra’s gut, using a spear and an abdominal stretch. Serra hit a flippy reverse DDT for the double down spot. Serra launched the comeback with an enzuigiri. The end came when Johnson rolled out from under Serra’s moonsault and pinned him with his feet on the ropes. Johnson has improved a ton since his early NWA Anarchy appearances.
Death Row staggered down to ringside. Johnson’s begging was of no use. Death Row laid out both Johnson and Serra. He wasn’t all that aggressive or devastating, but you have to give the big guy credit for overcoming the effects of an IV sedative.
(3) Wade Koverly pinned Craig Classic at 7:32 to advance in the Cruiserweight Title Tournament. The crowd was split on this match. They either hated it or didn’t give a rat’s ass. Nobody was buying these guys as legit pro wrestlers. A fan in the first row came up with an appropriate mantra for this match - “little people, big world”- there was zero that was larger than life about either one of them. They’re both based in South Florida, where Koverly is one half of the team known as the Lifeguards. Classic looks a bit like an underdeveloped kiddie version of Chris Benoit. He used a diving headbutt for a near fall. Classic hit a Blue Thunder Bomb for his big near fall. Koverly hit a tornado DDT and won it with a slingshot legdrop.
I was up for a road trip this weekend. It was between GCW, Dropkick Pro Wrestling in Macon, and the Wrestle Birmingham show in Graysville. I got the sinking feeling that I had made the wrong choice.
(4) John Bogie beat Keith Blonde in 4:10. You know you’re short on babyface draws when Bogie’s lame 80’s “Miami Vice” gimmick was as over as anything on the show. Faint praise for sure. I have no idea where Bond came from, and I doubt he will be back. He looked like a nondescript nobody. Seeing the scar on Bond’s abdomen, a cold-blooded fan in the first row said he sold his kidney on E-Bay. Anatomically incorrect, but funny nevertheless. Bond landed a jumping forearm to the face at the opening bell. Bogie stormed back with a flurry of offense and botched a nip up. Bond’s comeback prompted a fan to shout “girl’s gone wild.” When Bond dropped Bogie on a side slam, the crowd was all over him. Bogie caught fire. It was lariat city. Bogie scored the pin after a brainbuster suplex. That made it four lousy matches in a row.
(5) “The Obsession” Caleb Konley (with Melissa Coates) beat Andrew Pendleton III in 7 minutes. [/b]This was the best match of the show. By way of comparison, it would have been an average match at Anarchy. Konley has strong heel charisma. If he only he had more size. Pendleton was pressed into service as a babyface replacement for no-show Chris Stevens. He’s better suited to being a heel, but the crowd took to him after a nice series of arm drags. They were probably desperate for something to cheer about at this point. Coates snapped Pendleton’s neck off the top rope to turn the tide. Coates is in her element as a heel valet, because she’s got great facial expressions and believable physical power to beat up the babyface wrestler. Konley scored a series of near falls and almost had the three count with a neckbreaker. Pendleton rallied with a Spinesplitta, but Konley rolled a shoulder. Konley used a cool rolling leg grapevine cradle. Pendleton countered Konley’s wheelbarrow with a sitout facebuster for a near fall. Konley got the pinfall with a unique cutthroat skullcracker called the Homewrecker.
(6) Scotty Beach beat Raven to retain the GCW Heavyweight Title in 11:02. Raven said the only fans cheering Beach had were underage girls (true), and he was going to beat him down again. He said Beach was a low life scum and a Dusty Rhodes (?) wannabe. Raven caught Beach off guard with a kick to the gut. It’s almost never a good idea to make the babyface look stupid, and that made it twice on the same show for Beach to get suckered. Beach worked on Raven’s arm. Raven nailed Beach with some stiff kicks. Raven used a diving headbutt to the nutsack. Raven choked Beach with his boot while complaining to ref Scrappy McGowan about his arm. Raven was getting heat from the girls. They battled outside the ring. Raven tossed Beach over the rail, and Beach took a rude bump on the carpet that covers the skating rink. Raven brought a chair in. He said it was Raven’s Rules. McGowan said no dice. Raven slammed Beach’s head into the chair and asked if that was not OK. McGowan said it wasn’t. “What about this?” said Raven, as he went to blast Beach with the chair. McGowan took it away. Beach blocked a superkick and spun Raven around into a lariat. It reads a lot better than it looked. Beach bounced Raven’s head off the turnbuckles, three to each turnbuckle and then one into the mat. Beach went up top, but Raven shook the ropes to crotch him and hit a hanging DDT for a near fall. McGowan got bumped. Raven ordered production guy Eddie Phillips to bring him the belt. Phillips did as he was told. Beach ducked the belt shot and clocked Raven with the belt to get the 1-2-3. It had some entertaining moments, but precious little in the way of good wrestling for a main event title match.
Swinger hit the ring with a pool cue while Michaels sauntered down to ringside. Swinger did a number on Beach with the cue. Raven intervened. Then Raven blasted Beach. Raven shook hands with Michaels. Raven put Beach in the ankle lock, while Swinger was grinding the cue into his face. Michaels said he warned Beach not to mess with Michaels Inc. Swinger placed the belt over Beach’s crotch and whacked it with the pool cue. Michaels warned owner Diane Hewes to stay in her office and keep her mouth shut. He pregnant dog slapped Beach and told him to take his beatings like a man. Raven said he was going to stick Beach’s head in the sand. The segment got some heat, but it dragged on too long.
The show closed with the aforementioned underage girls chanting for Beach as he was helped to the back.
NOTES: If Konley doesn’t make it in pro wrestling, it won’t be for a lack of desire. After starting his weekend in Royston, Ga for APW Friday night, Konley worked two matches on an afternoon show in Newnan on his way to Phoenix City. From there, he was headed to Nashville for a Sunday afternoon TV taping for SAW…GCW returns to action next Saturday with Swinger vs. Beach and God only knows what else…The Gr8 Sk8 Plex is open six days a week for matinee roller skating during the summer months, along with evening hours on Tuesdays, Wednesday and Fridays, with Friday night being by far their best draw.
This show was an abomination, easily the worst show I’ve attended in 2007. With tickets going for $12 and $15, it was complete ripoff. Coming off consecutive crowds in the 200 range, their best showing at the boxoffice since the move to Phenix City, attendance was down to 85. And they certainly did themselves no favors with those diehards last night. The overall talent level had plummeted to an all time low. The booking gave the people nothing to sink their teeth into and almost no reason to come back.
Of late, GCW has been going with a unique way of promoting shows, where they usually don’t reveal the card in advance - not at the live shows , not on the posters (they have a generic poster that lists Raven and Shark Boy in the “legends” section), and not on their website, which gets updated once in a blue moon. Nothing was put out in advance for last night beyond A) Raven would be there B) Scotty Beach was the new champion and C) there would be a cruiserweight tournament match.
Ring announcer Billy Roper advised the crowd to stick around for the main event because Raven was getting a title shot. Why Roper revealed this instead of the new commissioner, is another one of those mind boggling mystery about GCW.
(1) Death Row beat Tony Santarelli in 3:13. This match was over before they really got out of the blocks. The man from The Institute for the Criminally Insane showed amazing command of his faculties as he focused his attack on Santarelli’s leg. Santarelli either suffered a groin injury or took a look a the crowd and said f*** this. Death Row won out of nowhere with a quick kick to the face. Too bad. It was a fresh match up, and even with the extra poundage, Santarelli is one of the best wrestlers they have.
Death Row’s keeper was able to inject tranquilizer into his neck. But Death Row fought him off and wobbled back to the dressing room. They do some variation on this perversely entertaining theme every week.
Roper introduced former GCW Heavyweight Champion Johnny Swinger and the CEO of Michaels Incorporated, Quentin Michaels, Esq. The mic work here was the highlight of the first half. Fans chanted “where’s your belt?” at Swinger. Michaels said Swinger’s loss to Scotty Beach was the greatest injustice of all time. “Not in GCW, not in the sport of pro wrestling, but of all time.” Michaels said Swinger was forced into the steel cage (by Commissioner Bo Oates) and robbed of what was rightfully his. Michaels said Swinger was there despite a broken jaw (his jaw was swollen up legit) because of the kind of man he was. Michaels vowed that Swinger would correct the injustice.
Raven came out and made fun of Swinger’s injury. He likened Swinger to a school girl whining about a skinned knee. Raven said the only reason Swinger had the belt was because he wasn’t there and said that was Swinger’s doing. Raven said he would beat Beach and then he was going to beat Swinger into oblivion. Michaels said Swinger couldn’t respond to Raven’s ludicrous accusations because of his injury. Raven said Swinger couldn’t cut a promo worth a crap anyway. “Why don’t you give him mouth to mouth resuscitation? Not that there’s anything wrong with that.”
Swinger called out Commissioner Oates and asked him to do what was right for the business. Swinger said that since he was in no condition to wrestle and didn’t want to go against doctor’s orders, Oates should award him the belt, and he would wrestle the winner of Beach/Raven next week. Oates said no way. The official had ruled that Beach was the first man out of the cage, so he was the champion, and if Swinger wanted a title shot, he needed to get medical clearance. Michaels started to get physical, and Oates told him to lay off. Oates pointed out that Raven lost the title without being pinned or submitted. He named Raven as the number one contender and made Swinger number two. Raven said Swinger should be number four or five, and should have to go through Voodoo Doctor or something to get a shot.
Beach entered for the first time since winning the title to the sound of the Beach Boys’ “Kokomo.” He’s fine as a midcard guy, but a heavyweight champion? Swinger told Beach he would get his next week. Raven said, “What if I win?” With that, Raven smoked Beach with the Raven Effect. Raven said the crowd was down because nobody cared about Beach, and Kokomo was the worst song ever. He hit Beach with the belt and then choked him with it. “I’m not going to take it now, cuz I’m gonna take it later. Quote the Raven, nevermore.”
(2) Randall Johnson beat Chris Serra in 4:37. The crowd noted that poor Serra had a woody. Serra literally got off to a flying start. Johnson offered a phony handshake, and Serra responded with some crappy arm drags. Serra tried to milk the crowd for a pop and was met with dead silence. I hate it when guys beg for a pop, but at least do it after a good move. Johnson worked over Serra’s gut, using a spear and an abdominal stretch. Serra hit a flippy reverse DDT for the double down spot. Serra launched the comeback with an enzuigiri. The end came when Johnson rolled out from under Serra’s moonsault and pinned him with his feet on the ropes. Johnson has improved a ton since his early NWA Anarchy appearances.
Death Row staggered down to ringside. Johnson’s begging was of no use. Death Row laid out both Johnson and Serra. He wasn’t all that aggressive or devastating, but you have to give the big guy credit for overcoming the effects of an IV sedative.
(3) Wade Koverly pinned Craig Classic at 7:32 to advance in the Cruiserweight Title Tournament. The crowd was split on this match. They either hated it or didn’t give a rat’s ass. Nobody was buying these guys as legit pro wrestlers. A fan in the first row came up with an appropriate mantra for this match - “little people, big world”- there was zero that was larger than life about either one of them. They’re both based in South Florida, where Koverly is one half of the team known as the Lifeguards. Classic looks a bit like an underdeveloped kiddie version of Chris Benoit. He used a diving headbutt for a near fall. Classic hit a Blue Thunder Bomb for his big near fall. Koverly hit a tornado DDT and won it with a slingshot legdrop.
I was up for a road trip this weekend. It was between GCW, Dropkick Pro Wrestling in Macon, and the Wrestle Birmingham show in Graysville. I got the sinking feeling that I had made the wrong choice.
(4) John Bogie beat Keith Blonde in 4:10. You know you’re short on babyface draws when Bogie’s lame 80’s “Miami Vice” gimmick was as over as anything on the show. Faint praise for sure. I have no idea where Bond came from, and I doubt he will be back. He looked like a nondescript nobody. Seeing the scar on Bond’s abdomen, a cold-blooded fan in the first row said he sold his kidney on E-Bay. Anatomically incorrect, but funny nevertheless. Bond landed a jumping forearm to the face at the opening bell. Bogie stormed back with a flurry of offense and botched a nip up. Bond’s comeback prompted a fan to shout “girl’s gone wild.” When Bond dropped Bogie on a side slam, the crowd was all over him. Bogie caught fire. It was lariat city. Bogie scored the pin after a brainbuster suplex. That made it four lousy matches in a row.
(5) “The Obsession” Caleb Konley (with Melissa Coates) beat Andrew Pendleton III in 7 minutes. [/b]This was the best match of the show. By way of comparison, it would have been an average match at Anarchy. Konley has strong heel charisma. If he only he had more size. Pendleton was pressed into service as a babyface replacement for no-show Chris Stevens. He’s better suited to being a heel, but the crowd took to him after a nice series of arm drags. They were probably desperate for something to cheer about at this point. Coates snapped Pendleton’s neck off the top rope to turn the tide. Coates is in her element as a heel valet, because she’s got great facial expressions and believable physical power to beat up the babyface wrestler. Konley scored a series of near falls and almost had the three count with a neckbreaker. Pendleton rallied with a Spinesplitta, but Konley rolled a shoulder. Konley used a cool rolling leg grapevine cradle. Pendleton countered Konley’s wheelbarrow with a sitout facebuster for a near fall. Konley got the pinfall with a unique cutthroat skullcracker called the Homewrecker.
(6) Scotty Beach beat Raven to retain the GCW Heavyweight Title in 11:02. Raven said the only fans cheering Beach had were underage girls (true), and he was going to beat him down again. He said Beach was a low life scum and a Dusty Rhodes (?) wannabe. Raven caught Beach off guard with a kick to the gut. It’s almost never a good idea to make the babyface look stupid, and that made it twice on the same show for Beach to get suckered. Beach worked on Raven’s arm. Raven nailed Beach with some stiff kicks. Raven used a diving headbutt to the nutsack. Raven choked Beach with his boot while complaining to ref Scrappy McGowan about his arm. Raven was getting heat from the girls. They battled outside the ring. Raven tossed Beach over the rail, and Beach took a rude bump on the carpet that covers the skating rink. Raven brought a chair in. He said it was Raven’s Rules. McGowan said no dice. Raven slammed Beach’s head into the chair and asked if that was not OK. McGowan said it wasn’t. “What about this?” said Raven, as he went to blast Beach with the chair. McGowan took it away. Beach blocked a superkick and spun Raven around into a lariat. It reads a lot better than it looked. Beach bounced Raven’s head off the turnbuckles, three to each turnbuckle and then one into the mat. Beach went up top, but Raven shook the ropes to crotch him and hit a hanging DDT for a near fall. McGowan got bumped. Raven ordered production guy Eddie Phillips to bring him the belt. Phillips did as he was told. Beach ducked the belt shot and clocked Raven with the belt to get the 1-2-3. It had some entertaining moments, but precious little in the way of good wrestling for a main event title match.
Swinger hit the ring with a pool cue while Michaels sauntered down to ringside. Swinger did a number on Beach with the cue. Raven intervened. Then Raven blasted Beach. Raven shook hands with Michaels. Raven put Beach in the ankle lock, while Swinger was grinding the cue into his face. Michaels said he warned Beach not to mess with Michaels Inc. Swinger placed the belt over Beach’s crotch and whacked it with the pool cue. Michaels warned owner Diane Hewes to stay in her office and keep her mouth shut. He pregnant dog slapped Beach and told him to take his beatings like a man. Raven said he was going to stick Beach’s head in the sand. The segment got some heat, but it dragged on too long.
The show closed with the aforementioned underage girls chanting for Beach as he was helped to the back.
NOTES: If Konley doesn’t make it in pro wrestling, it won’t be for a lack of desire. After starting his weekend in Royston, Ga for APW Friday night, Konley worked two matches on an afternoon show in Newnan on his way to Phoenix City. From there, he was headed to Nashville for a Sunday afternoon TV taping for SAW…GCW returns to action next Saturday with Swinger vs. Beach and God only knows what else…The Gr8 Sk8 Plex is open six days a week for matinee roller skating during the summer months, along with evening hours on Tuesdays, Wednesday and Fridays, with Friday night being by far their best draw.