PWG All-Star Weekend Night Two 4/21/2018

PWG World Tag Team Champions The Rascalz defend their newly won titles against Violence Unlimited. PWG World Champion Keith Lee defends against Walter and Jonah Rock in a triple threat match.

Pro Wrestling Guerrilla presents All-Star Weekend Night Two
Date: 4/21/2018
From: Reseda, CA

Opening Contest: Flash Morgan Webster vs. Trevor Lee: Lee wastes no time decking Webster during his in-ring introduction. Lee says that everyone knows he’s TNA superstar Trevor Lee and he doesn’t need an introduction. Lee continues to beat on Webster and continues to talk on the microphone. Lee claims that the last time PWG comes to Reseda he’ll be PWG World Champion. He asks the fans if they don’t remember that he’s the guy to kick Kevin Steen out of here. Lee has beaten Adam Cole, Steen, Bucks and Chris Hero. Webster counters a suplex with an inside cradle for a two count. Webster arm drags Lee after coming off the ropes and Lee delivers an uppercut. Webster arm drags Lee out of the corner and hits a reverse senton followed right hands on the mat. Webster goes to the apron and shoulder rams Lee. Webster tries for a suplex to the floor, but Lee is able to block it. Lee bites Webster’s thumb and is met with a forearm for doing so. Lee tosses Webster’s helmet at Flash and delivers a kick. Lee uses the helmet to drive his head into his midsection. Lee sends Webster chest first into the corner and crotches Flash on the top turnbuckle. Lee drives Webster down with a back suplex for a two count.

Lee continues to choke Webster in the corner and plays to the crowd as they are mixed on him tonight. Webster counters a hip toss and nearly wins with a backslide. Webster locks in a choke but Lee drives him into the corner back first. Webster hits a middle rope moonsault. Webster delivers a forearm and running knee strike in the corner. Webster dumps Lee to the floor and comes off the ropes to hit a somersault dive on the floor. Webster goes back to a choke hold in the middle of the ring. Lee breaks free and is met with more chops from Webster. Lee drives Webster down with a jumping double stomp for a two count. Lee tries to toss Webster but Flash lands on his feet and gets tossed down gut first. Webster counters a vertical suplex with a hurricanrana for a two count. Webster knee strikes Lee followed by a slice bread for a near fall. Webster crawls to the apron and goes to the top rope. Lee gets up and stops Webster with a strike. Lee hooks Webster looking for a superplex but Webster holds onto the ropes and forearms Lee to the mat. Webster moves the referee out of the way in the corner and headbutts Lee. Lee counters a slam and hits Orange Crush for the win! (***. So, when I was reviewing Impact Wrestling I really didn’t care for Trevor Lee. I’m really starting to think it was because of the poor way he was being presented on TV. Because, on the independents, Lee has been doing very well. He’s a really good heel and he’s more than capable in the ring. The match didn’t go overly long or anything, but it was consistent action and held my interest.)

Second Contest: Robbie Eagles vs. Joey Janela: They start off with some basic mat wrestling holds as both men get moments of control. Both men try for back suplexs but they land on their feet and that leads to a standoff. Janela wants to shake hands with Webster. Janela tricks him with a kick to the midsection. Webster comes back with an arm drag and ducks a back elbow before hitting a head scissors. Janela stumbles into a corner and is met with a spinning heel kick for a one count. Joey nails Eagles with a boot in the corner but runs into an elbow. Joey sends Eagles head first into the corner with a German suplex. Joey takes Eagles out with a suicide dive. Joey jugs a fans beer before returning to the ring for a two count. Eagles tries to fight back with strikes but isn’t able to get any momentum as Joey continues to chop Eagles. Eagles sends Janela face first into the corner and misses a double knee strike. Janela tries a fireman’s carry but Eagles breaks free and delivers a running knee strike. Joey rolls to the floor and Eagles takes Joey out with a suicide dive.

Eagles kicks Janela on the apron and delivers another strike. Eagles tries for a slice bread but Janela counters and tombstones Eagles on the apron! Janela does another tombstone on a few chairs on the floor! Eagles struggles on the floor and gets back in the ring before the count of twenty. Janela plants Eagles with a Package Piledriver but can’t win the match. Eagles hits an over the shoulder sit out driver for a near fall. Eagles delivers a double knee strike in the corner two times. Eagles tries for the cover but Janela kicks out at two. Eagles kicks Janela several times on the mat. Janela forearms Eagles but Eagles delivers a superkick and drops Joey over his knee. They trade kicks until Janela delivers a lariat to knock both men down. They begin to trade strikes while on their knees. Eagles kicks Janela several times into the corner. Eagles runs into an uppercut but Eagles hits two slice breads for a near fall. Eagles goes to the top rope but is cut off by Janela. Joey chops Eagles and tries for a middle rope Package Piledriver, but Eagles blocks it. Janela regains control in order to hit a top rope brain buster for the win. (**1/2. There were a few really good moments in the match. The tombstone piledriver stuff on the floor was intense and brought my interest into the match. I really thought the immediate package piledriver after that was going to be all, but that wasn’t the case. I’d consider it a solid undercard match.)

Third Contest: Taiji Ishimori vs. Sammy Guevara: Sammy flips off Ishimori and is met with a wrist lock for doing so. They have a standoff after neither man could get consistent control. Ishimori head scissors Sammy followed by a dropkick to send Sammy to the floor. Ishimori comes off the ropes and Sammy slides back in to dropkick Taiji to the outside. Sammy comes off the ropes but Taiji slips on a springboard and crashes to the mat. Sammy takes Taiji over with a snap suplex. Sammy puts Taiji on the top turnbuckle and delivers more right hands. Taiji gains footing but is kicked by Guevara. Guevara takes Taiji out with a dive over the post to the outside! Sammy chokes Taiji with a steel chair and brings him back into the ring. Guevara goes to the top rope missing a shooting star press. Ishimori drives Sammy down with a double knee gut buster for a near fall. Ishimori goes to the top rope but Sammy settles for a superkick and a running stomp driving Ishimori face first into the canvas. Guevara goes to the top rope and leaps off trying for a shooting star press, but Ishimori gets his knees up!

Ishimori locks in a crossface and Sammy rolls through into the middle of the ring before reaching the ropes. Ishimori nails Guevara with a knee strike and drives Sammy into the corner before hitting a rolling Death Valley Driver. Ishimori almost wins followed a superkick. Ishimori tries for a tombstone on Sammy, but it gets countered with a head scissors. Sammy connects with a standing Spanish Fly and almost wins with a superkick of his own. Ishimori blocks a kickand looks for a powerbomb but Sammy delivers a double stomp in the corner to the chest instead. Sammy heads to the top hitting a shooting star press for the win. (**1/2. Similar to the previous match, this was an average match. It felt like when Taiji slipped on a springboard that it took him out of the match. The action didn’t really get going out of first gear. Sammy is someone you’d probably want to keep an eye on moving forward.)

Sammy Guevara remains in the ring sitting in a chair. The fans are giving him some good heat before he even grabs a microphone. Guevara tells the fans that they know he’s damn good. Guevara sacrifices everything for the fans and is still dealing with a shoulder injury. Guevara sits down on the chair and says he’s not competing in PWG again until he gets a PWG World Championship match. The fans don’t seem interested and sing the goodbye song. Sammy gets them to be quiet and then says they can go fuck themselves.

Fourth Contest: PWG World Tag Team Champions The Rascalz (Dezmond Xavier & Zachary Wentz) vs. Violence Unlimited (Brody King & Tyler Bateman): I’m kind of confused as to how Violence Unlimited get a tag title opportunity considering they just lost the previous night. Oh, apparently this match had been booked well in advanced so that would explain it. Thanks to Excalibur for explaining that.

Bateman and Wentz start the title match with Bateman getting control for a moment. Wentz arm drags Bateman and then goes to a corner to have a standoff. Bateman forearms Wentz and delivers a pump kick. Xavier decides to try his luck and takes Bateman down for a two count. Xavier sends Bateman into the ropes before hitting a dropkick and King tags himself into the match. King blocks Xavier’s attempt to take him down and is met with a chop. King chops Xavier and comes off the ropes with a shoulder block. King runs through a clothesline and takes Xavier down with a running hurricanrana! Xavier goes to the floor and Wentz tags himself into the match. Wentz hits a springboard corkscrew crossbody. King decks Wentz and Xavier in the corner and Bateman tags in to deliver a knee strike on Wentz. King nails Wentz with a cannonball splash in the corner, too. Wentz kicks out on the cover attempt at two.

Bateman forearms Wentz into the corner and continues to deliver strikes. Wentz chops Bateman several times against the ropes. Bateman stops Wentz with a forearm strike and tags in King. King beats on Wentz with strikes and chops in the corner. Bateman tags back into the match and forearms Wentz after King lifted him into the air. King comes off the ropes with a senton for a two count. King misses a clothesline and Wentz drops Brody with a knee strike right on the jaw. Xavier gets tagged into the match and Xavier nails Bateman off the apron. Xavier strikes King several times followed by a dropkick on the mat. Xavier is sent to the apron but kicks Brody and Wentz comes running over for the bronco buster. Bateman gets kicked off the apron and King kicks out on the cover attempt. King fights back with chops on the champs but gets knocked down after several kicks. Wentz leaps off of Xavier’s back to take King out with a dive on the floor. Xavier runs the ropes and is met with a forearm from Bateman. Bateman takes everyone out with a crossbody on the floor. Xavier takes the challengers out with a handspring dive. Xavier heads to the top rope and attempts a 450 but King avoids it. Xavier catapults King into a superkick and a double stomp for a two count.

Wentz gets decked by Bateman with a forearm. King and Bateman set it up so that Wentz hits a reverse tombstone on Xavier and they destroy the champions with strikes. King decks Xavier with a clothesline for a two count. Xavier attempts a reverse hurricanrana on King, and he hits it but damn it looked ugly. Wentz tags in and delivers running dropkicks on the challengers in opposite corners. Bateman tries to cover Wentz after a strike but he’s not the legal man. Bateman accidentally hits King and Xavier delivers a handspring kick to drop King. Wentz plants Bateman with an ace crusher and the assisted shooting star press leads to the three count. (***1/4. A solid tag match though there were a few sloppy parts by the tag champs. The spot where Wentz hit a reverse tombstone on Xavier seemed badly forced and didn’t help the flow of the match. The action was fun and the crowd seems to buy into Wentz and Xavier. I must say, it kind of surprises me since the CZW fanbase doesn’t seem to care much about them. Though, I think the fanbase of both companies are little different.)

Fifth Contest: Rey Horus vs. Bandido: They shake hands to show mutual respect. They start off with counters and neither man getting a clear advantage. That leads to a standoff. They both attempt clotheslines and then have another standoff. Horus kicks Bandido in the midsection and they both do shoulder blocks. Horus drops Bandido with a standing dropkick. Horus avoids a handspring and they continue to avoid moves. Bandido takes Horus out with a suicide dive to the floor. Bandido sends Horus face first into the ring post. Bandido and Horus trade blows on the floor until Bandido press slams Horus face first into the post! Bandido uppercuts Horus in the corner but misses a knee strike and drops to the floor. Horus takes Bandido out with a hurricanrana to the floor. Horus comes off the ropes and takes Bandido out with a somersault dive. Bandido flies over the top to take Horus out with a twisting dive. Horus splashes Bandido in the corner and they trade diving attacks in the corner. They both slide to the floor and Horus hits a middle rope leg drop for a two count.

Horus chops Bandido and Bandido does a handstand after avoiding a clothesline. Bandido drops Horus with a GTS and a Liger Bomb for a two count. Bandido superkicks Horus for a two count. Horus drives Bandido down with a face buster and they both get nailed by boots at the same time and are laid out in the middle of the ring. They begin to trade overhand chops and elbow strikes. Bandido superkicks Horus and plays to the crowd. Horus spikes Bandido with a DDT for a two count. Horus delivers a standing Spanish Fly for a near fall. Horus goes to the top and kicks Bandido from the apron. Bandido uppercuts Horus and gets on the middle rope. Horus elbows Bandido but Bandido is able to hit a top rope fallaway slam for the win. (***1/4. I would have laughed if Horus kicked out of the finish there. That was an incredible finish to an otherwise solid overall match.)

Sixth Contest: Timothy Thatcher vs. Matt Riddle: As expected, they start with some mat wrestling oriented offense. Thatcher gets control of Riddle’s ankle but Riddle kicks him away leading to a standoff. Riddle gets control with an ankle lock, but Thatcher counters with an arm bar before Riddle reaches the ropes. Thatcher takes Riddle down to the mat and looks for a half Boston Crab but Thatcher still gets the hold locked in despite kicks from Riddle. Their focus has been mainly mat wrestling, which can’t be a surprise at all. Riddle tosses Thatcher with a gut wrench suplex. Thatcher performs the same move moments later for a one count. Riddle chops Thatcher only to be met with an uppercut. Riddle forearms Thatcher in the corner a few times. Riddle tries for an exploder and drops Thatcher to the mat. Riddle delivers a standing senton for a two count. Riddle continues to beat on Thatcher with a kick to the back a few times. Riddle delivers another senton splash for a near fall. Thatcher pummels Riddle with elbow strikes on the mat. Riddle staggers Thatcher with a knee strike and several chops. Thatcher drops Riddle with a leaping kick and a belly to belly suplex.

Thatcher tries for a butterfly suplex but Riddle is able to avoid it. Riddle has Thatcher on his shoulders but Thatcher counters with a choke. Thatcher switches to a butterfly slam for a two count. Thatcher chokes Riddle for a moment but Riddle hits the Bro To Sleep and almost wins with a German suplex. Riddle delivers a few kicks to Thatcher’s chest but a third one is blocked. Thatcher uppercuts Riddle several times. Riddle goes for a backslide but Thatcher counters with one of his own. Riddle powerbombs Thatcher followed by a knee strike for a two count. Riddle hits a leaping tombstone but still can’t put Thatcher away. Thatcher counter elbow strikes and gets an arm bar locked on. Riddle knee strikes Thatcher and locks in the Bro-Mission for the win. (***. A completely different match than probably anything else during this weekend for PWG. Hard hitting and a focus on mat wrestling for the most part. These kind of matches are far more effective when they are crowded with other insane high spot driven matches.)

Main Event: PWG World Champion Keith Lee vs. Jonah Rock vs. Walter: Rock cheap shots Walter with a forearm and avoids a leg lariat from Lee leading to a standing crossbody. Rock kicks Walter and runs into a scoop slam. Walter comes off the ropes to deliver a sit down splash. Lee and Walter are left in the ring and collide on an attempted shoulder block. Lee tosses Walter with a belly to belly suplex. Lee comes off the ropes and is met with a strike from Rock. Rock proceeds to take Walter out with a suicide dive. Lee takes them both out with a somersault dive to the floor. Lee rolls Walter back into the ring and they trade blows. Walter gets a Boston Crab on Lee but Rock enters to chop Walter, but Walter just yells at him. Walter and Rock begin to trade chops in the middle of the ring with Walter knocking Rock out. Lee gets up and gets in Walter’s face. They begin to trade chops with Rock recovering in the corner. The fans appreciate the chop sequence. Rock fires up with chops with on both men. All three men are laid out in the ring and the fans love it. Walter forearms Lee but Lee fires back with strikes of his own.

Lee strikes Walter with a headbutt but Walter gets a choke on Lee. Walter puts a choke on Rock but Lee splashes both men in the corner. Lee hits a sit down powerbomb on Walter for a two count. Rock and Lee counter a few suplex attempts as Rock plants Lee with a DDT. Rock takes Lee over with a full nelson suplex. Walter gets a choke on Rock and Walter hits a German suplex on Rock. Walter boots Lee and Rock staggers Walter with a kick. Walter takes Lee over with a German suplex, who took Rock over with a Samoan Drop. They get to their feet and begin to forearm strike each other. Rock gets decked by chops from Walter and Lee. Walter dropkicks Lee into the corner and Walter clotheslines Rock. Walter dropkicks Rock and gets nailed with a low blow. Rock gets a rollup on Walter for a two count. Rock low blows Lee and Lee rolls to the floor. Rock charges the corner and splashes Walter. Walter big boots Rock and Rock superkicks Walter. Rock spikes Walter with a brainbuster for a two count. Lee blocks a low blow from Rock. Lee hits a jackhammer on Rock but can’t get a three count.

Rock is laid out on the canvas as Lee slowly goes to the corner. Lee gets decked by Rock and Rock plants Lee with a powerbomb for a two count. Rock connects with a senton splash. Rock gets nailed by Walter with a big boot and falls to the floor. Walter comes off the top with a splash but Lee kicks out at two. Walter decks Lee with a clothesline and wins the title! (****. It is safe to say that at the beginning of this year I wouldn’t have had any interest in this match largely because I wouldn’t know who they were. Four months into reviewing independent wrestling and I was heavily interested in the match. They delivered a good hard hitting match and all three men are great workers. If you think big man wrestling has dipped, there were three of the best in this match and don’t forget about Brody King.)

Final Thoughts:
Night one was better as an overall show, but this was a quality show with a stellar main event.

Thanks for reading.