ECW House Show 8/7/1998

Written by: Bob Colling

Extreme Championship Wrestling House Show
Date: 8/7/1998
From: Wilkes Berre, PA

Opening Contest: Axl Rotten & Balls Mahoney vs. Danny Doring & Mike Lozansky: The camera cut out for a moment and I thought maybe we’d miss the first match, but have no worries the camera came back on for the opening bell. The fans are heavily behind Axl Rotten, which doesn’t happen very often. Doring tries to take Rotten down, but Axl makes it look like Doring is sucking his penis and that causes Mahoney to laugh off the apron. Rotten rams Doring and Lozansky into each other followed by a clothesline to Doring. Mahoney leg drops Doring after a drop toe hold by Rotten. Lozansky works over Mahoney with a few kicks before trying a crossbody, but Mahoney hits a fallaway slam instead. Lozansky dropkicks Mahoney twice and hits a crossbody for a two count. Lozansky delivers a few more kicks, but Balls stops Lozansky with a clothesline. Mahoney has Lozansky over his shoulder and Rotten comes off the middle rope with a forearm strike for a two count. Rotten hip tosses Lozansky but misses an elbow drop. Doring enters and is taken down to the mat with an arm drag.

Lozansky kicks Rotten from the apron and Doring knocks Axl to the floor allowing Lozansky to send Rotten into the guard railing. Lozansky works over Rotten with a double axe handle. Doring beats on Rotten in the corner to keep the advantage. Rotten chops Doring a few times in the corner but Doring fights back with a clothesline. Doring misses a twisting top rope leg drop. Mahoney and Lozansky get tagged in with Mahoney cleaning house on the heels. Mahoney hits a running double clothesline and all four men are involved now. Lozansky and Doring are sent into each other. Rotten and Mahoney grab their chairs and waffle Doring with them for the three count. (*3/4. The crowd responded to the comedy and the finish. The actual wrestling aspect to the match lacked entertainment or much energy. Lozansky seems to have a good style and could fit in there with the likes of RVD or something. I’m still trying to understand why the crowd was so into Rotten and Mahoney here.)

Second Contest: Ulf Herman vs. John Kronus: They start off with some basic mat wrestling until Herman delivered a big boot and strikes. Herman clotheslines Kronus in the corner and keeps a sleeper on Kronus for a moment. Herman shoulder rams Kronus in the corner a few times. Kronus drives Herman to the mat with a slam for a two count. Kronus chops Herman down to his knees before delivering a spin kick to the back of Herman’s head. Kronus hits a twisting senton splash. Kronus slams Herman and heads to the top rope, but Herman cuts Kronus off to hit a superplex for a two count. Herman runs over Kronus with a clothesline. Kronus backdrops Herman over the top to the floor. Kronus takes out two of Herman’s pals out with a slingshot crossbody before sending Herman into the guard railing. Herman whacks Kronus with a chair two times and crotches Kronus over the railing. Herman leaps off the apron to clothesline Kronus into the crowd. Herman takes Kronus over with a double under hook suplex for a near fall. Kronus nails Herman with a couple of kicks to the chest. Kronus goes to the middle rope, but Herman hits a twisting powerbomb for a near fall. Kronus almost wins with an inside cradle.

Herman drives Kronus down with a side slam for a two count. Herman continues with a leg drop and goes to the middle rope only to miss a diving headbutt. Kronus connects with a spin kick and hits the 450 splash for the win. After the match, Herman’s buddy, the Equalizer, tries to attack but gets slammed for his troubles. (*1/2. That probably went longer than it needed to go. Kronus seems to be a capable singles wrestler as his offense is enjoyable. Herman had a couple of decent moments, but the focus was on Kronus here and that’s the right call.)

Third Contest: Chris Chetti vs. FTW Champion Taz: Early on, Taz beats on Chetti with strikes in the corner before hitting an overhead suplex. Taz gives a fan in the front row the middle finger. Taz kicks Chetti to the floor and sends Chetti into the guard railing. Chetti kicks Taz a few times, but Taz is able to hit a leg trapped overhead suplex. Chetti springboards off the top rope to heel kick Taz followed by a scoop slam. Taz runs over Chetti with a clothesline. Chetti powerslams Taz for another near fall followed by a heel kick. Chetti misses a double springboard moonsault. Taz locks in the Taz Mission and wins the match. (*. It’s kind of a bummer that Chetti got destroyed in the manner that he did. Chetti would have been capable of a fun match with Taz, but it’s understandable why Taz dominated.)

Fourth Contest: Bam-Bam Bigelow vs. Blue Meanie: Early on, Meanie is able to drop toe hold and trip Bigelow to the mat followed by a DDT. Meanie misses a top rope moonsault. Bigelow clotheslines Meanie and locks in the Taz Mission to win the match. (NR. It went less than a minute and was just a way to promote Bigelow’s feud with Taz.)

Fifth Contest: Justin Credible & Mike Awesome vs. Jerry Lynn & Masato Tanaka: Lynn and Credible start the match. They exchange a few chops until Lynn gets a rollup for a two count out of the corner. Lynn nails Credible with a spinning elbow strike for a two count. Tanaka gets tagged in but Credible goes to his corner to tag in Awesome. Awesome and Tanaka trade chops in the middle of the ring for a few moments. Awesome drops Tanaka with a release German suplex. Tanaka clotheslines Awesome on the apron after a springboard. Awesome nearly wins following a springboard back elbow. Awesome clotheslines Tanaka over the top to the floor. Awesome dives over the top to take Tanaka out. Lynn drop toe holds Credible on the apron while Awesome sends Tanaka into the guard railing. Awesome grabs a steel chair and jabs Tanaka in the midsection a few times. Awesome smashes Tanaka with the chair, but Tanaka hits a back suplex. Lynn comes off the top to double axe handle Awesome. Lynn dropkicks Awesome but gets caught on a crossbody and is slammed to the mat. Credible tags in and taunts Lynn. Credible hammers away on Lynn in the corner to keep control of the match.

Lynn sends Credible flipping upside down in the corner followed by an atomic drop for a two count. Chastity gets in the ring, but Lynn sends her out. Credible stops Lynn with a jawbreaker and Awesome hits a double axe handle off the top rope. Awesome clotheslines Lynn followed by a big splash for a two count. Awesome has a camel clutch on Lynn until Tanaka breaks the hold. Credible drives Lynn down with a Razors Edge for a two count. Lynn gets a rollup on Credible out of the corner, but Credible low blows Lynn. Awesome tags in and drops Lynn gut first to the mat followed by an elbow drop. Awesome looks to hit the Awesome Bomb, and connects for a two count as Tanaka breaks the cover. Awesome decks Tanaka off the apron. Lynn takes Awesome over with a head scissors. Credible tags into the match and chops Lynn in the corner. Lynn low blows Credible in what ends up being a botched spot. Awesome has set a table up on the floor.

Tanaka gets tagged in and cleans house hitting a sit out slam on Credible followed by a running forearm and clothesline for a two count. Tanaka hits a suplex turned into a stunner. Tanaka gets a chair from Lynn and plants Credible with a tornado DDT onto the chair. Awesome enters with a chair to break that cover up. Jason gets a few cheap shots on Tanaka while Awesome held him. Tanaka sends Jason into the guard railing. Lynn is being double teamed in the ring. Tanaka saves Lynn from an Awesome Bomb through the table. Lynn spikes Credible with the That’s Incredible to win the match. (***. A solid match between four of the better in-ring workers for ECW, at the time. Yes, Credible is fairly solid. For the most part, the match was a standard match, but the usage of some weapons towards the end were used correctly. I was quite intrigued to see how this would go and I felt like it was a good viewing experience.)

Shane Douglas made an appearance before the next match and introduced Chris Candido.

Sixth Contest: Chris Candido vs. Lance Storm: Candido goes right after Storm taking Lance down to the mat and pummeling him. Candido hits a quick powerbomb and struts around the ring. Candido chops Storm several times against the ropes but runs into a boot. Storm low blows Candido but Candido counters a dropkick off the middle rope. Storm plants Candido with a DDT. Candido tries for a vertical suplex, but Storm gets free to hit a superkick for a near fall. Storm dropkicks a seated Candido for a two count. Candido hits a swinging neckbreaker and comes off the middle rope to hit a leg drop for a two count. Storm dropkicks Candido followed by a powerslam for a two count. Storm misses a spinning heel kick and Candido hits a kick to the back of Storm’s head. Storm knocks Candido off the apron and hits a slingshot crossbody to the floor. Storm chops Candido against the railing. Candido stops Storm on the top rope and they trade a few strikes. Candido hits a top rope hurricanrana followed by a diving headbutt for a two count. Storm springboards off the top to hit a back elbow strike for a near fall. Storm appeared to try and counter a powerbomb, but didn’t land on his feet and just acted like the powerbomb connected. Candido leaps off the top but gets powerbombed in midair. Douglas gives Candido a chain to hit Storm and win the match thanks to Francine causing a distraction. (**. There were a few clunky spots that seemed to be a little mistimed. The finish was rather flat and not very exciting by any means. It was a decent match, but rather disappointing.)

Seventh Contest: Sandman, Tommy Dreamer & Spike Dudley vs. Tracy Smothers, Tommy Rich & Little Guido: The heels get beer spat into their faces and they bail to the floor to regroup. Dreamer tosses Guido with a fallaway slam and locks in an abdominal stretch. Guido gets out with a rollup but Dreamer hits a neckbreaker for a two count. Smothers enters and accidentally elbow drops Guido with Dreamer, and Rich does the same spot. Sandman and Rich legally enter the match with Rich backing Sandman into a corner before backing away. Sandman decks Smothers and Guido off the apron after a rollup attempt on Rich. Rich cheap shots Sandman as he was taking his shirt off. Sandman punches Smothers off the apron and backdrops both Rich and Guido. Smothers strikes Sandman allowing Rich to hit a piledriver for a two count. Guido hits a middle rope leg drop for a two count. Sandman fights out of the heels corner with strikes. Spike gets the hot tag and forearms the heels. Spike takes Smothers over with a hurricanrana. Spike hits a crossbody off the top onto Smothers and Guido. Spike missile dropkicks Guido followed by a head scissors on Smothers. Spike bulldogs both Guido and Smothers. Smothers saves Guido from the Acid Drop.

Guido keeps control stomping on Spike until Rich crotches Spike over the guard railing. Sandman pummels Rich over a table at ringside. Guido takes Sandman down with a swinging neckbreaker for a two count. Rich splashes Spike for a two count. Rich dumps Spike over the top to the floor where Smothers drops Spike over the railing chest first. Spike continues to be worked over in the corner for a few moments. Spike forearms Smothers before tagging in Sandman. Sandman uses his kendo stick on the heels and nearly pins Rich. Jeff Jones attacks the referee. Smothers heel kicks Sandman and Dreamer plants Smothers with a DDT. Tommy Rogers comes out and plants Jones with the Un-Prettier, Spike hits the Acid Drop on Guido. Sandman hits a side Russian leg sweep on Rich and Rogers counts the fall. After the match, fans flood the ring with plastic bottles. It’s not out of anger. Rich stays in the ring not afraid of the bottles and looks like a badass compared to everyone else running away. (*1/2. I’d hardly consider this a match and rather just a segment for the faces to get a pop and the heels get beaten in an extended squash match.)

Eighth Contest: Mikey Whipwreck vs. Jack Victory: Whipwreck takes Victory down to the mat a few times with an arm drag. Whipwreck comes off the ropes with a crossbody and dropkick to send Victory to the floor. Whipwreck baseball slides Victory into the railing followed by a springboard twisting crossbody to the floor. Whipwreck sets a table up on the floor and puts Victory through the table with a suplex. Victory sends Whipwreck over the railing into the crowd before using a chair on Mikey. Mikey avoids a punch to hit the Whippersnapper, but Victory’s manager, Lance Wright, enters and eats a Whippersnapper, too. Victory has recovered and stomps on Whipwreck. Wright chokes Mikey on the apron prompting New Jack to come out and make the save. Victory is bleeding buckets by the time Jack is done with him. So, there’s no finish and this was essentially must something to fill time with.

Main Event: ECW Tag Team Champions Rob Van Dam & Sabu vs. Bubba Ray Dudley & D-Von Dudley: RVD and D-Von start the main event. D-Von works over RVD with several strikes and knocks RVD through the ropes to the floor. RVD hits a spinning leg drop onto D-Von. D-Von hits a neckbreaker off the middle rope. Bubba gets tagged in and beats on RVD with strikes in the corner. Bubba drops RVD with a clothesline and kicks Sabu off the apron. Bubba backdrops RVD and taunts the crowd. RVD avoids a clothesline to hit a springboard kick. Bubba plants RVD with a Samoan Drop. Sabu tries to get involved, but the referee stops him. RVD comes off the top to hit a crossbody on Bubba. Sabu enters to baseball slide Bubba on the knee a few times. Bubba drives Sabu down to the mat gut first out of a wheelbarrow position. D-Von nails Sabu with a leaping elbow strike. D-Von slams Sabu and tags in Bubba. Sabu trips Bubba to the mat managing to lock in a chin lock. RVD runs the ropes before dropkicking Bubba. RVD pulls D-Von to the floor sending D-Von into the railing. Bubba back suplexs Sabu and shoulder blocks RVD to the floor. D-Von and RVD trade a few strikes on the floor. Sabu double springboard to take both D-Von and Bubba out on the floor.

RVD drops Bubba chest first over the railing. Sabu splashed onto D-Von in the corner, but Bubba breaks the cover by hitting an elbow on RVD. Dudley’s hit a vertical suplex/crossbody combo on RVD. Sabu breaks up the cover. Sabu sets a table up in the ring, but Big Dick chokeslams the champions. RVD and Sabu are laid onto the table, but Sabu rolls off and hits a top rope hurricanrana on Bubba for a two count. RVD drives D-Von down to the mat face first. RVD kicks a chair into Big Dick’s face. Alfonso hits Sign Guy. Bubba and D-Von are laid onto the table. Sabu hits a leg drop off the top to put Bubba through it, but it wasn’t a clean break. RVD kicks a chair into D-Von’s face and that’s good enough for a three count. (**. There’s no doubt this was a sloppy match. That has to be expected. It wasn’t a bad match, but I don’t think it was a strong main event match and didn’t leave me on a positive feeling.)

Final Thoughts:
The crowd atmosphere was probably the most enjoyable of this entire show, which is usually the case with ECW house shows. The tag match involving Awesome/Tanaka/Lynn/Credible was the best match on the show, but certainly isn’t a must-see match. I can’t recommend this one.

Thanks for reading.