Written by: Brian Bayless
March 5, 2016
From the American Legion Post #308 in Reseda, CA
Your host is Excalibur
Chuck Taylor vs. “The Villain” Marty Scurll
These two start off the match going back-and-forth while working the arm. Taylor now works the leg then bites Scurll’s toes as the crowd chants “you sick fuck.” Scurll now works a headscissors on the mat until Taylor gets his foot on the bottom rope. Taylor escapes from the chicken wing but Scurll pokes his eye then taunts the crowd before running into a powerslam. Scurll ducks out for a breather but dodges a pescado and connects with a super kick from the apron before taunting the crowd. Scurll beats on Taylor on the outside before the action returns to the ring. Scurll works the arm for a bit until Taylor catches him with a release German suplex as both men are down. Taylor gets up and starts firing away then gets two after catching Scurll with a uranage. Taylor goes up top and misses a moonsault as Scurll knees Taylor in the head before getting a nearfall with a powerbomb. Scurll pauses to taunt the crowd but that allows Taylor to get up. They trade super kicks and knee smashes until both men are down. Both men go back-and-forth until Taylor hits Scurll with a Pop-Up Powerbomb. Scurll floats over and attempts the Chicken Wing then breaks Taylor’s fingers when he blocked the hold. Taylor comes back with the Sole Food but Scurll ends up floating over and catching Taylor with the chicken wing. Taylor escapes and gets two off of a rollup before hitting the Awful Waffle for the win (12:30) ***1/4.
Thoughts: Good opener. Taylor’s role of having entertaining opening matches continues and Scurll is an awesome talent who can excel in these types of matches as well as technical matches, which we saw in Night One with Kyle O’Reilly.
Evil Uno vs. Mark Andrews
Senior official Rick Knox is now on commentary, replacing Hero. Uno starts off the match by shoving around the much smaller Andrews. The announcers talk about the title match tonight between Roderick Strong and Zack Sabre Jr. as Andrews hits a dropkick. Uno rolls outside then decks Andrews in midair after he attempted a pescado. Uno then hits Andrews with an Alabama Slam on to the apron. Back inside, Uno chops Andrews multiple times, even no-selling when Andrews returned the favor. Andrews tries to fight back but Uno stops by biting his fingers. Uno chokes out Andrews in the corner then gives the ref Andrews’ leg as he proceeds to bite his crotch. Andrews is down on the mat in pain as the crowd once again chants “you sick fuck.” Uno uses all sorts of heel tactics to maintain control of the mat until Andrews finally comes back with a wheelbarrow bulldog. Andrews then stomps Uno after a victory roll before hitting a Northern Lights suplex. He hits Uno with a standing Sky Twister Press for a nearfall then follows with a springboard crossbody block. Andrews heads up top but takes too long as Uno shoves him off as Andrews gets crotched on the top rope. Uno gets two off of a neckbreaker then bites Andrews’ fingers. Andrews leapfrogs Uno and lands a few kicks but runs into a chop. Andrews comes back with an enziguiri but runs right into a bicycle kick. Andrews is able to counter a suplex with a stunner then gets a nearfall with a Code Red as both men are down. Andrews kicks Uno but gets splattered after Uno countered a springboard hurricarana with a powerbomb. Uno then hits a piledriver but that only gets two as the fans are behind Andrews. They fight up top as Andrews knocks Uno down and follows with a double stomp to the groin before climbing back up top with a shooting star press for the win (15:22) ***1/4.
Thoughts: Good match. The crowd was into Andrews’ come-backs and popped for his win, which had a cool finishing sequence. The beginning of the match was nothing special but it ended up turning out well.
Trevor Lee vs. Drew Galloway
Chuck Taylor as now replaced Knox on commentary. Before the match, Lee tells Galloway that they are TNA superstars and offers a high-five but Galloway declines as the crowd chants “Fuck TNA.” Lee then tries to talk up Galloway, who tosses Lee in the corner. Galloway then catches Lee with an overhead suplex. Lee rolls outside after getting tossed around some more as the crowd chants for Galloway. A fan holds up Lee so Galloway can chop him then they head further into the crowd as Lee fights back then tries a crossbody from the stage but Galloway catches that and tosses Lee into the wall. Lee catches Galloway with a pair of dropkicks as he was trying to get back into the ring then he slides out to yank Galloway down and trap him inside of the ring apron. Lee hits four straight running kicks from the apron before heading back inside as the crowd is all over him. Lee catches Galloway with a kick to the head but has his deadlift German suplex blocked. Lee then stomps Galloway in the corner then continues to heel it up by shaking hands with the referee. Lee tries another German suplex but Galloway blocks that and hits an overhead suplex as both men are down. Lee sidesteps a charge and comes back with a missile dropkick as both men are down again. Galloway pulls up on the ropes and comes back with a kick to the face for a nearfall as Taylor mentions how hot it is inside of the building. Lee peppers Galloway with uppercuts then reverses a crossbody in midair for a nearfall. Lee finally hits the deadlfit German suplex but that only gets two. Lee then yells at the crowd how “PWG is his bitch” but that allowed Galloway to get up and fire away. Lee blocks a double underhook DDT so Galloway decides to swing him around. Lee catches Galloway with a kick then uses an airplane spin as both men are dizzy. Galloway catches Lee with a tombstone piledriver for a nearfall as they are now both on the mat. Galloway hits Lee with an avalanche powerbomb in the corner but Lee escapes a second attempt then snaps Galloway’s neck off of the top rope. Lee sends Galloway down but eats an elbow to the face. Galloway hulks up but then catches Lee by the throat as he tried a springboard but Lee is able to counter that with a small package as that gets the win (15:23) ***1/2.
Thoughts: Really good match. Lee’s interaction with Galloway at the beginning was entertaining as his heel act here is really starting to grow on me. Galloway has developed into a fantastic talent getting released from the WWE. He can be a major player right now for the company if they utilized him in that role.
Death by Elvow (Chris Hero & JT Dunn) vs. Matt Sydal & Ricochet
Dunn is replacing the injured Tommy End as Hero’s partner. Dunn is a smaller guy with a thin build but who reportedly wrestles similarly to Hero. Dunn starts off with Sydal as they take it to the mat. Hero and Ricochet then tag in to the delight of the crowd and they work an impressive Irish whip sequence that ended with Ricochet hitting a headscissor takedown. Dunn tags in and ends up elbowing Ricochet after a fast-paced sequence. Dunn then hits Sydal with an elbow as Ricochet is trapped in the opposing corner. Hero drills Ricochet with a bicycle kick as Death by Elbow continues to cut off the ring. Dunn gets a nearfall with a facebuster then shortly after that Hero knocks Sydal off of the apron. Ricochet and Dunn trade strikes until Ricochet hits a superman forearm as both men are down. Sydal makes the tag and runs wild on Dunn. He hits the slice then the match breaks down as everyone trades hurricaranas, including Hero who got impressive height on his. Ricochet & Sydal double-team Dunn before they each start stretching him out. Dunn comes back with a leaping elbow strike on Sydal as both men are down. Sydal uses an upkick to send Dunn down then tags out as Ricochet drills Hero with an elbow strike. Ricochet then hits Dunn with a springboard rolling senton for two as Hero gets up and yells at him. Dunn fights out of a cradle suplex then makes the tag as Hero starts beating the crap out of Ricochet. Sydal runs in and attacks Hero but he takes down both guys. Sydal dodges a charging Dunn, who crashes and burns on the floor. Dunn is able to catch Sydal with a kick as Hero motions to the crowd before teasing a dive as he lands on the apron then Ricochet flies over him to hit Dunn with a Fosbury Flop. That was insane. Ricochet trips Hero up then heads back inside to celebrate and teases a dive but runs into a biycycle kick from Hero as that gets two. The fans chant “this is awesome” as Dunn catches Ricochet in the back of the head with an elbow as Hero hits a snap piledriver for a nearfall. Ricochet dodges a charge from Dunn then catches Hero and tosses him at Dunn with an overhead suplex as everyone is down. Sydal gets back up and they hit Dunn with a standing shooting star press/moonsault combo for a nearfall. Hero gets back up and knocks down Ricochet and ends up catching Sydal with a piledriver but Ricochet breaks that up with a knee smash. Ricochet ends up catching Dunn with a dropkick but rolls through a 450 splash as Dunn hits a reverse hurricarana then Hero follows with a roaring elbow for two. Ricochet gets sandwiched with elbow strikes then set up for the Death Elbow but Sydal runs in and gets hit instead. They try for another frankensteiner/elbow smash combo but Ricochet reverses and Hero accidentally hits his partner. However, Ricochet gets outnumbered and hit by the Death Elbow but Sydal runs in for another save. The match breaks down as Dunn is set up for the double stack super hurricarana as Ricochet hits that move. Sydal rolls through a shooting star press but he catches Dunn with a knee then Dunn eats a double roundhouse kick as Hero makes the save. Hero elbows Ricochet, who spits in his face, as Hero hits him even harder. He has both Sydal & Ricochet in the corner and starts destroying the both of them. They fight back against Hero as Ricochet nearly puts Dunn away with a brainbuster. Dunn blocks a Benadryller attempt but Sydal comes off of the top with a double knee smash then Ricochet finally connects with the Benadryller for the win (27:23) ***1/4.
Thoughts: The action was fun but this match went on for far too long. The last ten minutes were not necessary as they built up to a great point around the 15-minute mark then sort of lost the crowd after that. Dunn did okay in his PWG debut but seemed a bit nervous at times. When PWG does 20-minute long tag matches, they usually lose the crowd.
Trent? vs. Adam Cole
Cole super kicks Trent before the bell. Cole then beats on Trent outside of the ring. Cole celebrates outside but that allows Trent the time to fly out with a tope. Back inside, Trent uses a stomp but gets caught with a lungblower coming off of the top rope. Cole then hits a slam then a snap suplex but acts nonchalantly as Trent locks on a crossface. Cole escapes and works a chinlock on the mat. Trent gets out and catches Cole with a knee smash as both men are down. Trent is up first and fires away. Tornado DDT gets two. He climbs up top but Cole cuts him off and they fight on the apron as Cole blocks a shoulder thrust by Trent then leaps up high and piledrives him through the middle rope as that gets two. Damn! Cole drops him with a back suplex before hitting a bicycle knee smash for two. They fight in the corner as Cole rolls through a top rope hurricarana but Trent counters that and puts on a sharpshooter. They are now fighting on the apron as that ends with Cole hitting a package piledriver. As dangerous as that sounds, Trent was well-protected by Cole. Trent rolls inside after just beating the 20 count but eats a super kick for a nearfall. Cole sets up for the Panama Sunrise (Canadian Destroyer) but Trent blocks that and hits the Crunchy as Cole is able to break the pin by putting his finger on the rope. They end up fighting up top where Cole hits a top rope Panama Sunrise then acts cocky before covering as that allows Trent to use a crucifix for the win (13:25) ***1/4.
Thoughts: I liked this until the end. A top rope Canadian Destroyer should be an automatic finisher, not a move someone can counter a pin with a crucifix after it happens. With Trent getting two big wins this weekend, he might be in line for an upcoming PWG Title shot.
PWG Tag Team Championship Match: reDragon vs. Young Bucks (c)
Hero has replaced Taylor on commentary. Both teams struggle to gain an advantage. The match breaks down due to constant illegal double-teams from the Bucks then reDragon breaks up the “suck it” punches with crotch grabs. reDragon is in control for a bit until the Bucks run wild and clear O’Reilly from the ring. Fish escapes from a Meltzer Driver attempt as the Bucks argue until Fish shoves Matt into Nick. O’Reilly tags and beats on Matt as the match keeps breaking down. O’Reilly uses a hanging cross armbreaker on Matt as reDragon is back in control. O’Reilly now works the leg of Nick before tagging out. The Bucks trap Fish between the ring apron and attack him before Matt takes out O’Reilly on the outside with a baseball slide. The Bucks neutralize Fish in the corner for a bit before Matt works a chinlock. The Bucks go back to attacking Fish, who tries to fight back but Matt trips him up on the outside. Nick misses a kick and hits the ring post then Fish heads in and hits Matt with a fireman’s carry slam as both men are down. O’Reilly tags and runs wild on the Bucks. He hits Matt with all sorts of strikes then blocks a sunset flip with a cross armbreaker before switching over to an ankle lock. reDragon almost puts Matt away with a double-team move but Nick drags Fish outside. The Bucks take care of O’Reilly for a bit until he comes back with a double dragon screw. Fish returns and beats on the Bucks. On the floor, O’Reilly works a standing ankle lick in Nick while Fish has the same hold applied to Matt in the ring. However, they both break up the holds using Axe Body Spray behind the referee’s back. The Bucks take control then more a few contrived spots, one of them leading to O’Reilly hitting his partner with a tombstone. Fish is held up by Matt as Nick uses the spray but Fish escapes and Matt gets sprayed in the face. reDragon almost puts Nick away after a few suplexes but Matt comes back as the Bucks start hitting super kicks. O’Reilly puts Matt in a hanging guillotine but Nick breaks that up by hitting O’Reilly with a 450 splash from the top rope as Fish slides in to break up the pin. O’Reilly fights back and hits the Bucks with a rebound double clothesline after eating a double suplex. reDragon almost puts Nick away with Shade of the Dragon as they now put the Bucks in double cross armbreakers that the Bucks escape from. All four men are down as the crowd chants “This is awesome.” They all get up and start brawling until the referee steps in-between, allowing the Bucks to hit a double low blow. The Bucks follow with super kicks then take reDragon’s mouth pieces and put them down their pants before inserting them back in mouths of reDragon. The Bucks hit Fish with a rolling fireman’s carry slam then put him away after they hit consecutive 450 splashes (22:48) ***3/4.
Thoughts: A damn-good match. This got crazy towards the end but in a good way. Plus, it was a lot more palatable than the previous tag match. I like how the Bucks work in PWG more than in any other promotion.
PWG Championship Match: Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Roderick Strong (c)
Before the match, Strong grabs the mic. He gets harassed by the crowd then calls out his own referee but Rick Knox super kicks him off the apron as the match gets underway. The crowd now engages in a dueling chant as the two men go at it on the mat. Strong ducks outside to stall as he takes a stroll around the ring. Strong then teases going through the curtain as Sabre takes his belt and places it over his shoulder. Strong runs in for the attack but Sabre fights back. Sabre works the leg for a bit until Strong fights out. He chops Sabre in the corner and that leads to a brief exchange of strikes until Strong sends Sabre down with an elbow smash. Sabre tries to fight back in the corner but Strong beats him down. Sabre finally is able to regain the advantage as he works the arm on the apron but Strong picks him up with a fireman’s carry and dumps him on the apron. Strong dumps Sabre Jr. on the apron again before celebrating in the ring while selling his leg. The crowd chants for Sabre as he is now getting stomped on the mat. Strong hits a few different suplexes before choking him out with his boot. Sabre comes back with a kick on the apron then yanks down Strong with an armbreaker. The crowd chants for Sabre as he mounts a comeback. He knocks Strong down with a diving uppercut then stretches him out on the mat. Strong knocks Sabre down and places him up top. Sabre wrenches Strong’s arm then escapes and knocks him off. Sabre attacks the leg as he places it in the ropes and hits it with three straight charging dropkicks. Strong is able to regain control after smacking Sabre in the ear and hitting a backbreaker. Strong escapes from a cross armbreaker as these two are starting to run out of steam. Strong cuts Sabre off of the top rope and climbs up as he tosses Sabre off with a back suplex. Sabre is just able to kick out as Strong starts hammering away. Strong almost puts him away after blocking a victory roll but Sabre rolls through and puts on a key lock but Strong comes back with a gutbuster. Sabre tosses Strong with an overhead suplex and follows up with the Penalty Kick as both men are now down after a brief flurry of action. They start trading strikes from their knees as Sabre is drilling Strong with kicks to the back. Sabre gets up and stomps the hand of Strong before they trade strikes on their feet. Strong sends Sabre down after he escaped from the torture rack position. He places Sabre back up top and hits a superplex then sets up for the End of Heartache but Sabre locks on the octopus hold. Strong breaks that up with a Doctor Bomb for a nearfall as both men are down again. Strong is up first and he stomps Sabre down. Strong takes off his own boot and tosses it at Sabre’s face before attacking him. Sabre then takes off his boots as they trade elbow strikes. Sabre nearly puts Strong away with a crucifix after an elaborate sequence then goes for the Fujiwara Armbar but Strong is able to reach the ropes. Strong is able to catch Sabre with the Sick Kick for two. Strong catches Sabre with a jumping knee smash then hits the End of Heartache but Sabre is able to kick out. Strong places Sabre up top but he fights back and after a struggle, Sabre takes Strong off of the top with the Fujiwara Armbar. They are in the center of the ring as Strong desperately tries to reach the ropes. Sabre then tuns it into the Stretch Muffler as he even puts Strong’s other leg behind his own back and Strong submits as Sabre is now the PWG Champion (32:34) ****. After the match, Sabre celebrates with the crowd as the streamers fall from the ceiling. Sabre lays down on the mat with the belt as the crowd starts going nuts, even starting up a “best in the world” chant. The other European wrestlers, Scurll, Galloway, and Andrews, come out as they celebrate, with Galloway lifting Sabre on his shoulders. Sabre addresses the crowd but per usual, the sound quality is too poor to make out what he is saying but the gist of it is that he thanks the fans and wants to now get drunk and celebrate with his friends from home as they all leave the ring.
Thoughts: Excellent match. It ended up turning into a battle which each guy giving each other everything they had. I loved the finishing sequence too as that submission was insane. I also liked the bit with Strong’s personal referee getting knocked out as Strong had to fight Sabre without any help. Sabre is a good fit as the PWG Champion and I think there will be some trouble brewing within Mt. Rushmore.
Final Thoughts: Good show, but Night One was better. Sabre winning the title was a great moment though and nothing here was bad or anything. And these shows were easily the best offerings from PWG in 2016. I’d definitely seek these out, especially Night One.