ACW Head Games
Date: 2/16/2024
From: Catlettsburg, KY
MATCH #1: SUICIDE VS. NICK HAMRICK
NOTE: Yes, this is the same Suicide character that is from TNA fame. Caleb Konley is playing the character.
FINISH: Suicide wins the match following a swanton bomb off the top rope.
Bob’s Take: I’m guessing the crowd doesn’t care for Suicide or something because the crowd was silent for the majority of this match. I’m not a fan of Hamrick’s manager Dick Vickers. He doesn’t do anything to add to Hamrick’s presentation and may be more of a hinderance. There wasn’t much to this match for entertainment or excitement. I figured Suicide would do something of note, but that was not the case. I’m wondering if they did little because Konley is pulling double duty tonight. This was a downer of an opener.
Match Rating: *
MATCH #2: DANI MO VS. BETTY D VS. REESE RAMONE VS. NURSE MIKA — VACANT ACW WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP — FOUR WAY SCRAMBLE
FINISH: Nurse Mika forces Betty D to submit to a Crossface to become the first ever ACW Women’s Champion.
Bob’s Take: This feels a bit random since they have been not posting women matches on the previous few shows for whatever reason. Now, they are introducing a women’s championship. I’m not sure of the context, but Dani Mo has five championships in her possession seemingly doing a belt collector gimmick herself. It didn’t take me long to realize why they may be cutting the women matches from their previous show. Dani Mo is the only one in the match who is clearly seasoned and knows what she’s doing. Nurse Mika wasn’t too bad either. The other two are not strong in-ring competitors. Dani Mo isn’t a regular for ACW, so Nurse Mika winning the title is probably the next best option. They probably could have cut a few minutes off of this one as it dragged a bit.
Match Rating: *1/2
MATCH #3: DDTRASH (BRUCE GREY & RON MATHIS) VS. PHILLY MARINO EXPERIENCE (MARINO TENAGLIA & PHILLY COLLINS) — ACW BLUEGRASS CON TAG TITLE NUMER ONE CONTENDERS
FINISH: As all four men are on the mat, Chris Cannon and Nick Hamrick attack the teams to cause the match to be thrown out. After the match, Chris Cannon says the mystery is over and they’ll be wrestling nobody. Instead, tomorrow it is a three way dance. DDTrash and PME proceed to dance to Too Cool’s music afterward.
Bob’s Take: It was obvious fairly early on that these two teams know what they’re doing and the vibe of the match came across a lot more professional than the previous matches on the card. There were some dives to the floor to pop the crowd early into the bout. ACW is a unique company where they will have matches that don’t have great in-ring action, but then they will get throw in a match that it’s clear they are seasoned and produce quality action that gives the viewer hope that more of it will happen. It seems to be one match on the show that appeases the diehard fan who prefers in-ring quality. That was the case here with the tag match. These four produced a quality match and flew by as a result compared to anything else on the show to this point. It’s a bit of a bummer for their to not be a finish, but a three way dance the next night has my interest.
Match Rating: ***1/4
MATCH #4: INTERIM ACW HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION JOSHUA BISHOP VS. FACADE
FINISH: Bishop crotches Facade on the top rope and manages to hit the Exit 187 to win the match and retain the title.
Bob’s Take: Bishop is playing the heel role this time around against Facade, which shouldn’t be too much of a surprise since Facade is a smaller wrestler who the fans are going to naturally cheer for being an underdog. Bishop ripped up a young fans sign and rubbed it on his crotch to be a true heel, which was honestly great. Facade uses his aerial advantage hit a few springboard moves and a somersault dive over the top to the floor at one point. I thought there was good action here throughout. A good title defense and win for Bishop heading into his big match with Bobby Beverly in April.
Match Rating: ***
MAIN EVENT: ACW BLUEGRASS CON CHAMPION CALEB KONLEY VS SAM HOLLOWAY
FINISH: Late in the match, the referee gets knocked down and isn’t there to count for Holloway after a chokeslam. Holloway avoids a title strike and hits a big boot. However, as the referee makes the count he sees the belt in the ring and believes Holloway hit Konley causing a disqualification. Konley retains.
Bob’s Take: ACW is a bit odd when it comes to presentation of their wrestlers. It seemed like Holloway was getting jeered by the crowd, but he’s largely presented as a babyface everywhere else. Konley is 100% playing the heel role, so I’m sure the crowd will switch when the match starts. Konley kept the pace of the match to be a bit slower and methodical to work over the larger Holloway. Holloway has enjoyable offense when he makes his comeback on Konley. Konley doesn’t keep it slow the entire time, thankfully. The finish is dumb and I’m always in the camp of having a finish. Does it hurt Holloway if he loses to Konley? No. It’s a bit insulting to do these kinds of finishes. Prior to the finish, this was a decent match.
Match Rating: **
Outside, Caleb Konley cuts a promo in a snow storm saying that the snow is the tears of all the fans in Kentucky and the title shows that he’s better than everyone in ACW.
Final Thoughts:
I’m going to give this a mild thumbs up as it’s probably the best ACW show I’ve reviewed to this point. Bishop vs. Facade and the tag match were highlights on the show. I wish the main event had a better finish. Anyway, the next night will feature another Bishop vs. Holloway match, and a three way dance for the ACW Bluegrass Con Tag Titles.
Thanks for reading.