AAW Windy City Classic VII DVD Review

-Taped from Berwyn, Illinois

-Your hosts are Phil Colvin and Derek St. Holmes

-Elimination Match- (Winners Advance to AAW Heavyweight Championship Match): Sami Callihan, Johnny Gargano, Gregory Iron, and Mr. Miller vs. Shane Hollister, Austin Mannix, Matt Fitchett, and Louis Lyndon

Match in Five Words or Less:  Not Your Daddy’s  Elimination Match

Match Highlights: Don’t expect times on the eliminations because the action is coming hot and heavy in this match. Mannix goes after the other team already. Iron and Hollister are in the ring together. Forearm exchange. Rana takes Hollister over. Kick sends Iron out. Callihan eats a huge kick. Nice response  and a running kick from Callihan. Fitchett with a leg lariat. Hurancanrana on Callihan. Kick to the gut. Reverse hurancanrana takes Callihan out of the ring. Gargano hits a double stomp coming in. Head to the knee and neckbreaker. Big kick from Lyndon. A second out of the corner. Rana and Gargano is out. Mr. Miller enters. Back and forth. Miller drives Lyndon down and does it again with his foot. Now it’s time for a battle of the Clash. Forearm and snapmare by Mannix. Running knee strike. Miller goes up and over and hits a flying kick. This takes out Mannix. Fitchett comes back with an enziguri. Callihan kicks him. Diving lariat and Fitchett is on the floor. Tope suicida and Callihan is nuts. Lyndon and Iron also dive. Fitchett with a twisting dive of his own. My God. Spear into the ring misses. Standing moonsault press on Gargano’s back gets two.  Fitchett misses a shooting star press. Dropkick to the corner and a lawn dart by Gargano. Superkick. Hertz Doughnut. Fitchett is gone. Discus forearm by Hollister. Running kick by Callihan. Lyndon with a kick as well. Into the corner with an elbow. Dropkick to the corner. Iron hits a neckbreaker. Gimp slap misses. Flatliner. Hollister with a superkick. A second hits. Iron rolls Hollister up and gets three! Hollister is not happy. Lyndon is by himself. Lyndon fends them off one at a time. Big kick to Iron and German suplex. 1-2-NO!  Lyndon catches Callihan with a kick. Moonsault off the top for two. Lyndon moonsaults but Gargano dropkicks him. Dragon suplex by Miller. Facebuster by Iron. Callihan takes the leg out and applies a stretch muffler. Lyndon has no choice but to tap.

Match Analysis: Even though this was an eight man tag team match, they shoved about as much action as they possibly could in just under nine minutes. This was about the best possible way to open a show. Lots of action and dives. Plus, you’ve got four stellar indy stars going on to wrestle later in the evening for the AAW title. A perfect match to set up what is AAW’s biggest show of the year.

Winner (s)/Time/Match Rating: Sami Callihan, Johnny Gargano, Gregory Iron, and Mr. Miller/8:43/***1/4

-Tweek Phoenix is here to say hello to the fans before he goes to a stand-up comedy show. Truth Martini calls him a joke and tells him to stay gone. He’s not even worried about Tweek.

-Samuray Del Sol vs. Alex Colon

Match in Five Words or Less:  Pitbull Versus Lucha

Match Highlights:  Feeling out process to start. Colon misses a boot. Kick off the top misses. Elbow drop but Del Sol crucifix pins for two. Neckbreaker gets two. Colon holds on to the ropes and hits a boot. Springboard. Dropkick with Del Sol intertwined in the ropes. Colon goes for a pair of covers. Camel clutch while holding on to the mask. Del Sol low bridges Colon and hits a springboard moonsault. Del Sol comes off but eats a dropkick. Running kick from Colon. Flying knee. Diving elbow for two. Kick to the gut and a standing sliced bread by Del Sol. Forearm exchange on the apron. Enziguri by Colon and a death valley driver on the side of the ring. Del Sol crawls back in the ring. Colon goes for a rana. Del Sol catches him, drops him, and gets the three count in a modified roll-up.

Match Analysis: Okay little undercard match that served its purpose on the card. I think Colon has a bright future on the indies, but he definitely needs to establish a reputation before receiving a greater opportunity in AAW. Del Sol is a solid performer, but I’m not he has the skills to really be a singles star.

-Cameron Skyy wants to know if people are listening to the message. The Clash stand way ahead of the rest of the roster, especially Zero Gravity. Mena Libra talks about pinning MsChif again considering what happened at Bourbon Street.

Winner (s)/Time/Match Rating: Samuray Del Sol/6:08/**

-House of Truth (Keith Walker and Jesse Emerson w/Truth Martini and Danny Daniels) vs. The Awesome Threesome (Knight Wagner and Jordan McEntyre w/Eryn)

Match in Five Words or Less: Dastardly Danny Daniels

Match Highlights:  Knight Wagner calls the Threesome the best AAW tag team. He talks about their recent run of bad luck. They’re saving up their rematch. McEntyre talks about the management screwing them. McEntyre says they’re ready to (expletive deleted) a tag team up. McEntyre and Emerson begin the actual match. Right hands from Emerson. Running knee strike to the midsection. Raking the face. Strikes from McEntyre. Back elbows. Ugly rana sends Emerson down. Wagner with a boot. Running knee strike from McEntyre. Bulldog into Wagner’s knees.Another knee and Russian legsweep. Time to drop the leg. Right hand. Walker kicks Wagner in the back. Wagner tossed outside. Walker beats up Wagner. It’s not pretty. Wagner is simply tossed back in the ring. Charge and butterfly suplex by Emerson. Walker with some strikes. Chinbreaker by Wagner. Walker hits a swinging backbreaker for two. McEntyre is sent flying off the apron. Wagner grabs the referee and hits a back elbow. Flying kick. Open hand slap from Walker.  Claw hold? Wagner falls. That was ugly. Walker drives him down hard and gets two. Emerson fends McEntyre off. Wagner meets a charge with boots. Tornado DDT leads to the hot tag. McEntyre elbows Emerson. Jumping knee to the corner. Leg lariat and low dropkick. A basement dropkick leads to a two count. Martini grabs the legs. Double clothesline by Walker. Eryn faces off with Walker. She rakes the eyes. Emerson enters and grabs her by the hair. Another slap. Walker chokeslams his own partner. McEntyre and Wagner crotch Walker on the post. Martini slaps Eryn in the butt. Cat fight!  Martini gets pantsed. Martini hits his own man with the book. McEntyre gets a roll-up for two. Double penetration. 1-2-Walker breaks the count. Crowd thought the last count was three. Series of kicks on Walker. Double back suplex. McEntyre hits a big splash and gets two as Daniels grabs Wagner on the top rope. Piledriver on the stairs. Emerson comes from behind on McEntyre. Uranagi. Walker hits a lariat and gets three.

Match Analysis: An okay tag team match with some sloppiness involved. I’m interested to see where they go with Awesome Threesome since they’ve almost become babyfaces based on this match.

Winner (s)/Time/Match Rating: House of Truth/10:05/**1/2

-Walker continues the beat down until Darin Corbin runs in with a chair. He wants Danny Daniels in the ring. Corbin uses the “P” word. Martini holds Daniels off and requests the microphone. Martini says Daniels is ready and not that word. However, it’s not the right time for this match to happen.  Corbin has to settle for someone else in the House of Truth.

-Darin Corbin vs. N8 Matteson (w/Truth Martini)

Match in Five Words or Less:  Darin Goes Low

Match Highlights:  Matteson comes from behind. Referee tosses everyone except Martini from ringside. Eye rake and biting in the corner by Matteson. He brings the chair back in the ring. Boot to the midsection. Uppercut. Corbin hits the chair back into Matteson. Missile dropkick off the top rope. Punches while in the mount. Bodyslam. Martini distracts Corbin while on the top rope. Matteson knocks him to the floor. He rakes at the face. Martini with a double axe and rips at Corbin’s eyes. Chop from Corbin. Matteson responds back. They battle around ringside briefly. Matteson back in for a cover. Again with an eye rake. Double chops. Diving back elbow off the ropes. Corbin battles back. Matteson hits an STO. 1-2-NO! Fishermen’s buster. Matteson goes to the top rope and hits a leg drop. 1-2-NO! Matteson picks up the chair. Referee yells at him. Chair set up in the corner. Boots in the corner. Corbin gets a backslide for two. Matteson tossed into the chair. Lefts and rights by Corbin. Clothesline and back elbow. Another kick to the midsection. Neckbreaker for two. Matteson begs off being hit with the chair. Low blow blocked. Corbin punts Matteson in the groin and gets three.

Match Analysis: This was more about forwarding the issue between Corbin and the House of Truth than producing a quality match. This was overall fine. Corbin is not the best singles wrestler, but he’s good enough to keep things entertaining. Matteson is a serviceable veteran and the perfect guy to put Corbin over as a threat.

Winner (s)/Time/Match Rating: Darin Corbin/7:54/**

-More shots to the groin from Corbin. He puts the chair on top and stomps the chair. Corbin is about to be overrun by the rest of the House of Truth until Tweek Phoenix of all people makes the save. So is it Phoenix Express or TwinStarExpress? Tweek hands Corbin the chair.

-Silas Young has to defend the AAW title against five other guys. It’s no biggie for him. Young says nothing will stop him. He says he’s the smartest man in the match. He then runs down the other guys in the match. Hey man. Watch what you say about the Open the Freedom Gate champion.

-Clash (Cameron Skyy, Tommy Treznik, and Mena Libra)  vs. Zero Gravity (Bret Gakiya and CJ Esparza) and MsChif

Match in Five Words or Less:  Clash Flies High

Match Highlights:  Clash gets pulled out right away and we have ourselves a brawl. Back in the ring. Clash catches MsChif. Gakiya cross bodies both of them. Libra gets screamed at by MsChif. Clash saves Libra from being triple-teamed. Clash again try pulling ZG and MsChif out but all eat sliding dropkicks. ZG focus on Skyy and then Treznik. MsChif applies an Indian deathlock on Skyy. Sledgehammer by Libra on MsChif. Quick counter and a snap suplex. Into the mount with right hands. Standing moonsaults. Huge open hand slap. Clash use shenanigans to get on the offensive advantage. O’Connor roll variation by Libra. Treznik gets headscissored. Gakiya ranas Skyy. Kicks on Treznik. Elbow by Treznik. Near miscommunication. Gakiyanails Skyy off the apron. Skyy grabs his foot. All three Clash members take advantage of the distraction. Heat segment on Gakiya. Clash even breaks out Demolition Decapitation. School boy by Gakiya. Forearm and back kick. Tag to MsChif and Libra. Back fists and a scream. Spinning back fist. Choke bomb for two and a tag to Esparza. Treznik sends Esparza into the corner. Running boot by Skyy. Bus Driver by Treznik gets two as Gakiya saves his partner. ZG double team Treznik. Flippy Cup gets a long two count. Libra lariats both members of ZG. Now it’s down to the girls. Code Green blocked. The Cleanser. ZG each hit dropkicks. Double dives. Libra hits a samoan drop. She bridges over and gets the victory for her team.

Match Analysis: Clash have certainly elevated their game in recent months and this tag team match is another example of that. Very good work from both teams. I also liked that they continue adding heat to the Libra/MsChif feud by having Libra continue to pick up wins. Solid stuff all around.

Winner (s)/Time/Match Rating:  The Clash/9:56/**3/4

-Unsanctioned Match: Ryan Boz vs. Mason Beck

Match in Five Words or Less:  Boz Kill Beck

Match Highlights:  I love the idea that unsanctioned matches always have a referee. Boz charges into the ring. Quick stomps by Beck. Shots in the corner. Whip to the outside. Slaps. Boz with slaps of his own. Whip. Low bridge and Beck boots over. Boz hits a tope suicida. Brawl around ringside. Boz controls. Clothesline sends Beck into the crowd. Quickly back into the ring. Knee strikes from Boz. Back outside and he teases a powerbomb. Beck back drops him into the front row. Beck rams Boz into the rail. Beck uses a cane. Boz rammed into the post. Chair shot blocked. Boz delivers a shot with the chair and spits on him. Vertical suplex on the floor. Boz calls for the finish. Beck hits a huge boot and calls for the finish. Clothesline misses. Rear naked choke. Beck rams him into the corner. Boz grabs it again. Beck separates Boz’s arms. Running boot into the corner.  Beck misses a charging splash. Boz hits a series of cross face elbows. Rear naked choke. Beck passes out and Boz picks up the victory.

Match Analysis: Very much a brawl with little flow or psychology. For long time fans of AAW (and particularly the ones who’ve been going to the Eagles Club), this was probably more fun than those who are not as familiar with the product. Not a bad match by any means but nothing special either.

Winner (s)/Time/Match Rating: Ryan Boz/11:44/**1/2

–Kevin Harvey wants to do an interview, but the referees barge in to talk about their grievances. Harvey suspends Corbin based on his actions earlier. More promises towards the officials are made.

-Ryland Foxx hosts the Hollywood Vine. We’ve still got a long way to go, so let me bottom line this. Arik Cannon and Jimmy Jacobs are going to battle in an “I Quit” main event. Dave Prazak will not be at ringside for Cannon, and the loser will leave the promotion for 90 days.

-AAW Heritage Championship: Michael Elgin (champion) vs. BJ Whitmer

Match in Five Words or Less:  Another Mean Guy Match

Match Highlights:  Code of Honor followed. Feeling out process as they keep things friendly and provide some surprisingly well done chain wrestling. Shoulder blocks go nowhere. Attempted powerslam. Whitmer sent into the corner. Splash and Elgin sends Whitmer into the other buckle. Flying shoulder tackle gets two. Knees to the back. Backbreaker for two. Blows from Whitmer don’t do much. Forearm to the back. Whitmer hits a one-footed dropkick to get on the offense. Clubbing blow to the back. Chop exchange. Snapmare and stiff kick from Whitmer. Elgin sent into the turnbuckle. Hard strikes in the corner. Back elbow. Chinlock. High knee gets two for Whitmer. Back to the resthold. Elgin works out of it. Whitmer tosses over to the floor. Elgin hits a tope suicida! Running charge met with a boot. Rolling German suplexes. Running splash and a running back elbow. Acecrusher out of the firemen’s carry gets two. Powerbomb turned into a back drop. Whitmer hits a running knee. Snap suplex and right into a northern lights suplex. Elgin sends Whitmer into the corner. Strike exchange. Elgin hits a uranagi slam for two. Spinning powerbomb blocked again. O’Connor roll fails Hurancanrana! Into a cover for two. Series of counters. Exploder blocked. Elgin hits a pele kick! Deadlift side slam for 1-2-NO! This is remarkable. Clothesline blocked. Elgin hits a spinning lariat. Back drop driver from Whitmer. No sold. Whitmer charges with boots. Forearms from Elgin. Sick kick from Whitmer gets two.  Whitmer places Elgin on the top rope. Elgin battles off. Elgin goes for a powerbomb. He eventually hits it and finally gets the victory.  Elgin retains in a battle.

Match Analysis: What you had here was the comeback wrestler of the year battling the breakout wrestler of the year in one of the best big man battles of the year. I loved this match. The moves they were able to pull off were nothing short of incredible. Great moves and nearfalls throughout. THIS is the match that should have clinched Whitmer’s spot back in Ring of Honor when considering he was wrestling a current roster member and put in a great performance.

Winner (s)/Time/Match Rating: STILL Heritage Champion-Mike Elgin/16:13/***3/4

-Shane Hollister is angry about being beat again. Some hussie wants to talk to him, the one who quit a few months ago.

-AAW Tag Team Championship: Irish Airborne (Jake and Dave Crist w/Val Malone)(champions) vs. Josh Raymond and Christian Able

Match in Five Words or Less:  A Statement From The Champions

Match Highlights:  Irish Airborne don’t feel Raymond and Able deserve a tag team title rematch. Raymond and Able promise to go back to the bottom  of the contender’s list if they lose. Able overpowers Dave Crist to start. Raymond and Jake Crist come in quickly. YEAH! Malone pulls Raymond’s leg. Raymond goes after and stalks her. They used to go together if you’ll remember back to the early days of my AAW DVD reviews. Boot from Dave. Able blind tags and tosses his partner into the champions. Double team from the challengers. Raymond drives Jake down. Raymond applies a surfboard. Able hits an acecrusher. YEAH! Draping elbow drop. Raymond hits an atomic drop.  Takedown and  lariat. Raymond ties Dave in the rope. Jake gets forearmed. Dave hung upside down. Dropkicks form Raymond and Able. Boot to the gut. Malone shakes the ropes and sends Raymond down. Dave takes out Able. Airborne double teams and nearly gets three. Heat segment on Raymond. Dave hits a gorgeous frog splash to get two. Raymond out of a suplex. Roll up into a hot tag. Able with strikes for everyone. Back drop on Jake. Firemen’s carry into a DVD right on top of Dave’s head. That was nasty. Drop toehold. Raymond hits a twisting kick. Able lawn darts Jake Into Raymond’s boot. Able spinebuster. Raymond drives Dave into the middle buckle. Huge dive. Pumphandle slam but Malone puts Dave’s foot on the rope. Springboard moonsault but Jake grabs the leg. Jake hits a prone Able with a double stomp. 1-2-NO! Jake springboards into his own partner. Able powerbombs his partner right on top of his head. Able hits a springboard moonsault. 1-2-NO! Raymond climbs to the top. Tower of Truth set up. Malone is dragged into the ring. Running boot from Jake. Tandem piledriver gets a win for the champions.

Match Analysis: Other than the scary head drops, I’d say this was a slightly better contest than the one at War is Coming. The ring rust was less prevalent for the challengers, and they’ve even come up with some more double teams. Airborne are really just an underrated tag team who deserve a greater opportunity in other indies. I hope these two teams can have a third match some time in the near future.

Winner (s)/Time/Match Rating: Irish Airborne/11:45/***1/4

-Gregory Iron comes out for the six way elimination title match, but Shane Hollister comes from behind and viciously attacks Iron. Into the stairs goes Iron. Brainbuster on the floor. And there’s your much needed heel turn. Hollister is immediately freshened up and gets a great feud to begin his heel run too. Officials carry Iron out.

-Shane Hollister celebrates with what I presume will be his valet. Hollister has been toiling for years, and he’s now ready to be strong. Also, the weak should apparently be eaten. Well, we’re not cannibals Shane. Geez.

-AAW Heavyweight Championship Eliminator: Silas Young (w/Val Malone) (champion) vs. Dan Lawrence vs. Sami Callihan vs. Johnny Gargano vs. Mr. Miller

Match in Five Words or Less:  One For The Ages

Match Highlights:  You’ve got the current Open the Freedom Gate champion, a former  triple crown AAW title holder, the CZW Junior Heavyweight Champion and 2011 16 Carat winner, the current and two time AAW heavyweight champion, and Mr. Miller. We get some trash talk to start. Unlike many multi-man matches, tags are not necessary, and it’s utter chaos. The four challengers work over the champion. Callihan appears to clear the ring, but Gargano hits an immediate spear back in. Knee lift and neckbreaker. Lawrence drops Gargano on his knee. Big knee. Miller goes up and over and drives Lawrence face down. Young sends Miller and Lawrence to the floor. Callihan chops him. Stretch muffler on the outside. Lawrence with a running boot. Callihan crotches Lawrence on the top rope. Young forearms a charging Callihan. Lawrence hits a dive. Miller dodges Callihan and hits a corkscrew dive. Gargano taken up and over. Gargano dodges and Callihan dives. Gargano goes for a dive but Callihan rips him off. Gargano and Callihan back in the ring. Kick to the back. Lawrence comes in and gets kicked. Face wash. Callihan stacks Lawrence on top of Gargano in the corner. Gargano sits up and German suplexes the men. Miller hits a dropkick. Young tosses Miller to the outside. His leg once again hits the post. Champion goes in for a series of covers. Backbreaker/clothesline combo on Lawrence. Running boot from Miller. Callihan meets him with another kick. DVD and springboard splash. He catches Gargano in the spear. Gargano takes Callihan in the spear. Flatliner into the middle buckle. Gargano sits down on a powerbomb for two. Lawrence hits a flying rana. Cross body. Young rolls through. Lawrence hits a tornado DDT. Callihan misses a charge. Lawrence hits a face wash. Miller rolls through and hits a round house kick. Lawrence ranas Miller. Nagasaki roll and Pee Gee Waja Plunge by the champion eliminates Dan Lawrence.

All that and he match is eight minutes old. Low kick from Callihan. He goes for the stretch muffler, but the champion escapes. Lariat to the corner by Miller. Miller drives Callihan into the corner with his knees. Callihan catches Miller in a powerbomb. Right into a sort of anklelock. Miller quickly taps and is the second man eliminated.

Callihan low bridged. Gargano takes turns diving on his opponents. Low kicks from Callihan on the champion. Series of chops. Nagasaki roll. Gargano knocks Young out with a kick. Kick exchange from Callihan and Gargano. Swinging lariat by Gargano. Callihan hits a deadlift backdrop driver. Both men down. Young again goes to cover both of his opponents. Young exchanges words with the crowd and eggs them on. Callihan is dead weight… until he hits a backdrop driver. Young kicks out of the stretch muffler. Gargano Escape on the champion, Callihan applies the ankelock. Gargano sends him to the turnbuckle. Over into the Escape. Callihan rolls him up. Dropkick in the corner from Gargano. Lawn dart. Superkick. Hertz Doughnut. 1-2-NO! Again to the Gargano Escape! Callihan refuses to tap. Gargano kicks out of the stretch muffler. Pair of kicks. Stretch muffler. Gargano taps and is the third man eliminated. I’m just glad Gargano got reaction after doing his moves and didn’t have to kill himself in front of a bunch of bloodthirsty Philadelphians to no reaction. The only thing he needs to apologize for in this match is having an awesome performance when he could have easily phoned it in.

Callihan goes to the stretch muffler and locks it on the champion. Val Malone comes on the apron. Callihan drags her in. Stretch muffler! Referee shoved down. Young low blow. Cover. 1-2-NO! Crowd is way behind Callihan. Young chokes away. Callihan fires back with a series of strikes. Young tosses Callihan to the floor. Young tosses Callihan in the ring. Callihan fights out of a powerbomb and boots him. Young counters a backdrop driver into a cross body for two. Young misses a charge. Callihan goes for the kick. Nagasaki roll. Pee Gee Waja Plunge misses. Running boot from the challenger. Clothesline from Young. Nagasaki roll. Pee Gee Waja Plunge. 1-2-NO! Young goes under the ring for a chair. Callihan blocks being rammed into the buckle. O’Connor roll. Young sent into the chair. Roll-up for two. Again into the stretch muffler. Crowd going nuts. Young small packages out of nowhere and gets the victory.

Match Analysis: This match felt like one long spot… but with a purpose. Unlike so many Sami Callihan matches, this one had a story. The stretch muffler was built as a dangerous finisher and then built up extremely well once it was down to Young and Callihan. This was just an phenomenal contest with all five guys playing their role to perfection. This was an easy watch, even a second time. Gargano showed why he’s one of the best in the world. Callihan really stepped up his game. Young showed again why he’s super underrated. Mr. Miller is going to be a future star as well. Even Dan Lawrence wrestled a very solid match. A must see contest that everyone should go out of their way to see.

Winner (s)/Time/Match Rating: STILL AAW Heavyweight Champion-Silas Young/21:59/****1/4

-Silas Young does some gloating after the match. He talks about not giving the fans the time of day and not caring what they think. He says he’s the best in the world and no one on the roster can beat him. Ryan Boz walks out, not to fight Young, but to announce he’s going to face Silas Young in a “Fans Bring the Weapons” match for the championship on December 17 at Twisted Christmas.

– I Quit Match (Loser leaves for 90 days) Jimmy Jacobs vs. Arik Cannon

Match in Five Words or Less:  THAT’S How to End It

Match Highlights:  From an intense world title match to now this. The biggest news of this show might be that Arik Cannon has ditched the Mohawk. Immediate ground and pound. You were expecting a feeling out process? Nope. To the outside and the brawl through the crowd is on. Pretty much back and forth through three sides of the building and of course the bathroom. Back to ringside. Jacobs goes for a dive to the floor, but Cannon tosses a chair in his face. Total Anarchy on the hardwood. Cannon attempts to take the rails apart but settles for punching a busted up Jacobs. Cannon breaks a beer bottle and uses it on the open wound of Jacobs.  Whip across. Jacobs with an elbow. Acecrusher as the announcers let the action speak for itself at this point. Seems appropriate. Jacobs goes into his boot for the spike. Spike shot misses. Exploder out of the corner. Into the mount with right hands. Cannon brings out duct tape and wraps Jacobs’s hands behind his back. Cannon wants Jacobs to quit. If not, it’s curtains. Spike shots from Cannon. Jacobs refuses to quit.  Low blow sends Cannon Down. Jacobs takes the spike and undoes the wrapping. What is he? McGuyver. Running spike shot. Cannon is now bleeding. Jacobs drives the spike into Cannon’s head. Jacobs uses the spike across Cannon’s mouth! Cannon appears to be bleeding from his head and right arm. He manages a spinebuster. Cannon goes for the spare guard rail this time. Short right hand and Cannon staggers. To the outside and another right hand. He sets the guard rail up between the ring and the front row. Cannon goes for a suplex on the rail. Jacobs fires punches. Off the ropes for a spear. Cannon meets him with a knee. Jacobs uses the spike and applies a sleeper hold. Cannon slowly climbs back up and rams Jacobs into the corner until he is out. Jacobs transitions into End Time. Cannon lifts him up and drops him in a northern lights bomb.  Cannon misses a second rope moonsault. Spear by Jacobs. Cannon placed on the top rope. Cannon slaps him down. Jacobs recovers and nails a rana. Canadian Destroyer. End Time. Cannon quits. Feud over.

Match Analysis: Everything the match in October wasn’t this was. There was violence (not over the top), an epic feel, and an incredibly eerie atmosphere with the lack of announcing. Considering everything that had already happened on this night, the decision to ditch the announcing turned out to be a sound one.  This was a real spectacle. Both guys wrestled like they had something to prove. I almost wish the dog collar never happened because this was the proper way to end this rivalry.

Winner (s)/Time/Match Rating: Jimmy Jacobs/25:09/****1/4

-Jimmy Jacobs using Petey Williams’s finisher can’t be a coincidence considering Cannon was replaced on Resistance Pro by the aforementioned Williams. I’ve never seen Jacobs use that move before. These are the things that make you go “Hmm.”

-Arik Cannon bleeds into a sink, but he feels like a man who gave it everything he had. Cannon is down (and out for 90 days), but he vows to be back in AAW. That’s a promise.

-Sami Callihan is used to pain. In fact, he welcomes it.  He talks about nearly walking out the heavyweight champion in his second appearance. He bows to beat Young the next time they meet.

-Silas Young says he’s the only real man in the locker room. Arik Cannon walks by. Young makes fun of him for losing.  Young says it’s about being the smartest  man in wrestling and not being on social media. Shots at Facebook and Twitter are taken.

-Fave Five

No offense to any other member of the roster, but these five slots have to go to the five people in the championship match. Each man played their role to perfection and contributed to it being the AAW classic it was. This was a very special night for two men in particular. Mr. Miller and Sami Callihan will undoubtedly be the real benefactors. They’ll both be getting singles pushes in the near future if this match was any indication.

-The Verdict: The first half of the show was alright but nothing special. The second half contains three incredible must see matches that need to be seen to be believed. A number of irregular roster members contributed to this being such an incredible show. And the mainstays also did their part, especially in the main event. Part of me wishes AAW was ending 2011 on this note because it doesn’t get any better than this. Considering the other show that took place this weekend, AAW had something to prove. And boy did they. Highest possible recommendation for Windy City Classic VII.

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