Pro Wrestling EVO returned to Ippv on August 25th for ‘This Is Wrestling’ featuring a huge 4 way main event between Zack Salvation, Cedric Alexander, Marcellus King & KC McKnight for Salvation’s PWEvo Heavyweight title. Also a heated SuperHEX match between Joe Black & Robyn Golphin, The Bravado Brothers in their EVO debut and much more! I’ll tkae a look at the entire night of action and what’s ahead for Pro Wrestling Evo. Remember the following is…..
Matches rated 1-5 stars
Overall show rated 1-10
SuperHEX Grudge Match
Joe Black vs “Relentless” Robyn Golphin
These two had been asking for this match since the conclusion of EVO’s first Ippv in June and officials gave it to them. Over the last few weeks Golphin and Black exchanged insults, threats and heated words backing all of them. Golphin and black had a hard hitting match with both looking to position themselves for the first shot at the SuperHEX championship once the inaugural champion is decided. Black worked Golphin over with knife edge chops, and brutalized the youngster with kicks and clotheslines. Golphin has always displayed the never say die attitude and it was no different at ‘This Is Wrestling’ Golphin used his speed advantage to combat the strength of Black. Golphin then took to the air with a dive over the top. Black showed both his toughness as well as tenacity in the end getting the win & positioning himself as a top challenger in the SuperHEX division.
#1MansOpinion: Good Opener, less explosive than most EVO opening matches. Good emotion played out between these two and a good back and forth battle. ***
6 Man “Open Session” Match
Chase Brown vs Matt Madison vs William Huckabee vs Kameron Kade vs Raymond King vs “Mr ATL” Terrell Givins
Pro Wrestling EVO held it’s annual “Open Session” prior to the event and these six guys impressed EVO officials enough to be given this “All or Nothing” shot live on Ippv. All 6 guys gave good efforts in this big opportunity. I apologize for not knowing more about each of the guys and hopefully will learn more about them in the future should they continue to appear for EVO. As for the match, all the guys broke off into pairs and from that point it was mostly a spot fest with each man getting some offense in and really trying to introduce themselves to the PWEvo fans both live and watching on Ippv. I will be interested to watch this match again at evoondemand.com In the end the biggest guy of the match(both in size and attitude got the win) as “The Four Time All-American African American” William Huckabee picked up a big win in this “Open Session” match.
#1MansOpinion: As I said I’d like to see this one again so I can familiarize myself with these talents. Huckabee had a good ring presence and really worked his gimmick. Brown & Kade were very athletic and looked to have some skill and with more development could become fixtures in the EVO landscape. Congratulations to all six of these guys for going 100% and taking advantage of a great opportunity presented by Pro Wrestling EVO. **
Jason Blade vs “Mr. Elite” Drew Meyers
Blade debuted for PWEvo last month and was asked back to challenge Mr. Elite who is one of the most successful up and comers in PWEVo. There were several blown spots in this match and a lot of times things seemed to be moving too fast for anyone to keep up with. Meyers did a good job parlaying these moments into offense and to his credit Blade never gave up. Meyers continued his roll and picked up the win with a nice bridging german suplex. ** 1/4
#1MansOpinion: This match was just off from the beginning and never got back on track. I thin k it could’ve been much worse and really evolved into a dangerous match for both guys so to their credit, both were able to reel it back in and pull things together at the end. Meyers should be involved in more substantial matches and angles as he’s starting to be a consistent talent having good matches in many promotions across the Mid-Atlantic.
Chiva Kid vs Circo
Originally intended to be the SuperHEX finals with Chiva facing Kirby Mack, “The Man Creature” Circo makes his return to EVO to take on the crowd’s favorite “Goat Boy”. Circo attacks Chiva at the bell and is agressive in trying to derail the momentum Chiva has built up in these last 2 months. Chiva turns the tide and as always electrifies the crowd with a wild dive to the outside sending Circo crashing into the guardrail. Circo is as tough as they come and fought back catching Chiva on the top with a kick to the back of the head, Circo then got several near falls including a very nice frogsplash elbow drop which almost earned him a a big win. In the end Chiva went for is 720, missed but rolled out of it and avoided an “Alabama Slam” planting Circo with a “Canadian Destroyer” for the win.
#1MansOpinion: Very good match. Chiva is always exciting to watch and when he hits that top rope or goes to dive to the outside the crowd knows they are in for something special. Circo looked very good here as well competing with consistently one of the best in the fairly new SueprHEX division and nearly stealing a victory and all of Chiva’s momentum going into the SuperHEX finals. *** 1/4
During Intermission Pro Wrestling EVO Owner Patrick Wright came to the ring and addressed the situation between his promotion and Premiere Wrestling Xperience(PWX) Wright announced that PWX has proposed a match of Team PWX vs Team EVO and it will take place Sept. 28th at EVO’s next Ippv ‘This One is for the Haters’. PWX owner Tyshion Williams joined Wright in the ring and said before the night ended we would find out who is representing Team PWX.
Caleb Konley vs Adam Page
Konley made his return to Pro Wrestling EVO and was met by a new face on the EVO talent roster, Adam Page. These two have similar styles and it showed as neither could seem to keep the advantage in this one for long. Page was hungry for his first victory in PWEvo and fought through all of Konley’s offense frustrating the EVO Veteran. Finally Page made his charge and with the crowd behind him looked for an upset victory. Page hit a devestating “Alabama Slam” and got a nearfall, however Konley was able to reverse a pin attempt into the “Oh Face” submision. Page was able to free himself but only temporarily as Konley again locked in the hold and Page had no choice but to tap out and will have to wait until another day to earn his first win in Pro Wrestling EVO.
Post Match: Konley grabbed a mic and congratulated Page on an athletic performance then quickly turned his attention to the management of Pro Wrestling EVO. Konley said he will no longer be looked over and briefly mentioned the PWX vs EVO feud brewing. Konley said he was the champion of PWX and is looking for more championships, EVO may now have to deal with a refocused, hungry, and angry Caleb Konley.
#1MansOpinion: Both men are great athletes and put on good match. The similar styles blended together at times in this match and while it was a competetive contest it just dragged in some areas. As I’ve said before I prefer Konley working heel as he has more chance to showcase his attitude and it translates to his matches. Page is a good babyface who the fans can get behind so that first(of many victories) is right around the corner for the country boy from Aaron’s Creek Virginia. ** 3/4
The Bravado Brothers(Harlem & Lancelot) vs Corey Hollis & Mike Posey(replacement for injured Chip Day)
The Bravado Bandwagon rolled into Pro Wrestling EVO and picked up a victory over Corey Hollis & Mike Posey. Really good match here as Hollis is always a pleasure to watch with his innovative offensive style and athleticism. The Bravados were very entertaining and not to be out matched have some innovative tag team offense of their own. Harlem & Lancelot represented their homestate of North Carolina with their “Carolina” Blue argyle ring gear which drew cheers from some of the crowd and jeers from others. Posey and Hollis worked well together and gave the ROH talents all they could ask for but in the end The Bravados hit “The Gentleman’s Agreement” to get a debut win and make a statement to the EVO lockerroom.
Post Match: Corey Hollis had a statement of his own to make, jumping both Mike Posey and his injured partner Chip Day and taking the mic to say we are seeing “THE REAL” Corey Hollis and he’s tired of playing second fiddle. Hollis then announced himself as the first entrant in the annual ‘Evo Eight’ tourament coming January 2013 in which the winner receives a Pro Wrestling EVO Heavyweight title shot.
#1MansOpinion: Good work from all four guys here. The Bravados were a welcome addition to bolster the tag team ranks of Pro Wrestling EVO a bit. Corey Hollis getting some time to address a possible singles career is something I enjoyed as I think Hollis is poised to have a breakout year in 2013 and I think EVO is a great place to at least get started. *** 1/2
4 Way Pro Wrestling EVO Heavyweight Title Match
“The Queen City Killer” Zack Salvation (c) vs Marcellus King vs Cedric Alexander vs KC McKnight
This match was conducted under “Lucha Rules” meaning two men must be in the ring at all times whether by tag or when someone is thrown from the ring another competitor takes their place. This added an interesting component to the main event, Salvation came out fired up to defend his title and welcomed all challengers turning all three back until the Cirkus finally got the numbers advantage on him. Alexander & King used quick tags in and out and punished the champion, while McKnight took any opportunity he could to get into the ring and settle an unfinished score with Marcellus King and anyone else who got in his way. The Cirkus toyed with Salvation nearly allowing him to make a tag and brutalizing him in and out of the ring. KC McKnight took his shots at the champ as well, nearly becoming the new champion with his beautiful array of suplexes including a bridging northern lights that nearly ended the match. In the end the action broke down and all four men entered the ring, after a Slingshot into a devestating superkick by Cedric Alexander, it was Marcellus King breaking up the pin as the Cirkus had a momentary divide. This gave Salvation just enough time to get back into the match and he & McKnight cleared the ring of the Cirkus, Salvation then was able to hit the “Zacklash” on McKnight and in a blink of an eye the match was over and at least for this night, “Good” won out & Salvation retained his EVO championship.
#1MansOpinion: MOTN This main event told the story of “Good vs Evil” very well and as I said the Lucha style rules added a good component. This was four of the most talented guys on the roster(or in Independent Wrestling period) so it was sure to come through. All four guys worked their asses off for over 20 minutes and you can’t ask for more than that. *** 3/4
Post Match: Team PWX(Eddie Edwards, Delirious, & Roderick Strong) appeared and exchanged words with Cedric Alexander(The Captain of Team EVO) Alexander & King responded by inviting PWX Owner Tyshion Williams into the ring! You can see the controversial & shocking end to ‘This Is Wrestling’ below
#1MansFINALOpinion: Pro Wrestling EVO continues to be one of the top Independent companies today. The quality both in production and especially in ring is matched by few. ‘This Is Wrestling’ was a really good show but as I’ve mentioned before “EVO standards” are a bit higher and this event fell short of past PWEvo shows. The show started out well, with a heated matchup of two young, talented guys in Joe Black & Robyn Golphin then dipped with a match between Jason Blade & Mr. Elite that just got off track and didn’t fully get back on. The Open Session was a talent showcase and there was definitely some potential there but also some work left to be done as well. Chiva Kid & Circo really picked things back up and put on an exciting match that is to be expected from both of these guys. As I said the tag match was entertaining but being a fan of Hollis & Day I was disappointed to see a replacement for Chip Day. It appears if we see Day & Hollis in the EVO ring together again anytime soon it will be as adversaries instead of partners and that too, is fine with me. The Main Event delivered and EVO continues to put together main events that feature the top tier of their talented roster. I have no doubt that Pro Wrestling EVO will continue to be one of the best and possibly THE ultimate Independent wrestling company after it’s feud with PWX. I look forward to the PWX vs EVO matchup and think it’s a great idea however the execution thus far is lacking. Team PWX is made up completely of ROH Superstars and PWX does have a close relationship with ROH but I personally would rather see the top talents of PWX representing that company as opposed to a full roster of ROH guys.
Overall: 6.5/10
Check out www.prowrestlingevo.com for updates on their next Ippv ‘This is for The Haters’ which takes place Friday September 28 at Cabarrus Arena & Events Center. You can also follow @ProWrestlingEVO and @PWXWrestling1 on twitter to see all the interactions between the companies leading up to the event. If you missed ‘This Is Wrestling’ or any past events check out www.evoondemand.com
Did you see ‘This Is Wrestling’? or Attend Live? What did you think of the show? Leave a comment or Follow me @The1andonlyJer on twitter to discuss your thoughts on the event and the impending feud between the two premiere Independent Wrestling Companies in the Mid-Atlantic
