Since this event took place on July 6, there are so many comments & references that could be made about fireworks & explosives; but it had rained all during the holiday. So you get none of that because not only does it not fit for this event: it’s downright corny. Also, with all the usual local activities being cancelled, there was a need for quality entertainment. The entertainment for the evening? The local wrestling promotion putting on its riskiest event since their debut show.
The Lethal Lottery may not be an original concept, and it does have one the highest margins for failure because none of the specifics of the match can be worked out beforehand. When it does work? It can create stars & events that a promotion can build on for months, especially since the winner gets a title shot. This big gamble was being held to help a member of the roster who was injured in that very ring 2 months prior. For those who don’t know, the Lethal Lottery was held to raise money for one of PWF’s most entertaining workers, Maxx Misery.
After Volbeat’s music hits & the owner & commentary team come out to hype the crowd, they introduce the ring announcer which is a clear indicator that the festivities are about to start. Once everyone is in place, the all too familiar sound of The Offspring is heard & Bobby Blade & the new addition to his faction, Shane Mercer, enter the ring to once again bully Brian Sizemore with Blade berated him while Mercer looked like he was about to hit up that kid wearing a bowtie for his lunch money. After Bobby asked Brian for the microphone (well, as nice as he was going to anyway), he proceeded to introduce himself & while he announced that Cash Flo was given the night off, he voiced his disdain because Mercer wasn’t in the Lottery. During his tirade, Blade was informed that The Iron Demon does have an opponent, which cued an all too familiar entrance music. Making his first appearance since Dream Night, Zodiak came out to his usual theatrics.
Shane Mercer vs. Zodiak. First time in a PWF ring, 2 of the largest & strongest square off. In typical PWF fashion, the first match is very strong & entertaining. This was an extremely hard hitting matchup with both guys showing themselves as well as the fans just how tough they can be. While Zodiak showed everyone that he’s undeniably tenacious and wasn’t intimidated by Mercer’s imposing presence & even pursued him when Mercer tried to retreat; Mercer showed that his change in attitude has led to him being even more vicious. His newfound allegiance to Flawless has led him to become even more fearless as he hoisted the 250lb Zodiak (unless he went on a diet) & executed his fall away slam from the 2nd turnbuckle as well as his standing vertical suplex where he walks around, showing the fans what he thinks of them. In the end, the masked man fell. Winner: Shane Mercer.
Kharn Alexander vs. Kerry Awful. Looking at these guys, they are about as opposite as you can get. Alexander looks like he should be either in a ring for New York or in Florida, while Kerry looks like a guy who you yell at when your drink order is messed up. With that being said, very good match. Alexander demonstrates that he has the potential to be a big name with his look & his ring work, especially his power moves & his submissions. Awful is far from awful as he has shown since January that he’s tough & knows how to get the crowd involved. This time, scrappy beat sleek. Winner: Kerry Awful.
Alex Angel vs. Shane Smalls. This is the second appearance these 2 have made in PWF, & possibly the first time they have met (I have been wrong before). If it is their first ever meeting, they work rather well together. Both have played to each other’s strengths rather well & there weren’t a lot of low points in the match. Honest opinion? I think those 2 should work together more. Winner: Alex Angel.
Nate Cross & The Dahlia come out to address the crowd. Cross informs everyone he won’t be in The Lottery because of a touring commitment. But the real high point is The Dahlia going on a tirade about how everyone treated her the last show, the things they called her, & the fact the fans threw change at her. As they leave the area, she mockingly blows a kiss to everyone in attendance.
“Juicy” Jimmy Feltcher vs. Nick Iggy. Feltcher made his return to the PWF ring due to the roster’s lack of depth that night & faces Iggy in his first singles match for the company. You’ve read me writing many times that a match plays to the worker’s strengths, well, this one does. It was a very entertaining match because both guys work a very comedic style. One spot left Iggy running outside the ring yelling “stranger danger!”; which I won’t go into but if you’re familiar with both their gimmicks, you can kinda guess what happened.
Once Iggy scored a pinfall, Jimmy got on the mic & immediately protested & demanded the match be restarted. Iggy complied & pinned Feltcher again. Feltcher protested once again, which led the referee to roll the Juicy one up for the kid from Nashville to make the count. Winner (more than once): Nick Iggy.
Ryan Dookie vs. “The Modern Day Viking” Shawn Shultz. Dookie is a PWF original, while Shultz is making his 2nd appearance in an attempt to get another title shot. Before I discuss anything about the match, I have to mention that Shultz has the best intro music. Ever. To clarify, it’s customized to him. Now, I have heard some customized music recently that was just dreadful, but I’m not going to discuss them. While Dookie mounted some impressive offense, Shultz couldn’t be denied. Winner: Shawn Shultz. Post match the fans saw Derek Neal make his first appearance since December to attack Dookie. The crowd didn’t seem to be as involved as they should have been, but the fact that he hasn’t been seen in 7 months & that a good portion of the fanbase may not have been to those early shows, so fans may not be familiar with Neal. But it does look like one of PWF’s earliest & nastiest feuds has been rekindled.
John Bullard comes out to talk to the crowd & introduces Scotty Vicious who has been absent from PWF. Scotty comes out & explains to everyone what happened to him & why he hasn’t been around. I respect his privacy, & I’m not certain whether he may want it broadcast over the Internet or not, so I won’t say anything. If he wants to disclose it he can leave a comment on here. In as classy and as brusque as he can be, he requested the fans continue to support PWF, & thanked everyone. Then Father Fear walked out & confronted Bullard on his commitment to Scotty which led to the Bullard/Fear feud to continue. Once that seemed to cool, Viciouse in not too many words or actions announced that his faith has been shaken. On a personal note, I may not know Scotty as well as some, he appeared to have a smile on his face most of the time & he seemed to tolerate me for the most part (trust me, I’m not easy to be around); he is a longtime veteran to the business, possesses a well of knowledge, & if he never wrestles again, and/or if he decides to go into training, any student of his I’m certain would have great potential to be a star.
Drew Adler & John D vs. Derek Neal & Eric Walker. In the penultimate match of the Lottery, we have two who make their returns, in D & Neal. And in true PWF fashion, new talent in the form of Adler & Walker. The match was entertaining in regards to watching 2 teams, each had a face & a heel and the conflict that ensued. In my opinion, I thought the guy who stood out was definitely Eric Walker who at a glance may remind people of Human Tornado, but when you watch him, you immediately stop the comparison & see that he stands on his own merits. Definitely someone worth seeing again if booked. Winners: Derek Neal & Eric Walker.
Alex Angel vs. Kerry Awful vs. Nick Iggy vs. Derek Neal vs. Shawn Shultz vs. Eric Walker. In this final match, several of the wrestler’s characters come out in ways like Iggy & Kerry facing each other in the ring & acting like 2 friends who were around the age of 12 having an argument, Neal being a bully, Walker showing everyone why he was booked, Angel making his way, & Shultz just hanging back & letting everyone kill each other. While everyone had an opportunity to shine, Shultz gets his rematch. Winner: Shawn Shultz.
“Picture Perfect” Jordan Kage vs. Kyle Matthews (C)- PWF Heavyweight Title Match. This marks Matthews’s 3rd title defense & his first one against a member of the roster. This is also a rematch from their first round face off from The Primus; which was one of the most exciting matches in PWF history. Every match tonight led to this particular moment where one of the most popular personalities in the promotion faces the champion who is considered one of the best wrestlers in the Eastern U.S. This match did not disappoint & was the best title defense to date. These 2 went back & forth for at least 20 minutes throwing everything at each other.
Especially Kage who dusted off a move he hadn’t used in awhile (yes, I went over my photos & found it Mike). Honestly, I don’t think the crowd has been that involved in a match since Matthews vs. Rayz in the tournament final in April. After multiple near falls & possibly heart attacks from audience members, the match ends with both Shane Mercer & Shawn Shultz interfering. Winner: No Contest. Post match featured Ryan Dookie coming out to aid Kage & Matthews which sets up the next event in August & the second time that PWF will not be having a show at the Corbin Civic Center but will be at their second home which is the National Guard Armory in London, KY. Other announcements were that the Matthews would face Shultz in a rematch, Hy Zaya will be returning to face Menace, the tag titles will be defended in a street fight as Flawless faces Team BFF with Brian Sizemore as special referee, & there would be a dream match between Kage & the returning Jason “The Gift” Kincaid!
For a show that was a definite gamble, it paid off. I think many were surprised at how well the matches were because they were drawn completely at random by the fans themselves. That’s right. Unlike many of these lottery shows, aside from the very first match & the very last match, no one knew who would be working with whom. Also, those matches have to be called on the fly which should tell you the quality of the roster PWF has at their disposal. I still think more & more people would enjoy PWF once they realize that it’s not some promotion ran by a guy who decided to get a ring & a license & hired a bunch of guys whose pay scale goes from a hot dog, drink, & an attaboy down to working for just a simple hello at the door; but ran by & presented by people who take the business seriously.
The only downside to this event I could see is that the roster was light. There was no Cash Flo, no Mickie Knuckles, no Nasty Russ, no Dustin Rayz, no Jason Kincaid, etc. The reason being was the fact that many of the workers not only had prior commitments & bookings since PWF did not initially have a July show planned as of early May, they simply couldn’t afford the trip because to my knowledge no one was getting paid that night. Like I said earlier, this show was to raise money for Maxx to cover not only his living expenses but also his medical bills. Were they missed? Yes. Did the show suffer because of it? I don’t think so because I believe the show was entertaining. Do I think that it’s a format that should be used more often? No. However, I am neither a booker nor a promoter, I’m a guy with access to the Internet & an opinion.
If you’ve read any of my other reviews, you’ll notice I try not to pepper my review with insider terms. I admit, I do use a few, but I try not to out of respect for those who actually put themselves out there. With that being said, here’s one for you that many may have overlooked: the boys (yes, I know there are women involved, but hopefully those of you who have stuck it out with me this far will understand what I’m saying). It’s that group that go out there & give the people more than they paid for whether it’s in front of crowds that can range from 5 fans or 5,000. In many places, when one of them gets hurt, they can not only get dropped from the roster, but not be able to work their regular jobs which affects not only themselves, but their families. And yes, I know there are those who don’t care, that’s human nature & maybe I’m looking at this differently, but hey, this is my opinion. I’m going to say that it says a lot about the promoters, the bookers, event staff, & especially the boys (& girls) who are donating their services to help one of their own who was injured putting on a show. It also says a lot about those who have been forced out of commission to come be a part of the show despite how painful it may be to them.
One more thing I should add: yes, the ending was what some have called a Dusty finish (it wasn’t technically a Dusty finish) but the fact that the outcome wasn’t what you were wanting shouldn’t be a rallying cry against the product. Some of you should realize that wrestling is entertainment, not necessarily what is defined as “sports entertainment”, but entertainment nonetheless. The people out in that ring have to be athletes, actors, orators, improvisers, & I’m sure some of them have to become mathematicians when the opportunity calls for it. They aren’t always the ones who call the shots, that’s usually someone else who if they’re any good at booking have planted seeds that won’t bear fruit for months. As I was told by someone for whom I have a great deal of respect: this isn’t a short story or a one-shot, this a novel. Personally, I equate good wrestling storylines to Greek Epics of Norse Sagas; but to each their own.
Now, if there’s one in your area, go check out a show.
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(Edit: Due to scheduling conflicts with NWA Smoky Mountain, Jason Kincaid has had to withdraw from the August 10th date because on that same night he is not only scheduled to defend his almost 2 year reign as NWA Smoky Mountain Champion, but he has the opportunity to obtain the NWA Junior Heavyweight Championship. Personally, I will miss seeing him August 10th, as will many of the PWF fanbase, but I encourage anyone who is reading this that is beyond the driving distance of London, KY but within driving distance to Kingsport, TN to go watch one of the absolute best in the world show you how it’s done.)