Last week’s episode could be categorized as “different” . This week was also different, but it was a more solid show in my opinion. The unique vibe Chapel Hill brings was still present, but the wrestling was much closer to the norm than last week.

Our opening match saw John Skyler team up with the All Star’s Mace Li against Aaron Biggs and Keith Mac. Biggs and Mac had a noticeable advantage in the strength, size, and popularity departments. Li and Skyler on the other hand, were noticeably quicker.

I found the team of Li and Skyler rather  interesting. Li shows promise but is still youthful in his career. Teaming with Skyler could definitely help him sharpen his skills. For example, Li liked to showboat and would end up catching a beating for it. Under Skyler’s guidance, Li more than held his own. Skyler did a masterful job utilizing tricks to combat his opponents’ strength advantage.

Some of my favorite tricks were the “pull ropes down with feet to make your rival fall to the outside ” and the classic double team abdominal stretch. Despite all of these great dirty tactics, Li and Skyler came up short. The young Li fell to a monstrous Thesz Press from Biggs while Skyler was on the outside. I know the Kernodle Cup tournament is coming up soon, maybe Li and Skyler will team up in the near future?

Contrasts in styles tend to work really well inside a wrestling ring. This next match between Chet Sterling and Otto Schwanz is a perfect example of that. On one side you have the wrecking ball, Otto Schwanz. Otto is a really special talent in this current era. When I watch him, I see bits of Bruiser Brody, Kamala, and Lesnar. He’s an excellent combination of madman antics and power brawling.

Chet Sterling is also a special breed of talent. Chet brings an excellent mix of a natural babyface ability, great selling, and incredible athleticism to every match. In my opinion, Chet is a combination of Ricky Steamboat, Shawn Michaels, and Seth Rollins.

Chet is one of the best at taking a beating and coming back. Otto is one of the best at being a crazy, wild monster. For the majority of the match, Otto had the upper hand. One of his biggest, most effective weapons is a bearhug. Every time he applies it, it looks absolutely vicious. Chet makes it look even more impressive by collapsing once Otto abandons the hold.

Chet got in some pretty good offense in his own right. Arm Drags might seem basic, but Chet Sterling does them with a certain fire. Being a natural babyface isn’t the only thing he shares with Steamboat. Late in the match, Chet releases his inner HBK with a flying forearm and a crisp superkick. After a back and forth battle, Chet gets the duke with a rollup in true underdog fashion.

Up next, those dastardly Dawsons defend their belts against the  duo of Dirty Daddy and Kool Jay As a long-time viewer of CWF, I’ve seen just how mean and vicious the Dawsons can be, and just how much fire Dirty Daddy has inside him. Tonight, Kool Jay was the star. Over the past 3 months, Kool Jay has gone from CWF’s designated whipping boy to their most beloved underdog.

The Dawsons start the match with a sneak attack on Kool Jay. This sets the tone for the rest of the match. No sneak attack or fake tag or any other dirty tactic is gonna keep Kool Jay or Dirty Daddy down. Neither Dirty nor Kool Jay are afraid to throw hands. Honestly, that’s probably not a good idea. Dirty and Kool Jay realized this and decided to use their speed advantage. For a while, the aerial tactics were successful. Unfortunately, Kool Jay made a fatal error when he missed a Moonsault. One double powerbomb later, and the champ’s retained.

For our main event, Trevor Lee defended his Heavyweight belt against Donnie Dollars. Donnie is one of the few guys that has the power advantage over the champ. In order to be successful, Trevor must use his speed and technique. He constantly attacked Donnie’s arm with kicks. Sometimes in UFC, you hear about guys with one punch knockout power. To me, that’s what Donnie has. Donnie doesn’t need too many shots to put someone’s lights out, if he catches you just right, consider yourself done. Trevor’s arm work made it to where Donnie couldn’t immediately capitalize after his big boot and he couldn’t hit his spinning facebuster variation, The Answer with maximum power.

Trevor’s arm work unquestionably saved him from losing his title. Late in the match, Trevor blasted the challenger’s already weak arm with nasty penalty kicks. He then followed by locking Donnie in his patented STF. Donnie’s arm just couldn’t withstand any more punishment and he had to tap. Trevor retained, but Donnie put up a big fight.

 

 

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