Ring of Fire: Fighting Every Step of the Way

[chris caulfield]

Nichiren Amagawa vs. [B]Capitao Brasil Jr[/B] [B]Bulldozer Brandon Smith [/B]vs. Seiji Jimbo [B]The Force [/B]vs. The Shooters [B]Davis Wayne Newton[/B] vs. British Samurai vs. Petey Barnes [B]Joey Beauchamp[/B] vs. Bairei Yasujiro for the ROF Championship

[Phantom Stranger]

Tuesday Week 3 February Aston University Sports Hall 733 in attendance Our dark match this week showed two of our rookies; Nichiren Amagawa and Capitao Brasil Jr. It could have been a pretty good match, led by Nichiren, if they hadn't failed notably to mesh well. In the end, though, we've had worse matches in the dark and even on TV. And Amagawa broke out his Amagawa Total Lock to win the match in a pretty nifty submission sequence. [I]Nichiren Amagawa defeated Capitao Brasil Jr by submission.[/I] RATING: D [B]Bulldozer Brandon Smith vs. Seiji Jimbo[/B] I'm confident that one day both of these men will be main eventing for promotions of one size or another. But even this young and this early in their careers, they make excellent midcarders, and here they used a twenty minute time limit draw to put on a really, really good match. Puroresu has traditionally been a Japanese form; we're bringing it to the UK, and the UK is loving it. [I]Bulldozer Brandon Smith drew with Seiji Jimbo when the time limit elapsed.[/I] RATING: C+ [B]The Force vs. The Shooters[/B] This should've been much better; possibly the weakness came from asking them to put the focus on the lower-card members of each team. Possibly not; The Force were both tiring by the time they had to hit the Star Destroyer so Jed could pin Billy. Regardless, these four are capable of much, much better. [I]The Force defeated the Shooters when Jed High pinned Billy Robinson[/I] RATING: D+ [B]Davis Wayne Newton vs. British Samurai vs. Petey Barnes[/B] Oh. My. God. Also: this was probably on too early. But I'd never have guessed that Sammy was capable of being in a match quite this good. In a barnstormer of a triple threat that deserves to rank in our top ten matches, at least, and which is easily the best triple threat we've put on, these three men tore it up with absolutely everything they have, and the two technical specialists even found the time to teach Petey a few new holds and transitions. It just kept coming, building in pace and intensity perfectly all the way to the twenty minute time limit. [I]Davis Wayne Newton drew with British Samurai and Petey Barnes when the time limit elapsed.[/I] RATING: B [B]Joey Beauchamp vs. Bairei Yasujiro for the ROF Championship[/B] Yeah, this was a comparative letdown, but after the prior match that's no surprise. It's rare that we can pull something out to match that. Joey and Bairei put together a perfectly adequate bout; a little less than I'd hope for in a championship match, but good enough for now. I think both men knew they weren't going to match the prior bout and didn't really motivate themselves as well as you'd hope, instead concentrating on learning from each other. Which is development for the future, which is definitely a good thing. In the end Joey came through smoothly with a Breeze Block and retained. [I]Joey Beauchamp defeated Bairei Yasujiro by pinfall[/I] RATING: C Yes; this is the sort of show we want. A really good card that set the internet blazing, and our downloads get another spike. If you can call it that when they don't taper off. OVERALL: C+

[Phantom Stranger]

Next week: Nichiren Amagawa vs. Huracan Sandoval Jr vs. Capitao Brasil Jr Your New Favourite Team vs. The Stunners El Critico vs. Billy Robinson vs. Hector Montez Don Henderson vs. Seiji Jimbo for the Heritage Championship Joey Beauchamp vs. Davis Wayne Newton in a 30 minute Iron Man match for the ROF Championship

[chris caulfield]

Nichiren Amagawa vs. [B]Huracan Sandoval Jr[/B] vs. Capitao Brasil Jr [B]Your New Favourite Team[/B] vs. The Stunners El Critico vs. Billy Robinson vs. [B]Hector Montez[/B] Don Henderson vs. [B]Seiji Jimbo [/B]for the Heritage Championship [B]Joey Beauchamp[/B] vs. Davis Wayne Newton in a 30 minute Iron Man match for the ROF Championship

[Phantom Stranger]

Tuesday Week 4 February Parliament Square 697 in attendance Oh, ugh. A really bad dark bout proves once again that you never let the rookies lay out their own stuff; Huracan, Capitao, and Nichiren all kicked off the show with a painfully bad triple threat. There is nothing good to say about this; Huracan got the win with an Ojo del Huracan on Capitao, but that's about it. [I]Huracan Sandoval Jr defeated Capitao Brasil Jr and Nichiren Amagawa by pinning Capitao.[/I] RATING: E+ [B]Your New Favourite Team vs. The Stunners[/B] The Stunners are still tag champions in the Coastal Zone, but ultimately this was a battle to give four tag workers time without risking dragging down too much tag momentum, while also giving them a chance to learn. As pretty much ever Brandon seems to be picking up new technical know-how, and really he had plenty of time to do so. These guys had twenty minutes of time limit draw to work the crowd back up after that disastrous dark opener; it was very nicely done. [I]Your New Favourite Team drew with The Stunners when the time limit elapsed[/I] RATING: C- [B]El Critico vs. Billy Robinson vs. Hector Montez[/B] Once again I'm basically trusting to Donny's judgement; three men went in and I told the road agent to figure out the result, so I can use someone else's gut instinct to balance out my own. On commentary we sold this as Billy getting in the ring to keep these two's blood feud in check, as they still ask for matches against each other and in my character as booker I have to be certain they won't actually try and kill each other. It gives us an in for more Critico/'Bandito' matches in the future, and they work well enough together that I didn't want to lose that. Billy and Hector really worked Critico, the former champ, over until he started to fight back on those same brawling terms; eventually he got an opening and brought Billy down with a Critical Mass, only to be caught by Hector and hit – and pinned – with the Hijack Suplex. Donny sees upside in Hector, but we'll have to capitalise quick; he's getting on. [I]Hector Montez defeated El Critico and Billy Robinson when he pinned El Critico.[/I] RATING: C- [B]Don Henderson vs. Seiji Jimbo for the Heritage Championship[/B] They're both members of the two best active tag teams on our roster. One is a tag champion; the other is a singles champion. Seiji's here aiming to get all the gold; and while his epic journey kept the crowd popping, it didn't make it all the way here; in 15:39 Don managed to ground him long enough to get the Scottish Deathlock. [I]Don Henderson defeated Seiji Jimbo by submission[/I] RATING: C [B]Joey Beauchamp vs. Davis Wayne Newton in a 30 minute Iron Man match for the ROF Championship[/B] Last time these two met no one believed Davis had a shot. This time, after he scored a fall in their last encounter, after his second capture of tag gold, and with Joey's new reign not yet as secure, the fans took it as an even match. And these two made everything they could out of it; following Joey's capture of the first fall with a piledriver, Davis' famed ability to lock on the STF out of nowhere came into play in the middle of a sequence of duelling armdrags, but Joey managed to counter out of the hold smoothly. As he set up for a DDT, Davis twisted into another STF – and this time Joey couldn't escape; after a good minute of struggle, he finally tapped. With the score at one-all and ten minutes to go both men changed gear – upward – and the last ten minutes had the crowd bellowing support for one man or another constantly. At the twenty-seven minute mark, Davis' tornado DDT was countered when Joey threw him off and smashed into him as Davis found his feet. The Breeze Block claimed the third fall of the bout and with three minutes to go Davis couldn't quite even the score. Incredible show, though. [I]Joey Beauchamp defeated Davis Wayne Newton by two falls to one.[/I] RATING: B Once again, a really solid show and a lot more downloads this week than last, etc, etc. I saw complaints that Seiji was allowed to last a little too long against Don, and a few scattered and puzzling complaints that the well-established Bulldozer's twenty minutes of tag action were too many. I honestly don't know what to do about that; they put on too good a show to just nerf them. OVERALL: C+ More title joy for Davis this week as he picks up the CGC Canadian title, to add to the CGC tag belt and our own tag strap. For this point in his career he's doing pretty well. As are we. February saw $18,000 more profit than ever before. I could get used to this. ...But perhaps Lobster Warrior as a DAVE main eventer is something that will always boggle my brain.

[Phantom Stranger]

Next week: Low Lives vs. Amo del Gato & Capitao Brasil Jr Hidekazu vs. Nichiren Amagawa vs. Black Eagle vs. Velocidad Toby Juan Kenobi vs. British Samurai Young Blood II vs. The Shooters for the Tag Titles Joey Beauchamp vs. Petey Barnes for the ROF Championship

[Phantom Stranger]

Tuesday Week 1 March Norman Blue Athletic Centre 300 in attendance Yep; back in the Norman Blue. No, there's no excuse from a financial viewpoint, but I miss the place and am weaning myself off it slowly. Our dark bout this week: Low Lives leading Amo del Gato and Capitao Brasil Jr through a tag bout. Hector looked absolutely on fire out there, shining like crazy through the match, but he tagged out just before the Mexican Standoff on Capitao to allow Jonni the pinfall. [I]Low Lives defeated Amo del Gato and Capitao Brasil Jr when Jonni Lowlife pinned Capitao Brasil Jr[/I] RATING: C- Jed High hit the ring at the beginning of the webcast, laying down a challenge to Don Henderson for the Heritage Championship with his UCR belt on one shoulder. It was... OK, considering it was a promo. Testing the waters again... RATING: E [B]Hidekazu vs. Nichiren Amagawa vs. Black Eagle vs. Velocidad[/B] Not brilliant by a lot of standards, but for these four? Man, this was great. Eagle and Velocidad banded together against the other two, showing tag loyalty, but it wasn't enough in the end; both Eagle and Velocidad ended up in submission holds, but while Nichiren is a submissions specialist and Hidekazu isn't, Hidekazu still managed to make the Eagle tap first, barely. [I]Hidekazu defeated Nichiren Amagawa, Black Eagle, and Velocidad when he made Eagle submit.[/I] RATING: C- Don Henderson hit the ring, Heritage Belt around his waist, and accompanied by Nadia Snow, who told Jed he was on, but he'd have to wait until next week, by which time Don would be a two-belt champion. RATING: E- [B]Toby Juan Kenobi vs. British Samurai[/B] This deserved to be – and should have been – better. Truth be told I'm not sure why it wasn't; it was a fairly lacklustre fifteen minutes of action from two experts that ended when the Fisherman's Suplex turned out to be a good counter from a Kenobi Kutter attempt. [I]British Samurai defeated Toby Juan Kenobi by pinfall[/I] RATING: C- [B]Young Blood II vs. The Shooters for the Tag Titles[/B] Better. Not great – not enough to make me happy – but better. I think Billy's just not at his physical best at the moment. On the plus side, Davis really stood out, and finished that when the Newton's Cradle pinned Billy's shoulders to the floor. [I]Young Blood II defeated The Shooters when Davis Wayne Newton pinned Billy Robinson[/I] RATING: C [B]Joey Beauchamp vs. Petey Barnes for the ROF Championship[/B] Ahh, yes. This would be why I still have faith in this company. We can still pull out knock-down drag-out matches like this; half an hour of unremitting hard hitting fight to the finish action that only ended when Joey fought through a reinjured shoulder to hit the Breeze Block, collapsing from the pain in a pinning position. Feedback suggests this is the latest match to reach the hallowed position of being the best we've put on. [I]Joey Beauchamp defeated Petey Barnes by pinfall[/I] RATING: B After a long minute, both Joey and Petey were able to regain their feet, and Joey offered Petey his hand. The X Factor took it, and the pair shook respectfully. RATING: E+ The only complaint anyone had about this show, online at least, was that Nichiren got to be on the main card in such a long match. I have my own complaints, but they're mostly about some of the matches being ones I expected to do better. I can't really be too upset when the response is this good, though. OVERALL: B- ...And the week we sign Marc Speed to the roster he gets his elbow shattered. Fantastic, eh? HOLY CRAP. I just glanced across at SOTBPW's roster, as I was idly wondering why I hadn't seen Gino show up in their matches in a while. He's been unemployed since the start of the year! I assume he handed them their walking papers, but it's gonna be worth keeping an eye on him. I could potentially resign him in, what, the end of April?

[Phantom Stranger]

Next week: Death from Above vs. The Animals (Amo del Gato & El Bestia Purpura) Sergei Kalashnov vs. El Critico vs. Steve Flash Young Blood II vs. Low Lives for the Tag Titles Don Henderson vs. Jed High for the Heritage Championship Toby Juan Kenobi vs. Bulldozer Brandon Smith Joey Beauchamp vs. British Samurai for the ROF Championship

[chris caulfield]

Death from Above vs. [B]The Animals [/B](Amo del Gato & El Bestia Purpura) Sergei Kalashnov vs. [B]El Critico [/B]vs. Steve Flash [B]Young Blood II [/B]vs. Low Lives for the Tag Titles Don Henderson vs.[B] Jed High [/B]for the Heritage Championship Toby Juan Kenobi vs. [B]Bulldozer Brandon Smith[/B] [B]Joey Beauchamp[/B] vs. British Samurai for the ROF Championship

[Phantom Stranger]

Tuesday Week 2 March Parliament Square 757 in attendance Our return down South shows our attendance figures spiking up again. In the dark we put Death From Above up against a team I threw together on a whim; Amo del Gato and El Bestia Purpura, our latest signing. They call themselves The Animals, and I had to grin when I saw them work together. Sure, they're new to each other and Purpura is relatively new to wrestling in general, meaning the bout wasn't exactly brilliant, but there are very, very few teams out there that click so perfectly. In time to come, this'll be a better match. [I]Death from Above defeated The Animals when Black Eagle pinned El Bestia Purpura[/I] RATING: D [B]Sergei Kalashnov vs. El Critico vs. Steve Flash[/B] Now this was nice. Three very solid midcard workers, albeit three very solid workers who've held major titles elsewhere. They only had ten minutes to go, but the hard-hitting European, technical American, and fast-acting Mexican put on a great display that ended when the Critical Mass hit Steve and covered him for the pin. [I]El Critico defeated Sergei Kalashnov and Steve Flash when he pinned Steve Flash.[/I] RATING: C- [B]Young Blood II vs. Low Lives for the Tag Titles[/B] Another pretty solid match from these four, hampered only by the fact that the Low Lives start to run out of fuel around fifteen minutes into these intense matches. Still, it's good work, and it means we can play up Davis and Seiji as endurance specialists – which, among other things, should help us deal with the idea that Seiji doesn't belong in matches of this length. The bout ended when Hector was too tired to evade the Newton's Cradle. [I]Young Blood II defeated Low Lives when Davis Wayne Newton pinned Hector Montez.[/I] RATING: C [B]Don Henderson vs. Jed High for the Heritage Championship[/B] Another nice, solid little back-and-forth affair, the high flyer trying to avoid being grounded and capitalise on openings. As is often the case with these, though, once it was taken to the mat it was all Don and he walked away with a comfortable win. [I]Don Henderson defeated Jed High by submission.[/I] RATING: C- [B]Toby Juan Kenobi vs. Bulldozer Brandon Smith[/B] Both members of the Force in action tonight in action-packed affairs; Toby was the more experienced of his pairing, though, and used that experience to twist free of the backdrop driver and deposit Brandon on canvas with the Kenobi Kutter. [I]Toby Juan Kenobi defeated Bulldozer Brandon Smith by pinfall[/I] RATING: C [B]Joey Beauchamp vs. British Samurai for the ROF Championship[/B] And Sammy delivers another great match! I'm going to have to reassess my 'eventually lower him to the midcard' notion, I think. He gave Joey an evenly-fought bout that could've gone either way and addressed notions that he might get title reigns only because he was the owner perfectly. Lovely match that kept us teetering on the edge of a new champion, especially when a Breeze Block attempt was sidestepped into the Secret Samurai Stretch – unfortunately too close to the ropes, and Joey was free. Eventually he resorted to the top rope diving Breeze Block to score the fall. [I]Joey Beauchamp defeated British Samurai by pinfall[/I] RATING: B A good show that could've been great. But good is enough; downloads continue to climb and word of mouth continues to spread. OVERALL: C+ Hector's been picked up by SOTBPW, giving him yet another run with a major lucha federation. They're announcing him as El Bandito but he's wrestling unmasked. I hope for great things from this; he deserves them. El Critico joins him there, and from what I've heard they plan to fit a recap version of the two men's feud in over there. Matt Gauge has agreed to a tour with WLW. Ring of Fire is rapidly becoming a promotion to watch in terms of breakout and forgotten talent. In the not-forgotten talent department, Davis received laurels this week as the acclaimed MVP of CGC's latest TV episode. It's time, I think, to start putting the Before-he-was-famous DVD together. I'm calling it '[I]On the Shoulders of Giants[/I]'. Also soon to be released, and I need to make sure it'll play in whatever region Mexico technically falls under: [I]Leyenda del Bandito[/I], a DVD collection of the Critico/Bandito mask feud. SOTBPW shouldn't make all the money off this, right?

[Phantom Stranger]

Next week: Low Lives vs. The Animals Steve Flash vs. Bairei Yasujiro Bulldozer Brandon Smith vs. Hidekazu vs. Sergei Kalashnov Young Blood II vs. Death from Above for the Tag Titles Don Henderson vs. El Critico for the Heritage Championship The Force vs. Joey Beauchamp & Petey Barnes

[chris caulfield]

Low Lives vs. [B]The Animals[/B] Steve Flash vs. [B]Bairei Yasujiro[/B] [B]Bulldozer Brandon Smith[/B] vs. Hidekazu vs. Sergei Kalashnov [B]Young Blood II[/B] vs. Death from Above for the Tag Titles Don Henderson vs.[B] El Critico [/B]for the Heritage Championship The Force vs. [B]Joey Beauchamp & Petey Barnes[/B]

[Phantom Stranger]

Tuesday Week 3 March Aston University Sports Centre 816 in attendance Another new ROF attendance record as we go into this show. To thank them for coming we put the Animals in the dark against the Low Lives, and the Animals acquitted themselves fantastically, though Hector, presumably revitalised by his contract news, was the star of this particular show – and while he continued to teach the younger luchadors tricks of the trade, we gave him a little more momentum as he heads back into Mexican wrestling; the Mexican Standoff gave him a pinfall on El Bestia Purpura. [I]Low Lives defeated the Animals when Hector Montez pinned El Bestia Purpura[/I] RATING: C- [B]Steve Flash vs. Bairei Yasujiro[/B] I was a little edgy putting this match together; wasn't sure how well they'd work together with such different styles, but I wanted to get this match on record. (To be honest, one of my back-projects with ROF is to get as many champ/former champ vs. champ/former champ matches recorded as possible, not as foci for DVDs but as historical curiosities. In years to come it's entirely possible we'll just feed 'em to YouTube for the record.) And they'll enjoy this one, as an East Coast War veteran battles a champion of Mexico, Japan, and England – and while their styles don't match, both men show that their experience is more than sufficient to put together a good, solid veteran match. The crowd were heavily into this, and seemed pleased to see the Yasujiro Suplex end things. [I]Bairei Yasujiro defeated Steve Flash by pinfall[/I] RATING: C [B]Bulldozer Brandon Smith vs. Hidekazu vs. Sergei Kalashnov[/B] It elevates Sergei to throw down with these two. It shouldn't, if I'm honest; he's got the chops, but at the time he came in he was primarily needed to elevate other workers. Now it's his turn; these three men put in a fantastic power-based match, entirely different in style to the prior two but at least as well received – which was good, as the bout ran all the way to the time limit, and I hate to deliver twenty minutes of dreck. [I]Bulldozer Brandon Smith drew with Hidekazu and Sergei Kalashnov when the time limit elapsed.[/I] RATING: C [B]Young Blood II vs. Death from Above for the Tag Titles[/B] Death cash in their win last week to earn a title shot this week, and the results are perfectly acceptable; a really nice bout in which, once again, Davis was the standout player – until the New Jersey Turnpike broke up his STF on Velocidad; the luchador was faster to recover and got the Velocidad Tornado without it being countered into another STF this time, but Seiji was able to make the blind tag, come in, and hold his own, eventually winning via Jimbo Driver on Black Eagle. [I]Young Blood II defeated Death from Above when Seiji Jimbo pinned Black Eagle[/I] RATING: C [B]Don Henderson vs. El Critico for the Heritage Championship[/B] When I hired El Critico I had a lot of hard work to do to haul him out of just being an opening act. I had high hopes for him, but one of the big strikes against him? He'd never held a major title in a lucha promotion. Until Joey Beauchamp came along, though, Critico was the most dominant champion in any of my divisions; along the way he put on a number of phenomenal performances, helped me replace the #1 Contendership with a title I actually like, and made a mark in lucha history when he unmasked El Bandito. He also finally won the big one with OLLIE, and now he's going to SOTBPW. I'm very, very proud of that progress. And he's someone who legitimizes competitors just by wrestling them – just like Don Henderson, a man who's been the backbone of the midcard since before I came to the Ring of Fire, a man limited only by the fact nowhere else has been smart enough to ask him to work for them. These are two fantastic competitors, and tonight they left it all in the ring again for the title they made so precious. At 13:30 the Scottish Deathlock went on; at 13:45 Critico and Don, still locked in the hold, rolled under the bottom rope and out of the ring. They landed badly, their legs entwined, and at 13:55 Humphrey was forced to count them out. [I]Don Henderson drew with El Critico in a double count out.[/I] RATING: C+ [B]The Force vs. Joey Beauchamp & Petey Barnes[/B] Ah, man. I had really grand plans for this; all four men agreed it was going to be great as we laid it out backstage. But Joey and Petey, while expert opponents, cannot wrestle as a team at all, and that was enough to reduce this to the level of the dark bout. Sometimes chemistry will do that, I guess, but this attempt to freshen up our main event bouts failed – at least as far as Joey and Petey go. Petey's an experienced tag wrestler, and the Force are absolute experts at tag competition, so they patched it up, but this was our weakest main event in months. It ended – mercifully – around sixteen minutes in when the Star Destroyer sank Joey Beauchamp and Toby scored the three count. [I]The Force defeated Joey Beauchamp & Petey Barnes when Toby Juan Kenobi pinned Joey Beauchamp.[/I] RATING: C- A solid show brought low by the main event; a mistaken tag pairing I won't make again. Might work with other competitors, of course; but this wasn't great. Good enough that we didn't see any real complaints, but not enough to really add momentum. OVERALL: C

[Phantom Stranger]

Next week: Animals vs. Capitao Brasil Jr & Nichiren Amagawa Velocidad vs. Hector Montez Black Eagle vs. Jonni Lowlife Johnny Highspot vs. Sergei Kalashnov Young Blood II vs The Shooters for the Tag Titles in a two out of three falls match Joey Beauchamp vs. Petey Barnes

[chris caulfield]

[B]Animals [/B]vs. Capitao Brasil Jr & Nichiren Amagawa Velocidad vs. [B]Hector Montez[/B] [B]Black Eagle[/B] vs. Jonni Lowlife [B]Johnny Highspot [/B]vs. Sergei Kalashnov [B]Young Blood II [/B]vs The Shooters for the Tag Titles in a two out of three falls match Joey Beauchamp vs.[B] Petey Barnes[/B]

[Phantom Stranger]

Tuesday Week 4 March Parliament Square 970 in attendance OK, our southern attendance has overtaken our Midlands attendance. Which will be fantastic when they're paying the same for tickets. Our dark match this week once again features the Animals, this time against Capitao Brasil Jr and Nichiren Amagawa. For such rookie levels, this was a good match, as well as a learning experience for all four men. It ended with a Ninth Life to Capitao at 9:58. [I]The Animals defeated Capitao Brasil Jr and Nichiren Amagawa when Amo del Gato pinned Capitao Brasil Jr[/I] RATING: D+ [B]Velocidad vs. Hector Montez[/B] We continue to show the UK fans what the Mexicans are relearning; that Montez is one of the great legends of lucha libre. Here he really stood out; what weakened this was that Velocidad is a rookie and not used to facing Hector without their tag partners by their sides. Around 10:09 Hector capitalised on a 'rookie mistake' and landed the Hijack Suplex successfully. [I]Hector Montez defeated Velocidad by pinfall[/I] RATING: C- [B]Black Eagle vs. Jonni Lowlife[/B] This tag-partners-in-singles-bouts sequence definitely has its merits; I discovered, or remembered – embarrassingly, I'm not sure – that Eagle and Jonni have great chemistry in the ring together. Probably fortunate as, thus far, both men are still not great at putting together matches. But they're getting better, and this ten-minute performance was enjoyable right up to the New Jersey Turnpike at the finish. [I]Black Eagle defeated Jonni Lowlife by pinfall[/I] RATING: C- [B]Johnny Highspot vs. Sergei Kalashnov[/B] Theoretically, this should've been a much better match. Theory, of course, doesn't take into account the fact that these two don't really click. They did their best, though, each man showing the other how capable they are as the match rolled inexorably to a time limit draw. [I]Johnny Highspot drew with Sergei Kalashnov when the time limit elapsed.[/I] RATING: C- [B]Young Blood II vs The Shooters for the Tag Titles in a two out of three falls match[/B] Now this is a reliable combination, though sadly limited by Don and Billy's stamina. Davis and Don really seemed to learn something in this match; the first fall, entirely Davis and Don, ended when the Scottish Deathlock was countered into the STF. In the second, Don and Billy double-teamed Seiji and while he did well against the veteran pair, eventually the We Have to Amputate evened the score. Things got heated from there and eventually the ref threw the match out with all four men in the ring giving it everything they had. [I]Young Blood II drew with the Shooters with a score of one fall apiece and one fall tied.[/I] RATING: C [B]Joey Beauchamp vs. Petey Barnes[/B] If the tag title bout represented us finally climbing out of first gear, this represented us blasting into top speed. This was twenty-four minutes of high-speed high octane magic that showed Joey reach down deep and demonstrate a level of selling he's never used before. Both these men looked like gods before, eventually and inevitably, the Breeze Block ended the match. [I]Joey Beauchamp defeated Petey Barnes by pinfall[/I] RATING: B At the time I was worried, but this was an excellent show in hindsight. Sometimes the slow build formula just works, you know? We got fantastic word of mouth, excellent online feedback, and – as ever – downloads of the shows continue to rise in numbers. We had to mess around with the tech this month – we'd apparently not budgeted enough bandwidth. OVERALL: B- Hector and Critico are currently being used as a tag team in SOTBPW; they are, for reasons known only to, well, idiots, Team XXX. Day 1 of the DeColt WrestleFestival saw Davis wrestle twice, defending his tag belt on TV and defeating Eddie Peak to retain the Canadian title during the PPV. The following day he defeated Joe Sexy for another Canadian defence.

[Phantom Stranger]

Next week: Steve Flash vs. Huracan Sandoval vs. Capitao Brasil vs. El Bestia Purpura Hidekazu vs. Sergei Kalashnov Young Blood II vs. The Shooters vs. Low Lives for the Tag Titles El Critico vs. Bulldozer Brandon Smith British Samurai vs. Joey Beauchamp for the ROF Championship in a 30 minute iron man match

[chris caulfield]

Steve Flash vs. [B]Huracan Sandoval [/B]vs. Capitao Brasil vs. El Bestia Purpura [B]Hidekazu [/B]vs. Sergei Kalashnov [B]Young Blood II [/B]vs. The Shooters vs. Low Lives for the Tag Titles El Critico vs. [B]Bulldozer Brandon Smith[/B] British Samurai vs. [B]Joey Beauchamp [/B]for the ROF Championship in a 30 minute iron man match

[Phantom Stranger]

Tuesday Week 1 April Aston University Sports Hall 892 in attendance A slight shakeup to the 'formula' as I laughably call the current show layout. In the dark I set Steve Flash against Huracan Sandoval, Capitao Brasil, and El Bestia Purpura, with instructions to work them out for ten minutes then win. Steve performed well, the other three not so well – but they've time to learn. It was Capitao who ate the Flash Bang in the end. [I]Steve Flash defeated Huracan Sandoval Jr, El Bestia Purpura & Capitao Brasil Jr when he pinned Capitao Brasil Jr.[/I] RATING: D- [B]Hidekazu vs. Sergei Kalashnov[/B] Pretty basic opening fare here; nothing spectacular to say about it either way. Good solid bout that outdoes most 21CW matches, ending when the Eastern Block finished Hidekazu off in 12:39. [I]Sergei Kalashnov defeated Hidekazu by pinfall[/I] RATING: C- [B]Young Blood II vs. The Shooters vs. Low Lives for the Tag Titles[/B] Once again this bout really could've been better, but wasn't quite. It was pretty good, though, with Davis looking like a star throughout, Don putting up a surprisingly good puro offence in places, and Jonni showing remarkable knowledge of just when to step in and either hit an arm drag or eat a back elbow to improve the match – in short the development I want out of the lower carders I dropped into an ailing tag division continues to happen. In the end, though, confusion over a tag led to Don putting Seiji – not the legal man – in the Scottish Deathlock while Davis rolled with a Low Down and ended up with the STF locked in – and Jonni tapped. [I]Young Blood II defeated The Shooters & Low Lives when Davis Wayne Newton made Jonni Lowlife submit.[/I] RATING: C- [B]El Critico vs. Bulldozer Brandon Smith[/B] This was actually intended mostly as a training exercise, giving Critico a little more puro skill and teaching Brandon a few new holds and pinning positions, and it fulfilled that purpose. What I didn't expect was for it also to blow the roof off Aston University when these two really opened up, taking twenty minutes of time limit draw to see exactly how far each man could be pushed. It's easy to forget, watching Critico take an Inverted Piledriver head-on and kick out, that he's likely more than halfway through his career, on the theoretical downslope; it's easy to forget, when Brandon flips perfectly to take a sunset flip powerbomb off the top turnbuckle, that the man is less than two years a pro wrestler. And it should be, because both of these guys are damn good. Critico deserves another main title run; Brandon deserves many. [I]El Critico drew with Bulldozer Brandon Smith when the time limit elapsed[/I] RATING: B- [B]British Samurai vs. Joey Beauchamp for the ROF Championship in a 30 minute iron man match.[/B] I take back everything I've said about him; Sammy's two great recent matches were no flukes, and the man just proved it. Over half an hour, he and Joey took our fans to the edge of screaming rapturous burnout; Sammy going up two falls, Joey pulling them both back ever so slowly, and the final thirty seconds with the young powerhouse caught helplessly in the centre of the ring, trapped in the Secret Samurai Stretch as the seconds tipped down... but Joey just wouldn't quit and the bell rang to sign off on an incredible draw. [I]British Samurai drew with Joey Beauchamp at two falls apiece.[/I] RATING: B I'm still getting complaints about Bulldozer being used for such long periods, despite the fact he's just blasting through his opposition and putting on incredible matches; I guess I'm stuck with it, because this is not a degree of skill I'm going to just ignore. This would be the best show that the fans managed to really make any complaints about. In point of fact, this would be the best show I ever booked. I'm not sure how, but I'll take it, man, I'll take it. OVERALL: B-

[Phantom Stranger]

The Animals vs. Steve Flash & Nichiren Amagawa Hector Montez vs. Sergei Kalashnov Don Henderson vs. Bairei Yasujiro for the Heritage Championship Seiji Jimbo vs. Huracan Sandoval Jr El Critico vs. British Samurai Joey Beauchamp vs. Toby Juan Kenobi for the ROF Championship

[chris caulfield]

[B]The Animals [/B]vs. Steve Flash & Nichiren Amagawa [B]Hector Montez[/B] vs. Sergei Kalashnov Don Henderson vs. [B][B]Bairei Yasujiro [/B][/B]for the Heritage Championship [B]Seiji Jimbo[/B] vs. Huracan Sandoval Jr [B]El Critico[/B] vs. British Samurai [B]Joey Beauchamp [/B]vs. Toby Juan Kenobi for the ROF Championship

[Marcel Fromage]

[B]The Animals [/B]vs. Steve Flash & Nichiren Amagawa [B]Hector Montez [/B]vs. Sergei Kalashnov [B]Don Henderson [/B]vs. Bairei Yasujiro for the Heritage Championship [B]Seiji Jimbo [/B]vs. Huracan Sandoval Jr El Critico vs. [B]British Samurai[/B] [B]Joey Beauchamp [/B]vs. Toby Juan Kenobi for the ROF Championship Congrats on the successes you're having. You've certainly built a tidy roster. I like the international feel to it and I also like that a lot of your wrestlers seem, from your booking, to have similar standing. It makes results that bit more unpredictable. Keep up the good work.

[Phantom Stranger]

Tuesday Week 2 April Parliament Square 1000 in attendance A full house tonight; we'll try not to disappoint them with the show. Or most of us will; the dark bout pitted the Animals against Steve Flash and Nichiren Amagawa, and Amagawa was off his game a bit. Other than that, though, it went pretty well; del Gato is learning from Flash about putting matches together and Purpura displays a wonderful understanding of how to eat a Flash Bang and be pinned. [I]Steve Flash and Nichiren Amagawa defeated the Animals when Flash pinned El Bestia Purpura.[/I] RATING: D [B]Hector Montez vs. Sergei Kalashnov[/B] These two know how to work together, they really do. I wasn't expecting this to match Critico and Brandon last week, but that's not a problem; I've seen Hector described as a low-rent Critico (unfair) and Sergei compared to a lower-card Brandon (though the Fresh Prince's charisma has vaulted him up the ranks of late.) They're both very, very good grapplers, and they know what they're doing here. And while Hector flags around the seventeen minute mark on, these two work well enough together that they make it believable that Sergei doesn't therefore kill him around the eighteen minute; both men take it all the way to the time limit in a fantastic match. Long, but this week's main event mandates me putting in some longer bouts beforehand. [I]Hector Montez drew with Sergei Kalashnov when the time limit elapsed.[/I] RATING: C+ [B]Don Henderson vs. Bairei Yasujiro for the Heritage Championship[/B] These guys are both only so-so in the other guy's speciality, but when the contest is done well that tends to lead to some really nice back-and-forth – and it does here, with the former champion dominating with speed until a clothesline is ducked – and Don catches both arms and hits a bridged chickenwing overhead suplex without either man ever coming all the way to a halt. Bairei kicks out, but Don keeps an arm held, takes him down, and goes to work on the legs. The Scottish Deathlock carries the day at 12:41 [I]Don Henderson defeated Bairei Yasujiro by submission.[/I] RATING: C [B]Seiji Jimbo vs. Huracan Sandoval Jr[/B] Well, this test was failed; Seiji can't yet be trusted to call a match without Davis on the ring apron. This was merely 21CW level. Yes, I will continue with these jokes, and you're just going to have to deal with that. Quick back and forth, spot, spot, spot, spot, Jimbo Driver, cover for the pin. [I]Seiji Jimbo defeated Huracan Sandoval Jr by pinfall.[/I] RATING: D [B]El Critico vs. British Samurai[/B] And this was nowhere near what it should've been, but I know why; Sammy was having one of his very, very rare off days. We did our best on commentary, but it wasn't enough; these men were far below the quality found in either of their matches last week, and they stayed that way for the full twenty minutes to time limit. Real shame. [I]El Critico drew with British Samurai when the time limit elapsed.[/I] RATING: C [B]Joey Beauchamp vs. Toby Juan Kenobi for the ROF Championship[/B] I dread the day that Joey moves on. I also look forward to it; he deserves to be putting on this quality of match Toby is not on a level in terms of endurance with much of the main event, but this bout puts to rest the idea that he's not on a level with them in terms of ability; sure, it helps that he has remarkable chemistry with Joey, but this was just a great match, pure and simple, producing a fantastic result in less than seventeen minutes when Joey finally overcame a technical barrage of holds, broke free, and got the Breeze Block and the pin. And I think he picked up some ideas along the way. [I]Joey Beauchamp defeated Toby Juan Kenobi by pinfall[/I] RATING: B Seiji and Huracan's outing seems to have been all but forgotten by the crowd. We were a hit, indisputably – and we did it without using Brandon, Davis, Petey... We can do this. There's enough depth to the roster to keep us rolling. OVERALL: B-

[Phantom Stranger]

[QUOTE=Marcel Fromage;319055] Congrats on the successes you're having. You've certainly built a tidy roster. I like the international feel to it and I also like that a lot of your wrestlers seem, from your booking, to have similar standing. It makes results that bit more unpredictable. Keep up the good work.[/QUOTE] That last is definitely good to hear. I do want a roster where it's only at the extreme ends of the spectrum that you can feel confident that Guy A will definitively beat Guy B or what have you. The roster's likely a bit big - hence the newer format. On the other hand, that's doing well for me (where I'm at, in August, I've actually hit my first B+ match at last and the average show rating's definitely climbing.)

[Phantom Stranger]

Next week: The Animals vs. Death from Above Bulldozer Brandon Smith vs. Jonni Lowlife Don Henderson vs. El Critico for the Heritage Championship Young Blood II vs. Death from Above for the Tag Titles Sergei Kalashnov vs. Hidekazu vs. Johnny Highspot in a number one contender's bout for the Heritage Championship Joey Beauchamp vs. Petey Barnes vs. Jed High for the ROF Championship