Ring of Fire: Fighting Every Step of the Way

[Phantom Stranger]

Graduation Predictions Key: TV: El Bestia Purpura vs. Velocidad Hidekazu vs. Matthew Gauge for the Heritage Championship The Stunners vs. The Animals for the Tag Titles Mario Heroic vs. UK Dragon Daniel Black Francis vs. Jonathan Faust Graduation: Nate Johnson vs. Ultimate Phoenix British Samurai vs. Don Henderson Merle O'Curle vs. Petey Barnes Davis Wayne Newton vs. Joey Beauchamp in a 1 Hour Iron Man Match

[Phantom Stranger]

ROF: Fighting Fit Tuesday Week 3 June Kent Racecourse 4226 in attendance RATING: 0.25 Another 21CW dark bout, this time featuring Velocidad and El Bestia Purpura. Purpura got the win with the Beast Bomb after a fairly lengthy period in which they showed they just don't work too well together. [I]El Bestia Purpura defeated Velocidad by pinfall[/I] RATING: D+ [B]Hidekazu vs. Matthew Gauge for the Heritage Championship[/B] Another lack of chemistry here doesn't stop us from having a pretty good match to open the show. This battle lasted for nearly the full time limit, but as Hidekazu went for the tilt-a-whirl Matthew snagged an arm, bringing the move to a premature halt and then settling into the Proton Lock to become champion once again. [I]Matthew Gauge defeated Hidekazu by submission[/I] RATING: C+ A hype video was slotted next, recapping the Davis/Joey feud to date RATING: C [B]The Stunners vs. The Animals for the Tag Titles[/B] Thirteen minutes of... well, of OK. If I could get Greg Gauge back from RIPW I could remake our tag division. If and when we merge USPW into ROF again, I can remake our tag division. Until then these boys will be the weak link. Eagle got the win with the Superbomb Splash this time around, over Amo del Gato [I]The Stunners defeated The Animals when Black Eagle pinned Amo del Gato[/I] RATING: C Another hype video, this one for the champion versus champion match RATING: C+ [B]Mario Heroic vs. UK Dragon[/B] Another bout with bad chemistry, another great match in spite of that thanks to the sheer skill these two brought to it. Mario ended up eating a Dragon Drop after around a quarter of an hour to a major pop. [I]UK Dragon defeated Mario Heroic by pinfall[/I] RATING: B- [B]Daniel Black Francis vs. Jonathan Faust[/B] Tonight's main event sees Daniel once again try to improve his cardio in what's still a pretty short time, and once again he produces a match that ain't all that bad. It stacks up to Mario/Dragon to deserve its position as main event, at the least. Coming close to 26 minutes in Jonathan hit the Devil's Drop and got a pin for himself while April Appleseed and Miss Information stood off with each other on the edge of the ring. [I]Jonathan Faust defeated Daniel Black Francis by pinfall[/I] RATING: B- Our last hype video for Graduation: Sammy and Don Henderson. RATING: C+ A weak show for the UK, but good enough to still provide development. I'm now looking to Graduation itself to really show us an improvement. Lowest rating in a couple weeks, but we had the surplus viewership and more in added attendance here. OVERALL: C+

[Phantom Stranger]

ROF: Graduation Tuesday Week 3 June Kent Racecourse 4226 in attendance BUYRATE: 0.05 The plan, such as it is, is to make Graduation the capstone to the ROF year. As such it's two and a half hours rather than one, and thus far in this first PPV year it's got the highest attendance. At the rate we're improving I kind of expect that to change in a couple of months, but even so. Our dark match this time around saw Nate Johnson back in dark action defeating Ultimate Phoenix with a Natural Order after around a quarter of an hour. Not bad, but not great. [I]Nate Johnson defeated Ultimate Phoenix by pinfall[/I] RATING: C- Fans got a shock when they saw Seiji Jimbo in the ring. “This is the largest stage I can get access to,” he said. “So I came over with Merle, 'cause this concerns him too. Yasujiro – I know you're out there and I know you're watching. I realise you're not happy with the champion beating you and I have no problem with that. But what you did to him – that was my uncle's move. And you don't use that outside of a match. Sunday, I want to teach you that.” RATING: E [B]British Samurai vs. Don Henderson[/B] Another pretty good match that ran longer than we'd seen these two battle before – it was 33:32 when the tapout finally occurred to give Don the nod. Before that, though, the Southern fans were on their feet and yelling in support. [I]Don Henderson defeated British Samurai by submission[/I] RATING: B Don was promptly joined by Hidekazu who came to show him respect. RATING: C+ Petey Barnes came out and launched into a tirade against USPW and specifically their champion. The crowd seemed a litle unsettled by this. RATING: C [B]Merle O'Curle vs. Petey Barnes[/B] We continue the roll Sammy and Don put us on with another over-half-hour bout full of close calls, near-falls, and finisher attempts. I only told them who needed to win, so I was absolutely stunned when Petey snatched that sleeper hold out of the air and locked Merle in to pick up the win. Not what I'd expected. [I]Petey Barnes defeated Merle O'Curle by submission[/I] RATING: B We ran a quick hype package for Bairei and Seiji. RATING: E+ [B]Davis Wayne Newton vs. Joey Beauchamp in a 1 Hour Iron Man Match[/B] Not as good as I'd planned for, chiefly because Joey didn't quite have the stamina for it. I'll know better next time. It was, however, still pretty good, and well-fought, with Davis picking up the first fall with an STF before Joey got a springboard Breeze Block around twenty-seven minutes in to even the score. At that point Davis went after Joey's shoulder for nearly fifteen minutes before forcing him to tap to an armbar; Joey, desperate now, got another fall with a big boot around the fifty-two minute mark and set up for a top turnbuckle Breeze Block while Davis recovered. The Block had an impact that nearly knocked Joey out with the pain himself, but he collapsed over Davis, picking up his third fall and securing the win. [I]Joey Beauchamp defeated Davis Wayne Newton by three falls to two.[/I] RATING: B And then Petey was in the ring, staring down Joey. A mirror image of our first PPV ending closed out the show. RATING: B- Not as good as it should've been; I think we needed a couple more bouts in there to keep the crowd pumped. That'll be easier next year when it's officially a cross-brand PPV. All the same, it was pretty good show and will keep us going a while yet. OVERALL: B-

[Phantom Stranger]

CWWF's lost Leo Davis as a booker, too. This could get interesting, if the dance keeps going...

[Phantom Stranger]

USPW: Standard Bearers Sunday Week 3 June Plaza La Navarre 1000 in attendance Another Roy-takes-a-beating dark match sees Ultimate Phoenix destroy him over the course of ten minutes. There's something developing into a good worker here, but it'll take time. [I]Ultimate Phoenix defeated Roy Edison by pinfall[/I] RATING: C- [B]Steve Flash vs. Sergei Kalashnov for the USPW National Championship[/B] Wow, was this on at the wrong point in the show. I expected this to be good; I didn't expect it to have this effect on the fans. A good solid sixteen minutes saw the crowds really get into the Fresh Prince of Belarus' quest for the belt before Steve got a lot more heat by simply stepping up his game and revealing he'd been playing, sealing the deal with a Flash Bang. [I]Steve Flash defeated Sergei Kalashnov by pinfall[/I] RATING: B- A quick hype video then played for Steve. Not yet positive enough. RATING: F+ [B]East and West vs. The Force[/B] More good work here and another script by Ray sees the high fliers and the technicals put on a pretty good show overall. Toby is rapidly proving to be the weak link in the Force's matches, as this time Nichiren isolates him, beats him down, and applies the Total Lock with sublime confidence. Not bad, really not bad. [I]East and West defeated The Force when Nichiren Amagawa made Toby Juan Kenobi submit.[/I] RATING: C Toby, Jed and Simona promptly assaulted East and West, only to be headed off by the timely arrival of the Riot Act and simultaneous title belt shots. RATING: F+ [B]Dean Daniels vs. Marcos Flores[/B] These men got the crowd back up and running in only thirteen minutes with another fantastic match, leading up to the Flores Heaven Elbow in a natural story. Dean and Marcos did good work here. [I]Marcos Flores defeated Dean Daniels by pinfall[/I] RATING: B- A video recap followed of the Graduation events revolving around Bairei, Merle, and Seiji. RATING: F+ [B]Seiji Jimbo vs. Bairei Yasujiro[/B] Given half an hour to work together these two put on a reasonable bout. Should've been better, but they spent a chunk of it rehashing old Sadaharu Jimbo puro sequences better suited to popping a crowd of Japanese smarks. Seems to have helped Bairei some, though. Eventually their minds got back onto their feud and the battle just got nasty, with referee Kazuko Hiroyuki eventually throwing the whole thing out in disgust. [I]Seiji Jimbo drew with Bairei Yasujiro when the match was thrown out[/I] RATING: C Boy, was that a backward show – and yet still good enough to get the pops we were hunting for, and the development of the brand continues. Traffic on the USPW section of our forum is up, as are the downloads. OVERALL: C

[Phantom Stranger]

...And Bart Biggz is now the CWWF head booker. Weell, that's interesting, huh? Them Biggz Boyz do seem to like women wrestling.

[Phantom Stranger]

ROF: Fighting Fit Tuesday Week 4 June The Cobra Den 783 in attendance RATING: 0.27 Ah, the North – an area where we're slowly bringing our reputation up to par with our main stomping grounds. These shows are still loss leaders, but sooner or later they won't be. I kinda look forward to the day when running a PPV in the North isn't a stupid idea. In any case, the dark match tonight was pretty good for a dark match, as Nate Johnson took on – and overcame – Extraordinario Jr to continue his dark rise. It'll be a while before Fighting Fit gets a chance to run more than an hour and a half per show, which makes showcasing people like Nate often tricky, but he seems to be good, and I need a solid midcarder with psychology. [I]Nate Johnson defeated Extraordinario Jr by pinfall[/I] RATING: C The show itself kicked off with Petey in the ring, as ever, selecting a challenger. This time the man he chose was Mario Heroic, but even that went down well with the crowd – a sure sign we're getting somewhere. RATING: C [B]Hugh de Aske vs. Johnny Highspot for the Beacon Championship[/B] Not quite twelve minutes of an entertaining enough opener to kick the show off, and they did well enough to pop the crowd while working a much more mat-based style than Johnny traditionally favours to work the Cobra Den crowd better. It actually worked pretty well, with Johnny occasionally releasing a hold to run the ropes and get a big move off, and even getting as far as setting up for the spike DDT before Hugh twisted clear and hit a DDT of his own before scooping Johnny back up for the Cut-Throat Driver and the pin. [I]Hugh de Aske defeated Johnny Highspot by pinfall[/I] RATING: C+ A fun little video aired next, charting Dragon's work across the globe and his back injuries, intercut with the masked grappler on a motorbike chasing along the roads of Europe and the UK (the latter shot when we brought Dragon out on the USPW flight). The message was clear; the Dragon was coming home for his gold. RATING: D [B]British Samurai vs. Hidekazu[/B] I expected this to get a slightly better pop, but I'm putting that down to their not facing the usual crowds. At any rate it was a useful quarter of an hour in advancing things, with Hidekazu eventually countering the fisherman's suplex setup and rolling through to lock on the Scottish Deathlock and pick up the win. H[I]idekazu defeated British Samurai by submission[/I] RATING: C+ [B]Davis Wayne Newton vs. Don Henderson[/B] Mentor followed protege, and this time around it wasn't so good for the partnership; these two looked set to go to the time limit, but it just didn't happen as, after something resembling a moonsault clothesline from the top turnbuckle, Davis set up for the Newton's Cradle and walked away with the win in a very sweet little match. [I]Davis Wayne Newton defeated Don Henderson by pinfall[/I] RATING: B [B]Petey Barnes vs. Mario Heroic in a 30 minute Iron Man match for the ROF Championship[/B] Yeah, we're testing all our up and comers around now, although this was a whitewash for Petey as he picked up three falls while losing none. But this was the best match of the night and, once again, left Matthew Morris behind in places, with Heroic's DaVE background showing in his willingness to take some truly astonishing bumps, chief among them a powerbomb from the top rope to the outside of the ring. This was great stuff and Petey shows even more development. [I]Petey Barnes defeated Mario Heroic by three falls to nil[/I] RATING: B+ Joey stood off with Petey once more, only to be joined almost immediately by the UK Dragon, making the standoff into a triangle. This looked to get interesting... RATING: C Yep; another good solid show and one of the best we've run in the North. I'm happy with this, and we look to have a good foundation to build on in developing Summer Games. OVERALL: B

[Phantom Stranger]

UCR's latest TV broadcast is the shark-jumper, it seems; the point where the journos stopped calling them a cult favourite and tagged them a mere regional success story. I don't think I have to explain why I feel this is a shame.

[Phantom Stranger]

USPW: Standard Bearers Sunday Week 4 June Lubuskie Arena 745 in attendance Well, this was a surprisingly hot dark bout; Roy took on Billy Robinson and Marc Speed here, eventually becoming the one to tap to Billy's Capital City Crucifix. But between Ray's script and the abilities of the three men in the ring, this was enjoyable and got a pretty good pop. [I]Billy Robinson defeated Roy Edison and Marc Speed when he made Roy Edison submit[/I] RATING: C [B]Steve Flash vs. Nichiren Amagawa for the USPW National Championship[/B] To kick off the webcast portion, a title defence. And, once again, it was a pretty entertaining quarter of an hour that saw Nichiren learn that little bit more and come close on a number of occasions to gaining a belt before the Flash Bang finished things. [I]Steve Flash defeated Nichiren Amagawa by pinfall[/I] RATING: C [B]Ruud van Anger vs. Sergei Kalashnov[/B] Two UCR names, even if only Ruud still works there. In only ten minutes they had the crowd even hotter than had been the case before, and finished well with Sergei ducking the Anger Management and running the ropes for the Eastern Block. [I]Sergei Kalashnov defeated Ruud van Anger by pinfall[/I] RATING: C+ Sergei helped Ruud to his feet after the match, and then sent him back down to the canvas with a stiff clothesline. In seconds the Force were on the scene and the 'sabers' were raining down on Ruud, with Simona handing Sergei an extension baton of his own to join in. RATING: D- [B]Chojiro Kitoaji vs. Rolling Johnny Stones[/B] And these two had only eight minutes, but used the time to put on a great show and bring the crowd right back up there. Once again we saw one finisher countered into another as Johnny ducked the Kitoaji Lariat and got the Brainbuster in one smooth motion to finish things. [I]Rolling Johnny Stones defeated Chojiro Kitoaji by pinfall[/I] RATING: C+ Simona's face appeared on the big screen. “By now, you'll all have seen that the Force just got bigger,” she smirked. “But let's face it, that means more than you think.” A highlight video of their careers to date played; the Force's many tag team title runs, the fact that all three had held UCR's biggest title, Sergei's Heritage championship run... RATING: D- [B]Bairei Yasujiro vs. Seiji Jimbo in a Last Man Standing match[/B] Well, this could've been better. I suspect if I checked I'd find that both of these two have most of their European history in the Western regions, and that that had something to do with this. In any case this was the weakest match tonight, but it ended with a Jimbo Driver from the apron to the outside to give Seiji a major win. [I]Seiji Jimbo defeated Bairei Yasujiro when Yasujiro could not answer the ten count[/I] RATING: C- [B]Merle O'Curle vs. Pit Bull Brown in a two out of three falls match for the USPW World Championship[/B] This wasn't too bad, and will get both of them further over, but I felt it should've been better. They split the first two falls, with the Pit Bull getting the opening advantage, and as time dragged on it looked like Brown would wrest the title from Merle – but in the end Nadia nailed him with that fearsome Yakuza kick again while the ref was distracted, sending him staggering back for Merle to get the Celtic Crossface in the middle of the ring. [I]Merle O'Curle defeated Pit Bull Brown by two falls to one[/I] RATING: C+ Another pretty solid show by European standards to give us more development in the region. A neat little plot advancement, too. OVERALL: C

[Phantom Stranger]

ROF: Fighting Fit Tuesday Week 1 July Edgeware Hall 2000 in attendance RATING: 0.25 This is the difference between the south and the Midlands; if anything the fans are more rabid back home but we'll sell out places twice the size here. Our dark match sees Johnny Highspot score a victory against Velocidad to an Optimus script. It's not bad at all for the dark; problem's going to be getting either of these two up to the point they do better than that, preferably under their own direction. [I]Johnny Highspot defeated Velocidad by pinfall[/I] RATING: C Once again our opening saw Petey setting up a match from the big screen; tonight's title challenger, he'd decided, would be... Bulldozer Brandon Smith! RATING: C+ As Petey kept on rolling Joey made his way out from under the screen and got in the ring. “I'm sick of this,” he said. “I'm the longest-reigning champion in Ring of Fire history, man. And somehow I can't get a title shot. Here's how it goes, Sparky. You and me at Summer Games, and that gold gets a cool... summer... breeze...” RATING: C [B]Nate Johnson vs. Black Eagle[/B] Nate Johnson makes it on to TV again and takes on Black Eagle. In a perfect display of what's good about these two they produce the same kind of reaction as Johnny and Velocidad without resorting to Optimus. After around a quarter of an hour, though, the New Jersey Turnpike brought this to an end. [I]Black Eagle defeated Nate Johnson by pinfall[/I] RATING: C [B]Daniel Black Francis vs. Hidekazu[/B] Hey, this Hidekazu kid could go places, you know? Lovely work here, and Daniel even helped Hidekazu shore up some of his slams and kicks during the quarter of an hour before Hidekazu put him away with the tilt-a-whirl powerbomb. Daniel continues to excel at helping others reach the peak. [I]Hidekazu defeated Daniel Black Francis by pinfall[/I] RATING: B- [B]Joey Beauchamp vs. Mario Heroic[/B] Not bad here, either, though not quite as good as I'd hoped. Mario lasted a lot longer than Daniel, and this consequently got a little more interesting, particularly as there's been a lot of trying out the lower-card guys at their shots lately. In the end, however, it was Joey coasting back to victory. [I]Joey Beauchamp defeated Mario Heroic by pinfall[/I] RATING: B- Petey came out as Joey was celebrating and told him he wasn't going to take him up on it; as far as he was concerned the UK Dragon was the true contender. Joey really didn't look happy. RATING: B- [B]Petey Barnes vs. Bulldozer Brandon Smith for the ROF Championship[/B] Man, Brandon picked the wrong show to bring his B-game to, and man, these two don't click. And still... this was OK, at the least. Bulldozer showed an early readiness to turn any Future Shock attempt into a collossal slam of one form or another and countered two X Factor attempts, and in the end Petey was forced to resort to a sleeper hold after slamming him face-first into the ring post. If Brandon had been fired up, this would've been fantastic. [I]Petey Barnes defeated Bulldozer Brandon Smith by submission[/I] RATING: B So a weakish show but a succcessful one nonetheless. I think we've actually done pretty well out of this; I can get behind this. OVERALL: B-

[Phantom Stranger]

USPW: Standard Bearers Sunday Week 1 July Plaza La Navarre 1000 in attendance Roy gets a break from his usual dark abuse as he's busy elsewhere; accordingly El Leon and Ultimate Phoenix face off in the dark to provide an enjoyable warm-up spectacle that the crowd gets into before the Phoenix Firebird Splash carries the day. [I]Ultimate Phoenix defeated El Leon by pinfall[/I] RATING: C We kicked off the webcast with a hype video featuring the new four-member force; Toby, Jed, the Princess, and the newly-rechristened S.K. Walker. RATING: D- [B]The Force vs. East and West[/B] It's Ray's scripts that drive a lot of these tag contests, with this being no exception, but this was unusually good. After the first sports-entertainment derived rush of momentum I'm actually feeling this division can go places again. Which makes me very happy. After a lot of shenanigans Jed managed to keep Nichiren down long enough to hit the Sky High, which the plucky youngster kicked out of. Irritated, Jed hit a quick DDT and the Force as a whole set up to nail the Star Destroyer – and that kept him down. [I]The Force defeated East and West when Jed High pinned Nichiren Amagawa.[/I] RATING: C+ The Riot Act came out and cut a lengthy and vicious promo on the Force in an interview with Danny Jillefski. I think he needs getting over. RATING: E+ [B]Dean Daniels vs. Seiji Jimbo[/B] I hoped for more from this but it was just... kind of there. We'll see more development in the WLW crowd as we go along, I expect. For now, though... Seiji got the pin with the Jimbo Driver, and the fans were reasonably accepting of this. [I]Seiji Jimbo defeated Dean Daniels by pinfall[/I] RATING: C [B]Steve Flash vs. Billy Robinson vs. Chojiro Kitoaji for the USPW National Championship[/B] Weak, which I lay at Chojiro's feet – he kinda phoned this in. I mean, don't get me wrong, at the Plaza this will do, but I'd love to see better. A pretty tense quarter of an hour developed here with a lot of near-falls and one or two almost-submissions which ended when Chojiro, seemingly about to go for a slingshot suplex on Billy, instead tossed him out of the ring, hit the ropes, and felled Steve with a Kitoaji Lariat from nowhere to pick up the gold. [I]Chojiro Kitoaji defeated Steve Flash & Billy Robinson when he pinned Steve Flash[/I] RATING: C An individual hype video for S.K. Walker ran next. Sergei has gold in every promotion he works for but here, which we made much of, along with hyping his feared 'Kessel Run' finisher. RATING: D [B]Merle O'Curle vs. Marcos Flores vs. Pit Bull Brown vs. Rolling Johnny Stones for the USPW World Championship[/B] A good way to close out the show, if expensive – but these guys all need the exposure, so the money's at least semi-worthwhile. All four men got to strut their stuff in this, with Brown's late-game attempt at a Dog House Piledriver on Marcos seeing Johnny hit a dropkick to send both men to the floor under the bottom rope – and then Merle had the Celtic Crossface on Johnny, almost perfectly seamlessly, and while the Pit Bull almost got back there in time Johnny tapped a second before the elbow broke it up. [I]Merle O'Curle defeated Marcos Flores, Pit Bull Brown & Rolling Johnny Stones when he made Rolling Johnny Stones submit[/I] RATING: B- Another groundwork-based show, which I think is pretty much inevitable at this point. We need these people over in Europe, though the ROF show's popularity does seem to be helping us despite the lack of crossover. OVERALL: C+

[Phantom Stranger]

ROF: Fighting Fit Tuesday Week 2 July Aston University Sports Hall 1000 in attendance RATING: 0.27 Ugh. A horribly poor dark match between the Animals and Los Hijos kicks things off as I tell them to call it themselves so we can see how they do at that. I think del Gato and Huracan are reaching their peaks in some of what Ring of Fire considers the most important skills. Couple more years to develop, then it'll be time to trade up if they don't show me something great. The important factor here; Huracan got the win over El Bestia Purpura. [I]Los Hijos defeated The Animals when Huracan Sandoval Jr pinned El Bestia Purpura[/I] RATING: D- At the top of the broadcast tonight, Petey Barnes announces he's taken Joey's words to heart, and will be facing the very credible threat of Jonathan Faust tonight. RATING: C+ [B]Hugh de Aske vs. Nate Johnson for the Beacon Championship[/B] A very fluid, very good ten minutes to bring the crowd back after that first match. Nate got some good offence in, but in the end this was very much a match controlled by the champion who went on to hit the Cut-Throat Driver at 9:52. Very promising work from both men. [I]Hugh de Aske defeated Nate Johnson by pinfall[/I] RATING: C+ Our cameras followed Hugh back up the ramp after his victory and caught sight of Davis and Joey in conversation just by the entrance. They seemed to be getting on surprisingly well. RATING: C+ [B]Joey Beauchamp vs. UK Dragon[/B] I informed the fans at home that I'd booked this match after last week's finale; it seemed like a way to capitalise on their tension with some damn good wrestling. And boy howdy did this ever deliver. They went at each other, man; they didn't let up. They didn't stop and neither man slowed long enough for their rival to hit a finisher and seal the deal; this one was twenty minutes of extremely solid fast-paced wrestling. [I]Joey Beauchamp drew with UK Dragon when the time limit elapsed.[/I] RATING: A Davis then hit the ramp and came down to talk to me. Live on the mic, he pointed out that I only needed one of those guys at Summer Games to have a great title bout; so why not let him take on the other? And he felt that him and Joey would be a little much three PPVs in a row, so could he wrestle UK Dragon? I said absolutely. RATING: C [B]Davis Wayne Newton vs. Mario Heroic[/B] Not as good as the Joey/Dragon match beforehand, regrettably, but a good match nonetheless. In a little over a quarter of an hour Davis got the Newton's Cradle to stay strong heading into Summer Games. [I]Davis Wayne Newton defeated Mario Heroic by pinfall[/I] RATING: B [B]Petey Barnes vs. Jonathan Faust in a two out of three falls match for the ROF Championship[/B] Excellent work here in one of Faust's best performances to date, helped along by Miss Information. It didn't live up to Joey and the Dragon but I hadn't expected it to; this was more than good enough. Petey got the first fall with the X Factor to a charging Faust, but after Miss Information 'slipped' while climbing the ladder he was distracted for long enough for Faust to score a quick roll-up and even the scores before both men slowed the pace right down, going extremely cagey. The end saw a blinding sequence where the Future Shock was countered toward the Devil's Drop but Petey backflipped out and slapped on a sleeper hold to pick up the win. It took Petey to do it, but there may be something to this Faust cat yet. [I]Petey Barnes defeated Jonathan Faust by two falls to one.[/I] RATING: B+ A great show with no complaints; one of our best. Next week: The PPV. OVERALL: B+

[Phantom Stranger]

USPW: Standard Bearers Sunday Week 2 July Lubuskie Arena 1000 in attendance Roy once again couldn't make it tonight. His place is taken by Nigel Svensson, who generates a good enough dark match with Billy to a Crippler Ray script that I'm quite happy with this contest. Billy gets the Capital City Crucifix applied in time, however. [I]Billy Robinson defeated Nigel Svensson by submission[/I] RATING: C [B]Jonni Lowlife vs. Marc Speed[/B] A 21CW match reminds me that I can't yet rely on these two to call it for themselves. It serves its purpose, though, setting things up for Jonni to get the Low Down. [I]Jonni Lowlife defeated Marc Speed by pinfall[/I] RATING: D+ Immediately after the match S.K. Walker, as Sergei's calling himself, vaulted the fan rail, scrambled onto the top rope, extended his 'saber' and came off with a terrific shot to the back of the unwitting tag champ's head. RATING: E+ [B]Jed High vs. Nichiren Amagawa[/B] Better, this, but then I made sure they had a Ray script. Looks to have been a wise plan, as Jed and Nichiren both looked reasonably good out there before a neat inverted suplex set Nichiren up for the Sky High. [I]Jed High defeated Nichiren Amagawa by pinfall[/I] RATING: C- ...Whereupon the Riot Act crashed the ring and laid Jed out with three consecutive Rubber Bullets Bombs. RATING: E+ [B]Ruud van Anger vs. Toby Juan Kenobi & S.K. Walker in a Handicap Match[/B] And to think I was worried about employing a handicap match formula in front of these fans. The sports-entertainment feel of USPW seems to be getting across to them, and this saw a series of huge (for Poland) pops through its ten minute length, in particular whenever Ruud looked like he might score an upset pin. Toby and S.K. were just that little bit too together for that to happen, though and in the end the Kessel Run finally floored Ruud to allow S.K. to pick up the victory. [I]S.K. Walker & Toby Juan Kenobi defeated Ruud van Anger when S.K. Walker pinned him[/I] RATING: B- Our cameras then went backstage, showing the Princess looking after Jed after his injury. After a long tender moment, they kissed. So much for the Jedi Code. RATING: D- [B]Chojiro Kitoaji vs. Seiji Jimbo for the USPW National Championship[/B] Another ten minute affair was weaker than I'd hoped, but again, it's getting these guys over that's the problem here. Chojiro carried the day with the Kitoaji Lariat to avoid hotshotting the title. [I]Chojiro Kitoaji defeated Seiji Jimbo by pinfall[/I] RATING: C- [B] Merle O'Curle vs. Rolling Johnny Stones for the USPW World Championship[/B] For whatever reason these two just work so much better in Poland. With twenty-five minutes to fill they popped the crowd right back up to the level the handicap match left them at, and the former champion really put up a hell of a fight before Merle twisted free of the brainbuster and took it to the mat for the Celtic Cross. [I]Merle O'Curle defeated Rolling Johnny Stones by submission.[/I] RATING: B- A pretty good show by European standards keeps us rolling. OVERALL: C+

[Phantom Stranger]

Summer Games prediction sheet: TV: Extraordinario Jr vs. Velocidad British Samurai vs. Hidekazu Don Henderson vs. Jonathan Faust Mario Heroic vs. Bulldozer Brandon Smith Black Eagle vs. Daniel Black Francis PPV: Mario Heroic vs. Velocidad Hugh de Aske vs. Matthew Gauge for the Beacon Championship & Heritage Championship Davis Wayne Newton vs. UK Dragon Petey Barnes vs. Joey Beauchamp in a Ladder Match for the ROF Championship

[Phantom Stranger]

ROF: Fighting Fit Tuesday Week 3 July Hall Green Cricket Club 2000 in attendance RATING: 0.24 A pretty good dark match to kick the biggest show of the month of; Extraordinario Jr, the newest EXODUS2010 TV Champion, picks up a win over Velocidad in a good solid match. [I]Extraordinario Jr defeated Velocidad by pinfall[/I] RATING: C+ Matthew Gauge kicked things off in Petey's usual place, laying down a challenge to Hugh de Aske: Title vs. title on PPV. RATING: D [B]British Samurai vs. Hidekazu[/B] What a way to open the televised matches. This was good; both men are capable of better, but this was good and it picked the crowd up pretty heavily over the nineteen minutes it ran. In the end Hidekazu got another win with that tilt-a-whirl powerbomb, but that was only a capstone to a good solid match. [I]Hidekazu defeated British Samurai by pinfall[/I] RATING: B- Don came out to the ring for his match next and Hidekazu once again put over how grateful he was for Don's help and advice these past few months. RATING: B- [B]Don Henderson vs. Jonathan Faust[/B] Once again Don takes Faust to about the best match he's capable of despite their lack of chemistry. It almost went to the time limit, but in the end Don hit a tornado slam, a la the Hidekazu of old, and hooked in the Scottish Deathlock at 19:51 [I]Don Henderson defeated Jonathan Faust by submission.[/I] RATING: C+ This time around Don was the one thanking Hidekazu for recent help and advice. RATING: C [B]Mario Heroic vs. Bulldozer Brandon Smith[/B] One day, one of these men will learn to sell, and the Earth will implode. That said, this was still a very enjoyable bout which really helped both men shine before the Hero Attack cleared the way for our main event. [I]Mario Heroic defeated Bulldozer Brandon Smith by pinfall[/I] RATING: B- [B]Black Eagle vs. Daniel Black Francis[/B] Our main event was disappointing; a lack of chemistry and Daniel's weak cardio regime made for a sub-par bout. Worst on the card, in fact. But Daniel gets the win and keeps his momentum up with the Dreadlock Drop. [I]Daniel Black Francis defeated Black Eagle by pinfall[/I] RATING: C- A really weak show by our standards, but something that I think will help us elsewhere and not hurt us here. We did deserve the poor rating, though. OVERALL: C

[Phantom Stranger]

ROF: Summer Games Tuesday Week 3 July Hall Green Cricket Club 2000 in attendance BUYRATE: 0.06 Mario Heroic overcame Velocidad in the dark. Horrible match. Lack of chemistry plus Velocidad phoning it in equals an utterly horrible match. I should've put Nate in there. [I]Mario Heroic defeated Velocidad by pinfall[/I] RATING: D [B]Hugh de Aske vs. Matthew Gauge for the Beacon Championship & Heritage Championship[/B] Lovely work by these two; again, it's a situation where both men can do better, but where them doing this well is still pretty gratifying. In a little under twenty-two minutes Hugh and Matthew put on something of a clinic of the up-and-comers, with Hugh eventually carrying the day with the Skull and Crossbones pinning combination. [I]Hugh de Aske defeated Matthew Gauge by pinfall[/I] RATING: B- Hugh celebrates for a moment, taking the microphone. “I just want ye all to know that I'm proud to have won this pretty, pretty pair,” he says. “But you'll only see one from now on – the Ring of Fire TV title has a ring to my ears, and where these two meet, that's what ye'll see.” RATING: C We then ran a video recapping the events that have led up to the Davis/Dragon showdown. RATING: C [B]Davis Wayne Newton vs. UK Dragon[/B] More lovely work picks the pace up and steps up to the plate to give us better as the match runs to 22:59 with a lot of back and forth before the Newton's Cradle proves a worthy counter to the Dragon Drop and Davis gets the win. [I]Davis Wayne Newton defeated UK Dragon by pinfall[/I] RATING: B Back to the hype video as the crew brought out the ladders for the main event; the tangled four-man-mess that's been Davis, Joey, Petey and Dragon over the past few months leading up to this. RATING: C+ [B]Petey Barnes vs. Joey Beauchamp in a Ladder Match for the ROF Championship[/B] Now this was absolutely beautiful. They only had a hair over twenty-five minutes but they used that to recap all their prior ladder matches and improve on them, with the top turnbuckle Breeze Block toward the ladder being countered when Petey hopped off the ladder to hit the X Factor as the major defining spot of the match. And that was a real theme; Petey pulled out all the stops to show he'd evolved since the last time Joey took a belt from him, and I think we'll have renewed interest in this conflict in future. Petey retains this time around. [I]Petey Barnes defeated Joey Beauchamp when he retrieved his title[/I] RATING: A Overall, not our best PPV nor our weakest. I can live with shows like this. Our buyrate seems to be improving, too – at least, this is our best to date, albeit marginally. OVERALL: B

[Phantom Stranger]

Just for my own interest, I went through the roster and checked who had what titles elsewhere currently. Davis Wayne Newton – CGC Tag Champion (with Elmo Benson), CZCW Tag Champion (with Jim Force) Extraordinario Jr – EX2010 TV Champion (untelevised) Nate Johnson – MAW Tag Champion (with Clark Alexander) Ruud van Anger – UCR Tag Champion (with Geoff Borne) Sergei Kalashnov/S.K. Walker – Campeon de Mexico OLLIE Seiji Jimbo – WLW Tag Champion (with Takayuki 2000) Velocidad – Campeones de Parejas OLLIE (with El Hijo del Zonk) Not too bad. What the tag fascination is, I don't know. MOSC have managed to reestablish themselves as a regional force. Congratulations definitely due.

[Phantom Stranger]

USPW: Standard Bearers Sunday Week 3 July Plaza La Navarre 1000 in attendance With Nigel once again filling in for Roy, El Leon steps up to be the other half of this dark bout, winning handily with a Split Second Justice. There was a good pop for this despite the weak chemistry; I'm happy with it. [I]El Leon defeated Nigel Svensson by pinfall[/I] RATING: C [B]Dean Daniels vs. Ultimate Phoenix[/B] Sadly this duo don't click either, and the result was highly 21CW. Dean controlled most of the match and put it away with the Cradle Piledriver. [I]Dean Daniels defeated Ultimate Phoenix by pinfall[/I] RATING: D+ Another hype video for the Force ran next. RATING: D- [B]Chojiro Kitoaji vs. S.K. Walker for the USPW National Championship[/B] Now this was good. Two fast-paced brawlers getting into it with a title on the line, and I found myself very glad I gave this the time I did. The Kessel Run was sidestepped right near the end and Walker came off the ropes to meet the Kitoaji Lariat; Chojiro quickly covered to put him away. [I]Chojiro Kitoaji defeated S. K. Walker by pinfall[/I] RATING: B- As Chojiro received his belt, however, he was felled by dual 'saber' shots from behind as the Force arrived to help their fallen comrade, who quickly prepped his own 'saber' to join in the fun. RATING: E+ And then the Riot Act arrived with a Low Down to Walker and an Anger Management to Toby that led in short order to Jed taking the Rubber Bullets Bomb. RATING: E [B]Seiji Jimbo vs. Steve Flash[/B] To pep the crowd back up after that segment, these two put on an excellent match capped off with a Jimbo Driver. Good work on both sides. [I]Seiji Jimbo defeated Steve Flash by pinfall[/I] RATING: C+ [B]Merle O'Curle vs. Marcos Flores for the USPW World Championship[/B] More sterling work to round the show off with an excellent half-hour. It looked for a while like Marcos might be the new champion, but Merle fought back time and again, eventually grounding him with the Celtic Crossface for the win. [I]Merle O'Curle defeated Marcos Flores by submission[/I] RATING: B- Yeah, another lovely show in terms of getting us over. Europe's being nicer and nicer to us. OVERALL: B-

[Phantom Stranger]

ROF: Fighting Fit Tuesday Week 4 July The Cobra Den 781 in attendance RATING: 0.25 Another 21CW tag bout in the dark. Even Optimus can't take this quartet to the next level yet as The Animals go over Los Hijos when del Gato gets the Ninth Life, which at least gets a small pop. [I]The Animals defeated Los Hijos when Amo del Gato pinned Huracan Sandoval Jr[/I] RATING: D+ [B]Hidekazu vs. Nate Johnson[/B] Beginning the show proper we treated the Cobra Den to some good solid technical stylings. It only lasted ten minutes, but they still put on a pretty good match which popped the crowd, leading up to the tilt-a-whirl powerbomb as Hidekazu continues a pretty dominant few months. [I]Hidekazu defeated Nate Johnson by pinfall[/I] RATING: C+ Petey then appeared on the big screen, naming the British Samurai as his title challenger tonight. RATING: C [B]Mario Heroic vs. Matthew Gauge[/B] I'd hoped this would do that tiny bit better, but while Matthew's style is pretty much what the Cobra Den love I guess Mario's not quite in line. It was still a good match, though, with both men putting on very solid performances. With only seconds remaining Matthew got the Proton Lock, but Mario held on to the time limit. [I]Mario Heroic drew with Matthew Gauge when the time limit elapsed.[/I] RATING: C+ Dragon came down to the announce table next and delivered a bitter tirade about Joey to me. I basically tried to calm him down and absorbed it as best I could. RATING: D And then Hugh hit the ring, sporting the new TV Championship around his waist. It wouldn't be TV, he told us, if this wasn't defended, and accordingly he was throwing down an open challenge to the boys in the back. RATING: D “Pirates are criminals,” an unfamiliar voice to ROF fans announced over the speakers. “So I think it's time for Vigilante Justice!” And with that, MOSC and 21CW's Edward Cornell hit the ring. RATING: D- [B]Hugh de Aske vs. 'Vigilante Justice' Edward Cornell for the TV Championship[/B] Not bad considering the northern crowd was more lukewarm for Edward's debut than I'd expected. Hugh and Edward aren't anything special together, but they're both pretty good wrestlers even if Edward's no Tommy – the only reason I've signed him now is that he's only recently started to put out the quality of match I want, plus, let's face it, it'll piss off Tyler and so long as we're at war I should probably fire the occasional shot. Edward did a pretty good job in this match, but my plans for him don't involve the TV title, so Hugh got the Cut Throat Driver and sealed the deal. [I]Hugh de Aske defeated Edward Cornell by pinfall[/I] RATING: C+ [B]Petey Barnes vs. British Samurai in a two out of three falls match for the ROF Championship[/B] There's precious little in crowd reaction to choose between our Northern UK and European matches at the moment, which I take to be a good sign so far as Europe goes. Plus these two don't click, and nonetheless this was a good fight that kept the crowd happy in one of our weaker shows. Petey dominated this one, despite my request that it be even; I think Sammy just decided to give Petey more of a rub. He's not expecting another championship run, but I suspect he thinks Petey can go for a while yet. So Petey walks away with two straight falls. [I]Petey Barnes defeated British Samurai by two straight falls[/I] RATING: B- I'd always rather get our weakest shows done just after the PPV, it has to be said. It gives us a clear run at Proving Grounds over the next four weeks. OVERALL: B-

[Phantom Stranger]

Sammy walked into my office the following day and dropped into the seat opposite. “We still can't fill the Cobra Den,” he said. “We can pack them in in Europe, but we can't put a thousand in their seats when we go about two hours up the road. How does that work?” I shrugged. “Working on it,” I said. “Still, I figure it's a good problem to have.” “How do you work that one out?” “We're half-filling our weakest venue,” I said. “Three and a half years ago we were happy to see thirty show up. A tenth the capacity of a smaller place.” Sammy paused to consider that. “Yeah,” he smiled. “A good problem. So... the youngster's debut match was OK.” I nodded. “I didn't think much of him when he started looking for work and I saw his tapes,” I said. “But the past couple months he's been the best thing coming out of 21CW and MOSC both. His performances there were weak by our standards, but consider what he was having to carry. Which is the point; he can carry people, if they're weak.” Sammy nodded. “So what's the plan with him?” I smiled, and pushed a contract I'd received that morning across the desk. Sammy examined it carefully. “Three and a half years you don't touch him. Why now?” “Because it writes itself,” I said. “And because I realised where he can fit for us.”

[Phantom Stranger]

USPW: Standard Bearers Sunday Week 4 July Lubuskie Arena 733 in attendance Another dark bout, another loss for Nigel, this time to Ultimate Phoenix. The two really don't mesh and I think, ultimately, that that's why this one felt 21CW to me. Could be worse, though. [I]Ultimate Phoenix defeated Nigel Svensson by pinfall[/I] RATING: D+ [B]Bairei Yasujiro vs. Marcos Flores[/B] A good enough quarter-hour to open the webcast sees Marcos recapture some momentum with a win over Bairei. Glad this was on the show; I may regret using it as an opener. [I]Bairei Yasujiro defeated Marcos Flores by pinfall[/I] RATING: C+ Another three-man backstage assault next, as the trio of the Force practically destroy Ruud van Anger. RATING: D- [B]The Riot Act vs. The Force for the USPW Tag Titles[/B] That leads to Jonni Lowlife more or less having to do this on his own. Ruud recovers just about enough by the end to assist with a Rubber Bullets Bomb, but the opening that lets them hit that on Jed is pretty close to pure luck after Jonni spends twelve minutes concentrating on avoiding a beatdown. [I]The Riot Act defeated The Force when Jonni Lowlife pinned Jed High[/I] RATING: C- A quick video recap next reminded us what happened recently with S.K. Walker and Chojiro. RATING: E+ [B]Chojiro Kitoaji vs. S.K. Walker for the USPW National Championship[/B] Ten minutes and pretty smooth, good work from these two, as Chojiro eventually puts Walker away with the Kitoaji Lariat, but it's tense along the way. [I]Chojiro Kitoaji defeated S. K. Walker by pinfall[/I] RATING: C+ Danny Jillefski then ran a hype session for Pit Bull Brown, who he's apparently taken on as a client. RATING: F+ [B]Merle O'Curle vs. Pit Bull Brown for the USPW World Championship in a two out of three falls match[/B] In the longest match in our USPW history Merle got destroyed by Brown and Jillefski's dirty tricks at all points, eventually being laid out by a brass knucks shot from Jillefski. Two straight falls gave us a new champion, and the crowd loved it. [I]Pit Bull Brown defeated Merle O'Curle by two straight falls[/I] RATING: B- Good show all told; I'm happy with this. OVERALL: C+

[Phantom Stranger]

PWC formally shut down yesterday. A real shame. Sensational Ogiwara, in news that also qualifies as a real shame, is retiring. On the plus side, the PWH Women's Wrestler of the Year is now an actual contest.

[Phantom Stranger]

ROF: Fighting Fit Tuesday Week 1 August Aston University Sports Hall 1000 in attendance RATING: 0.27 So here we go again; our dark match to kick off features Johnny Highspot and Nate Johnson, with Nate once again being handily dispatched in a match that was a pleasure to watch. These two work together beautifully and Johnny's become the best man at selling his opponent's offence we have, so Nate looked credible for a while. A feud for the future. [I]Johnny Highspot defeated Nate Johnson by pinfall[/I] RATING: C+ [B]Hugh de Aske vs. Extraordinario Jr vs. Matthew Gauge for the ROF TV Championship[/B] With Extraordinario's appearance here the EXODUS2010 TV title was seen on broadcast television for the first time. And it was seen in a very good match, too; Hugh and Extraordinario spent a little while showing Matthew a few high-flying moves he hadn't tried before and then ran a one-upmanship spot with Hugh and Matthew where Matthew matched him almost all the way before getting caught with a blindingly fast dropkick by Extraordinario to drop him, at which point Hugh just hit the Cut Throat Driver on the rival champ to pin him and take the gold home. Good use of our opening quarter hour here. [I]Hugh de Aske defeated Extraordinario Jr & Matthew Gauge when he pinned Extraordinario Jr[/I] RATING: B- Petey issued his standard challenge: Don would be the lucky title contender tonight. RATING: C [B]The Stunners vs. Hot Fuzz for the Tag Titles[/B] Hot Fuzz are Edward Cornell and Keith Adams. They absolutely don't click as teammates, which is a real shame, but this was nonetheless the best tag match we've seen on Fighting Fit without needing to call in outside help to script it. A good solid match ended when Bulldozer slammed Black Eagle onto Edward for the superbomb splash and covered for the pin; but there's potential quality here, despite that certain something being lacking from the new team. [I]The Stunners defeated Hot Fuzz when Bulldozer Brandon Smith pinned Edward Cornell.[/I] RATING: C Hidekazu cut a promo backstage telling the world that in his eyes he'd outgrown Don, and was stepping out to be his own man now. RATING: D+ [B]British Samurai vs. Davis Wayne Newton[/B] Another good solid match here by both these professionals, building steadily until Davis hooked the leg to block a DDT attempt, stepped round, and hit a drop toehold into the STF to get the win at 14:39. Nice work. [I]Davis Wayne Newton defeated British Samurai by submission[/I] RATING: B- Davis then grabbed the stick and talked up his accomplishments, promising the ROF Title would soon be back around his waist. RATING: C+ [B]Petey Barnes vs. Don Henderson for the ROF Championship[/B] ...This blew me away. I absolutely did not expect a performance this good from these two. Three years ago these two were reliable tag teamers, and that was all. But... man, this was good. Don played the story of this match as a man determined to refute Hidekazu's claims, but also troubled by them, and Petey played up to that brilliantly, proving to have a counter for absolutely every trick Don tried. It was tough stuff; back-and-forth to an incredible extent with a lot of teases in one or the other direction, and Petey eventually countered the tilt-a-whirl powerbomb and forced Don to tap with a triangle choke. Amazing stuff. [I]Petey Barnes defeated Don Henderson by submission[/I] RATING: A Another great show, and I think we're establishing ourselves even more strongly in the Midlands as a result. OVERALL: B

[Phantom Stranger]

21CW's back on the air; the new show's called 21CW Pain. Good to know what mood Eric's in, eh?

[Phantom Stranger]

USPW: Standard Bearers Sunday Week 1 August Plaza La Navarre 1000 in attendance A new arrival goes up against Nigel in the dark this week; Remmy Honeyman debuts. This guy comes with an indy rep for making his opponents look good, and we can always use that in USPW as we try and get folks over. A little under ten minutes sees Nigel get that running knee drive of his and cover Remmy for the win. Not too bad, especially as Remmy's hardly what you'd call known. [I]Nigel Svensson defeated Remmy Honeyman by pinfall[/I] RATING: C- [B]East and West vs. Los Leyendas[/B] WHAT THE HELL? I leave these four alone, come back, and they deliver the arguably the best tag bout in ROF history. And it took them less than ten minutes. Los Leyendas have been developing a series of nifty puro slams while they've been concentrating on their burgeoning Japanese careers – EXODUS again – and that extra flavour, coupled with some development by Nichiren, totally blindsided me. The Tooth and Claw, when it came, hit out of nowhere and Phoenix' pin on Marc Speed popped the crowd big time. [I]Los Leyendas defeated East and West when Ultimate Phoenix pinned Marc Speed.[/I] RATING: B- Unfortunately, our main tag storyline then destroyed that momentum when the Riot Act ran over Toby and Jed in vengeance. RATING: E [B]Dean Daniels vs. Steve Flash[/B] Hard fought work that still produced a good result despite their chemistry issues, this didn't match the opening match of the webcast, but that happens when you don't expect much and people amaze you. Dean and Steve did some pretty good work before the Cradle Piledriver overcame the DaVE stalwart and powered Dean through to a win. [I]Dean Daniels defeated Steve Flash by pinfall[/I] RATING: C S.K. Walker ran into Ruud backstage and the two began an argument about whether or not the Riot Act had any right to do what they did. RATING: E+ Eventually Walker lost his patience. A saber shot staggered Ruud backward, setting him up for the Kessel Run. RATING: E+ [B]Billy Robinson vs. Seiji Jimbo[/B] Not bad at all; much the same things can be said of this as Dean and Steve, except that with no chemistry conflicts this naturally produced a better result. Ray gave me some scripting help for what I trust will be obvious reasons, those being 'Billy', which led eventually to him eating the Jimbo Driver. [I]Seiji Jimbo defeated Billy Robinson by pinfall[/I] RATING: C+ [B]Bairei Yasujiro vs. Marcos Flores[/B] Once again, a weaker match than I expected. But I'm fairly happy with this, which did pretty well at getting both men across to each other before Bairei kipped up, caught Marcos in mid-leap and hit the Yasujiro Suplex. [I]Bairei Yasujiro defeated Marcos Flores by pinfall[/I] RATING: C [B] Pit Bull Brown vs. Rolling Johnny Stones for the USPW World Championship[/B] Twenty minutes long and fairly damn weak for a main event. We'll have to work on that. Thing is, part of this is to get Jillefski on screen as more than just a commentator, and with his headset mic on he ran commentary while pacing up and down at ringside, helping put the match across. We'll get that over, I'm sure, and that'll help whenever Danny has interviews to do. Needless to say, he helped his picked man retain. [I]Pit Bull Brown defeated Rolling Johnny Stones by pinfall[/I] RATING: C Well, that show was back to front. Hopefully we can work on that in the future. OVERALL: C