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I apologize for the delay in this and all other updates to the site. As you read this you will see why I have not been able to update the site in the past few days.
WXW presented the 2nd Annual Ladies Super 8 Tournament on November 21st at Rick's Sciota BBQ in Sciota PA. The crowd was small but vocal at around 50 - 60. The show started at 7:35 with last year's Super 8 winner, Tracy Brooks entering the ring to thank Pops (Afa) for believing in women's wrestling and for giving her and all the other women a chance. Tracy then called all the WXW divas and Pops to join her at ringside where they presented Pops with a birthday cake and a rendition of "Happy Birthday".
The show started with a Battle Royal in which the final 2 women would wrestle each other in a first round tournament match. The women, in order of elimination were: Frankie V (the first sign that this tournament designed to feature some of the best female talent on the indy scene is not being taken seriously by the booking committee), Tara Charisma, Alere Little Feather, ODB, Luscious Lily, and Belladonna. The final two women in the ring were Sarah Stock and Jessica Dally (the second sign that wrestling ability really isn't taken into consideration).
Sarah Stock went on to defeat Jessica Dally after a Tiger Driver. In a scary moment, Jessica went for a Fisherman Buster and dropped Sarah on her head. Luckily, Sarah was unharmed and was able to claim a victory.
Rob Dimension came out to the ring and started cutting a promo on Rapid Fire Maldanado. He then said, and I quote, "I love a girl that's got a little spunk in her!" This set up Jessica to slap him. So, in the midst of a tournament that is supposed to feature some of the best women on the indy scene, we are treated to a promo about a wrestler that isn't even at the show. Great logic in my book.
The second match in the first round of the Super 8 Tournament saw Phoenix defeat Psycho (the "Bitch" portion of her name isn't used in WXW). Very good match by both women. Psycho held her own using her size to gain the upper hand. Psycho missed her handspring elbow which allowed Phoenix to hit a belly to belly suplex for the pinfall.
As Phoenix is walking through the curtain, to the dressing room, she is hit by a chair which knocks her back out of the curtain and to the floor. Tracy Brooks, Belladonna, and numerous referees come out to check on her and help her to the back. (So now we're doing angles in this tournament which was originally designed to feature the best in women's wrestling instead of focusing on the actual wrestling? Great logic in my book).
Next up, Angel Williams defeated Allison Danger with a Downward Spiral. Another very good match with both women giving it their all. A beautiful climb of the ropes into a springboard armdrag by Angel was an awesome sight.
April Hunter defeated Ariel in the final match of the first round. The two women began by brawling at ringside. Back in the ring, a beautiful belly to back by April for a two count. Ariel with a tornado DDT for a two count. April was able to fight back and came off the second rope with a swinging neckbreaker on Ariel for the pinfall.
Tracy Brooks came to the ring and told the crowd that her friend Phoenix was in the back with a cracked skull. She said she has a problem because last year she wrestled her ass off to win this tournament and she doesn't appreciate someone trying to take the easy way out. Tracy calls out Belladonna who tells her to question everyone in the tournament. All the "WXW Divas" come to the ring where Tracy questions each of them to find out where they were when Phoenix was attacked. As this episode of Diagnosis Murder She Wrote came to and end, April Hunter admitted to having seen everything that happened. She told everyone how it was Tracy who took out Phoenix. Tracy then attacks April. Phoenix made her way to the ring shocked at what she just saw. How could Tracy do this to her? It doesn't matter because it will not keep her down. (Have I mentioned that the Super 8 was originally designed to showcase some of the best women WRESTLING on the indy scene?)
Round 2 begins with Phoenix defeating Angel Williams. During the match, Tracy and Belladonna came out to watch. Cindy Rogers came out and chased them to the back. As Phoenix is distracted, Angel rolls her up for a 2 count. Phoenix rolls up Angel for the three count.
April Hunter defeated Sarah Stock in the final match of the second round. April hit a nice floatover suplex on Sarah. Sarah then gained the upper hand with a series of moves. Sarah ascended to the top rope but missed a dropkick. April to the second rope where she hit the swinging neckbreaker for the pinfall. Excellent match.
The next match was for the WXW Heavyweight Title. Mean Gene Sinsky defended his title against Sinn and Slyk Wagner Brown. Mean Gene started off by going berserk with clotheslines, bodyslams, and boots to his opponents. Slyk and Sinn started to work over Sinsky but Sinsky suplexed them both at the same time. Some brief offense by Slyk and Sinn but Sinsky one hand chokeslammed Slyk and pumphandle side slammed Sinn for the victory.
After a second intermission, it was time for the main event. April Hunter vs Phoenix. April started by working the head of Phoenix with a headlock. April with a springboard armbar followed by a Fujiwara armbar. April whipped Phoenix into the turnbuckle but Phoenix leapfrogged April into a reverse schoolboy using her legs. Phoenix then suplexed April into the referee. April put her submission hold on Phoenix but the ref is down and can not see Phoenix tapping. Tracy runs out with a chair. April slaps Tracy. Phoenix grabs the chair, nails April and gets the three count. A second referee comes out and decides (after taking way to long to decide) that the match must continue. Quick belly to back suplex with a bridge by April for the victory and the 2003 WXW Ladies Super 8 Trophy. Great ring psychology throughout the match.
Overall, the wrestling was solid by all the women involved. Unfortunately, the poorly done angles and screwjob finish in the final match, took away from what this tournament should have been all about. Maybe I'm wrong, but I am presuming that the "Ladies Super 8" was somewhat based off of Jim Kettner's Super 8 Tournament (since the Super 8 has been around a lot longer than this tournament has been). Could you imagine the reaction Jim Kettner would get if he decided to take the focus OFF of the wrestling and put it onto storylines, angles, and run ins? It would destroy the credibility of the tournament. It would never happen. Unfortunately, the booking committee of WXW decided to take what is a potentially great idea and water it down by taking the focus away from wrestling. I completely understand that WXW wanted to set Tracy and April into a new direction but I do not feel it should have been done at this show. (I'm not even going to get into the fact that on the "Ladies Super 8" show you don't even allow last year's winner to at LEAST have a title shot against your woman's champion.. but I digress).
Even with the negatives I mentioned, several women clearly proved themselves as great talents this evening. April Hunter, able to wrestle three matches while sick, must be commended for having three good matches. Phoenix, who not only did a phenomenal job of selling a "cracked skull" also did a phenomenal job in the ring WRESTLING. Sarah Stock showed why she is a champion in Mexico. Psycho did a great job holding her own against Phoenix in a match that even surprised me. ODB, Allison Danger, and Ariel all proved that they were invited to participate for a reason. I in no way want the abilities of all these women to be overshadowed by anything I may have not liked about the show as they all deserve a standing ovation for wrestling some outstanding matches.
Injury Report:
During the show, an irish whip into me and a chair that did not give an
inch, caused me to not only hear something crack, but to have some intense
pain in my chest. The pain was aggravated by any movement I made. I was
able to make it through the remainder of the show but the pain went from
a sharp shooting pain to a pretty steady pain. After the show, I was asked
by a relative of the promoter what I thought of the show. I honestly (as
I am sometimes too honest) said that the wrestling was good but I didn't
enjoy all the angles. I also mentioned that I thought I may have a cracked
rib or something. I was told, " I don't book the angles". That's
cool. I guess the mention of the rib injury was a joke? When I told the
promoter that I seriously thought something was wrong, he must have thought
I was joking as all he could do was laugh about how I loved getting the
person whipped into me. I said, "No, seriously. I think something
is cracked or broken". He continued to laugh and state how it was
all his idea to have the people spill over onto me. When I said if it
was anyone else that this happened to there would be a lawsuit on his
hands he said "Well next time we won't let it happen then".
That was it. Not a hint of him even thinking I was telling the truth.
Wow. That spoke volumes to me. Not only that, but it broke my heart as
I really did expect a little bit more from this man who I have known and
admired for so many years. Not on inkling of remorse. Not one sign of
concern. Just some laughs. Thanks. After so many years, I appreciate it.
Being the idiot and fan that I am, and hoping that whatever the pain was would go away, we headed back to the hotel for the night. Sleep was not an option as no matter how I tried to position myself, I was in constant pain.
The next day, we headed up to Hazelton for the WXW show.
Prior to the show I had the chance to speak to a few people. I told Tracy Brooks about my injury and she at least showed some concern. Of course, once she knew I'd live she did say, "That is cool though!". Lance came up and told me, "I have a problem with you." But wouldn't tell me what the problem was. (Although I believe it may have something to do with his adoration of a Miss Brooks). I also told the culprit (no names will be used in order to protect the guilty lol :) that I wasn't trying to "work" anyone, I was in severe pain. They apologized. No apology needed. It's wrestling. It's all in good fun. Shit happens. Accidents happen. Unfortunately, the promoter didn't seem too sorry last night when I brought it up. That's what hurts the most.
The show opened with the National Anthem. As the crowd (of about 60) stood...nothing. About 5 minutes later, the Anthem played.
Rob Dimension comes out to talk about Rapid Fire Maldonado (who still isn't here). He challenges Samu (who isn't here). He challenges Billy Dream, who comes to the ring with Jessica Dally. He then challenges Reno. Billy turns on Reno and beats him down. LA Smooth and Afa Jr make the save.
Mana defeated Devious in a solid opener. Devious climbed to the top rope but jumped into a Samoan Drop. Mana with a butterfly piledriver for the pinfall. After the match, a Samoan Drop by Mana is icing on the cake. Mana is SO over with the crowd it is scary.
Boogalu defeated Beautiful Billy Body in the next match. Body hit the Simon Series on Boogalu (note to Body...not original...do something else). Body missed a moonsault and Boogalu hit a tazplex into a fisherman buster for the pin.
Luscious Lily came out, looking outstanding in her new, matrix look. She announced that it's time she starts taking and interest in some of the men in WXW. More specifically, the tag team division. She then introduces her new tag team of Mark Gore and Anthony Michaels, "The Untouchables". The Untouchables face the debuting Christopher Street Connection. CSC gets better every time. They are hilarious. The Untouchables got the pinfall with a double team finisher but CSC stole the match with their antics.
In a six woman match; Belladonna, Phoenix, and Tracy Brooks and lost to April Hunter, Cindy Rogers, and Angel Williams. Angel hit the running springboard arm drag on Tracy. Phoenix and Cindy traded blows until Phoenix tagged in Belladonna. April tagged in and cleaned house. April with a side slam into a backbreacker on Tracy, Phoenix and Belladonna. April throws Tracy and Belladonna out of the ring. Cindy and April hit the "Hart Attack" on Phoenix but Tracy breaks up the pinfall. All six women in the ring. Tracy, Phoenix, and Bella are thrown into the same corner. April, Cindy and Angel run in with splashes on them. Angel with the Downward Spiral on Tracy. X Factor by Cindy on Belladonna. Off the rope neckbreaker by April on Phoenix for the pinfall. Good match by the 5 wrestlers in the match.
Joey Knight lost to Low Ryda in a very good match. Low Ryda hit a cobra clutch into a suplex followed by an elbow for the pinfall.
Eddie Guapo defeated The Puerto Rican Hurricane Havok in another good match.
La Smooth defeated Mean Gene Sinsky in a non title match. The usual "non title match" announcement pretty much means the champion will lose. He did.
Intermission.
As the ring announcer was announcing the participants for the next event, firemen entered the building and told everyone to leave. Lily got on the mic and asked everyone to please leave the building in a calm and orderly fashion. The fans and wrestlers all headed outside. We were out there for about 10 minutes before we were allowed back into the building. No word on why the building was evacuated but April Hunter did notice how most of the firemen were bigger than most of the wrestlers on the card.
Supreme Lee Great gets into the ring where he challenges Suga to a match later in the evening. Suga cleans house.
Psycho (with Lily) defeated Alere Little Feather and Frankie V in a three way match. I still can not figure out the logic or humor in continuously putting Frankie into women's matches. Cest La Vie. Psycho won after splashing and pinning both opponents simultaneously. After the match, CSC came out to revive Frankie V.
All Money Is Legal defeated Heavenly Chaos (Johnny Thunder and Vic Divine) in a tag title match. Excellent match by two teams with opposing styles. AMIL kept hitting their fast high flying arsenal as Thunder and Divine grounded them. Thunder hit a nice superkick on Kaos. AMIL with a double dropkick to Thunder's knees followed by a double dropkick to his head twice. Crucifix by Kash, dropkick by Kaos for the two count. Divine ran in with a chair and got DQ'd. As Divine chaired AMIL, someone ran in with a vacuum to make the save. (Sorry, but I never got his name and I hadn't seen him before).
Sarah Stock defeated ODB in an outstanding match. Cross body by Sarah but ODB caught her and tossed her over her head with a slam. Oklahoma Stampede by ODB into three turnbuckles before hitting the powerslam for a two count. ODB went for a clothesline but Sarah ducked and grabbed the hair for a modified neckbreaker. Sarah followed up with a clothesline and dropkick. Sarah attempted a tiger driver but ODB blocked it. Sarah hit an enziguri for the three count. Keep an eye on Sarah as she is bound to continue to make a name for herself on the indy scene, if not elsewhere, fast. Great match by both women.
In a Triple Threat Match for the TV Title: Slyk Wagner Brown defended against Sinn and Scotty Matthews. Sinn and Matthews double armbar Slyk who reversed it into two elbows followed by two dropkicks. During the match, Angel starts choking out Slyk only to have April break it up and push her away. Angel yells, "Don't you know who I am?" to which April replies, "No!". Slyk goes for a flying cross body only to be caught by Matthews. Lungblower by Slyk for a two count. Sinn and Matthews start fighting. The ref gets knocked down during an airplane spin. Sinn hits Matthews with a chair and tells him "That's what you get for turning your back on me!" Slyk rolls Sinn up and the ref recovers to make the three count. Angel tried to get in the ring but April stopped her. Another excellent match.
In the next match, Suga (or is it Shuga?) defeated Supreme Lee Great with a modified version of the Widow's Peak.
In the main event, "The Ax Dog" Jake Bishop defeated Cliff Compton. After touching 3 turnbuckles, Compton was stopped by Bishop who gained control. He touched 3 turnbuckles, hit a headbutt on Compton and touched the fourth for the win. He won with a headbutt. After the match, Compton attacked Bishop. Bishop challenged Compton to a Philly Junkyard Match. (Remember the old days when a dog collar match ended a feud?)
Overall this was one of the best WXW shows I have ever seen in person. The show flowed nicely (even with a "fire drill"). All the matches were solid with some that were spectacular. No matches hit the mark where you wanted to say "This match has gone 2 minutes too long."
After the show, I had the chance to tell the promoter that I thoroughly enjoyed this evening's show. He asked what I thought of the previous night's show and I told him I didn't enjoy the angles it should have focused on wrestling. I then told him that I seriously thought that I had a cracked rib. He said nothing but "Drive home safely."
Injury Update:
X -rays have shown that I was not all that inaccurate when I said that I thought I may have cracked or broken something. In fact, I have one broken rib and one cracked rib. That's not all that bad... prognosis is just 6 - 8 weeks of pain when I move, breathe, laugh, sleep, or do anything more strenuous than stand perfectly still.
To everyone who has emailed me or IM'd me with their well wishes and concerns, thank you. To all the wrestlers who knew I wasn't joking around or "working" them, thanks for your well wishes. To those who heard that I was injured and suggested a lawsuit... I have enough problems paying for X Rays let alone wasting time and money on lawyers! :)
To the promoter and his wife... in the future I suggest you take a fan a little more seriously when they tell you they think they are hurt. Had it been anyone other than me, someone would have been checking on the fan within seconds of the incident (as we have seen in the past... for example... when Sinsky was thrown into Paul and WXW staff was at Paul's side within seconds to check on his condition). Instead, because I'm the sarcastic fan who jokes around, everything is taken as a joke. If any other fan in that building received a serious injury and was treated in this manner would they just go home and take no actions? I doubt it. Would possible calls be made to the PA Athletic Commission? Would other possible legal actions take place? I'm sure they would. I'm not going to pursue this any further. I've spoken my piece here and that's the end of it.
I did not post this report until today, as I wanted to see if anyone attempted to contact me (and because sitting in front of a computer for any extended amount of time hurts like hell). As of this posting, I have heard nothing from Mr. A'noia or any other member of the WXW staff, with the exception of several of the wrestlers. That greatly saddens me as I have never had anything but love and admiration for their entire family. After being treated in the manner I was this weekend, my feelings have changed tremendously. Remember how you felt when you found out there was no Santa Claus? Welcome to my world. Thanks for reading this.
