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Chris Harris captured the heavyweight title at the Purks
International Championship Wrestling event last night in Cedartown, Ga.
The former TNA star and multiple time NWA World Tag Team Champion defeated
champion Butcher Bobby Hayes and David Young in a three way
dance.
Attendance at the Purks building was right at 500, which was the same
as the
June show with Abyss as the guest star.
Whle thats only half of what Purks ICW was drawing a
couple of months ago. The good news is that last nights crowd was
drawn
without bringing in a high dollar guest. attendance figured to be down
during
the summer, and it didnt help that it was a brutally hot night.
It appears
that Purks has established a core audience that will be there come hell
or high
water.
With Purks running storylines based on one five match show per month,
every
segment becomes vital. Every match has to serve a purpose, or at least
it
should, and a major flop could prove extra costly.
Last night, every match worked -- some more so than others, most notably,
the
streetfight between Shaun Banks and Adams Jacobs, which is one of my favorite
matches this year.
It was a feel good night, as they babyfaces went over in the
three big matches.
There was a preshow autograph and photo session with Harris, Ron Simmons,
and
Tracy Taylor.
(1) John Arden beat Jay Clinton in 6:01.
This was close perfect in so far as booking Arden to keep him strong.
The fans in
Cedartown love to see Arden throw his weight
around, all 400 pound of it, and Clinton was the right man for the job.
He bumped huge for all of Ardens stuff. The frustration factor quickly
got the better of Clinton.
He raked the eyes. Arden bumped for a forearm
shot, but he had the good sense to kick out right away on Clintons
one foot cover. Crowd chanted for Arden to get it in gear.
He obliged with a spear.
(2) Thunder & Lightning (Chris Ganz & Chris Lightning)
& Little Big Guy beat Alexander the Great & Terry Lawler &
Jackie
Rosedale in 14:08.
Guys mask was on the line, and if it turned out be Too Tall Shortts
under the
hood (as it obviously was), then he was gone from Cedartown forever. Thunder
and Lightning got a monster pop. Match opened with a solid shine segment.
The
crowd was popping for T &Ls double teams. There was a fiery
exchange
between Lightning and Alexander. The key spots involved Guy and Alexander.
Guy
came off the top with a huracanrana and in another, he gave Alexander
a horsey
ride. The heels isolated Lightning and gave him a beating. Rosedale tagged
in for all of 15 seconds. Hes a limited performer at best. Hes
just a
guy filling the spot, and its a shame, because a top flight manager
like Jeff
G. Bailey would get nuclear heat in Cedartown. A superplex lead to the
hot tag.
The apparent finish saw Guy once again perched on the top rope. Rosedale
shoved him off and covered for the pin. As the
heels started to unmask Guy, Commissioner Ron Simmons made his presence
known.
Simmons said he was going to enforce the rules and called for a restart.
T
& L scored simultaneous pin on Alexander and Lawler with sterep top
rope
sunset flips.
Simmons made a match for July 10 (he actually said next week but ring
announcer
Dave Wills cleaned that up) where if Little Big Guy beats Alexander, then
Alexander has to wear a dress until he wins a match. Simmons polled the
crowd
for choice of dress color. Alexander accepted what he said was a ridiculous
challenge.
(3) Traci Brooks beat Tracy Taylor in 7:13.
Brooks got heat by refusing to remove the baggy t-shirt that was covering
up
the goods. She said it was a family show and called ring announcer Wills
a
pervert. Taylor pulled Brooks shirt off and hula danced. Taylor
surfed on Brooks back. Brooks took it to the outside and whipped
Taylor into the post. She
mocked Taylors
hula dancing. Taylor started her comeback with a series of pinning combinations
and built it to a
nice dropkick for a near fall. When Taylor tried for a slingshot sunset
flip, Brooks sat down on her and used the ropes
for extra leverage. It got heat. Match worked because of the heel/babyface
dynamic, The crowd likes Taylor,
and she was able to carry the action. Brooks isnt much as a wrestler,
but she
is a good heel.
(4) Shaun Banks beat Adam Jacobs in a Cedartown Streetfight in
17:07.
Just an awesome streefight, because it was a fight, first and foremost.
They
made selective use of weapons. They historic buildings architecture
came into
play in interesting ways. But the core of the match was stiff hand-to-hand
combat. The other great thing was the way they built to the match on the
previous show. Fans wanted to see Banks unload on Jacobs, and they wanted
it
BAD. There was a pile of weapons in the ring. Jacobs brought a chair and
baking
pan with him. Banks had a hubcap that he immediately put to use. They
traded
slams on the floor. I dont know what its made out of, but
it has no give and
bodies hit with sickening thuds. Banks caught Jacobs with a kendo stick
as he
came off the top. Jacobs bumped over the top, and it was one of those
death defying
circus moments that had the girls shrieking. Jacobs suplexed Banks on
the
floor. They fought up into the bleachers and over the entrance way a
10-12
foot drop onto a sloping floor. They were seated on the railing trading
punches
like it was the top of a cage. Banks ended up dangling from the railing.
Thankfully, he thought better of taking the bump, because it could have
been
really, really ugly. They went all the way to the top of bleachers and
did
moves making use of the girders that support the ceiling. That was different.
Jacobs slammed Banks on the top row of bleachers producing another sick
thud.
Back inside the ring, Jacobs begged off, but there would be no escape
this
month. Banks blasted him with the hubcap. Banks hit an electric chair
drop. Banks
went up top but Jacobs cut him off with a kendo stick shot and hit a
tree-of-woe hang time dropkick for a near fall. They battled over to the
WGAA
broadcast table. The radio guys were ducking for cover. It was great.
Back
inside, Banks sent Jacobs head first into a chair wedged between the
turnbuckles and finished with a long distance top rope elbow. Its
so difficult
to do this type of match any more without it feeling clichéd, but
they totally
pulled it off. Between the action and the heat, it was easily one of the
best
matches Ive seen this year.
(5) Chris Harris beat Champion Bobby Hayes and David Young to win
the Purks ICW Heavyweight Title in 14:52.
Harris got a major star pop coming out. Young is in better shape than
hes been
in for a while. Match opened with the crowd chanting Wildcat
as Harris took
on Hayes and Young. It was all harmony between the heels until Hayes broke
up
Youngs pin. They argued but decided to resume their attack on Harris.
Things
looked grim for the good guy until Young and Hayes both came off the ropes
and
ate boot. Young tasted his own medicine via a Harris spinebuster, but
Hayes
pulled the ref out. Hayes had Harris pinned with a sidewalk slam and Young
broke that up. A heel slapfest ensued. They spilled to the outside. All
three
men could have been counted out. Ref Eddie Wilson simply stopped counting.
Harris hit a double top rope lariat and speared Young for a near fall.
Hayes
decked Harris. Young then planted the ref with a spinebuster. With Harris
and
the ref both down, the heels decided a stuff piledriver was in order.
Young
brought a chair in for a second piledriver, when out came Air Paris, still
wearing the neckbrace from the piledriver treatment he received two months
ago.
He got the heros welcome. Young and Hayes were snickering at him.
Paris ripped the neckbrace
off and waffled them with chairshots. Harris hit the Catatonic on Young,
and Paris slapped the refs
hand for the pin. Say what you will, the crowd loved the finish.
Hayes refused to hand over the belt. Simmons came out and ordered Hayes
to
cough it up. Hayes finally dropped the belt and tried to punch Simmons,
who
blocked it and blasted Hayes with a right hand. Simmons presented Harris
with
the championship belt, saying that he was now the hunted rather than the
hunter. As a rule, I hate it when a champion loses a title without being
pinned
or submitted, but they made the title change out to be such a grand deal
that
it seemed less of an issue.
Simmons went on to say that Paris had been chasing rabbit
Hayes for over a year and it was about time he
trapped him. Simmons ordered Paris vs. Hayes in a 10 foot steel cage for
July 10.
NOTES: Micah Taylor, Steve The Brawler Lawler and Frenchy
Riviera were in the house, as was Dave Wills sidekick, Danger from the
[url=http://www.blogtalkradio.com/psp/2010/06/16/the-dave-danger-show]Dave
and Danger show on Georgia Wrestling Radio[/url]. Among their guests this
coming Tuesday night at 8pm will be Drew Feldman from the Promolast Events
Fanfest
Purks ICW had a cage match scheduled for their March 2009
show and
couldnt get it in the building. That was an eight foot cage, so
speculation is
that they are going to construct the cage for July inside the venue
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