NWA E.P.I.C.

[Deleted]

Wow... Thank you, Powermonger. I'm honored that I influenced you to start up a territory-based fed. I've been having so much fun with E.P.I.C. and I hope you will, too!

Thank you again for reading and commenting--it really means a lot to me.

[Deleted]

NWA: Evoluttion
Hollywood, California
July 17, 2015

In-Ring Promo: David Marquez

Not to be outdone by his colleagues in N.W.A. Intensity and Purity, Marquez made an appearance to describe the rules that would govern N.W.A. Evolution.

MARQUEZ: “Here in Evolution, we’ll be focused on the rules of sportsmanship: if it’s not allowed in the world of sports, it won’t be allowed here. We will allow competitors a twenty-count on the floor, and notwithstanding special attractions like street fights or cage matches, the disqualification rules will be strictly enforced.

He also announced that he had signed a match for the United States Tag Team Titles for tonight’s main event, as the American Wolves put their belts on the line against PPRay!

Shane Strickland vs. Scorpio Sky

Sky came out looking strong, unloading on his opponent with knees and choke holds, the latter drawing a warning from referee Brad Maddox. Strickland countered with a kick and an enzuigiri, after which Sky popped up and slapped him in the face! This lit a fire under Strickland, who went on a tear and scored two near falls after a Mafia Kick and a moonsault. Sky fled to the floor where he resorted to an eye rake, then rammed Strickland’s head into the announce table. While Strickland was dazed, Sky slid into the ring, ran the ropes, and dove out of the ring with a breathtaking suicide plancha. Rolling Strickland back into the ring, Sky hit his ACE OF SPADES to take the victory.

WINNER: Scorpio Sky via pinfall (12:26)

The Bravado Brothers vs. The Inner City Machine Guns

Rich Swann started the match for his team, facing off against Lancelot Bravado. While Harlem was jawing with the fans at ringside, the competitors inside the ring locked up. Lancelot tossed Swann into the ropes, but Swann put on the brakes and hit a springboard cross body block. With Harlem still occupied with the crowd, there was no one to save Lancelot as referee Brian Hebner counted three.

WINNERS: The Inner City Machine Guns via pinfall (0:51)

Tommaso Ciampa vs. Brian Cage (with Larry Dallas)

Ciampa started off the match by wearing Cage down with a sleeper hold, and the powerhouse struggled to recover. He reversed a whip into the turnbuckle, but Ciampa sidestepped Cage’s charge and rolled him up with a schoolboy for two. Ciampa followed up with a PROJECT CIAMPA, but Larry Dallas draped Cage’s foot over the bottom rope, breaking up the pinfall. The action spilled out of the ring, where Ciampa unloaded with a piledriver onto the floor. Cage sought refuge back in the ring, where he collapsed in the corner. Ciampa charged across the ring with a running knee strike, and made the cover. Dallas tried to wrap up referee Brad Maddox, but he was ignored and Maddox counted to three.

WINNER: Tommaso Ciampa via pinfall (5:28)

Roderick Strong (with Truth Martini) vs. Joey Ryan

Martini got on the microphone prior to the lockup, offering the King of Sleaze a spot in the House of Truth. Ryan seemed to consider the offer, but decked Martini with a right hand instead, then went after Strong. A knee, a boxing jab, and a Pedigree earned Ryan a two-count, and he immediately followed up with his MUSTACHE RIDE for the one-two…no! Strong kicked out, and Ryan complained to referee Brian Hebner about the pace of his count. This gave Strong a chance to recover, and he sent Ryan’s head crashing into the bottom turnbuckle with a drop toe hold. Strong worked over Ryan’s knee with a single-leg crab, hit a half nelson backbreaker, then clamped on his STRONG HOLD, which Ryan could not withstand.

WINNER: Roderick Strong via submission (6:14)

Johnny Gargano vs. Biff Busick

This match started off fairly evenly, with both men trading chops, punches and kicks. Busick managed to take the advantage after a hangman’s neckbreaker, and followed up with a figure four leg lock that had Gargano screaming in pain. When Gargano reached the ropes, Busick followed up with a clothesline that sent Gargano over the top rope and to the floor, where he managed to turn things around by ramming Busick’s head into the ring post. A Hurts Donut earned Gargano a two-count, then he locked Busick in a cross-legged Boston Crab. Busick powered his way to the ropes, forcing the break, and Gargano tossed him into the corner and climbed up to the second turnbuckle, peppering Busick with punches. Busick countered with an inverted atomic drop, then a neckbreaker for two. A HALF-AND-HALF SUPLEX earned Busick a long two-count, then he tossed Gargano through the ropes, where he slid over the announce table and into Lenny Leonard’s lap! Gargano hit a desperation chair shot that bloodied Busick’s forehead, then rolled him into the ring and hit a double knee strike for two. Another Hurts Donut earned him another two count, then Gargano went for a power bomb, which was countered into a back body drop. Busick took Gargano down with a Mafia Kick, then hit another HALF-AND-HALF SUPLEX for three.

WINNER: Biff Busick via pinfall (15:56)

NWA United States Tag Team Championship Match: The American Wolves (c) vs. PPRay

The main event did not disappoint. The champions started out strong, manhandling Peter Avalon and nearly winning the match when Davey Richards wiped him out with a German suplex and a Buzzsaw Kick. Avalon fought back and managed to tag in his partner, who unloaded on Richards and nearly scored a pinfall of his own after his ROSAS R RED. Quick tags and some double team offense soon had Richards on the ropes, and the DROP DEAD GOEGEOUS almost brought the titles to PPRay. With Richards hurting, Avalon went for an enzuigiri, but his opponent ducked and somersaulted to his corner for a hot tag. Eddie Edwards fought off both Rosas and Avalon, hitting super kicks galore on both men. While he was setting Avalon up for the DIE HARD DRIVER, Ray Rosas took him out with a chop block, allowing Avalon to make the cover for a long two-count. Edwards was dragged to the challengers’ corner and worked over for several minutes, nearly pinned after Avalon’s MARTI-KNEES and another DROP DEAD GORGEOUS. Avalon and Rosas sent Edwards into the ropes for a double clothesline, but he ducked beneath the move and took them down with a pair of clotheslines of his own. Edwards leapt into his corner and tagged in his rested partner, who went after Avalon with unmistakable fury. Pop-up kick to the stomach. Buzzsaw Kick. ANKLE LOCK and Avalon had no choice other than giving up.

WINNERS and still NWA United States Tag Team Champions: The American Wolves via submission (24:04)


Match of the Night: Biff Busick d. Johnny Gargano
Wrestling Observer Rating: 4.5 stars

[Pariah]

And another NWA brand gets off to a fine start...

Commanding performance by ICMGs... The Bravados never knew what hit them! Great victory by Roddy Strong as well... Was hoping for Gargano to earn a win here, but he and Busick turned in an awesome match regardless...

American Wolves are a force of nature... Who has what it takes to end their title reign?

Great stuff!

[Deleted]

Thanks for your comments, Pariah!

The match between Busick and Gargano was *so* much fun to play out. I had anticipated a one-sided victory for Gargano, but boy, was I wrong. Similarly, I thought the Wolves would eat PPRay for lunch, but Rosas and Avalon (and the dice!) had other plans. They came really close to winning the titles on several occasions--like, a roll of 5 or less would win them the belts, and I rolled a 6 for Edwards' PIN. That happened more than once.

Again, thank you so much for taking the time to comment. I really appreciate it.

[Deleted]

NWA: Intensity

Cleveland, Ohio

July 14, 2015

In-Ring Promo:  Robert Anthony

Anthony's schedule opponent, Papadon, no-showed the event, leaving him without an opponent for the evening.  He came to the ring to gloat about "scaring that Greek God wannabe" out of NWA:  Intensity, and demanding that he be awarded a count out victory.

Before referee Drake Younger could make a decision on that, familiar music began playing and the crowd went ballistic as Tim Donst made his way to the ring!  He walked right past ring announcer Joel Gertner and his offered house microphone and slapped Anthony in the face!  Younger called for the bell, and we had a match!

Tim Donst vs. Robert Anthony

Recoiling from the slap, Anthony countered with a kick to Donst's groin that sent him to his knees.  Anthony immediately went for the TACO PIZZA, but Donst got a shoulder up at two.  A vicious lariat turned Donst inside-out, then another TACO PIZZA put him away, much to the crowd's displeasure.

WINNER:  Robert Anthony via pinfall (3:08)

Rob Van Dam vs. Alex Colon

Colon was dominant in the early stages of this contest, lighting RVD up with a variety of savage kicks.  A particularly brutal Mafia Kick earned Colon a two-count, but he made the mistake of throwing Van Dam out of the ring after that, where his "Extreme" past gave him the advantage.  Van Dam out brawled Colon and threw him back into the ring, then went up top for a FIVE STAR FROG SPLASH.  Incredibly, Colon managed to kick out, and even rallied back with a kick to the stomach that sent RVD to his knees, then a super kick that nearly put Van Dam away.  Colon climbed up to the top rope, but took some time to mock RVD's signature "Whole F'n Show" gesture.  When he finally flew with a cross body block, Van Dam managed to roll through it and wrapped up Colon's legs, securing a pinfall victory.

WINNER:  Rob Van Dam via pinfall (10:35)

Matt Cross vs. Danny Havoc

Aside from a brief flurry by Matt Cross in the middle of the match, this one was all Danny Havoc.  Cross' toughness allowed him to kick out after a corkscrew moonsault and a TOTAL HAVOC, but a GENERAL ORDER 24 finally put him away to end the one-sided contest.

WINNER:  Danny Havoc via pinfall (7:40)

The Irish Airborne (with Nevaeh) vs. Philly's Most Wanted

The team from "Killadelphia" dominated a solid five or six minutes of this match, out brawling their opponents and securing near falls on Dave Crist on two occasions.  Dave managed a brief rally and went for a tag, but Joker cut him off and tagged in Sabian.  A flying double stomp to the head left Dave in serious trouble, but just as Joker tagged back into the match, Dave somersaulted across the ring and managed to tag his brother.  Jake peppered Joker (and Sabian, when he came into the ring) with kicks and punches, hitting a frog splash on Joker for a two count, then following up with his SUICIDE to put him away.

WINNERS:  The Irish Airborne via pinfall (9:55)

NWA World Television Championship Match:  Eddie Kingston (c) vs. Silas Young

The champion came out of the gates strong, laying into Young with punches and hitting a wicked piledriver for a two-count.  Kingston tossed Young into the turnbuckle and charged in with a clothesline, but the challenger sidestepped and rolled him up with a schoolboy for two.  Kingston popped up and walked right into a clothesline, then Young showed off with a headstand in the corner, going right into his PEE GEE WAJA PLUNGE.  The champion struggled, but Young wrapped up both his legs and scored the pinfall--and the title!

WINNER and NEW NWA WORLD TELEVISION CHAMPION:  Silas Young via pinfall (3:02)


Match of the Night:  Rob Van Dam d. Alex Colon
Wrestling Observer Rating:  2 stars

[Pariah]

Was hoping to see Donst make Anthony eat his words after he slapped the taste of of his mouth... But instead, Donst is forced to eat multiple TACO PIZZAS... Boo!

Superb comeback by RVD... He let Colon know that it doesn't pay to mock The Whole F'n Show!

Exciting wins by Havoc and Irish Airborne as well... Really enjoyed watching Jake Crist dish it out following the hot tag from his brother...

Congrats to The Last Real Man on becoming the new World TV Champion in a very brief encounter against Eddie Kingston...

Great stuff... Looking forward to more!

[Powermonger]

Great card Scooter. Irish Airborne is one of my favorite Indy tag teams and glad to see them doing good in your fed. Nice action. Really nice work.

[Deleted]

Pariah, Powermonger, and Cruefan, thanks so much for reading!

This was actually a fairly disappointing card for me--the dice must have been tired, because they rolled low consistently, as evidenced by the short match times. I was also shocked to see Young capture the TV Title from Kingston. That gives him a reign of just seven days; the belt's becoming a real hot potato!

As always, thank you so much for taking the time to read, and especially to comment. Much appreciated!

[Deleted]

NWA:  Purity
Orlando, Florida
July 22, 2015

Claudio Castagnoli vs. Uhaa Nation

This match was all Castagnoli from the opening bell, as he lit his opponent up with kicks and European uppercuts.  Both men went down courtesy of a double clothesline, but Castagnoli struggled to his feet first.  He picked up Uhaa Nation and delivered a head butt, but his opponent's harder head left Castagnoli reeling.  A huge lariat took Castagnoli down, then he was picked up and set on the top turnbuckle.  Uhaa Nation took him down with a belly-to-back superplex, then immediately scooped him up, put him on the top rope again, and hit another from the opposite corner.  He made the cover, and Castagnoli was unable to kick out.

WINNER:  Uhaa Nation via pinfall (5:12)

reDRagon vs. The Playa's Club (with Maria Kanellis, AJ Lee, & Scarlett Bordeaux

This match had barely gotten started before Matt Taven found himself in big trouble, cut off from his corner and victimized by double-team offense from reDRagon.  Bobby Fish planted him with a backbreaker while Kyle O'Reilly flew off the top rope with a knee drop, then clamped on his ARMAGEDDON.  With nowhere to go, Taven was forced to tap out to save his arm.

WINNERS:  reDRagon via submission (3:16)

In-Ring Promo:  Nigel McGuinness

The head of NWA:  Purity made his way to the ring to address Kevin Steen's attack on his partner El Generico last week.

McGUINNESS:  "As I said last week, here at NWA:  Purity we're focused on sportsmanship and honor.  That means more than just a handshake at the beginning and ending of a match--that means you conduct yourself as a professional inside this ring.  If you have a beef with your partner, you take it up with him in the locker room, not out here in front of these great fans.  I've consulted with the NWA Championship Committee, and we've agreed that, effective immediately, Kevin Steen is suspended for thirty days!"

The crowd cheered the ruling, then booed as Kevin Steen and Ric Flair came out, protesting the decision.  McGuinness let them rant for a moment or three, then lifted the microphone.

McGUINNESS:  "Let me put it this way, 'Mr. Wrestling.'  You can walk out of here like a man and take your thirty days, or I can have you escorted out of here and you'll be suspended for a year!  And stripped of that United States Title!"

Steen continued to go ballistic, and it appeared he was going to attack McGuinness.  Fortunately for everyone, AJ Styles and Shaun Ricker quickly raced out and, working with Ric Flair, managed to talk Steen off the ledge.  Shaun Ricker escorted him to the back while Styles and Flair prepared for the next match.

AJ Styles (with Ric Flair) vs. Michael Elgin

Still incensed over the suspension to his teammate, Styles came out strong, keeping Elgin off-balance with his speed advantage.  Several minutes in, Styles leapt to the top rope and sprung off, attempting a cross body block, but Elgin ducked and referee Todd Sinclair was wiped out, instead.  As Elgin checked on the referee, Styles hit him from behind with a chop block, then planted him with a STYLES CLASH, though there was no one to make the count.  Styles picked his opponent up and tossed him into the ropes, going for a back body drop, but Elgin put on the brakes, wrapped his arms around Styles, and planted him with a running power bomb!  After that, it was all Elgin; he worked over Styles' back and clamped on a crossface hold as Sinclair recovered from being knocked out. Styles managed to reach the ropes, pulling himself out to the floor to try to catch his breath--but Elgin followed and unloaded on him with a lariat.  He hoisted Styles up, spun around once, and planted him with an ELGIN BOMB on the floor.  By this point, Sinclair had reached a count of eight.  Elgin rolled under the bottom rope into the ring as Sinclair finished his count and called for the bell.

WINNER:  Michael Elgin via count out (7:44)

Drew Galloway vs. Adam Cole (with Mia Yim)

Galloway and Cole traded punches to start the match, with neither man taking an advantage.  Galloway went for a power bomb, but Cole reversed it into a back body drop, bridging into a cover for two.  Galloway reversed a cross body block into a power slam, then hit a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker which earned him a two-count.  Galloway unloaded on Cole with punches, kicked him in the stomach, then hit him with the FUTURE SHOCK, and Cole was unable to escape.

WINNER:  Drew Galloway via pinfall (4:57)

The Briscoe Brothers vs. The Young Bucks

The Jacksons attempted to follow the Code of Honor, but not only did the Briscoes refuse to shake their hands, Jay spit in Matt's face!  Incensed, the Bucks attacked the Briscoes and all four men tumbled out to the floor.  Referee Charles Robinson tried to restore some sort of order, but the competitors were having none of it.  Finally, Robinson threw his hands up in the air and called the match off, declaring it a no contest.

NO WINNER:  No contest (0:00)

Homicide vs. Shaun Ricker (with Ric Flair)

This was an absolute brawl, stemming from last week's incident where Ricker interrupted a match between Homicide and Drew Galloway.  Ricker started wearing Homicide down with punches, but he ran into trouble when the fight spilled to the floor and Homicide opened up his forehead with a steel chair shot.  Homicide shrugged off the warning from Todd Sinclair and swung the chair again, but Ricker ducked and Homicide hit the ring post, numbing his hands.  Ricker responded with a low blow, then tossed Homicide into the ring and clamped on a Boston Crab.  Homicide struggled to reach the ropes, but Ricker dragged him back to the center of the ring, and Homicide nearly tapped out.  Inexplicably, Ricker released the hold and picked Homicide up, planting him with a D.T.B., then a GRAVY TRAIN, each of which earned him a long two-count.  One more GRAVY TRAIN finally put Homicide away, and Flair rolled into the ring to celebrate with his charge.

WINNER:  Shaun Ricker via pinfall (11:19)


Match of the Night:  Shaun Ricker d. Homicide
Wrestling Observer Rating:  2.5 stars

[Pariah]

Tons of great action... Never expected Nation to get by the Swiss Superman... And was very pleased with Galloway's victory over Adam Cole Bay-Bay...

Are you using the name The Playa's Club for Bennett and Taven? If so, hat's off to you, my good man... That is a wicked name for a tag team... (I'm toying around with a few alternate names for that duo myself because Christopher Daniels and Claudio Castagnoli are already known as Kingdom Come in my OutBreak fed.)

Stiff penalty for Kevin Steen for what most company's would view as a pretty standard post-match beatdown... Wonder what kinda backlash we can expect from Wrestling's Worst Nightmare...

Top notch main event... Homicide and Ricker tore it up!

Looks like McGuinness has his hands full in the Purity brand... It seems like The Briscoes and The Bucks have little regard with how he wants business to be conducted inside the ring... How long will he be able to enforce such strict regulations?

Excellent stuff, my friend... Very entertaining!