European Pure Wrestling (EPW)

[tystates]

The NWA announced changes to its member roster along with big news about the next joint ppv event.

International Championship Wrestling will be contracting where its shows are run. The promotion will contain itself to Europe and they will now be known as European Pure Wrestling!

The EPW will run shows all across Europe. The group will showcase the big men of the sport and the best wrestlers the world has to offer. Look for shows to be seen on the World of Sport television show.

Fans will see a lot of action taking place under British Rounds rules. The fed also plans to feature a lot of different tournaments and have plans to continue sanctioning the European heavyweight title along with a Cruiserweight championship. Already signed by EPW for the cruiserweight division are PJ Black, Tommy End, Drew Galloway, Jakob Hammermeier and Zack Sabre Jr.

The other big news from the NWA is in regards to the 2120 Royal Rumble. The board of directors voted to allow EPW the honor of hosting this major show on Jan. 27, 2120.

The EPW will be announcing the participants and other matches for the Royal Rumble in the coming days. The complete transfer from ICW to EPW is not expected to be completed until following WrestleMania IV.

[joebreakdown]

More European action needed! Looking forward to this!

[tystates]

More news involving the Royal Rumble was released by EPW.

The NWA World Six-Man tag team champions - The Road Warriors & Andre the Giant - will defend in an elimination match against the Mexican Trios title holders, The Wild Samoans!

The NWA World Jr. heavyweight championship will also be defended that night.

The first name for the Royal Rumble battle royal is Andre the Giant, as he will have double duty also defending the six-man belts.

[tystates]

Added to the card for The Royal Rumble:

Bellatrix Female Warriors showcase - Kay Lee Ray vs. Rhia O'Reilly

Entering the Royal Rumble match:

Fritz Von Goering

Kurrgan

Masked Superstar II

Bruiser Costa

Yukon Eric

[tystates]

Added to The Royal Rumble:

Larry Hennig

Don Muraco

Hillbilly Jim

[tystates]

THE ROYAL RUMBLE
Royal Albert Hall
London, England
Jan. 27, 2120

ELIMINATION MATCH
NWA WORLD SIX-MAN TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP
The Road Warriors & Andre the Giant (ch) vs. The Wild Samoans

ICW IRON MAN TOURNAMENT
ICW INTERCONTINENTAL HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
Nigel McGuinness (ch) vs. Bruiser Brody

ICW IRON MAN TOURNAMENT
ICW EUROPEAN HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
Tony Atlas (ch) vs. Fred Blassie

BELLATRIX FEMALE WARRIORS SHOWCASE
Kay Lee Ray vs. Rhia O'Reilly

NWA WORLD JR. HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
Delirious (ch) vs. Ricochet

ICW IRON TEAM TOURNAMENT
NWA WORLD TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP
Bolsheviks (ch) vs. Mongols

The Royal Rumble

Steve Williams
Bruiser Brody
Killer Kowalski
King Kong Bundy
Tony Atlas
Terry Gordy
Rhino
Giant Baba
Don Leo Jonathan
Dan Spivey
Giant Bernard
Blackjack Mulligan
Jim Duggan
P.N. News
French Angel
Fritz Von Goering
Kurrgan
Masked Superstar II
Claudio Castagnoli
Bruiser Costa
One Man Gang
Andre the Giant
Ox Baker
Larry Hennig
Don Muraco
Hillbilly Jim
Yukon Eric
Lance Hoyt
Jon Moxley
Brodie Lee

[tystates]

Updated card for the Royal Rumble:

The NWA World Six-Man tag team championship will not be defended.

Buddy Rogers will defend the NWA World heavyweight title against Don Muraco.

Replacing Don Muraco in the Royal Rumble is George "The Animal" Steele.

The order of entry for the Royal Rumble has been determined.

[tystates]

THE ROYAL RUMBLE
Royal Albert Hall
London, England
Jan. 27, 2120

European Pure Wrestling is proud to host The Royal Rumble! EPW will be running shows after Wrestlemania IV, taking the place of ICW. The European roster is going to have plenty of powerhouses and big men, as well as a cruiserweight division.

ICW IRON MAN TOURNAMENT
ICW INTERCONTINENTAL HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
Bruiser Brody def. Nigel McGuinness (ch) by count out.

Bruiser Brody had the support of the crowd despite Nigel McGuinness being from London, England. Brody put a hurting on the champ but Nigel kept holding on. Brody piledrove Nigel on the floor and ended up winning by count out, so he does not get the title and only one point in the Iron Man Tournament.

ICW IRON MAN TOURNAMENT
ICW EUROPEAN HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
Tony Atlas (ch) def. Fred Blassie by D.Q.

Fred Blassie seemingly had no interest in the title or winning or wrestling. He just started brawling, went completely out of control, and was disqualified.

BELLATRIX FEMALE WARRIORS SHOWCASE
Rhia O'Reilly def. Kay Lee Ray

Bellatrix is a new female promotion that will be opening its doors soon. Rhia O'Reilly obliterated Kay Lee Ray. It was a brutal beating she handed out, winning with the Rhiadjustment.

BRITISH 10 ROUNDS MATCH
Johnny Saint def. Dave Taylor

An extra special match here as EPW shows its British Rounds match, something fans will see a lot of when it begins running regular shows.

Solid back and forth action in round one. Taylor ended rounded two on the attack. Johnny Saint wins the first fall in round three. In the next round Taylor fought back but Saint won the match with a rollup in the corner.

NWA WORLD JR. HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
Ricochet def. Delirious (ch) by D.Q.

This is a rematch from Starrcade last month. That was an awesome match. This one saw Delirious take charge and use the Red Poison early on. He continued to take it to Ricochet but soon after was disqualified.

ICW IRON TEAM TOURNAMENT
NWA WORLD TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP
Mongols def. Bolsheviks (ch)

The Mongols ran over the Bolsheviks. Boris Zhukov took the initial beating, almost getting counted out. Nikolai Volkoff was leveled by Geeto Mongol and went down after a top rope knee drop.

NWA WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
Buddy Rogers (ch) def. Don Muraco

The Magnificent One gave it his all and showed he very well could have won the title. Rogers held the upper hand most of the way but Muraco kept firing back and his chances to win. Muraco fended off attack after attack but eventually was worn down and pinned. (Muraco 5 coins, Rogers 2 coins).

THE ROYAL RUMBLE

The excitement for the Royal Rumble builds as the first two entrants are finally revealed. The awesome form of the Masked Superstar II comes down the aisle, followed by Claudio Castagnoli.

The first two wrestlers fought until Rhino entered and he helped Claudio. The Neutralizer by Claudio eliminated Masked Superstar II. Killer Kowalski came in but was eliminated by a Rhino belly to belly.

Claudio and Rhino worked against Andre, but the Giant proved to be very tough to put out of the ring for a long time. Brodie Lee came in against Claudio while Andre eliminated Rhino.

Giant Bernard then tried Andre on for size. Don Leo Jonathan gave Andre a breather. Brodie Lee almost had Claudio out but Andre sent him over the top from behind. King Kong Bundy entered as Jonathan tossed Bernard. Andre then went after Bundy. Steve Williams exploded as he tossed out both Claudio and Jonathan.

Dr. Death quickly threw out George Steele, then took on Blackjack Mulligan. Andre dumped out Bundy, then faced off with the One Man Gang. Andre splashed the Gang twice before eliminating him.

Dan Spivey came in and exchanged blows with Williams and Mulligan. Lance Hoyt tried to match up with Andre. Williams sent out Spivey. Mulligan got rid of Fritz Von Goering as Jim Duggan fought with Hoyt.

Andre, Mulligan and Williams began battling it out. Duggan speared Hoyt out of the ring. Mulligan used the Claw to drop Williams. Andre then stood toe to toe with the Giant Baba. Mulligan, Larry Hennig and Duggan took turns against each other. Then Yukon Eric squared off with Hennig.

Andre continued to roll with the elimination of Baba. Eric's Kodiac Crunch sent out Hennig. Mulligan eliminated Duggan, then Andre met the huge form of Kurrgan. Bruiser Brody hit the ring against Eric. Andre disposed of Kurrgan.

Andre made a mistake and it cost him. His ill advised charge of Mulligan backfired when he missed and put himself over the top rope. The Brody did the same thing and he was eliminated.

Hillbilly Jim eliminated Yukon Eric and Mulligan to stand alone in the ring, briefly. Tony Atlas entered next, then Terry Gordy made it a three-way dance. Ox Baker joined the fray, and teammate P.N. News helped fight Atlas. Baker eliminated Atlas as the French Angel came in the ring.

Terry Gordy got rid of Hillbilly Jim after a long fight between the two. Jon Moxley was next and he fought Baker. The French Angel sent out P.N. News.

The last five in the ring: Terry Gordy, Ox Baker, Jon Moxley, The French Angel and Bruiser Costa.

The French Angel easily tossed Costa. Gordy got rid of Baker. The French Angel fought both opponents and eliminated Moxley.

Terry Gordy then took over with the piledriver and the spike to throw out the French Angel and win the Royal Rumble!

The Royal Rumble
(order or entry)
1. Masked Superstar II
2. Claudio Castagnoli
3. Rhino
4. Killer Kowalski
5. Andre the Giant
6. Brodie Lee
7. Giant Bernard
8. Don Leo Jonathan
9. King Kong Bundy
10. Steve Williams
11. George Steele
12. Blackjack Mulligan
13. One Man Gang
14. Dan Spivey
15. Lance Hoyt
16. Fritz Von Goering
17. Jim Duggan
18. Giant Baba
19. Larry Hennig
20. Yukon Eric
21. Kurrgan
22. Bruiser Brody
23. Hillbilly Jim
24. Tony Atlas
25. Terry Gordy
26. Ox Baker
27. P.N. News
28. French Angel
29. Jon Moxley
30. Bruiser Costa

Wrestler / (# eliminated) / wrestler eliminated
Claudio Castagnoli: (1) Masked Superstar II
Rhino: (2) Killer Kowalski
Andre: (3) Rhino, (4) Brodie Lee, (9) King Kong Bundy, (10) One Man Gang, (15) Giant Baba, (18) Kurrgan
Don Leo Jonathan: (5) Giant Bernard
Steve Williams: (6) Claudio Castagnoli & (7) Don Leo Jonathan, (8) George Steele, (11) Dan Spivey
Blackjack Mulligan: (12) Fritz Von Goering, (14) Steve Williams, (17) Jim Duggan, (19) Andre, (20) Bruiser Brody
Jim Duggan: (13) Lance Hoyt
Yukon Eric: (16) Larry Hennig
Hillbilly Jim: (21) Yukon Eric, (22) Blackjack Mulligan
Ox Baker: (23) Tony Atlas
Terry Gordy: (24) Hillbilly Jim, (27) Ox Baker, (29) French Angel
French Angel: (25) P.N. News, (26) Bruiser Costa, (28) Jon Moxley

[tystates]

The inaugural card for European Pure Wrestling is set to take place. The focus is on the big men of wrestling. The first card on World of Sport will feature a 15-man battle royal. The order of elimination will determine matches to take place later in the evening.

Competing in the battle royal are: Adrian Street, Shawn Daivari, P.N. News, Masked Superstar II, Iron Sheik, Ed Lewis, Kurrgan, Don Leo Jonathan, George Hackenschmidt, Frank Gotch, Fritz Von Goering, Ilio DiPaolo, Claudio Castagnoli, French Angel, and Andre the Giant!

Also, the No. 2 ranked tag team contenders in the world -- Jim Londos & Johnny Saint -- will meet Fit Finlay & Dave Taylor.

European champion Nigel McGuinness will face the Terrible Turk in a European Rounds Match!

[tystates]

EPW World of Sport #1
UPC-Arena
Graz, Austria
April 13, 2120

Welcome to World of Sport! European Pure Wrestling opens its doors for the wresting fans to see the action they want!

Our opening show is a big one with a 15-man battle royal where order of elimination determines matches for the card. The European heavyweight championship will also be on the line.

15-man Battle Royal

(Adrian Street, Shawn Daivari, P.N. News, Masked Superstar II, Iron Sheik, Ed Lewis, Kurrgan, Don Leo Jonathan, George Hackenschmidt, Frank Gotch, Fritz Von Goering, Ilio DiPaolo, Claudio Castagnoli, French Angel, and Andre the Giant)

Some of the biggest men in the sport are in this ring to try and show who is the best. It soon becomes apparent that the best big man is indeed Andre the Giant. The Eighth Wonder of the World shows it by eliminating six wrestlers!

Andre and Ilio DiPaolo work together to throw out the French Angel. Ilio then did his best against the Giant but Andre put him over the top rope to win the battle royal.

Wrestler / who they eliminated / (#)

George Hackenschmidt - Frank Gotch (1), Ed Lewis (2)
Andre - Masked Superstar II (3), George Hackenschmidt (6), Iron Sheik (11), Kurrgan (12), French Angel (13), Ilio DiPaolo (14)
French Angel - Don Leo Jonathan (4), P.N. News (10)
Iron Sheik - Fritz Von Goering (5), Adrian Street (9)
Kurrgan - Claudio Castagnoli (7)
Ilio DiPaolo - Shawn Daivari (8)

Winner: Andre the Giant

Frank Gotch def. Ed Lewis

The first singles match in EPW was an absolute epic, a classic, and exactly the type of action the company wants to bring you! Gotch really dominated a long time, but Lewis held on over and over. He got his chances but Gotch avoided the fall in the Strangler Headlock. Gotch kept the pressure on as this match kept going and going. Gotch finally won with the Toe Hold. (Lewis 6 coins, Gotch 3 coins)

Masked Superstar II def. Don Leo Jonathan

Definitely two of the biggest in the sport slugged it out in this one. The Masked Superstar II did some damage on the outside and pounded away. Jonathan fired back but it was MSII able to get the Backbreaker applied for the win.

George Hackenschmidt def. Fritz Von Goering

The German heel matched up with the former World champion Hackenschmidt. It was a donneybrook! Goering held on against the Bear Hug and battled back. Hackenschmidt was able to stay alive as well. It was a brawl toward the end but the Russian Bear Hug ended the night for Von Goering. Seen watching the match from the back was Bobby Heenan.

Claudio Castagnoli def. Shawn Daivari

Claudio quickly took over and destroyed Daivari. A clothesline, fallaway slam and twice with the Neutralier ended the match.

Adrian Street def. P.N. News

These two have had a lot of matches against each other in ICW. Street rolled to the win, overwhelming News with his hit and run moves. He won with the Crucifix.

The Iron Sheik def. Kurrgan

The Iron Sheik comes to EPW from Japan where he is a former All-Asia heavyweight champion. Kurrgan gave him a rough time but the Iron Sheik got his European run off to a good start, winning with the Camel Clutch.

Ilio DiPaolo def. The French Angel

Two of the last three men left in the battle royal picked up the fight. Maurice Tillet fought back after the Airplane Spin, but the Italian was able to use the move again to get the win. Once more Bobby Heenan was seen watching this match.

Jim Londos & Johnny Saint def. Fit Finlay & Dave Taylor

Another matchup with these four who have a lot of history in ICW. Londos and Saint were in command all the way, with Saint beating Taylor with the Three In One. It was announced that Londos & Saint will receive an NWA World tag team title match at the Cauliflower Cup Tournament next month. The current title holders are the Road Warriors. Londos & Saint defeated the LOD during the ICW Iron Team Tournament.

EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP
Nigel McGuinness (ch) def. The Terrible Turk

Bobby Heenan made his first official appearance in EPW managing the champ. The Turk used his rough and tough style to take over and dish out and punishment on the floor. Nigel came off the ropes wtih a huge lariat and scored the fall. The Turk hit him from behind after the match and started going to work. Out from the back came John Pesek to fight off the Turk. The Brain joined the first two members of his stable in the ring as the show closed.