By Sean Radican, Torch columnist

RADICAN’S ALPHA-1 REVIEW SERIES
“REHAB”
HAMILTON, ONTARIO
APRIL 20, 2013
BY SEAN RADICAN, TORCH COLUMNIST

Radican note: Alpha-1 wrestling is a promotion owned by Ethan Page. The promotion is run out of Ontario featuring a mix of Canadian and American independent talent. I will be reviewing their shows beginning with their first event of 2013.

Alpha-1 uses a Six Sided ring.

Dark match: John Greed beat Preston Myles. Myles got in a little offense, but this was mostly about Greed, who is a large man, getting his offense in. Greed won with a nice twisting neck breaker off his shoulders.

(1) Scotty O'Shea vs. Justin Sane vs. Alex Vega vs. Brent B. vs. Timothy Krane vs. Alessandro Del Bruno - Winner faces Mike Rollins for the Alpha Male Title. This match was contested under Lucha rules. O’Shea slapped Del Bruno in the face and bailed. Krane jumped him from behind, but Del Bruno fired right back and hit a standing moonsault for a 2 count. Brent B. and Vega ended up working together to wear down Krane. The action picked up with O’Shea running in to get a cover on Del Bruno after Sane hit him with a nice powerslam. Del Bruno sent O’Shea to the floor and nailed him with a big dive to the floor. Krane went up top, but Sane picked him up and powerbombed him onto a pile of men on the floor. Sane then hit a big flip dive to the floor a short time later and the crowd went nuts. Brent B. and Vega tried to work together to get a pin on Sane, but Krane tried to steal the pin. They broke up the pin on Sane and the match continued to move along at a fast pace. Del Bruno ran wild and hit Brent B. with a coast to coast dropkick and then nailed Vega with a running knee charge, but O’Shea rolled him up from behind for the win.

Winner: Scotty O’Shea

Star rating: (***) – This was all action and it was a blast to watch these guys keep the tempo going in this match. It was easy to jump right in and figure out the relationships between most of these men, despite not having seen them before. I was impressed with what I saw out of just about everyone in this match.

(2) EZE vs. Joey Kings vs. Johnny Wave vs. Steve Brown in an Elimination match. Wave worked over EZE during the early going. Brown and Kings ended up brawling on the floor. Wave crotched EZE on the top rope and nailed him with a dropkick. Kings tried to jump Wave from behind, but he low bridged him and he spilled to the floor. Wave went for a dive, but Brown cut him off. Wave sent Brown to the outside and went for a corkscrew to the floor, but ended up slipping and didn’t catch everyone on his way to the floor. Brown surprised Wave and hit him with a big spinning slam to eliminate him from the match. Brown picked up Wave and hit two more spinning slams on him. He shoved the ref, so the ref ejected him from the match. Brown got back into the ring and hit another spinning slam on Wave. The match came down to Kings and EZE. Kings caught EZE with a huge punch, but he kicked out at the last second. EZE fired back and hit a big neck breaker that left both men down on the mat. EZE hit a trio of German suplexes on King and hit the last one with a bridge, but Kings kicked out. They exchanged counters in the middle of the ring and EZE finally caught Kings with a superkick for a nearfall. EZE went up top for a diving headbutt, but Kings got out of the way. Kings connected with the rain maker lariat. Kings then hit the Kings throne for the win (gut wrench powerbomb into a lung blower).

Music played after the match and Ethan Page came down to the ring with a ref. He called Brown a douchebag and said he wanted a No DQ match with Brown. The fans cheered.

Winner: Joey Kings

Star rating: (**3/4) – This was another action filled match. The crowd was into the action and clearly wasn’t happy that Kings won.

(3) Ethan Page vs. Steve Brown in a No DQ match. Brown looks like Kevin Steen if Steen really let himself go. Page nailed Brown with a suicide dive as he made his entrance and worked him over with a chair on the outside. Brown fired back and rammed Page into the ringpost. They battled back into the ring and the announcers said Brown wanted to show he could be a big star. Brown got the upper hand inside the ring and began working over Page. Page mounted a comeback, but couldn’t take Brown down. Brown eventually caught Page with a big clothesline off the ropes. Brown went to the outside and tossed some chairs into the ring. Brown set up Page on a chair and nailed him with a big clothesline for a 2 count. Brown tried to powerbomb Page through 2 chairs, but Page countered and nailed him with one of the chairs. Page hit a slingshot ace crusher on one of the chairs for a 2 count. Brown blocked a superkick and hit a side slam through a chair on Page, but he kicked out at 2. Brown went to the floor and got a trashcan. He nailed Page with the lid and then tossed the lid into Page’s crotch. Page fired back and hit a superkick. He nailed Brown with the trashcan. Page began working over Brown and he put the lid of the trashcan over Brown’s head. He went up top and hit a leg drop off the top on top of the lid, but Brown kicked out at the last second. The fans began singing the Fandango theme. Brown fired back and nailed Page several times with the trashcan. Brown went to the outside and got a table. He put it into the ring and hit Page with a chair shot over the back. The fans chanted A1 as Brown set up the table.

Wave ran down to the ring and nailed Brown with a kick to the head. Page slammed the trash can lid onto Brown’s head. He followed up with a splash off the top that sent Brown through the table. Page rolled over and covered Brown, but he kicked out at 2. Wave got another table for Page. The fans wanted Page to light the table on fire! Wave and Page set up the table. Page held Brown on the table and told Wave to go up top, but Kings ran down and shoved Wave off the top and he went through a table at ringside. Brown then caught Page from behind and nailed him with a double hand chokeslam through the table. The announcers wondered what the relationship was between Brown and Kings.

Winner: Steve Brown

Star rating: (***1/4) – This was a fun brawl designed to get Brown over as a force. Brown needs to lose some weight to be taken seriously, but he was impressive in this match and the fans were really into the action, especially down the stretch after Wave and then Kings got involved. This was well done in terms of getting over Brown as someone that is very hard to beat, as he took everything Page dished out and walked out of the ring after the match was over.

(4) Zero Gravity Champion Josh Alexander vs. Fire Ant. Fire Ant sent Alexander to the outside with a nice arm drag off the ropes. He hit a suicide dive, but Alexander wouldn’t go down. He then hit a big flip dive, and Alexander finally went down. Alexander caught Fire Ant coming off the top a short time later and hit a back breaker and a fall away slam. He followed up with a big vertical suplex for a 2 count. Fire Ant caught Alexander with a boot out of the corner and hit a big splash off the top. Alexander fired back and hit a splash onto Fire Ant’s back on the apron. They brawled on the outside. Fire Ant blocked a powerbomb on the floor. They ended up going at it on the turnbuckles. Fire Ant nailed Alexander with a kick and he ended up draped over the middle rope. Fire Ant then came off the top and nailed him with a double axe handle. Alexander ducked a boot in the corner and hit an inverted piledriver for a nearfall. Alexander stalked Fire Ant as the fans chanted for both men. Fire Ant blocked a double underhook piledriver and hit a big kick to the head. He followed up with a suplex, but only got a 2 count.

Both men went back and forth. Fire Ant went for a spinning DDT. Alexander tried to turn it into a suplex, but Fire Ant turned it into a stunner. He then hit kryptonite crunch for a nearfall. The fans broke into a this is awesome chant. Alexander spit at Fire Ant from his knees. Fire Ant nailed him with a big kick to the head and then a pair of running boots in the corner. He went for a third running kick, but Alexander hit a series of roaring forearms and a double underhook piledriver for a nearfall and the fans exploded and chanted for Fire Ant. Wow! Alexander lifted up Fire Ant and hit a spinning tombstone for the win.

Winner: Josh Alexander to retain the Zero Gravity Title

Star rating: (***3/4) – This was a very good match bordering on excellent. They had some great back and forth hard-hitting exchanges that set the crowd on fire. The action down the stretch was really good and Alexander mounted a heck of a comeback to overcome Fire Ant, who was making his Alpha-1 debut.

(5) John Silver vs. Michael Elgin. Elgin laughed at Silver as he tried to take him down with a shoulder tackle. Silver told Elgin to go for a shoulder tackle. They went to a fast paced exchange and Elgin ended up running him over with a shoulder tackle. Elgin held up Silver forever in the vertical suplex. He winked at the commentators and eventually dumped Silver down to the mat for a 2 count. The fans chanted one more time. Elgin went for another vertical suplex, but Silver managed to push him off. Silver mounted a comeback and nailed Elgin with a kick to the back of the head against the ropes for a 2 count. Silver bounced off the ropes and hit a dancing double axe handle, but Elgin kicked out at 1. Elgin fired back and nailed Silver with some big chops. Silver went for a vertical suplex, but Elgin blocked it. Silver ended up ducking a charge into the corner and he nailed Elgin with a kick to the arm. Silver went up top, but Elgin cut him off and nailed him with a huge chop. Elgin set up for a dead-lift vertical superplex and nailed it and the fans chanted for Elgin.

They went to a big exchange of blows in the middle of the ring. Elgin fired up and nailed Silver with a barrage of forearms. Silver tried to fire back, but ate a belly to belly suplex. Elgin hit a big black hole slam, but Silver kicked out at 2. Elgin blocked a charge in the corner and hit a German into the turnbuckles. Elgin followed up with a dead-lift German with a bridge for a 2 count. Silver blocked a big clothesline and hit a spinning kick. He followed up with a running kick to the back of Elgin’s head for a 2 count. Silver went up top, but Elgin cut him off. Silver tried to fight Elgin off and eventually hit a sunset bomb. Silver went up top again and hit a huge double knee strike off the top for a nearfall and the fans applauded. Silver slipped around a charge from Elgin and hit a German suplex, but Elgin got right up and hit a T-bone suplex. Siler got up and they began trading forearms in the middle of the ring. They began trading superkicks. Elgin hit a superkick and a big forearm. Elgin then hit a rainmaker lariat for a nearfall and the fans gasped. Elgin hit a buckle bomb, but Silver came right back with a running kick to the head. Elgin hit a pair of spinning forearms and he went for a buckle bomb, but silver rolled over him and covered him for a 2 count. Elgin got right up, picked up Silver, and hit a buckle bomb. Elgin then hit the Elgin bomb for the win. Holy crap!

Winner: Michael Elgin

Star rating: (***1/2) – This was a really good match. Silver did a heck of a job showing fighting spirit. They had a great exchange where both men showed fighting spirit down the stretch. The finish was spectacular with Elgin dead-lifting Silver into a buckle bomb and then finishing him off with the Elgin bomb. The crowd was really into the action, especially down the stretch.

(6) Alpha Male Champion Mike Rollins vs. Scotty O’Shea. O’Shea went after Rollins with a keyboard right after the bell rang. Rollins ducked it and O’Shea briefly had the upper hand until Rollins cut him off. Rollins went for a top rope hurricanrana, but O’Shea rolled through for a 2 count. Rollins got right up and hit a slingshot that sent O’Shea to the outside. Rollins went for a dive through the ropes, but O’Shea swatted him and Rollins went flying through the door in the back of the venue. Holy crap! The fans chanted yes after Rollins went flying through the door. O’Shea went and got Rollins and rolled him back into the ring for a 2 count. O’Shea tied Rollins in the rope and slapped him across the face. Rollins freed himself and nailed O’Shea with a big palm strikes as he came off the ropes. They went back and forth and Rollins caught O’Shea with a tornado kick for a 2 count. O’Shea fired back and began working over Rollins again. O’Shea raked away at Rollins’s head and busted him open. O’Shea went up top, but Rollins cut him off. O’Shea fought him off and came off the top, but Rollins turned it into a powerbomb for a 2 count. O’Shea blocked a fisherman buster attempt. O’Shea low bridged Rollins as he charged him on the apron. Rollins spilled to the floor. O’Shea went for a moonsault to the floor, but Rollins caught him and hit kryptonite crunch on the apron and the fans went nuts.

Rollins rolled O’Shea back into the ring and covered him for a 2 count. Rollins mounted a comeback and hit a big running kick in the corner. He went up top and hit a missile dropkick, but O’Shea got right up and hit a cannon ball into the corner for a nearfall. The fans chanted for O’Shea to hit the maneuver one more time. They went to a big exchange in the corner. Rollins went for the fisherman buster, but they ended up running into the ref. O’Shea hit a low blow and grabbed the keyboard. The fans booed O’Shea as he set up Rollins for a keyboard shot. Del Bruno came down to the ring and grabbed the keyboard from O’Shea. Rollins hit O’Shea with a low blow and nailed him with the keyboard. He followed up with the fisherman buster and the ref recovered and counted the win.

Del Bruno waited for Rollins to leave and got into the ring. The fans chanted that Del Bruno had screwed O’Shea. Del Bruno offered O’Shea a handshake. The announcers said that Del Bruno wanted to get back together with O’Shea as a tag team. O’Shea shook Del Bruno’s hand, but then attacked him and hit a series of knee strikes to the head. They began brawling around the ring until several wrestlers ran down and broke up the brawl. O’Shea broke free and went after Del Bruno again. They continued to try to separate Del Bruno and O’Shea. The fans chanted to let them fight. Del Bruno broke free and hit a suicide dive to the floor into a pile of men.

Mr. Melo, the authority figure, got into the ring. He told Del Bruno he would give him his choice of match against O’Shea at the next show on June 29. Del Bruno said he didn’t care if the fans liked him or not. He said he wanted a TLC match against O’Shea.

Winner: Mike Rollins to retain the Alpha Male Title.

Star rating: (***1/2) – This was another very good match. It was hard to tell who the crowd favored during the match, as they seemed split even though O’Shea was portrayed as a heel. The finish was well done and played off the interaction between Del Bruno and O’Shea during the opener. The post-match brawl was also well-done and set up a big match between O’Shea and Del Bruno on June 29.

Overall thoughts: (7.0) – This was an enjoyable show from start to finish. The production was a bit rough at times due to the angle of the hard camera and at times the floor camera was disrupted as well. The venue itself was a cool venue with an underground vibe to it, although the lighting wasn’t ideal. The production wasn’t great, but this is still a watchable show.

As a first time watcher of Alpha-1, you can jump right in and feel like you know what is going on in the company. They don’t run many shows each year and the storylines are simple and easy to follow. Before watching the main show, make sure you watch the preview videos under the extras tag on the main menu to get caught up if you’re watching for the first time. These videos are really well done.

Nearly all of the matches on the card were good to very good. The show only lasts about an hour and half, but it has a great flow and was tightly edited. The Six Way opener was a nice way to start the show with some high-flying action and set the table for some storyline development going forward. The Page-Brown impromptu No DQ match was also very good and established Brown as a force to be reckoned with in Alpha-1, although he needs to drop some weight to be taken seriously.

Alexander defending the Zero One Gravity Title was the highlight of the show. They had a fantastic back and forth match that set the crowd on fire. Elgin vs. Silver was good as well and they did a good job playing up Elgin’s strength vs. Silver’s quickness throughout the match.

The main event with Rollins defending the Alpha Male Championship against Scotty O’Shea was the second best match on the show. They had some really good exchanges, especially when O’Shea redirected a dive from Rollins through the ropes that sent him flying through a door near the back of the venue. The finish of the main event and the post-match action made me really look forward to seeing Del Bruno vs. O’Shea at the next Alpha-1 show.

If you’re looking for a fun show to check out, “Rehab” is worth a look. They have a very good roster and the promotion tells simple stories that are easy to follow. The length of the show might give some pause when it comes to ordering the show, but the show flies by and definitely has some value give the quality of action up and down the card.

You can purchase “Rehab” on DVD by clicking HERE or by visiting SmartMarkVideo.com. For more information on Alpha-1, visit http://www.alpha-1wrestling.com.

***

Please click HERE and click “like” to join the Radican’s Wrestling Community Facebook fan page.

Follow Sean on Twitter at Twitter.com/SeanRadican

Contact Sean at PWTorchSean@gmail.com

We suggest these recent related articles...

RADICAN'S Beyond Wrestling "Greatest Rivals Round Robin" review 9/26 - incredible show of the year contender, Busick-Edwards top-flight MOTYC, more!

RADICAN'S "The Pull List" (Vol. 5) "Young Bucks Too Sweet Journey" doc review, The Flash season 1 Blu-Ray, Top Ten MOTYC for 2015

RADICAN'S ROH "All-Star Extravaganza VII" PPV BLOG 9/18: Booking issues dampen excellent in-ring action