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NWA POWER TV REPORT
FEBRUARY 11, 2020
ATLANTA, GA AT GPB STUDIOS
REPORT BY MICHAEL TAYLOR, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR
Announcers: Stu Bennett, Joe Galli
-The show opened with Sean Mooney stating he would have “breaking news” about Nick Aldis and Marty Scurll later in the show. “I’m Broken” began, as did the Power intro video. The camera entered the studio and panned the audience before landing on the announcers. Alongside Bennett and Galli were James Storm and Eli Drake. The Dawsons made their entrance with Pope, followed by The Bouncers with Eddie Kingston.
(2) THE DAWSONS vs. THE BOUNCERS
Zane and Beer City Bruiser started the match. They hit each other with stiff clotheslines until Bruiser knocked Zane to the mat. Brian Milonas tagged in as did Dave Dawson. They traded chops to the chest until Milonas pushed Dave into the corner. He squashed Dave several times until Bruiser tagged back in. Each time Bruiser struck Dave the crowd shouted “Beer!” Eventually, The Dawsons took double tamed Bruiser and kept control with frequent tags. Eventually, Bruiser created separation and tagged Milonas who entered the ring and hit a flurry of offense. Milonas scaled the top rope, but the Dawsons power bombed him for a two count. Kingston and Pope argued at ringside. Back in the ring, Milonas hit a superplex on Zane. Bruiser followed with a top rope splash for the win.
WINNERS: The Bouncers via pinfall
-After the match, The Bouncers approached the announce table. The Crockett Cup could be seen at the side of the table. James Storm poured beer in it and drank out of it. The Bouncers shared as did Eli Drake. The crowd cheered as the segment ended.
-A replay of Stu Bennett announcing the return of The Crockett Cup aired.
-Nick Aldis was shown backstage at ROH Free Enterprise. Aldis said he expected Scurll to answer his challenge after their tag match that night.
-Back in the studio, Galli introduced Tom Latimer. Latimer and Kamille walked out to boos from the crowd. Latimer said he would “kick the crap” out of Tim Storm later in the show. Galli said Storm was a former NWA champion and if Latimer beat him, Latimer could challenge for the NWA title. Latimer said he knew what Galli was up to and called Aldis his “best mate”. He said he and Issacs would be getting their Tag titles back in the future. Galli asked Latimer about James Storm and Eli Drake. Latimer said they weren’t a real team and called them rubbish. Galli asked Latimer about The Rock ‘n’ Roll express facing Issacs and Aldis in the main event. Latimer said Strictly Business would beat The Rock ‘n’ Roll Express, just like he would beat Tim Storm. Galli asked if Kamille would like to share her thoughts on anything in the NWA. Kamille patted Galli on the cheek and said nothing. Latimer entered the ring and Tim Storm made his ring entrance.
(1) TOM LATIMER vs. TIM STORM
The bell rang, and Latimer quickly attacked Storm. Storm responded by knocking Latimer over the top rope. Back in the ring, they locked up but neither man could gain the advantage. They charged at each other and tried to knock each other to the mat. Storm took control with strikes and hit a back-body drop. The crowd rallied behind Storm with a “Perfect Storm!” chant. Latimer stood and they traded strikes. Latimer hit a chop to Storm’s throat, followed by a running spear for a two count. From there, Latimer threw Storm into the corner and punished him with strikes. He hit Storm with a short-arm clothesline for a two count. Storm stood slowly as Latimer struck him. Storm shook off the blows and rallied. He charged at Latimer and they struck heads. Both men stood slowly, and Storm hit a running boot. Latimer dodged a charging Strom and hit an Impaler DDT for the win. After the match, the Mama Storm impersonator returned to mock Storm. Storm left the ring and walked by the impersonator in disgust.
(Taylor’s Analysis: This match didn’t feel like it had any stakes involved. Teasing that Latimer could use this win to make a case for himself as an NWA title challenger was interesting. I’m curious to see if Latimer could pull off a babyface role. The relationship Kamille has with both Aldis and Latimer could add an interesting dynamic.)
-A commercial for NWA.com aired.
-Footage of Nick Aldis making his ring entrance at Free Enterprise aired, followed by a replay of the time limit draw between Aron Stevens and Trevor Murdoch on last week’s Power.
-Back in the studio, Dave Marquez interviewed Trevor Murdoch. Murdoch said he never met anyone who ran as much as Stevens did. He demanded a rematch with Steven and said the people deserved a fighting champion. Murdoch said every time he entered the ring, he proved he was the roughest and toughest of them all. He said was trained by Harley Race and if Race saw Stevens as the National champion, he’d be ashamed. Question Mark walked out and calmed Murdoch down. He began singing the Mongrovian national anthem. He said “Me, you, Ka-ra-tey” at Murdoch and the segment ended.
(Taylor’s Analysis: Interrupting Murdoch’s serious, heartfelt promo with comedy was a bad move. I hope this does not lead to a goofy Karate skit with Question Mark and Murdoch in the future.)
-Sean Mooney recapped the saga between Aldis and Scurll. Footage of Free Enterprise aired. Scurll responded to Nick’s challenge and said if he lost at the Crockett Cup, he would cut Aldis a personal check for a half-million dollars. Aldis was shown backstage and accepted the challenge. Mooney said more news would be announced next week. He turned his attention to the debut of NWA Circle Squared. He said wrestlers from all over the world would showcase their skills. He announced the name of new NWA shows and the segment ended.
(Taylor’s Analysis: Does this mean the original challenge is gone? Will Scurll still have to repay the ticket-buyers money if he loses? If so, it was not made clear at all.)
-A commercial aired for Nikita Koloff’s Koloff for Christ Ministries aired.
-Back in the studio, Matt Cross made his ring entrance, followed by Ricky Starks.
(2) RICKY STARKS (c) vs. MATT CROSS – NWA TV Title match
The bell rang, and the 6:05 timer appeared on the screen. On commentary, Bennett talked about the 7-win rule for the TV title and said Starks had one successful title defense thus far. They traded holds until Starks knocked cross to the matt with a shoulder tackle. Starks hit a running dropkick. He charged at Cross, but Cross countered with a backbreaker for a two count. A “Let’s go, Ricky!” “Let’s go Cross!” dueling chant began. Eventually, Cross hit a running back elbow for a two count. Both men stood and traded strikes. From there, Cross hit a scissors kick for a two count. Starks blocked a suplex attempt as the “one-minute” announcement was made. Starks hit a suplex, followed by a spinning DDT for a two count. Cross stood and hit a Cross cutter as the time limit expired.
-After the match, Zicky Dice entered the interview booth. He called the match a “yawn fest” and called out Ricky Starks. He said he couldn’t get the job done against Cross. He said the difference between him and Starks was that he “finished every time”.
WINNER: No contest
(Taylor’s Analysis: This was a solid match, but it happened far too soon. This should have been built over time, culminating at a pay-per-view.)
-A commercial for Flag Under 14 aired.
-A replay of the ending of the match between Thunder Rosa and Allysin Kay on last week’s episode aired.
-Back in the studio, Kyle Durden interviewed Marti Belle. Belle said everything Melina said has come true. She said Kay has lost everything including the title and her best friend. Durden asked if Melina had control over her. Belle angrily interrupted Durden and told him to never talk bad about Melina. Belle said Melina saw something in her while Kay only thought about herself. She said Kay doesn’t care about the NWA fans or anyone but herself. Kay walked out and said she put her body on the line every night for the fans. She said she knows Belle can see what Melina was up to. She said Melina was Jim Jones and Marti was “drinking the Kool-Aid”. Kay said she couldn’t force Belle to be her friend, but that she would always be there for her. Belle refused to embrace Kay and walked to the back.
-A replay of Stu Bennett announcing the return of The Crockett Cup aired.
-Back in the studio, Melina made her ring entrance, with Tasha Steelz already in the ring.
(3) MELINA vs. TASHA STEELZ
The bell rang, Melina shoved Steelz into the corner. Steelz struck Melina, but Melina responded by driving Steelz face-first into the mat. She punished Steelz in the corner before hitting her with a running kick. Steelz tried to create separation but Melina hit a running face-plant. She mounted Steelz and punched her. Steelz stood and took control. She rallied and hit a neck breaker on Melina for a two count. Both women stood and Melina hit a modified DDT for a two count. Melina hit a running clothesline followed by a modified leg drop for the win. After the match, Melina said she was a living legend and she proved herself over again. She said next week, she would have a title match against Thunder Rosa.
WINNER: Melina via pinfall
(Taylor’s Analysis: This was clumsy, and at times, dangerous. Melina dropped Steelz on her head while attempting the suplex-DDT. Melina is most effective in the managerial role. NWA keeps trying to force her to be more than she is, and it’s not working.)
-Back in the studio, Royce Issacs and Nick Aldis made their ring entrance. Saul Rinauro and Mae Valentine walked through the audience and sat together. The Rock ‘n’ Roll Express made their ring entrance.
(4) NICK ALDIS & ROYCE ISSACS vs. THE ROCK ‘N’ ROLL EXPRESS
The bell rang, and the crowd started an “NWA!” chant. Gibson and Issacs entered the ring. Issacs was distracted by Valentine in the audience. Gibson rolled up from behind for a two count. Gibson knocked Issacs to the mat and tagged in Morton. They split Issacs’ legs and started a “Rock and Roll!” chant. Morton knocked Aldis off the ring apron. With the referee distracted by Aldis, Morton and Gibson made fake tags by clapping their hands together. They kept control of the match until Issacs tagged in Aldis. Morton tagged in and attempted a hurricanrana.
(Taylor’s Analysis: The camera switched to a wide-angle to avoid showing how much Aldis had to assist Morton. Not a good look at all.)
-The match spilled to the outside of the ring. Aldis attacked Morton and threw him back into the ring. Issacs hit a back suplex for a two count. Aldis tagged back in and punished Morton in the corner. Morton dodged a charging Aldis and tagged in Gibson. Issacs tagged in but was quickly knocked to the mat by Gibson. From there, Gibson hit a suplex, followed by a backslide. Aldis entered the ring and broke up the two count. Issacs hit Gibson in the eyes and used the ropes to pin him. Strictly Business retreated to the back with Mae Valentine as Issacs scolded her for sitting with Rinauro.
WINNERS: Nick Aldis & Royce Issacs
(Taylor’s Analysis: This was hard to watch. Issacs and Aldis were clearly compensating for Morton and Gibson’s limited mobility. Besides that, what was the point of the match? The only development was between Issacs, Rinauro, and Valentine. That’s the storyline you choose to advance with your main event? Bad match and a corny ending.)
-Highlights of the saga between Aldis and Scurll aired as the show ended.
FINAL THOUGHTS: This show felt like a lot happened, while nothing happened at the same time. They have milked the saga between Aldis and Scurll, and it seems like the extra weeks in between pay-per-views are negatively affecting the show. There have been no other developments for the Crockett Cup other than the NWA title match. Hopefully, the card solidifies sooner rather than later in order to avoid random matches forced feuds on the card.
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