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RADICAN’S PWG “NICE BOYS (DON’T PLAY ROCK ‘N ROLL)” REPORT
MARCH 18, 2017
RESEDA, CALIF
BY SEAN RADICAN, PWTORCH COLUMNIST
The show began with Sami Callihan interrupting the start of Keith Lee vs. Brian Cage. Callihan was supposed to face Adam Cole, but he was out with an injury. Callihan got on the mic and inserted himself into the match.
(1) Keith Lee vs. Brian Cage vs. Sami Callihan in a Three-Way match. The fans were way into Lee, as he went to work on Callihan during the early going. Cage ended up getting Lee and Callihan stacked up in the corner. He nailed them with a series of clotheslines. Callihan finally ducked a clothesline and sent Cage into Lee. They collapsed in the corner and Callihan hit them both with a pair of running boot scrapes. The pace picked up and Lee hit a hurricanrana on Cage and the fans lost their minds. He told Callihan and Cage to bask in his glory and they nailed him with a double pump kick. Callihan went for a dive and Cage didn’t look to be ready so he modified it and dove through and landed on his back. Cage hit a flip dive, but Sami ran into the ring while he celebrated and wiped him out with a lope. Cage then ran back into the ring and wiped out Callihan with a big flip dive. Lee was left alone in the ring and the fans went nuts chanting his name. Lee got a running start and wiped out Callihan and Cage with a huge flip dive. Callihan fired back and got a running start and nailed Lee with a big flip senton through a chair on the floor. Cage went up top a short time later and wiped out Lee and Callihan with a moonsault to the floor and the fans lost their minds again. Cage and Callihan worked together to hit a double deadlift superplex from the apron back into the ring. There was all sorts of crazy back and forth action as the match went on. Cage flipped out of a choke slam from Lee and hit a jumping knee strike followed by a F5, but Callihan broke up the pin and the fans went nuts. Lee hit a Liger bomb, but Cage kicked out at the last second. Callihan countered Cage and hit a Yoshi-tonic. He went for the stretch muffler, but Lee escaped. Cage finally got Callihan over his back and hit weapon x, but Callihan rolled to the floor. Cage finally hit a falcon arrow on Lee and it was good for the win.
Winner: Brian Cage
Star rating: (***3/4) – This match was a ton of fun from start to finish with all three guys trading big moves in and out of the ring. This was a heck of a way to begin the show.
(2) OI4K (Dave & Jake Crist) vs. Chosen Bros. (Matt Riddle & Jeff Cobb). Jake made the mistake of flexing at Cobb, who threw him across the ring. He then gut-wrenched him back and forth several times before tossing him across the ring. Dave grounded Cobb with a dropkick. Jake tagged in, but Cobb lifted him up and tossed him into his own corner. Riddle tagged in and continued to work over Jake. Riddle hit a series of rolling gut-wrench suplexes. Riddle got cut off, but he quickly hit a fisherman buster on Jake. Cobb got the tag and threw Jake over his head. He then went after Dave in the corner and hit some sick clotheslines. He popped up Dave into a gut-wrench suplex and Riddle followed up with a huge senton for a 2 count. The match didn’t have much of a rhythm, as Dave mounted a comeback and tagged in Jake, who went to work on Cobb. OI4K finally seemed to get on track working over Cobb, but he ended up hitting a belly-to-belly suplex on Jake. Both men tagged out and Riddle and Dave went at it. Riddle cleaned house and went to town on Jake in the corner. Dave tried to cut him off, but Riddle nailed him with a series of big strikes and a Pele kick. Riddle hit bro to sleep and a German on Dave, but he kicked out. They built up to some big near falls and Jake ended up ending a back and forth sequence by decking Cobb with a superkick that left everyone down. Cobb eventually hit tour of the islands on Jake and Riddle submitted Dave with the bromission.
Winner: Matt Riddle & Jeff Cobb
Star rating: (**1/2) – This match was hard to get into. There wasn’t a lot of flow to the match and they went from some back and forth action to going all out. The match didn’t slow down from there and it just didn’t grab me given the nature of the action.
(3) Lio Rush vs. Trevor Lee. Lee jumped Rush during the introductions. The fans booed and Lee laughed. Rush mounted a high energy comeback, but Lee cut him off and whipped him hard into the corner a short time later to slow down the pace. Lee hit a sliding shoulder tackle that sent Rush flying under the bottom rope to the floor and the fans booed. Lee’s lip was busted open. Lee worked over Rush and set up for a suplex, but Rush blocked it. Lee and Rush went back and forth trading blows. Lee bounced off the ropes after decking Rush with a kick only to eat Rush hour for a near fall. They went back and forth and Rush hit a huge DDT to counter Lee and both men were down. Rush hit a kick to Lee’s leg and a spinning kick to his head. Lee grabbed the ref and hit a low blow. Lee lifted up Rush, but Rush hit a poison hurricanrana. He went up top and went for the frog splash, but Lee got his knees up. Lee tried for a small package, but Rush reversed it for the win.
Winner: Lio Rush
Star rating: (***1/4) – This was a good match. Lee played the heel role in the match jumping Rush during the introductions and hitting a low blow during the late stages of the match. I wasn’t a fan of the finish, but overall this was a nice little match.
(4) Shane Strickland vs. Dezmond Xavier. Both men are making their PWG debut in this match. They had some crazy exchanges early. Strickland seemed to mess up a hurricanrana spot, but they went right back at it. Xavier ended up on the apron and Strickland dove at him over the top rope. At the same time, Xavier did a back flip and Strickland landed on his feet on the floor, which was an incredible spot. Xavier swept Strickland’s legs out from under him and hit a crazy kick to the head all in one motion. He then hit a standing corkscrew press for a 2 count and the crowd went nuts. They went up top and Xavier went for a poison hurricanrana, but Strickland landed on his feet. Strickland went on the attack and sent Xavier in the corner with a back kick. Strickland went up top for a doubles stomp, but Xavier got out of the way. Xavier hit a 619 around the ringpost a short time later. Xavier hit a cartwheel into a crazy flip dive over the top to the floor a short time later and the fans fired up again. Xavier caught Strickland with a handspring Pele kick a short time later and Strickland managed to kick out at the last second. The fans fired up and chanted for both men as they regrouped in the ring. Xavier got a running start and flipped himself into a dragoncanrana for a near fall. WOW! Strickland fired back a short time later and hit a double stomp for a near fall. Xavier went for a poison hurricanrana, but Strickland caught him, popped him up, and hit the Cuerno killer for the win.
Winner: Shane Strickland
Star rating: (***3/4) – This was a great way to debut both guys. The only downside of the match was that they botched a couple of spots during the early going, but they recovered well and wrestled at an incredible pace. There were so many jaw-dropping moments in this match, but the best was Xavier’s running dragoncanrana. I’ve never seen anything quite like that before.
Marty Scurll got on the mic during the ring introductions, as he and Zack Sabre Jr. were set to face Best Friends. The mic went out. He got it fixed and the fans booed when he began to speak. He called LDRS the greatest tag team on God’s green earth. The fans booed and then cheered. He said they don’t want their support. He said Sabre might be Zack three belts, but he’s Marty three bitches and the fans need to shut the f— up. He then introduced himself and Sabre. The fans booed again.
(5) LDRS (PWG Champion Zack Sabre Jr. & Marty Scurll) vs. Best Friends (Chuck Taylor & Trent). Both teams went right at it and exchanged blows. Trent and Taylor went for piledrivers, but LDRS managed to slip away and they bailed to the floor. They went to the back, but Best Friends went to the outside, backstage, and dragged them back to ringside. Both teams brawled back and forth on the floor. The action spilled back into the ring and Best Friends stood tall after connecting with clotheslines in opposite corners on Sabre and Scurll. The fans applauded as they hugged in the ring. Sabre ran in to save Scurll and LDRS took control with a flurry of offense. The action went back to the floor. Scurll tossed a plastic chair at Trent’s head on the floor. He then did the same to Taylor as Sabre worked over Trent inside the ring. Sabre and Scurll went after Trent’s arm. Trent tagged out, but LDRS managed to distract the ref and he forced Taylor out of the ring. The fans booed as Sabre and Scurll hugged and patted each other on the rear end. Sabre whipped Trent hard into the corner, but ended up surprising Sabre with a huge clothesline. He was about to make the tag, but Scurll dragged Taylor off the apron at the last second.
The fans booed as Scurll and Sabre took turns kicking away at Trent in the middle of the ring. LDRS hit a Michinoku driver/dropkick combination on Trent, but Taylor made the save. Sabre knocked Taylor off the apron a short time later. LDRS hit a middle rope dropkick/Michinoku driver combination on Trent for a near fall and the fans fired up. Scurll went to the floor and went after Taylor with a chair. Trent finally fired back and wiped out Scurll. He hit a dude buster on Sabre and all three men were down inside the ring. Trent FINALLY made the hot tag to Taylor, who ran wild on Scurll and Sabre. Taylor eventually suplexed Scurll into Sabre in the corner. Taylor hit the Chuck bottom on Scurll and the fans fired up and chanted for Taylor. Sabre and Scurll hit the fake out basement superkick, but Taylor popped up and wiped them out with a double Steiner line. Taylor tossed Sabre to Trent for an assisted ace crusher. Scurll and Sabre ended up on the floor and Taylor went for a dive, but ended up eating a chair. Trent then dove over him and wiped out LDRS with a huge flip dive! Trent and Taylor went for a hug, but Trent got the chicken wing on Taylor. Sabre got a triangle on Trent at the same time. Sabre transitioned the hold into a double arm submission. Taylor finally got the ropes to break the chicken wing and the fans chanted USA after Trent escaped Sabre’s clutch as well. Taylor took a series of moves from Sabre and Scurll. He ate a huge PK from Sabre to end the sequence, but managed to kick out at the last second! The fans chanted for Taylor, who was still in the ring alone with LDRS. Trent made a blind tag and Taylor and Trent hit stereo piledrivers on the leaders. They made a double pin for a double near fall!
The fans chanted Best Friends, but Trent ran into a chicken wing. Taylor went for an awful waffle on Sabre, but he countered into a triangle. The fans booed, but fired up after Taylor powerbombed Sabre on top of Trent and Scurll to break up the chicken wing. Scurll and Taylor exchanged blows from their knees. They got to their feet and continued to exchange. Scurll grabbed Taylor’s fingers and snapped them apart and the fans gasped. Scurll went to snap Taylor’s fingers apart again, but Taylor countered it into soul food. Taylor and Scurll brawled to the back, which left Trent and Sabre alone in the ring. Trent nailed Sabre with a big slap to the face, but Sabre dragged him down to the mat and set up his elbow at a bad angle before stomping down on it. Sabre continued to after Trent’s arm. Trent caught Sabre charging at him and eventually nailed him with a cradle piledriver for the win!
Taylor made it back to the ring and had his hand raised with Trent. Scurll eventually ran down and wiped them both out with a double low blow and the fans booed. The fans chanted F—you Marty. He tossed a bunch of chairs into the ring. He yelled at Sabre and they began slapping each other across the face to fire each other up. Scurll set up a chair structure. Sabre helped him hit a double powerbomb on Taylor through the chairs and the fans booed. Scurll got on the mic and Sabre sat in his lap. He said these people may love Taylor, but Scurll and Sabre see him for what he is. Scurll said Taylor is a no good son of a bitch. Scurll challenged Taylor to a one on one match. The fans booed as Scurll left the ring. Taylor said he would accept on one condition. Taylor then demanded a Reseda street fight.
Winners: Trent & Chuck Taylor
Star rating: (****1/4) – This was a tremendous tag that built and built leading into the finish. The fans badly wanted to see Taylor and Trent win. I really enjoyed this match and one of the reasons was that there was an actual storyline behind it from the previous show, which added a lot of enjoyment to the match. The fans booed Sabre and Scurll throughout the match, who really played to the crowd with their heelish tactics. There was a great heat segment on Trent to set up an awesome hot tag to Taylor leading to the hot finish. I like that the next chapter is Scurll vs. Taylor in a Reseda Street Fight. This was great all-around.
(6) PWG World Tag Team Champions The Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson) vs. Penta el Zero M & Rey Fenix vs. Ricochet & Matt Sydal in a Three-way Dance Tag Team Tornado match. Nick, Penta, and Ricochet went at it during the early going with the other three men sent to the floor. Nick at one point hit an arm drag/head scissors combination on Ricochet and Penta that fired up the crowd. Matt, Sydal, and Fenix went at it next with the other three men down on the outside. They had a crazy exchange and came to a stalemate. Everyone went for standing flip dives in the ring. All six men then went for a dropkick at the same time and came to a standoff and the fans went nuts. The Bucks hit a pair of superkicks on Ricochet and Sydal to send them to the floor. They had a standoff hitting each other’s poses. The Young Bucks finally went under the ring and put on Fenix and Penta masks. Penta and Fenix then hit the suck it pose after putting on The Bucks ring jackets. The fans chanted along as the Bucks idd the Cero Miedo pose and Fenix and Penta responded with the suck it chops. Ricochet and Sydal came up on the apron wearing Fenix and Penta masks. They wiped out everyone with a double missile dropkick and then wiped them out again with a double dive to the floor. They were also wearing Young Bucks ring jackets! That was hilarious. Fenix and Penta recovered and ran wild. They wiped out Ricochet with a series of kicks to the front and back. They then went to town on Sydal with a series of moves. Penta and Fenix hit a code red Yoshi tonic combo that sent them into Sydal with a splash/leg drop combination.
The Young Bucks recovered and cleared the ring as the fans chanted for them. They did some crazy three-way spots. Penta then kicked the crap out of Sydal before going for a suplex. Sydal countered it into a hurricanrana, but Fenix broke up the pin. Fenix got whipped into the corner, but he flipped through the ropes. Nick then nailed him with a superkick and Sydal came out of nowhere and jumped from the floor to deliver a hurricanrana and the fans fired up. Penta hit a package piledriver on Nick on the apron a short time later. Ricochet then hit a code red on Penta on the apron. Matt then spiked him with a jumping DDT over the ropes that sent Ricochet head-first into the apron. The fan lost their minds. ARE YOU KIDDING ME! They built up to a big series of back and forth strikes that ended with Penta nailing Ricochet with a superkick and everyone was down! Sydal hit a moonsault off the top to the floor to wipe out everyone a short time later. Fenix then hit a springboard twisting dive to wipe out everyone on the floor. Nick set up and hit a double spring flip dive to the floor and the fans went nuts again. Ricochet blocked the springboard x-factor from Nick. He wiped him out with a superkick and hit a step-up SSP press off the ropes to the floor to wipe out everyone! WOW! Sydal went for a super hurricanrana off the top on Matt, but Matt slipped out from underneath him. Sydal wiped out and it looked Nasty. The Bucks ran wild on Ricochet and Sydal. They hit risky business on Ricochet, but Fenix broke up the pin. Fenix went for a moonsault off the apron, but Matt caught him in the tombstone position. Nick set up for an insane Meltzer driver, but Penta cut off Nick. Penta got Fenix up on his shoulders, but Ricochet got up on the apron and nailed him with a springboard cutter! The action continued at a crazy pace. Ricochet and Sydal hit a SSP Meltzer driver on Matt! They went up top on opposite sides of the ring with the Bucks down. They went for stereo SSP’s, but the Bucks got their knees up. Penta and Fenix began nailing the Bucks with a series of superkicks. The Bucks tried to hit the Cero Miedo pose, but Fenix and Penta continued to superkick them until they finally sent them to the floor with a double superkick!
The action continued at a rapid pace. Sydal hit a poison hurricanrana on Penta. Sydal went up top, but Fenix cut him off. He then tossed Sydal into a pump-handle driver. Fenix hit a double stomp off the top Penta, but Ricochet made the save! Ricochet went at it alone with Fenix and Penta. He eventually hit a crazy flip dive over the post to the floor to wipe out the Young Bucks. Penta caught him with a powerbomb over his knee. Fenix followed up with a swanton for a near fall! Fenix hit a package piledriver and Fenix followed up with a destroyer on Ricochet. Fenix held off Sydal from making the save and Penta made the cover for the win!
The fans went nuts after the match. Nick ran into the ring and yelled at the ref and began throwing chairs around the ring. The fans chanted Cero Miedo. Penta and Fenix then stood tall on the ropes with the belts to end the show.
Winners: Penta el Zero M & Rey Fenix to become the new PWG World Tag Team Champions
Star rating: (****1/2) – This was just an awesome display of this style of tag team wrestling. There were so many crazy exchanges during the match that I lose count of the number of insane double team moves and dives I had seen. Ricochet was insane in this match hitting a step-up SSP press to the floor and later hitting a twisting dive over the ringpost to wipe out The Young Bucks. Go out of your way to see this match.
Overall score: (8.5) – This was one heck of a show from PWG. There were some light spots on the undercard, but the three way opener between Callihan, Cage, and Lee was a heck of a way to begin the show. Another highlight later in the card was the excellent Xavier vs. Strickland match, which was just a blur of action. Even though there were some mistakes during portions of the match, as both guys just went for broke, they got right back on track and delivered an awesome match that won the crowd over.
The last two matches on the card were both fantastic with the main event being incredible at times. I really enjoyed watching the feud between Best Friends and LDRS play out here with the fans buying into Sabre and Scurll as heels thanks to the storyline. The match was designed to make the fans want to see Taylor & Trent win and they did win, but it wasn’t without a struggle. The finish of the match did a nice job of building to a Scurll vs. Taylor Street Fight at the next show.
The main event was an incredible three-way affair with insane action from start to finish with The Young Bucks, Fenix & Penta, and Sydal & Ricochet putting on a state-of-the-art tornado style match. Seeing Sydal and Ricochet teaming together again made me really miss them in NJPW. Ricochet was the MVP of this match, he hit some insane dives and is just an incredible performer to watch. The crowd exploded for Penta and Fenix winning the titles to end the show on a high note.
Overall, I really enjoyed most of this show. The last two matches were both awesome and I give this show a high recommendation. You’ll get more than your money’s worth out of this release from PWG with four out of the six matches on the card being close to four stars or over four stars.
You can purchase PWG “Nice Boys (Don’t Play Rock ‘N Roll)” on DVD/Blu-Ray by clicking HERE or by visiting Highspots.com. For more information on PWG visit ProWrestlingGuerrilla.com.
Also be sure to visit highspotswrestlingnetwork.com. You can watch a ton of great content for one low monthly price including the WrestleCon 2017 event from WrestleMania weekend. You can also watch Highspots titles including the new But I Digress DVD series hosted by Kevin Gill with his first guess John Morrison. You can also watch The Kevin Steen Show, Best Friends, CZW, PWG, and more on the HighspotsWrestlingNetwork.com subscription service, which is now available on Roku.
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Email Sean at pwtorchsean@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @SR_Torch. Click the follow button on Facebook to join the Radican’s Wrestling Community Audio Fan Page at Facebook.com/SeanRadicanRWC
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