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From The Shelf- PWG Battle of Los Angeles 2014 Night Two

February 24, 2015 | Posted by Dylan Diot
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From The Shelf- PWG Battle of Los Angeles 2014 Night Two  

PWG Battle of Los Angeles 2014 Night Two
8-30-14
Reseda, CA

Your hosts are Excalibur and his many friends.

BOLA First Round Match-Candice LaRae vs. Rich Swann
Joey Ryan is on commentary. Test of strength is won by Swann. Back elbow by Swann and he gets a crucifix for 2. Springboard reverse hurricanrana by Candice but this time Swann is able to block it!!! Nice callback from the night before. SWANN SLAPS CANDICE!!!! Snap mare and Swann kicks Candice in the back for 2. Swann stretches Candice and release to cover for 2. Chinlock by Swann but Candice fights out. Dropkick by Swann and he locks in a standing Boston Crab. Swann converts it to the jackknife roll-up for 2. Slam by Swann and he hits a leg drop for 2. Swann chops away on Candice but Candice fires back with forearms in the corner. She stomps away on Swann but walks into a spin kick for 2. Springboard hurricanrana by Candice and she goes up. Missile dropkick by Candice and Swann bails. Suicide dive into a Tornado DDT by Candice!!!! Back in, Candice goes up and leaps into a DDT onto Swann for 2. Swann escapes the ball plex and hits a standing Frog Splash for 2. Candice blocks a suplex and Swann catches her with the handspring ace crusher for 2. BALLPLEX~!!!! Springboard reverse hurricanrana by Candice gets 2!!! Candice puts Swann on top and she follows up. Swann blocks the swinging neck breaker and he hits a Frog Splash for 2. Standing 450 eats knees and Candice catches Swann in the small package for 3!!!
Winner- Candice LaRae ***1/4 ( A perfect match to start this show. Candice is absolutely beloved and Swann played his role to perfection, not underestimating Candice and being creative in the way he worked with her, finding the balance between goofing around and treating her like a legitimate threat. )

BOLA First Round Match- Chuck Taylor vs. Johnny Gargano
Gargano works the arm to start but Taylor takes him down and works the spinning toe hold on Gargano. Drop toe hold by Gargano and they trade counters until they reach a standstill. They clothesline each other and both men are down. Taylor works over Gargano in the corner and he charges in the corner but Gargano rolls him into a basement high kick. Slingshot spear by Gargano and Taylor bails. He looks to dive but Taylor nails him to block. Taylor hip tosses Gargano into some chairs and he takes over commentary. Gargano is able to press slam Taylor off the stage onto some chairs!!!! Back in, Taylor blocks the slingshot DDT and he hits the northern lights suplex into the corner. Standing Sliced Bread #2 by Taylor gets 2. Taylor goes up for a moonsault but misses. Gargano rolls Taylor and goes for the basement kick but Taylor counters into the Cross Crab. Gargano makes the ropes to break and he hits a big boot. Lawn Dart by Gargano gets 2. Gargano chops away in the corner and he puts Taylor on top. Taylor blocks a superplex attempt so Gargano hits an enzuigiri knocking Taylor off the apron. Gargano goes for the suicide dive but Taylor blocks and hits a release suplex on the floor!!! Back in, Taylor covers for 2. Gargano blocks the Awful Waffle and he hits a super kick. Knee strike by Taylor but Gargano comes back with a super kick. Gargano goes for the Gargano Escape but Taylor blocks. Small package by Gargano gets 2 and he hits a basement high kick. Super kick and big boot by Taylor but Gargano comes back with a tilt-a-whirl into the Gargano Escape!!! Taylor taps!!!
Winner- Johnny Gargano ***1/2 ( Really good match. Chuck Taylor allows pulls off being goffy and silly and then turning on the jets and putting in a hell of a performance. These two obviously clicked having worked together for years as partners and opponents so they lived up to the expectations a match between these two should have. )

BOLA First Round Match- Chris Sabin vs. Ricochet
Roderick Strong is on commentary. Test of strength and Ricochet ends that with a wheelbarrow arm drag. Handspring head scissors and a dropkick by Ricochet. Slam by Ricochet and misses the People’s standing moonsault. Inside cradle by Sabin gets 2 and he hits a suplex. Back suplex by Sabin gets 1. Sabin chokes Ricochet with his boot and he stomps away. Octopus by Sabin and he converts it into the crucifix for 2. They trade chops and Sabin throws some knees at Ricochet. Sabin stretches Ricochet but Ricochet makes the ropes to break. Snap mare by Sabin and he grabs a chinlock. Ricochet fights back with uppercuts and he hits the Ace Crusher onto Sabin. Ricochet hits an enzugiri to the back of Sabin and he hits a springboard clothesline. Axe kick by Ricochet and he hits a standing SSP for 2. Sabin blocks the Regal Plex and Ricochet hits a spinning enzuigiri. Regal plex by Ricochet gets 2. Ricochet goes up and misses the Phoenix Splash. Enzuigiri by Sabin and both men are down. Total Anarchy by Sabin gets 2. Ricochet blocks the springboard Tornado DDT and hits a northern lights suplex. He deadlifts Sabin into the Brainbuster for 2!!! Ricochet goes up but Sabin crotches him and follows up. Ricochet blocks the superplex and he goes for the sunset flip bomb but Sabin blocks. Sabin hits the ally-oop and rolls through into a piledriver. Tiger suplex by Sabin gets 2. Reverse atomic drop and a rolling elbow by Sabin. Enzuigiri by Sabin and he hits a basement super kick. All Hail Sabin gets 2. Enzuigiri from the apron by Ricochet and he hits the springboard 450 splash for 2. Ricochet goes up but Sabin follows up. Ricochet fights him off and hits the 630 splash for 3.
Winner- Ricochet ***1/2 ( With Sabin’s history of knee injuries, he seems to have toned down greatly on high flying and has a developed a more physical, ground based style. It worked here, he essentially grounded the fast paced, high impact Ricochet with more devastating, hard hitting maneuvers but Ricochet withstood and beat Sabin with what brought him to the dance. )

Drew Gulak and Biff Busick vs. reDragon (Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish)
Fish and Busick start. They grapple on the mat to start and Busick throws some uppercuts. Dropkick by Fish and O’Reilly tags in. reDragon throw kicks at Busick and they tie Gulak to Busick. They both lock in Fujiwara arm bars and O’Reilly hits a knee drop for 1. Gulak tags in and he gets sent into Busick. reDragon clothesline Gulak to the floor but get pulled out to brawl with Gulak and Busick. Double flapjack onto the apron to O’Reilly and back in, Busick grabs a neck crank. O’Reilly fights out so Busick catches him with a back elbow for 2. Tag to Gulak and he works the arm of O’Reilly. Tag to Busick and Fish and Fish hits a kick to the chest of Busick. Gulak catches Fish with a dropkick but Fish comes back with the O’Connor roll for 2. Busick catches Fish with a shot, allowing Gulak to catch him with a Northern lariat for 2 as Fish gets his foot on the ropes. Tag to Busick and he hits a suplex for 1. Tag to Gulak and he grabs the Fujiwara arm bar. Gulak rolls Fish up for 2 and he tags Busick who grabs the head scissors. Fish escapes and he misses an elbow drop. Front facelock by Busick but Fish backs Busick to the corner and O’Reilly tags in. Punches in the corner by O’Reilly but Busick stops him. Busick and Gulak POWERBOMB FISH AND O’REILLY INTO EACH OTHER for 2!!!! Tag to Gulak and he hiptosses Fish for 2. Wristlock by Gulak but O’Reilly breaks with a kick to the back. Tag to Busick and he throws some uppercuts. Samoan drop by Fish and O’Reilly tags in. He throws strikes at Gulak and sweeps his legs. Busick attacks from behind and O’Reilly catches both with a double Dragon Screw leg sweep. Northern lights suplex to Gulak gets 2. Corner forearm by O’Reilly and Gulak goes for a piledriver but O’Reilly backdrops out. Cross arm breaker/diving head butt combo by reDragon and Fish catches Busick in the Fish Hook. Gulak and Busick make the ropes to break. Tilt-a-whirl backbreaker/knee drop combo by reDragon gets 2 as Busick saves. Fish tags in and Gulak low bridges Fish, sending him crashing to the floor. Blockbuster by Busick to O’Reilly and Gulak grabs the Dragon Sleeper on Fish. Busick catches O’Reilly in the sleeper but O’Reilly falls back onto Gulak, breaking both holds. Both teams trade blows and reDragon hit kicks to the chest on Gulak and Busick. Discus lariat by Gulak to O’Reilly. Busick catches Fish and O’Reilly with uppercuts. Jawbreaker lariat by O’Reilly to Busick. Busick goes for a piledriver to Fish on the floor but Fish backdrops out. O’Reilly and Gulak trade strikes in the ring and O’Reilly hits a knee strike. Release German suplex by O’Reilly and Fish hits the Saito suplex. Kick/Brainbuster combo by reDragon gets 3.
Winners-reDragon ***1/4 ( I thought the work in this match was good but this just didn’t completely click for me. Gulak and Busick didn’t feel like an uthentic team and seemed to want to work their own stuff in on reDragon rather than work as a natural heel team. This didn’t end up with the heat or excitement I would have wanted for these four but given it was one of Busick and Gulak’s early go around as a team I’d say given the chance to do it again these teams could tear the house down. )

BOLA Round One Match- Chris Hero vs. Matt Sydal
Joey Ryan is back on commentary. Cravat by Hero but Sydal escapes. They grapple on the mat and Sydal catches Hero with some arm drags. Atomic toss by Hero and Sydal comes back with chops. Hero returns the favor and Sydal catches him with a basement dropkick. Hero works over Sydal in the corner and Sydal catches Hero with a head scissors. Sydal throws some kicks and catches Hero with a monkey flip which Hero doesn’t fully rotate on. Sydal springboards but Hero catches him with a big boot. Hero throws some boots and Hero catches Sydal with a basement dropkick in the corner. Sydal throws some strikes but Hero catches him with a slam for 2. Hero drives a knee into Sydal but Sydal fires back with some kicks. Big boot by Hero knocks Sydal to the floor. Hero catches Sydal with a dropkick as he comes back in and Hero goes for a suplex. Sydal blocks and catches Hero with a roll-up for 2. Sydal blocks the tilt-a-whirl for 2 and he hits a kick to the chest of Hero. Standing moonsault is BLOCKED BY Hero and he hits the Cravat neckbreaker for 2. Backslide by Sydal gets 2 and he catches Hero with a leg drop. Springboard hurricanrana by Sydal and he hits a leg lariat. Corner lariat by Sydal and he goes up. Meteora by Sydal gets 2. Sydal sweeps the leg of Hero and hits the standing moonsault for 2. Hero catches Sydal with a hard forearm and a big boot. Release suplex by Hero gets 2. Hero charges in the corner but misses and Sydal hits a backward springboard hurricanrana. Knee strike by Hero but Sydal comes back with one of his own. Rolling elbow by Hero gets 2. Hero goes up but Sydal follows and goes for the Frankensteiner. Hero blocks and they collapse to the mat, allowing Hero to cover for 2. Back elbow by Sydal and Hero comes back with a rolling elbow. Hero puts Sydal on top and hits a big boot. Hero follows up but Sydal blocks. He leaps but Hero catches him. Sydal converts it into a piledriver and he goes up. Shooting Star Press by Sydal gets 3.
Winner- Matt Sydal *** ( Another match that again didn’t work for me like I wished it did. This was a totally dominated match by Chris Hero. Sydal had some flash moves on Hero and ending up catching in the end for a win, but considering I love these view and view them at the same level, this should have been more competitive and Hero should’ve have had his way so easily with someone like Sydal. )

BOLA Round One Match- Zach Sabre Jr. vs. Adam Cole
Chuck Taylor is on commentary. Sabre Jr. works the arm of Cole to start and he goes to a chin lock. Some more battling for positioning and we reach a stand still. Head scissors by Sabre Jr. and he converts it into a cover for 2. Cole bails to regain his composure and back in, they go to the test of strength. Sabre Jr. breaks with a Northern lights suplex for 2. Backslide by Sabre Jr. gets 2 and he rolls Cole up for 2. Cole stomps away on Sabre Jr. in the corner and Sabre Jr. catches him in the cross arm breaker. Cole makes the ropes to break and he bails again. Baseball slide by Sabre Jr. and he hits some uppercuts. Octopus by Sabre Jr. but Cole counters into the Lawn Dart into the post!!! Back in, Cole covers for 2. DVD back breaker by Cole gets 2. Snap mare and Cole goes to the chin lock. Sabre Jr. goes to the ropes to break and Cole catches him with the Shining Wizard for 2. Flying knee strike by Sabre Jr. and he kicks Cole straight in the arm. He stomps the elbow of Cole and he grabs the key lock. Cole makes the ropes to break and Cole pokes Sabre Jr. in the eyes. Enzuigiri by Cole but Sabre Jr. comes back with a Dragon suplex for 2. Sabre Jr. goes for a second rope uppercut but eats knees on the way down for 2. Sabre Jr. blocks the suplex and they trade counters until Cole catches him in the Figure-4. Sabre Jr. makes the ropes to break. Uppercuts by Sabre Jr. and he goes back to the hanging key lock. Cole counters into a Brainbuster on his knee for 2!!! Forearms by Cole and Sabre Jr. fires back with his own. Super kick to the knee by Cole and he hits the Saito suplex. Sabre Jr. comes back with the Penalty Kick and both men are down!!! Rapid back elbows in the corner by Sabre Jr. but Cole comes back with a super kick. Sabre Jr. catches Cole in the Prawn Hold for 3!!!
Winner- Zach Sabre Jr. **** ( This was a phenomenal technical contest. Sabre Jr. is a technical wizard and watching him work submission and work the limbs of Cole was a pleasure to watch. He continues to have a sensational weekend and beating one of the faces of PWG in Cole in a very competitive contest has made him in the eyes of the fans. This was some great stuff. )

BOLA Round One Match- ACH vs. Kenny Omega
They start with the HANDSHAKE OF DEATH!!!!! They finally break their grip and ACH seems upset by it. They shake hands again and they seem to be cool now. ACH overpowers Omega and Omega counters an arm drag into a face buster. Omega hammers away on ACH and he works over ACH in the corner. Dropkick by ACH and he clotheslines Omega to the floor. Tilt-a-whirl back breaker by Omega gets 2. Sitting chin lock by Omega but ACH goes to the ropes to break. Omega sends ACH sternum first into the corner and he hits a back breaker on ACH for 2. Omega works over ACH and they trade forearms. Big boot by Omega sends ACH flying into the corner for 2. Corner back elbow by Omega and he hits a abck suplex for 2. Omega rubs his forearm across the face of ACH and he covers for 2. Omega hammers away on ACH and he knocks ACH down with a chop. Omega goes up but ACH takes him to the floor with the kick flip. ACH misses the baseball slide and he catches Omega with the flatliner into the apron. Back in, ACH goes up and leaps but Omega dropkicks him on the way down. Omega takes a fan’s STONE COLD JACKET and whips Omega with it!!! He chokes ACH with the vest and goes to ram ACH’s head into the vest but ACH blocks. ACH slams Omega’s face off the vest and he puts the vest on!!! ACH hammers away on Omega and he stomps a mudhole into Omega!!!! Thesz press and some rights by ACH. Front elbow drop gets 2. The crowd is going NUTS!!!! Omega blocks the Stunner but ACH blocks the Rock Bottom. They slap it out and ACH hits the Stunner for 2!!! ACH grabs a pitcher of beer and poses for the crowd but Omega attacks him from behind. ACH escapes Croyt’s Wrath and SPITS BEER IN OMEGA’S FACE!!! German suplex by ACH gets 2. ACH goes up but Omega stops him and follows up. Omega goes for a superplex but ACH blocks and fights Omega off. Double stomp to the back by ACH gets 2. ACH stomps away on Omega but Omega catches him with the Rock Bottom for 2!!! Flying knee by Omega knocks ACH to the floor. Enzuigiri from the apron by ACH and he hits a slingshot ace crusher for 2. ACH goes up for the 450 splash but misses. Release Dragon suplex by Omega and he hits a second one. HADOUKEN~!!! ACH COMES BACK WITH ONE OF HIS OWN!!!!!! They trade blows and ACH catches Omega with the spinning enzuigiri knocking Omega to the floor. Springboard summersault plancha to the floor by ACH!!! Back in, ACH goes up for the 450 but misses again. HADOUKEN!!! ACH counters Croyt’s Wrath into the Victory roll for 2. Knee strike by Omega and he hits Croyt’s Wrath for 3!!!
Winner- Kenny Omega ***3/4 ( The first quarter of the match didn’t do much for me as I didn’t care for Omega bullying ACH around but once the Stone Cold jacket came in, this became one of the most fun experiences I had watching wrestling in some time. The crowd was going ballistic, they played off classic Rock/Austin spots to perfection and the finishing sequence was sensational. )

Young Bucks (Matt and Nick Jackson) vs. Christopher Daniels and Frankie Kazarian
The Bucks DOUBLE SUPER KICK THE ANNOUNCER!!!!!! Daniels and Kazarian attack and Matt hiptosses Kazarian onto the announcer!!!! Nick drop toe holds Daniels onto the announcer!!!! ALL FOUR STOMP ON THE RING ANNOUNCER!!!!!! Daniels and Kazarian attack again as the match officially begins. Head butt by Daniels to Matt and Matt comes back with a handspring head scissors sending Daniels to the floor. Dropkick through the ropes by Matt to Daniels and Matt presses Nick into a dropkick on Kazarian. Nick goes for a slingshot pescado but Kazarian blocks. Matt misses a baseball slide and Kazarian tosses Nick into Matt on the floor. Back in, Kazarian tags in and they hit a Northern lariat/elbow drop combo for 2. Tag to Matt and the Bucks hit the gutbuster/neck breaker/backbreaker combo. Nick dropkicks Daniels off the apron and Matt chokes Kazarian with his shirt. Tag to Nick and he stomps away on Kazarian in the corner. Tag to Matt and he stomps away on Kazarian in the corner. Kazarian fights out of the Bucks’ corner and Daniels tags in. He cleans house and drops Matt into a leg drop onto Nick. Lionsault by Daniels gets 2. Daniels puts Matt on top and Matt blocks the Iconoclasm. Flatliner by Daniels and he grabs the Koji Clutch. Kazarian catches Nick in the cross arm breaker but he escapes and saves Matt. Final Cut by Daniels and Kazarian tags in. Delayed suplex by Kazarian gets 2 and he steps on the hair of Matt. Swinging neck breaker by Kazarian and Daniels covers for 2. Half nelson chin lock by Daniels but Matt fights out. Daniels prevents the tag and Kazarian tags in. Spinning heel kick by Kazarian gets 2 as Nick saves. Tag to Daniels and Nick catches both Daniels and Kazarian with an enzuigiri from the apron. Matt uses Kazarian to hit Sliced Bread #2 on Daniels. Tag to Nick and he cleans house. Springboard dropkick knocks Kazarian off the apron and he hits the Penalty Kick from the apron. Slingshot X-Factor to Daniels into a swinging DDT on Kazarian on the floor!!! Back in, Nick hits the Swanton Bomb for 2!!! Curb Stomp by Daniels and he hits a suicide dive onto Matt on the floor!!! Kazarian slingshots Nick into the Ace Crusher for 2. Tag to Kazarian and they hit a powerbomb/neckbreaker combo for 2. Matt backdrops Daniels to the floor and he super kicks Kazarian into the Yoshi Tonic from Nick for 2!!! Tag to Matt and Nick superkicks Kazarian into the backslide from Matt for 2 as Daniels saves. Super kick by Nick to Daniels from the apron but Kazarian catches him with a slingshot guillotine leg drop. Kazarian belly to belly suplexes Matt to the floor!!! DDT on the apron by Kazarian to Nick and Daniels hits the slingshot Arabian Press to Matt on the floor!!!! Back in, Matt spears Kazarian. Blue Thunder Bomb by Daniels. Spinning enzuigiri by Nick. Kazarian and Nick cross body each other mid-ring and all four men are down. The Bucks take down Daniels and Kazarian with clotheslines and they come back with super kicks. Angel’s Wings by Daniels and Kazarian gets 2. Urinage by Daniels to Nick and he goes for the BME but eats boot. Super kick by Matt and Kazarian hits a Northern’s light suplex/O’Connor roll combo on the Bucks for 2!!! Double super kick by the Bucks. Buckle Bomb/Enzuigiri combo by the Bucks. More Bang for Your Buck on Kazarian gets 2 as Daniels saves. STO by Daniels to Nick. Daniels puts Matt on top and follows up. Matt fights him off but Kazarian catches him with a dropkick. Kazarian follows up and hits the Flux Capacitor for 2!!! Daniels goes up but Nick knocks him off with a super kick. The BUCKS DEBUT THE MELTZER DRIVER ON KAZARIAN FOR 3!!!!!
Winners- The Young Bucks ****1/2 ( This match blew my mind. From the opening beat down of the ring announcer, they had the crowd in the palm of their hand. The match just built and built and the speed picked up as the match progressed. I never bored for an instant and they kept me engaged and excited for the entire twenty plus minutes with as action packed and engaging a tag match as I’ve seen in 2014. Both teams’ tandem manuvers were so smooth and they made even the more incredible spots look fluid. This match will forever be remembered for the debut of the Meltzer Driver but this should have been talked about more as one of the best matches of 2014. )

8.5
The final score: review Very Good
The 411
This show was awesome, living up the incredibly high standards set by other PWG shows. The undercard was the perfect blend of intensity and flat out wackiness. Everyone just looked like they were having fun and a majority of the matches just clicked on every level. There were some disappointments but I can't criticize the effort and the work ethic, everyone worked there asses off on this night. The final three matches produced an electric atmosphere and was as good a stretch of matches as I've seen in 2014 outside of the G1 Climax. This is one of the best shows of 2014 and is the best show of the tournament this year. If you are only going to check out one show from this tournament, this is the one.
legend