Views from the Hawke’s Nest: wXw Inner Circle III

This was the dojo show wXw ran the night before their three-night 16 Carat Gold Tournament. Here are some select reviews of the 2017 Carat.

Great: WALTER vs. Ilja Dragunov, WALTER vs. David Starr, Paul London vs. Bad Bones
Good: Donovan Dijak vs. Matt Riddle, WALTER vs. Matt Riddle, Matt Riddle vs. Mike Bailey, Donovan Dijak vs. Jeff Cobb, Timothy Thatcher vs. Koji Kanemoto, Ilja Dragunov vs. Bad Bones
Eh: ACH vs. Mike Bailey, ACH & Mike Bailey vs. JT Dunn & Donovan Dijak, Ilja Dragunov vs. Timothy Thatcher
Bad: ACH vs. David Starr vs. Absolute Andy vs. Paul London, Koji Kanemoto vs. Bobby Gunns, Koji Kanemoto vs. Francis Kaspin

 

March 9, 2017
Essen, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Deutschland

Commentators: Christian Bischof & Sebastian Hollmichel

 

Absolute Andy vs. Paul London

This was a fine match. The beatdown of London went on a little too long unfortunately though, and Andy did not really do anything of note with the time. London’s comeback was fun enough to make up for some of that at least. He ended up winning after pulling off a small package. (**3/4)

 

ACH vs. WALTER

This match never really had a chance to get out of second gear. However, watching Walter beat up ACH was fine enough, and it certainly made it seem like they could have a really good match one day if nothing else. Walter won via chokeout. (**1/2)

 

Jeff Cobb vs. Marius Al-Ani

This was not too bad. It may have seemed a little bit better if it was not the third straight match to feature a big lad methodically beating down his opponent. The show feeling so repetitive has made each match seem almost unfairly boring. Cobb managed to lose this particular battle. (**1/2)

 

Francis Kaspin vs. Timothy Thatcher

This was a real solid match. The story was the youngin Kaspin trying to survive in the ring with the mat master, The Thatch Man. The Thatch Man obviously won this contest but not before Kaspin got to look competitive and like a bonafide prospect for wXw. Mission accomplished. (***)

 

David Starr vs. Matt Riddle

This was a really fun contest and a great way for wXw to close out their 2017 Carat Inner Circle show. Both guys put in a great effort and delivered a competitive battle that was compelling from beginning to end. Kudos to them for not phoning it in on the smallest stage of the weekend. Starr won with a strait jacket German. (***1/2)

5.0

The final score: review Not So Good

The 411

At barely over an hour long, this was an exceptionally easy show to get through. The show as a whole was not very good outside of the main event. Three of the matches felt very repetitive, and the effort felt lacking in most cases. These mini-shows from wXw are excellent idea though, and I hope they keep tinkering with the execution until they really start hitting some easy homeruns with them. The fact that they're including them on the Carat weekend to make this weekend even bigger for them is a sign that wXw is really pushing the envelope in order to maximize their potential as a promotion. I need to keep a closer eye on what they're doing. Watch the show here.