Death by Midwest: IWA Mid-South Ted Petty Invitational 2006, Night One

IWA Mid South Ted Petty Invitational 2006 Night #1
September 29th, 2006
Midlothian, IL at the Don Preston Recreation Center

The TPI is the premiere event of IWA Mid South. Formed in 2000 as the Sweet Science Sixteen Tournament, it was renamed in honor of Ted Petty, better known as Rocco Rock. Top talent from across the country has appeared in every tournament, and the 2004 edition is widely regarded as the best wrestling tournament ever. The 2005 tourney couldn’t match up due to many last minute cancellations. Can the 2006 edition match up?

I’ll be foregoing the champions roll call since no titles are defended on night number one.

THE WRESTLERS, here they are and how many times they’ve been in this tournament:
M-Dogg 20, 3rd TPI (UWA Hardcore)-Former IWA World Champion
Ricochet, 1st TPI (IWA Mid South)
Mike Quackenbush, 4th TPI (Chikara)
Colt Cabana, 4th TPI (ROH)-Former IWA World Champion
Chris Hero, 7th TPI (Every promotion ever)-2000 Sweet Science Winner
Ricky Reyes, 1st TPI (ROH)
Scorpio Sky, 1st TPI (PWG)
Hallowicked, 2nd TPI (Chikara)
Trik Davis, 1st TPI (IWA Mid South)-Former IWA World Champion
Erick Stevens, 1st TPI (FIP)
El Generico, 2nd TPI (IWS)
Chris Bosh, 1st TPI (PWG)
Jigsaw, 1st TPI (Chikara)
Davey Richards, 1st TPI (PWG/ROH)
Brandon Thomaselli, 2nd TPI (IWA Mid South)
Roderick Strong, 2nd TPI (ROH)
Kevin Steen, 2nd TPI (IWS/PWG)-Runner Up in 2005 TPI
Claudio Castagnoli, 3rd TPI (ROH/CZW/Chikara)
Gran Akuma, 1st TPI (Chikara)
Low-Ki, 1st TPI (IWA Mid South/TNA)
Scott Lost, 1st TPI (PWG)
Delirious, 2nd TPI (ROH)
Arik Cannon, 4th TPI (IWA Mid South)-2-time former IWA World Champion
B-Boy, 2nd TPI (CZW/PWG)

That is an awesome lineup. Just awesome. They all take a picture, during which Bosh and Cabana continually say “penis!”

#1: TPI Round One: M-DOGG 20 vs. RICOCHET
M-Dogg 20 hasn’t been in IWA in years, but is a former IWA Champ. Ricochet can do a double moonsault. I’m not a fan of his. Darin Corbin is on commentary with Ben Jordan and says he’s going to count how many flips there are in the match. Mat stuff to start off with. Dogg kind of looks like a mini-Benoit with his mat work. Dogg misses a standing moonsault but lands on his feet. Ricochet goes for a Standing Shooting Press but Dogg moves. Ricochet lands on his feet, though. Headscissors takeover and an armdrag by Ricochet. Dogg goes for a TKO but Ricochet armdrags out of it. Dogg moves out of the way of the flipping kick and lands one of his own followed by a step up enziguri. That gets 2. Snap suplex follows but Ricochet gets his foot on the ropes. Flipping dropkick by Dogg. Cocky cover by Dogg gets 1. Big chops by Dogg. Ricochet gets a rollup for 2 but gets cut off by Dogg after that. Weird spot sends Dogg to the outside. Ricochet goes for a dive but Dogg moves out of the way and back into the ring for his own dive….but he fakes the tope! I’ve never seen that and it’s pretty cool. Dogg stomps Ricochet off the apron. He does his flagpole elbow drop to the floor after that. Cool. Back in the ring, both men get knocked down by clotheslines. Spin kick by Ricochet gets 2. Dogg stops the double moonsault but Ricochet catches him on top….Super Reverse Rana! They hit that pretty well. Dogg flips out of a German Suplex…Mafia Kick by Dogg! He heads up top and hits the Shooting Star Press for the win at 9:55. **1/4. I can live with that. A blown spot or two thanks to Ricochet, though. M-Dogg 20 impressed here and I’m glad he’s moving on.

#2: TPI Round One: COLT CABANA vs. MIKE QUACKENBUSH
Quack rules. So does Cabana. That’s all you need to know. Big reaction for both guys. They go all British style to start until Cabana kicks Quack in the mouth. More great reversal and counter wrestling follows that. Cabana tries to kip up out of a headscissors but Quack cinches it on. Cabana then just stands out of it. More mat work that I can’t possibly call until Quack gets a Rowboat submission. Corbin mentions that Colt may try to focus on the back of Quack since he had surgery on it earlier in the year. Quack ties on a figure four with an anklelock added. Cool. Then a Knee-DT and Quack’s target is now Cabana’s knee and leg. Cabana tries to reverse by wrapping up Quack’s legs into a Sharpshooter! That was so smooth. We get a clean break in the ropes. More submission wrestling by Quack. Dragon screw leg whip on Cabana and he’s limping now. Quack goes for a bulldog but Colt reverses into a backbreaker over his shoulder. Cabana goes straight after the back with several unique submissions. He locks in a Camel Clutch as he says “Make you humble!” Head vice neck snap by Cabana gets 2. Cabana goes for the Colt 45 but Quack hits a reverse Samoan Drop. That put strain on the back, however. Bulldog and a basement dropkick get 2 for Quack. Double knee drop gets 2 after that. Moonsault press by Cabana by 2. Butt bump in the corner follows but Quack kicks him running in. Quack looks like he’s going for a Russian Leg Sweep but he rolls through into a STRETCH MUFFLER. Cabana makes the ropes. Quack goes off the ropes but Colt catches him….HANGMAN’S DDT! Only for 2. Quack gets back up and jumps on Colt’s back…Reverse Rana! He hooks Cabana’s leg…QUACKENDRIVER 3! That’s all at 13:36. ***1/4. Really fun match between these two mat masters. The body part work didn’t play into the finish at all, but it was still a good, fun match in between, and I’ll give it a good rating. Quack advances to the second round to the third straight year.

#3: TPI Round One: CHRIS HERO vs. RICKY REYES
Hero is very hated here. He’s wearing the ROH Tag Title along with the CHIKARA Tag Titles. Reyes is looking very shiny. The mention of ROH gets boos. Reyes goes after Hero with strikes, all ending with a STIFF kick by Reyes. Crowd is loving this because Hero is getting his ass handed to him. Hero goes for some weird dive flip thing out of the ring but Reyes just kicks him again. More stiff kicks. As Reyes tries to back in the ring, Hero meets him with a Mafia Kick. Hero beats on Reyes for a bit until Reyes fires back with a big chop. Hero goes with a basement dropkick to head for 2. Hero ties Reyes up with a double arm submission which soon becomes a cool full body submission. Hero getting very cocky as he beats on Reyes. Big boot from the corner gets 2 for Hero. A jumping forearm gets 2 again. Dueling chants begin. TPI draws in a bigger smark audience, you see. The kind that has to cheer heels for no reason. Reyes comes back strong with a jumping knee strike, a jawbreaker and a roundhouse kick. Swinging neckbreaker gets 2 for Reyes. Maybe some neck work for the Dragon Sleeper? EXPLODER by Reyes and Hero was dropped on his head! Apparently that move cost Hero the CZW Title. But it only gets 2 here. Hero answers with a snap powerslam and a jumping senton. Release suplex by Hero…for 2! Good move. They trade STIFF forearms until Hero goes for a O’Connor Roll and then he bridges back, but Reyes seizes the opportunity and locks on the DRAGON SLEEPER! Crowd is screaming for Hero to tap out. Hero keeps trying to roll out but Reyes keeps the hold on. Hero’s arm falls once…twice…but he reaches the ropes before the third time. Oh, crowd did not like that. Reyes pounds away at Hero and goes off the ropes only to get met with a big boot from Hero. STANDING MOONSAULT from Hero and that gets 3 at 12:32. ***1/4. Another good match. Reyes has improved from his sloppiness in ROH two years ago, and Hero is one of the best heels around nowadays. The way they teased the Hero arm dropping only to have him fire back and win moments later was just brilliant. Good stuff. Reyes gets a “Please Come Back” from the Midlo crowd.

#4: TPI Round One: HALLOWICKED vs. SCORPIO SKY
Scorpio Sky is from PWG where he is a former Tag Champion. Hallowicked is one of the best guys to come out of the Chikara Wrestle Factory. First time matchup between these guys. Quackenbush is on commentary now, which rules because he knows every move I don’t. They trade arm wringers to start with Sky spinning out of one on the mat. Helicopter headscissors takeover by Sky. Sky hits a series of nearfalls after that. Hallowicked fires back with a Frankensteiner. Big boot gets 2 for Hallowicked. Swinging neckbreaker gets 2 after that. Some miscommunication happens as Sky regains the edge. Suplex by Hallowicked ends the comeback. Hallowicked hooks on what Quack calls a One-leg version of the Gory Special. Sky quickly comes back with a forearm strike and a rana which sends the masked man to the floor. Somersault Plancha by Sky! Back in the ring now, Sky hits a Reverse Angle Slam…for 2! I guess that’s what it’s called. Sky ties him up in a submission that Quack says was a favorite of Dos Caras Sr. Sky is holding his arm. Sky off the ropes, but Hallowicked hits a Rydeen Bomb for 2! Hallowicked goes for an Ace Crusher, but Sky hits the Final Answer…for 2! Sky puts Hallowicked in a fireman’s carry, but Hallowicked gets out and puts Sky up on his shoulders, then throws him and FIELD GOAL KICKS HIM on the way down. Ouch. That gets 2. Ace Crusher by Sky into a Dragon Sleeper but Hallowicked is in the ropes. Sky heads up top, but Hallowicked hits a step up enziguri to stop him. SUPER FISHERMAN’S SUPLEX gets 3 for Hallowicked at 9:31. **. These guys didn’t mesh well. You could tell that there wasn’t much flow in the match. Hallowicked moves onto the second round.

#5: TPI Round One: TRIK DAVIS vs. ERICK STEVENS
Stevens is a student of Roderick Strong. He’s mainly known from his work in FIP. He’s about 235 pounds, making him look like a giant next to the 160 pound Trik. Trik, by the way, looks way better in the new tight pants than he did the floppy crap he wore for 3 years. Crowd is not big on Stevens. Trik hits two forearms and sends Stevens to the outside with a headscissors takeover. After some countering, Trik hits a rana off the apron to the floor on Stevens. Well so much for the chairs staying in order. Trik chops Stevens a few times, so the big guy gets pissed and Stevens POWERBOMBS TRIK INTO THE APRON. As in his back hits the edge of the ring. Owwwww that hurts. I now love Erick Stevens. So does the crowd. Leaping elbow drop gets 2 for Stevens. Some heelish offense from Stevens with a boot choke. Suplex and then a neckbreaker gets 2 for Stevens. Powerslam followed by a running senton gets another 2 count. Stevens is being smart and hitting a good amount of moves to the back of Trik. Octupus Stretch from Stevens. A portion of the crowd seems to turn on Trik here by chanting “Die Trik Die!” I haven’t the slightest idea why. Trik finally recovers with a pair of leg lariats. Stevens sends him into the corner and runs after him yelling “Choo! Choo!” but Trik moves and hits a missile dropkick. Crowd starts chanting “Choo! Choo!” as Trik hits a rana. Trik rolls Stevens up for 2. Trik goes for the front lungblower but Stevens blocks into a TKO for 2. Stevens pounds on the back but Trik hits the front lungblower and then a roll up for 2. Trik flips Stevens over….HANGMAN’S CLUTCH! Ohhhh, Hero is not going to be pleased. I’ll explain more after the match. Stevens grabs the ropes, though. Powerbomb for 2 by Stevens followed by a HUGE LARIAT….for 2! Stevens can’t believe he didn’t get the win. Trik plays possum with Stevens until he goes into a Reverse victory roll for the surprise win at 9:20. **3/4. Good action, but shame they forgot about the back stuff with Trik. Stevens is good already with just a few minor mistakes in this match. The story behind the Hangman’s Clutch was Hero and Trik feuded through much of 2006, with Hero making it his goal to keep Trik out of the TPI.

And speak of the devil, Chris Hero comes out and attacks Trik Davis. He slams Trik into the wall and throws Trik’s shoulder into the ringpost. He then PILMANIZES THE SHOULDER of Trik. Awesome angle, but unfortunately the crowd was more pro-Hero, anti-Trik tonight.

#6: EL GENERICO vs. CHRIS BOSH-38:40
Bosh comes out to Whitesnake. Bosh is one half of then-PWG Tag Champs. Generico has wrestled in PWG a lot, so these two have met before. Bosh introduces himself and says he is the “sexiest man alive.” Bosh says Generico has two choices: “Be humiliated in a loss and go jack off to internet porn or walk away now.” Though the crowd chants for “porn!”, Generico chooses to stay. Bosh beat Generico in the 2005 PWG Battle of Los Angeles on his way to winning the tournament. They trade mat work quickly to start off. Generico goes to some armdrags. Bosh takes a powder and Generico feigns a tope. Bosh does a sunset flip and Generico rolls through. Bosh covers himself for a dropkick to the face, but Generico leaps over him and dropkicks him in the back. That gets 2. Generico tries to slide under Bosh but Bosh catches him and hits a neckbreaker over his knee! Ouch! Camel Clutch applied on Generico. Perfect Plex by Bosh for 2. Generico goes for his running Mafia Kick and Bosh punches him down low. Generico slowly keels over in pain. Bosh goes for the Jeff Jarrett splash while Generico is hung on the second rope, but Generico moves. Bosh is suspended on the second rope…LIONSAULT ONTO HIM by Generico! They trade punches with the crowd alternating chants of “Bosh!” and “Ole!” They go to the outside where Bosh posts Generico. Bosh lariats the post as Generico moves. Generico dives THROUGH the second and first turnbuckles and hits a Tornado DDT! That was fucking awesome! That gets a “Holy shit!” chant. Generico heads back in the ring, but then hits a SPRINGBOARD MOONSAULT FROM THE TOP ROPE to the floor! Bosh gets thrown in and Generico heads up top…Superfly Splash….for 2! Generico goes for a springboard armdrag but he slips so Bosh hits a backbreaker. See, this is how to handle mess-ups. Take advantage of it and you can keep the suspension of disbelief. That gets 2. Bosh grabs Generico…Tornado DDT on the apron! Back in the ring, Generico blocks Bosh and hits a Half Nelson Suplex for 2. Generico gets him in a double pumphandle and flips Bosh into a Hangman’s DDT position but Bosh reverses in mid-air and hits a Stunner! Then the clothesline into a backbreaker over Bosh’s knee….for 2! Awesome sequence there. Generico catches Bosh up top but Bosh blocks the Brainbustah and tries to hit a sunset flip powerbomb him but Generico lands on his feet and hits a basement dropkick. Then he finally hits the Mafia Kick and takes Bosh up top…TOP ROPE BRAINBUSTAAAAAAHHHH!!!! Of course that’s it at 15:03. ***3/4. Really good match. These guys just flowed extremely well together. Mostly a spotfest but when you hit stuff that clean that often I can’t help but grade it highly. Bosh did do some back work and acted like a true heel by slowing the match down whenever he gained control. Good stuff.

And that’s the end of disc one. Out of 6 matches, 3 are ***1/4 or more.

#7: TPI Round One: DAVEY RICHARDS vs. JIGSAW
Davey Richards has won the Super 8 and PWG’s Battle of Los Angeles so far in 2006. This is the first IWA appearance for him. Jigsaw is one of the top talents from Chikara, winning their first Torneo Cibernetico and the 3rd Young Lions Cup. So this could be a complete clash of styles. Richards definitely has the power advantage. They trade armlocks until Richards bridges and kicks the shoulder of Jigsaw to break it off. Interesting reversal. Richards bridges out of a headscissors and grabs a front facelock. Flurry of armdrags by Jigsaw Chikara-style. Dropkick sends Richards outside. Shockingly, Jigsaw doesn’t dive on him. Back inside, Jigsaw keeps doing lucha style reversals to Richards’s mat game, so Richards’s drives him down with a hard STO. Richards chops Jigsaw down. STIFF kick to the chest by Richards. Richards snapmares Jigsaw over and hits a huge running kick to Jigsaw’s face. That gets 2. Richards has gone for a lot of nearfalls in this match. Sound psychology there by making the high flyer expend all that energy repeatedly. Jigsaw blocks a suplex and Richards gets sent outside. Plancha by Jigsaw! They trade strikes back in the ring. Mafia Kick from Richards but Jigsaw lands a Spinning Heel Kick. DDT by Jigsaw for 2. Richards blocks a superplex and hits a missile dropkick and gets fired up! Ultimo Dragon-style martial arts kicks followed by a bridging German Suplex…for 2! Jigsaw blocks the Shooting Star and hits his jumping Frankensteiner. Step up enziguri by Jigsaw followed by a very strange leg drop for 2. I don’t know what the hell happened there. Richards blocks the Jig and Tonic and hits a SAITO SUPLEX! He hits a running forearm but Jigsaw then kicks the arm of Richards away on a clothesline attempt and hits another kick after that. DISCUS LARIAT by Richards…for 2! KAWADA KICKS by Richards, Jigsaw fires back with slaps but Richards throws him up and kicks him in the gut on the way down. Implant DDT by Richards! Richards locks on the AT Lock, which is a headscissors with an armbar, for the submission at 12:10. **3/4. I really wanted to like it but it just didn’t click for me. Richards looked really out of his element with the lucha stuff, but they made up for it in good mat work and some psychology. Richards isn’t at the level yet where he can completely direct the match and make it work and neither is Jigsaw. That kind of thing only comes with experience, and they are both on their way. Until then, this was a good effort but too much of a styles clash between two young wrestlers.

#8: TPI Round One: RODERICK STRONG vs. BRANDON THOMASELLI
Thomaselli is one of IWA’s top stars. He lost in the first round last year. Strong lost in the first round in the 2004 edition, but this year he’s one of the favorites. Strong gets right in Brandon’s face to begin and the fans like that. Brandon gets on the mic to begin and insults Strong for getting kicked out of TNA, while Brandon had recently appeared on Impact as a jobber. He then cheap shots Roderick and they go at it. But here’s the lesson: DO NOT PISS OFF RODERICK STRONG BECAUSE HE WILL CHOP YOU. Leaping leg lariat by Roderick sends Brandon outside and then he heads outside to beat on him some more. Back inside, Brandon goes low and hits a basement dropkick for 2. Brandon keeps control with a headstand front facelock. Cool stuff. Roderick comes back with several quick near falls. Brandon hits a standing moonsault and a standing Shooting Star for 2. Neither of those were hit well. Brandon goes for a Stinger Splash but Roderick catches him with a backbreaker. That gets a big pop. Chops by Roderick followed by a huge dropkick. Brandon hits the Golden Gate Swing…for 2. That wasn’t pretty either. Half Nelson Backbreaker by Roderick! Death Valley Driver follows up….for 2. More chops by Roderick but Brandon ducks a lariat….AIR RAID CRASH! Only gets 2 as Roderick grabs the ropes. Roderick moves out of the way of the 450 Splash so Roderick picks him…GORILLA PRESS GUTBUSTER! He threw Brandon up in the air! MAFIA KICK by Roderick! TIGER DRIVER and that’s 3 at 8:06. **1/2. WAY too short. Pretty good match that could have been the match of the night if given more time and Brandon was a little more on. He screwed up two big pieces of offense there. As it stands, it was entertaining but disappointing considering the talent level of both guys.

#9: TPI Round One: KEVIN STEEN vs. CLAUDIO CASTAGNOLI
Steen was the surprise of last year’s TPI, debuting in IWA that weekend and making it all the way to the finals where he lost to Matt Sydal. Claudio is wearing the Chikara and ROH Tag Team belts like Hero did earlier, plus the ultra spiffy IWA Switzerland Title. Quack notes that Claudio has won the Chikara Tag World Grand Prix 2 years in a row. Obviously they wrestle right away. Crowd quickly begins duel chanting for both men. The respectful nature ends quickly as they trade slaps and forearms until Steen makes the mistake of European Uppercuting Claudio. That’s like trying to outgun Rambo. A diving Euro Uppercut to the back of Steen gets 2 for Claudio. Claudio goes for another Uppercut but Steen telegraphs it and grabs his arms for a Gory Bomb! Steen keeps control with a back suplex and a flipping leg drop for 2. Claudio goes for a long delay vertical suplex. 12 seconds, which is impressive because Steen is about 240 to 245. Steen backdrops Claudio outside, but Claudio goes back in as Steen tries a baseball slide so Claudio hits a TOPE! Damn, he went far on that. Steen is in the 5th or 6th row. Back inside, Claudio gets a 2 count. Beautiful Tornado DDT by Steen gets 2. Steen goes for a gutbuster but Claudio reverses into a Fisherman’s Angle Slam! That was new. Quack called that the “Waterslide”. That gets 2. Steen fires back up with a superkick, enziguri, and a rana…for 2! Steen heads up….Swanton for 2! The big boy can fly. Steen calls for the Package Piledriver but Claudio reverses into the RICOLA BOMB! But only for 2! A HUGE discus European Uppercut follows and that gets 3 at 9:03. ***. Really good while it lasted but again too short. These guys were definitely on their game tonight, though, and went full tilt for 9 minutes of action. That’s why I gave it 3 stars even though it was under 10 minutes. Steen was really impressive here and the crowd gives both men a big cheer.

#10: TPI Round One: LOW KI vs. GRAN AKUMA
Ohhhhh yes. Gran Akuma is probably the best wrestler to come out of Chikara and has been awesome in all his IWA appearances. Low-Ki has been tearing up IWA since his debut in April and has yet to be defeated. They go to the mat but are right away far more intense in their exchange than anyone tonight. Both guys are striking specialists so I expect lots of stiffness soon. They lock up and Low Ki smartly climbs up the turnbuckles for the Cross Armbreaker in the ropes! That’s a hyperextension waiting to happen. Akuma grabs a headscissors out of a side headlock back in the ring. Low Ki bridges out of that and ties up Akuma until he reaches the ropes. Both men square off trying to go for kicks. STIFF chop by Low Ki. Akuma decides to speed things up with a lightning quick headscissors takedown. Akuma chops Low Ki but that just pisses Ki off. And you don’t want to do that. But Akuma answers right back. Then Ki fires back with a speedy headscissors takedown. A few chops get 2 for Ki. Japanese armdrag by Akuma. I’m calling more of this match than usual because I love both wrestlers. Ki avoids a kick and drop toe holds Akuma down to kick him in the face but Akuma quickly rolls away. Akuma ties up Low Ki in the Royal Octupus Hold! Awesome. Akuma turns that into a nearfall then switches to a seated Octupus Stretch. Ki gets out and DESTROYS Akuma’s back with a kick. A back elbow smash by Ki gets 2 followed by a flash elow drop for 2 again. STIFF kick again by Ki. Akuma backdrops Ki in the corner over the ropes but Ki hooks on the Dragon Clutch in the ropes! After a few kicks from Ki, Akuma regains control with a spinning back kick and kicks Low Ki’s exposed neck into the middle turnbuckle! That gets 2. Akuma stretches Low Ki with a full nelson. Snap suplex by Akuma gets 2. Akuma ties Ki up in the CATTLE MUTILATION! The difference is Ki is in a seated position so his entire back is being worked over. The neck seems to be the focus of Akuma. STIFFFFFF KICK to the face in the corner by Akuma. Ouch. Akuma tries to whip Ki from the corner but Ki reverses in the center of the ring into a CAAAPPPPPOOO KICK! That gets 2.

STIFF spine kick by Low Ki. BRUTAL KICK to the chest by Ki. Oh dear lord that smacked him hard. Akuma is just out of breath from all these strikes. Akuma reverses Ki into a Flatliner! There’s the opening for Akuma to take control. Akuma slams Ki onto the mat knees first for a big kick to the head. Akuma forearms Ki in the corner, rolls through with a snapmare and a HIPKICK to Ki all in one fluid motion. Akuma heads up top….HUGE MISSILE DROPKICK for 2! Akuma goes for a Falcon Arrow, Ki blocks it. Ki goes for a Shining Wizard, Akuma ducks but Ki rewinds and catches Akuma with a leg lariat to the back of the head!!!! Ki measures Akuma and kicks him in the FACE…for 2! Akuma kicks out and the crowd is really into this. TIDAL KRUSH by Ki…for 2 again! Kobashi chops by Ki, but Akuma grabs Ki into Tombstone position then flips him into a faceplant….for 2! Crowd LOVES this. I love this. Akuma heads up top for a Frog Splash….but Ki moves. Ki goes for his John Woo running dropkick in the corner but Akuma moves out of the way. Ki moves out of the way of Akuma’s charge and hits the KI KRUSHER! Ki heads up top….DOUBLE STOMP!!!! That gets 3 at 17:37. ****1/4. That was awesome. Everything just flowed so well because you had two of the best in there going at it. Akuma gave Ki one of the biggest tests yet in IWA, but Ki took advantage by wearing Akuma down with strikes and not letting the kid get his wind back fully. Awesome match. Crowd gives both men a standing ovation after the match.

#11: TPI Round One: DELIRIOUS vs. SCOTT LOST
Lost is the other half of the PWG Tag Team Champs and is making his IWA debut. Delirious of course, is extremely over and goes crazy at the bell. Lost wants a test of strength and Delirious speaks gibberish. He takes control right away with a quick succession of mat work. They dodge each other until Lost hits a leg lariat. Delirious hits a hotshot for 2. Lost recovers with a single leg gutbuster. Lost applies a Camel Clutch and Delirious bites his arm. Lost hits a spear in the corner. Ben Jordan notes that none of the West Coast wrestlers have won a first round match yet, so maybe jet lag is a factor here. Delirious hits the BAM leaping lariat. They wrestle for position on the top rope and Delirious wins that and hits a Missile Dropkick to the back. Lost in the corner for the Panic Attack from Delirious! Delirious goes for the Shadows Over Hell, but Lost turns and gets his knees up for Delirious. Well, kind of. It ended looking like a regular splash for the most part. Lost hits the Lost Cause (corner superkick) and tries to suplex Delirious to the floor but Delirious holds on so Lost tumbles out after him. Cool stuff. Back inside Lost gets a 2 count. Lost goes for a Sharpshooter and Delirious blocks but gets met with a dropkick. Savage Elbow off the top from Lost gets 2. That was pretty. Lost argues over the count with the ref. Lost goes for a Shining Wizard but Delirious catches him and holds him up. Lost powers out by smacking Delirious back down. Small package by Delirious gets 2. Delirious picks him up….Bizzaro Driver! That gets 2. Lost fights out of a Cobra Clutch but Delirious spears him and heads up top…SHADOWS OVER HELL. The Cobra Stretch gets locked in and Lost taps at 10:42. ***. Perfectly acceptable wrestling to quote the great Scott Keith. The two high impact moves at the end softened up the back for the Cobra Stretch. Solid first round match.

#12: TPI Round One: ARIK CANNON vs. B-BOY
Cannon had made it to the finals of the 2005 TPI but after beating Chris Hero in the semis, Hero went beserk and injured Cannon, which forced Cannon to wrestle at partial strength in the final 3-way match. I need to review since that match is one of the few good double turns done in wrestling. B-Boy gets a “welcome back” chant. Some fans are VERY Anti-Cannon tonight. I’m guessing ROHbots. Quick standing switches to start followed by a few armdrags. Big dropkick by B-Boy followed by a big chop. Clothesline from B-Boy gets 2. Second rope Goomba stomp by B-Boy! I love calling it that. Now if only wrestling could have power-ups. Anyway, B-Boy grabs a seated ab stretch. Cannon hits a jumping forearm to the back of the head from the second rope! Cool. Eye poke by Cannon. B-Boy catches Cannon on the top with a Iconoclasm Facebuster for 2. B-Boy catches Cannon coming in…EXPLODER INTO THE BUCKLES! B-Boy sets up….FACELIFT DROPKICK! Man, that has to sting. That gets 2. Cannon catches B-Boy on the apron trying to shoulder block so he SPIKE DDTs him back in the ring. Nice. Swinging neckbreaker by Cannon followed by a Hangman’s Pedigree…for 2! Saito Suplex by Cannon…NO SOLD. Cannon picks him up for the HANGMAN’S NECKBREAKER. Cannon misses the Glimmering Warlock but B-Boy answers back…SHINING WIZARD! But it only gets 2. Both men are down. B-Boy looks for an up and over but Cannon reads it and hits a German Suplex for 2! B-Boy retaliates with a spinebuster then TWO Shining Wizards into another FACELIFT! B-Boy hits a strange gutbuster move for 2. Strange as in semi-botched. It happens. Cannon hits an Enziguri then a SNAP BRAINBUSTER. That gets 2. Cannon dropkicks the knee of B-Boy…GLIMMERICK WARLOCK for the 3 at 13:08. ***1/4. Hard-hitting, stiff match and a good way to end Night #1. Nothing completely spectactular but good nonetheless.

Ian Rotten comes out post-match to announce the 2nd round matches for Night #2:
-Arik Cannon vs. Hallowicked
-M-Dogg 20 vs. El Generico
-Delirious vs. Roderick Strong
-Chris Hero vs. Trik Davis (Crowd LOVES that)
-Mike Quackenbush vs. Claudio Castagnoli(Crowd likes that, too)
-Low Ki vs. Davey Richards (Crowd REALLY loves that)

Plus:
-IWA World Champion Toby Klein vs. Chuck Taylor
-Falls Count Anywhere: The Iron Saints vs. American Kickboxer and Tarek the Great
-Loser Leaves IWA for 6 Months: Tyler Black vs. Josh Abercrombie
-6 Team Gauntlet Battle Royal

The 411: A great first night for the TPI. This year they went with nothing but tournament action for Night number one which allowed maximum time for almost everyone. Only one match was below average (Hallowicked vs. Scorpio Sky). Out of 12 matches, 7 were *** or more. You can’t ask for much more than that. Ki vs. Akuma was MOTN with second going to Bosh vs. Generico. A great night of action. You can purchase both nights of the TPI 2006 (9 hours total) for $40 at www.smartmarkvideo.com or iwamidsouthwrestling.com.

Final Score:  9.0   [  Amazing ]