Guerrilla Reviewfare: PWG Battle of Los Angeles 2016 (Stage Two)

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Night One of the 2016 edition of BOLA was a rousing success in almost every conceivable way. More often than not, for whatever reason, the first night of BOLA’s past have been the most lackluster of the bunch… 2014 (the most overrated BOLA of the bunch) is a prime example. But this time around, PWG started with a bang and doled out its best show of the year. But based on live reports – and BIG DAVE himself – Night 2 blows it out of the water. The main event of The Young Bucks & Adam Cole vs. Ricochet, Matt Sydal, & Will Ospreay has garnered perhaps the most hype of any PWG match since the Steen Wolf ladder match while the rest of the first round concludes with debuts from the likes of Pete Dunne, Mark Haskins, and Matt Riddle. So let’s not waste any more time, because this one is liable to be a doozy.

We are TAPED from the American Legion in Reseda, CA.

Your hosts are Excalibur & Chuck Taylor, who were side-splittingly hilarious during Stage One.

BOLA First Round Match: Dalton Castle vs. Tommaso Ciampa
In one of the more heartbreaking turns of events on BOLA weekend, this match was supposed to feature the debut of Jack Gallagher against Dalton Castle, in what was likely to be one of the most entertaining pieces of wrestling of the year. Unfortunately, travel problems put the kibosh on that and Tommaso Ciampa, fresh off one of the finest tag matches in years alongside Johnny Gargano vs. The Revival at Takeover: Brooklyn 2, made his return in a much-lauded surprise. PWG understandably cuts entrances from their DVDs to avoid problems, but it’s still a minor tragedy we don’t get to hear the pop once Psycho Killer hits the speakers…

The crowd is beyond yoked that Ciampa is there, and for good reason. “I don’t like Ciampa. He borderline raped me twice,” says a disgusted Kentucky Gentleman on commentary. Tommaso Ciampa tries his hand at out-posing Dalton Castle, putting the legend of Scott Steiner vs. Triple H to shame. They morph into a hug that would make Trent Beretta cry, but it’s soon spoiled by a stiff lariat from Ciampa. The Boys attempt to revive Dalton, and Tommaso intervenes by shitcanning one, and giving the other Project Ciampa. Castle grabs him and gives him a Bangarang, but Tommaso kicks out and frantically escapes to the outside. Dalton struts out a feinted dive, but Ciampa stops that silliness and does a strut of his own after sending Castle to the outside. Tommaso chastises Castle about playing games, and Dalton defiantly pie-faces him… only to eat a barrage of chops and an FU from the Psycho Killer. Ciampa hilariously channels the spirit of Roman Reigns with an unfortunate Superman Punch, but Castle kicks out. He then transitions to Rusev-land, putting on the Accolade with RUSEV BULGARIA outcries intersped. Dalton starts mounting some offense with some chops, finally taking Ciampa off of his feet with a lariat. Ciampa tries to intervene by jumping off the second rope for something, but Dalton catches him and flings him with a Belly-to-Belly. Dalton looks for a German on the apron, but Ciampa is able to get out of harm’s way momentarily by giving him a scary up-and-over to a different side of the apron before kneeing a running Dalton through the turnbuckles. Ciampa tries fake out the crowd by teasing throwing Dalton into the fans but the switcheroo proves fatal as Dalton hits the spinning rana to the floor! One Lope later, and Dalton has control. Dalton hits a Backdrop Driver in the ring and tries to follow it with a deadlift German, but Tommaso breaks by heading to the apron once more and elbowing out… until DALTON DEADLIFTS HIM FROM THE APRON FOR A NEARFALL! Ciampa counters a Bangarang into a Schoolboy for two, followed by a PEDIGREE! Dalton kicks out. Tommaso follows up with a nasty running knee for another nearfall. Ciampa has cut his mouth all to shit, so naturally he spits on his hand and chops Dalton. Unfortunately he runs into a Bangarang, and Dalton advances at the 15 minute mark. *** While I’m certain Jack Gallagher would have made for a more entertaining match-up, I’m not going to complain about what we got here. They didn’t really do much in the way of focused, energetic wrestling unfortunately, but we got a lot of fun interactions and a funny – if slightly corny – story of Tommaso just using a bunch of WWE moves since he’s there full-time now. They at least tried to tell a story in lieu of just going batty, which is something I can respect even if things weren’t feeling so hot. Like I say, it’s not something I’ll remember in a month but for a surprise opener, it’ll do.

BOLA First Round Match: Mark Andrews vs. Pete Dunne
This is Dunne’s PWG debut as you can probably tell, and even in my trek through PROGRESS Wrestling, I’ve oddly yet to come across the man other than bits and pieces of other shows I’ve seen. Naturally I can only expect the best seeing as though he made it to PWG, especially against a guy in Mark Andrews who – while a bit formulaic – is great at being thrown around by guys like Dunne.

It’s your general grappling fare to begin, except with some nasty twists to it from Dunne. He just lifts Mark up in a wristlock and drops him like a sack of shit. Dunne slaps the shit out of Andrews in lieu of an armdrag, so Andrews slinks out and flips himself into a Prawn Hold, then a double stomp. Andrews builds a head of steam, sending Dunne to the floor with a diving Frankensteiner followed by a Tope Con Hilo! Dunne just heaves Andrews into the ropes and sends him careening to the floor, before bringing him back in for some more limb punishment. Andrews pulls off his suplex counter into a Stunner, but Dunne traps him in the ring apron as he tries to follow up, and turns that into a nasty hanging DDT for 2. Dunne snaps Andrews over his head with something resembling a Backdrop Driver, and I’m convinced that this man is awesome. He’s one of the few guys that seems to be able to blend aggression with the snap and crispness of a Roderick Strong and it’s really fun to watch. His restholds don’t look like restholds, even though he’s slowed the pace down. That tattoo on his knee seems a bit ill-advised though. He puts Mark in a Trailer Hitch while stomping him in the back, but Andrews catches a slap and looks for a side slam. Dunne slaps him anyway, but Mark fights back and finally hits the Side Effect to create seperation. He follows with a Casadora Bulldog and a beautiful Code Red for 2. Dunne battles back with a step up gamengiri before hitting a pop-up uppercut, following that with a release suplex for a nearfall. Andrews whiffs a Dragonrana, but is able to smarty adjust into a spinning armdrag before MOONSAULTING INTO A TORNADO DDT ON THE FLOOR! Dunne rolls out of the way of a Shooting Star so Mark tries to do the Tornado DDT again, but Dunne deadweights and GIVES HIM A TOMBSTONE ON THE FLOOR! Mark starts scurrying around a 14 count, but he slides in at the last second and gives Dunne a Reverse Rana for his troubles! Mark starts building up some more momentum, but Dunne UP AND OVERS INTO A TOMBSTONE~! TWO STRAIGHT TOMBSTONES! ANDREWS KICKS OUT! DANIELSON STOMPS TO THE HEAD! As unsafe as those are, God do I ever love watching them. Dunne nearly falls victim to a small package after taking too much time, but DUNNE KILLS ANDREWS WITH A REBOUND GERMAN… PUMPHANDLE COUNTERED INTO A DDT! Dunne sits up as Mark kips up, and Mark hits a running SSP! Mark heads up to the top for a super Frankensteiner, but Dunne rakes his eyes and looks for an imploding DDT… BUT ANDREWS COUNTERS INTO A MID AIR STUNNER! SHOOTING STAR MISSES! Roll-Up with the ropes, but Knox catches Dunne and stops the count. DUNNE ELBOWS ANDREWS OUT OF MID-AIR! PUMPHANDLE… COUNTERED… NO, INTO A DRAGON SUPLEX! PUMPHANDLE FLATLINER! CLOSE NEARFALL! Dunne looks for a superplex, but ANDREWS GIVES DUNNE A SUPER REVERSE RANA! SHOOTING STAR PRESS! Mark Andrews advances in a spectacular 19 minutes. **** What an outstanding debut from Pete Dunne. I came away from this match so much more impressed than even my optimistic standards allowed me to expect, and I would imagine that he’ll be a regular fixture from here on out. He works so fluidly, changes gears expertly and was often a tremendous base for Andrews’ exciting comebacks. I said it during the play by play, but Dunne impressed me most during the match’s downtime. He didn’t just put on a headlock and wait until he had his breath. He managed to make his attack look methodical, but stayed active the entire time. He looked like he was slowly wearing Mark Andrews down rather than sloppily transitioning from one segment to the next. He did dastardly heel things when the time called for it, and Mark Andrews biting Dunne’s fingers right before the last Reverse Rana was a wonderful payoff to that little mini-story. Otherwise, there’s not much of a narrative from bell-to-bell, but it never once threatened to get tedious and I think a lot of that has to do with Pete Dunne. Obviously Mark Andrews did his part too, and actually had my favorite performance of his PWG career so far. He usually stays to a formula of moves that tends to get old depending on my mood, but here he was forced to maneuver his way from the bottom instead of making the same old comeback, and I appreciated that. While I wouldn’t put this on the level of Stage One’s best tournament matches, I do think it’s the best debut so far this weekend and a tremendous match all around.

BOLA First Round Match: Cody Rhodes vs. Sami Callihan
This was predictably one of the biggest question marks surrounding the weekend. Cody Rhodes (who, for legal reasons, is billed as Cody R) quit WWE out of frustration earlier this year and set his sights on the indie scene. I always thought he was a good worker, but not up to the caliber of former WWE-turned-indie-darling guys like Trent Beretta or the like. I certainly never saw him as a main event level star that many apparently did, but he was always a “good hand” and has potential to be something on the indies. If anything, he’s done a fabulous job of marketing his arrival to the independents so you’ve got to at least give him that. As for his opponent choice? Pretty mind-boggling on the surface, if I’m being honest. Sami Callihan has yet to be anywhere near PWG-caliber since returning last year and yet he keeps being brought back to have mediocre match after mediocre match. And with a guy like Cody who, while quite adept, still hasn’t quite adapted to the higher-octane indie style, it’s hard to see how this match turned out positively. But much to my surprise, a lot of the reports of this match turned out to be quite positive and actually have me quite optimistic for what I (maybe wrongly) assumed was going to be a drag.

Cody is incredibly hyped to be in Reseda, which is pretty cool to see. The crowd is equally as happy to see him. His wife Brandi is with him as his personal ring announcer, announcing him as the “Grandson of a Plumber” which brings the crowd to its feet for what might be the biggest pop of the weekend so far. He’s also the “Star That Left Them in The Dust.” It’s a bit corny, but kind of endearing when you see how ridiculously loud the crowd is for it all. It’s a rough start for both men, with a stiff lock up and some cheap shots traded before we find ourselves at a stalemate. Callihan offers a handshake, but pump kicks Cody out and comes out with a beautiful Elbow Suicida. Cody, not one to be outdone, gives him a Beautiful Disaster to the floor before diving out with an equally beautiful double jump plancha. Sami gives him some chops around the outside, but Cody fights back with some overhand pancakes of his own, I love how they’re working this so far. Sami builds a head of steam for a running chop, but Cody catches him with a Showtime Kick off of the apron! They trade stalling suplexes on the floor until Sami is eventually able to give Cody a Tornado DDT. Cody nearly gets counted out, but gets a flash small package back in the ring for a nearfall. He follows with a wacky leg-hook DDT. He puts on the American Nightmare, but Callihan is able to find the ropes. Cody charges a cornered Sami, who cleverly kicks his leg out from under him, sending Cody face-first into the turnbuckles. Sami looks for the Face Wash kicks in the corner, but Cody intercepts him with a lariat. Sami fights back with a nasty DVD into the corner. Cody follows Sami with a forearm in the corner, and uses a passe to hit the Beautiful Disaster Kick. Sami has to escape, so he goes outside and grabs a brown paper bag from under the ring… and it’s the Space Cat mask. Cody goes under the ring himself and FINDS THE UN-DASHING CODY RHODES MASK~! This is awesome. Sami rakes Cody to near-death, but Cody grabs him and ALABAMA SLAMS THE CAT MASK OFF OF HIM! Cody looks for Cross-Rhodes, but Sami counters into the Package Tombstone for a nearall. Sami hits a Northern Lariat, but Cody counters another Package Tombstone into Cross-Rhodes for the win at the 14 minute mark. ***3/4 Well, color me surprised. This wasn’t the balls out insanity that say, Ospreay vs. Fenix was, but it didn’t need to be. Cody Rhodes came to work, and pulled out perhaps the most enjoyable performance of his indie run so far. I think the Chris Hero match from EVOLVE had better wrestling, but this match had so much more character and identity compared to anything Cody’s done so far. I actually wish they’d have gone a good five minutes longer and attempted to steal the show, because they did a phenomenal job building this up and it’s slightly disappointing that they didn’t shoot for the moon. That’s not a knock on the match quality, just a selfish observation. It started a lot heavier than most expected, and Cody turned out to be well-adept at the spontaneous brawling Sami Callihan brings to the table. Cody tied that brawling style together with a crispness that many indie guys lack, so I thought they complemented each other a lot better than I was anticipating. Instead of pulling out cool moves for the sake of it, they adapted to their surroundings and used tact rather than flash to get the upperhand. I’m not one of those sticklers of pro wrestling that absolutely NEEDS his matches to feel like legitimate fights, but I also highly appreciate it when a match is able to do that sensibly. And I think they managed to do that. This match blended a lot of things together superbly, and it’s got me quite excited for how Cody is going to do tomorrow night. What a pleasant surprise.

Heroes Eventually Die (Tommy End & Chris Hero) vs. Fenix & Pentagon Jr
This one is hard to do an introduction for, admittedly. Tommy End and Chris Hero had one of the best matches of the year against Zack Sabre Jr and Sami Callihan way back in January in EVOLVE, and were supposed to make their PWG debut as a team at All Star Weekend XII that was stopped by a Tommy End knee injury. Fenix and Pentagon are SHOOT~! brothers, and come out wearing dope matching gear to boot. So in conclusion, matches like this are why I love wrestling.

Angelo Trinidad screws up Hero and End’s tag team name in glorious fashion, showing either his lack of research or his ignorance of Outkast’s discography. A fan chants “Fuck You Hero” as Hero takes the mic, so both Hero and Tommy go down to the floor and stare DAGGERS through this fool. Luckily, the fan looks like a heroin addict whose concept of fear faded long ago, so he fares better in this staring contest than I would have. Fenix and Tommy start things off, but neither man ends up with the early advantage. They both end up throwing kicks at the same time and negotiate their legs down, before coming to a standoff. Pentagon Jr tags in, and looks across the ring from Tommy End in a scene that would probably make me cry if I was in the middle of it. Pentagon wants Hero though, and he taunts him in… so HERO HITS A STEP-UP RANA AND KIPS UP~! Watching Chris Hero do lucha will never get old. Hero throws the Cero Miedo to Pentagon, who superkicks him and shitcans him. Tommy End suffers the same fate as his partner, and FENIX MOONSAULTS OFF OF PENTAGON’S SHOULDERS ONTO HERO AND END!~! End eats superkicks and lungblowers from both men, ending in a standing moonsault from Fenix and a Cero Miedo double stomp from Pentagon. Fenix starts trying to work over Tommy, but he runs into a nasty Kitchen Sink from the Dutchman. Hero and End go to WORK on Fenix, with bicycle kicks and knees, ending with a senton from Chris Hero. Hero and End hit a Bicycle Knee into a falling suplex in a crazy double team, but it only gets two. Pentagon talks shit from the apron, and gets kicked to the floor once more. Chuck Taylor says “talk shit, get hit” instead of “chat shit, get banged” which hurts. Hero crumbles Fenix with an elbow just because. He tells Pentagon to watch as he destroys his brother with a Tommy End assisted SOCCER KICK INTO A CRADLE PILEDRIVER! Christ Almighty. Fenix escapes a Tommy End suplex and hits a desperation Ace Crusher, before spitting at Hero and flipping him off. That draws Hero in, and Fenix tries to give him a German. Hero won’t go down, so Fenix hits a ripcord kick and DEADLIFTS HIM INTO A GERMAN! Here comes Pentagon! SLING BLADES FOR EVERYBODY! Hero and End both punch him in the face, following with stereo knees to Fenix. They pick the brothers up and put them back to back for rolling elbows and pump kicks, before cornering them for running forearms. The brothers move and put them on the top rope, with Hero in the Tree or Woe. End eats a double stomp, and PENTAGON SUPLEXES FENIX INTO HERO! Fenix full nelson’s Tommy End for a DISGUSTING KICK TO THE RIBS! He spits on his hand and CROSSES THE SATANIST TOMMY END, but Tommy catches his arm with his leg! He tells Fenix to break the hold or he’ll “break his fucking arm!” I LOVE TOMMY END. Tommy whips Pentagon into Fenix, and MURDERS PENTAGON WITH A PUNT TO THE HEAD! BARRAGE OF STRIKES TO FENIX! GERMAN ON PENTAGON! FENIX BREAKS WITH A PUNT TO THE HAMSTRING! BUTTERFLY MUTA LOCK FROM FENIX! Hero puts him in a cravat, to try and break, so PENTAGON PUTS ON A KNEEBAR! AND HE’S FIGHTING TOMMY END ON THE MAT! This match is so fucking awesome, I can’t even begin to describe it. Holy shit. Pentagon and Tommy fight it out in the middle of the ring until Tommy folds him with a switch knee, but he turns right into a JUMPING superkick from Fenix, who runs right into a rolling Mafia Kick from Hero, who Pentagon kills with an enzuigiri! Everybody’s down! Pentagon superkicks Hero and gives him the up-and-over Lungblower before a Tope Con Hilo! Fenix and Tommy are in the ring, where Tommy waylays Fenix with an elbow. But Fenix fights back up valiantly. Tommy looks for a German, and FENIX IS THE ELBOW MACHINE~! Tommy trips him and KILLS HIM with a running knee though. A Tommy End brainbuster scores for a nearfall. Fenix hits a rolling lifter to stop a climbing Tommy End, WHO FLOATS OVER FROM HIS BACK FOR A SUPER FRANKENSTEINER! DOUBLE JUMP 450! Fenix and Pentagon pick up the win in a sensational 18 minutes. ****1/2 That might be the best PWG match of the year so far. You rarely ever see wrestling matches that are able to combine four larger-than-life personalities, cohesion, and utter insanity in such a clean, well-oiled manner. Sure, there was no limbwork or year-long story meeting its end, but all four men managed to lay out one of the most excitingly combustible matches I have seen in ages. Upon reading the announcement, I was frothing at the mouth for Tommy End and Pentagon interactions or more wacky double teams from Heroes Eventually Die, or more suicidal spots from Fenix… and I was not disappointed in the least. The way they built up tension throughout with the loudmouthed Pentagon talking shit from the apron, to the climax of all four men being in a submission while Pentagon and Tommy fought lying on the mat… that’s one of those markout moments that’s hard to really do justice in writing. I cannot say enough about how perfectly they blended so many elements of pro wrestling, all within the context of the match and their respective styles. What I appreciated the most however, was how they came in with hot heads and egged each other on, so that the gradual escalation in intensity made the utmost sense and didn’t just feel like an obligation. The switching gears felt like it had to happen logically, rather than just another segment in the match. Tommy End was the MAN in this match specifically, whether it was staring holes through fans or threatening to break Pentagon’s “fucking arm.” He just gets professional wrestling in a way so few wrestlers do, and it makes him so incredibly satisfying to watch. Watching him progress in WWE is going to be a wonder, and I pray to God they don’t screw him up. He’s a special talent. This match was a fight, a spotfest, and a piece of storytelling all wrapped into one of the best matches of 2016, and I really can’t say enough good things about it.

BOLA First Round Match: Trevor Lee vs. Kamaitachi
Kamaitachi had a fun debut against Michael Elgin back at PRINCE, in a match that a lot of people seemed to like much more than I did. Even so, Kamaitachi is a great fit for PWG and watching him interact with Trevor Lee is going to be something to see.

Kamaitachi is a weirdly proportioned man. Trevor starts hot with a huge Mushroom Stomp, followd by a Tope Suicida! Kamaitachi ducks a baseball slide and tries to sunset powerbomb Trevor to the floor (!), but settles for a powerbomb on the apron! Kamaitachi tries his senton, but he splats on the ground as Trevor moves, followed by a punt from the apron. Trevor drops Kamaitachi ON HIS HEAD with a back suplex on the apron! Chris Hero wonders if Trevor Lee is fighting for his cousin Dragon Lee, who of course is Kamaitachi’s biggest rival. Trevor is in firm control, but Kamaitachi eventually tries to fight back, hitting a beautiful step-up rana before going up top for a missile dropkick for a nearfall. Kamaitachi gives chase and uses that to spear Trevor off of the apron, into the crowd! Kamaitachi goes up top for the DICK TOGO SENTON TO THE OUTSIDE! Back in the ring, Kamaitachi goes up top for something, but Trevor elbows him down to the apron and gives him a hanging DDT, followed by a DELETE Twist of Fate on the apron! Kamaitachi fights back with a Falcon Arrow, but Trevor Lee UNDOES THE DEAL and kicks out. Kamaitachi sets Trevor up top for an AVALANCHE CASADORA BOMB! That only gets two. Excalibur says he’s never seen that before, which is FALSE because Samuray Del Sol did that against TJ Perkins at All Star Weekend 9, Night 2. Kamaitachi’s was much cooler though, so all is forgiven. Trevor hits a beautiful deadlift German for two, but Kamaitachi fights back with a barrage of superkicks and a POP-UP METEORA! Kamaitachi does some Tozawa screams before hitting Meteora off the top rope again, but a third dive earns him boots to the face. Kamaitachi charges but RUNS INTO THE FLIPPING CROSSBODY! Trevor dodges a superkick and hits the Mushroom Stomp, but KAMAITACHI KICKS OUT AT ONE~! Trevor hits a jumping knee, and God’s Last Gift gives him the win in 12 minutes. ***1/2 This was about what you’d expect a 12 minute PWG match between these two to be, which means it was slightly sloppy, high risk, but always very exciting. Kamaitachi is one of those guys who is too young to feel pain, so when he goes out to wrestle he does a bunch of wacky bumps to make his opponent look like a monster. I liked the unpredictability of both men just going out there to chuck bombs at each other, and you never know which guy was going to come out on top considering Kamaitachi’s threshold for pain and Trevor Lee’s redneck strength. So no, it wasn’t as bombastic as the last match but it was still a great match for what it was, and did the unenviable task of both being a good comedown as well as providing something to sink my teeth into.

BOLA First Round Match: Cedric Alexander vs. Mark Haskins
If you’ve not followed my PROGRESS reviews, Mark Haskins is a tremendous professional wrestler. He has an incredible talent for chaining moves together lightning fast, all the while remaining as technical as any of his peers. Watching him against a rejuvenated Cedric Alexander, who is fresh off his incredible performance in the Cruiserweight Classic, should be a treat as both men are incredibly athletic and can move at a million miles an hour. Cedric is here as a replacement for Adam Cole, who “pulled himself out of the tournament” (because he was winning the ROH Title, and ROH doesn’t want him jobbing even though it’s 2016 and no one cares) making way for a returning Cedric, who was 1/3 of one of the most spectacular openers in PWG history two years ago with Trevor Lee and Andrew Everett.

I’ve seen him wrestle a bunch since, but Cedric still looks like a brand new guy after dropping those thirty pounds. And it’s not like he was in woeful shape beforehand either. We find ourselves in the midst of the first GENERIC INDY STANDOFF!~! in ages. Haskins grinds Cedric out with an intense headlock. Cedric fights back with a dropkick, and soon they are BEATING THE SHIT OUT OF EACH OTHER with slaps and elbows and chops and such. Haskins says bully to Cedric’s athleticism, out-gunning him in that department for a few moments. Cedric smacks him with a punch, but Haskins shitcans him and is able to recover after Cedric moves out of the way of a dive, catching him on the adjacent side with a Tope Suicida. Haskins goes to work on Cedric’s arm as they head back into the ring. Cedric hits a frustrated chop, so Haskins kicks his leg out from his leg for his troubles and continues to target the arm. Haskins eats stiff boots and elbows from Cedric, who gives him a PK on the apron and comes out with a BEAUTIFUL TOPE CON HILO! A springboard elbow drop from Cedric gets him a two count as the action spills back into the ring. Cedric misses the step-up 540 Kick, but hits his spectacular Michinoku Driver for a nearfall. Cedric misses a standing 540 Kick, which allows Haskins to hit a trapped lariat for two. Haskins hits a running Meteora into a cradle in a beautiful move, but it only gets 2. Haskins keeps after the arm, but catches a running Cedric and ROLLS THROUGH INTO A SHARPSHOOTER! Cedric shoots him off and gets a flash small package, and headbutts Haskins before hitting him with a brainbuster for a long two count. Cedric says Haskins is his bitch, and they throw leather with slaps! Haskins ROLLS INTO A MAGNUM DRIVER! CEDRIC KICKS OUT… RIGHT INTO THE STAR ARMBAR! Cedric taps at the 15 minute mark. ***3/4 While this felt a bit too much like an exhibition to match the best of the other tournament matches, both Haskins and Cedric made enough of an impression to leave me with something memorable. They focused mainly on some tight storytelling and psychology, and while they diverted from the path at points, everything tied together really well and left no stone unturned. The best overarching story here was Cedric being quite out of his element on the ground, where Haskins really had his way with him. Cedric’s only significant offense came from combinations of desperate strikes and athletic feats rather than trying to outdo Haskins at his own game. Plus, the armwork – while it wasn’t as essential to the match as I’ve seen in other Haskins matches – had consistent enough work and selling to make the finish seem logical, so both men did their jobs exquisitely on that front. Both men definitely have a better match in them, but that’s hardly a complaint considering they just gave us 15 minutes of outstanding quality.

BOLA First Round Match: Kyle O’Reilly vs. Matt Riddle
For those who haven’t heard of or seen Matt Riddle wrestle, you’re in for a treat. Alumni of one of the more underrated seasons of The Ultimate Fighter (Season 7), he made the transition to pro wrestling after being released from the UFC on a four fight win streak, due to his multiple marijuana failures. I won’t get into the ridiculousness of all that, but UFC’s loss is pro wrestling’s gain, as Riddle is about as close to a wrestling prodigy as you can get considering he’s just over a year in. He has more charisma in his pinkie than most do in their entire bodies, and he’s one of the premier grapplers in the world in a worked environment. And with the man across from him being one of the best wrestlers on the planet, it’s hard to imagine this being anything less than fantastic.

This one starts like a New Jack match, with plunder being introduced immediately without much wrestling being done. And by that, I mean they show more grappling skill in 2 minutes that I’ve ever shown at anything in my 23 years of being alive. Kyle forgoes a clean break for an elbow, so Riddle rears back and slaps the piss out of Kyle who daring to do such a stupid thing. Riddle has the Cross Armbreaker scouted immediately, and puts on one of his own that causes Kyle to scramble outside. Kyle looks for a sleeper on the outside, but Riddle escapes and hits a beautiful springboard knee that sends Kyle from the apron to the floor. Riddle teases a dive, but instead slides out and slaps Kyle O’Reilly. Kyle goes for a kneebar, which manages to catch Riddle for the first time in the match. Riddle is able to find the ropes though. Kyle responds by stomping Riddle’s bare feet and tooling him with various leg holds as the crowd tells Matt that he should have worn shoes. Kyle hammerlocks Riddle’s arm and stiffs him with strikes, causing Riddle to yell “COME ON PUSSY” which proves foolish as Kyle stiffs him some more before punting him in the back. Riddle fights back with slaps, but Kyle wins that battle with his leg-sweep sequence. Kyle locks in another kneebar, so Riddle desperately stomps the injured shoulder to escape. Kyle follows back up with kicks, but Riddle fights back with furious slaps and a Pele Kick that staggers O’Reilly. Kyle shoots for a takedown, but Riddle sprawls and goes behind… and WE HAVE A GERMAN SUPLEX DUEL! FISHERMAN’S BUSTER FROM RIDDLE! Riddle rises up with several slaps and sprawls another takedown, deadlifting Kyle for a couple gutwrench suplexes. Riddle hits some Danielson stomps, rolled right into a triangle that starts to fold Kyle! Right into a cross armbreaker, but a groggy Kyle finds the ropes. Riddle throws some defiant kicks, which comes back to haunt him as Kyle folds him with a combo of leg kicks. Riddle escapes a Regalplex and puts in a guillotine, but Kyle counters it into an arm triangle… RIGHT INTO A SHOULDER CAPTURE SUPLEX! Riddle kicks out, but Kyle goes right into a cross armbreaker… right into an ankle lock! Riddle upkicks Kyle in the face to escape, but Kyle MURDERS RIDDLE WITH A LARIAT~! RIDDLE KICKS OUT AT ONE! BRAINBUSTER! RIDDLE KICKS OUT! CROSS ARMBREAKER! INTO A TRIANGLE! COUNTERED INTO THE BROMISSION~! KYLE COUNTERS INTO A PIN! Kyle barely escapes Matt Riddle at the 17 minute mark. **** A predictably awesome PWG debut for Riddle, who gets better in every single outing at alarming pace. They established a tremendous story from the get-go, with Riddle having the upperhand on the ground over O’Reilly, who can normally tool his opponents on the ground. This caused Kyle to search for different ways out, but still going back to the ground game after he was able to wear Riddle down enough with strikes to keep him steady for a second. Riddle’s selling towed a thin line between believable and dramatic, letting out blood-curdling screams when Kyle went after his leg and scrambling for any opportunity to get out of the hole he was in. He also mixed his Bro character in with some intensity that you usually don’t see from him, shit-talking Kyle at points when he knew the former champ didn’t have what it took. The finish seemed to deflate the crowd a little bit as I think they were all in on Riddle getting the upset, but I actually liked it. Riddle had the match won with his Bromission, but Kyle was just a little more crafty and experienced to roll Riddle over and get the flash pinfall. It leaves open rematch opportunities and leaves a bit of intrigue and “what if?” scenarios in the audience’s head. It was a subtle way to play the experience card I thought, and it’s that kind of nuance O’Reilly – and Riddle as he chugs along – is very good at. I thought this was one of the better tournament matches of the bunch, and I hope to see this guys in a main event position somewhere soon because they have a MOTYC in them down the line.

The Young Bucks & Adam Cole vs. Ricochet, Matt Sydal, & Will Ospreay
If you followed live coverage of BOLA, you’ll know what the deal is with this one. Dave Meltzer gave it his first North American five star rating since 2012. The crowd chanted five star match afterwards. The Bucks tweeted that it was the wildest match they’d ever wrestled. I’ve tried to temper my expectations, in hopes that I wouldn’t believe the hype so much that I’d be let down by the end. All’s I know is, I’m going to have a bitch of a time keeping up with this on the play-by-play end so thank God no one reads those things. So without further ado…

Cole and Ricochet start things off as Chuck Taylor and Excalibur continue to bury Adam Cole 12 feet beneath the earth. Cole spits in Ricochet’s face… and it’s already way too fast for me to call legibly. TRIO BACK HANDSPRINGS! All six men stare each other down until trio Suck It’s earn the BC three superkicks. Sydal EATS SHIT on a double team springboard thing, but Ospreay and Ricochet come out with STEREO SASUKE SPECIALS to make it all better! The BC fights back with triple apron powerbombs and triple Tope Suicidas! Things finally slow down as Adam Cole isolates Ricochet. I can already tell I’m in big trouble. Ricochet hits a rolling DDT on Nick, and here comes Ospreay, who cleans house momentarily. Matt tells Nick to give him a second, since he just took a hurricanrana, and soon after he takes a double arm drag from the Brit, who cleans house on the Bucks until Adam Cole flips him with a superkick. Cue MAYHEM from the Bullet Club as the Bucks fly all over Reseda, barring a portly Adam Cole who taunts before MURDERING Ospreay throwing him into the turnbuckles. Bullet Club isolates Ospreay afterwards for the BIGGEST BACKRAKE OF ALL TIME! How anyone can hate the Young Bucks will always be a mystery to me. Will Ospreay’s sell of it is so ridiculously great, yelling “oh my fuck that fucking stings” at the top of his lungs. Cole puts on the Camel Clutch so the Bucks can kiss him, but Ospreay drags Cole down and the Jackson Brothers lock lips! Back Handspring Pele wipes out everyone, and here come Ricochet, who cleans house in spectacular fashion! Ricochet and Sydal double team Cole with the Risky Business for a two count. Cue the funniest moment in wrestling history as Adam Cole telegraphs a double backdrop from Sydal and Ricochet, so he boots Ricochet who backflips on his head to sell it, prompting an exasperated Chuck Taylor to just say “…alright” in the most hate-filled tone I’ve ever heard on wrestling commentary. The Bucks rush in and eat a double Frankensteiner from Sydal, who hits the Here It Is Driver on Cole for a two count. He sets Cole up top for a super Frankensteiner, but Cole POPS HIM UP AND SYDAL CRASHES AND BURNS~! OSPREAY EATS A PUNT FROM THE APRON! MOONSAULT FROM MATT ON RICOCHET! They destroy Sydal in the corner with an I Love You Big Kev cannonball! They set Sydal and Ospreay up both for a DOUBLE HANGING 450~! The Bucks look for a Meltzer Driver, but Sydal CATCHES NICK and puts both Bucks down with a Slice/Jawbreaker combo! Ospreay tags in and goes after Cole with a back handspring, BUT COLE SUPERKICKS HIM MID-BACKFLIP! USHIGOROSHI! Ospreay kicks out! Cole goes up for the 10 Punches, but tells the crowd to suck his dick on the 10th! CHEEKY NANDOS ON COLE! RICOCHET DIVES OVER COLE ONTO THE BUCKS~! SYDAL GIVES COLE A REVERSE RANA OFF THE TOP! SPRINGBOARD 450 FROM RICOCHET! RED ARROW FROM OSPREAY! THE BUCKS SAVE~! Ricochet picks up Cole and hits the Northern Lights, but the Bucks superkick him mid Brainbuster! LAST SHOT ON RICOCHET! REVERSE RANA ON MATT FROM SYDAL! OSPREAY GIVES MATT A C4! SYDAL THROWS OSPREAY AWAY FROM A PANAMA SUNRISE AND HIS A SUPER FRANKENSTEINER! SSP RIGHT INTO A SUPERKICK! RICOCHET EATS A SUPERKICK IN MID-AIR! DOOMSDAY SUPERKICK ON OSPREAY ON THE FLOOR! Jesus CHRIST. RICOCHET CATCHES A DRAGONRANA… BUT EATS MORE BANG FOR YOUR FUCK FROM THE BULLET CLUB! RICOCHET KICKS OUT! The Bucks look for More Bang, but Ricochet escapes and hits Sydal with a DOUBLE BENADRYLLER! SYDAL EATS A SUPERKICK! MATT COUNTERS A RANA INTO A TOMBSTONE! OSPREAY COUNTERS A MELTZER DRIVER IN MID-AIR WITH A FUCKING ACE CRUSHER! RICOCHET COUNTERS… SYDAL COMES DOWN WITH A FUCKING SHOOTING STAR MELTZER DRIVER!~! SIMULTANEOUS SHOOTING STARS! IT’S OVER! Ricochet, Matt Sydal and Will Ospreay get a big win at the 20 minute mark. ****3/4 I really have no clue what I could possibly write here to do this match anything resembling justice. It’s just impossible. It’s one of those matches you just have to sit back and appreciate closely, without thinking of some poetic way to spin it in your head. And let’s face it; this match ain’t that heavy on psychology. It doesn’t have Ricky Morton selling. I didn’t have the gut feeling that I get when I see a ‘five star match’ like a Sami Zayn vs. Shinsuke Nakamura. It frankly doesn’t even look like a fight. But guess what? It’s still incredible. It’s breathtaking, and still one of the most jaw-droppingly athletic wrestling matches I have ever seen. It deserves all the credit in the world for being the pinnacle of its style, and these six men just pulled a virtuoso performance in front of a crowd that had unbearably high expectations. You put this match on paper, and that Reseda crowd is going to expect the world of you. And by golly, did these men ever pull a rabbit out of their hats. The finishing minute – without hyperbole – may be the most well-crafted sequence of wrestling I’ve ever seen. This match ended at exactly the right moment, in the exact way it should have, with the sort of grandiose finale that normal wrestlers just could not pull off. Often times, wrestlers will build to a beautiful crescendo but ruin the peak by going too long and sucking all the energy out of their previously raucous match. There was none of that here, and it might be the most perfect example of peaking this side of Dennis Reynolds. Is this match going to polarize people? Of course. They’re going to say that matches like these are “killing the business”, or look like a choreographed dance more than a wrestling match. That’s fine. Everyone has their opinion, and wrestling is one of the more subjective artforms out there so it’s hard to really hold that against anyone. Unfortunately, wrestling fans are historically awful with accepting the concept of subjectivity, but it’s the thought that counts. Whether the style appeals to you or not, you have to respect that these six men went out in front of 400 fans in an American Legion Hall to have what very well could be their magnum opus. From where I’m sitting, this is far and away PWG’s match of the year and furthermore, a breathtaking, exhilarating, and almost-perfect example of how beautiful the art of pro wrestling can be.

The crowd chants “Five Star Match”, and Dave Meltzer appears to agree. He joked that if he held up five fingers he would have gotten the pop of the night, which actually might be true. Ricochet takes the mic and thanks the crowd for appreciating the match, and says there’s one more day of BOLA to go. He teases a Will Ospreay vs. Ricochet match, which we do end up getting. He teases a Bucks vs. Ricochet & Sydal rematch and that’s how we end Night 2…

10.0

The final score: review Virtually Perfect

The 411

I said last year that I thought BOLA Stage Two was PWG's best show of all time. And that's a hefty, hefty claim when you consider just how great their product has been the past 7 years. But nevertheless, a year later, I might be saying it again. This show is one of the best 2 and half hours of wrestling I've ever seen. There's so much to love about this show, that listing it in the conclusion would be a horrible crime against brevity. A lot of people may find the mindblowing trios main event to be self-indulgent. That's cool; just watch End & Hero vs. Pentagon and Fenix! If you don't like that (God forbid), have a high-octane cat and mouse match with Mark Andrews and Pete Dunne. Not a fan of that? Watch Matt Riddle and Kyle O'Reilly do grappling that would make Akira Maeda shed a tear of joy. This show is so diverse that you'll be able to find a style of wrestling you enjoy, and those styles are all represented by the best the wrestling world has to offer. Please, please, please go out of your way to see this. There's a good chance you won't find a better wrestling show anywhere else in the world.