wrestling / TV Reports
Hamilton’s ACTION Wrestling You Can’t Do That In A Wrestling Ring 03.19.21 Review
Loading...Quick Results
Rob Killjoy & Bobby Flaco pinned Takuri & King Garuda in 9:12 (***)
Damyan Tangra submitted Dillon McQueen in 6:22 (**½)
Orion Bishop pinned Ron Bass Jr. in 5:40 (*½)
Jared Evans pinned Kavron Kanyon in 6:16 (**½)
Alex Kane pinned O’Shay Edwards in 10:58 (***¼)
Cabana Man Dan pinned Ashton Starr in 9:17 (***)
Kevin Ku & Dominic Garrini pinned Adrian Alanis & Liam Gray in 14:49 (***½)
Alan Angels pinned AC Mack in 14:31 (***)
— If you’re on Twitter, give me a follow over on @IanWrestling – and check out the GoFundMe that’s still open for Larry’s family.
We’re back at the Roger Spencer Community Center in Tyrone, Georgia for this one… If you have IWTV, this show’s up as part of your subscription – otherwise, you can sign-up at iwtv.live using promo code ACTION for a free trial.
King Garuda & Takuri vs. Bobby Flaco & Rob Killjoy
Flaco and Killjoy paired up in defeat on ACTION’s last double-header, so maybe second time’s the charm here against the WWA4 trainees Garuda and Takuri?
Takuri and Flaco start us off, with Takuri shoving down Flaco off the ropes before Flaco tripped Takuri. A wheelbarrow attempt from Takuri countered, as Flaco hits an armdrag. Killjoy and Garuda are in, with Garuda’s springboard headscissors taking the Ugly Duckling down, but an armdrag resets things before a dropkick from Garuda gets him a one-count.
Killjoy’s back with a chop, then a tiltawhirl backbreaker for a two-count before he and Flaco began to build up a head of steam. Quick tags isolate Garuda, but Killjoy stops to go after Takuri, and ends up getting distracted to the point where almost a desperation splash at Garuda saw Killjoy crash and burn in the ropes.
Takuri’s back in, but his kicks are countered into a roll-up before a dropkick took Killjoy back down. Garuda’s back for a sliding clothesline, before Takuri’s back senton and a Garuda legdrop gets a two-count on Killjoy as the WWA4 trainees isolated the Duckling. Quick tags give him a taste of his own medicine before he boots away Garuda and tagged out to Flaco, who crashes in with a crossbody off the top.
A cutter from Flaco drops Garuda, before Takuri’s caught with a DDT for a near-fall. Killjoy’s back for a Chaos Theory-like German suplex after a stunner from Flaco for a near-fall, but Takuri mounts a one-man comeback, blasting Killjoy with a clothesline, then Flaco with a scoop slam, before propelling Killjoy onto his own partner. Takuri takes to the skies with a tope, before Garuda’s tornillo keeps everyone down.
Back inside, Takuri superkicks Flaco, but Killjoy makes a save by ‘rana’ing Takuri into Garuda on the mat, before Killjoy rolled Flaco and threw him in for a flatliner… then hit an assisted tornado DDT onto Takuri, before an over-the-knee brainbuster gets the win for Killjoy. A lot of innovation here, and while not all of it landed, it made for a pacey opener. I mean this in the kindest way possible, but you can tell that Garuda and Takuri are AR Fox guys going by their style. ***
Dillon McQueen vs. Damyan Tangra
It’s an ACTION debut for McQueen, who had been used as a manager in OVW for a while in 2020 but is branching out into wrestling more.
We’ve a bit of shoving to start as Tangra beats McQueen to the punch, then suckered him into the corner ahead of a neat 619 from the floor to trip up Dillon in the ring. Back inside, Tangra’s uppercut off the ropes catches McQueen, then set up for the STF, but McQueen claws his way towards the ropes before it could be applied. A stun gun drops Tangra as McQueen fought back, but he slips on a springboard armdrag and opted to just slap Tangra instead. Tangra returns with a butterfly suplex for a two-count, before McQueen tripped him into the corner for a springboard kneedrop to the back for a two-count of his own.
McQueen pulls Tangra down by the hair, but gets too cocky as Tangra pulls him into a triangle choke. McQueen’s pin forces a break, as Dillon then returned with a knee strike to waffle him for a two-count… only for Tangra to catch McQueen off the ropes with some bodyscissors. Biting helps McQueen get free, only for an inside cradle to get a near-fall for Tangra.
Tangra can’t avoid a leg lariat as McQueen stays in it… but he misses a Bronco buster into the corner, and that allows Tangra to make a comeback with elbows before a side suplex that spun out into a gutbuster almost wins it. From there, Tangra misses a kick and gets spiked with a Sister Abigail… but he’s out at two, before Tangra rolled him up into a STF for the submission. This was brief, but they packed a lot in as they got over Tangra’s STF as a killer move. Keeping it simple, and it’s great. **½
Orion Bishop vs. Ron Bass Jr.
Another ACTION debut here, with Ron Bass Jr. mostly appeared on Florida indies… and yes, he is Ron Bass’ shoot son.
HOSS FIGHT! We open with a lock-up, but Bass quickly pushes it aside before Bishop’s side headlock ended with him being pushed off. A shoulder tackle yields nothing, so Bass comes in with a right hand and a headbutt to block a belly-to-belly. An Irish whip’s blocked, as Bass punches free before he squishes Bishop in the corner ahead of a POUNCE!
Bishop rolls outside to shake it off, then looked to start a chop battle. It turns into a general strike battle, with Bishop staggering Bass into the corner with an elbow before he hauled him up onto his shoulders. Bass slips out and takes Bishop into the corners before a full nelson slam landed for a two-count.
Bishop retaliates with a German suplex out of the corner, then picked up Bass for a death valley driver that nearly went south in a hurry… and that’s enough for a near-fall. Bass tries to fight back, but he’s booted as Bishop goes for a suplex, then opted for a DDT for a near-fall. Uppercuts from Bass stagger Bishop ahead of a clothesline, but it’s not enough, so Bass heads up top for a moonsault… but he’s caught in the ropes as Bishop slams him out of the corner for the win. Going by “modern” big lads’ wrestling standards, this was slow paced, but everything they did meant something, even if it didn’t quite come off. *½
Jared Evans vs. Kavron Kanyon
It’s a debut for Evans, while Kanyon’s back in ACTION for the first time in over a year – yep, he’s another WWA4 guy. That school’s been turning out some cracking potential over the years.
Evans started by offering Kanyon a way out of the match, but Kanyon hits a bell clapper and a slam as the debutant seemingly had no plan B. He rolls outside as Kanyon threatened to jump off the ropes, which gave way to a brief Benny Hill chase before Evans raked the eyes. Kanyon’s thrown into the post, and that puts him on the defensive back inside as Evans stomps away on him in the corner. A swinging neckbreaker lands for a two-count, before Evans looked to take out Kanyon’s knee. Working the arm, Evans heads up for a rope-walk Meteora, almost getting the win there before he kept the big man grounded with a chinlock.
Kanyon fights free, booting Evans out of the corner before a clothesline to the back of the head with his bad arm… then a sidewalk slam drew a two-count. Going up to the middle rope, Kanyon misses a springboard elbow drop with the bad arm, before Evans hit a springboard crossbody for a near-fall of his own.
Evans heads up top again… but he’s press slammed down by Kanyon, who followed up with a double jump elbow drop for a two-count, before Evans pulled him into the ropes, then finished him off with a curb stomp for the win. Brief, but a good debut for Evans who had a game plan and put away Kanyon – in spite of the big man hitting his finish. **½
Alex Kane vs. O’Shay Edwards
Ooh boy, when I saw this match get announced, I was all in on this show.
We start with a handshake, as Edwards looked to take Kane down in a waistlock, but Kane spins out as the pair end up back to their feet. Kane shoves O’Shay into the ropes as the pair trade shoulder tackles, before Edwards landed a right hand that took Kane into the corner.
Kane’s tossed to the outside with Edwards eventually following him outside for some brawling before a slam on the outside ended with Edwards getting posted. Twice. Edwards kicks the rope into Kane as he heads back inside, before he CHUCKED Kane into the turnbuckles. Kane pops back up by teasing a belly-to-belly suplex, but Edwards goes to the eyes and elbows his way free. A nerve hold keeps Kane down, but he punches free only to get squished with a body attack a la Vader.
Taking Kane to the ropes, Edwards chokes away for a spell, then charged at him in the ropes to exacerbate things. Kane reverses an Irish whip and teases the suplex again, but Edwards fought free before Kane charged through a clothesline and hit a cross-chop to the throat. Then another, then a knee to the gut, before he got back body dropped in the search for a suplex.
A discus elbow stuns Edwards as Kane again goes for the suplex, and gets a gutwrench! Edwards kicks out at one from that, and quickly returned with a spinebuster before a German suplex threw Kane across the ring. After getting a taste of his own medicine, Kane escapes a powerbomb and boots Edwards, only to get caught with a pop-up sitout powerbomb for a one-count.
Edwards hoists up Kane for a torture rack, but Kane slips out for an X-Plex! Edwards rolls to the outside after, but Kane just rolls him back inside to get a two-count. An inside cradle nearly costs Kane as Edwards was firmly on the defensive, taking a big boot before an inverted cravat/back suplex lands. Edwards is right back up, so Kane hits it again, and that’s enough to get the win! On paper that’s absolutely an upset, and perhaps the biggest win of Alex Kane’s career thus far as he doggedly kept going for suplexes. Edwards knew that those would be the difference maker, and Kane eventually landing some of them forced the win. An enjoyable sprint, as I keep saying – keep your eyes on Alex Kane, that’s a name to follow for a future that’s rapidly approaching. ***¼
Ashton Starr vs. Cabana Man Dan
It’s something he’s charted on his Twitter, but Cabana Man Dan has completely transformed himself in the past year. He’s completely unrecognisable from how he was in February 2020 in *that* picture of him with the New South title belt (that happens to be the size of a small country…). Do the work, and all that…
Starr pokes fun at Dan’s height… and is made to pay early on when Dan went for a wristlock. It’s reversed, but Dan trips him up before an armbar turned into a pin attempt for a very early near-fall.
Back inside, Dan trips up Starr, but gets rolled up for a two-count as Starr went back to the wristlock. It’s reversed again, but Starr cartwheels away and shoves Dan, who in return replied with some kicks to the leg. An armdrag spins down Starr, with Dan going back to the armbar, then a hiptoss before a wheelbarrow armdrag took Starr back outside. Some baseball slide headscissors from Dan take Starr into the ring post, as Dan continued to stay on him until a double chop rocked him.
A drop toe hold takes Starr into the side of the ring… Dan slips climbing the ropes, and gets caught as Starr took out the legs, ahead of a flip neckbreaker that almost wins him the match. Starr stays on Dan with kicks and a bridging suplex for a near-fall, but Starr’s arguing nearly costs him as Dan rolls him up for a near-fall.
Dan’s quickly on the defensive as Starr took him down for a leaping elbow drop, again for a two-count, before Dan came back off the ropes… and ran into a tiltawhirl backbreaker. Starr stretches him over the knee, looking for a submission, but Starr pushes him down and looks for a pin, only getting a two-count as Dan began to fight back.
A boot out of the corner knocks Starr back as they trade elbows, but it’s a headbutt that knocks Starr into the ropes. Starr pulls Dan onto the apron, but can’t quite follow up as Dan slingshots back in for a Code Red to nearly win it, before a double chicken wing led to some back-and-forth roll-ups for near-falls. Starr pulls ahead with a modified Sharpshooter, but it ends in the ropes… where Dan suckered him in as a sliced bread out of the corner ends up getting the win. Some good back-and-forth here as Dan had to survive an onslaught, with Starr more than holding his own here, but in the end it was a pretty handy win for the former holder of the World’s Biggest Belt. ***
The Skulk (Adrian Alanis & Liam Gray) vs. Violence Is Forever (Dominic Garrini & Kevin Ku)
Ku and Garrini have a date with Fin-Juice over WrestleMania weekend, but first they have a date with the Skulk here.
Ku and Gray start – mostly because Alanis tagged out at the bell. When we do get going, Gray kicks Ku in the quad, and almost loses his leg when Ku returns the favour. Back inside, Ku kicks Gray again, then again, this time in the arm, before he faked out a kick and caught Gray’s leap. Liam escapes, but can’t avoid getting taken into the corner as he eventually returned with a dropkick.
Alanis tags in and hits a Slingblade into a backbreaker, before he clubbed away on Ku ahead of an uppercut off the middle rope. That gets Gray a two-count, as did a wrist-clutch snap suplex, before Dominic Garrini came in to hiptoss Alanis into an armbar. Gray quickly comes in to break it up, as Alanis recovered to hit a spinebuster and a back senton on Garrini.
Garrini rolls to the outside, but Alanis joins him to throw some elbows, before he dragged and slingshotted Garrini into a forearm from Gray, which led to a slingshot elbow as Garrini was draped over Alanis’ knees. Ku breaks up the cover on that, but Gray stays on him with some elbow drops as the Skulk looked to control proceedings.
Alanis is back to box Garrini into the corner, but Garrini escapes and hits some chops. The positions trade again though, but Alanis falls back into his corner as Garrini trapped him in a heel hook. That allows Gray to tag in, but he’s caught too, so Alanis needs to return the favour, coming in with a legdrop that gets a near-fall. Garrini’s thrown down, but he kicks Alanis away as Gray blind-tags in… which saves Alanis as he tapped to a cross armbreaker… but he’s not legal! Gray’s splash off the top breaks the hold, and nearly wins the match as the Skulk were doing a damn fine job of isolating Garrini.
Gray tags Alanis back in, but Garrini finds a second wind to hit some chops and a German suplex before bringing Ku back in… Ku kills Gray with an uppercut, then goes back to kicks and elbows. A reversed Irish whip takes Ku into the corner, but he floats over and nails Gray with a snap Dragon suplex, then went after Alanis with a flying knee off the apron as the camera goes black.
We’re back as a pop-up forearm from Garrini nearly puts Gray away, before Alanis chop blocks Ku’s knee to save his partner. Garrini’s left one-on-two… as a Dodon/Codebreaker combo should have put Garrini away, but Ku pushes Gray off the pin to save the match. Garrini tries to fight back, but a discus lariat from Alanis dumps him as Ku’s also dispatched of… but Garrini’s able to reply with an enziguiri before he ragdolled Gray into a powerbomb for a near-fall… then roll him into a half crab.
Alanis breaks it up by powerbombing Ku onto Garrini though. All four men stay in the ring, trading shots, but it’s Ku and Garrini who push ahead as a discus elbow and a head kick knock the Skulk down… before Gray escapes Chasing the Dragon again. Garrini’s thrown into the corner as Ku takes a Black Hole Backbreaker, with a running neckbreaker from Gray adding to it before a suplex/crossbody combo nearly got the upset.
Gray and Alanis stay on Ku, who turtles up before he was lifted up for a Hart Attack off the top… but Garrini intercepts Gray with a leaping knee as Alanis takes a beating, leading to Chasing the Dragon for the win. This was an absolutely frantic 15 minutes – perhaps to its detriment in parts, but this was a match that saw a lot get thrown out there, with Ku and Garrini picking up a hard-fought win. Alanis and Gray more than held up their end of the bargain too, and hopefully their time here will come – particularly if Ku and Garrini’s match against Fin-Juice next month gets parlayed into anything else… ***½
AC Mack vs. Alan Angels
This was set up after the last ACTION show, where it was revealed that Angels had paid off Graham Bell to take out then-champion Mack. Before the match, Mack talked about his Alan Angels “went onto greener pastures” but had to come back to ruin “his thing”.
Of course, Angels got heckled as he came out with Robin Renegade for “moral support” as the crowd (rightly) pointed out: she’s taller than he is. Angels powders outside at the bell as he looked to dictate the pace of proceedings from the off. He backs into the corner from the opening tie-up, then rolled outside as Mack charged at him. Returning to the ring, Angels ties up Mack for a Fireman’s carry takedown into an armbar, before a springboard armdrag took Mack down.
A leg lariat from Mack drops Angels, ahead of some right hands, before a standing crossbody had Angels scurrying into the corner, where stomps followed. Angels rolls outside again, but Mack followed as he posts Angels, before a brief Benny Hill chase ends with Angels getting thrown right back to the outside. Mack goes for a dive, but Robin Renegade leaps onto the apron to block Mack… and distract as Angels goes around for a springboard dropkick back inside. Stomps from Angels keep Mack in the corner (about five of them…) before a grounded front facelock kept Mack down. Eventually getting up to hit the ropes, Mack’s caught with a belly-to-belly for a near-fall, before a neckbreaker keeps Angels ahead.
Some choking in the ropes followed, from Angels, then Renegade, before a splash to the back of Mack in the ropes led to a near-fall. More kicks keep Mack in the ropes before he began to fight back with some right hands and a hooking lariat, but that just buys him some time as Mack added another clothesline and a leaping elbow to take Angels outside.
Mack keeps going with a flying knee off the apron, then tripped him back into the corner for a hesitation dropkick that almost ended things. Angels escapes the Mack 10 and returned fire with kicks to the chest before a standing Spanish fly crept Angels closer to the win. Angels throws some more punches from above as he poises himself for a clothesline off the middle rope… that takes Mack back down, but Mack cuts out the legs as Angels went for a springboard moonsault in the corner, making him crash and burn down to the mat. Mack tries to go for a pin, but Angels looked for a stoppage because of his knee.
Mack tries to go for a cover, but the referee calls for some help as they replay the crash and burn… of course, the bell doesn’t go to end the match, which one guy in the crowd immediately smelled a rat on. He was proven right, mind you, as Angels wiped away what proved to be crocodile tears… and stole a win with a running dropkick in the corner. That rat bastard! I’ve never been a fan of hoax injury angles, particularly since the lack of a bell is the tell – but here it worked somewhat to solidify Angels’ new role. ***
Post-match, Mack gets the mic and exclaimed his disbelief at how he was cheated… he demanded a rematch under last man standing rules, and was given it on April 16.
