Hamilton’s wXw We Love Wrestling #36 – Axeman vs. Babo 10.02.2022 Review

Quick Results
Peter Tihanyi pinned Fast Time Moodo in 9:04 (***)
Vincent Heisenberg pinned Rambo in 3:56 (**)
Maggot pinned Gulyas Jr., Michael Knight & Elijah Blum in 8:02 to retain the wXw Shotgun Championship (***¼)
Jacob Crane pinned Levaniel in 2:49 (*¾)
Jurn Simmons pinned Nick Schreier in 3:18 (**)
Bobby Gunns pinned Masha Slamovich in 9:15 (***¾)
Maria de la Rosa & Killer Kelly pinned Ava Everett & Iva Kolasky in 8:18 (***¼)
Laurance Roman submitted Hektor Invictus in 7:09 (***)
Metehan pinned Axel Tischer in 13:52 (***½)

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We’re back inside the Turbinenhalle as World Tag Team Festival continued with this We Love Wrestling show… giving us a match that was over two years in the making. As with the rest of the weekend, Dave Bradshaw and Mett Dimassi are on the call…

Peter Tihanyi vs. Fast Time Moodo
An interesting opener, given the trajectories of the pair…

We start with a lock-up as Tihanyi took Moodo into the ropes, before he was pushed off… and met with a shoulder tackle from the former tag champion. Body scissors get Moodo a quick one-count as the initial exchanges ended with them catching the other’s kick and de-escalating things.

We’re quickly back with armdrags before a ballin’ back elbow from Tihanyi earned a one-count. Moodo elbows out of a side headlock, then kicked away a missile dropkick as Tihanyi took to the skies. Chops from Moodo earn him replies from Tihanyi, before a butterfly suplex cut that off for a two-count.

A back elbow from Moodo leads to kicks and a leg sweep for a two-count, before Tihanyi fought out of a Made in Japan. Moodo instead applies an Octopus stretch, which gets hiptossed away as Tihanyi came back in with a back suplex. A tornado DDT’s next for a near-fall for Tihanyi, who then went up top for a 450 splash that he had to roll through out of.

Moodo leaps into the corner with a spinning heel kick to Tihanyi, then a sliding punch and a leaping stomp to the back… as a Made in Japan almost won him the match. A low bridge takes Moodo to the outside as Tihanyi teed up a dive… only to get pulled outside for some kicks. One of those kicks hits the ring post, allowing Tihanyi to roll Moodo back inside for a springboard Meteora, then a half crab, only for Moodo to cradle his way free.

Tihanyi looked to duck a Black Belt Kick, but Moodo’s leg gave out before he could even land it… allowing Tihanyi to head up top and land the 450 splash for the win. ***

Rambo vs. Vincent Heisenberg
It’s a first singles match for Rambo in wXw since the closed-set tapings… and this might be a quick one for him.

Rambo charged at Heisenberg at the bell, only to get goozled. He breaks the grip, but Heisenberg laughs off a lariat as Rambo went to take out the leg. It worked… but a second charge ends with a clothesline as chops took Rambo into the corner.

Heisenberg swats Rambo’s comeback away, then effortlessly picked him up for a fallaway slam. A clothesline squashes Rambo in the corner for a one-count, before a bodyslam drew a two-count. That’s upgraded to a powerslam, but Rambo slips free as he tried his luck with elbows and a suplex, which almost put the big man away.

Rambo tries a package piledriver, but it’s easily back body dropped away as Heisenberg went for the powerslam… and that’s your lot. A tasty squash. **

wXw Shotgun Championship: Michael Knight vs. Elijah Blum vs. Gulyas Jr. vs. Maggot (c)
Maggot won the Shotgun title in a four-way over 16 Carat Gold weekend, which presented a little risk here…

Maggot kicks Blum out of the ring to start, then formed an alliance with Michael Knight to take care of Gulyas… only for the pair of them to get suplexed. Gulyas then hit a pair of back body drops before a Michinoku Driver nearly put away Knight inside a minute, but Blum broke up the cover and came in with a side Russian legsweep.

A dropkick from Blum forces Maggot in to break up a cover, while a Thesz press and a strutting stomp from Maggot left Blum in the corner. Mounted punches and some biting in the corner follow for Blum, as did a teardrop suplex that nearly retained the title for Maggot. Knight’s in to break that up as he proceeded to bulldog Gulyas onto Blum, following with a back senton/dropkick combo and a Magistral cradle to Maggot that see-sawed for two-counts.

Blum kicks out of a prawn hold from Gulyas, who found a way back in, only for an enziguiri to take him down as Maggot tried to stop all the momentum. Knight takes to the air with a tope to Blum and Maggot on the outside, before Gulyas’ elbow suicida ensured everyone stayed on the outside.

Back inside, a lariat and a Parting Gift from Blum almost put Gulyas away, but Gulyas hits back with a spinebuster before Maggot cut off Gulyas on the top rope. The superplex is thrown off as things built up into a Tower of Doom, which Maggot tried to profit off of with a series of two-counts.

Things speed up again with a shotgun dropkick from Blum, before a spear from Maggot wiped out Gulyas… while a uranage/reverse DDT combo nearly put the Shotgun title back in Knight’s hands. A Titanic from Blum gets him a little closer, while a missed Gulyas cannonball allowed Knight in with a top rope ‘rana… throwing Gulyas into Maggot’s cutter, and that’s enough for the fortuitous win. A really good multi-man match, but the Shotgun title picture could do with a storyline – whether they pull the trigger on Ahura and his SL-Wrestling belt, or something entirely different… ***¼

Dan Mallmann interviews Maggot afterwards, who complained that Norman Harras still has it in for him by booking him in this match amid World Tag Team Festival weekend. Talk turned to Maggot’s upcoming handicap match against Sanity, caused by Ahura bailing to go to a wedding, but Maggot just stormed off…

Levaniel vs. Jacob Crane
This was made at night one of World Tag Team Festival, after Levaniel got into it with Norman Harras…

Oberhausen’s calling for Bodyslams before the bell, so here’s some more of Norman Harras, alongside Joe Keys and Dante Cabellero. Norman wants to watch from the stage, and the distraction allows Crane to attack Levaniel from behind… but Levaniel shrugs it off and took Crane to the corner for an uppercut.

Levaniel busts out a bodyslam, before a back body drop out of the corner left Crane in all sorts of trouble. Keys and Caballero inched their way towards ringside as Levaniel busted out a stalling suplex, before he slapped away Crane’s ask for a time-out… and followed up with another bodyslam.

The Galactic Facecrusher lands, but Dante Caballero pops up on the apron to distract as Joe Keys suckered Levaniel with a belt-assisted punch… Crane’s rolled onto Levaniel, and that’s the easy win as Levaniel’s bumpy weekend continued. *¾

Post-match, Harras continued to antagonise Levaniel by telling him that he could keep his title shot… as long as he beat Keys and Caballero later in the day.

Backstage, we’ve a new unnamed interviewer quizzing Jurn Simmons about the whole Levaniel thing… but Jurn doesn’t want to scratch the surface too deeply because he’s got his own thing going on. Like wiping out Nick Schreier as he looked to recover from the Heisenberg loss.

Nick Schreier vs. Jurn Simmons
Oh, poor Nick…

Jurn charges Schreier into the corner, then suplex-threw him out of it. And again. An Irish whip bounced Schreier out of the corner, while a third suplex-throw kept Nick on the back foot. A press slam into a spinebuster is next for poor Nick, who blocked a Simmons spear with a knee strike as Schreier looked to make a dent in things.

A pop-up dropkick takes Jurn into the corner, where a gamengiri followed, but a crossbody’s caught and turned into a swinging side slam. It’s elementary from there, as a piledriver bounced Schreier, and that’s your lot. Lovely squash. **

Masha Slamovich vs. Bobby Gunns
This one had a little bit of build on social media – with Masha wanting to get a big win on the weekend after coming up short to Fuminori Abe at Inner Circle.

The pair come out of the corners trading front kicks, then forearms, before Slamovich found her way in with a shotgun dropkick. Mid kicks are eventually caught by Gunns, who countered one into a Dragon screw, before snapmares and kicks to the back left Masha laying.

A dropkick through the ropes from Masha gets her a two-count, but Gunns is right back with an elbow for a two-count of his own… then a half crab after dragging Masha away from the ropes. Uppercuts follow from Gunns after a rope break, but an up kick from Masha and a step-up knee in the corner helped get her back in it, while kicks and a clothesline earned a two-count.

Gunns sidesteps a Shining Wizard and countered with a German suplex, following with a hattrick of uppercuts in the corner, then a front kick as a release Northern Lights suplex nearly won the match. Slamovich trades elbows with Gunns, but a kick took her down… only for Masha to ‘rana out of a powerbomb, then hit a pair of spinning heel kicks ahead of an Air Raid Crash into the corner.

Slamovich gets a near-fall from that, then tied up Gunns in a crossface… forcing the former champion to scramble towards the ropes. Kawada kicks from Slamovich just fired up Gunns, but his clothesline is blocked the first two times, only to land at the third attempt. A PK from Gunns is ducked as a roll-up and a stomp took Masha in for a cross armbar… before Gunns rolled out and sparked an exchange of German suplexes.

Another spinning heel kick from Masha earned her a headbutt after all that, before the Ehrenmann Driver and a PK drew another near-fall. Gunns swings for another PK, and this time it’s enough for Bobby to get the win – as Masha seemed to have found the magic formula when it came to sprints in Germany. Two for two, even if she came out on the wrong side. ***¾

Ava Everett & Iva Kolasky vs. Killer Kelly & Maria de la Rosa
Kelly’s got a different tag partner, and is looking for another win after beating Ava and Iva at Inner Circle.

Ava and Iva can’t agree who’d start against Kelly, so we end up with a trade. Maria de la Rosa starts against Ava Everett, hitting an early dropkick to take Ava outside. Back inside, Kelly scored with a kick, but got rolled up by Ava… who earned herself a PK seconds later.

Ava realises the mess she’s gotten herself into and backed into the corner to try and tag out, but Iva made the mistake of holding the tag rope… and had to come in. Kelly stalks Kolasky, but gets elbowed away from a German suplex, only for Iva to get pulled into a bucklebomb. Apparently that counted as a tag out, but Ava said she didn’t have the tag rope, so Iva stays in…

A backbreaker from Kelly, then a dropkick from de la Rosa lands… but Iva’s still not legal. Ava’s in to wallop Maria with clotheslines and forearms in the corner, leading to a neckbreaker for a two-count. Ava knocks Kelly off the apron, so Iva’s in to double-team Maria with back elbows ahead of a Final Cut for a near-fall.

De La Rosa kicks out but gets taken back to the corner as Ava’s back with some boot chokes. Maria evades the pair and got the tag out to Kelly, who goes wild with clotheslines and suplexes, cornering both of her opponents for the Shades of Shibata. Kolasky goes for the eyes to escape a Vale da Morte as all four jockey over suplexes.

Maria and Kelly land their suplexes, taking Iva and Ava outside… in position for a tope from de la Rosa before a full nelson into a high-angle German suplex back inside got the win. A good tag match, with the de la Rosa/Kelly team working well – while the Iva/Ava tandem stuttered as the two personalities struggled to find ground. ***¼

Laurance Roman vs. Hektor Invictus
The Hektor fan club was rightfully on show here, as poor Hektor looks to be a little meandering while Dennis Dullnig’s on the shelf.

A tie-up takes Roman into the corner before Laurance double-legged Hektor… who returned with a lucha roll-up that’s countered as the pair went back-and-forth. Hektor’s side headlock is escaped, but Hektor armdrags free then rolled up Roman… who bridged up, and found himself in a backslide as Hektor was dominating things in the opening minutes.

Hektor’s huge dropkick took Roman’s breath away, but Hektor ends up moonsaulting onto Roman’s knee… and that opened the door for the AMBOSS comeback. Roman hits a neckbreaker, then a snap suplex for a two-count as the crowd began to chant for the former “Waschbär.”

Roman gets distracted by that, allowing Hektor in with a chop before Roman snapped back… an overhead kick from Hektor gives him an opening, as did a moonsault press out of the corner, before a front kick and a back suplex had Roman on the ropes. Another lariat nearly puts Roman away, while a stomp-started powerbomb was countered out of by Roman.

Roman comes in with clotheslines, including a discus lariat off the ropes, before a crossface in the middle of the ring forced the submission. A good win for Roman, and a much-needed one too. ***

Axel Tischer vs. Metehan
So this one started at 16 Carat Gold 2020, when we looked to be getting a Shotgun title feud between Tischer and Metehan… but then, pandemic.

Tischer wasn’t in his Sanity gear here, just being the plain ol’ Axeman as we started with the pair teeing off on each other with elbows and uppercuts. It resembles more a fight than a wrestling match in the early going, until a trip and a low dropkick left Tischer reeling. Mounted punches from Metehan were quickly cut-off as Tischer fought back with a Northern Lights suplex for a two-count, while a kick sent Metehan through the ropes.

Metehan hits a neckbreaker through the ropes to Tischer, then returned to the ring to try and maul Tischer. Body blows from Tischer led to him taking a neckbreaker onto a knee, which nearly wins it for Metehan, while a beard pull cut off Tischer’s attempt to fight off a full nelson. It’s a rather more vicious offence from Metehan, who goes for a cover before a crossface after the kick-out featured some eye rakes as well.

Tischer’s able to return with uppercuts and a slam as he sensed his window of opportunity may be closing, but a half-and-half suplex managed to keep Tischer in front… only for his follow-up clothesline off the top, as he ended up landing a Horrible Slam that looked more like an X-Plex.

A second Horrible Slam’s countered into a guillotine by Metehan, who’s able to add to that with a trip up top… but an uppercut stops that as a superplex brought Metehan down to earth. With both men on the mat, they opt to try and slap the taste out of each other’s mouths, upgrading to forearms and elbows as we were back to the fighting we had at the start of the match.

Tischer snuck in a German suplex but couldn’t bridge it, before Metehan countered a powerbomb into a double-stomp. Another slam nearly wins it, as Tischer was now looking to avoid a final blow… lifting Metehan up top for a superplex… but they slip off as Metehan hits a standing Falcon arrow of sorts almost won it for the former 16 Carat Gold winner.

From the kick-out, Metehan laid into Tischer with elbows, forcing the referee to separate them… there’s no stoppage though, so Metehan gets flipped off, then laid in with a sliding elbow for the win. That’s win number one back in wXw, as Metehan “has some bills to collect” going by the story they’re telling. ***½

7.3

The final score: review Good

The 411

At under two hours, We Love Wrestling flew by - while still finding a way to stand alone on its own and weave in wider storylines from World Tag Team Festival weekend. If you only have time for one match here though, go out of your way for that Bobby Gunns/Masha Slamovich outing!