Ring Crew Reviews: ROH Final Battle 09: Part One

• Scheduled Card:
1. Pick 6 Four Corner Survival: Claudio Castognoli vs. Rhett Titus vs. Kenny Omega vs. Colt Cabana.
2. Erick Stevens & Bison Smith vs. Delirious & Necro Butcher.
3. Fight Without Honor: Eddie Kingston vs. Chris Hero.
4. The Young Bucks vs. Kevin Steen & El Generico.
5. Kenny King vs. Roderick Strong.
6. Alex Koslov vs. Rocky Romero.
7. ROH Tag Team Championship: The American Wolves vs. The Briscoes (c).
8. Jack Evans vs. Teddy Hart.
9. ROH World Championship: Tyler Black vs. Austin Aries (c).

• Show opens with the best ROH video package I’ve ever seen. It puts over the Aries-Black feud and says it has been a year in the making. We get clips of Aries’s heel turn, Manhattan Mayhem III, Nigel questioning Black’s heart, and Black finally pinning Bryan Danielson. I will add that Aries’s facial hair had quite the personality disorder going on during the course of the year as it changes in every clip and seems to be intentionally bad.

• Pick 6 Four Corner Survival: Claudio Castognoli vs. Rhett Titus vs. Kenny Omega vs. Colt Cabana. No tags for this one. Claudio is even more ripped to shreds here than usual and has a badass posing routine to go with his fanfare music. Big chant for Cabana prior to the handshakes. Claudio theatrically smacks Cabana with his glove. That’s hardcore right there because if Charlie Murphy is accurate, now they have to have a gunfight. Rhett gets a handful of junk musk and offers it to Cabana who promptly piefaces Claudio with it who shoves the hell out of Rhett. Cool opening that plays into each character. Claudio tries to boot Cabana but he catches it. Omega and Cabana take turns grabbing his foot to great delight and then scaring off Rhett with a hadouken attempt. Claudio boots Omega from behind to pair off. The heels avoid being whipped into each other but instead turn into atomic drops that they sell to the floor. Cabana and Omega tease planchas but instead ring around the rosies and steal Rhett’s taunt. Colt and Rhett brawl to the floor. Omega handsprings over Claudio and gets a huracanrana. Omega tries a charge in the corner but gets elevated to the top rope and instead hits a moonsault plancha on Rhett on the floor. Cabana in and hits a headscissors on Claudio. Cabana dumps him to the floor but gets rolled up by Omega for 2. Cabana and Omega do a nice reversal sequence and then hit a double baseball slide on Rhett. Claudio cuts off to send Omega into the guardrail. Colt tries a Dusty elbow on Rhett but Claudio cuts him off and Rhett hits the Bluechipper dropkick. Claudio drives Omega into the guardrail again. Rhett and Claudio with a double suplex but Omega breaks up the cover. Rhett shitcans him to the floor. Prazak mentions the history between Colt and Rhett of Cabana’s splitting his forehead open in Dayton, Ohio. Claudio with a European uppercut and hits his taunt. Claudio and Rhett both eat elbow in the corner as Omega comes off the top with a crossbody on both. Omega and Colt hit butt bomb variations on both on the corners. Colt tells him to stop but Omega turns on him with an enzuigiri and a uranage for 2 as Rhett breaks it up. Rhett tosses Omega and Claudio hits the no hands airplane spin (UFO). Omega back in with a slingshot missile dropkick and a Dragon suplex for 2 on Claudio. Omega goes up top but Cabana cuts him off. Omega shoves him off but Rhett comes in with the pop up super Sex Factor. Cabana rolls Rhett into the Billy Goat’s Curse. Claudio unleashes the bicycle kick to send Cabana flying and hits the bridged German suplex on Rhett for the 3 at 6:16. Fast paced opener with some interesting personalities, cool spots, and a lot of action to get the crowd into the show. **1/2

• Next, we get a taped promo from Tyler Black after defeating Kenny King at Reverse The Curse. Tyler Black says he got into the business five years ago because he loved it more than anything. He says he wanted to follow in the footsteps of ROH greats like Low Ki, Joe, and yes even Austin Aries to become ROH champ. He says he’s had a quick rise and he’s let the critics get to him. He has lost some of his love for wrestling and lost track of what’s important in wrestling and in life. He says wrestling doesn’t have to be the way they tell you it is, you don’t have to follow in footsteps, and you don’t have to listen to Vince McMahon. Somewhere in here, he drifts into ra-ra ROH and bash the fed mode. He says things will change and we’re (we?) taking over the world. It may not sound like it but this drifts suspiciously close to tweener territory if you ask me.

• Erick Stevens & Bison Smith vs. Delirious & Necro Butcher. Nana gets the stick and says Necro is stuck at the airport like a jabroni, due to the massive blizzard. He says “Embassy Forever,” and let’s get this over with so he can go have some shrimp cocktails. Delirious jumps them at the bell sans introductions with back elbows because he’s going it alone. They quickly take over and put the boots to him. They work him over in the corner with a pair of running clotheslines and a huge mask toss across the ring. Stevens tosses him to the floor and into the crowd. Bison gives him a running splash over the barricade into the crowd. BUT PELLE HAS COME OUT!

• Erick Stevens & Bison Smith vs. Delirious & Necro Butcher Pelle Primeau. Crowd is dead as shit for the mystery partner. Pelle with the multiple headscissors on Stevens. Stevens cuts him off with a back elbow but eats one himself from Pelle. Pelle tries a crossbody. Stevens catches him but Pelle reverses to a DDT. Bison in and takes out Pelle with a clothesline. Stevens with a release overhead German suplex on Pelle and Bison press slams him to the floor. Brutal. Here comes Bobby Dempsey.

• Erick Stevens & Bison Smith vs. Delirious & Necro Butcher Pelle Primeau Bobby Dempsey. In the war to settle the score, Dempsey hits a Ho Train on both of them and the crowd loves it now. Bobby with the World’s Strongest Slam for 2. Delirious tags in with rights on Stevens. Dempsey gives him a neckbreaker and they both hit splashes for 2. Bison breaks it up and tosses Delirious to the floor. Nana puts the boots to Delirious and buries him in the flag. Delirious tries fighting back with succumbs to the numbers again. Bison with chops in the corner and a knee to choke Delirious. The ref threatens to DQ him. Stevens tries a back suplex but Delirious flips out. He tries to make a tag but Stevens half crabs him back to the heel corner. Bison in and they take him down with a double shoulderblock. Stevens tries a Ho Train but whiffs on it. Delirious lowers the bridge and Bison wipes out. Delirious makes the tag and Dempsey is in with clotheslines. Dempsey with a backdrop and an Exploder suplex. Delirious hits the Panic Attack and Dempsey follows with the cannonball splash in the corner. Delirious heads up top and hits a flip splash off the top on Stevens and Dempsey hits one on Bison off the apron. Back in, Dempsey with a bodyslam on Bison. Delirious heads up top but Stevens tosses him to the floor. The heels with a double clothesline and a tag team clawhold slam into a backbreaker. Cover gets 2 but Stevens sells the knee on impact to the floor. Dempsey backdrops out of a piledriver attempt but runs into a clothesline from Bison. Cover gets 2. Bison puts Dempsey on the top rope and hits the modified Razor’s Edge for the 3 at 9:36 for the trio. Decent given the circumstances but they didn’t have much to work with. ** for the whole affair.

• Fight Without Honor: Eddie Kingston vs. Chris Hero. Pre-match, we get footage of Hero absolutely smashing Kingston with the Roaring Elbow with the loaded pad from Glory by Honor VIII. The fans fuck up the timing for smacking the banners in tune with Hero’s music. I’m disappointed a section of the crowd didn’t spontaneously start chanting, “You fucked up!” and “You can’t count!” at them. Somehow, I think that would put slightly miscalculating a springboard Phoenix Splash off a balcony through a table in a little more perspective. No gear tonight because it’s a brawl. Kingston jumps him in the aisle to get things going. They trade stiff forearms on the floor. Kingston gets the advantages with a yakuza kick and brutal chops. Kingston gets on the apron and Hero fashwashes him and gives him a suicide baseball slide dropkick to the floor. Hero gets a chain and hits him across the back with it on the floor. Hero wraps the chain around him and into his mouth and rams him into the guardrail again. Hero goes to the Batista kicks and continues wrapping and choking the chain around Kingston’s throat. Kingston tries fighting back but eats a Roaring Elbow for 2. Hero uses the chain to put some force behind some headbutts. Kingston comes back with a smack but eats another boot and he’s down again. Hero hits the chain-assisted Roaring Elbow. Kingston isn’t bumping but he’s selling the intensity of the blows well. Hero unravels the chain and smacks Kingston and gives him a fireman’s carry slam on the chain. Hero goes for a running LigerBomb but Kingston reverses to a Frankensteiner and then gives him a Sambo suplex on the chain. Kingston goes to the chops, forearms, and a headbutt. Kingston eats boot on a charge but he blocks the big boot and comes back with an enzuigiri and a brainbuster for 2. Hero reverses a whip to come back with a forearm. He hits a flying burrito in the corner and another Roaring Elbow for 2. Hero rips off Kingston’s beater. Kingston fights back and rips off Hero’s shirt. Hero gives him the double Roaring Elbows for a close 2. These are hella stiff shots, but I’d like some more variation. Hero detaches one of the pieces of the guardrail. Not just the ROH sheet metal banner, but the whole thing. Hero props it up in the corner. Kingston teases the Saito suplex through it and instead Hero gives him a backdrop suplex in the middle of the ring. Hero changes the guardrail setup to a table like in the corner. Hero places him on the top rope. Kingston teases a piledriver through it. Hero reverses and instead gives him the MOTHERFUCKIN’ SHEER DROP KAWADA DRIVER ON THE GUARDRAIL! Kingston is DOA. “Holy shit” chant. Kingston kicks out at 2. Huge “Eddie” chant. Hero wraps the chain again and goes for the hangman’s neckbreaker but Kingston reverses to an overhead straitjacket release suplex. Kingston wraps the chain around the arm for the LARIATO! Crowd is super hot for the finishing sequence. Big “ROH” chant. Kingston gets the chain but Hagadorn distracts and Sara Del Ray hits Kingston with a series of kicks. Kingston cuts her off with a leg capture overhead suplex. Kingston ducks Hero’s loaded elbow pad and gives him a Backdrop Driver. Kingston goes for his own Roaring Elbow but Hero goes low with the loaded pad, gives him a kiss, and then gives him the Roaring Elbow of Doom again. Cover gets 2. Crowd behind Eddie again. Hero comes off the ropes but runs into a series of spinning backfists for a close 2. Kingston gets the loaded elbow pad and puts it on and gives Hero the elbow for the win at 15:10. Anticlimatic ending and the crowd still applauds. Right guy went over, but that finish was not enough. Even though it played into the gimmick and the psychology of the previous finish, it’s problematic because once you break out a move that could legit kill a guy and he kicks out, there’s nowhere to go but down. Good stiff, hardcore match though that I liked more than Colt-Corino or Homicide-Steen from Chicago last year. ***1/4

• The Young Bucks vs. Kevin Steen & El Generico. We get footage of ROH: Contention in Manassas where Steenerico won round 1 and ROH: Aries vs. Richards where they also won round 2. Let’s hope The Young Bucks get the win, otherwise this could turn into Orlando Jordan vs. Chris Benoit in terms of competitiveness. Bucks get a decent ovation. Surprisingly, Steenerico doesn’t get a big pop either. Prazak talks about how Steen needs surgery on his knee but is determined to stay by his partner’s side. Steenerico is coming off a loss to Bison Smith and Erick Stevens from the previous night due to Steen’s knee. Generico and Nick to start. They trade waistlocks until Nick gets a headlock. Generico reverses and works the arm wringer. He sends off Nick who counters to a springboard knucklelock armdrag off the top and a Bluechipper dropkick. He hits his taunt and it’s a standoff. Steen and Matt now get in. Big chant for “Mr. Wrestling.” Steen gets a big shoulderblock and another but runs into a Bluechipper dropkick and sells the knee on impact. Prazak wonders if the Bucks will target the knee or will exercise “sportsmanship.” Since when is it sportsmanship to NOT exploit weaknesses? In the kayfabe sense, cheating is different, but bodyparts and injuries are fair game. Matt offers the handshake and Steen smacks him instead. Matt spits his gum at him. Steen picks up the gum and starts chewing it only to spit it in Nick’s face on the apron and pieface him to the floor to a big reaction. Matt knocks Generico off the other apron to retaliate and NOW it’s go time. They slug it out with forearms. Matt runs off but Generico slides in with the drop toe hold and Steen hits the somersault legdrop to a pop. Steen knocks Nick off the apron again and gives him the snot rocket. Very entertaining sequence. Generico in with some boots for Matt and a leg lariat for 2. Steen back in with chops and a high backdrop for 2. Steen gestures to the crowd and then bites his ear. Generico in and punches the ear. Where’s Prazak with his lamentations of sportsmanship now? At least be consistent. Matt cuts off Generico with a standing sliced bread. Tag to Nick to runs through Generico and knocks Steen off the apron with a beautiful springboard dropkick. Nick with a back elbow and a springboard tornado DDT on Generico. Nick goes to the modified anchor hold but Generico gets the ropes. Steen gets the crowd going with a huge Ole chant for Generico. Matt comes in with a double foot stomp on Generico’s arm for 2. Matt with a stiff whip for 2. Steen gets the crowd rabid again. The Bucks continue to work him over with quick tags. They hit a nice hiptoss handstand dropkick combo for 2. Steen gets the crowd going again. Generico seems inspired by the noise. I know the hot tag is the standard structure but this is some great selling of the concept by Steenerico. Generico flips out of a back suplex attempt and runs over to give Steen the hot tag. Steen in with forearms for both. Both Bucks in and gives him the same hiptoss/dropkick combo but Steen no sells and comes back with a clothesline for both. Steen hits the cannonball splash in the corner and gives Nick the Orton DDT for 2. Matt trips up Steen but Generico comes charging in and launches off his back to hit a top con giro to the floor on Matt. Steen with a package pumphandle neckbreaker for 2 on Nick. Prazak brings up the damage it could have done to Steen’s knee but Steen isn’t really selling it. Nick flips out of a powerbomb and comes back with a roundhouse enzuigiri. Matt in and knocks Generico off the apron. The Bucks with a double foot stomp/reverse DDT combo for 2. Steen comes back with a Codebreaker and tags in Generico.

• Crossbody off the top gets 2. Matt reverses a half nelson suplex for Nick to run in with the step up gamengiri and then knocks Steen to the floor. Nick with a springboard X-factor but Steen pulls him to the outside and gives him an apron powerbomb. Steen eats a superkick from Matt only for Generico to give him an Exploder into the second turnbuckle. Nice back and forth action. Generico goes for the yakuza kick but runs into a boot. Matt handsprings into the wheelbarrow position and then flips through Code Red style for the reverse Low Down. Cover but Steen breaks it up. Nick tosses Steen to the floor. Matt with a baseball slide dropkick and Nick follows with a corkscrew plancha on Steen. Matt with the super badass no hands Diamond Dust on Generico. Then they hit a standing moonsault, springboard Frog Splash combo. Cover gets a very narrow 2. That really could/should have been the finish. Nick whiffs off the top and Steen tries to apply the Sharpshooter. Matt looks to break up but gets sent to the floor. Generico hits the yakuza kick and half nelson suplex. Steen comes off the top with the Frog Splash. Nick kicks out at a very close 2. Same could be said for that sequence as well. Steen sells the knee on impact to the apron. Nick flips out of the Package Piledriver attempt. He tries a superkick but Steen throws it into an incoming Matt Jackson. Steen with the Low Down and rolls Nick into the Sharpshooter. Matt tries breaking it up with a Batista kick but Steen no sells and spits in his face. Generico Cactus clotheslines him to the floor. Steen reapplies, but his knee buckles. Matt sends Generico into the guardrail. Steen tries the Package Piledriver but Matt breaks it up with a superkick. Matt with a Finlay forward roll slam, Nick with a 450 and Matt with a moonsault. They both cover and Steen STILL kicks out at 2. They are pulling out the stops here. The Bucks can’t believe it. They hit 4 consecutive superkicks and a double superkick and finally Steen eats the pin at 17:10. Terrific extended RR formula match. Steen looks superhuman after that performance. His selling of the knee only seemed to appear when the story needed it, but even in losing, this put him over huge as a guy with a lot of fortitude. I wasn’t digging the score of kickouts earlier but it made the finish even better. ****1/4

• Post-match, we get a “Mr. Wrestling” chant and an embrace from Steen and Generico. Steen gets the stick. “Steen” chant. Some fan wants to talk shit, so Steen says he may not be Nigel or Danielson but he wants some respect. Big applause for that. Steen says not to kick them out because he’ll meet them after the show to kick their “asshole virgin” asses. Steen says he started 10 years ago and prided himself on performing and giving the crowd what they wanted. Steen says he’s not the same man he use to be whether from injuries or weight gain. Steen says he wants to thank all of the fans of ROH, even the two assholes, for showing their appreciation. He says he wants to thank various promotions including “ROH, the best goddamn promotion in the world.” He thanks all the wrestlers including the great ones who taught him what to do and the shitty ones who taught him what not to do. Some fans are sporadically chanting, “Please don’t go.” “Mr. Wrestling” chant gets going and Steen starts crying. He wants to thank Generico last but not least. They embrace again to big applause. Generico’s crying too. Steen then through the tears manages to say, “I hate your fucking guts!” and gives him a HUGE low blow. NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! He gets a chair and gives Generico an unprotected shot to the head. Cabana comes out and shoves him in disbelief. Steen kisses Cabana and leaves to a shocked crowd. That was an amazing turn. Perfectly executed. One thing worth noting though, whether it’s the acoustics of the building or the DVD audio or my average television and speakers, this was damn near impossible to hear without plugging in my headphones.

• Kenny King vs. Roderick Strong. Roddy goes to the arm wringer and Kenny reverses but Roddy rolls through and reverses again. Roddy works the top wristlock only for Kenny to reverse again. Roddy handstands out but runs into a drop toe hold and Kenny floats over into the side headlock. Roddy sends him off but Kenny gets a shoulderblock. Kenny leap frogs and taunts but eats a leg lariat for a 1 count. Roddy with a chop and Kenny begs off. Roddy with more chops and works Kenny around the corner. Kenny slides out of a slingshot suplex only to get knocked off the apron by Roddy. Roddy follows out with a clothesline off the apron. Roddy with more chops and tells the ringside crew to move. Roddy tries to ram him into the apron but Kenny jumps up on the guardrail and comes back with a corkscrew flip splash. Kenny rams his head into the guardrail a few times and taunts to jeers. Back in, Kenny with a snap suplex and floats over into GnP. Kenny mocks a Let’s go Roderick taunt. Kenny with a spinwheel kick for 2. Kenny with a backbreaker and taunts some more. Kenny tries a spingboard legdrop but eats canvass. Kenny dances and goes for a clothesline in the corner but instead Roddy comes back with a forearm, clothesline and uranage backbreaker for 2. Roddy with some forearms and a Bluechipper dropkick for 2. They slug it out with forearms and Roddy gets the advantages with a chop. Roddy runs into a spinebuster for 2. Roddy goes for a StrongHold. Kenny leg whips out but Roddy handsprings over to stay on his feet. Kenny with the handspring Pele kick for 2. Roddy elbows out of a fireman’s carry and comes back with a boot. Roddy with an enzuigiri and a backbreaker on the apron. Cover gets 2. Roddy tries to put him on the top rope but Kenny sunset flips him for 2. Roddy tries a kick but crotches himself on the top rope and eats a roundhouse from King for 2. They go up top. Kenny backflips off and comes back with another enzuigiri then hits a Royal Flush (fireman’s carry into a Black Hole Slam) for 2. Kenny goes for the Elijah Express but eats turnbuckle. Roddy with something like the 10th enzuigiri of the match and then a Torture Rack backbreaker that lands awkwardly for 2. Roddy goes for a fireman’s carry but Kenny slides out and school boys him at 10:05. Good for what it was, a 10 minute match with a roll up finish, but I’ve seen significantly better from both guys. **3/4

• Alex Koslov vs. Rocky Romero. Rocky chants and he gets on the stick. He’s glad to be back. It was supposed to be a tag match involving Teddy Hart and Jack Evans but they weren’t able to make it in time. AK refuses the shake to be a dick. AK jumps him from behind with a side headlock that goes nowhere. Rocky with a takedown and his own side headlock that also goes nowhere. Crowd is restless early as they weren’t exactly looking for this mtach. Greco-Roman knuckle lock up. They do the bridge spot and trade monkey flips before both doing the bridge and Rocky takes him down with a headscissors. Alright, that’s cool. AK gets back to his feet and Rocky does it again. AK avoids a charge and gets a springboard crossbody. AK cartwheels over and stops Rocky cold just by putting his hand up. Crowd eats the spot up as AK gets a “RUSSIA! RUSSIA!” chant going. Rocky cuts him off with a dropkick and a Cuba chant. Prazak calls it a “communism battle” as Rocky headscissors AK into the ropes. Rocky gets whipped into the ropes but avoids a charge and gets a suicide dive. And now, we dance. Back in, AK with an overhand chop and Rocky with the sidekicks. They exchange more before Rocky gets a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. Rocky with an up and over but eats an enzuigiri in a majorly telegraphed spot. Cover gets 2. AK goes to the chinlock. Rocky elbows out but runs into a side Russian legsweep. AK gets the ushanka and gets a clap going. AK hits the Russian dance kicks but Rocky ducks a Batista kick and gets another headscissors. AK drop toe holds him into the ropes. AK applies the Mexican surfboard in the ropes. Nice. AK whiffs on a flying burrito and eats a running knee strike and a flapjack. Rocky gets the ushanka now and mocks AK. Rocky with a springboard tornado DDT. AK baseball slides to the floor and chops Rocky into the crowd. AK follows with a splash off the top into the front row. Back in, AK goes for the Frog Splash but eats knee. Rocky with a mule kick for 2. Rocky runs into a brutal superkick from AK. AK heads up top but Rocky meets him there. Rocky flies into the Diablo armbar and the ref calls for the bell (I think?) at 11:21. Not a lot of build to that finish. Just like the last match though, they had a perfectly competent back and forth encounter and had even more crowd interaction. If you had told me before the show I would enjoy this match more than the last one, I wouldn’t have believed you. ***

• ROH Tag Team Championship: The American Wolves vs. The Briscoes (c). This was set up by the American Wolves attacking the Briscoes at FB 2008 and Pillmanizing Mark’s knee. No handshake that I can see. Davey and Mark to start. They lock up into the corner with a rope break. They work the headscissors spot until Davey kips out to a headlock. Eddie in and Mark goes to the hammerlock. Eddie with a snapmare and a kick to the back. Mark retaliates with his own snapmare and kick to the back. Davey back in. Mark goes to the side headlock and they work a cover spot a couple times. Davey with the snapmare now and a kick to the back for the third time. Mark smacks him and goes back to the side headlock. Mark goes to a neck crank and Davey rolls him over to go for a kimura. Mark rolls him up for 2. Jay and Eddie in. Eddie yakuza kicks Mark off the apron. Davey in. Jay goes for a couple of shoulderblocks but Davey stands stiff. Davey goes for one and now Jay yakuza kicks Eddie off the apron. Davey tries to do it to Mark but he avoids. That’s the same spot the Bucks/Steenerico did earlier. Briscoes with a double team shoulderblock on Davey and he rolls to the floor. Back in, all four break down into a brawl. Jay and Davey take down the others with yakuza kicks. They try it on each other but they both no sell. Davey gets a head of steam but runs into a Bluechipper dropkick. Eddie gets taken down by a Sambo Exploder suplex and a yakuza kick. Cover gets 2 from Jay. The Briscoes hit a tag team back elbow and senton for 2 from Mark. Mark with a brainbuster for 2. Mark goes to the triangle choke to wear down Eddie. Eddie rolls over and gets the ropes. Mark tries a kick on Eddie but he catches the foot and passes it to Davey. Eddie with a gamengiri and Davey with a Dragonscrew leg whip through the ropes. Davey goes to the reverse Texas Cloverleaf but Mark gets the ropes. Davey with a running forearm to Jay and then Wolves do a blind tag. Eddie with a running dropkick into Mark’s bad knee. Mark with a Diamond Cutter and Jay in with a double foot stomp. Davey jumps Jay from behind to double team. Jay ducks a double clothesline to give Davey a superkick and Eddie a running clothesline in the corner. Jay with a spinebuster on Eddie for 2. Hagadorn and the ref checks on Eddie because it looked like he had a tough landing. Davey and Mark brawl on the floor. The commentators speculate that it could be a broken arm for Eddie. Davey and Jay slug it out in the ring. Eddie reveals he was faking and flapjacks Jay into the Alarm Clock. Eddie superkicks him into a German Suplex from Davey and Eddie bridges him for a close 2 count. Eddie does push ups and Davey lets them know they outsmarted them. Eddie sends Jay to the floor and Davey sends him into the barricade. Davey throws a chair on him and chokes him with a flag from ringside. Eddie chokes him from the wrist tape and smartly hides it from the ref. That’s pretty cool.

• Davey in and continues choking and finally disposes of the tape. Davey sends Jay into the corner and hits the running forearm and the yakuza kick. Davey with a Northern Lights suplex for 2. Eddie goes to the rear chinlock. Eddie runs into a DVD from Jay. Mark and Davey in. Mark with a spinwheel kick and some chops. He hits the Kung Fu on Eddie. Mark with a springboard flying burrito and clotheslines Eddie to the floor. Mark with a Northern Lights suplex on Davey for 2. Eddie pulls Davey to the floor and Mark follows with a flip splash on both to polite applause but not the huge pop you’d expect for that sequence. Mark gives Davey a discus throat thrust on the top rope and an iconoclasm off the top for 2. Jay gives Eddie a Flatliner into the 2nd turnbuckle on the apron. Badass. Mark with a flying sidekick off the top on Davey. The Briscoes get the backbreaker/guillotine legdrop combo (Sidewinder) for 2. Jay and Davey go through a reversal sequence that ends with a school boy for 2 for Jay. Davey suckers Jay in to a boot from Eddie on the turnbuckle in the corner. Eddie and Jay slug it out with forearms. Eddie with an enzuigiri on Jay but runs into a big boot in the corner. Eddie comes back with another enzuigiri and a backpack jawbreaker for 2. Davey yakuza kicks Mark off the apron. Davey enzuigiris him on the top rope just like Eddie did earlier. Eddie with a super Frankensteiner. Davey with a running knee strike and a DR Driver on Jay. Cover gets a near 2. Eddie rolls him into the half crab and Davey with the Texas Cloverleaf. Both Briscoes reverse into small packages for 2. Davey sends Mark to the floor. The Wolves with the Alarm Clock again. They hit a kick combo and a powerbomb/backcracker combo for 2. Eddie puts the half crab on again. Jay makes the ropes again. “Man up” chant. The Wolves set up the Doomsday Device but Mark in with a super uranage off the top on Davey. Jay with a release German suplex on Eddie and a LARIATO for 2. Eddie and Jay exchange kicks until Eddie runs into a double superkick from the Briscoes but Davey breaks up the cover. Jay this the Jaydriller and Mark with a piledriver on the floor. Cover gets 2. The Briscoes hit the Doomsday Device on Eddie and that’s enough for new champs at 22:51. Very good match but nothing earth-shattering. About what you’d expect from these great teams. Some repetitive spots from other matches are a drawback and the crowd wasn’t enthusiastic for any of it, but Eddie’s foiled attempt to exploit the arm was a nice midmatch turning point. ****

• Post-match, Prazak tries to lead us away to highlights but Claudio interrupts. Hero jumps the Briscoes from behind with a roaring elbow. Oh shit! KOW REUNITE! Hero and Claudio set up the KRS TWO! BAM! Huge “Kings of Wrestling” chant before they grab the belts to pose.

• Jack Evans vs. Teddy Hart. After not making it due to the blizzard, it turns out these guys were just a little late. Big “Welcome Back!” chant. Julius Smokes is holding court. Teddy Hart gets on the stick and says this is about the best professional wrestlers you don’t get to see in the states. The announcers talk about their AAA feud. Uh oh. This doesn’t sound good. No ref so I guess this is an unsanctioned exhibition. Jack Evans starts with some break dancing for cheap heat. Evans flips off a clothesline and Teddy hits a vertical suplex. Jack flips out of a back suplex and hits a spin kick. Teddy powder outs and Jack follows with the Super Space Blind Tiger Drop according to Prazak. Jack sends him into a barricade and then hits a springboard 450 back in. He tries to pin but again THERE’S NO REF. Jack gets the boots up into the corner but Teddy hits a powerbomb into a backcracker. Teddy hits some knees and a piledriver from the apron through the ropes. Teddy hits a package brainbuster or something. Teddy with a cuttthroat backcracker. He goes for a SSP but eats knee. Jack with a atomic dropkick and the Big Twist. Jack goes for the 630 but eats knee. Jack tries to flip out of a back suplex but Teddy catches him and hits the flipping powerbomb. Holy shit. This is insane. Julius counts but kick out at 2. “Teddy” chant. Teddy with a straitjacket piledriver for 2. These are some batshit insane, crazy moves. Jack with a handspring back elbow and a springboard knees first senton. Jack with the 630 and that gets the 3 at 5:51. Are these guys doing it to please the fans or doing it to put themselves over? That question makes this hard to evaluate. If we’re going for metaphors, it’s more of a slam dunk contest than a basketball game. They basically shit all over the rest of the roster by doing a bunch of cool moves and then upping the ante by kicking out of all of them. At the same time, there’s a blizzard going on and they still came out to get the crowd involved. This kind of spotfest would get them fans but wouldn’t get them a job if it was a tryout. No rating.