11/29/2018 - LR 112

Sam Hewitt and Brian Shelzi opened the program hyping up the night's matches - an eight man tag team match that sees World's Champion Ben Chrenshaw, Alexander Irvine, Rafa & Graham Gosch up against David Troy, Bam Markham, Mushigihara and... a mystery partner.  Shelzi scoffed at the notion that the partner was a mystery and when pressed by Hewitt to tell us who it was, Shelzi just gave him an incredulous look.  Undeterred, Hewitt continued on about how that would be a main event in any city within the Great Lakes, but tonight it was the opening bout as a perhaps more volatile bout would be the main event - a Heritage Tag Team title bout to be exact.  "A technical wrestling clinic this is not." said Shelzi, who reminded fans that rivalries are criss-crossing every which way in this title match.  Hewitt said the title bout will finally determine proper tag team champions, after more than a month of mystery as a result of Eli Buchanan outright refusing to team with Jason Cashe after the two defeated Alexander Irvine and Carl Whitaker back in October.  Would it be El Hijo de Pollo picking up his first title win here in Lion's Road, or would Buchanan and Hammerstein each get their third reign as a tag team champion? We'll find out tonight!

Seven of the eight fighters are inside the ring, the Dangerous Mix look down the aisle as the WALL, Rafa and Graham Gosch are growing impatient.  The Pollovision screen comes to life and shows the front door of the arena.

The fans recognize the voice and pop!

The door swings open and AJ Knight steps into the arena, the camera following him as he marches towards the ringside area...

AJ KNIGHT

How did it feel to be on the other side of it Ben? Getting blindsided like that? Not so great on the other foot I bet.

AJ turns the corner, still no joviality to his face, just raw anger...

AJ KNIGHT

When this whole thing started, when you first blindsided me, when you betrayed me and you stuck the knife in my back, in August... I blamed myself for the whole thing, you stabbing me in the back, everything even down to you joining the WALL... But then I realized one thing: It's not about me here... This was about you Ben, it always was always has been. See all you are is a leech!

AJ continues his undeterred march towards the ring new disdain in his face and his voice.

AJ KNIGHT

I've got to ask you Ben, have you ever once in your life actually stood on your own? First you team with Robb Daniels, then the Red Army, then Irvine, then you piggybacked off me for a while before finding your way back to Irvine! Now you finally have that belt, but you know the only reason for that is standing right next to you! I've got to ask: Who is Ben Chrenshaw really? Do you actually know? Or are you so wrapped up in your lies you've forgotten? Irvine handed you that belt on a silver platter, and right now you're staring down the rightful king across the ring from you, and let me tell you David Troy's waiting to tear your head off. But if doesn't get the job done, I'll rip that crown from your head and beat you to death with it. Of course...

AJ looks at the curtain.

AJ KNIGHT

AJ Knight charges through the curtain, down the aisle and slides into the ring as Brian Shelzi wonders if AJ modelled his promo after the rant segment of the old Rick Mercer Report on CBC, which actually makes Hewitt chuckle! AJ tries to get at Chrenshaw, but the World's Champion dips out.  Rafa and Bam charge each other, David Troy rolls out of the ring and catches Chrenshaw off guard as Irvine intercepts AJ and those two battle.  That leaves Gosch and Mushigihara as the only two without a dance partner... so they naturally pair off also! Hewitt points out that two referees have been assigned to this match with Cordell Garner inside the ring and Xavier Price outside of it, but Brian Shelzi wonders aloud why they don't do that for all tag team matches.  Hewitt doesn't have an answer.

Anyway, Chrenshaw tried his best to keep his distance from Troy despite Dynamite's persistent attacks.  He tried to roll back into the ring, but AJ Knight broke off from attacking Irvine to try and stomp the one time Silent Assassin.  Chrenshaw rolled back out and ate a middle kick from Troy, then doubled over as Troy opted to attack the legs.  Markham and Rafa continued their brawling from their first match, leaving no one corner untouched.  Finally when things slowed down just a bit, both referees entered the ring and called for some order and surprisingly got it.

The sides debate on who will start and Chrenshaw opts to start for his side, which creates some conflict on the other side as both AJ and Troy want at him.  However, it's AJ that gets in there but it doesn't take long for the World's Champion to bail out of the ring, signalling an automatic tag.  Alexander Irvine stops AJ from exiting and gives his side an early advantage as he backs the former World's Champion into the ropes and gives him a barrage of knees to the midsection to soften him up.  Garner orders Irvine off the ropes, but gets ignored so a yellow card is issued and Garner forcibly separates them.  On the forced break, AJ is grabbed from behind by Chrenshaw who punches him in the back of the head a couple of times! Irvine tags in Gosch, who walks in and grabs AJ as he tries to turn around...

GERMAN SUPLEX!

AJ plays face in peril for a few minutes, but it's largely by his own stubbornness - using any open opportunity to try and go after Chrenshaw instead of making a tag.  Gosch tags in Rafa, who doesn't want to play ball with this WALL game and dumps AJ into his partner's corner and calls for Bam Markham.  The Bull from Boulder is happy to oblige and the two butt heads like two bulls in a China shop, just wildin' out inside the ring.  Markham takes Rafa down, but the crowd roars as Rafa is able to neutralize the ground strikes and locks in an Omaplata! As impressive as it is, they're way too close to the ropes for a win to be had.  Markham is tagged by Troy, who hops in and tells Rafa he wants Chrenshaw.  The WALL smiles when Rafa tells him he doesn't care! Troy fires off some leg kicks, limiting Rafa's movement but then tries for a clinch.  Rafa hoists him up onto his shoulders, but Mushigihara saves him from a potential Death Valley driver by grabbing his arm and pulling him to safety.  Rafa backs up as a tag is made, trying not to get caught in enemy territory and gets tagged by Graham Gosch. 

Gosch and Mushigihara circle each other with Gosch making axe motions, they lock-up and Gosch tries to go behind but the God-Beast thwarts the attempt and pummels him down to his knees.  Gosch avoids being picked up by grabbing the leg of the big man, forcing him to let go.  As soon as he does, Gosch shoots in for a takedown attempt and only the ropes save the mighty Mushi.  After the break, Mushigihara backs him into the opposite ropes with sumo strikes.  Garner calls for a break and he gets a clean one for a change, Gosch circles out - refusing to engage on Mushi's terms as he calculates what he wants to do.  Mushigihara gets frustrated and tries to rush him, Gosch goes behind and manages to trap up the legs and drops the big man to the mat with a trip.  Gosch tries to control him, but Mushi's dead set on getting up - so some elbows to the head are the only cure for that.  Gosch goes into north-south and peppers the Japanese behemoth with knees until Troy saves him by head kicking Gosch! Gosch rolls out of the ring, bringing in Irvine.  Troy gets Mushi out and these two men circle, Irvine not forgetting the head kick from the summertime. 

It's a strike heavy exchange, Irvine trying to clinch strike and Troy staying on the outside.  Irvine finally grabs a leg kick and holds him as he delivers left hands into the body, as he backs him up into enemy territory.  Troy tries to break free, but Chrenshaw tags in and smirks as AJ tries to get in and draws Garner's attention.  AJ is so hellbent on Chrenshaw that Price needs to come into the ring and help Garner restrain him, all the while Markham and Mushi share a chuckle at the sight.  However, no laughing matter is Troy being roughed up by Irvine, Chrenshaw and even Gosch - who grabs an arm with Irvine as Chrenshaw knees the man he beat for the belt in the corner.  Troy spits in Chrenshaw's face! The crowd ROARS at the act of defiance, then Chrenshaw tries to close the gap but gets low-blowed! AJ breaks free and tackles Chrenshaw, pounding away! Mushigihara and Markham come to Troy's aid, but Rafa is drawn in just to intercept the Heritage Heavyweight Champion. 

All hell has broken loose would be an understatement, but Irvine manages to clamp a rear naked choke on AJ and help Chrenshaw get up - only to be socked by a Flashbang kick! Chrenshaw rolls out to the floor! Mushigihara tries to save AJ, but he's already been choked out.  Irvine lets go and gets into it with the Japanese God-Beast and the fans eat up that exchange... which ends with Mushi delivering a belly to belly suplex to Irvine! Rafa and Markham are in the aisle, Troy grabs the top rope and leaps out onto Chrenshaw! Mushigihara surveys the scene...

JUDO THROW!

Gosch takes the big man down!

ANACONDA VISE!

The Goschlock gets applied... sort of.  Mushigihara is not the easiest man to tie up and Gosch is discovering this quickly, but traps up the arm... then rotates...

THE CROWD GROANS!

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MUSHI TAPS!

Gosch keeps it on a few seconds longer, but Garner pulls Mushigihara free.  Gosch gets up and raises his arms in victory, but the Japanese Behemoth is not happy whatsoever! Gosch exits the ring and stops to look at the chaos around him, but shrugs and walks off.  Both referees try to restrain Mushigihara, but he easily breaks free and exits the ring, chasing after Gosch.  His manager Eddie Dante comes out to try and calm the big man down as we go to break. 

We come back from break with Sam Hewitt announcing that Mandeville Nelson has added Graham Gosch vs. Mushigihara in singles action for next week's card, which of course is in addition to the big Heritage Heavyweight title rematch between Bam Markham and Rafa.  Shelzi tells us it's main event time and brings up the stats...

The main event was a wild, bloody affair that couldn't even wait for the opening bell to sound! Cashe and Pollo jumped Hammerstein in the aisle, pummelling him with punches and kicks before Eli Buchanan sprinted down to join the fray and even up the odds.  The four men would split into pairs with Buchanan and Pollo battling into the ring while Cashe tried to whip Hammer into the guardrail, but got reversed and ended up against them himself.  Cashe was unceremoniously dumped over the barricade and scrambled to recover as Hammerstein climbed over them himself, the Spessal Made man would grab a chair and tried to swing but ate a kick to the gut that interrupted the process.  Hammerstein then parted the London crowd by whipping Cashe further back, into a row of chairs.  The Los Olivos, California native then began folding up chairs and piling them on top of each other before calling for the Hammersteiner, but Cashe countered with several headbutts to the face and delivered a snap suplex onto the pile! He floated over and continued raining punches down onto his foe.

Back inside the ring, Pollo has Buchanan up against the ropes, choking the hell out of him.  Referee Buster Powell pulled him off after the five count and issued a yellow card, drawing the ire of the chicken man.  Buchanan stepped forward, nailing a throat thrust on Pollo that sent him reeling backwards.  This simple change of momentum led to Buchanan taking charge for the next several minutes, cutting off Pollo at every turn and making him pay for his short-sighted attempts at offense with hellacious suplexes.  Finally, Eli tried for his signature Tiger suplex but Pollo rolled forward into a pin attempt.

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NO!

Right after Eli's kickout, Pollo superkicked him - the Chicken Scratch! Buchanan went down and Pollo paraded around the ring, drawing boos from the London crowd.  As Buchanan scrambled to get back to his feet, he got put into the corner by Pollo.  The chicken man dashed across the ring into the opposite corner and sprinted back across, delivering a European uppercut! He tried to deliver the second half of his Ninety Nine Cent Special, but Cashe hollered out and Pollo moved! Cashe charged in and landed an impressively aggressive crossbody splash that would make the Stinger smile.  Buchanan staggered out and Pollo tried to go for the cutter, but Hammerstein grabbed his feet and yanked him out of the ring! Hammerstein began pounding on Pollo, telling him "this is for Holly!" before Cashe called out to him from the apron, Hammerstein turned around and a somersault attack put the American Monster on the ground! Eli Buchanan leaned over the middle rope, then pulled himself up with the top.  The fans roared their approval as Eli climbed the turnbuckles and soared off with a flying crossbody - taking Pollo out just as he got back up and catching Cashe with a knee! Cashe went down, blood formed underneath him - and Shelzi speculated he might have lost some teeth.  The slow motion replay didn't do anything to solve the mystery, but did make the crowd groan at the sight of Buchanan's knee catching the unsuspecting Cashe.  Shelzi further commented on the matter, wondering how many teeth Cashe has left after that.

The bloody Cashe would get up and grab Eli, taking him from the ground up to his feet in a half a second - then slammed him head first into the ring post.  Cashe leaned over, grabbed a fan's beer and took a swig and used it like mouthwash before spitting into Eli's now bloody face.  The crowd gasped as Cashe flashed his toothless smile, then began chanting "YOU SICK FUCK!" as he went over and used his remaining teeth to bite into Buchanan's wound.  Hammerstein would come over to help out as Pollo recovered on the ground, grabbing Cashe in a full nelson to restrain him while Buchanan got his bearings back.  With Eli back up, the former Tiger Mask Red grabbed Cashe's head and repeatedly hit him into the ring post - busting him up good.  Hammerstein threw Cashe down and the duo turned to see Pollo doing his best tight rope walk impression along the the top of the guardrail before leaping off onto Hammerstein! His hurracanrana attempt is thwarted as Hammer hauls him back up, Buchanan quickly tries to figure out the best spot to splat the chicken thorn in his side for the past four years.  Buchanan grabs a chair and unfolds it on the ground, telling Hammer to end him! Hammer goes to step forward, but Cashe grabs his tights and low blows him! Pollo is able to complete the hurracanrana and puts Hammer into the chair - upside down! Buchanan hurries past Pollo, beelining for Cashe.  However, the DiOGee dove back into the ring and told Eli to bring it!

And bring it Eli did! Not hesitating to slide in, but Cashe was on top of him - lefts and rights raining down on Eli as the bloodied Guelph native tried to rally back up to his feet.  The support of the crowd behind him, Buchanan managed to shove Cashe away while on his knees and leapt to his feet.  Cashe tried for a lariat, but missed and Buchanan bounced off the ropes and cracked Cashe with a Yakuza kick! Cashe fell against the ropes and Buchanan fell to his knees, but quickly got back up and called for his signature knee strike - a move that won him the World Tag Team titles, Hewitt points out.  Buchanan grabs Cashe off the ropes, but gets his eyes raked.  Buchanan turns around, holding his eyes in pain...

UNDER THE INFLUENCE!

Cashe's signature move hits! However, the Georgia born fighter can't immediately follow up with the pain! The crowd has fallen silent as Cashe struggles to push off the mat, but does - and drapes half his body over Eli!

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HAMMER SAVES THE DAY!

Just in the nick of time, Hammerstein jumps on top of Cashe and makes the first official save of the match.  He grabs the Georgia native and hauls him up to his feet and dumps him through the ropes, then follows him out.  El Hijo de Pollo slinks into the ring and quietly covers Eli Buchanan - knowing Hammer can't save him this time!

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3-NO!

Pollo shakes his head and yells at Powell, getting up and grabbing him by the collar... and this is a scene that just looks ridiculous as you can tell the 6'3" / 280lbs Powell is not intimidated at all by 5'8" / 190lbs Pollo.  Pollo threatens to deck him which gets a "OK" from Powell, but the chicken man decides better of it and shoves him back.  Pollo turns around...

THUNDERSTRUCK!

Hammerstein sets up a chair on the floor, then full nelsons Cashe...

Eli covers!

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3!

FULL NELSON BOMB ONTO THE CHAIR!

Buchanan tries to hurry up to his feet, but his mind's going way faster than his body will let him as he falls back down.  Mandeville Nelson hands him the Heritage tag belts and he snatches them away, yelling that they were always his anyway! A shot of the outside shows the steel chair completely broken from the full nelson bomb and Hammerstein clutching his back as he tries to get up into the ring to celebrate with Buchanan.  Eli reaches through the ropes and the two men share a hug as medical staff attends to Cashe, checking out his cut and his teeth.  Hewitt wonders if this means the issue is over while Shelzi responds with laughter... then adds, "not by a long shot."

The final shot of the night is Hammer and Eli, battered and bloody, on the apron holding their belts in the air as the London crowd chants their name!