Post by fifthhorseman on Feb 18, 2014 22:13:53 GMT -5
Joey Styles: Hello, wrestling fans - we are live from Colorado Springs, Colorado for AWA Throwdown! Settle in for two hours of the most exciting, hardest-hitting professional wrestling action in the world today! I am, as usual, joined at the commentary table by Josh Mathews. Together, we will be calling the action for six different bouts on tonight’s star-studded card. Last night, we saw the Great Muta pin Art Barr to win the AWA Television Championship – and tonight, we will see yet another championship be decided. Tonight, two teams enter that ring with one prize in mind – the AWA Tag-Team Championship. Will we see William Regal and Doug Williams strap the belts around their waists? Or will Steve Williams and Terry Gordy walk away with the gold? Whoever it is, they will know they’ve been in a war.
That’s not all – Daniel Bryan and Harley Race clash in what is sure to be an unforgettable mat classic. This is the second and final semi-final match in the AWA Heavyweight Championship tournament; the winner moves on to face Big Van Vader, who defeated Edge just last night. In fact, that match kicks off AWA Throwdown in more moments. I’ll now turn it over to Josh, who will quickly run through the rest of tonight’s card.
Josh Mathews: Thanks, Joey, and hello to our AWA fans worldwide. Tonight, Nunzio challenges Ricky Morton in singles action; apparently, Nunzio didn’t take too kindly to the Rock and Roller clocking him after his loss last night. We’ll also get a three-war dance featuring Drew McIntyre, Magnum T.A., and Michael Elgin – remember, two men have to be eliminated from the match for a winner to be named. The high-flying Young Bucks, Matt and Nick Jackson, tangle with the dangerous Varsity Club, comprised of Jack Swagger and Mike Rotunda. And rounding out the card is our final AWA Intercontinental semi-final match, in which Ethan Carter III faces Tully Blanchard. If Blanchard wins, it’s simple – he moves onto the finals and Bruiser Brody. If Carter wins, the round-robin between he, Blanchard, and Adam Cole is all tied up at a win apiece, and it gets complicated. Simply put, Carter must win his match in under 12 minutes and five seconds – if he does, he notches the fastest time in the round-robin tie-breaker. But if he beats Blanchard after that time, it’s irrelevant for either man tonight – and Adam Cole moves on. This will really affect the strategies employed by both men.
Joey Styles: Right you are, Mr. Mathews – now, let’s go to the ring for tonight’s first contest. Harley Race. Daniel Bryan. It’s on!
VS.
If you want to start a show right, put Harley Race and Daniel Bryan in the same ring. Their 25-minute bout was hard-fought, and fought nearly entirely inside the squared circle. Both men were more than willing to take it to the mat, and tried several times for the submission victory. When that didn't work, it turned into suplexes, and knee strikes, and forearms. It was a clean fight, but it was also a fight that drew blood from both men. For all of its violence, it ended, perhaps fittingly, with a small package. Your winner, and moving on to face Big Van Vader for the AWA Heavyweight championship... Daniel Bryan.
VS.
The Young Bucks bewildered the Varsity Club for the first half of this contest, going airborne at every opportunity while keeping their biggest opponents off-balance with frantic double-teaming. Eventually, though, Swagger used his mass to slow the match down, grounding Nick Jackson for several minutes, while frequently tagging with Rotunda. The Bucks briefly rallied, but in the end, Rotunda slammed Nick into a waiting Patriot Lock for an inevitable three-count.
VS.
The clock ran on the scoreboard as Blanchard and Carter tied up. Carter went for early pins, often, but the relatively undamaged Texan kicked out with ease. He also frustrated his younger opponent by going outside the ring, forcing Carter to go after him. After rolling back in, Blanchard made his move, putting the boots to his foe when he rolled after him. However, he still couldn't finish him off. The match ran past the 12:05 mark, eliminating Carter from further contention, but he could still spoil Blanchard's opportunity by winning in the next two minutes... which he could not. The veteran hit his patented slingshot suplex for the victory, putting him in the AWA Intercontinental championship match against Bruiser Brody.
VS. VS.
It was a mix of three very different styles when these three men went to work. Allegiances were forged and quickly broken, with no man willing to trust either of the other two for very long. Elgin's power was on display early, and he was able to even outmuscle the larger Scot. The pace was quick for the first several minutes, until Magnum caught Elgin with the belly-to-belly suplex - but before he could score the pin, McIntyre caught the former NWA stalwart with a DDT, eliminating him from the match. He couldn't keep Elgin down, though, and the match raged on. It appeared that McIntyre was going to hit the cradle-shock DDT on Elgin as well, but the Canadian fought it off and countered with his finisher, the spinning Elgin bomb.
VS.
Morton's first foray into singles action was a triumph, although it certainly was not easy. The "Sicilian Shooter" was merciless, and made it known that he was much more than a so-called comedy figure. He punished Morton's legs, trying to take the dropkick out of Morton's arsenal. Unfortunately for Nunzio, the tide turned, and the Nashville native fought back to his feet and re-took the advantage. He ended the match with a high cross-body from the top rope.
VS.
Complete with "big-match" introductions from the lovely Christie Hemme, this was just good in the ring as it appeared to be on paper. Despite the size disadvantage, the BlueBloods were utterly unafraid to mix it up with either opponent. The referee was very lenient, allowing all four men to brawl at will, both inside and outside of the ring, in the bout's first few minutes. It did eventually settle inside the ring, with Gordy controlling the action against Doug Williams. Soon after, though, the Britisher took over, tagging in Regal, and after that, it was "Bamm Bamm's" turn to survive. And survive he did, fighting off numerous two-counts and double-teams that would have defeated alomst any other wrestler in the AWA. After avoiding a Williams clothesline, he rolled to his corner and tagged in "Dr. Death", who ran over his opponents. More brawling, resulting in Steve hitting Doug with the Oklahoma Stampede powerslam. Regal broke the pin at the 2.9 mark, and Gordy hit the ring again. While the referee tried to expel the latecomers, Regal slid a pair of brass knuckles toward his partner, but they didn't quite reach their mark. Steve Williams grabbed them instead, and with the ref still unaware, slowly stalked Doug.
He should have moved quicker... WADE BARRETT slid from underneath the ring and, sporting his own pair of brass knuckles, punched Williams in the back of the head before darting back out of the ring. Doug Williams immediately sprang, and pinned his foe just as the referee got Gordy and Regal back out of the ring. One, two, three... and the BlueBloods captured the AWA Tag-Team titles.
When the bloodied Miracle Violence Connection got up to square off against the trio of Barrett, Regal, and Williams, McIntyre and Nigel McGuinness ran down to make it a five-on-two beatdown. Gaining the upper hand quickly, the show ended with the five natives of the United Kingdom standing, hands raised, belts held high.
That’s not all – Daniel Bryan and Harley Race clash in what is sure to be an unforgettable mat classic. This is the second and final semi-final match in the AWA Heavyweight Championship tournament; the winner moves on to face Big Van Vader, who defeated Edge just last night. In fact, that match kicks off AWA Throwdown in more moments. I’ll now turn it over to Josh, who will quickly run through the rest of tonight’s card.
Josh Mathews: Thanks, Joey, and hello to our AWA fans worldwide. Tonight, Nunzio challenges Ricky Morton in singles action; apparently, Nunzio didn’t take too kindly to the Rock and Roller clocking him after his loss last night. We’ll also get a three-war dance featuring Drew McIntyre, Magnum T.A., and Michael Elgin – remember, two men have to be eliminated from the match for a winner to be named. The high-flying Young Bucks, Matt and Nick Jackson, tangle with the dangerous Varsity Club, comprised of Jack Swagger and Mike Rotunda. And rounding out the card is our final AWA Intercontinental semi-final match, in which Ethan Carter III faces Tully Blanchard. If Blanchard wins, it’s simple – he moves onto the finals and Bruiser Brody. If Carter wins, the round-robin between he, Blanchard, and Adam Cole is all tied up at a win apiece, and it gets complicated. Simply put, Carter must win his match in under 12 minutes and five seconds – if he does, he notches the fastest time in the round-robin tie-breaker. But if he beats Blanchard after that time, it’s irrelevant for either man tonight – and Adam Cole moves on. This will really affect the strategies employed by both men.
Joey Styles: Right you are, Mr. Mathews – now, let’s go to the ring for tonight’s first contest. Harley Race. Daniel Bryan. It’s on!
VS.
If you want to start a show right, put Harley Race and Daniel Bryan in the same ring. Their 25-minute bout was hard-fought, and fought nearly entirely inside the squared circle. Both men were more than willing to take it to the mat, and tried several times for the submission victory. When that didn't work, it turned into suplexes, and knee strikes, and forearms. It was a clean fight, but it was also a fight that drew blood from both men. For all of its violence, it ended, perhaps fittingly, with a small package. Your winner, and moving on to face Big Van Vader for the AWA Heavyweight championship... Daniel Bryan.
VS.
The Young Bucks bewildered the Varsity Club for the first half of this contest, going airborne at every opportunity while keeping their biggest opponents off-balance with frantic double-teaming. Eventually, though, Swagger used his mass to slow the match down, grounding Nick Jackson for several minutes, while frequently tagging with Rotunda. The Bucks briefly rallied, but in the end, Rotunda slammed Nick into a waiting Patriot Lock for an inevitable three-count.
VS.
The clock ran on the scoreboard as Blanchard and Carter tied up. Carter went for early pins, often, but the relatively undamaged Texan kicked out with ease. He also frustrated his younger opponent by going outside the ring, forcing Carter to go after him. After rolling back in, Blanchard made his move, putting the boots to his foe when he rolled after him. However, he still couldn't finish him off. The match ran past the 12:05 mark, eliminating Carter from further contention, but he could still spoil Blanchard's opportunity by winning in the next two minutes... which he could not. The veteran hit his patented slingshot suplex for the victory, putting him in the AWA Intercontinental championship match against Bruiser Brody.
VS. VS.
It was a mix of three very different styles when these three men went to work. Allegiances were forged and quickly broken, with no man willing to trust either of the other two for very long. Elgin's power was on display early, and he was able to even outmuscle the larger Scot. The pace was quick for the first several minutes, until Magnum caught Elgin with the belly-to-belly suplex - but before he could score the pin, McIntyre caught the former NWA stalwart with a DDT, eliminating him from the match. He couldn't keep Elgin down, though, and the match raged on. It appeared that McIntyre was going to hit the cradle-shock DDT on Elgin as well, but the Canadian fought it off and countered with his finisher, the spinning Elgin bomb.
VS.
Morton's first foray into singles action was a triumph, although it certainly was not easy. The "Sicilian Shooter" was merciless, and made it known that he was much more than a so-called comedy figure. He punished Morton's legs, trying to take the dropkick out of Morton's arsenal. Unfortunately for Nunzio, the tide turned, and the Nashville native fought back to his feet and re-took the advantage. He ended the match with a high cross-body from the top rope.
VS.
Complete with "big-match" introductions from the lovely Christie Hemme, this was just good in the ring as it appeared to be on paper. Despite the size disadvantage, the BlueBloods were utterly unafraid to mix it up with either opponent. The referee was very lenient, allowing all four men to brawl at will, both inside and outside of the ring, in the bout's first few minutes. It did eventually settle inside the ring, with Gordy controlling the action against Doug Williams. Soon after, though, the Britisher took over, tagging in Regal, and after that, it was "Bamm Bamm's" turn to survive. And survive he did, fighting off numerous two-counts and double-teams that would have defeated alomst any other wrestler in the AWA. After avoiding a Williams clothesline, he rolled to his corner and tagged in "Dr. Death", who ran over his opponents. More brawling, resulting in Steve hitting Doug with the Oklahoma Stampede powerslam. Regal broke the pin at the 2.9 mark, and Gordy hit the ring again. While the referee tried to expel the latecomers, Regal slid a pair of brass knuckles toward his partner, but they didn't quite reach their mark. Steve Williams grabbed them instead, and with the ref still unaware, slowly stalked Doug.
He should have moved quicker... WADE BARRETT slid from underneath the ring and, sporting his own pair of brass knuckles, punched Williams in the back of the head before darting back out of the ring. Doug Williams immediately sprang, and pinned his foe just as the referee got Gordy and Regal back out of the ring. One, two, three... and the BlueBloods captured the AWA Tag-Team titles.
When the bloodied Miracle Violence Connection got up to square off against the trio of Barrett, Regal, and Williams, McIntyre and Nigel McGuinness ran down to make it a five-on-two beatdown. Gaining the upper hand quickly, the show ended with the five natives of the United Kingdom standing, hands raised, belts held high.