PWG Nineteen
July 3, 2022
by Doc Allen
Taped from the Globe Theatre, in Los Angeles, California. Our host is Excalibur.
Titus Alexander vs. Shane Haste
Titus is so excited to debut in PWG, he gives his shirt an elbow drop. Haste puts his experience advantage to good use in the early going. Titus hits a snapmare and hits some quick dropkicks to send Haste outside for a tope suicida. Haste comes back with a Saito Suplex. Haste picks Titus apart with body kicks. Titus escapes an armbar but Haste counters with a Saito Suplex. Haste hits a third Saito Suplex for a restless 2 count TItus counters with a German suplex in midair. Titus tries a rolling cutter, gets blocked, and hits a back handspring cutter instead. Fans flee as Titus hits a soaring plancha onto the floor. Haste answers with a Liger Bomb for 2. Titus finds his second wind and nails a Brainbuster for 2. They trade suplexes and Haste throws a mean lariat. Fireman's Carry Uranage finishes Titus at 9:19. Fun match that did what opening matches are supposed to do, **½.Winner: Shane Haste
Yuka Sakazaki vs. Masha Slamovich
Yuka's playful demeanor is a good juxtaposition for Masha's intensity. Yuka more than holds her own in the opening chain wrestling sequence. Yuka sends Masha outside with a rana, and hits a cannonball senton off the middle rope! Masha breaks a crossface in the ropes, so Yuka gives her a modified tarantula. Masha angrily counters with a springboard dropkick. Gutwrench suplex by Masha gets 2, Yuka answers with a rolling enziguri and sliding lariat Delayed suplex by Yuka gets a routine nearfall. Masha pops up for a roaring big boot and spinning heel kick. Yuka cartwheels on the top rope and hits a springboard missile dropkick! Masha hits rapid fire, but phony looking gut punches, and hits a more brutal looking Ganso Bomb for 2. Masha hits a German suplex and the fans are increasingly buying into the nearfalls. Yuka nails a haymaker and spinning Blue Thunder Bomb to win at 9:23! That finish caught me off guard, so kudos to them. Lots of fun spots to fill the highlight reel, but the lack of selling or dramatic storyline holds it back, **¾.Winner: Yuka Sakazaki
Kevin Blackwood vs. JONAH vs. Davey Richards
JONAH makes a quick statement with double clotheslines. JONAH slams Davey onto Kevin and the fans love it. JONAH dismantles Davey with a powerslam and leg drop. JONAH gives Davey a delayed suplex, then gets caught off guard by Kevin, who suplexes Davey onto him! Kevin hits Davey with a German for 2. Davey's dropkick forces JONAH to DDT Kevin! Davey howls, but misses a diving double stomp. Davey puts Kevin in a Trailer Hitch and JONAH in an ankle lock at the same time! Kevin's rope break saves them both. JONAH drops Davey with a body block. JONAH powerbombs Kevin onto Davey in the buckles, then splashes them both. JONAH stacks his opponents on his shoulders for a massive Samoan Drop! Kevin blocks JONAH's Superman punch, they tease a Tower of Doom, instead Kevin hits JONAH with a flying boot stomp. Davey gives Kevin a Dragon Screw through the ropes, then a double stomp on JONAH for only 2! JONAH escapes Davey's ankle lock, but Kevin gives him a massive Death Valley Driver, Davey saves the match! Davey and Kevin duke it out until Richards nails a German suplex and lariat. Teardrop Brainbuster by Davey gets 2, so he puts Kevin into an ankle lock. JONAH is too late to stop the submission and Richards wins at 10:38! Inventive spotfest, triple threat matches naturally encourage the wrestlers not to sell anything, ***.Winner: Davey Richards
Mike Bailey vs. Buddy Matthews
Matthews tackles Bailey's leg before the bell! He wraps Bailey's leg in a chair for a series of conchairto shots! Bell rings, Bailey desperately gets a roll up for 2. Bailey limps while setting Matthews up for an inside out moonsault! Matthews reverses a rana into a powerbomb to the apron! Matthews steals some power from the ref and gives Bailey a paper cut between the fingers! HE'S HARDCORE! Bailey suffers another papercut between the toes and sells it beautifully. Dragonscrew by Buddy, then a papercut between the lips. Matthews is free to destroy Bailey's bad leg, and even uses PLIERS to pluck his toe nails! Bailey hits a desperation thrust kick, and finds enough will power to mount a comeback with stiff kicks. Standing Sky Twister by Bailey gets 2. Bailey misses a backflip knee drop onto the apron, and Matthews plants him for a great nearfall. Fans chant “Let's go, Speedball!” Bailey goes for broke with a slick Asai moonsault! Matthews blocks a spinning kick, and they duke it out until Buddy stomps the bad foot. Bailey summons his rapid, yet cartoonish, kicks. Buddy attacks the toes, but his top rope powerbomb is blocked! Buddy blocks superplex, and they trade reversals until Bailey nails a penalty kick and backflip knee drop! Bailey hits a KO kick for only 2! Bailey goes for a SSP but lands on Buddy's knee! Brutal stomp by Buddy, but BAILEY KICKS OUT! Bailey reverses a pump handle into a rollup and WINS at 13:26 to a gigantic pop! Bailey put in one of the best underdog, wounded babyface performances I've seen in a long time. You could feel his desperation and eagerness to finish the match throughout, ****¼.Winner: Mike Bailey
PWG Tag Team Championship:
Kings of the Black Throne © (Malakai Black and Brody King) vs. Aussie Open (Mark Davis and Kyle Fletcher)
King enjoys a hot start smashing Davis to pieces. Fletcher tags, requests Malakai, and gets him. Black grabs a headlock, then a head scissors, but Fletcher pops out. Black outmaneuvers Fletcher and taunts him from his seated position. Black ducks a penalty kick and hits a hard armdrag. They lock elbows, Fletcher smashes Black in the face. Davis tags and lights Black up in the buckles. Black fights out of a 2 on 1 situation and tags in King to swarm Fletcher. King slows things down and hits a back senton. Fletcher manages a Brainbuster on Black for 2. Davis gets the hot tag, knocks King from the apron, and storms through Black. Aussie Open give Black a pop up throw for 2. The fans give Aussie Open crap as they work over Black. Since the fans have decided that Aussie Open are the heels, they pull Black from the apron to prevent a hot tag. Black blocks a tandem cutter, forcing Aussie Open to punish each other, and King storms in on a hot tag. King piles Aussie Open for a cannonball into the buckles! Aussie Open answer with double superkicks for 2. Davis and King both apply Boston Crabs and trade slaps. Everyone hits a drive-by attack and take a breather for the obligatory (non-standing) ovation. King and Davis stumble up for a chopfest. The breakdown continues until Aussie Open hit a cutter/power slam combo, but Black saves the match! The chaos allows King to hit a nasty piledriver on Davis. Aussie Open block Dante's Inferono, Davis lariats King and nails a Burning Hammer but BLACK KICKS OUT! Black surprises with a Dragon Sleeper, King traps Fletcher in a hangman sleeper, and Davis taps at 18:03! That finish was all kinds of bad-ass! Tremendous tag team war, they were flexible enough to work with what the fans were giving them, and delivered a sleeper classic, ****½.Winners and still PWG Tag Team Champions: Kings of the Black Throne
PWG World Championship:
Daniel Garcia © vs. Konosuke Takeshita
Garcia has brought his JAS shtick to PWG and is introduced as a "Sports Entertainer!" There's a thin backstory that Garcia requested that Takeshita be his first challenger, because he wasn't sure how long he'd stay in the States. They start with some creative chain wrestling. Garcia seemingly effortlessly escapes a headscissors and taunts his challenger. Takeshita grabs a headlock, followed by a shoulder tackle. They trade leap frogs until Takeshita nails a leg lariat. Garcia throws Mongolian chops, Takeshita goes for a crossface, Garcia gets the ropes. Garcia throws some uppercuts and dodges Takeshita's jumping knee. Garcia surprises with a front Chancery, Takeshita reverses into a Brainbuster! Garcia dropkicks the knees and nails a Dragon screw leg sweep! Garcia hits a second Dragon Screw from the apron! Garcia draws boos for running stomps across Takeshita's stomach. Garcia stands on Takeshita's hair and pulls him off the canvas by the arms. Garcia reverses a suplex into an ankle lock! Takeshita gets the ropes, but Garcia is reluctant to let go of the ankle lock. They slug it out until Takeshita hits a leaping rana! Takeshita tries a dive but collapses under his bad knee. Garcia is delighted and walks right into a surprise lariat! Garcia ties the bad leg into the ropes and runs into yet another surprise lariat! Leaping lariat by Takeshita, and then a flying rana! Garcia rolls outside, Takeshita hits a somersault plancha over the ring post! Takeshita then hits a powerbomb onto the apron! Frog splash by Takeshita, but GARCIA KICKS OUT! Garcia repeatedly blocks the Blue Thunder Bomb, but Takeshita improvises with a head scissors. Garcia reverses, but Takeshita hits a wild, spinning Blue Thunder Bomb! V-Trigger by Takeshita, but Garcia pulls him into an STF! Garcia transitions into a front face lock, then a sleeper! Garcia is forced into adjusting into a grapevine ankle lock, Takeshita fights back with head butts, Garcia answers with biting! They trade counters until Takeshita hits a devastating German suplex! Fans chant “PWG” while they take a breather. Takeshita hits a Last Ride, but Garcia chop blocks the bad leg and nails a piledriver, but Takeshita surprises with a roaring elbow strike! Garcia sneakily steps into a Scorpion Deathlock, Takeshita reverses the hold! Garcia gets the ropes! Garcia reverses a superplex into a leaping DDT but TAKESHITA KICKS OUT! Garcia desperately tries a bulldog choke, but gets slammed onto his face. Takeshita locks on a Crossface, Garcia reverses into another Scorpion Deathlock! Takeshita reverses into another Crossface, but Garcia escapes. They trade pinning predicaments, and Garcia runs into a jumping knee strike! Garcia rolls away from a cover! They battle on the on the top rope until Garcia hits a flying power slam, right into a Scorpion Deathlock, fully wrenched back to force the submission at 23:15! This flew under the radar, but was one of the very best matches from 2022, I've seen. Total thriller, and I can't wait until these guys get a chance to do something like this on AEW TV, ****¾.Winner and still PWG World Champion: Daniel Garcia
Garcia and Takeshita shake hands and leave it at that. Fans chant "Both these guys." Garcia and Takeshita are both stars, I don't care what anyone says.
Final Thoughts: Delightful two hours of unapologetic in-ring workrate for wrestling nerds. You know what you're going to get with PWG, and they deliver yet again. Thumbs up.
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