FUJI OF OZ: The Tag Tournament Night 1 (Report)
The show started with Eric Bischoff coming out to the ring and presenting his out of the ring working crew. One by one they were appearing in ring as he called them out and their positions in WaW. SoCalVal was announced as the backstage interviewer, Willie Urbina was announced as ring announcer, and James Mitchell and Michael Cole were announced as the commentators. When all formalities were disclosed Eric announced the first match of the night himself.
1-- Muhammad Hassan (w/The Sheik) vs. El Zorro
This match was all about technique and will. At one point Zorro had Hassan on a vicious sharpshooter but The Sheik quickly intervened and the ref didn’t saw Hassan tapping out. That enraged Zorro who attacked The Sheik but turned his back at Hassan. By doing that Hassan did recover and had his best with the Kligerman Drop and the three count to end Zorro’s night. The Sheik came up to the ring and celebrated the victory with a smiling Hassan.
WINNER: Hassan at 7:25. Great opening, the crowd seem interested in the match from the beginning and overall a great showing from both guys who I expect to see more as the shows go on.
In-ring: Larry Sweeney and his four represented wrestlers are in the ring and Sweeney talk about how great his four guys are. How important is that night for all of them and that they are going to rule WaW because they are truly WIKKID AWESOME WRESTLERS. Sweeney hands the mic to Aries who speaks about the “tradition of lucha libre†and talked about his and Helms opponents for the night. He then hands the mic to Helms who says that only ugly people hide from the rest of the world wearing a mask, that’s why he decided to get rid of his mask… They hand the mic to Gargano and Taylor who mock their rivals for the night and state that both of Sweeney’s teams in the tournament are going to meet at the finals.
Helms and Aries leave the ring and AJ and Daniel’s music hits. We have our second match of the night.
2-- “The Phenomenal†AJ Styles & “The Fallen Angel†Christopher Daniels vs. Johnny Gargano and Chuck Taylor (w/Larry Sweeney)
With Gargano and Taylor in the ring AJ and Daniels entered together just to be ambushed by both Gargano and Taylor. As the match progressed we saw really that these two teams work great together and how great tag teams these two teams really are. Good spots from AJ and Daniels with Gargano and Taylor having theirs. At one point they did mock AJ and Daniels performing their signature poses and the crowd really hated them. AJ and Daniels controlled some part of the match, with Gargano and Taylor controlling other parts. This was really a great match and great way to kick off the tournament. The end came with AJ and Daniels hitting the combination of Best Moonsault Ever and Frog Splash on Gargano. When the three count was coming Sweeney dragged the ref to the outside. This infuriated Daniels and AJ and they forgot about Taylor who was entering the ring and pushed AJ to the outside and hit Daniels with the Awful Waffle. He put Gargano over Daniels and Sweeney got the ref in ring for the count.
WINNERS: Gargano & Taylor at 12:45. Great match to kick off the tournament, tough to see Daniels and AJ lose this match but I know this match won’t be the last we’ve seen of these two.
They showed a video backstage of Kenny Bolin and KENTA. The crowd went nuts when they showed Kenta on the tron. SoCalVal is interviewing them and she asks them what are their plans now that they are at WaW and Kenny simply responded by stating that he will make sure KENTA gets where no Japanese have gotten in the new continent… that he will lead his client to the World Title at any cost.
In-ring: The Psycho Cyrcus are in the ring. they are laughing and making jokes in both Spanish and English. The crowd loves these two dudes, I think they could become a mainstay tag-team in the future. The Steiner Brothers music hits and out comes Ryan Shamrock with the Steiner Brothers not too far behind.
3-- The Steiner Brothers (w/Ryan Shamrock) vs. Psycho Cyrcus
Raw power all over the place, well that with a good mixture of technique and high risk moves. That’s what could resume this match for you reading this. The clowns brought up a nice mix of power in Murder Clown and the traditional Mexican high risk moves in Psycho Clown. The Steiner Brothers at some point didn’t know how to react to their tag team antics. But the reversal came when “Big Poppa Pump†entered the ring and dominated Psycho Clown with his power. Good tag action and good showing by the two teams. The end came with Ryan Shamrock getting involved by distracting Murder Clown thus allowing the Steiners to hit the Steiner Device for the win. Murder Clown realized what happened and rushed to the ring but it was too late.
WINNERS: The Steiner Brothers at 8:25. To be honest I wasn’t expecting the showing the Steiners and the Clowns brought in this night.
Another video backstage is shown this time it’s Sting with Vampiro and Ricky Banderas. They are talking on how they will dominate the night winning the three matches they have and how darkness will fill out merciless souls to create something bigger and better with them on charge.
In-Ring: Willie Urbina presents both teams competing next. We have women tag action here.
4-- Bull Nakano and Tara vs. Beth Phoenix and Awesome Kong
Women power here, F*** these girls have more muscle than me… and they look all mean. These are the type of women I won’t want to get pissed. Good match here, Tara and Nakano really work well together even with their seemingly working ethics in different ways. Phoenix and Kong on the other hand are really focused that they want to be the ones gaining the opportunity to advance in the tag tournament. Nakano and Phoenix had a great showing of power in this match and they girls really exceeded the expectations. The end came when Alyssa Flash and MsChif came to the ring and attacked Nakano and Tara when Kong was distracting the ref. Beth carried Tara to the outside and Kong hit the Implant Buster on Nakano for the three count.
Out of the ring Kong, Phoenix, MsChif and Flash celebrated. I believe these four girls have created a faction of some sorts.
WINNERS: Awesome Kong & Beth Phoenix at 11:00.
They show another backstage video this time is Samoa Joe talking with SoCalVal about his career, how much he has had to endure during that time. How many critics, how many guys who want him out… how many times he has heard about people giving shit about him. He ends his message stating that tonight we are going to see something we didn’t saw coming.
In-Ring: Back to the ring we have Larry Sweeney one more time coming out of the gates with Helms and Aries. They really seem cocky and enter the ring without looking towards the crowd. Then their music stops and “The Masked Luchadores†music hits. Out of the gate come Pierroth and Dr. Wagner Jr. for the delight of the crowd.
5-- The Masked Luchadores vs. Helms & Aries (w/Larry Sweeney)
This match really put Helms and Aries to the test; sure they have similar styles but both Pierroth and Wagner Jr. have had experience together and power. This was the classic match-up of speed and power. Aries and Helms did pair really well during the match and Pierroth and Wagner represented the way they have always done. Great match, a lot of lucha, a lot of air, a lot of technique, great storytelling by the two teams. Larry Sweeney getting involved with Wagner was seen as pure gold by me and the guys sitting next to me. The end came when Aries was involved with Pierroth but when Aries was going to hit a hurracarrana, Pierroth evaded the move hitting Aries with a powerbomb; while Dr. Wagner Jr. hit the Wagner Driver on Helms. Both Mexicans pinned their respective opponents for the three count, the delight of the crowd and got Larry Sweeney pissed off.
WINNERS: The Masked Luchadores at 13:50. Great match, really Larry Sweeney got some great guys on his side. Two matches of the night candidates already and both had Larry Sweeney’s guys involved.
The Legion of Doom with Paul Ellering are shown backstage speaking with SoCalVal about how the tag tournament was made just for them and that in night two of Fuji of Oz: The Tag Tournament they will see exactly why they are the best tag team in WaW.
In-Ring: Back to the ring we see the Xtreme Warriors, CIMA and Xtreme Tiger. Out of the gate come Vampiro and Banderas, they are really showing great condition tonight.
6-- Xtreme Warriors vs. The Sons of Darkness
Great match here, Banderas and Vampiro showed their experience with CIMA and Tiger showing why they are raising stars in WaW and they are two guys that really will show the world what they are made off given a great chance. Banderas ended the match for the SOD with Straight to Heel on Xtreme Tiger.
WINNERS: Sons of Darkness at 8:15. Decent match; did its job to present Banderas and Vampiro as threats to anyone. CIMA and Tiger looked big even with the size difference and I expect great things from both teams.
After the four wrestlers left the ring, Rick Rude music hit and he entered the ring. He asked for a mic and he began talking about how good he was in the ring, how pretty he was and how ugly all of the sitting fans really were. He spoke about his opponents being filthy guys that came to HIS land illegally, and that he had the perfect partner for the tournament, which he stated they will win… and also get rid of the two guys they were facing that night. He asked for the guy to come out and a music hit the P.A System. Out came Ray Gonzalez. He entered the ring and talked about how he’s known as “Mr. Ray-tings†Ray Gonzalez, how he’s a man known for moving the chips and getting things done. How he’s the biggest wrestler in the history of Puerto Rico and that he and Rick Rude are going to be unstoppable because they are going to give the competition “Check-Mate†tonight.
7-- “Ravishing†Rick Rude and “Mr. Ray-tings†Ray Gonzalez vs. The Cuban Assasins
This match pitted up two great teams and two great styles of wrestling. On one hand we have the flamboyance of both Rude and Gonzalez, on the other hand he have the toughness of Ricky Santana and Fidel Sierra. Great back and forth match, great in ring psychology. Overall great match. Really enjoyed the mix of Rude and Gonzalez, expect great things from both. The end of this match came when Gonzalez had Sierra on the Figure 4 Leg Lock and Rude hit the Rude Awakening on Santana for the three count.
WINNERS: “Ravishing†Rick Rude and “Mr. Ray-tings†Ray Gonzalez at 10:25; great pre-main event match here.
Right now I know that the show has extended a bit, from the two hours advertised but a friend of mine watching it at home, he bought the PPV, says that they are still live so there’s no problem. In ring we have Willie Urbina who announces the upcoming match to a huge pop from the crowd. Out of the gate first comes Sting, who draws a huge pop, it seems like he’s right now the big guy in WaW. Then Urbina announces Samoa Joe who comes out and the crowd cheers for him and chants “JOE IS GONNA KILL YOUâ€. Both Joe and Sting look straight up in the ring, while Urbina announces the third contestant of this match and we see KENTA coming out of the gate with Kenny Bolin on his side. Three men are in the ring and this is a showcase no one wants to miss.
Main Event: Sting vs. Samoa Joe vs. KENTA (w/Kenny Bolin)
The match was great from the word go. KENTA showed why he’s so revered around the world, really showed some stints of something that’s not quite him, but really showed it all. Joe looked great and Sting… Sting was as usual a great performer. Kenny Bolin getting involved in the match was great and Joe chasing him was even greater. The end came when Joe hit sting with the Muscle Buster. Just to turn around and get hit by a Busaiku Knee Kick from KENTA. Kenta covered Joe and the count gets to three. Kenny Bolin celebrates with his client and then cuts a promo stating that this was just the beginning, no more Mr. Nice Asian Guy… now was time to change that perspective and KENTA will be the guy to deliver.
WINNER: KENTA at 20:25. I have to say this was clearly the Match of the Night. Bischoff and the guys backstage would have to be really impressed by the showing of their guys and the fact that the owner of WaW paid another hour of PPV just for the fans at home to see the match of the night shows how dedicated to the fans the guys backstage really are.
After the bell rang, Sting walked backstage leaving Joe alone in the ring. Then Larry Sweeney came out with his four guys and handed Joe a card. We got to hear, really only by chance, Sweeney saying “Think About It… Call Me†to Joe. One could assume Sweeney wants Joe on his faction and I have to admit, that would be great.
: other thing I'm having trouble is that of writing full matches or just results with the end sequence like it was a report on the show. I know that my feelings go towards doing a full show but that will take a lot of time given the perfectionist that I am when I have to write matches (look up to matches of each performer and then decide how would they approach the match I've set... so it does takes time)
