Dragon Gate USA – United: Philly – 29th January 2011
DGUSA’s United weekend continues with a trip to ECW country and the battle for the inaugural United Gate tag titles really begins to intensify. Blood Warriors are fighting for their lives in the tournament, with both the CIMA/Kid and Doi/Ricochet teams losing their opening matches yesterday. For CIMA and Dragon Kid tonight’s battle with Ronin will be particularly tense, given that they need the win but Gargano and Taylor have vowed to beat them and earn a spot on a Japanese tour. BxB Hulk, now bereft of the Freedom Gate Title, faces Kamikaze USA’s dastardly leader Jon Moxley in a grudge match, Austin Aries tests out another promising up and comer when he squares off with Akira Tozawa whilst new Freedom Gate Champion YAMATO has his work cut out for him with the massive trucker Brodie Lee placed before him. We journey to the former ECW Arena in Philadelphia, PA to join Lenny Leonard and Leonard Chikarason.
Jon Moxley and YAMATO head into the arena to open the show in front of a VOCAL Philly crowd. A ‘fan’ jumps the rails trying to attack Moxley, presumably sent by Homicide just like Julius Smokes in New York the previous evening.
YAMATO vs Brodie Lee
Kamikaze USA now control the top prize in Dragon Gate USA as YAMATO holds the Open The Freedom Gate Championship. He is non-title action tonight, but Brodie (a representative of Blood Warriors) will know a victory here immediately puts him into title contention.
Lee gives Yamato a few tasty slaps then uses sheer force to overpower him. Yamato tries tackles and strikes but they have little effect and he soon eats dropkick. Pescado attempt caught by the Big Rig, who then guillotines Yamato over the guardrails before punting him straight into the front row. Yamato claws at Lee’s eyes and even then finds himself falling victim to a Michinoku Driver for 2. We’re past the five minute mark and Yamato has been taking abuse for the duration…and continues to get pummelled as a shortarm lariat drops him on his neck. Big Boot misses but Yamato can’t even lift Brodie for a simple body slam at this point. Doujime Sleeper countered with a snapmare then a HALF NELSON SUPLEX by Lee! Big Boot into the Truck Stop…for 2! Moxley at ringside seems to be in shock, but celebrates seconds later as Yamato escapes the Brodie Bomb and lands a German suplex. BRAINBUSTER! DOUJIME SLEEPER! Brodie is unconscious, giving Yamato a huge win at 08:53
Rating - *** - Booking Brodie to lose this absolutely kills his momentum, but the match itself was really entertaining. Lee’s beating on YAMATO was so emphatic that it almost turned the Japanese athlete babyface by default. It was basically a massacre, but the pop from the awesome crowd when YAMATO survived all Brodie’s finishers and somehow started retaliating was great. YAMATO comes out of this looking fantastic – by surviving the big monster and decisively choking him out. Where does Lee’s career go from here though? I feel like Gabe rather booked himself into a corner with this.
Two more of Homicide’s crew jump the rails trying to attack Jon Moxley. The Notorious 187 will be in the building in New Jersey tomorrow night to settle his score with Mox.
Jigsaw nearly sends everyone to sleep with a brief promo telling everyone how he’s going to win the Six Way Freestyle later tonight.
Rich Swann vs Jimmy Jacobs
Last night in New York Rich took Austin Aries to the limit in a highly credible performance. This evening he faces another veteran of the independent scene in Jimmy Jacobs – and this time he’ll want to be the one celebrating at the end of it. Jimmy, meanwhile, is trying to position himself for a Freedom Gate Title shot. Last night he succumbed to defeat against Brodie Lee, so going 0-2 in 2011 tonight will put him way back down the line of contenders to YAMATO’s belt.
Jacobs seems annoyed that Swann isn’t taking this seriously, so immediately beats him into the corner looking to beat some respect into him. Rich is clearly the quicker man though, and rolls around on the apron to hit a version of the 619 on the floor. FACE-FIRST HIPTOSS INTO THE STEEL STEPS BY JACOBS! That looked obscene! Somehow Swann isn’t dead, and retaliates by flatlining Jimmy right on his head out of the corner for 2. Jimmy doesn’t take kindly to having his eyes raked so gives him the double stomp trampoline. Contra Code blocked…then Rich batters him into the turnbuckles as he attempts End Time. Vertical leap frankensteiner into a standing SSP gets 2 for the Ronin member. Rebound cutter by Jacobs gets 2 as well. Swann holds on to the ropes to block the Contra Code! BIG BOOT INSTEAD! Contra Code nailed this time, and still Swann refuses to quit. Jimmy blocks the standing 450 splash (apparently it’s called the Rich Kick) but eats the SWANN-ACANRANA! RICH KICK! Swann scores the win at 09:15
Rating - *** - A much improved performance from Swann tonight, who looked far more at home in a shorter, lower profile match. Just like yesterday, Jacobs was the ultimate professional and was working incredibly hard to make Rich look good. Swann, in turn, showed more personality and was immeasurably more polished with his ring work. Presumably Jimmy is now just putting people over on his way out of WWNLive before returning to Ring Of Honor.
Chuck Taylor reminds CIMA that he and Gargano are coming for them tonight. Swann heels up on the fans by refusing to do his Ronin rap again…
World-1 are backstage. Pac does the talking, but his Geordie accent is so thick I’m guessing the majority of the fans don’t understand a word he’s saying. He points out that he and Yoshino are the top singles wrestlers in Dragon Gate right now, and doesn’t think anyone can stop them winning the tournament this weekend.
Sami Callihan vs AR Fox vs Rexx Reed vs Frightmare vs Cheech Hernandez vs Jigsaw
There are plenty of guys looking to force their way on the DGUSA roster here. Without Chikara Sekigun, Jigsaw suffered a demoralising loss to Jon Moxley yesterday and knows he needs victories in order to keep his spot. Callihan has been impressing people with his intensity and performances, but likewise is short of victories. Everyone else is looking to make an impression. Cheech wrestles all over the east coast but most still remember him as that guy from Special K in ROH. Frightmare is a staple on the Chikara roster. Reed is a pretty rotund individual and not someone I’ve seen before. That leaves AR Fox, who would go on to become a strong talent in WWNLive, but at this point he was just another high spot guy looking for bookings.
Rexx tries to pick a fight with everyone at once, so unsurprisingly gets quickly dispatched to the floor. Frightmare nearly falls victim to Sami’s Horse Collar early on…but then escapes and nearly finishes him off with Kneecolepsy. Cheech looks pretty impressive as he goes at it with both the Chikara guys – eventually getting wiped out by a tope suicida from Jigsaw. Reed steamrolls Fox with a lariat, then goes strike for strike with Callihan. Facewash dropkick from Cheech to AR as in the ring Jigsaw drops Frightmare with a German suplex. CORKSCREW BRAINBUSTER BY FOX! Kneecolepsy from Frightmare gets 2! FOX MISSES A GUILLOTINE LEG DROP TO THE APRON! CORKSCREW PLANCHA BY FRIGHTMARE! Running moonsault to the floor from Hernandez! KICKFLIP DIVE BY FOX! 450 SPLASH TO THE FLOOR BY JIGSAW! More stiffness from Callihan and Reed next, with Sami dragging the big man into the Horse Collar. He breaks it to bootscrape Frightmare, then Fox flies all the way across the ring with a springboard frog splash. He follows it with a springboard facebreaker, but goes to the air once too often and gets caught with a neckbreaker from Sami. RUNNING ELBOW! Callihan pins AR at 09:22
Rating - *** - There’s a lot that could go wrong when you throw a bunch of low level indy guys in the ring together with nothing to lose and no instructions other than to toss spots around. Given that we have some of the world’s elite high fliers and spot workers on the card, these six could have looked badly out of place. Therefore it is to the credit of all six men that this was actually rather enjoyable. Everyone got a chance to shine, everyone contributed, nothing was really botched and they finished before they outstayed their welcome and started killing the crowd. Callihan and Fox were the clear stars of the show so it’s no wonder they were the guys who really stuck around out of this group.
Ricochet is in the back with Naruki Doi. He plans to prove to Pac that he is the best high flier in the world, and claims that Doi had to carry Yoshino in Speed Muscle.
Akira Tozawa vs Austin Aries
Once again Moxley is at ringside to accompany a member of his Kamikaze USA stable, and Aries brings out Reby Sky with him to counteract Mox’s ‘ugly factor’. Last night A-Double taught Ronin’s Rich Swann a lesson in respect with an impressive victory over him. It was Austin’s first DGUSA victory, and he has the chance to follow it up with another one against another precocious rising star.
Reby gives Aries a kiss for luck…prompting Tozawa to hilariously demand that Moxley give him a kiss too. Jon, who is already annoyed at him for not hitting Reby yesterday, obviously refuses. Apron Kara Tozawa misses…and Akira continues to make fundamental errors as he puts Aries in a grounded headscissors and gets the inevitable dropkick to the face. Moxley won’t dance with him to make matters even worse, and Aries rebounds off the ropes into a sick basement lariat. ROLLING ELBOW SUICIDAS by Tozawa! The Japanese youngster is completely insane – now applying a chinlock and dementedly demanding that the ref ‘ask him’…before breaking it to scream at Reby Sky for no apparent reason whatsoever. His bizarre approach starts to unsettle Aries though, allowing Tozawa to beat the former ROH Champion all over the ring. Still he can’t hit Apron Kara Tozawa though, so settles with a diving senton for 2. A-Double clocks him with a roaring elbow then tosses him out of the ring for the HEAT SEEKING MISSILE! He then gives him a neckbreaker in the ropes before locking him in the LAST CHANCERY! Tozawa barely makes the ropes and may have sustained critical damage to his neck. Somehow he puts a couple of knees into Aries’ ribs then lands a BACK DROP DRIVER for 2! Bicycle kick by Tozawa…NO SOLD! IED! BRAINBUSTER! Moxley shoves Aries off the ropes as he lines up the 450 Splash…so Reby nutshots the leader of Kamikaze. She hops onto the apron and plants a kiss on Tozawa’s lips. ROARING ELBOW BY ARIES! NO SOLD! BICYCLE KICK! ARIES FLIPS OUT OF A GERMAN SUPLEX INTO THE KICK OF DEATH! BRAINBUSTER COUNTERED TO ROLLING GERMAN SUPLEXES! TOZAWA WINS at 14:26
Rating - **** - What a riot this was. Tozawa makes for compulsive viewing every time he steps into the ring. He’s so strange that you can’t take your eyes off him, and his inexplicably weird persona completely carried this match. Aries was his normal outstanding self, but this was all about breaking Tozawa out in a major way and it totally succeeded. He was dominated early, but survived everything A-Double could throw at him before gradually working his way back into the match with his ‘high intensity’ striking and bizarre character work. The fact that Reby’s kiss, meant to distract him, fired him up leading to a crazy final exchange was a brilliant way to finish things. One of the most enjoyable matches of the weekend thus far.
Jimmy Jacobs discusses his poor United weekend thus far, which leaves him 0-2 in 2011. He vows to make amends tomorrow in New Jersey…but does he really believe it?
Jon Moxley vs BxB Hulk – No DQ Match
This weekend Hulk runs the Kamikaze USA gauntlet. Originally he was scheduled to defend his Freedom Gate Title on all three nights, but fell at the first hurdle in that respect as he dropped the belt to YAMATO last night in New York. Tonight he wants a measure of revenge against the leader of Kamikaze, and the man who has made his life a living hell recently.
Hulk isn’t interested in pre-match formalities and literally sprints to the ring to get the fight started. Moxley, though, is more suited to the No DQ environment and soon gets his own back by violently throwing him through a segment of the guardrails. MOONSAULT PRESS OFF THE STEPS by Hulk! Mox ducks the springboard heel kick though, then starts biting at BxB’s face! Fujiwara armbar applied and when Hulk escapes that he DROPS HIM ON HIS NECK with a back body drop! Hulk is rattled but fires back with kicks…so Jon grabs his arm again to pull him into a Crippler Crossface. Mouse Click to escape that, into the BxB Star Press for 2. Akira Tozawa NAILS Hulk as he climbs the ropes for the phoenix splash, allowing Mox to drop him with a superplex. BxB hits possibly the sloppiest EVO ever…and quite rightly Moxley barely bothers selling it since it looked like sh*t. He pops right back up and lays him out with Homicide’s Ace Crusher. Crossface Chickenwing suplex blocked into FTX for 2! First Flash wins it for Hulk at 08:00
Rating - ** - I found this rather disappointing. Gabe went on and on about how much he rates Moxley, so why on earth was he thrown under a bus here? I understand he needs to appease the Dragon Gate office, but is BxB Hulk so worth protecting that you basically murder your top American star’s heat for him? In fairness, this was a hell of a way for Hulk to rebound after losing the belt yesterday. He looked sloppy as f*ck, but took everything Mox threw at him before scoring a decisive victory without even needing to utilise the ‘No DQ’ stipulations. But where on earth does that leave Jon’s credibility?
Sami Callihan thinks he has earned respect by going 2-0 so far this weekend. He has his sights set on some of the bigger fish in the Dragon Gate USA pond now…
Johnny Gargano/Chuck Taylor vs CIMA/Dragon Kid
Ronin pulled off the biggest surprise at United NYC when they defeated the Blood Warriors of Naruki Doi and Ricochet. The group formed out of frustration at being overlooked by the Japanese officials and wrestlers of Dragon Gate, and are now looking to forcibly earn their respect. Ronin now want to go to Japan, which CIMA thinks is laughable because they aren’t good enough. Taylor and Gargano know a win tonight may earn them a spot on a Japanese tour, as well as putting them on 4 points in the United Gate tournament. CIMA and Dragon Kid will want to put the cocky youngsters in their place tonight, and know that a loss will effectively eliminate them from the tournament as they sit on 0 points after losing to World-1 yesterday.
Rich Swann makes fun of the Warriors’ pose…but is quickly terrified into silence by Ricochet, Doi and Brodie Lee surrounding him. Cima clearly doesn’t like Ronin, repeatedly having to be restrained by Bryce Remsburg as he looks to straight up assault them. Kid starts with Taylor, and quickly kicks him out of the ring with a springboard headscissors. It means Cima can come in for the first time – and without using any fancy offence he stomps and punches Gargano into the mat. Both members of Ronin are needed to nullify the aggressive Dragon Gate veteran. Even when Cima does manage to tag out, rather than take a break he grabs a steel chair and starts chasing Swann around. It means Dragon is exposed to double teams and Chucky flings him into a mule kick from Gargano for 2. Ronin continue to get under the Warriors’ skin, this time by making fun of DK’s break dancing as they stomp him into the mat. Cima takes a cheap shot at Johnny, then comes in to wheelbarrow him into a Dragon Kid lungblower. The Blood Warriors persist with their overly aggressive approach as they start to isolate Gargano…before forcibly disciplining Chucky T by SPANKING HIS ASS! Brodie Lee gets involved and distracts the ref as Cima and Kid continue taking it to Gargano with a flurry of illegal double teams. Hot tag to Taylor, who preoccupies Cima for long enough to allow Johnny to hit the slingshot spear. Blockbuster off Gargano’s back nailed! CANNONBALL OFF THE APRON by Johnny! Dragon Stunner nailed inside the ring as Kid and Chuck go blow for blow. Cristo countered to a backbreaker before Cima gives Gargano a Superdrol out of the corner for 2. LAWN DART! DK comes to Cima’s aid, then helps him stack Johnny in the corner for the SPRINGBOARD DOOMSDAY RANA! PERFECT DRIVER! Ultra Hurricanrana ducked…then Cima saves his partner from the Hurtz Donut! SPLASH MOUNTAIN ACE CRUSHER BY RONIN! STEREO MISSILE DROPKICKS BY THE WARRIORS! Schwein blocked…Hurtz Donut blocked…SCHWEIN NAILED! METEORA MISSES! HURTZ DONUT! GARGANO ESCAPE! Taylor CATCHES Kid as he tries to springboard in for a save. CIMA TAPS! CIMA TAPS! Ronin win, eliminating Cima and DK at 19:25
Rating - **** - Match of the weekend so far for me. It combined all the usual impeccable spot mayhem you enjoy from Dragon Gate with a compelling back story which engrossed from the opening bell. The way CIMA and Kid ditched their usual jovial personas instantly put Ronin over. CIMA in particular was striking in how he looked like legitimately wanted to murder these cocky young punks trying to force their way into his turf. They played their characters superbly throughout the match, and as a result Gargano making CIMA tap instantly becomes a HUGE deal. Ronin, considered the outsiders at the start of the tournament (and not even on the map two years ago when DGUSA began) are on the cusp of becoming the first United Gate Champions and have beaten both Blood Warriors teams in one weekend. It’s looking harder and harder for the Dragon Gate Japan office to deny them a tour now…
CIMA grabs a microphone and calls the fans ‘stupid’ for thinking Ronin belong in Japan. Eventually he does agree they can make the trip – but as ‘young boys’. He then leads Blood Warriors in a beatdown to show them exactly how ‘young boys’ can expect to be treated. F*cking AWESOME angle. After Brodie has tossed the unconscious Ronin guys from the ring and the Blood Warriors’ heel turn has been completed, World-1 make their entrance ready for the main event…
Masato Yoshino/Pac vs Naruki Doi/Ricochet
Like CIMA and Dragon Kid, the other Blood Warriors Doi and Ricochet are on the verge of elimination from the United Gate tournament. They lost to Ronin last night, so know only a victory tonight will keep them alive. Yoshino and Pac already have 2 points and are considered the favourites to win the whole thing at this stage. There is plenty of personal animosity between these four too. Pac and Ricochet are locked in a personal feud over who is the best high flier in wrestling, whilst Doi and Yoshino used to be tag partners in Speed Muscle before they had a bitter falling out.
Doi and Yoshino start, and are understandably pretty cautious considering how well they know each other. Pac and Ricochet share the ring next, and you can immediately feel the anticipation from the fans. Rico gets the better of their first exchange – knocking Pac out of the ring for a HANDSPRING MOONSAULT TO THE FLOOR! The accompanying cast of Blood Warriors (CIMA, Dragon Kid and Brodie) assist Doi in dragging Yoshino across the ring, cutting him off from a tag at this stage. Even when Pac does rescue his partner, Naruki is able to plant him with a succession of jawbreakers to ensure the Warriors remain in charge. Yoshino is trapped in the ring and punished for several minutes, at times even at a 5-on-1 disadvantage as the remaining Warriors on the floor are always eager to lay in a cheap shot or two behind the ref’s back. Sling Blade out of nowhere drops Doi though, finally bringing Pac back in. SPRINGBOARD CORKSCREW MOONAULT TO THE FLOOR! That’s so incredible that it leaves CIMA and Brodie literally motionless at ringside. Doi retaliates with the somersault senton across his back as he hangs in the ropes though. Doi 555 blocked, Baketare Sliding Kick dodged into a STANDING RED ARROW! STANDING BACK FLIP SENTON BY RICO! From Jungle on him, but he escapes with a backwards roll hurricanrana. Another somersault senton from Doi, this time across Yoshino’s chest…followed by a Red Star Press from Ricochet. Pac breaks the count with a standing SSP of his own! SECOND ROPE PHOENIX SPLASH ON DOI! MISSILE DROPKICK/SENTON COMBO by Yoshino! DAI BOSOU COMBO by the Warriors, followed by Ricochet’s 630 SENTON FOR 2! Backslide Driver blocked so Rico gives Yoshino a FLIPPING Regalplex instead. ROPE RUN GERMAN SUPERPLEX BY PAC as Ricochet thinks about the double moonsault. RED ARROW NAILED! DOI SAVES! He then counters the Lightning Spiral into E HONDA STRIKES! DOI 555! NO SOLD! LIGHTNING SPIRAL! BOTH MEN DOWN! 630 SENTON BY PAC! RUNNING MOONSAULT INTO THE GUARDRAILS! UDE YOSHINO ON RICOCHET! SOL NACIENTE! YOSHINO WINS! The Blood Warriors are eliminated at 19:44
Rating - **** - This is what Dragon Gate is all about. Aerial mayhem, astounding displays of agility and so many spots you just don’t know what’s coming next and which body is coming from where. The feud between Pac and Ricochet took centre stage here, as they continually tried to one-up the other. It is a simple conception, and provided wonderful logic to every potentially unnecessary flip they pulled off – and Pac stealing Ricochet’s finisher at the end was just marvellous. The Blood Warriors are a blast as full blown heels too. This tournament has been awesome so far.
Blood Warriors don’t take defeat gracefully and dish out a number of cheap shots to the victorious World-1 team on their way out. Pac promises to win the United Gate tournament tomorrow…and again I’m not convinced anyone understands him.
Tape Rating - *** - Call it about the same as the NYC show. Tonight had a better crowd, and arguably both United Gate tournament matches were better here. However, the undercard tonight was pretty flimsy outside of Aries/Tozawa. Although most stuff reached a low level 3* rating, nothing was particularly memorable or significant in the longer term. Last night was a little more inconsistent, but still had two great tournament matches as well as Aries/Swann and the Freedom Gate Title change. You’re getting decent value for money either way if you only pick up one of these two shows before the Finale tomorrow.
Top 3 Matches
3) Akira Tozawa vs Austin Aries (****)
2) Johnny Gargano/Chuck Taylor vs CIMA/Dragon Kid (****)
1) Masato Yoshino/Pac vs Naruki Doi/Ricochet (****)