Post by PoisonousAnchovie on Aug 25, 2013 18:13:39 GMT -6
North American Pro Wrestling (NAPW) made its triumphant return last Saturday (August 24th) as it made its debut in Rochelle, IL at the Hickory Grove Banquet Center. It's been a little over a year since the company ran a show. This was a benefit for cystic fibrosis. An NAPW official told me that the attendance was 203 fans with 100 tickets sold at pre-sale. A good turn out for a small company trying to get back on track.
The Hickory Grove Banquet Center is a nice, small venue. There is a bar for fans over the age of twenty-one. Fans could meet the wrestlers at intermission. NAPW always provides a family friendly atmosphere. Two wonderful people with cystic fibrosis was in attendance. Joshua, the younger brother of NAPW owner/wrestler Joey Rose, and my good friend Scott Rush from nearby DeKalb. Joshua has always been great with the other fans and my friend Scott was very happy with both the turn out and the quality of the show. A fun evening going for a good cause.
Some new fans showed up for their first NAPW show. Eric, store manager for Hickey's Marathon in DeKalb, is not a big wrestling fan. He gave it a shot cause his buddy loves wrestling. Eric thought it was a lot of fun and would gladly return.
The show started at its scheduled 7:15PM start. Always a good sign when an indy show actually starts on time. Ring announcer "Fast Talk" Marty Fairlane welcomed the crowd and introduced his fellow announcers the Articulator Steve Kenton and D. Wight Streator. An announcement was made that the NAPW title was vacant and three of the matches would be qualifying matches as part of an eight-man tournament.
1. Aaron Xavier and Justice Jones vs The Sea-Man and "Reckless" Jay Kross.
Xavier & Jones are the fresh new heel team of NAPW. The match opens with Jones headlocking the masked Sea-Man. A few arm bars are exchanged by both competitors. The smaller Sea-Man eventually gets overpowered by Jones and gets trapped in the corner for double teaming. A massive shoulder block by Jones causes a nasty spill to the floor for the Sea-Man. A tag to the beefy Kross evens things up. Two bulls lock horns and some more shoulder blocks are exchanged. A big boot by Jones sends Kross to the floor where Xavier chokes him out using the cape of Sea-Man. Jones continues to pound on a helpless Sea-Man ignoring the instructions of Referee Joshua Jones. A DQ was ordered by the official.
Winners: The Sea-Man and "Reckless" Aaron Kross.
2. Jack Carpenter vs Anthony Antonelli
This was indeed the match of the night. Carpenter rudely interrupted special guest ring announcer Frankie the Chi-Town Hitman. Antonelli burst into the ring to get in Jack's face. The young Italian star has beefed up over the last year and easily muscled Carpenter into the corner. A shoving war emerged. A ton of back-n-forth action with huge pops from the crowd. Antonelli held his opponent at ringside to allow a fan to deliver a knife-chop to the chest. Back in the ring, the crafty Carpenter suckers Anthony into the corner and trips him up. Anthony retaliated with a huge power-slam and an impressive high cross body that almost ended the contest. Impressed to see Carpenter using the old camel clutch. An insaguri and a DDT by Antonelli secured him the "W".
Winner: Anthony Antonelli
3. DOJ (Department of Justice) vs "The Diceman" Ronnie Vegas
This was one of the shorter matches of the night. The classic veteran (Vegas) vs newcomer (DOJ). The young DOJ had slim down and appeared to be in good ring-shape since I saw him a year ago. Vegas dominated most of the match with a classic eye rake, choking opponent on ropes and the ever popular boot to the throat. DOJ bounced back with punches and a big splash in the corner. Missed the second times and paid the price. "The Diceman" rolled snake-eyes for DOJ as he punched him with a full bottle of water, gave his version of shattered dreams and a vicious neck breaker. The veteran easily scored the pin.
Winner: "The Diceman" Ronnie Vegas
4. Joey Rose vs Machine in a Tournament Qualifying Match
The popular Rose was escorted to ringside by the lovely, beautiful, sexy, smiling and gorgeous Kadance Kelli. The larger and threatening looking Machine appeared to be ready to send Joey to the emergency ward. Joey played a smart match by opening with an arm drag and a dropkick. Machine ended up on the floor and caught a leaping Joey with a hard shot. Rose suffered massive shots to his chest. The match was physical with Machine scoring the heavier blows. Joey manages to nail a dropkick off the ropes and score a surprise pin for the upset.
Winner: Joey Rose
Intermission
5. Ruff Crossing vs Mike Anthony in a Tournament Qualifying Match
Always good to see the former WCPW Champion Mike Anthony in action. This was probably the second best match of the night. This was for the fans who enjoy hard shots and a lot of physical action. Crossing attacks with his knee as Anthony attempts to enter the ring. A rough clothesline and an illegal choke with his bull rope gave Crossing the early advantage. A quick small package almost gave Mike an early victory. Crossing counters with a big boot to the face. Anthony hit a very impressive belly-to-belly suplex as he caught Crossing charging him into the corner. Mike would lose his cool and shove the ref enabling Crossing to sucker punch his opponent with a cow bell. The fans were shocked to see the veteran kick out. Crossing followed up with a pump handle slam into a tombstone piledriver to end the match.
Winner: Rough Crossing.
6. Grin vs Pretty Boy Floyd in a Tournament Qualifying Match
This bout also opened with an attack from behind as the maniac Grin was all over Floyd. Big applause for both guys with cool colorful outfits. This was a fast paced match with the crowd split on who to cheer for. Grin missed a big drop kick and Floyd catches him with a head butt to the groin. A nice pop for Pretty Boy as he gave his version of the Three Amigos ending the series with a facebuster. Grin bounced back and scored a pinfall. The referee made an error as he failed to see Floyd's boot on the second rope.
Winner: Grin
7. The Main Event: Melanie Cruise & Dana Adiva vs Texas Pete & Barry Ryte
This was your basic comedy match and the crowd was really into this contest. The guys were the heels and began the match with stalling tactics. The beautiful Melanie Cruise was the tallest of the four competitors. She was impressive when she was able to bodyslam or toss around her opponents. I've never seen Dana before but she was really green at times. The loudest pop of the night was when both men attempted to double suplex Cruise and she reversed it on them. The double teaming on young Dana would eventually have Ryte pinning her with the use of a snap mare.
Winners: Barry Ryte & Texas Pete
* Justice Jones and Aaron Xavier came out to ambush the fallen women. The snake-like Xavier ran Dana off as Jones nailed Cruise with a thunderous powerbomb.
-Hats off to everyone in NAPW for a wonderful, successful return. The fans had a great time and it was all for charity.
-NAPW returns to Rochelle on Saturday, September 14TH. Check the upcoming show section of this website for more details.
The Hickory Grove Banquet Center is a nice, small venue. There is a bar for fans over the age of twenty-one. Fans could meet the wrestlers at intermission. NAPW always provides a family friendly atmosphere. Two wonderful people with cystic fibrosis was in attendance. Joshua, the younger brother of NAPW owner/wrestler Joey Rose, and my good friend Scott Rush from nearby DeKalb. Joshua has always been great with the other fans and my friend Scott was very happy with both the turn out and the quality of the show. A fun evening going for a good cause.
Some new fans showed up for their first NAPW show. Eric, store manager for Hickey's Marathon in DeKalb, is not a big wrestling fan. He gave it a shot cause his buddy loves wrestling. Eric thought it was a lot of fun and would gladly return.
The show started at its scheduled 7:15PM start. Always a good sign when an indy show actually starts on time. Ring announcer "Fast Talk" Marty Fairlane welcomed the crowd and introduced his fellow announcers the Articulator Steve Kenton and D. Wight Streator. An announcement was made that the NAPW title was vacant and three of the matches would be qualifying matches as part of an eight-man tournament.
1. Aaron Xavier and Justice Jones vs The Sea-Man and "Reckless" Jay Kross.
Xavier & Jones are the fresh new heel team of NAPW. The match opens with Jones headlocking the masked Sea-Man. A few arm bars are exchanged by both competitors. The smaller Sea-Man eventually gets overpowered by Jones and gets trapped in the corner for double teaming. A massive shoulder block by Jones causes a nasty spill to the floor for the Sea-Man. A tag to the beefy Kross evens things up. Two bulls lock horns and some more shoulder blocks are exchanged. A big boot by Jones sends Kross to the floor where Xavier chokes him out using the cape of Sea-Man. Jones continues to pound on a helpless Sea-Man ignoring the instructions of Referee Joshua Jones. A DQ was ordered by the official.
Winners: The Sea-Man and "Reckless" Aaron Kross.
2. Jack Carpenter vs Anthony Antonelli
This was indeed the match of the night. Carpenter rudely interrupted special guest ring announcer Frankie the Chi-Town Hitman. Antonelli burst into the ring to get in Jack's face. The young Italian star has beefed up over the last year and easily muscled Carpenter into the corner. A shoving war emerged. A ton of back-n-forth action with huge pops from the crowd. Antonelli held his opponent at ringside to allow a fan to deliver a knife-chop to the chest. Back in the ring, the crafty Carpenter suckers Anthony into the corner and trips him up. Anthony retaliated with a huge power-slam and an impressive high cross body that almost ended the contest. Impressed to see Carpenter using the old camel clutch. An insaguri and a DDT by Antonelli secured him the "W".
Winner: Anthony Antonelli
3. DOJ (Department of Justice) vs "The Diceman" Ronnie Vegas
This was one of the shorter matches of the night. The classic veteran (Vegas) vs newcomer (DOJ). The young DOJ had slim down and appeared to be in good ring-shape since I saw him a year ago. Vegas dominated most of the match with a classic eye rake, choking opponent on ropes and the ever popular boot to the throat. DOJ bounced back with punches and a big splash in the corner. Missed the second times and paid the price. "The Diceman" rolled snake-eyes for DOJ as he punched him with a full bottle of water, gave his version of shattered dreams and a vicious neck breaker. The veteran easily scored the pin.
Winner: "The Diceman" Ronnie Vegas
4. Joey Rose vs Machine in a Tournament Qualifying Match
The popular Rose was escorted to ringside by the lovely, beautiful, sexy, smiling and gorgeous Kadance Kelli. The larger and threatening looking Machine appeared to be ready to send Joey to the emergency ward. Joey played a smart match by opening with an arm drag and a dropkick. Machine ended up on the floor and caught a leaping Joey with a hard shot. Rose suffered massive shots to his chest. The match was physical with Machine scoring the heavier blows. Joey manages to nail a dropkick off the ropes and score a surprise pin for the upset.
Winner: Joey Rose
Intermission
5. Ruff Crossing vs Mike Anthony in a Tournament Qualifying Match
Always good to see the former WCPW Champion Mike Anthony in action. This was probably the second best match of the night. This was for the fans who enjoy hard shots and a lot of physical action. Crossing attacks with his knee as Anthony attempts to enter the ring. A rough clothesline and an illegal choke with his bull rope gave Crossing the early advantage. A quick small package almost gave Mike an early victory. Crossing counters with a big boot to the face. Anthony hit a very impressive belly-to-belly suplex as he caught Crossing charging him into the corner. Mike would lose his cool and shove the ref enabling Crossing to sucker punch his opponent with a cow bell. The fans were shocked to see the veteran kick out. Crossing followed up with a pump handle slam into a tombstone piledriver to end the match.
Winner: Rough Crossing.
6. Grin vs Pretty Boy Floyd in a Tournament Qualifying Match
This bout also opened with an attack from behind as the maniac Grin was all over Floyd. Big applause for both guys with cool colorful outfits. This was a fast paced match with the crowd split on who to cheer for. Grin missed a big drop kick and Floyd catches him with a head butt to the groin. A nice pop for Pretty Boy as he gave his version of the Three Amigos ending the series with a facebuster. Grin bounced back and scored a pinfall. The referee made an error as he failed to see Floyd's boot on the second rope.
Winner: Grin
7. The Main Event: Melanie Cruise & Dana Adiva vs Texas Pete & Barry Ryte
This was your basic comedy match and the crowd was really into this contest. The guys were the heels and began the match with stalling tactics. The beautiful Melanie Cruise was the tallest of the four competitors. She was impressive when she was able to bodyslam or toss around her opponents. I've never seen Dana before but she was really green at times. The loudest pop of the night was when both men attempted to double suplex Cruise and she reversed it on them. The double teaming on young Dana would eventually have Ryte pinning her with the use of a snap mare.
Winners: Barry Ryte & Texas Pete
* Justice Jones and Aaron Xavier came out to ambush the fallen women. The snake-like Xavier ran Dana off as Jones nailed Cruise with a thunderous powerbomb.
-Hats off to everyone in NAPW for a wonderful, successful return. The fans had a great time and it was all for charity.
-NAPW returns to Rochelle on Saturday, September 14TH. Check the upcoming show section of this website for more details.
