Time to dip into a match that got a lot of GIFs from this past weekend – as we head to the Atlantic City Boardwalk…
This one took place in the first half of GCW’s first Homecoming show. It was one that grabbed my attention enough to buy the show on Fite… and it damn sure lived up to my expectations. Let’s take a look. Commentary’s from Kevin Gill and J. Rose.
Quick Result
Blake Christian pinned Alex Zayne in 14:10 (***¾)
Blake Christian vs. Alex Zayne
According to Cagematch, these two have been in the same ring 10 times before today. I feel like there’s an “at least” I’m missing there… but this is apparently only their third singles match.
We start off hot after a hug and a handshake, with Christian dropkicking Zayne to the outside, before a bunch of switches led to our first GIF. TOPE CON GIRO INTO A ‘RANA! Zayne throws in a tijeras on the outside before returning to the ring… but Christian rolls back in to avoid a dive… only to head outside as Zayne leapt up to sit on the top rope for a springboard inside-out moonsault/Arabian press to the floor. Back inside, Zayne threw a right hand at Christian ahead of a floatover suplex that drew a two-count. Zayne teases a pendulum backbreaker, but switches it up into a facebuster for another two-count, before Zayne caught Christian on the top rope with a gamengiri… then a pump kick, before bringing him down hard with a superplex.
Christian comes back with a spinning enziguiri, before a baseball slide and a low dropkick took Zayne into the ropes for a low 619. A quebrada’s aborted as the pace quickens, with Zayne hitting a Pele kick before he missed a flip and got dumped with a half nelson suplex from Christian. Christian comes back with a right hand before a handspring DDT’s blocked and met with a massive Samoa Joe-like uranage. Zayne doesn’t go for the cover though, and instead heads up top… only to get met with a superkick as Christian dropkicks the top turnbuckle, sending the Taco Bell lover crashing onto the boardwalk below.
Cue GIF #2. Sasuke special into a lifting reverse DDT and a tombstone on the floor. Yeah, this may be “video game wrestling,” but I don’t see any video games chaining stuff like that together! On the outside, Zayne throws Christian into the apron, before they climb the turnbuckles… teasing a superplex to the floor, but Christian heads back inside as he ends up avoiding shooting star knees before Christian rolls through a sunset flip and responds with a cross-legged Ki Krusher for a near-fall. Christian tries to grab Zayne’s wrist, but gets sent into the corner as Zayne responds with the shooting star knees to the back for a near-fall. Zayne heads back up top, but he’s delayed by Blake… and misses a stomp before Christian came back with a standing Spanish Fly. Blake quickly kips up and throws in a 450 splash off the top, but it’s still not enough, as another switcharound led to Zayne running into the corner to ‘rana Christian off the top rope… before going for the Taco Driver – a pumphandle’d version of a Shadow Driver – for a near-fall.
Headscissors from Christian take Zayne off the top rope as the pace quickens again, leading to Christian coming off the top rope with a rewind stomp… then he’s back up for a twisting splash that adds another near-fall. The end comes not long after when Zayne’s backflip is turned into a SPIKING DDT for GIF number three, before a German suplex version of an X-Plex got Christian the win. ***¾
Some spectacular stuff here, and sure, matches like this won’t be everyone’s cup of tea – but if this is a glimpse of the future, then what’s coming down the line with the likes of Zayne, Christian and Benjamin Carter is going to one big game of “can you top this” that’s going to please the GIF-ers and leave us all wondering just how on earth they’ll go one better!