David Starr’s reign as OTT champion got going as Speedball Mike Bailey provided the first opposition in Dublin.
It’s back to the Kilnamanagh Family Recreation Centre – or the KFR Centre for the sake of words – in Dublin. This show sold out in double-quick time… but we’ve a late change on the day of the show as B. Cool’s GN title shot fell through because of Mark Haskins going down with illness. Aonghus og McAnally and Tony Kelly are back for commentary. By the way, if you’ve not heard Tony’s “Me Head is Wrecked” podcast, go out of your way to give it a listen. It’s better than his KFC joke… still, he revealed an Independent t-shirt, so that got him back onside.
Calum Black vs. Omari vs. Kyle Fletcher vs. MAO vs. Terry Thatcher
Kyle’s got a thing for MAO… while the Dublin crowd’s got a lot of split loyalties to contend with here.
MAO starts by pretending to lock up, but he just stands back and watches as everyone else pairs off. He’s the last man to be picked… which makes him want to fight everyone instead. They push him away as a four-way test of strength broke out, so he breaks it up and wrenches the arm of Fletcher, which flowed throughout the rest of the line before he goes wild with hiptosses, having fun along the way.
Superkicks get rid of MAO as things began to pick up, working on the revolving door theory as guys swapped in and out of the match. Fletcher and MAO worked a double-team elbow drop, but then had arguments over who’d pin Omari, before they… puckered up. Eh, kiss and make up, and all that. Omari clears the ring before he hit a tope con giro, landing on his feet to boot, before Kyle dropkicked him to the floor ahead of a step-up flip senton. Back in the ring, Omari came close with a suplex on MAO, before we had another shoving match as they argued over who should pin MAO. Luckily, MAO fought back, with a dropkick in the corner before he went for a dive of his own. A split-legged moonsault comes up short as things broke out again, with Omari landing awkwardly from a satellite DDT from Thatcher, before MAO spiked Black with a Michinoku driver for a near-all.
Fletcher dumped MAO with a Ligerbomb, but Omari quickly breaks it up and hits a springboard stomp, then a gutwrench powerbomb before Thatcher slipped off the top into a break-up. A top rope elbow follows for a near-fall on Omari, as things started to get a little too head-droppy, Black POUNCES Omari away from a Dethatched attempt… and we’re left with the local lads laying into each other, before Black just back body drops Thatcher into the pile on the outside. Black comes close with a Shouten Kai on Fletcher, before Terry Thatcher came in and snuck a DeThatched on Fletcher – getting the pin just before Black could get anything going from his Burning Hammer. A nice dead-heat to end things, but it’d have been nice if there’d been someone in the mix to boo – aside from the Black/Thatcher stuff, it felt a little too “fireworks”. ***
Backsiate, Aidan’s throwing up – Club Tropicana’s in threat because they’re overspending. Captain Sexsea’s bet on Aidan to lose, but he’s not told him…
Liam Royal vs. Aidan
There’s no Michael May this time, while Aidan comes out to the Rocky theme. Uh oh. Big pops for Aidan’s built-up but ultimately “eh” intro.
From the bell, Aidan runs into a lariat, which left everyone aghast, before a Beele throw left Aidan in more trouble. Royal removes a turnbuckle pad, so he can go for a Snake Eyes, but Aidan slips out and began to fight back with chops… which Royal barely registered as he punched Aidan out of the ring. Aidan begs for mercy, but gets none as a snap powerbomb would have finished him off… but Royal pulls him up. Captain Sexsea throws in the towel, but Royal rips it in half, before he ran into the exposed buckle, allowing Aidan to Yano his way to a win with a roll-up! Captain Sexsea was not thrilled… By the numbers, but it told a good story behind it all. *½
La Rebelion Amarilla (Bestia 666 & Mecha Wolf) vs. Kings Of The North (Bonesaw & Damien Corvin)
Brought to OTT as part of the Crash, there was some sour feeling beforehand on Bestia and Mecha Wolf for various reasons. More the latter than the former.
Bonesaw and Mecha Wolf start, but it’s the Belfast native who pushed on with some big strong lucha in the form of a ‘rana. Tags bring in Corvin and Bestia, with the latter hitting a cheapshot from a handshake, but Corvin clears house with dropkicks to both opponents, only to get caught with some double-teaming as things settled down with Bestia stomping on him in the corner.
A frog splash from Mecha Wolf flattens Corvin, as did an enziguiri, before Corvin absorbed some chops, only to run into a dropkick. There’s a questionable kick down low, but Corvin’s back with a missile dropkick as Bonesaw tags in and tried to fight back, but Mecha Wolf cuts off the Kings, before Mecha’s Asai moonsault took everyone into the first row. Back inside, Bonesaw took a Meteora-assisted powerbomb for a near-fall, before Corvin’s White Star line helped them back in.
Yeah, Corvin tops that off with a dive, going hands free with a tope con giro before Bonesaw’s Falcon arrow almost got the win. Bestia and Mecha Wolf combine again as a muscle buster and a 450 splash dropped Bonesaw… but Bestia couldn’t go for the cover, and Bonesaw rolled to the outside. Corvin’s brought back in as Bestia went up top… Bonesaw knocks him to the floor, then watched as Corvin hit a sit-out front suplex, with the It’s A Kind of Magic Killer on Mecha Wolf getting the win. This was weird – the crowd were muted throughout, perhaps the protest at Mecha Wolf actually paid off, or perhaps it’s a sign of how the Kings’ return to Dublin was handled? **¼
OTT Women’s Championship: Debbie Keitel vs. Katey Harvey (c)
Debbie’s still got a busted eye following the spill she had at the Defiant show last month… but it’s not stopping her from trying to get the Woke Queens’ title back. The Dublin crowd give the Woke Queens a hard time about them not having CT Flexor anymore… but we start with Keitel going after Harvey’s arm early on.
Harvey’s back with a Romero special, before some short-range forearms and a spinning sidewalk slam dropped Debbie for a two-count. Keitel distracts the ref as Valkyrie choked Keitel in the corner, and the challenger’s right on with the arm, even after Harvey’s attempted fight back. A diving uppercut to the back gets a near-fall as commentary pondered if Katey had Lex Luger’d herself with any plates in her arm, before some body scissors on the mat looked to force a submission.
Valkyrie again gets involved, stuffing Harvey’s arm in the turnbuckle pad as Keitel ran in with a knee, but Katey’s back with forearms to Debbie’s eye, only for Keitel to reply with another armbar in the ropes. Harvey stops it with a superplex for a two-count, before Keitel went back to the arm to escape a Gory bomb. Not to worry, Harvey goes all Taguchi on us with a Dodon for a near-fall, before Keitel rolled into a Cattle Mutilation to try and force a stoppage.
Harvey got to the ropes as the pair went tit-for-tat with strikes, ending with Harvey landing the Gory bomb for the clean-as-a-sheet win. A decent outing, but this crowd simply didn’t seem to care. Is this really an OTT crowd?! **¾
OTT No Limits Championship: Ren Narita vs. Scotty Davis (c)
This one could be a “remember when?” down the line… and I’m not talking about Tony Kelly baiting Aonghus on commentary.
Narita slaps away a handshake at the bell, as the early grappling had some intensity behind it. An arm wringer from Narita has Davis looking for a counter, which he finally gets as a pair of Gator rolls had Narita stunned. Ren ducks a head kick, before some waistlocks led to Narita taking Davis down to the mat. A German suplex from Davis dumped Narita hard into the turnbuckles, before a Gator roll saw Scotty continue to target the head and neck of the travelling Young Lion. Using a front chancery, Davis eventually bridges into a Muta lock, rolling Narita away from the ropes before an eventual break.
Suplexes follow as Narita was looking out of it, with a guillotine choke seeing Davis try to end things early… Ren got free, but was right back down after a head kick as Scotty wasn’t giving any quarter. A release German suplex folds up Ren for a near-fall, but that seemed to fire up Narita as he began to fight back with forearms, eventually handing a suplex for a near-fall. Narita builds up with a leg sweep into a leg spreader, before he rolled Scotty into a half crab. Davis throws headbutts to avoid a Narita Special #4, then dumped Ren awkwardly with a Saito suplex as they weren’t holding back… before some boxing led to a lariat and a standing moonsault for a near-fall.
Scotty tries to roll in for a crossface, but Narita rolls through, only to get caught with a Chaos Theory out of the corner for a near-fall. Back-and-forth chops follow, then lariats until Narita ducked one and turned it into a suplex of his own. An Angle Slam drops Narita as Davis pushed on, landing a head kick then a cross-legged Fisherman buster… and that’s all. I’m a sucker for competitive Young Lion’s matches, and this was one in all but name. Narita took a beating, but got plenty in… this may not be the only time these two pair off in their career, and they’ve got a cracker to build off of! ***¾
We go backstage as B. Cool’s moaning about losing his title shot because Mark Haskins has the flu. He’s looking to add himself to the main event, but Joe Cabray’s a little salty over B’s past comments. B’s annoyed that Paddy’s in the discussions for a title shot, calling it nepotism (nice callback!), before Paddy opted to put his non-specific title shot on the line.
B. Cool vs. Paddy M
B’s got his mockumentary crew with him, so he’s hyping up the crowd beforehand. It works, after a couple of cheap digs at Jordan Devlin and Katey Harvey…
Paddy M’s got his Kill Bill tracksuit on, and he’s goosing the ref too. He loses his chain inside the ring post, which doesn’t help, before he pulled off a spinaroonie at the bell. We start with a lock-up, that segued into an arm wringer from B Cool, although it gets reversed as B tried to get the crowd on-side. Some forward rolls get him free, and make Paddy laugh, before B’s taken outside… where he decided to become a streetfighter. Which involved running away.
Paddy needles B by passing on a message from Cabray, as another Benny Hill chase begins… ending badly for B. Chops keep him winded, before he tried to press slam Paddy off the top… and got poked in the eye instead as Paddy flew in with a crossbody for a near-fall. A back suplex from B’s good for a near-fall as commentary praised him for at least lasting longer than last time here, while B Cool turned into the Road Dogg. A chinlock keeps Paddy down, but he elbows free, then eventually pulled B down into a sunset flip for a near-fall. Paddy’s chucked with a fallaway slam for a near-fall, before Paddy landed awkwardly… commentary brought up some knee surgery Paddy apparently needed, as they proceeded to wave off the match. Or did they? Joe Cabray’s out to check on Paddy, but he insists they continue, as B Cool accidentally launched into Cabray with a Pescado.
Well, he’ll be out of a job. Eventually, as the match continued, with Paddy flipping on the impact from a Stunner before he kicked out of a brainbuster. Again, Paddy’s knee looked to be problematic, worsened when he’s crotched on the top rope, before he countered an avalanche brainbuster into an avalanche sunset flip, then a Samoan driver for the win. Workrate fans perhaps won’t like this, but this was a solid match for a more casual audience that perhaps could have done with being a little tighter in terms of timing. **½
More Than Hype (Darren Kearney, LJ Cleary & Nathan Martin) vs. Rey Horus & Lucha Brothers (Fenix & Pentagon Jr.)
This was a massive test for the More Than Hype lads, and Pentagon was making a beeline straight for “Psycho” Nathan. Oh boy.
An early exchange of superkicks left Kearney alone in the corner, before Pentagon took his gloves off to slap the taste out of Nathan Martin. Things don’t improve as the Lucha Brothers hit a wheelbarrow splash onto him, before LJ’s attempt to make a save ended with him getting powerbombed, then held for a Wazzup stomp to the arse.
There’s fear in Nathan’s eyes as Penta ironically screamed “cero miedo” at him, but Martin’s back with forearms to Fenix, then an enziguiri and a Falcon arrow that didn’t quite do the deal. The lucha rules allowed Horus to come in, but More Than Hype swarm him ahead of some dives to the outside, culminating with Kearney’s step-up flip senton into the pile. Back inside, Kearney’s suplex/powerbomb drops Horus for a near-fall, while Martin got booted in the back by Pentagon on the outside. Ow. A Spanish fly from Horus nearly gets the win, but LJ breaks up the pin and ended up squaring off with Fenix, who offered the first shot. Fenix nearly buckles Cleary with a chop, but LJ’s back with forearms and a spinning enziguiri before Fenix got him in the ropes with a rope-walk PK. JEEEZ.
A springboard enziguiri gets LJ back in, but Penta breaks up the cover… then called in Nathan Martin. Oh boy. The dualling chants are LOUD… but not as loud as Penta’s chops, which Martin shrugs off before issuing his own… so Penta tries to cave his chest in as they went back and forth. Is it possible to puncture a lung with chops?
A superkick stops Martin, who hit one of his own, before a pumphande driver nearly got the win… a spike package piledriver’s stopped as More Than Hype rush the ring, leading to the Activate Destroyer on Fenix for a near-fall… so they pull down their knee pads, only for their plans of knee strikes to get stopped as the Lucha Brothers hit a spike package piledriver onto LJ for the win. An enjoyable sprint of a match, which’ll take your breath away. Quite literally in the case of Psycho Nathan… ****
OTT World Championship: Mike Bailey vs. David Starr (c)
In an interesting note, Mike Bailey was the first person Jordan Devlin defended against following his first OTT title win… as Starr was leaning into his new “real import killer” moniker, taking on the nickname and using it on his trunks.
The crowd’s somewhat split on Starr, but it’s nowhere near the 50-50 we had against Devlin, despite him slapping Bailey to start things off as the crowd showered him with chants of “Davey Five Star”. That’s the last thing he needs, another nickname…
Bailey still wants that handshake, but Starr’s still sucker punching, so Bailey eschews the respect line, and took Starr into the ropes for a mid kick. They head outside, where Bailey keeps up with the kicks, before he took Starr into the crowd as his own minions held him for some more. Starr turns it around as his followers helped hold Bailey ahead of some spitty chops, followed up by a powerbomb onto the edge of the ring.
Back inside, Bailey ran into a Pretty Pumped for a near-fall, as Starr continued to work over the Canadian. Chops have Speedball in the corner, but Starr took too long addressing his detractors and walked into a chop… only to hit right back with a backbreaker to keep the momentum going. Bailey fought back with a diving kick off the ropes, before he again offered a handshake that Starr ducked… with the champion again trying to laugh it off. This time, Bailey’s expecting the cheapshot and beat Starr to the punch with a series of kicks, knocking him down for a standing corkscrew press that led to the near-fall. Starr evades Bailey and comes back with a Violence Party in the corner, before a goddamn Flatliner spiked Speedball for a near-fall.
Starr calls for a Han Stansen, but runs into a fallaway moonsault slam, then rebounded instantly for a Blackheart Buster for a near-fall. When that didn’t get the job done, Starr took a swing for the ref as he reverted to form, blaming the officials… and distracting himself as Bailey hit a lariat of his own. Starr replies with lariats as the pair clattered each other, before a Han Stansen eventually spun Bailey back to the mat.
Kicks got Bailey back in it, but Bailey’s taken outside for some topes, only for the third one to miss as Speedball countered back with an Asai moonsault instead. Starr brawls in the crowd, dragging Bailey towards the stage, where the champion teased a powerbomb to the floor… only for Bailey to throw him off for a shooting star press to the floor. Speedball’s really into his high dives in OTT this year, eh? A brainbuster from Starr stops Bailey… but Starr refuses to break the count, instead taking the double count-out as this was going to be ruled as a draw? However, referee Niall Fox restarts it as he wanted a winner… and Speedball’s right back in with a roll-up for a near-fall. Ultima Weapon’s next for another two-count as Bailey was trying to snatch it, following up with a Flamingo Driver, before another Ultima Weapon whiffed.
Starr’s right on top of Bailey after that, rolling him into the Republican Remorse… but Bailey’s able to crawl to the ropes as he got his hand free. The crowd’s starting to get more like 50-50 as Starr’s actions was losing him fans, as the pair got back to their feet… only for Bailey to bring it back to a slugfest. A short Han Stansen spins Bailey, who’s then dumped with an avalanche Blackheart Huster for a near-fall. The same happens from Kaepernick, before the Trapped Arm Bob Fossil was blocked… so Starr counters back with a Figure Four in the middle of the ring.
Somehow Bailey gets to the ropes, but Starr “couldn’t let go” of the hold… until Bailey slapped him. Starr heads for the belt, teasing using it as a weapon, as the referee again got in his face. Rather than let himself get distracted, Starr poked Bailey, who struck back, countering a package piledriver with a back body drop and some moonsault knees, before Starr countered a kick with a Dragon screw. Another Republican Remorse was countered into a small package, before Starr tripped Bailey into a half crab, ripping off Bailey’s kick pad to get some extra leverage. Bailey gets free as he proceeded to use his bare leg for a head kick on Starr, before an Ultima Weapon landed yet again… but Starr’s able to grab the bottom rope, despite Bailey getting the three count. That’s two decisions that’s been waved off now, and as Bailey didn’t realise what had happened, he got shoved into the ref…
Starr counters with a Cherry Mint DDT onto the belt that was on the apron, before another Han Stansen and a Trapped Arm Bob Fossil led to one more Han Stansen… and that’s your lot. I wasn’t crazy about the referee restarting the match, given we’re already establishing Joe Cabray as an authority figure of sorts. It does feel like OTT are doing their best to subtly turn Starr, without being too overt – and things like him having fans celebrate with him afterwards keeps the character’s double-talking going. ****
After the match Starr teased giving a riled-up Bailey the handshake, but decked him with a lariat instead. He then tried to cut a promo, but was interrupted by dissenters, who kept poking him about WALTER. Starr’s response? “WALTER’s so important, he spent about three minutes on pay-per-view”. OOF.
With that off the table, Starr then settled back down to the sort of stuff that made him a good guy initially, talking about fighting the machine and putting over the fans for literally carrying him on his shoulders. That then turned to Starr putting over the people who put the show on: specifically the ring crew, who he dedicated the belt to. Are they going to be his minions?!
Outer Space Odyssey 4 was a bit of a weird show from OTT – while some elements of the show were clearly there to extend storylines, such as Club Tropicana’s demise and B. Cool’s ongoing irritating of Joe Cabray, the matches behind them didn’t seem to land… while the building for More Than Hype and Scotty Davis continued unabated. I’m still curious to see where this stuff heads: does Starr brainwash the ring crew and have them save his arse? Some may compare this to his run in Rev Pro, especially the “me against the machine” part, but the “us versus them” bit is definitely more fleshed out. Whether it has legs like this… time will tell!