We’ve the semis and the elimination finals as the 2021 Scenic City Invitational wrapped up in Chattanooga!
Quick Results
Adam Priest pinned Kevin Ku in 7:55 (***)
Scenic City Invitational Tournament 2021 Semi-Final: Alex Kane pinned Jon Davis in 9:35 (***¼)
Scenic City Invitational Tournament 2021 Semi-Final: AC Mack pinned Jeremy Wyatt in 10:10 (***¼)
Scenic City Invitational Tournament 2021 Semi-Final: Daniel Makabe submitted Arik Royal in 11:09 (***¾)
Scenic City Invitational Tournament 2021 Semi-Final: Daniel Garcia defeats Jaden Newman by referee stoppage in 9:40 (***½)
Damyan Tangra defeats Bobby Flaco, Ashton Starr, Kevin Ryan, Orion Bishop and Robert Martyr in 7:32 (***¼)
Krule pinned Tank in a No Holds Barred match in 6:18 (**¼)
Brett Ison, 1 Called Manders, Cabana Man Dan & Ron Bass Jr. pinned Big Beef, Eli Knight, Graham Bell & Hoodfoot in 10:05 (***)
O’Shay Edwards pinned Derek Neal in 9:01(***½)
Scenic City Invitational Tournament 2021 Final: AC Mack defeated Daniel Makabe, Daniel Garcia & Alex Kane in 23:10 (****¼)
We’re back at the TWE Arena in Chattanooga, with John Moseley and Dylan Hales on commentary.
Adam Priest vs. Kevin Ku
We open with a non-tournament match, as Adam Priest went from losing in yesterday’s main event, to opening the show…
Ku and Priest lock-up into the corner, but there’s a shoulder tackle from Ku after a push-off, before he caught Priest’s leapfrog… only to get shoved away as a knee to the gut took Priest down. Gutwrenches from Ku toss Priest around the ring, ahead of a big Dragon screw that lifted Priest into the air. Priest retaliated with a back suplex on the apron, before a suplex back inside drew a couple of one-counts. Elbows wear down Ku in the ring, as did a knee to the face, before Ku fought out of a hammerlock, only to telegraph a back body drop and get caught with a DDT instead. Ku shakes it off, but gets clotheslined down by Priest, who then took things back into the corner looking for a superplex, bringing Ku down with a bump.
Priest rolls it through, but Ku countered into a Fisherman buster instead, before an Angle slam dropped Priest in the middle of the ring. A clothesline keeps Priest in the corner, before Ku looked to chop back in… only to get caught with a Dragon suplex for a near-fall. Priest returns with a butterfly backbreaker, only for Ku to respond with a half crab, then an Alphamare Waterslide for a near-fall. Ku looks for another gutwrench, but Priest rakes the eyes before waffling Ku in the head with the cast… and that’s enough for the win as Priest went full 1993 Lex Luger there for the finish. A nice, pacey opener as Ku squeaked out a win here. ***
Scenic City Invitational Tournament 2021 Semi-Final: Alex Kane vs. Jon Davis
My word, they’re not giving Alex Kane an easy path, eh?
Davis takes Kane to the ropes, then kicked him in the leg early on – looking to remove that vertical base that’s paramount to all them suplexes. Kane’s response? A takedown sees Kane try to out-wrestle Davis, grabbing a hammerlock as he tied up the arm, but Davis gets free and rolled down Kane, cranking the neck in the process. Back to their feet, the pair trade elbows until a Davis enziguiri took Kane to the floor. They trade chops around ringside, as Kane was being worn out on the apron by the more experienced Davis, who followed up with crossbodies as Kane was sat on the apron. A second one’s caught though as Kane switches around, putting Davis on the apron for a kick ahead of that splash on the edge of the ring.
In the ring, the pair jostle over a suplex, but Kane gets off the X-Plex for a two-count, only for Davis to retaliate with a spinebuster and a Shining Wizard for a near-fall. Davis keeps Kane in the ropes with chops, before a swinging backbreaker and a Flatline almost put Kane away again. Kicks from Davis left Kane down for a mooonsault, but Davis misses the springboard and ends up being pulled into an Angle slam. The Mark of Kane follows… but Davis is up at one! Snarling, Davis calls for more, sidestepping a charge into the corner before a German suplex and a lariat waffled Kane for a two-count, before Kane caught a second lariat, countering it into the Mark of Kane for the win. A rather different game plan sees Kane drop the suplexes yet still make it to the finals as he booked his ticket to the final. ***¼
Post-match, Davis refused to shake Kane’s hand, saying he’d only earn it by winning the tournament.
Scenic City Invitational Tournament 2021 Semi-Final: AC Mack vs. Jeremy Wyatt
Wyatt overcame Cabana Man Dan to make it here, while Mack was limping out, feeling the effects of his win over Big Beef yesterday.
Wyatt attacks Mack from behind as Mack was doing his introduction, and we get going with Wyatt swarming him in the corner, before a push-off led to Mack getting charged down. At the second time of asking, Mack’s able to hit a leaping clothesline, then took Wyatt to the outside, but Wyatt manages to grab Mack by the legs, and pulls them onto the edge of the apron. A slingshot roll-up back in nearly wins it for Wyatt, who then switches into a half crab that ended in the ropes. Wyatt stays on Mack with a neck crank, following up with a neckbreaker as he continued to wear down Mack.
Mack’s caught with a side Russian legsweep as Wyatt continues to dominate, blistering Mack in the corner with chops, but Mack switches around… only for his kicks to get caught ahead of a Dragon screw for a near-fall. A neckbreaker’s pushed away as Mack just about manages to avoid a charge back into the corner, then caught Wyatt with a leg lariat… but it was with the bad leg. A Flatliner’s able to drop Wyatt for a near-fall, as Mack managed to chain stuff together. A swinging DDT sends Wyatt to the corner, with Mack figuring out what to do… and he chanced his arm on a diving leg lariat into the corner, landing it… yet also tweaked his knee again. It gets a two-count for Mack, who then went for a Mack 10, but Wyatt bridges back into a suplex for a near-fall, before Mack kicked out and landed the Mack 10 anyway.
Mack can’t make the cover as Wyatt rolls to the floor. He returned to take Mack up top for a superplex, eventually sending Mack flying, with a two-count then prompting Wyatt to roll in for an ankle lock. Mack rolls Wyatt into the corner to break the hold, but had to kick out of a backslide before the SummerSlam ‘92 finish saw Mack sit down on a sunset flip to sneak out the victory. A real banana peel finish here as Mack took a beating… but surely enters the finals as an outsider given the injury? ***¼
Scenic City Invitational Tournament 2021 Semi-Final: Arik Royal vs. Daniel Makabe
We waited for years for this match to happen over a WrestleMania weekend… and four months after we finally got it, we’ve got the rematch!
Makabe’s sticking with the Whitecaps here as he locked up with Royal, but neither man was able to keep the collar and elbow on as they headed to the corner. Standing switches end with Royal backing Makabe into the corner, before an early attempt at the Kobe was rolled out as the pair square off again. Royal’s sent into the corner, then dropkicked to the floor as Makabe fakes out a dive… opting to slingshot himself from the apron to the floor for a lucha armdrag. Goddamn. Back inside, elbows from Makabe just seemed to annoy Royal, who replied with a waistlock takedown and a diving tackle for a two-count, before a rolling inside cradle just left the referee holding his hands up rather than count.
Royal’s got his senses back first as he leaps in with a high knee to Makabe for a two-count, before Makabe countered out of some bodyscissors by going after Arik’s ankles. Royal takes things into the corner, chopping Makabe on the top rope… but Daniel slips out and teased a powerbomb, only to counter out and trip Royal into a STF. I’ve absolutely no idea what started it, but Makabe’s Whitecaps shirt’s starting to turn red, with blood starting to trickle from the back of his head.Makabe gets up but gets rolled up by Royal, who then traps Makabe in a spinning toe hold en route to a Figure Four, only for the ropes to force a break. Pulling himself up, Makabe’s almost a sitting duck as Royal chopped him into the corner, before a floatover, a Big Unit punch and a bridging German suplex led to a near-fall from the Canadian.
Makabe tries to dead weight himself, but Royal pulls him up into a clothesline, before a POUNCE spun Makabe into the ropes, which he clung onto for grim death. Eventually Royal breaks the grip and covers for a two-count… but he gets a little too far ahead of himself, heading to the corner for a springboard Kobe, only for Makabe to chop block the knees. Pulling down the knee pad, Makabe waffles Royal in the head, then dropped his knee on Arik’s knee as a set up for the Makabe Lock 𝜋 … and the seated cattle mutilation gets the battle-weary Makabe the spot in final. That’s two-thirds of the field going into the finals with some disadvantage, after Makabe managed to get revenge for Miami in April. ***¾
Scenic City Invitational Tournament 2021 Semi-Final: Daniel Garcia vs. Jaden Newman
Garcia brought all his belts with him – dripping in goal just a day before he looked to add the IWTV title to his haul.
We open with a knuckle lock as Garcia took Newman to the mat for some early two-counts, before Newman forced Garcia back into the ropes as he looked for a submission attempt. Garcia charges Newman into the corner for a chop, before taking things to the mat for a rear naked choke that Newman managed to get in the ropes to break up. Newman tries for a Hangman’s Clutch, but Garcia grabs the rope, and then came back as he ground down Newman with a side headlock. A shoulder block and a kick gets a one-count, as we go back to the mat… then into the corner as Newman and Garcia trade chops. Garcia’s snap suplex gets another one-count, before another exchange of chops and kicks just served to up the aggression.
Almost an Exploder from Newman gets a one-count, while a corner dropkick just lulled Newman into a false sense of security as he whiffs on a cannonball. Garcia throws him into the corner again, then pulled Newman into a rear naked choke out of a suplex, but Newman backs into the corner and throws Garcia away. Newman goes back to the corner for a rolling cravat neckbreaker off the middle rope for a near-fall, before another crack at the Hangman’s Clutch was countered back into a rear naked choke. It’s escaped as we go back to strikes, with Newman targeting the neck, before he popped up from a German suplex to kick Garcia in the head. From there, a Ricola bomb lands for a near-fall for Newman, only to get caught in a neck crank from Garcia as a set up for a Saito suplex.
Garcia pulls Newman back up for a piledriver, but Newman pushes free and went back to the Hangman’s Clutch. The ropes save Garcia again, as Newman got fired up… but he runs into a rear naked choke as Garcia wrapped him down to the mat, before Garcia slipped in the Garcia Lock, tying up the arms and legs for the stoppage. Newman looked good here, but aside of the Hangman’s Clutch, it didn’t feel like he had much of a game plan – and as soon as he was caught in that rear naked choke, it was pretty much game over from there. ***½
Post-match, Garcia took off his boot as he’d apparently tweaked his ankle… which I guess puts Alex Kane in pole position as the least-injured of the finalists?
Robert Martyr vs. Kevin Ryan vs. Bobby Flaco vs. Damyan Tangra vs. Ashton Starr vs. Orion Bishop
This scramble is apparently to determine an alternate if someone drops out… but what the hell happens if everyone’s hurt?!
Martyr ran into Bishop at the bell, as Orion was just picking up BODIES. Ryan, Starr, and Tangra get sent into the corner after Flaco’s dropkick, but Bishop doesn’t go down and ends up getting swarmed by the other five. With Orion on the outside, things settle down a little, before Flaco just got taken down with a forearm from Martyr amid a springboard attempt. A brainbuster from Martyr gets rid of Flaco, and brings in Starr, who’s sunset flip was countered before he dumped Martyr with a backbreaker. In comes Tangra, uppercutting Starr in mid-air, before Flaco returned to go for a stunner… and ended up eating an uppercut of his own for a near-fall.
Kevin Ryan escapes a powerbomb on the floor before he ‘rana’d Bishop into a supporting column… before he cleared the ring ahead of an Orihara moonsault to the pile on floor that almost went awry. Back inside, a standing Spanish Fly nearly got Ryan the win, but Martyr’s back with an enziguiri and a German suplex for a near-fall on Ryan as bodies begin to fill the ring. Bishop’s caught by Martyr, but ends up diving in with a clothesline before Starr clipped the big man with a scissors kick. Orion’s back with a spear to Starr, before Martyr cut off a POUNCE that was aimed squarely at Tangra! Martyr rolls outside after that, as Tangra and Ryan went at it, only to get interrupted by a Flaco crossbody… Flaco chains together a facebuster and a cutter for a near-fall on Tangra, before a springboard crossbody to the floor kept Bobby ahead.
Back inside, Tangra uppercuts away another springboard from Flaco, before a spiking Flatliner was enough to get the win on Flaco. What, no STF? An entertaining balls-to-the-wall scramble, as Tangra stood manages to do just enough to claim the alternate spot. ***¼
Post-match, ACTION’s Matt Griffin hit the ring and announced Tangra was the first entrant for next year’s SCI.
No Holds Barred: Krule vs. Tank
Krule looks familiar… maybe like he might be a little Mads elsewhere, or perhaps he just enjoys Creed? We’ve got ourselves a post-intermission death match.
Krule starts by tossing Tank into a door with his name on it… then by bouncing the remnants off of him. Chairshots. Tank breaks some more of those remnants over Krule’s head, before a low blow had Krule down to a knee as Tank grabbed some skewers and gave Krule a wooden peacock hairstyle. Tank grabs some more as Krule barely registered them… then returned the favour with some skewers to the back of Tank’s dome. The back end of a mohawk! They trade punches next as the skewers flew out of their heads, before Krule was thrown through another door in the corner. A gusset plate’s handed to Tank, who “chops” it into Krule’s chest, before a second one got slapped onto Tank’s arms.
A running boot drops Tank, who tried to come back with a German suplex… but only got a one-count from that, as Krule then turned around into a chokebreaker for a near-fall. Krule counters a chokeslam by throwing Tank through a barbed wire board, before flip senton off the top landed on Tank for the win. As you know, I’m not a death match guy, and this was looking to go south when it ended… **¼
Graham Bell, Big Beef, Eli Knight, & Hoodfoot vs. Brett Ison, 1 Called Manders, Cabana Man Dan & Ron Bass Jr.
We continue the non-tournament stuff now, with an eight man tag – with some rather meaty fellows in here. And a bazooka.
The match starts with a big ol’ staredown, with the ref getting shoved aside as all hell broke loose. Hoodfoot dives into a pile that gathered on the floor, while Manders just waffled him with a bit of Tank’s door from earlier on. Eli Knight decides to do a dive, hitting a flip senton over the top rope, before Cabana Man Dan suplexed Graham Bell into the business on the floor. Hitting the ring, Big Beef goes after Dan, catching a floatover only to see his back suplex countered with a crossbody. Second time’s the charm as Dan hits the Shiranui out of the corner, only for Graham Bell to run in with a stinging chop. A stomp to Dan’s bare feet was an obvious move, but Dan’s able to shrug it off, before Manders made the save as the two big lads trade elbows and kicks.
Manders’ powerslam has Bell down, before Knight leaps in off the top… and got caught ahead of a shoulder block. Size matters… but Knight’s able to catch Manders on the top rope, eventually landing the ‘rana as Manders tried to counter out. A springboard dropkick gets rid of Manders, and brings in Ison, whose release Exploder chucks Knight into the corner, before we reset with Ison and Hoodfoot. They go back and forth with right hands, but Ison’s backfist missed as Hoodfoot elbowed him to the mat. Dan’s back with a springboard DDT, but we’ve still no ref, so we keep on going with Knight getting caught with a Black Hole Slam from Ron Bass Jr. We circle back to Ison and Bell throwing strikes, but it’s Bell who pulls ahead, before he got POUNCED into the corner by Bass.
We keep rotating as Big Beef hits the ring with some clubbing blows, just as the ref comes to… a lariat dumps Bass, who then squared off with Manders for more strike exchanges. Beef’s elbows rock Manders, who jumped back with a clothesline, then ate one from Beef, whose powerbomb looked to get it done… but he doesn’t go for the cover. Instead, Cabana Man Dan tries to run in, but gets caught by Beef in a full nelson slam. A backfist from Ison dumps Beef, and that’s your lot. This was a lot closer to a tornado tag, and perhaps truthfully, a scramble at time, but this had a glorious number of big lads having a go at each other, and I’m always going to go for that sort of stuff in my “popcorn” matches. ***
Derek Neal vs. O’Shay Edwards
They sure love their hoss fights around the Scenic City, eh?
Neal goes to the eyes early before he took a swing at Edwards… who swung right back. A low bridge has O’Shay on the floor, with Neal throwing some more strikes that Edwards just walked through before he began to throw Neal into the side of the ring. Kicking the rope stops O’Shay’s momentum as Neal sent him right back outside, looking for a count-out, but O’Shay beats the count… then countered a suplex into a stalling one that eventually dumped Derek to the mat. Edwards looks to follow up, but gets taken to the ropes as Neal looked for roll-ups, before an uppercut and a dropkick took Edwards down. A stomp to the hand keeps O’Shay rocked, but he tries his luck with an inside cradle for a near-fall, only to get bounced with a lariat from the kickout.
Another lariat from Neal’s ducked and turned into a spinebuster, before Edwards’ Oklahoma Stampede caught Derek off guard. Splashes in the corner followed from O’Shay, but Neal comes in with a back suplex for a two-count. More strikes from Neal lead to a Fisherman buster, before a suplex from the apron in was blocked. The pair jockey for position, with Edwards then getting nailed with a backfist and a knee, before a back senton from Neal landed firm for a two-count. In the end though, Neal got a little too carried away, and ends up losing as his floatover out of the corner was caught and turned into a sit-out tombstone from Edwards for the decisive win. Gotta love two big lads swinging for the fences in a sprint of a match – which this was. Seek this one out! ***½
Scenic City Invitational Tournament 2021 Elimination Final: AC Mack vs. Alex Kane vs. Daniel Garcia vs. Daniel Makabe
We’ve a sixty-minute time limit for this… with the winner taking home the Greg Hullender trophy.
Mack limps to the ring but refused to withdraw as he cast a nervous look over his shoulder while doing his usual intro, while Daniel Makabe was looking to be the first man to win back-to-back SCIs.
Kane and Garcia start, beginning with a knuckle lock that went to the mat, as Garcia tried to tempt Kane into his grappling game. A waistlock from Garcia quickly ends in the ropes as Kane just walked away, only for Garcia to look for a roll-up ahead of chops that Kane just shrugged off. We’re working under lucha rules, as Kane’s elbow took Garcia to the outside… so in comes Makabe, who renewed his acquaintance with Kane following a surprise tag match earlier in the day. Kane takes things to the mat, but Makabe frustrated things as he instead went for the arm of Kane, looking for a wristlock as he breaks a waistlock, before standing switches ended with Makabe taking Kane into the ropes… only to get speared. Out goes Makabe, and in comes Mack, as Garcia opted to wait on the floor and bide his time.
Mack backs into the corner as Kane went for a lock-up, before he was taken down in a side headlock by Kane. A roll back gets a two-count on Kane, who responds with a half crab, but Mack instantly grabs the ropes as Garcia poked a kick through the ropes to try and aggravate things further. A sit-out powerbomb from Kane gets a two-count, as Mack rolled out… but it’s Daniel Garcia who takes over as he beat Makabe to the proverbial punch. Garcia’s mounted rear naked choke ends in the ropes, but Kane quickly splashes Garcia in the corner, before he swiped at Makabe on the apron. Makabe hits the ring to catch Kane from behind, but that landing caught Garcia off guard as he was left checking his teeth.
Mack’s in too to square off with Makabe, hobbling as he goes, before he shoved Makabe into the ropes. Makabe replied with a STF, then an attempt at the Makabe Lock 𝜋, before we ended up with a regular Makabe Lock and a veritable Human Centipede of submission attempts as all four men were in the ring at the same time. The two Daniels break it up, as Kane clung onto an ankle lock on Mack, despite Garcia’s elbows… they’re eventually effective as Kane waffles Garcia into the corner before he had his knee chopped out. A Shining Wizard from Garcia leaves Kane laying, as did a leaping hooking clothesline from Mack, before Makabe hit the Big Unit punch for a near-fall… despite Garcia piling onto Kane as well! Kane’s back with clotheslines as the ref looked to abandon the legal-man concept for now, allowing Kane to toss Garcia with the Mark of Kane… but Garcia rolls outside, as Makabe then took over, looking for a Makabe Lock.
A Mark of Kane’s blocked as Makabe transitioned to an Octopus hold, then rolled Kane down for a Makabe Lock, leading to Kane backing into the ropes. Makabe heads up top and drops the knee on Kane… and that’s all as Kane takes the first fall at 13:26. We’re down to Mack and the two Daniels, and it’s those two who resume things, with Makabe looking for a Fujiwara armbar before he hammerlocked and rolled Garcia up for a two-count. Garcia fakes out a punch before he kicked out Makabe’s knee en route to a calf-slicing ankle lock, which Makabe rolled out of for a two-count. The kick worked, as Makabe’s knee gave out, allowing Garcia to hit a Shining Wizard for a near-fall as Makabe rolled outside for respite. Mack’s in to take another beating, but he’s able to catch Garcia with a Slingblade, only to get caught with a Sharpshooter.
The ropes save Mack, as Makabe returned to the ring. Things quickly descend into strikes, with almost a Superman Elbow from Makabe and an uppercut looking to wear out Garcia, who gleefully threw back in kind. Elbows and chops sting both sides, before Garcia booted Makabe into the corner… only to get the Big Unit! Mack capitalises with a Mack 10, and that’s Garcia out… as we get a reboot of the 2019 final two!
Dualling chants greet the pair as Mack talked trash, berating Makabe for not staying in “the region (he) won” two years ago. Cue two fired up dudes, with a backhand stinging Makabe into the corner, only for Mack to hobble in for some double knees, which Makabe caught as he took Mack up top for a ‘rana! After kicking out a two, Mack had to defend a Makabe Lock 𝜋, before firing back in with a swinging DDT. It’s enough to get Mack a near-fall, as he then followed up with a Trailer Hitch, in spite of his own bad leg. Makabe grabs the free leg that Mack had been using to kick with, before Mack grabbed the hair and resumed the striking game with uppercuts. Elbows from Mack wear down Makabe, but the Mack 10’s countered away into a triangle choke that Mack rolled up for a near-fall… and then it’s back to the Makabe Lock. That breaks down into back-and-forth roll-ups, only for Mack to get back up to land the Mack 10… then another as the pair of Mack 10s proved to be enough for AC to go one step further than 2019 and win the SCI. Some fantastic work here, with Mack’s leg injury from his first round match proving a hindrance, but this proved to be a match too far for Makabe on his fifth outing of the weekend as AC Mack “won back” the region in a classic. ****¼
Post-match, Makabe handed the SCI trophy to Mack, who joked that Chattanooga can “keep their building” after his earlier promise to “win it all or burn it all.” Mack then noted he’d won every championship in the region… and now he’s got his eye on something bigger – the IWTV championship. Mack noted he’d just beaten Daniel Garcia, who’ll be facing Wheeler Yuta on Sunday for the IWTV title, and claimed himself as the number one contender for that title, regardless of how Yuta’s defence goes.
If you’re a fan of the big lads wrestling, you had plenty to whet your appetite here with the non tournament matches – and while this may not have hit the heights of night one, we’re still dealing with some high standard tournament wrestling, particularly with the stories of the injuries going through to the final, and a whole lot of fun on the undercard as well.