Following up on Beyond’s afternoon show, it was WWR’s turn to headline with an evening card featuring Deonna Purrazzo and Davienne in the main event.
We’re back at the Electric Haze once again, with Rich Palladino doing the ring announcing, with Paul Crockett on commentary with a rotating crew of co-hosts. Deonna Purazzo starts on what could turn out to be her final night before leaving for greener pastures…
Team PAWG (Jordynne Grace & LuFisto) vs. Team Adams (Karen Q & Tasha Steelz)
This was the WWR debut of Team PAWG, who are unbeaten in WWR’s sister group Beyond.
After refusing a handshake, Grace was double-teamed from the off with Q and Steelz taking her down, as Team Adams looked to target Jordynne’s arm in the early going. They isolate her with a standing moonsault and a legdrop combo for a near-fall, before Grace blocks a suplex attempt and reverses it, before she dragged Karen into the ropes for a sly kick from LuFisto ahead of a wheelbarrow facebuster.
LuFisto’s tagged in next, as she keeps up the pressure with a suplex on Tasha for a near-fall, before she just throws her into the corner for some chops. A snapmare out of the corner leads to a kick to the back for a near-fall, as Grace is brought back in to keep up the focus on Steelz, who is forced to withstand a double armbar. A stalling suplex takes Steelz down for another two-count, as LuFisto returned… just as Tasha fought back, leaping over a charge from LuFisto, only to get bulldozed down. Steelz wriggles out of a Burning hammer and brings in Karen Q, who cleared house with a handspring forearm to LuFisto and a suplex out of the corner as Grace was forced to keep the match alive.
LuFisto charges back into the corner and squashes Q with a cradle DDT for a near-fall, with Steelz breaking up the cover. Jordynne returns to keep up the isolation on Q as she built up to the Vader Bomb, but Q rolls away and after the impact she put a Boston crab on Grace as a cutter from Steelz neutralises LuFisto. A rope break saves Grace, who tried to fight back with forearms and a Muscle Buster/powerbomb combo… but somehow Q kicked out at two before she was sandwiched between hip attacks for the win. A fun opener, with Team PAWG not quite blowing out Q and Steelz – but it was a dominant outing nevertheless as their unbeaten run continued. ***
Delmi Exo vs. Allie Recks
Painted as a match between two women who’d lost to Faye Jackson lately, this perhaps was a match that’d be destined for a WWR pre-show if there ever was one!
Recks started out as the early aggressor, but the pair quickly hit a stalemate after a headlock takedown’s escaped. They play up into a test of strength, which ended up being an arm wrestle on the back of referee Steven DuMeng, which was quickly stopped as Recks instead uses bodyscissors to roll down Exo.
Recks Matrix’s away from a punch, but misses a Stinger splash into the corner as there’s a lot of swinging and missing going on until Allie nails a bulldog for a near-fall. Exo tries to fight back with a neckbreaker, before a tarnished Shining Wizard gets her a two-count, as she took Recks into the corner for some chops. A Kevin Nash boot choke followed, before Recks leapt into a Samoan drop as the former Sea Star kept pushing for the win. Exo keeps up with an avalanche in the corner before dragging Recks into a chinlock. Allie tried to fight back, and manages to slip into a back cracker before a 619 clocks Delmi for another near-fall as the match remained evenly balanced.
Recks followed into the corner with a rolling elbow as they fought over Irish whips into the corner… Recks hesitates and fell to a neckbreaker as Exo leapt off the middle rope, before returning fire with a spear for the win. That felt very anticlimactic, perhaps cut short as Recks left with a bloodied nose but the match as a whole was very rough around the edges. **
Samara vs. Oceanea
Samara was on the earlier Beyond show as a valet for Robo the Punjabi Lion – here, she’s in action for what I believe was her WWR debut. Oceanea’s character has evolved a little, as she’s painted her face a little as she has Hermit Crab out with her for extra support… and already I’m expecting shenanigans.
Oceanea swings for Samara at the bell, and ends up falling to some La Majistral cradles as Samara was all over her witharmdrags. She nearly loses her footing on a double-jump armdrag, and managed to keep up with a Northern Lights suplex before some headscissors from Oceanea dragged Samara into the turnbuckles. Oceanea went back to the mystical hook that she tried to use earlier… and ends up snapping it as she hit the mat with it. The remains of the stick are grabbed by Robo, but that distracts everyone as Hermit Crab slides in with a back suplex to Samara for a near-fall. They headed onto the apron, where Oceanea peppers Samara with uppercuts and a back senton, before another attempt at those headscissors was countered, with Samara turning it into an Alabama Slam.
From there, Samara locked in a reverse figure four, only to let it go as Hermit Crab leapt on the apron… Oceanea takes the upper hand from there, charging into Samara with a cannonball in the corner, before a double hairmare left the pair flat on the mat. Samara heads up top for a flying clothesline, but Oceanea’s right back up into some elbows, then a scoop slam for a near-fall, before a double-arm DDT almost put away Oceanea.
Oceanea fights back with a kick, then rolls out of a roll-up as Samara looked for another charge… a boot stops her, as does a Fisherman’s buster, before a back senton off the top barely drew a one-count as Oceanea rolled up Samara into a fish hook attempt. Samara got to the ropes pretty quickly, and tries to respond, eventually getting the win when she ducked a kick and rolled up Oceanea for the pin. This was fine, although there were some clear hesitations – but that’s just a lack of experience that’s easily sorted! **¼
Yeah, Oceanea wasn’t happy, and we had a post-match attack that Samara edged out with a head kick, before Robo finally got involved, neutralising the Hermit Crab with headbutts, ahead of a Buckle Bomb and a Pounce! Well, after Samara outshone Robo on the Beyond show, the favour’s returned here!
Deonna Purrazzo leaves commentary here and is replaced by Denver Colorado for the remainder…
Kris Stadtlander vs. Widow Belmont
Stadtlander’s on her own here after her regular running buddy Kasey Catal was in a car accident. It’s a rare outing for Widow Belmont, who I don’t recall seeing in a singles match before.
Stadtlander starts by taking down Belmont in an armbar, throwing in some finger biting in the early moments, before an Irish whip backfired with Belmont hitting a shoulder tackle before getting taken down in an armdrag. A bridging pinfall from a toe hold gets a near-fall for Stadtlander, before a handstand into a legdrop gets a similar result, as it’s all Kris in the early going.
Belmont quickly swings it around by throwing knees to the midsection while trapping Stadtlander in a hammerlock, but Kris is back with a back elbow, before running into a boot as things got a little scrappy. Some fish-hooking from Belmont allowed her to put Kris in the ropes for some choking – with a little help from Sammi Lane at ringside – before she put down the relative newcomer in the corner.
Stadtlander gets back into it with her magical powers, forcing Belmont to flip away before she’s taken down with a dropkick. A scoop slam from Kris dumped Belmont onto her head on the way down, before a Finlay roll and a big splash off the top caught Belmont on the back… the Widow’s right back with a spinebuster for a near-fall, before her attempt at a Victory roll is countered out of with a facebuster and an axe kick as Stadtlander got the win. This was fine given the experience level on show; I’m still not too sure how Stadtlander went from the spinebuster to winning, but this was fine. **
Alisha Edwards & Gillian Leigh vs. The Bird And The Bee (Solo Darling & Willow Nightingale)
I’m not quite sure this was what they meant by the talk about “the birds and the bees”…
Despite still being billed as a “sugar creature”, Solo seems to have ditched the furry tail for good. We get going with Solo trying to take down Edwards, but she’s quickly in the ropes, before tagging out to Gillian Leigh, whose kick is caught and dragged down to the mat.
Leigh clings onto the ropes to get to the corner, but another kick gets caught as Darling turned her into an ankle lock, but it’s too scrappy as they end up in the ropes again. Leigh finally gets into it with some palm strikes and forearms, prompting Solo to kick her way back into it, before Willow Nightingale came in to double-team Leigh, finishing with a superkick for a near-fall. Nightingale almost nicks the win with a backslide, before snapmaring Leigh back down to the mat for some bodyscissors as she rolls around into pinning attempts while keeping Leigh a way from a tag. Eventually Nightingale loses the hold, and gets dragged onto the apron… but Leigh’s in trouble as she found herself pinned between kicks from Darling and Nightingale… who then have Gillian Leigh to aim for as she tried to make a save.
The Bird and the Bee combine as a hip attack from Darling knocked Leigh into the arms of Nightingale, who hits a death valley driver on the apron for a near-fall… but Leigh’s still in trouble as she has to roll out of an inverted cloverleaf before hitting an enziguiri for a near-fall. Finally Leigh gets in control, taking Darling to the corner for a tag as Edwards chokes Solo in the ropes.
Darling’s kept isolated for a spell, not helped when Leigh returned in with a superplex, but Solo’s able to make a tag out as Willow came in to dump Leigh with a uranage for a near-fall. Leigh manages to avoid a charge in the corner and dump Willow with a backcracker for a two-count, before Leigh and Edwards combined for a wheelbarrow senton for another near-fall.
All four women ended up in the ring as the referee lost control, before Solo’s threat at a tornado apron DDT turned into “just” a suplex onto the apron for Leigh, as Edwards followed in with a dropkick to the back of Solo’s head. Alisha tries for a kick off the apron, but Willow decides to go up top too, hitting a moonsault that wiped out everyone… and Green Ant who was there, just because!
The Bird and the Bee returned to the ring to double-team Edwards, but Leigh breaks it up as a double-arm DDT from Edwards dropped Willow. A sliding Flatliner takes down Solo, before Leigh’s flying Blockbuster almost put away Nightingale… who’s quickly back on her feet to help Solo dump Edwards with what looked like a double-team version of the Dynamite Plunger for the win. A good finish to a match that was generally solid and aggressive. ***
Penelope Ford vs. Kimber Lee
Lee’s the early aggressor here as she takes down Ford with headlocks, only to get caught in headscissors as the “Bad Girl” looked to catch her unawares.
Ford nearly nicks it early with an O’Connor roll, before she too gets caught in headscissors as another O’Connor roll almost led to the win as they ripped pages out of each other’s playbooks. A German suplex sends Lee into the turnbuckles ahead of a handspring back elbow, then a Northern Lights suplex as Ford could only get another two-count to her name.
Lee fights back with a suplex, sending Ford into the corners for chops, but Penelope finally blocks one and throws some back, only to get caught in the face with an enziguiri. From there, Kimber pulls her down into the Axel Dieter Special, before a rear naked choke forced Ford into the ropes and eventually to the outside. A hot shot took Kimber into the ropes as Ford slingshots her way into a roll-up for a near-fall, before a pair of pump kicks left both women down on the mat. They return to exchange forearms and elbows, but Ford hesitated after throwing a head kick and after Lee kicked out of the cover, she’s quickly back in with a bridging German suplex for a near-fall.
Penelope goes flying with a top rope ‘rana, collecting another near-fall, before an attempt to go up again sees her press slammed to the mat. Kimber slips as she goes up top, but she’s able to connect with a senton bomb, and that’s enough! This felt a little flat to me – while the match itself was good, you never got the sense that the crowd were willing anyone on in particular. It’s the same sort of thing as Beyond – without any major storylines, matches at a certain spot on the card can feel “just there”. ***¼
Skylar vs. Chelsea Green
Another first-time match here, and Skylar’s the strong home-town favourite… apart from that one guy who went “Woo Woo Woo”. Don’t be that guy.
The match instantly spills to the outside as the pair rolled to the floor from the opening tie-up, breaking the lock-up in time to beat the count as they almost curtailed the match stupidly early. Waistlock switches come next as Skylar eventually took Green outside with headscissors… a baseball slide misses though as Chelsea’s tope connects… but Green throws Skylar back in and waits outside, eventually getting dropped with a cannonball off the apron.
Back inside, Green regains control by pulling down Skylar in the ropes, as she pulls out some lipstick – signifying the transformation into the “Hot Mess”. Some running knees knock Skylar down into the corner for a near-fall, before a diving clothesline put Skylar back down after she’d tried a sunset flip. With Chelsea adminising the referee for… reasons, she’s almost rolled up by Skylar, but Green’s right back in it, whipping Skylar head-first into the turnbuckle before a curb stomp drove her head into the bottom buckle.
Some clubbing forearms kept Green ahead, as Skyler was forced to fight out of a chinlock before duelling forearms sent both women down again. They resume with forearms as Skylar slowly edged ahead, coming back with a hiptoss knee strike, before a Meteora off the top almost produced the upset. Green just about catches Skylar with a low dropkick before she got all of a pump kick en route to an Unprettier… but Skylar escaped and hits a backcracker for a near-fall as you sensed the end was nigh.
Green just about hits a Destroyer for a near-fall, as she went back to the Unprettier, only for Skylar to counter with a Pedigree for the win – even though Green’s boot was clearly under the bottom rope. Sounds like a case for a Product… This was pretty decent, and it’s clear that WWR’s putting the proverbial rocket under Skylar. She’s improving, and hopefully things keep on that trajectory! ***¼
Powerbomb.tv Independent Championship: Tessa Blanchard vs. Tracy Williams (c)
Another Powerbomb title defence here for “Hot Sauce”, who offered a handshake to Blanchard before the bell… only to have it kicked away. Setting the tempo, eh?
Williams goes for an armbar early, before switching out to go for Tessa’s knee as commentary mused about her partnership with David Starr in Beyond. It’s all one-way stuff here from Williams as he was outwrestling Blanchard, who was struggling with a takedown, as Williams countered with a headlock takedown before rolling her up into a half-nelson suplex.
A toe-hold from Williams keeps Tessa on the mat, as he looked for a crossface amid a sea of roll-ups as the pair ended up squaring off once more. Blanchard pulls Williams into the turnbuckles, but the advantage is short-lived as he tries to come back with a teardrop suplex, only for Tessa to roll him up for a near-fall. They’re back in the corner as Williams gets tripped between the ropes for a lungblower, landing a near-fall in the process.
A forearm to the back rocks Williams as Blanchard’s dropkick caught him in the lower back, again for a near-fall, before the teardrop suplex finally comes off, with Tessa scrambling into the corner for cover. She tries to fire back with chops, but it’s caught as he tried to counter back with a TKO. From there, Williams goes for a modified crossface, but Blanchard gets to the ropes, only to get dragged back into the ring as Williams goes for a suplex. Blanchard escaped that suplex and hits a full nelson into a swing-out facebuster for a near-fall, before she leapt off the top and misses. She keeps up with strikes only to get clotheslined by Williams.
A piledriver attempt sees Blanchard accidentally catch the referee – and using the ensuing distraction to low blow and cradle Williams for a near-fall. Picking up Williams, she looked for a DDT, before making do with a cutter… that doesn’t get the job done, so she heads up top again and leaps into a crossface, before rolling free… and into the path of a sickening piledriver as Williams retained. Another fun match – I was half-expecting interference here to keep the Starr/Janela-ish feud going, but this was kept clean(ish), and was all the better for it. ***½
Before the main event, Deonna Purrazzo took the microphone and acknowledged that she was meant to have done another tour with STARDOM in Japan. Visa issues meant that she couldn’t make it, so she was a surprise appearance for this show… something she spoiled, while Paul Crockett on commentary gave away her mystery opponent.
Deonna Purrazzo vs. Davienne
Our “surprise” main event started with Davienne easily shrugging away a waistlock attempt from Purrazzo, before throwing her outside as “Not America’s Sweetheart” seemed to be looking for an easy result.
Back inside, Deonna manages to take down Davienne with headscissors, as the roles reversed with Davienne powdering to the outside, as the pair started to exchange shots before Purrazzo whipped her into the ring post. An apron PK followed as Purrazzo started her usual playbook of arm work, only to leap off the apron and get caught, with Davienne returning the favour by charging her into the ringpost.
Returning to the ring, Davienne used her power to drop Deonna with a sidewalk slam, then a suplex, before choking her in the ropes. Deonna’s thrown head-first into the turnbuckles as a barrage of forearms keep her there, before another hard Irish whip bounced Purrazzo out of the other corner for a near-fall.
Davienne keeps going for pinning attempts, but can’t get beyond a two-count as she dropped an elbow on Deonna, who began to fight back, only for her vertical suplex to get turned into a German suplex as Davienne regained the upper hand… although her frustration was quickly mounting as she grounds Purrazzo in a sleeperhold, almost resulting in a victory. Purrazzo fights back to her feet, but gets dragged back into the hold as she backs Davienne into the corner. Chops follow, before Davienne tried to charge at Purrazzo… and ended up getting sent into the corner, as Deonna took advantage and wrapped her arm into the ring post for good effect. A knee lift gets Deonna back in it, as a side Russian leg sweep proved to be enough for a near-fall, only for Davienne to return fire with an Air Raid Crash for a near-fall.
Davienne tries for a suplex, but Purrazzo escaped it as she looked for the Fujiwara armbar… and eventually gets it in with an Octopus-like variation of the hold. It gets broken up in the corner, but Deonna manages to fight back with a Fisherman’s release suplex before going back to the Fujiwara armbar, only broken up when Davienne rolled up for a near-fall. Another resurgence from Davienne almost ends things as a swinging side slam draws a two-count, before Deonna hits out of nowhere with tiltawhirl headscissors, dragging Davienne into the Fujiwara armbar – which this time drew the submission. A fun little back-and-forth main event, although this was her final match, I do question the missed opportunity here – although commentary did try and babyface Davienne at the end by saying that she lost “on her own” for a change! ***¼
Much like Beyond, WWR’s shows are susceptible to having way too many matches and falling into that trap of trying to be all things to all people. Still, when compared to one of America’s other “regular” monthly women’s wrestling promotions, they seem to be streets ahead of SHINE – helped perhaps by the crowd actually making a noise every now and then. Eschewing the norm of having titles in wrestling, WWR may not be for everyone – after all, when you see wrestlers getting wins and losses, but little to show for it, it’s easy to become disconnected.
Still, for what it is, WWR is a nice diversion from the norm – and their version of All Day is no different. Jump in and enjoy some good wrestling – and potentially the early days of some of tomorrow’s stars as well!