Marius al-Ani looks to keep in touch with the top of the block, as he faces Vincent Heisenberg in the latest Catch Grand Prix outing.
We’re back at the Steffy with Nico Schmidt, Dään Jokisch and Tristan Archer… who is hoping that Senza Volto tops out at eight points. I’d hope so too, because Senza’s almost got the block sewn up! They talk about today’s match, bringing up Heisenberg’s upset of Archer at the start of the tournament. Tristan kinda hopes Marius makes the same mistake as he did…
Andy Jackson, in interviewing Heisenberg, brings up the quick loss he had to al-Ani earlier in the year. Vincent’s learned from that, and knows to keep his distance… and avoid those punches. As for Marius, he shrugs off Heisenberg’s upset in week one, and turns it into some shade at Tristan Archer. That’s clearly a plan for the future, no? I swear I heard Marius describe Heisenberg as “ganz green” – you might be able to guess what that knock is all about…
Catch Grand Prix 2020 – Block B: Vincent Heisenberg vs. Marius al-Ani
Round 1: We start with a lock-up, with Heisenberg taking al-Ani into the corner… but it’s quickly broken. Wash, rinse, repeat, then al-Ani’s attempt at a takedown’s countered into a powerbomb. Heisenberg can’t get the move off though, and comes back with a shoulder tackle that angers Marius. Another shoulder tackle from Heisenberg knocks al-Ani down… but Marius comes back with a kick to the gut, then worked over the arm, only to get elbowed away. He gets his boots up to stop Heisenberg, but a crossbody gets caught and turned into a slam attempt… which Marius escapes, then followed up with a ‘rana. Strikes keep Heisenberg on his knees, trapping him with an armbar until time ran out.
Round 2: The second round opens with Marius kicking Heisenberg, but al-Ani’s knocked into the corner before Heisenberg rolled him down for a legdrop. That gets a two-count, before he caught Marius’ floatover… but the slam attempt is escaped as Marius burst back in with a nip-up kick and a Superman punch. al-Ani went for a Diamond Driver, but Heisenberg counters with a slam, only to get rolled to the mat for an ankle lock. He pushes Marius away, but staggers into a Superman punch before al-Ani reapplied the ankle lock for the submission. Solid effort, as Marius didn’t have it all his own way, but it’s a swift win for the former Shotgun champ.
Result: Marius al-Ani submitted Vincent Heisenberg at 1:51 of Round 2 (**½)
Post-match, Marius gets his interviewer back! Nico congratulates him, as Marius brags about doing something Tristan Archer couldn’t… meanwhile, Heisenberg is backstage as he’s told that he’s eliminated. All he can do is give his all and rack up as many points as possible by the end of the tournament…
Standings, with eliminations (including those who’d be eliminated on tie-breakers)…
Block A
Bobby Gunns (3-0; 6pts)
Avalanche (2-1-1; 5pts)
Cara Noir, Metehan (2-1; 4pts)
Hektor Invictus (1-1-1; 3pts)
Fast Time Moodo (1-3; 2pts) * eliminated
Anil Marik (0-4; 0pts) * eliminated
Block B
Senza Volto (4-0; 8pts)
Marius al-Ani (3-0; 6pts)
Tristan Archer (2-1; 4pts)
Vincent Heisenberg (1-3; 2pts) * eliminated
Prince Ahura (1-2; 2pts) * eliminated
Emil Sitoci (0-2; 0pts) * eliminated
Norman Harras (0-3; 0pts) * eliminated
Disciplinary: €2515 of fines; sixteen yellow cards and one red card.
Tomorrow, the fourth week of the Catch Grand Prix wraps up with Norman Harras against Emil Sitoci.