Tristan Archer looks to end Marius al-Ani’s lengthy winning streak and unseat him as wXw Undisputed World Wrestling Champion on the second half of the FAN weekender.
Quick Results
Dennis Dullnig pinned Peter Tihanyi in 7:47 (**¾)
Icarus & Dover pinned Michael Schenkenberg & Nikita Charisma in 11:13 (***)
Iva Kolasky pinned Nicky Foxley in 6:41 (**¾)
Robert Dreissker & Anil Marik pinned Tim Stübing & Leon van Gasteren in 10:58 to retain the wXw World Tag Team Championship (***¼)
Marius al-Ani submitted Tristan Archer in 16:02 to retain the wXw Unified World Wrestling Championship (***¾)
We open with a highlight reel from night one, not using the usual ringside cameras (a nice touch), and then we bleed into another fantastic video entrance for this show, with appearances from the likes of Leon van Gasteren, Marius al-Ani and Robert Dreissker…
Once again, Dave Bradshaw’s running solo on English commentary and runs down the card for tonight’s show.
Dan Mallman’s backstage with Dennis Dullnig, noting his form’s picked up a little. Dennis is still representing Hektor and imitates him in his promo…
Dennis Dullnig vs. Peter Tihanyi
Dullnig’s “got Hektor in his heart.” Wonder if that shows up on any EKGs…
Dullnig grabs a waistlock early on, but Tihanyi trips him goes for a toe hold that has Dullnig scrambling into the ropes. Tihanyi tries to roll out of a wristlock, but Dullnig rolls with him before he went to the ropes as Tihanyi manages to get in some bodyscissors. A dropkick gets Dullnig back in it, as he moved into a side headlock on the mat, but Tihanyi pushes free and floats in with a side headlock of his own. Armdrags follow, but Dullnig stems the tide before a floatover… took him into another armdrag. Dullnig comes back with a punch to the gut, then a kick to the back for a two-count, before a chinlock keeps Tihanyi on the deck.
Tihanyi’s shot into the ropes for a clothesline that gets a two-count, before a swinging DDT gave the Hungarian an opening. A leg sweep and a kick has Dullnig down, with a springboard moonsault giving Tihanyi a near-fall, as did a Meteora off the top, before a standing Shiranui dropped Dullnig for another near-fall. A ‘rana from Tihanyi’s blocked, but Dullnig just stretched the Hungarian on the mat before throwing in some kicks… with a “Hektor-Knee” and a piledriver quickly following for the win. A solid opener, with Tihanyi coming the closest yet to a win – but Dullnig-as-Hektor manages to build momentum here. **¾
Post-match, Dan Mallman gives Dullnig the Invictus flag, as Dennis again appeals for Hektor to return his calls.
We get a recap of the feud between the Arrows of Hungary and Rott und Flott – going back to the Arrows’ early tag title tournament exit (oh hi again, logo!), through to the Arrows getting a title shot… which they lost in, and their subsequent turn to the darker side.
Backstage, Christian Bischof is with the Arrows of Hungary, who didn’t seem to take too kindly to his questioning about the cheapshots. Icarus promises that what they do in the ring will send a clear message, while Dover just didn’t want to talk about their issues with Robert Dreissker. Meanwhile, Rott und Flott were all masked up, as they’re now following the rules resolutely – so they’re going in for face masks. It was also a shot at Dover using his mask a few weeks back, while Schenkenberg voiced his displeasure at the wXw office putting them in singles match.
Rott und Flott (Michael Schenkenberg & Nikita Charisma) vs. Arrows of Hungary (Icarus & Dover)
Rott und Flott lost a contender’s match to the Arrows last month – but with the Arrows having decided to try out “other tactics,” with mixed results, perhaps it’ll be second time lucky?
When we get going, the Arrows’ masks were handed over to the ring announcer for safe keeping, as Charisma and Icarus started off with a tie-up. Charisma rolls away and decks Dover, as all four men end up hitting the ring as things broke down early, calming down somewhat when Charisma got hit with a rebound facebuster for a two-count. Charisma fought back on Dover, then tagged out to Schenkenberg, whose double sledges wore down Dover. A front facelock’s powered out of, so Schenkenberg takes Dover to the corner. Charisma’s chinlock’s turned into an eye rake as Schenkenberg distracted the ref, but Dover shakes it off and fought back, tagging out to Icarus after sending Charisma flying with a release German suplex.
Schenkenberg’s in too to take a bunch of chops before he got tripped into a Heart of Europe submission attempt that quickly ended in the ropes. Charisma trips Icarus as he went for a knee strike, allowing Schenkenberg to capitalise as the Arrows were again put on the defensive. A chinbar from Charisma leads to a short knee drop on Icarus, before he landed a quick neckbreaker following the brief appearance of Schenkenberg. Dover inadvertently distracts the ref as Icarus was double-teamed. A nerve hold from Schenkenberg wears down Icarus some more, before Charisma kept Icarus in the corner, tagging in to hit some uppercuts. Again, Charisma charges Dover off the apron, but ends up getting tripped into the ropes as Icarus mounted a comeback… but an attempted tag out is thwarted with a side Russian legsweep off the middle rope as Dover was still on the floor.
Charisma gets a near-fall from that, before more quick tags led to Icarus getting spiked on a nasty-looking double-team facebuster. An elevated DDT followed, but Dover’s in to break up the pin before an Iacrus dropkick finally led him to making a tag out. Dover ran wild with Beele throws and shoulder blocks, before he dumped Charisma with a standing fallaway slam. Dover’s got a Saito suplex for Schenkenberg after that, before a double slam almost got Dover the win. Having gone outside, Charisma grabs one of the Arrow’s masks, and slid it in for Dover to use… Schenkenberg adds temptation, but Dover resists and almost fell to a roll-up.
Icarus tags back in to hit a springboard enziguiri to Charisma, then help with a double-team chokeslam on Schenkenberg, with the Crossfire quickly getting the win. Rott und Flott tempted the Arrows, but it backfired as the Arrows seemed to get back on the straight and narrow with a decisive win, in spite of them being on the defensive for so long. ***
Post-match, Dover yelled that wXw got the killer instinct that they wanted from the Arrows.
Backstage, Christian Bischof’s with Nicky Foxley. She tells us of her excitement of winning her debut a few weeks back. Foxley’s facing another recent debutant today, but she’s more than aware of Iva Kolasky’s “fancy stuff.” As for Kolasky, she’s looking to do the same moonsault she did in her first match to get the win.
Nicky Foxley vs. Iva Kolasky
Someone’s winning record’s getting snapped here – although Kolasky was on the losing end of a mixed tag match last week…
From the opening tie-up, Kolasky grabbed a hammerlock, then a side headlock before she charged down Foxley from the push-off. Foxley tries to respond, but was met with a wristlock that Foxley flipped free of before Kolasky was sent into the ropes… and flipped past Foxley on the way back. An armdrag followed from Kolasky, who backflipped into an elbow on Foxley in the corner… but a floatover and a roll-up gets Nicky a two-count. Iva’s right back with a crossbody out of the corner for a two-count of her own, before a handspring cutter from Kolasky’s blocked. A clothesline gets Foxley ahead, as did a diving uppercut to the back, before an armbar looked to get Foxley even further ahead. She wrapped up Kolasky for a two-count, but a splash in the corner leads to Kolasky rolling away before she was taken down with a neck flip from Foxley.
Foxley bides her time, then kicked Kolasky again for a two-count, before a chinlock was broken out of as a splits led to a jawbreaker from the Hungarian Kolasky. From there, Kolasky hits the ropes for a handspring cutter, before clotheslines were countered with a crucifix pin that almost win it for Foxley. A missed charge into the corner gives Kolasky a new opening, which she almost grabbed with both hands after landing a Fisherman’s suplex, before some see-saw sunset flips almost ended it. After the two-counts, Kolasky came in with an axe kick, before a moonsault off the top landed flush for the win. That’s two wins in a row for Kolasky, who’s building some momentum among the new arrivals here – and looking solid in doing so. **¾
Dan asks about Iva building up a winning streak as he gushed over her moonsault…
Back in April, van Gasteren and Stübing were offered a shot at the tag titles – but turned it down, with van Gasteren citing that his team hadn’t enough experience to earn a shot. We’ve a recap of that match, and van Gasteren and Stübing’s build to this shot.
Backstage, Christian Bischof’s with Leon and Tim, and brings up their non-title loss last time out. Leon says things have changed, they’ve won matches and Tim’s put in some good shifts, so now’s the right time (in his eyes) for them to get the title match. Stübing calls out the crane kick as one of their stronger weapons, which made Leon wince as you’re left with the feeling that Tim may be getting a little carried away again.
As for the champions, Anil Marik noted that the titles brought some extra pressure for him, while Dreissker’s more than aware that the challengers will have made a game plan. Dan brings up Feyyaz Aguila’s interference last night, thinking out loud if this was part of Dreissker’s coachings… but Dreissker replies condemning what happened last night, even if he could understand why Feyyaz did what he did.
wXw World Tag Team Championship: Leon van Gasteren & Tim Stübing vs. wXw Wrestling Academy (Robert Dreissker & Anil Marik) (c)
It’s a second defence for Dreissker and Marik, who’ve had a bunch of non-title outings since Dead End…
Marik and Stübing start us off, with Marik’s side headlock takedown putting him ahead early on before Stübing pushed free and wangled Marik down with a chinlock. A push-off leads to a shoulder block from Stübing, before Marik returned fire with a dropkick… then with a leaping elbow before Marik’s Slingblade was blocked. An armdrag has Stübing down, but he’s back with a shoulder block as a tag brings in Leon van Gasteren for the first time. Leon’s uppercut drops Marik, who came back with a crossbody off the top for a two-count before Dreissker tagged in. The two veterans lock up, but it’s van Gasteren whose side headlock is pushed off… the resulting shoulder block has little effect as the pair lay into each other, before Dreissker grabbed a side headlock.
Van Gasteren pushes free, but can’t score with a hiptoss… so he lands some dropkicks before a crossbody was countered into a slam. Dreissker followed with an elbow drop for a two-count, but van Gasteren’s able to return with a dropkick as Stübing came in to hit a double-team facebuster for a two-count. A pancake and a back senton from Dreissker flattened Stübing, who got taken to the corner for shoulder charges as Marik came in. Marik’s bulldog leads to a flip senton from Dreissker for a two-count, with Marik stretching Stübing afterwards with a grounded Cobra twist. Stübing escapes and made a blind tag out, with van Gasteren flying in to take down Marik, following up with a cross chop and a leaping legdrop.
Stübing and van Gasteren pancake Marik for another two-count, before a shotgun dropkick from Stübing took Marik back into the corner as the challengers looked buoyant. Van Gasteren’s back for a PK, but Dreissker breaks up the cover before he pushed van Gasteren into a roll-up that nearly won it on a distracted van Gasteren. Leon looked pissed at that, and began to take his frustration out on Marik. Stübing returns, but gets elbowed in the corner as Marik rolled free to tag in Dreissker, who ran wild with clotheslines. Avalanches greet the challengers, before Dreissker caught Stübing’s crossbody, then shrugged off van Gasteren’s ahead of a Samoan drop on Stübing for a two-count.
Marik’s back in, but eats a dropkick from Stübing… Dreissker’s back in to clothesline him as the match looked to break down. Van Gasteren lands a spinebuster amid a Parade of Moves, with Marik almost putting Stübing away with a Slingblade. Dreissker tags back in and ducks an enziguiri as a wheelbarrow lungblower bled into the Boulder Dash for the win. This started a little nervy, but the match got on track as the challengers pushed the champions to the limit – but the tag team experience of Dreissker was the clear difference here. ***¼
After the match, Dreissker put over van Gasteren and Stübing for stepping up their game, while being proud of their second successful defence.
We then get this well-made trailer for the main event. wXw always seem to go the extra mile to make their big-time main events feel big – rather than just “throwing them out there and saying it’s big”.
Before the match, Christian Bischof interviewed Marius al-Ani, who was boasting about his work finally paying off… while Dan’s got Tristan Archer, who noted that watching Marius al-Ani made him work harder, hopefully hard enough to leave with the title tonight.
wXw Unified World Wrestling Championship: Tristan Archer vs. Marius al-Ani (c)
Archer is one of the names on Marius’ streak list, having fallen to him in the final block B match in last year’s Catch Grand Prix tournament.
When we get going, we’ve got some grappling on the mat before al-Ani’s taken into the ropes by Archer. We reset for more of the same, but there’s no early advantage as Archer shrugged off al-Ani… and reset once more, as al-Ani finally grabbed a hammerlock… which ended in the ropes. An inside cradle gets Archer a quick one-count, before he backed into the ropes as he tried to make Marius lose his temper. Archer catches a leapfrog, but al-Ani’s right back in with a dropkick before a wristlock ended with Archer backing into the corner. Stomps from al-Ani keep him there, only for Archer to respond with an Exploder suplex that has Marius powdering to the outside. The champion drags Archer to the floor as the pair scrapped around ringside, leading to a back suplex on the side of the ring from Archer as Marius swung and missed.
Back inside, Archer went for a springboard lungblower, but al-Ani caught it and rolled Acher into an ankle lock, dragging him away from the ropes before he got pushed away. Marius followed right back with a step-up knee in the corner for a two-count, as more stomps kept the challenger down. Kicks to Archer looked to give him a dead leg as al-Ani refused to let up… so much so he swung and missed on a clothesline, sending himself flying to the outside. A kick from Archer keeps him on the floor, but al-Ani gets back in to avoid a dive, before Archer landed that springboard lungblower for a near-fall.
Archer looked to go for La Terreur, but it’s caught… so Archer counters the counter with a guillotine, which al-Ani slipped out of as he worked into a STF. It’s broken in the ropes, but al-Ani stays on Archer as an exchange of strikes led to both men staggering into the ropes. A swift knee strike gets Marius a two-count, but Archer’s able to come back with a Million Dollar Dream that turned into a slam. Except al-Ani instantly grabbed the ankle on the landing and went back to an ankle lock, only for Archer to roll Marius into the corner to break. Boxing al-Ani into the corner looked to give Archer some hope, as a right hand knocked the champion down for a two-count, before taking Marius onto the apron for a suplex back in. It’s blocked as al-Ani hangs Archer’s arm in the rope, then slingshotted back into the ring… only for the Exploder to get countered into la Guillotine for a near-fall.
Archer goes for the Coup d’etat, but a spinning heel kick from al-Ani counters it as the champion pushed ahead, landing a Superman punch for a near-fall. Grabbing Marius’ leg leads to Archer coming in with a backbreaker, before a crucifix pin from al-Ani led to him eating a clothesline. La Terreur lands… but while referee Tassilo Jung counts three, Marius grabbed the bottom rope from that Go 2 Sleep. The pin doesn’t count, which Archer argued with, before he went after al-Ani in the corner. Marius clutches onto the ropes, then turned around for a Superman punch as an ankle lock was resisted by Archer… until al-Ani forced the Frenchman onto his front. Archer rolls through, but Marius goes with it before grounding the hold for the submission. So close for Archer, but al-Ani played to the proverbial whistle and used Archer’s emotions against him to leave with the gold. ***¾
Post-match, Marius gloats, but put over Archer momentarily before calling himself the number one as we fade to the credits. wXw’s going on their usual (shorter) summer break after this show, returning in mid-July as they resume the We Love Wrestling series.
This was a good second half to the FAN weekend, which saw no new champions crowned, but the streak of Marius al-Ani continues to grow – while the question of “who’s next” leaves no obvious answers at this time.