It’s the last stop before 16 Carat Gold 2015 – as wXw headed to Weyhe for what’d be the AUTsiders’ final appearance as a duo.
Quick Results
John Klinger pinned Bobby Gunns to retain the wXw Shotgun Championship in 5:20 (**¾)
Four Nations Cup Semi-Final: Axel Dieter Jr. defeated Damian O’Connor via count-out in 8:28 (**½)
Four Nations Cup Semi-Final: Timothy Thatcher submitted Sasa Keel in 8:36 (**½)
Axel Tischer pinned Da Mack in 9:49 (***)
Big Daddy Walter & Robert Dreissker defeated Lucas di Leo & Peter Fischer via disqualification in 14:11 – di Leo & Fischer retain the wXw World Tag Team Championship (***)
Four Nations Cup Final: Axel Dieter Jr. pinned Timothy Thatcher in 15:36 (***¼)
Street Fight: Absolute Andy pinned Karsten Beck in 36:10 (***½)
We’re at the Sportscenter Dassbeck in Weyhe – and we’ve got a one-off cup tournament on hand today. The show opens with Christian Michael Jakobi in the ring with Eddie Steinblock and the four men that are competing in the Four Nations tournament. German commentary here’s from Sebastian Hollmichel and Christian Bischof.
wXw Shotgun Championship: Bobby Gunns vs. John Klinger (c)
Klinger warmed up the crowd before the bell by playing each side off against each other.
We get going with Klinger double-legging Gunns, before he shrugged off shots from the challenger and returned with a crossbody for an early two-count. Chops take Gunns into the corner, but Gunns ends up bouncing Klinger into the buckles, then booted him on the rebound out.
Gunns gets met with a back body drop after a reversed whip into the corner, then with a powerslam as he tried to chip away at the champion some more. A German suplex got Gunns back into it for a near-fall, ahead of an antagonising Muta lock. Klinger’s able to get back in with a dropkick, adding a Drive By dropkick after taking a run-up through the crowd.
Back inside, we’ve a missile dropkick off the top for a near-fall, before a Kitchen Sink knee and a crucifix bucklebomb bounced Gunns. The Wrecking Ball knees follow, and that’s your lot – a swift title defence for Klinger as he headed into the Wladiwostok rules match with Ilja Dragunov. **¾
Four Nations Cup Semi-Final: Damian O’Connor vs. Axel Dieter Jr.
A first-time meeting here, as we got going with Damo taking some uppercuts before he barged Junior into the ropes.
Junior’s dropkick knocks Damo into the corner, where a second one followed, ahead of a leap off the top that was swatted away with a Damo uppercut. Damo kicks Junior to keep him on the outside, before body blows took the former tag champion into the corner. Damo’s given a €20 fine for refusing to break on Junior in the corner, but it didn’t derail him too badly, as he continued to deck Junior with uppercuts.
Damo whips Junior from corner-to-corner, following up with a slam and a back senton for good measure. A second back senton misses, with Junior rolling away and capitalising with a low dropkick, before a gamengiri in the corner and a dropkick took Damo down to a knee. Damo responds with a Finlay roll, which nearly put Junior away, before Junior found a way back in with a Blockbuster for a near-fall.
Damo rolls outside after kicking out, where he caught a tope from Junior… only to get posted as he tried to throw him like a lawn dart. A tope from Junior follows, knocking Damo into the front row… and that’s enough to end things as Junior beat the count-out to get the win. **½
Post-match, Damo pulled Junior outside and posted him again and again, wearing out the shoulder until Eddy Steinblock intervened… going toe-to-toe with Damo and eventually making the Belfast native back away. Meanwhile, medics checked on Axel Dieter Jr. at ringside, before helping him to the back.
Four Nations Cup Semi-Final: Timothy Thatcher vs. Sasa Keel
The winner of this faces Axel Dieter Jr. in the final later…
Keel started by taking Thatcher to the ropes, before another grapple ended with Keel backing up into the ropes. The die was cast pretty early here as this was virtually an Ambition preview, with the pair going for a hold… and needing the ropes to save themselves, as we saw with a half crab from Thatcher.
Thatcher’s taken down with a belly-to-belly as Keel then worked an armbar, but that too’s broken in the ropes after Thatcher had worked free. A side headlock from Thatcher wears down Keel, taking things to the mat… but Keel gets back up for an overhead suplex, which only drew some one-counts on Thatcher.
An armbar attempt from Keel ends as he instead began to pound away on Thatcher’s back, then went back to some short arm scissors that Thatcher defended. Thatcher’s roll-up is kicked out of, before Keel got to the ropes to escape an armbar… prompting the pair to trade uppercuts and forearms for a spell.
Thatcher’s caught with a knee to the midsection as Keel then pulled a page out of Timo’s book with a gutwrench suplex… picking up a two-count. Another armbar sees Thatcher counter the Vijak… with Keel furiously tapping before Thatcher could apply it fully – with the post-show story from Keel being that he tapped to save himself for the following week’s Carat. This one was fine, but never really got going – and would have been more at home in Ambition. **½
Axel Tischer vs. Da Mack
The night before in Hamburg, Tischer saved Da Mack from a beatdown… so now they’re opposite each other as part of the Axeman’s Farewell Tour.
Things go a little wonky with armdrags early on as Tischer looks to slow things down a little with a chinbar… Mack gets his armdrag off, then a dropkick for just a one count, before Tischer hit a dropkick of his own for a two-count. Mack tries to respond with a crossbody out of the corner, but Tischer just walks away and picked up a one-count from it all.
A suplex keeps Tischer ahead, as he then cut off Mack’s attempt to fight back… only to get taken down with some tiltawhirl headscissors. Mack adds a roll-up for a two-count, but ends up getting chucked with an overhead belly-to-belly as Tischer turned it back around, adding a back suplex moments later for a two-count.
A forearm traps Mack in the corner, as did a front kick as Tischer ragdolled him out of the corner seconds later to keep the upper hand. Finally, Mack hit back with a springboard crossbody out of the corner… following up with a leaping forearm and a spinning wheel kick… before a dropkick picked up a two-count.
Mack’s satellite DDT plants Tischer, but isn’t enough to get the win, nor was a Slingblade… the pair begin to trade kicks, but it’s Tischer’s bicycle kick that sees him pull ahead, as did a deadlift bridging German suplex that almost got the win. From there, a Ligerbomb stacks up Mack, and that’s enough to get the win in a match that threatened to go off the rails real early, but ended up being a decent little sprint. ***
wXw World Tag Team Championship: The AUTsiders (Big Daddy Walter & Robert Dreissker) vs. French Flavour (Lucas Di Leo & Peter Fischer) (c)
French Flavour had to resort to an obvious DQ to retain in Hamburg 24 hours earlier… and again antagonised the crowd here with their pre-match promo, which led to an angry response from Walter as the match got going… with him and Fischer in the ring.
Fischer and di Leo powder away early, teasing a count-out only for Walter and Dreissker to throw them back into the ring. Chops and mudhole stomping from Walter wore out Fischer, ahead of duelling mounted punches from the Austrians, who then squashed the French lads between splashes.
Dualling back body drops clear the ring, but Walter drags Fischer back inside for a powerslam before Dreissker tagged in and grounded Fischer for a spell. A suplex bounces Fischer for a two-count, while a standing splash drew a similar result as the champions were finding it hard to get going.
Walter’s sucker punch caught out di Leo on the apron, but Fischer capitalised with an eye rake… only for a follow-up crossbody to be avoided. An elbow drop from Dreissker keeps it going, while a Fireman’s carry gutbuster forces di Leo to break up the pin as Walter had Fischer in deep trouble. Di Leo saves Fischer from an Avalanche in the corner, before Fischer’s clothesline and stomps helped wear down Dreissker amid a fine-inducing protest from Walter… and much like Axel Dieter Jr. in Hamburg, the fans paid it for him!
Dreissker’s taken into the corner for some prolonged double-teaming – with di Leo choking Dreissker with the tag rope as Walter again earned another €20 fine for protesting. They’re almost building quite the racket, getting the good guys’ fines paid for them. A clothesline cuts off Dreissker’s comeback as Fischer picks up a two-count, before di Leo again stormed the ring to stop Dreissker.
Finally, di Leo tags in as Fischer picked up our third fine of the match… that one’s not paid, as Dreissker hit a double suplex on the champions, then a Samoan drop to di Leo. Walter’s brought in to run wild on di Leo and Fischer, wiping out Lucas with a wild chop, then Fischer, before Dreissker returned to hit an Avalanche splash in the corner. A double dropkick from Walter’s next, before the AUTsiders went for their stacked-up splash which brought in di Leo to break up the pin.
Di Leo is back moments later with a title belt… but Walter clotheslines him to stop the obvious DQ. Dreissker heads up as the AUTsiders go for a Doomsday Device, but Dreissker slips… he tries again and has more luck, before Fischer cracked Walter with the belt for the DQ. ***
After the match, Walter and Dreissker used a cowbell to clothesline Fischer as the AUTsiders then paraded the tag titles that they’d… not won. Tassilo Jung takes the belts off them, before Dreissker was shoved away by Walter, with tensions starting to mount here.
Four Nations Cup Final: Axel Dieter Jr. vs. Timothy Thatcher
Junior’s shoulder was taped up after the attack from Big Damo earlier – and there were some questions over whether he’d even appear.
Opening with a handshake, Junior’s being really evasive of anything on his left side… as he’s forced to push away a half crab as Thatcher opted to work over Junior’s legs instead of the obvious target. Junior spins free of an ankle hold, before he got pulled into a bow-and-arrow hold from Thatcher, flipping free before he rolled into the corner.
Thatcher goes back to a toe hold on Junior, as the pace remained somewhat slow, with Thatcher opting to measure his offence. Junior takes things down to the mat for his bridging hammerlock, following Thatcher around before a guillotine attempt ended in the ropes. An arm whip helps Junior take down Thatcher, but again a reversal of fortunes saw Thatcher work up into a chinlock, before Junior started to go for pins… which prompted Thatcher to go for the bad shoulder, dumping Junior onto it with an arm whip.
The match continues, but Thatcher’s now focusing on that bad wing, which prompted Eddy Steinblock to head out and check on Junior. Thatcher’s armbar torques on the shoulder some more, forcing Junior into the ropes for a break, with Thatcher following him outside to stay on the arm, then take it back inside as stomps… riled up Junior into some chops.
A single uppercut shut that down though, before a double wristlock rolled Junior down and into the ropes for another break. An uppercut gave Junior an opening though, but a Blockbuster out of the corner’s stopped as Thatcher just pulled Junior down to the mat. Second time’s the charm though, as Junior picked up a near-fall, before Thatcher snapped back with a Fujiwara armbar. Junior’s able to counter with a crucifix for a two-count, before snatching the win with a backslide to win the Four Nations Cup after a gutsy outing. ***¼
Street Fight: Absolute Andy vs. Karsten Beck
Beck’s title isn’t on the line here, in a match that’s a little more poignant to watch in 2024.
Andy’s all over Beck to start, with a Thesz press that accidentally highlighted his Stone Cold look with the jeans in this street fight. A clothesline into the corner drops Beck, as did a back body drop after Andy had taken him into the corner. That’s followed up with a suplex for a two-count, before Andy headed outside to grab a chair.
Beck bails… but can’t avoid a plancha from Andy, before Andy punted him through a chair on the outside. Andy gets shoved into the post as Beck bought himself time… but a chairshot misses as Andy ducked, only for him to get thrown into the post seconds later as the pair brawled around ringside.
Beck pulls a fan out of his seat as he cleared the crowd away… only to get bowled into the fourth row by Andy after a reversed whip. As Beck recovered, Andy pulled out some sawhorses and a board as he fashioned together a table, only for Beck to lay him out with a chairshot as Andy teased an F5.
Heading back into the ring, Beck chokes Andy in the ropes… using his towel for extra leverage, before Beck took a board into the ring. The board’s propped up against the turnbuckles, as both men tried to whip the other through it… before a missile dropkick from Beck took Andy down for a two-count. Beck brings in some more sawhorses as he made another makeshift table, this time in the ring, but Andy rolls off the table and instead hit a top rope ‘rana to send Beck through the board. Jeez Andy…
Beck ducks a superkick seconds later, returning with a Flatliner for a two-count, before he went back to choking Andy in the ropes. Heading outside, Beck got into it with another fan, then went back after Andy, hurling him into the corner ahead of a sidewalk slam on the rebound for a two-count. Another gunshot-like bounce into the corner led to another sidewalk slam as Beck continued to control the pace.
Andy makes a comeback, charging down Beck with clotheslines out of the corner… before he got lifted over the top rope and was sent crashing through that table that had been left on the outside from earlier. Christian Michael Jakobi’s out to check on Andy, as a stretcher was brought out for Andy… with some of the crowd booing. Tellingly though, the match isn’t waved off, despite Beck’s desire to be announced as the winner… so he storms out and beats Andy while he was strapped to the gurney, then threw him down to stomp on him some more.
Beck screams at Jakobi and Tassilo Jung as he went to use a chair on Andy… with another fan getting involved. It’s real in Weyhe.
Heading back inside, Beck gets a two-count on Andy – who was still sporting a neck brace as medics scurried to collect their things. Andy tries to fight back as the pair traded rights, only for Beck to bite Andy… and then get met with a leaping forearm off the ropes. The comeback continues with an inverted atomic drop, shoulder blocks and an Absolute knee drop that got Andy a near-fall.
Andy tees up a superkick, but a chairshot from Beck stops all that for another near-fall, prompting Beck to try and force a stoppage as he choked out Andy with a towel. Andy held on though, and managed to sneak in a superkick after Beck had pulled him up… almost winning with that as well. Beck heads up the ropes and caught Andy with a missile dropkick, sending Andy outside once more…
In the meantime, Beck began to dismantle the ring, undoing the top turnbuckle so he could hang Andy with the loosened top rope from the floor. When that didn’t force Andy to quit, Beck then began to tear the ring apart, removing the tarpaulin cover, then the padding as he teased a piledriver onto the exposed boards. Andy escaped and teased an F5… but Beck escaped, only to get met with another superkick, before Andy hit a F5 onto the exposed boards for the eventual pin. I’m not sure where wXw got the 43-minute bell time from – bell to bell was a shade over 36 – as the show closed out with Karsten Beck taking a heck of a loss heading into Carat the following weekend. ***½
The last show before Carat wasn’t quite what I was expecting – a little rough going in parts, although the one-night tournament was a decent enough curtain raiser.