All of wXw’s active singles titles were on the line as Thomas Shire, Zoltan and Axel Tischer looked to shake things up in Dresden.
Quick Results
Metehan & Rambo pinned Laurance Roman & Nick Schreier in 13:19 (**½)
Katsuya Murashima pinned Shreddy in 9:58 (*¼)
Ahura & Lil Marz pinned Alex Duke & Jane Nero in 12:45 (**¾)
Axel Tischer pinned Dennis Dullnig to win the wXw Shotgun Championship in 13:37 (***)
Zoltan pinned Ricky Sosa to win the wXw European Championship in 14:30 (***)
Marc Empire & Robert Dreissker pinned Nordino & Luca de Leone in 7:55 (***)
Elijah Blum pinned Thomas Shire to retain the wXw Unified World Wrestling Championship in 17:12 (***½)
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We’re coming live via stream from the Stromwerk in Dresden – with the pairing of Mett Dimassi and Norman Harras again on English commentary.
The Grind (Nick Schreier & Laurance Roman) vs. Los Compadres (Metehan & Rambo)
“Heated and Hated” – that’s quite a tag-line for the Metehan x Rambo combo…
Metehan bailed at the bell, as he showed off some stalling that Larry Zbyszko would have been proud of to start. Short of grazing Laurance Roman’s ear, Metehan did little before tagging in Rambo… only to tag back in as we finally had something to note, even if it was in the form of a collar-and-elbow tie-up that went into the corner.
Metehan was more willing to engage with Nick Schreier… but after he ate a dropkick, Nick brought Roman back in to catch out a celebrating Metehan. Stomps from Metehan earn him boos, but a double-team clothesline from the Grind help them back in ahead of a double axehandle to a restrained Metehan.
A Benny Hill chase on Metehan ends with Rambo tagging back in as we’ve somehow burned five minutes of time with this. Rambo’s shoulder block takes Nick down, but a quick turnaround has Schreier in with mounted punches in the corner as Mett busted out a Gorilla Monsoon-ism on commentary.
Schreier telegraphs a superkick, which pissed off Roman who rushed in to try and stem the proverbial bleeding, but to no avail as Rambo turned into a one-man wrecking crew on the Grind. A powerbomb leaves Schreier laying, before Metehan came in to try and steal the pin as the Grind again were in trouble. Metehan’s gutbuster helps for a near-fall as Roman again ran in to make his point with the referee.
Eventually Schreier found an opening with a satellite DDT, but he had to overpower Metehan before making the tag to Roman, who cleared house with some clotheslines and enziguiri. A missile dropkick from Roman looked to clear the way, but he’s thwarted by an on-rushing Rambo as things began to fray. Schreier’s dive wiped out Rambo on the floor, leaving Roman behind to eat a Metehan clothesline, before a knee strike stopped Metehan in his tracks.
Roman goes for a piledriver, but Schreier begged for a tag… that distraction was enough for Rambo to return with an apron powerbomb on Nick, before Roman turned around and got caught with a roll-up… aided by Metehan using his belt around Laurance’s leg for extra leverage to steal the win. This took way too long to get going, and I guess that’s the point of Metehan in this current run… but it’s clear that the Grind are clearly closer to falling apart than being champions again. **½
Backstage, Mett Dimassi’s with Thomas Shire. Twice! Shire’s asked about his recent perceived change in attitude. Shire brought up an old slam from Blum to justify it all, before he began to stonewall Mett in the name of not giving his gameplan away.
Shreddy vs. Katsuya Murashima
It’s a wXw debut for Shreddy, and sadly nobody’s trying to pronounce “Hartlepool” amid Shreddy’s very WCW Saturday Night-coded entrance music.
The opening lockup has Murashima and Shreddy going nowhere, before a full nelson attempt was easily broken out of by Shreddy. Shoulder tackles eventually end with Murashima on the deck, before a Test of Strength saw Shreddy take Murashima briefly down to his knees… ahead of a bodyslam and an elbow drop as Shreddy was getting his calling cards in.
Finally Murashima responded with a Judo throw for a one-count, before he got caught with almost a running uranage from Shreddy. Referee Tassilo Jung refused to count after some choking in the ropes, before the pair jockeyed over a suplex. Eventually, Murashima overcame and landed the move, before he set up for a Giant Swing.
Murashima couldn’t follow-up after that, as he took down Murashima for a Vader Bomb Elbow instead, while a follow-up TKO almost got the debutant the win. In the end, Murashima nailed a leaping cutter, before a flip senton off the top got the win. This felt like the pair weren’t quite on the same page for a while, but Murashima left with the win as he looked to build his career in Germany. *¼
Jane Nero & Alex Duke vs. Ahura & Lil Marz
Nero’s still parading around with the wXw Women’s title, but at least she’s close to home and is getting cheered here. Aleksander Bellamy made sure to repeat the ring announcing… and really draw out the vowels in Jane’s name.
After gifting his tournament trophies to some kids in the crowd, Ahura charged the ring as we finally got going with Nero and Marz squaring up to each other. A shove into the corner left Marz miffed, with Ahura tagging himself in. Nero didn’t back down, chop blocking Ahura’s knee before shoving his way out of a side headlock and charging down Nero.
Alex Duke’s brought in as he and Ahura trade blows before Ahura’s headscissors and chop left Duke in place for a basement dropkick from a returning Marz. After getting tagged in, Marz looked for a powerbomb, but Duke throws her away ahead of a sliding clothesline from Nero for a two-count as the wannabe-champion looked to pick up the pace.
Marz is kept isolated for a spell, but she’s able to ‘rana out of a powerbomb from Duke before Ahura came in to hit a springboard missile dropkick. Aleksander Bellamy distracted Ahura in the ropes to stop a Boss lariat, but Ahura’s able to hit back with a flying forearm as Duke threatened to capitalise.
We’re back to Nero and Marz, but this time Marz had the upper hand as she caught out Nero with a facebuster and a Fireman’s carry slam for a near-fall. Bellamy makes the save as Nero was about to eat a 619… Ahura’s plancha took care of him, before Duke’s attempt at a Kona Crush ended with him landing a forearm instead. From there, a standing uranage left Marz laying, only for Nero to pick up a near-fall as she looked to snatch the pin.
Marz manages to avoid a threatened double-team, pushing away Nero before tagging Ahura back in. Bellamy yet again gets involved, and this time he’s ejected for it, but Bellamy’s arguing distracts the ref to the point that Felix Schulz misses Jane Nero attempt at choking out Ahura. Marz has it pay off as she gave Ahura a confetti gun to shoot in Nero’s face, before a Tiger feint kick to Duke left Alex laying ahead of a Salamandra for the win. The visual of Bellamy and Schulz arguing all oblivious while all hell was breaking loose behind them was ridiculous, but that’s wrestling for you! **¾
Backstage, CSI’s cutting a promo only to get interrupted by Robert Dreissker and some pizza. The Italians took offence to the Dominos, but Elijah Blum’s in to have a word with Planet Gojirah about why on earth they’ve gotten affiliated with Robin Christopher Fohrwerk. The promo ends with Nordino wetting himself after getting caught wearing the Planet Gojirah Road Warrior gear…
wXw Shotgun Championship: Axel Tischer vs. Dennis Dullnig (c)
It’s the Shotgun title defence that Dullnig tried to avoid…
Dullnig tried for a belt shot on Tischer before the bell – like he did to Tischer last time out in Oberhausen – but it’s stopped as Tischer took the fight to the champion in the early going. Of course, Dullnig’s able to shut things down by working Tischer’s fingers, which started a lengthy spell of offence.
A punt to the ribs gets a two-count for Tischer, before a chinbar in the middle of the ring was broken up as Tischer snapped back with a DDT. Dullnig’s German suplex looked to turn it back in his favour, but it just sent Tischer into the ropes for a rebound lariat, allowing the challenger to resume his offence with a half-hatch suplex and a flying clothesline for good measure.
Tischer telegraphs a powerbomb, but Dullnig clamps onto the knee to try and prevent it. Instead, Tischer just punches him in the face before Dullnig began to go after the Axeman’s lower back. A Hektor-Knie almost wins it for Dullnig, before a ‘rana took Tischer into the ropes. We’re given a ten-minute time call, which makes me think we’re going to be pushing the 15-minute time limit… especially since time calls are rarely a thing here.
Just as I type that, Dullnig almost made a fool out of me with an eye rake and a gutwrench powerbomb that almost put Tischer away. Dullnig powders to the outside and grabs both the Shotgun title belt and the ring hammer… but this time the ploy backfires as Dullnig had to stop himself using the belt on the referee.
Instead, Dullnig manages to find an opening to punt Tischer low, before a snap piledriver again drew a near-fall as we hit the final three minutes. Tischer’s able to hit an Exploder and a German suplex as he pushed on for the win, before a Ligerbomb finally got the job done! Tischer regains the Shotgun title that he had to vacate during the pandemic – and put the lid on a Dullnig run that was proving aggravating for many reasons. ***
wXw European Championship: Zoltan vs. Ricky Sosa (c)
This was Sosa’s first appearance since he’d signed with TNA… and against the man who he debuted against in wXw back in September. Hey, check out the light-up ZOLTAN sign!
Zoltan seemed to have the edge in terms of the crowd going in, but Sosa tried to take control early on as the pair exchanged pinning attempts. Misdirection from Zoltan allowed him to crack Sosa with a low dropkick, only for Sosa to hit back when the Hungarian tried the same trick again.
A low bridge helps send Sosa outside ahead of a wacky plancha from Zoltan, whose follow-up Rolling Z got nothing but knees. Sosa’s legdrop keeps him in control, as did some chops, before Zoltan’s chops took Sosa into the corner as the back-and-forth ended with a diving kick from Zoltan.
Pushing on, Zoltan’s crossbody off the top squashes Sosa for a two-count, before a cutter out of the corner got countered into a backslide. Sosa tries to add a powerbomb, but Zoltan’s Code Red stops it ahead of a top rope ‘rana from Sosa, whose moonsault press seconds later almost ended things.
A grounded chinlock from Sosa’s fought out of, but Zoltan’s able to stop the Blue Thunder Bang as the pair continued to trade barbs, until a standing Spanish Fly from Zoltan punctuated things. More back-and-forth shots ended with Zoltan sneaking in a superkick before a cutter out of the corner drew a near-fall.
Heading up top, Sosa stops Zoltan… but he’s knocked down as Zoltan instead went for a Mamba splash. It goes nowhere as Zoltan instead handspringed his way into the Blue Thunder Bang for a near-fall… with Zoltan able to get his ankle onto the rope to save the day. Zoltan was still running on fumes when Sosa lifted him up top, looking for the avalanche Blue Thunder… but it’s countered into a cutter, as Zoltan then put away Sosa with the Mamba splash to become the youngest ever European champion. Politically, you can make your own theories about this given Sosa’s deal with TNA, but this was a match (and a pairing) that didn’t quite work out for me. Still, good to see Zoltan get the belt and get this title a fresh start. G’wan Zoltan! ***
Laurance Roman celebrated with Zoltan at ringside afterwards – and that’s gonna be fuel in the slow Grind split!
CSI (Luca de Leone & Nordino) vs. Planet Gojirah (Robert Dreissker & Marc Empire)
Of course this wasn’t for the tag titles, but de Leone looked to gabagool himself into some sort of advantage early on… only to get choked into the corner.
Nordino tags in to help take Dreissker outside with a double-team shoulder tackle, before Dreissker came back to tag in Empire… who had better luck with shoulder tackles. Nordino’s hurled across the ring, before Dreissker came in and missed some elbow drops. That’s not gonna help the mood. Nor would a missed back senton… or Nordino hitting his own elbow!
A spinebuster shuts down an exuberant Nordino, forcing de Leone to make the save… but he gets squashed too as Empire continued to club away on Nordino. More squashing of Nordino leads to a sidewalk slam from Dreissker… but Nordino again takes down Dreissker, this time with a solo flying shoulder tackle. What on earth??
Empire’s back, but so is de Leone, and CSI’s able to push ahead… only to get caught with a double powerbomb out of the corner from Dreissker. A double clothesline resets things, before a slam from Dreissker and a big ol’ splash from Empire ends things. CSI were plucky in defeat, but Dreissker seemed a little shaky after the Blum run-in earlier. ***
wXw Unified World Wrestling Championship: Thomas Shire vs. Elijah Blum (c)
So it looks like Dieter Schwartz vs. Peter Tihanyi’s on Shotgun this week!
I Swore That I is no more, as Thomas Shire has new music and accompanying entrance video, one that’s more befitting his current attitude. Shire bailed to the outside to start so he could adjust his elbow pad/arm sleeve. Hey, it’s more than Metehan did in the opener!
Shire goes all Trent Seven to mock Elijah Blum’s moustache, as he slowly began to target Blum in the opening stages, sending the champion to the outside for respite. Shire finds his fan for a quick little cheer, before returning to the ring as Blum tried his luck with a shoulder tackle.
The Kitchen Sink stops Blum as Shire was barely breaking a sweat here, swatting away dropkicks from Blum before Shire’s own hubris finally caught him out, with Blum landing a missile dropkick, then a crossbody off the top to take the big man down. Shire powders outside straightaway, cracking Blum with an uppercut as he went for a plancha. Staying on the outside, Shire antagonises the crowd as he went to grab some seats, but changed tack and took things back into the ring for an abdominal stretch… complete with a claw to the ribs.
Shire quickly converted that into a roll-up as Blum was forced to turn up the pace to take Shire into the corner with a shotgun dropkick. Keeping Shire in the corner, Blum’s clotheslines looked to have an effect, as did a springboard moonsault press out of the corner, which helped the champion pick up a near-fall.
Just like that, Blum’s caught out with suplexes as a German suplex, then a half-and-half put Shire right back in it, before a sleeper suplex dumped Blum on his head en route to a near-fall. The UFO followed as Blum’s dumped into the middle of the ring again as Shire again came close to the win, but Shire misses a clothesline… allowing Blum to hit back with the Total Depravity as the champion turned the match around.
Shire begs Blum to hit the Sliding D, but he countered it… before the pair crashed into each other with dualling clotheslines as Shire tried to bait Blum into an unforced error. We restart with Blum laughing at Shire, before more back-and-forth shots ended with Shire’s pop-up uppercut… and a Parting Gift out of nowhere from Blum for the win! The pacing of this might annoy some, but Thomas Shire trying to control the duration of the match and wrestle it his way almost worked – but the Parting Gift right at the end allowed Blum to snatch the win when defeat was looking oh so realistic a fate. ***½
This latest trip to Dresden was a show of two halves for wXw – if you’re picking and choosing across the weekend, catch the Shotgun title match and the second half as wXw found new starts with their secondary belts.