Indies and Insanity: March 7, 2019

RIP Dick Beyer, aka the Destroyer, aka Doctor X. I still remember his induction speech for Gorgeous George, which he gave with his mask on because that’s gangsta.

Your TNT NBA doubleheader tonight is Pacers/Bucks, followed by Thunder/Blazers. College hoops features ESPN showing Iowa/Wisconsin, then SMU/Houston. ESPN2 gives us a ranked battle with Cincinnati/UCF, followed by Bill Walton Story Time with UCLA/Colorado. ESPNU has a lacrosse (!!) night on tonight with Loyola-Maryland facing Duke. At 11, though, it’s the Cal-Stanford game.

But this weekend in wrestling is l-o-a-d-e-d, and after the jump, we’ll break it down!

Oh, man, let’s start with the big celebration and work our way around:

• WXW is the place to be this weekend. As we speak, their Inner Circle show has likely already wrapped up, so if anyone attended, let us know how Ilja Dragunov facing Mark Davis or Irie/Ishikawa vs Ringkampf went…
• …but it’s the three day 16 CARAT GOLD weekend, and that’s the big deal! Tomorrow is Round 1, Saturday is Round 2, Sunday is the Final Four! Saturday night also features Absolute Andy vs. Bobby Gunns for the big gold, and Sunday has the Women’s Title on the line as Killer Kelly faces Toni Storm. Here’s the first-round matchups:
  • Avalanche vs Jurn Simmons
  • Axel Dieter, Jr vs Marius Al-Ani
  • Chris Brookes vs Shigehiro Irie
  • Daisuke Sekimoto vs Ilja Dragunov
  • David Starr vs WALTER
  • Fenix vs Rey Horus
  • Lucky Kid vs Timothy Thatcher
  • Mark Davis vs Penta El 0 Miedo
• But wait, there’s more! The AMBITION tournament will be held this weekend, too! AMBITION is an eight-man, one-night, single-elimination, UWFi-style tournament. In addition to a non-tournament match of Thatcher/Ishikawa, here’s that field:
  • A-Kid vs Chris Ridgeway
  • Danny Jones vs Punch-Drunk Istria
  • Laurence Roman vs Shigehiro Irie
  • Rico Bushido vs Veit Mueller
• Meanwhile! Back in the USA on Friday afternoon, AIW is putting on 7 Year Itch in Parma, OH. Billy Kidman will be there with a seminar pre-show and making an appearance during it. PB Smooth defends the big belt against Maxwell Jacob Friedman, while Tim Donst goes one-on-one with MLW champion Tom Lawlor!
• What would a Friday be without CMLL? Your trios main event this week is Los Ingobernables taking on Angel de Oro, Caristico, and Niebla Roja, while your singles match of the week features Diamante Azul facing Gilbert El Boricua (aka Mil Muertes)!
• Also Friday: Freelance is in Chicago asking you to Thrill Your Idols! Kylie Rae defends the big gold against Priscilla Kelly as two women face off for a men’s title! Underneath, we have the WorkHorsemen defending the tag belts against the Hooligans, while former champ Isaias Velasquez takes on Ethan Page!
• EVE is holding two shows this weekend, though they haven’t announced much of a card for either. She Fights on Fridays has Britt Baker, DMD going against Charli Evans, while She Suplexes on Saturdays will have Command Bolshoi defend her Pure-J title against Leon.
• Black Label Pro are in Crown Point once again for Whoomp There It is — and the show has that name because it’s Tag Team Tournament Time! We open with two four-way matches: Radrick/Philips vs Sadkampf vs Space Pirates vs To Infinity and Beyond, and Page/Durst vs No New Friends vs Philly-Marino Experience vs The Production. The two winners of those matches meet for the gold. Also, Lawlor challenges Orange Cassidy for the Independent Wrestling championship!
• NOVA PRO SHILL! I’ll be back in Annandale for a twin bill! Saturday afternoon, it’s Applause, an open tryout show featuring many people hoping to get regular bookings, but a great double main event of Isaiah Frazier facing Juan Francisco de Coronado, and a CHIKARA rivalry reborn as Hype Rockwell faces the man he un-unmasked, BLANK!
• And that night, it’s Calling All Girls, NOVA Pro’s second annual women’s extravaganza! Ariela Nyx defends her PW Magic women’s title against Leva Bates, while Allie Kat and Penelope Ford go at it, and the main event features Faye Jackson against Princess Kimber Lee!
• Hey, speaking of double-shots, it’s TWO PROGRESS CHAPTERS! Chapter 85 (Progro.naut) will be Saturday and featuring Trent Seven going against Jody Fleisch. Meanwhile, a high-flying attempt to qualify for SSS16 takes place as Angelico squares off with DJ Z!
• And then there’s Chapter 86 (Corrupted Harmony)! Seven faces Austin Theory, while Fleisch faces DJ Z. Plus, we have a six-woman war as Millie McKenzie, Nina Samuels, and the Session Moth Martina face off with Jinny, Kasey Owens, and Laura Di Matteo!
• Hamilton, Ontario hosts Alpha-1’s Watch the Throne VI on Sunday, with a doozy of a main event as Kobe Durst must defend the big gold against Chris Dickinson, Josh Briggs, and Scott Steiner (!!) in a four-way! Underneath sees the NWA National Title on the line as Willie Mack defends against Josh Alexander!
• PWX is in Concord, NC, for Rise of a Champion XIV, their big event! The big gold is on the line as Elijah Evans IV faces Corey Hollis and Slim J in a triple threat. Plus, it’s Ducks, Ladders, and Chairs as the Ugly Ducklings challenge The Revolt for the tag gold, while two PWX icons go at it as John Skyler faces Ethan Case!
• Why yes, I do take requests! NGW in Tennessee is hosting Don’t Call It A Comeback 2 on Sunday, and thanks to my readers for pointing this one out, as Matt Cross faces Tajiri in the big main event! Plus Shane Strickland faces Shawn Hoodrich for the big gold, and Veda Scott goes one-on-one with Su Yung!

WHEW. I can’t imagine what kind of carpal tunnel I’ll get for the WM weekend at this rate. Anyway, here’s the Free Indie Match Of The Week: from DEFY Wrestling in the Pacific Northwest, Matt Cross goes against Puma King!

Bring the insanity!