WARNING: STRONG VIOLENCE AND LANGUAGE AHEAD

Welcome back to ICW NHB and to the Pitfighter arena. The return to the Blood Shed had gone slightly array and we were now going to see the cage debut in the Field of Fear. In the circle of violence this time we’d see, Gary Jay vs Azrieal, Satu Jinn vs Max the Impaler, Dan Maff vs AKIRA, and much much more leading to the main event where Jeff Cannonball gets a shot at John Wayne Murdoch and that American Deathmatch Title as Murdoch continues to be a fighting champ. Let’s get into the violence.

Fights, Camera, Action

Gary Jay defeated Azrieal via Stiff Robo Elbow

Up first was the return of the Stiff Robo Ginger Gary Jay. After a bit of an absence from the pit and chains, he was returning with a vengeance against the return of an ICW pre-NHB fighter, The Good Guy Azrieal. I didn’t know too much about Azrieal so this was going to be my chance to see him in action against a very heavy hitter. They opened with stiff kicks and elbows, then went into a chest-reddening chop battle. This was just a long chain of heavy striking and kicking with the chair shots somehow being the lightest hits in the fight. Azrieal utilised his ground game to try and tap Jay out but found better success stomping and a backdrop across a chair. A door was set up and Jay used the cage to hit a Tornado DDT. Jay tried to bring in another door but Azrieal dropkicked him out into the field and followed with a dive. They fought around the crowd and after more stiff shots, Azrieal hit a Hangman’s Neckbreaker into the dirt. They scaled the cage to trade slaps and both fell through a door. The horrible stiff strikes returned and Azrieal took Jay out with a rib kick into a German. He put Jay through another door with a powerbomb but only got two. Azrieal fired Jay up with disrespectful kicks and Jay returned the favour by knocking him out with rolling elbows and a door strike. Azrieal had certainly given Jay a fight but he was leaving here with a red mark where a win should be and an even redder chest.

Bobby Beverly defeated Vincent Nothing via Saito Suplex

Up next was the ICW debut of Vincent Nothing. He wasn’t having an easy welcome to the Pit as he was going into a cage with the Bev. 44OH!’s newest gun has had quite the time in ICW and now he could upset Nothing’s debut. Nothing opened with strong striking and ground and pound, forcing a cocky Beverly to play defensively. Nothing threw Beverly around the cage and continued raining down shots on him as the crowd cheered. 44OH! was getting fucked up by Faith in Nothing here. Beverly was busted open the hard way and lit up with stiff kicks as Nothing was out for even more blood. He found his way back into the fight with a pop-up knee and tossed Nothing into the cage and a door pile. He wedged chairs into the cage wall and smashed in Nothing’s face with pelted chairs. Nothing bludgeoned Beverly with the same chair and fought off a Saito to drop Beverly on the cage trapped chair. He bounced Beverly off a door with a Backdrop and threw more chairs at him, soliciting some from the fans. He repurposed the chairs to make a bridge and broke Beverly on them with an Exploder. He set up a door but Beverly elbowed free of his throw and broke the door with a Cyclone Fisherman Buster. Nothing kicked out and lit up Beverly with another combo but an ill-fated Triangle was broken with a chair shot and Beverly ended things with a running knee into a Saito. The Beverly had taken the win after a fucking war and put 44OH! on the score sheet. This was incredibly physical and a whole load of fun to watch. Fuck 44OH! Count: 1

Satu Jinn defeated Max the Impaler via Door Uranage

Say goodbye to law and order. Things were about to get uncivil as Satu Jinn was about to take on the Wasteland Warlord Max the Impaler. After both picked up big wins in Atlantic City, it was time to let these two monsters collide in the cage to see which savage would come out on top. Jinn started smart and ran Max into the cage wall to nail them with palm strikes. He threw Max into the cage again so they threw a trashcan at him and smashed him in with a kendo stick. They danced around a trashcan and Max picked Jinn up like he was nothing and slammed him through it. Jinn pelted Max with a chair and tried to use the cane knife on them but they snatched it off him and cut him up with it. Jinn hit back and slammed Max into the mat for a diving headbutt. Max tried for the door spear but Jinn cut them off and broke the door with a Samoan Drop. Jinn carved up Max with the cane knife and Max clubbed free to pelt Jinn with chairs. They duelled with kendo sticks and Jinn tried to crush Max under a door. Jinn dared question the might of Max so they tanked his headbutt and speared him through a door. They set up a final door but Jinn was back up and the pair struck it out. Max tried for the Wasteland but Jinn blocked it and ended the match with a Uranage through the door. This was so much fucking fun. Two monstrous savages just unloading on each other until one was knocked out. This was pure murder with the Deathmatch Djinn taking the win this time.

Neil Diamond Cutter defeated Atticus Cogar via Honey Badger Splash

Time to get messy as Neil Diamond Cutter was back in the Pit and ready to kick some 44OH! ass. This was Cogar’s return to the Pit and he wanted to upset the streak Cutter has been on, planning to skewer him like had so many others. This wasn’t the first time the pair had battled and I doubt it would be the last as Cutter wanted to beat some respect into Cogar. He did just that with chairs and sentons but Cogar cut him off with a crutch to the throat. Cogar whipped him into a guardrail but couldn’t capitalise as Cutter took him out with the crutch to the knee. Cogar countered another senton and gave Cutter his first skewering. Cutter came back with BOB the staple gun and wrecked Cogar’s knee with a cinderblock and bowling ball. Cogar skewered Cutter again and turned the Honey Badger into a Porcupine. The pair went strike crazy and traded headbutts. Cutter won the exchange but ate shit as Cogar dodged a seated cannonball. Cogar murdered Cutter’s back further with a powerbomb and Air Raid Crash to chairs. Cutter shook it off and dropped Cogar with a Finlay Roll and nailed a flipping leg drop from a chair. He followed up with the Badger Bomb and the Moonsault off a chair. Cogar refused to stay down so Cutter beat him with a cap bat and threw a guardrail at him. That guardrail was set up on chairs but Cogar cut Cutter off as he scaled the cage and filled his back with even more skewers or making him Porcupine 2.0. Despite the skewers in his body, Cutter pushed Cogar away and sent him into the guardrail. Cogar hit the trapped Cutter with a chair and joined him up top for a slugfest. Cutter won the exchange and Cogar toppled down onto the railing. A Honey Badger Splash later and the match was won. Cutter had succeeded in beating Cogar. He didn’t beat respect into him though as Cogar stole BOB on the way out. 44OH! Fucked Count: 1

Dan Maff defeated AKIRA via Guardrail Powerslam

AKIRA, please don’t die here. The Death Samurai is as tough as they come and will push anyone to their limit until they kill him. Unfortunately, I’m not sure he’s taken on someone quite like Dan Maff before. The guy’s a fucking juggernaut. This would be Maff’s first taste of Reject warfare this weekend, could AKIRA cause the upset ahead of Murdoch? AKIRA tried to get technical but settled for chopping down Maff with kicks and working the leg when he could. The striking intensified and Maff charged AKIRA through a door. AKIRA kicked out at one and kicked Maff’s legs out from under him before bashing him off a door with a DVD. The door didn’t break so AKIRA crushed Maff under it with a double stomp. AKIRA didn’t fall for the door to the head trap and instead bounced it into Maff’s knee before giving him even more kicks and a rolling elbow to another door part. AKIRA continued to kick and senton but couldn’t keep Maff down. Maff woke up and again, the striking picked up. He was done being nice and shit-canned AKIRA into another door with a sickening powerbomb. AKIRA wouldn’t die either so Maff nailed him with a Rainmaker and nailed the Burning Hammer. AKIRA kicked out… no one kicks out. AKIRA hit back and latched onto the cage for a Kappu Kick. He blasted Maff with a PK but it still wasn’t enough. AKIRA hit the Shatter Star Bomb but even that wasn’t enough. Maff dodged the Scorpion Kick and landed a second Burning Hammer. AKIRA kicked out again… so Maff hit the third one through a door and powerslammed him into a guardrail for the win. That’s how much it takes to put down a Samurai in his element. Maff was shocked by the fight in him, giving him the respect, he’d earned and ended the segment staring down Murdoch ahead of their fight.

Eric Ryan defeated Dale Patricks via Shopping Trolley Snuff Stomps

Dale Patricks cemented himself as an undeniable force in Atlantic City. He did four shows with a broken foot and came out the other side a respected, welcomed fighter. Now, it was time to reap the “rewards” of that. He was being thrown into the cage with a fork-wielding murderer. That’s right, he was battling Eric Ryan and it was under Taipei rules. As expected, the pair punched the hell out of each other and Patricks took an early advantage. Ryan came back with a barbed-wire cane to Patricks’ AC damaged knee and hammered more glass-coated fists into his head. Ryan cut down a second cane and administered another barbed-wire beating to Patricks. He quashed a comeback and snapped the cane to stab the end into Patricks’ head. Patricks kicked away the Snuff Stomp and sent Ryan reeling into a shopping trolley. He quickly scooped Ryan up and drove him into a barbed-wire board with a spinebuster. Patricks risked further leg damage with a double stomp to the board and Ryan took a barbed-wire 2×4 to his knee and head. He ripped the 2×4 across Patricks’ gut and back for good measure and rammed the shopping trolley into his face. Patricks chokeslammed him onto the trolley and brought him crashing back to the Pit floor. The pair struck it out and Ryan tripped Patricks face-first onto the wired door. Ryan pressed Patricks into the trolley and stomped him until the lights went out. Ryan and killed the Deathmatch Jackass but it hadn’t been clean and it hadn’t been easy. They were both wearing the scars of battle. Fuck 44OH! Count: 2

ICW American Deathmatch Title: John Wayne Murdoch defeated Jeff Cannonball via Power Drill to the head

Last but not least, the main event, John Wayne Murdoch vs Jeff Cannonball. Originally slated as a non-title match, Murdoch scrapped that and gave Cannonball a shot at the belt. Would the Sultan of Soda walk away with a new jewel in his collection? Cannonball started quickly by pushing Murdoch through a glass pane and throwing him through a second. Murdoch fell to the outside and Cannonball pursued him with a gusset. Murdoch gave him the gusset to the head and Cannonball hit Murdoch with soda mist. They played chair toss and Murdoch threw Cannonball through a door. He attempted the Brainbuster but Cannonball smacked him for trying and hit him with a snap bat. Murdoch tripped Cannonball onto the chair and used it to break a pane of glass in Cannonball’s face. Cannonball didn’t stay down so Murdoch broke a bundle on his back and carved his head. Cannonball got pissed and used water jugs as boxing clubs to beat Murdoch’s face in. He attacked Murdoch with a snap bat and Murdoch used his belt to form a noose and drove Cannonball through another door. That still wasn’t enough so Murdoch grabbed a power drill and tapped Cannonball out by driving it into his head. Yep, that’s how Murdoch is choosing to beat opponents he can’t pick up. What the fuck…

Best of the Bloodletting

• Azrieal and Vincent Nothing both personified the strong style spirit of the Pit against their opponents. We know what the Bev and Jay bring to a fight but their opponents brought out the best in them and kept things violent in a whole other way. I am glad Vincent Nothing is coming back; his style is perfect for ICW.
• Max vs Jinn was an incredible display of uncivil violence between two creative killers. One of my favourite fights of the night and a nice increase in intensity from Max’s first fight. I hope they keep coming back as they could fight anyone and win.
• Neil Diamond Cutter is just on another level at the moment. Between racking up wins and putting on killer matches, the guy deserves all the flowers he’s getting.
• Seriously, win or lose, AKIRA proves time and time again he will shock his opponents and force them to think up new battle plans. He’s like a deathmatch Sun Tzu, writing a new Art of War for a new generation. He took on a monster and nearly won. The killer is still there even in defeat.
•  Murdoch vs Cannonball was another great fuckery filled bloodbath. It was a sprint of glass, gussets and gushing as both guys bleed badly. Cannonball took a whole lot of horror show abuse here and I only hope he’s okay. He remains one of my favourite guys on the scene even in defeat.

What comes next?

• I will continue to make the point that we need more Wastelanders in ICW as Max the Impaler has set the tone well and the Pit is perfect for more Wasteland warriors to test their might.
• Atticus Cogar stole BOB, that leads me to believe he ain’t done with Cutter and hey, with Cutter calling out MASADA, maybe we’ll see a meeting of the badger and the skewer fiends in Texas?
• Murdoch and Maff are going to tear the house down when they fight. The question is with just a day to recover, what shape is either man going to be in for it? AKIRA and Cannonball have left their marks, who’s hurts more?

All images courtesy of ICW, Earl Gardner Photography