All good things must come to an end. We’ve had another series of high-quality UWFI rules warfare but now it was time to put the KO on season 4 with one final episode. Dubbed Mad World, it was going to bring in some final new contenders and give us more competition between some of the most interesting and highly rated in the division. There were six final fights with the season being capped off with a tag team encounter between champions and challengers as Isaiah Broner and Ron Mathis had to see of the 44OH! team of Vincent Nothing and The Bev Bobby Beverly gunning for their titles. Plus, there were more chances for challengers to get those all-important wins. Let’s jump into the action.

Let’s quickly go over the rules. UWFI is all based on shoot wrestling and points. Each fighter starts with a set number of points and will lose them based on rope breaks, knockdowns, and breaches of the rule set in intervals of 1-3 depending on the infraction. Victories can come from KOs, submissions, or draining all your opponent’s points. There are no time limits, closed fists, no groin shots, and no intentional fighting outside the ring. The system is in place to make sure fights have winners and are as rapid, violent, and efficient as possible. Now let’s get to the fights.

Trey Shaw defeated Kenji Brea via Dragon Sleeper

The first fight tonight would pit two fighters out for their first win against each other. It would be The Ripper Trey Shaw against the Death Threat Army’s Kenji Brea. This was all to play for and both fighters were going to bring their best. It went by in a flash as the two collided for some early strikes and kicks before going for the kill. Brea scored big with a sneaky up kick but that seemed to piss off Shaw and lead to his demise as he answered back with a Regal-Plex, then kicked his head off and ended things with a Dragon Sleeper. It was fast, efficient, and vicious. Brea again showed some smarts but couldn’t quite deal with the ferocity coming from the Ripper. It did all make for an excellent opening fight though.

Erron Wade defeated Chris Lyons via Jaw-Breaking Front Kick

Next up was another stiff encounter as we had the return of the 32-Bit Samurai Chris Lyons. He had come for his first win and now was going to have to battle the Baby Dragon Erron Wade. It would be Pancrase vs MMA as the two brought their similar styles of aggression out to play. These two had both brought out the legs of death as Wade scored the first knockdown with a devastating roundhouse and Lyons got the second with a rib-breaking knee. They kept trading kicks and knees until Wade could score the trip, rolled Lyons through, and broke his jaw with a front kick. Again, it was fast and aggressive with both fighters going for broke until one was left standing. Wade walked away victorious but Lyons had left his mark or more accurately several across Wade’s ribs. These two are born strikers and left it all on display here. That’s one win down, now Wade has a whole lot more to show.

Brutus Dylan defeated Mayhym via Knee Strike KO

Time for the scary fight. Brutus Dylan is an absolute monster. A hulking powerhouse ready to break anyone that comes his way. This time, it would be Mayhym unleashed on him. Dylan’s last opponent lasted 24 seconds, could Mayhym last longer? Slightly yes. Mayhym came out of the gates swinging and tried to rock the Mastodon but got laughed off and launched with an overhead belly to belly. He found his feet but ran right into a knee and got knocked out. it was over just like that with Dylan once again sending a statement that he will KO you in under a minute. He is one of the scariest newcomers to the roster and only wants to keep building his stock within the company. He ended the segment calling out and staring down the most handsome man in Paradigm, the Himboss, Max ZERO. Now that is a fight I’d love to see. The Himboss is no pushover so he might just bring down Brutus.

Trish Adora defeated Freddie Hudson via Inverted Seated Cattle Mutilation

How’s this for a battle of the combat sports stars? Trish Adora is one of the most decorated indie champions on the planet and now after losing to Blade under CFU rules, she was out to score a win over a UWFI-rules stalwart, The Hornet Freddie Hudson. These two are grappling gods so we were in for something special here. What started as a grappling contest became something wholly more hybrid as the pair went from scrambling around the mat to trying to knock each other out. Hudson brought out his Sleeper and Muay Thai knees but once Adora connected with Lariat Tubman, it was a foregone conclusion as to where the match was going. Despite being dazed, Hudson tried to battle on, only to get caught in a nasty variation on Cattle Mutilation. Adora had just bested a former PPW champion and had done so in a nasty fashion. These two showed just how good they are under the ruleset with Adora’s lariat being a game-changer. This is just the start, she’ll be back and I imagine the competition is only going to get tougher.

Filthy Tom Lawlor defeated Brandon Williams via Figure-Four Leglock

Let’s keep the technical wizardry going as Filthy Tom Lawlor answered the call of the Locksmith Brandon Williams. We had two submission specialists about to put on a masterclass in the middle of that ring. Williams has been clawing his way up the ranks and a win over someone the calibre of Lawlor would prove how much he belonged in the upper echelon. Even in defeat, he definitely helped his case with this one. It was a back-and-forth cat and mouse game of submissions and counters. Lawlor knew he was in there with an expert so there was a lot less of the usual trash-talking. It was all business as he worked at avoiding damage and keeping Williams as locked down as possible. Williams was out to do the same and we ended up with a very cerebral bout with both guys knowing when to strike, when to go for the ropes and when to push. Lawlor got the big win but Williams had managed to hang in there for over five minutes and forced Lawlor to the ropes. Lawlor had been called out, accepted the call, and sent Williams away. He was the one that was going to be doing the calling out and all he wanted was the Heavy Hitters Title, it didn’t matter who was holding it. Any champion was fair game.

Bobby Beverly & Vincent Nothing (w/Gregory Iron) defeated Ron Mathis & Isaiah Broner via Crucifix Elbows on Mathis

Last but not least, the main event. To end the season, we pitted challengers against champions ahead of the next big shows coming up. Ron Mathis was preparing to enter the three stages of hell against Bobby Beverly to defend his Brass Knuckles Title and Isaiah Broner had Vincent Nothing gunning for him and the Heavy Hitters Title. Now was the perfect time to feel out the foe before the fight. We had the makeshift Death Trash Army taking on 44OH! and Nothing. This was an odd one as half the match was the ideal matchups being cockblocked. Beverly prevented us from getting Broner vs Nothing and once Broner had tagged out, he never got back in. Ronnie the Shooter managed to get one SOS Toss in on Nothing but after that, he was ambushed by Nothing and Beverly. They mauled him with Germans and Knees, then quickly ended things with Crucifix Elbow as Broner looked on in annoyance. The match meant very little though as 44OH! made sure to attack once the match was over and laid waste to both challengers. They had destroyed the champions, left them broken, and now they could do it again at Room Two Thirty-Seven. This was never about victory; it was about proving a point. 44OH! ended the show as the kings but could they do it again when it mattered? That ended the series, bringing to a close another barrage of excellent fights, never fighters to root for and revile and now, I hope there’s a season 5. The UWFI division is so strong in Paradigm and I hope to hell it just keeps on going and growing. It always leads to great matches.

Thank you to everyone who watched #UWFiContenders this season on @indiewrestling!

Let us know who you want to see back, who you want to see debut, and what you'd want out of a Season 5!

Then we're back in Jeffersonville, IN, THIS FRIDAY NIGHT for #PPW237 and #PPWIndiana! pic.twitter.com/W9q6AS3wQI

— Paradigm Pro Wrestling (@ParadigmProWres) February 17, 2022

All images courtesy of Paradigm