WARNING: STRONG VIOLENCE AND LANGUAGE AHEAD

Welcome back to ICW and to the vicious world of Pitfighter X. The cage was back and it was time to adorn it with blood and fuckery once again. The company of chaos had made its grand return to Tennessee and was bringing in a multitude of home-field talents alongside TWE. It was going to be a spectacle of violence. On the cards tonight, AKIRA and Masha Slamovich on the world’s bloodiest date night, Jaiden Newman vs Tank, Brandon Kirk vs MERC, the return of Dominic Garrini against the debuting Derek Neal, John Wayne Murdoch vs Kasey Kirk, and much much more leading to the main event where Joel Bateman, the big boss of Deathmatch Downunder started his US Tour in style with an American Deathmatch Title shot. Let’s get into the carnage.

Fights, Camera, Action

AKIRA vs Masha Slamovich ends in no contest

Up first tonight was one of the deadliest fights of the night. Masha and AKIRA might be lovers but here, they were going to be fighters, and given the sheer bloodlust and self-destructive willpower the pair have, it was going to get ghoulish. There was no soft start either, just thrown hands, submission attempts, and a chair collision. Slamovich went feral with a backpack sleeper and bit AKIRA’s ear and launched him into the cage when he tried to escape. As promised, AKIRA tanked the damages, smashed her leg off the cage, and drove her into a flatscreen. They returned to kicking the shit out of each other and Slamovich got a measure of revenge with a gusset to AKIRA’s head. AKIRA tried to do the same but Slamovich kept him at bay with an attempted flamethrower. With that plan out the window, he just Gourdbusted her into the floor. He finally got the gusset in and sent her flying out the cage door, earning some admonishment for his brutality. Another AKIRA specialty came out as he came at Slamovich with knives, stabbing into her head and back with blades. He even found the Nicolas Cage special in a Sawzall, because it saws-all, especially Masha Slamovich. He soon regretted bringing that out though because Slamovich got her vengeance in spades, carving him up with it too. They bludgeoned their way back into the cage and Slamovich used it to spring into a headlock takeover. She gave AKIRA a taste of the flatscreen with a Ganso Bomb and AKIRA dropped her across a chair. No one was willing to stop no matter what was thrown at them. They just Kawada kicked each other into another slugfest. AKIRA hit the Death Penalty but even that wasn’t enough. They just kept swinging and shrugging off damage. AKIRA tanked an Assault Driver through a door and Slamovich a door German. In the end, they both tapped out to a Fuckery Muta Lock. They’d both killed each other. No one won but everyone was fucking enamoured with the massacre they’d just seen. They ended the segment with a passing of the biting bullets and a kiss. Holy shit, that opened things strong.

Dominic Garrini defeated Derek Neal via Head Kick KO

The Bone Collector was back! Dominic Garrini had been away from the chains for a while and now, it was time for his comeback. He wasn’t getting an easy return as he was stepping into the pit with the King’s Road Slayer, Derek Neal. One of the most dangerous strikers in the game. No fuckery needed here as both guys were already weapons. This started off with Garrini trying to flex his submission skills but when Neal matched that, they went into a full-out striking war. There was nothing pretty as these two beat each other from pillar to post with every type of strike known to man. For each hit they landed, they received double back, all the while getting fired up in the process. This was pure 70s-style Memphis violence in the best way. Not too much to comment on, just one of the absolute best matches of the night. It was pure bell-to-bell horror with both guys dropping artillery like it was nothing and getting right back up to deliver more. The only time they ever deviated from the formula was to use the cage as a weapon. Neal looked right at home in the pit and made it his own, showing why the crowd was hyped. He might have lost but he left Garrini bruised and battered, the sign of a good fight. Somehow, I doubt this is the last we’ll see of Neal in ICW. His style is always welcome and goddamn did he show his worth here. What a slobber knocker of a battle.

Danny Demanto defeated Erron Wade via Table-Breaking Demanto Driver

Now for the random one. Sometimes when you’re the boss you make fights for yourself. Danny loves a good fight and so, he’d brought the Baby Dragon Erron Wade in for a scrap. Wade might not be common with death but he loves a good fight and has all the tools to pull it off. This was going to be an interesting one. Demanto had given him a spot because of his work ethic, now he had to show what the fuck he could do. Wade started strong with rapid-fire kicks but Demanto caught him into a Go-Home Driver and from there, the torture began. The boss took joy in punishing the TWE favourite with gussets, chairs, and lemon juice. Yep, Demanto was in full sadist mode. He got Wade again with salt and kept swinging with trashcan lids and firecracker bats. Wade returned fire with a Tornado Kick but got distracted rearranging furniture and went through two doors courtesy of Demanto. Despite that, he kicked out at one and delivered a heavy Powerslam. Wade left the cage to grab a table and the pair fought over a Piledriver on top of it. Demanto landed the Demanto Driver and got the win. Wade had shown a lot of heart but the unfamiliarity of the fuckery mixed with Demanto’s drive to make a statement had cost him the victory. Even so, he’d shown his worth, earned even more love from a hot crowd, and shown he ain’t afraid to bleed. He’d earned his spot.

TWE Title: MERC defeated Brandon Kirk (w/Kasey Kirk) via Regime Elbow Drop

Time to up the ante a bit. The most-loathed man in ICW, Brandon Kirk was getting a shot at the TWE Title. That might sound like a bonus but it also meant he’d be getting a lesson in how to put down dissidents from the Generalissimo of Merxism, MERC. Could Kirk find a way to get past that force and bring down the regime? They’d both talked the talk, tried to one-up each other in the build to the bloodletting and now, it was time for fists. MERC proved a point early on, shunning Kirk and levelling him with kicks and the cage wall. Kirk wasn’t going to take the abuse lying down and pie-faced MERC with a chair then played the drums on him with tack bats. Kirk kept shunning the MERC with assorted fuckery but a gusset was reversed on him and the blood started to flow from his head. MERC unleashed another flurry of kicks and flew into a corner cannonball before point-blank F5’ing Kirk into the cage wall. Kirk almost KO’ed MERC with forearms and the pair danced around a table. They ended up scaling the cage and dropping to the floor, continuing the brawl around the venue, Kirk allowing some fan interaction with a firecracker bat to MERC. They returned to the cage and climbed the table again, battling it out to be the one to break it. MERC got the better of the exchange by using the cage wall again and broke the table with a Regime Elbow drop. These two had torn up the TWE Arena in their quest for gold and because of that, both were bloodied. It had been a fun fight to watch with the Generalissimo keeping his title another day even if some people were hoping his reign would end.

Krule defeated Satu Jinn via Rain of Fists

Originally this was going to be Hoodfoot vs Jinn but due to injury that couldn’t happen. Rest up well Hoodfoot and join us in watching the chaos about to unfold. The Heathen had stepped in to fill the void and he was going to make Jinn suffer. After their last encounter, all cards were off the table for this one. They started with some striking and Krule ran himself into a door. Jinn took advantage by throwing whatever was at hand and came at Krule with his cane knife. That proved to be a big mistake as Krule wrenched it away and made Jinn Sashimi with his forehead. The monsters just kept lashing out at each other, striking and pelting around the cage. Jinn tried to attack with an oversized gusset board but Krule just lobbed him into a door. Krule set up a gusset door and seemed to have more ill intentions but Jinn was able to knock him away and open up his back with that gusset board. He landed the Uranage through the door but Krule wasn’t ready to die. Jinn’s killing blow had just been kicked out of. He wasn’t sure what to do next so he pulled Krule up and the pair went at it again with punches and knees. Jinn went for another chair but Krule just punched it into him and pummelled him with punches until the ref called off the match. Well… tried to. Krule scared him off so he could keep beating the shit out of Jinn. Just like that, Krule had gotten his revenge and destroyed Jinn’s win-streak. It had been another hard-fought battle of the kaiju with the Heathen standing tall, albeit with a whole lot of blood leaking from his back. This is the type of ugly warfare the pit was made for.

Tank (w/Reverend Dan “The Dragon” Wilson) defeated Jaden Newman via Barbed Wire Backdrop Driver

Time for another horror show as the Bloodbath Behemoth Tank was about to administer a beat down of epic proportion on Ichiban Jaden Newman. Jaden might be tough as nails but was he ready for the nightmares coming his way at the hands of Tank? This was the real battle of Chattanooga as decreed in a sermon from the Reverend. Newman came out swinging, launching his shirt then his knuckles at Tank. He had an early flurry but Tank just let him self-destruct and started carving with a sickle. He continued with a gusset and revelled much like Demanto in his destruction of a hometown hero. Newman snapped and unleashed more heavy shots before whipping and choking out Tank with his belt, turning the studs in on the Behemoth’s eyes. The fight broke to the outside and once the brawling ceased, the pair went at each other with forks. The pair collapsed and after beating the ten-count, rearranged the furniture for a barfight. Tank headbutted Jaden to death and flipped off the crowd for expressing their frustrations. The pair kept going back-and-forth with cage collisions until Tank got evil with a sickle to the scrotal region. Despite this, Jaden kept fighting and knocked Tank down. They just kept slugging away until Tank finally put an end to things with a barbed-wire door Backdrop Driver. Newman had fought his heart out but Tank was just too damn tough. Tank was impressed with what he’d seen and made sure to put his opponent over. They’d both been left bloody and beaten which is just how both liked it. New and old-gen had clashed in the nastiest way possible.

Kasey Kirk (w/Brandon Kirk) defeated John Wayne Murdoch via Inside Cradle

It was a double dose of Kirk’s warfare as Kasey Kirk was getting a match too. The more popular Kirk was about to show why she is one of the toughest in the game by kicking the duke’s ass. John Wayne Murdoch has been the king of the company for so long, was he going to be able to maintain that hold after tangling with Kasey? Murdoch was all business as he shrugged off Kirk’s opening kick and started laying into her with his fists, trays, and a knife. He cracked her in the leg with a firecracker racquet and smacked her with a trashcan as Brandon just watched from the outside. Kasey had wanted this moment; he wasn’t going to interfere. Murdoch gave Kasey multiple free shots with a tack bat before dropping her again with a chair to the back. He set up a knifeboard and Kasey dropped him onto it with a Tornado DDT. Murdoch retreated to the outside and took a firecracker bat to the back as Kirk followed. They brawled to commentary and the Sawzall made a second appearance, meeting Kasey in multiple areas. Murdoch demanded she fights back so she damn well did, punching the taste out of his mouth. He collapsed onto some tables and followed her up the cage to bring them both tumbling through them. They brawled back to the cage and Kasey used the cage frame for a Hurricanrana. She gave Murdoch a gusset to the head and kept bludgeoning him with fuckery until Murdoch kicked her back down. He set up more tables and went after Kasey with a knife again, this time cutting into her mouth. Brandon threatened to throw in the towel but Kasey stopped him. This was her fight. She exploded into action and slammed Murdoch through a chair. Murdoch was laid out on the tables and again followed Kirk up to drop her through them. She kicked out and reversed the Brainbuster into an Inside Cradle, taking the win. Kasey Kirk just beat the duke. It had been a bloody war of attrition with Kirk having to go through hell and back. This was a massive win and one hell of a reminder that Kasey Kirk is one hell of a wrestler. Brandon was there to attend to her instantly and the duke bowed out gracefully with a hug. This was her moment; she’d fought for it.

ICW American Deathmatch Title: Joel Bateman defeated Reed Bentley via KO Headbutt

Last but not least, the main event. Joel Bateman, the Smash Hit and boss of DMDU was coming to take the US by storm. His first step on this road was Reed Bentley. He’d called his shot and now, he had the chance to not only upset the company but have a title to take home to the spiders. Bentley was in for one hell of a fight here. The cage was adorned with fuckery, the tubes were out and now it was time to break it all. There was a handshake but that was the only bit of respect to be seen as the one-up contest began. Bentley didn’t take Bateman to be much of a challenger and openly tried to get in his head. They went to the tubes and beat the fuck out of each other. Bentley kept cutting and gave Bateman a vicious tour of the venue. He even introduced him to AKIRA and Slamovich by throwing him into them. He slammed more people onto him and used a ladder to crush his ribs against the cage, Bentley really was rolling out the welcome mat. Bateman got some vengeance with a seat Suplex and after a beer break, ran him into the cage. They kept brawling, threatening to destroy the merch area, and used more fans as weapons. A door was set up and Bateman bounced off it multiple times since it wouldn’t break. They finally returned to the cage and Bateman was launched right into a barbed-wire corner. It got no easier for Bateman as Bentley smashed more tubes and crushed him under a senton. Bateman cut him off with a Dragon Screw and landed a senton of his own but got the same result. He worked over Bentley’s neck and took the glass to him, using a tube for an added element to an Abdominal Stretch. Bentley was fighting blind but somehow had the awareness to counter Bateman and drop him ass-first onto an exploding bat. The Pepsi Twist quickly followed but Bateman still wouldn’t give. The same thing happened with the Tiger Driller, Bateman just wouldn’t give. The pair kept trading shots and despite eating more glass, Bateman was able to launch Bentley into the wired corner.

Bentley had to be cut free so Bateman used the time to get his breath back. He laid out Bentley on some tables and finally for the first time tonight, a table spot went right as Bateman scaled the cage and hit a Bundle Swanton. The bad thing was it only got a one-count. Bentley was fired-up and started crashing more glass into Bateman’s chest and sternum. Both guys cut the other off with hard strikes and Bateman collapsed into another pin following a headbutt. That got the win as the damage had just accumulated and the adrenaline had worn off. Joel Bateman was your new American Deathmatch champion. He’d taken Bentley’s best and won. He’d come to fight and now, he had a prize for doing so. This was the upset of the evening as everyone knew Bateman was going to be a top-tier challenger but most didn’t expect him to win. He’d shown them all he wasn’t here to fuck spiders and the chaos he’d just wrought spoke for itself. What a way to end a show. Bentley took it gracefully and left Bateman to his moment. This hadn’t been the Rejects’ night but they weren’t going to dwell. The next show has just gotten way more interesting.

Best of the Bloodletting

• AKIRA loves to push boundaries. It’s something I feel he’s never made a secret and I bet he’s grinning with glee at the reception he and Masha Slamovich got. They opened the show in furious fashion with one hell of an ugly encounter. The cavalcade of carnage set the tone for this monster of a show in the best way and honestly, I hope this isn’t the last encounter the pair have against each other.
• It’s great to see Garrini back. The Pit was built for him and now, he’s come to take back his turf. His match with Neal was an absolute standout and further shows how good new blood is for the company. Derek Neal, Erron Wade, and Jaden Newman all killed it in their debuts for the company.
• Krule terrifies the hell out of me. The juggernaut of destruction has cut a path of carnage through the company and finally got a measure of revenge against the welcoming committee that had bested him when first appearing. Jinn and Krule had a masterclass in fuckery based damage-tanking horror and put the time they had to good use on short notice.
• Kasey Kirk is one of the most underrated people in deathmatch wrestling. Male or female, she has stepped up and scrapped with some of the best, and to see ICW take some time to remind everyone what she is really capable of. This was an excellent night for her and hopefully sets a precedent going forward that she should be fighting more often.
• Joel Bateman. Joel Fucking Bateman. He came, he saw and he conquered in one night. What had started as a daring challenge had led to the Smash Hit walking away with a new title. He may not be leaving ICW with that title but for this night, he pushed the champion to his limit and secured one hell of an upset. His name is now in the ICW history books. Not to mention, he helped cap off an exceptional show with an exceptional main event.

What happens next?

• Multiple people that competed tonight are going to shake off the wounds of tonight and prepare to fight tomorrow. How will they fare against fresher opponents? Krule has to worry about SHLAK, John Wayne Murdoch has to worry about Eric Ryan, Garrini has to worry about Dale Patricks, Jinn has Dale Patricks and Tank has Brandon Kirk. There’s a lot to be excited about.
• Well, Joel Bateman vs AKIRA just got even more interesting. What originally aimed to be an international super fight is now going to be an international super title fight. After the wars, both men have had, just who is going to come away with that title?
• Last but not least, I just want to state again that ICW keep touring Tennessee. The fans rock, the talent is always in plentiful supply and we can keep getting MERC in the pit.

All images courtesy of ICW NHB, Brandi G Photography