WARNING: STRONG VIOLENCE AND LANGUAGE AHEAD
Welcome back to GCW and to a double-bill of carnage. In the build-up to Tournament of Survival weekend, the company was looking to finalise the tournament bracket by giving eight bloodletting badasses the chance to join Rina Yamashita, Drew Parker, and Toru Sugiura. All they had to do was beat each other. Hoodfoot had AKIRA, SLADE had Sawyer Wreck, Brandon Kirk had Matt Tremont and Shane Mercer had Jimmy Lloyd. Alongside that, we’d see a multitude of messy, fun, and dream matches featuring BUSSY, the Rejects, Cole Radrick, AJ Gray and so many more. We have not one, but two shows to dissect so let’s dwell no longer and get into the madness.
“In Too Deep”
Scramble: Gringo Loco defeated Axton Ray, Dante Leon, ASF, Drago Kid, Jimmy Lloyd & Shane Mercer via Loco Bomb on Mercer
WHAT?! @TheASF_27 @AxtonRay96 @TheJimmyLLoyd #GCWDeep @GCWrestling_
▶️https://t.co/Ff68NI6bEk pic.twitter.com/FBBH0qb0CL— Rob (@HeyyImRob) May 1, 2022
We opened with everything with a massive scramble. It was Axton Ray making his big GCW debut alongside a whole host of GCW regulars and wonders. We had Lucha galore, high-flying galore and Shane Mercer doing his usual of throwing everyone around like they were nothing. As per usual, there were a whole host of Giffable moments and glorious multi-man manoeuvres. You know by now that GCW scrambles are something special and this one was no exception. It kicked ass and set everything off with a bang. Ray got to stand out amongst the crowd and Gringo Loco gets another win on the checklist, scoring the three-count on the Iron Demon. Goddamn, this was a good one.
Jordan Oliver defeated Masha Slamovich via Orange Crush
Next up was a scary contest. Jordan Oliver is known for being one of the standouts of GCW. He will take on anyone, win or lose. Now, he was going to have to contend with Masha Slamovich. Russian Dynamite is one of the scariest fighters to join the GCW roster. Were we going to see Jordan Oliver going home young, dumb and broken? No, he walked away the winner after fighting smart and trying to destroy the legs of Masha. That didn’t stop him from having the shit beaten out of him but it did slow her down enough for Oliver to do his work. They both put on a nasty back-and-forth fight with both trying to one-up the other in toughness. Masha hitting an Ocean Cyclone Suplex was one of the absolute wildest things I’ve seen and that was just a part of this bout. There were a lot of hard hits and harder landings with Oliver coming away as the big winner this time. The East Coast Ace scores on his home turf.
Alex Zayne defeated ACH via Crunchwrap Supreme
.@ACHWORLD1 with a tope con giro!#GCWDeep @GCWrestling_
▶️https://t.co/Ff68NI6bEk pic.twitter.com/HrYXRiG2ZI— Rob (@HeyyImRob) May 1, 2022
The pace was about to pick up as ACH was back in GCW once again with another high-quality opponent ready to kill. The Sauce God Alex Zayne was getting a star opponent to battle and he was going to go all-out in it, then go for Taco Bell. It was hard to pick a favourite in this one, both of them fucking rock. They went all-out for most of this match and did whatever they could to try and secure the win. It was fast and fierce with room for more later down the line. I just hope it isn’t the only encounter. This had heat, spice, and a lot of excellent wrestling to tuck into. Zayne hit the pay window this time so I am going to assume he enjoyed a lot of celebratory Taco Bell. This show was starting strong with back-to-back-to-back smash hits. Respect was shown at the end and everyone ended things happy. It’s hard not to smile after a match like that.
SGC (AJ Gray, Matthew Justice & Mance Warner) defeated BUSSY 420 (Grim Reefer, EFFY & Allie Katch) via SGC Doomsday on Reefer
The card is always subject to change and with the Briscoes out due to a family emergency, it was time for six-person tag chaos. SGC was in the building with a whole crew and they still wanted a fight. The titles weren’t on the line but BUSSY doesn’t turn down a challenge and had drafted in a special third member for this one, Grim Reefer. Things were going to get high in this one. The brawl began with a kiss of death and just descended into the hurricane of chaos that SGC always brings with them. We had BUSSY on the joint and Reefer giving SGC a taste of his “high”-flying. This was all great fun with both teams going to war. For a spur-of-the-moment replacement, it felt completely natural and well-orchestrated. SGC and BUSSY may be allies most of the time but when they fight, oh man, they fucking fight. We had doors and disasters and blood across the runtime as BUSSY and SGC brought the hardcore until SGC could hit Reefer with Doomsday for the win.
Blake Christian defeated Biff Busick via Curb Stomp
Tope suicida with a door from @_BlakeChristian!#GCWDeep @GCWrestling_
▶️https://t.co/Ff68NI6bEk pic.twitter.com/3JolpeGH5t— Rob (@HeyyImRob) May 1, 2022
Oh, fucking hell. Blake Christian has been proving time and time again why he is one of GCW’s greatest stars. Whilst continuously skirting title contention, his name has been in the mouths of a lot of stars and with GCW, those matches are always potentially around the corner. This time, he was in for something different though. Instead of a high-flyer, he was dealing with the scrappy, brute-force approach of Biff Busick. Christian knows how to adapt but what would he do once the chops and slaps were coming his way? This got rough as they took the violence all around the Showboat, hitting chairs and uppercuts amongst the fans. Christian found himself in a lot of holds and situations he didn’t want to be in but the All-Heart never gave out and kept working to break Busick. It certainly wasn’t pretty at times but we aren’t here for pretty things, we wanted a scrap. Christian gave just as hard as Busick and the match benefitted massively from it. Christian might just have one of the nastiest Curb Stomps to date, but he needed that to keep down Busick.
“Speedball” Mike Bailey defeated Joey Janela via Flamingo Driver
JESUS! @SpeedballBailey with moonsault double knees through a table!#GCWDeep @GCWrestling_
▶️https://t.co/Ff68NI6bEk pic.twitter.com/tIVMfuSGwq— Rob (@HeyyImRob) May 1, 2022
The Janela kills your favourites tour continues with a showdown with “Speedball” Mike Bailey. This is an unusual pairing when it comes to styles but both guys will innovate when necessary to do some damage. Bailey has been on a tear but then again, so has Janela so anyone could win this one. This one got physical. No one was surprised when these two just started levelling each other with heavy hands and heavier kicks. It didn’t even stay contained to the ring as the pair took their fight around the venue, murdering a table in the process. Janela loves to bully opponents and although it wasn’t the easiest to do, he managed to impose his will on Bailey for a lot of this match. It never lasted though as Bailey had a counter prepped. Janela loved being a dick and baiting Bailey in whilst Bailey just worked to kick Janela’s head in. People like to shit on Janela but regardless of whether he wins or loses both he and his opponent look like stars. These two had excellent chemistry and made one hell of a fight out of it. Yes, Joey, those were flowers… please don’t kill me. Both these guys were almost invincible until the end with Janela falling to not one but two of Bailey’s finishers.
Before we could get to the bloodbaths, we were interrupted by the Root of All Evil, Patrick Bateman… I mean Charles Mason. He had been attacking GCW and JCW favourites in a barrage of brutal ways and was now addressing the fans, despite no one wanting to hear his opinions. He ran them all down alongside the locker room before attacking the deathmatch wrestlers, including Nick Fucking Gage. Gage would have killed him there and then but Mason wasn’t there for him this time, he wanted to start with Spyder Nate Webb. Webb tried to attack him but Mason bit into his face and choked him out with a belt, getting rather aroused whilst doing so. Pure sadism at its finest.
ToS Qualifier: Hoodfoot defeated AKIRA via Chained Club KO
With that bit of nastiness behind us, it was time for some bloodbaths. Opening the gory foray were two favourites. GCW are evil bastards and had made everyone choose between AKIRA and Hoodfoot. Both these guys belong in ToS so they were going to fight like hell to secure a spot. Nick Gage had come to commentary and was delivering his insights as Hoodfoot and AKIRA brought out the bloodlust in a hybrid, strongman deathmatch. They had gussets galore, ladder shenanigans, and a whole host of wrestling and striking excellence. These two are pros at their style of fighting and had the fans in the palm of their hands as they bled around the venue. These two got ridiculously physical with gusset chops, wired landings, tubes, and a whole lot of fists and kicks. The pair threatened to steal the show before the main event and cemented their status as two of the worthiest potential entrants to the tournament. They went long but it was continuously escalating, even bringing in the weedwhacker to carve up both of them. Hoodfoot got the win and stamped his ticket to ToS but both these guys earned the spotlight this match received. They made the most of their time and went wild with it. This is how you kick off a fuckery section. AKIRA’s ambition got the better of him this time but hell, GCW would be mad not to keep giving him a spotlight.
ToS Qualifier: SLADE defeated Sawyer Wreck via Choke Out
I’m not sure who is the more terrifying fighter in this one. On one hand, there’s Slade the Rikers Island psycho. On the other, the Matriarch of Mayhem, Sawyer Wreck. Both will fuck you up and enjoy the violence. Now, they were being unleashed on each other to secure a tournament spot. This started at 100 and just kept burning as Wreck went fuckery crazy on SLADE. She wasn’t wasting time but neither was SLADE who took the onslaught and ended thing in minutes with pure murder. This was a sprint of blood and plunder with neither holding back. These two wanted to fuck each other up and they did. It wasn’t pretty but it was effective. Neither would stay down, regardless of the tubes they’d been hit with. When fuckery wasn’t getting the job done, SLADE choked Wreck out and cemented his place in ToS. He is certainly one of the scarier guys in the tournament.
GCW Ultraviolent Title: John Wayne Murdoch defeated Cole Radrick via Door Impact Brainbuster
Last but not least, the main event. Cole Radrick has shot up the deathmatch rankings as of late. The King of Wreck-Shit Mountain has been making a whole lot of new fans as a bloody buddy and now, he was getting a shot at the GCW Ultraviolent Title shot against the duke of hardcore. Murdoch is the benchmark for deathmatch and Radrick was going to give it his all, even channelling JC Bailey through his actions and gear. This match had fucking everything but the kitchen sink. It was a back-and-forth murder fest with Radrick showing this deathmatch run was more than a phase or fluke. He was bringing the fight and pain to Murdoch no matter how many times he was cut or stabbed. It had wit, energy, and attitude as Radrick brought his brand of mayhem to Murdoch. It made for a worthy main event and is only getting a small written bit here because I want you to all go out and watch it. Radrick and Murdoch worked their asses off in this one. There was glass, blood, and powder everywhere as the glass was stabbed everywhere and anywhere. This was a nightmarish crimson masterpiece by two fighters willing to bleed out for the art. The champ was mauled just as much as the challenger with both leaving a lot of blood on that canvas. Murdoch was so impressed with Radrick’s performance that he gave up his ToS spot to him. Radrick might not have won the title tonight but he continues to win over the deathmatch pros and has another opportunity to bring his demolition derby style to the big leagues. It ended the show on a high note with Radrick being celebrated and Murdoch showing that no matter what the fans think of him, he isn’t an asshole. He wants more death, more blood and he’s going to take the fans along with him.
“Life Goes On”
ASF defeated Alec Price via Butterfly Piledriver
Show two kicked off with a high-flying, domineering extravaganza as the Prize City OG came to play and make ASF his bitch. He had a height and power advantage but that has never stopped ASF from kicking a match into gear and flying into action. He had Price trapped in roll-ups and launched around the ring as he took Price to max speed. Price was able to weather the storm and started bullying ASF, lavishing the fan’s derision of him. Much like the scramble beforehand, it made for an excellent opening match and gave us a mix of underdog high-flying hearts and the domineering, sneering evil of Price. It did exactly what it needed to do and started things off on a good note as good overcame evil.
Alex Zayne defeated Dante Leon via Taco Driver
.@EndseekerLeon flips off the ropes and into a stunner!#GCWLife @GCWrestling_
▶️https://t.co/Ff68NI6bEk pic.twitter.com/5lbtgPKErc— Rob (@HeyyImRob) May 1, 2022
The Sauce God was back in action for his second match of the weekend and this time, he was ready for someone as devastating as him when it comes to aerial carnage. He was facing the Endseeker, Dante Leon. This had a high likelihood to blow some minds. It was like watching two mirror images fight and they both leaned into this, going blow for blow with often identical ideas. Leon continuously excels when given the chance and this was no different as he and Zayne just got what people wanted from this fight. It was deviously creative and ludicrously athletic with just a hint of madness. Leon had control for a lot of the match but all Zayne needed was an opening to put pain on the menu. The Taco Driver sealed the deal this time with Zayne nearly always finding a way to stop or dodge Leon. This was great for what it was.
GCW Tag Team Titles: BUSSY (Allie Katch & EFFY) defeated The Rejects (AKIRA & John Wayne Murdoch) via BUSSY Piledriver on AKIRA
It was title match time as John Wayne Murdoch looked to add more GCW gold to his waist. He’d drafted in AKIRA to join him for a GCW Tag Title shot. It would be the Rejects vs BUSSY in a fight I couldn’t begin to predict. BUSSY are usually ready for anything but just how violent were things going to get here since some deathmatch superstars had come a-knocking? Murdoch had threatened to penetrate some BUSSY. The chants were winding up Murdoch but thankfully calmer heads (AKIRA’s) prevailed and we got down to one hell of a match. Much like both teams, this had a bit of everything. There was some excellent wrestling, some lip-locking fun between AKIRA and EFFY, and a lot of violence as deathmatch plunder entered the fray. Murdoch went from not being ready for the shenanigans to cutting up Katch with light tubes. This match went everywhere and was great fun whilst it lasted. It’s hard not to appreciate a wrestling buffet such as this. There were so many different styles mixed into this one match. Murdoch and AKIRA weren’t co-existing properly throughout this one and it definitely cost them. It seemed to hit Murdoch harder than AKIRA as he’d cracked his partner with a slap. It seems all is not right with camp Rejects. It’s been a while since we’ve seen deathmatch Katch, I had missed her. Katch isn’t just a professional wrestler, she’s tough as nails too. I swear one-day AKIRA is going to get a win and we’ll all rejoice. This segment ended with Murdoch and EFFY brawling backstage and Katch taking both of the straps to the back.
ToS Qualifier: Shane Mercer defeated Jimmy Lloyd via Moonsault and Battery
The gore kept on coming as Shane Mercer and Jimmy Lloyd prepared to battle over a spot in ToS. Jimmy Lloyd is one of GCW’s deathmatch OG’s but he doesn’t like being handed things so he’d decided to fight for a spot. The problem was, that he was battling an absolute monster, the Iron Demon, Shane Mercer. Lloyd was going to have to bring out all his tricks to survive this encounter. The mace was out, the Iron Demon was ready to kill. These two had a bit of everything as glassware started things and it all went off the rails from there. Mercer no-sold a weedwhacker for fucks sake and seemed invincible as he unleashed all the power and pain he could on Lloyd. It was like watching Nemesis chase down S.T.A.R.S as Mercer just couldn’t be stopped. Lloyd just couldn’t find an answer. In the end, it didn’t matter. Mercer bulldozed Lloyd with Moonsault and Battery to become the next entrant into ToS. It had been a massacre of a match with Lloyd giving it his all and coming up short.
GCW Extreme Title: AJ Gray defeated Cole Radrick, Axton Ray, Drago Kid, Gringo Loco & Marcus Mathers via Diving Leg Drop on Mathers
Satellite DDT from Drago Kid!#GCWLife @GCWrestling_
▶️https://t.co/Ff68NI6bEk pic.twitter.com/XrYPwZBHti— Rob (@HeyyImRob) May 1, 2022
The action returned with a scramble. Many of the competitors from the last show’s scramble returned to action alongside Marcus Mathers, Cole Radrick, and AJ Gray. Since the champ was here, he’d put the belt on the line, making this the highest stakes scramble yet. Anyone could leave this match the new champ or, we could potentially see Gray murder absolutely everyone. This was even better than the last scramble. Radrick and Gray opened with a competitive back-and-forth before the floodgates opened and everyone came in to play. It was another glorious highlight reel of dives, bombs, and striking disasters. It was great fun with everyone playing it smart to pick their moments. It was a cacophony of chaos with the champ retaining after the funniest exchange with Marcus Mathers I’d ever seen. You don’t chop the Motherfucking Truth or you fucking die. A lot of people needed to learn this in this one.
The S.A.T (Joel & Jose Maximo) defeated Jordan Oliver & Nick Wayne via Double Spanish Fly on Wayne and Oliver
The S.A.T (@realjosemaximo @RealJoelMaximo) with the Spanish Fly on both Jordan Oliver and Nick Wayne!#GCWLife @GCWrestling_
▶️https://t.co/Ff68NI6bEk pic.twitter.com/mxn4U3d8LG— Rob (@HeyyImRob) May 1, 2022
It was time for some generational warfare as the S.A.T, the innovators of the Spanish Fly were back in GCW to show the younger generation how it was done. They call themselves the fathers of the style of today and they were going to prove that against Nick Wayne and Jordan Oliver. The young guns were going to have to expect the unexpected against the Maximos. This had everything you’d want. The younger generation was more than happy to take the fight to the S.A.T whilst the S.A.T proved they could still go, showcasing the style that had made them so famous. They were in firm control for most of this, having to fend off flurries of fire from Oliver and Wayne. Even then, that heart and determination couldn’t stop The S.A.T from walking away with the win. The innovators were on the comeback trail and weren’t ready to stop yet. The Maximos want to climb the tag ranks and with performances like this, it isn’t too hard to believe they’ll accomplish that. This match made it hard to root for either side because you want them all to win. Wayne and Oliver are two of the hottest stars on the scene whilst the S.A.T are showing that the older dogs will bring new tricks to succeed. This was the shit you wanted to see. I really hope The Maximos stick around.
Joey Janela defeated Masha Slamovich via Superkick
The Kill Your Favourites Tour pressed on as Joey Janela had his second match of the weekend against Russian Dynamite, Masha Slamovich. Janela had been unsuccessful against Bailey, was he going to meet a similar fate here? Very few people fuck with Masha Slamovich and live to tell the tale. This started stiff and just got stiffer as the two pummelled the absolute fuck out of each other. It was a vicious back-and-forth of strong strikes and stronger throws as the pair showed zero mercy. It was all attitude and all pain. These two threw caution to the wind and just laid into each other all around the venue. It was a warpath that both were running straight down. Janela kept toying with Janela and swiftly kept paying the price. The Bad Boy is always a glutton for punishment so of course, Janela was more than ready to fuck him up, even sacrificing a chair in the process. Janela had no idea what he’d unleashed. Even then, he was able to recover and take out multiple doors. This was frantic fun and compelling as hell until the very last second. Masha knows how to command a room and Janela was more than happy to go along with it. By the end of it, they were both hurting from this one. Masha remained defiant to the end but Janela’s superkick launched her teeth into the third row and shut the match down. Janela had successfully killed off a favourite here but it hadn’t been smooth sailing for the Bad Boy. Yet again though, Janela not only secured a win but brought the best out of his opponent. Janela wants to wrestle and he’s fucking wrestling alright. Especially now that he’s back where his heart belongs.
ToS Qualifier: Matt Tremont defeated Brandon Kirk via DVD Massacre
Last but not least, the main event. It was the final ToS Qualifier. It was going to be between two veterans of the game, both of which just deserve all the respect for what they do. It was the Bulldozer, Matt Tremont looking to get back into tournament action, and the Rogue Brandon Kirk looking to get into Ultraviolent Title contention. It’s Love the Kirks mode now as everyone has woken up to the inherent skill of one of deathmatch wrestling’s best gobshites. If he could beat Tremont, he was entering the field with one hell of an accolade. Beating the Bulldozer is no easy feat, especially since he had different music and a massive 2×4 covered in barbed wire. These two were definitely going to bleed. There’s two had an absolute war. This went above and beyond to end the weekend on a high note. It had more glass and gussets than you could want with both guys left bloody messes. Tremont loves telling stories and this reflected the tale of a guy coming back with a reignited passion against the Rogue that has scratched and clawed for every bit of recognition he’s gotten. This was a brilliant match for both of these guys as they sacrificed it all for the spotlight. We had tubes in heads, guts, and mouths. It was pure ghoulish gore and goodness ending this weekend on the highest of notes. Kirk is finally getting some of the recognition he deserves after years of pissing everyone off and Tremont enters the ToS reinvigorated. Kirk wouldn’t quit until Tremont near enough KO’ed him with multiple DVDs, including one through a tube cabin. This was intense, dramatic, and full of blood. We even saw fire as a branding iron made its way into the fray, ending up in Tremont’s face and gut. These two held nothing back and I’m thankful for it. This was fucking insane and deserves every bit of praise it has received. It’s a shame Kirk isn’t in the tournament but goddamn, did he not earn a title shot for this one? That is how you end a weekend, with the most violent display you possibly could.
Delicious. @ItsBrandonKirk @TremontH2O #GCWLife @GCWrestling_
▶️https://t.co/Ff68NI6bEk pic.twitter.com/529NqNvRXG— Rob (@HeyyImRob) May 1, 2022
All images courtesy of GCW, FREEDBIRDS_Shop, HeyyImRob