THE TWO SHEDS REVIEW by Julian Radbourne
E-mail: twosheds316@aol.com
Website: www.twoshedsreview.com
This coming Saturday, October 1st, 1 Pro Wrestling will be holding their first ever show, “A Cruel Twist Of Fate”, at the Doncaster Dome in South Yorkshire. It’s the first of many “super shows” that are being held over the coming months, with stars being gathered from both Britain and America.
The name of the show actually comes from a wrestler who, because of the machinations of one Vincent K. McMahon, had to pull out of the show. Matt Hardy was originally scheduled to be a part of the main event, but instead of flying over here to entertain us Brits, he decided to take out some of his pent-up aggression on a certain two-timing Canadian.
Some writers will probably be critical that the card is stacked with American talent, that the promoters, 1 Up Games, are trying to pander to the internet smart marks too much, but when you look at the card in a little more detail, you’ll see that although some of the internet’s darlings will be on the show, there’s also something for the more casual fan, the type of person who doesn’t spend almost every waking moment over analysing every move in a Pro Wrestling NOAH match.
Let’s start with Hardy’s replacement. Originally, the thought of TNA monster Abyss going up against Hardy looked like a good David v Goliath match on paper. But Hardy’s withdrawal opened the door for one of the pioneers of TNA’s X Division – A.J. Styles. Styles and Abyss have fought against each other numerous times in TNA. The discrepancy in size wasn’t apparent as these two tore the house down several times, so to say that Styles is an adequate replacement for Hardy would be something of an understatement.
A word of advice if you’re going to this show, and you’re going to be sitting in the first six rows – wear water-proof clothing, or take an umbrella, because The Sandman will be in attendance. Yep, not only will you probably get drenched in beer during his usual ten minute ring entrance, you’ll also get the chance to sing along to Metallica’s greatest ever song as he goes up against Raven in a Raven’s Rules (basically, a no rules bout) match. This will be the Sandman’s first appearance in a British wrestling ring in four years, since his last appearance at the ill-fated Wrestlexpress show.
Let’s not forget the other man in the bout here. Raven is a firm favourite with the British fans. Perhaps one of the greatest psychological wrestlers of the past twenty years, Raven’s ECW feud with the Sandman is the stuff of legend, and although time, and in the Sandman’s case, beer, may have slowed both me down somewhat, this still looks like it could be a great match. A shame that Raven is no longer NWA World Champion though.
But speaking of World Champions, Steve Corino will be defending his AWA World Heavyweight title on the show. The AWA World title is one of the oldest in professional wrestling, and although it’s lost some of it’s lustre in the past few years, Corino is probably the first champion since Larry Zybyszko that fans will recognise on name value alone. What’s intriguing about this match is that he’ll actually be defending the title against a current WWE star – Al Snow. In the past few years Al is better known for his work as the head trainer on the Tough Enough series, but go back a few years, and forget his stints as Leif Cassidy and Avatar, and you’ll see that Snow was a hell of a wrestler, and perhaps one of the most under-rated wrestlers in the WWE in the late 90’s. With the pedigree that these two have, Corino v Snow could possibly be the sleeping giant of the card, the match that unexpectedly steals the show.
One for the smart marks next. Late last year Austin Aries caused something of an upset when he defeated long-reigning champion Samoa Joe for the Ring of Honor title. Aries held the title for nearly six months before losing it to C.M. Punk. Aries also recently made his TNA debut, taking on X-Division Champion Christopher Daniels. But on his British debut, Aries will have his work cut out for him as he takes on a man regarded as this country’s best technical wrestler, “The Anarchist” Doug Williams. I’ve been a keen follower of Williams’ work in the past few years. This is another bout that promises a great deal.
In another bout that harks back to the glory days of ECW, the Blue Meanie, recently seen on Smackdown trying to get a measure of revenge against John Bradshaw Layfield, will be taking on another guy who also wanted a piece of JBL, Tracey Smothers. This is the kind of match I was alluding to earlier. Meanie and Smothers are hardly internet darlings, but they do appeal to the casual fans, because of their work in ECW and WWE.
The main tag-team bout of the show also looks like it will be very interesting. Representing the USA will be two wrestlers who have made quite a name for themselves in TNA’s X-Division. Chris Sabin is probably one of the best young high-flyers on the American indy circuit at the moment, and a former X-Division champion, who only lost the belt because he was injured. Sabin will be partnered by a man I have a great deal of admiration and respect for – Jerry Lynn. Lynn was a pioneer of the X-Division long before there was an X-Division. A fifteen year veteran, Lynn has held titles wherever he has competed. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a bad Jerry Lynn match, he’s that good.
Representing Great Britain will be two of Britain’s premier cruiserweights. “The Phoenix” Jody Fleisch returned to action earlier this year after a self-imposed exile, and although he has competed only sporadically since his return, his matches before his absence are the stuff of legend, particularly those with his tag-team partner. “The Wonderkid” Jonny Storm is Britain’s premier lightweight wrestler at the moment. Storm is another of those men I don’t think I’ve ever seen a bad match from. This tag-match promises much, and will definitely deliver.
With an under card featuring American stars Low-Ki, D’Lo Brown, and Brits such as James Tighe, Spud and Iceman, A Cruel Twist of Fate looks stacked from top to bottom. Sadly, I won’t be at the show, but if it looks as good on DVD as it does on paper, then I’ll be the first in line to get my copy!
Tickets for the show can be obtained by telephoning the 1PW ticket hotline on 01302 367525, the Doncaster Dome Box Office on 01302 370777, or online at www.1upgames.co.uk. For information on the show, log onto www.1p-w.com.
