From Jeffrey Taylor: So this past Saturday I attended Viral Pro Wrestling in Thomson, GA which was about a two-hour drive from Atla...
From Jeffrey Taylor:
So this past Saturday I attended Viral Pro Wrestling in Thomson, GA which was about a two-hour drive from Atlanta and it was a really good show you all. I was expecting to walk into a country old school venue and old fashion style of things because of the name and all but I was in for a really nice surprise. The venue was full of life and looked physically well if I do say so myself. I was greeted by a group of women who were selling tickets and distributing will-call and they were very strict and aggressive. Although they were handling business with an iron fist they managed to still be friendly which set the tone for the rest of the night luckily. Shoutouts to Mika for letting me join her for the ride and Joseph Brown from Suplexes & Microphones for all the hospitality and showing me around.
Okay so I’m not good with venue attendance but IT WAS A NICE SIZE CROWD and front row VIP was sold out so that’s good. They had a few merchandise tables set up which was executed properly (Indie Customs I saw you) but none of the tables looked force or cluttered as well as the main sponsor table that was legit in the middle. I was really impressed with the lighting, the banners, the ring, the seating, and most importantly the big screen that displayed actual videos throughout the show and sponsors as well. Everyone was nice and this was definitely a family friendly show or WAS IT? Let’s get into the WRESTLING!
Owen Knight defeated Wade Adams, Sean Legacy, Joe Black, Hunter Young, and Cam Carter in a ladder match to become the inaugural Outbreak Champion: AMAZING OPENER!!!! This card was strong enough to hold its own post ladder match so I really appreciate the decision making to make this the opening contest of the night. The match kicked off with the ladder use in the beginning with two smaller ladders that was used to inflict physical punishment throughout the match and a mega large ladder which would determine the winner at the end. I originally thought Joe Black was going to win to be honest just because Owen Knight doesn’t win titles but boy was I wrong and it was well deserved at that! I saw some new faces like Hunter Young who I got to chop it up with post-show who was involved in a lot of sloppy moments of this match but IT’S A LADDER MATCH, what do you expect? Wade Adams was another new face to me and I really enjoyed his Canadian character and crowd engagement throughout the night. Adams took some bumps but he definitely was the lesser of this match which I don’t blame him personally. I want to see Adams character in a singles match and see how he performs with his character in that environment because it was working really well in the ladder match. Believe it or not but Cam Carter was another new face to me and I honestly been watching him for months now thru the internet as he’s the current Fire Star Pro Champion and on the rise so he was really sharp in this matchup with a beautiful dive in the early going and not so much of using the ladder but really showing off his high-flying abilities. Carter stand out moment of the match for me was when he messed up the 450 springboard splash from the ropes onto Joe who was positioned on the ladder but Joe really made the save and set up for Carter to execute it properly for the pop. Sean Legacy was new to me and by far one of my favorites of the night actually. Legacy really has something special and reminds me of Austin Theory’s IT FACTOR, he just has that presence that really standouts. Legacy proved to me personally that not only is he willing to take the necessary physical risk but proved to be strong in endurance and standard throughout the match of pacing himself. The next competitor that I want to touch on is Joe Black who the fans didn’t know at all coming into the match but definitely raising their eyebrow on him. One of the main reasons I love sitting in the crowd and not doing my reviews from a backstage perspective is because I love interacting with others and how others feel and react to the show because it’s persuasive. The adult crowd loved Joe Black and the kids did not dislike him, they weren’t crazy about him because there were other men they connected with priory but Black definitely caught their attention. I’m intrigued to see if Viral Pro is going to recognize this and write Joe Black to be the babyface that’s associated with the hells of Murder One and Adrian Armour to create the antagonist feel moving forward for entertainment. Black by far was one of the most physical men in the match and that says a lot because everyone was kind of hard hitting in this one like they were getting paid more than usual (haha). Finally, you have Owen Knight who genuinely worked the match, he was in control from start to finish he managed to work the crowd and maintain relevance throughout the entire match. This was honestly Knight’s match, you can even see him taking the initiative and calling a lot of the big spots of the match up until the end. I really enjoyed the suspense between Knight and Legacy at the end because it was truly believed that one of the two could win just a matter of time who would fall first. Everyone in the crowd enjoyed and agreed that this was a really good 30-minute match to kick off the show.
Mr. Sleaze Erik Thompson defeated Kevin Phoenix w/ Zuka King via pinfall: Kevin Phoenix and Zuka King are a part of “end” with a third member it kind of reminds me the nWo and The Nation of Domination having a baby and they spit out this group. #ByAnyMeansNecessary. They actually have some really good merchandise worth buying, I snagged myself a wristband post-match. Anywho Mr. Sleaze made his debut and had literally one half of a VIP section cheering for him with posters and signs and to say that his debut wasn’t highly anticipated is an understatement. I think Mr. Sleaze is going to push the boundaries in professional wrestling similar to how Joey Ryan is doing now and how Goldust did in the mid to late 90s which I’m more familiar with. My original views of this match which stand AT THAT TIME is that I enjoyed the match but it was cringeworthy to watch at the time because of all the children in the crowd like the German Suplex by the nuts. I LOVED THAT SPOT SO MUCH AND HOOKED ME IN BUT then I heard an adult say “We Got Kids Here” and I was like okayyyyyy…… I originally became a fan of Mr. Sleaze at an AWE event back in May and been a huge fan ever since but seeing the character in Viral Pro which doesn’t cater to the adult entertainment side as much made me feel uncomfortable throughout the majority of the match. In my opinion, there was a lot of provocative and sexual things going on beforehand of the match and a little during the match but no so much, was it just me? IF SO THAN EXCUSE ME FOR HAVING A DIRTY MIND. Granted with all that being said, I genuinely enjoyed the dance-off between Mr. Sleaze before the match and I thought Kevin Phoenix was hilarious especially with his facial expressions and his dance moves that I was not expecting. I thought Phoenix was a great sport with all the negative jabs being thrown at him from the crowd so I definitely commend him for how he handled things. Zuka King was an excellent manager man, he was great to watch at ringside and was just at the right place at the right times. This was my first time seeing Mr. Sleaze wrestle a singles match and although it wasn’t a technical classic you could tell that this man knows how to wrestle and not that I ever doubted him but similar to Goldust a lot of people thought that he was all gimmick well if you didn’t know that he was Dustin Rhodes but HE COULD GO IN THE RING. That’s what Mr. Sleaze is bringing to the table he is bringing fun, entertaining, and wrestling all in one which is rare sometimes in this business. I don’t think that Mr. Sleaze needs to change and I think that he should continue to push the envelope in business and proved to me that this character could work at adult shows and family-friendly show and I’m a little disappointed that I didn’t see it more during the actual real time of the match. Mr. Sleaze picks up the win in his debut with a nice execution of the Sleazeball after a second attempt and made the night that much sleazier.
Shane Hexxon calls out T.J. BOSS because TJ prevented Shane from participating in the number one contender tournament and now he’s mad and wants to fight to solve his problems. It’s so funny to me when growing up in school when the administration promotes not to fight but to tell an authority when someone does you wrong but kids watch adults do it all the time in wrestling. OKAY, THAT’S TOO DEEP, LET’S GET BACK TO THE FUN! This was a really great brawl that involved security and referees attempting to break them up all over the venue before the head man gave us what we wanted and said: “Let them fight it is now an unsanctioned match.” I WAS SHOOK and was not expecting the head man to make the call and the two big men just went back and forth trying to destroy one another until the “end” members came out and the number games caught up with Shane. Eventually, Chris Mayne made his way down to the ring to make the save well AT LEAST WE THOUGHT! I absolutely hated how Mayne entrance music was played as he was running down to the ring because it gives the indication that someone planned it. I love silent run-ins but this is entertainment but does that make sense though? If I was really running in to save someone, I do not have the time for my entrance music to go off and all. Anyways, Mayne ran off “end” members without touching them with the chair which I found interesting and thought Teddy Long was about to come out and make this a tag team match between Zuka and TJ vs. Mayne and Shane; HOLLA HOLLA PLAYA! However, we notice Mayne set up for the turn on Shane by positioning himself to attack Shane from behind with the chair. I thought Mayne was about to join “end” but based off body language and all it seemed like more of a business deal, to be honest. Shane ended up getting up on his own with no help after the beating making him look VERY STRONG.
Tracer X defeated "The Southern Savior" John Skyler via pinfall: John Skyler had a nice entrance and ring attire and was the heel from the contest and Tracer X who I got to chop it up with post-match was the crowd favorite and had everyone throwing up “X” during his entrance which was the most entertaining of the night. The Southern Savior Skyler kicked off the match in control working the crowd and pissing them off. Let me just stop and let you all know that this crowd was very engaging and VOCAL. Tracer eventually got back control of the match and grounded Skyler, YES I SAID IT RIGHT HE GROUNDED SKYLER. In addition to that just in case you didn’t believe him; Tracer made sure to call out that he was doing a headlock onto Skyler like it wasn’t obvious enough. I don’t think fans were expected Tracer to “WRESTLE” let alone ground wrestle and they were disappointed and displayed it with “boring” chants. I think the crowd was expecting Tracer to be doing unnecessary dives and flipping all over the place and not try and tell a story during his match. I applaud Tracer and Skyler for actually doing the most wrestling that I have seen of the night, however, I am disappointed that they didn’t acknowledge their audience better. In this business, you have to know your crowd and who you’re doing it for because they are paying the money. So after 4 minutes of ground repetitive headlocks, I would have expected for Skyler and Tracer to both agree ahead of time that it’s time to switch up the style of this match opposed to saying let’s continue to cry and create Ricky Steamboat and Ric Flair Clash of the Champions 92 mid-show before intermission. (Inserts sarcasm). I realized that during this match the audience preferred to see Tracer the good guy get beat up just so they could scream at Skyler the bad guy. GOT TO LOVE PROFESSIONAL WRESTLING LOGIC. The crowd was super quiet during this match at sometimes but luckily Skyler turned the match around and Tracer stepped it up and prepared for the 450 splash finisher for the win. (Sidenote: Tracer X has some really nice merchandise you all especially with the Digimon appeal!)
INTERMISSION WAS FUN! I got to meet a lot of the wrestlers personally and got to mingle. The concession stand was packed with various snacks and courteous coordinators. It was a really great time to take in all of the action that we’ve seen thus far and to prepare for some more. Interesting enough as I was attempting to use the restroom I saw Murder One and Adrian Armour leaving out right as I opened the door, I WAS SHOOK! I can’t make this up you guys. Speaking of The Hierarchy………….
The Hierarchy (Adrian Armour & Murder One) defeated Instant Heat (Oz Knight & Quinten Ficklin) and Y2X via pinfall: I don’t like Y2X, I thought they were corny just everything about them. This wasn’t a bad match but it also wasn’t anything special. I do like Instant Heat though, I feel like seeing them in action a few more times in 2018, I can definitely see myself becoming a fan. There was no way in hell that The Hierarchy was going to lose this match but I did like the fashion that they won this match by outsmarting the other two teams. Armour and Murder One was barely in this match but when they did get involved they cleaned house and took care of business. They literally let Instant Heat and Y2X beat each other down long enough like there wasn’t a third team in the match that was remaining fresh. The beginning of the match you saw a strong chaotic style match that was potentially going to ensue but the referee managed to get control. When The Hierarchy first came out during their entrance the kids were chanting “Illuminati” and it was HILARIOUS. Some of my favorite moments of this match were the two big men of Instant Heat offense throughout the contest, Mika Villas snatching Armour hat from a child viscously like a savage, and the men running to catch Kismet unnecessary dive. One thing that I do want to point out about Kismet though is that I loved his energy throughout the night reminds me of what Ricky Morton was doing later on in the night. Y'all I like Y2X in terms of athletic abilities but the entire Y2X joint can just go unless they trying to be jobbers all their life and if that’s what they want then that’s cool too. Murder One hit his signature cutter and Armour who was the legal man scored the pinfall for the win that instantly got major HEAT.
Post-match Segment: The Hierarchy got some REAL HEAT!!!!! I was a little disappointed with security for not stepping in more but I guess they trusted the veteran in Murder One because it was getting too close. The major moments from this amazing promo shot by Murder One came from future tag team titles shot after two victories back to back. Well-deserved and they are converting a lot of good guy fans to be on their side week by week, who doesn’t enjoy the cool bad guys. In closing, MY HEART LITERALLY JUMPED OUT OF PLACE when Murder One asked to get my $1500 camera and my dumb self-gave it to him because “You Only Live Once” that’s the motto and you know we live by it every day, ayeeeee. Seriously this segment invoked passion, emotion, reaction, and was honestly one of the highlights from the show.
Savannah Evans defeated Kiera Hogan via count-out: Savannah Evans was originally supposed to face Nicole Pain in her debut match but she was unable to make it and we are just going to say it was because of the weather. I got to touch Evans' hand and she acknowledged me so that made my night special but the fans were loving her altogether and really wanted to see her compete. We spotted Kiera Hogan in attendance via intermission so it was a no-brainer who she would be facing unless they wanted to make it an inter-gender match but I didn’t see Viral Pro going that direction at a family-friendly show. Evans made a pun about let’s set this place on fire during her opening challenge remarks and long behold Kiera Hogan came out of nowhere with what seemed to be a slapjack attacking Evans. Hogan being a small spitfire was just going in on Evans but eventually, Evans caught her breathe and stance and took back control as the bell officially rang. The crowd had a strong dislike for Kiera Hogan to the max and was all for the newcomer Evans who was much bigger than Hogan to shut her down. Hogan was not in the attire to wrestle with no shoes on or wrestling gear which had some of the wrestling bloggers questioning whether she just didn’t want to perform the match in its entirety or just forgot her gear altogether BUT WHICH WRESTLER REALLY FORGETS THEIR GEAR when coming to a show? So we just came to the realization that Kiera Hogan count-out loss to Savannah Evans came from her just not wanting to wrestle this evening at such short notice. I don’t want to see a rematch, to be honest.
The Rock N Roll Express (Robert Gibson and Ricky Morton) defeated Monster Squad (Billy Brash and Joshua Real Cutshall) via pinfall to win the VPW Tag Team Championship: I THINK THIS SHOULD HAVE BEEN THE MAIN EVENT! With all due respect to Chris Mayne and Chip Day title match closer. The thing that really stood out to me during this tag team title match is that Hall of Famers well, Ricky Morton in specific knows how to work a crowd better than A LOT OF PEOPLE IN 2017. The entire match psychology was excellent and couldn’t have written it out better myself. As someone said in the crowd, The Monster Squad let two legends who were much older, out-smart them to win the tag team championship on this night. Billy Brash and especially Joshua who was the MVP of this match, in my opinion, did a fantastic job of working this match alongside The Rock N Roll Express. The miscommunication spots between Billy and Joshua were gold, and the crowd already think Joshua is out of his freaking mind. Ricky just wouldn’t let the crowd die down or get quiet at all especially after they were chanting his name all night. I THINK THIS MATCH WAS A LOT OF FUN TO WATCH WITH AN UNEXPECTED TWIST TO THE END. I don’t think anyone was expecting The Rock N Roll Express to actually with the titles but by God when they did the pop exploded in the arena. It created the environment now at Viral Pro Wrestling that anything could happen and that’s always a reason to comeback for more. Post-match; Ricky shared his emotions on how pleased he was with the big win and gave credit to not only the fans in attendance but Brash and John as well as he looks forward to the rematch. Class-act, talk about putting someone over with words, that’s power! (Sidenote: The Monster Squad entrance is amazing)
The Predator Chris Mayne defeated Chip Day via pinfall to retain the VPW Heavyweight Championship: During main event matches I really just stop and enjoy the moment these days and I really enjoyed this contest thanks to both men. I really liked how the heel turn by Mayne earlier in the show convinced so many kids to be all for Chip Day during this match when they originally split going into the beginning of the show when the match was announced. However, there were still a few fans that didn’t want to believe Mayne went to the dark side and some kids in the crowd were indeed still chanting for Mayne during the match believe it or not. Chip Day coming out with the big GWC Championship performed various strikes to captivate the audience attention and had them all behind him as he looked to add another belt to his collection. The closing moments of the match proved to be the most entertaining as Chip Day was going for the knockout kick to Mayne but Mayne pushed the referee in front of him to EAT THE KICK. Mayne that quickly forgot that he set the referee up went for his finishing maneuver and went to cover only for his adrenaline to slow down and see that the ref was knocked out. Mayne proceeded to get a steel chair to add insult to injury on Chip Day but Shane Hexxon comes down to make the save to get vengeance on Chris Mayne from earlier and cost him the title but Mayne managed to be two steps ahead of him and duck only for Hexxon to nail Chip Day. Mayne then low blow Hexxon and removed him from the equation and revived the ref from being unconscious to count the three count for the win.
Post-Match Segment: Chris Mayne took the microphone and explained his entire plan to keep Shane Hexxon out of the title picture by hiring TJ to make sure he didn’t make it to the tournament. Pre-calculating Hexxon to interfere and attempt to cost him the title and being one step ahead of him and it was pissing Hexxon off to the max but he couldn’t do anything but watch as the security guards managed to hold him back as he could just listen to Mayne getting over on him. IT WAS GREAT HONESTLY! Although I would have preferred The Rock n Roll Express title win to close the show this wasn’t a BAD CLOSER AT ALL!!!! It really got you wanting Shane Hexxon to get some revenge from this entire evil genius master manipulated plan Chris Mayne created come February 10th. Great job Hexxon, I kind of want you to take the belt from Mayne but I think you may need some allies moving forward.
OVERALL A REALLY GREAT SHOW YOU ALL!!!!! I am definitely going to make plans to come back and see some future shows at Viral Pro Wrestling, I’m going to give their final show of the year a solid 4 stars based of continuity and cohesiveness throughout the show. The show made sense and was very entertaining at that. Great vibes throughout the entire show and I just want everyone to be a part of what Viral Pro Wrestling is creating here in the south moving forward. Special thanks to Joshua Hancock for all the hospitality even while managing a fantastic show you were really hands-on, John Maldonado was a great neighbor and helped expressed a lot of my opinions and honestly thanks for just making my Saturday night FUN, and most importantly; I hope you all are still reading but PJ Synenberg! I watched from a distance "PJ pulled a family aside and offered a deal to a young boy who's struggling in school that he would get him VIP Front Row Tickets for Feb. show if he pulled up his grades to close out the end of the school term; and the young boy agreed to the challenge and deal while the mother was so appreciative." THIS IS WHY I LOVE THIS BUSINESS AND THIS IS WHY I WILL FOREVER SUPPORT VIRAL PRO WRESTLING FOR THEIR AMAZING GOOD ETHICS. It's genuine you all and I wish nothing but everyone behind the operations in the back the best in success because they are truly making a difference in their community.
