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2 COLD SCORPIO VS. RICH SWANN & MORE: 4/8 GCW FOR THE CULTURE IN TAMPA, FL REPORT

GCW For the Culture 

4/8/21 - 11:59pm

Tampa, FL - Streaming on FITE.tv

For the Culture is in it’s 3rd iteration, and like the previous two, this card is staaaaaaaaaacked. Mega Ran is your announcer! 

Match 1: Mysterious Q vs. D-Rogue vs. Alpha Zo vs. Rob Martyr vs. Troy Hollywood vs. AC Mack (6-way Scramble)

AC Mack takes the mic from Megaran and introduces himself as only he can do. No one else gets an intro. They superkick Mack out of the ring. Mysterious Q takes control early against D-Rogue. Robert Martyr in but Mack slithers in and tries to hit the Mack-10. Q in with a german to Mack. Alpha Zo catches Q with an exploder. D-Rogue holding his own against everyone. Zo serving up drops to the apron. Zo in against Martyr, Rob with a big german. D-Rogue with a leg Lariat. Q with a slingshot electric chair ddt to Martyr. Mack trying to capitalize but Hollywood giving every one knee strikes in the corner. Hollywood with PK’s off the apron. Hollywood hits a frog splash off the top, Mack stops the pin Zo with a rolling forearm o the side of Mack’s head. Q with a super spin blue thunder bomb but Hollywood stops that win, hits a popup gut buster on Q for the win! Great frantic energy here for the opener!

Winner: Troy Hollywood

Match 2: Thick and Juicy 2.0 (Brooke Valentine & Willow Nightingale w/ Faye Jackson) vs. Fire & Flava(c) (Kiera Hogan & Tasha Steelz) 

Valentine is here to replace Faye Jackson, who got hurt a couple of weeks again. Fire & Flava are going to put their Impact Knockouts Tag Titles on the line here. THIS IS A TITLE MATCH! Fire & Flava come in hot but Willow and Brooke are crushing these small women. Willow with a front face lock and hits a triple suplex on Steelz. Steelz gets come shots in but Willow cartwheels through and hits a superkick. Brooke in and Hogan in to save her partner....and gets kicked in the gut. Hogan rakes the eyes and hits a neckbreaker. Fire & Flava keeps the pressure on Valentine and isolated from her partner. Fire & Flava playing mind games, forcing a photo op in the corner while Valentine is getting choked on the ropes. Hogan gets caught in a crossbody but Steelz catches her partner and slams her onto the Queen Bee. Steelz with a camel clutch on Brooke but she picks up into an electric chair drop! Willow gets the tag and hands out a spinebuster and a pounce! Hogan jacks the jaw and gets Willow up on the shoulders....and turns right into a spear by Valentine. Hogan with a head kick staggers her but walks into a DVD. Steelz with a cutter on Nightingale! Kick out! Steelz misses a frog splash but Hogan takes th blind tag. Willow makes a powerbomb but Hogan with a superkick. Backdrop driver from Steelz and Hogan hits a fisherman’s neckbreaker for the pin. Big fight feel here! The titles being on the line may have made the result a foregone conclusion but gave Thick and Juicy something to fight for here. Fire & Flava party on their way out in victory. 

Winners: Fire & Flava

Match 3: PB Smooth vs. Jon Davis

Well this is gonna rule. I just saw Davis knock Dom Garrini the f*** out. Davis is a long time Indy vet and Smooth is the young gun,stepping up. Smooth with some early shots but Davis swarming with headbutts and slams. Davis giving soccer kicks to the back but gets caught with a snake eyes and a big boot that sends him to the floor. Smooth hitting body splashes and a show stopper. Smooth clubbing Davis’ back but Jon fires up and throws back hard shots. Davis trips up PB and hits a big shoulder tackle. Shining Wizard for two! PB wants a chokeslam but settles for an iron claw STO. PB with a choke lift sitout powerbomb and Davis is out at 2. Davis with a curb stomp and piledriver. PB Smooth is donnnnnnnnne. Heck of a fight! Davis is such a real dude. THAT Dude. 

Winner: Jon Davis

Match 4: Myron Reed vs Frontman Jah-C vs. Calvin Tankman vs. Uptown Andy Brown

Tankman gets sent to the ropes early and eats an apron stomp from Jay-C. Brown goes to war with Reed until Jah-C in to pick the bones. Reed scouts it and hits a big neckbreaker for two. Big Cal is back with a double pounce that clears the ring, trading strikes with Andy Brow but walking into a Reed cutter.....Reed with a coffin drop but falls into a backbreaker and lariat for two. Jah-C with superkicks to Tankman that topple him. Reed boots Brown to the outside and topes after him. Jah-C attacks Reed but is on the wrong end of a hangman’s flatliner. Brown with a high angle backstabber to Reed. Tankman is back up and immediately attacked by Brown and Jah-C. Brown sent out, Jah-C tries to dive after but runs into an uppercut. Brown piledrivers him to the apron. Reed flies out with a beautiful cutter to Brown. Reed wants a 450 to finish but Tankman is back with a spinning backfist. Brown in and eats a spinebuster, spinning back elbow and sitout piledriver for the pin. Tankman was the force here and everyone knew it. Good storytelling kept him mostly out of the match, letting the others shine until it was time to smash the smaller men. Awesome.

Winner: Calvin Tankman

Match 5: Bryan Keith vs. Darius Lockhart

Darius is working his first live match in over a year. He grabs the wrist and arm but gives distance any time Keith tries to take hold. Lockhart wrapping up the legs but Keith finally with a heel hook that forces Darius to roll them to the ropes. Keith hitting chest kicks that drop Lockhart repeatedly. Big uranage for two. Bryan Keith is going to work on the limbs of Darius. Lockhart throwing chops but he can barely stand up through throwing them. Bryan hammering him in the face with forearms but Darius pulls the back of his pants, creates space and rebounds with a lariat. Darius with a crossbody and giving suplexes. Top rope cross body but Keith is out. Bryan raking the eyes sends Darius to the corner, DDT out of the corner for two. Darius sweeps the legs and throws knees to the corner. Darius flips Keith into the air and flapjacks him to the mat. Bryan Keith is out for the count. Clash of styles here that really worked. Great showing from the returning Lockhart. Bryan raises his fist in a show of respect for the Revolutionary Lockhart. Hell yeah.

Winner: Darius Lockhart

Match 6: Tre Lamar vs. Eli Knight

Trading wrist locks early, Knight with a kip out bounce to take a headlock. Knight fakes a superkick and Tre flinches....Knight pats him on the head. OH NOOOOO YOU DIDN’T. Knight with a springboard dropkick but falls into a potential crab but Knight goes to the rope. Tre with a slingshot rolling frog splash. Tre tries a crossbody but falls into a gut buster. OW. Exploder and a dropkick off the second rope but he may have hurt his back. Tre firing back with punches but Knight with a springboard moonsault. Knight sent to the floor and Tre with a suicide dive after him. Knight, not to be outdone, back in to hit a somersault dive. Back in the ring, Tre dodges a moonsault but Knight flips into a knee strike. Tre hit with a ripcord punch and rebound with an enziguri. Battling to the top, Tre lands on his feet from a poisonrana! Double stomp and a brain buster from Tre and Knight kicks out! Tre is shocked but hits a torture rack into a back breaker and locks in a lion tamer to get the tap out. Tre started fun and Knight frustrated him so much he found a deeper vicious side to put the kid away. Good stuff. 

Winner: Tre LaMar

Match 7: AJ Gray vs. JTG

JTG displaying his power early, drawing a line in the mat for Gray to step to. Gray shoves him into the corner. JTG comes running right into Gray’s lariat for a CLOSE two. JTG has to powder to recover while Gray draws that line right back. JTG back to drop and stomp Gray, then drag him up into a spinebuster for two. Mounted punches, Gray tries to come back but smashed with a bulldog. JTG getting a moment to breath while he takes AJ’s breathe away on the rope. JTG clubbing Gray down and hitting a back drop for two. JTG continuing to crank the neck but Gray hits a jawbreaker and back elbow. Gray with a pair of shoulder blocks but he’s hurting. Big top rope moonsault and JTG is winded. Trading forearms and elbows in the center as they recover. Gray walks into a Facebuster and swinging uranage for two. JTG dodges a ripcord lariat and hits one of his own for two. Gray slips out of the Brooklyn’s Edge, hits a leg lariat and they battle to the top rope. Gray with a superplex but JTG kicks out. Gray with corner punches, JTG escapes and tries the Brooklyn’s Edge. AJ slips out and hits a lariat! JTG out at one! JTG up and turns around for a third short lariat. Emerald Fusion slams JTG to the mat for the three count. Gray and JTG took each other apart tonight. Gray matches always have that big fight feel. 

Winner: AJ Gray

Billy Dixon hits the ring and blasts Gray with a chair ahead of their match at Effy’s Big Gay Brunch. He’s furious that Gray skipped out on the Brunch before. They’re having a dog collar match on Saturday and Dixon is going to punish him for letting everyone down. He’s going to prove that the Truth is a lie and that black wrestlers draw money. WOW. Dixon was absolutely fire on the mic here. 

Match 8: Lee Moriarty vs. Lio Rush

Handshake and Lio fakes a cheap shot with a smile. Lee has his ribs taped. Lio baiting Lee in to take his leg. Lio goes for the leg but Lee grabs a hammerlock. Lio struggles to escape it in a variety of creative ways. Lee going for kicks but Lio is dodging like crazy. Lee adapts to the speed and start working the arm of Lio with wrenches, arm drags and uppercuts. Lio caught coming in and Lee jacks up the arm again with kicks. Both on their feet, Lee swinging wild and Lio with a flurry of strikes, a headbutt to the gut and a leg lariat to the back. Lee whips to the corner, PK to the arm and a double stomp for two. Lee sent to the apron and Lio with a handspring kick to the head. Suicide dive to the front row. Lio goes for that low cutter but Lee wraps a sleeper there. Lio flips out, kick to the head, basement cutter lands but they’re both exhausted. Trading forearms and they are both frustrated the other hasn’t dropped yet. Lee with a mousetrap pin, Lio shaking up and down and the ref allows it to continue, Lio’s shoulder was up, it seems like? Lee needs to go for the kill, Lio headbutts him off the top. Lio with a top rope frog splash....Lee kicks out! Lio arguing with the ref and Lee rolls him up and puts off the pressure down on the legs where Rush CANNOT escape this time. Damn good match.

Winner: Lee Moriarty

Main Event: Rich Swann vs. 2 Cold Scorpio

Mr. All Night Long is dancing with the folks at ringside. Scorpio won’t be outdone and we have a “Jungle Boogie” dance session. This starts with reversals back and forth, rapidly changing holds, evenly matched to a statemate. Trading dropkicks and running attacks. This is a mirror match. Test of strength and Scorpio with the gut kick and send Rich outside. Scorpio opts to grind instead of dive. Scorpio grabs the head lock, lands a knee to the face. Scorpio sent out and Rich returns that dance. Scorpio in and Swann hits a tilt-a-whirl DDT for two. Swann with a step up mule kick for two. Swann working the arm and Scorpio works his leg to the ropes. Swann pays him back for that with a double stomp. 2 Cold is eating Swann’s offense and blasts a capo kick. Scorpio with a stiff kick to the back. Back suplex to Swann and a release german sends him to the ropes. Rich comes running, straight into a clothesline. Trading forearms, Scorpio with a spinning heel kick that starches Swann. Front flip leg drop. Second rope front front flip double leg drop. Swann kicks out! Swann up and trading strikes and chops but Scorpio eats all of it and ejects Swann to the floor. Scorpio follows but Swann with a Pheonix splash variation off the post to the floor. Swann with a frog splash for two. Scorpio with knees to the gut and a spinning pele kick for two. Scorpio with a moonsault and Swann is out again. Scorpio hits a huge tumbleweed that crushes Swann but he’s out again. Swann up and kicks out the knee and head. Swann with a second rope 450 and Scorpio kicks out. Swann back up to hit a Pheonix splash to the back and this time the veteran stays down for the three.

Winner: Rich Swann

Well, that was great. This was miles above the Fox match from FTC1. Scorpio keeps that clock perpetually turned back and he had a great dance partner in Swann. That’s it for tonight and FOR THE CULTURE. This shouldn’t be a surprise but this was a great show, probably the best overall show of the day for me. Energy across the board, even at this late of night. Keep these cards coming if they will just continue to be all killer, no filler.   

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