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5/11 WRESTLING OPEN: RI LIVE REPORT FROM CRANSTON, RI

Wrestling Open RI

5/11/26 Cranston, MA

Spotlight Match: Rain Conway vs Brett Mettro

Rain calls out his former New School partner for being away (on the injured list) which Conway has been breathing the air of victory…like twice? Anyways, the Barricade is back! He overpowers Conway. He sends him flying with a pounce. Rain proves that he’s more than just a mouthpiece with a stiff knee and some vicious stomps. A suplex doesn’t get the job done. Mettro hits a big atomic drop. An airplane spin to a Samoan drop! Rain is rocked but he fights out of a world’s strongest slam and hits his rainmaker for the win. Boooooo!

We have the Wrestling Open Championship tournament semifinals tonight! Will my picks hold? 

Match 1: Bobby Orlando vs Platinum Max Caster

Max Caster is looking to fight his former Shook Crew partner. Orlando has a date with MJF in June but first, he needs to get through the Best Wrestler Alive. Bobby doesn’t come in happy….he comes in with a pocket full of receipts for Max after he interfered in his opening round tournament match against Dustin Waller. Caster takes a beating and has to beg off…despite being the man who picked this fight in the first place. Caster trying to find his way back with cheap shots but Bobby is running through them. Caster finally catches Bobby flying and dumps him into the apron edge. Owwww. Caster continues the beating in the ring but opens himself up to a back rake and a sunset flip bomb. Max has had enough and clubs Bobby with this framed certificate he brought with him to the ring. Ref Gina and Scott finally get Caster out of there but not before he cracks Bobby again and lays the boots to his shoulder. Bobby is hurting and has to be carried out by the refs, but he did win by DQ.

Corey Duke is out here and fulfills his promise. He admits Dustin Waller was the better man last week. Kylon King hops up and tells him to shut up. Dustin beat him so bad that he’s crying about it? Duke says he’s a man of his word. Kylon laughs it up and offers to fight Corey in two weeks. Duke is down for it…but no Dustin. King agrees. We’ll see if it works out that way.

Match 2: Notorious Mimi vs Brooke Havoc

Mimi’s attitude change is in full swing but Havoc is bouncing and flying everywhere and making this a much more difficult dance for her opponent. Mimi cracks her with a big boot and hits an electric chair snake eyes. She keeps the pressure on but Havoc won’t stay down. Brooke breaks free!  A cutter and a flying knee almost take Mimi out. Havoc tries to set up a cross Rhodes but Mimi reverses to a Jaded and a Muta lock gets the tap! 

Mimi brings out her friend Kylie Alexa so she can watch Liviyah get beat up.

Match 3: Liviyah vs Kylie Alexa (w/ Notorious Mimi)

The Open Women’s Title tournament this weekend is stacked but I would call these two the favorites to win the whole thing. Can Liviyah get a win back from Kylie tonight after her defeat at WWR Tournament for Tomorrow? Liv comes right into the fight but Kylie drags her to the floor and pummels her on the apron. Mimi cheers Kylie on but Liv starts to return fire with heavy chops. Alexa has had enough of this and smashes Liv right into the post. This isn’t a wrestling match…this is a fight. Kylie complains to Ref Gina…and of course Mimi blindsides Liv. Kylie keeps the pressure on and gets the rings of Saturn on. Liv with a rollup…Kylie escapes and walks into a huge boot! Liv coming back to life. Mimi tries to interfere again but this time Kylie crashes into her friend and Liv rolls her up for the three! Kylie is FURIOUS! 

We see a video of the Stetson Ranch brawling with the Shooter Boys last week and it looks like there was a postscript of the Ranch taking out the Shooters with a baseball bat. 

Match 4: The Breadwinners (Patrick Wheatman & Cash McGuiness) vs Star Struck (Anthony Greene & Channing Thomas)

God, the Breadwinners mere existence is irritating. Everyone wants to see Star Struck kill these kids. And…they are. Cash and Wheatman are perfect crash dummies as Star Struck puts a whupping on them. Patrick manages to grab the leg of Greene and that sets up a flurry from the Breadwinners…but they can’t get the three. Channing looks kind of disappointed in Greene for letting this go so far but Greene bombs McGuiness out of the corner…Channing tags in and serves up pain. Wheatman sent flying and Cash eats a modified Demolition Device for the win. Good showing from the Breadwinners but you KNEW how this was gonna go for them. 

Greene is furious at the Stetson Ranch and reveals that Aaron Ortiz is out injured indefinitely after last week’s attack. Star Struck wants a piece of the Ranch. In two weeks, they’ll take on all three remaining members….and Star Struck will team up with the remaining member of the Shooter Boys Anthony Vecchio to make this a World Class 6-man fight!

Smart Mark Sterling is out here. He has an arm brace, a neck brace AND a walker…AND A BREATHING MACHINE?!? He has an announcement. He was told that he “tore his bicep once again” and that’s why he wasn’t here for Bryce and Vinny’s tournament matches. And after everything that happened? THE LAWSUITS ARE COMING! Brando Lee up on the stage. We’re all sick of Sterling’s complaining. Lee doesn’t think Mark is injured at all! He’s afraid of being EXPOSED! Lee asks Sterling for a rematch with Bryce Donovan…and if Donovan wins? Lee WON’T reveal the evidence he has that Sterling has been lying. 

Match 5: Eye Black Jack vs Bear Bronson (Title Tournament Semifinal)

Jack’s upset win over Oxx Adams last week set him up for a rematch of a hard hitting war in Worcester a few weeks ago. Can  Bear put this hungry kid down once again or will Jack’s tournament expertise carry him to the finals? Jack hypes himself up but he runs right into a motivated Bear Bronson. Bronson with big slams and a second route elbow that almost ends this VERY early. Jack staggers Bear with a kick…Bear chops him in half. Jack hits a suplex, finally showing some of that power off….but he keeps fighting Bear’s fight, Throwing hard chops and driving Bear into the mat. Bronson is going to wake up soon and be VERY mad. Jack goes for a piledriver and here it is: Bear flips free and hits his seated senton. Jack comes running…right into a waiting black hole slam. Jack escapes a Vader bomb and powerbombs Bronson out of the corner for two! Jack can’t stop trying to pick up Bear….and he finally hits an AA and a Jack splash! But only for a two count and was all that effort worth it? The crowd loving this contest. They forearm each other back to life….and then back to death. Bear with a discus lariat and a chokebomb but Jack kicks out! He uncorks the Fire Thunder Driver and that puts Jack away, sending Bronson to the tournament finals! 

Bear pulls an exhausted EBJ up and rallies the crowd for his effort. Good moment. When Jack finally beats Bear, this place will come unglued…but that night is not now.

Did I pick this one right? YES. Jack wasn’t supposed to be in this match per my original pick…but I had Bear winning this regardless. 

Main Event: Ichiban vs Dustin Waller (Title Tournament Semifinal)

Ichiban was betrayed months ago by the Miracle Generation and every clash with one of them since is an emotional one. Ichiban is the most decorated of the Miracle Ones…but Waller is the jealous ex-friend who needs to cut through Ichiban’s dream to get to the finals. The crowd? This is Ichiban country. Waller out here holding his old Miracle Ones gear. He throws it on the ground in front of Ichiban and kicks it away. The bell rings and they charge each other! The exchange is hard, Waller sent to the floor…Ichiban dives into nothing and Dustin sends him face first into the apron. Waller lays in a beating and the crowd is ALLLLLL up on him. Ichiban trying to rally but Waller cuts him off repeatedly. Ichiban trying to number one himself back to life but Dusty twists those fingers and stomps them. The crowd has almost lost hope as Ichiban hits a jawbreaker to gain some separation. Ichiban is flying! Missile Dropkick! Michanoku Driver! Kick out! He wants the Ichi Bankai…Dustin scouts it…but Ichi is ready for the lethal injection that comes after. A spike ddt drives Waller into the mat! Ichiban laid out again and now Dustin wants the Ichi Bankai?!? Ichi dodges it and hits the Lethal Injection! High velocity dive to the floor as Waller tries to escape! Ichi rolls him back into but runs into his own finisher! Dustin with an Impaler! Ichiban kicks out! The crowd still all over Dustin and it’s clearly affecting him. He tries to show them that Dustin Waller is NOT weak…and Ichiban suplexes him into the apron! They are crashed out on the floor and both barely make the ten count! This is another WAR to close out Open RI! More punches back and forth as we hit the fifteen minute mark in this contest. Ichi slaps Dustin down. Waller tries the Lethal injection but Ichiban superkicks him in the back of the head! Ichiban with a 619! Destroyer! Ichi Bankai connects! The count is so close that the ref starts calling for Ref Gina to replace Ref Scott. Poor Scott. Ichiban heads to the top but calls out Number One! Dustin uses that moment to hop up for a Spanish Fly. Lethal Injection connects! 450! Ichiban kicks out! Crowd has gone full on “This is awesome”… but the disrespect for Waller is still VERY much there. “I don’t love you anymore” says Waller as he slaps Ichi. Ichiban offers a slap back. Dustin tries to put the lights out with superkicks but Ichiban comes off the top with another Ichi Bankai! Kickout again! Jesus! Ichiban takes him to the top again but Waller grabs the face and shoves Ichiban off the ropes to the floor. He rolls him in, hits a 1916 and gets the three in an INCREDIBLE match. 

Did I pick this one right? YES. My finals are secured.

Waller just punched his ticket to the finals….but in his path? BEAR BRONSON. Waller grabs the mic. He doesn’t wanna talk to the camera…he calls Bear in to face him. Bear might not like Dustin but he cannot deny that match was one of the most incredible contests in Open history. The crowd agrees. Bronson is ready for the war that Dustin has in his heart….but he’s not here to fight. He wants to hear what Dustin has to say. “Bear, I hate you. I don’t even hate you as a wrestler. I hate you as a person.” Waller resents that Bear got fired from AEW and came to Open to “find himself”, whereas Dustin has been here the whole time. He resents the crowd that embraces him. He resents that one of the matches that sent him on this newly aggressive streak of bangers was against Bear himself. Waller in full pipe-bomb mode as he tells Bear just how much this match means to him. This may be a match for Bear…but this is Dustin’s LIFE. “Dustin, I hear you loud and clear” says Bear. “In two weeks, you will be standing across the ring from reality.” Both men as seething as the crowd chants for Bear. We may have just seen one of the best matches in Open history but we may have ALSO seen one of the best and most emotional back and forth promos segments in Open history as well. This ruled. 

 

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