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The big story coming out of Subtle Hustle is the crowning of a new NWA World Heavyweight Champion when The Sheik took advantage an accidental referee bump (depending on who you might ask) and a shot with hit boot to knock out Cabana and apply the camel clutch.
Here are the quick results from the show:
Sam Shaw defeated Francisco Ciatso (with Pete Cannon, Amy Vitale, and Ron Niemi)
Christopher Gray defeated Kyle Matthews to earn an NWA Junior Heavyweight Title Match
Dagon defeated Jack Manley, Blain Rage, and Henry Maxwell
Craig Classic defeated Lince Dorado to retain the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship
The Dark City Fight Club (Jon Davis and Kory Chavis) defeated The Briscoe Brothers (Mark and Jay Briscoe) to retain the NWA World Tag Team Championship
The Sheik defeated Colt Cabana to become the new NWA World Heavyweight Champion
Here is a more detailed look back at Subtle Hustle:
Match Number One: Sam Shaw defeated Francisco Ciatso (with Amy Vitale, Pete Cannon, and Ron Niemi)
Ciatso tried to get the referee to help him out by alleging that Shaw was pulling his hair when it was not the case. The other members of the Double Deuce Social Club try to help Ciatso gain an advantage and it works. Ciatso maintains control of the match until he tries for an elbow drop from the turnbuckles and misses when Shaw moves out of the way. Shaw appeared to have everything under control until Amy tried to get in the ring to interfere. Shaw stopped her until Cannon was able to grab Shaw. Ciatso tried to hit Shaw but Shaw moved and Cannon got hit by Ciatso. Shaw hit a super kick and got the three count.
After the match, Amy and Pete check on Ciatso.
Match Number Two: Christopher Gray defeated Kyle Matthews to earn an NWA World Junior Heavyweight Title Match
The match started off with the fans chanting USA to get under Gray’s skin since he is proud of his English heritage. After some mat wrestling at the start of the match, Gray tries for a submission but Matthews is able to counter. They each try to wear down their opponent but neither man is able to sustain a significant advantage in the first half of the match. Gray with a low kick to gain control and then he sent Matthews into the ring post. Matthews gets a number of near falls on Gray but he cannot finish him off. Gray with a double thrust to the throat and a rotating vertical suplex for a near fall. Matthews hit an enzuigiri and then he went up top for a cross body but the momentum allowed Gray to roll over and get the three count.
Match Number Three: Dagon defeated Blain Rage, Henry Maxwell, and Jack Manley
The match starts off with Maxwell and Dagon battling while Manley and Rage square off. Manley and Maxwell are sent to the floor with clotheslines and then Rage and Dagon tease dives to the floor. As Maxwell and Manley go to the other side of the ring, Rage hits a flip dive while Dagon hits a suicide dive. After a series of power moves by all four men, nobody has really gained an advantage. Rage battles with Maxwell and he puts Maxwell on the turnbuckles. He gets Maxwell on his shoulders but Dagon goes under Rage for an apparent electric chair drop. On the apron, Manley hits a springboard drop kick that takes everyone to the mat. Manley tries for an Acid Drop but Dagon avoids it. He is not as lucky with a DDT from Manley and Manley gets a near fall. Maxwell hits a blockbuster on Rage but Dagon hits a rolling fireman’s carry slam followed by a Death Valley Driver for the three count.
It was time for intermission.
Match Number Four: Craig Classic defeated Lince Dorado to retain the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Title
Classic tries to work on the leg to try to set up a potential submission later in the match but Dorado works on Craig’s midsection with a seated abdominal stretch. Both men exchange slaps before Dorado shows off his acrobatic skill with a springboard into an arm drag and then a rana. Dorado decides to take more risks by walking three quarters of the way around the ring on the top rope before giving Craig an arm drag. Dorado hits more high impact maneuvers including an Asai moonsault and a springboard cross body. Dorado continues to wear down the champion but Craig is able to take control back after Dorado tries one too many times to go up top and he kicks Dorado in the leg to force him back to the mat. Craig tries for a diving head butt but he misses when Lince moves out of the way. Dorado is knocked off the apron but he is able to grab the railing of the section of elevated seating by ringside and then he comes off the guardrail and hits a flying clothesline on Craig but Craig is able to kick out at two. Craig recovers and works on Dorado’s arm with a Fujiwara arm bar but Dorado escapes. He hits a Frankensteiner followed by a shooting star press but he can only get a near fall. Classic hits a power bomb and then he picks up Lince and hits a Death Valley Driver for the three count.
Match Number Five: Dark City Fight Club (Jon Davis and Kory Chavis) defeated The Briscoe Brothers (Mark and Jay Briscoe) to retain the NWA World Tag Team Titles
Davis and Chavis work over the challengers at the start of the match and get a number of near falls as Mark shows his frustration and goes to the floor to discuss strategy with his brother. The challengers start to work on Chavis’ arm and use the ropes and ring post to further incapacitate Chavis. Things break down and all four men fight on the floor. The Briscoes continue to work on Chavis’ arm but Davis breaks things up. Davis hits a slingshot shoulder tackle followed by a clothesline and then he hits a power slam. Davis avoids interference from Jay and he continues to work over both Briscoes. Each team exchanges near falls and then when Dark City tries for Project Mayhem, Chavis’ arm gives out and they cannot hit the move. The Briscoes continue to work on Chavis’ arm but he refuses to tap out. They set up for the Doomsday Device on Davis but Chavis is able to break it up. Davis gets the three count on Jay.
After the match, Davis and Chavis offer their hands to the Briscoes but they refuse. Davis gets on the mic and he says that the Briscoes might call themselves the best tag team in the world, but Dark City are the best champions in the world and they look forward to meeting the Briscoes in the ring again.
Match Number Six: The Sheik defeated Colt Cabana to become the new NWA World Heavyweight Champion
Sheik wants the crowd to show some respect while he prays before the match starts. Cabana decides to use his towel as a prayer rug and he gets down next to Sheik and prays as well and Sheik tries to attack Cabana but Colt moves out of the way and he throws Sheik around ringside. Cabana sends Sheik back into the ring but when Cabana gets back into the ring, Sheik kicks the ropes. Sheik tries for a camel clutch but Cabana is able to get out of the hold before Sheik can properly lock it in. They fight to the floor again and Sheik sends Cabana’s head into the ring steps and ring post. Cabana knocks Sheik off the turnbuckles but Sheik fights back with a sleeper. Cabana escapes with a belly-to-back suplex and then he tries for the Flying Asshole into the corner but Sheik sees it coming and he pulls the referee into the way and the referee goes down. Cabana has Sheik pinned by the referee is still out. Sheik goes to the floor and he removes his boot and hits Cabana with it. Cabana is knocked out and Sheik applies the camel clutch and the referee determines that Cabana has passed out and calls for the bell.
Subtle Hustle Thoughts
I am glad that I was able to make the trip from Tampa to Jacksonville for this show. It is not that often that you see three World Title matches on a show and especially on an independent show unless it is a pay per view.
The building had a strange configuration to it. It was part of a multi night club concept and in this specific club, there were three bars and an elevated dance floor. The ring was between these bars and dance floor. There was a railing around the elevated dance floor. For some reason, they decided not to have the air conditioning on during the show (but conveniently started to turn it on as soon as it ended).
I thought the best match of the night was the World Tag Title Match between the Briscoes and Dark City Fight Club. If the World Title was not being defended on the show, it would have been a good main event of any show.
My second favorite match of the night was the World Junior Heavyweight Title Match between Craig Classic and Lince Dorado. This match had the move of the night.
The opening match between Francisco Ciatso and Sam Shaw was a good way to start the show. Ciatso does a good job of riling up the crowd along with Amy Vitale, Pete Cannon, and Ron Niemi. This was the first time that I believe I have seen Shaw wrestle and I look forward to seeing more from him. Shaw did a good job working with the distractions around ringside and was able to get the victory in the match thanks to the interference backfiring on Ciatso.
I was impressed with Shaw’s look in the ring and I look forward to seeing more from him in the ring.
I liked the Matthews/Gray match. The addition of an NWA World Junior Heavyweight Title match allowed both men to up their games in the ring. There were a lot of good counters as they focused on mat wrestling in the early part of the match. I thought Kyle Matthews was very impressive in the match and he did a lot to show that he was a credible contender for the Junior Heavyweight Title. In the end, Gray took advantage of the situation and used whatever he needed to get the win.
Gray has really upped his game and I was impressed with Kyle Matthews since it has been a while since I saw him live in a match.
The four way match was a little shorter than I expected with only six matches on the show. I don’t know if it was because there were some NWA Officials at the show, but I thought this match might have been better after intermission because it would have been able to get the fans back into the show after the lag in the action because of the intermission.
There was some good action in the match and all four men worked well together. There were a few situations where two people tried to work together but in the end, it would backfire. I liked the spot with Rage trying to hit a Samoan drop from the turnbuckles on Maxwell only to have Dagon get under Rage and put him on his shoulders for an electric chair drop, and then have that followed by a springboard drop kick by Manley to take them all down to the mat.
With the way that Rage was in control of the match for the most part, I expected him to get the win, but in the end, Dagon hit a nice rolling fireman’s carry slam into a Death Valley Driver to get the win.
As I mentioned above, my second favorite match of the night was the World Junior Heavyweight Title Match. I thought that Classic worked well against the lucha style of Dorado and vice versa with Dorado dealing with the strong style that Classic utilizes. I mentioned above that this match had the move of the night, and it really had the top two moves of the night. Early in the match, Dorado appeared to try to use the ropes for extra momentum on an arm drag, but instead he took a page from the Spoiler where he walked three quarters of the way around the ring on the top rope to finally arm drag Classic. While it might seem strange that this wasn’t the top move of the night. Later in the match, Classic and Dorado were fighting on the side of the ring closer to the raised dance floor. Dorado was sent to the raised dance floor and he got on the railing and then he hit a flying clothesline on Classic and almost got the win. Because of the contrast of styles, there were a few things that looked a little off between the two but it was not enough to take away from the match. Dorado has established himself in Florida as a top contender for Craig’s title and I would not mind seeing them meet one more time.
While it was close, I thought the Tag Title Match between the Briscoes and Dark City Fight Club was the best match of the night. All four men worked hard in the match and they left everything in the ring. There were a number of times when it looked like the Briscoes were going to win the tag titles, but in the end, the champions were too much for Jay and Mark. I thought they told a great story with the Briscoes working on Kory Chavis’ arm throughout the match and Kory did a great job of selling the arm late in the match when Dark City set up for Project Mayhem, but Kory was unable to toss one of the Briscoes in the air and that allowed the Briscoes to gain an advantage in the match.
I liked that after the Briscoes refused the handshake from Dark City that Jon Davis was able to point out that while the Briscoes claim to be the best tag team, Dark City holds the titles and opened the door for a rematch down the road.
I don’t know if you asked the people in the building at the start of the night if they thought that The Sheik had a chance against Cabana that you would get a lot of people who would suggest that there would be a title change.
I thought the main event was okay. There was an interesting contrast with Cabana and the Sheik because of Sheik’s desire to pray before the match. I thought Colt was funny using his towel to pray next to Sheik, leading to the start of the match. Cabana tried to outwrestle Sheik while Sheik did his best to try to overpower Cabana. Cabana was able to fight out of the camel clutch, when he was conscious, and he was able to get in many of his usual moves. However, he had not worn down Sheik enough and that allowed him to pull the referee into the way on the Flying Asshole in the corner. That ended up being Cabana’s downfall because Sheik used his boot to knock out Cabana and then he got the win with the camel clutch.
With the use of the boot to set up the finish and the ref bump, it allows for a build for the rematch.
There were no announcements about any upcoming Pro Wrestling Fusion shows.
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