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Fighting Spirit Review: New Japan “Road to the New Beginning” 1/30/15

By
Kevin Wilson
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0

A Casual Review by Kevin Wilson of Puroresu Central

Date:  January 30th, 2015
Location:  Tokorozawa Citizen Gymnasium Sub Arena, Tokorozawa, Saitama, Japan
Announced Attendance:  1,200

New Japan’s “Road to the New Beginning” is a smaller tour without any major matches that is mostly being used to build up to the “New Beginning” show on February 11th. Hence the clever name of the tour. Even though these are basically house shows, three of them were filmed and being shown on NJPW World. This is the first one, with the only thing of note being Jay White making his New Japan debut. Here is the full card:

– Alex Shelley vs. Jay White
– Kyle O’Reilly vs. Yohei Komatsu
– KUSHIDA and Máscara Dorada vs. Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson
– Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Satoshi Kojima, and Jushin Liger vs. Nakanishi, Captain New Japan, and Tiger Mask
– Shinsuke Nakamura, Toru Yano, Ishii, and YOSHI-HASHI vs. Yuji Nagata, Togi Makabe, Tetsuya Naito, and Honma
– Bad Luck Fale and Yujiro Takahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada and Gedo
– Hiroshi Tanahashi, Goto, Shibata, and Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Karl Anderson, Doc Gallows, Tama Tonga, and Omega

Let’s get straight to the matches.  There is just one hard camera for this event, definitely house-show quality here coming up.

Alex Shelley vs. Jay White
Tie-up to start but they break cleanly.  They jockey around for leverage until White hits a dropkick, side headlock by White, Shelley gets out of it but White puts it back on.  Shelley finally gets out of it with a backdrop suplex, he then hits a back bodydrop.  White regains the advantage in the corner but Shelley throws him hard into the opposite one and White collapses to the mat.  Shelley avoids a White dropkick and applies a crab hold.  Camel clutch by Shelley but White gets out of it and slams him to the mat.  Elbow drop by White but the cover gets two.  White goes up top and he delivers a missile dropkick.  White charges Shelley but Shelley kicks him in the face, he goes up top but White moves when he jumps off.  Release German by Shelley and he hits a superkick.  Automatic Midnight by Shelley and he gets the three count.  What you’d expect here, this was White’s debut match and Shelley was just being the veteran showing him around.  Both looked fine, nothing looked sloppy here, but not much to it.  Score:  5.0

Kyle O’Reilly vs. Yohei Komatsu
Wristlock by O’Reilly but Komatsu gets away.  Side headlock by O’Reilly and he shoulderblocks Komatsu.  Kicks by Komatsu but O’Reilly hits a knee to the stomach.  Knees to the ribs by O’Reilly and he applies an abdominal stretch.  O’Reilly slams Komatsu’s arm into the mat and kicks him in the chest.  Komatsu knocks O’Reilly into the corner and he hits a running elbow.  Single underhook suplex by Komatsu and he goes for O’Reilly’s arm, but O’Reilly gets in the ropes.  Knee to the stomach by O’Reilly and he slaps Komatsu in the face.  Inside cradle by Komatsu but it gets two.  Stomps and punches by O’Reilly and he hits a brainbuster.  O’Reilly Factor by O’Reilly and he gets the three count.  Another acceptable match, nothing earth shattering but solid throughout.  Komatsu is really coming along nicely, I think he shows a lot of potential.  Score:  6.0

KUSHIDA and Máscara Dorada vs. Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson
I know what Matt and Nick look like, but this far off camera is going to make this play by play a pain.  Nick and Dorada start off, Dorada flies around and armdrags Nick out of the ring.  Matt runs in and attacks him, but Dorada sails out of the ring onto both of them.  Nick is rolled in for KUSHIDA, I assume it is Nick, Matt wore a ponytail just to make it harder.  Matt pulls Dorada out of the ring and Nick kicks him from the apron.  They then double team KUSHIDA before taunting the crowd.  Dorada gets back in and Nick tags in Matt.  Matt and Nick double team Dorada at the corner, cover by Nick but KUSHIDA breaks it up.  Nick and Matt Irish whip Dorada but Dorada hits a double springboard elbow.  Dorada tags in KUSHIDA and KUSHIDA attacks both Matt and Nick.  Nick elbows KUSHIDA but KUSHIDA kicks him in the head.  Nick tags in Matt as KUSHIDA tags in Dorada.  Dorada rolls up Matt, kick by Dorada and he runs around in the corner before hitting a dropkick.  Matt slides away from Dorada, he sets him up and with Nick he hits the Indy Taker for the three count.  Well that match ended super quickly, felt like they were just getting warmed up.  A bit too short, would have liked to see these guys go a bit longer.  Score:  4.0

Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Kojima, and Liger vs. Nakanishi, Captain New Japan, and Tiger Mask
Tenzan and Nagata start off, and Nagata shoulderblocks Tenzan to the mat.  Tenzan regains the advantage but Nagata clubs him to the mat.  Tenzan tags in Liger and Nagata tags in Tiger Mask.  Side headlock by Tiger Mask but Liger gets out of it and hits a shoulderblock.  Jumping double chops by Liger but Tiger Mask hits a dropkick.  Tiger Mask then sails out of the ring with a tope suicida onto Liger.  They both get back in the ring and Tiger Mask hits a vertical suplex.  Tiger Mask tags in Captain New Japan, punches by Captain New Japan and he tags in Nagata.  Double Irish whip to Liger, Nagata goes off the ropes but he lariats Captain New Japan by accident.  Nagata clubs Liger but Liger avoids the knee drop and tags in Kojima.  Chops in the corner by Kojima and he hits a jumping elbow.  Diving elbow drop by Kojima and he gets a two.  Elbows by Kojima but Nagata hits a lariat.  Another lariat by Nagata but Kojima hits a lariat, he goes off the ropes but Nagata hits a spear.  Nagata tags in Captain New Japan, chops by Captain New Japan but Kojima hits a Cozy Cutter before tagging in Tenzan.  Nagata and Tiger Mask come in the ring and everyone attacks Tenzan.  Tenzan avoids Captain New Japan’s diving headbutt, which brings in Kojima and Liger to clear the ring.  Hirai End by Captain New Japan to Tenzan and he gets a two count.  Tenzan and Kojima hit the 3D on Nagata, they go for it on Captain New Japan but Captain New Japan chops them back.  Lariat by Kojima to Captain New Japan, Tenzan applies the Anaconda Vice and picks up submission victory.  This is exactly as you would expect, although I will give them credit for not coasting.  Everyone got to hit their big moves and get the crowd excited before going to the ending stretch.  Just a fun midcard match but nothing more than that.  Score:  6.0

Nakamura, Toru Yano, Ishii, and YOSHI-HASHI vs. Nagata, Makabe, Tetsuya Naito, and Honma
Nagata starts off with Nakamura and they immediately start trading kicks and kick attempts.  Nakamura drives Nagata back and he tags in Naito.  Yano is tagged in too, Naito applies a wristlock but Yano gets out of it.  Elbow by Naito and he tags in Honma.  The fight goes out to the floor, with Yano and Honma eventually returning.  YOSHI-HASHI is tagged in and he drops Honma on the top rope.  Nakamura comes back in, snapmare by Nakamura and he applies a double kneedrop.  Ishii is next and he chops Honma, but Honma chops him back.  Ishii goes for a suplex but Honma reverses it into his own vertical suplex and tags in Makabe.  Makabe clears everyone off the apron and hits a powerslam to Ishii.  Lariat by Makabe in the corner and he hits mounted punches.  Irish whip by Ishii and he hits a lariat.  Makabe and Ishii trade elbows until Makabe hits a lariat onto Ishii.  Back bodydrop by Ishii and both wrestlers are knocked to the mat.  Nakamura and Nagata tag in and they trade elbows.  Nagata kicks Nakamura into the corner and then hits a big boot.  Knee by Nakamura but Nagata avoids his charge.  Running knee by Nakamura and he hits an inverted powerslam on Nagata.  Nakamura goes for a Boma Ye but Nagata kinda suplexes him, dropping Nakamura on his face.  Nakamura tags in YOSHI-HASHI and everyone hits running strikes on Nagata in the corner.  Cover by YOSHI-HASHI but the pin is broken up.  Lariat by YOSHI-HASHI, cover, but it still gets two.  Naito hits a missile dropkick on YOSHI-HASHI and everyone trades signature moves on each other.  Makabe lariats Ishii and YOSHI-HASHI , Nagata goes for a suplex but YOSHI-HASHI blocks it.  Kick by Nagata and he hits the backdrop Hold for the three count.   This was another fun but pretty standard match.  Notice a pattern?  These guys can put on good matches with their eyes closed but there isn’t much of a reason to care about the match on an emotional level.  But solid nonetheless.  Score:  6.5

Bad Luck Fale and Yujiro Takahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada and Gedo
Fale and Okada start off and Okada hits a sliding kick to Fale.  Okada goes off the ropes but Fale catches him with a shoulderblock.  Yujiro and Gedo are tagged in, Yujiro pushes Gedo in the ropes but Gedo applies a side headlock.  Stomps by Yujiro but Gedo punches Yujiro in the face.  Gedo kicks back Yujiro but Yujiro drops him throat-first on the top rope.  The action spills out of the ring as Fale and Yujiro continue to dominate.  Yujiro and Gedo return to the ring and Yujiro tags in Fale.  Fale stands on Gedo, snapmare, and he punches Gedo in the head.  Sliding kick by Yujiro, cover, but it gets two.  Yujiro tags in Fale, Yujiro tries to tag out but Fale cuts him off and tags in Yujiro.  Yujiro rakes Gedo in the eyes and tags in Fale.  By far the most boring event of the match so far.  Okada punches Fale from the apron, giving Gedo time to tag him in.  Okada knocks down both Fale and Yujiro, he goes for a bodyslam on Fale but Fale blocks it.  Lariat by Fale in the corner and he hits a body press for two.  Okada dropkicks Fale back but Fale tags in Yujiro.  Yujiro chops Okada into the corner, Irish whip, and he hits a big boot.  Okada makes the hot tag to Gedo after a moment, punches by Gedo but Yujiro rakes his eyes.  Gedo returns the favor and Okada comes in the ring to dropkick Yujiro.  Gedo Clutch to Yujiro, but it gets two.  Okada hits a pescado out of the ring onto Fale, Gedo punches Yujiro in the ring but Yujiro regains the advantage and hits a Fisherman Buster for two.  Yujiro picks up Gedo and hits the Miami Shine, and this time he gets the three count.  This one bored me to tears, Fale and Yujiro are just so not interesting on offense and that was 90% of the match.  This one needed a lot more of Okada since he was the only entertaining one in the ring, just a chore to watch.  Score:  3.0

Hiroshi Tanahashi, Hirooki Goto, Katsuyori Shibata, and Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Karl Anderson, Doc Gallows, Tama Tonga, and Kenny Omega
Bullet Club naturally attacks their opponents before the match starts and they brawl both in and out of the ring. Tanahashi is isolated in the ring and Anderson stays in it but Tanahashi hits a rebound crossbody and makes the hot tag to Goto. Goto and Anderson trade elbows and Goto hits a lariat. Shibata comes in the ring and they hit a double shoulderblock. Anderson rakes his eyes and tags in Gallows. Shibata and Gallows trade strikes and Shibata kicks Gallows to the mat. Shibata tags in Taguchi while Omega is also tagged in. Taguchi kicks around Omega and he hits a hip attack. Gallows runs in and Taguchi hip attacks him, but it has no impact. Omega stomps on Taguchi and the action spills to the floor again. Taguchi and Tonga get back in the ring and Tonga stomps down Taguchi in the corner. Body press by Tonga and he tags in Anderson. Anderson elbows Taguchi and tags in Gallows. Elbow drops by Gallows and he slams Taguchi to the mat. Gallows tags in Omega and Omega hits a backbreaker. Snap vertical suplex by Taguchi but Omega stops him from making the hot tag. Taguchi kicks back Anderson and Omega and hits a double DDT. He finally tags in Goto and Goto hits a lariat on Anderson. Shibata comes in the ring and they double team Anderson, German suplex by Shibata and Goto hits a backdrop suplex. Anderson hits a spinebuster to Goto and Goto tags in Tanahashi while Omega is also tagged in. Tanahashi hits a somersault senton on Omega and he gets a two count. Tanahashi is tripped from the floor but so is Omega when he goes off the ropes. Tanahashi is tripped again and is double teamed, powerbomb by Omega but it gets a two count. Omega picks up Tanahashi but Tanahashi gets away and hits a Sling Blade. Omega tags in Anderson as everyone runs into the ring and Tanahashi is attacked in the corner. Tonga stays in with Tanahashi and hits a slam for a two count. Tonga picks up Tanahashi but Taguchi runs in and hits a hip attack. This leads to all the wrestlers coming in one at a time and attacking each other. Tanahashi grabs Tonga and he hits the Styles Clash. Tanahashi goes up top and he hits a High Fly Flow for the three count victory. This was… maybe good, I guess, but some of the beatdown segments just went too long. Taguchi is not and never has been interesting and he spent too much time in this match when he was so clearly the least talented wrestler on his team. Some of the middle portions with Goto and Shibata were good but overall it was just average at best. Score: 5.5

Final Thoughts:

This was pretty bland. New Japan has some of the best wrestlers in the world so even when the matches have no purpose they are only going to be but so bad, but either way this event wasn’t very exciting. The main event was definitely watchable and there were some highlights here and there, but for the most part not a whole lot happened. No hidden gems here, you can safely skip this event.

Grade: D+ 

The “OH MY GOD!” Review: Maximum Xtreme Pro Wrestling “Impact TV” 6/11, 6/18, & 6/25/04

By
Heels Inc
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0

Maximum Impact 2004-06-11 (Matches taped 2004-05-22 from War Memorial in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla)

Heavyweight: Vacant
TV Champion: “Black Nature Boy” Scoot Andrews
Tag Team: Vacant

We open up with Kevin Kelly and Chris Nelson in the ring with three referees and the VP of Talent Relations Casey Thompson. Kelly tells us that a new Director of Operations will be revealed today. Mark Nullity is outside the War Memorial and he wonders who the new Director is going to be. He throws out the names of Bobby Heenan, Terry Funk and Brian Blair. No matter who it is it will change the course of MXPW forever!

Kahagas vs. Norman Smiley
And here we go with our first shitty match of the night. Kahagas uses some kicks and chops to gain control. Norman goes for an up and over in the corner and tries to turn it into a sunset flip but they fuck it up. Norman tries to keep it going with a school boy but Kahagas just sits on him. Norman with a few clotheslines and the big swing slam. Nullity is on commentary with Nelson this week by the way, no Kevin Kelly. Back breaker by Norman and he goes for the cross face but Kahagas blocks it. Kahagas blocks a hip toss but Norman turns it into the cross face and gets the submission victory in 4.14.

Back stage Chasyn Rance talks to Casey Thompson and asks him if there is any open spots tonight. Thompson says he has one open spot and wishes Rance luck. Apolo is coming to MXPW.

Apocalypse vs. Chasyn Rance, ref Bruce Michaels
One half of the Blackharts in action. Apocalypse attacks right away and floors Rance with a clothesline for 2. Rance gets beat on in the corner. Apocalypes continually picks up Rance after 2 counts. Standing senton ends it in 2.41.

The Market Crashers are training in the ring when the same woman from last week shows up and calls them over. After speaking with her they go back to the ring and beat up the trainees.

Dennis Knight is backstage for an interview with some new lady who doesn’t introduce herself to us. Knight says that no matter what promotion he shows up in he is alway the best. Umm no. Knight says he has people and things watching his back. He likes to hurt people and that’s what he’s here to do.

Dennis Knight vs. Hack “Dog” Meyers, ref Mickie Jay
So part of what makes me hate MXPW so much is the lack of commentary. After the pin in the last match Apocalypse celebrated in the ring for about a minute and the commentators sat completely silent. We get both ring introductions for this match and again the commentators say NOTHING at all. It’s like 4-5 minutes of silence. This happens pretty often. Knight attacks Meyers from behind but Hack able to fight back and dump Knight to the floor. Knight trips up Hack and pulls him to the floor and then throws him to the post and guardrail. Back in the ring Knight with a jawbreaker and he gets 2. Knight with a back breaker but then he takes to much time coming off the 2nd rope with an elbow drop. Hack comes back with a clothesline, big boot and leg drop for a near fall. Knight with an eye rack and he sends Hack into the corner. Knight charges and misses and Hack lands a bulldog. The Blackharts hit the ring and attack Hack causing a DQ in about 5 minutes (my phone died during the match so I couldn’t get a time on the match.) New Jack helps up Hack as Knight and the Blackharts yell at them from outside the ring. Looks like the Blackharts are the people that Knight mentioned were watching his back.

Warlord hits the ring and he talks about how he has destroyed everyone he steps into the ring with except Punisher. That is until now because Punisher is out with a neck injury. Warlord says someone should step up and get in the ring with him. Casey Thompson comes out and interrupts saying its time to introduce the new Director of Operations. Tons of feedback from his mic. Out comes Punisher. Really? All the names they were throwing out as “rumored” and it’s a dude that is already in the company and not famous. Punisher says he has big plans for the Warlord. Warlord freaks out. Wow how very anticlimactic and I wasn’t really even expecting much.

Chaz is in the bathroom and the woman interviewer asks him about his match tonight with Lex Lovett. Chaz flushes the toilet and says that’s where Lovett is going.

Lex Lovett vs. Chaz, ref Chuck Hart
Chaz with some slams and an arm drag and Lovett goes to the floor. Back in the ring some back and forth ends with Chaz getting a monkey flip. Lovett then goes for a monkey flip but Chaz stomps him. Chaz goes for a corner charge butt bump but Lovett catches him and drops him with a belly to back. Vertical suplex follows and gets a 2 count. Drop kick by Lovett. Lovett jumps over the top rope while holding onto Chaz’s head guillotining him on the rope as we go to commercial. Back from break and we appear to be at the same exact point we left. Lovett comes back into the ring and gets a 2 count. Lovett has Chaz in the corner and lands some strikes. Lovett for some reason does a back handspring then charges Chaz but catches a boot to the face. Chaz comes back and hits the flying attack in the corner this time. Lovett blocks the downward spiral by grabbing onto the top rope. Lovett hits a german suplex for 2. He goes for another one but Chaz blocks it turns and hits the downward spiral for the victory in 7.24.

My thoughts on the show…
Well the main event was decent enough. Maybe even great when compared to the rest of the matches from MXPW so far. A giant bullshit announcement when it comes to Punisher being named the Director of Operations. I’m actually looking forward to seeing what happens with the new pairing of the Blackharts and Dennis Knight.

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Maximum Impact 2004-06-18 (Matches taped 2004-05-22 from War Memorial in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla)

Heavyweight: Vacant
TV Champion: “Black Nature Boy” Scoot Andrews
Tag Team: Vacant

We see last weeks “Big announcement” of the new Director of Operations. HAHA they mute the mic feedback so they can look a little less bush league. Highlights from the final two matches from last week are shown. Nice way to call the first ten minutes of the show.

New Jack and Hack “Dog” Meyers show up to the arena. The interview lady is there and we still don’t know her name but she has gigantic boobs. New Jack says they are going to rip out the Blackharts’ eyes and eat them.

Casey Thompson is back stage and he is with the top four tag teams in MXPW, The Vandals, Market Crashers, Blackharts and Myers/New Jack. There is going to be a four way singles match tonight with the winner getting a first round bye for his team in the title tournament. How did New Jack and Hack get into the top four seeded teams?

Four Corners Match: Blackhart vs. Tommy Vandal vs. Hack “Dog” Myers vs. Nasdaq ,ref Bruce Michaels
Tommy Vandal comes out to the song “Game Over” by Lil Flip which makes me think he is awesome. I thought the Blackharts have names now but he is just being called Blackhart this week. Dennis Knight joins on commentary. Vandal and Nasdaq start. Nasdaq takes over on Vandal and Blackhart tags in. Blackhart takes down Vandal with a clothesline. Vandal fights back but Hack tags him and comes in. Hack all over Blackhart and he gets a 2 count but it’s broken up by Nasdaq. First fall wins the match. Nasdaq tags in and works over Blackhart. Vandal tags Blackhart and he gets the advantage on Nasdaq. Dropkick by Vandal but Blackhart breaks up the pin. Blackhart and Hack both tag in. Blackhart in control of Hack. Vandal tags in and Hack with a big boot leg drop combo. The pin is broken up and now all four men in the ring. Vandal hits a DDT on Blackhart. Knight leaves the broadcast booth and hands Blackhart something. Vandal comes off the top rope with a headbutt to the face of Blackhart and it knocks himself out. Blackhart loaded his mask with whatever Knight handed him! The Blackharts get a bye in the tournament with a win in 8.15.

Chris Nelson is with the Warlord for another addition of “Inside the Guardrails”. Nelson wants to know what is going on in the Warlord’s head. Warlord says he will wrestle and destroy anyone he steps in the ring with. Nelson wants to know where Warlord has been for the past ten years. Warlord won’t answer the question and instead goes into the ring where two guys are training and beats them up. He then screams something into the camera but it apparently doesn’t have a microphone on it as there is no sound, bush league.

Warlord vs. Bad Boy Ray & Johnny Voring, ref Chuck Hart
Powerbomb on Ray. Powerslam on Voring. Another bomb on Ray. Doc Rivers and The Rebel show up and attack Warlord but he just runs them over with a double clothesline. Full nelson on Rivers and the match is over. Big power bomb on the ref and we go to commercial.

Chasyn Rance again is asking Casey Thompson for another match. Thompson says that Punisher likes him and wants to give him a chance in the tag team title tournament.

Steve Madison gives an interview and talks about where he has toured and where he is going. Tonight he takes on Dennis Knight in the main event.

Dennis Knight vs. Steve Madison, ref Mickie Jay
Madison gets a quick advantage and Knight bails to the floor. Madison with a suicide dive and then he sends Knight into the guardrail. Madison with a missile drop kick for 2 back in the ring. Knight takes over and slows things down as we go to commercial break. Madison goes for an enziguri but Knight blocks it and Madison crashes to the mat. Madison fights back again hits a neck breaker and both men are down. Big clothesline from Knight turns Madison inside out. Knight only gets a 2 count though. Knight misses a corner charge by about 300 feet. Madison with a clothesline and brain buster for 2. Madison goes up top but misses a leg drop. Reverse DDT by Knight but he takes to much time and only gets a 2. Back breaker by Knight. Knight comes off the second buckle with a forearm. Knight hits the ropes and charges but Madison locks in an abdominal stretch and brings it into a abdominal stretch roll up and gets the surprise win! 8.30 is shown and I don’t think much of anything was cut during the commercial break.

Chasyn Rance is in the locker room looking for a partner but no one is paying any attention to him and they are telling him to leave them alone.

We get previews of next weeks show which will feature tag team tournament action.

My thoughts on the show…
I didn’t hate it!! Easily the best show to date. Some good things happening in MXPW the past two weeks. Decent matches for once and some story lines with the tag team tournament and Chasyn Rance. Warlord beating the shit out of tons of guys is fun too.

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Maximum Impact 2004-06-25 (Matches taped 2004-05-22 from War Memorial in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla)

Heavyweight: Vacant
TV Champion: “Black Nature Boy” Scoot Andrews
Tag Team: Vacant

Mark Nulty and Chris Nelson welcome us to the show and let us know that the Tag Team Tournament starts tonight with a bunch of first round matches. They tells us we are going to our first bout but instead we go backstage. Dennis Knight is with the Blackharts. Knight says they have strength in numbers and starting tonight they take over the world.

Scott Commodity & Preston James vs. The Vandals, ref Bruce Michaels
Tommy Vandal starts with James. They trade off arm drags then both clothesline each other. Ricky comes in with Commodity and they end up taking each other down with shoulder blocks. The Vandals both hit a suicide dive. Ricky with a neck breaker. They all go to the floor now where Commodity and James are able to take over. Commodity comes off the top rope and dive onto both Vandals. Back in the ring they hit a double suplex on Tommy. Northern lights by Commodity gets 2. James and Commodity tag back a forth a few times. They go for a double superplex but Tommy fights them off and hits a top rope drop kick on Commodity. Ricky tags in hitting clotheslines and a spin buster to both his opponents. Commodity and James cut him off and hit a power bomb neck breaker combo. Tommy breaks up the pin. Miscommunication leads to a super kick/sweep combo on Commodity and the Vandals get the win in 7.40.

Market Crashers are cutting a promo and that women shows up after they say their names and slaps them repeatedly asking Nasdaq his name each time. He finally says his real name Joey Machete and that Dow Jones is Shawn Murphy. I guess that means it’s time to get serious.

Market Crashers (w/ ???) vs. Chasyn Rance
Rance couldn’t find a partner so he goes at this alone. I think it’s time to give this woman a name since she’s has been around for weeks. Murphy the bigger of the Crashers starts off. He takes down Rance and quickly tags Machete. Joey with a side slam but he picks up Rance after a 2 count. Belly to back and tag back to Murphy. They hit a side slam neck breaker combo but don’t go for the pin. Rance with a school boy on Joey but it only gets 2. Joey with a power bomb and he gets the pin in 3.18. Murphy hits a super bomb after the match.

Kahagas & Ryan O’Reilly vs. Hack “Dog” Meyers & “Original Gangsta” New Jack, ref Chuck Hart
I hate New Jack but they really couldn’t bring in someone from ECW for him that was more important then Meyers? After some brawling this shockingly becomes a real tag match. Jack and O’Reilly are in the ring. Hack tags in and stomps away. O’Reilly fights back and tags Kahagas. Meyers comes back and tags New Jack. The teams go back and forth until Hack hits a bulldog and makes a tag. Jack comes off the top with the 187 with a shovel for the win in 6.55

Warlord hits the ring for an interview. He rips the mic out of the interviewers hand. Before Warlord can say much out comes Punisher and he tells Warlord he has a surprise for him. Punisher tells Warlord to turn around and behind him is Apolo. The locker room empties before they can come to blows.

Norman Smiley trash talks Lex Lovett.

Lex Lovett vs. Norman Smiley, ref Mickie Jay
Some nice counter wrestling to start between the two men. After a few minutes of that Smiley hits a back elbow and we go to commercial. Back from break right where we left off Lovett with a small package fro 2. Smiley with some european uppercuts. Lovett reverses one into a backslide. Smiley kicks out and hits a double under hook suplex. Lovett gets up and takes over on Smiley. Lovett misses a leg drop. Lovett goes for a roll up but Smiley catches him in the big wiggle position does it and then hits a wheel barrel slam. Smiley with an irish whip Lovett ducks a clothesline and hits a running blockbuster. Suplex by Lovett and he goes up to but misses a swanton bomb. Lovett with a german suplex but Smiley rolls out of it and puts on a an arm bar for the submission win in 7.58.

Highlights for next weeks episode are shown with more tag team title tournament action.

My thoughts on the show…
Well after two somewhat decent weeks of TV we go back to another down week. All these guys have such basic matches even a veteran like Smiley hardly does anything. I’m all for watching Warlord squash a bunch of guys in 2 minutes but I am not looking forward to him having a match with Apolo. Don’t watch this.

Fighting Spirit Review: All Japan “Excite Series” 2/7/15

By
Kevin Wilson
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0
A review by Kevin Wilson of PuroresuCentral.com

Date:  February 7th, 2015
Location:  Osaka BODYMAKER COLOSSEUM #2 in Osaka, Japan
Announced Attendance:  873

We are jumping back to All Japan to try to catch-up on them over the next few days.  This show has the start of the Jr. Battle of Glory Tournament as well as Shiozaki defending the Triple Crown against Zeus.  While the winner isn’t in doubt, it should still be fun.  Here is the full card:

– Masanobu Fuchi and Masashi Aoyagi vs. Takao Soma and Yuma Aoyagi
– Kento Miyahara and Yohei Nakajima vs. The Bodyguard and Shigehiro Irie
– Akebono and SUSHI vs. KENSO and Takeshi Minamino
– Jun Akiyama, Takao Omori, and Ultimo Dragon vs. Suwama, Hikaru Sato, and Naoya Nomura
– Jr. Battle of Glory – Block B: Kotaro Suzuki vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru
– Jr. Battle of Glory – Block A: Atsushi Aoki vs. Keisuke Ishii
– Triple Crown Championship: Go Shiozaki vs. Zeus

I was hoping some of these would be clipped but sadly they are not.

Masanobu Fuchi and Masashi Aoyagi vs. Takao Soma and Yuma Aoyagi
Like this one, for example.  Fuchi and Yuma start off and they trade wristlocks.  Fuchi flips Yuma to the mat but he lets him back up.  Fuchi tags in Aoyagi, I didn’t know that Aoyagi was still wrestling.  Yuma clubs Aoyagi in the chest but Aoyagi fights back with kicks.  Tombstone piledriver by Aoyagi but it gets two.  Yuma catches a kick and elbows Aoyagi in the leg before hitting a dropkick.  Yuma tags in Soma and Soma stands on Aoyagi in the corner.  Dropkick by Soma and he chops Aoyagi in the corner.  Aoyagi kicks Soma back and hits a heel kick, giving him time to tag in Fuchi.  Fuchi picks up Soma and hits a scoop slam.  Delayed scoop slam by Fuchi, Yuma comes in but Fuchi scoop slams him too.  Fuchi slams Soma again a couple more times but Soma kicks Fuchi in the stomach and tags in Yuma.  Yuma dropkicks Fuchi and Fuchi tags in Aoyagi.  Aoyagi kicks Yuma in the leg and the chest, he picks him back up and kicks him in the stomach.  More kicks by Aoyagi but Soma breaks up the cover.  Dropkick by Yuma and he hits a second one.  Yuma goes off the ropes but Aoyagi kicks him in the stomach before hitting an enzigieri for the three count cover.  Maybe I am just feeling nostalgic but it was nice to see Aoyagi again, apparently he still actively competes, I just personally hadn’t seen him in a while.  The crowd enjoys Fuchi and the young guys looked fine.  Not exciting but nothing bad.  Score:  5.5

Kento Miyahara and Yohei Nakajima vs. The Bodyguard and Shigehiro Irie
Irie and Nakajima begin things, shoulderblock by Irie but Nakajima hits a hurricanrana.  Bodyguard and Miyahara tag in and they bounce off each other with no results.  Finally Bodyguard shoulderblocks Miyahara down but Miyahara pushes him back and tags in Nakajima.  Bodyguard chops Nakajima to the mat and chops him again.  Press slam by Bodyguard and he tags in Irie.  Nakajima and Irie trade elbows, Irie gets the better of it and he tags in Bodyguard.  Bodyguard kicks Nakajima and he hits a scoop slam followed by a neck crank.  Reverse chinlock by Bodyguard and he covers Nakajima for two.  Bodyguard tags in Irie and Irie hits a body slam.  Irie goes up top and hits a diving body press for two.  Irie charges Nakajima but Nakajima kicks him back and hits a missile dropkick.  Nakajima tags in Miyahara, and Miyahara trades elbows with Irie.  Dropkick by Miyahara and he hits a jumping elbow in the corner.  Northern Lights Suplex by Miyahara but Irie kicks out.  Vertical suplex by Irie and he tags in Bodyguard.  Lariat by Bodyguard to Miyahara in the corner and he hits a series of short range lariats.  Flapjack by Bodyguard and he hits an elbow drop.  Bodyguard picks up Miyahara but Miyahara boots him in the head.  Miyahara tags in Nakajima, Bodyguard punches Nakajima but Nakajima kicks him back.  Dropkick by Nakajima and he dropkicks Bodyguard in the corner.  Missile dropkick by Nakajima but Bodyguard catches him with a spear.  Irie comes in and body slams Nakajima, leg drop by Bodyguard but it gets a two count.  Bodyguard hits a lariat to Nakajima, but Nakajima kicks out of the pin.  Bodyguard picks up Nakajima and blasts him with a short-range lariat, and this time he gets the three count.  Another solid match, nothing earth scorching but still fun. Bodyguard is good in short bursts and the other three did their parts.  Perfectly acceptable match for this part of the card.  Score:  6.0

Akebono and SUSHI vs. KENSO and Takeshi Minamino
SUSHI and KENSO square off first and they shake hands before KENSO kicks Akebono off the apron.  KENSO goes after Akebono while Minamino runs in to attack SUSHI.  Everyone brawls outside the ring, but KENSO and SUSHI return after a moment and KENSO hits a lariat.  Brainbuster by KENSO, but SUSHI kicks out of the cover.  KENSO tags in Minamino and Minamino chokes SUSHI with a metal rod until Akebono breaks it up.  KENSO is tagged in and he attacks SUSHI in the corner.  Slaps by KENSO but SUSHI lariats KENSO in the corner.  SUSHI tries to knock over KENSO but KENSO slaps him.  SUSHI finally hits a lariat to knock KENSO over and he tags in Akebono.  KENSO tags in Minamino, and Minamino kicks Akebono low.  Chokeslam by Akebono and he hits an elbow drop.  Another elbow drop and Akebono tags in SUSHI.  Lazy ass Akebono, don’t tag in the weak guy.  SUSHI goes up top and he hits a diving headbutt to Minamino, but KENSO breaks it up.  Akebono lariats KENSO out of the ring, SUSHI grabs Minamino but Minamino kicks SUSHI low.  SUSHI grabs Minamino and hits the Tekkamaki, getting the three count.  Akebono was just coasting here, it wasn’t even a long match but he still let SUSHI do the bulk of the work.  Too short to mean anything but not too bad.  Score:  4.0

Jun Akiyama, Takao Omori, and Ultimo Dragon vs. Suwama, Hikaru Sato, and Naoya Nomura
Omori and Suwama begin things.  This would normally be the co-main big tag match, it just got bumped down because of the tournament.  They get into an elbow battle, which Suwama wins, but both miss elbow drops.  Ultimo Dragon and Sato come in next, wristlock by Sato but Ultimo Dragon rolls out of it.  Sato kicks Ultimo Dragon in the leg and he applies an ankle hold, but Ultimo Dragon hits a spinning headscissors.  Ultimo Dragon drives Sato into the corner and Sato tags in Nomura.  Ultimo Dragon kicks Nomura and he tags in Akiyama.  Nomura pushes Akiyama into the ropes and clubs him in the chest repeatedly but Akiyama knocks him to the mat.  Akiyama throws Nomura out of the ring, and Omori chops Nomura in the chest.  Akiyama slams Nomura out on the floor before returning to the ring, and Akiyama throws Nomura into the corner.  Akiyama tags in Omori, Omori chops Nomura against the ropes and hits a back bodydrop.  Omori tags in Ultimo Dragon, Ultimo Dragon elbows Nomura and covers him for two.  Ultimo Dragon twists up Nomura and then applies an ankle hold but Sato breaks it up.  Akiyama is tagged in and he slams Nomura to the mat.  Crab hold by Akiyama and he tags in Omori.  Omori backdrop suplexes Nomura as poor Nomura is just the whipping boy in this match.  Nomura finally hits a missile dropkick and he makes the super hot tag to Suwama.

Akiyama comes in to help but Suwama lariats both of them.  Suwama lariats Omori in the corner and hits a belly to belly suplex.  Omori boots Suwama but Suwama applies a sleeper.  Suwama goes for a Last Ride but Omori hits a hurricanrana to reverse it.  Axe Guillotine Driver by Omori and he tags in Ultimo Dragon while Sato is also tagged in.  Dropkick by Ultimo Dragon to Sato and he hits a back bodydrop.  Kick combination by Ultimo Dragon but Sato slaps on a cross armbreaker.  Ultimo Dragon gets a foot on the ropes to get a break and Sato tags in Nomura.  Jumping elbow by Nomura and he hits a Northern Lights Suplex.  Ultimo Dragon avoids Nomura’s dropkick and tags in Akiyama.  Akiyama applies a neck lock but it is broken up.  Boots by Akiyama  but Nomura dropkicks him.  Nomura goes up top but Akiyama avoids the missile dropkick.  Akiyama applies a crab hold but Nomura gets to the ropes.  Brainbuster by Akiyama, but Nomura kicks out.  Crab hold by Akiyama and this time he taps out.  I mean a crab hold ending this late in the card is a super copout, I knew Nomura was getting pinned when I saw the line-up but at least let him lost to a knee.  And his teammates didn’t come help even though they were on the apron, I guess so Nomura could learn.  This wasn’t much of a match as 75% of it was Nomura getting beaten down, but it wasn’t bad.  Just a bit of a waste for wrestlers of this quality.  Score:  5.5

Kotaro Suzuki vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru
This match is part of the Jr. Battle of Glory Tournament.  After the introductory back and forth, Suzuki starts working over Kanemaru’s leg and applies a figure four.  Kanemaru gets to the ropes but Suzuki twists on Kanemaru’s knee.  Kanemaru gets to the ropes again and they trade strikes, with Suzuki kicking Kanemaru in the leg until he falls to the mat.  Suzuki goes for a handspring elbow but Kanemaru catches him and hits a backdrop suplex.  Kanemaru goes up top and hits a diving crossbody for two.  Flapjack by Kanemaru but Suzuki hits a jumping knee in the corner.  Diving knee by Suzuki but it gets two.  Suzuki drop toeholds Kanemaru into the ropes and hits the tiger feint kick.  Suzuki and Kanemaru trade elbows, boot by Kanemaru and he hits a backdrop suplex.  Suzuki gets back up and returns the favor but Kanemaru hits a lariat.  Lariat by Kanemaru in the corner but Suzuki kicks him in the leg.  Suzuki goes up top but Kanemaru joins him, Kanemaru goes for a superplex but Suzuki lands on top of him for two.  Elbows by Suzuki and he hits a tombstone piledriver for another two.  Suzuki goes for the Tiger Driver but Kanemaru drops Suzuki on his head because he hates his face.  Kanemaru goes up to the second turnbuckle, but Suzuki catches him when he dives off.  Kanemaru blocks the Tiger Driver again and he hits a brainbuster.  Kanemaru goes up to the top turnbuckle and nails the Deep Impact, but Suzuki kicks out.  Brainbuster by Suzuki, he picks up Kanemaru and delivers the Touch Out for the three count.  Kanemaru gets two points!  This match didn’t do a whole lot for me.  It was half leg work but Suzuki doesn’t really have a finisher that targets the leg so there wasn’t anywhere that he could go with it.  So the leg work was quickly forgotten and it turned into Kanemaru running through his finishers as his matches usually do.  It definitely had some good spots, but as whole it was disappointing.  Score:  4.0

Atsushi Aoki vs. Keisuke Ishii
This match is part of the Jr. Battle of Glory Tournament.  Aoki attacks Ishii before the match starts and beats him around the ring.  Back in the ring they trade elbows, Aoki gets the better of it and dumps Ishii out of the ring.  Aoki throws Ishii into the railing and Aoki throws Ishii into the ring post.  Back in the ring, Ishii catches Aoki with a rough DDT.  Aoki grabs Ishii’s arm and drives his knee into it.  Armbreaker by Aoki but Ishii boots him in the face.  Aoki kicks Ishii in the arm and then twists it but Ishii gets to the ropes.   Aoki knocks Ishii into the corner and yanks on his arm but Ishii hits a dropkick.  Ishii goes up top, Aoki joins him but Ishii pushes him off and hits a missile dropkick.  Ishii hits a double kneedrop and covers Aoki, but Aoki applies an armbar.  Ishii kicks out of it and hits an enzigieri.  German suplex hold by Ishii but Aoki avoids the heel kick.  Lariat by Aoki and he hits a scoop slam.  Aoki goes up top but Ishii avoids a diving doublestomp.  Backdrop suplex by Aoki and he hits a lariat.  Brainbuster by Aoki but Ishii blocks the Assault Point.  Tiger suplex hold by Ishii but it gets a two.  Backflip kick by Ishii and he hits a double armed DDT.  Cover, but Aoki barely kicks out.  They trade pin attempts but Aoki applies a cross armbreaker.  He reverts it into the Trap Over, and Ishii submits.  Aoki is trying really hard to be interesting, and I appreciate that he is trying.  Ishii was good also, and overall it was entertaining even though something was missing.  But it was well structured and didn’t go long so they were able to stay focused.  Score:  6.5

(c) Go Shiozaki vs. Zeus
This match is for the All Japan Triple Crown Championship.  Shiozaki and Zeus collide into each other to start and Shiozaki snaps off a backdrop suplex which Zeus replies to with a lariat.  Suplex by Shiozaki but Zeus picks him up and drops him onto the apron.  Zeus suplexes Shiozaki back into the ring and then press slams him over the top rope to the floor.  Zeus beats Shiozaki with the guardrail before they return to the ring, and they trade chops.  Lariat by Zeus and he applies a facelock.  Shoulderblock by Zeus but Shiozaki gets back up, body avalanche by Zeus and he hits a bearhug suplex.  Zeus hits a vertical suplex and he covers Shiozaki for two.  Jumping shoulderblock by Shiozaki but Zeus shrugs it off.  DDT by Shiozaki but Zeus pops up from that too.  Shiozaki tries the backdrop suplex but Zeus gets up in the corner.  Running chop by Shiozaki and he hits another one, but Zeus chops him back.  Fisherman Buster by Shiozaki and he dropkicks  Zeus out of the ring.  Shiozaki goes off the ropes but Zeus gets back in the ring and lariats Shiozaki out of it.  Zeus then goes to the ropes and hits a muscle man pescado.  Awkward but effective.  Back in the ring Zeus lariats Shiozaki, Shiozaki falls out to the apron but Zeus suplexes him back into the ring.  Zeus dropkicks Shiozaki into the corner and he hits a chokeslam.  Zeus is just killing Shiozaki here.

Shiozaki chops Zeus and goes for a hurricanrana, but Zeus powerbombs him into the turnbuckles.  Big lariat by Zeus but Shiozaki hits a vertical suplex.  Both Shiozaki and Zeus try to lariat each other, and Shiozaki finally wins the battle.  Zeus chops Shiozaki but Shiozaki chops him back.  Shiozaki lariats Zeus out of the ring and then sails out onto him with a tope suicida.  Shiozaki slides Zeus back in, he puts Zeus on the top turnbuckle and hits an avalanche Frankensteiner for a one count.  Lariat by Shiozaki, he picks up Zeus but Zeus snaps off a Jackhammer.  Zeus picks up Shiozaki but Shiozaki hits a Go Flasher.  Zeus and Shiozaki lariat each other to the mat, they both get up and start trading chops.  Shiozaki falls to the mat, but he drops Zeus with a rolling chop.  Another rolling chop by Shiozaki and he hits the Short-Range Lariat.  Shiozaki picks up  Zeus and hits another Go Flasher, cover, but Zeus gets a shoulder up.  Shiozaki slams Zeus in front of the corner, he goes up top and nails the moonsault for the three count cover. Go Shiozaki is still your Triple Crown Champion!  Let me talk about Zeus first.  The fact I like Shiozaki is no secret, but Zeus really stepped up.  I mean he is a big dude but he had no cardio issues, there was no time killed, and he was flying outside the ring and popping up from big moves like it was nothing. So super impressed there.  The only issue with the structure here is that Zeus looked so strong it was hard to buy Shiozaki’s comeback at first.  I mean Zeus was indestructible the first 15 minutes of the match.  But it was great fun, not perfect, but entertaining.  Score:  8.0

Final Thoughts:

  • There was a ton of action packed in here, which I do take into account when recommending an event.  Seven matches with six going over ten minutes, all shown in full, and a well done long main event on top of that.  Shiozaki/Zeus should be enjoyable to most, even though at times you may shake your head at the prospect of Shiozaki somehow making a comeback.  The Jr. Battle of the Glory matches weren’t great but Aoki/Ishii was definitely solid.  Top to bottom a really good event from All Japan, recommended.

    Grade:  B

Update On Brock Lesnar Re-Signing With WWE, WWE Hoping For A New Deal Next Week

By
Brian Grey
-
0

Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

We noted earlier that there were rumors at SmackDown that WWE World Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar was close to signing a new deal with WWE.

The Wrestling Observer Newsletter notes that those reports are premature. As of today, the situation with Lesnar and WWE is still the same as it has been for a few weeks now. Whatever led to the backstage blow-up at RAW in Nashville a few weeks back has not been settled and nothing has changed.

WWE officials are still negotiating and hoping to get Lesnar to sign a new contract at next Monday’s RAW in Los Angeles.

WWE Doctor Makes Controversial Concussion Comments, WWE Issues Statement On Piracy Arrest

By
Brian Grey
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0

Source: F4WOnline

– WWE Medical Director Dr. Joseph Maroon, who is also a NFL medical consultant and neurosurgeon for the Pittsburgh Steelers, appeared on the NFL Network this week to discuss concussions after the retirement of San Francisco 49ers linebacker Chris Borland, who is just 24 and is retiring out of concern for his longterm health.

Maroon, who has operated on several WWE talents and says the NFL has never been safer, is receiving heat in the media for some of his comments. Maroon said his message to parents that are concerned about their youth football players would be that he believes “the problem of CTE, although real, is it’s being overexaggerated and being extrapolated to youth football and to high school football” and that “it’s much more dangerous riding a bike or a skateboard than playing youth football.”

– The UK’s Police International Property Crime Unit has raided the home of a 55 year old UK man and arrested him for illegally uploading WWE and UFC content. TorrentFreak.com described the man as “one of the world’s most prolific uploaders of both UFC and WWE content.” It’s believed the man went by the name “Sir Paul” on torrent sites. The man is accused of uploading 3.2 terabytes of copyrighted content, or around 3,000 videos, which have been downloaded more than two million times and cost WWE and UFC lost revenue.

WWE Senior Vice President of General Counsel James Langham issued a statement to The Daily Mail:

“WWE provides many options for our fans to watch our content lawfully – on television, pay-per-view, and digitally via YouTube and the WWE Network. We will continue to protect our intellectual property aggressively and combat piracy in any form.”

Spoiler On Another WWE Hall Of Fame Inductor, Final HOF Line-Up For This Year’s Class

By
Brian Grey
-
0

As noted earlier, WWE announced at last night’s tapings that former Junior Heavyweight Champion Tatsumi Fujinami will be inducted into the Hall of Fame this year. WWE is still planning on announcing Kevin Nash this Monday. PWInsider has confirmed that Fujinami will be inducted by rival Ric Flair.

Below is the final line-up for this year’s Hall of Fame class:

* Warrior Award: Connor Michalek, inducted by Daniel Bryan and Dana Warrior

* Larry Zbyszko, inducted by Bruno Sammartino

* Tatsumi Fujinami, inducted by Ric Flair

* The Bushwhackers, inducted by John Laurinaitis

* Alundra Blayze, inductor TBA and rumored to be current Diva

* Rikishi, inducted by The Usos

* Arnold Schwarzenegger, inducted by Triple H

* Randy Savage, inducted by Hulk Hogan

* Kevin Nash, inducted by Shawn Michaels

WWE Announces Tatsumi Fujinami As The Next Hall Of Fame Inductee

By
Brian Grey
-
0

At last night’s Smackdown tapings, WWE announced that legendary Japanese wrestler Tatsumi Fujinami will be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.

The 61 year old Fujinami was a staple of New Japan Pro Wrestling for decades, winning the IWGP Heavyweight Championship six times. He also held the WWF Junior Heavyweight Championship, WWF International Heavyweight Championship, and WWF International Tag Team Titles.

Fujinami had a brief reign with WCW’s NWA World Heavyweight Championship, although it is only sporadically recognized. American fans may best remember him for facing Ric Flair at SuperBrawl in 1991.

Fujinami worked as recently as last year, appearing for NOAH. Fujinami left New Japan Pro Wrestling in 2006 after almost 35 years with the company due to issues with Riki Choshu.

WWE had been collecting Fujinami memorabilia of late, and an induction was rumored several weeks ago. This will be the WWE’s biggest Hall of Fame class in over a decade, with nine acts set.

Follow Sean Ross Sapp on

Woman In Lisa Marie Varon Controversy Denies Affair, Threatens Legal Action

By
Jim Somers
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0

The legal counsel for Liz Dal Santo, whose name was mentioned in Lisa Marie Varon’s online conflict with husband Lee, is denying that Dal Santo had an affair with Lee. According to Daliah Saper of Saper Law, Dal Santo claims that Lee is just a friend, and is contemplating taking legal action after receiving hundreds of phone calls after Varon posted her phone number on Twitter last November. That tweet has since been deleted.

As noted, Varon claimed to not know that Dal Santo was working at the restaurant when TMZ released the video above last week of Lee taking down an intruder, which featured Dal Santo. Saper noted that Varon posted the tweet below this past January stating that Lee and Dal Santo would be running the restaurant:

Hey gang! The @theSQDcircle will be ran by my husband and @DizzyMsLizz! Thank you for all your support. Much love.

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