Full match results from May 11th & 12th, 2018 #PPW195 and #PPW196 tapings at Premier Pro Wrestling studios in Woodstock, IL with Justin Barlow.
#PPW195 “NOW OR NEVER” RESULTS
– SOMETHING-TO-PROVE TOURNAMENT OPENING ROUND MATCHES –
At #PPW194, it was announced that a groundbreaking two-night taping would take place for the very first time in PPW history at #PPW195. This momentous occasion kicked off this past Friday with the return of the Something-to-Prove Challenge, a concept not seen in Premier Pro Wrestling for a number of years. The purpose of the challenge is to give the young rising stars from the Premier Academy an opportunity to not only showcase their skills against both each other and against more experienced competitors, but to earn their place on the main roster or sometimes even be granted, pun intended, a golden opportunity. This was the case at #PPW195. In a high stake tournament, the best and brightest of talents from the Premier Academy put their hearts and souls on full display to earn a place in Saturday night’s tournament to crown a new #1 contender to the PPW World Heavyweight Championship.
“THE SCIENCE” MARCUS SMITH DEF. CONNOR CORR (W/ ZERO 2) BY WAY OF PIN FALL
Kicking off the first leg of the tournament were two individuals who are familiar faces in PPW, but nonetheless had something to prove, Marcus Smith and Connor Corr. Despite Zero 2 getting involved when Connor distracted the referee, an ill-placed charge toward Marcus in the corner saw Connor miss his target and collide with the turnbuckle which gave Marcus the opening he needed to roll Connor up for the 1-2-3 and move on to the semi-finals.
JAMIE GARZA DEF. “NOT BAD” CHAD BY WAY OF PIN FALL
After a near six month absence from PPW, Jamie Garza returned to action in the Premier Studio, but with a new disposition that quickly soured the Premier Planet who, at first, were excited to see him return. “Not Bad” Chad, however, was not intimidated by Jamie’s new attitude and gleefully danced his way to the ring, excited by the prospect of potentially becoming the new #1 contender. In the end, perhaps in a moment of desperation due to Chad’s onslaught of offense, Jamie would resort to placing his feet on the ropes in order to steal the victory and move on in the tournament, leaving Chad’s party rained out.
LA TARANTULA DEF. ZERO 2 (W/ CONNOR CORR) BY WAY OF PIN FALL
There was good reason behind the Premier officials dubbing the back-to-back taping “Now or Never,” because for some members of the Premier roster, the stakes were even higher than earning an opportunity at the title, namely La Tarantula who was not only looking to become the new #1 contender, but was also looking for his very first win since coming to PPW a number of months ago. On an ever increasing losing streak, many doubted that La Tarantula could make it past the opening round, particularly because his opponent was no stranger to shortcuts and cheap tactics, Zero 2, who had also been accompanied to the ring by Connor Corr. However, Lan Tarantula shocked the Premier Planet when he hit a DDT on Zero 2, stunning the Zero and giving La Tarantula the opening he needed to make the pin, bringing him the crucial first victory he has chased for so long along with a place in the semi-finals.
SEM SEI DEF. LEVI BY WAY OF PIN FALL
One student of the Premier Academy who has been turning heads ever since his debut a number of weeks ago is Levi who, despite only having a handful of matches to his name, was placed in the tournament against Sem Sei who, with Iniestra not in attendance, was forced to rely only on himself if he hoped to advance. Given the significant gap in experience, Sem Sei perhaps underestimated the competition and was caught completely off guard by a cascade of offense from Levi, finding himself nearly pinned on several occasions. Levi showed that he has been a quick learner while training at the Premier Academy and eventually the two found themselves in a fast paced exchange of pin fall attempts and it was during this exchange that Sem decided to take advantage of the referee’s obstructed view to grab hold of Levi’s tights and seize the victory out from underneath the young standout.
“THE HUNK WITH THE TREE TRUNKS” CHASE GOSLING DEF. “TEXAS” PETE BY WAY OF PIN FALL
With Chase Gosling’s physical condition in question after a shoulder dislocation two weeks prior, “Texas” Pete made a surprise appearance and immediately tried to seize on the perceived opportunity to get a bye in the tournament and go straight to the semi-finals, but Pete’s plans were thrown in the shredder when Chase came to the ring healed and dressed for competition which lead to an impromptu match between the two. After distracting the referee by bringing his keytar into the ring and declaring his intentions to hit Chase with it which resulted in the referee turning his back momentarily in order to get the key tar away from the ring, Pete hit Chase with a low blow. However, the resulting advantage was short-lived when Chase was able to regroup and, despite being able to avoid a running knee in the corner, Pete fell victim to a running leg lariat which was enough for Chase to pick up a pin fall victory and move on in the tournament.
– SOMETHING-TO-PROVE TOURNAMENT SEMI-FINALS –
“THE SCIENCE” MARCUS SMITH DEF. JAMIE GARZA BY WAY OF PIN FALL
With a place in Saturday night’s #1 contenders tournament now within reach, it was now or never for the winners of the opening round of the Something-to-Prove tournament. The first two to compete in the semi-finals were Jamie Garza who had stolen a victory out from underneath “Not Bad” Chad earlier in the evening and “The Science” Marcus Smith who opened the tournament by defeating Connor Corr despite being outnumbered by Connor in the ring and Zero 2 outside the ring. Marcus’s technical wrestling prowess was put to the test by the new attitude of Jamie Garza who now seems willing to do whatever it takes to win, but in the end a pinning attempt by Jamie was turned around as Marcus was able to roll through and deliver a pin of his own, one that Jamie could not escape from in time, giving the crucial victory to Marcus and sending him to Saturday night’s #1 contenders tournament where he will compete in a triple threat match against “El Mero Mero” Iniestra and “The Hunk with the Tree Trunks” Chase Gosling.
SEM SEI DEF. LA TARANTULA BY WAY OF PIN FALL
With not only a place in the semi-finals but also his first victory ever in PPW under his belt, La Tarantula seemed unfazed by the challenge that lay ahead of him when he entered his semi-final match to face Sem Sei and for a time it appeared as though he might pull off yet another victory, but Sem Sei dashed La Tarantula’s hopes courtesy of an ax kick across the back of La Tarantula’s neck which temporarily stunned the masked man and brought Sem the victory. See now goes on to Saturday night to face Anakin one-on-one in what will surely be an exciting contest between two friends-turned-rivals.
– PPW WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH –
“THE WORLD EXCLUSIVE” MATT VINE DEF. RONNY METRO (C) BY WAY OF PIN FALL
With their previous encounters leading up to PPW #195 resulting in no clear cut winner, “Now or Never” was the perfect way to describe what lay before the champion, Ronny Metro, and his challenger, Matt Vine. In order to ensure victory for one of the participants, count outs, time limits, and disqualifications were tossed aside and it would be up to pin fall or submission to decide who truly was worthy of wearing the PPW World Heavyweight Championship. With nothing holding them back, Matt and Ronny took almost every liberty possible with what would have been the rules in the culmination of bitter war that the two have been waging from week to week, attempting to not only walk out with the gold but also to do as much damage to the other as possible now that their actions during the match would not be met with repercussions. The harder each man fought, the harder the other fought back until both were exhausted and looking for that one critical opening. With victory and hatred the driving factors, Ronny tried to end the match and potentially Matt Vine’s career with a jumping piledriver, but Matt refused to quit and, seizing on that critical opening, delivered a piledriver of his own with such force that Ronny could not respond to the referee’s three count, giving Matt the decisive victory and a record-setting fourth reign as PPW World Heavyweight Champion!
We here at PPW would like to congratulate Matt Vine on his historic win Friday night, but the new champion will not have much time to savor the victory, because he will be defending his newly won championship against the winner of the #1 contenders tournament tonight in Woodstock! Will it be “The Science” Marcus Smith, “The Hunk with the Tree Trunks” Chase Gosling, Sem Sei, “El Mero Mero” Iniestra, or Anakin who comes out on top and steps up to face the new champ? Find out tonight live in Woodstock!
#PPW196 RESULTS
SOMETHING-TO-PROVE CHALLENGE: SIX-MAN TAG TEAM MATCH –
LEVI, “NOT BAD” CHAD, & LA TARANTULA DEF. JAMIE GARZA, CONNOR CORR, & ZERO 2 BY WAY OF PIN FALL
With the brackets for the #1 contenders tournament decided the night before, the six participants who came up short in the Something-to-Prove tournament on Friday were given an opportunity of a different sort in a six-man tag team match where the man who scored the winning pin fall or submission would be rewarded with a one-on-one match on the main card at PPW #197. Jamie Garza teamed with Zero 2 and Connor Corr to take on the trio of Levi, “Not Bad” Chad, and La Tarantula, fresh off of picking up his very first victory the night before. Knowing their opponents would not shy away from resorting to underhanded tactics, Levi, Chad, and La Tarantula opted to try and outthink their opponents rather than outfight them and the strategy paid off by causing Connor, Jamie, and Zero 2 to become disorganized and that was when Levi seized on an opening and rolled Jamie up to bring his team the win in the match and earning himself a match on the main roster at #PPW197.
RONNY METRO ADDRESSES HIS LOSS AT #PPW195
Now without the PPW World Heavyweight Championship around his waist after losing it to Matt Vine the night before, former champion Ronny Metro came to the ring to address the Premier Planet, but as Ronny was taking out his frustrations on the fans in attendance, Andy Anderson snuck up on Ronny and Ronny quickly exited the ring to a safe distance. With a plethora of unfinished business still between them, Andy demanded a match with Ronny right then and there, but while Ronny did agree to face Andy, he refused to do so immediately and instead insisted they wait until later in the evening which was not exactly according to Andy’s plan, but Andy was nonetheless happy to have been granted a chance to get his hands on Ronny again after all of the injustices he had faced since the implosion of the Dirty Boys Club some months ago.
#1 CONTENDERS TOURNAMENT MATCH –
SEM SEI DEF. ANAKIN BY WAY OF PIN FALL
Receiving a bye in the tournament due to his now veteran status within PPW, Anakin sought to, once again, climb the ladder of PPW and earn himself a shot at the PPW World Heavyweight Championship and his first opponent along the way would be none other than his friend-turned-rival Sem Sei who had been forced into the Something-to-Prove tournament when an injury kept him out of action the week prior. With both competitors having trained together at the Premier Academy, they proved to be an even match for each other, that was until Sem decided that, if he couldn’t beat Anakin fair and square, he would resort to other measures, and used a handful of Anakin’s tights during a pin attempt to steal a victory out from under him and move on to the tournament semi-finals. As for Anakin, he will now have to wait for his next opportunity at the #1 contendership, but will be in action this coming Saturday against Premier Academy standout, Levi.
#1 CONTENDERS TOURNAMENT TRIPLE THREAT MATCH –
“EL MERO MERO” INIESTRA DEF. “THE SCIENCE” MARCUS SMITH AND “THE HUNK WITH THE TREE TRUNKS” CHASE GOSLING BY WAY OF PIN FALL
With Chase Gosling’s surprise return the night before at PPW #195, the #1 contenders tournament now had an odd number of participants, but instead of one of them being granted a bye, a triple threat match was scheduled between Chase, Marcus Smith, and Iniestra. When the match started, Chase and Marcus seemed to form and alliance against Iniestra in an effort to take him out of the equation, but there could be only one winner and it soon became every man for himself. As Chase and Marcus dissolved their temporary partnership and began taking the fight to each other, Iniestra took advantage and began isolating the other two from each other. As Marcus lay on the floor outside the ring, Sem Sei crept down to ringside with kendo stick in hand and, with the referee’s back turned, delivered a gruesome shot across Marcus’s spine and, with Chase now incapacitated, rolled Marcus back into the ring where Iniestra proceeded to pick up the pieces and pin Marcus for the victory, but this now meant that Iniestra and Sem would have to face each other in the tournament final where their bond would face perhaps its most formidable test to date.
#1 CONTENDERS TOURNAMENT FINAL –
SEM SEI DEF. “EL MERO MERO” INIESTRA BY WAY OF PIN FALL
With Iniestra advancing to the tournament finals thanks to Sem Sei’s interference in the triple threat match, the two now faced off to decide who would become the first in line to challenge “The World Exclusive” Matt Vine in Matt’s first title defense since regaining the title from Ronny Metro just twenty four hours prior, but Iniestra and Sem had completely pulled the wool over the eyes of the Premier authorities and the Premier Planet. In a stunning turn of events, Iniestra laid down in the middle of the ring and, with one finger on Iniestra’s chest, Sem pinned his compatriot to become the new #1 contender to the PPW World Heavyweight Championship.
GRUDGE MATCH –
“IRISH” ANDY ANDERSON DEF. RONNY METRO BY WAY OF COUNT OUT
Once the closest of teammates, there are few rivalries as hot as the one that has spawned between Andy Anderson and Ronny Metro and, after Andy interrupted Ronny’s in-ring address earlier in the evening, their feud was reignited in a one-on-one confrontation that saw both push the rulebook as far as it could go without causing themselves to lose via disqualification, but right when Andy seemed to have Ronny right where he wanted him, Ronny decided that enough was enough and, instead of seeing the match through to a definitive conclusion, took a count out over having to face more offense from Andy. While he may have won the match, Andy was furious that he could not see the match through and finish Ronny off the way he had intended.
PPW WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH –
SEM SEI (W/ “EL MERO MERO” INIESTRA) DEF. “THE WORLD EXCLUSIVE” MATT VINE (C) BY WAY OF DISQUALIFICATION
Finally back on throne of PPW for a record-setting fourth time, “The World Exclusive” Matt Vine stepped up to his first challenger, Sem Sei who had survived both the Something-to-Prove tournament on Friday night and the #1 contenders tournament to get to the main event of PPW #196, of course with help from Iniestra who accompanied him to the ring for the occasion. Despite having already competed, Sem delivered a barrage of offense against Matt and this coupled with outside interference from Iniestra behind the referee’s back on numerous occasions throughout the match had Matt fighting uphill for the majority of the contest, but when Iniestra got on the apron to once again distract the referee, Matt reached his breaking point, grabbed ahold of Iniestra, and pulled him over the top rope and into the ring. This momentary lapse in judgment lead to the referee calling for the bell and issuing a disqualification against Matt. Despite still being PPW Champion, Matt was outraged by the outcome and immediately demanded a match against Iniestra this coming Saturday at #PPW197 — a demand that was quickly granted by the Premier head office.
We here at PPW would like to send out a heartfelt thanks to everyone who came out to Woodstock this past Friday and Saturday for our first ever back-to-back studio taping and would like to invite all to come and witness the fallout from this milestone weekend this Saturday at #PPW197.
BUY TICKETS for #PPW197 SATURDAY, May 19th, 7:30pm belltime, 1230 Davis Road in Woodstock, IL.