GPW: "Crazy Cruiser8" 2013 / Nov 29 / Wigan

[Forrest]

Really like the graphics, they give yourself an individual look, which is really important in British Wrestling because I can't tell most of these companies apart.

 

Best of luck with the show!

[chunk3rvd]

Good show so far. Bubblegum looked the best I've seen since his return and great to see Jack Gallagher back in action. Quick first half results:

 

Zack Gibson b. Kris Travis

Joey Hayes b. Jim Nastic

El Ligero b. Dylan Roberts

Jack Gallagher b. Bubblegum

 

Hoping Gallagher and Ligero can put a classic together in the 2nd half!

 

Edit - 2nd half results:

 

Zack Gibson b. Joey Hayes

El Ligero b. Jack Gallagher

Cyanide, DDL & Bin Man b. T-Bone,

El Ligero b. Zack Gibson to win Crazy Cruiser 2013

 

Good stories told through the night with Ligero hurting his arm with the winning splash in the first match. He then fought through the next 2 matches with both Gallagher and Gibson destroying his injured limb. Lots of interference in the main event lead to a popular and satisfying win for Ligero

 

Good night all round although the crowd was a little flat. Couldn't help but feel that the Infinite crowd would have responded a lot more to the show and matches. Everyone appeared to be talking amongst themselves all night although they all came alive for the last 2 matches

 

Been getting well into the north west scene lately after falling out of touch with UK indies for a few years. PCW and HXC are next on my list!

[Big Benny HG]

GPW 'Crazy Cruiser 8' - 29 November 2013

 

So, last Friday was the final GPW show of 2013. It also therefore marked the last show on my ‘Golden Ticket’ that I’d won at last show of 2012, granting me free entry into all 2013 GPW events. I should also point out that after a raffle hot streak going back years in multiple promotions, I’ve not won a single damn thing since that Golden Ticket at the end of last year. It’s also kinda typical that given I’d won a ticket to every 2013 show, 2013 would be the first year in quite a few that I’d have to miss a couple of GPW events (one clashed with the Dragon Gate UK tour; the other was while I was away on holiday). Cursed, I tells ye…

 

Once inside, the crowd looked to be back up to the level of some of the higher attended 2013 show, after couple of slow months recently. Probably somewhere in the region of 300. The gimmick for this show was that it was to feature the fourth-ever ‘Crazy Cruiser 8’ tournament, an eight-man one-night single elimination tournament they have held once every few years as a showcase event. Given that the last show ended with the dark moment of top anti-GPW heel faction The Cause continuing their 2013 dominance by beating everyone and winning the GPW Heavyweight Title, the ‘Crazy Cruiser 8’ special (usually a highlight of the promotion for actual in-ring quality) was therefore a perfect season-ender.

 

We knew the identity of the 8 tournament entrants, given that they have all been either revealed, selected or won qualifying matches over the second half of the year, but the individual matches and brackets were not revealed until they hit the ring. The show started with the traditional group photos with all 8 participants, only for the moment to be interrupted by The Cause. Leader Dave Rayne verbally ran down each of the entrants (except Bubblegum, who I presume he forgot) and how they none of them have actually accomplished anything. He then ‘bigged up’ The Cause’s sole entrant, Zack Gibson, and how his victory tonight will not be about individual success but will be “For… The… Cause!!”.

 

CC8 Quarter-Final: Zack Gibson beat Kris Travis by submission to the arm-lock Nigel McGuinness used to call the ‘London Dungeon’. Travis was an obvious candidate for an early exit given he was advertised to appear on the Revolution Pro bill in Castleford later the same night. I suppose there wouldn’t be many in Hindley that would know that, though. This was a good, solid opener but I felt it was probably not representative of the potential quality of match these two could and probably will have against each other some day. That says more about the talents of the individuals on display than this match, though, since there was absolutely nothing wrong with it and it was a decent bout to kick things off. **3/4.

 

CC8 Quarter-Final: Joey Hayes beat Jim Nastic by submission to a crossface. This was another good one, with Nastic given the every opportunity to look competitive against an established top guy. Joey really made it seem like he was having to dig deep and work hard to beat him. They are trying their best to make Nastic, and it has to be said that the kid’s got something. Watch for a breakout 2014. **3/4.

 

CC8 Quarter-Final: El Ligero beat Dylan Roberts with top rope splash. It’s not so long back since these two were mortal enemies (remember the El Oscuro angle), but this one wasn’t really fought like that, to the point it was only mid-match that I even remembered their history. Dylan continues to look decent, and shows strides in character development every time. That menacing glare on his face when he eyeballs members of the audience is pretty terrifying. In what was the start of a fabulous show-long story, on hitting his winning move Ligero appeared to re-hurt the arm injured by The Cause a few months ago. **1/2.

 

CC8 Quarter-Final: Jack Gallagher pinned Bubblegum with his feet on the ropes after Bubblegum missed a shooting star press. Bubblegum got a massive beloved reaction for his return, and fed off that support with a superb performance. I’d almost forgot Gallagher is still a heel here, and shouted down anyone who tried to cheer for him. It’s a great gimmick that he is a Gotch-esque super-shooter with all these technical skills, but in the end resorts to cheap tactics to get the win. Love his style, he’s the closest we have to a Minoru Suzuki. I thought this was great. ***.

 

With the opening round out of the way, it was interval time. After a year out in the cold, guess who won the raffle?? That’s right. 2 tickets to next show (7 Feb) are mine. So, the run of free tickets to GPW extends into 2014. Will I ever have to pay to attend a GPW event again??

 

CC8 Semi-Final: Zack Gibson beat Joey Hayes when the bizarre Noah distracted Hayes, much to the bewilderment of The Cause at ringside. The look on Rayne’s face was like “WTF? Huh, we’ll take that!!” Very, very quick match, this. Like Gibson’s match with Trav earlier, this was nowhere near the level you feel these two have the potential to produce against each other. **1/2.

 

CC8 Semi-Final: El Ligero beat Jack Gallagher with top rope splash. Ligs came out with his injured arm all bandaged up, creating a target for Gallagher to systematically target throughout match. This was a tremendous match, full of detail and great story. Ligero survived the sustained assault on his arm, took advantage of his openings and got the win. Loved it. ***1/2.

 

Non-Tournament Match: Dangerous Toxic Waste (Damon Leigh, Cyanide & Ste ‘Bin’ Mann) beat T-Bone & Double Denim (Mickey Barnes & Drill) with a big Cyanide splash on Drill. Fantastic fun this, coming at the perfect time for the crowd who were eager to eat up something different to the tournament singles matches. Huge characters drew everyone in and the crowd was more vocal during this than it had been at any other time of night to this point. I’ve quickly become a fan of the Barnes/Drill Bad Lads double act – they are perfect mouthy baddies you love to hate. I’m pretty certain all the “Mickey Wears A Blouse” abuse is going to stick. Non-stop entertainment from start to finish – the type of multi-man match GPW pulls off so well. ***1/4

 

CC8 Final: El Ligero bt Zack Gibson with a jack-knife pin to win 2013 CC8. Ligero was attacked by Cause on way to ring (Axl Rage was hiding behind curtain waiting for him) but bravely elected to fight on. Incredible drama, with the crowd at fever pitch throughout. There was a ref bump, leading to a visual pin. Rayne ended up in the ring, but accidentally hit Gibson with the title belt instead of his intended target. GPW babyfaces all came out to fight off The Cause, leaving Ligero one-on-one with Gibson in the ring to pick up the victory. Huge genuine pop for Ligero’s win. Hayes and Bubblegum came back out to celebrate with Ligero, creating a brilliant feel-good end to year. This was the first time The Cause has been beaten in GPW, and it really came over as the massive moment it should have been. ***1/2.

 

And that was that. A terrific year-end. I’ll likely do a ‘Year in Review’ piece in the coming weeks, picking out my favourite 2013 GPW shows, matches and other moments, but anyone wanting to check out what the GPW product is all about wouldn’t do wrong in picking this one up. Stories, characters, gimmicks, drama and massive fun made for a top night’s entertainment.

 

As I mentioned, GPW goes into it’s winter break now, but will be back with the new season on Friday 7 February, then 7 more shows over the course of 2014.