Missouri Wrestling Revival

By Kari Williams

In House Springs, Mo, with an attendance of 87, Lethal Wrestling Alliance witnessed IWA-Mid South Heavyweight Champion Dingo make a bold statement regarding his title, the reuniting of the Ego Express after a nearly six month separation and much more.

LWA President Luke Roberts MC’d the show because he gave Paul Parker and Graham Wellington the night off. Roberts called out the Submission Squad, who had a few things to clear up after their actions at the last show. Pierre Abernathy claimed that he does not like Adam Raw and that the only thing they have in common is their love for the LWA. He compared their respective involvements with the company to two men loving one woman, but she can only choose one. Abernathy vowed to rid LWA of Raw.

The next point Evan Gelistico, Gary the Nightowl and Abernathy made was to make an example out of “Spitfire” Davey Vega, who shook Dingo’s hand after their match in New Athens, IL. Vega was unceremoniously removed from the Submission Squad for that act. Chaos ensued moments after Gary began attacking Vega; Dash Rando and Rebelucha came to Vega’s aid.

Rando and Rebelucha cleared the ring, and prepared to start the first match. Abernathy and Gelistico barely stood a chance with the momentum Rando and Rebelucha had going for them. Although they have not been tagging together all that long, the luchadore-duo has found a niche in LWA as one of the top tag teams.

Rebelucha goes airborne to take out Pierre Abernathy and Evan Gelistico. Photo by Kari Williams

Nonetheless, the Submission Squad grounded, and did considerable damage to, their opponents. With the crowd rallying behind them, Rando and Rebelucha worked their way back from defeat to get the win—with a little help from Vega, who laid in pain at ringside for the entire match. During the winning pinning predicament, Vega held Gelistico’s feet for added leverage.

“Irresistibly Flawless” Brandon Aarons addressed the fans next, complaining about why his absence from the main event with his reasoning for deserving a title shot being because of his looks. Aarons went on to boast about both Mike Sydal and “Thee” Brandon Espinosa being in the PWI 500, enraging the fans. He could not even finish what he wanted to say because the fans were too loud, so he stormed off in disgust.

“Future” Donovan Ruddick made quick work of Super Electro. Ruddick had a plan to destroy his opponent, and that he did. Electro barely got in any offense, as he could not match Ruddick’s tenacity or brute strength.

"Future" Donovan Ruddick manhandles Super Electro. Photo by Kari Williams

Even with the fans willing Electro on, nothing helped. Future’s domination would not relent, and he easily secured victory. After the match, Ruddick claimed that he will take back the LWA Heavyweight Championship, no matter who he has to go through.

Gary the Nightowl, with Tiffani LaFane, took on Dingo prior to intermission. Before the contest began, Dingo stated that as the IWA-Mid South Heavyweight Champion, he will continue to defend the belt every time he wrestles, despite the company folding.

Dingo and Gary the Nightowl went through a hellacious battle for Dingo's IWA Mid-South Championship. Photo by Kari Williams

Gary and Dingo went through a battle for Dingo’s championship, much to the delight of the fans—even the hard-to-impress super fans. Dingo’s technical, yet high-flying style meshed perfectly with Gary’s newly acquired viciousness. Pinning combinations and near-falls galore accompanied this stand-out bout. Dingo retained his belt, but not without effort—it took nearly all of Dingo’s signature moves and a piledriver to put Gary away.

The Medallion of Pain was put on the line, as Gorgeous Jordan and Adam Raw wrestled. Raw took the fight straight to Jordan, who—because of his recent actions—would lose the medallion if he was disqualified or counted out.

Adam Raw attempts to wear down Gorgeous Jordan in their battle for Jordan's Medallion of Pain. Photo by Kari Williams

The two appeared to match each other in strength, but Jordan gained the early advantage and targeted Raw’s arm for the majority of the bout. Raw pushed on, though, and all but had Jordan beat. On so many occasions, it looked as though Raw had pulled off the upset, but Jordan would not relent. Lacey’s persistence and never-say-die attitude propelled him toward victory.

Vega and Sydal competed in the following contest for Vega’s Medallion of Torment. Despite the beating he took earlier in the evening, Vega wrestled excellently against Evan Bourne’s brother. These two men put on, arguably, one of the best matches of the night.

Mike Sydal takes on "Spitfire" Davey Vega in an attempt to wrestle the Medallion of Torment from Vega. Photo by Kari Williams

Hold for hold, they took each other to the limit, in order to force the other to tap out. Sydal capitalized on Vega’s previously obtained injuries, getting the advantage for a good portion of the bout. Unfortunately for Sydal, submission finishes have become Vega’s forte. Spitfire forced Sydal to tap to the triangle choke after misguided interference on Aarons’ behalf.

The main event of the evening saw the Ego Express (K.C. Karrington and “Spoiled” Steven Kennedy) reunite for the first time in almost six months against Mark Sterling and Jeremy Wyatt. Kennedy and Wyatt started off the match, with neither man gaining the clear advantage. As the battle progressed, Wyatt and Sterling slowly began to dominate the Egos.

"Spoiled" Steven Kennedy delivers a devastating DDT to Mark Sterling as he tries to take the advantage. Photo by Kari Williams

At one point Sterling and Wyatt had Karrington completely cut off from Kennedy. Once Karrington made his way back to Kennedy, the tide began to turn. Both sides had their moments of near victory, but Wyatt and Sterling kept a subtle advantage. In the closing moments, multiple double teams took place for both teams, but Wyatt got the pin on Kennedy after double-team DDTs with Sterling.

LWA’s next show bring them back to House Springs, MO where they will celebrate their six year anniversary.