Thom Latimer has been a steady worker and a great fighting champion in the National Wrestling Alliance. Whoever steps in the ring with The King of All Evil, he manages to find a way to come out with his hand raised and still wear the Ten Pounds of Gold. On this episode of NWA POWERRR, he faces a tough test in El Dragon Nihan from Puerto Rico.
Can Latimer slay the dragon and still be the NWA World Heavyweight champion heading into NWA 77?
We come to you from the PowerrrStation at the WEDU PBS studios in Tampa, FL. Joe Galli, William Patrick Corgan, and Danny Dealz have the call, and your First Match of the Night is…
Mike Mondo and Slade (with Aron Stevens) vs. The Lost (Alex Misery and Lev, with Father James Mitchell)
It looks like Stevens is now in their corner, and even the commentary noted that Rolando, who was absent, has been managing Slade as part of The Spectaculars up until recently.
Interesting times, indeed.
As the match gets underway, Mondo utilizes his power on Misery, who seems to be enjoying the abuse. Mondo makes the beatings hurt a little more, and after a tag to Slade, they double axe handle him in the chest. Slade misses a knee drop, and Misery comes back with an almost botched springboard crossbody for a two count. He climbs up top for a high-risk maneuver, and he fends off Mondo, but can’t stop Slade pushing him off the top rope as he crashes and burns to the mat. He covers Misery for a two-count, and they double-team him for an atomic drop to a bulldog. Mondo keeps beating down Misery, who looks Lost and in Peril. A full Nelson suplex by Slade, but it’s still a near fall. Misery comes back with a springboard cutter that connects, and he crawls to the corner. A Hot tag to Lev, who is not Lost but is a house on fire, and he takes down a Mondo with an STO for a count of two. As the match breaks down, Mondo gives Misery a Busaiku knee to knock him out of the ring. Lev goes for the rollup, but Mondo kicks out and delivers a gut check for the pin and the win.
Your Winners via Pinfall: Slade and Mike Mondo
If this pairing of Stevens with Mondo and Slade is going to be permanent, I am curious what that means for the tag division in the NWA, let alone his current clients in Blunt Force Trauma.
Kylie Paige talks to the Attorney handling the estate of Mr. Bleer, and he’s aware of who she is. She asks when she’ll receive the inheritance, but he advises that because she was not in attendance last week, she was disqualified. However, the Attorney points out that her family (Tommy Henry and Kenzie Paige) is still in the running. She seeks his legal advice on the inheritance, but he can’t address it. She’d need to talk to her family, he counsels, and Kylie asks if there’s anything in the papers he could look over. He’s amenable to that, and you can smell the drama that is a brewing’.
Again, this is better than reality TV, and I will die on that hill.
Now for your next match between…
Kerry Morton vs. Dillon McQueen
It’s been a while since McQueen was in an NWA ring. For those of you new to this wrestler, he’s been trained by QT Marshall and Cody Rhodes, I assume, with The Nightmare Factory. He apparently has been spending time wrestling with various members of Kross Fire Wrestling, including teaming with Kenzie Paige.
Morton showboats a bit before getting to business. McQueen then gives him an old school rope walk before slapping the taste out of his mouth, and now I’m understanding why McQueen” sometimes goes by the moniker “The Gaytriarch (look it up, kids).”
A headscissors in the corner, followed by a drop toe hold to Morton on the middle ropes, and he adds a knee drop to his face. Morton rolls out, and McQueen hits the ropes for a suicide dive, and Morton catches him with a punch before he heads out. He gives a suplex to McQueen on the floor, and then a frog splash to cover, and pulls him up at two. The Rizz God isn’t done having fun with McQueen as Morton picks him apart and adds a little Garvin Stomp to his prone opponent. He shoots him to the ropes, and McQueen attempts a sunset flip, but can’t get Morton to rotate, and he pins him for another count of two. Morton cinches a guillotine-style choke, but McQueen powers through and nails him with a suplex. He stages a comeback until Morton counters with a neckbreaker. As he goes up the top turnbuckle, McQueen knocks him off balance and nails a top rope flatliner for a near fall. He picks him up in a fireman’s carry, but Morton rakes the eyes and gives a forearm to the back of his head that rocks McQueen. A Kiss It Goodbye finds the mark, and he covers, but Morton pulls him back up because he wants to make an example out of him. A fishhook to a Showstopper now ends this mercifully.
Your Winner via Pinfall: Kerry Morton
Now for a short match with big repercussions, it is…
Eric Smalls vs. Trevor Murdoch
We learn that this match stipulates that one of the NWA World Tag Team champions will be incapacitated at ringside to ensure this will be a true one-on-one matchup. Knox agrees to be handcuffed (or zip tied in this case) at ringside to keep things “fair.”
Murdoch is not taking this too seriously, and he gets on his knees to lock up with Smalls. He shoves him off, and Captain Badass takes his time putting the boots to Smalls in the corner. He gives him a bulldog and then goes up top for his flying bulldog finisher. Smalls moves in the nick of time as Murdoch finds no water in the pool, and that allows the Half Pint Punk to give him a kick to the uprights that scores the field goal. Smalls follows with an SME (Smallest Moonsault Ever) and gets a two count. He hits the ropes, and Knox gives him a forearm to the back. He thumbs his eye, and Murdoch uses the distraction to make him eat a boot before delivering a sliding clothesline for the three count.
Your Winner via Pinfall: Trevor Murdoch
Morton cuts a promo and says he wins like he always does, like he did with McQueen earlier tonight. What’s on his mind is NWA 77, and while his Southern Six member, like Alex Taylor will face Rich Swann for the NWA Junior Heavyweight title, and “Thrillbilly” Silas Mason wants a shot at the Ten Pounds of Gold, Morton calls out Hammerstone. He claims Your Boy Hammer is not close to lacing his boots, and the Rizz God he wants to show that in New York.
Corino discusses the comments Stevens made last week about being in his father’s shadow and how he’s always had to prove he is more than just a second-generation wrestler. Also, he feels like he needs to put Carson Drake in his place, and NWA 77 may be the time The Prince of Old School proves that point.
Meanwhile, at the BitCrush, Tiffany Nieves sees Dr. Viktor (or Vic) arrive, and he wasn’t prepared for her friends in TVMA like Ms. Starr and Valentina Rossi. He explains he has a vision for her, which includes the NWA Women’s World Championship, but it requires a one-on-one session. Nieves is down for it, to the surprise of Ms.Starr.
I’m curious what those sessions might even look like, or how badly this will violate doctor-patient relations.
But let’s head back to the squared circle as your next match is…
Damian Fenrir vs. Nick Swift
Fenrir is no stranger to the NWA, and neither is Swift. The Tampa regular has a nice fanbase cheering him on as the match gets started, and Fenrir shows off his power. Swift realizes his speed will be the difference maker as “Slick” Nic Swift goes for a backslide for a two count, along with a series of near falls. He nails a kneebreaker to his face, and Swift quickly locks in a guillotine choke. Fenrir powers out and goes for a suplex, but Swift wiggles out and shoves him into the corner. He rushes for a splash, but Fenrir flips over him, hits a boot to the face, and then follows with a flipping slingshot lariat for a cover of two. Chops in the corner and a snap suplex to Swift, and Fenrir punctuates with a running elbow drop. Swift rallies, and as he gets on the top rope, Fenrir nails a dropkick to make him lose his balance and drop. A sitting crucifix powerbomb from the corner by Fenrir spells the end for Swift
Your Winner via Pinfall: Damian Fenrir
Latimer claims he is a Fighting Champion and tells the camera they will find out why he is the best in the NWA as he prepares for his match.
Also, “Thrillbilly” Silas Mason says the longer Latimer ignores him, the worse it’s gonna get. Mason demands at NWA 77 that Latimer put up the Ten Pounds of Gold on the line, and that he prove to everyone the streak on his back isn’t yellow.
Strong words from “Big Daddy Thrill.”
Now it’s time for the Main Event, and it is for the…
NWA World Heavyweight Championship: Thom Latimer(c) vs. El Dragón Nihan
For those of you not familiar with El Dragón Nihan, this 13-year veteran is a 6’9”, 350 lbs powerhouse from Puerto Rico. Mostly, he has wrestled for the World Wrestling Council (WWC), the same promotion that Carlos Colón and Victor Jovica founded. He proclaims to be, “El Fuego que Todo lo Consume (which means, “The Fire that Consume Everything”).”
The bell rings, and you see the size difference between the 6’3″ Latimer and El Dragón. They lock up, and neither man will go down to shoulder tackles. Latimer fires with European uppercuts, and he whips Dragón to the ropes, where the big guy hits the brakes. Dragón backs him in the corner and gives the champ a knee to the midsection. He continues to pummel Latimer in the corner before whipping him hard to the opposite end. Latimer comes firing back with a clothesline and a spinning heel kick, and he lifts the 300-pounder to a body slam in the center of the ring. An elbow drop later, and he covers Dragón for a two count. In the corner, Latimer mounts with punches, and then he nails a belly to back suplex for another two count. Another suplex attempt, but Dragón reverses with his own vertical suplex and gets a near fall. Latimer with uppercuts, and he escapes a choke slam, but can’t avoid the big boot by Dragón. The big man connects with a leg drop and gets another two count, and he attempts to follow with a splash, but Latimer gets his knees up just in time. He gives Dragón an Ace Crusher stunner, followed by a DDT, and he still can’t slay the Dragón. A body slam by Dragón to the champ, and he climbs to the top turnbuckle. Latimer scouts it, and he delivers the Side of Suffering powerbomb to extinguish El Fuego que Todo lo Consume in one, two, and three.
Your Winner, and Still NWA World Heavyweight Champion
As Latimer celebrates with the Ten Pounds of Gold, The Southern Six run out to jump Latimer. Corino and Luke Curtis run out for the save and to even the odds. Then the entire roster spills out, devolving into complete chaos as we prepare for NWA 77 coming up next week, so we will see you then.
