GRWR #4

Five random matches in the fourth installment of Geo's Random Wrestling Review~!

Tyler Black vs. Steve Corino - ROH Buffalo Stampede 2 6/18/10 - 3

I wouldn't know what to think if I would've paid for a ticket to the show and saw the main event being Steve Corino vs. Tyler Black non-title match -- probably would've felt like this was an omen for the rest of the show. Tyler actually surprised me when he started selling the knee after his 'flippy thing' where he irish whips a guy into the ropes and then does a backflip. The knee would come back into play as Corino kept going after it. Corino can't go as much as he could 10+ years ago, but his stalling and psychology is still there which made the match an interesting watch and not as bad as I thought it would've been. Finish kind of fell flat, but I really can't complain. Corino's performance was decent.

Ikuto Hidaka vs. Ryuji Sai - Z-1 7.28.06 - 5

Fun matchup in the Fire Festival featuring two of my faves. Match started off with some great mat-work that quickly fed into some stiff kick exchanges. Sai was selling the leg after missing a kick on the outside when Hidaka was leaning against the post, which Hidaka exploited with a sweet variation on an roll-through ankle lock. Hidaka was getting his midsection worked over by Sai who completely destroyed his abdomen with consecutive double-stomps. Loved Hidaka's hunched over, out-of-breath selling of the abs. Fun matchup that went about 10 mins.

Delirious vs. Andy Ridge - Pro Wrestling Respect 3/14/10 - 4

Ok, Andy Ridge's selling in this match was intense and awesome for someone with so little exposure. Delirious put Ridge in a half crab leading to Ridge screaming for his life. Really good kicks by Ridge as well.I felt like the crowd didn't know who to cheer for -- the young, up-and-comer, or the experienced veteran. Overall, the match went about 15 mins and saw some great selling by Ridge.

John Morrison vs. Chris Jericho WWE Raw 9/6/10 - 5

Really good for a Raw match. I enjoyed the pairing of Jericho and Morrison. I was shocked to see the bump that Morrison took to the outside -- a flat back bump from over the top rope. The thing that REALLY shocked me was that they were on commercial when they did it. Jericho's methodical style of picking apart Morrison's body was great, and Morrison's selling of the knee was a nice touch to feed into the walls. Impressive Starship Pain by Morrison while situated on the top rope as well. Fun little match.

Johnny B. Badd vs. Steve Austin - WCW Slamboree '94 - 4

I've loved Marc Mero on the Superstars that we've collectively been watching, and Austin's squashes vary from fun to boring, so I figured this would be a good choice. I loved the matwork here. It's great to see Austin working a real ground-based style, countering Mero's moves. Mero's 'uncomfortable' selling while being in holds was great, as were some of the basic bumps Austin was taking. A really slowly built match based on the mat really built up the audience and primed them for the rest of the night.