GCW’S THE COLLECTIVE RESULTS: Heydorn’s report on For The Culture featuring AJ Gray vs. Dezmond Xavier, ACH vs. Lee Moriarty, JTG vs. Trey Miguel, and more

GCW’S THE COLLECTIVE RESULTS
FOR THE CULTURE
OCTOBER 9, 2020
AIRED LIVE ON FITE TV FROM INDIANAPOLIS, IN

The show opened with a pumped up crowd cheering as Mike Outlaw, Mo Atlas, Zayne Washington, and Timmy Lou Retton stood in the ring. From there, AC Mack entered the ring unexpectedly and demanded he join the first match to make it a fatal five-way. He then started swinging and the match was on.

(1) AC MACK vs. MIKE OUTLAW vs. MO ATLAS vs. ZAYNE WASHINGTON vs. TIMMY LOU RETTON

Mack’s opening punch got the ball rolling right out of the gate. It was fast and furious from that point on with each competitor having a moment of offense on the others. The finish saw Mack connected with Mack 10. Retton then tried to secure momentum, but was crushed with Outlaw’s Yakuza Kick and covered for the 1,2,3 win.

WINNER: Outlaw via pinfall

Heydorn’s Analysis: Ouch. That Yakuza Kick looked like it hurt. An action packed opener and a tone setter in every sense. Some really smooth moves and unique spots, but ultimately the spots drove the ship. This did what it was supposed to do and got the crowd going.  

(2) TREY MIGUEL vs. JTG

Before the bell rang, Miguel attacked JTG and both men brawled around the outside of the ring. Miguel connected with a sliding DDT from the ring to the floor to get momentum. From there, both men battled into the ring and everything officially began. JTG took over early, but Miguel battled back and worked to slow down the pace. He was precise with his strikes and got to JTG, but it wasn’t enough to fully slow him down. Eventually, JTG took the momentum back with some high impact maneuvers. Miguel worked to gain control back with some kicks in the corner, but JTG halted that too. In the end, JTG hit Brooklyn’s Edge and made the cover for the 1,2,3 win.

WINNER: JTG via pinfall

Heydorn’s Analysis: Really good stuff all around. Fun to see JTG outside of the WWE environment and he certainly brought intensity to the match. The Brooklyn’s Edge is a very unique finish and put a definitive end on this. That cadence felt right. Miguel showcased his moves, but some small slides in the middle of his offense conveyed the sense that he was performing and not fighting.

(3) 40 ACRES vs. TOP FLIGHT vs. CULTURE SZN

Top Flight showed off their flight skills to start the match. They connected with some signature high flying and controlled the very early part of the match. Tre Lamar then took and took control with offense. He maintained the momentum for his team until the spot of the match occurred. There, PB Smooth worked over Tasha Steelz. When it looked like he was about to toss her out of the ring, she was caught and thrown back at him. She manipulated that throw into a hurricanrana and launched Smooth out of the ring. From there, the action continued and Lamar found himself with the upper hand again. He worked with PB Smooth to connect with a choke slam into a neckbreaker before covering for a two count. Out of the pin, Top Flight finally slowed Lamar by hitting him with a missile dropkick off of the top rope. That momentum was short-lived as 40 Acres hit the ring together and connected with a massive sit down powerbomb before making the cover for the 1,2,3 win.

WINNER: 40 Acres via pinfall

Heydorn’s Analysis: This was one of those car wreck tag team matches. Trust me, I say that as a compliment. The action was complete madness. Yes, you couldn’t quickly tell who the legal men were, but the action was mesmerizing. The unique spot with Smooth and Steelz was a blast and though the big spots were clearly setup and almost TOO setup, it worked as the crowd ate it all up. 

(4) SUGE D vs. TRISH ADORA – Pan-Afrikan World Wrestling Championship

Once the bell rang and official introductions were made, the match began. Trish took over early with holds and parlayed that into a pin attempt for a one count. From there, Adora controlled with an arm lock out of the pin. Eventually, she launched Suge out of the ring and taunted him before welcoming him back into the ring as the crowd cheered. Eventually Suge punched her in the gut and slowed her momentum. He looked concerned at first, but then dramatically kicked her in the face. From there, Suge took over and connected with a snap vertical suplex. He followed that with an aggressive shoulder submission. The audience clapped for Adora to break out. From there, both competitors exchanged offense back and forth. Adora fired up with some stiff chops and Suge countered them into another shoulder submission. Adora broke free and immediately connected with her Lariat Tubman. She covered, but Suge kicked out at two. After, Adora hit a second Lariat Tubman and followed with a crossface submission for the win.

WINNER: Adora via submission

Heydorn’s Analysis: Generally speaking, I’m not a fan of inter-gender wrestling matches and this match fell in line with that opinion. Adora has an incredible amount of charisma, but I never felt that she could win this even though the direction of the match told you she would. Suge D sold nicely for Adora and genuinely seemed happy to be working with her. Adora’s Lariat Tubman is a thing of beauty and the most memorable part of the match. 

(5) O’SHAY EDWARDS vs. CALVIN TANKMAN

Both men circled each other to start things off. They then went into the test of strength early that Tankman won. From there, Edwards and Tankman exchanged connected shoulder tackles as the crowd cheered. On the last one, Tankman was able to knock Edwards out of the ring. Calvin owned the momentum from there and kept up offense. He tried for a standing shooting star press, but Edwards rolled out of the way and took control. Edwards hit a large series of moves before lifting Tankman on his shoulders for a move. Calvin countered into a suplex and followed that right away with a running elbow to the face. Edwards no-sold the move which popped the crowd, but Tankman hit him with his Tiger Driver and then covered for the 1,2,3 win.

WINNER: Tankman via pinfall

Heydorn’s Analysis: Really good match. Not many have thrived professionally in 2020 due to the pandemic. Calvin Tankman has. Not only has he improved, but he regularly has some of the best matches on the shows he is wrestling on. This was no different. Both big men told their story of big men with Tankman leaving that stratosphere and connecting with high risk and high impact stuff along the way. It was hard hitting and aggressive, but didn’t overstay its welcome. Tankman has an “it” factor. He looks the part, is convincing in the ring, and displays a passion for this that is easily felt. The sky is the limit for Tankman and this was as showcase match for him.

(6) WILLOW NIGHTENGALE vs. FAYE JACKSON vs. MARTI BELLE vs. DEVON MONROE

Once the bell rang, the fight was on. Each competitor exchanged offense throughout. The action spilled to the outside of the ring early on. Jackson took advantage and connected with a flipping suicide dive off of the ring apron. From there, Belle connected with a regular suicide dive underneath the low rope. Eventually, the action spilled back into the ring and there, Monroe got some high spots in. The finish saw all four competitors taking turns hitting each other with strikes. Nightengale then connected with a powerbomb on Monroe before covering for the 1,2,3 win.

WINNER: Nightengale via pinfall

Heydorn’s Analysis: A bit sloppy at times, but fine for what it was supposed to be on the card. Monroe was impressive throughout and connected with crisp high-flying stuff throughout the match. The finish in which all four competitors took turns striking each other was a little too cute and contrived for my liking, but given the crowd response, I was in the minority.

(7) DEZMOND XAVIER vs. AJ GRAY

Right out of the gate, both men established their story as power vs. speed. Gray tried for his power moves and Xavier attempted to thwart those with his speed. They were each successful and unsuccessful. Xavier hit some nice hurricanranas, but a moonsault spot fell apart when Xavier slipped a bit on the rope and Gray missed the catch. After, Gray took over and his power dominated in the match. In the end, Gray connected with his lariat and covered, but Xavier kicked out. Out of the pin, Xavier hit his finisher, but Gray kicked out of that. Finally, Gray hit his clothesline lariat for the second time and covered for the 1,2,3 win.

WINNER: Gray via pinfall

Heydorn’s Analysis: It’s shocking to me that Gray hasn’t signed on with a major promotion yet. He exudes charisma and delivers regularly. This match was very good. The speed vs. power narrative throughout was a well told story that Gray and Xavier both sold properly. They paced everything out nicely so as to boil the audience right at the end for the finishers and kickouts. Man, you could feel those Gray clotheslines through the TV. Ouch.

(8) LEE MORIARTY vs. ACH

The match started out slowly, but increased in pace throughout. Neither Moriarty or ACH had consistent momentum throughout as the upper hand was passed back and forth as the match went on. ACH sold an arm injury throughout the match due to a submission on the part of Moriarty. Eventually, Moriarty connected with the Hammerlock Slam on the ring apron. The move was the culmination of a staredown that both men had while sitting on the ring apron that conveyed exhaustion. After that, ACH hit a Brainbuster in the ring and covered, but Moriarty kicked out. ACH tried for a 450 splash, but Moriarty rolled out of the way and rolled ACH up into a pin for the 1,2,3 win.

WINNER: Moriarty via pinfall

Heydorn’s Analysis: Really good stuff. Both men had tremendous chemistry which played nicely with the narrative of the match being Moriarty trying to respectfully take down his mentor in ACH. All of the moves were smooth and they put on a clinic in terms of how to pace a match properly. The Hammerlock Slam on the ring apron was dangerous, but gave the match some added intensity. Moriarty is a guy to watch. Only a matter of time before he hits the big time in some fashion or another. 

(9) AR FOX vs. 2 COLD SCORPIO

A much slower pace than the other matches on the show, but a really good showcase of history. Fox and Scorpio worked really hard to tell a good story and took some dramatic risks to send the crowd home happy in the main event. In the end, Fox connected with a 450 Splash and made the cover for the 1,2,3 win.

WINNER: Fox via pinfall

Heydorn’s Analysis: As veterans of the game, this match made sense to anchor the main event slot on the show even if it wasn’t the best match on the card. Both guys looked crisp and the end result was a serviceable main event.

FINAL THOUGHTS: For The Culture was a straightforward wrestling show all the way through. It featured a mixture of styles and shined a bright light on key African American talent on the independent wrestling circuit. Match of the night goes to Gray vs. Xavier with Moriarty vs. ACH not too far behind.