About 24 hours ahead of LPW 20: Planet Slammet, Janet, the stars of Clandestine Wrestling Society (CWS), and Love Pro Wrestling (LPW) took to the mat at the South Edmonton Common Rec Room with the opening rounds of the Tournament for Salvation. Although the general public was unaware of the prize at the finale in November, the fans who ventured out in the snow were treated to some entertaining bouts, with the finalists determined in less than two hours of action.
Even though a handful of these tournament matches were short affairs, there were many developing storylines during the show, so without further ado, let’s get to the highlights.
Taryn From Accounting punches her ticket to the semi-finals, beating Berat Gorani
Two familiar foes, Berat Gorani and Taryn From Accounting, faced off against one another in the night’s first match. After the opening bell, each competitor got in some offensive moves and pinfalls before Gorani took control of the match, nailing Taryn with everything in his arsenal. Eventually, Taryn did her best John Cena impression for Halloween, finally ending Gorani’s attacks in a quick turnaround, nailing the Number Cruncher to advance to the semi-finals.
Marz the Specialist showcases his resiliency in edging Sheik Shabaz in quarter-final action
In the night’s second bout, Marz the Specialist took on Gorani’s tag team partner, Sheik Shabaz, in another tournament matchup. Once the two superstars locked up in the ring, Marz landed the show’s first highlight reel move when he clotheslined Shabaz out of the ring and then dove through the ropes, landing in the front row. Despite being on the wrong end of the move, Shabaz seemed energized upon returning to the ring, taking the fight to Marz, who didn’t have any answers.
At one point, it appeared to be curtains for Marz, who took a missile drop kick from the top rope but found the strength to hit a running knee that Shabaz barely kicked out at two and a half. Ultimately, with momentum seemingly on his opponent’s side, Marz tried to use the tag team championship as a weapon, only to land a low blow instead to secure the pinfall and pass through to the semi-finals.
Jared Rogers upsets Scramble Champion Jack Pride in an entertaining contest
Jared Rogers continues to carve out his legacy at LPW with a massive win over Scramble Champion Jack Pride, who came to the ring looking upset and holding a set of keys for some reason. Of course, Pride attempted to use the keys without rhyme or reason to attack Rogers, who was in the mood for a wrestling match, not a street fight. Eventually, referee Stuart Garvey managed to get things under control, which was when Rogers landed a handful of offensive attacks, leaving Pride looking for answers.
Although he was distracted, Pride had no response to Roger’s relentless attack, which included another spot in the crowd with the underdog nailing a kick through the ropes. As Pride turned his attention back to the keys, he left himself vulnerable for a small package roll-up, resulting in a three count and Rogers earning a spot in the final four. Even though it was confusing to follow Pride’s motives, there’s no denying Rogers his moment as he earned his spot with a solid offensive attack.
Steven Crowe advances in the tournament with a win over Wolfboy Will Mantla
As one of the brightest stars in CWS, Steven Crowe advanced to the semi-finals after eliminating Wolfboy Will Mantla in a short match with plenty of action. Immediately following the opening bell, Crowe took the fight to Mantla, who didn’t counter much and found himself kicking out of several pinfall attempts. Even though he spent more time defending than attacking, anytime Mantla managed to get some moves in, they were enough to throw Crowe off his game. Although each competitor landed significant blows to one another, Crowe picked up the victory off a counter, landing him in a coveted semi-final matchup against Rodgers.
Grand Champion Zoë Sager, with Reid Matthews, talk smack to the RADz
The wrestling world will tune into the main event featuring Grand Champion Zoë Sager and Lumberjack Larry Woods on Friday night at LPW 20. However, a night before the epic showdown, the two competitors met in a tag team match after Sager came out to mock Woods for being a loser most of his career. Although no one from the RADz, including Woods himself, came out to tear the mic out of the champion’s hand, she talked about how their upcoming match would be another failure in his career, and eventually, the RADz would realize they couldn’t beat her.
The RADz lose a critical tag team match ahead of a championship showdown on Friday night
As expected, TY Jackson and Sager started the tag team match, engaging in some quick maneuvers before Woods tagged in, forcing Sager to abandon her attack. Despite everyone in attendance waiting for a preview of Friday’s night main event, Sager immediately tagged Reid Matthews, and he suffered a heavy beatdown, which included several double team spots. Eventually, Jackson and Sager met again, with the champion trying to cheat (again).
However, their interactions were short-lived, with Woods and Matthews tagging back in and executing some great sequences before everyone got involved in the match. By the end, Jackson got Matthews down in a pin, but before the referee’s hand could reach three, he broke the pin with a low blow. As Jackson tried to regain his barrings, Matthews rolled him up for a pinfall, leaving the RADz to walk away empty-handed just 24 hours before the faction’s biggest match to date.
Crowe secures his spot in the tournament final with a pinfall victory over Rogers
Earlier in the night, Crowe and Rogers picked up wins to advance to the Tournament of Salvation semi-finals. During their second night match, the pair didn’t waste anything mounting an offensive attack against one another, with each landing damaging blows to begin the contest. Although he could have been deemed an underdog for the second straight contest, Rogers kept knocking Crowe down with countless moves, but The Rhinestone Cowboy wouldn’t stay down. After a suplex from the top rope, Crowe landed a decisive blow to Rogers’ campaign to be in the tournament finale, securing a three count to become the first wrestler to advance to the finals.
Nothing is more certain than death, taxes, and Taryn From Accounting in the Finals
As the first challenger who came to the ring for the match, Taryn From Accounting was not expecting a sneak attack from Marz the Specialist, who ran in from the crowd to nail Taryn from behind before the bell even rang. Although she had time to compose herself, Marz launched a relentless assault, keeping Taryn down without any opportunities to mount an attack until several minutes into the contest.
Eventually, the tide turned, and Marz found himself in trouble when Taryn began to counter his moves and flipped the script on the cocky guy already thinking about winning the tournament instead of focusing on his current challenge. Although he landed the match’s best move with a toss from the top rope, both competitors eventually went down for a lengthy count after a double clothesline. Upon returning to their feet, Taryn had Marz right where she wanted him, landing her finisher for the second time on the night to punch her ticket to the all-CWS finals.
God’s Gift to Wrestling and CWS Founder Michael Richard Blais introduces the Champion of Salvation belt
According to social media, hours before LPW x CWS 8 went live, CWS Founder Michael Richard Blais announced that he would be in the crowd watching the Tournament of Salvation and would eventually tell everyone what the winner would receive at the next event. After a passionate speech about all the performers of CWS and the partnership with LPW, Blais unveiled the Champion of Salvation title belt, which will be awarded to the tournament winner and defended at upcoming CWS events. Additionally, the belt can be cashed in for an LPW title shot, and a new champion can again be crowned through a tournament format. As fate would have it, two of CWS’s top stars, Taryn From Accounting and Steven Crowe, will battle to become the promotion’s first-ever champion in November.
Upcoming LPW Events
Although it is cold outside and getting to events takes a little longer due to road conditions, LPW is still moving forward at full speed, hosting a Rocky Horror Picture Show theme event on Friday, Oct. 27, 2023, at 7:00 pm at the Rec Room in South Edmonton Common. As mentioned, the main event will feature LPW’s top prize, but with six other exciting matches on the card, there’s no telling what could happen in one of the promotion’s biggest shows of the year. Whether you are watching from your couch or attending in person, don’t miss a chance to watch the best professional wrestling show in Alberta.
Check out the preview for LPW 20: Planet Slammet, Janet here.
