On one of LPW’s greatest nights, the crowd filled the South Edmonton Common Rec Room to the rafters in one of the most anticipated cards in the promotion’s history. Besides “Speedball” Mike Bailey headlining the show against “God’s Gift to Wrestling” Michael Richard Blais, LPW 19 featured eight matches with some swerves thrown in, causing a ripple effect up and down the roster.
Whether you watched the action in person or followed the show online, here’s a recap of how everything unfolded in what would be one of the rowdiest nights of all time.
Travis Williams Wins LPW Challenge Championship From Son of Irish
LPW 19 opened with a championship bout, where Travis Williams squared off against Son of Irish for the Challenge Championship. At first, the match was slow-paced, with the two testing each other with various holds, allowing Williams to work on Son of Irish’s shoulder. Eventually, the two combined for the first “holy shit” moment of the night when Son of Irish dove over the top rope, landing on Williams a few rows into the crowd.
After the two exchanged pin attempts, Williams kept holding Son of Irish down, focusing on his shoulder, trying to weaken his opponent. Then, the action picked up again with several near falls before Williams pulled a reversal on a roll-up, flipping Son of Irish on his back, clutching his tights for the pinfall, and capturing the Challenge Championship.
Se7en and The RADz Battle to No Contest, Set up Special Stipulation Match at LPW 20
As always with big events, the Se7en came out in full force, with TJ Cannon and Marz the Specialist, taking on the Lumberjack Larry Woods and Rich King from the RADz. Even though the contest didn’t have a finish, the action in and out of the ring and the aftermath led to one of the more entertaining bouts of the night.
After the opening bell, Marz took most of the beating, including several spots of double teamwork from the RADz. Eventually, the tide turned in favor of the Se7en, but Cannon spent as much time engaging with the rowdy crowd instead of remaining focused on keeping the momentum on his side. Soon, all four competitors were in the ring, and chaos ensued. After a low blow by Marz, the two faction managers got involved in the action, forcing referee Stewart Garvey to call for the bell.
Considering how quickly the situation got out of hand, LPW’s fearless leader, Spencer Love, had to come out and calm things down, laying down a challenge for LPW 20 in November. Ultimately, RADz manager Judge Ben Oomen will choose a team member, while Thaddeus Archer the Third will do the same, and the two factions will battle again. However, the loser of the match will never be able to manage in LPW again.
Jared Rogers Scores Surprise Win Over El Asesino
In one of the shortest matches of the night, Jared Rogers scored a surprise win over El Asesino, who made the trip to Edmonton from Mexico. However, Rogers didn’t stand a chance since Asesino attacked him before the opening bell, pouncing on the local kid with no remorse.
As Asesino tossed his opponent around, his cockiness got the best of him when Rogers secured a surprise roll-up pin for the victory, sending the masked man into a rage. Eventually, security had to come out to the ring to break up the beatdown, but at that point, it didn’t matter because the record book would always read Rogers with the win.
Ty Jackson Secures RADz Championship Bid Beating Reid Matthews
In one of the most anticipated matches of the evening, Ty Jackson took care of business, earning a pinfall victory over “The Thickness” Reid Matthews, securing a championship shot for The RADz. Immediately after the bell rang, Jackson hoped on the attack, throwing a series of punches at an unsuspecting Matthews. Shortly after, he rolled outside, but Jackson kept the offense coming with a back flip over the ropes, sending Matthews to the concrete floor amongst the fans.
Surprisingly, once the two returned to the ring, Matthews had all the momentum, with Jackson eventually thrown to the floor outside. Although they reengage in the crowd, Jackson managed to land a kick from the top rope, resulting in both competitors staying down for a six count.
As expected, LPW Grand Champion Zoë Sager came out, and her first order of business was to untie the top turnbuckle to assist Matthews in getting the win. However, with the referee Garvey’s back turn, she tossed the title to Matthews, but Jackson intercepted it, and the whole incident sent the crowd into a frenzy.
Instead of using the belt as a weapon, he threw the title at Matthews and dropped to the mat, holding his face, just in time for Garvey to catch the tail end of the situation. Instead of calling for a disqualification, the match continued with Jackson attempting a roll-up pin that failed, then climbed to the top rope one final time to execute the Swanton Bomb, earning his stable a title shot despite the foiled interference attempts by Sager.
Jack Pride Retains Scramble Championship in Chaotic Fashion
Despite the lineup for the Scramble Championship changing before the start of the bout, “The Man of Two Minds” Jack Pride managed to walk away with his title thanks to a wild finish that ranks amongst the best moments of the night. In the beginning, Pride stood face to face with Dean Richtor, and the two tried to showcase their strength by beating up on Wolfboy Will Mantla and Riley Cruz. Eventually, Richor got tossed out of the ring, leaving Pride alone for several moments to take a double-team beat down.
After regaining his position as the alpha wrestler in the match, Richtor took everyone out, executing a head butt from the top rope. Although he wasn’t done just yet, tossing Mantla for three suplexes before throwing caution to the wind with a dive on Pride on the outside. Then, seemingly moments away from winning the bout, Richor set himself up for another diving head butt from the other side of the ring, only to catch the double knees of Pride, who slide back into the ring. Despite missing the head butt from Richor, Cruz took the pin from Pride, who stole the moment to retain his title yet again.
Para Lira Remain Tag Team Champions in Stunning Fashion
Although the tag team championship bout didn’t have a clean finish, there was plenty of action between the team of Taryn From Accounting and Steven Crowe (Ride or Die) battling Berat Gorani and Sheik Shabaz (Para Lira). Before the opening bell, Crowe got attacked by Gorani in the crowd, feet away from the commentary table, allowing Shabaz to take out an unsuspecting Taryn inside the ring.
Eventually, referee Garvey got everyone back to ringside, where Para Lira doubled team their opponents for long stretches of the match. Once Crowe returned to his corner, he tagged in the match, getting momentum for Ride or Die. Although Taryn returned to the action, Berat and Shabaz, sporting a golden bowtie for the match, continued dominating the contest.
However, just when Crowe was about to put the match away with a few slaps and kicks when he got Berat down for the pin, Shabaz kicked Garvey, forcing the referee to call for the disqualification, handing the win to Ride or Die. Ultimately, because titles don’t change hands on a disqualification, Para Lira continues to reign as tag team champions despite their attempts to avoid defeat in this match.
Zoë Sager Keeps Finding Unusual Ways to Keep Her Grand Championship
Anyone attending an LPW show usually brings signs that read something about Sager being a cheater. Although she can win a match cleanly, lately, she keeps retaining her Grand Championship with the assistance of a person or object. Unfortunately, it was no different on Friday night at LPW 19.
In one of the night’s best matches, in front of an anti-Zoë crowd, the champion lived to fight another day after spending the first few minutes held down in various holds by challenger Judas Icarus. Besides looking vulnerable at times, Sager took control of the match after Matthews interfered with a hold along the ropes. However, things slowed down again with Icarus keeping Sager tied up in holds and on the mat, far away from her bodyguard lurking outside.
Hilariously, after another attempt to get involved, Matthews got thrown out, leaving Sager alone to defend her championship. Immediately, Icarus capitalized on his opportunity and tossed the champion around the ring, connecting on a series of chops in each corner before laying her out with a spear. Ultimately, the crowd erupted into “this is awesome” chants as Sager grabbed her title belt and attempted to cheat, even failing to land a low blow.
Instead of taking a hit, Sager grabbed referee Mike “The Fitz” Fitzpatrick in her place, forcing Icarus to back off from the collision. While Fitzpatrick turned away, thanking the wrestling gods for not taking the bump, Sager hit Icarus with the belt, collecting the one-two-three seconds later.
The RADz Shock the Wrestling World
Immediately after the bell, the RADz came through the curtains to celebrate Jackson’s win and to discuss the upcoming title match with Sager. However, when Judge Ben Ooman read the contract for the match, it wasn’t Jackson’s name on the dotted line, but Lumberjack Larry Woods.
Although there was a lot of confusion and frustration, Woods gave a passionate promo about all his errors over the months and how this title opportunity is a way to make up for the past. Even though Jackson lost his chance for gold, he supported Woods’ attempt to fix the situation and gave him his full support.
Michael Richard Blais and “Speedball” Mike Bailey Tear Down the House in the Main Event
One of the most anticipated and talked about matches in LPW history occurred in the main event, with Impact’s “Speedball” Mike Bailey taking on Michael Richard Blais. Ultimately, anyone who watched this match online would never really appreciate how fast-paced the contest was; something only felt being feet away from the ring.
In front of a sold-out crowd, Blais and Bailey tore down the house with countless breathtaking moves. Whether it was the two combatants trading blows, chops, or kicks, ultimately, you’d miss something if you blinked or looked at your phone. Whether the match was inside the ropes or amongst the fans in the rows or stairs, there was one “holy shit” chant and three “this is awesome” chants.
One of the most brutal spots of the match took place with MRB tossing Bailey into the ring apron in what looked like the most painful move of the night. Surprisingly, Bailey was on the verge of being counted out when MRB interrupted the count at nine and begged for the match to continue. Eventually, the pair engaged in a series of chops, including some in the back, which ended when Bailey kicked MRB from behind.
Once again, they engaged in a series of kicks before a double suplex put men on the mat for another lengthy count. Then, in the highlight of the night, Bailey dove off the top rope, sending the crowd into another “this is awesome” chant before MRB took a double knee on the apron. Surprisingly, after both competitors pushed each other to their limits, with MRB going coast to coast once, then surviving a 360 splash, he got Bailey to tap with the Dungeon Lock.
Upcoming LPW Events
After a historic night in front of professional wrestling’s best fans, LPW announced their next show, on October 27, LPW 20 Planet Slammet, Janet. As mentioned, there’s only one confirmed match for the event, with Sager defending her Grand Championship against Woods in one of the night’s biggest contests.
As always, you can find all the latest news about LPW events by following them on social media at @LoveWrestlingCA and attending shows by buying your tickets in the links below. Also, season tickets will be on sale soon, so if you are not witnessing history in person, you are missing out.
