GWF Light Heavyweight World Cup

7th April, 2018 – Huxley’s Neue Welt, Berlin, Germany

While the eyes of the world were pointed towards New Orleans at the 500,000 wrestling shows that were going on this past weekend, there was still a fairly big show going on over here in Europe – with Germany’s second largest promotion holding the inaugural Light Heavyweight World Cup tournament in die Hauptstadt. Much like Revolution Pro’s British J Cup last summer, this competition consists of four opening round matches of which the winner of each goes on to the final – a elimination four-way dance in order to be crowned champion.

Light Heavyweight World Cup First Round Match: Angelico vs. Oliver Carter

The first match of the evening saw the two African representatives in the tournament face each other with Angelico representing South Africa and Carter representing Ghana by the way of Switzerland. Carter spent much of the early stages of the match working Angelico’s shoulder before it descended into the usual suicide dive madness. Carter has come a long long way since I last saw him for Rev Pro at the start of 2017 and he is more than capable of matching Angelico for the whole match.

Carter nearly got the win after a few minutes when he pulled off one of the finest Lionsaults I’ve ever seen, likewise Angelico goes close after a double foot stomp off the top. However, it was all over for the Ghanaian after he was struck by one of Angelico’s famed knee strikes, which was followed by the crucifix bomb into the corner for the win.

Light Heavyweight World Cup First Round Match: Jody Fleisch vs. Tarkan Aslan

Our next bout saw “The Lion King” Tarkan Aslan take on one of 2017’s biggest comeback artists in Jody Fleisch. From the opening bell this match went at 100mph, with Aslan knocked out of the ring early which was then met by Fleisch performing a picture perfect Asai Moonsault to the outside. The Berlin crowd were more in to this match than the opener – with the audience duelling with “Tarkan Aslan” “Jody Fleisch” chants. Aslan began to get the upper hand on the Englishman when he started targeting the left knee of Fleisch, slowing the pace of the match down. Whether the “injury” is legit or not, this was a great chance for Aslan to play to one of his biggest strengths – he can play the asshole perfectly and I think this has perhaps been lost a bit when he’s been dialled back in RISE.

After recovering, Fleisch gained a little bit of steam, doing the usual hurricanrana from the top spot for a near fall. Fleisch would then go on an attempt the 720 DDT but this was reversed by Aslan who put him down with a Death Valley Driver. In the end, Fleisch lived up to his English roots by being knocked out before the final by a German.

Light Heavyweight World Cup First Round Match: Kenny Williams vs. Kris Jokic

Scotland took on Croatia in the penultimate first round match – a match I was quite excited for having got really into Jokic at the WrestlingKULT and #WrestlingDeutschland show over Carat weekend.

After a little bit of heel work from Kenny – Jokic seemed to have it all wrapped up when he hit the stunning cartwheel Death Valley Driver, which he then attempted (and failed) to follow with a corkscrew dive from the middle turnbuckle. Kenny dodged this and smashed the Croatian lad with a devastating knee strike which was enough for the three count.

The crowd didn’t seem to be that into this match at all – but at least it was a short one.

Light Heavyweight World Cup First Round Match: Senza Volto vs. Tucker

Volto’s entrance before this match is certainly one to behold – he comes out of the smoke with all these green lasers pointing out of his hands and he gets a huge ovation. Senza Volto is one of the most ‘indy-rific’ luchadors I’ve ever seen but he always seems to get a great reaction whenever I’ve seen him. Likewise, Tucker looks great and also gets a good reaction from the Berlin crowd – especially when the overly enthusiastic ring announcer reminds everyone that he was in the WWE UK tournament.

What followed was a really fun match which went to a fast pace from bell to bell. Tucker went for a more guttural style, going in with strong elbows and bombs while Volto went for the usual flippy spots. There was a really awkward moment where Volto rolled up Tucker for a pin but instead of kicking out Tucker just slightly rolls Volto onto his shoulders to break the pin. If I was the referee I would’ve started counting Volto as his shoulders were down but nevermind. After this weird bit, Volto hit a Shooting Star Press on the Ulsterman and became the last finalist.

Mystery Mayhem Envelope Three Way Match: Dover vs. Lucky Kid vs. Pascal Spalter

Our first non-tournament match is the intriguing Mystery Mayhem match – which is (from my understanding) a match where the winner receives one of three envelopes that will be contested for this evening – one of which contains an opportunity for a title match in the future. What is in the other envelopes is unclear.

First out is Dover – better known as the other half of the Arrows of Hungary with Icarus – who is an absolute beast. After him is Pascal Spalter – who is an absolute asshole. He’s the sort of guy who looks like he would sympathise with Andy after Tag League 2017. Deplorable human. Spalter grabs the mic and is about as popular as crotch rot.

In contrast, one of European wrestling’s purest (yet misguided) bois Lucky Kid gets a great reaction – one lady in the front row has a high pitched scream for his entire entrance – definitely the favourite for the Berlin crowd.

Much of the early stages of the match saw Spalter and Dover pummel each other in a real hoss fight, occasionally pausing to paste Lucky Kid when he dares to interject into the melee. Dover gets sent to the outside and Spalter begins to pound on Lucky more – but the tables are turned when Lucky hits Spalter with a thunderous sit down Powerbomb. Both men are down and out before Lucky shoots up onto his feet to a great reaction. Kid attempts the full nelson on Spalter, who backs the Young Lion into the corner before getting splashed himself by Dover. The two big lads go back at it again but Spalter gets the upper hand again when he targets the right knee of Dover – which temporarily sends the Hungarian out of the match. As Dover is being helped on the outside, a hooded figure slinks into the ring and spears Spalter, before confronting the dazed Lucky who stops dead in his tracks when he sees who it is. The man drops Lucky with a wicked double knee breaker before revealing himself to the audience.

Just over a week removed from his dismissal from wXw, Bad Bones John Klinger has apparently jumped ship to Berlin in a completely unexpected move. This is some Monday Night Wars shit and I am living for it. Klinger stands for a moment and soaks up the ovation he gets from the Huxley’s crowd before leaving the destruction in the ring. Very intriguing.

Seizing the opportunity, Dover stumbles into the ring and attempts to sweep up the fallen Kid but his attempt is thwarted when Kid goes for a schoolboy pin – which the Hungarian kicks out of. Kid goes for the powerbomb on Dover but the big man is too powerful – lifting Lucky onto his shoulders for his Hungarian Wanderer bomb for the win.

The crows aren’t quite sure what to make of the result as Bones remained on the stage during the closing moments, giving a wry smile at the win. Dover is presented with the Mystery Envelope – which he doesn’t open. Still not entirely sure what is going on with this.

We cut to a vignette and Bones is seen walking backstage when he’s stopped by Davey, the matchmaker of GWF. Davey asks him why he attacked Lucky Kid and Spalter – to which Klinger explains he wanted to make a big statement in GWF – a company he has always wanted to work for. He derides the fact that he has brought Lucky Kid into every promotion he has gone to but Kid didn’t do anything to get Bones into GWF when only one call would have been enough to get him here. He explained his attack on Spalter as being the best way to make a mark on GWF, taking out a three time World Champion.

GWF Tag Team Title Four Way Match:
Cash Money Mafia (Cash Money Erkan & Murat AK) ©  vs. Grup Anarşi (Abdul Kenan & Aytac Bahar) vs. Icarus & Orlando Silver vs. Muskelkater (Michael Schenkenberg & Toni Harting)

After the completely barmy nature of the previous segment, it was time for the show to settle back down with a Four Way tag title match. Matches like these are always great ways to show off the depth in your roster on bigger shows and it was exciting to get a look at some other teams on the German scene. I’m slightly familiar with Die Muskelkater having seen them live at the WrestlingKULT does Carat show last month as well as having seen a little bit of Toni Harting when he was a protege of Nero Consulting in mid-2017. They look like a million Euro.

Orlando Silver was this time without his regular International Impact partner Ahmed Chaer, with the Egyptian being taken out by Rambo and Crazy Sexy Mike at a recent show. Chaer’s replacement was the incredibly popular Hungarian superstar Icarus – whether we’ll be seeing him join the International Impact is yet to be seen.

Predictably, this match is a bit of a hot mess due to the varying styles of each team – but this doesn’t mean the match is bad, it’s just that you have to watch the match carefully to get what is going on. Grup Anarşi and Cash Money Mafia seem to be working together in the early stages as the two heel teams against the other more popular teams. A particularly cool spot is when Erkan takes out a stack of Cash Money Dollars (there’s another novelty wrestling note to add to the collection) and stuffs a load of them into Icarus’s mouth before crushing the Hungarian’s head with a knee drop – causing Icarus to sit up and spit them out in a daze.

In the end, it’s Die Muskelkater alone in the ring with Cash Money Erkan – but Erkan is able to fight off Harting with a superkick. Schenkenberg gets Erkan onto his shoulders but this move is blocked by Murat AK pulls Erkan to the ground. Murat grabs Schenkenberg and lifts him onto his shoulders, where Erkan superkicks the Muskelkater to the ground for the pin. Cash Money Mafia retain. A fun match that’s hard to describe in a blow-for-blow fashion because so much happened – but worth a look.

Mystery Mayhem Envelope Match: Benji vs. Rambo (Special Referee: Crazy Sexy Mike)

Dark Society Vol. 2 make their way to the ring and Crazy Sexy Mike grabs the microphone, explaining that his partner Rambo has his Mystery Mayhem match up next and as Mike has been made the special matchmaker for the evening (I missed that earlier)  – he has selected a special opponent for him. The music of the “Persian Wunderkind” Arash hits and he makes his way across the stage. However, he’s ambushed from behind and giraffe fetishist Benji throws him off the ramp to a huge applause. Once he makes his way into the ring, the Dark Society begin mocking him and tell the referee to leave the ring.

Now, this would be a great opportunity for an upset win for Benji – but this didn’t happen. After Benji flexed in Rambo’s face, Rambo pushed Benji into an elbow from Mike which was immediately followed by a cutter from Rambo. The world’s fastest count from Mike gave Rambo the victory and the second Mystery Mayhem envelope. All over in less than 30 seconds.

Mystery Mayhem Envelope Match: Benji vs. Crazy Sexy Mike (Special Referee: Rambo)

Mike sarcastically congratulates the fallen Benji and says that he did well and is deserving of another opportunity for an envelope – and luckily he has another envelope on offer. Mike says he has another opponent – so Benji turns to the stage where inevitably Mike’s entrance video plays. Mike grabs Benji from behind but the youngster smart enough to roll over Mike into armbar. Rambo breaks the hold and the pair begin piling on Benji – but he isn’t out yet.

Benji manages to fight back against his much bigger opponent, dropping him with a springboard clothesline that appears to have put Mike down for good. Benji goes for the cover but the crooked Rambo slowly gets down to his knees for a one count. Benji is on a roll – but Rambo sweeps the legs out from under him, allowing Mike to lock in an inverted figure four leg lock which is enough for the youngster to tap out. Mike wins the final Mystery envelope.

Light Heavyweight World Cup Final Four Way Elimination Match: 

Angelico vs. Kenny Williams vs. Senza Volto vs. Tarkan Aslan

After all of the madness, it was time for the final of the World Cup. Aslan’s entrance is even longer and more obnoxious as it was in the first round but it’s okay because his theme is such a bop.

The match begins and three of the four men extend their hands out for a test of strength, but Aslan is having none of it. After a little bit of convincing, Aslan walks towards the three and links with Williams but then immediately pummels Senza with a kick to the midsection and then swats Kenny with a swift elbow. The match then finally kicks into gear. Volto and Williams start brawling on the outside, while Aslan and Angelico start going at it – with the action spilling out of the ring and onto the stage near the podium that had been set up for the winner. Aslan looked like he was about to suplex Angelico onto the podium – but this was initially blocked by the South African – who in turn attempted the same maneuver. However, Aslan then blocks this reversal and drops Angelico onto the wooden floor – putting Angelico out of action for a moment.

The action refocuses to Williams and Volto who are trading strikes at ringside just as Aslan runs down and clears Volto to the floor. This is met by a dive from Williams which sends all three men tumbling down. The brawl moves into the crowd to a corner of the arena by the stage with just enough space for the three gentlemen and the accompanying security detail.

Yep, Angelico dives off the stage and clears all of them. Brilliant stuff. Eventually all four men return to the ring and Kenny starts cleaning house. He smacks Aslan with the same knee that put Jokic away earlier but the Scotsman is too fatigued to make the pin. Both men recover and Williams lays two running elbows into Aslan who is propped into the corner. On the third attempt Aslan dodges it and rolls up Kenny for the 1-2-3, albeit with his feet on the middle rope.

Aslan refocuses on Senza Volto now and nearly pins the Frenchman as well – with Volto kicking out at 2.999999. This shocks Aslan who starts gesticulating at the referee. Angelico runs in to attempt the Death Valley Driver on Aslan – who struggles out of it and cowers in the corner. Angelico runs in and gets caught by Aslan who attempts the same pin that eliminated Williams just minutes before – however the referee is wise to this and refuses to count. Aslan starts arguing with the referee again and then is smacked by Angelico’s knee. The crucifix powerbomb is enough to put Aslan away.

Now there were two – and Angelico is looking tired. A suplex attempt from Angelico is reversed into a ace crusher by the much more spritely Volto who then goes for a reverse springboard from the second rope. Angelico catches him and tries for his so far unbeatable crucifix powerbomb to the corner. Volto has other ideas and reverses this into a hurricanrana and the crowd goes absolutely ballistic. Volto manages to successfully hit the springboard cutter and it seems like he’s only a shooting star press away from being the first Light Heavyweight World Cup winner. Tragically, he misses when the South African moves out of the way, leaving Angelico enough time to strike Senza with the crucifix bomb. Angelico wins the Light Heavyweight World Cup. There are a few boos in the crowd as I think Senza Volto was the much more popular choice in the venue – however Angelico is definitely a deserving champion.

Having had a diet of German wrestling that mainly consisted of Mr. Jakobi’s tasting menu – the decision to catch a GWF show for the first time was definitely a smart decision. This tournament, although happening for the first time, felt like a big deal and there were a few different presentation styles that GWF did in this show which were interesting choices – the use of a Formula 1 style podium to crown the winner at the end for example set this apart from other similar tournaments I’ve seen in the past. All in all, I would wholeheartedly recommend this show if you’ve been curious about this promotion in the past and I’m very much looking forward to catching more of GWF in the future.

✏️@MikeKilby

BUT WAIT – there’s more!

Minutes after this article was published, I received a message from @WeAreGWF (follow them, they’re really nice) explaining a few things which I didn’t understand from the show:

•  Crazy Sexy Mike is the matchmaker but isn’t allowed to make his or Rambo’s matches because he lost this right at the last show
• Davey is the vice president and is responsible for setting up the roster for each show (Mike creates the matches from that, except his own + Rambos, Davey is deciding them from May)
• The envelopes (5 of them) are opened next month at Mystery Mayhem (May 5th, 2018). It’s an annual show, where each envelope equals a title opportunity. But beware of the Loserweight Title opportunity, you don’t want that 😉
• Orlando Silver is Mexican 😀

There we go – serves me right for not paying enough attention during my German classes!

You can watch the GWF Light Heavyweight World Cup on GWF’s on demand service with German commentary now, with English commentary coming soon.

🇩🇪http://wearegwf.com/gwf-light-heavyweight-world-cup-2018/