SSW #75 - 'King of the Ring: West Regional Round 1 (Maui, Hawaii)

AND



PRESENT . . .



THE WEST REGIONAL – ROUND 1
Live from the Lahaina Civic Center in Maui, Hawaii

We get a shot of the tranquil Hawaiian islands that bursts into action shots of UWF stars as the King of the Ring promo airs.  We go inside the arena, where Nicole Scherzinger of the Pussycat Dolls sings the National Anthem and it is time to kick off the opening round of the King of the Ring!!!!  We go to the podium with the HIP announce crew of Lord James Blears and Scott Hudson, who point out the King of the Ring throne and crown, which are on display nearby.  Tonight, history is made as the King of the Ring tournament gets underway.  64 men, 10 territories across the United States, but only one man will earn the right to be called King and receive the World title match at Wrestlemania!!!!  In addition, we have 2 big UWF world title matches as the Women’s world title and the World tag titles will be on the line!!!!  The music hits, and we are ready for our first contest.

First Round: Match 1

(1) Curt Hennig
vs.
(16) Bob Armstrong

Good chain wrestling by both men to start the match off.  Hennig goes to work on the neck of Armstrong, who withstands the punishment and mounts a furious comeback.  In the end, the top seed is too much for Armstrong though, and he catches him with a  Perfect Plex for an impressive 3 count.  

Round 1: Match 2

( Brayden Walker
vs.
(9) Matt Morgan

Walker is not intimidated in the least by the size of Morgan.  Both men try to use their power early, but Walker’s slight speed advantage allows him to strike early.  Morgan is able to withstand it though, and he connects with the carbon footprint out of nowhere.  Walker kicks out of the pin, but is never really the same after that.  Morgan is able to finish Walker off with the ‘Hell-evator’ and get the 3 count to advance.  

Break

Round 1: Match 3

(5) Samoa Joe
vs.
(12) Adrian Adonis

Adonis attacks Joe at the bell and tries to end the match early.  Joe withstands the sleeper hold, but Adonis blocks a muscle buster attempt.  Joe ends up knocking Adonis silly with the sick running drop kick, then traps him in the Coquina Clutch to get the tap out victory.  Joe moves on.  

Round 1: Match 4

(4) Bruiser Brody
vs.
(13) ‘Dr. Death’ Steve Williams

Maybe the most violent match of the night as far as sheer brutality.  These two men tear into each other, trading heavy blows and stiff shots.  The action spills outside, where Doc hits the power slam on Brody on the concrete floor.  He tosses him back in and covers, but Brody kicks out.  Doc goes for the 3 point stance and tackle, but Brody meets him with a big boot.  A power bomb by Brody gets a 2 count, but then he hits a diving high knee from the 2nd rope that is enough for him to hold Doc down for the 1 . . . 2 . . . 3.  

Break

IN THE BACK: Matt Morgan confronts Curt Hennig, the man that he will face in the 2nd round of the King of the Ring.  Hennig appears to be intimidated by Morgan.

UWF Women’s World title

(Champion) Trish Stratus
vs.
Cindy Rogers

The match started out as a stalemate with neither lady getting the advantage. That changed when Cindy charged at Trish, Trish moved, and Cindy ended up with her left shoulder hitting the steel post. Trish worked on the arm and shoulder for several minutes using moves and holds concentrating on that area. Cindy mounted a comeback and things started to get heated between the two. Cindy responded with forearm shots while Trish returned the favor by delivering some knife edge chops. Trish whipped Cindy into the turnbuckles and charged. Cindy lifted up her feet and caught Trish in the chin. Cindy then grounded Trish with a hard clothesline. Cindy then started to work on the champ's back with suplexes and backbreakers. After near falls back and forth, Trish went for the Chick Kick. Cindy ducked and went behind Trish and applied TCB. Trish struggled to get to the ropes and her right leg just managed to hang over the bottom rope and the ref broke the submission hold. Cindy attempted to apply TCB again, but Trish drove Cindy back-first into the turnbuckles. Cindy staggered out of the corner and Trish went for another Chick Kick. However Cindy caught the foot and spun her around but Trish rebounded with an enzugiri that hit its mark. She quickly executed Stratus Faction getting the three count.

Rogers and Trish shake hands and the crowd cheers for the local favorite who gave it her all.

Break

Round 1: Match 5

(3) Raven
vs.
(14) Rhino

Another brutal match sees Raven come out and demand that this match be contested under ‘Raven’s rules’.  Rhino is quick to oblige him, and the brawling begins.  Raven hits the drop toehold into the chair spot, but Rhino kicks out.  Rhino ‘Gore’s Raven through the ropes to the floor, then tries to get tables from under the ring.  Rhino misses a Gore attempt in the corner and crashes through a table, allowing Raven to hit the Evenflow DDT to score the pinfall.

Samoa Joe comes to the podium and cuts a promo about facing Bruiser Brody in the 2nd round.

Round 1: match 6

(6) Cactus Jack
vs.
(11) Taz

Jack goes nuts as this one starts, attacking Taz and fighting all over the arena.  The ref lets the action go, and Taz ends up hitting a German suplex on the floor on Cactus!!!!  They fight back to the ring and Jack blocks the attempt at the Taz-mission, tumbling backwards through the ropes and sends both men crashing to the floor.  Jack lands on top of Taz, knocking the wind out of him, then goes to the apron and hits the diving elbow drop.  Jack rolls Taz back in the ring and gets the 3 count.    

Break

Round 1: Match 7

(7) Jushin Liger
vs.
(10) Homicide

An amazing match that sees both men pull out all the stops and take each other to the limit.  There are several moments where it looks like either man could win, but it is Liger that comes out on top, pinning Homicide after 2 consecutive Liger Bombs.

Liger comes to the podium and talks about how tough of an opponent that Homicide was.  He is eagerly anticipating the next matchup to see who he will face.

Round 1: Match 8

(2) CM Punk
vs.
(15) Kenta

This match rivals the Williams-Brody match in terms of sheer brutality, as Kenta and Punk beat the hell out of each other with kicks and chops.  By the end of the match, Punk’s chest is red from Kenta’s vicious kicks, while Kenta’s chest has been busted open due to stiff chops from Punk.  Kenta goes for the GTS late in the match, but Punk is able to counter it and land on his feet.  Punk locks in the Anaconda Vice and traps Kenta in the center of the ring, forcing him to finally tap out after fighting the move for several minutes.  

Liger is still at ringside and he and Punk have a staredown.  Liger bows to Punk, who bows in return as a show of respect.

Break

Main Event: 3 way dance for the UWF World tag team titles

(Champions) Nigel McGuiness & Bryan Danielson
vs.
The Polynesian Connection
Vs.
The Blonde Bombers

The champions took the lead early keeping their challengers at bay by setting the tone of the match with heavy offense. Daniels was able to technically outwrestle his more brawling type opponents. The Polynesian Connection was then able to offset this with the power of the High Chief Peter Maivia. As strong as Nigel McGuinness is for his size, Maivia's size matches the man's power and may even exceed it. The Bombers then manged to take charge by using every dirty, illegal trick in their arsenal to get any kind of edge they could. After a blind tag to Neff Maiava, the Polynesian Connection came extremely close to pinning the Blonde Bombers. However, Nigel came in to break up the pin since the champs can lose the world tag team titles even if they are not the ones to be pinned or submit. The match then became a total free for all with all the wrestlers in the ring at the same time. During the chaos Ray "The Crippler" Stevens came off the tope rope and landed on the throat of Nigel McGuinness with the Bombs Away Knee Drop. And quickly went for the pin. The ref counted one...two...and Neff Maivia came off the top rope with a flying headbutt to the back of the head of Stevens and covered him for the pin. Pat Patterson broke up the count at 2 3/4. The High Chief then threw Patterson over the top rope to the floor. Bryan Danielson then dropkicked Peter Maivia over the top rope. Danielson then climbed to the top rope and did a suicide dive to the arena floor taking out Patterson and Maivia on the concrete floor. Stevens charged at Neff and got backdropped over the top rope for his troubles. Neff turned around to deal with a charging Nigel and shoulder blocked him into the ropes. On the rebound off the ropes Nigel connected with a jawbreaker lariat that brutally knocked Neff off his feet long enough for Nigel to get the three count and retain the world tag team titles for his team.

As Danielson and McGuiness celebrate with the UWF World tag team titles, Mike and Joe recap tonight’s action and preview the 2nd round of the West bracket of the King of the Ring.  

Curt Hennig vs. Matt Morgan
Raven vs. Cactus Jack
CM Punk vs. Jushin Liger
Samoa Joe vs. Bruiser Brody