Scot Summers retains NWA Texas Championship after brawl in Cypress
by: Phillip Barnard, Houston Pro Wrestling Examiner
If you could've packed one more person into the Cypress VFW this past Friday night, the building probably would've exploded. The sound alone would've put most large stadiums on notice. That could only mean that NWA Houston was back on the scene for the "Valentine's Vengeance" event.
In the opening match, Dave Duperon faced former NWA Lone Star Junior Heavyweight Champion Bolt Brady. In the opening minutes, Brady was very quick with a series of chain wrestling maneuvers, but Duperon was ready with counters of his own. Duperon would quickly get into rhythm and would be nearly unstoppable. Brady would get back into the contest briefly, and even make his way to the top rope. But Duperon used the referee to his advantage, shoving him into the ropes and causing Brady to land awkwardly on the top rope. Once Brady crumbled to the mat, Duperon moved in for the kill. He locked Brady in a Cobra Clutch and took him to the mat for the submission. Brady was left with no choice but to tap out and Duperon picks up the win.
Up next in Cypress was "The Scottish Nightmare" Wallace Gordon, as he faced off against Big Ricky. Gordon found himself in trouble early, ending up on the receiving end of a clothesline and several chops in the corner. Gordon tried to catch a breather on the outside of the ring, but Ricky gave chase. Gordon grabbed his signature bone and rolled back in the ring. The referee saw this and took the object from him. That was all the distraction he needed, as he caught Ricky coming back into the ring with a knee to the head. Gordon kept the pressure on, and locked in a sleeper hold. However Ricky was able to use his strength advantage to back Gordon into the corner. Ricky then attempted to charge at Gordon in the corner, but found nothing but the turnbuckle. Gordon had dodged the attack and rolled him up, using his feet on the ropes for leverage. The referee did not see Gordon’s feet on the ropes and declared him the winner. Gordon then attacked Ricky with the bone, striking him in the stomach and then across the back. The referee then disqualified Gordon and reversed the decision awarding the match to Big Ricky.
On deck for the fans in Cypress was an appearance by "The Hebrew Phenom" David Stahr. He came out to kick off the inaugural "Jew Versus You" challenge, where he would call out a member of the NWA Houston Security team. During a recent battle royal, the entire security team stepped into the ring at the direction of Tugboat Taylor and eliminated several NWA Houston stars from the match. Stahr took exception to what happened, called out each member as actually being students of Tugboat Taylor's Wrestling Academy in Houston. His first victim would be "Josh", who was about to get a rude welcome from Stahr. As Josh was getting into the ring, Stahr went on the attack. He sent Josh to the corner for a pair of chops, and then brought him to the middle of the ring for a suplex. Following an attempt to realign Josh's spinal column, Stahr connected on a spear and a pedigree to the aspiring wrestler. He then pinned Josh and walked away with a very quick win.
Up next was a tag team match, featuring the team of Chaz Taylor and Hambone facing the NWA Lone Star Tag Team Champions, “Breaking Point” (DJ King and Silky Baines). It didn't take long for this one to get out of control, as all four men began brawling as the bell rang. Chaz and Hambone took control early, ejecting the champions from the ring to get things started. The champions got back into control and got the fans into near-riot mode almost immediately. As they were putting boots to Hambone, Chaz was able to make the tag to get in. However the referee was distracted by Silky, and didn't see the tag. So Hambone was forced to stay in the ring while the champions continued their assault. After several minutes of this, Chaz finally had enough. He jumped in the ring and suddenly all four men were battling again. Moments later, the action had spilled outside the ring to the floor. A full-scale riot had ensued between the two teams and Hambone had even started to use food items from ringside fans to use on the champions. During the madness, they had forgotten about the referee and ultimately were all counted out. The fans began clamoring for five more minutes, but the champions wanted no part of it. NWA Lone Star CEO Tony Brooklyn then informed DJ and Silky that on March 9, the two teams would meet again but this time the titles would be on the line.
The ladies took the stage next, as former WWE Women's Champion Jazz challenged Psycho Circus member Jen-Alise for the NWA Lone Star Women's Championship. This was a solid back and forth match all the way through the opening minutes, as Jen scored a series of quick pins but was unable to get the three-count. Jazz finally went offensive, as she caught Jen in the ropes and used them for extra leverage. NWA Texas Champion Scot Summers and Rodney Mack looked on from ringside, showing support for their respective counterparts. Jazz locked in a sleeper hold on the mat, as an electric crowd got behind Jen-Alise. Jazz kept things in her favor, as she climbed the middle turnbuckle. She leaped off, but Jen caught her with a boot in the face to slow things down. Back on her feet, Jen began lighting up Jazz with a series of chops. But Jazz was already thinking ahead. As Jen sent her to the ropes, Jazz held on as Jen missed a crucial dropkick. Jazz immediately moved in for across face submission, but Jen was able to finally drag herself to the ropes. Jazz refused to release the hold, and referee was left no choice but to disqualify her and give the match to Jen-Alise. She retains the NWA Lone Star Women's Championship, and picked up a big win for the Psycho Circus.
After the break, The NWA Lone Star Junior Heavyweight Championship was on the line, as Rudy Russo defended against Alex Reigns. It started off with Russo taking Reigns to the mat. After a brief verbal exchange, the two locked up again. They began chain-wrestling to test each other, and Reigns won that battle with a side headlock takeover. Back on their feet, the two traded various shots, but Russo would get the upper hand. This would be a great match, as the two fought back and forth throughout the match. Russo would score with a single-arm DDT during the match, but couldn't get the decision. Reigns wasn't done however, as he scored with a pair of big clotheslines and a dropkick that sent Russo down to the mat. At the 10-minute mark, Russo had regained control. But the fans were visibly getting into his head, as they chanted various things at him. This gave Reigns a minute to catch his breath, before he connected with a running boot to Russo's face. As both men struggled to their feet, they began trading punches. Later in the match, Reigns hit a missile dropkick from the corner. Reigns was the first to recover, but as he moved over for a pin he was caught by Russo in an arm bar submission. Minutes later, Russo found himself on the top rope, and scored with a splash from high above, and picked up the pin fall victory to retain the title. After the match, Tony Brooklyn spoke to Russo and told him he had a surprise for Russo. He informed Russo that on March 9, NWA World Junior Heavyweight Champion Kevin Douglas was returning to NWA Houston and Russo would get his World Title match, but it would be an "I Quit" match. An infuriated Russo went back to Reigns and locked in another arm bar submission on Reigns in the ring. This brought out referee Scot Zenzen, who physically pulled Russo away from Reigns.
An old feud was reignited this past Friday night, as Psycho Circus member "One Man" Mike Dell stepped into the ring against former NWA Lone Star Champion Ken Carson. This started early, as Carson jumped Dell from the beginning. The two began trading shots, and Carson went for a leapfrog but Dell stopped short and slapped his face. Carson bolted to the outside, but Dell spring boarded over the top rope and onto Carson. Dell brought him back into the ring and then scored with a missile dropkick from the top rope. Dell kept the pressure on, repeatedly sending Carson into the corner and doing damage to his back. Carson would get back into control. After a leg drop and subsequent near fall, Carson locked in a front face lock on the mat to keep Dell grounded. Dell powered back to his feet and once again sent Carson to the corner. But as he went to charge Carson, he was met with a boot to the face. Carson wasted no time in going back to work on Dell. After another boot to the face, Carson returned to the top rope and hit a double axe handle. Carson would stay in control, locking in a Boston Crab submission. Dell would be able to reverse the hold into a single-leg version of his own, but Carson went to the ropes. Carson would later attempt a super kick, but Dell caught him and spun him into a brain buster. Dell then sent Carson to the corner again, but Carson would finally connect on a super kick. After arguing with the referee over the count, Carson went back to the top rope. He attempted a top rope elbow drop, but Dell moved out of the way. That gave Dell the opportunity to recover and head to the top rope. He delivered his signature elbow drop and picked up the pin fall victory.
The Psycho Circus was set for the clean sweep, as the main event featured "Mr. Showtime" Scot Summers defending the gold against Rodney Mack. The two had exchanged words earlier in the evening, during the women's match, and were ready to finally go to war. This was a back and forth contest all the way through, as Summers and Rodney beat each other all over the building. Summers locked in a submission on his opponent, rendering him unable to continue in the match. The referee counted Rodney down, and Summers had survived yet another tough challenge to escape with the NWA Texas Heavyweight Championship.
NWA Houston returns to the Cypress VFW on March 9 with their "Green With Envy" event. You can check out the NWA Houston website or their official Facebook page for breaking news surrounding that event. NWA Houston holds events on the second Friday of every month in Cypress, Texas.
Also don't forget that on February 24, NWA Houston will be featured on KHOU Channel 11’s ten o’clock news (during the sports segment). Daniel Gotera and the film crew were on hand to get footage for a piece that will be featured on their news program.
