IPW:UK 6th Annual Brawl at the Hall.

Yes, I ventured down to Sittingbourne once again last night for IPW's traditional year-end blow-out show. The main focus of the festivites was a three-way Tag Team Round Robin tournament between the British Tag Team Champions, Robbie Dynamite and Mikey Whiplash (The All Stars), the former champions Marty Scurl and Zack Sabre Jr (The Leaders of the New School) and the team of former WWE star Paul London, and the Masked Generic Luchador, El Generico (The Dangerous Bees).

Anyone who has read my previous IPW reports will know that IPW's tag division has been red hot of late, with those matches easily stealing the shows, so I was looking forward to three excellent tag team matches.

The show kicked off with the Leaders versus All Stars, and 3 minutes in I was already thinking I'd seen a better show than the WWE offered at Survivor Series. Absolutely excellent match that had it all from comedy to brawling to technical wrestling to spotty high-flying. These two teams seem incapable of having anything other than a 5 star match together and it was sheer brilliance. Any company in the world would have been proud to have that opening match as their match of the night, it was that good. Eventually the Leaders manage to score the win over the champs, giving them 3 points in the tournament. Amazing show, and that was just the opener.

Next up was scheduled to be Jonny Moss versus Leroy Kincaide, but due to transport difficulties, Moss couldn't make it, so instead Leroy chose to go up against former champ and IPW post boy Martin Stone. These two knocked the living hell out of each other, with Leroy especially doing a great spot where he rolled through and no sold a German suplex, and then turned it straight into an awesome looking spear. But eventually after a London Bridge, lariats a plenty, a flurry by Leroy, and some more brawling, it was Stone who got the win. Martin then got on the Mike and announced that was his last IPW match (he's supposed to be going to WWE development)

3rd cab off the rank saw former Crusierweight champion and now Dragongate star Mark Haskins take on the current ROH TV Champion Eddie Edwards. A great match which built up well from the early technical exchanges. Edwards was working Haskins' leg and ankle throughout, and they really told a superb story as Haskins had to fight on one leg for most of the match. Edwards hit his package Stunner, and Haskins the RKO, but neither could pin the other. Eventually as Edwards tried again for the package stunner, Haskins reversed it, flipped him over, and hit the cradle tombstone for the win. Great great match.

Final match before the interval saw The Dangerous Bees take on the All Stars in the 2nd tag match. Great comedy stuff from London and Generico early on, and London was sporting the funkiest pair of orange shorts I've ever seen. The All Stars played the heels perfectly here though, and the match ramped up and up as it went, even brawling into the audience and seeing London break out a couple of top rope flips and springboards to the outside. Once again, seeing matches like this really makes you miss good tag team matches in the WWE. Eventually Generico hit the BRAINBUSTAAA!!! on Whiplash for the pin. This meant the Allstars had lost the tag belts, and the winners of Leaders/Bees would get them.

After the interval, the 6 man elimination Brawl at the Hall match was up, with the Thrillers (Iestyn Rees, Alexander, and the manager Gilligan Gordon) taking on former Thriller and now face Joel Redman. As his partners, Redman brought out former All England champion Terry Frazier, and another former Thriller in the aforementioned Mark Haskins.

Alexander (a late sub for a missing James Tighe) was out early courtesy of a Redman clothesline, leaving Rees to do the bulk of the work. The problem here is that Rees isn't very good. He's got the look, and is a former IPW champ, but he was an unsuccessful one, and he's never quite been at the high level the rest of the IPW roster is at. Still, between him and some comedy for Gordon, it worked, until Haskins was eliminated by Rees. Frazier then looked to have the match going well until his former partner, Sha Samuels ran in and levelled him with a vile chair shot, allowing Gordon to get the pin. Redman was on his own, but not backing down. He hit 6 German suplexes in a row on Rees and pinned him. Gordon tried to escape, but was cut off by Haskins, and Redman proceeded to destroy the tubby manager. After the pin, he and Haskins destroyed him some more. The crowd were happy.

Co main event saw the IPW Champion, Dave Mastiff, defend the title against Sha Samuels. A violent and aggressive bralw here which roamed all over the arena and destroyed a lot of furniture. Both were slammed onto chairs, thrown into walls, and generally abused. Dave had the better of it, including a fecking sick looking thrown German suplex which saw Sha smash head first into the top turnbuckle and hit the ground like he'd been shot. Sha managed to turn it around, using his scarf to choke the champ. As Sha looked in the hot seat, and with the match ten minutes old, Terry Frazier ran out and levelled Sha with a sick Rock Bottom which saw Sha virtually land on his head. The match was thrown out.

Then the main event. Dangerous Bees .v. The Leaders. Well, the opening contest had been the match of the night...right until this started. It was simply a thousand types of awesome. There must have been half a million false finishes and long two counts, people flew over the ropes and into the crowd on all four sides, they brawled, they did technical stuff, they did lucha libre, they hit their trademark spots, they threw in comedy. People took bumps that should have killed them, they traded kicks that would drop an elephant, threw each other off the top ropes, bunged each other to the outside. They even used each other's finishing moves. On a freezing night all four of them were drenched in sweat and went about 35 minutes during which there wasn't a single low point. The absolute best match I have ever seen live. In the end it was the Leaders who hit the sickest looking double kick to the head on Generico that I have ever seen, and then managed to score a 3 count. The place exploded into a standing ovation. Awesome, just awesome.

After the match, London got on the mike and said he wants IPW to book a rematch, and it may happen on March 6th at their next show. God I hope so!

Wow.

That sounds like an absolutely wonderful show. This is seriously the kind of wrestling I know I need to watch much more of.

I believe IPW DVDs are region free, so you could order from their site.

Cool!

I seriously need to start watching Dragon Gate, and IPW.

What an awesome event! The big two in America could learn a lot from IPW:UK.

Is this who I think it is?

Yes it is.

The 630 was his finishing move when he wrestled.

I've seen his entrance video, and a full match with him in. Is he not wrestling anymore?

So, is there anywhere to find this full song? Because if so, I might update Matt's theme in SvR11 to this.

I'm also in the process of getting ready to change, alter or tweak a few that I already wasn't completely happy with for my next pack of themes to put on a disc.

I've no idea what the music is, I'm afraid.

And Matt is concentrating on his personal training business at the moment.

Any idea whether he'll get back into wrestling in the future? He looks like a really good wrestler, and it'll be a shame to see his talent go to waste.

He would really need to answer that mate.

Here's some more :p

Yes currently concentrating on my personal training business but who knows!! I miss it like crazy

Clearly the best thing about that first video is the awesome "Erelim" t shirt Gary is wearing. A complete artistic visionary and genius must have come up with that entire Erelim gimmick and designed that shirt. I wonder who that marvellously creative person was?

*Ahem Ahem*

It was a good gimmick though, and you worked excellently as a heel team. Pity you never got to do more with it.

Yeah Matt, that's the full match I watched earlier. Very entertaining match. If you ever return to wrestling, I'll come watch you get your butt kicked lol./

More photos of Matt wrestling

The crowd show Mr Campbell exactly what they think of him







Jake McCluskey goes up for a Powerbomb



Suplex



Celtic Cross



Matt tries for the package piledriver, but Jake breaks his grasp



Package Piledriver take 2 turns into a double underhook

It would seem that Matt.... the real one, would actually be able to recreate PERFECTLY in SvR11.

Especially with the paint tool, where the only thing that needs to be made is the tight designs.

The morphing, attire and kickpad boots are all in the game as it is.

That tight design is pretty cool. I'd like to see someone attempt it in paint tool.

Because of the length, width, and shape, it would be quite difficult to do accurately in the paint tool, and frankly I don't have the patience! That's why when I did the "real" version of Matt on the game, I gave him a costume design closer to where we'd talked about the Erelim gear going if the angle continued.

BTW, I am currently working on CAWS of current IPW:UK champions Marty Scurl and Jack Sabre Jr (The LDRS of the New School) and will be putting some shots of them, and Myron's new look, on the site this weekend. Did a LDRS logo on the paint tool, and I'm quite pleased with how Marty has come out so far.

Reaper wrote:

Because of the length, width, and shape, it would be quite difficult to do accurately in the paint tool, and frankly I don't have the patience! That's why when I did the "real" version of Matt on the game, I gave him a costume design closer to where we'd talked about the Erelim gear going if the angle continued.

I think, by looking at it, I can do it. In fact, I believe I will.

The glowy effect will be a more opaque two-color thing, but other than that, I may just be able to get it very accurate.

If you want to, then go for it. Simply replace the costume on the default version of Matt on my download.

I'll upload the paint tool as well, so you can apply it to, if you want.

Mike, I love you.

Honestly though, I dunno if and when i'll get to this. I suddenly decided to start doing a lot of things at once. >_>

Those pictures were from one of my favourite matches, loved wrestling Jake!! The finish to that match was awesome so much fun with it!!

You always worked well with Jake. That was a good match...

...just took a lot of tidying up afterwards!

So Matt you have any tips for training, dieting and workout routines? It's always been a dream to actually get into the ring but always been trying to find out how to train my body for it. Probably would help me lose this damn beer gut lol

Hey Matt, Fitness Individuals' first overseas customer!

OC, it all depends on what you currently are now? And what you want to be? If your serious about getting in the ring then you need to be in great shape prior to starting (which I wasn't!!). Also it depends on how you will wrestle i.e no point being stacked if you wanna fly around and no point shrinking to fly if you have no balance and can't fly to begin with!!

Well im 220 with as i see it, not much muscle compared to this beer belly. I've always wanted to see myself more or less in the shape of the rock when he was wrestling, not the behemoth we see in Faster (dude added 25 pounds of muscle for the part, dude was beast). Im working on a cardio routine at the first of the new year to get back into shape.

I wish I could find the time to get in better shape. Sinse I moved to be with my son, I've put on weight and look really out of shape.

My gf and I have been on diets. I've dropped 2 stone to get to 170 pounds (I'm 6'2") and my gf has lost 2.5 stone. We both feel amazing. At the moment we're on a diet break between my birthday (16 Dec) to hers (3 Jan) but aim not to just shovel it back on.

Next year I aim to tone up. I do lots of walking and will be adding weights/starting back at the fencing classes.

Only you would choose fencing as a way to keep fit...

lol, it was partly that and partly because I just love swords! I have a friend who wanted to do it again after doing a bit in America (when she worked on the camps there) and it seemed like a good thing to do.