Phil Schneider

I think if you asked the folks going to OMEGA shows in the 90's who the biggest star out of that group was going to be, you would have gotten unanimous votes for Venom, big guy, stuff looked great, bumped awesomely for flyers. He had a good run in MCW, got stuck with the awful Joey Abs gimmick, was stuck in Velocity hell for a while, washed out and quit wrestling.

One of the great Hillbilly Wrecking Crew tags got put up on Youtube, it was as much fun as I remembered, felt very much like a Memphis Moondogs match

Email Black Terry Jr. at [email protected] He has Hechicero v. Terry from this weekend too. Both rule! Thanks so much We reviewed them over at Segunda Caida Terry v. Hechicero http://segundacaida.blogspot.com/2014/11/2014-ongoing-match-of-year-list_4.html Hechicero/Terry v. Navarro/Trauma 2 http://segundacaida.blogspot.com/2014/11/2014-ongoing-match-of-year-list.html

It is about time for the annual Regal series on NXT. Someone unearth Sami Callihan and let them have a couple of matches against each other

I remember liking Ross on commentary in the WCW/New Japan supershows back in the day

Why can't everyone see that Joe is only concerned with ethics in gaming journalism?

That Dave quote is really embarrassing.

No Problem, I am going to through up reviews on Segunda Caida of those two matches this weekend hopefully.You should post what you think here.

I liked some of Dreamers WWECW stuff. He had a really great match with Regal William Regal v. Tommy Dreamer WWE 11/8/09-EPIC I was on the fence, this is a 8 minute match against Tommy Dreamer, can this really be an epic. Fuck it, this was just too great and Regal was just too awesome for me not to give the full E. Dreamer took a crutch shot in a street fight the week before and the bolt penetrated his triceps, so he is coming into this match with a big white wrap on his arm. Regal is on that arm like a fat kid on the last piece of pinata candy. Really the best example of Regal as vicious WWII prison guard. He just tears and pounds on the wound, he is someone with so many ways to hurt you. Meanwhile Dreamer does a great job of selling the injury (which I am sure hurt like a broken heart) while throwing in some really exciting comebacks. I loved how he went for a DDT, only to Regal hurl him down using the arm, still Dreamer was able to catch him in a one armed spinebuster. Finish was awesome. Dreamer is rolling, finally getting the advantage, but Regal rolls to the floor, grabs the arm rings it over the cable, while Dreamer is recoiling, Regal flies into the ring and hits the running knee right on the arm. Best Tommy Dreamer match ever, and a hell of performance by Regal He isn't going to come close to my list, but that match did rule

Email Black Terry Jr. at [email protected] He has Hechicero v. Terry from this weekend too. Both rule!

Any idea about the date or the wrestlers?

Here are my reviews of two of the three matches DR recommended. Seems like I didn't review the Mochizuki match, so look for a C+A Fujiwara post upcoming Yoshiaki Fujiwara vs Super Tiger UWF 9/11/85- EPIC This is the final UWF 1 match up between these two, and really their masterpiece. Kris Zellner described the beginning of this match resembling a heavyweight title fight, and that is really accurate. The first part has a lot of feints and shrugs, Fujiwara throws some jabs, Tiger tosses some range finder kicks but neither guy wants to make the first move. At one point Fujiwara grabs Tiger's wrist and just yanks him in to take him down. Then you have the Fujiwara controlling Tiger on the mat. The two most trite moves in the first UWF are the half crab and sitting leg lock. Watch some of the lesser matches from this period and they are loaded with diffident half crabs and somnambulant sitting leg locks, watching Fujiwara work those moves shows the real gulf between him and everyone else. He is constantly moving and working to improve his position, and Tiger is constantly trying to counter. There is never a point in the hold where nothing is happening. After being controlled on the mat, Tiger is able to get a break and unloads a nasty jumping knee right to Fujiwara's face. Fujiwara gets up at nine, backs Tiger into the corner and just blasts him with one of the best straight right hands in wrestling history. And it is on. Most UWF1 matches have a slow build and a hot finish, but this was the best slow build of any of the UWF, and damn near the best hot finish. The end run of this match was really all about establishing distance. Super Tiger needs to have some distance to unleash his kicks, and when he gets that distance Fujiwara does an amazing job of selling them as deadly, even when they don't land clean. He is drooling, eyes rolling back into his head, checking his tooth to see if it still there, gasping for breath when he gets hit in the belly, Tiger looks like a guy who has the eraser in his feet, he can end a match with one shot. Meanwhile Fujiwara is attempting to keep it close, either on the mat, or in the corners where he can land body shots or headbutts. The finish run is perfect example of that, Tiger gets a couple of near fall KO's, but makes the mistake of locking up with Fujiwara, he tries for a German suplex, but Fujiwara, throws a back elbow, and just drops into a Fujiwara armbar for the tap out. Just an awesome perfect finish for a great match. Yoshiaki Fujiwara v. Wellington Wilkins Jr. PWFG 5/19/91-GREAT Damn was this a blast. This was worked as a mat brawl, both guys were exchanging really nasty shots mostly on the mat. Short punches to the temple by Wilkins, almost JYDish seated headbutts by Fujiwara, Wilkins kind of leaping from a lying position into a knee on Fujiwara's throat. Fujiwara was almost working heel here, as he slaps on a kneebar and lays out in a supine lounging position with his head resting on his elbow, he almost looks like he is stifling a yawn. Wilkins is great, he has nice deadlift suplexes and takes Fujiwara's signature boston crab reversal as a dangerous neck bump. Is their any other shoot Wilkins out there? Did he work Kingdom or something?

All the matches I rated EPIC are worth seeing, here is the match I had #1 on my Other Japan 80's ballot http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x9chrh_yoshiaki-fujiwara-vs-kazuo-yamazaki_sport

Boy I wonder where one could find some Fujiwara recommendations? http://segundacaida.blogspot.com/2009/08/complete-and-accurate-list-of-all-of.html

We are live blogging this over at Segunda Caida again http://segundacaida.blogspot.com/2014/10/ongoning-hell-in-cell-live-blog.html

Pretty obvious response from a Ravens beat writer

I really liked the Mr. Olympia stuff on the Mid-South set, but I haven't seen nearly enough to consider him. Someone link me some stuff to watch

He is an interesting case, I just love his elite matches, just a crazy intense brawler who knows how to make a big match big. He has some great Hamada UWF matches too. I need to look into his early 90's stuff

Madusa and 2 Cold were in WCW. Kong was in TNA, there is a cavernous difference between the two promotions when it comes to visibility and importance.

Thatcher never worked PWG, and Gulak never worked Busick in PWG. What are you guys even talking about?

Tonight. It looks like Busick worked Ciampa not Gulak

When did Gulak and Busick work each other in PWG? It looks like they were both in the BOLA but not against each other

Kris posted that match on youtube. Everyone should watch it

Here is my live review of the awesome Callihan v. Finlay match Sami Callihan v. Fit Finlay 7/26/11 This is why I took a bus to NYC and it delivered everything I wanted it to. Finlay was rocking orange and white gear, I am not sure whether that means he has converted to Protestantism, but I would really be into Apostate Finlay vs. soon to be released Mistico. Man does Finlay look like the baddest fucker in the world live, Barrel chest, thick forearms. He looks like a guy who owns a Belfast bar and once split a mouthy British soldiers head open with a pool cue. Sami comes right at him at the bell and he runs directly into the hardest forearm I have ever seen live. I thought that Finlay knocked him out cold, I would have been a little bummed to take a four hour bus ride for a seven second match, but it might have been worth it. The match goes from there with Sami getting in Finlay's face and paying for it. There is a great moment early when he slaps Finlay and Fit responds with a no hands bar fight headbutt. Sami fired back the best he could, he just blistered Finlay with chops to the throat, and hit a couple of big running kicks and his running forearm. Really cool story here with Callihan trying to earn Finlay's respect and Finlay making him earn it by kicking the shit out of him. There was this point where Callihan has Finlay in the corner, Finlay calls for the break and as the ref gets between them Fit kick Sami in the kneecap. Callihan responds by screaming something like "forget the cheapshots, lets go strike for strike and see who is toughest." Finlay responds by cheap shotting him in the knee again which was such a great "fuck your fake puro fighting spirit" moment. Finlay is here to kick ass and cash a check, he doesn't have shit to prove to anyone. Finish run was perfect, Sami gets him to the floor and goes for his tope, Finlay dismissively walks away leaving Sami to fly throat first into the guard rail. He is fucked, but still sharp enough to trip Finlay when he was trying to get into the ring. Sami goes to the top, but gets swept off taking a big fall into the ring. Finlay hits a Celtic Cross, which Sami kicks out of. He is beaten but still flips Fit off, Finlay hits him with another Celtic Cross for two again. Sami can barely lift his body off the mat, but still flips the double bird to Finlay. At this point Sami looks like Patricia Arquette at the motel room in True Romance. Finlay finally lifts him up and absolutely plants Callihan with his awesome jumping tombstone for the three count. Fuck I had forgotten how beautiful Finlay's tombstone was. Just a great match, which I can't wait to watch again. Callihan has spent much of this year having good matches with chumps, I am glad he got to get in with someone above his level. Finlay is fucking back, which is the most exciting thing in wrestling in 2011, I want to watch every time he steps into a ring. Post match Finlay gets on the mike and puts over Callihan as one of the toughest guys he has been in the ring with, with a raspy Lawrence Tierney voice which he attributes to Callihan's chops. Anthony and I decide to bail on Chuck Taylor v. Johnny Gargano and go eat some Bon Chon Chicken. It was a one match show for me, and that match totally delivered so no complaints for me. If EVOLVE books a rematch, they sell a ticket to me.

Your Callihan Top 10 matches will be better then the top 10 matches of a lot of guys who make this list. He was really hurt by being put on the shelf for so long. I think he is at his best as an intense brawler. Here is my review of his 2008 Necro match which is one of my favs Necro Butcher v. Sami Callihan IWA-MS 10/4 In most of your famous Necro matches he is a guy working from below, the crazy lunatic who takes a huge beating but is impossible to kill, and always has a punchers chance. Kind of dirty barefoot hillbilly Arturo Gatti. So it’s a cool reversal to see Necro as the unstoppable force and Callahan in the Necro Butcher role as the crazy brawler coming out like a buzzsaw and taking a huge beating. This is the equivalent of a short toe to toe boxing brawl, as both guys just go at each other with nasty shots, neither taking a backwards step. Callihan also did some cool counter wrestling, as he was working as almost a protégé v. mentor thing, guy who studied the master and knew his every move. Finish was perfect, as Callihan survived a lot, avoided a lot, but fell to the KO punch. Shockingly awesome match, and IWA-MS has delivered some great great stuff this year. Here are my reviews of the Havoc v. Callihan Death match series Danny Havok v. Sami Callihan - Devil Wears Prada Death Match 9/12/09 This was the start of their feud and a great way to start what I thought was the US Indy feud of the year. The gimmick was pretty amusing with purses hung on polls from the corners, and a board with high heeled shoes glued to it. The thing that really separates these guys from most death match dudes is that their brawling actually looks good. The best part of the match was when both guys were in the middle of the ring punching and headbutting each other. The high heel shoe board is a really cool idea, but I thought they used it too early in the match, it really should have been used closer to the finish and been a bigger deal. Havok does a sick blade job, which was old school bloody forehead style, rather then some weird gash in the side or arm like you often get in death matches. I dug the finish, both guys crawl for purses, Callihan gets a power drill out of onw, but gets cut off with hair spray to the eyes, and gets hit by Havok's finisher. Unfortunately that was preceded by a ladder and table bump which took way too long to set up and then got shrugged off. Post match really makes this match, Callihan pulls out his switchblade, unwraps Havok's tape and slits his wrist which causes the locker room to empty. It actually came off like a total crossing of the line, like Funk with the plastic bag or Shane Douglas shaking Pitbulls Halo, pretty impressive to get that kind of reaction in CZW of all places. Sami Callihan v. Danny Havok- Caribbean Spider Net 10/25/09 This is the kind of death match I like, no good natured sportsmanship, no respect knucks. Just two guys who hate each other trying to kill each other. Callihan jumps him before the bell, and this is a heated nasty little fight. Callihan was my discovery of 08, and while he hasn’t had the opportunities he had in IWA, his death match run in CZW has been pretty great. Both guys take some grizzly bumps into the Spider Nets, although Havok totally wins the bump contest, by flying off the tope rope into some metal contraption with barbed wire and glass. Callihan was a real prick in this, throwing broken glass in Havok’s face and jamming it into his mouth. Finish was nasty as fuck with Sami hitting his headlock driver on a giant bundle of tubes. Bump of the show, and absolutely the right thing to end the match on. Danny Havok v. Sami Callihan- Cage of Death 12/12/09 This was the crazy blowoff to the feud, and CZW has done a nice job of making this gimmick a big deal. Setup was nuts, with two sides yellow steel, two sides barbed wire at a 45 degree angle with plates of glass, and to top it off you have a scaffold with panes of glass and electrified barbed wire, with two panes of glasses hanged between the scaffold and the ring. A truly insane looking deal and by the end of the match the ring had more glass then mat, it looked like Hans Gruber ordered his men to shoot the windows. The match lived up to the craziness for sure. This was absent most of the flaws of US indy death match wrestling, it looked and felt like a fight rather then an exhibition of stunts. It had big bumps rather then shit like needles and syringes, and the biggest bump ended the match. Too many nutty bumps to list, Callihan going off a scaffold, face first through a pain of glass looked like something out of a Jackie Chan post movie stunt montage. I did think it got formless near the end, as the five minutes or so before the finish you had both guys kind of diffidently exchanging headrops. It felt unnecessary and took me out of the match. Ending was pretty great, they go back on the scaffold with Callihan pulling his switchblade, Havok blocks the first stab but gets slashed and falcon arrowed off the scaffold through the hanging glass pains and a table to the ring. Completely nuts, and it didn't feel super set up like those kind of stunts often do. I am not sure where I place this on a list of their 2009 matches, as the stuff pre finish was the worst stuff they did against each other, but damn did this feel like the way you end a feud, give me a good COD match up next year and CZW has sold me a ticket.