[2011-07-26-EVOLVE 9] Fit Finlay vs Sami Callihan

[Loss]

Talk about it here.

[Graham Crackers]

This is probably the most brutal match I've seen live. Finlay could still get rough in WWE but there was definitely more restraint than this and in the WWE there weren't many opponents who could withstand this kind of beating. It all starts with Sami running headfirst into a nasty forearm and continued in that vein. Finlay threw forearms, stomps, kicks, and an uppercut to Sami's throat. I love Finlay's headbutts here. Sami tries to return the favor but that was unwise. Sami does eventually make a little space with some really nasty chops and a backdrop but Finlay dominates the rest of the time. Sami also nearly decapitates himself on a missed tope. Fucking awesome. It definitely held up on tape and is my US MOTY. It's just as gritty and violent as I remembered plus there's a better vantage point to see Sami's knees getting picked apart than we had in person.

[zep81]

Fit Finlay vs Sami Callihan (EVOLVE 9 07/26/11)

So this match is very well pimped in most circles and I remember uploading it for someone years ago but I'm not sure if I ever got around to watching it myself. I was reminded of it yesterday so thought I'd see what all the fuss is.

Finlay. What a guy.

Don't care if were a pro wrestler, I'm not sure i'd want to face Finlay when he's in this mood. In fairness to Callihan, he took most of Finlay's punishment and tried his best to bring some himself.

But Finlay was a fucking brutal machine here. Right from the bat when Sami ran at Finlay and Finlay dumped him right down with one hell of a forearm. Yup, that set the tone of the match.

Finlay was super aggressive in everything he did here. Shit like strikes, elbows, throws and headlocks were put on with such force, it's a miracle Sami could stand. Some real nasty leg submissions and Sami gets beaten and bended to fuck. Headbutts are met with sounds of thunder.

At one point, Callihan wants to go strike for strike "like men", but Finlay responds by shouting "How can we fight like men when I'm the only man here?"

Woah.

Finish typifies the match too. Callihan has had it, but he refuses to stay down after a Celtic Cross. Finlay gives him another, but Callihan just won't stay down. He defiently flips him the bird, so Finlay picks him up and plants him with a tombstone. Wonderful match and experience.

A proper war and watching Finlay inflict this much damage was both scary and sooooo entertaining at the same time. Callihan though in fairness bought out a very fine performance here. He kept taking all the shit from Finlay and kept hanging in there and was defiant to the end.

Stiff as fuck match and I looooooved it.

So glad I watched this.

[Alex]

This match was fantastic.  I had to look up Finlay's age here, 53, amazing.  His offense is SO GOOD.  What a stiff f*cking match, everything looked brutal, even that missed tope.  Ending was great.

[cactus]

This told the tale of the old guard brutalizing the cocky punk upstart and putting him in his place. I don't think I've seen a more vicious Finlay than the one we got here. He was a right bastard here and even basic things like his headlock takedowns felt gritty. Callihan makes the mistake of trying to rush Finlay straight away and Finlay quickly responds with a brutal forearm. Finlay doesn't take kindly to Callihan's attitude and brutalizes him with stiff forearms, stomps, and headbutts. I love Finlay being a grouchy old bastard who trash-talks Callihan and the fans who he views as being out of line. Sami shows a lot of fire whenever he would try and make a comeback and his missed dive to the outside was downright disgusting. They started to lose me during the end when Callihan was on equal footing with Finlay, but they wrapped this up nicely with Finlay having to bust out his old finish to put Callihan after his WWE finisher fails him. ★★★★¼

[xlynwoodx]

This was a battle of toughness.  Finlay is the toughest, meanest SOB in town while Sami was so resilient, absorbing an incredible amount of punishment.  Finlay has a way of making everything he does look so brutal.  He will turn a simple bodyslam into a mean-ass throw onto the ropes, his submissions are all very snug and just look painful.  Sami gets his ass kicked from pillar to post, but he keeps coming back.  If he can't get his body to cooperate enough to get some offense in, he is screaming at Finlay and giving him the bird.  Despite how much Sami was getting beaten down, the finish remained in question right up until the 3-count because of how tough Sami was.  Fantastic match, now I want to track down more of Finlay kicking ass on the indies.