[1999-01-23-ECW-Detroit, MI] Sabu vs One Man Gang

[Loss]

Talk about it here.

[Loss]

I thought this was a super match. It shocked the hell out of me. Gang could still go in 1999 and really should have gotten a run in FMW or Big Japan. Not only did he keep up with Sabu athletically, but he added some cool veteran touches to this, which made it more of an intense brawl than one for show, as often happens in ECW. He bled a gusher but also added in a healthy dose of psychology. I had no idea the Gang was this good this late.

[tim]

What's better for a hardcore wrestling fan than seeing an awesome Sabu vs. One Man Gang house show match from 1999? Short, fun match with a nice big guy/little guy dynamic. Both guys looked really good and there were some nice spots, I especially loved the ref grabbing the fork while Gang cocks back for a shit and Sabu taking the opportunity to hit a kick to the knee that sends Gang toppling forward. Good ending and Gang sells post-match like he's been beaten half to death.

[Tim Evans]

OMG managed by Rod Price here. That's a random pairing. This wasn't bad for a 1999 Sabu match. Gang bleed and Sabu hits his moves clean so that's all I ask for.

[soup23]

Fun ass match with Gang resulting back to his early days and being a great bumping big man that also dished it out quite a bit. This is a match that looks odd on paper and made me curious but was actually better watching it. Sabu's bumps looked crisp and were built up and the finish was teased well. ***1/2

[Superstar Sleeze]

Charles put this in his Top 500 so I had to watch. Found the July match online. This is the date 7/25/99 that ECW Smarkschoice poll lists as the good one. Prowrestlinghistory.com has both dates as plausible as both dates have Sabu vs OMG matches.

 

An above commenter says Rod Price as OMG's second, here it is Justin Credible. So maybe a watched a different match...

 

Sabu vs One Man Gang - ECW 1999

 

One Man Gang looks better here then when he was Akeem ten years prior. Fun, energetic brawl. Sabu hit his spots cleanly and his straight right looked great. OMG looked menacing. Good cat and mouse early with Sabu using speed and aerial moves to gain advantage. Good crowd brawling M-Pro style by clearing out chairs. OMG taking a rana off the top was impressive. Nice table bump by OMG. Vicious scissors stab by Sabu. I love Sabu! Loved Cane shot on OMG by accident by Credible and then a wicked chair throw by Sabu on Credible. Love the heel comeuppance. Tight finish to send crowd home happy with Triple Jump moonsault and a Arabian Facebuster. Great brawl! ***1/2

[JKWebb]

Sabu gets beat down in the early portion of the match, and OMG establishes himself well as a monster out for blood. The crowd goes nuts when Sabu gains the advantage hitting a double axe handle from the top rope to the outside. Sabu starts throwing OMG into chairs as they brawl through the crowd. The lady that screams "Fight!" at them cracked me up. You can hear her talking before the camera ever pans to her... anyway... they brawl back to the ring after that. I thought Sabu's punches looked really good in this match. Cool table spot seeing OMG, at this point in his career, going through one. Whoa, Sabu hits OMG with one hellacious right elbow to the face. OMG is busted open. We get a near fall after the beatdown. We get some more stiff punches from both guys, and they really sucked me in by this point of the match. Sabu hits the moonsault well. It takes everything Sabu can throw out to take OMG down for the three count. I thought this match would be fun, but I actually enjoyed it more than I anticipated. This was really good. I agree with the ***1/2.

 

#455 - placetobenation.com/countdown-top-500-matches-of-the-90s-500-451/2/

[PeteF3]

The highlight of this was Gang actually taking a top-rope huracanrana. A fun burst of a match that doesn't overstay its welcome as Gang definitively and selflessly puts Sabu over. For a few minutes, the UWF Gang was back.