[2000-12-24-ECW-Hardcore TV] Little Guido & Tony Mamaluke vs Mikey Whipwreck & Yoshihiro Tajiri

[GSR]

So for the final time in 2000 we get to see these four do their stuff, this time coming to us from  ‘the Madhouse of Extreme’ in Queens Boulevard.  Curiously, even though the Guilty as Charged PPV is only a fortnight away (1/7/01) no tag team title match has been announced yet for the show, Joey Styles saying how both of these teams would like a crack at the champions, Danny Doring and Roadkill.  Mikey is wearing an FBI T-shirt for this which Mamaluke takes umbrage with.  Styles has a tremendous line about Whipwreck being fine until he went to WCW, that’s when he cracked “and did he ever crack!”.  A pretty physical lock up between the two as they both jockey for position.  Nice headscissors takeover by Mikey.  The look and gimmick is so deceiving as he’s a real good technical wrestler when he actually shows it.  He drops Mamaluke across his own knee for a backbreaker before the Unholy Alliance unleash some quality double team combinations, Tajiri mocking his opponent’s pain like we have seen him do so many times this year.  Guido counters the handspring elbow by grabbing an arm, but as he looks for the armbar Tajiri then counters that by grabbing his leg.  This is great.  Tajiri backdrops him over the top rope and although Guido lands on the apron he takes his head off with a superkick, collapsing onto the ringside mats.   More double, even triple, teaming from the Alliance as Tajiri applies a Boston crab with Guido’s neck lay across the bottom rope, the Sinister Minister then places a chair across the back of his neck which Mikey legdrops .  Tony is in only to end up joining his partner being tied in the ‘Tree of Woe’.  Guido raises himself up to avoid the Mikey baseball slide, but whereas you will have been expecting Mamaluke to do something similar to avoid Tajiri’s, no ‘the Buzzsaw’ takes aim at Guido and nails him instead.  Layers.  The Minister is now in the ring and applies a testicular claw to Mamaluke.  That spot is my least favourite thing of the act as it always takes a fair bit of suspension of disbelief to think that the referee is unaware as to what is going on.  This time he’s put his head through the ropes to speak to Big Sal on the floor about something.  Not believable really, especially as Sal has yet to be involved in the match.  Mikey with an Indian Deathlock before Tajiri ties him up with this awesomely wacky Lucha pretzel submission.   Guido is forced to break that up but then he ends up being stretched, helpless as Mikey dropkicks him in the face.  Whipwreck climbs the turnbuckles to pound away on Tony who manages to shove him off and onto the top rope.  Inverted tornado DDT followed by the ‘Sicilian Slice’.  I knew it was only a matter of time and maybe Mike Kehner was forewarning him not to get involved when he spoke to him earlier?  Big Sal wasn’t listening as Guido distracts Kehner so Sal can get some shots in.  Snap suplex into a Northern Lights by Tony for a two count.  Double belly to back.  The FBI makes a wish, and as they apply stereo leg locks Tajiri is in to break things up.  Mikey goes for the wheelbarrow off the bodyscissors but Mamaluke counters with a Fujiwara armbar.  Again this is so smart if you’ve watched the matches that these teams have had.  The FBI go for a second double belly to back, this time though Mikey flips over, lands on his feet and hits a double Whippersnapper.  Tag to Tajiri who just goes to town on the Italians with all manner of strikes and kicks.  Double brainbuster by the Alliance.  Mikey gets backdropped over the top rope and, just like Guido earlier, he too lands on the apron, however the big man trips him from the floor and he goes crashing head first into the apron.  Tajiri lands on his feet from the release German, grabs a waistlock, but Mamaluke with the mule kick low blow and he’s easy prey for the ‘Kiss of Death’.

As much as I had had enough of this match a couple of months ago, I’m glad we got it one more time before the turn of the year.  I thought this was excellent; moreover how the match has evolved, the counters, the layers, the development of spots, the storytelling, how you expect one thing but got something else.  Also none of the excesses that were an issue for me with the Unholy Alliance’s match against Super Crazy and Kid Kash from earlier in the month.  A fitting way to finish ECW in the year 2000 and on the back of Rhino vs Spike Dudley, this has been a superb television episode.