[2001-03-17-XPW-The Night XPW Stood Still] Sabu vs Juventud Guerrera vs Kid Kaos

[GSR]

Josh Lacey, Sabu’s handler, cuts a profanity laden promo taking exception to Rob Black’s claims that they’ve been ducking him, that they’re running scared and that they don’t want to defend the XPW World Heavyweight title.  He says how Sabu has defended it against contenders such as Chris Candido, Abdullah the Butcher and Terry Funk, none of whom could get the job done, before going on to challenge the Messiah.  Black and the Messiah are out and Black says how tonight Messiah is facing New Jack, but he does have an opponent for him, someone who wants to be in the ‘Black Army’ and someone who, when he defeats Sabu for the World title, will be in the ‘Black Army’.  That person is Juventud Guerrera, arriving through the curtains to a very tepid response.  Just as the match is about to get underway Kid Kaos makes his way out and informs Sabu that if anyone is fighting Juventud Guerrera tonight it is him.  If Sabu is going to fight him too, “guess that makes this a three-way dance”.  Could this company be any more like ECW if they tried?  Black allows the three-way (like he wouldn’t?) and despite Lacey’s initial misgivings thinks that Sabu can beat the shit out of both of these jabronis.  I’ll give him his due Lacey does have one funny comeback, after Black says “we’ll see your ass next month” replying, “we see your wife’s every week!”

That contrived three-way lock up.  The opening few minutes suffers badly from the repetitive “move, cover, third man breaks it up” trope.  I had it in my head that three-way dances were fought under elimination rules, I must be wrong because the commentators talk about how Sabu can lose his title without being pinned.  Juvi cuts off the triple jump moonsault with a back elbow, before laying the chair on Sabu’s face and slingshot legdropping himself onto it.  Larry Rivera points out the in a match like this you must wear down one man enough so that you can then concentrate on the other, and although tricky, it is possible.  A very rare piece of useful insight from the XPW commentary team.   A right hand from Kaos sends Sabu under the bottom rope to the outside which he follows with a heavy looking flip dive to the floor.  Juvi comes off the top with a plancha out onto both, only just maintaining his balance up there, while Sabu and Kaos have to stand there waiting for him.  Sabu launches Juvi over the security railing into the front row and then hops back into the ring where Lacey throws him a second chair.  Double jump springboard plancha, Sabu clearing the railing by inches as it’s too far away and you can visibly see him hesitate before jumping, unsure as to whether he could make it or not.  A table is set up at ringside although that doesn’t play a part in proceedings, Juvi swiping a leg out from under Kaos who falls backwards from the turnbuckles to the mat.  After a ‘Juvi Driver’ he signals for the 450 splash, all while Sabu is messing around with that table and now trying to bring it into the ring.  Kaos crotches ‘the Juice’ and hits a superplex, Sabu breaking up the cover by punting Kaos in the head.  A second ‘Juvi Driver’ to Kaos, but Sabu interrupts things and lays Kid on that table he’d brought in moments earlier.  Arabian facebuster from the top sees Sabu retain his World title, Juvi getting their fractionally too late in his efforts to stop the count.

The mic work at the start between Lacey and Black was lame, especially Lacey’s over reliance on swearing.  The match was not the train wreck I expected going in, Sabu hitting everything clean, but contained very stereotypical three-way elements of the era.  Okay to see the once, not something I could ever imagine we wanting to revisit in the future.