Beach Club Pro

[ohheylook]

[LowBlowPodcast]

This looks fantastic!

[El Dragon]

This entire project was worth it just for that image. Holy shit.

[SirEdger]

This picture encapsulates everything exciting about this project, dude. This is AMAZING.

[Chachins]

Wow, very well done, my friend.  I don't have the technical knowledge to do what you did here, but I love it!

[ohheylook]

August 2nd, 2000

They would have expected for him to show up late to his own event, but as the last reporters filed into the Pioneer Room at Sam’s Town Hotel & Casino off the Vegas strip, there sat Dennis Rodman, unexpectedly seated and ready to kick off his major announcement. Behind him stood men in suits, though Rodman donned his typical sunglasses and casual wear. The squeak of his flip flops as he bounced his right foot indicated he had just come back from the pool.

“Y’all sit down, I wanna get this shit started.” Rodman spoke into the microphone with his familiar voice. With everyone seated, Rodman began.

“Thank you all for being here. This is new for me, to be callin’ a press conference like this. I ain’t never done anything like this, but I’m ready to take a chance. All my life I’ve been taking a chance, from growing up, to the NBA, to the things y’all write about me in the papers. Back when I was kid, I wasn’t good enough to play ball. I tried, but I didn’t amount to shit - until I did. Then I gave almost 20 years to that game, and I missed so much. That’s why you’ve seen me do all kinds a things. I’m almost 40 years old, man. I gotta do something different.” 

“I love professional wrestling. I’ve loved it since I was a child growing up in Dallas. We used to get to see those Von Erichs, and I got to see Iceman Parsons and The Freebirds. I never got to go, but I loved it. When I worked with WCW three years ago, with Hogan and them, I knew this was the world I needed to move into. Wrestling got so hot it boiled over. The bubble burst. And I’m gonna blow that bubble back up.”

“I’m here to officially announce that I have secured a semi-permanent home here at Sam’s Town to produce a new wrestling program. Right now, we have the funding to run shows here - but we’re looking beyond the borders of Vegas. Right now, you see a lot of new companies starting up in the USA, in Australia, back up in Japan. The next generation wants to create something new in wrestling, something that ain’t never been seen before, and I’m ‘bout that. Las Vegas is already the place to be for the nightlife, for the party, for boxing. Starting today, with y’all as my witness - Las Vegas is the new home for professional wrestling, Rodman style.”

“Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you: Beach Club Pro.”

“Yeah, the name’s a little funky. A little off kilter - that’s how we want it. You interested? Well then we did the damn job. Now the thing is, I wouldn’t know what I was doing if I was doing this alone. So I brought in one of my childhood icons to help me out. He’ll be relocating from Florida here to Vegas for this opportunity, but what the Worm was to basketball, this man was to professional wrestling for almost 40 years. The man in charge of the day to day operations - ladies and gentleman, “The Exotic” Adrian Street.”

Adrian Street, ever the provocateur, walked out to applause from the sea of reporters who had not seen him in quite some time. Donning a purple “Sgt. Pepper’s” style coat and a freshly shorn bald head, he didn’t look quite like the glam icon of years past - but his small frame still cut an imposing figure. Street took to the microphone in his Welsh drawl: “Thanks Dennis. Ya see folks, this is a big opportunity here. Dennis contacted me at my wrestling school a few months ago and told me his vision for a new style of professional wrestling. I was skeptical at first, but when he could discuss matches of mine in Mid-South, obscure angles from World Class, and what he liked about his time in WCW, I thought I should hear him out.” 

Street continued, “He then told me about some of this stuff someone sent him out of the Philadelphia area. All this stuff with weapons, with barbed-wire, whatever these jokers could get their hands on. It’s a new world out there, and it took me a minute to get used to it, but the way the crowds reacted? That hasn’t been seen in decades. I told him, ‘Dennis, we gotta find these guys before somebody else does.’”

A brief highlight video played on the screen behind Dennis and Adrian, grainy footage of guys jumping off ladders, putting their opponents through tables, twisting them up in barbed-wire, a shot of someone going through a pane of glass. 

Dennis took the microphone back from Adrian, “But we also knew we wanted to feature the hardest hitting wrestlers in the world. Wrestling is beautiful, but it’s violent, right? Weapons are violence, blood is violence. But two people using their physical prowess to try and overpower the other? That’s beauty. That’s violence. It’s beautiful violence. And the next person I want to introduce helped me fill this roster the way I wanted. He’s a legend in America and in Japan and will be working from Japan on talent acquisition...and venue acquisition. Because we are going to Japan, baby. You better believe it. Ladies and Gentleman, the great Masa Saito.”

The crowd is overcome with a loud gasp at the appearance of the recently retired wrestler. Hulking behind Dennis, he has a slight tremor in his demeanor, but is able to speak in rudimentary English. “Thank you Mr. Rodman. I am happy to help rebuild wrestling in Japan. And I believe that with the vision between Mr. Rodman, Mr. Street and myself, we can do that. I have signed some of the best young and veteran talent in Japan for Beach Club Pro and you will see them soon. Thank you.”

The crowd roars with applause, but Rodman holds up his hands to quiet them down.

“So what’s next? Haha, man...How ‘bout a lil’ tournament? We gonna kick off Beach Club Pro right. Starting next week, and over the next four weeks - we’re gonna get a little wild. A little crazy. And we’re gonna crown our first champion.”

Applause from the reporters. Adrian is handed the microphone.

“Two brackets. Eight men in each. One bracket, the “Strong” bracket. Each match will have a 20-minute time limit, pinfall, submissions and knockout only. The other, the “Death” bracket. Each match will be contested under a different set of rules each time. Expect blood.”

“In the “Strong” bracket, we will see a Hawaiian wrestler, known for his impressively violent bouts in Japan take on the man with the strongest arm, also from Japan, when Maunakea Mossman takes on Satoshi Kojima. We will see the former Green Beret Tom Howard take on the young, hard-hitting Tomohiro Ishii. The West Texas Redneck and veteran force Kendall Windham take on the most dominant UFC fighter alive Don Frye and in a battle of two of the biggest men in the competition, the man formerly known as Kurosawa, Manabu Nakanishi will take on one of the most decorated American wrestlers of all-time when he faces none other than “Dr. Death” Steve Williams."

Huge applause at that last announcement.

“In the “Death” bracket, we will see former ECW star, the technically sound CW Anderson, despite his protestations, fight one of the most intense people you will ever see in the wrestling ring, Justice Pain. A man on his way to becoming a legend in Japan, Tomoaki Honma will fight the unhinged, death-defying Ric Blade. The ever popular Vampiro, unafraid of pain, will try his hand at the world of extreme as he takes on a man who might not even feel pain in John Zandig. And in our last match of the bracket, “Sick” Nick Mondo currently has no opponent, as a VISA issue has removed the chance of his planned opponent showing up. When we nail down the opponent, we will make sure to announce it through all avenues.”

Suddenly, the door to the conference busts open, causing the reporters to turn their heads and look. Who walks through? K-Dogg, Konnan, in shades and a flannel. 

“Ay, fuckin’ Rodman, man. You ain’t gotta look any further for this prick, Sick Nick to get his ass beat. I got ya boy right here.”

Konnan motions behind him and out walks a broad chested man with shoulder-length black hair.

“Yeah yeah, this is Ricky Banderas ‘ese. He’s from Puerto Rico, eh? And that title? Is his. ARRIBA LA RAZA!”

Konnan throws up a hand sign and does a “cut throat” motion, before turning with Banderas and walking back out the room. Everyone reshuffles in the room to find Rodman standing, smiling.

“Hope y’all ready for Beach Club Pro.”

With that, Rodman shakes hands with Adrian Street and Masa Saito and the three men walk out.

 

[superkix]

GOOD SHIT!

[jpchicago23]

I’m loving the vibe of this man. 

[SirEdger]

Beach Club Pro cannot get started soon enough. We're in for a fun ride!

[Chachins]

Great stuff, Rodman is the perfect guy to set the tone you are looking for.

[LowBlowPodcast]

I'm going to have to do a little bit of research on the group of guys that you have but this definitely looks like a fun kick start to what is going to be a wild ride.

[ohheylook]

Card for Beach Club Pro's First Show
Sam's Town Hotel & Gambling Hall
8/8/2000

Maunakea Mossman & Tatsuhito Takaiwa Vs. Satoshi Kojima & Ikuto Hidaka
Rey Bucanero & Ultimo Guerrero Vs. Simon Diamond & Johnny Swinger
World Title Tournament First Round (Barbed-Wire Whip Match): CW Anderson Vs. Justice Pain
World Title Tournament First Round: Tom Howard Vs. Tomohiro Ishii
World Title Tournament First Round (10,000 Thumbtacks Match): Vampiro Vs. John Zandig
World Title Tournament First Round: "Dr. Death" Steve Williams Vs. Manabu Nakanishi

[SirEdger]

SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY!!! This poster is amazing! How can we all top this?

[ohheylook]

On 8/3/2020 at 11:24 AM, LowBlowPodcast said:

I'm going to have to do a little bit of research on the group of guys that you have but this definitely looks like a fun kick start to what is going to be a wild ride.

Feel free to ask if you’re looking for recommendations on someone 

[ohheylook]

For Immediate Release
August 5, 2000
Contact: Beach Club Pro - (702) 556-5566

Las Vegas, NV - Beach Club Pro owner Dennis Rodman, in partnership with Japanese talent liason Masa Saito, have announced the signing of two legendary wrestlers, with all contract negotiations and VISA paperwork completed and approved through the Nevada State Athletic Commission. 

On the 4th anniversary  (8/5/96) of their legendary match unifying eight different junior heavyweight titles, otherwise known as the J-Crown, Beach Club Pro is proud to announce the acquistion of The Great Sasuke and Ultimo Dragon as additions to their roster.

Rodman was ecstatic at the signings, stating that while the early weeks of Beach Club Pro will focus on the Strong and Death divisions of the tournament, his plans for worldly expansion also include a lively Junior division. "Both Dragon and Sasuke have seen what we plan to offer as a wrestling product, and as two individuals that have made their entire career on being on the forefront of change, they were happy to work with Saito on something that benefitted all parties."

There is no word yet on the shape this Junior division will take within Beach Club Pro, nor was Rodman willing to concede if he had made any other notable signings, but he promised we would find out soon. "The plan right now is for the Heavyweight Title tournament to be the focus of the next four weeks. You may see some new talent sprinkle in here and there, like (Ikuto) Hidaka and (Tatsuhito) Takaiwa on our first show. But rest assured - we promise something brand new for the future. Just ride with us for little ways, you won't be disappointed."

It remains to be seen just how Beach Club pro will look once their events start, but their desire for many different types of wrestling is evident.

-END-

[jpchicago23]

Love it. Sasuke and Dragon are two juniors that can work multiple styles so they definitely fit your promotion and the overall feel isn’t sacrificed by having them join 

[Chachins]

Really great stuff here, your use of that amazing poster and the set up for your tournament makes Beach Club Pro such a strong promotion.  Like LowBlow, I am not that familiar with a number of your competitors, so I plan to enjoy learning who they are through your writings, which to this point are rich in detail.  

[ohheylook]

Beach Club Pro “World Title Tournament - Night 1”
August 8, 2000
Live from Sam’s Town Hotel & Casino
Las Vegas, Nevada

DUN DUN DUN DUN. 
GET THE FUCK UP.
DUN DUN DUN DUN.
SIMON SAYS GET THE FUCK UP

The rollicking crowd for the debut wrestling show from Beach Club Pro stood and yelled in anticipation and excitement as “Simon Says” by Pharohe Monch rumbled over the speakers throughout Sam’s Town. Out from the curtained area stepped Dennis Rodman dressed in a black and maroon leisure suit befitting his status here in Las Vegas, Nevada. The crowd roared with approval as “The Worm” walked down the short aisle to the ring, clapping hands with fans. He entered the ring with a microphone and hushed the crowd. 

“What’s up y’all crazy mother fuckers?!?”

Almost as if on queue, the relatively small crowd began an early and deafening chant of BEE CEE PEE BEE CEE PEE.

“Welcome to the debut show for Beach Club Pro here in Las Vegas, Nevada!” 

More applause as the crowd heard the hometown shouted out by The Worm. Many in the front row began slapping the railing for added effect.

“I don’t want to take away from what y’all are gonna see tonight, cuz it’s gonna be wild. It’s gonna be unique, and it will have the wrestling world buzzin. This promotion may have been a dream of mine, may have come from my confused lil’ head, but it is not about me. It’s about the guys who are gonna show you what real wrestling looks like here in the year 2000. Over the next few weeks, y’all are gonna see the tournament to crown the World Champion here in Beach Club Pro, but that’s just a start. Every week we will debut new talent, we will pull out shit you ain’t ever seen before and we are gonna blow your gat damn minds. Best believe, BCP is here and TONIGHT, the new wrestling world is put on notice!”

“Simon Says” played again as Rodman held his hands up to applause. The giant man smiled as he left the ring to the back.

Match 1: Los Infernales (Rey Bucanero & Ultimo Guerrero) w/ El Satanico Vs. Johnny Swinger & Simon Diamond

The first match in Beach Club Pro history delivered hard hitting tag team action for the live crowd. Pairing two rule-breaking teams against one another was an interesting wrinkle, but the familiarity the crowd had with the late ECW tag team Swinger & Diamond allowed for them to get some uncharacteristic cheers. Bucanero & Guerrero had lucha legend El Satanico in their corner and he played a crucial role throughout the match, constantly attempting to trip up Swinger & Diamond when the ref wasn’t looking. It wasn’t all shenanigans, however, as the Infernales team both hit suicide dives to the outside, laying out their opponents. Around the 9-minute mark, the match broke down into a glorified brawl, with Bucanero in particular taking it to Diamond on the outside, throwing him into the guard rail and nailing him with big stomps to the gut and head, busting him open. Back in the ring, Guerrero and Swinger provided the crowd with some high-flying moves and reversals. As Swinger took Guerrero up top for a superplex, Guerrero was able to flip out, leaving Swinger prone on the turnbuckle. Guerrero hit a big kick to the back of Swinger’s head and followed up with the Guerrero Special from the top for the 3-count!
Winners: Los Infernales (Rey Bucanero & Ultimo Guerrero) 

 

Match 2: Satoshi Kojima & Ikuto Hidaka Vs. Maunakea Mossman & Tatsuhito Takaiwa

The second match of the night featured a preview of what to expect when World Title Tournament first-round opponents Satoshi Kojima and Maunakea Mossman faced off with smaller partners in town. Much of the match was worked between Takaiwa and Hidaka as Takaiwa used his signature huge moves against the much faster Hidaka. The energy was palpable when Kojima and Mossman both tagged in to face off against one another however, as the two went directly into a chop exchange. Kojima won out, but as he celebrated by knocking down Mossman, was unaware that Mossman had gotten up, and as Kojima turned around, he ate a boot right to the face. After knocking Kojima off the ring apron, Mossman and Takaiwa showed their dominance, as Mossman hit the Hawaiian Smasher (TKO) on Hidaka, as the legal Takaiwa followed with a deadlift German Suplex for the win. After the match, an angry Kojima rushed in to protect Hidaka, before standing nose to nose with a smiling Mossman.
Winners: Maunakea Mossman & Tatsuhito Takaiwa

 

Match 3: Justice Pain Vs. CW Anderson
World Title Tournament First Round (Death Bracket)
Barbed-Wire Whip Match

The “Barbed-Wire Whip” in question in this match appeared to be a 10-foot long bullrope wrapped in barbed-wire as the crowd audibly gasped when it was brought to the ring. The whip was laid in the center of the ring as Justice Pain and CW Anderson stared at each other from opposite corners. Pain had hate in his eyes, almost salivating at the thought of inflicting damage to Anderson. Anderson, for his part looked a bit frightened, even protesting with the ref about the validity of this stipulation. As the bell rang, Anderson immediately ran towards the whip, but Pain was smarter and quicker - nailing Anderson with a dropkick much to the crowd’s pleasure. Instead of grabbing the whip, Pain instead followed with stomps to Anderson’s body. Anderson rolled out of the ring to catch a breath, but was surprised by tope over the top from Pain. Pain relished in the cheers from the crowd and threw Anderson back into the ring. Anderson struggled to make it to his feet, but when he did, he was shocked to see Pain holding the whip in his hand. Anderson begged off instantly, dropping to his knees with his hands up as if to surrender. Pain egged the crowd on and he walked slowly toward Anderson. He held the whip as if ready to strike, but instead booted him right in the face, laying him up in the corner. Sitting prey to Pain, Anderson was then on the receiving end of multiple whip crack shots of barbed-wire across his legs. Anderson tried to escape, but Pain grabbed him, and began to rake his head with the barbed-wire end of the whip. Blood streamed down Anderson’s face, as he looked ready to pass out. Pain wrapped the whip tighter around Anderson’s head and upper body before he delivered a Half-Nelson Suplex out of the corner. Anderson lay prone on the ground, his face an intense shade of red. Pain rolled him over and pinned him for the squash win, leaving Anderson looking dead inside the ring.
Winner: Justice Pain

 

As CW Anderson was being helped out of the ring, the sudden loud intro to “Si Senor” by Control Machete hit the speakers and out walked Konnan dancing to the beat, followed by his new, young talent Ricky Banderas. In the ring, Konnan cut a promo with his usual lines, but focused on making fun of the match that Justice Pain and CW Anderson just had. Konnan claims that Ricky isn’t a death match wrestler, but will wipe the floor with Nick Mondo and anyone else on his way to winning the title. Konnan’s usual charisma on the microphone wins the crowd over during his promo, they turn slightly against him when he states after Banderas wins the title, he’ll have to bring in his own scouted talent to provide any sort of competition.

 

Match 4: Tom Howard Vs. Tomohiro Ishii
World Title Tournament First Round (Strong Bracket)

In a match that stole the hearts of the audience, American Tom Howard and Tomohiro Ishii put on a clinic in hard-hitting wrestling while defining exactly what we should expect from the BCP Strong Division. For 13 minutes, Howard surprised the crowd with many high kicks and suplexes, while Ishii continually popped up from landing on his head to deliver strong lariats. As much as Howard was able to give Ishii, he also had to take it back, as Ishii refused to go down for the count. A standing ovation came from the crowd as a exchange of chops and lariats finally ended with a huge Howard spin kick, himself collapsing to the mat after the exchange. Ishii was able to back Howard into a corner with chops and elbow strikes, but Howard’s mixed martial arts prowess was on full display as he was able to block one strike, drop, and roll away from Ishii, grabbing his ankle on the way for an ankle lock, before Ishii got the ropes with an escape. Ishii returned the favor, attacking Howard’s right leg repeatedly with elbows and submissions, causing him to hobble around the ring. The end of the match came in quick succession, as Ishii whipped Howard into the corner, who hopped up on the ropes, sprange off the top and delivered a twisting Blockbuster to a charging Ishii. Howard then picked up Ishii for a deadlift brainbuster, bringing him down right on his head and cinched in a seated front-necklock, causing Ishii to tap out. A tremendous match from start to finish.
Winner: Tom Howard

 

Match 5: Vampiro Vs. John Zandig
World Title Tournament First Round (Death Bracket)
10,000 Thumbtack Match

The fifth match of the night, and second death match started with four separate canvas bags filled with thumbtacks in each corner of the ring. Both fighters entered to huge applause, but perhaps the loudest reaction of the night came, when prior to the bell being rung, Zandig took one bag of thumbtacks out of the corner and poured it over himself like water, before taking a flat back bump onto them - thus leaving him bleeding before the match even got started. Vampiro nodded at Zandig, and as the bell rang immediately rushed him into the corner - charging him with shoulder blocks into the gut. Zandig, with his size advantage, used huge clubbing forearms to knock the wind out of Vampiro, kneeing him in the head and delivering a huge powerbomb into the tacks, only 25 seconds into the match. The crowd came unglued at this sequence and as Vampiro stood back up, ribbons of blood ran down his back as well. The rest of the match devolved into chaos. All the bags of thumbtacks were eventually emptied into the ring, but prior to that, Vampiro missed a top rope dive through a table, slipped off the ropes when attempting to dive on Zandig outside, and Zandig for his part seemed to bumble around the ring. Less than 20 actual wrestling moves took place during this match’s 19-minute run time, though the crowd popped at every big spot. The finish came when Vampiro kicked a charging Zandig in the gut, before lifting and dropping him with the Nail in the Coffin onto a pile of thumbtacks for the 3-count.
Winner: Vampiro

 

Main Event: “Dr. Death” Steve Williams Vs. “Man Beast” Manabu Nakanishi
World Title Tournament First Round (Strong Division)

The main event of the evening was all about muscle, as two of the biggest, strongest men in all of wrestling battled in a test of strength. Though the match was not worked as fast-paced as the previous Strong Division match, the legendary Steve Williams had a hell of a time with a man who resembled him in his younger years in Nakanishi. With both having ample experience in amateur wrestling, the match featured quite a bit of mat grappling, as both men jockeyed for position. Despite his Dr. Death’s experience, the vigor of Nakanishi seemed to win out during these portions of the match, consistently getting the upper hand against the veteran. Around the 11-minute mark, the match turned into essentially a battle of strikes. Each man turned the other’s chest purple with chops, each man hit the ground multiple times with lariats, and around the 17-minute mark, both seemed barely able to stand. Nakanishi appeared to finally get lasting blows on Williams, and as he lifted him up into a Torture Rack, Williams was able to slide out and surprise Ishii with the Murder Backdrop for the 3-count and victory! After the bell, both men stared at each other from their knees, and pointed at one another. Williams stood up, walked over to Nakanishi and shook his hand, before pulling him to his feet and raising his arms as well to applause from the crowd.
Winner: “Dr. Death” Steve Williams

Williams closed the show by cutting a promo about how he’s been in this business for almost 20 years, and while he’s won many titles along the way, he’s far from done. He put over Nakanishi as the future of not only BCP, but all of wrestling before claiming that the World Title belongs to Dr. Death.

 

Results:
Los Infernales def. Johnny Storm & Simon Diamond (10:40) (**3/4)
Maunakea Mossman & Tatsuhito Takaiwa def. Satoshi Kojima & Ikuto Hidaka (9:26) (***)
Justice Pain def. CW Anderson (3:35) (*½)
Tom Howard def. Tomohiro Ishii (13:17) (****)
Vampiro def. John Zandig (19:22) (**)
Steve Williams def. Manabu Nakanishi (21:01) (***½)
 

[Chachins]

I was curious about your first show, because you set a high standard with your unique use of posters and graphics, which has been stellar and attention grabbing.  But now we come to what really matters ... the substance of your shows.

And you matched that standard with flying colors!

I am not the biggest fan of hardcore and extreme wrestling (although I did host a hardcore division in a former federation I wrote for that got pretty extreme) but I like your use of it here.  I thought in the Pain/Anderson match, waiting until the end to introduce the barb-wire whip was a great choice.

I have no clue who Maunakea Mossman is, but from reading the match, he is my new favorite wrestler in BCP.

I kind of hope Justice Pain takes out Konnan.  I just never liked him that much, but I grudgingly admit he got great heel heat with me on this show, so what he is doing is working.

Loved the show of sportsmanship between Dr. Death and Nakanishi to close out the show.

Great debut for BCP and the future here is wide open for sure!

[ohheylook]

Card for Beach Club Pro's Second Show
Sam's Town Hotel & Gambling Hall
8/15/2000

Gedo, Jado & Tatsuhito Takaiwa Vs. Elix Skipper, Ikuto Hidaka & Naomichi Marufuji
Manabu Nakanishi & Tomohiro Ishii Vs. Simon Diamond & Johnny Swinger
World Title Tournament First Round (Barbed-Wire Board Match): Tomoaki Honma Vs. Ric Blade
World Title Tournament First Round: Kendall Windham Vs. "The Predator" Don Frye
World Title Tournament First Round (TLC Match): "Sick" Nick Mondo Vs. Ricky Banderas
World Title Tournament First Round: Maunakea Mossman Vs. Satoshi Kojima

[ohheylook]

Beach Club Pro “World Title Tournament - Night 2”
August 15, 2000
Live from Sam’s Town Hotel & Casino
Las Vegas, Nevada

Fresh off the well-regarded and groundbreaking debut wrestling show for Beach Club Pro, in which 4 men moved forward in the inaugural World Title Tournament, a nearly sold out crowd was back at Sam’s Town Hotel in Las Vegas for the second show. Already knowing their worth, they chanted to their heart’s content:

B C P
B C P
B C P

The crowd had whipped themselves into a frenzy in their anticipation for the hard-hitting, bloody matches. They were sedated when the speakers around the venue crackled to life, followed by

IT’S PRIMETIME BABY!

The familiar whistles of “Party Up” by DMX roared through the speakers, and the crowd stood at attention, looking toward the entrance, as out walked former WCW cruiserweight Elix Skipper, nodding his head to the beat, while smiling and pointing to the crowd. Though Skipper was still a rookie before WCW’s closure, the crowd seems excited to see him in Beach Club Pro. Skipper held his thumbs out, turned and pointed to the entrance, as out walked Ikuto Hidaka and Naomichi Marufuji. The crowd seemed less familiar with them but the three men shook hands to applause and began their walk to the ring.

Match 1: Elix Skipper, Naomichi Marufuji & Ikuto Hidaka Vs. Gedo, Jado & Tatsuhito Takaiwa

Tatsuhito Takaiwa walked out from the current to boos, looking as serious and mean as he always does, as the speakers roared with a phrase in broken English - 

FUCK YOU. WE ARE JADO AND GEDO!

The well-known “World Class Tag Team” of Gedo & Jado walked out from behind the curtain to a mixed response, boos as they came out flipping off the crowd, but cheers as the Vegas fans appeared to remember them from their excellent work in ECW. Gedo carried a chair with him down the aisle.

The first match of the evening was a perfect showcase of the upcoming Junior division that has been hyped over the last couple of weeks. In a sense, this match was everything great about the best of the WCW Cruiserweight division, with more extreme measures being taken. Takaiwa continued his powerful dominance from last week against Hidaka, even delivering a disgusting release powerbomb into the turnbuckle, seemingly knocking Hidaka out cold. As Takaiwa turned from the fallen Hidaka and raised his arms in the air, he was met with two boots right to the face, from a Marufuji springboard dropkick, knocking him out of the ring. Marufuji was the star here, bouncing around the ring with swift kicks to all 3 of his opponents, before finally being thwarted by a low blow from Gedo & clothesline from Jado on the outside. This left Skipper to take on Gedo & Jado on his own, and though he fought valiantly, the experience of his opponents was too much to overcome, as Gedo was able to hit the Complete Shot, followed by his patented Gedo Clutch for the pinfall. The heroes were defeated, but as they walked to the back, the crowd gave them a standing ovation.
Winners: Gedo, Jado & Tatsuhito Takaiwa

Match 2: Simon Diamond & Johnny Swinger Vs. Tomohiro Ishii & Manabu Nakanishi

The second match of the night featured four men who lost on the first BCP show, with Diamond & Swinger trying to show their tag team prowess and make up for their loss against Los Infernales. As the experienced tag team in the match, Diamond and Swinger used some crafty tactics to take the upper hand here and there, but Ishii & Nakanishi, angry at their first round losses were just too aggressive for the American team to handle. It was a battle of craftiness and quick tags vs. brute strength, with the Japanese team seemingly trying to prove themselves against one another. The highlight of the match came with Diamond, after standing toe to toe with Ishii, decided to slap him across the face. Ishii proceeded to rock his world with chops, punches and kicks all the way into the corner, leaving Diamond like a prone animal and cowering in fear. When all was said and done, Nakanishi was able to score the pinfall on Swinger with a monster lariat in the center of the ring.
Winners: Tomohiro Ishii & Manabu Nakanishi

GET THE FUCK UP

The now familiar sounds of “Simon Says” by Pharaohe Monch play over the speakers and the crowd SCREAMS because out from the back comes the owner of Beach Club Pro - Dennis Rodman.

“Vegas, how ya feeling?”

The crowd continues to applaud

“You know, when I came out here to kick off the show last week, I said we were gonna blow your minds and god damn, I think we’ve done it, eh? We got 4 hot matches comin’ up still - but I’m out here to talk about something else. How’d y’all feel about that opener today?”

The crowd cheers loudly

“Glad y’all liked it. In Beach Club Pro, we wanna provide you with a lil’ bit of everything. We got the power, we got the blood, and baby, we got the flyers. I know most of y’all saw that press release announcing that with the help of Masa Saito over in Japan, we had signed two absolute legends in Ultimo Dragon and The Great Sasuke. And today y’all saw 6 other talents in that opener. Well I’m here to tell you, on September 5th and 6th, we are goin’ ALL JUNIORS baby. The best flyers in the world, the fastest wrestlers you’ve ever seen, they’re comin’ to Vegas for a two night event, right here. Twenty-One men will be included in a tournament to decide the first ever BCP Junior Heavyweight champion. And yeah, I realize that 21 doesn’t make for a perfect tournament bracket - so here’s what we got goin:
- There will be three brackets of 7 wrestlers each
- Each bracket will have a top seed with a first round “bye”
- Those 3 wrestlers with “byes” will be Ultimo Dragon, The Great Sasuke, and the man with two wins to his name already here in BCP - Tatsuhito Takaiwa.
- The winner of each bracket will face one another in a 3-way elimination match to determine the champion.”

The crowd seems really enthusiastic about this announcement.

“BCP will ALWAYS bring you something different. Death matches, heavyweight matches, and things that aren’t gonna be happening anywhere else on this planet. We will reveal one bracket per week until the event, so keep your eyes peeled for that. And tickets for the event go on sale Monday, August 24th - you won’t want to miss it.”

“Simon Says” plays again as Rodman exits the ring, shakes hands with the crowd and leaves to the back.

Match 3: Tomoaki Honma Vs. Ric Blade
World Title Tournament First Round (Death Bracket)
Barbed-Wire Board Death Match

Prior to the match beginning, a barbed-wire board was set up in each corner of the ring to a rabid reaction from the crowd, chanting for blood. Young japanese deathmatch stalwart Tomoaki Honma entered first to almost no reaction from the fans, this being his first time on US soil. He wore basic blue wrestling trunks to the ring, and though his body was impressive, a closer look revealed scars all up and down his torso. Ric Blade entered to “Blind” by Korn to a huge applause, and though he was working in Las Vegas for the first time, his name and exploits as the Extreme High Flyer had obviously reached the crowd, as they came unglued at his entrance. The match was as violent as the crowd could have hoped for, with two men who didn’t work with a lot of hate in their eyes, but unafraid to hurt themselves or their opponent. The recklessness with which both men worked led to the match being clunky at times, each trying perhaps too hard to be creative with the barbed-wire boards, but ultimately this creativity paid off when Honma won the match by putting Blade on top of a table, putting a barbed-wire board face down on top of him, climbing to the top and hitting a flying headbutt through both boards for the pinfall. Honma stood up to get his hand raised, his face covered in blood and obviously dazed. Though the crowd didn’t know what to make of him at first and were surprised with the result, his performance in the match made it impossible for them to not cheer at the result.
Winner: Tomoaki Honma

Match 4: Kendall Windham Vs. Don Frye
World Title Tournament First Round (Strong Bracket)

In a match of conflicting styles, one of the toughest men on the planet, Don Frye, perhaps the favorite to win the World Title tournament faced off with the lesser-known Windham. Frye, due to his popularity with the UFC, especially in and around Las Vegas, got one of the biggest pops of the night, though he pretended not to hear it, rather stalking down to the ring in all black trunks, boots and thick mustache. Windham went back to his roots with his look, donning a vest and cowboy hat, as well as red trunks and adapted cowboy boots to wrestle in. Windham received loud boos from the crowd. The match itself was not much, with Windham circling Frye, who for 3 minutes continually tried to tackle his legs. The two did tie up at one point, with Frye throwing haymakers, and Windham throwing convincing ones back. However, around the 5-minute mark, none other than “The Tennessee Stud” Robert Fuller walked out, in his full white cowboy getup. Though he didn’t make his intentions obvious at first, he wound up distracting the referee right as Frye grabbed a rear naked choke on Windham. Though Windham tapped almost immediately, the submission was broken suddenly by a diving CW Anderson! Anderson punted Frye right in the head, knocking him loopy before diving out of the ring. In the confusion, Windham was able to recover, stomp Frye a few times on the ground, pick him up like dead weight, place his head between his legs and execute the Powerbomb O’Doom (slingshot powerbomb). Frye looked knocked out, and Windham pinned him lazily, while posing for the crowd to huge boos. Windham left the perhaps concussed Frye in the ring, walked up the aisle and was joined at the entrance by Fuller and Anderson, who held their arms up to the crowd to deafening boos.
Winner: Kendall Windham

Match 5: “Sick” Nick Mondo Vs. Ricky Banderas (w/ Konnan)
World Title Tournament First Round (Death Bracket)
Tables, Ladders & Chairs Match

In perhaps the most anticipated match of the entire first round of the tournament, Ricky Banderas and Nick Mondo showed exactly what death match wrestling in the year 2000 should look like. The undersized Mondo had the crowd behind him the whole way and he did everything he could to use the weapons around the ring for his benefit. Though Konnan got involved frequently, hitting Mondo each time Banderas threw him out of the ring, Mondo’s never-say-die attitude allowed for him to kick out about a dozen pinfall attempts through the match. Banderas, for his part, was brutal. He wasn’t overly creative with the weapons, but he used his size and strength to his advantage in his attempt to murder his opponent. In a particularly shocking series, Banderas threw Mondo like a lawn dart straight into a ladder in the corner, deadlifted him into a brutal backdrop onto a folded chair, and then picked him up and gave him a piledriver on that same chair. Mondo, for his part, bloodied Banderas up with an Arabian Facebuster and was able to put him through a table with a senton, amongst other things. By around the 14-minute mark, both guys were covered in blood, much to the crowd’s pleasure. The match ended in a moment that will be talked about for years. After stomping the hell out of Mondo in the corner, Banderas asked Konnan to set up a table on the outside. Banderas lifted the smaller Mondo onto the top turnbuckle, slowly climbed it himself, and pulled Mondo up. The two caught their balance, and then Banderas made a throat slit motion to the crowd, grabbed Mondo by the throat, lifted him for a chokeslam and threw him to the outside, through the table and onto the concrete below. Mondo landed with a sickening thud as Banderas collapsed back into the ring, leaving the crowd astonished at what they had just seen. After taking in the scene, the referee went to the outside to check on Mondo, as Banderas slowly used the ropes to pull himself up. Banderas leaned over the ropes and looked at the scene below, when a sick smile crossed his face. The referee decided that Mondo could no longer continue and called for the bell - Banderas winning by knockout. The room felt like the air had been sucked out, until someone from the crowd yelled 

HOLY FUCK

This got a laugh from the crowd, but they then proceeded to chant through the whole arena. Banderas raised his arms to a mixed reaction, though Konnan got heavy boos. After they headed to the back, medics were able to help Mondo up, and though it took time, he was able to walk to the back on his own.
Winner: Ricky Banderas

Main Event: “Hawaiian Tornado” Maunakea Mossman Vs. “Strongest Arm” Satoshi Kojima
World Title Tournament First Round (Strong Division)

If the crowd thought the previous match couldn’t be topped, they were proven wrong in the main event as Maunakea Mossman and Satoshi Kojima took almost the entirety of the 30-minute time limit to show why they were considered 2 of the toughest, hardest-hitting men in Japan. It was a battle of holds early on, with Mossman’s amateur background putting him on top, though Kojima was able to hold his own. Each man was able to hit hard strikes and a suplex or two, but they spent a lot of time jockeying for position, testing each other’s skills. After being stood back up, Mossman was able to connect with one high kick to the head that knocked Kojima to ground and could have knocked him out if it was just a touch more solid. That woke Kojima up, and after he shook out the cobwebs, he fired up. For the last 15-minutes of the match, the two did their best impression of the legendary King’s Road style, repeatedly dropping each other on their heads, firing up, smashing each other with chops, lighting up each other’s chests and more. The end stretch saw Kojima drop Mossman with a tornado ddt, and while he signaled to the crowd he was going to set up for the Cozy Lariat, Mossman popped up and threw Kojima with a release german suplex. Kojima also immediately stood up, signaled for the lariat, but Mossman went for one at the same time, with both men colliding but not going down. They clothesline each other again with the same result and then go for a third time, but Kojima hooks Mossman’s arm, spins him around and kicks him in the back, which sends Mossman stumbling into the ropes, Kojima runs and hits him with a lariat against the ropes, sends him with an Irish whip across the ring, and meets him with a fully cocked Cozy Lariat, finally knocking Mossman (and himself) down. Kojima covered Mossman for the 3-count and the win!

Kojima was so exhausted, he had to rely on the referee to help prop him up, but he raised an arm in celebration to huge cheers from the crowd, closing the show.
Winner: Satoshi Kojima

Next week, the second round of the World Title Tournament!

Tom Howard Vs. Kendall Windham
Steve Williams Vs. Satoshi Kojima
Justice Pain Vs. Tomoaki Honma
Vampiro Vs. Ricky Banderas
More!

Results:
Gedo, Jado & Tatsuhito Takaiwa def. Elix Skipper, Naomichi Marufuji & Ikuto Hidaka (8:33) (***¼)
Tomohiro Ishii & Manabu Nakanishi def. Simon Diamond & Johnny Swinger (9:48) (**¾)
Tomoaki Honma def. Ric Blade (11:50) (***¼)
Kendall Windham def. Don Frye (6:34) (**)
Ricky Banderas def. Nick Mondo (18:16) (***¾)
Satoshi Kojima def. Maunakea Mossman (29:12) (****¼)

[jpchicago23]

I’m really loving the use of Banderas in this fed. He was a guy that I always thought could’ve had a decent run in the states outside of his TNA stuff. Good shit man 

[LowBlowPodcast]

You are without a doubt the king of the images here in this game. A lot of really good stuff up and down and with rodman at the home anything can happen. I'm definitely going to have to do a little research and some of your guys but I also like how the brackets are moved around a little bit. I am a huge mark for deathmatch stuff in the '90s and owned a couple of FMW best of the deathmatch video tapes. I also like the results at the end of your show just as a refresher of what happened. I appreciate all the work that you're putting into this. I appreciate all the work that you're putting into this.

[Chachins]

Once again, your presentation is outstanding!

I've never been that big a fan of the deathmatches and that sort of thing, I do acknowledge they have their place in the wrestling landscape, but just not my personal cup of tea.  That being said, the main event was my cup of tea and a strong one!  

You did a good subterfuge in the Windham/Frye match, the opening lines portraying Frye had me convinced Windham was in trouble, but the outcome was anything but.  

You have a lot of inventive and intriguing things going on here, and your effort to create a unique product that appeals to an edgy, anti-mainstream fanbase is coming to fruition nicely!

[ohheylook]

For Immediate Release
August 18, 2000
Contact: Beach Club Pro - (702) 556-5566

Las Vegas, NV - Following the completion of the first round in their World Title Tournament, Beach Club Pro head booker Adrian Street held a conference call with any wrestling media that could dial in. 

The call was broken up into 3 distinct sections.

1) Contrary to normal protocol, Street expressed deep pleasure with the quality of BCP's first two shows, citing the variety of matches and match quality as being as high wrestling promotion in the world currently. When he was questioned on BCP's physical distribution of their shows, as only short RealVideo clips have made their way onto online filesharing services and message boards, Street didn't have an answer on when wrestling fans around the world would be getting their hands on copies of the shows, but did mention that owner Dennis Rodman and some of the behind the scenes staff were working on it. In reference to the video clips that have already begun circling the internet, he told reporters that he was aware of this phenomenon, though was unsure how it happened, before stating "The response has been pretty good, aye?"  A few reporters asked questions about whether Street believes the Death Match style can make it into the mainstream ("Ours can"), if there are any updates on expansion out of Sam's Town ("Hold Tight") and how much of the roster we have yet to see ("Oh, bout two-thirds")

2) Street than promoted this weekend's show, which in addition to the Quarter-Finals of the World Title Tournament will feature two 5-way scramble matches featuring Junior Heavyweight wrestlers, many of which have yet to debut.  When asked if Ultimo Dragon or The Great Sasuke would be included in these matches, Street was candid, "Unfortunately, they are still in Japan, but you will see them before too long"  A follow-up question asked which mach would main event the show, and while Street didn't give a straight answer, he did state, "Expect it to be one of the most violent main events in wrestling history."

3) Before getting off the call, Street wanted to follow-up on Mr. Rodman's announcement in the ring last weekend about the upcoming Junior Heavyweight Title Tournament. He acknowledged it's ballsy to do another tournament RIGHT after their first, but stated that the energy and speed these competitors will bring will be far from a bore. He also reiterated that the entire tournament would take place over two back-to-back nights on September 5th & 6th. With the NINE first round matches taking place on the first night, and the remaining TEN matches (including the 3-way elimination final) to take place on the second night. He closed by reading out the matchups in the 1st bracket, titled the SEA bracket, and stating there is a printable bracket online on the Beach Club Pro website. The SUN bracket will be revealed next week, and the SAND bracket revealed the the week of the event.

-END-

BCP Junior Heavyweight Title Tournament (Sept. 5th & 6th):
SEA Bracket

Ultimo Dragon (JP) (First Round Bye)
Ultimo Guerrero (MX) Vs. Ricky Marvin (MX)

Elix Skipper (US) Vs. Gedo (JP)
Michael Modest (US) Vs. Virus (MX)