The lineup for PWG Battle of Los Angeles 2023 is now fully set.
The two-day tournament is being held at the Globe Theatre in Los Angeles on Saturday, January 7 and Sunday, January 8. Here are the 17 wrestlers who will be taking part in the tournament:
Michael Oku
Shun Skywalker
Masha Slamovich
“Speedball” Mike Bailey
Komander
Alex Shelley
Jonathan Gresham
Aramis
Titus Alexander
Jordynne Grace
Lio Rush
Black Taurus
Latigo
Daniel Garcia
Bandido
Konosuke Takeshita
El Hijo del Vikingo
Oku, Skywalker, and Vikingo are making their PWG debuts in the tournament. Slamovich, Komander, Alexander, Grace, Latigo, and Takeshita all debuted for PWG earlier this year and will be competing in their first Battle of Los Angeles.
Vikingo, who is the current AAA Mega Champion, recently secured his visa to wrestle in the United States. He won Mexico MVP in the 2021 Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards and finished second in the Best Flying Wrestler category.
Garcia currently holds the PWG World Championship. After winning the 2022 edition of BOLA, he defeated Bandido for the title this May.
The winner of BOLA 2023 will get a future shot at Garcia’s title.
PWG has revealed the eight first round matches for night one of Battle of Los Angeles on Saturday, January 29.
Bandido will face “Speedball” Mike Bailey on night one. Bailey was announced as a replacement for Phillip Five Skulls, who may have been CM Punk. Punk tweeted today that it was him, but may have been joking.
The other first round matchups are JONAH vs. Buddy Matthews, ROH World Champion Jonathan Gresham vs. Davey Richards, JD Drake vs. Black Taurus, Lee Moriarty vs. Alex Shelley, Jack Cartwheel vs. Lio Rush, Kevin Blackwood vs. Daniel Garcia, and Aramis vs. Rey Horus.
Tickets for BOLA are on sale now. The event will take place at the Globe Theatre in Los Angeles, California on January 29 and January 30.
Here is the lineup:
PWG Battle of Los Angeles night one, Saturday, January 29 —
Bandido vs. “Speedball” Mike Bailey
JONAH vs. Buddy Matthews
ROH World Champion Jonathan Gresham vs. Davey Richards
PWG has announced the full field of 16 for the Battle of Los Angeles 2022 tournament.
Buddy Matthews and Phillip Five Skulls were revealed today as the final two participants in the 2022 BOLA. PWG announcedboth on Twitter.
“Phillip Five Skulls” looks to be a mystery entrant, with PWG using the name as a joke. It’s based on a tweet from earlier this year where someone made up the name “Phillip Five Skulls from Dayton.”
Matthews, formerly known as Buddy Murphy in WWE, and the unknown Philip Five Skulls join PWG World Champion Bandido, ROH World Champion Jonathan Gresham, AEW’s Lio Rush, Daniel Garcia and Lee Moriarty, JONAH, Alex Shelley, Kevin Blackwood, Black Taurus, Jack Cartwheel, Aramis, Davey Richards, JD Drake, and Rey Horus in the BOLA field. The event will be held at the Globe Theatre in Los Angeles, California on Saturday, January 29 and Sunday, January 30, the same weekend as WWE’s Royal Rumble.
Matthews was released by WWE in June and has since embarked on an indie tour that has included a stop in NJPW for a match with Kazuchika Okada at Battle in the Valley in November.
PWG announced on Twitter this evening that Rey Horus will take part in the 2022 BOLA tournament. The event will be held at the Globe Theatre in Los Angeles, California on Saturday, January 29 and Sunday, January 30.
Horus joins PWG World Champion Bandido, ROH World Champion Jonathan Gresham, AEW’s Lio Rush, Daniel Garcia and Lee Moriarty, JONAH, Alex Shelley, Kevin Blackwood, Black Taurus, Jack Cartwheel, Aramis, Davey Richards, plus JD Drake as announced tournament participants.
A ROH, AAA, MLW and former Lucha Underground regular, Horus has taken part in the last three BOLA tournaments. In 2017, he dropped a first round contest to Rey Fenix. In 2018, Horus defeated Adam Brooks in the first round, then lost in the quarterfinals to eventual tournament winner Jeff Cobb. In the 2019 BOLA, he lost in the first round to Dragon Lee.
JD Drake will take part in the 2022 PWG Battle of Los Angeles.
PWG announced tonight that Drake is the thirteenth entrant in the BOLA. The tournament will be held on Saturday, January 29 and Sunday, January 30 at the Globe Theatre in Los Angeles, California.
Drake, an AEW regular as part of The Wingmen, joins PWG World Champion Bandido, ROH World Champion Jonathan Gresham, AEW’s Lio Rush, Daniel Garcia and Lee Moriarty, JONAH, Alex Shelley, Kevin Blackwood, Black Taurus, Jack Cartwheel, Aramis, plus Davey Richards in the BOLA field.
After making his PWG debut in 2019 at The Makings Of A Varsity Athlete, Drake has appeared on three PWG events in 2021 as the company returned to running shows following a pandemic-related hiatus. Drake teamed with Anthony Henry to challenge PWG World Tag Team Champions Malakai Black and Brody King at November’s It’s A Long Way To The Top (If You Wanna Rock ‘n’ Roll) show.
PWG announced tonight that Jonathan Gresham will be part of the 2022 Battle of Los Angeles tournament. BOLA will be held on Saturday, January 29 and Sunday, January 30 at the Globe Theatre in Los Angeles, California.
Gresham joins PWG World Champion Bandido, AEW’s Lio Rush, Daniel Garcia and Lee Moriarty, JONAH, Alex Shelley, Kevin Blackwood, Black Taurus, Jack Cartwheel, Aramis, plus Davey Richards in the BOLA field.
Gresham won the ROH World title by defeating Jay Lethal in the main event of the Final Battle pay-per-view on December 11. The title was vacated after Bandido tested positive for COVID-19 the week of the event. He has since defended the ROH title at GCW Blood on the Hills, and is also set to defend the title against Blake Christian at The Wrld on GCW on January 23 at a sold out Hammerstein Ballroom in New York.
PWG has announced the eleventh participant for the Battle of Los Angeles 2022.
Aramis will be part of the field for the second time, as he joins the previously announced PWG World Champion Bandido, AEW’s Lio Rush, Daniel Garcia and Lee Moriarty, JONAH, Alex Shelley, Kevin Blackwood, Black Taurus, Jack Cartwheel and Davey Richards in the BOLA field.
The tournament is set to take place on Saturday, January 29 and Sunday, January 30 at the Globe Theatre in Los Angeles, California.
Aramis became a PWG regular this year, appearing at their last three events. He teamed with Rey Horus in a win over Myron Reed and Trey Miguel at Mystery Vortex 7 in August, lost to Dragon Lee at Threemendous VI in September, then defeated Jack Cartwheel at It’s A Long Way To The Top (If You Wanna Rock ‘n’ Roll) in November. In his previous BOLA appearance, he lost in the first round of the 2019 tournament to Rey Fenix.
PWG has made their tenth talent announcement for the 2022 Battle of Los Angeles event.
Davey Richards will take part in the 2022 edition of BOLA. The tournament is set to take place on Saturday, January 29 and Sunday, January 30 at the Globe Theatre in Los Angeles, California.
Richards joins PWG World Champion Bandido, AEW’s Lio Rush, Daniel Garcia and Lee Moriarty, JONAH, Alex Shelley, Kevin Blackwood, Black Taurus and Jack Cartwheel in the BOLA field.
Richards returned to the ring in 2021 following a four-year hiatus. He won MLW’s Opera Cup in November, defeating TJP in the finals. Richards also re-formed the American Wolves tag team with Eddie Edwards and captured the Pro Wrestling Revolver Tag Team titles in October.
In his most recent PWG appearance, Richards lost to Lio Rush at It’s A Long Way To The Top (If You Wanna Rock ‘n’ Roll) in November. He also unsuccessfully challenged Bandido for the PWG title at Threemendous VI in September.
Lee Moriarty has been announced as the ninth entrant in the PWG Battle of Los Angeles 2022.
PWG made the announcement on Twitter this evening. Moriarty joins PWG World Champion Bandido, JONAH, Alex Shelley, Kevin Blackwood, AEW’s Lio Rush, AEW’s Daniel Garcia, Black Taurus and Jack Cartwheel in the tournament lineup. Battle of Los Angeles will take place on Saturday, January 29 and Sunday, January 30 at the Globe Theatre in Los Angeles, California.
Moriarty accepted a contract offer from AEW at the Dark: Elevation taping in Cincinnati on September 8. The company officially announced the full-time deal on October 15. Moriarty faced CM Punk on the December 1 Dynamite, then competed in the Dynamite Diamond Ring Battle Royale on December 8.
A former IWTV Independent Wrestling World Champion. He last appeared for PWG in November at It’s A Long Way To The Top (If You Wanna Rock ‘n’ Roll), defeating Blackwood on that show.
The eighth entrant in the PWG Battle of Los Angeles 2022 tournament has been announced.
PWG World Champion Bandido will take part in the 2022 BOLA. The promotion made the official announcement tonight on Twitter. Battle of Los Angeles will take place on Saturday, January 29 and Sunday, January 30 at the Globe Theatre in Los Angeles, California.
Bandido joins JONAH, Alex Shelley, Kevin Blackwood, Lio Rush, Black Taurus, Daniel Garcia and Jack Cartwheel in the tournament lineup. Bandido has held PWG’s World title since December 2019 and is the longest-reigning World Champion in the company’s history, that fact aided by PWG not being able to run events in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bandido was forced to vacate the ROH World Championship just prior to Final Battle on December 11 following a positive COVID-19 test. Jonathan Gresham then won the vacant title by defeating Jay Lethal in the main event of that show.
PWG has made their fifth talent announcement for the 2022 Battle of Los Angeles tournament.
The promotion has announced Black Taurus as a participant in BOLA 2022. He joins Lio Rush, Alex Shelley, JONAH and Kevin Blackwood on the list of tournament entrants. Taurus also competed in the 2019 Battle of Los Angeles, losing in the first round to Darby Allin.
Black Taurus, an Impact Wrestling and AAA regular, made his PWG debut in July 2019. He challenged Bandido for the PWG World Championship at this year’s Mystery Vortex 7 event in August, then competed for the vacant PWG Tag titles at September’s Threemendous VI event in a match won by Malakai Black and Brody King.
2022’s Battle of Los Angeles will take place on Saturday, January 29 and Sunday, January 30 at the Globe Theatre in Los Angeles, California. It will be the sixteenth edition of the tournament, and the first since 2019 after the COVID-19 pandemic did not allow for a 2020 or 2021 edition.
PWG has announced the fourth entrant in the Battle of Los Angeles 2022.
AEW’s Lio Rush will be part of the 2022 BOLA tournament, joining JONAH, Alex Shelley, and Kevin Blackwood who have been announced previously. The Battle of Los Angeles 2022 will be held Saturday, January 29 and Sunday, January 30, the same weekend as WWE’s Royal Rumble.
Rush made his PWG return at November’s It’s A Long Way To The Top (If You Wanna Rock ‘n’ Roll) event, defeating Davey Richards on that show. That match was Rush’s first with the promotion since 2017.
Since joining AEW, Rush has appeared in two battle royales, a pair of tag matches with Dante Martin as his partner, and a singles match against Rayo on this week’s AEW Dark. In addition to his AEW work, Rush is also a regular for NJPW Strong.
BOLA returns in 2022 after not being held in 2020 or 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
PWG has announced the third entrant in the Battle of Los Angeles 2022.
Kevin Blackwood will be part of the 2022 BOLA tournament, joining JONAH and Alex Shelley as the first three participants announced. The Battle of Los Angeles is set for Saturday, January 29 and Sunday, January 30, the same weekend as WWE’s Royal Rumble.
Blackwood, 31, currently holds the ESW Heavyweight Championship, defeating AEW’s Daniel Garcia for the title last month. Blackwood made his PWG debut in November at It’s A Long Way To The Top (If You Wanna Rock ‘n’ Roll), losing to Lee Moriarty.
Battle of Los Angeles returns in 2022 following a two-year absence. This iteration of the tournament will be held over two nights, a departure from the three-night format of recent years. Current PWG World Champion Bandido won the 2019 BOLA. Ricochet remains the only two-time winner of the tournament, claiming victory in 2014 and 2017.
PWG’s Battle of Los Angeles tournament is coming back.
After a 2020 and 2021 hiatus, PWG announced the 2022 Battle of Los Angeles for January 29 and January 30, 2022. No further details regarding the tournament have been released as of yet.
PWG did not run an event in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. They returned with Mystery Vortex 7 on August 1 of this year. They have since run two additional shows, Threemendous VI and It’s A Long Way To The Top (If You Wanna Rock ‘n’ Roll).
Battle of Los Angeles was last held in September 2019. Bandido won that year’s tournament in a three-way elimination match against David Starr and Jonathan Gresham. The 2019 event was held over three days.
Bandido was also a finalist in the 2018 BoLA. That final was also an elimination three-way, where Bandido eliminated current IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Shingo Takagi before dropping the match to tournament winner Jeff Cobb.
Bandido, the crowd favorite and betting favorite, won PWG’s 2019 BOLA tournament in a three-way over Jonathan Gresham and David Starr.
Sunday’s night three was an amazing show in front of an electric crowd, coming across like PWG from a few years ago. The show built well and featured a variety of different styles. A number of names new to the promotion stood out and the show ended with a clear direction of Bandido facing Jeff Cobb once again for the PWG title in a program that has been around in some form for a year.
BOLA Round 2: Dragon Lee defeated Jake Atlas
Lee won after hitting a running knee. At this point, this was the consensus best match of the tournament, although it would be topped later. Atlas, who most thought had the best first round match with Jungle Boy, got a deafening reaction.
BOLA Round 2: Bandido defeated Brody King
Bandido won after a GTS and 21 Plex. This was a Lucha Libre style match and for a 300 pounder, King looked amazing with his movements.
BOLA Round 2: Jonathan Gresham defeated A-Kid
Gresham won after working on his knee and smashing it on the ground over and over in an excellent match.
BOLA Round 2: Joey Janela defeated Fenix
Janela pulled off the upset by twisting Fenix’s mask around so he couldn’t see and gave him a superkick.
BOLA Round 2: Darby Allin defeated Pentagon Jr.
Allin pulled off an upset with a sunset bomb and a kneebar into a roll-up. This was another great match. Allin has improved a lot as far as coming across as a star as opposed to a guy who got over just based on taking insane bumps.
BOLA Round 2: David Starr defeated PWG Champion Jeff Cobb in a non-title match
Starr won after hitting Cobb with a belt shot as the ref was thrown down, followed by a lariat.
The Dark Order defeated Aramis & Rey Horus
Horus was pinned after a Gori Special by Evil Uno combined with a blockbuster off the top rope by Stu Grayson for the pin. Crowd gave Aramis & Horus a standing ovation after the match.
BOLA Round 3: Jonathan Gresham defeated Joey Janela with an Octopus submission.
BOLA Round 3: Bandido defeated Dragon Lee
This would have been a match of the year candidate in most years. Lee did a tope flying at least five rows into the crowd. Bandido did a moonsault off the post to the floor and nearly hit the balcony.
BOLA Round 3: David Starr defeated Darby Allin
Starr advanced when Allin went for a coffin drop off the top rope and Starr turned it into a shoulderbreaker.
Orange Cassidy & Artemis Spencer & Caveman Ugg & Jungle Boy & Paris Da Silva defeated Tony Deppan & Lucky Kid & Mick Moretti * Kyle Fletcher & Black Taurus
This was a super entertaining match featuring a lot of great moves and a lot of preposterous antics. Even the big guys like Ugg and Taurus were flying around. Cassidy pinned Deppan after spitting orange juice in his face and rolling him up.
BOLA Finals: Bandido beat David Starr and Jonathan Gresham in a three-way
Gresham eliminated Starr with the Octopus and elbows on the ground for a ref stoppage. This left Bandido vs. Gresham with Bandido using a Samoan drop, a reverse fallaway slam off the top rope and the 21 Plex for the win.
