Three days after announcing that he was closing Chikara and resigning as head trainer of the Wrestle Factory school, Mike Quackenbush released a 14-minute video Saturday where he accepted responsbility for some of the allegations, admitted to others, and denied others.
The first half of the video was devoted to a single female trainee who came forward as part of #SpeakingOut and chose to remain anonymous while addressing other allegations in the second half.
Quackenbush (Mike Spillane) said he first heard a few days ago of the allegation from one trainee that another was “blackout drunk” at a coach’s residence and sexually assaulted. He said that coach was removed several months ago, but that safeguards must be put in place so that never happens again.
He said he had no first hand knowledge of a male wrestler exposing himself to a female trainee on a road trip, but since the trip was organized under his purview, he accepts full responsibility. He said he was alerted by a coach of “unprofessional behavior” during the trip and that discipline was handed out at the time, but the behavior was not reported to him in this level of detail.
He addressed a leg injury that was suffered by the trainee and jokes made at their expense by others. He said he was in the ring with the trainee when the injury happened and did go to the hospital with them, but did not hear any jokes about it. He said he believed the accuser and apologized, but denied any allegation an injury would be caused on purpose. He also stood by his call of not letting the woman continue training due to the injury and denied any “manipulation or gaslighting”, saying she didn’t have the proper upper body strength to safely keep doing so.
He denied another allegation where it was said he was openly talking about his sex life, saying he never had done so publicly. He admitted that at two points of his professional life, he was involved with active Chikara performers, but that they were consensual and are those two are free to talk about it if they choose. He denied ever being involved sexually with a trainee.
He didn’t recall making a comment about an “attractive female fan” at an event or a trainee later having sex with that fan, but apologized and accepted responsibility, giving the accuser the benefit of the doubt.
He got emotional when addressing allegations he made inappropriate comments against a wrestler with autism. He said he didn’t hear the comments, but believed the allegations and apologized to his friend. He also said he very well might have been a narcissist during that period and apologized.
He admitted that he did likely use homophobic language during 2010-11, but didn’t recall making other remarks. However, he he should own that he did and accept responsibility as he did say “ignorant things in my past”. He said he didn’t do enough to change the culture and reflected on an exit interview with a trainee where they said how hurtful it was to hear anti-gay slurs used aloud.
Following accusations including both inappropriate language and misconduct with students that emerged due to the #SpeakingOut movement, Chikara founder Mike Quackenbush announced on Wednesday he is shutting down the company and resigning as head trainer of Philadelphia’s Wrestle Factory.
“I have been made aware of recent allegations about myself, and people in my employ. I take all allegations seriously – whether they are about me, or members of my team. Addressing these with openness and transparency is of the utmost importance to me. So these matters can be given the proper time and attention, I am discontinuing CHIKARA and resigning as head trainer at the Wrestle Factory. I’ll make a full statement on these matters in the near future.”
Quackenbush (Mike Spillane) has also been a regular guest trainer at the WWE Performance Center.
The news follows several wrestlers announcing they were leaving the company including Hallowicked, Kimber Lee, and Dasher Hatfield. Chikara had been in operation since 2002 following Quackenbush and Reckless Youth (Thomas Carter) opening the Wrestle Factory school.
Last Friday, Chikara announced that wrestler Kobald (Anthony Wilson) was done with the company after claims from several women that he was both physically and verbally abusive.
Coverage of an incredibly newsworthy week is the focus of this week’s double-issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
We look at what could be the end of the career of David Starr, his significance in wrestling, the charges made about him by an ex-girlfriend, his response, the response fro companies he was headlining for and a discussion of the bigger picture story and business history on the subject.
The new issue also has:
Most recent COVID-19 case in the WWE, how plans changed for WWE taping, the schedule going forward, the company’s policies on the subject of testing and fans how WWE’s reaction compares to other companies, the politicizing of the COVID story in Orange County and how things could change this week. We also look at how every other company is handling the situation, Kevin Owens not wrestling at next week’s taping, a UFC fighter who just tested positive and a training partner pulled from this week’s who had problems at the Orlando Airport that all the wrestlers that don’t live in the area have to fly into.
More on the departure of Paul Heyman as the head of Raw. We look at Heyman’s goals, USA Network’s reaction, the previous difference between Raw and Smackdown, how Raw has already changed, how the booking this year on Raw had changed, how NXT looked different, as well as a look at how all the wrestling shows have done over the past month and actual drops both from late last year and from early this year in the COVID era.
Talent that was being featured that wasn’t this week and why.
A feature on New Japan Pro Wrestling opening up, talking about the first shows, plus New Japan Cup coverage with match-by-match and star ratings, and where the tournament goes this week.
One of the most significant issues in MMA, weight cutting,and how another sport handles the situation.
A feature on the stockholders lawsuit against WWE regarding Saudi Arabia including two secret witnesses and what they have said about the television negotiations and what really happened after the October show when talent couldn’t get out of the country.
Full coverage of Backlash, noting the Randy Orton vs. Edge match, match-by-match coverage with star ratings as well as poll results on the show.
More on the XFL’s demise, a huge story regarding TV rights and how it relates to WWE & AEW when their deals are up, Evolve not running new shows, WWE and new touring shows, new TV series based on the life of a wrestling star, Sports ratings for the past week, Canadian ratings for the past week, most-watched shows on WWE Network and WWE’s current market value.
Mustafa Ali talking the behavior of the police, replacement feud on Smackdown and why, Drew McIntyre talks current scene, the stalker returns to Performance Center, Randy Orton talks Tommaso Ciampa, Wade Barrett talks booking idea he was given, plus next week’s TV stuff.
Coverage of this past week’s UFC show.
A back of the book feature on Johnny “Mr. Wrestling II” Walker. We’ve got his unbelievably long career title history, a look back at Georgia Wrestling in the 70s and 80s, his early days as Johnny Walker, how far masked wrestlers went to keep their identities secret, Jim Cornette talks the one time he saw him without his mask and working with him in Mid South, Les Thatcher talks their friendship clothes, the kneelift, the birth of the gimmick and it taking off, his famous match with Junkyard Dog in New Orleans, and his period as the No. 2 babyface in the 60s in an opposition promotion in New York. We also look at his criminal record updated.
In-depth looks at the ratings of all the major shows, the key demos and quarters for AEW and WWE, what happened head-to-head and what can be learned from them.
Results of all the major pro wrestling events around the world over the past week.
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WEDNESDAY NEWS UPDATE
WWE
Bryan Alvarez is reporting that no friends or family will be allowed at next week’s tapings in the wake of more people within WWE testing positive for COVID-19..
This week’s episode of The Bump featured Kevin Owens, Xavier Woods, Tyler Breeze, Fandango, Shinsuke Nakamura, and Cesaro.
WWE announced a new television deal in Italy today with Discovery that begins on July 1. WWE’s weekly programming will now air with original US commentary on DPlay PLUS, and shows with Italian commentary will air on DMAX.
Edge also commented on criticism of his Backlash match against Randy Orton: “I know some of our audience is conditioned to 52 superkick, 82 flip matches. That’s not going to be me. It was never me, but especially not now. I want the match where Bret Hart, Undertaker, & Gerald Brisco are gonna text me after.”
PWInsider is reporting that CHIKARA is shutting down in the wake of a number of allegations against Mike Quackenbush. CHIKARA talent including Jakob Hammermeier, Hallowicked, Kimber Lee, and Frightmare have resigned from the promotion. Allegations have specifically come out against Quackenbush and Icarus over inappropriate behavior.
ECCW released a statement saying they have removed people from their promotion following “allegations involving certain members of our promotion”. John Pollock later reported one of these members being Jeff Duncan, the co-owner and booker of the promotion. Duncan gave Pollock the following statement: “I am no longer involved with ECCW. While I deny the allegations, I understand this course of action is best for the company”.
Chikara Pro Wrestling followed up Princess Kimber Lee’s Grand Championship victory at Top Banana with a double shot kick-off for Season 16 at Chikara’s Training Facility The Wrestle Factory in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The afternoon show, titled The Days of the Phoenix after the AFI album, featured former Chikara everything winner Hallowicked & Wrestling Observer Rookie of the Year 2009 Frightmare challenging N_R_G for the Chikara Campeonatos De Parejas. While the evening show, titled 5 Senses after what I am assuming is the XTC album, featured Princess Kimber Lee’s first defense of the Chikara Grand Championship against Oleg The Usurper.
Both shows saw great turn outs, but the evening show was particularly note-worthy for the super standing room only crowd. Under the new format, Chikara is doing slightly shorter shows — running anywhere from 90 minutes to 2 1/5 hours at the Wrestle Factory rather than a normal 3 hour show. Show one ran about 2 hours with intermission. Show two ran a little more than 2 1/2 hours. Like last season, Wrestle Factory shows are named after favorite musical albums. Shows outside the Wrestle Factory will be subtitles of movie sequels as When Nature Calls, Dead Man’s Chest, The Secret of the Ooze, and the New Batch have already been scheduled.
Chikara: The Days of the Phoenix | Saturday January 30th, 2015
After the passing of the torch from Gavin Loudspeaker, “The Party Tsar” Vlad Radinov is now doing Chikara ring announcing duties. Vlad brings a bit of comedy that hasn’t been seen in wrestling ring announcing since Joel Gertner. Referees for the evening were Bryce Remsberg and Larry Peace.
The Proletariat Boar of Moldova b Arctic Rescue Ant in 8 minutes after a gore as Ant jumped into the ring through the ropes.
This was a fun opener and a slick finish. With the demise of Orbit Adventure Ant at King of Trios and Missile Assault Ant now a part of Battleborn, Arctic is the lone remaining member of The Colony: Xtreme Force. Boar has begun really enjoying his time in the ring and is talking a lot more during matches. The crowd was into this. Vlad Radinov brings out Chikara Director of Fun, Mike Quackenbush. Quack talks about Season 15 being about two things: the season long Challenge of the Immortals tournament and Princess Kimber Lee’s victory. He brings out Kimber. They then raise a banner in the Wrestle Factory commemorating the Crown & Court victory. This was a nice touch.
The Hermit Crab & Rock Lobster b Ben Macklemore & Lewis Ryan in 3 minutes when Crab pinned we’ll say Lewis Ryan after a middle rope walk elbow drop.
This was the unannounced 6th match of the card. Hermit Crab’s partner, Cajun Crawdad, recently succumbed to a knee injury. Since he is a Crawdad it could be problematic. This was Rock Lobster’s debut. A nice showcase for the new team. The crowd sang about Crab People. The remaining members of the Bruderschaft des Kreuzes (BDK), Jakob Hammermeier & Pinkie Sanchez came out. Jakob noted he is here to deal with the traitor, Soldier Ant. They did a BDK roll call and introduced Jaka as the 3rd member of their trio. Pinkie Sanchez mentioned Eddie Kingston, which angered Jakob.
Jaka with Jakob Hammermeier & Pinkie Sanchez b Amasis in 10 minutes after a splash from the top.
The ending was pretty clean. They did a sweet Russian Legsweep from a springboard bit with a slight slip, but it still looked really nice. Jakob was all over the place here yelling at referee Bryce Remsberg. Pinkie Sanchez was fantastic all day. Seriously, words cannot describe just how good he is. Pinkie was taken out by a miscommunication Jaka dive, crawled into the ring, was ignored by Jakob and then rolled to the back.
– They announced Chikara would be going to Toronto on July 23rd before intermission. They’ve since put up tickets for two Saturday shows. Additionally, there is a Chikara v. SMASH Wrestling event scheduled for July 24th. After intermission, they did the drawing for the Magic Move. There was a bachelor party at the show. The gentleman getting married drew the ball. Remsberg read the move as a “long and prosperous marriage”, then noted the Magic Move was really a clothesline over the top rope.
Juan Francisco de Coronado & Prakash Sabar b Dasher Hatfield & Heidi Lovelace when Sabar pinned Hatfield in 15 minutes with a small package after a low blow by Juan in the Magic Move Match.
This was a follow-up to Juan & his team winning the 2015 Cibernetico at the season finale. There was some good comedy with Juan and referee Bryce Remsberg as Remsberg wouldn’t count against Dasher’s team and would force Juan to follow the rules in an overly exaggerated manner. Prakash continues his streak of hitting the Best Bronco Buster in the World. The Proletariat Boar of Moldova came to ringside and interfered. This eventually brought out Icarus, whose arm was in a sling. Dasher debuted a suplex into a gutbuster then a cradle instead of his usual Jackhammer. The story here was Prakash knocking Icarus off the apron after Boar interfered. They tried to use Juan’s Ecuadorian Flag. “Mr. Touchdown” Mark Angelosetti came to the ring to stop it. He took out Boar. Juan begged off, then tossed Touchdown the flag. He directed Dasher to see what was in the ring. Dasher saw Touchdown and assumed he was there to break the rules again. There was a confrontation. As Touchdown tried to explain himself, Juan hit Dasher with a low blow leading to the small package by Prakash for the win. This story is working out very well so far. Hatfield hit the Magic Move. Everyone got a Chikara pen.
Vlad attempted to do Rafflemania. He brought a kid into the ring. There was no Rafflemania. Vlad said that there are no losers in Chikara and proceeded to award the kid 2 semi-mint condition Jim Ross WCW trading cards that “for some reason prominently feature Lex Luger.” Planned or not, this was fantastic.
Soldier Ant b Jakob Hammermeier with a spinning chokeslam in 10 minutes
Solider is fresh off of breaking the spell of the Flood and the Eye of Tyr and is finally back to being himself after Top Banana. He got a Welcome Back chant. Jakob got in a Worldstar! punch early, but Soldier survived. He also hit his Death Valley Drive over the knee for a near fall. Pinkie Sanchez crawled out in commando face paint and circled the ring. He eventually was laid out by Soldier. This was so excellent. Soldier eventually hit Jakob with his own version of the Worldstar punch, told him he was dismissed, then chokeslammed him for the victory. With the win, Soldier Ant received his 3rd point and can now challenge for the Chikara Grand Championship. Soldier, having previously been under a spell, did not realize he had done enough to qualify. This was a fine blow off.
N_R_G (Race Jaxon & Hype Rockwell) b The Nightmare Warriors (Frightmare & Hallowicked) 2 falls to 1 to retain the Chikara Campenatos de Parejas in their second defense in 18 minutes.
This was a bit of a shocking development as N_R_G is still gaining traction with a lot of the Chikara faithful, despite being around the main roster since just after the return show. This victory solidifies them as a real deal team, more or less. The story of the match was Race Jaxon taking everything possible from the Nightmare Warriors and going toe-to-toe with the former Grand Champion Hallowicked. Wicked would eventually overcome him for the first fall in 7 minutes after his cross-legged fisherman DDT, Never Wake Up.
There was really no break between falls as Wicked just kept going at Jaxon. With a slight miscommunication, Jaxon pinned Wicked with a waistlock roll-up in 12 minutes to be only the 2nd person since Chikara’s return to defeat Wicked in some fashion (outside of Kimber Lee twice). This was a big deal. Wicked lost it. He was not happy with fans at ringside. Jaxon was finally able to make a tag to Rockwell. They cleaned house. Things got crazy as both teams traded big moves. Jaxon did a flip reverse blockbuster off the top on Frightmare. N_R_G retained the titles in 18 minutes when Rockwell hit the Hyper Wheel on Frightmare. This was really well done.
After the match, Los Ice Creams music hit. The crowd popped as Princess Kimber Lee had done the same thing at Top Banana. N_R_G faced off with Los Ice Creams and they got scared. They instead ran to the back rather than cashing in their golden opportunity. Fun end to the afternoon show.
Chikara 5 Senses: Saturday January 30th, 2015
Vlad Radinov welcomed the crowd. He announced that due to an injury during training, Icarus could not compete as scheduled against Pinkie Sanchez. This was seen by the sling earlier in the day. He then introduced Kobald as Icarus’ replacement.
Kobald b Pinkie Sanchez in 12 minutes with the Demon’s Toilet (squat splash from the top).
This match was fantastic. If Chikara gave out game balls, Pinkie Sanchez would get it for the day. They started with Pinkie demanding a test of strength since he noticed Kobald checking out his physique backstage. Pinkie, of course, cheated to get out of it. They did spots around the ring where they used the fans to hurt each other. They were given time to breath and have a great match. They did not disappoint. Crowd chanted for both guys.
Vlad Radinov noted that he knows where the parties are and right now, there would be a 60 second selfie party for the fans in attendance. Several members of the Chikara roster ran around the crowd to assist.
Los Ice Creams b Adam Ward & Burt West by disqualification in 3 minutes when the Devastation Corporation (Blaster McMassive, Flex Rumblecrunch, & Max Smashmaster) hit the ring and destroyed Los Ice Creams.
Up until that point, this was a showcase for Los Ice Creams. It was a tight 3 minutes where they got in all their moves and did very little of the comedy work. DevCorp were a bit of a surprise since they were not booked for the show and didn’t appear on the earlier show. They laid out Ice Creams for a while. Princess Kimber Lee eventually showed up and chased them off. Crowd booed DevCorp.
Wani b “Mr. Touchdown” Mark Angelosetti in 15 minutes with a somersault corkscrew neckbreaker.
This was fantastic and a great singles debut for Wani. Touchdown is one of those guys that when given time really brings it, he should seriously be on everyone’s radar. Touchdown paused for a bit on the walkway and looked back at the entrance where no one was behind him. He looked dejected, having lost everyone for the loaded elbow pad shenanigans last season. He tried to do a go-team salute before the match on the floor but no one came. Mid-way through, Juan Francisco de Coronado showed up. He attempted to hand Touchdown the Ecuadorian flag. Touchdown refused. Touchdown spent the match not cheating, only to eventually be screwed by Juan and cheating leading to the finish. Touchdown went to the top and Juan grabbed his leg. Touchdown fought it off, then went for a splash from the top. The delay gave Wani enough time to get his knees up leading to the finish.
Some of the crowd on the bleachers started chanting for “Doctor Touchdown” likely due to a misunderstanding. This led to a crazy series of chants throughout the match giving Touchdown different titles including Sherriff, Captain, Gym Leader, and even SmackDown! General Manager. The chants were so good that Vlad addressed them post-match with some future suggestions. He then asked the crowd if they had heard of King of Trios. The crowd popped. He then said okay and it was intermission time. Some tease.
During intermission, Snow Troll crawled out from underneath the ring. He began whispering to different people wondering where Kevin Condron was and if anyone had seen him.
Back from break, they drew the Magic Move for the next match, the move was drawn as the Alabama Slam.
Kevin Condron Presents Battleborn (“Juke Joint” Lucas Calhoun & Missile Assault Man) b The Batiri (Kodama & Obaryion) in 14 minutes with a sharpshooter by MAM on Obaryion in the Magic Move Match.
Vlad announced the Batiri at a combined height. The story here was Missile Assault Man was vicious. Juke Joint was also less cheery and fun than normal, going all out. They worked on Obaryion’s knee throughout the match. This led to problems on the comeback, especially given all the Batiri’s offense involves kicks and knees. The Batiri hit their Alabama Slam/knee lift double team to hit the Magic Move, but couldn’t capitalize due to the knee injury. This was really good and continues the Batiri’s streak of great tag matches when they get time. With the victory, Battleborn now have 3 points and can challenge for the Campenatos de Parejas.
Harold won Rafflemania for a Chikara Challenge of the Immortals T-Shirt.
The Colony (Fire Ant, Silver Ant, & Worker Ant II) b The Snake Pit (Argus, Ophidian, & Shynron) in 19 minutes when Fire Ant pinned Shynron after the Ant Hill.
Argus & Ophidian have matching gear now. Argus’ new gear looks great and he’s definitely slimmed down in the last few months. Fire Ant had both antenna for this match, despite walking around earlier in the day with only one previously showing the signs of the war with Soldier Ant at Top Banana. Argus was in this match a long way. He took everything from the Colony. He and Silver Ant had an extended exchange of chops and submission work. Argus stood up for himself and went toe-to-toe. The crowd chanted for Argus in a way that I’d never previously heard. This match was probably the match of the weekend, but Pinkie/Kobald was pretty close. This was a great top off to Argus getting his first pin at Top Banana as he came off like a star even in the loss. After the match, Fire Ant demanded that Argus get in the ring. He did. They did a face off. Ophidian and then Shynron joined. They hugged. Great match.
Princess Kimber Lee and Oleg The Usurper went to a no contest in 14 minutes when the Devastation Corporation broke up the match in a match for the Chikara Grand Championship.
Due to the result, Kimber retains the title. Vlad had a nice intro about how the Princess had to slay the giant during the heartbeat of Chikara prior to the main event. Oleg had new music. Kimber’s music was remixed. They squared off. Kimber hit some nice kicks. A little kid yelled that Kimber Lee can save herself. Oleg stopped and then lost it. It was a nice moment. Oleg hit more speed. He tried to suplex Kimber on the floor, but she reversed it. Kimber made a comeback and eventually went to lock on the Chikara Special when a Los Ice Cream (dressed in Brown & Pink instead of Green & Chocolate from earlier) walked down the ramp. A second Ice Cream in normal garb followed confused. The Brown & Pink Ice Cream kicked Kimber. He then unmasked to be Blaster McMassive, member of the Devastation Corporation. Flex Rumblecrunch & Max Smashmaster then jumped the other Ice Cream on the ramp. All three then destroyed Kimber & Oleg. This was a strong heel beat down.
Max shoved Bryce. Max got a microphone and stood over Oleg. He told him that just because you rip up a piece of paper doesn’t mean that you are free. Max then turned his attention to Kimber. He held her against the ropes and made her watch a little girl at ringside crying. He told her to watch. He said that when she won the title at Top Banana, she became queen, but they are here for her life. Larry Peace eventually came down and Dev Corp left the ring. This was a bit dark at moments, but if the idea is that everyone should hate the Devastation Corporation, they probably will. Bryce was helped up and stopped Vlad from announcing it as a DQ victory saying that it wasn’t a disqualification. This would indicate a No Contest and that Oleg would still be able to challenge for the Grand Championship at a later date without winning 3 matches in a row again. Crowd chanted that Dev Corp were not nice people.
Vlad said good night, but the crowd demanded one more match.
Heidi Lovelace b Juan Francisco de Coronado after The Heidi-can-Rana spike huricanrana as Juan was on his knees in 4 minutes.
This would be the last time Heidi would appear as the current Young Lion’s Cup holder as a tournament will be held on Saturday, February 6th in Reading, Pennsylvania as a part of National Pro Wrestling Day. Heidi now has 2 points towards a Grand Championship match. Heidi placed Juan’s Ecuador flag on top of him and left him laying to close the show. Juan laid in the ring as people left. With the lights brought back on, referees assisted the Ice Cream who had been taken out during the main event helping him to the back. He’d be laid out the entire encore.
*****
Thus ended the Season 16 Chikara Premiere. The entire day was very fun. The roster were all up to the task. The talk coming out of the show was a bit of concern, however. After the great victory for Kimber at Top Banana, there was tons of coverage of her title win. The close of the main event match feels a bit like couldn’t pull the trigger on her being a complete equal. The challenge is that Oleg doesn’t get beat often. Arik Cannon outsmarted him on the mid-west tour, but he’d only ever been beaten well by Hallowicked over the summer when he previously challenged for the Grand Championship. If the goal is that Oleg and Kimber have common enemies, there are multiple ways to get there without sacrificing Kimber as the lead-dog. What the next steps are following this beat down will determine how this show stands.
With Chikara, the safe rule is always be patient. The overall attack was strong. Devastation Corporation are no longer cartoonish Demolition/Legion of Doom style muscle monsters, but evil jerks that take things too far. There is a fine line that must be walked, especially given the size difference and the potential multiple views of such a destruction that if seen wrong or mis-stepped, could sacrifice all the PR, goodwill, and alternative perception the promotion has gotten in the last few months.
The Snake Pit (Argus, Ophidian, & Shynron) beat Battleborn (“Juke Joint” Lucas Calhon, Missile Assault Man, & Snowflake) in 11 min when Argus p Snowflake with a leg in forward scoop slam
This was Argus’ first real win in Chikara, They did a story beat where Snowflake reverted back to Kevin Condron to tell Argus that he knows him and that he shouldn’t hurt him. Argus hit Snowflake anyway for the win.
Frightmare beat Silver Ant with a body scissors into a victory roll from an ankelock attempt by Silver in 10 min. This was really good.
Ring Announcer Gavin Loudspeaker (who was back for the finale) introduced Vladimir Rabinsky, basically passing the torch to him as the new Chikara Ring Announcer going forward.
The Batiri (Kobald, Kodama, & Obaryion) with a wheelchair bound Ultra Mantis Black beat The Gentlemen’s Club (Orange Cassidy, Drew Gulak, & Chuck Taylor) with Swamp Monster in 9 min when Kobald p Cassidy with a spear
This was an insanely perfect mix of high paced action and comedy. There wasn’t a down beat in the whole 9 minutes. Great effort.
Gavin Loudspeaker introduced Chikara’s Director of Fun, Mike Quackenbush. Quack mentions the 2015 Chikara Yearbook and the lights in the arena go out. When they return up, Archibald Peck appears standing in the ring. He sees Quack and the yearbook then shoves Quack to take it. Peck reads through the yearbook and appears to find out his demise last season at the hands of Deucalion. Peck freaked out and left through the crowd yelling at people not to touch him. This was a pay off of a storyline nearly 5 years old where Peck was sent into the future and returned with the Chikara 2015 Yearbook. The crowd went crazy for this.
Juan Franscisco de Coronado won the 2015 Chikara Cibernetico in 41 minutes
Rules worked exactly like a normal lucha Cibernetico were once one team was eliminated, the remaining members of the winning team would fight each other. Teams were:
Rudos: Juan Franscisco de Coronado, Mr. Azerbaijan, Prakash Sabar, The Proletariat Boar of Moldova, Wani, Pinkie Sanchez, Jakob Hammermeier, & “Mr. Touchdown” Mark Angelosetti
Technicos: Dasher Hatfield, Chikara Tag Champions: NRG (Race Jaxon & Hype Rockwell), Young Lion’s Cup Champion: Heidi Lovelace, Amasis, Worker Ant, Oleg The Usurper, & Farmer Frog
Eliminations:
(1) Dasher Hatfield pinned Mr Azerbaijan in about 1 minute with a small package.
(2) Hype Rockwell pinned Prakash Sabar in 21 minutes with the Hype Wheel (spinning uranage across the knee)
(3) Pinkie Sanchez pinned Hype Rockwell with a modified DDT in 22 minutes.
(4) Pinkie Sanchez pinned Amasis in 23 minutes with a missile dropkick.
(5) Jakob Hammermeier pinned Worker Ant in 25 minutes with a Worldstar! punch.
(6) Jakob Hammermeier pinned Farmer Frog in 26 minutes after a powerbomb out of the corner thanks to a Pinkie Sanchez distraction.
(7) Heidi Lovelace pinned Jakob Hammermeier in 27 minutes with a waistlock roll-up.
(8) Dasher Hatfield pinned The Proletariat Boar of Moldova in 29 minutes with a Jackhammer.
(9) Wani pinned Race Jaxon in 30ish minutes with a palm strike.
(10) Oleg the Usurper pinned Wani in 31 minutes with Off with his head.
(11) “Mr. Touchdown” Mark Angelosetti pinned Oleg the Usuper in 34 minutes after a superplex then a spear.
(12) Juan Francisco de Coronado pinned Heidi Lovelace in 36 minutes after a sitout powerbomb.
(13) Dasher Hatfield pinned Pinkie Sanchez after a jackhammer in 38 minutes.
(14) Dasher Hatfield was counted out in 40+ minutes after being knocked off the ring apron by Angelosetti accidentally. Juan ran them into each other as the count was near 20. Angelosetti tried to go after Dasher, but was pulled back into the ring by his foot by Juan.
(15) Juan Francisco de Coronado pinned Mark Angelosetti with a delayed German suplex in 41 minutes to win the Cibernetico.
Fire Ant with Silver Ant and Soldier Ant with Jakob Hammermeier went to a No Contest in 20 minutes
Another big payoff to a Chikara story here as Soldier went AWOL and then came back during the return brainwashed by the Flood. Soldier has been under the spell of the Eye of Tyr and Jakob Hammermeier’s BDK since the dissolution of the Flood at the end of last season. Soldier (who is scarred, missing an antenna) ripped off one of Fire’s antenna’s during the match. Soldier’s trance was finally broken when Jakob got into a fight with referee Derek Sabato (who used to be a BDK member) and went to hit him with his WORLDSTAR! punch, but accidentally hit Soldier. Solider saluted Fire Ant. He then saluted Silver Ant. Worker Ant came out and the crowd chanted “Please Be Friends!”. They saluted each other. Worker returned Soldier’s King of Trios medal the Colony won in 2011. Everyone embraced. People cried. This was a crazy moment only found in Chikara. So insanely good and special. I’ve never seen a crowd so happy to get a non-finish before.
Crown & Court (Princess Kimber Lee (c), Jervis Cottonbelly, & Los Ice Creams (El Hijo del Ice Cream & Ice Cream, Jr.) beat The Wrecking Crew (Jaka & The Devastation Corporation (Max Smashmaster (c), Blaster McMassive, & Flex Rumblecrunch) to win the season long Challenge of the Immortals tournament in 19 minutes when Kimber Lee pinned McMassive after a powerbomb out of the corner into an Alligator Clutch.
Crowd lost it when Crown & Court won it. They were, pardon the term, the Cinderella team of the tournament and really only ended up in the finals thanks to the angle with Dasher & Mr. Touchdown forcing Dasher to vacate his team’s points in the tournament. Each member of Crown & Court was presented with a Golden Opportunity, which in Chikara can usually mean anything but in this case was the form of 3 Golden Point Tokens needed to challenge for any Chikara championship.
Hallowicked beat Icarus and Eddie Kingston in a Triple Threat Match in 24 minutes to retain the Chikara Grand Championship for a 6th time.
Wicked p Kingston after a crossed leg DDT. This was the first time a Chikara championship was defended in a 3 way and also featured all 3 Chikara Grand Champions from the company’s history. Match was very good.
As referees checked on Hallowicked, Princess Kimber Lee’s music hit. The crowd went crazy. Golden opportunities apparently can be used at any time and cannot be lost (in Chikara, you need 3 points to challenge for titles which means 3 wins in a row without a loss outside of special competition).
Princess Kimber Lee beat Hallowicked by submission in 5 minutes to become the 4th Chikara Grand Champion with the Chikara Special.
This was a crazy moment. The crowd lost it.
Chikara goes out of its way to present Kimber Lee, Heidi, and any other female that comes through the company as just wrestlers. In the year plus that Kimber Lee has been on shows, my wife and I have personally seen a huge increase in young little girls coming to the shows. They leave with smiles and the general execution of her rise has been so perfectly handled that a crowd at the old ECW arena (which tends to be the most adult crowd at Chikara shows) behaved like 5 years at the finish.
As an aside, special Crown & Court shirts were made by fans (us, full disclosure) specially for the finale for support. The shirts were given to anyone who makes a $20 donation that will be given directly to Chikara & Jervis Cottonbelly’s charity of choice: Philabundance. We have a few of them left in sizes M-XL and we can ship anywhere in the US for $5. So far we’ve raised about $500 for the charity. I’d love to get rid of the remaining shirts and get over $600.
Wrestling Observer Live with Bryan Alvarez and Mike Sempervive returns today to talk tons of news in wrestling and MMA including the latest on Ronda Rousey vs. Holly Holm, the search for an opponent for CM Punk, TNA Impact ratings, and more, plus MAX SMASHMASTER of Chikara joins us to talk this weekend’s season-ending TOP BANANA show in Philadelphia! A fun show as always so check it out~!
Wrestling Observer Live with Bryan Alvarez and Mike Sempervive returns today to talk all the news in wrestling and MMA including tons of notes on the Raw rating, the WWE Fan Council survey, your calls and more, plus THE WORLD’S SWEETEST MAN JERVIS COTTONBELLY appears on the show to talk Chikara’s big show at the former ECW Arena in Philadelphia this Saturday! A really fun show as always so check it out~!
