Following his match, Murdoch engaged in an interview with Kyle Davis, where he opened up in detail about his decision to hang up his wrestling boots.
Murdoch announced his retirement and reflected on his 27-year career. He further expressed his gratitude to NWA owner Billy Corgan and the fans. (H/T Fightful)
“I’m not sure if I can do this anymore. I’ve been wrestling for 27 years, and I have seen guys that come in here, and they’re only here for a payday. They don’t give the fans what they deserve, and I always told myself that if I ever got to that point, I wasn’t gonna be that guy,” Murdoch said.
“I don’t wanna embarrass myself. I don’t wanna embarrass my family. I don’t want to embarrass Harley Race. So at this moment, I’m announcing my retirement from pro wrestling. I wanna thank the fans, I wanna thank you, guys. Because of you guys, I’ve been able to put two of my kids through college. It’s all good, you know what I mean? For a fat guy from a small town, 27 years ain’t bad,” he continued.
“I wanna thank one more dude. He doesn’t get enough credit. His name’s William Patrick Corgan. Billy, you believed in me and gave me an opportunity when even wrestling didn’t want me. You extended my career for seven years. I can’t never give that back to you. All I can say is thank you. Thank you so much.”
Who is former WWE wrestler Trevor Murdoch?
Starting his wrestling career in the late 1990s, Murdoch wrestled in ECW and TNA before signing up with WWE in 2005. He stayed with the promotion until 2008. Throughout his career, he mostly wrestled for TNA and NWA, including a few matches on the indies.
Murdoch is a former three-time WWE World Tag Team Champion with Lance Cade. He joined the NWA in 2018 and remained a part of the promotion till 2026, until his retirement, where he even heldthe World Heavyweight title.
𝙎𝘼𝙔 𝙄𝙏 𝙄𝙎𝙉’𝙏 𝙎𝙊
It’s over?! After a 27-year career, an emotional @TheRealTMurdoch announces his retirement on 𝙉𝙒𝘼 𝙋𝙊𝙒𝙀𝙍𝙍𝙍 on Comet.
The NWA has announced a change to the main event of its next pay-per-view.
On this week’s episode of NWA USA, it was announced that Tyrus is cashing in his NWA Television title for a chance to become World Champion. The NWA Hard Times 3 main event will now be Trevor Murdoch vs. Matt Cardona vs. Tyrus for the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship.
Wrestlers who hold the NWA TV title are able to cash in the championship for a Worlds Heavyweight Championship shot after seven successful title defenses. In a promo on NWA USA, Tyrus said he’s willing to give up what he loves most for another chance to become Worlds Heavyweight Champion.
Tyrus unsuccessfully challenged Murdoch for the Worlds Heavyweight Championship at NWA 74 last month.
This June, Murdoch won the Worlds Heavyweight Championship after Cardona had to vacate the title due to injury.
It was said on NWA USA that a tournament will be held to crown a new Television Champion. Tyrus will hold the title until that happens.
Hard Times 3 is taking place in Chalmette, Louisiana on Saturday, November 12.
The rivalry between NWA World Champion Trevor Murdoch and Matt Cardona will continue at November 12th’s Hard Times III in New Orleans, Louisiana, as they will meet again for the title.
During Tuesday’s NWA Power, Ricky Steamboat was on hand to help make the announcement with Murdoch but Cardona came out instead and revealed the news.
Cardona had to relinquish the title at June’s Alwayz Ready due to a torn biceps which was then put up in a four-way that night. Murdoch won the match to begin his second reign as champion. It was Cardona who ended that first reign, defeating Murdoch on a February edition of Power.
As part of the storyline, William Corgan agreed to give Cardona and all of his entourage future title shots if he agreed to give up the championship at Alwayz Ready.
Murdoch successfully defended the title against Tyrus this past Sunday at NWA 74 while Cardona took a shocking loss to the unheralded Rolando Freeman. Cardona rematched Freeman on Tuesday’s show in a no DQ match and lost again, aided by Murdoch.
Wrestling Observer Live with Bryan Alvarez is back with tons to talk about including all the news from the last few days, mailbag questions, a whopping three no-shows, and a lesson — NEVER GIVE UP!
NWA World Champion Trevor Murdoch joins us in the final segment to talk NWA’s 74th Anniversary Show and tons more.
Nick Aldis has been removed from the NWA World Heavyweight Championship match at NWA 74.
Billy Corgan appeared on Thursday’s edition of Busted Open Radio and announced Tyrus will now challenge Trevor Murdoch on the show.
“In the case of Nick Aldis, yes, your #1 contender for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship against Trevor Murdoch in St. Louis, I’ve dealt with this man for over four years, and for every ounce of politicking you see publicly there’s about ten times worse behind the scenes,” Corgan said.
“No one stresses me out more in the NWA than Nick Aldis, no one is more highly paid than Nick Aldis and no one is more unhappy than Nick Aldis.”
Aldis won a fatal 4-way match on NWA Power this week to earn a title shot against Murdoch.
Corgan continued to criticize Aldis for a social media post he made shortly after earning the #1 contender spot.
“I told you I would out think them all. No matter what kind of goalpost-moving goes on, I find a way to win. But I’m not naive; I know there are forces who don’t want to see me as champion again, and a lot can happen between now and #NWA74…your move…,” Aldis’ tweet reads.
Corgan then announced Aldis has been removed from the title match.
“He is stripped of the #1 contendership, he will not be in the main event of NWA 74,” Corgan continued.
“Listen, why this stuff has to play out in public I don’t know but I’m just sick of it.”
Corgan then revealed Tyrus will replace Aldis in the match.
Aldis has since responded to the news on Twitter. He posted three laughing emojis.
It was also announced that Bully Ray will now face Mike Knox on the pay-per-view in a tables match.
NWA 74 is a two-night event held on August 27 & 28 from the Chase’s Khorassan Ballroom in St. Louis. It will stream live on FITE TV. The updated lineup for the show is as follows:
August 27:
10-team battle royale for the vacant NWA United States Tag Team Championships
NWA World Junior Heavyweight Champion Homicide defends against Kerry Morton
August 28:
NWA World Heavyweight Champion Trevor Murdoch defends against Tyrus
NWA World Champion Trevor Murdoch now knows who his opponent will be at next month’s NWA 74: an old rival.
On Tuesday’s NWA Power, former champion Nick Aldis won a fatal four-way that included Thom Latimer, Mike Knox and Brian Myers. The four men qualified via last week’s Race for the Chase qualifying matches with Knox earning a bye.
Aldis will now challenge Murdoch for the title at night one of NWA 74 on August 27th and 28th — the company’s two-night pay-per-view from the Chase Ballroom in St. Louis, Missouri.
These two feuded over the gold last summer with Murdoch finally wresting the title away from Aldis at last August’s NWA 73. The two men were also involved in a four-way for the vacant title at June’s Alwayz Ready that saw Murdoch regain the belt after he had lost it to Matt Cardona. Cardona had to relinquish it after tearing his biceps.
Aldis will be looking to regain the World title for the third time.
Trevor Murdoch won the NWA World Heavyweight title for a second time at NWA Alwayz Ready after Matt Cardona vacated the championship due to injury.
The originally advertised main event, Cardona vs. Nick Aldis for the title, did not take place. Instead, a four-way was set up, with Murdoch, Aldis, Sam Shaw (formerly Dexter Lumis) and Thom Latimer battling it out for the vacant title. Murdoch won the match after hitting Aldis with a top rope bulldog.
Cardona appeared at the end of the show and initally refused to vacate the title. After the four contenders came out to argue their case for a title match, NWA President Billy Corgan persuaded Cardona to vacate the title. After giving Corgan the title, Cardona stormed out of the ring, upset.
Cardona underwent surgery for a torn bicep earlier this month after suffering the injury at GCW’s Downward Spiral event in a match against Blake Christian. The NWA did not make an announcement about the status of the main event prior to the show.
Two more title changes took place on tonight’s show in Knoxville, Tennessee. Pretty Empowered (Kenzie Paige and Ella Envy) defeated The Hex (Allysin Kay and Marti Belle) to win the Women’s Tag Team titles. Meanwhile, the Commonwealth Connection (Doug Williams and Harry Smith) defeated La Rebellion (Bestia 666 and Mecha Wolf) to win the NWA World Tag Team titles for the first time.
This week’s show took place from Valor Hall in Oak Grove, Kentucky.
We opened with Kyle Davis in the ring with Mike Knox. Davis announced that Harry Smith was not medically cleared to compete as the main event had been advertised as Knox vs. Smith. Knox then cut a promo saying Smith was faking because he didn’t want to face him, and called out Trevor Murdoch to face him later in the show.
Max The Impaler defeated Ella Envy
Max The Impaler is certainly an intimidating presence. They attacked Envy before the bell. The ref gave Ella a little time to recover and she then came out with a flurry of strikes, but they barely impacted her opponent.
Max quickly took over the match and finished her off with a backbreaker. It was a little more than a squash, but basically a squash.
After the match, Max took a pom pom type object that had been tied to Ella’s hair. The story is that Max will take a trophy from all their victims.
Max seems like a cool character that I can see being built up with more squash matches before being entered into a bigger program.
– Kyle Davis interviewed Cyon in the back. Cyon said his thoughts are on the NWA National title and he’s basically looking past his match tonight. He said his opponent, Joe Alonzo, is not on his level. When Davis tried to bring up that Austin Idol is claiming to be his father, Cyon grabbed Davis by the jacket and told him to never ask him that again.
Cyon defeated Joe Alonzo
Alonzo came into this one very cocky and got a good laugh when Cyon was unable to land a kip-up early in the match.
They had a back and forth start until Cyon started to take over and wore his opponent down with strikes. He then worked on Alonzo with various moves including a string of three bodyslams in a row. He also hit a delayed vertical suplex for a two count.
Alonzo started to make a comeback and got a few near falls off pinning combinations. He then rocked Cyon with a headscissors. Alonzo followed that up with a suicide dive. He then went for another one, but Cyon caught him. The masked man then suplexed him on the concrete floor before we went to commercial.
As we come back from break, both wrestlers dove to get back in the ring before the 10 count. They then exchanged strikes from their knees in the center of the ring.
Alonzo hit a springboard cutter for a two count. The crowd was really starting to get behind Alonzo at this point, but that’s when Cyon regained control. Cyon then delivered a superplex to his opponent for another two count.
Cyon hit a buckle bomb, but Alonzo followed that up with a big lariat. The crowd was into this and had been good all night, actually. Cyon locked his opponent in a surfboard before slamming him face first into the mat for another two count. Cyon then hit the rolling death valley driver for a near fall as Kyle Davis screamed that nobody has ever kicked out of that move before.
Alonzo hit a superkick and then bounced off the ropes, but was caught by Cyon who delivered another rolling death valley driver. He then opted to give him a third for good measure before finally getting the pin.
Cyon then made the title belt motion around his waist, signifying that he wants that NWA National Championship. This was good and the fans really responded to it.
– Kyle Davis interviewed Jax Dane and his attorney, Chris Silvio, Esq., backstage. Davis asked Dane about his match on NWA USA this week where he’ll team with “Magic” Jake Dumas against The Miserably Faithful. Dane said he’s not a tag team wrestler anymore but in this case, he doesn’t mind letting Dumas ride his coattails. He continued to say that NWA USA is his show. Silvio then said that wherever Jax is, that’s where the money is.
Trevor Murdoch defeated Mike Knox via disqualification
Murdoch punched Knox right in the face to start the match and then dared Knox to do the same to him, which he did. The two continued to exchange strikes like this for a little while.
Eventually, Murdoch got the better of the exchange. He clotheslined his opponent to the floor and they both landed hard on the outside. Murdoch then got up and hammered his opponent with strikes.
Knox raked Murdoch’s eyes and dropped him face first on top of the guardrail to take control of the match. Knox continued the attack once both were back in the ring as well. He hit a short arm clothesline and a leg drop to the back of the head for only a one count. Knox then held on tight to a headlock.
Murdoch eventually came back and hit Knox with a big DDT. Murdoch hit a series of clotheslines and a spinebuster. He then went to the top for the flying bulldog, but Knox avoided the move. Knox then hit a high crossbody for a two count. He then hit the Knox Out, but was lackadaisical in his cover and only got a two count.
Knox then went to the outside and got the ring bell, but the referee pulled it out of his hands. Knox shoved the referee to the ground, causing a disqualification. After Knox regained possession of the bell, Murdoch clotheslined him out of the ring.
As Knox was heading to the back, the commentary team suggested a rematch between the two could be upcoming.
Final Thoughts:
Overall, it was a fun show, the DQ finish in the main event notwithstanding. It seems as though Cyon is really starting to put it together and the angle of Austin Idol claiming to be his father is pretty interesting. I liked Max The Impaler who will be a fun heel for the division. The main event was good, although the DQ finish was a bit of a drag. The best part of the show for me was the crowd as they were into everything which made the show feel fun.
This week’s NWA Power opened with Tyrus and Austin Idol being interviewed in the back. Tyrus said that Cyon must like a beating since he’s always coming back for one. Idol told William Patrick Corgan that he needs to understand that Idolmania Sports Management is the only thing that matters.
Cyon promo
We cut to the ring where Joe Galli was standing with Cyon. Galli straight out asked the masked wrestler who his father is. Cyon said that ever since he told everyone his father was a former NWA World Heavyweight Champion, it’s all anyone wants to talk about. He told the live crowd to not worry about his past because his future is even brighter.
Idolmania Sports Management (BLK Jeez, Marshe Rockett, Jordan Clearwater and NWA TV Champion Tyrus) (w/ Austin Idol) defeated Cyon, The Ill Begotten and Mims
Tyrus asked for silence as Clearwater took his robe off before the match began.
Cyon came out really aggressive as commentary played up how much he wanted to get his hands on Idolmania Sports Management.
Jeez ended up getting the heels back into it. Rockett hit Taylor from the apron as he was coming off the ropes and the heels started to work him over afterward. Tyrus kept working on Taylor, but calling out to Cyon on the apron.
Mims got a hot tag and took out everyone from the opposing side. He hit Jeez with a spinebuster for a near fall. Cyon then came in and gave a death valley driver to Clearwater. Jeez then hit a suicide dive onto Cyon shortly after.
Mims and Tyrus ended up in the ring together. Mims went to slam Tyrus, but Rockett hit him from behind as he was lifting his opponent. Tyrus fell on top of him and the referee counted to three, giving Austin Idol’s team the victory.
Nick Aldis defeated Tom Latimer in an I Quit match
Latimer cut a promo before the match, saying he was going to make Aldis say “I quit” and then would become the new face of the NWA.
They exchanged strikes to begin, but Aldis quickly took control with a clothesline and a Lou Thesz press. Latimer fought out of a cloverleaf attempt early on. Latimer later countered a penalty kick from the apron, allowing him to go on offense.
Latimer hit Aldis with a metal turnbuckle hook he found under the ring. He would later use the weapon to fish hook his opponent while he had him in a camel clutch as well. Aldis still wouldn’t submit, however. Aldis attempted to use a chain, but Latimer countered and used it on him.
Latimer then wrapped Aldis’ hand with the chain around the ring post. He yanked on Aldis’ arm until Aldis countered and rammed Latimer head first into the post. This allowed Aldis to go on offense for a period.
Latimer kicked the ropes as Aldis was getting back in the ring. He then hit Aldis with a chair a couple of times. Aldis hit Latimer with a low blow to get himself back into it and later dropped his opponent head first onto a chair. Latimer fought out of a figure four leg lock shortly after, however.
Latimer hit Aldis in the arm with a chair shot up against the steel steps. Moments later, Aldis hit Latimer with a chair and both men were down. Aldis then came off the ring apron and dove onto Latimer, sending both of them crashing through a table at ringside.
They ended up exchanging strikes in the middle of the ring. Aldis went for his cloverleaf again, but Latimer countered by raking his eyes and delivering a spear. Aldis backdropped him on a chair moments later. Aldis then wrapped his opponent’s neck in a chair and stomped on it, but Latimer still wouldn’t quit.
Aldis then locked in the cloverleaf while Latimer’s head was still wrapped in the chair. Women’s Champion Kamille came out and threw in the towel on behalf of Latimer, ending the match.
After it was over, Aldis looked disappointed and Latimer kept screaming that he didn’t give up. After the show came back from break, we were shown footage of Latimer attacking a bunch of security guards.
Matt Cardona defeated Trevor Murdoch to win the NWA World title
It was noted on commentary that Murdoch’s reign with the title has been longer than any of Dusty Rhodes’ runs with the belt.
Cardona stalled quite a bit to start. It was also noted on commentary that Cardona’s gear was a tribute to former NWA Champion Christian Cage.
Cardona escaped to the outside several times in the early moments. He called for a test of strength, but then just booted the champion in the midsection. But, Murdoch fought back. Anytime they were in the ring, Murdoch would gain the advantage and Cardona would then roll to the outside and stall for time.
Finally, Murdoch just went out, collected his opponent and rolled him back in the ring. Cardona kicked the ropes as Murdoch was getting back in, causing the champion to spill back to the outside. Cardona then gave him a DDT on the floor, busting him wide open.
Cardona got a chair out from under the ring and lodged it in the corner. He then got a two count after a neckbreaker. Cardona took his time working on Murdoch with strikes.
Murdoch fought back and hit a spinebuster. He then went to the top rope looking to hit his bulldog. The champion looked very unbalanced on the top which allowed Cardona time to recover. Murdoch still came off the top with a crossbody for a two count. Murdoch then gave Cardona a big piledriver, but Cardona got his shoulder up on two.
Murdoch then missed a charge in the corner and went head first into the chair that Cardona had set up earlier. Cardona then hit Radio Silence and got the three count to win the title.
I respect the rich history of the @nwa World’s Heavyweight Championship.
After the match, VSK, Mike Knox and Chelsea Green came out to celebrate with the new champion. Cardona then cut a promo. He told Corgan not to worry and that he’s not going to do what Shane Douglas did to that title. He thanked himself for being a self-made superstar and, according to him, changing the business.
Cardona also thanked Green, Knox and VSK. He referred to the fans as the NWA Universe, promised to save the company, and be the greatest NWA World Heavyweight Champion ever.
The new champion continued to say that there was no one who could stop him, which brought out Nick Aldis. The former champion called Cardona arrogant and told him that he still has a contractual rematch that he hasn’t redeemed. Aldis vs. Cardona for the title was later made official for the Crockett Cup.
Final Thoughts:
The NWA treats its World title with such respect that any time it changes hands, it feels important. I’m very interested to see Cardona vs. Aldis at the Crockett Cup. It really feels as though Aldis could win the belt back but maybe Corgan wants to see what Cardona can do with a longer reign. I’m interested to see where it goes.
Matt Cardona is the new NWA World Heavyweight Champion.
Cardona pinned Trevor Murdoch at tonight’s NWA Power Trip tapings in Oak Grove, Kentucky to win the championship for the first time. Footage shows Cardona pinning Murdoch following Cardona’s leg lariat finisher.
Cardona tweeted after he had won the title: “I did it. I am the @nwa World’s Heavyweight Champion!,” posting a picture of himself with the title.
Murdoch’s run with the title ended after 167 days. He defeated Nick Aldis for the championship back at the NWA’s 73rd Anniversary show on August 29th.
The title match, which will air on NWA Power this coming Tuesday, was announced by the NWA last week. The match came after Cardona made his debut at NWA Hard Times 2 back on December 4, attacking Murdoch after he successfully defended the championship against Mike Knox.
Cardona is also a regular for Impact Wrestling, where he is the current Digital Media Champion. He also makes appearances for GCW.
Matt Cardona opened this week’s Power with Kyle Davis to talk about his attack on NWA World Champion Trevor Murdoch last week. Cardona claimed that he couldn’t wrestle Murdoch because he would have to win and that would cause Murdoch to quit wrestling like he did in 2018.
Cardona mocked him, saying he never quit despite never getting opportunities. This promo really rode the line between factual with Cardona not being given chances, but still came across as a heel promo as he begged Murdoch to quit the business again if he beat him.
This was fantastic and the most into Cardona I have ever been as he is making me want to see Murdoch beat him.
Team War Tournament match: El Rudo and Strictly Business (Thom Latimer & National Champion Chris Adonis) defeated The OGK (Matt Taven & Mike Bennett) and Victor Benjamin; Homicide and Tag Team Champions La Rebelion (Bestia 666 & Mecha Wolf); and Colby Corino and The Fixers (Wrecking Ball Legursky & Jay Bradley)
The rules for these matches was never explained, so I had no idea it was an elimination tag team match until Homicide was eliminated by El Rudo. I had no idea there were battle royal rules until Legursky was thrown out. I also found out at the end that it was no DQ. So, I spent most of this match confused.
The action was good, but it would have helped if they told us what the rules were before the match in a graphic or explaining things in previous weeks.
Rudo, Homicide and Benjamin started with Homicide hitting a cutter on Rudo. Rudo managed to pin Homicide after a sunset flip, but I have no idea if that was planned or the referee counted too fast, because it definitely didn’t look right. It broke down into everyone hitting big moves until Benjamin was eliminated by Wolf after a tornado DDT.
Bennett and Wolf hit crossbodies on each other at the same time. Corino hit a victory roll on Rudo and jumped into a wheelbarrow on Adonis, but Adonis grabbed him and put on the Master Lock in a really great spot. Wrecking Ball threw several people around the ring, including Adonis, which was impressive. Adonis hit an axe handle, followed by Bennett and Wolf hitting double superkicks on Legursky who they then threw him over the ropes to eliminate him.
Bradley and Wolf battled in the ring until Bennett hit a forearm on Bradley. Bennett hit a spear on Wolf and then a brainbuster and a rolling elbow for the pin.
Bestia 666 hit a superkick to the back of Bradley’s head. Adonis botched something with Bestia 666 here, but Bestia then turned into a big boot from Bradley. Velvet said at this point that this is what Billy Corgan’s vision was for Team War, which is to say confusion if Velvet was accurate. At this point, it came down to Taven against Strictly Business.
Taven dumped Adonis over the top rope when he countered a Master Lock and with a Twist and Shout on Latimer. Taven nailed Latimer with a knee and went to the top rope, but Adonis shoved him off right in front of the referee, who did nothing. So, apparently this is also no DQ? Latimer hit a piledriver on Taven for the pinfall and win.
— Pope came out and thanked the fans for their prayers as he has been out of action since Hard Times II. He talked about being unsure when he was going to leave the hospital and the uncertainty about him during his absence. Pope reiterated that he stood with Murdoch against Cardona and that Pope was coming to slap tradition into him. This was a money promo if I ever heard one and one of the best promos Pope has ever done.
NWA Women’s Champion Kamille defeated Kiera Hogan to retain
Kamille immediately threw Hogan across the ring, backed Hogan up and patted her on the head. Hogan yelled “I got her!” as she had a waist lock which Kamille just shrugged off. Well, I wasn’t supposed to laugh at the babyface getting thrown around, but I did there. Kamille drove Hogan face first into the turnbuckle and continued to paint brush Hogan before hitting a gutwrench suplex.
Kamille caught Hogan with a bearhug and a suplex and got a pin, but the pinfall was botched. Hogan kicked out, but the referee counted three anyway. Joe Galli and Madusa (who was on commentary) tried to cover for it as best they could, but since the show is pre-taped, why not just redo the finish and edit it? There is nothing wrong with it and the fans in attendance would understand.
Team War Tournament match: The End (Parrow & Odinson) and Rodney Mack defeated Aron Stevens, Kratos and Judias; Idolmania Sports Management (TV Champion Tyrus, Jordan Clearwater & Marche Rockett); and The Ill Begotten (Jeremiah Plunkett, Rush Freeman & Alex Taylor)
This was a perfectly fine main event now since the rules were established. This wasn’t as good as the first match in terms of action and Kratos getting eliminated like he did made me sad as they should push him to the moon. That said, Odinson looked great.
Stevens was eliminated first after mistaking Tyrus for Kratos and getting hit with the heart punch. Galli said that Stevens had to leave the arena, but why? If it’s no DQ, why does Stevens have to leave? He can’t be punished for interfering as we saw with Adonis. Kratos and Tyrus eliminated several folks and got into a fight over who got to destroy Plunkett. Kratos, Odinson and Plunkett then eliminated Tyrus and the match improved greatly.
Rockett eliminated Kratos. Judias continued to get no heat, proving my judgement of keeping him in instead of Kratos correct. Rockett was eliminated by Judias before Odinson and Clearwater eliminated him. Clearwater eliminated Plunkett with a Midas Touch big boot. Clearwater was left against Odinson, Parrow and Mack, which had the classic heel at a disadvantage from the babyfaces, so classic Russo-style booking there.
Plunkett’s body was left laying for dead on the mat. Clearwater proceeded to get the heat on Odinson for several minutes to little heat, because the fans knew he was alone. Odinson hit a nice series of European uppercuts, and he looked quite good here overall. Clearwater announced he was out and quitting, but Parrow and Mack cut him off and Odinson hit a huge F5 type move for the win. At least Parrow and Mack just sat outside the ring, but the 3-on-1 killed the heat a bit.
Final Thoughts:
I think I would have enjoyed this episode more if I understood the Team War rules from the start and even after, I was still confused by the end of that first match. We learned the winners will go onto another match and compete for $30,000, so that was at least clear.
The action on this show was fine and even quite great at points. The two major promos from Cardona and Pope were absolutely fantastic. This episode, however, contained all the markers of why I find NWA frustrating sometimes. The best thing? They are all easy things to fix.
The NWA World’s Heavyweight Championship will be on the line at Power Trip.
The company announced today that Trevor Murdoch will defend the NWA World title against Matt Cardona at the Saturday, February 12 event. The match stems from an angle at the conclusion of the Hard Times 2 pay-per-view in December that saw Cardona attack Murdoch.
In another match coming out of the show-closing angle at Hard Times, Da Pope will face Mike Knox. Cardona aligned with Knox in attacking Pope and Murdoch at the conclusion of that event.
Here is the lineup for Power Trip:
NWA World’s Heavyweight Championship: Trevor Murdoch (c) vs. Matt Cardona
NWA World Women’s Championship: Kamille (c) vs. Taryn Terrell
NWA National Championship: Chris Adonis (c) vs. Anthony Mayweather
The OGK vs. The Fixers
I Quit match: Nick Aldis vs. Thom Latimer
2-out-of-3 falls: Colby Corino vs. Rhett Titus
Chelsea Green vs. Kylie Rae
Cyon, Matthew Mims, Alex Taylor & Rush Freeman vs. Tyrus, BLK Jeez, Jordan Clearwater & Marshe Rockett
NWA World Champion Trevor Murdoch and Mike Knox opened the show at the podium, cutting promos on each other. Knox said he “accidentally” jumped Murdoch which was a funny line. Knox said that to get beat twice by Murdoch, the champion was going to need a lot more than what it took the first time. Knox wasn’t very good here, but it was fine. Murdoch was excellent.
The Dirty Sexy Boys (Dango & JTG) defeated The Ill Begotten (Captain Yuma, Rush Freeman & Alex Taylor)
Freeman (with his mullet) started the match and didn’t want to be in the ring with Dango, so he tagged in Yuma. Poor Yuma was on the receiving end of a few double team moves. Yuma protested Freeman’s cheating tactics to get the advantage on JTG. Taylor and Freeman got the heat for a little bit before Dango was tagged in and ran wild, hitting a guillotine leg drop on Yuma for the pinfall.
This was a perfectly fine opening match that was designed to show Freeman and Taylor not getting along with Yuma, leaving him to take the pinfall. DSB got their win back from two weeks ago and move up the tag team ranks.
— Kiera Hogan was with May Valentine and talked about how Mickie James inspired her and that she wanted to be the same type of inspiration to others. Hogan commented that she still wants to beat James eventually as her two losses to her have rocked her. Valentine and Hogan playing an excellent babyface were great here.
— Christopher Silvio, Esq. was with Valentine and talked about his client Jax Dane and the restraining order against Anthony Mayweather. He said Dane was done with Mayweather.
Cyon defeated Sal Rinauro (w/ Judias & The Sinister Minister) in a no DQ Match
The major story of this match was Austin Idol coming out to help Cyon. It was recently dropped that Cyon had a father who was a legend in the NWA and they have been heavily implying it could be Idol. This was the first real explicit evidence for it and is actually quite compelling.
Rinauro immediately started throwing chairs into the ring, but ate a big boot when Cyon came in. Cyon hit a back suplex on the podium on Rinauro. He slammed Cyon’s head into the announce table and hit an elbow drop with a chair. Rinauro slammed Cyon into a table and then back into the ring while screaming for approval from The Sinister Minister.
Cyon cut Rinauro off and locked on a surfboard stretch. Cyon set up a chair in the corner, but Rinauro reversed the Irish whip and drove Cyon into the chair. Cyon crashed to the floor and Idol came out to help him up and told him to get back into the ring. Cyon fired up, hit a death valley driver, and locked on a crossface with a hammer for the submission.
— Several wrestlers cut promos about the Team Wars tournament coming up where the winner gets $30,000. They never really clarified what the tournament is or who is in it, but the promos weren’t bad. I can’t call it effective, though, as I have no idea how the tournament works.
— Natalia Markova, Jennacide, Paola Blaze and Tarryn Terrell were at the podium. Blaze talked about being attacked by Markova, and threatened to break her face. Jennacide accepted Markova’s challenge for a later date.
— Another video aired for the Team Wars tournament, but it had the same issue as the last video. However, we did learn it would be a six-man tournament.
NWA World Champion Trevor Murdoch defeated Mike Knox to retain the title
Murdoch tackled Knox and hit some crossface blows on the mat. Murdoch leg dropped Knox on the apron and then hit a flying crossbody on Knox for a two count. Matt Cardona made his way out to distract Murdoch. Knox drove Murdoch into the ring post twice and they ended up on the outside of the ring.
Knox had an extended heat segment here but Murdoch managed to hit a DDT at the end of it to drop Knox and start his comeback. Knox missed a corner charge and Murdoch rolled him up for a near fall.
But, the ref botched the count as Knox’s shoulder accidentally went up so Murdoch just cradled him and pinned him to retain the title in their rematch.
Murdoch went after Cardona after the match, but Knox cut him off and hit a forearm. Cardona and Knox beat down Murdoch after the match and Cardona hit Murdoch with the title belt. Cardona mocked Murdoch with the title before dropping it back on him.
This was a short match that really had no chance to get going, but that might be for the best given Knox’s ability in the ring. The angle at the end was quite good as Matt Cardona is getting good heat. Velvet Sky’s calm commentary while claiming to be angry really didn’t help much. She has improved lately, but she was not good here.
Final Thoughts:
NWA Power was a very easy watch this week with nothing on the show that was particularly bad, but also nothing that was outstanding either. The best thing was easily the Kiera Hogan promo segment.
Cyon started this week’s show by cutting a promo on Sal Rinauro, saying that he was going to show him what pro wrestling really is.
Matt Cardona and Mike Knox were then at the podium, insulting the NWA, saying that they were an amateur production for not playing his theme music on NWA Power, but Knox and he were the doctors that were going to fix it.
Trevor Murdoch came out defending the NWA, saying it’s 73 years of blood, sweat, and tears. He said that all you need is a ring and two people who want to fight, but Cardona and Knox wouldn’t take his spot. Cardona said that Murdoch needed to go through Knox to get to him, and asked Murdoch to put the title on the line. This was both a good promo from Murdoch and good heel work from Cardona.
Kylie Rae defeated Allysin Kay
This was a decent match with Kay looking stunned at the loss. Rae looked really good in her selling and offense. Kay is also quite good, so this was fun.
Velvet Sky asked if the title was on the line in this match and Joe Galli let her know that it was a singles match, so the Tag Team titles wouldn’t be on the line. She said, “You never know” which must be leftovers from her experience with Russo booking.
Kay locked on an armbar, leaving Rae struggling to get to the ropes. Before Rae could escape, Kay rolled it over into a pinfall for a two count. Rae rolled through after running the ropes, hanging onto Kay’s arm before kicking up over the downed Kay and hitting a superkick in a cool spot.
Kay blocked a crossface, hit a Samoan drop and then landed a kick for a two count. Rae countered an AK-47 attempt and rolled through into a sunset flip on Kay for the pinfall victory.
— Kiera Hogan and Women’s Champion Kamille were with May Valentine and Hogan claimed that she wanted the title. Kamille said that Hogan should be honored to face her that she was going to put Hogan’s flame out.
— Dango and JTG were with Kyle Davis and talked about wanting competition. Dango ate a candy cigarette. The Ill Begotten came out to challenge them when Dango accepted. Captain YUMA asked for a handshake. Dango pulled out baby oil and squirted the baby oil onto his hands for an uncomfortably long time while Yuma broke the fourth wall and turned to the camera. That was weird but I also laughed.
— Homicide and Tag Team Champions La Rebelion were with May Valentine and Homicide said he didn’t care who were in front of them or what match it was. Bestia 666 said that Homicide had their back they’ll take on all comers. This was a good promo.
Madi Wrenkowski defeated Melina
Melina gave a lot to Wrenkowski in this one as this was designed to make her look strong in defeat. If the NWA wanted to, they could do something with this. The crowd got behind Wrenkowski.
She immediately took it to Melina, staying ahead with a submission and then a pinfall attempt which seemed to surprise Melina. Wrenkowski hit a knee and then drove Melina’s face to the mat for a two count. Melina countered with a neckbreaker and was so visibly upset at Wrenkowski’s performance, she yanked Wrenkowski by the hair to take her to the mat before locking on a modified surfboard stretch.
Wrenkowski kicked out at one, which infuriated Melina more. Wrenkowski drove Melina’s face into the turnbuckles before they went into several pinfall attempts but Melina fired up and dared Wrenkowski to hit her. Melina countered after a few more attacks and was able to get the pinfall.
— Taryn Terrell, Paola Blaze and Jennacide were with May Valentine. Terrell claimed that she brokered peace between the both of them and then claimed she was going to create world peace and solve the climate crisis.
— Tyrus and Idolmania Sports Management were with Kyle Davis. Tyrus claimed he was going to keep the TV title as long as he wanted and when he successfully defended it seven times, he was going to take the NWA World title from Trevor Murdoch, but he was going to do it on his time.
Tyrus also announced that Jordan Clearwater and Marche Rockett were going to take the tag titles. I actually enjoyed that promo. Austin Idol then cut an awesome promo to the camera while on commentary about how he was wearing camo because it was hunting season, and Idolmania was running all over the NWA.
The Ill Begotten (The Fixers & Rush Freeman) (w/ Captain Yuma & Alex Taylor) defeated DSB (Dango & TJG)
Jay Bradley and Wrecking Ball (which is a name I love) surprised DSB (and Captain Yuma) as Yuma was sure he was competing in the match, but it seemed Freeman and Taylor went out and hired the Fixers. Bradley and Wrecking Ball got the heat on JTG in the early part of the match. After hitting a double brainbuster on Dango, Freeman paid the Fixers off and pinned Dango.
— Rodney Mack and Anthony Mayweather were with Kyle Davis. Mack said that Jax Dane disrespected his wife Jazz and he was going to show Dane why he is the baddest man in the world.
Mayweather went on to talk about Dane when a lawyer served him with papers for a restraining order where Mayweather cannot be within a mile of Dane.
— Galli announced a new match for the NWA called Team War with four trios teams in a fatal four-way with the winning team getting $30,000.
Clearwater claimed that Luke was not allowed to touch him, so he hit a forearm and drove Clearwater back into the corner. Clearwater tagged out in fear. PJ and Rockett exchanged some blows, sending Rockett back to the corner and Luke tagged back in. BLJ drove Luke into the apron behind the ref’s back and they moved into the heat.
BLK Jeez got on the apron so the ref missed the tag from Luke to his son, but it still wasn’t long before PJ tagged in and hit suplexes and strikes on everyone. Tyrus distracted PJ and the referee ejected BLK Jeez and Tyrus, but the damage was done and Marche Rockett dropped PJ. Rockett went for the Rockett Kick, but Luke moved, but Hawx Aerie hit a pop-up powerslam on Clearwater for the pinfall.
The show went off the air with Galli announcing that Trevor Murdoch would be defending the World title next week against Mike Knox.
Final Thoughts:
There was a lot to like on this episode of Power. I liked the growth of stables outside of Strictly Business with Idolmania Sports Management and attempting to highlight newer stars with Hawx Aerie and Madi Wrenkowski being showcased in particular. This was a good episode this week.
NWA Power opened with a promo from Melina saying that she should be the permanent number 1 contender because of her status as a legend. It’s a heel line, but I think she’s the babyface here. Babyfaces should be willing to work their way up the card, and Melina did not want to, so this was confusing to say the least.
That led into our first match.
Kiera Hogan defeated Jennacide (w/ Taryn Terrell), Kenzie Paige and Christi Jaynes to become the number 1 contender to the NWA Women’s title
This was an excellent match from all four as they put on quite the show. You have to think places like AEW would want to fill out their women’s division with the talent seen here. Hogan has an AEW contract, but she would be a great get for any organization out there.
Everyone tried to take out Jennacide at the onset, including Kenzie Paige hitting a dive on her. Hogan hit a dropkick in the corner on Jaynes while Jennacide pulled Hogan to the floor. Hogan went for a wheelbarrow on Jennacide, but Jaynes ran in and hit a cutter on Hogan for the two count in a cool spot.
Jaynes chopped Jennacide, who no sold it and chopped her back before hitting a fall away into a DDT. Paige and Hogan hit double superkicks on Jennacide. Paige then hit Hogan with a superkick, followed by Jaynes hitting a palm strike and ushigoroshi on Paige.
Jaynes hit a moonsault to the floor on all three women, but Hogan came back in and hit Face the Music (a swinging fisherman’s neckbreaker) for the pinfall to earn the title shot.
— The OGK (Matt Taven and Mike Bennett) & Tag Team Champions La Rebelion were backstage with Homicide. Homicide bad-mouthed The OGK, asking why they were there. Bennett and Taven said they wanted a match against them for the titles, but La Rebelion said that they weren’t worthy. Bennett told Homicide to keep his boys in line and a brawl almost broke out.
— Jax Dane was with Kyle Davis and continued to talk about Anthony Mayweather (Crimson). Dane claimed that he set up Mayweather’s match against Mims tonight. Mims is the student of Mayweather, so he wanted to see how bad Mayweather wanted another match against him, going through his student.
Dane started bad-mouthing the NWA legends and Rodney Mack, the husband of Jazz, decided that was disrespectful and took him out to end the segment.
Anthony Mayweather defeated Mims by countout
This was an interesting way to book the match, but in this case, I think the finish served the story. Mims didn’t want Mayweather to play into the hands of Dane. Mayweather understood it as business and wanted his trainee to wrestle. Mims, in the end, was the one manipulated. If it goes somewhere, it’s interesting.
Mayweather and Mims exchanged some offense, but Mims kept letting up on him every time he had the advantage. Mims said he couldn’t do it and that Dane was manipulating both of them. Mayweather said it was just business and they should fight. Mims laid down for the pin, and Mayweather said that there was no honor in winning that way, so give him a fight.
Both men left the ring and Mayweather told him that this was part of his training, but Mims threw Mayweather into the ring before they could both get counted out, giving the teacher the win by countout.
— Cyon was with May Valentine and spoke about how his past doesn’t matter despite Valentine asking about his former NWA champion father. He chose to wore a mask because the past doesn’t matter and was going to continue to fight and prove himself, because Tyrus showed him what he needed to do to get to the top.
DSB (JTG and Dirty Dango) defeated The Rude Dudes (El Rudo & Jamie Stanley)
I like all four guys, but this wasn’t very good. Stanley and JTG, in particular, seemed to struggle, but I have seen far worse.
JTG started with El Rudo. Dango and JTG showed some good tag team offense in the early part with a few double teams on El Rudo. Rudo and Stanley kept the heat up for a few minutes until Dango hit a back suplex before making the tag to JTG.
JTG and Stanley had a bit of a miscommunication when JTG tried to wrap Stanley’s arm around his head and hit a neckbreaker, but it just didn’t come together. JTG got a uranage on Stanley before Dango hit the guillotine leg drop off the top rope for the finish.
NWA Television Champion Tyrus (w/ BLK Jeez, Jordan Clearwater & Marche Rockett) defeated Jaden Roller to retain
This match sucked. Tyrus is so lazy in the ring that he barely moved while doing anything. This was one of the most boring three-minute matches I have ever seen.
Roller hit Tyrus with a jawbreaker after Tyrus lazily shoved Roller to the mat. Roller attacked the knee and kept attacking until hitting a flying clothesline to drop Tyrus. Roller hit an Axe Kick on Tyrus for a two-count.
Tyrus couldn’t get up in time to hit Roller with a punch to the stomach, so Roller just stopped and sold it like Tyrus headbutted him. Wow, Tyrus is bad. Tyrus hit a corner splash and a heart punch for the win. This was horrible.
Cyon defeated Judias (w/ Sinister Minister) via DQ
This also sucked. Judias wasn’t over. I like Cyon, but Judias is terrible.
Judias controlled the early parts of the match with slow, awful offense. Sal Rinauro came out as he is still trying to join Sinister Minister. Judias then threw Rinauro at Cyon for the DQ. Rinauro then asked the Minister if he did good.
Matt Cardona & Mike Knox defeated Strictly Business (Thom Latimer & NWA National Champion Chris Adonis) & NWA World Champion Trevor Murdoch & Tim Storm in a three-way
This was a fine tag match, but was nothing too special.
Knox, Cardona, and Strictly Business seemed to agree that working together to beat on Storm and Murdoch made the most sense. Cardona entered the match when Murdoch was being beat on, but tagged out as soon as Murdoch showed any offense.
Cardona missed a boot scrape and Storm ran wild on Knox and Cardona. Cardona was able to steal the win after everyone exchanged finishers until Cardona hit Radio Silence on Storm.
Final Thoughts:
The opening match was the best on the show with the non-finishes hurting the show a bit. Judias and Tyrus being in featured matches and storylines suck the life out of Power, and the crowd usually responds with silence. I wish anyone else in Idol’s group would wrestle, but Tyrus wrestles the most for them.
The main event was a perfectly fine tag match, but Cardona vs. Murdoch needs to be heated up soon with more promos and angles.
