The wrestling world is changing fast, and tonight Queensland, Australia plays host to the debut of the World Wrestling All-Stars (WWA). With a roster packed with names we’ve seen in the WWF, WCW, and ECW over the last decade, they are clearly trying to stake a claim as the new #2 promotion. But if tonight was any indication, the road to the top is going to be a very weird one. Jeremy Borash & Mark Madden welcome us to the show as our commentary team as some pyro goes off.
It’s a midget match and it’s about as ridiculous as you’d expect. They brawl all over the place and use a variety of props, leaning into the spectacle rather than the sport. Teo eventually hits a Frog Splash from the middle rope and gets the pin.
That is one way to debut your company to the wider wrestling world. Nothing against the guys in the ring, and they did put on a show, but what the hell is this?
Brian Christopher is out in the ring. He’s apparently already the WWA International Cruiserweight Champion. He cuts a typical promo about defending the gold tonight and then spends way too much time dancing. Thanks, Brian.
We go backstage to see Jeff Jarrett talking to someone whose face is hidden in the shadows. The camera finally pans around to show it's Vampire Warrior aka Gangrel. Okay then.
This was a total mess of a 6-man tag. You have the "Homicidal" Sabu teaming with a 1990s WWF cartoon character in Tatanka and the massive Nathan Jones. Jones is an imposing dude and clearly the hometown favorite, so he spends most of the match tossing the smaller guys around. Sabu tries to bring some "Extreme" flavor, hitting a triple jump dive onto Kazarian & Nova to take them out leading to Jones catching Danny Dominion with a massive Choke Slam for the win.
So you have a new company and want to really make a bang, so you stick Sabu in a random 6-man tag with Tatanka and Nathan Jones? Jones is a big imposing dude and Australian, so I can see why they maybe want to give him a push, but you couldn’t have just had a tag match? Sabu should have been better utilized.
This should have been interesting, but it focused way too much on the gimmicks. We actually got a mid-match dance off, which killed any momentum the wrestling had built up. Christopher eventually hits the Top Rope Diving Leg Drop to retain.
This was actually the best wrestling on the show. Scorpio and Juvi can still go, and they tried to keep the pace up. Jarrett played the heel well and the crowd seemed to react to him more than anyone else on the card, but the pairing with Vampire Warrior is just bizarre. The end comes when Jarrett nails Scorpio with The Stroke to get the pin.
These guys at least did some wrestling and the crowd cared a bit about Jarrett. But again, I have to ask, what is this match? Why is Jarrett in a random tag team match with Vampire Warrior? What is any of this?
The main event saw the "World's Most Dangerous Man" taking on the powerhouse Animal. Notably, Road Warrior Hawk was originally supposed to be on this tour but apparently walked out after demanding more money and not getting it. The match itself was pretty meh; Animal isn't really a singles guy and Shamrock is talented but hasn’t been wrestling much lately. Shamrock eventually takes him down and locks in the Ankle Lock for the tap out.
I do not understand this show.