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PAUL LONDON VS. JADEN NEMAN & MORE: 7/11 TWE THE NIGHT BEFORE LIVE REPORT FROM TN

TWE “The Night Before”

7/11/24 - Red Bank, TN

 The Scenic City Invitational is back at the TWE arena and the hosts are kicking it off tonight! Some of my Open/Beyond faves are down here as well so I’m looking forward to a bit of that rivalry being rekindled this weekend. 

Daniel Makabe vs Darian Bengston

For his second to last match, Makabe offers a handshake but Bengston wants none of it. Makabe with the quick takedown and Bengston makes him pay for that. What follows is an aggressive chess match of standing up and quickly grappling the other down. Fast reversals and pin attempts back and forth. This is absolutely a grap fest but they are bumping back and forth before they settle in and try to rip each other’s limbs off. Darian won their first encounter so Makabe has something to prove here. Darian is proving to be WELL STUDIED on his opponent. Crowd is split here. Bengston is so smooth but Makabe has the wrestling genius moniker for a REASON. Makabe blocks a flying kick into an octopus stretch…right ti a piledriver for two. Bengston dodges the fastball punch…he connects with a punch to the back of the head! Ref Gina counts three but Makabe gets a foot to the ropes! Bengston lands a ridiculous chop! Makabe catches Bengston and hits a jumping tombstone out of the corner! He gets the cattle mutilation on….Bengston breaks the hold. Both men are frustrated, resorting to shots to the eyes and even biting. They go back and forth with rolls and pin attempts, Darian manages to leverage Makabe down just long enough to get the win! Makabe is in disbelief but he leaves the ring to the victorious TWE Undisputed Champ. What an opener! Watch this one back. 

Love Doug vs MacKenzie Morgan

Morgan is amused by Doug’s flower petals. He wants a test of love….Morgan LOVES this. He even gets a prom pose in. She doesn’t quite know what to do with this. He has so much love! She tries to bring him down…Doug feels betrayed! Big slams! He pulls out a ring?!? She hits a jawjacker! If he loved her, he’d stay down! MKZ unloading shots and pulls him into a rear naked choke. Doug screams “I love her!” before he taps out. Amazing. Lot of people fell in love tonight. 

Akuto Death Society (Chris Crunk & Kevin Ryan) vs Thunder & Steel (Sigrid, Daughter of Tyr & Will Steel

It’s one thing to hear how much people hate Kevin Ryan on stream. It’s another to hear it IN PERSON. Will is there to make Ryan and Crunk look good until Sigrid tags in to destroy everyone….Sigrid even uses Steel as a battering ram on Crunk. The heels try to keep Steel grounded and the ref distracted as much as possible. Sigrid sent to the floor and Ryan wiped her out with a dive. Steel eats a double superkick to take the three. ADS tries to keep the beating going but the TWE tag champs are here to make the save.

Totally Shook (Jamesen Shook & Pha’Nesse)(c) vs Suge D & Kasey Owens

Suge has apparently turned over a new leaf and he encourages Owens to NOT CHEAT. Owens can’t believe what he’s hearing. Based on this crowd, he’s hearing booooooos. Owens drags Shook over for the tag by his beard and Suge don’t like it. Suge tries to apologize to Pha’Nesse for all the bad things he’s done…Pha’Nesse ain’t having it. Kasey just heeling it up as Suge tries to bring him back from the brink. Owens is just commited to being a jerk. Suge finally runs in to save Owens from a crucifix…Kasey with a pouncing headbutt to Shook! Pha’Nesse is caught alone and Owens has some brass knucks…Suge stops him again and it is his undoing! Owens just shoved into Suge and Totally Shook puts him away with a running slam. Suge is the bigger man and offers a handshake to the victors…Owens wants NOTHING to do with it. The champs leave as Owens and Suge argue in the ring. “You taught me to cheat like this” says Owens to a disappointed Suge D. Good little story here. I wonder how this might pan out in other places. 

Rob Killjoy vs Damon Stryker

The crowd also does not like this Damon Stryker and Killjoy wasted no time chopping him up and flying around. Stryker thinks he can play this game too but Killjoy is way more experienced….so a shot to the gut and a toss to the floor gives him the advantage he needs. Killjoy survives some hellacious offense, including a moonsault flip into a ddt. Superkick to the back of the head. He tries that moonsault again and Rob is ready for it. Suplex neckbreaker right into the knee ends Stryker’s night emphatically. Killjoy is over as hell but there is something there with this Stryker kid. He’s hateable…he needs to lean into that HARD. 

Eden Monroe(c) vs Braydon Toon (for the Gig City Championship)

They make a note that the title can changes hands on a countout or DQ. Wowwwww people hate Eden Monroe. Whose Wheaties did they poop in? Ah I see it now. Eden cares wayyyy more about preening for the crowd that clearly does NOT want that. Toon gets frustrated quickly by this, sends them in, blasts a PK and drops Eden for a two. Toon tries a dive but eats a double throat chop. “Why are you like this” shouts Eden to the people. Despite the hate, Eden lands a huge legdrop to the throat. Toon hits a sling board leapfrog into a huge German! Five through the ropes! Swanton bomb for two! Eden posts Toons and hits a judo toss facebuster for the two! We have two minutes remaining? I guess these are speed rules? Eden sent to the floor and Brayden is begging the ref to keep counting. Why is Kasey Owens out here? Toon takes his eyes off the ball as Eden slides in and hits a flying hidden blade to get the win and everyone is BOOOOOOOOING them. Not gonna lie, I love their violin solo Phantom of the Opera theme.

1 Called Manders, Anakin Murphy, Tim Bosby & Kody Manhorn v TJ Crawford, Erron Wade, Tyler Franks & Hunter Drake

This is gonna be wild. TJ is excited to get in there with Kody Manhorn but Manders tags in. TJ doesn’t feel like giving these people a preview of tomorrow’s first round so he tags Franks in. Mander with a huge vertical and holds this kid up high. Franks retaliates with a dropkick but the cowboy just bowls him over. Drake and Murphy tag in and the crowd is hot for this twink mirror match. Drake wants NOTHING to do with Bosby so the sensei gets in there. Bosby is too much for him. Manhorn finally in and TJ goes to work. This  quickly breaks down as the heels lay out their opponents and isolate Anakin for a 4-way beatdown. It’s looking bad for Anakin but he gets the tag to Manhorn, who goes right after his former tag partner. TJ blindsides Manders in the corner as this devolves into a gang fight. Manhorn hits a flying headbutt into a German on Wade….it should be over but TJ pulls out ref Gina. Manders and TJ face off again but TJ rolls right out. Big moves back and forth. Manhorn and Wade get tangled up. TJ distracts Ref Gina so Wade can hit a low blow and roll Kody up for the three. Boooooo! Says the crowd!

Main Event: Jaden Newman (w/ The Rev) vs Paul London

HERE WE GO. Newman’s entrance as the Lightbringer of the Coven of the Goat is pretty incredible. London comes out singing Thunderball but he’s clearly unamused by the venue, the acoustics, the sound system, the people…and definitely unamused by the “spirit Halloween” guys in front of him. He says he’s known Jaden since he was 14 and Newman is ready to show him just what kind of man he became. London wants to grapple but it’s so clear that he’s hesitating to get in there. Jaden offers his chest up as tribute…one good chop lands but Jaden ducks the other and takes London right over and traps up the legs….AND then the arms too! London is VERY confused and befuddled as Jaden has an answer for everything and keeps asking for more. London finally with an unsportsmanlike dropkick. Yt Jaden keeps coming. London retreats to the floor…Jaden walks him down and lands some vicious forearms. Jaden comes running…right into a leg lariat. They battle to the…oh no…London grabs the bag of trash. They start beating each other until the bag breaks and trash juice rains in the TWE arena. 

 I lose the plot for a moment while I protect myself from trash juice. Like, people on twitter love the trash juice…until they get hit with it. ANYWAYS -> When I’m composed again, I see London body slam Newman out of the ring. Baseball slide to the outside! London is just methodically beating Newman down…Newman tries to rally and London trips him right into the ropes. London tries an attack but Jaden moves and Paul flies right through the ropes. Newman hits a dive. Big slam for two! Running enziguri! High cross body for two! London with a vicious double stomp to the back. He’s slow to make the cover and Jaden kicks out! London comes running and Jaden hits a hip toss ddt with the quickness of the Orton snap powerslam. London stays down for the three!

Jaden is intensely staring down London. Paul says “not bad” and offers a handshake. “The best man won tonight”. Jaden does the handshake. And paul does it two more times. He says That despite his “goth emo bulls***l, there is a lot to be proud of here. And at that moment…CHANNING THOMAS RUNS IN AND BLINDSIDES NEWMAN! London is shocked and just lets it happen. Channing hits a piledriver and leaves Newman laying. “ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED?” The ring fills with wrestlers and officially checking on Jaden, who is screaming about his neck. The crowd is hushed as they slowly get Jaden out of there, but he is gonna be in trouble tomorrow night…if he can make it here at all…as for Channing Thomas, I’d say he just fired the first shot that will reverberate right into tomorrow’s tournament. 

 

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