SHOOT OUT REVIEW

 
1) Brian Kendrick Vs Jamie Knoble (2 out of 3 Falls, * * * ¼  )
            The show kicked off with a rematch from the Cruiserweight Title Tournament Final at January’s Corporal Punishment.  It certain too that the match was eagerly anticipated by most fans and there was a sense of anticipation as the two competitors made their way to the ring.  What transpired was a definite notch below their CP match, but this was still a high powered and fast paced opener, which featured good performances from both men. 
            Knoble started off like the proverbial house on fire and sent the cocky Kendrick reeling with a barrage of punches.  Kendrick soon hopped out of the ring in order to get his bearings back, but Knoble followed him out and tossed him back into the ring.  However Kendrick kept his wits about him and when Knoble made his way back in, he clobbered him and took control of the match for the first time.  The two had a spirited mat tussle and exchanged some old school manoeuvres. 
            This benefited Kendrick the most as he tied his opponent up in knots and try as Knoble might he couldn’t get back into the swing of things.  He did hit back with some stiff kicks but at this stage of the match, Kendrick was always one step ahead.  And he indeed won the first fall after he turned an arm-lock into a springboard “BK” which enabled him to claim the opening pinfall.
            Kendrick was unbearably cocky as he celebrated and he made a couple of moves towards finishing Knoble off, but always stopped and preened in front of the crowd.  Which turned out to be his mistake as the third time he went to grab Knoble, young Jamie had recovered enough to wrap up the Cruiserweight Champion in a Small package for the second pinfall of the match, and the one that tied the bout at 1-1.
            For the final fall, the two cranked up the big moves and went to the air, hitting some amazing moves.  It all seemed over for Kendrick as Knoble perched him on the top rope for a Super-Plex attempt, but Kendrick blocked it and then hit an absolutely awesome top-rope DDT on Knoble for the decisive pinfall.  The crowd, well impressed by the closing sequences gave both men a deserved round of applause. 
2) Randy Orton Vs Mark Jindrak ( * * * )
            The battle between these two generated at Corporal Punishment where both had their moments with Girls Aloud Cheryl Tweedy, and both had argued about their respective treatments of the young lass.  The battle was fortified by an unsuccessful shot at the World Tag Team Titles at the recent Slammin and the two finally got it on here.  Pre-match though, Cheryl said that if they were fighting over her then they were both going to be going home alone tonight.
            The fans didn’t really know who to cheer in this one, but they were drawn in by the hammy opening  sequence where both men were attempting to get the crowd on their side.  What followed was a very decent match indeed which did both men’s burgeoning reputations no end of good. 
            This was power based action but was kept fast paced and both men kept it at a level that they could work within.  There also seems to be a natural chemistry between the pair (the two being great friends away from the ring) and this played out very well.  Jindrak had the better of the early stages but Orton slowly got back into the swing of things. 
            MJ hit back with some sweet moves, but it just wasn’t to be his night.  Orton blocked an attempted “Golden Globe” and hit back with an RKO of his own to wrap up the match. 1-2-3.  A great little tussle between two men with seemingly great futures. 
3) Eddy Guerrero Vs Chavo Guerrero ( * * )
            We’d waited a long time for these two to go one-on-one in an official match and finally the occasion was here.  However what, pre-game, was touted as a possible show stealer was actually a great disappointment in the final reckoning. 
            That’s not to say that this was an awful match, far from it, just that it lacked the spark that all great matches have and, furthermore, lacked the intensity that one would expect from an Uncle Vs Nephew clash with as much bad blood behind it as this. 
            What also seemed to hurt the bout is that, despite his best efforts over the past few weeks, the fans don’t really care about Chavo in his own right and so they spent the portions of the match where he was in control in virtual silence.  At least they did pop for the finish, where after three consecutive suplexes, Eddy climbed the ropes, hit the Frog Splash and got the spotlessly clean pinfall victory.  Good news for Eddy then, but where Chavo goes from here is open to question.   
4) The Blueprint Vs The Positive Role Models ( Entertaining Sq. )
            Our esteemed Commissioners Riprock and Corino had let their new found power go to their head’s somewhat and had been out manoeuvred by Matt Morgan’s Spokesperson Paul Heyman in finding themselves in this match.  Of course they looked as cocky as ever on their way to the ring but as soon as Morgan’s music hit and he made his way to the ring, the role model’s expressions told the truth…they were bricking it!!
            The two had a lengthy discussion as the bell went to decide who would take on Morgan first.  Morgan stood looking but soon grew tired of waiting and he just steamed in and attacked both of them.  Riprock and Corino went flying out of the ring and were reluctant to get back in.  However when Morgan followed them out, they soon hopped back into the ring and when Morgan slid under the ropes the PRM’s took the fight to him with a barrage of kicks.  It was to be the sum total of their offence. 
            With Morgan seemingly down and out, Riprock and Corino congratulated themselves and played to the crowd.  However when they turned around the saw that Morgan was up and he immediately hit them both with powerful kicks.  He then smashed Corino with a wicked spine-buster, and then hit a powerbomb on Riprock, onto the prone Corino.  Morgan then made the pin on both of them and won the match!
            As Morgan & Heyman celebrated and then walked off, the Positive Role Models slowly came around and gingerly got to their feet.  They were then interviewed by roving reporter Jenni B and their reply’s were very honest.  “Hey, we got our butt’s kicked” said Corino.  “We sure did” replied Riprock, “but hell, at least we’re still alive.”  And with that they went off back to the Commissioner’s office!
5) The Big Gee Vs Edge ( * * )
            Well what a difference a month makes.  Four weeks ago, Edge was in the Triple Crown match and all looked bright; tonight he was lumbered with The Big Gee (despite these two having a poor match at January’s Slammin) in what amounted to little more than “something for both men to do.” 
            It’s hard to imagine anyone wanting to see these two going at it with months and months of brilliant storylines behind the feud but here, where the whole “feud” ran around the fact that both men wanted to prove to the other that they weren’t bottlers on the big stage, there was practically no interest at all. 
            The size difference was always going to make this an awkward encounter, and so it proved.  What made it worse is that neither man seemed motivated to pull something special out of the bout (and the whole scenario) and so this just dragged and dragged.
            In the end, the finish couldn’t come fast enough, and it was a real kick in the teeth for those who have championed Edge’s cause for genuine headliner status.  Edge went for the Edgecution but Gee pulled the referee into the melee and the ref went down.  Gee then got some brass knux that he had concealed and he smacked Edge right in the face.  Gee then woke the ref up, hit Edge with the Gee-Bomb and got the tainted pinfall victory, and earned a small chorus of boo’s from those fans still awake. 
6) Rhino Vs Diamond Dallas Page ( * * ¼ )
            At least the crowd picked up again slightly as these two made their way to the ring to battle over the European Title.  This was one of those matches that was quite short (clocking in at just over seven minutes) which meant that whilst it was never likely to be a classic, the two men did what they could with the time allotted. 
            Rhino looked particularly sharp and DDP hung in with him all the way, and actually really got the crowd behind him big style.  And much to the delight of the crowd, this was actually DDP’s night!!!  Yes that’s right.  The ref took a bump (for the second match in a row nonetheless) and DDP was flat out.  Rhino took this as an opportunity to showboat and then, much to the disgust of the crowd, he started to signal for some Sweet Chin Music. 
            Rhino was having the time of his life tapping his foot in readiness for the super-kick, but Rhino didn’t count on the arrival of Shawn Michaels, who sneaked in and then as Rhino went for his version, all he met was HBK giving him the real thing.  Michaels then scampered off as DDP and the ref awoke.  DDP couldn’t believe his eyes, but hit his opponent with the Page Turner and grabbed the three count that won him the European title.  As daft as it all might sound, the fans loved this match and, hell, so did I!
7) Chris Jericho Vs Chris Kanyon ( * * * * ¼ )
            Issues surrounding the Robo Rumble match at last month’s Corporal Punishment were the set up for this battle, with the Triple Crown shot at MuscleMania XIII going on the line in a match set up by Commissioner’s Riprock and Corino.  The fans were excited as both men made their way to the ring and there was a real sense of heightened anticipation as the two circled each other.  Jericho threw the first punch and from thereon in it was action, action, action all the way. 
            Kanyon had the best of the early exchanges, but some quick footed offence from Y2J brought the match back in his favour.  The two traded some more speedy exchanges, before a stunning top-rope dropkick from Jericho put Kanyon down and led to Jericho putting prolonged pressure on Kanyon’s left leg, seemingly looking to be able to lock in the Walls of Jericho to finish the match off.  Jericho was unremitting in his onslaught, but somehow Kanyon managed to keep some strength and when Jericho went to lock on his favoured submission hold for the first time, Kanyon surged out of it and went on the offence himself. 
            Kanyon really took the fight to his opponent and looked all set to hit the Kanyon Cutter on Jericho, but Jericho squirmed out of it and retaliated with a DDT of his own.  Once again Jericho went for his Walls of Jericho, and this time he managed to get it on, but Kanyon made the ropes after a brief struggle.  Jericho was livid, but rather than go for the hold again, he put some stiff boots in and went for the Lion-Sault.  He connected, but much to his disgust, Kanyon kicked out before the referee could count three from the subsequent pinfall. 
            Perturbed, Jericho went for the same move again, but this time Kanyon lifted up his knees and Y2J got quite a nasty shock.  The two both struggled to get up but Jericho just about won the race.  He went to grab Kanyon, but Kanyon threw him into the ropes and once again looked ready to attempt to hit the Kanyon Cutter.  Once again Jericho avoided it, this time by ducking out of the challenge, and on the rebound went to hit Kanyon with a clothesline.  However Kanyon himself ducked this, turned around and after a stiff forearm straight into Jericho’s face, he hit the Cutter and got the massively popular pinfall victory, which put right the travesty of justice from the Rumble and earned Kanyon his Triple Crown title shot at MuscleMania XIII.  A fantastic match. 
8) Xavier Vs Cheryl Tweedy ( * ½ for wrestling, * * * ½ for entertainment )
            So it was time for the most bizarre match of the evening (if not of the IWF’s existence) and it was preceded by a cracking promo video of the trouble between these two, to the tune of “Take Me Out” by new rock hope’s Franz Ferdinand.  Cheryl made her way to the ring first and was, of course, accompanied by her four Girls Aloud buddies Nadine, Sarah, Nicola and Kimberly.  She looked ready for action too.  Xavier, on the other hand, came out looking as if he didn’t have any worries whatsoever to affect him. 
            The two circled each other for what seemed like an age, before they finally squared up to each other.  The two had a verbal argument before Cheryl slapped Xavi in the face.  Xav looked ready to retaliate with a slap of his own, but instead slapped her cheek with a kiss.  This sent Cheryl into a rage and she flew at Xavier, fists flying and the sheer ferocity sent him sprawling out of the ring, where all the other members of Girls Aloud were hanging out, and after the obligatory pause, they all kicked the crap out of him too!!!
            Xav shook them off and finally got back in the ring and played the old “lets shake hands” routine, and Cheryl fell for it.  Xav hit her with a swift kick and took control of the match in the way that you would expect.  He was, quite simply, toying with the outmatched Tweedy and kept humiliating her with such choice Lou Thesz manoeuvres as the spanked bottom. 
            It was about now that Randy Orton made his way to the ring, seemingly following up on his promise to “get some action” with the girls.  Funnily enough, his charm seemed to be getting somewhere with Kimberly, but this didn’t sit well with Orton’s some-time squeeze Dawn Marie, who ran out and started an almighty cat fight with Kimberly, which soon got all the other girls involved.  This brought out, for some reason, “The Hollywood Superstar” Mark Jindrak who, quite frankly, looked like he just wanted to be in the middle of a mass of fighting girls. 
            Meanwhile back in the ring, Xavier was watching all this with a smile on his face.  But he didn’t see that Cheryl had regained her senses and she hit him with an almightily painful looking low blow.  However when she went to clothesline X-Rated’s spiritual leader, Xav smashed her with a stiff arm of his own, which sent her reeling. 
            It was at this point that a masked man ran in from the crowd and attacked Xavier.  The man reigned down blows on his opponent and Xav was reeling; and then the damndest thing happened…the man hit Xavier with what could only be termed as a Razor’s Edge!!!  Could it have been Scott Hall?  Well we didn’t find out.  At this point, our Commissioners Riprock & Corino made their way out with security and went to sort out the mess.  The masked man hopped away back from where he came and security got rid of the Girls Aloud at ringside, and Jindrak and Orton as well.
            Back in the ring, Tweedy made her way over to the prone Xavier and covered him for the pin.  The count was so close to three that some thought she had done it, but the referee confirmed that Xav had just kicked out, despite the Razor’s Edge.  Xav recovered, hit the Xav-Attack on Tweedy and got the pinfall victory.  As Xav walked off backstage, furious that the masked man had attacked him, the rest of Girls Aloud  came back out and helped up Cheryl, to a rousing ovation from the crowd, who appreciated her valiant efforts in what was, after all, her first pro match!  And heck, this writer appreciated them too, and all credit to Xavier for doing his best to help this to be an entertaining encounter, rather than the embarrassment that many observers thought it might turn out to be. 
9) Kurt Angle Vs Matthew Mercy ( * * * * )
            So after all that, it was time for the main event.  If you can rely on a pair of guys to put on a stellar main event, it has to be these two.  Clashing again on the ppv stage, but this was almost as good as their previous crackers, and it certainly went down well with the crowd.
            The crowd were certainly 100% behind Mercy in his quest to lift the Triple Crown, and this seemed to spur him on in the early going as he unleashed a barrage of punches and kicks onto the stunned Angle, who quickly saved himself by hopping out of the ring. 
            Mercy followed him, but Angle was smart and immediately lay into the challenger and then tossed him back into the ring.  The two continued their back and forth battle, until Angle finally wore down his opponent with some well timed blows to Mercy’s knee.
            For the next few moments, Angle was in complete control and he was taunting the crowd and winding them up something rotten.  On more than one occasion he laid off the beating just long enough for Mercy to stir, but then coldly and coolly restarted his attack just as Mercy was about to get up.
            He tried this once too often though and got too cocky.  Mercy played possum as he came around again, and when Angle went to hit him again, Mercy rolled around, and put the Ankle Lock on Angle!  The crowd were going mental, but Angle soon found a way out of the hold.  He was furious though and he went straight at Mercy, but in a battle of brute strength he was always going to be a loser. 
            Mercy powered his way through some high impact moves, and then signalled for the Mercy-Bomb.  Angle reversed it though and after some quick exchanges, he actually managed to hit a Mercy-Bomb of his own.  Mercy’s subsequent kick out of the pinfall attempt got the crowd popping like mad though.  Mercy looked almost out of it, but he managed to avoid an attempt by Angle to lock on the Ankle Lock and out of nowhere he hit back with a Mercy-Bomb of his own.  It took an age for him to make the cover though, and when he did Angle just about kicked out. 
            The two both looked out of it, but Angle managed to trip Mercy and lock on the Ankle Lock.  After a titanic struggle, Mercy managed to reach the ropes but Angle just dragged him back.  Mercy managed to reach the ropes to break the hold again and this time Angle was forced to let go.  As Mercy got up, Angle hit him with an Olympic Slam, but amazingly Mercy managed to kick out of the pinfall attempt.  However Mercy couldn’t survive a second Olympic Slam and thus Angle got the three count that retained him his title, and booked him a match against Chris Kanyon at MuscleMania XIII.  Fantastic effort from both men, and a fantastic match.
 
Ok, so this wasn’t the greatest three hours of action that the IWF have ever produced as a whole, but when the show produced, it produced big style.  The Kanyon/Jericho and Mercy/Angle matches were two definite match of the year candidates, even though we are only in February, and did the utmost for the reputations of all four men.  The matches truly where that good.  Of the undercard, only Knoble/Kendrick really was anything worth a second look, but the likes of Jindrak/Orton gave us plenty of entertainment.  And against all the odds the Xavier/Cheryl Tweedy match gave us plenty to enjoy too, even if it was ultimately silly nonsense. 
So whilst this may not have been the greatest in-ring ppv show ever, there wasn’t really a dud match on the card, and the two main event matches were absolutely superb.  And it has to be said that whilst the rest of the card didn’t always hit the in-ring heights we might have wanted, it rarely failed to entertain, and it did stoke up a lot of interesting issues on the road to MuscleMania.  We’re looking forward to that one for sure.