New England Championship Wrestling returned to live action in front of another standing room only crowd this past on Saturday night, March 21st at the National Guard Armory in Quincy, MA for MARCH BADNESS.
One major championship changed hands and numerous surprises took place.
Before the opening contest, “The Talent” TJ Richter and Mr. Munroe came to the ring. Richter accused the NECW Officials of having a conspiracy against him. Ring announcer Chris Norman then announced that those same officials had decided that if Richter won his match, he would gain an invite the 6th annual IRON 8 Championship. This appeased Richter. His opponent “The Heat” Kris Pyro showed tons of heart and upset Richter with a top rope sunset flip for the pin fall victory. After the match, NECW President Sheldon Goldberg came to the ring and announced that due to the tremendous win, it would be Pyro, not Richter, who would be invited to compete in the 6th annual IRON 8.
The next match was scheduled to be between the Asian star MAKOTO and “The Devil’s Reject” Brandon Webb. While Webb hoped to make an impact in his new persona, another man came to the ring only seconds after the match began, also hoping to make an impact. “The Natural” Scott Osbourne stated he was upset at being left off the show, especially when it is time to impress the Championship Committee to earn invitations into the IRON 8. Osbourne stated that he was entering the match one of two ways, by invite or by force. Both MAKOTO and Webb called Osbourne on, which might have been a mistake. At the ten-minute mark, Osbourne threw MAKOTO from the ring and hit a cross-arm Falcon arrow on Webb to secure the pin and the victory.
In the Pat’s Pit segment, a seemingly remorseful “Golden Greek” Alex Arion came to the ring and apologized to fans for his actions. He spoke on jealousy and how he had needed help and direction. The fans seemed sympathetic for Arion, until he announced that the help and direction he needed would come from his new manager “The Manager of Champions” Sean Gorman. Gorman came out and infuriated the fans after his 6-month absence from NECW. Gorman swore that he would be the difference that wins the NECW Triple Crown for the “Golden Greek”.
In a match up of up and coming NECW Cruiserweights, “The Upset Kid” Nick Westgate proved his nickname was accurate as he defeated “The Prince of Pink” Brendan Michael Thomas, accompanied by World Women’s Wrestling Champion “The Portuguese Princess” Ariel. Westgate took the fall and the match with an amazing double chicken-wing neck breaker maneuver that defies description.
In a match for the NECW Tag Team Championship, the reigning and defending champions Dan Freitas and Brian Nunes, collectively known as PRIDE faced off with the #1 Contenders, The Crown Jewels (Darling Damon and Bad Boy Jason) with “Mr. Fabulous” Tony Ulysses. PRIDE seemed to have the match well in hand, when Ulysses caused Freitas to fall from the top rope, allowing Jason to use a victory roll to pin Nunes for the win and the titles. The Crown Jewels are the new NECW Tag Team Champions. The match was not without controversy, as Referee J.T. Franks has been accused of possibly allowing the interference to occur leading to the title change.
In the special “Superstar” Challenge, “Superstar” Ryan Matthews fought Pat “The Brat” Piper’s hand picked opponent in former NECW Heavyweight Champion, Slyck Wagner Brown. Brown spent the better part of 10 minutes outclassing and battering the self-proclaimed “Superstar”. The match spilled to the outside of the ring, with Brown throwing Matthews over the guardrail. As Slyck charged and attempted a bodypress over the rail and into the crowd onto Matthews, “Matty Cat” ducked and Wagner hit the floor hard. Somehow, Matthews was able to sneak back into the ring just beating the referee’s ten count to score the count out win. As Matthews celebrated, Brown recovered and congratulated the match victor with an “Appreciation Bomb” for his troubles much to the crowd’s delight. Matthews had to be physically assisted from the ring.
As Handsome Johnny and Sammi Lane were announced to compete in a mixed tag team grudge match, Handsome informed the fans that as a part of his training for his run at the NECW Triple Crown, he was bowing out of the match. He had signed a new wrestler in that match, a wrestler he was taking under his wing to make a star… “Sensational” Scott Levesque. Levesque and Lane’s opponents, the new NECW Television Champion “The Real Deal” Brandon Locke and Taeler Hendrix made their way to the ring. Locke pounded on Handsome Johnny’s protégé, while also Hendrix physically dominated Sammi Lane. Taeler hit a high head kick on Lane that appeared to knock her out, when Handsome Johnny took the TV Title and began to walk from ringside with it. Locke dropped down to confront Johnny. While this was happening and taking the referee’s attention from the action, Levesque dropped a huge elbow on Taeler and then pulled Sammi Lane on top of her for the cover. The referee returned in time to count the three giving Handsome Johnny’s team the victory.
With the assistance of NECW Officials, “Superstar” Ryan Matthews made his way back to the ring showing obvious injuries from his match with Slyck Wagner Brown earlier in the evening. He demanded that Sheldon Goldberg and the NECW Championship Committee grant him a TV Title match on April 18th. As Goldberg balked at the deal, Matthews begged and said his grandfather would be there to see him wrestle for the first time. Goldberg reluctantly obliged and granted him the match.
In the main event of the evening, NECW Triple Crown Champion “The Enforcer” Max Bauer faced off with Antonio “The Promise” Thomas. The two men fought tooth and nail, with Thomas nearly upsetting the champion on a number of occasions. As Thomas scaled to the top rope to capitalize on an earlier Bauer mistake, Sean Gorman ran out and pulled “The Promise” off the turnbuckle. Thomas stepped down and stalked Gorman to the backstage area. As Bauer slowly got up, “The Golden Greek” Alex Arion came through the crown and entered the ring. Bauer turned around and was leveled by a huge chair shot to the head by Arion leading to the disqualification. Thomas ran back to the ring, leading to Arion running off. Eventually, “The Promise” helped “The Enforcer” to his feet and handed him the Triple Crown Championship and shook his hand in a sign of respect. The crowd showed their appreciation for the sportsmanship of Thomas, who only 6 months prior was one of the most hated men in the company.
NECW returns to Quincy for SPRING BREAKDOWN on Saturday night, April 18 with a 7 PM bell time. Tickets are on sale now at all FYE locations, K.C. Sports Cards, 133 Temple Street, Quincy Center, MA and online by clicking here. You can now order tickets by phone with Visa, Mastercard or Discover, any time 24/7 by calling toll free 1-800-838-3006.
