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Full Impact Pro
Florida Rumble
Friday, December 17, 2004
Lakeland, FL
The show started off with the Florida Rumble. I was worried about how this would come off. One mess up would ruin the entire card, so it was crucial that the eliminations went according to plan. What made it even more crucial was that fans were let into the building while wrestlers were still going over their matches. We knew who was going to wrestle, so if there were a mess up in the eliminations then we would know about it. For example, when Azrieal was eliminated we knew that Vordell Walker was next to go. Luckily, the Rumble came off without a hitch, so everything was fine for the rest of the show.
Match 1 - Spanky won the Florida Rumble when he eliminated Jerrelle Clark. Spanky now faces Homicide for the FIP Heavyweight Championship in the main event.
The order of entries were as followed:
1) James Gibson; 2) Azrieal; 3) 'The Black Nature Boy' Scoot Andrews; 4) Vordell Walker; 5) Erick Stevens; 6) LaDuke Jakes; 7) Phil Davis; 8) Sean Davis; 9) Mike Shane; 10) Antonio Banks; 11) Jimmy Rave; 12) Kahagas; 13) Fast Eddie; 14) Sal Rinauro; 15) Steve Madison; 16) Jerrelle Clark; 17) Spanky; 18) Roderick Strong; 19) CM Punk
The order of eliminations were as followed (person who eliminated them in parentheses):
1) Phil Davis (never entered); 2) Sean Davis (never entered); 3) Scoot Andrews (Mike Shane); 4) LaDuke Jakes (Mike Shane); 5) Azrieal (Mike Shane); 6) Vordell Walker (Mike Shane); 7) Erick Stevens (Antonio Banks); 8) Antonio Banks (Jimmy Rave); 9) Mike Shane (Jimmy Rave); 10) Kahagas (Fast Eddie); 11) Sal Rinauro (Fast Eddie); 12) Fast Eddie (Jerrelle Clark); 13) Steve Madison (Spanky); 14) Jimmy Rave (Roderick Strong); 15) CM Punk (James Gibson); 16) James Gibson (Spanky); 17) Roderick Strong (Jerrelle Clark); 18) Jerrelle Clark (Spanky).
Notes about the Rumble:
-- Phil Davis is introduced as the 7th entry, but his tag partner, Sean Davis, cuts a promo saying that they do nothing singles and do everything as a tag team. They challenge the first two eliminated to a tag match, which ends up being Scoot Andrews and LaDuke Jakes.
-- James Gibson spent enormous amounts of time outside of the ring by going through the middle rope. People must have asked a million times if he was eliminated or not.
-- Mike Shane got into the ring and just started tossing people left and right. I thought that was a smart move as it set up the first two matches easily. No one was eliminated up to that point (well, except Sean and Phil Davis, but they were going to meet the first two eliminated), so all Shane had to do was dump Andrews and Jakes first, then eliminate Walker and Azrieal next.
-- I’m surprised to see that Steve Madison is here in the Florida Rumble rather than at FUSION where he’s supposed to be. Damn, there was a drastic change in the FUSION card from what they originally advertised to what was actually there for the show.
-- Punk was in the rumble for about 5 seconds as he charged Gibson, and Gibson pulled the rope down and Punk fell over the top rope. It was pretty hilarious. A bunch of CM Punk marks all had their X’s thrown up in the air when he got eliminated. They just all looked at each other in shock as if to say, “What the hell just happened?”
-- After Spanky eliminated Jerrelle Clark, Homicide came out to cut a promo. Spanky wanted to give Homicide a hug, but Homicide said no because Spanky was wearing pink. But ‘Cide, isn’t pink gangsta now? Anyway, they just put over their match for the FIP Heavyweight Title later tonight.
Match 2 – Antonio Banks defeated Erick Stevens.
Banks cuts a promo before the match putting himself over. I like how Banks is being built up in FIP. The match starts and Stevens is playing it up that he really doesn’t want to fight with Banks. They do the shoulder block spot where Banks stands in the middle of the ring and Stevens runs at him trying to knock him down. Banks goes for a quick schoolboy after one attempt for a 2 count. Shortly thereafter, Banks hits Stevens with a mafia kick in the corner for another two count. There are a group of smart marks who just start heckling the entire show. It got old really quickly. Someone started yelling out about Banks getting Pounced by Monty Brown. It was really stupid, and you can tell that Banks was getting pissed. Now we get a short fight sequence where they exchange strikes, but Stevens heels out by eye poking Banks. Banks ends up picking up the win with his finisher, the Malicious Intent. It’s pretty much a roundhouse leg lariat. I enjoy watching both of these guys wrestle, but this wasn’t the physical encounter that I would’ve expected from having these two guys in the ring. It’s just something about two guys beating the crap out of each other that I thoroughly enjoy.
Match 3 – Mike Shane w/Ron Niemi defeated Kahagas.
Shane and Niemi come out, and Ron cuts a promo talking about how Shane is gassed up and is going to destroy Kahagas. Wow, that’s ballsy to allude that your guy is gassed up. I’ll give it to Niemi though, he’s not afraid to say things that people wouldn’t dare say during one of their promos. This match sees Kahagas get an early quick small package attempt on Shane. Shane then hits a couple of swinging neck breakers on Kahagas and pretty much chokes him the rest of the match. Kahagas does get in a huracanrana and a knee to Shane’s face in the corner, but Shane does an F5 finisher for the win, I believe. Mike Shane is another one of the Florida talents that Gabe appears to be building up for a run in FIP. Perhaps he’s realizing that he’s probably going to have to push Florida talent to get fans to the shows.
Match 4 – Vordell Walker defeated Azrieal.
Walker comes out to Jay-Z’s “Can I Get a…” which sucks because Vordell changes his music all the time, and I hate that. I swear he just grabs whatever CD is in his car when he pulls into the parking lot. Vordell, if you’re reading this, please stick to one song. The fans love you and want to associate you with one song. You had that with Lil’ Flip’s “Game Over,” but now you’re all over the board. Please pick a song. Vordell cuts a promo putting over the fans and their support for indy wrestling. Early in this match we see Vordell miss a ‘rana from the top rope and Azrieal hit the double stomp to the back of Vordell’s head from the top rope. I love this move. Azrieal then hits a Cobra Clutch Backbreaker on his knee. Paging Roderick Strong… Azrieal goes for a blockbuster from the top rope, but either he missed it or Vordell no-sold it. I really couldn’t tell from my vantage point because their backs were toward me. Anyway, Vordell hits a 450 on Azrieal for the win. I know Azrieal is in pain because Vordell drilled him right in the balls. Hell, it hurt me just watching it.
Match 5 – Fast Eddie defeated Sal Rinauro.
Eddie comes out to cut a promo. In probably one of the funnier moments of the night that no one caught, Eddie motions toward the ring for them to cut the music. It was funny because no one is even near the ring and the sound guy was actually right behind him. Ok, I know that was a cheesy “blind” joke, but he uses them during his promos, so why can’t I? Anyway, Eddie says that Dave Prazak is at home online waiting for the results of this show on the Internet. I don’t know why, but this seemed extremely funny to me. Sal Rinauro comes out and cuts a promo. Damn, everybody cuts promos in FIP. Rinauro spits on and slaps Eddie for payback to what they did to him last show. Eddie blocks a tilt-a-whirl from Rinauro, which leads to an STO on his knee by Eddie. That’s the second back bump someone has taken on the knee tonight. Is Roderick Strong not going to wrestle tonight? We get a nice spot where Rinauro stands on Eddie’s back (I’m assuming Eddie was going for a back body drop) and drops a leg drop on the back of Eddie’s head. Rinauro begins climbing the top rope when Eddie distracts the referee. This leads to Jimmy Rave coming out and tripping up Rinauro. Eddie hits the fall away slam moonsault for the win. The move is quite impressive. This was a very decent match.
Match 6 – Scoot Andrews and LaDuke Jakes defeated Heartbreak Xpress (Sean and Phil Davis)
As is the traditional Heartbreak Xpress, we get a few of their tag team heel bumps that the crowd eats up. Phil is back in the ring, but Scoot hits a leg lariat, which leads to Phil powdering. Scoot hits hit leg drop on Phil where his opponent is draped on the middle rope. It’s funny because Scoot plays it up like he’s scared of his own partner. LaDuke Jakes pretty much has a rip-off Papa Shango gimmick. I liked this match because it made the Florida Rumble more believable by having this odd pairing teaming together to take on the Davis’. Sean is now in the ring posing for camera shots when Jakes gets into the ring and scares him. He powders now. I love how the Davis’ are the only ones that can get away with leaving the ring so often during their matches. They just generate so much heel heat that it’s amazing. The Davis’ begin working over Scoot, but Scoot hits a jawbreaker, then gets the hot tag. Jakes and Sean Davis are brawling when Scoot hits his Forces of Nature finish on Phil Davis for the win. The Davis’ are definitely the most entertaining tag team in the state of Florida.
Match 7 – Jimmy Rave defeated Steve Madison.
The match starts off with some mat wrestling and some nice reversals. Jimmy Rave begins working over Madison’s neck. Madison gets a quick comeback by getting a schoolboy 2 count, then followed up by an Ace Crusher. Madison hits a sunset flip that Rave rolls out of, which immediately transitions into a Shining Wizard. Now Madison and Rave are exchanging forearms. A few of those looked like they really hurt. Madison hits a brainbuster, then climbs to the top rope. Madison being on the top rope can only mean one thing; Fast Eddie is coming out to interfere. Eddie trips up Madison on the top rope. This leads to Rave hitting the Rave Clash on Madison for the win. After the match, Jerrelle Clark runs out for the save. He hits his Canadian backbreaker into the piledriver move. The crowd was calling for it, and they popped when he did it. This was another decent match. The mat wrestling at the beginning kept me distracted enough to forget to take notes during the beginning portion of the match. Those are the types of matches that I like.
Match 8 – Roderick Strong defeated Jerrelle Clark.
Clark is already in the ring waiting for Strong to come out. The match immediately starts and Clark does two arm drags and teases the Clark Bar but Strong moves. Next Clark does a tilt-a-whirl on Strong sending him out of the ring. They brawl outside for a bit, but they’re back into the ring where Clark begins working on Strong’s arm. Strong counters by hitting a power bomb onto his knee and is now working over Clark. Clark blocks an exploder attempt from Strong and hits an enziguri. He’s back to working Strong’s arm. We finally get the Clark Bar. Clark jumps back in the ring and does a springboard moonsault, but Strong is near the ropes. In my favorite spot of the night, Strong gets the upper hand on Clark and military presses him over his head and launches him straight into the turnbuckles. Clark just bounced right off. It looks like that hurt like a bitch. A series of moves occurred leading to a few false finishes. They include Clark hitting a reverse ‘rana and a springboard arm breaker, while Strong hits a big Yakuza kick. Strong gets the win when he uses one of his backbreakers. I’m not sure which one because I was writing some notes when the finish happened. Strong cuts a promo, sarcastically calling Clark “Mr. TNA,” but then he puts him over for being a tough competitor. This was by far my match of the night. It was just fast paced from start to finish.
Match 9 – James Gibson defeated CM Punk.
Punk comes out and immediately starts choking Gibson with his jacket. That doesn’t last long though as Gibson begins working Punk’s arm. This went on for a while with Punk selling the arm like a pro. Punk now gets his heat. He begins kicking Gibson in the back. The crowd is popping for it. He asks them if they want to see one more kick. They pop again. Punk screams “Fuck you assholes” and doesn’t do it. They pop again anyway. I forget what Punk did, but the small crowd didn’t pop for it. Out of nowhere Punk yells out, “C’mon, you stupid Mexicans!” All the Mexicans no-sold his comment. That’s what Punk gets for going for the cheap heel heat. Gibson gets a schoolboy 2 count, then follows it up with a swinging neck breaker. Punk counters with a backbreaker. Gibson gets a Texas Cloverleaf on Punk, but he crawls to the ropes. Punk is now on the ropes but he jumps right into the crossface. They get up, and Gibson gets La Magistral Cradle roll up for the win. This was another very good match. I’m really hoping that Gibson becomes a regular in FIP. Seriously, there really is no excuse why he shouldn’t be because he lives in Florida. This really wasn’t a good day for Punk’s faction, The New Dawn. He and Azrieal went under in their matches, and Punk was eliminated immediately from the Florida Rumble. I’m hoping that the New Dawn gets phased out because I’m not a big fan of it anyway.
Match 10 - FIP Heavyweight Champion Homicide defeated Spanky to retain his title.
Spanky and Homicide go to lock up, but Spanky slides away which requires the referee, who is in the way, to jump over Spanky. The crowd pops for the ref jump. Spanky does a tilt-a-whirl on Homicide and follows up with a dropkick. Homicide powders, so Spanky teases a plancha. Homicide is furious, so he throws a trashcan into the ring. He gets back into the ring, and we get some submissions on the mat that I can’t see because the camera guy is standing right in front of me. I’m starting to get pissed off because I’m missing a good portion of the match because of him. He finally moves, and I see Homicide with some knee strikes to Spanky’s head. The heckling smart marks at ringside start up again by chanting, “We want Puma!” Ok, we’ve got Homicide wrestling Spanky right in front of us, and all these guys want is Puma. This is concrete evidence that the weed in Lakeland must be some good stuff. Spanky is working over Homicide and hits him with a side Russian leg sweep and a leg lariat. Homicide goes for an Ace Crusher but gets it blocked, and Spanky hits him with a super kick. Homicide gets in a neck breaker and a piledriver of his own, but Spanky counters with a SB#2. Homicide bumps right out of the ring. Back in the ring, Spanky goes for a second SB#2, but Homicide goes for the Cop Killa. Spanky blocks that and goes for a 3rd attempted SB#2, but Homicide stops him again and rolls him into a submission that leads to Spanky tapping out. This was definitely a decent match to end the night on.
Final Thoughts
-- As much as I was worried about how the Florida Rumble would turn out, this actually turned out to be my favorite FIP show thus far. There were several solid matches on this show. The Florida Rumble actually turned out to be ok, and I usually don’t like battle royals. There were at least 4-5 matches on this show that smart marks would have marked out for. It’s just unfortunate that smart marks don’t exist in Florida.
-- Attendance was sort of hard to track at this show. The reason being that it was held in a Latino Night Club, so people were paying to come in, but they were doing other stuff in the building. The attendance ranged from 35-50 people in the building. How many of those were actually watching the wrestling though is what’s hard to determine. I’m really hoping that FIP finds a permanent building soon because these random venues don’t help with the low attendance at these shows. For example, this venue was in the middle of nowhere and didn’t even have a proper sign letting us know that this was Latino’s. We pulled into a parking lot full of cars and realized it was the venue when we saw Vordell Walker’s car with the Georgia license plate.
-- I like how some of the Florida talent is being pushed this time around rather than being buried like in the first few shows. Antonio Banks and Mike Shane appear to be on the receiving end of some pushes. It was also good to see Roderick Strong and Jerrelle Clark have the match of the night. Clark has been having solid matches in FIP as his match with Azrieal at the last doubleshot was solid too.
-- Ok, let me break it down for you. The final three matches of this show were Clark/Strong, Gibson/Punk and Homicide/Spanky. That is reason enough to like this show. Also, the undercard was very good. I’m definitely going to pick up this DVD when it comes out. I’m really anxious to see how it comes off on DVD with no crowd there and it being really quiet. I guess time will only tell.
Will Rivera
Wriv25@yahoo.com
AIM – willriv22
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