What's up everyone and welcome to the 6th Annual J-Cup McReview. As many people know, Chris Candido passed away on Thursday. This news has shaken the wrestling world upside down. No other wrestler wrestled for WWE, WCW, ECW, SMW, TNA, Puerto Rico, and in Japan. In addition to that, Chris Candido made a huge impact here in the northeast area. Chris Candido touched the lives of many wrestling fans, wrestlers, promoters and other people in the wrestling business. Chris was also very close with NWS, which was one of the two main promotions in this area he wrestled for. (The other being UXW.) To stay true to the adage of "the show must go on", NWS presented the 6th Annual J-Cup this past Saturday night. It also featured the Candido family acknowledging the wrestling public for the first time since Candido's unfortunate and untimely passing. The NWS renamed the J-Cup to the Chris Candido Memorial J-Cup. From this day on, the event will always remember and promote Candido's legacy in the business. With that said, here is the review:

NWS
4/30
The 6th Annual Jersey J-Cup/Chris Candido Memorial J-Cup Tournament
From South Toms River, NJ
Refs: Kenny Edwards, Timmy Rivers & Matt Bennett
Attendance: 440+

Before I begin, I should let everyone know that I booked the finishes and some of the wrestlers in the tournament. If you look at the wrestlers in the tournament, I'm pretty sure you can tell who I booked and who I didn't book. I somewhat hid that fact going into this show, as I wanted the attention on the tournament itself and not on whatever business dealings I may have. Due to me booking the tournament, in addition to the title matches on the show, I watched the crowd to see how they reacted to things, more than the matches themselves. Therefore, I didn't take any notes on this show, making this review somewhat brief in detail.

The show kicked off with a tribute to Chris Candido. All 16 J-Cup participants were introduced. After that, the NWS locker room emptied out into the ring. NWS Promoter, Joe Panzarino, talked about the history of the J-Cup. He said he "acquired the J-Cup tournament from the now defunct Jersey All Pro, I mean excuse me for the error, Jersey Championship Wrestling." I wonder if that was a Freudian slip by Joe, although Joe did clear that it was JCW that was dead, not JAPW, as JAPW is alive and kicking ass. Joe then moved on to Chris Candido and talked about Chris. He then introduced the Candido family. Johnny Candido and his sisters entered the ring. Johnny said Chris would've wanted the show to go on. He said that Chris left the world the way he wanted to, blonde and tan. Johnny said he was at a loss for words and that he loved his brother very much. From there, a slide show was presented to the crowd, to AC/DC's "Back in Black". After the classy tribute, the National Anthem played.

Chris Candido Memorial J-Cup Round One Match
NY BRACKET
Azraiel d. Latin Fury Louis Ortiz, Drew Blood and Tommy Force
This was a decent match with Azraiel and Ortiz standing out the most. Ortiz has a great heel look. The finish of this match saw Azraiel pin Force, although Ortiz had Blood tapping out to a submission hold. Azraiel advances to the second round.
I thought this was a decent match, despite it being short, although the wrestlers were able to tell a story in the ring.

Chris Candido Memorial J-Cup Round One Match
North NJ Bracket
Deranged d. Neeno Capone, Archadia and Gavin Quest
I thought this was the best first round match of the tournament, and one of the better matches on the show. This match was a spot fest, and gave the crowd exactly what they wanted. Deranged hit a crazy top rope stomp in this match. Archadia and Capone hit a double top rope flying clothesline. Insane. Gavin and Archadia, who have been feuding in NWS for some time, eventually let their bad blood get the better of them. Both battled to the back, leaving Neeno and Deranged in the ring by themselves. Deranged was able to hit a reverse sitout hiptoss on Neeno, for the clean 3 count. Deranged moves on to the second round.
This was a good match with all four really looking good when it was all said and done.

For the WXW World Heavyweight Championship
(c) Bison Bravado d. Funky White Boy
This was pretty much a squash match, that showcased the power of the WXW champion. Bison laid Funky White Boy out with a huge cannonball in the corner, before wiping him out for good with an Owendriver, for the 1-2-3.
This match pretty much established WXW and Bison's dominance.

Chris Candido Memorial J-Cup Round One Match
PHILADELPHIA BRACKET
Trent Acid d. Devan Moore, Nick Berk and Tony Flow
Trent was very over in his Toms River return. Moore is an up and comer and will probably be a name most indy fans know by the time the year is out. Berk has trimmed some of the fat off his body and looks impressive. Trent was the sly heel in this match, trying to win by getting the easy way out. The finish of this match saw Trent fake an injury, after being dropped on his head by his opponents. Berk and Flow went to get medical attention for Trent, while Moore stayed in the ring, to help his PWU trainer. Acid, being the savvy ring veteran, quickly got up, and Yakuza kicked Moore right in the face, and picked up the shady 3 count. Acid advances to the next round.
POSTMATCH: Berk and Flow come back to the ring to get revenge on Trent for fooling them, but Trent bailed and pointed to his head, letting everyone know that he outsmarted them.
This was a pretty solid match and everyone was able to look good, despite Flow seeming to be the odd man out in this match.

Chris Candido Memorial J-Cup Round One Match
SOUTH NJ BRACKET
Mike Kruel d. Damian Adams, Steve Zapf and Slayer
This was the match that I was most shaky of going into this tournament. Zapf is one of NWS's ticket sellers and flat out fucking sucked and doesn't belong watching wrestling, never mind actually doing it. Zapf couldn't throw a punch to save his life, and single handedly almost dragged this tournament down. He also blew two false finishes in the match, and exposed the sport of wrestling several times in this match. This was a huge wake-up call for NWS, as they should now 100% realize that you can't mix ticket sellers with real wrestlers. The other wrestler I was wary of was Slayer, but he was able to step up to the challenge and had a good match. Kruel and Adams were the stars of this match. Both are in the middle of an intense feud in NWS, and they showcased their feud and abilities in this first round match. Damian looked like he had this match won over Slayer, but Kruel was able to step in and pick up the submission win for himself. Kruel then advanced to the second round.
This was the worst match of the tournament due to Zapf stinking the joint up. However, Kruel and Adams were able to make everyone forget about it in the...
POSTMATCH: Kruel and Adams got nose to nose and were screaming at each other. Adams vowed revenge over Kruel. This was a really intense square off, that had the hardcore NWS fans jumping in the front rows. (There are about 10 NWS fans who go to almost every show who are huge Kruel fans.)

Up next was a promo to hype up Jim Neidhart/Powerchild vs Simon Diamond/Chemical Ali. Chemical Ali was a replacement for Danny Doring, who couldn't make the show due to flight trouble. Simon Diamond, who would later be introduced from South Bend, Saudi Arbia through Iraq, played up the evil mid-east wrestler act. This '70s promo set up the main event for later on.

INTERMISSION
There was a huge line with people getting Jim Neidhart autographs. There were also alot of young fans in the crowd getting autographs from various indy wrestlers.

Chris Candido Memorial J-Cup Round Two Match
Azraiel d. Deranged
Many said this was the best match of the night. Personally, I liked the final match of the tourney better, but either way this was a great match. Both of these guys know each other and have wrestled each other in the past, and had a great outing. Both are known for their stomps, and incorporated them into this match. This match went about 13 minutes or so, before Azraiel was eventually able to pull off the win, with a South of Heaven, for the pinfall. Azraiel moves on to the finals of the tournament.
Just a great match here, that really represented the doghouse and indy wrestling very well.

Chris Candido Memorial J-Cup Round Two Match
Mike Kruel d. Trent Acid
Both wrestlers were very over with the crowd. In a really funny moment, during Trent's entrance, a fan held up a replica title belt. Trent took the title from the fan and started celebrating with it. The fan then got up out of his seat and chased Trent with his shoe. I don't know if the camera picked up on it, but it was just hysterical to watch some 50 year old man chase Trent halfway around the ring. The man eventually got his belt on, and this match started. Kruel, who as sporting black trunks/white boots, ala Candido, took a beating early on from Trent, eating up various moonsaults. Trent would later set up Kruel for his Yakuza kick, which Kruel was able to avoid for most of this match. In the end, Kruel was able to hit his powerbomb/neckbreaker combon on Acid. Kruel would then win this match via pinfall. Kruel moves on to the finals of the tournament.
Another great match on this show, as both went all out here.

For the AWA Heavyweight Title
(c) Danny Demanto d. J.D. Smooth
Ouch. That's all I could say after watching the finish of this quick 3 minute squash. Demanto laid into J.D. Smooth in this match, as he hit a huge victim kick to start things off. Demanto then hit his Pork Grind Line on JD. Demanto would then win this match with a spinning top rope rope knee to the jaw. I don't know what you else you can call it, or the technical name for the move, as Demanto just jumped from the top, spun side to side, and put his knee in JD's jaw. That was more than enough for the 1-2-3. The ending of this match was one for the ouch files.

Powerchild/Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart d. Simon Diamond/Chemical Ali
Powerchild, who sold about 50 tickets for this show, had the Powerchildamaniacs going nuts for his antics. Simon Diamond channeled the spirit of Chris Candido in this match, as he pretty much wrestled this match the way Chris would've wrestled it. Simon was over gimmicky and had the crowd laughing during this match. I guess Simon ain't a bad guy for a guy coming from South Bend, Saudi Arabia. Simon, a guy who I've always compared to Candido, will probably find himself with alot more NWS bookings, now that Chris has moved on. The finish of this match saw Powerchild and Neidhart hit a weak version of the Hart Attack on Simon, for the clean pinfall, making the crowd ecstatic.
This was your basic '80s WWF style tag team match, which the NWS regulars loved. As a wrestling fan, I can appreciate these type of matches, even if they aren't my can of beer or cup of tea. Sometimes though, it sucks being an insider, as you knew Powerchild would have to pick up the win, because he pushed 50 tickets. Imagine a ticket seller wrestler like Josh Deely pinning Hulk Hogan on RAW, just because he sold 100 tickets? Ticket selling, unfortunately, is a necessary evil in this business.

***MAIN EVENT***
MATCH OF THE NIGHT
Chris Candido Memorial J-Cup Round Three Match
THE FINALS
Mike Kruel d. Azraiel to become the 6th Ever Winner of the Jersey J-Cup and first ever winner of the Chris Candido Memorial J-Cup
I thought this match represented everything right in wrestling. Two guys, who don't play any political games, who just go out there and flat out fucking wrestle every night were showcased here. These two are two of the hardest working wrestlers on the indy scene today. Both just wrestle 100% everytime and do everything in their power to have great matches and entertain. While both might not be big on the mic, both are huge in the ring. This match told a story early on, as the smaller Azraiel was outpowered by the better physical specimen, Mike Kruel. Azraiel would later on be able to wear down Mike Kruel. After several false finishes, Kruel was able to get the upperhand on Azraiel. The only problem was that the ref was knocked down. Damian Adams then ran out with a chair in hand, to get revenge on his NWS arch-nemesis, Mike Kruel. Adams hit Kruel with a chair. Damian then pulled Azraiel on top of Kruel before the ref woke up. The ref got up and made the slow count, stopping just a millisecond before 3. The crowd popped for that one, as their "home" wrestler Mike Kruel was still able to go on. Damian, who wasn't as pissed off as I thought he'd be, still stayed at ringside, hoping Azraiel would best Kruel. It never happened. Kruel would go on to win this match via pinfall, and the crowd got up and gave Kruel a standing ovation. Another person who deserved a standing ovation was Azraiel, as he also wrestled three excellent matches.

POSTMATCH: The rest of the competitors came to the ring and hoisted Kruel over their heads. NWS promoter Joe Panzarino came to the ring. Joe brought out the J-Cup trophy, and Kruel celebrated with it. Joe even brought out myself, as I gave Kruel a present on behalf of the NWS, which was a mens gift set. (Watch/wallet/pen set) Joe then brought back out the Candido family. Johnny talked about Kruel's classic matches with Chris Candido. Kruel acknowledged his great matches with Candido in UXW. (The two wrestled three times in the past year and had great bouts every time out.) Johnny thanked the fans and the wrestlers for supporting him during this time. The competitors of the J-Cup hoisted Kruel over their heads again, and Kruel celebrated with the J-Cup trophy and his mens gift set.

Final McWord
My involvement aside, I thought this was the best ever NWS show I attended. I know several fans felt the same way, as they told me so afterwards. I thought NWS did an awesome job remembering Chris Candido. During the first round 4 way matches, the competitors all came out to "Back in Black". That will be the new tradition for this annual tournament, in a way to always remember the late and great Chris Candido.

I thought Kruel/Azraiel was the match of the night. Azraiel/Deranged, Kruel/Trent and the North NJ Bracket stuck out as some of the top matches of the night. Although Kruel won the tournament, Azraiel really stood out in my mind as the MVP.

I really enjoyed this show from a fans point of view. The show did feel special, outside of Zapf's work in the tournament. Even Powerchild, the ticket pusher, wasn't that offensive in his match. I thought this show overall was able to give the fans a smart mark type of show, with a family twist to it. I still can't believe Johnny and the rest of the Candido family showed up. For them to show up really was special. I can't imagine what they are going through right now.

Overall- this will probably go down as the best NWS show of the year. I think NWS showed to themselves that they could pull off a smart mark event once in a while, even if it was family oriented. NWS really delivered here in all facets, and I'm glad the show had a good turnout and were respectful of the Candido family.

For more on NWS, visit http://www.nwswrestling.com