Northern Wrestling Coalition 2006

[Ultima]

Backstory
Last winter, a group of WWE wrestlers, dissatisfied with the recent releases and backstage politics, left the company to create a great experiment, a wrestling company owned and run by all the wrestlers, not just a few. This promotion, the Northern Wrestling Coalition was based in Minneapolis, Minnesota and typically doing their shows at Roy Wilkins Auditorium. What made the NWC unique is that a vast majority of the workers owned some stake in the company. Day to day operations are handled by a board of five wrestlers, two permanent (Chris Irvine and Nora Greenwald) and three that are changed each month.

Mixing established stars with some of the best independent workers in the world today, they were instantly propelled to the number three promotion in North America, behind WWE and TNA. The NWC currently has three titles, the International Title, the North American Title, and the Women’s Title.

Until I get to shows, I'll do one post a day. After that, I'll go to roughly every other day.

Edit: Forgot to mention that this is based on a modification to the RaveX database and that I own none of the names in this.

[Ultima]

These card positions are how I think of the wrestlers, not the card positions used in the game.

NWC Roster
Main Event
Chris Jericho
Rey Mysterio
Chris Benoit
“Captain Charisma” Jay Reso
Rob Van Dam

Upper Midcard
Brian Kendrick (Heartbreak Kids)
Bryan Danielson (Heartbreak Kids)
Cael Sanderson
Chavo Guerrero Jr.
Paul London (Heartbreak Kids)
Sean Morley
Frank Shamrock
Matt Hardy (OMEGA)
Shane Helms (OMEGA)
Rhino

Midcard
Andrew Martin
Charlie Haas
Doug Williams
Rico Costantino
Stevie Richards
Christian York (OMEGA)
James Gibson
Joey Matthews (OMEGA)
Shannon Moore (OMEGA)
Tajiri

Women’s Division
Ariel
Nidia
Nora Greenwald
Taylor Matheny
Tracy Brooks
Gail Kim (tweener. Face for game purposes)
Alexis Laree
Amy Dumas
Jillian Hall
Lady Apache
Lisa Varon
Nattie Neidhart

Referees
Dean Malenko (Senior Referee)
Sean Corneleus

Announce Team
Lance Storm
Al Snow

Road Agents
Fit Finlay
Tommy Dreamer

[Ultima]

Year in Review
NWC held its first show, Origins in March 2005.

International Title
Chris Benoit became the first International Champion after winning an eight man tournament. He instantly started a feud with Adam Copeland, who he had defeated in the finals of the tournament. After Copeland left the company (See Hardy/Copeland Situation), Benoit continued his dominance, defeating both Chris Jericho and Eddie Guerrero in feuds, “putting Jericho on the shelf” while he went on a short tour with Fozzy. Shortly after Eddie’s death (see Guerrero Memorial), Jericho made his return and defeated Benoit for the title at the last NWC show of 2005 (December 17).

North American Title
Matt Hardy became the inaugural North American champion, winning the title in a battle royal with the help of allies Shane Helms and Shannon Moore. His position was further enhanced when Christian York and Joey Matthews(Mercury) debuted a few weeks later, joining his OMEGA stable. Another stable, the Heartbreak Kids (Paul London, Brian Kendrick, and Bryan Danielson) rose to challenge them. In early June, London managed to claim the title and moved on to a feud with Helms. In late November, Chavo Guerrero defeated London to claim the North American title and dedicated his title run to the memory of his uncle.

Women’s Division
Gail Kim won a unique Total Elimination match (starts out as 4v4 elimination, survivors of the winning team immediately have an elimination match), defeating Nora Greenwald after interference from Amy Dumas. Gail feuded with Lisa Varon (Victoria) while Nora and Amy feuded. Though she was not the champion, Nora was a locker room leader, giving tips to the other faces. This didn’t sit well with Gail, who felt that the other faces should look up to her, not Nora. Amy moved into a feud with Gail when Nora helped her protégé Taylor Matheny in her feud with Jillian Hall and Alexis Laree.

Meanwhile, Tracy Brooks debuted at the first bi-monthly “Ladies’ Night” event. She used her friendship with both Nora and Gail to try to resolve their disagreement, but it exploded into a feud in which Nora narrowly won the title in September. Since then, she’s defended it against all comers.

Hardy/Copeland Situation
In May, Adam Copeland and Matt Hardy fought in the main event of a NWC show. The match went normally for the first few minutes, then Hardy attacked Copeland even more aggressively than had been intended, and Copeland was clearly unable to defend himself. Seeing what happened, Benoit ran in earlier than planned, causing Copeland to win by disqualification, then kept him in the ring in the Crossface as Senior Referee Dean Malenko pulled Hardy away from the ring.

When Jericho confronted Hardy about the situation, he explained that he had discovered that Amy had been cheating on him with Copeland. The board decides not to make this into an angle, since it would require a major roster reshuffling. They decide to de-push all three people, but Copeland responds negatively to this and walks out, rejoining WWE.

Guerrero Memorial
Following the NWC event on November 12, many NWC wrestlers, including Eddie Guerrero, remained in Minneapolis so they could visit friends at the Raw and Smackdown tapings the next day. The next morning, Chavo found Eddie dead in his hotel room. The tribute shows happened much the same way they did in real life, with NWC wrestlers returning to WWE for one night only. The next Saturday, NWC held its own tribute show, featuring Rey Mysterio v Chris Benoit, Chavo Guerrero v Chris Jericho, and in a one night only return to competition for both men, Dean Malenko v Lance Storm.

[Ultima]

Other Promotions
WWE
Despite the loss of many people from all over the card, WWE kept the brand split going, even after releasing several more workers (same as real life), and the main event scene was much the same as it has been in real life. However, this changed at Survivor Series. Ken Kennedy was the fifth man for the Smackdown team, and he and Orton survived, giving Theodore Long control over both brands and ending the brand split. At Armageddon, the titles were unified, with John Cena becoming the World Champion and Shelton Benjamin unifying the Intercontinental and US titles. MNM(Johnny Nitro & Matt Capotelli) defeated Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch to unify the tag titles, and Melina ended Trish’s almost year-long reign as Women’s Champion.

TNA
TNA’s year was much the same as it has been in real life, except that Rhino did not join their roster. Instead, Raven got his rematch at Bound for Glory, narrowly losing to Jarrett. Gail did debut as Jarrett’s ally (a sort of trade for Tracy working for NWC), and at Turning Point, Monty Brown defeated Jarrett to claim the NWA world title. There are rumors of several big debuts in the new year.

ROH
The NWC has been a mixed blessing for ROH. On the bad side, they were bumped down to the number 4 promotion in North America. However, on the good side, they were able to sign quite a few former WWE guys, including having Chris Benoit make some special appearances in the promotion.

[Ultima]

January Board Members
Chris Irvine
Nora Greenwald
Steven Richards
Tommy Dreamer
James Gibson

January 6, 2006

“I hope everyone enjoyed our few weeks off,” Nora said, bringing the meeting to order. “As you know, this will be the first taping for our weekly show on WGN.”

A cheer rose from the assembled roster, as they had been working on getting a television show since their debut, and it was finally happening.

“I’ve talked to Scott down in TNA, and he seemed interested in working with us on a larger scale,” Gail commented. “We’ll need to talk to the guys we’re interested in, but we won’t be getting any complaints from TNA management.”

“Good to know. Did he say if there’s anyone from here that he’s interested in using?” Benoit asked.

“He said that he might contact a couple of you guys. Spike’s been pressuring them to get more wrestlers who would be familiar to casual fans.”

Chris Irvine stood up at the front of the room. “Now that we’re going to have a television show, we’ve decided that it’s time for us to start a tag division. Next week, we’re going to do a gauntlet match for the tag titles. Hopefully we’ll have some TNA guys lined up to debut as a surprise.”

He went on to discuss the plans for tonight with them.


Card for NWC Friction
Taped January 6, 2006, to be broadcast January 10, 2006
Cael Sanderson v James Gibson
Taylor Matheny v Alexis Laree
Heartbreak Kids (Danielson & Kendrick) v OMEGA(Hardy & Helms)
Charlie Haas v Frank Shamrock
Nora Greenwald v Lisa Varon (NWC Women’s Title)
Chris Jericho v Chris Benoit (NWC International Title)

I'm going to every other day for updates now that the backstory is done, so the show will be posted Friday evening.

[Ultima]

NWC Friction Report for January 6, 2005

After the opening video, Don’t You Wish You Were Me? hit on the speakers. Chris Jericho walked down to the ring, microphone in hand.

Jericho: Welcome to the first episode of Friction on WGN. We have a big show today, with both the Women’s and International titles on the line. Next week will be equally big, as we will be crowning the first NWC tag team champions in a tag team open gauntlet. Any pair of wrestlers are welcome to participate. Enjoy the show.

Jericho walked to the back, clearing the ring for the first match.
Rating: A*

Cael Sanderson v James Gibson
They locked up, with Cael wringing Gibson’s arm, then turning it into an arm drag. Another lock-up ended with Gibson forcing Cael into the corner, then punching him on the break. Cael started working on Gibson’s left leg to set him up for the Golden Moment (half crab ankle lock). Gibson’s attacks were less focused, but consisted of more high impact moves, wearing Cael down.

The end of the match came when Cael set Gibson up for a superplex. Gibson blocked it and delivered a tornado DDT for a long two count. He locked in his guillotine choke. Cael held out for about fifteen seconds before submitting.
Rating: A

Taylor Matheny v Alexis Laree
The two women traded kicks in the beginning of the match, neither gaining a clear advantage. Taylor’s training from Nora showed when she hit a crisp snap suplex for one. This didn’t faze Alexis too much, as she replied with a DDT. They continued trading the advantage, neither managing to hit a finisher until Taylor leveled Alexis with a spinning heel kick, then stood on the apron, waiting for Alexis to get to her feet. When Alexis stood, Taylor jumped to the top to try for her springboard crossbody, but Alexis rolled through it for a two count, then hit the Laree DDT for the win.

After the match, Alexis grabbed a microphone.

Alexis: Nora, I beat your protégé, so I want a shot at you with the title on the line!
Rating: B

Bryan Danielson & Brian Kendrick v Matt Hardy & Shane Helms
Quick tags abounded through the match, showing just how experienced each of the teams were. After several minutes of even competition, Hardy and Helms managed to isolate Kendrick. Hardy signaled for the Twist of Fate, but Kendrick shoved him into the ropes then snapped off a dropkick into Hardy’s back. They both tagged out at roughly the same time, but the referee missed Hardy’s tag and forced Helms back into the corner.

Danielson took advantage of Hardy being dazed with a variety of suplexes. He went for the Cattle Mutilation, but Helms ran in and stomped him to break the hold. Danielson went for the tag, but Kendrick was still worn down from his earlier time in the ring. After a brief flurry of offense, he fell prey to a DDT from Hardy, who quickly tagged Helms in. Helms pulled Kendrick to his feet and hit the Vertebreaker for the win.
Rating: B

We see Jay Reso walking down a hallway backstage when he bumps into Rey Mysterio. The two men get into an argument that almost comes to blows before they’re split up by road agents.
Rating: A

Charlie Haas v Frank Shamrock
This is Haas’ debut match, and he enters to Fozzy’s Wanderlust. He and Shamrock traded holds, Shamrock getting the better of the exchange. He followed it up with a series of kicks to Haas’ legs and chops. He continued work on Haas’ legs, eventually locking in a modified Figure Four, but Haas made it to the ropes. Shamrock went for a German suplex, but after a standing switch, Haas delivered one instead. Haas increased the pace of the match, using his speed advantage. After some arm drags, he hit a pair of snap suplexes. He tried for an Exploder suplex, but Shamrock punched his way out of it. He went for an Irish whip, but Haas reversed it and hit a belly to belly as Shamrock rebounded. After a two count on that, he tried for another Exploder, hitting this one for the pin.
Rating: A

Nora Greenwald v Lisa Varon (NWC Women’s Title)
Lisa took the advantage early with her power advantage, but Nora kept fighting, reversing an early Widow’s Peak attempt with a backslide for one. She followed this up with a snap suplex. Lisa used the corner to get to her feet but managed to dodge Nora’s handspring elbow. She whipped Nora into the opposite corner, then charged into a hurricanrana as Nora countered. Nora took control again, wearing Lisa down with her combination of speed and technical expertise.

Lisa fought back, dodging the Nora Go Round. She hit her spinning sidewalk slam and went for a standing moonsault, getting a two count. After another flurry of offense, she put Nora on the top rope for a superplex, but Nora countered into a cross body in midair for a long two count. Nora followed this up with the Twin Cities Twist for the pinfall victory.
Rating: A

After the match, Nora grabbed a microphone and re-entered the ring.

Nora: Alexis, if you want a title shot, you’ve got it. At New Beginning, it will be Nora Greenwald v Alexis Laree for the NWC Women’s Title.
Rating: A

Chris Jericho v Chris Benoit (NWC International Title)
The two men’s knowledge of each other showed from the beginning, with them constantly countering each other, garnering applause from the audience. After a couple minutes, Jericho elbowed his way out of a German suplex and hit a butterfly backbreaker for two. He went for the Lionsault, but Benoit popped up and shoved him over the ropes as he jumped for it. Benoit followed him out with a suicide dive. He went for a powerbomb on the arena floor, but Jericho backdropped out of it and got back into the ring. As Benoit climbed onto the apron, Jericho hit his springboard dropkick to send him back to the floor.

Jericho followed him out, but took a kick to the gut as he pulled him to his feet. Benoit punished him outside the ring, breaking the count on a couple occasions before throwing him back in. A trio of German suplexes got Benoit a two count. He continued his attack, focusing on Jericho’s shoulder and neck to wear him down for the Crossface. After a few minutes, he went to the top rope for his diving headbutt, but Jericho rolled out of the way, then back onto him for a two count. He took advantage of this, working over Benoit’s ribs and back. Benoit mounted a few small comebacks, but Jericho kept control and hit the Lionsault for the win.
Rating: A*

Show Rating: A
Live Attendance: 9332
Viewers: 374102

[Oldschool]

Cael Sanderson gets an A rating...Nothing against him, but I'd think because he lacks true professional experience he wouldn't be able to pull that off...unless that is just a true testament to Gibson...What style fed are you using...I guess if its Pure it makes more sense to me

Anyways, I'll be reading along...I'm always a fan of the smaller guy trying to take on the bigger promotions and you got a great roster...Though, the workrate that you'd get from this roster will be difficult to put into words.

I like the sport you got going on here, Down with the Entertainment

[tcage]

I followed this diary in its first incarnation...This is definately one of my must-reads

[Ultima]

Cael Sanderson gets an A rating...Nothing against him, but I'd think because he lacks true professional experience he wouldn't be able to pull that off...unless that is just a true testament to Gibson...What style fed are you using...I guess if its Pure it makes more sense to me


I'm running it as a Cutting Edge promotion, and remember, by this point, he has almost a year of professional experience and was being helped in the transition by guys like Chris Benoit, Dean Malenko, etc.

You're right that I might have made him a bit too good though.


Thanks for the responses.

[Oldschool]

Well not necessarily, just look at Kurt Angle and Sanderson has almost as decorative amateur resume...Factor in Beniot and Malenko and maybe you have your new superstar

[Ultima]

January 13, 2006
“Hey, Terry. How’s it going?” Chavo asked, sitting down next to Terry Gerin(Rhino) for the pre-show meeting.

“Pretty good. Heard you and Matt had a good match down in ROH last weekend.”

“Yeah. I could bring the tape up next week for you if you’d like.”

“Thanks.” Their conversation lulled as the room filled up. “Mr. D’Amore down in TNA offered me and Rob contracts. Spike’s been pressuring them to get more former WWE guys.”

“Me too. I heard that Matt and Jay got offered contracts too. You know, it’s funny. Even working in three promotions, I’ll still have more time back home than I did in WWE.”

Before Terry could respond, Nora entered the room and started talking about the plans for the show.

Card for NWC Friction
Taped January 13 to be broadcast on January 17
NWC Tag Titles Gauntlet
Confirmed participants:
York & Matthews
Kendrick & Danielson
Doug Williams & Cael Sanderson
Frank Shamrock Rhino
James Gibson & Tajiri
Others to be named at the show.

Would you guys like it if I did a post with some excerpts from my original NWC diary to give you a better idea of the gimmicks of some of the wrestlers? I'd post it between the tag gauntlet and the pre-show post for New Beginning.

[Ultima]

NWC Friction Report for January 13, 2006
Tag Team Gauntlet

Cael Sanderson & Doug Williams v Frank Shamrock & Rhino
Both teams tried to end the match quickly, knowing that they stood the least chance of becoming champions due to being in the first match. Cael and Doug had an advantage from teaming before, but the intensity of their opponents provided them with quite a challenge. After a couple minutes, Rhino tagged in Shamrock, who worked on Williams’ neck. Williams retaliated with a variety of suplexes and strikes. After a particularly brutal German suplex, both men tagged their partners at the same time. Rhino instantly went for the Gore, but Cael used a drop toehold to drive him into the bottom turnbuckle. He tried for the Golden Moment, but Rhino was able to power out of it, then floor him with a clothesline.

The two men battled back and forth until Cael dodged out of the ring to avoid another Gore attempt. Rhino surprised Cael with a plancha, then rolled him back into the ring for a two count. A spinebuster got him another two. Frustrated, he tagged in Shamrock, who tried to exploit Cael’s weakened state with an abdominal stretch. Cael countered this into a hip toss and tagged Williams back in, then proceeded to hit a double suplex on Shamrock. Williams followed this up with the Chaos Theory for the win.
Rating: B

Cael Sanderson & Doug Williams v York & Matthews (OMEGA)
Having noticed Shamrock’s focus on Doug’s neck in the first match, York and Matthews did the same, using their superior expertise as a team to isolate him. This continued for several minutes until York went for a corkscrew legdrop. Williams rolled out of the way and tagged in Cael. Cael hit dropkicks on both opponents. He followed this up with a legwhip and started working on York’s leg. The two men battled back and forth until York reversed an Irish whip.

As Cael hit the near ropes, Doug made a blind tag, but was unable to stop Cael from running into a hurricanrana. York found out that Cael wasn’t the legal man when the referee refused to count. Before he could get back up, Doug hit an elbow drop on him and rolled him into a pin, getting two. He pulled York to his feet and set him up for a superplex, but York blocked it and hit a tornado DDT. Both men crawled to their corners, but York made it first. Matthews grabbed Doug’s leg and pulled him away. Doug got to his feet, but Matthews hit the Virginia Neck Tie for the win.
Rating: B+

York & Matthews (OMEGA) v Rey Mysterio & Chavo Guerrero
Matthews clearly wanted to keep his momentum going, trying to lock up as soon as the bell rang, but Chavo backed away from him long enough to start a massive “Eddie!” chant. He then locked up with Matthews, using an arm wringer to transition into a series of arm drags, turning the last into an arm bar. He and Rey continued to focus on Matthews’ arm for the next few minutes, with Matthews only getting brief flurries of offense. Chavo then tried for the Gory Bomb, but Matthews countered with a backslide. He got one, but unfortunately for Chavo, was able to make a tag.

Quick tags on both sides kept the match even, but Rey’s speed advantage gradually shifted the match in his team’s favor. After a few minutes, York and Matthews went outside to confer, but took stereo planchas from Rey and Chavo. Chavo rolled Matthews back in and hit a tornado DDT for 2. He whipped Matthews into the ropes, but Matthews sprung back at him with a flying forearm. Chavo struggled back towards his corner with Matthews right behind him, just managing to tag in Rey. Rey jumped to the top rope and hit a springboard hurricanrana, hooking Matthews leg for the pin.
Rating: A

Rey Mysterio & Chavo Guerrero v Andrew Martin & Sean Morley
The size difference came into play early, with Martin dominating Chavo (and, after a blind tag, Rey). After a few minutes, he grew overconfident and tried for a big boot, but Chavo dropkicked his other knee, sending him crashing to the mat. Both men tag out at the same time and Rey comes in, hitting hurricanranas on both Martin and Morley, then clotheslining Morley over the top rope. He went for a suicide dive, but seeing Morley move out of the way, grabbed the ropes and spun back into the ring. Morley reentered the ring, but was quickly taken down again, this time by a bulldog for a two count.
Rey and Chavo took over, using their superior speed to wear Morley down, but he was repeatedly saved by Martin. Chavo hit Morley with a brainbuster, then climbed to the top rope and hit a Frog Splash. While the pin was being counted, Rey intercepted Martin to keep him from breaking it up, giving his team the win.
Rating: A

Rey Mysterio & Chavo Guerrero v James Gibson & Tajiri
Chavo and Rey were starting to show some wear and tear as the match began. Chavo’s European uppercuts didn’t show as much snap as he took the fight to Tajiri. Tajiri fired back with stiff kicks, then whipped Chavo into the ropes and delivered another kick to his chest. Tajiri locked in the Octopus, but Rey broke it up. Tajiri tagged in Gibson, who continued working on Chavo’s ribs. After an ensiguri, Chavo tagged in Rey who cleaned house with hurricanranas. Rey seemed to get his second wind, fighting back against both men with his high paced offense. After Chavo had recovered a bit, Rey tagged him in, then clotheslined Tajiri out of the ring, flipping to the floor with him. As Tajiri and Rey continued their battle on the outside of the ring, Gibson hit a Tiger Bomb, pinning Chavo.
Rating: A

Gibson quickly grabbed a microphone and challenged Chavo to a match for the North American Title at New Beginning. Chavo accepted, promising an excellent match, regardless of the winner.
Rating: A

James Gibson & Tajiri v Brian Kendrick & Bryan Danielson (Heartbreak Kids)
Kendrick and Danielson darted down the aisle and slid into the ring, instantly taking it to Gibson and Tajiri. The referee gained control, leaving Kendrick and Tajiri in the ring as the legal men. They traded stiff kicks, Kendrick surprisingly staying toe to toe with Tajiri. Quick tags abounded in the match, not allowing either team to get much of an advantage.

This lasted until Tajiri countered a corner clothesline into the Tarantula. He continued the attack with a series of kicks and chops. He tagged in Gibson, who instantly tried for the Tiger Bomb, but Danielson backdropped him to escape. The two men once again fought evenly, neither allowing the other to tag. Danielson locked in the Cattle Mutilation, but Tajiri hit a senton to break it up, allowing Gibson to tag out.

Danielson snapped off a surprise dropkick as Tajiri charged and tagged in Kendrick. Kendrick picked Tajiri up and went for a Tornado DDT, but Tajiri pushed him off and tried for a superkick. Kendrick ducked him and hit a legsweep. He tagged Danielson back in and waited as Danielson pulled Tajiri to his feet, setting up the Heartbreaker (Superkick German suplex).
Rating: A

Kendrick and Danielson grabbed the new tag team titles and held them up, but before they could celebrate for long, they were interrupted by Big City Nights. Tracy Brooks walked out into the aisle with a microphone

Storm (on commentary): Why is Tracy coming out? There aren’t any women’s matches scheduled this week.

Tracy: Hold on a second, guys. There’s one more team in the gauntlet. It is my pleasure to introduce Chris Sabin and “Showstopper” Matt Bentley.

Big City Nights started again, and the two men walked down the aisle, escorted by Tracy. They entered the ring and shook hands with Kendrick and Danielson, then the bell rang.

Rating: B+

Brian Kendrick & Bryan Danielson v Chris Sabin & Matt Bentley
Kendrick and Bentley started off, countering each other’s every move to a big pop. Bentley surprised Kendrick with a drop toehold into his corner and tagged Sabin. After Sabin wore Kendrick down a bit, he tried for a powerbomb, but Kendrick countered into a hurricanrana and tagged in Danielson.

They snapped off a double hiptoss, then continued using quick tags to double team Sabin, culminating in Danielson giant swinging Sabin into a basement dropkick from Kendrick, getting a two count before Bentley broke it up. Danielson went for an airplane spin, but Sabin countered it into an arm drag and tagged out. Kendrick entered the ring and the match dissolved into a melee involving all four men. This ended when Bentley clotheslined Kendrick and Danielson out of the ring and followed them out with a plancha to Danielson. Sabin followed suit with a suicide dive to Kendrick. They rolled Danielson back into the ring and Bentley went for a top rope elbow drop, but Danielson rolled out of the way and tagged in Kendrick.

They tried for the Heartbreaker, but Bentley ducked the superkick from Kendrick, causing it to hit Danielson, then snapped off a superkick of his own for the pin.
Rating: A

After the match, the referee handed Sabin and Bentley the tag titles. They and Tracy celebrated for a moment. Kendrick and Danielson reentered the ring and, after a brief staredown, held up Sabin and Bentley’s hands, congratulating them on the win.
Rating: B+

Show Rating: B
Attendance: 8898
Viewers: 322547

[Oldschool]

Wow you're still getting some great ratings!!

[Ultima]

NWC Character Moments
Benoit
Getting to his feet, Adam [Copeland] offered the new champion a handshake. After appearing to consider it for a moment, Chris took his hand. Rather than shaking the hand, he used it for leverage, dragging Adam down to his stomach and locked in the Crippler Crossface until being restrained by both refs and half the locker room.

RVD
Rob Van Dam walked down to the ring with a microphone and a smug look on his face. Entering the ring, he arrogantly posed before speaking.

Rob: Rey, just because we had a draw in a match a couple weeks ago, it doesn’t mean that you’re in my league. You’re just lucky that I knocked myself out, or there was no way you would have beaten me.

The crowd resoundingly booed this statement.

Rob: Then you decided to cost your best friend a match against me. Bad decision, half-pint. The next time, you won’t be so lucky, and you’ll find out why you don’t mess with Rob… Van… Dam!

The boos continued as he walked back up the aisle to the back.


Nora
The ring announcer directed the fans’ attention upward to the scoreboard’s video screens to show a video from earlier in the day.

The screen shows Nora and Taylor in the ring. Nora is showing Talyor some holds.

Nora: Your springboard crossbody is pretty effective, but your opponents will know it’s coming, making it easier for them to dodge. They’ll also know to focus on your legs to make it harder for you to hit.

Taylor: Good points. What do you think would be another good finisher?

Nora: Well, it would probably be best for you to use a submission finisher, since you aren’t big enough to reliably use a power move. Do you know how to do the Texas Cloverleaf?

Taylor: I’ve used it once or twice before. It’s pretty simple.

Nora: Maybe you could do an elevated version of it. Sort of a cross between it and Chris’ Liontamer.

Taylor: That would be pretty cool. Thanks for the help, Nora.

Gail
We see Nora walking down the hallway. As she is about to open the door to the women’s lockerroom, Gail opens it and walks out.

Nora: Hi, Gail.

Gail: (showing little enthusiasm) Hey, Nora.

Nora: Good match a couple weeks ago. You’ll make a good champion.

Gail: Let me guess. You want to help me become a better one?

Nora: Well, considering that you’ve asked for my advice before…

Gail: I don’t need your help. And this proves it.
Gail indicated the women’s title on her shoulder.

Nora: OK. Whatever you say.”

[Ultima]

//Note: For the purpose of the simulation, I am simulating the monthly shows on the Thursday before I list them here since I can’t change the day the television tapings occur on.
January 21, 2006
“This is going to be our first big show since we started on WGN, so that might effect attendance, but with only two shows broadcast, I kind of doubt it,” Chris told Nora. “Plus, it’ll be on pay per view, so we might actually get less attendance since people can watch it live at home.”

“It could go either way,” Nora replied, sipping her coffee. “I’m thinking that it’ll be a modest gain or loss though. If we’d been able to build it up on TV for a couple more weeks, I’d be worried about having to turn people away at the door.”

Card for NWC New Beginning
Chris Jericho© v Chris Benoit (NWC International Title, Submission Match)
Chavo Guerrero© v James Gibson (NWC North American Title)
Nora Greenwald© v Alexis Laree (NWC Women’s Title)
Matt Bentley & Chris Sabin© v Christian York & Joey Matthews (NWC Tag Titles)
Heartbreak Kids v OMEGA
Doug Williams v Frank Shamrock
Amy Dumas v Gail Kim v Lisa Varon v Tracy Brooks (Women’s Title #1 Contender)

[Ultima]

NWC New Beginning Report
January 21, 2006
Heartbreak Kids v OMEGA
These six men were very familiar with each other from their many battles in NWC, and it showed, with neither team able to gain much of an advantage for the first few minutes. Both teams made liberal use of double team moves to try shifting the match in their favor.

Kendrick and London hit a double superkick on Shannon, but Matt ran in to break up the pin. The Heartbreak Kids continued to isolate Moore, but he managed to shove Kendrick out of the ring on a Sliced Bread #2 attempt and make a tag to Helms, who hit a plancha on Kendrick and roll him back in, getting a 1 count. After a couple minutes of action between them, Kendrick made the hot tag to Danielson, who hit suplexes on all three OMEGA members. He followed this up with another snap suplex to Helms, then hit the diving headbutt for 2.

Danielson locked in the Cattle Mutilation on Helms, but Matt broke it by hitting a moonsault on him. Seeing this, Kendrick ran into the ring and hit the Sliced Bread #2 on Hardy. This brought Moore and London into the ring. Meanwhile, Helms crawled into a pin, but the ref was trying to get control of the match and wasn’t there to count the pin. He pulled Danielson to his feet and tried for the Vertebreaker, but Danielson slipped out of it and set him up for the Dragon suplex. Seeing that the referee was still distracted, Helms mule-kicked Danielson and hit the Vertebreaker. Hearing the impact, the referee turned around and counted the pin. London tried to break it up, but got there right after the ref’s hand came down for the third time.
Rating: B

Don’t you want to be me?

Chris Jericho walked out to the ring, posturing for the crowd.

Jericho: Welcome to New Beginning is Jericho. Tonight, I’ll once again be defending my title against that gap-toothed assclown Chris Benoit (intentionally mispronounced), this time in his specialty, a submission match. You might wonder why it’s a submission match. He brags about being the best technical wrestler in the world today, but I want to knock his ego down a few pegs by making him tap out. After all is said and done tonight, I will still be the NWC International Champion.
Rating: A*

Doug Williams v Frank Shamrock
This was definitely the stiffest match of the night. They started by trading strikes, with Frank getting the better of the exchange. He continued with stiff punches, but when he went for a kick, Doug ducked it and swept his leg from under him and locked in a leg bar. He continued to focus his attacks on Shamrock’s left knee and leg. Meanwhile, when he was getting offense in, Shamrock worked over Doug’s shoulder. When Doug went for a piledriver, Shamrock reversed it into a shoulderbreaker, then locked in a modified Fujiwara armbar for the win.
Rating: B

Chris Sabin & Matt Bentley © v Christian York & Joey Matthews (NWC Tag Titles)
The referee had a lot of trouble keeping control in this match, allowing both teams to use a lot of double team moves. This gave York and Matthews an advantage in the first several minutes, since they had teamed longer. After the ref regained control, Sabin slowed the pace of the match down a bit. After working over York for a couple minutes, he hung him up in the corner, then hit a stalling dropkick for 1. He went for the Cradle Shock, but York countered with a tornado DDT. Both men tagged out at the same time. Bentley was fired up, flooring both opponents with clotheslines. He followed this up with a series of high impact moves, ending in a scoop slam.

Bentley climbed to the top rope and hit the Picture Perfect Elbow on Matthews, but York broke up the pin at two. He turned around and immediately got scooped up into a Cradle Shock onto Matthews. Bentley rolled him off Matthews and got the three count, successfully defending the titles.
Rating: A

After the match, as Sabin and Bentley celebrated, they turned around, right into stereo superkicks from York and Matthews. They then hit the Full Effect (Torture Rack DDT) on Bentley.
Rating: B+

Chavo Guerrero © v James Gibson (NWC North American Title)
Chavo used his speed from the opening bell, hitting a quick series of dropkicks. He went to the well one too many times and had his legs caught by Gibson, who slingshotted him into the corner, then delivered a clothesline to the back of his neck. After wearing Chavo down a bit more, he tried for a Texas Cloverleaf, but Chavo powered out of it, then fired off a series of European uppercuts and a trio of vertical suplexes for a two count. After holding on to the advantage a bit longer, he went for a cross body, but Gibson rolled through it into a pin for two. Chavo popped back up and clotheslined Gibson out of the ring. He went for a baseball slide, but turned it into a hurricanrana, sending Gibson part way up the aisle. After hitting a back suplex on the floor, he rolled Gibson back in and tried for the Frog Splash, but Gibson got his knees up.

Gibson hit a gutbuster for a two count. He followed this up with the Tiger Bomb, but Chavo just barely managed to get his foot on the ropes at the last second. Gibson made the mistake of arguing with the referee, letting Chavo roll him up for a two count. Gibson got to his feet and punched Chavo, but Chavo fired back with a European uppercut, then a tornado DDT for two. He followed this up with the Gory Bomb for the win.
Rating: B+

Gail Kim v Tracy Brooks v Amy Dumas v Lisa Varon
This started out as more of a tornado tag match than a four corners match, with Gail and Tracy working together against Lisa and Amy. This teamwork lasted until they knocked Lisa out of the ring and hit a double DDT on Amy. Tracy went for the pin, but Gail pulled her off at 1. Tracy returned the favor, but her pinfall attempt was broken by a slingshot legdrop from Lisa

At this point, the match dissolved into a free for all with many rapid pin attempts broken up just as quickly. After a few more minutes, Lisa hoisted Gail into a fireman’s carry, but Gail reversed the spinning sidewalk slam attempt into her Christo armbar. After fighting this for a few seconds, Lisa countered with a Samoan drop, getting 1 before Amy broke it up. Amy hit a Twist of Fate on Gail, but Tracy blocked the pin attempt. Lisa was ready for her though and kicked her in the gut. Lisa then hit the Widow’s Peak and went for the pin, but Amy hit a moonsault on both of them and rolled Lisa off Tracy, pinning her herself for the win.

Rating: B-

Headstrong cut through the crowd noise as Rob Van Dam stalked out to the ring. He did his typical arrogant posturing before grabbing the microphone.

RVD: Once again, the Whole Dam Show wasn’t booked for a match tonight, so I’m going to issue a challenge. I’ll take on anyone who’s ready to lose a match.

The boos directed his way got louder, but no one answered.

RVD: What, doesn’t anyone have the guts to face me?

Suddenly, some unfamiliar music crackled through the loudspeakers

Touched. You say that I am touched.
So much of what you say, is true.

The crowd, though puzzled, cheered that someone was on the way out to shut RVD up. The cheers became louder as AJ Styles threw the curtain aside, wearing one of his hooded jackets. He walked down the aisle and got into the ring, grabbing the microphone out of RVD’s hand.

AJ: I’d be happy to face you, but don’t plan on winning.

RVD went to slap him, but Styles blocked the slap and answered with one of his own as a referee ran down to officiate the match.
Rating: B

AJ Styles v Rob Van Dam
Rob was angered by this slap and immediately floored AJ with a clothesline. He went for a senton, but AJ rolled out of the way and tried for one of his own. Rob rolled out of the way and went for a kick when AJ got to his feet. AJ ducked it and tried for one of his own, which Rob also ducked. They simultaneously went for dropkicks, getting to their feet at the same time and squaring off again to a big pop.

Rob(yelling): Who the hell do you think you are? I’m Rob… Van… Dam!

As his thumbs came down the third time, AJ kicked him in the chin, then hit a knee drop for 1. He continued his high paced offense, then sprung off the reverse rope for his reverse DDT, but Rob countered with a kick while AJ was still in midair. He surprisingly slowed the pace down, using impact moves rather than high risk to wear AJ down, eventually shifting it back into high gear with a Rolling Thunder for 2, then tried for a split legged moonsault, but AJ got his knees up and pinned Rob for 2. After a few more near falls from both men, AJ reversed an Irish whip, then hit a Pele kick for 2.

Styles signaled for the Styles Clash, but Rob backdropped out of it and hit the Rolling Thunder for two. He pulled Styles to his feet and surprised him with a forearm shot. Rob responded in kind. They continued to trade forearms, but as AJ knocked him down with a discus clothesline, the bell rang.

Ring Announcer: The twenty minute time limit has expired. This match is a draw.
Rating: A

Catching his breath as the fans chanted “Five more minutes,” Styles offered RVD a handshake. Rob refused and rolled out of the ring, staring at Styles as he walked back up the aisle
Rating: B+

Nora Greenwald © v Alexis Laree(NWC Women’s Title)
Nora’s technical skills gave her an advantage until Alexis countered an abdominal stretch with a hiptoss. She followed this up with two arm drags and an arm bar. Nora slipped out of the armbar and went for a clothesline, but Alexis gave her a drop toehold into the bottom rope, then choked her against it until the ref forced her off. As the ref criticized her, Jillian walked around and slapped Nora. Taylor ran over, but Jillian slipped away from her. Nora and Alexis traded the advantage for a while, with Nora mainly focusing on Alexis’ arm. After a while, Nora went for a missile dropkick, but Alexis dodged it.

Alexis went to the top rope, but Nora crotched her on the top rope, then pushed her down into a tree of woe, following it up with her handspring elbow. She tried for a snap suplex, but Alexis reversed it into one of her own. Hoping to make the most of her momentary advantage, Alexis tried for the Laree DDT. Nora countered into a back suplex, but was unable to capitalize, even when Alexis rolled away, clutching her shoulder. As the referee followed her to investigate, Jillian climbed to the top rope.

Taylor tried to pull her down, but Jillian kicked her off the apron and hit a 450 splash on Nora. Jillian quickly rolled out of the ring as Alexis shook off her “shoulder injury” and went for the pin. Nora kicked out, but the referee declared that it was after his hand came down the third time, awarding the match and the title to Alexis.
Rating: B+

As Nora walked back down the aisle, Taylor followed her, apologizing for not having been able to stop Jillian. Interestingly, Nora doesn’t seem as upset about it as Taylor.
Rating: B

Chris Jericho © v Chris Benoit (NWC International Title, Submission match)
Jericho immediately went for an armbar, but Benoit slipped out just as quickly. They traded holds for the first part of the match, playing into Benoit’s strengths, but Jericho used his Dungeon training to hol his own. After the first few minutes, Benoit tried for a snap suplex, but Jericho reversed it into a delayed vertical suplex, then went for a surfboard, but Benoit powered out. Benoit’s intensity let him take over with a blistering series of chops. He continued his aggressive attack with a backbreaker, then stretched Jericho over his knee until Jericho kicked him in the head to release the hold. Each man started trying to show the other up with ever-intensifying moves, but neither could get the other to submit. Benoit locked in the Sharpshooter, but Jericho made it to the ropes. He then hit a series of German suplexes and tried for the diving headbutt, but Jericho rolled out of the way.

Jericho went for the Lionsault, but Benoit put his knees up to block. Jericho saw this and overrotated, landing on his feet. He tried for the Liontamer, but Benoit countered, grabbing Jericho’s arm to lock in the Crossface. Jericho battled his way to the ropes, forcing Benoit to break the hold. Benoit tried for a Dragon suplex as Jericho got to his feet, but Jericho slipped out of the Full Nelson and kicked Benoit away. Jericho followed this up with a running ensiguri and locked in the Liontamer. Benoit tried fighting out of it for almost a minute, but was forced to submit.
Rating: A

Show Rating: B+
Attendance: 10000 (Full house)
Viewers: 95731

[Oldschool]

I'm really enjoying this...I'd really love to see an RVD/Styles match someday when RVD is fully healthy, glad it got you an A RATING!

[Ultima]

January 22, 2006
“It looks like we underestimated the effect of Friction. We had to turn lots of people away at the door for New Beginning,” Chris commented.

“We should probably think about moving to a different arena for pay per views. Wilkins seems to be good for Friction, but I could see if we could get the Target Center for Exodus Rising.”

“That’s a good idea, Nora. It’s close enough that we won’t have trouble getting the equipment moved back to Wilkins for the Friction taping. It’d also be a nice test for eventually going on tour.”

NWC Friction Card
Taped January 22, 2006 for January 24, 2006
Paul London v Shannon Moore
Nora, Taylor, Ariel & Nidia v Amy, Lisa, Nattie & Lady Apache
Stevie Richards v Rhino
Frank Shamrock v Andrew Martin
James Gibson & Tajiri v Brian Kendrick & Bryan Danielson
“Captain Charisma” Jay Reso v Rey Mysterio (International Title #1 Contender)

[Ultima]

NWC Friction Report for January 22, 2006
Paul London v Shannon Moore
This was a very fast-paced match. London was in control for a lot of it, but Moore managed to hit some big moves. After he hit a Blockbuster for 2, he whipped London into the ropes. London reversed and hit a dropsault for 2. He then hit a face driver and pulled Moore into the corner, hitting the London Calling for the win.
Rating: B

As soon as the bell rang, Shane Helms ran down the aisle and attacked London. After a few moments, Moore got to his feet and joined in the attack. Helms was setting London up for the Vertebreaker when Matt Bentley ran down for the save, driving off Helms and Moore. Bentley offered London a handshake, which he accepted.
Rating: B-

Nora Greenwald, Taylor Matheny, Ariel & Nidia v Amy Dumas, Lisa Varon, Nattie Neidhart & Lady Apache
As you can imagine, this was a very chaotic match. The face team worked together better because of mutual trust, while the heel team (especially Lisa and Amy) seemed reluctant to work together. This became more prominent towards the end of the match. Ariel reversed an Irish whip on Lisa, ramming her into a knee from Amy, who didn’t have time to react to the reversal. Lisa angrily tagged in Nattie, the walked up the aisle, abandoning her team. Meanwhile, Nattie overpowered Ariel, then hit the slingshot suplex for the win.
Rating: B

Stevie Richards v Rhino
Rhino dominated the early part of this match, basically beating the h*ll out of Stevie. He went for the Gore early, but Stevie dodged, sending Rhino shoulder first into the ring post. Stevie slid out of the ring and slammed Rhino’s arm into the post a couple more times. While Rhino was able to take control again, he was clearly favoring his right arm. Stevie took advantage of this, eventually hitting the Stevie-T for the upset win.
Rating: B+

Frank Shamrock v Andrew Martin
Martin impressed the crowd with his speed of attack, trying to overwhelm Shamrock. Unfazed, Shamrock focused on his surgically repaired neck. After slipping out of Martin’s pumphandle slam, Shamrock hit a Germen suplex, then locked in a full Nelson camel clutch for the submission victory.
Rating: A

James Gibson & Tajiri v Brian Kendrick & Bryan Danielson
Most of this match was fairly even, but about 10 minutes in, Gibson and Tajiri managed to isolate Kendrick. He struggled to make the tag to Danielson, but Gibson caught him and hit a Tiger Bomb. Danielson broke up the pin at 2, but was then attacked by Tajiri. Tajiri whipped him into the corner and put him in the Tarantula as Gibson used a Dragon Sleeper to defeat Kendrick.
Rating: B+

”Captain Charisma” Jay Reso v Rey Mysterio
Rey’s speed gave him an early advantage, but Jay managed to counter a hurricanrana into a powerbomb for 1. He then slowed the pace of the match, wearing Rey down with more high impact moves. He went for the Unprettier but Rey shoved him away and dropkicked him into the corner. After some more even battling, Rey went to the top rope, but got crotched. Jay threw him off the rope, then hit the Resonator DDT(Reverse DDT onto his knee) for the win.
Rating: A

Jay: I told you this half pint couldn’t stand a chance against me, so maybe you’ll believe me when I say that at Exodus Rising, I will win the International Title from Chris Jericho.
And Chris, after I take they title, you will (mockingly) never, eeeeeeeeeever be champion again, because that’s… how I roll!
Rating: A

Show Rating: A
Attendance: 8497
Viewers: 364143

[Ultima]

Sorry about the delay, I had a busy weekend.

Card for NWC Friction
Taped January 27, 2006 for January 31, 2006
Nattie Neidhart v Ariel
Bryan Danielson v Matt Hardy
Chris Sabin & Matt Bentley© v Shane Helms & Shannon Moore (NWC Tag Titles)
Amy Dumas v Alexis Laree© (NWC Women’s Title)

[Ultima]

NWC Friction Report for January 27, 2006
Nattie Neidhart v Ariel
Ariel tried to keep Nattie off balance by dropkicking her as she came into the ring, then hitting a series of armdrags, but when she went for a cross body, Nattie caught her and slammed her to the mat. Ariel was trying everything she could to put Nattie away, but her edge in power allowed her to keep fighting back. She ducked an attempt at the Dariel (Diamond Cutter) and tripped Ariel into the Sharpshooter, forcing a submission.
Rating: B-

Chris Jericho entered the ring and announced that tonight would be the start of a tournament to determine who would get a title shot at Origins in March. There will be three qualifying matches in the next few weeks, leading to a triple threat match at Exodus Rising. He announced that Chris Benoit will face a mystery opponent tonight for the first qualifying match.
Rating: A

Alexis Laree v Amy Dumas (NWC Women’s Title)
The crowd was uncertain who to cheer for, but was drawn into the match by the similar styles of the competitors. Alexis offense focused more on Amy’s weakened neck, wearing her down more quickly. After about 10 minutes, she reversed a Twist of Fate into the Laree DDT for the win.
Rating: B

Bryan Danielson v Matt Hardy
Hardy had an early advantage and got a bit overconfident, posturing to the crowd before delivering a leg drop. Danielson rolled out of the way and took control, wearing Matt’s neck down for the Cattle Mutilation. Matt fought back however, hitting the Side Effect out of nowhere for a near fall. He argued with the referee about the count, giving Danielson a chance to recover, and turned around right into a clothesline. Danileson hit his diving headbutt, then locked in the Cattle Mutilation for the win.
Rating: A

Chris Sabin & Matt Bentley v OMEGA(Helms & Moore)
This match had a lot of potential, but wasn’t given an opportunity to live up to it. After a few minutes, York and Matthews walked down to ringside, distracting Sabin. This let Helms and Moore take control. After a while, Sabin hit a dropkick, but as he made it to his corner, York and Matthews hit him and Bentley with chairs, drawing a disqualification.
Rating: B+

York and Matthews set Bentley up for the Full Effect while Helms went for the Vertebreaker on Sabin, but they were interrupted when London, Kendrick, and Danielson ran down. The numbers allowed them to send Helms to the outside, but they caught the other three. Kendrick and London hit the Get Well Soon on Moore, followed by a Cradle Shock on York and a Heartbreaker from Danielson and Bentley on Matthews.
Rating: B

Heartbreak Kids (London & Kendrick) v Tajiri & James Gibson
As Kendrick and London hype up the crowd, Gibson and Tajiri attack them from behind. This surprise allows them to isolate Kendrick until her reversed a whip into the corner and got the hot tag to London, who hit dropsaults on both men, landing in pinning position after the second one. Tajiri broke up the pin. London worked over Gibson, giving Kendrick time to recover a bit before being tagged back in. They hit a Double Northern Lights Suplex for 2. Kendrick tried for Sliced Bread #2, but got crotched on the top rope. Gibson pulled him down, then hit the Tiger Bomb for the win.
Rating: B+

Benoit entered the ring to wait for his opponent. After a few seconds, Don’t You Wish You Were Me played again. Jericho stood in the entrance way, microphone in hand.

Jericho: I have great news, Chris. I found the perfect opponent for you. I know how much you pride yourself in your ability to make people submit. However, you aren’t the only submission expert in the world.

Benoit: Get on with it, Jericho! Who do I have to beat?

Jericho: You claim to be the best, but I found someone who can… what did you say back east? ‘Prove you wrong?’ Let me introduce to you, the Samoan Submission Machine, SAMOA JOE!

The portion of the crowd that had heard of him popped huge and started chanting “Joe! Joe!” as he stalked down to the ring.
Rating: A*

Samoa Joe v Chris Benoit
The two men started by trading chops, neither giving an inch. After a few moments, Benoit backed off and gave Joe a nod of respect before resuming his attack. The match was very even, with neither man keeping control for long. After about 20 minutes, Benoit went to the top rope, but Joe crotched him and tried for a Muscle Buster. Benoit slipped out of it and hit two Germans into a Dragon suplex for the win.
Rating: A*

Show Rating: A
Attendance: 8024
Viewers: 391815

[Ultima]

Other Promotions Month in Review
//Note: I’m not going by the TEW results, because in it, Triple H and Jarrett are world champions again already ;)
WWE
Due to the end of the brand split, there was no New Year’s Revolution.
Because of his injury, Kid Kash lost the Cruiserweight Title to Nunzio (Royal Rumble).
Mr. Kennedy…………..Kennedy defeated Shelton Benjamin to win the Intercontinental Title (Royal Rumble)
MNM successfully defended the Tag Team Titles against the Mexicools (Smackdown, Jan. 13)
In a fairly unsurprising turn of events, Triple H won the Royal Rumble
John Cena successfully defended the WWE Undisputed Title against JBL (Royal Rumble)

TNA
Samoa Joe successfully defended the X-division Title against Christopher Daniels (Final Resolution)
Team 3D defeated AMW to win the NWA Tag Team Titles. After the match, Matt and Jeff Hardy ran down and attacked both teams. (Final Resolution)
Team Canada defeated the 3LK when their newest member, Jay Reso, debuted. D’Amore announced that Jay was the new team captain, which Petey didn’t appear too happy about.
Monty Brown successfully defended the NWA World Title against Jeff Jarrett.

[Ultima]

I'm going to just go ahead and say that updates will be on a Monday/Wednesday/Friday schedule for now.

NWC Board Members for February 2006
Chris Irvine
Nora Greenwald
Rey Mysterio
Paul London
Jillian Hall

February 3, 2006
“WGN just sent me the viewing figures from our last show. It was the most viewers we’ve had for any one show so far,” Nora reported to the board.

“That’s good news. It makes up a bit for the low gate,” Paul commented. “Though with the weather we had last week, I can’t say that I blame people.”

“Do you think we would have had more people come if we’d announced Joe’s debut against Chris beforehand?” Jillian asked. “Lots of people consider it a dream match and would have loved to have been here to see it.”

Chris leaned back in his chair. “We thought about it, but we wanted it to be a surprise. Probably should have announced the tournament beforehand, but we are planning on having a longer match between Chris and Joe in the future.”

Card for NWC Friction
Taped February 3, 2006 for February 7, 2006
Taylor Matheny v Jillian Hall
Kendrick & Danielson v Sanderson & Williams v Morley & Martin v York & Matthews
Chavo Guerrero© v Frank Shamrock (North American Title)
Rey Mysterio v ???

[Ultima]

NWC Friction Report for February 3, 2006
Taylor Matheny v Jillian Hall
Loser is banned from ringside during the Women’s Title match at Exodus Rising
Jillian cheated whenever she could, trying to get a quick win, but Taylor wouldn’t take any of it, managing to kick out of pins despite Jillian grabbing ropes or tights. Taylor then went on the attack, eventually trying for her springboard crossbody. Jillian dodged, then hit a lungblower on Taylor as she got to her feet. Jillian tried for a 450, but Taylor got her knees up, then hit a fisherman’s suplex for the win.
Rating: B

Kendrick & Danielson v Sanderson & Williams v Sean Morley & Andrew Martin v York & Matthews
Tag Team Titles #1 contenders match
This was an insanely chaotic match. Even with both referees out there, they had trouble controlling the eight men. Any time a member of one team went for a pin, three men broke it up. Martin showed his power towards the end, press slamming Williams out of the ring, but was quickly attacked from behind, a double dropkick from York and Matthews sending him out of the ring. They hit stereo planchas on Williams and Martin as they got up. Danielson and Kendrick flew out of the ring next, leveling all four men. Cael took advantage of this, slapping the Golden Moment on Morley, but before he could tap, Kendrick got back in and superkicked Cael. He went for the pin, but Martin broke it up. Martin hit the pumphandle slam on Kendrick, but York and Matthews broke up the pin, once again sending Martin over the top rope, then hit the Full Effect on Kendrick for the win.
Rating: B

Chavo Guerrero v Frank Shamrock
Shamrock focused on Chavo’s legs, but Chavo’s speed managed to keep him in the match. He got to the ropes to get out of a Texas Cloverleaf, then hit a brianbuster and went to the top. Unfortunately, Shamrock’s focus on his legs slowed him down enough that Shamrock could roll out of the way of a frog splash. Shamrock continued his attack, but Chavo just wouldn’t quit, getting out of an ankle lock and rolling Shamrock up for two. He followed this up with a trio of vertical suplexes, then went for another frog splash, this time hitting it for the win.
Rating: A

As Chavo’s hand was rasied, James Gibson ran down the aisle and chop blocked him. He followed this up with continued stomps on Chavo’s left knee, then locked in a leg bar before being pulled off him by the refs.
Rating: B+

Charlie Haas v Rhino
Rhino’s intensity caused him problems throughout this match, as Haas took advantage of the several mistakes he made. Rhino’s power kept him right in the match though. After hitting a spinebuster, he signaled for the Gore, but took a drop toehold into the turnbuckle. He followed this with a dropkick, then hit an Exploder suplex for the win.
Rating: B+

Rey entered the ring and waited patiently for his opponent to be announced. Suddenly, all the lights in the arena except for a single spotlight went out. The spotlight shone on the black curtain for a few moments before it was shoved aside by Christopher Daniels. Daniels slowly made his way down to the ring, seeming to formulate a plan for the match as the lights returned to normal.
Rating: B+

Rey Mysterio v Christopher Daniels
The match started surprisingly slow, with both men feeling out the other’s style. Daniels got in the first big move with an STO, but even after that, the match stayed fairly even. After a while, Rey went for a super hurricanrana, but Daniels countered it into a powerbomb off the top rope for a LONG 2 count. He followed this up with the BME for the win.
Rating: A

Show Rating: A
Attendance: 8606
Viewers: 386576

[Ultima]

NWC Wrestler Profiles
Taylor Matheny
Height: 5’ 2”
Entrance Music: Faith of the Heart
Finishing Moves: Springboard Cross Body, Attitude Adjustment (Elevated Texas Cloverleaf)
Allies: Nora Greenwald, Ariel
Notable Feuds: Jillian Hall, Alexis Laree

After being the a runner up on the first Tough Enough, Taylor worked on the independent scene for a few years. In 2004, she seemingly left the business, but when she heard about the Northern Wrestling Coalition, she was interested enough to join. Her competence in the ring quickly caught the attention of Nora Greenwald, who gave her several tips to improve her in ring performance.
Through most of 2005, she teamed with either Nora or Ariel feuding with the team of Alexis Laree and Jillian Hall.

Cael Sanderson
Height: 6’0”
Entrance Music: Iowa State University Fight Song
Finishing Moves: Golden Moment (Half Crab Ankle Lock), Cy-plex (inverted superplex)
Allies: Doug Williams
Notable Feuds: Frank Shamrock, James Gibson

Cael’s name is a greatly respected one in amateur wrestling. In four years at Iowa State University, he had an unprecedented 159-0 record, claiming 4 NCAA titles in his weight division. He went on to claim a gold medal in the 2004 Olympics. He has also been a long time professional wrestling fan, and accepted an offer to join the Northern Wrestling Coalition.
He had an impressive debut, only narrowly losing to Frank Shamrock. He quickly grew accustomed to professional wrestling, combining singles action with a team with Doug Williams.
Though unconfirmed, there are rumors that he has been talking to Charlie Haas about forming a team with him too.

Card for NWC Friction
Taped February 10, 2006 for February 14, 2006
Tajiri v Bryan Danielson
Ariel & Nidia v Nattie Neidhart & Lady Apache
Rhino v Andrew Martin
Rob Van Dam v AJ Styles
Chris Jericho & Chavo Guerrero v Jay Reso & James Gibson

[Ultima]

Sorry about the delay. Hectic week.

NWC Friction Report for February 10, 2006
Tajiri v Bryan Danielson
The two men fought a very balanced match, trading a variety of effective submission holds. After being forced to release the Tarantula, Tajiri dropped outside the ring. Danielson recovered and hit a suicide dive. Both men recovered at about the same time, and Tajiri doubled Danielson over with a kick to the stomach, then hit his roundhouse kick to the face. He bundled Danielson back into the ring and just barely got a three count.
Rating: B+

Ariel & Nidia v Nattie Neidhart & Lady Apache
Ariel started the match for her team and went straight after Nattie, trying to get revenge for her loss a couple weeks ago. This recklessness backfired when Nattie countered a dropkick into an attempt at the Sharpshooter, but Ariel managed to kick her away. Nattie and Lady Apache isolated Ariel until a surprise DDT let her tag in Nidia. Nidia floored Nattie with a clothesline, then hit a snap Northern Lights suplex on Lady Apache, but Nattie broke it up. After Ariel had a chance to recover, Nidia tagged her in. Ariel finished the match, hitting the Dariel on Nattie for the pin.
Rating: B-

Rhino v Andrew Martin
This was a good big-man matchup. Rhino overpowered Martin for much of the match, but Martin got some good offense in. After hitting a belly to belly suplex, Rhino went for the Gore, but Martin countered with a big boot for a long two count. He went for his elbow drop, but Rhino moved out of the way at the last second, then hit the Gore for the win.
Rating: B+

A video was shown detailing the debut of Sabin and Bentley, showing their respect towards the Heartbreak Kids and feud with York & Matthews.
Rating: B+

Rob Van Dam v AJ Styles
Rob knew better than to take AJ lightly in this match, making it even better than their first one. Both men showed off their aerial maneuvers, seemingly trying to one up the other. The match ended when RVD went for a hurricanrana off the top rope but AJ countered it into the Styles Clash for the win.
Rating: A*

Snow: It’s now official. At Exodus Rising, Chris Benoit, Christopher Daniels, and AJ Styles will face each other in a triple threat match to determine who will face the International Champion at Origins.
Rating: A

Chris Jericho & Chavo Guerrero v Jay Reso & James Gibson
The makeshift teams did not work particularly well together. While Chris and Chavo worked together better, Chavo was still favoring his knee after last week, and the heels exploited that, doing further harm to it whenever they could. Chris put Jay in the Liontamer, but Gibson broke it up, then hit a tiger suplex. Jay went for the pin, getting a two count. Jericho made a brief comeback, which Jay stopped with a high angle DDT. He then hit the Resonator for the win.
Rating: A*

Jay rolled out of the ring and grabbed a chair. Jericho tried getting to his feet as Jay rolled back into the ring, but Jay hit him in the head with the chair twice, then hit the Unprettier onto the chair. As the show ended, he mocked Jericho’s arrogant “Come on baby!” pin.
Rating: A

Show Rating: B
Attendance: 8223
Viewers: 349203

[Ultima]

February 18, 2006
“This is going to be our biggest show yet,” Chris commented to Nora as they watched the ring getting set up in the Target Center. “It’s a big step.”

“Yeah. Most of us have worked here before, but that was back in WWE. Now, we have more of a stake in putting on a good show.”

“You’re right. It’ll be nice to work in a big arena like this again. I’m a bit worried that some of the guys will be overawed, though.”

“Most of them have had dark matches in WWE, if nothing else. They’ll be able to handle it.”

Card for NWC Exodus Rising
February 18, 2006
Chris Sabin & Matt Bentley© v Christian York & Joey Matthews (NWC Tag Titles)
Lisa Varon v Gail Kim
Sanderson & Williams v Kendrick & Danielson v Hardy & Helms v Shamrock & Tajiri
Nora Greenwald v Alexis Laree© (NWC Women’s Title)
Chavo Guerrero© v James Gibson (NWC North American Title)
Charlie Haas v Rob Van Dam
Chris Benoit v Christopher Daniels v AJ Styles (International Title #1 Contender)
Chris Jericho© v Jay Reso (NWC International Title)

[Ultima]

NWC Exodus Rising Report
Chris Sabin & Matt Bentley v Christian York & Joey Matthews (NWC Tag Titles)
This was announced as a tornado tag match, allowing all four men to be in the ring at the same time. The match was very chaotic from the time the bell rang. With all four men in the ring, no one was able to get more than a 1 count before having it broken up. Bentley dropkicked Matthews out of the ring, then dove onto him in a plancha, leaving Sabin to hit a powerbomb on York for 2. He slingshotted York into a corner, then rolled him up for another 2. Matthews broke it up after having whipped Bentley into the steps.

They double teamed Sabin as Bentley recovered, eventually trying for the Full Effect, but Bentley broke it up, superkicking York into the corner. Sabin recovered as Bentley focused on Matthews, hitting a flying forearm, then climbing to the top rope. He went for the Picture Perfect elbow, but Matthews rolled out of the way. Tracy distracted Matthews, giving Bentley time to recover enough to kick out. Matthews put Bentley on the top rope, then climbed up for a superplex, but Sabin got behind him and hit a German suplex off the second rope for a long 2 count.

York broke it up, but having caught his second wind, Sabin clotheslined him over the top rope. He then hit an overhead belly to belly, with Matthews flipping in midair and landing on his back. Bentley recovered enough to hit the Picture Perfect Elbow, getting the win.
Rating: B

Lisa Varon v Gail Kim
Lisa’s power advantage allowed her to get an early advantage. After a while, she got ****y and played to the crowd before trying her spinning side slam, which let Gail counter it into an arm drag. Gail went to work on her arm with a hammerlock suplex. Gail left the ring and waited for Lisa to get to her feet, then used the ropes to springboard into a hurricanrana for 2.

She used her high-paced offense to wear Lisa down, but Lisa rolled out of the way of a top rope leg drop. She capitalized on this mistake, hitting a standing moonsault on Gail for 2. She continued her attack, mostly using her strength advantage, then using her slingshot legdrop for a long 2 count.

Lisa went for the Widow’s Peak, but Gail backdropped out of it. Gail locked in a modified version of her headscissors armbar and forced Lisa to submit.
Rating: B

Sanderson & Williams v Kendrick & Danielson v Hardy & Helms v Shamrock & Rhino
Even though only 2 men were supposed to be in the ring at a time, the sheer number of competitors overwhelmed the referee. The first three teams tried to keep Shamrock and Rhino out of the match, but after Helms hit a monkey flip on Kendrick, Rhino tagged himself in and floored Kendrick again with the Gore. All three other teams broke up the pin, and it broke loose, spilling outside the ring. When Rhino and Williams were brawling on the outside, Hardy went to the top rope and floored them with a moonsault. Helms snuck in and tried for a pin on Kendrick, but he managed to kick out at 2. A Vertebreaker attempt was foiled by Sanderson, who then hit a belly to belly suplex. He pulled Kendrick to his corner and tagged himself in, taking the fight to Helms.

Shamrock got a blind tag from an Irish whip as Helms flew back at Sanderson with a clothesline. Shamrock then clotheslined Helms out of the ring and pinned Sanderson for 2. He followed this with a powerbomb into the turnbuckles and a full Nelson camel clutch. Danielson broke it up, but then got Gored out of the ring by Rhino, who prevented interference as Shamrock reapplied the hold. Sanderson was forced to tap just before Williams got past Rhino to break it up.

Note: Probably not booking a 4 team match again, because there’s no way I can describe them well. Too much that would be going on at once.
Rating: B+

Nora Greenwald© v Alexis Laree (NWC Women’s Title)
With Jillian banned from ringside, Nora knew she wouldn’t have to deal with interference, and started the match with a very precise style, luring Alexis in, then working on her left leg with a series of submission holds. Alexis threw punches and forearm shots to escape a submission hold, then hit a spin kick for 2 as Nora backed off. She followed this up with her more high risk offense before locking in an abdominal stretch. Nora countered with a hip toss followed by a series of arm drags. Nora went back to the legs with an Indian deathlock, eventually transitioning it into the Twin Cities Twist for 2. Laree was still in the hold, but Nora released it after a few seconds. She put Alexis up on the top rope in a tree of woe, then hit a handspring elbow.

Nora went to the top rope and tried for a missile dropkick as Alexis got to her feet, but Alexis dodged. She took control again, getting to the point where she tried the Laree DDT. Nora countered into a Northern Lights suplex for 2, then climbed to the top and hit the Nora Go Round for the pin to regain the Women’s title.
Rating: B+

Chavo Guerrero© v James Gibson (NWC North American Title)
James immediately went after Chavo’s knee, knowing that it was probably still weak from his attacks on it the past few weeks. Chavo seemed to expect this and adjusted his attack accordingly, using more high impact offense than high risk moves. He responded to Gibson’s kicks to the knee with European uppercuts, getting the better of the exchange. A jawbreaker got him one. He turned Gibson’s attack back on him with a half crab. Chavo’s dominance in the match lasted until he decided to go to the top rope. His knee made him take longer, allowing Gibson to crotch him and climb to the top, hitting a superplex. He took control of the match, shifting his attacks to more general moves, trying to end the match. Chavo blocked a snap suplex, then hit the triple vertical suplexes, followed by a tornado DDT for 2. He hit some more high impact moves, scoring more near falls before delivering the Gory Bomb for the win.
Rating: B+

As the referee raised Chavo’s hand, Tajiri ran into the ring and kicked Chavo from behind, then whipped him into the corner, locking in the Tarantula. He kept it on until forced to release it by Malenko.
Rating: B+

Charlie Haas v Rob Van Dam
At the beginning of the match, Haas made the mistake of trying to compete with RVD’s speed. Rob took control with his unorthodox offense. Rob knocked Haas out of the ring and followed him out, then suplexed him onto the barricade. He followed this up with a corkscrew legdrop, then a monkey flip on the floor. Rob brought him into the ring and pinned him for 2. After wearing him down some more, Rob hit a corner-to-corner dropkick for another near fall. Rob tried for another monkey flip, but Haas countered into a Boston crab. He slowed the pace of the match down, hoping to keep Rob constrained. He tried for an Exploder, but Rob elbowed out of it, then dropped Haas chest first onto the top rope, then hit a DDT on the apron.

Haas made some brief comebacks, but couldn’t control the pace of the match. He got his knees up to block Rolling Thunder and locked in the Haas of Pain. He was unfortunately too close to the ropes, and RVD got a rope break. Rob reversed a shoulder breaker into a piledriver, then hit the split legged moonsault for the pin.
Rating: A

AJ Styles v Chris Benoit v Christopher Daniels
Styles and Daniels seemed to both focus on Benoit early, only attacking each other rarely. Benoit had Daniels set up for a German, but AJ flipped over both of them, a sunset flip adding extra snap to the suplex. Benoit hit the triple Germans on both men and went for a pin on Daniels, getting 2. As Benoit got to his feet, AJ hit his springboard reverse DDT on Benoit as he got to his feet. After Benoit kicked out, Daniels knocked AJ out of the ring and went for a pin of his own, only getting 1. Benoit got up and started lighting Daniels up with chops, then hit a backbreaker and stretched Daniels over his knee. Benoit hit a northern lights for 2, and tried for a German again, but a standing switch resulted in Daniels hitting one instead. AJ sprung into the ring with a kneedrop, hitting both men while breaking up the pin.

At this point, it looked like all bets were off, as Daniels went after both men, hitting a STO on AJ, then went back to Benoit and hit the Last Rites. Benoit got his foot on the ropes, then surprised Daniels with a pair of vicious headbutts as Daniels pulled him to his feet. Benoit whipped Daniels into the corner with enough force to flip him over the ringpost. Benoit kicked AJ a couple times, then hit a suicide dive through the ropes on Daniels. As they recovered, AJ followed him out with a twisting plancha, knocking both men back to the floor. He recovered first and rolled Benoit into the ring. He locked in his Indian Deathlock/chinlock combo, but Benoit refused to tap, so he released it. AJ tried for the Styles Clash, but Benoit countered into a Sharpshooter. After a long struggle, AJ made it to the ropes. Benoit released the hold and immediately dropped into the Crossface, but Daniels broke it up and pulled Benoit to his feet, holding his arms tightly as he went for the Angel’s Wings to keep him from countering. The Angel’s Wings got the pin, eliminating Benoit.

As Benoit stalked away from the ring, AJ and Daniels squared off. A brief “TNA” chant broke out, bringing a smirk to Daniels’ face. Neither managed to get much of an advantage, demonstrating their knowledge of each other. AJ went for the Pele, but Daniels dodged, tapping his head before stomping AJ. After a couple minutes, Daniels went for the BME. AJ got his knees up, then went for a pin, getting two. After making the most of this, he went for a back body drop, but Daniels countered it with an attempt at the Angel’s Wings. AJ was prepared for this and countered with a double leg trip into a pin for 2. AJ pulled Daniels to his feet and used a double underhook into a Styles Clash, getting the pin.
Rating: A

The Game by Trapt and a chorus of boos brought Jay Reso to the ring. He talked about his past with Jericho giving him an advantage.

Reso: I promise that I will win the International Title tonight, because that’s… how I roll.

As soon as he finished the catchphrase, Don’t You Wish You Were Me? started, and Jericho strutted out to the ring, the International Title wrapped around his waist.
Rating: A

Chris Jericho© v “Captain Charisma” Jay Reso (NWC International Title)
As Jericho posed on the ring apron, Jay hit him from behind. He followed Jericho to the floor and battered him with forearm shots before whipping him into the ring post. He rolled Jericho into the ring and followed him in, officially starting the match. A reverse DDT got him 2, so he pulled Jericho to his feet and whipped him into the ropes. Jericho surprised him with a flying forearm as he bounced back. Jericho took control until Jay reversed an Irish whip. Jericho grabbed the ropes to avoid a dropkick, then backdropped Jay over the ropes as he charged. He followed this up with an Asai moonsault.

Jericho recovered first and hit a back suplex on the floor before entering the ring. When Jay got to the apron, Jericho hit his springboard dropkick to send him back to the floor. Jericho rolled him back into the ring, but took a cheap shot as he got back into the ring. Jay took control, choking Jericho against the bottom rope, then using more legal offense to score a series of near falls. He hit a Frog Splash, but Jericho managed to get his foot on the ropes to save his title.

Jay hit the Resonator, but Jericho kicked out again, sending Jay into a rage. His anger got the better of him, allowing Jericho to roll him up for 2. Jericho followed this up with a butterfly suplex, then the Breakdown for a long 2. Jay blocked the Lionsault with his knees, but couldn’t capitalize.

Both men got to their feet at the same time and battled back and forth, neither gaining an edge until Jericho dodged a dropkick and locked in the Liontamer for the win.
Rating: A*

Show Rating: B
Attendance: 14250
Viewers: 96225

[Ultima]

Card for NWC Friction
Taped February 19, 2006 for February 21, 2006
Lady Apache v Nidia
Christopher Daniels & Jay Reso v Cael Sanderson & Charlie Haas
Tajiri v Andrew Martin v Doug Williams
Amy Dumas & Lisa Varon v Gail Kim & Tracy Brooks
Chris Benoit & Samoa Joe v AJ Styles & Chris Jericho

[lowki02]

Card for NWC Friction
Taped February 19, 2006 for February 21, 2006
Lady Apache v Nidia
Christopher Daniels & Jay Reso v Cael Sanderson & Charlie Haas
Tajiri v Andrew Martin v Doug Williams
Amy Dumas & Lisa Varon v Gail Kim & Tracy Brooks
Chris Benoit & Samoa Joe v AJ Styles & Chris Jericho


I have been reading this diary for quite some time and I must say, I'm enjoying it. I love the Jericho-Reso feud as well as the Heartbreak Kids concept. Good work man! Can't wait to read more!

[Ultima]

NWC Friction Report for February 19, 2006

Lady Apache v Nidia
Both women fought hard in the early going, neither gaining much of an advantage until Nidia countered a hurricanrana into a snake eyes. After this, she took control, scoring a series of near falls before hitting her snap Northern Lights Suplex for the win.
Rating: B

Christopher Daniels & Jay Reso v Cael Sanderson & Charlie Haas
Charlie and Cael worked well together despite never having teamed before. Jay and Daniels, in contrast, didn’t team as well, but held their own, thanks in part to underhanded tactics. Towards the end of the match, Charlie hit an exploder suplex, then tagged in Cael, gesturing for him to set something up. Cael draped Daniels over the top rope while still holding his legs. Charlie ran against the far ropes, but Jay tripped him up, then rolled in, hitting a reverse DDT on Cael. He and Daniels took control at this point, with Daniels hitting the BME for the win after a couple more minutes.
Rating: A

Amy Dumas & Lisa Varon v Gail Kim & Tracy Brooks
Amy and Lisa were very reluctant partners, not showing much team work at all during the match. This gave Gail and Tracy an advantage, which they used to keep the match fast paced, overwhelming Lisa with their speed and quick tags. Tracy hit the Pie in the Sky on Lisa, but she got her foot on the ropes to prevent the three count. Tracy tagged in Gail, who tried for the Christo, but Lisa countered with a samoan drop.

Lisa struggled to her corner to make the tag, but Amy stepped back. Lisa reached out a little further and managed to tag her anyways, much to Amy’s chagrin. They argued in the ring, culminating with Lisa slapping Amy before leaving the ring. Gail took advantage of this with a rollup for 2, then hit a tornado DDT for the pin.
Rating: B+

Tajiri v Andrew Martin v Doug Williams (North American Title #1 Contender)
Unlike most triple threat matches, no alliances were made in the course of the match. Tajiri knocked both men down with a handspring elbow, getting successive near falls on both of them. Any time anyone got a momentary advantage, the third man was there to break it up. After Williams hit the Revolution DDT on Tajiri, Martin broke it up and slammed him to the mat. He hit a top rope elbow drop, but Tajiri broke up the pinfall with the Buzzsaw kick and pinned Williams himself for the win.
Rating: B+

Rob Van Dam v Paul London
This first meeting between the men was, as expected, a fast paced, difficult to follow match. They exchanged moves and counters at a blistering pace, neither able to score more than a two count. London managed to hit a facebuster and went to the top for the London Calling, but Rob got his knees up, then got a 2 count. He had clearly knocked the wind from London and capitalized on this with a split-legged moonsault, followed by the Five Star Frog Splash for the win.
Rating: A

Chris Benoit & Samoa Joe v AJ Styles & Chris Jericho
Though neither team was very comfortable with each other, Jericho and Styles used their speed to get an early advantage over Joe. This lasted until Joe reversed a whip into the corner and hit a high knee on Styles. Joe and Benoit began wearing down AJ, focusing on his lower back and legs, both to slow him down, and possibly build up to a Sharpshooter. After a while, AJ hit an ensiguri on Benoit, then made a hot tag to Jericho, who cleaned house. After throwing Joe over the top rope, Jericho hit the Flashback on Benoit for 2. After another series of near falls, he tried for the Lionsault, but Joe pulled the middle rope out, sending him crashing to the floor. Joe pummeled him with stomps until warned by the referee. Jericho got to his feet, but was then met with a suicide dive from Benoit. Benoit rolled him into the ring and hit a series of Germans.

After being worn down by Benoit and Joe, Jericho made a comeback, reversing a shoulder breaker from Benoit into a piledriver for 2. Joe broke it up, but was met by AJ, who knocked him out of the ring, then followed him out with a flip dive. Jericho tried for the Lionsault again, this time hitting it for the win.
Rating: A*

Styles knocked Joe down again, then grabbed the International Title from the commentary position. Returning to the ring, he reluctantly handed it to Jericho. They stared each other down as the show ended, both men’s hands still on the title.
Rating: A

Show Rating: B
Attendance: 8132
Viewers: 381648

Next week is spring break and I'll be apartment shopping, so I won't be online. To make up for it, here's the preview for the next show.

Card for NWC Friction
Taped February 24, 2006 for February 28, 2006
Shane Helms & Shannon Moore v Charlie Haas & Cael Sanderson
Amy Dumas v Taylor Matheney
Alexis Laree & Jillian Hall v Ariel & Nidia
Frank Shamrock v Chris Sabin
Jay Reso v AJ Styles

[Ultima]

NWC Friction Report for February 24, 2006
Shane Helms & Shannon Moore v Charlie Haas & Cael Sanderson
The chemistry between Charlie and Cael showed again, with their double teaming overshadowing the superior experience of Helms and Moore in the early going. This lasted until Moore distracted the referee, allowing Helms to hit a low blow. Helms sped up the match at this point, allowing he and Moore to use their superior speed. After reversing a suplex, Cael got the tag to Charlie, who cleaned house, suplexing both men. After hitting the Exploder on Moore, he tagged in Cael, who held Moore on the ropes while Charlie jumped over him, hitting the Broken Arrow for Cael to get the pin.
Rating: B

Benoit: Before this match, I would like to challenge Samoa Joe. We’ve had two matches, but both have been decided by pinfall. Let’s decide who really is the best submission wrestler at Origins.
Rating: A

Chris Benoit v Sean Morley
Benoit doubled Morley over with a kick. He went for a snap suplex, but Morley blocked it twice, then reversed into a vertical. He got a few more moves in before Benoit hit a clothesline out of nowhere. Benoit dominated most of the rest of the match, locking in the Sharpshooter for the win.
Rating: A*

Benoit’s music was quickly replaced by Samoa Joe’s. Joe walked down to the ring and grabbed a microphone.

Joe: You want a submission match at Origins? I accept.


Joe dropped the microphone and got in Benoit’s face, hoping to get a psychological advantage before the match.
Rating: A

Amy Dumas v Taylor Matheny
Amy’s experience advantage served her well, but Taylor’s more well-rounded attack allowed her to stay in the match. She took control for a while towards the end of the match, hitting a snap suplex and tried for her springboard crossbody. Amy rolled through for 2, then hit a snap DDT for another near fall. She tried for the Twist of Fate, but Taylor pushed her away. They both went for dropkicks at the same time, knocking each other to the mat. Amy recovered first and hit the Twist of Fate for the win.
Rating: B

Chavo Guerrero v Matt Hardy
Chavo was fired up as he entered the ring, but this worked against him, as Matt dodged a corner clothesline. He slowed the match down, keeping control long enough to hit the Side Effect for 2. He argued about the speed of the count, letting Chavo roll him up for 2. Chavo took back over, hitting a Tornado DDT after a couple minutes to set up a Frog Splash for the win.
Rating: A

Alexis Laree & Jillian Hall v Ariel & Nidia
This was an even match, but as it wore on, the superior teamwork of Alexis and Jillian allowed them to get an advantage. Nidia managed to tag out to Ariel after countering a double suplex into a DDT on Alexis and Jillian. Ariel hit a missile dropkick on Jillian, getting a 2 count. As she tried to pick Jillian up, Jillian tripped her into the ropes, then choked her against them. After being forced back by the ref, Jillian pulled Ariel to the center of the ring and hit her cartwheel elbow drop for 2. Ariel fought back and tried for the Ariel Go Round, but Jillian slammed her off the top rope and tried for her 450 splash, but Ariel rolled out of the way. As Jillian got to her feet, Ariel hit the Dariel for the win.
Rating: B

Frank Shamrock v Chris Sabin
Sabin used his speed to get an early advantage, springing into the ring with a dropkick. His high paced offense served him well until he went for the Cradle Shock. Shamrock slipped out of it and hit a German before wearing Sabin down, focusing on his neck and back. Sabin countered a torture rack into a tornado DDT, then hit a splash for 2. After a few more offensive moves, Sabin went for a hurricanrana, but Shamrock countered into a powerbomb and locked in a full nelson camel clutch for the win.
Rating: B

As soon as the bell rang, Rhino slid into the ring and motioned for the Gore on Sabin. Before he could charge, Matt Bentley tripped him from outside the ring, then entered the ring and hit Shamrock with a superkick, then hit another one on Rhino as he charged, trying for a Gore on Bentley.
Rating: B+

Jay Reso v AJ Styles
The similarity between these two showed in more than just their ring jackets. Styles’ more high risk technique let him take control until Jay dodged a knee drop. Neither man was able to keep control for long after that. Jay went for a high angle DDT, but AJ grabbed the ropes to block it. After a few more minutes of back and forth action, Styles hit the Styles Clash for the win.
Rating: A*

After the match, AJ got a microphone and talked about his title history before saying that it would be an honor to be the NWC International Champion.
Rating: A

Show Rating: B+
Attendance: 7727
Viewers: 392606

[Ultima]

Month in review for WWE/TNA
WWE
Nunzio successfully defended the Cruiserweight Title against Super Crazy (Raw, Feb 6) and Scotty 2 Hotty (Smackdown, Feb 24)
Ken Kennedy……Kennedy successfully defended the Intercontinental Title against Lashley (No Way Out)
MNM defeated Eugene and (a newly turned) Rob Conway to retain the Tag Team Titles thanks to interference from Melina (No Way Out)
Triple H and JBL defeated John Cena and Batista in the No Way Out main event
John Cena defeated Ric Flair to retain the WWE Undisputed Title (Raw, Feb 27 in Charlotte, SC)
After the match, Flair announced that he was retiring and thanked all his fans for supporting him throughout the years.

TNA
After weeks of complaints about Jay Reso being the new team captain and a loss in the #1 contender match for the X-Division Title, Petey Williams was kicked out of Team Canada and beat down. He is now a face.
Samoa Joe defeated Sonjay Dutt to retain the X-Division Title (Against All Odds)
Team 3D and the Hardy Boys went to a no contest when AMW attacked both teams (Against All Odds)
Monty Brown successfully defended the NWA World Title against Abyss (Against All Odds)

Card for NWC Friction
Taped March 3 for March 7
Matt Bentley v Rhino
Sean Morley v Samoa Joe
Nora Greenwald & Taylor Matheny v Lisa Varon & Nattie Neidhart
Rey Mysterio & Chavo Guerrero v Rob Van Dam & Tajiri
Chris Jericho v Christopher Daniels

[Ultima]

Sorry about the lack of updates, but I'm done with work now, so hopefully they'll start picking up again.

NWC Friction Report for March 3, 2006
Paul London v Shannon Moore
This was a good contest, but not quite on the level of some of their others. Moore tried his best to keep London grounded, but then made the mistake of going high-risk himself. He tried for a cross body, but London rolled through it for 2. He hit a dropsault as Moore got to his feet to put himself firmly in control of the match, hitting the London Calling for the win after a couple more minutes.
Rating: B

Matt Bentley v Rhino
This started as a pretty typical power versus speed match before Rhino surprised Bentley with his own speed. Rhino dominated, but Bentley showed his resilience by kicking out of everything Rhino threw at him. Rhino got frustrated and tossed Bentley outside and tried Goring him into the barricade, but Bentley moved. Bentley got back into the ring, and at 9, Rhino managed to make it back in. Bentley took control, similarly giving Rhino everything he could without managing to get a pin. After the Picture Perfect Elbow only got 2, he waited for Rhino to get up, then superkicked him and hit another Picture Perfect Elbow for the win.
Rating: A

Rey Mysterio & Chavo Guerrero v Rob Van Dam & Tajiri
Rey and Chavo were a more cohesive team, but the stiff kicks from both Rob and Tajiri took their toll. After almost 10 minutes, Chavo hit a brainbuster on Rob, but Tajiri broke up the pin. Chavo followed this up with a tornado DDT attempt, but got crotched on the top rope. A kick from RVD sent him to the outside, where Tajiri dropped down and kicked him in the head several times as RVD distracted the ref.

Tajiri rolled him back into the ring and RVD tried for Rolling Thunder, but Chavo moved. They both tagged out at the same time, and Rey and Tajiri went toe to toe. Rob recovered on the outside and pulled Rey down as he tried for a springboard hurricanrana. He slammed Rey into the barricade, then kicked him into it a few times before rolling him back in. Tajiri tagged out to Rob, who hit a piledriver for the win.
Rating: A

Nora Greenwald & Taylor Matheny v Lisa Varon & Nattie Neidhart
Nora and Taylor obviously worked together better, but Lisa and Nattie meshed surprisingly well (and far better than Lisa worked with Amy). Neither team got much of an edge despite quick tags. After hitting a snap suplex on Lisa, Nora knocked Nattie off the ring apron and charged at Lisa, hitting a flipping snap mare on her as she sat up. Nora and Taylor took control, isolating Lisa until she hit a DDT on Nora. Lisa tagged out slightly before Nora, and Nattie charged across the ring, hoping to break up the tag.

Taylor hit her springboard crossbody on Nattie as she charged, but Lisa broke up the pin at 2. Taylor went for the Attitude Adjustment, but after a few seconds of having it locked on, Nattie countered it into a Sharpshooter. Taylor made it to the ropes, but ran right into a powerslam, which got Nattie 2. Nattie went for her slingshot suplex, but slipped right as Taylor’s feet bounced against the ropes. She thought quickly and somehow managed to change it into a slingshot jackhammer for the pin.
Rating: A

A video recap focusing on Benoit’s challenge for a submission match against Samoa Joe.
Rating: A

Sean Morley v Samoa Joe
Morley did slightly better against Joe than he did against Benoit last week, but Joe’s sheer intensity carried him through the match until a Muscle Buster attempt that Morley slipped out of. Morley went on the offensive and got a few near falls. He hit his spinning powerbomb and went for his splash, but Joe moved out of the way and locked in the Clutch for the win.
Rating: B

Tracy Brooks v Jillian Hall
These two women had a very even match. Both took to the air, hitting some impressive high risk moves before Jillian resorted to cheating to gain an advantage. Tracy made a comeback before Jillian once again cheated to get an edge. Tracy rolled out of the way of Jillian’s cartwheel elbow and took control again, hitting a headscissors takedown followed by a series of arm drags. She followed these up with the Pie in the Sky for the win.
Rating: B

Chris Jericho v Christopher Daniels
Jericho seemed to be looking past Daniels a bit, which let Daniels hit a STO after a couple minutes of an even match. Daniels kept control for a while, but Jericho managed to block the BME. He went for a Lionsault after hitting a butterfly suplex for 2, but Daniels returned the favor, getting his knees up. He immediately went for the Angel’s Wings, but Jericho countered into the Walls. Daniels reached the ropes, but this gave Jericho enough momentum to take control. The Breakdown and the Flashback each got near falls before another Lionsault gave Jericho the win.
Rating: A*

After the match, Jericho asked the ring announcer for the microphone.
Jericho: Next Saturday, I will be defending my International Title against AJ Styles in what is sure to be one of the best matches of the year. AJ is an extraordinary wrestler, and may very well take the title, but I’m not going to make it easy for him.

Jericho: AJ, you’d better bring your A game to Origins, because I’m sure as hell bringing mine.
Rating: A

Show Rating: A
Attendance: 7493
Viewers: 400442

NWC Origins Card
Bryan Danielson & Brian Kendrick v Shannon Moore & Shane Helms
Amy Dumas v Lisa Varon (#1 Contender for NWC Women’s Title)
Chris Sabin & Matt Bentley© v Frank Shamrock & Rhino (NWC Tag Titles)
Charlie Haas v Paul London v Matt Hardy
Chavo Guerrero© v Tajiri (NWC North American Title)
Rey Mysterio v Rob Van Dam
Chris Benoit v Samoa Joe (Submission Match)
Nora Greenwald© v Gail Kim (NWC Women’s Title)
Chris Jericho© v AJ Styles (NWC International Title)