411’s Buy or Sell 10.16.09: CHIKARA’s Annual Cibernetico Tournament, Mike Quackenbush Defends the NWA World Junior Title, Tyler Black’s RoH World Title Chances, More

Posted by Michael Bauer on 10.16.2009

This week, the 411 Wrestling Staff looks back at Survival of the Fittest 2009 and looks ahead to future events for PWG, Dragon Gate USA, and CHIKARA as Ryan Byers battles J.D. Dunn in Buy or Sell!

Welcome everyone to Week 129 of BUY or SELL. For those of you who haven't been with us since the beginning, here's the Reader's Digest version of what this column is all about. BUY or SELL is very much like 411's long-running Fact or Fiction column. The main difference is that BUY or SELL focuses on topics like the U.S. Independent scene, Lucha Libre, Japanese Wrestling and pretty much anything else that isn't mainstream wrestling, WWE and or TNA. This allows for these areas to get a bit more press and for you, our loyal readers, to learn even more about the sport of professional wrestling.

BANNER!


(Special thanks to Jasper Gerretsen)

CHIKARA's annual Cibernetico tournament will be won by a team member not established in the main event currently.


(For more details on this unique Tournament, go to Cibernetico)

Ryan Byers : BUY. First of all, I have to say that the concept of this year's Cibernetico is great. For those not aware, the Cibernetico is an annual sixteen man elimination match held by CHIKARA. This year, they have taken eight tag teams and put one member of each tag team on opposite sides of the Cibernetico. In some isolated cases, there has been tension between the teammates leading in to the Cibernetico. In most instances, the team members opposing one another are mainly squaring off in the name of athletic competition. It's a nice twist on an old theme, and, with the promotion's intricate booking, it could set up some interesting storyline possibilities. As far as the winner is concerned, I suppose part of the answer to this question depends on who you consider to be established in the main event and who you do not. My pick to win it all, Player Dos, could be seen by some as an established top guy given the fact that he has been holding the promotion's Young Lions' Cup for quite some time now. However, even though he has had the Cup for a while, he's not quite at the level of a Quackenbush or a Fire Ant or a Chuck Taylor. A win here could be the next step towards putting him on that level, which I am assuming is where CHIKARA wants him to be given how consistent of a performer he's been.

J.D. Dunn : BUY. I'm going to be bold and predict Player Uno pulls this one out given the Smash Bros. elevated profile and his tag partner's success earlier in the year. Most of the Ants are interchangeable anyway (by design! ) so a win only helps their collective not the individual. Unless… the individual begins to realize the value of his individuality, thus shattering the collective identity of the Ants. Perhaps a little too Brannon Braga for you? Anyway, I'll say Player Uno.

1 for 1.

Pro Wrestling Guerrilla should not have any TNA contracted wrestlers competing in the 2009 Battle of Los Angeles.

Ryan Byers : SELL. I don't even understand why this is a question. If the wrestlers are readily available, can be brought in for a decent rate, aren't going to refuse to job where it's needed, and will improve the quality of the show, there's no reason not to bring them in.

J.D. Dunn : SELL. PWG doesn't have to deal with the same political implications that Ring of Honor does thanks to ROH's higher profile, so why bother denying themselves talent without any of the benefits that ROH gets? Besides, one of the lone advantages to working for TNA as opposed to the WWE is that you get to supplement your income with other, smaller organizations. PWG cutting off that avenue for wrestlers doesn't really have much upside for anyone.

2 for 2.

Mike Quackenbush will finally drop the NWA World Junior Title this weekend, ending his near two and a half year reign.

Ryan Byers : SELL. On one hand, it seems like the time is right for Quack to drop the title. His reign has been significantly longer than I would have expected when it first began, and, in the grand scheme of things, he hasn't done that much with the championship aside from carrying it around. Combine that with the fact that he's facing an opponent who isn't a regular part of his promotion in a title match that was seemingly booked out of the blue, and one begins to suspect that the NWA wants to get the belt off of the CHIKARA front man and on to Sal Rinuaro. On the other hand, this would result in a championship that has been held by Jushin Liger and Tiger Mask going around the waist of SAL RINAURO. That's such a huge step down in terms of quality of champions that I just can't imagine it happening, no matter the circumstances surrounding Quack's current run with the belt.

J.D. Dunn : BUY. With both Quackenbush and CHIKARA raising their profile with PPV, the time for a big transition would seem to be now. Quack has already established himself as one of the top Junior Heavyweights in the world, and Sal Rinauro is a guy who isn't so associated with a particular group that he can't fulfill the duties of a champion.

2 for 3.


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Dragon Gate is over booking their Open the Historic Gate title tournament by having Qualifying Match Themes.

J.D. Dunn : BUY. I realize that gimmicks are a nice selling point, but Dragon Gate has the in-ring chops to book simple matches and put on a fantastic show. That's long been a characteristic of Gabe Sapolsky booking, though. Do we really need big stipulations for a Chad Collyer vs. Matt Stryker match? Save the "themes" for the big matches or when you need to disguise lack of talent.

Ryan Byers : SELL. It is a little bit weird that, of the qualifying matches, two are traditional singles bouts while one is a three way and one is a six way. However, giving the matches "themes" isn't what I would call overbooking. Overbooking would be adding a stipulation or two to the matches on top of them also being tournament bouts so that there are too many things to remember going on during one match. However, if you think about it, a "theme" is something that every match should have regardless of whether it's a match in a title tournament or not. Every match is supposed to tell some kind of story, and announcing a theme for a match in advance is just making more explicit what wrestlers should be doing in the ring anyway. It is also probably worth noting that "themed" matches - or at least matches with titles - are nothing new. Major Japanese promotions have been doing it for quite some time, with names like "ACROSS 4 SOUL," "RULE OF DISSIDENCE," and "JUSTICE REVENGE IN FUKUOKA" having been slapped on to recent matches on New Japan Pro Wrestling shows. So, if you think about it, what DGUSA is doing here is furthering its identity as a slightly Americanized version of puroresu.

2 for 4.

Even though he didn't win, the finish to the Survival of the Fittest tournament made Roderick Strong look just as good as Tyler Black.



J.D. Dunn : SELL. If it had been anyone other than perennial bridesmaid Roderick Strong, it might have. As it is, it just reinforces the fact that he can never get over the hump. If you get that close so many times but never take home the gold, your successes are diminished and the narrative becomes that of a high-level choker. Just ask the Buffalo Bills, whose four consecutive AFC championships are ignored in favor of their four consecutive Super Bowl losses. Now, granted we're talking a worked sport here, but I'll bet there are a number of fans who say they love watching Roderick challenge for the title but would hate seeing him as champion. That's what keeps him in that sort of yo-yo between main event and mid-card no matter how many flashes in the pan there are.

Ryan Byers : SELL. I'm sorry, but nothing can make Roderick Strong look like a legitimate ROH Title contender in 2009. Yes, he's a great in-ring performer and has more of a personality than a lot of people are willing to give him credit for, but the ship sailed on making him the face of the promotion literally years ago. I remember being heavily into Ring of Honor in 2005 and thinking that Strong was going to be the man that they elevated to receive the next run as the promotion's champion. However, they did not pull the trigger on him then, and he has never been able to recover. Sticking the guy in to the ill-conceived "faction warfare" storyline didn't do him any favors, and, ever since those two events Roddy's career, the promotion has never been able to rebuild him into somebody who can be taken seriously, no matter how hard they may try. Going to the finals of a tournament with Tyler Black (another guy they've missed the boat on) and then losing isn't going to change that, no matter how impressive Strong may have looked in defeat.

3 for 5.

Despite a number of indications that Tyler Black is in line for the belt, either Davey Richards or Chris Hero will actually be the next ROH World Champion.

J.D. Dunn : SELL. I'm not entirely sold on Black as a draw. He does make a good challenger, though. Davey Richards seems to have the all-around talent and personality to be ROH's next big thing. However, you'd be transitioning from heel champion to heel champion with either Richards or Hero. At best, it would be a lateral move to take the belt off Aries and give it to either one of them because Aries is as well-rounded as anyone in ROH right now. Unless Aries gets injured or jumps ship, the title will likely go to Black.

Ryan Byers : BUY. I'm actually amazed that the promotion went with Black as the Survival of the Fittest winner. As I alluded to in my prior answer, he seems like a wrestler who has failed so many times in so many prior title shots - including losing out to an over-the-hill Jerry Lynn - that he's hard to buy into as a guy who will actually be able to win the strap and carry the company. Meanwhile, Hero has performed more consistently and hasn't choked in as many title shots, plus he has the promo ability that Tyler Black lacks, which has made it much easier for him to build his character back up after suffering key losses. Hero is a guy who legitimately could win the title on any night of the week without me batting an eyelash. Richards isn't exactly my cup of tea because he hits too hard and tries to cram too much into his matches, but ROH fans love the guy more than they love just about any wrestler on the roster, and he's being hailed by Bryan Danielson as the new "Best in the World." All of those factors combine to make both Hero and Richards significantly hotter than Black, even in light of his tournament win. Though ROH hasn't exactly been making the best booking decisions in the world lately, I have a hard time figuring out how they could overlook all of this and give Black what would be a fairly cold reign as champ (unless it is a transitional one) when there are two far superior options staring the promotion in the face right now.

3 for 6!!


The 129th edition of BUY or SELL finishes at 3 for 6 as these two agree on the 50/50 average! Stay tuned for next week as two new people step up to the plate on Buy or Sell!