BG Says: FIP Payback
Posted by Brad Garoon on 06.07.2006
Featuring Punk's last match in FIP. Where have I heard that one before?
June 25, 2005 - Crystal River, Florida
When we last left FIP
On his way out of the company CM Punk sold the New Dawn to Dave Prazak's DP Associates, but Azrieal didn't like the idea of being sold and stood up for himself. This lead to a big main event in which Azrieal teamed with Colt Cabana, Spanky and Sal Rinauro to defeat Punk, Samoa Joe and the tag champs. In other news, Don Juan turned on Antonio Banks and rekindled his friendship with the Heartbreak Express, while Tony Mamaluke earned his second win over Roderick Strong and Steve Madison continued to taunt the absent James Gibson.
Your hosts are Dave Prazak and Lenny Leonard, the best team in the business.
VS.
They lock up and Steel grabs a wristlock. Rainman reverses to his own but Steel comes back with a headlock. Rainman gets a headlock of his own but Steel gets to the ropes. Rainman hits a dropkick and a clothesline for 2. Steel knocks Rainman to the floor and follows him out. He beats Rainman up on the apron and comes back into the ring with a slingshot elbowdrop for 2. He hits a series of kneedrops for 2. He puts on a headlock but Rainman escapes and gets a sunset flip for 1. Steel cuts off his momentum with a clothesline for 2. He puts on a headlock and tosses Rainman to the mat. He blocks a blind charge but Rainman comes back with an inverted DDT. They slug it out and Rainman comes out on top. He hits a clothesline and a back elbow. He hits a back bodydrop and gets a roll up for 2. He gets a backslide for 2. Steel hits a running knee and a neckbreaker for 2. Rainman comes back with the Uncle Slam into a cobra clutch for the win at 8:39. Steel's offense is pretty dull, and he was in control for most of this match.
Rating: *1/2
VS.
Kahagas grabs a wristlock but Madison comes back with his own. Wow, two matches in a row start the exact same way. Kahagas chops him down and Madison bails. Kahagas follows him out but gets poked in the eyes back in the ring. Madison hits a leaping forearm and a kneedrop. He puts on a chinlock and then hits a back suplex. He hits a second rope legdrop for 2. He pulls an object from his tights and jams it into Kahagas' neck. He goes for a tilt-a-whirl maneuver but Kahagas catches him with a roll up for 2. Madison hits a fistdrop while holding the object. He hits a bodyslam and an elbowdrop. He hits another elbowdrop but misses a third. Kahagas hits an atomic drop and a Manhattan drop. He hits a back bodydrop and a clothesline. He chops Madison down but Madison comes back with a punch while holding his chain for the win at 5:06. Not a good match by any means, but it was really just there to keep Madison hated while Gibson is away.
Rating: *
VS.
They lock up and Kozina power Spanky to the corner. They knuckle up and Kozina powers Spanky down for 1. Spanky comes back with a headlock but Kozina escapes and puts on an armbar. Spanky goes back to the headlock so Kozina goes back to the tried and true armbar. Once again Spanky puts on the headlock and then blocks the armbar to hit a pair of hiptosses and a dropkick. He runs up the turnbuckle and puts the headlock back on. He tries running up the turnbuckle again and gets hit with a back suplex. Kozina hangs him on the top rope and hits him with a dropkick. He hits a back elbow and a leg lariat to the back for 2. He puts on a sleeper hold but Spanky fights out. Kozina hits a dropkick but misses an elbowdrop. They clothesline each other down. Spanky regains his composure and hits a flying forearm and a back elbow. He hits a dropkick and a back bodydrop. He hits a leg lariat for 2. He hits a snap suplex and climbs the ropes. He hits a second rope elbowdrop for 2. He goes for a roll up but Kozina reverses it to one of his own for 2. Spanky hits a neckbreaker and climbs the ropes. He goes for a frog splash but it hits knees. Kozina climbs the ropes and hits a missile dropkick. He hits a running forearm in the corner and then skins the cat to hit a springboard bulldog for 2. He hits a cross-armed electric chair drop for 2. Spanky dodges a German suplex and hits Sliced Bread #2 for the win at 11:46. This turned into a fast paced and quality filled little match.
Rating: ***
After the match Dave Prazak comes out to rant and rave. Spanky threatens him until CM Punk attacks him from behind. Colt Cabana and Sal Rinauro make the save. Cabana then talks about how sick he is of Punk and DP Associates and how excited he is to take Punk out of FIP in the main event.
Antonio Banks claims that he's going to end his feud with Don Juan and the Heartbreak Express once and for all, and he's enlisted the two baddest guys in wrestling to do so. The Ring Crew Express shows up, confusing Banks. They put bandanas on, street gangsta' style, and Banks accepts them as his teammates.
VS.
Dunn & Juan start. Juan grabs a headlock and cheap shots Dunn in the corner. Dunn gets a sunset flip for 2. He gets another for 2. Marcos tags in and they double-team Juan. Banks comes in and adds a big boot for 2. Things break down in the ring as everyone brawls. The heels get forced into gay positions in the corner and then bail. Phil tags in and tries to steal crowd approval away from Marcos. He puts on a headlock and hits a hiptoss. Sean tags in and gets clotheslined down by Phil when Marcos ducks it. Marcos puts on a wristlock and tags to Banks. Banks kicks at the bad arm and then hits a spike armbreaker. He puts on an armbar and tags to Marcos. Marcos hits an ax handle to the arm and tags to Marcos. Dunn plays air guitar on Sean's bad arm. Marcos plays air guitar on Phil's arm and then Banks runs in to play air guitar, holding Juan up completely while doing so. He hits a side slam and then heels bail. Juan tags in and walks into a hurricanrana. Marcos gets a roll up but Sean tags in and clotheslines him down. Sean hits a Michinoku driver for 2. Phil tags in and keeps Marcos from his corner. Juan tags in and hits a dropkick for 2. He puts on a sleeper hold but Marcos hits a chinbreaker to escape. He hits an enziguiri but the heels cut off the tag. Juan and Sean hit a double suplex. Phil tags in and the Heartbreak Express double-team Marcos in the corner. Phil whips Marcos hard into the turnbuckle but Marcos comes back by blocking a blind charge with his boot. Juan comes in and hits a pumphandle backbreaker for 2. He puts on a headlock but Marcos fights out and hits a crossbody for 2. Juan quickly clotheslines him down as a girl (or young boy) screams for "Marcus" to get up. That'd be right up there with Vincent as far as lame wrestling names would go. Phil tags in and puts on a sleeper hold. Marcos pushes Phil into the corner and then tosses him off the top rope. Marcos dodges a splash from Sean and a moonsault from Juan and finally makes the tag. Banks cleans house, hitting a spinning side slam on Juan and a kick to Sean's bad shoulder. He puts on a crossface but Phil pulls him out of the ring. Marcos hits Sean with a swinging DDT and Dunn follows up with a flying elbowdrop. They finish up with the Stacker Senton for the win at 15:16. Not bad at all for a longer Heartbreak Express match. In fact, it was a good amount of fun.
Rating: **3/4
VS. VS.
I stole this from my Glory by Honor IV review, where this match also appears. Sal dives onto Mamaluke before the bell and Fury dives onto both of them. Back in the ring Fury gets 2. He hits a clothesline and a back elbow. He hits a leg lariat for 2. Jimmy Bower calls Tony Mamaluke a former ROH tag team champion, which is false at this point. Mamaluke hits Fury with a snap mare and a basement dropkick for 2. He hits a dropkick to the back. Sal hits Mamaluke with a springboard clothesline. Mamaluke hits Sal with a snap suplex and a northern lights suplex for 2. Fury hits a pair of rabbit kicks and an enziguiri on Mamaluke. He hits Sal with a dropkick and Mamaluke with a moonsault for 2 simultaneously. He hits a twisting suplex and an implant DDT on Sal for 2. Fury hits Mamaluke with an enziguiri but Sal catches him with a blockbuster to eliminate him. Mamaluke pulls Sal to the floor and rams him into the post. He goes to work on his shoulder and rolls him back into the ring. He rams his shoulder into the turnbuckle and hits a tornado armbreaker. He puts on a hammerlock and hits a back suplex for 2. He puts on a cross armbreaker but Sal reverses to a roll up for 2. Mamaluke goes back to the hold but Sal slugs out. Mamaluke puts on a wristlock and hits a legsweep. He puts on the royal octopus but Sal fights out. He hits a basement dropkick for 2. He goes for a suplex but his arm is no good and Mamaluke goes for an armbar. Sal hits a flying forearm for 2. He climbs to the top rope but Mamaluke uses the referee to crotch him. He hits him with a DDT from the top for 2 when Sal gets his foot on the bottom rope. Sal dodges a blind charge and goes for a springboard clothesline but Mamaluke catches him with an armbar for the win at 9:29. Started a little iffy but picked up quite nicely as it went on.
Rating: **1/2
After the match Prazak comes out to berate Rinauro. Sal gets in his face and fights off the CM Punk sneak attack. However, he does not see the Samoa Joe sneak attack coming. Azrieal and Cabana make the save and Azrieal challenges Joe to a match.
VS.
Joe beats Azrieal in the corner to start. He chokes him with his belt but Azrieal starts to fight back. Joe goes to the eyes to take control. He hits the Big Joe Combo and a series of stomps and headbutts for 2. He puts on a nervehold and slams Azrieal to the mat by his hair. He tosses Azrieal to the floor where Milo and Prazak stomp him. Back in the ring Joe hits a high knee in the corner for 2. Joe dumps Azrieal to the floor again and his corner men do the same as before. They try a third time to cheat Azrieal but he fights Milo and Prazak off and hits Joe with a springboard clothesline. He hits a head scissors takedown and a basement dropkick for 2. He rakes the back and puts on a front facelock. Joe gets to the ropes. Azrieal gets a sunset flip for 2. Joe hits a back elbow and a bodyslam. He hits a senton for 2. He puts on a chinlock but Azrieal fights out. Azrieal hits a forearm and an enziguiri for 2. He puts on a chinlock but Joe powers out and hits the STJoe for 2 with a cocky pin. Azrieal blocks a blind charge and hits a blockbuster. He climbs the ropes but Joe dodges the double stomp. He hits a clothesline and throws on the choke for the win at 12:47 when Azrieal passes out. I know I keep saying this and I know Joe was recovering from an injury at this point, but his FIP work so far has been really disappointing.
Rating: *3/4
VS.
Strong and Clark lost a number one contender's match to Punk and Azrieal a few shows back, but Punk forfeited his title shot when he sold the New Dawn to DP Associates. Logic dictates that Strong and Clark get the shot by default. Strong and Rave start. They lock up and Rave goes for a cheap shot but Strong ducks. Strong comes back with an armdrag into an armbar. Rave gets a hammerlock but Strong puts him back on the mat with a wristlock. Rave gets a takedown for 1. Strong pull Rave's pants down and Rave bails. Eddie and Clark tag in. Eddie puts Clark on the mat and grabs a front facelock. Clark reverses to his own but Eddie comes back with a hammerlock. He puts on a headlock but Clark escapes and puts on an armbar. Rave tags in and puts on a chinlock. Clark fights out but Rave slams him to the mat. Clark tags to Strong and they hit double hiptosses on their opponents. They dropkick Rave out of the ring and Eddie bails as well. Back in the ring Rave gets a roll up for 2. He hits a gutbuster for 2. Eddie tags in and hits a slingshot senton for 2 when Strong saves. Eddie hits a suplex into a gutbuster for 2. He puts on a bearhug but Clark fights out. Eddie hits a faceplant for 2. Rave tags in and DP Associates toss Clark into the air to the mat for 2. Rave knocks Clark to the floor where Prazak stomps him. Eddie comes in illegally and goes to work on Clark's midsection. Clark comes back with a springboard moonsault attempt but Eddie ducks. Rave tags in and puts on an abdominal stretch. Eddie and Prazak help him add pressure with the referee distracted. Strong breaks up the hold. Rave punts Clark's ribs for 2. He hits a mule kick for 2. Eddie tags in and drapes Clark over the top rope. He dumps him on the mat for 2. Clark comes back with a desperation spinebuster and tags to Strong. Strong cleans house, hitting a dropkick on Rave and a leg lariat on Eddie. He hits a flipping backbreaker on Rave and the DBR on Eddie. He hits the capture backbreaker on Rave and tosses Clark into a moonsault onto Rave. Eddie hits Strong with a lungblower but Clark catches him with a reverse hurricanrana. Rave hits Clark with a spear for 2 when Strong saves. He hits the running knee on Strong but Clark hits him with a spinning kick. Clark hits a springboard swinging DDT and climbs the ropes. Prazak crotches him, allowing Rave to hit the Rave Clash for the win at 18:41. This was really dull right up until the last few minutes, when they busted out most of their big moves to salvage something interesting out of it. Clark did play face-in-peril pretty well, so there's something to be said for that.
Rating: **3/4
VS.
The commentators keep calling this Punk's final match in FIP, but I think if we've learned anything from his ROH sendoff it's that we can't trust that to be true. They lock up and Colt ducks a cheap shot in the corner. Cabana teases a cheap shot, psyching Punk out. He grabs a headlock and dumps Punk to the floor. The referee sees Prazak trip Cabana and bans him from ringside. Back in the ring Punk throws his ring jacket at Cabana and then grabs a headlock. Cabana comes back with a monkey flip and a headlock takedown for 2. Punk goes for a monkey flip but Cabana stops short and stomps his face. He puts the headlock back on but Punk reverses to the leg scissors. Cabana escapes but waves rather than take advantage. They knuckle up and Cabana grabs an anklevice. Punk reverses to a ladylock. I never thought I'd type that a second time. Punk goes for a schoolboy but Cabana crawls away. He goes for another roll up with the same result. He puts on a headlock but Cabana escapes. Punk grabs a hammerlock but Cabana escapes and spreads Punk's legs apart. Punk rolls back and tries to return the favor but winds up back in the stretch. Cabana gives him a chance to return the favor but it turns out he's just way to flexible for Punk. Cabana dodges an elbowdrop and puts on an anklelock. Punk gets to the ropes and bails. Back in the ring they knuckle up and Punk powers Cabana down for 2. Cabana breaks Punk's bridge with a headbutt to the gut and gets 2. They go for roll ups and Cabana comes out of the exchange with a headlock. He gets a roll up for 2 but Punk catches him in the Kayak. Cabana powers up and kicks away. He puts on a strangle hold and leans back to jam his knees into Punk's back. Punk reverses the hold to his own but Cabana uses very interesting maneuvers to reverse back. He hits a shoulder block for 2 and puts on a chinlock. He cuts off Punk's momentum with an armdrag and puts on a headlock. Punk comes back with a bearhug. They end up slapping each other upside down with their legs intertwined. Cabana blocks a cheap shot and goes back to the headlock. Punk reverses to a legvice and pulls on Cabana's Jew fro. Cabana flips around and pins Punk for 2. Punk goes for a backslide but Cabana flips back and hits a dropkick. Punk's back gives out when he's rammed into the turnbuckle and Cabana rolls him up for 2. Punk low bridges Cabana to the floor where a fan pours his drink into Cabana's mouth. That's really gross.
Punk works him over on the apron and rolls him back into the ring. Punk goes for a sunset flip but Cabana blocks. Punk hits a side Russian legsweep for 2. He works over Cabana's neck, dropping a series of knees on it. He hits a backbreaker for 2. He puts on a headlock but Cabana fights out. Punk slams him to the mat by his hair but gets rolled up for 2. He hits a clothesline and puts on the Mark Nulty Special. Cabana powers up and hits an electric chair drop. He climbs to the second rope but misses an elbowdrop. Punk hits a vertical suplex for 2. He puts on a camel clutch and repeatedly jumps on Cabana's back until Cabana flips over and puts up his knees. He hits a pair of back suplexes but Punk reverses a third to a crossbody for 2. They trade chops and go for crossbodies at the same time and crumple to the mat. Back on their feet Cabana unloads with clotheslines and a head scissors takedown. He hits a butt butt and a leaping clothesline for 2. He dodges Punk artfully and catapults him into the turnbuckle. He hits a second rope elbowdrop for 2. Punk hits a chinbreaker and a crossbody. He hits a leg lariat for 2. He hits a high knee in the corner and Welcome to Chicago for 2. He gets a roll up for 2. Cabana gets a roll up for 2. Punk hits the Pepsi Twist for 2. He goes for the Pepsi Plunge but Cabana fights back and hits a superplex for 2. They slug it out and Punk clotheslines the referee. Cabana goes for a roll up but the referee can't count. Cabana hits a tombstone piledriver but the referee is still out. Samoa Joe runs out and puts the choke on Cabana. He rolls Punk on top of him and wakes the referee up. Cabana kicks out at 2 as Spanky runs out and hits Sliced Bread #2 on Punk using Joe as the post. Rave runs out and hits the running knee on Cabana. Rinauro runs out and takes out Rave. Azrieal comes out and hits the Demon Driver on Punk. He wakes the referee up and Cabana pins Punk for the win at 45:37.
I actually liked the overbooked finish, as Azrieal was the guy who really had the issue with Punk, and it was his move that put Punk out of the company with a loss, or so we were lead to believe at the time. This match featured a lot of neat mat wrestling and cool reversals from two guys that we've come to expect that from. The match seemed designed to make Cabana look completely dominant over Punk. It did that well and I think it was superior to their ROH match a couple months later. It didn't have the same awkward spots nor did it have the strain of following 2/3 falls rules, which I felt their Chicago match suffered through. The only knock I have for this match is that I think they could have accomplished the same thing with about fifteen minutes shaved off.
Rating: ***1/2
The 411:
For the first time a Saturday show is not as good as the show that preceded it. The main event is good fun even if it is on the long side. Spanky and Kozina have a fun match and the Heartbreak Express bring another surprisingly good match. Mild recommendation here, although pick up Sold Out first if you can only afford one. You can pick this up at ROHWrestling.com
