BG Says: FIP Dangerous Intentions 2007
Posted by Brad Garoon on 08.30.2007
Roderick Strong vs. Davey Richards, Part 1 of 2.
February 2, 2007 – Melbourne, Florida
When we last left FIP
Claudio Castagnoli joined the YRR and helped Sal Rinauro defeat Seth Delay in a TLC match. The Black Market challenged the YRR to a Loser Leaves FIP for 90 days match. Roderick Strong changed up his style completely to defeat Brent Albright and retain the FIP title. In the main event Erick Stevens finally put Steve Madison behind him by beating him in a brutal dog collar match.
Dave Prazak and Lenny Leonard team up for commentary goodness on this DVD.
VS.
They lock up and Shingo powers Hallowicked to the ropes. He puts on a headlock and hits a headbutt. Hallowicked comes back with an armdrag into a roll up for 2. He hits a dropkick and Shingo bails. Back in the ring Shingo puts on a chinlock. He slams Hallowicked to the mat by his stem and hits a fistdrop for 2. He dumps Hallowicked to the floor where Mr. Milo Beasley hits him with an elbowdrop off the apron. Back in the ring Shingo hits a pair of bodyslams and a vertical suplex for 2. Hallowicked comes back with a chinbreaker but Shingo catches him with a spinebuster for 2. He puts on the half crab and floats into a crossface. Hallowicked gets to the ropes. Shingo goes to the eyes but Hallowicked sends him to the floor with a hurricanrana. He follows Shingo out with a suicide dive and hits an enziguiri back in the ring. He hits a neckbreaker for 2. Shingo hits a neckbreaker on the middle rope and a hanging DDT for 2. He climbs the ropes but Hallowicked slams him down. Hallowicked climbs the ropes but Prazak cuts him off which gives Shingo enough time to get his wits about him and roll through a crossbody. Milo trips Hallowicked and Shingo hits a lariat for 2 before finishing Hallowicked with the Last Falconry at 10:34. Decent match, but nothing special.
Rating: **¼
As DP Associates make their way to the back Larry Sweeney strolls out to cut a promo. He brags about beating Jerrelle Clark and Jimmy Jacobs and makes a very big deal about beating Colt Cabana. That’s all, his match isn’t now.
The YRR comes out accompanied by Lexie Fyfe. Sal Rinauro is tired of Danger ruining their good time. They’ve hired Fyfe to take Danger out once and for all. Danger brings the Black Market out with her for backup. Of course Joey Machete can’t resist the urge to cut a superfluous promo. He says they’re going to kick in the teeth of anyone who touches Danger, including Lexie Fyfe. I think that makes them bad role models.
VS.
Danger puts on a wristlock to start. She gets a roll up for 2. They lock up and Fyfe powers Danger into the corner before hitting a cheap chop. She goes to the eyes and hits a facebuster. She hits a side slam for 2. She hits a backbreaker and keeps pressure on the back. She puts on a Boston crab but releases to press her knee into Danger’s back. She hits a snapmare and tosses Danger around by her hair. She catapults Danger into the bottom rope for 2. She puts on a chinlock but Danger hits a chinbreaker to escape. Danger hits a pair of clotheslines and a neckbreaker for 2. Fyfe goes for the Attitude Adjuster but Danger blocks it and dropkicks the knee. She hits the Shimmering Warlock for the anticlimactic win at 7:10. Painfully dull match.
Rating: ¾*
After the match Rance, Sal and Claudio come out to ringside. They corner Danger but Murphy and Machete make the save. Luckily for my state of mind the inevitable match is started without Machete cutting a promo.
VS.
Murphy and Sal start and Murphy easily overpowers the smaller Rinauro. He shoves Sal around the ring and clubs him to the mat. He goes for a military press slam but Sal goes to the eyes and tags to Rance. Rance get crotched up top and slammed to the mat. Murphy hits an avalanche on Sal and the fight goes to the floor. Rance and Sal get their faces slammed into the apron and all four men get back into the ring. Machete hits a bodyslam and an elbowdrop on Sal for 2. Neither of them are legal by the way. Rance crotches Machete on the post and Sal hits a dropkick to the face. Rance gets a roll up for 2. Sal tags in and hits a double axe handle. He hits a pair of dropkicks for 2. Rance tags in and catapults Machete into the bottom rope for 2. Machete gets a sunset flip for 2 but Rance catches him with a kick to the face. Sal tags in and they hit a double back elbow. Sal goes to the eyes and hits an elbowdrop for 2. Rance tags in but Machete fights off both opponents and tags to Murphy. Murphy wipes out everyone in sight but can’t get a winning pin. He hits an overhead suplex on Rance and the Blackout on Sal but Claudio runs in and nails him with the briefcase to draw the disqualification at 10:33. I just cannot get myself to care about the Black Market. Joey Machete is a black hole for entertainment. I wish the YRR was feuding with anyone else.
Rating: *
The beating on the Black Market continues until Colt Cabana runs out and makes the save. He gets on the microphone and says he’s sick and tired of the YRR. He’s also offended that Larry Sweeney is trying to use his name to further his career. He challenges Claudio to a match for later in the evening. That Sweeney comment sure seemed out of place if all he was going to do was challenge Castagnoli.
VS.
Vega was an original member in TNA’s LAX, but Hernandez has taken his place. Let’s see if TNA made the right choice. Moore attacks Vega from behind before the bell. Vega comes back with and armdrag and a clothesline. Moore crotches him with the middle rope and hits an avalanche. He hits a cannonball for 2. He hits an inverted lungblower for 2. Vega comes back with a fisherman suplex for 2. He hits a kick to the face for 2. Moore sits down on a sunset flip attempt for 2. Vega comes back with a leg lariat for 2. He hits the ugliest superkick ever and climbs the ropes. He hits a diving headbutt for the win at 3:31. TNA doesn’t do many things right but dumping Vega may have been a rare victory for them.
Rating: ½*
Tag team champs the Briscoe Brothers come out and tell Mad Man Pondo and Necro Butcher to come out and fight them now if they ever want to get a shot at the titles. They do just that and the brawl is on. Pondo and Jay fight out of the building as Mark and Necro brawl their way to the ring.
VS.
Necro is sporting a short haircut here, making him look much less like a bum. Before they ever get to the ring Necro hits the chair-assisted bodyslam on Mark on the floor. Mark no-sells it and springboards off the wall to hit a back elbow. He climbs up to a small ledge and hits a shooting star press onto Necro. With that triumph accomplished he takes a little break to eat some ice cream. Necro tosses Mark into a row of chairs and starts throwing chair after chair at him. Mark drags Necro to the bleachers and hiptosses him off the first step. He hits a fistdrop but Necro comes back with a suplex onto the bleachers. He tosses Mark into some more chairs and then starts throwing chairs into the ring. Mark does the same in preparation for the match to begin. He crotches Necro on the barricade but Necro falls to the floor. Mark adapts and hits a splash and a moonsault, both off the barricade. Inside the ring Mark goes for a springboard move but Necro blocks it by throwing a chair at his face. The match has finally begun. Necro hits a side slam onto the pile of chairs for 2. Mark hits a bodyslam onto the chairs and climbs the ropes. Necro crotches him but Mark fights back and hits a superplex onto the chairs. Pondo runs out with his CAN’T STOP PONDO sign and hits Mark in the face with it. Necro follows up with a tiger driver onto the chairs for the win at 2:21 actual match time. The bell-to-bell match was worth very little but the rating reflects the entire brawl. Jay runs out and his match with Pondo begins.
Rating: **¾
VS.
Pondo hits a vertical suplex onto an upright chair for 2. He chokes Jay with the CSP sign as Mark and Necro brawl out of the building. Pondo sets up two chairs and sets the CSP sign over them. He wedges a chair in the corner and whips Jay’s head into it. Jay comes back with a fisherman suplex through Pondo’s pile of plunder. They fight to the floor where Jay whips Pondo into the barricade. Pondo goes to the eyes to regain control and rolls Jay into the ring. He pulls out a staple gun and a dollar bill and does what you’d expect with it. I don’t quite get the message there. Jay gets a hold of the staple gun and staples a dollar to Pondo’s cheek. Pondo comes back with a staple to the belly. He smacks Jay with the CSP sign for 2. Mark runs in and starts putting the boots to Pondo. Necro runs in and the whole thing gets thrown out at 5:42. These matches certainly made the Death Match Kings seem like credible challengers. This match was just a short little taste of a death match and thus served only to get the new challengers over.
Rating: **
After the match the Death Match Kings lay out the Briscoes. Pondo puts the CSP sign over Jay’s face and then sets up a bridge of chairs over his head before jumping onto the whole mess with a senton. Necro hangs Mark on the top rope and flips Pondo off the top rope onto him. Then they steal the belts and walk to the back.
VS. VS. VS.
For whatever reason this is under four corner survival rules rather than four way fray rules. Jigsaw and Delay start. Delay grabs a headlock but Jigsaw responds with one of his own. Akuma tags in for Jigsaw and puts Delay on the mat with an armbar. Stevens tags in for Delay and slams Akuma to the mat. They trade holds until Stevens goes after a pin but never gets more than 2. Jigsaw tags in and puts an armbar on Akuma. An awkward exchange between the two leads Jigsaw slapping on the Christo. Akuma escapes and rolls Jigsaw up for 2. They trade pin attempts and tag out to the FIP regulars. Stevens puts on a headlock and hits a shoulder tackle. Delay hits an armdrag and a dropkick. He puts on a headlock but Stevens comes back with a powerslam. He hits a back elbow for 2. Jigsaw tags in and slugs Delay down for 2. He hits a leg lariat for 2. Akuma tags in and works over Delay’s leg. Stevens breaks up a leglock with an elbowdrop as tensions rise between him and Akuma. Jigsaw tags Akuma out and hits a legdrop on Delay’s leg. He puts on a half crab but Akuma breaks it up with a dropkick. Now Jigsaw is mad at him too. Delay rolls Jigsaw up for 2. Jigsaw keeps Delay down with a clothesline and shoves Akuma. The referee counts that as a tag so Delay rolls Akuma up for 2. Stevens tags Akuma out and hits a vertical suplex on Delay for 2. Stevens, Akuma and Jigsaw argue long enough for Delay to take them all down with dropkicks and forearms. He hits the Edge-O-Matic on Stevens for 2. Jigsaaw and Akuma hit Total Elimination on Delay for 2 even though neither CHIKARA guy is legal. Akuma hits a facebuster on Jigsaw for 2. Stevens hits the Oklahoma Stampede on Akuma for 2. Delay dodges the avalanche but Stevens hits a back elbow. Jigsaw pulls Stevens off the second rope with a hurricanrana for 2. Delay dropkicks Jigsaw and Akuma hits a suicide dive on Stevens. Delay hits a huge dive on Akuma and Jigsaw looks to follow. Stevens cuts off the dive with a lariat and hits the Doctor Bomb for the win at 15:02. Legal man issues aside this was good fun and everyone came out smelling like roses, especially Stevens.
Rating: ***
VS. [I Quit Match]
Richards complained for months that he wanted a title shot before beating Bryan Danielson at Cage of Pain in a number one contender match. Strong blocks a kick and chops Richards to the floor. He chases him back into the ring where Richards puts on a headlock. Strong comes back with another deafening chop and Richards bails again. Back in the ring Richards goes back to the headlock but Strong counters to a hammerlock. Richards hits the leg clap to escape. Richards puts on a camel clutch but Strong counters to a toehold. Richards puts on a deathlock but Strong escapes and puts on a headlock. He hits a bodyslam and puts on an armbar. Richards hits a suplex and knuckles up. He hits an armdrag and a hurricanrana. He hits a couple more armdrags and puts on an armbar. He hits a legdrop on the arm and rams Strong’s shoulder into the turnbuckle. He goes back to the armbar and hits a kneedrop on the shoulder. He hits a legdrop and knocks Strong to the floor. He hits a baseball slide and a suicide dive. They trade strikes on the floor so Richards brings the match back into the ring. He puts on a hammerlock but Strong comes back with a side slam. He hits a backbreaker and stretches Richards’s back against the ropes. He pulls Richards to the floor where he chops him into a chair. Richards goes to the eyes and rolls back into the ring. He crotches Strong on the middle rope and counters a sunset flip to a cross armbreaker. Strong gets to the ropes (which I didn’t think mattered in an I Quit match). Strong pulls Richards to the floor and rams him into the apron. He dumps Richards over the barricade and whips him into a wall. He pulls Richards onto a table and hits a side slam through it. They fight to the top of the bleachers where Richards comes back with kicks to the chest. He hits a bodyslam on the floor and puts on a half crab. Back in the ring Richards misses a dropkick. Strong hits a vertical suplex and puts on a chinlock. He hits a dropkick but Richards comes back with a springboard missile dropkick. Strong hits a Manhattan drop but Richards catches him with a wristlock takedown. He hits a hiptoss and floats into a crossface. Strong gets to the ropes. He hits a chinbreaker and an enziguiri. He hits a slingshot powerslam and puts on a stranglehold. Richards gets to the ropes. Richards hits the handspring kick and a tornado armbreaker. He puts on an armbar but Strong gets to the ropes. Strong catapults Richards into the corner and hits a slingshot backdrop. Richards hits a DDT and climbs the ropes. Strong puts up his knees to block the shooting star press and hits the tiger driver before putting on the Stronghold to make Richards quit at 26:42. They fought hard the whole way though but the psychology was all over the place for a lot of the match. The stipulation wasn’t played up at all and that kept it from being very dramatic. The last five minutes or so were a lot of fun and quite focused, but I enjoyed their first match in FIP more.
Rating: ***½
A pretty cool advertisement for Declarations: The Best of CM Punk is shown here. Check out my review of that DVD by clicking on that link. The clips shown really show how far FIP has come as far as drawing fans goes. There was NOBODY at those early shows.
Larry Sweeney and Claudio Castagnoli come out to the ring and are announced as a team. Cabana may have mentioned that he’s tired of Sweeney but he very expressly asked for a one-on-one match with Sweeney. This whole mess of an angle was part of Jake Roberts appearing at Unfinished Business 2007 but then being too drugged up to play the angle out during this weekend. Anywho, Cabana comes out and the match begins as a 2-on-1 contest. He holds his own long enough to hit the Flying Asshole and a plancha but eventually the numbers (and Claudio’s briefcase) catch up to him and it’s up to the new face of FIP Erick Stevens to even the odds.
VS.
Before Stevens can get to the ring Claudio busts Cabana open with brass knuckles. Cabana hits a springboard crossbody but can’t get to Stevens to make the tag. Sweeney and Claudio hit a double vertical suplex for 2. They set Cabana up top but he fights them off and comes down with a dropkick. Stevens tags in and cleans house. Our heroes whip Claudio and Sweeney into each other and hit stereo short-arm clotheslines. They hit stereo DDTs and pin Claudio for the win at 9:19. The match was awkwardly thrown together and structured similarly. All four of these guys are competent enough but this was a clown show. It served no purpose and really should have been stuck in the middle of the card.
Rating: *¼
The 411:
The new venue gave the show a fresh feel. Other than that the show was pretty disappointing, especially after the great showing that was Unfinished Business 2007. Everything from the Briscoe segments through the World title match was entertaining, but nothing was really worth going out of your way to see. The World Championship match really should have been the main event, because the main event we were given made no sense to people who don't see the shows live. FIP DVDs are available at ROHWrestling.com and FullImpactpro.com.
