PRO WRESTLING FUJIWARA-GUMI SHOW #15 8/15/92

Jerry Flynn v. Yuki Ishikawa

TKG: Ok they have been using this down scoring system where three rope breaks equals a knock down for almost a year know and still no one has won due to the scoring, but here Ishikawa gets his third knock down after already having two rope breaks and there is a pop for the third rope break that gives him 4 knock downs. So I'm assuming that it takes five knock downs to be a technical KO as the crowd just starts to stir.They don't go to 5 but really crowd stirring suggested to me that that was the goal. First time I can remember the crowd really popping for the scoring in PWFG. This is short and pretty one sided but Flynn's stuff looks good. Ishikawa's scrambling looks good and there may be no one better than Ishikawa at standing up at nine.

PAS: Ishikawa is still working like outclassed rookie, I assume when everyone leaves and forms Pancrase he becomes more competitive. I enjoy him as a spunky underdog, but I can't wait until he starts dishing out the beatings instead of just taking them.

Georgi Galdava v. Johnny Barett

TKG: I'm guessing Galdava is a Russian who wasn't good enough to be used in New Japan. Perhaps he was just Hashimikov's personal assistant making money on the side. He has this parted haircut that makes him look like a cantor. He is wearing a singlet with full on Borat chest hair. Just giant rat pubes coming off his chest. Barett is Barett. And this is competitive Baret match. This is kind of worked like a gaijin version of a Nakano v. Anjoh match. Galdava is constantly taking cheap shots throughout this. He gets caught in ahold goes for rope break. they are forced to break and Galdava cheap shots Barett on the break. Galdava gets Barett in a hold , Baret goes for ropes. they are forced to break and immediately Galdava cheap shots Barett again. Either way Barett is going to get hit with a cheap shot and Baret is just awesome with his slow burn. This is really fun and I look forward to seeing more Galdava.

PAS: The opening parts of this were really like worked amateur wrestling, and were very cool. Then Galdava keeps cheap shotting Barett untill he explodes and lays in some really nice looking headbutts and slaps, and then it is mostly Galdava fending off Barett until he catches him in a crucifix choke for the tap. I really want to see the boot camp rematch.

Yoshiaki Fujiwara v. Mark Rush

PAS: When I got all of this Fujiwara-Gumi I was hoping that the promotion would be like WAR, a fun undercard headlined by a big main event, with Fujiwara in the Tenryu role. Instead for the most part Funaki and Suzuki have been main eventing and Fujiwara has been working mostly fun midcard matches. This however was a midcard match worked like a big main event. Rush is an amateur guy who kind of has a circus strongman look, and this was worked like a match against a circus strongman amateur. Rush could take Fujiwara down at will, and really punish him on the ground with strength holds, chokes, body vices, bear hugs. While Fujiwara would be trying to maneuver him into joint locks and submissions. Very cool story and really well executed, the first time I have seen Rush in a complete wrestling match, and a really hidden gem for Fujiwara fanatics.

TKG: Yeah this had a real main event feel. And I like Phil's mention of carny circus stuff as this was built all around chokes/sleepers/front chanceries like a battle for Weaver lock. There is this one odd section in it where Fujiwara is caught in a choke tries to escape and then just starts to drool, and it's amazingly dramatic and you think that its a finish but for some reason its counted as a down and Fujiwara is given a ten count to get back to his feet. Fujiwara gets back up and its on again. Odd to count passing out in a sleeper as a down but once you get past that, it really works nicely in this.

Ken Shamrock v. Kazuo Takahashi

PAS: Takahashi is more Sam Houston and less George South here as he gets a couple of jobber near falls, before succumbing to Shamrock. Takahashi continues to be awesome at selling a KO as he has to flex his knees after the first knockdown to see if he can stand.

TKG: Yeah so earlier I was pimping Ishikawa as guy who was great at standing up at nine. Then I watch this where Takahashi stands up facing the wrong direction and has to flex his legs. Shamrock has cycled down a bit from last couple of shows.

Masakatsu Funaki v. Ryuji Yanagasawa

PAS: This was more boring Funaki. He looks completely disinterested here, as he is Scott Hall at a 1999 WCW house show level disinterested. There is one mat shift that really looks like he is demonstrating it in slow motion to a white belt ju-jitsu class.

TKG: This was listless. I mean short and one sided. But well Shamrock vs. Takahashi was exciting and engaging. This was like watching someone knit. Not like a novice knitter who has to concentrate and count stitches and slips and curses. More like watching an old woman do it by rote just to keep fingers busy while watching TV.

Joe Malenko v. Minoru Suzuki

PAS: Joe Malenko baby. Malenko is so smooth in everything he does. Just awesome to watch him roll on the mat. His selling of kick is really awesome too. The match is broken up by rounds, and I think that hurts the flow of the match. Feels like it would have been better as one match, although they did a nice job of having the rounds break up near falls.

TKG: I liked the rounds as they did a couple of one guy loosing momentum saved by the bell stops, followed by the next round starting where no one has advantage at the start. . Malenko and Suzuki working each other on the mat was just neat to watch. And well Malenko sells stuff like he's frustrated. It's not that he's just in pain but that he's also frustrated that body can't take the pain. like he expects more of himself. Neat.