RIPTIDE RECAP: INTERNATIONAL WATERS
I'll be revealing the outcome of every match followed by a few thoughts about each one in general, but I'll hold back on some of the details so that when you watch it on Riptide On Demand - you'll at least get some surprises!
MATCH 1: Money vs Everybody (Damon Moser & Chris Ridgeway) vs Toni Storm & Bea Priestley - BCT Qualifier
RESULT: Money vs Everybody win via Referee Stoppage (Submission)
- Great opener, exactly the right amount of each wrestling ingredient to get the crowd going early on.
- Always great to have wrestlers as talented as Toni & Bea in Riptide. I have a feeling we won't see them all the regularly given how often they work elsewhere, but nice to get them down here now and again.
- Of course Spike was with Money vs Everbody in his usual supervisory role. Could it be that he doesn't trust his lackeys to get the job done unless he's personally there to make sure?
- I don't think the result was ever really in doubt, but testament to all four participants that there were some genuinely believable near falls.
- Toni & Bea got hit with a double 'Chair Thing' following the bell. Maybe someone could come up with a good counter to it - seeing as they do it every show!
- The hatred towards MvsE seems not to waver event on event, but it'd be nice to see them get their comeuppance soon, at least in some way. Part of that heel heat for me is that they have to slink off or dodge a run-in now and again.
RESULT: Charlie Morgan wins via Pinfall
- Flash started off essentially running away from Charlie. I mean I get - she's tough. Maybe at this point we shouldn't expect anything more from 'The Modfather' in Riptide - as he seems to enjoy playing the cowardly heel.
- Once the action did get started there were some really good back and forth exchanges, and you could see why the WWE has these two on their books.
- Towards the end of the match there was what I believe was a superplex spot, but unfortunately both competitors seemed to land awkwardly - Charlie in particular on her head/neck/shoulder. The referee Aaren checked them and you could see some back and forth conversation with Charlie looking pretty uncomfortable. The match continued briefly, but there was a roll-up victory shortly afterwards - so I'd guess that might not have been the original finish.
- After the bell Flash snuck out and collected Arabella (his helmet), re-entered the ring, and hit Charlie on the back with it. In a weird way I saw that as a good sign as I don't believe that angle would have happened if Charlie was seriously hurt. Storyline-wise though, Flash seems to be another flaky bad guy who can go round injuring people with foreign objects with apparent impunity. Come on faces - show yourselves!
RESULT: Aussie Open win via Pinfall
- The Aussie Open guys were back after a few months away - hooray! Think it's safe to say that the Riptide crowd would like those two to stay together as a team (looking at you FCP).
- Part of the attraction of the challenge is that the opponents remain a mystery, and who doesn't love a good mystery! We weren't disappointed either as out came TK & Travis - SPPT were in the house, and it appeared to have become a good old AUS vs NZ grudge match.
- However, we were disappointed moments later when Grey and Chapman decided they wanted in too.
- This was actually a really really enjoyable match. I mean was there a lot of official tagging going on - no, but there was a hell of a lot of action and a ton of laughs.
- I particularly enjoyed Chapman being chopped to pretty much death and the spots where he and Grey were essentially tricked into attacking each other. I mean who wants to take a chop from any of the other four guys in that match - not anyone with half a brain that's who!
- Chapman and Grey actually have really good chemistry. I'm not necessarily saying they have titles or a winning run in their future, but the way they play off each other works really well in the role they play for Riptide.
- Aussie Open are absolute beasts, I'm not actually sure who can beat them at the moment within the confines of Riptide, although a match between them and MvsE would appeal massively to me - if only to see Moser or Ridgeway take some of the brutal damage Chapman did to conclude this match.
- Chapman lay in the ring for a good few minutes after he was hit with 'Close Your Eyes and Count to F*ck' by Davis - in such an exemplary display of selling I think he may appear on the next series of the Apprentice.
RESULT: Cara Noir & Millie McKenzie remain & advance to the BCT
- It's hard to make a lasting impression in a scramble, but I felt all the debutantes were well received. It'd be nice if we could get them all back in singles/tag bouts so we can see a little bit more of what they can do.
- Having said that, everyone seemed to get a spot or two in which is really all you can ask for in a match like this.
- I think most people probably expected the outcome, given that it would have seemed odd to have a newbie jump straight into the BCT, plus the Progress US Tour will likely feature Lykos and Jinny meaning they would be unavailable anyway. I wasn't disappointed though as I wanted Millie in the BCT from the get go and Cara needs to pay off his story line with Candy Floss - who has already qualified.
- Speaking of Cara he was his usual creepy self during and after this match - even bringing out a pink wig so he could dress Millie up as Candy. Not sure what the motivation behind this is, whether he wants her to be his girlfriend, whether he wants to destroy her, or something else. Will be interesting to see how this feud develops.
RESULT: Mambo wins via Disqualification
- Lots of cheers and chants for both of these guys. We still love Eddie in Riptide and until he does something to make us think otherwise, that will continue. Mambo of course is basically one of our own at this point.
- Some really great back and forth grappling between these two. Mambo might not be universally known for his technical wrestling, but he's shown recently he can hang with the best of them - and that includes Eddie.
- The action was building really well right up until the conclusion. I feel like we got three quarters of a match which makes my overall reaction a little bittersweet.
- The disqualification itself occurred when the presumed dead (not literally) Kurtis Chapman snuck up on Mambo and smashed him over the head with a computer keyboard. He and Grey then set about Chuck and Eddie attacking them over and over again mumbling something about respect. I could barely hear it over the boos to be honest.
- My gut says this is maybe a set up for Chapman or Grey to be added into the BCT as a wildcard - with Mambo demanding he gets one of them as revenge. If not then I'm not sure where this is going, but as always with Riptide I trust the process.
- Boy oh boy would I love to see a rematch though with both guys 100% full tilt, and no outside interference - this bout really whet my appetite for such an encounter.
RESULT: Walter wins via Submission
- This match was voted on Twitter as the most anticipated bout at this event - and wow did it not disappoint.
- Credit to both men that although the match promised a David vs Goliath battle, it was worked in such a way that it became a more even contest over time - with Walter's brutal chops matched by Speedball's ferocious kicks.
- The action went all-round the ring and into the crowd where Bailey landed an incredible standing moonsault on the camera platform. For sure one of the craziest spots in Riptide so far.
- This was just one of those spectacles you couldn't take you eyes off, stiff as hell, back-and forth, non-stop, no backing down. It was probably one of the closest things to an actual fight that I've ever seen in BritWres.
- For my money - the new match of the promotion. Go out of your way to see it on demand if you weren't there to witness it live. It received (I believe) the first standing ovation from the Riptide crowd - most of whom are stood already of course, but this even had the people in the seats on their feet too!
- Speedball now has arguably two of the best three matches in Riptide history. It might be recency bias, but I thought this slightly topped his previous bout with Travis Banks. Incredible really.
- Walter really is a beast, I'm not sure who's going to be able to stop him in the BCT to be honest - I guess someone who isn't afraid to cheat to bring the big guy down.
RESULT: Devlin wins via Referee Stoppage (Submission)
- This was a fine tilt, nothing wrong with it whatsoever, but the crowd just seemed exhausted by the previous match and the heat. Consequently it felt a little flat to me.
- Devlin was well received to begin with although he developed into the heel role as time went on. Even as the bad guy though, I'm not sure the Finn Balor chants are warranted. I don't want to tell people what to say, but it feels like that one should be let go at this point.
- Action itself was really crisp, some good technical exchanges and Jack got some of his signature impact spots in.
- The finish came as Devlin locked in a seemingly innocuous submission in. Jack fought it and was reaching for the ropes when referee Shay (or should it be Shame) called for the bell! Turns out he was in the employ of one Spike Trivet - and the screw job was complete.
- No suggestion Devlin was in on it, but he qualifies for the BCT nonetheless - bring Moth with you please Jordan.
- After this heinous act went down Shay took his pay packet and slunk off, whilst Moser and Ridgeway hit the ring. They proceeded to restrain Sexsmith whilst Spike spouted off about how clever he was and how he wasn't going to let Jack anywhere near the BCT. He's no threat if he isn't there - type of thing.
- We obviously haven't heard the last of this. Whether there is any minor/major expansion on the feud during BCT I'm not sure (scheduling with Jack), but we could be leading to some sort of ultimate battle later in the year.
RESULT: Brookes wins via Referee Stoppage (Submission)
- This match felt a little subdued too, which given the personnel involved was slightly disappointing. There were several factors and I don't really lay the blame on Brookes or Tanizaki to be honest.
- The bout seemed quite short for a main event - not sure if that was because Chris has been ill (if so respect to him for even competing), or if it was because we were approaching the end of the show/curfew. The fans had also just come off an incredibly brutal 'match of the promotion' candidate followed by another match, followed by a highly emotive promo. That plus the heat meant we still weren't on top form either.
- Overall the action itself was pretty good. You could tell both men were (and are) technically very skilled - Tanizaki had some brutal kicks in particular.
- Lykos got involved a few times too up to his old antics. He may do some questionable things in the name of securing a win for CCK, but I'm glad that s*t wolf is back.
- I felt as a stand-alone contest it was solid enough, but I guess we maybe expected a bit more, maybe too much - but in my opinion a combination of factors affected the reception more so than anything anyone did or didn't do in particular.
- After the match Brookes said he had an announcement, the middle of which we wouldn't like, but hopefully by the end we'd feel better. I kinda knew at this point what he was going to say - he's out of the BCT because of scheduling (blummin' Progress!) - and that was indeed the case. However, he also announced his replacement in the BCT would be none other that JONAH ROCK! Awesome news - although Brookes will be missed.
- Several wrestlers throughout the show, in print media, and on podcasts - have referenced how much Riptide means to them and how they all enjoy coming to Brighton and performing for the promotion. I honestly believe, from what I have heard personally, that this is absolutely true. What a testament to all that work for Riptide that someone as established as Chris Brookes will stand in the ring at the end of the show and say that Riptide is genuinely one of the best promotions in the country, a place he loves to work, and how much he respects the fans. I for one couldn't agree more!
- The heat was a factor overall, especially following the brutal Walter vs Speedball bout. That absolute war really took it out of us and in some ways we could never recover enough energy to truly get going for the final two matches. That would be my one and only real criticism of International Waters - we got an incredible main event, but not in the main event slot, so everything that went on subsequently seemed a little flat.
- After the show there was an unexpected medical situation where a fan became ill. From my understanding it was dealt with calmly and professionally by Riptide staff, the person in question was treated and able to recover sufficiently to make his way home. Massive round of applause and a ton of respect to all involved!
- There may have been logistical or operational reasons for any number of things that happened at International Waters and goodness knows stuff happens that isn't supposed to. I just want to be clear that as someone who would not be aware of those potential issues at the time, these were my initial feelings and reactions.
- Overall I thought was probably the second or third best event in Riptide history and that is something everyone involved should be immensely proud of!
If you haven't already, do check out our interviews with the legend that is Chuck Mambo & stand-out Riptide referee Aaren Wilde, which we have published in recent weeks.
As always if you'd like to talk or debate any of the subjects mentioned, come find us on Twitter @RiptideWresFans
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