GFS defeated John Inch via Pin Fall (Starts at 05:04)
The first match was a fairly even encounter between True-1 Pro Intercontinental Champion GFS and a fairly eccentric newcomer in John Inch. Off the reputation of GFS going into the match, one would expect a fairly brief one-sided encounter but Inch more than held his own.
Somewhat surprisingly Inch controlled much of the opening moments of the match, out grappling GFS and making use of his clear technical talents. However, this control would be short-lived as GFS’s pure athletic superiority would allow him to take control of Inch.
This match was a great introduction for us to Inch, even though he was clearly outmatched by GFS in athleticism and experience, he made use of his uniquely technical offense to make up for his deficiencies where he could. Much of his control could be summed up to GFS’s underestimating of his opponent however Inch still capitalized on every opportunity he could to inflict damage on GFS. At one point GFS caught Inch with multiple gutwrench suplexes and attempted to land his signature elbow to end his opponent however Inch managed to reverse into an imploding suplex, showing some incredible strength not only to lift but to also toss GFS into the air as well as some impressive resilience to fight back after GFS’s barrage.
The end of the match would see Inch land a superkick on GFS however this only staggered him and as Inch went for a springboard maneuver GFS swatted him out the air with a brutal forearm strike. GFS would raise Inch back to his feet and leveled him with a Howling Elbow for the pinfall victory.
Match Rating:
This match was rated ***¾ (3.75 Stars) by the reviewers here at TIC, this match was a great introduction for us to Inch however GFS seemed slightly off his normal game. We expected GFS to pick up a swift brutal victory but were pleasantly surprised by a pretty even match. The match was good but not exceptional, it did both men well but nothing to make it the standout of the night, nonetheless we thoroughly enjoyed and look forward to seeing more from both men in Three Lions.
TJ Stark defeated Hans Hammerstein via Pin Fall (Starts at 24:08)
The second match on the card presented another intriguing clash of styles as “The Berlin Brutalizer” Hans Hammerstein faced “The Superior” TJ Stark. It was Stark’s more agile and fast-paced style versus Hammerstein’s freakish strength and technical brilliance.
The open moments of the match saw both men engage in a collar and elbow lockup which at first seemed like a miscalculation by Stark and commentary made it seem like Hammerstein would completely dominate the exchanges but this seems fairly evenly matched. It may have been an underestimation by Hammerstein or an uncharacteristic mistake on his part but he didn’t quite have the control in the opening moments that we expected.
As the match continued the differing styles and approaches of both men became more and more evident, while Stark would attempt to achieve victory with his agility and pace, Hammerstein relied purely on his technical abilities and strength. At one point Hammerstein would catch a diving Stark with a powerbomb before transitioning directly into a Boston Crab displaying both great strength and skill, moments like this throughout the match further reinforce the difference in approaches both men brought to this encounter. Stark would have moments of brilliance of his own throughout the match as well, flipping and diving around the ring and just purely outpacing Hammerstein but ultimately it was his underhanded desperate tactic which would see him to victory.
The end of the match would see Stark reverse a powerbomb position from Hammerstein with a flurry of punches before landing what commentary stated was his new finishing maneuver a Butterfly Powerbomb for the pinfall victory.
Match Rating:
This match was rated *** (3.00 Stars) by the reviewers here at TIC, it suffered from production issues with very muted audio and lapses in synchronization. The action was solid however there were lulls and some odd moments where the competitors behaved in contrast to the story they were attempting to establish. Stark is meant to be a desperate shell of a man who should have been outclassed by Hammerstein but the action of the match placed them as almost equals. Ultimately I also disagreed with the decision to have Stark win, I understand he is just being reintroduced to the Three Lions audience however if the story was to show desperation and a decline in his career having him lose could have built a much longer story of possible redemption or even a further decline into utter villainy. Nonetheless a solid showing by both men and again we look forward to seeing how they both progress from here in their respective careers.
JP Masters defeated Cole Renner to win the Three Lions World Championship
The main event of the evening saw JP Masters dethrone Cole Ranner as Three Lions World Champion after an almost 3-year reign. We expected a hard-hitting affair and weren’t disappointed as both men did their best to beat the other into submission.
Renner clearly had the size and power advantage but that was more than matched by Masters’ striking prowess. From beginning to end both men just wailed on each other not letting up till the other couldn’t continue. Renner made use of his strength to toss Masters around the ring and overwhelm him with the pure power of his offense but Masters relied on his experience and stuck to his advantages responding to Renner’s power with brutally efficient strikes.
Masters at one point would be caught with a pair of belly-to-belly suplexes by Renner who followed them up with a massive German suplex just tossing Masters around like a ragdoll. Masters would attempt to mount a comeback but the strength of Renner was just too much as he continued to toss him around the ring.
The end of the match would see Masters dodge a Black Skull Boot following with a flurry of strikes knocking Renner down before raising him back to his feet to finish him off with a brutal Spinning Heel Kick for the pinfall victory and the championship.
Match Rating:
This match was rated **** (4.00 Stars) by the reviewers here at TIC, what the commentator called an upset victory we saw as an inevitability. Renner has never faced someone the caliber of Masters, he was purely outmatched, he put up a valiant defense however it simply was not enough. A fantastic match capping off a solid show by Three Lions Wrestling.
Overall Show Rating:
Three Lions have come a long way since their first shows, the production quality has vastly improved however there is still much room for growth. Dips in audio and visual quality plagued the show, one major highlight of the show was the superb commentary throughout, we rate this episode ***½ (3.50 Stars). A solid showing by the company but we had a few disagreements with decisions made on the show as stated in the review nonetheless we look forward to more shows in the future.
Written By: Philip Nelson
Twitter: TodayInCAW
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