GCW: The New Face of War 2023
July 18, 2023
Shin-Kiba 1st Ring
Tokyo, Japan
Six Way Scramble: Minoru Fujita vs. Kikutaro vs. Gringo Loco vs. Jimmy Lloyd vs. Dragon Libre vs. Terry Yaki
Terry Yaki threw Kiku to the outside as the three GCW members paired off in the ring. Yaki got the best of both of them with an impressive series of ranas, but he was eventually caught with a handspring back elbow from Loco, followed by a military press that sent Yaki to the floor. Kiku returned to the ring and faced off with Loco. Kiku took him off his feet with a series of arm drags, followed by a low bridge. Fujita and Lloyd paired off and traded strikes in the center of the ring. Fujita took Lloyd off his feet with a flying shoulder tackle and cleared the house by removing Yaki from the apron. Lloyd tried to cut him off, but he found himself in a pinning predicament, which was broken up by Dragon Libre, who took to the air, clearing the house on the floor with a tope. Lloyd returned to the ring and attempted a dive, but Yaki caught up to him, DDT’d him on the apron, and executed a moonsault to the floor. Loco evaded Yaki and hit him with an inverted top rope splash, followed by a tope over the top, taking out everyone on the floor. This marked Terry Yaki’s debut in Japan and Loco’s first GCW tour in Japan. Loco stacked Libre up on the top rope and hit the base bomb while Lloyd executed a dive to the floor. Loco pinned Libre for the victory.
Gringo Loco wins the Scramble
Deathmatch: Daisuke Masaoka vs. Shane Mercer
Mercer began the match with a headlock followed by a powerful shoulder tackle. He hoisted Masaoka onto his shoulder, but Masaoka managed to escape. Masaoka attempted a rana on Mercer, who swiftly caught him and buckle-bombed him into a barbed wire board. Mercer picked up a chair and targeted Masaoka’s back and head, taking advantage of the barbed wire still wrapped around the champion. He scraped it across Masaoka’s forehead. Mercer executed a scoop slam, followed by a back elbow, resulting in the first near fall of the night. Mercer focused on the open wounds on Masaoka’s head, delivering a series of brutal forearms and smearing his blood across his own chest. Mercer slammed the champion with a brainbuster for another close near fall. The production team failed to white-balance their cameras.
Mercer threw Masaoka to the outside with a belly-to-belly suplex. Mercer attempted to maintain his momentum, but Masaoka pushed him into the ring post and hit him with a moonsault. In retaliation, Mercer unleashed an open-handed chop on Masaoka and rammed him back-first into the ring post. Mercer set up a chair and aimed for a powerbomb, but Masaoka managed to lift him onto his shoulders and sent Mercer crashing through the chair in a desperate move. Masaoka grabbed a handful of chairs and arranged them across Mercer’s chest, then climbed a ladder and leaped down onto Mercer. Remarkably, Mercer kicked out at a count of one.
Mercer tossed Masaoka into the air and slammed him down with a powerslam, resulting in another close near fall. Mercer delighted the sold-out crowd by military pressing Masaoka to the outside. Mercer brought Masaoka back into the ring and hit him with a moonsault and battery, yet Masaoka kicked out at the last possible moment. Mercer positioned Masaoka on the turnbuckle once again, but as he went for the Moonsault and Battery, Masaoka powered up and executed a sunset bomb, pinning Mercer for the victory.
Daisuke Masaoka Defeated Shane Mercer
Six-Man Tag Team Deathmatch: Mammoth Sasaki, Tomoya Hirata, and Toru Sugiura vs. John Wayne Murdoch and Los Macizos
Ciclope attempted to bring Sasaki down with a series of shoulder blocks. He managed to send Sasaki to the floor with a dropkick, while the other competitors grabbed tubes and smashed them over each other’s heads. Toru dropped Extremo to the floor with a dropkick and then wiped out everyone with a tope. Sasaki climbed onto the apron and executed a tumbleweed onto Team GCW. Freedoms isolated Ciclope in the ring, taking him down with a DDT and a spear. They overwhelmed Murdoch, who fought back valiantly until Hirata struck him on the head with a tube. Miedo came to his partner’s rescue, tossing Sasaki and Toru to the floor, and Murdoch followed up with a devastating sick kick on Hirata. Hirata interrupted a triple-team maneuver but was then booted to the floor by Miedo. Ciclope grabbed a pizza cutter from his backpack and swung at Sasaki, who retaliated with a cutter of his own. Sasaki sliced Ciclope, but Ciclope quickly returned the favor by attacking Sasaki’s head with the cutter. The only way for Sasaki to break free was to break a tube over Ciclope’s head.
Toru took a hit from a light tube and then received another blow to the head from Murdoch with a tube. Toru endured a piledriver but kicked out at a count of one and retaliated with a tube-assisted elbow strike on Murdoch. Miedo and Hirata faced off, with Hirata charging in with a bundle of tubes, but Miedo caught him with a back elbow, followed by knife strikes to the stomach and forehead. Hirata managed to kick out and responded with a series of forearm strikes across Miedo’s head, culminating in a German Suplex. Hirata wiped out everyone on the floor with a tope suicida. They rolled Miedo back into the ring, where Hirata slammed him with a powerslam. Murdoch reentered the ring, delivering a sick kick to Hirata, followed by a big dive off the apron. Toru found himself double-teamed by Los Macizos, who executed a doomsday device followed by a fire thunder driver to secure the victory.
Los Macizos and John Wayne Murdoch Defeated Mammoth Sasaki, Tomoya Hirata, and Toru Sugiura
Post Match: Violento Jack and Los Macizos hugged, Jack was the original third member of Los Macizos. The reunion didn’t last long as Jack took them both out with a lariat and cut a promo and challenged them to a fight tomorrow.
Tag Team Deathmatch: Charli Evans and Sawyer Wreck vs. GCW Ultraviolent Champion Rina Yamashita and Masha Slamovich
Charli and Masha initiated the match with a stiff lock-up, followed by a series of forearms. Charli delivered a powerful uppercut, but both competitors swung wildly, missing each other, and then tagged out to their partners. Sawyer attempted a test of strength, but Rina didn’t find it amusing and tossed Sawyer a chair. Sawyer was struck in the gut with a chair and then subjected to a brainbuster onto a stack of chairs. However, Charli intervened to make the save, and they double-teamed the champion, dumping her onto the chairs for a near fall. Rina slammed Charli onto the pile of chairs and proceeded to strike her across the head with one.
Masha and Rina collaborated in double-teaming Charli, with Masha executing a snap suplex for a close near fall. Charli rallied and delivered a running knee to Masha, followed by a Northern Lights suplex. Sawyer reentered the ring and unleashed a series of big forearm shots on Masha, concluding with a World’s Strongest Slam. Masha fought back, connecting with a spinning wheel kick, but it wasn’t enough to put Sawyer away. Rina returned to the ring and delivered a chair-assisted DDT on Sawyer. She then set up a barbed wire board in the corner, but Sawyer used Rina’s momentum against her and tossed her into the wire.
All four women exchanged shots and kicks in the center of the ring. Sawyer retrieved a gusset plate and handed one to Charli and the others. They all struck themselves in the head with the plates. Sawyer engaged in a headbutt exchange with Masha before facing off with Rina. They traded more forearm shots and headbutts. Sawyer seized a handful of skewers and drove them into Rina’s head. Sawyer tagged in Charli, who continued the assault on Rina, securing a close near fall and unleashing a series of kicks. However, Rina rallied, hitting Charli with a devastating Dead Eye. Rina turned Charli inside out with a lariat, but Charli managed to kick out. Charli gathered a bunch of chairs and piled them in the center of the ring, only to be met with a Splash Mountain from Rina, who pinned her for the victory.
Rina Yamashita and Masha Slamovich Defeated Charli Evans and Sawyer Wreck
GCW World Championship Match: Blake Christian (Champion) vs. Shigehiro Irie
Blake swiftly took down Irie but hesitated before kicking him across the chest. They reset, and Christian grabbed a waist lock while mocking Irie. In response, Irie told Christian to “suck it,” prompting Christian to deliver a boot to Irie’s chest. However, Irie caught Christian in mid-air during a running maneuver and slammed him with a powerslam followed by a splash.
Christian rallied with a dropkick and a kip up, teasing a dive but stopping to once again tell Irie to “suck it.” He rolled through a lariat attempt, kicked Irie across the chest, and took him down with a neckbreaker. Without missing a beat, Christian launched himself to the outside with a beautiful Fosbury Flop. He tossed Irie back into the ring, resulting in a close near fall.
Irie endured a couple of punches to the jaw from Christian and fought off a stomp, countering it with a black hole slam. Irie then executed a running cannonball that propelled Blake into the ropes, nearly securing another near fall. Christian evaded Irie with his lightning-quick speed, delivering a kick to the chest before sending him into the corner and hanging him up on the top rope. Christian faked a dive, tricking Irie, but instead kicked him in the head. Not to be outdone, Irie retaliated with a kick and steamrolled Christian to the floor with a running cannonball.
Christian surprised Irie with a back-handspring cutter. He climbed to the top rope but was met with a forearm strike and a second-rope fallaway slam from Irie, resulting in a two-count. Blake fired up and hit Irie with a springboard 450, but Irie once again managed to kick out. Irie leveled Christian with a series of lariats, but Christian tripped him up and landed the stomp to secure the victory.
Blake Christian Retained the GCW World Championship
Deathmatch: Masashi Takeda vs. Joey Janela
The match commenced with a lock-up as they both attempted to push each other into the tubes strung up in the ropes. They broke the hold and reset, with Janela gaining the advantage with a wrist lock, which was quickly reversed by Takeda. Janela tried to send Takeda into the ropes, but Takeda held up before eventually being sent chest-first into the tubes. As pieces of glass flew off Takeda’s chest, Joey delivered a chop. Takeda fired up and retaliated by sending Janela into the tubes, then proceeded to stab Joey in the forehead with the broken end of a tube. Takeda set up a bundle of tubes across two chairs and attempted to send Janela into them. Joey responded with a Razors Edge, crashing Takeda through the tubes and resulting in a close near fall.
Janela struck Takeda over the head with a steel chair and unleashed a series of forearms on him. Joey executed a suplex onto the broken glass, but Takeda still managed to kick out. Janela hit Takeda in the throat with a chair, followed by a series of chops and a tube across his head. Joey delivered a running forearm but was caught by a running dropkick that shattered a bundle of tubes across Janela’s chest. Takeda placed a chair across Joey’s head and struck him with another chair. Joey was bleeding heavily from his forearm due to the dropkick spot, but he still managed to fire up and hit Takeda with a series of forearms on the apron. They continued to battle on the apron, with Janela attempting a Death Valley Driver, but Takeda escaped and unleashed a brutal Dragon Suplex on the ring apron. Janela kicked out, but took his time to recover, giving Takeda the opportunity to set up a series of chairs in the center of the ring, along with a ladder in the corner. Takeda placed Joey on the chairs and climbed to the top of the ladder. Janela struck Takeda with a palm strike, stunning him. Joey grabbed a bundle of tubes and placed them across the chairs. They fought on top of the ladder, with Janela taking Takeda over and sending him crashing through the chairs and tubes.
They exchanged tube shots in the center of the ring, with Takeda unloading on Joey with a giant bundle. Joey grabbed a bundle of his own and struck Takeda across the head with it. Janela was caught with a knee to the jaw, but managed to catch the second one and hit Takeda with a Death Valley Driver for an extremely close near fall. Joey had to get his arm taped up while Takeda attempted to recover in the corner. Janela delivered a brainbuster to Takeda and placed a bundle of tubes on him. Takeda got up and swung with the tubes, but Janela connected with a back fist, followed by a spinebuster onto the glass. Joey kicked out and hit Takeda with a superkick, followed by a package piledriver for another close near fall. Joey and Takeda traded forearms, with neither man budging. Takeda tried to duck a clothesline, but Janela still landed it and was caught with a combination of punches. Takeda placed a chair and tubes across Joey’s chest, climbed to the top of the ladder, and crashed down with a Swanton. Joey kicked out, but Takeda broke a tube across Joey’s mouth and planted him back-first on an open chair. Joey once again kicked out. Takeda broke a bunch of tubes over his own head and planted Joey on the broken glass with a backdrop driver for the victory.
Masashi Takeda Defeated Joey Janela
