Results ~ March 19th, 2022

[Dustin Salyers]

NWA Reign
March 19th, 2022 [Saturday] @ Grady Cole Center in Charlotte, NC
2,389 Spectators

1. PAC & Rush vs. Karl Anderson & Johnny Gargano
>Winner: Rush (11:22) following a backdrop driver on Anderson
~ Much better opener than last week but the Anderson loss seemed to leave the crowd wanting more. Rush is creating more heat with every appearance and brought the crowd to a roar by cutting a promo in Spanish, just to switch to English near the end to promise to embarrass Anderson next week.

2. Jack Brisco Memorial Block Match: AJ Styles vs. Bobby Roode
>Winner: Styles (15:33) with the Phenomenal Forearm
~ Styles scores his first points in the block while Roode continues to look to get on track.

3. Jack Brisco Memorial Block Match: Bandido vs. Zack Sabre Jr.
>Winner: Draw (30:00) Time limit expired
~ Definitely an unexpected finish for the third match of the night but the crowd seemed to love the clash of styles and the near falls that ensued. Sabre worked over Bandido’s left leg with his unique offense of old school holds, forcing Bandido to favor the leg the remainder of the match and hindering his offense and notably his ability to capitalize when he had an opportunity to secure a victory. Sabre gains his first point and Bandido moves to the top of the block at this point.

4. Briscoe Brothers vs. Hermanos Oscuros
>Winner: Mark (18:56) following a leg hook brainbuster on Pentagon Jr.
~ Really competitive match, though the fans were solidly behind the debuting luchadors given what happened last week. The Mechanics returned the favor shortly after the match ended though, getting a huge pop when they jumped the guardrail and slid into the ring, creating a brawl that lasted several minutes and tore up the entire ringside area. Several officials eventually pulled them apart and threats were being thrown back and forth when everything was interrupted by Matt Jackson. The Young Bucks had come to the ring during the scrum and now Matt had a microphone and made it clear that the Briscoes weren’t going to jump the line for an NWA North Carolina Tag Team Championships match. Matt pointed out that Mark & Jay may have a notch under their belt now, but they haven’t beaten the Bucks… with Nick then pointing out that they haven’t even beaten O’Reilly & Fish. Matt challenges the Briscoes to meet them next week and Nick follows by challenging the Mechanics to defend the belts against the winners before the Jim Crockett Sr. Memorial Tournament. Everyone seemed in agreement as intermission was announced.

5. Jay White & Kota Ibushi vs. Adam Page & Xavier Woods
>Winner: Woods (13:30) following a fireman’s carry cutter on Ibushi
~ Really good match to come back with after intermission with White and Page focusing on each other much of the match, even brawling at ringside when the finish happened and for several moments after.

6. Jack Brisco Memorial Block Match: Prince Devitt vs. Roderick Strong
>Winner: Devitt (23:52) with the Devitt’s End
~ Could have been the match of the night if not for the time limit draw earlier as both men worked extremely stiff before Strong was forced to quickly submit. Devitt pulls ahead of the entire block with 4 points while Strong falls to the bottom.

7. Jack Brisco Memorial Block Match: Adam Cole vs. Kazuchika Okada
>Winner: Okada (21:44) with the Rainmaker
~ Very good back and forth match with the crowd seemingly split until near the end when Cole seemed to pull more support with his resilience as he refused to stay down for the count of three. Okada maintains pace with Devitt at the top of the block while Cole falls back to the middle of the pack.

8. NWA North Carolina Ladies Championship Tournament Quarterfinal Match: Charlotte Flair vs. Mia Yim
>Winner: Flair (19:25) with the Figure Eight
~ Seemed to be the biggest pop of the night as Flair may be the most over talent in the territory at this point and the match was worked extremely well. Yim used several underhanded tricks and stalling at ringside to garner heat, allowing the action to spill to the floor several times. A couple of close near falls and a rope break on a pin near the end created false finish pops and built well to the finish, which saw Yim scream out in a pain and immediately submit once Charlotte locked in the Figure Eight.


Jack Brisco Memorial Block

1. Prince Devitt - 4 points (2-0)
1. Kazuchika Okada - 4 points (2-0)
3. Bandido - 3 points (1-0-1)
4. Adam Cole - 2 points (1-1)
4. AJ Styles - 2 points (1-1)
6. Zack Sabre Jr. - 1 point (0-1-1)
7. Bobby Roode - 0 points (0-2)
7. Roderick Strong - 0 points (0-2)

[magnusd]

Another solid show here, Devitt and Okada look like the men to beat in this block, but with the talent here I could see someone like Cole or Styles getting a run together as the tournament goes on. The tag match was my favourite of the night and honestly both of those teams could be good fits for the NWA World Tag Titles down the line. Charlotte winning in the main event was the right call I'd say, and I could see her going all the way with how well booked she has been in your early shows.

[joe]

It was good to see Styles get a win here. The Bandido/ZSJ match is one I would like to see. Nice win for Xavier Woods in the tag match; I was genuinely surprised there. Seemed like a lot of riff raff and drama at the end of that tag team match, but the Briscoes are stirring the pot and we are going to get some great matches out of it. Flair is looking strong, and I would have really liked to have seen that match as well, as I am a big fan of Yim.

[jp1985]

Some of these tag team match pairings are almost as interesting as the tournament itself. PAC & Rush would be cool to see together. I thought that maybe with their tag experience with other partners that Karl Anderson & Johnny Gargano might pull it out!

Good wins for AJ Styles and Prince Devitt, and it has me curious for Bobby Roode vs Roderick Strong just to see who gets the win between them.

The time limit draw caught me by surprise and if it comes down to one win for Bandido or Zack Sabre Jr., then they have that to blame! In the standings, you're missing a loss for Sabre from the last show (I think at least).

The tag team division here has seen some good story telling so far. The Briscoe Brothers get a big win here but they've got a loaded schedule with The Young Bucks, a potential title shot with The Mechanics, and then The Crockett Cup. That's a lot of wins they'll need without any losses as every win is important.

I liked seeing Xavier Woods get the fall in the second tag team match.

Adam Cole and Kazuchika Okada seems like the match of the night and I don't know if anybody in that block can beat Okada. Still a long way to go though.

It's good to see Charlotte Flair get treated like a star in Charlotte. The women's division here has some great competition but Charlotte seems like the one to beat in that tournament.

[Dustin Salyers]

Thanks for the heads up on the Sabre standings... and all the comments guys.