DAM Promotions crowned their first champions at the Holt Community Centre last night, in a six team tournament for the DAM Tag-Team Championship, as well as crowning their first DAM Open Champion.
DAM Tag-Team Title Tournament - 1st Round
THE NEW BREED v 2 FAST 2 FURIOUS
With the team of Swift Justice withdrawing from the tournament at the last minute, the New Breed team of Ashe and Curve faced the new team of The Kraft and the masked Red Helmet in the opening round of the tag-team tournament.
Despite the fact that this was probably the first time they had teamed together, Kraft and Red put up a very good showing against the more experienced team in a pretty even contest. One good moment from the new when Kraft lifted one of his opponents into a suplex, and Red came flying off the top rope with a cross-body block. A fluid double-team move, and a little unexpected from this "rookie" team.
The New Breed emerged victorious from this bout though. As Ashe lifted Red onto his shoulders, Curve came off the top rope with a reverse DDT to gain the victory and entry into the three team final. Probably the best match I've seen from the New Breed in a long time.
THE COALMINERS v THE VAN KUNDERS
The visiting team from the Netherlands immediately got the fans going with their flamboyant gimmick, which was somewhat off-putting for their opponents, who were more concerned with avoiding Mot & Bas's advances than trying to put on a wrestling match.
Another evenly fought contest here saw the foreign team emerge as winners, and impressing the fans with their wrestling skills. The win came when Mot climbed onto his brother's shoulders, and then came down on Miner D with a leg drop. A good show from the Van Kunders here.
THE ESSEX BOYS v THE U.K. PITBULLS
The final match of the first round saw the visiting Essex Boys team of Paul Tyrell and Phil Powers take on the local heroes, Big Dave Waters and the Bulk.
The Essex Boys had their game plan down pat, as they worked over Big D's leg for extended periods of the contest, realising that if the strongman couldn't stand he couldn't unleash any of his power moves. But with his local crowd cheering him on, Dave eventually made the tag to the Bulk, which led to him pinning Powers after a Bulkishi Driver.
DAM Open Title - Number One Contenders Match
THE ZEBRA KID v "THE RENEGADE ANGEL" ASHLEY DARKO
The second half of the show began with a back-and-forth, hard hitting contest between one of the top three wrestlers in the country right now and one of Britain's top young stars.
The Zebra Kid and Ashley Darko gave it their all, unleashing move after move on each other in an excellent contest which saw both men almost gain the win on a number of occasions. It was a great bout to watch, and the fans were totally enthralled by the action.
The Zebra Kid won the bout, and the number one contenders spot, with a top rope elbow drop, otherwise known as the Zebra Crossing. Both men should be commended for their efforts in this contest. This is quite possibly the best match I've seen on a DAM show in their two years of operation.
Vacant DAM Open Championship
"ROWDY" RICKY KNIGHT v HOT STUFF
Having discovered who the number one contender for the title was, we soon found out who the champion actually was in another great singles bout pitting the two old rivals against each other.
Once again, the visiting Rowdy Man endeared himself to the crowd with some well thought out comments about the local community that had the fans literally baying for his blood as the contest began. As usual, Knight used every underhanded trick in the book against his younger opponent, but as usual, Hot Stuff was a true fighting man, not one to back down.
However, Knight's games eventually took their toll on Hot Stuff, as he won the match and the championship after Hot Stuff tapped out to a Boston Crab, having been on the receiving end of a low blow moments earlier. As Knight celebrated his title triumph, Hot Stuff contested the decision. As usual, Knight claimed total innocence.
Vacant DAM Tag-Team Championship
THE NEW BREED v THE VAN KUNDERS v THE U.K. PITBULLS
The three team elimination final for the vacant tag-team titles saw the Pitbulls once again showing just how dominant they are as a team as they defeated both combinations to become the first DAM Tag-Team Champions.
As the bout began, both teams tried to double-up on their larger opponents, but it wasn't enough as the big men took all four of them down with choke-slams. After some good exchanges from all three teams, the New Breed were the first team eliminated after Bulk pinned Curve following a Pitbulls Power bomb.
The Pitbulls then showed that they weren't going to make the same mistake the Coalminers had earlier, and were not put off by the Van Kunders's mind games. It eventually led to Bulk pinning Mot Van Kunder following the devastating looking legdrop/big splash combo. A three count later, and the Pitbulls had what could be the first of two title wins this weekend.
In conclusion, a great night of wrestling action in North Norfolk, and probably the best DAM show since the company began two years ago. They've carved out a niche and a good fan following in the area. Of course, the very vocal crowd also made for a good night, and it was all for a good cause as the proceeds from the show went to the Norfolk Air Ambulance appeal.
Match of the night, of course, goes to the hard-hitting encounter between the Zebra Kid and Ashley Darko. I've looked forward to seeing these two go at it in a singles match for ages. Now I've seen one, I'm looking forward to seeing more.
And who can forget the Van Kunders, eh? I certainly won't!
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