Forever Forward Fridays

Mike Santana (c) VS Penta El Zero Miedo - HOG World Championship 3/2/2024

JJZ: So, while watching this match I got such strong ECW vibes. The energy from the crowd lead to Penta and Santana kinda wrestling to just pop the crowd with every spot. Which they did very well. No real psychology other than giving the paying customer what they wanted. Santana is an interesting wrestler. He doesn't look like he'd be as athletic as he is. I would assume a New Jack style from him but dude can go. Penta is always a treat to watch. My guy has such charisma in the ring. Not gonna lie I wasn't crazy about the finish but I left this match more satisfied than disappointed.

CJD: These two did a great job making this match and the promotion feel big. I'll agree with you on Santana and take it one step further, I never imagined he could be The Guy like he is in this match. But he is every bit the HOG Ace with a capital A here, you buy in completely and so do these fans. I know I'm in the minority but I'm not a big Penta fan. The one area I can't knock him is in that X factor, and this match brought that. This was highly entertaining, and for me the finish and post match was kind of a pleasant surprise. It felt like late 90s tv, maybe a little bit of an ECW vibe like you said. A little out of control and takes you on a ride. Everyone played their part really well and the crowd was rabid. I thought this was a great pick even if the match had aspects that left us both wanting. Not always a bad thing! Very curious where I want to go with Zero Miedo.

Forever Forward Fridays

Shelton Benjamin VS Mike Santana - Prestige Wrestling 7/12/2024

CJD: I wasn't sure if I was going to play this one forward. There's some awkward moments and I wish Prestige didn't telegraph that the finish of their uploads is just about to happen. I like everything else about their production, and I know it's for music rights. But still!! This match won out for me though because it had a really fun energy. In some ways it reminded me of a  2002 ROH undercard. Random pairings you don't know what to expect from that hit at least a couple of really memorable highlight kinda moments. And get you genuinely invested by the end to see who wins and how. So basically good bread and butter indies wrestling. Steaming hot rolls with a nice warm cup of soup on a crisp October morning. You get what I'm laying down JJZ?? I'm very tired this morning but I enjoyed this match with my thermos of coffee as a little pick me up and I think you'll enjoy it too.

JJZ: Man you are right. I could totally picture this at the Murphy Rec Center. Definitely a little clumpy at times but entertaining as fuck. The crowd wasn't packed but I got the feeling from them that they appreciated the effort Santana and Benjamin put forth. They did a good job of building to the big pop moments. Showing off good fundamental wrestling early. I've been a fan of Mike Santana since seeing him in AEW. Feel like be he always over performed when I didn't expect him to. Nice little yin and yang over these last couple matches.