Wrestler of the Day – December 13: Low Ki
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Crash vs. Loki
JAPW Light Heavyweight Title: Low Ki vs. Minoru Fujita vs. Xavier
Low Ki is defending and also holds the JAPW Heavyweight Title. Xavier was an early ROH World Champion but never really did anything anywhere else. This is turned into a three way dance before the match but I could barely understand what Low Ki was saying due to bad audio. Xavier mocks Fujita for being Japanese and gets double teamed for his efforts. A nice DDT sends him out to the floor but Low Ki jumps Fujita and sends him out onto Xavier.
Xavier talks trash but Ki kicks him from the hold and everyone is down. Back up and Xavier throws Ki out to the floor before hitting a pumphandle facebuster for two on Fujita. Everyone is back in now as Xavier loads up a neckbreaker on Fujita, only to have Ki kick him in the face, knocking Fujita to the floor in the process. The Ki Crusher to Xavier retains the title.
Low Ki would also be the first ROH World Champion. Since I have no interest in covering the 60 minute Iron Man match that he won to become champion, here he is at a show called Road to the Title on June 22, 2002.
Amazing Red vs. Low Ki
The Infrared (corkscrew moonsault) misses and Ki just nails him with a European uppercut. The Ki Crusher into the corner sends Red crashing out to the floor. Back in and Red blasts him with an elbow to the jaw but his super hurricanrana is countered into a top rope Ki Crusher for the pin.
Low Ki would head to TNA and appear in its first ever match. He would also appear in the main event of the second show ever for the first X-Division Title on June 26, 2002.
X Title: AJ Styles vs. Jerry Lynn vs. Low Ki vs. Psicosis
Lynn immediately clotheslines AJ down and hits the Cradle Piledriver to give him his first loss. This took less than ten seconds.
Both guys are down for a bit before they head to the corner. We get a pinfall reversal sequence which would make Flair and appropriately enough Steamboat jealous. There are about ten near falls in a minute and they clothesline each other to put both guys down again. They head to the floor and Lynn hits a WICKED Irish Whip into the barricade to send Styles flying.
Rating: A. This was AWESOME and a total star making performance for AJ. Matches like this one were the ones that got the company on the map (eventually) and this was excellent even ten years later. Lynn vs. AJ was the first big feud as they would go at it for months, over that title and another one eventually. Great stuff here and an actual new idea for a match.
He had another shot at the title at Weekly PPV #8 on August 7, 2002.
X-Division Title: Low Ki vs. AJ Styles vs. Jerry Lynn
Low Ki is sent to the apron but he slingshots in to roll up Jerry as Jerry German suplexes AJ which gets a double two count. Cool spot. Lynn and Low Ki chop it out as AJ is down. AJ tries a suplex on Low Ki but gets caught in a Dragon Sleeper. Lynn tries for a save but gets caught in the same hold. Jerry suplexes Low Ki down but AJ saves. AJ goes up but Jerry DDTs him off the top for two.
Styles and Low Ki slug it out but Low Ki kicks him in the face to take over. AJ hits his moonsault into the reverse DDT for two and then loads up a superplex on Low Ki but Jerry turns it into a Tower of Doom for two. All three guys get an awesome looking rollup for two, followed by AJ and Lynn trading very close two counts again. Low Ki rolls up Lynn, but Jerry kicks out, sending Low Ki into the Styles Clash position. Jerry breaks it up for some reason but the setup looked good.
From May 7, 2003. Triple X is Elix Skipper/Low Ki and the winners go on to a #1 contenders match later tonight. Brown and Low Ki trade strikes to start until Brown grabs a slam and drops some elbows. A blind tag brings in AJ for a springboard missile dropkick and a knee drop for two. Low Ki has to kick someone before he explodes so he takes over with a cartwheel kick.
Ki spent a lot of time in Japan, including this match in Pro Wrestling Noah on August 28, 2004.
Low Ki vs. Kotaro Suzuki
They shake hands to start and Ki backs him up to the ropes for a clean break. A hammerlock has Ki in trouble but he spins out into a wristlock, only to have Suzuki do the same to him. They try a test of strength with neither guy maintaining an advantage until Ki climbs the ropes and puts on a cross armbreaker in the ropes. Both guys fall to the floor to break it up and we reset again.
Back in and Ki rips off some chops but gets kicked backwards to give Suzuki his first quick advantage. A backdrop and chop put him on the floor again with Ki following, only to take a 619 with Suzuki sliding into the ring and spinning back into a kick to the face. That was a very cool looking spot. Low kicks him again for two and they slug it out with both guys ACTUALLY SELLING. When did we leave Japan?
only to have Ki right next to the ropes.
A spinning super Frankensteiner drops Ki again and the 619 gets two. Ki knocks him off the top but misses a moonsault, only to kick him in the back of the head for two more. The Ki Crusher is enough for the pin.
Christopher Daniels vs. Senshi
Senshi picked up the X-Division Title on Impact around this time and defended against a mystery opponent at Victory Road 2006.
Division Title: Senshi vs. ???
The surprise opponent is Kazarian. He just comes out before his name is announced and is out first. Was there a point to him being a mystery at all? Whatever. Good sign: Chuck Norris Fears Senshi. Feeling out process to start us off here as you would expect. Senshi grabs an armbar over the ropes which gets him nowhere since it’s in the ropes. Kaz shoots a single leg and we hit the mat for a bit.
With Senshi holding a headscissors, Kaz literally bounces back and forth before grabbing a headlock. The champion kicks away with those hard shots of his. They chop it out with no one being able to get a long advantage. Kaz has short hair here which is a very weird look for him. Senshi gets some knees in and drapes him over the top for two. Muta elbow gets two and we hit a body scissors.
Dueling chants: “This is boring” vs. “Shut the F up.” I’m with the former but not entirely. After some martial arts we go right back to the mat. Kaz gets up and gets something like a spinning clothesline to break the momentum. The fans are split here as Kaz gets a springboard back elbow for no cover. Slingshot dropkick in the corner has Senshi in trouble.
That only gets two though as the crowd wakes up for a few seconds and then dies just as fast. I mean literally it sounds like a radio show with West commentating at times. Sunset flip by Kaz is blocked by a double stomp by Senshi to shift momentum again. Rapid fire kicks to the head by Senshi as this is dominating again. Kaz gets a DDT out of nowhere for two. Running kick in the corner by Senshi though sets up the Warrior’s Way to end it.
Rating: D. Oh man this was dull and the crowd knew it. They would do some mat stuff, Senshi would throw some kicks, Kaz would try to get something going but then would get stuck right back on the mat. This was terribly weak and I still don’t get the appeal of Senshi’s style. It’s 90% kicks and it went nowhere at all.
Here he is as part of the BIZARRE Kevin Nash X-Division story from Destination X 2007.
Austin Starr vs. Senshi
Starr is from TV Land and is Austin Aries. Senshi is Low Ki/Kaval/whatever his name is this week. You have to win with the crossface chickenwing here for no apparent reason. This was during a WEIRD X Division angle with Bob Backlund running around like a psychopath. Starr jumps him to start and I’ll be going back and forth with Starr and Aries. Apparently Backlund likes Senshi.
A couple of attempts at the hold get Senshi nowhere as we hear that Backlund isn’t allowed to be referee here for some reason. All Senshi so far as he hits a Muta elbow since Muta is in attendance allegedly. This is just a weird match as it’s just one hold instead of a bunch of them like usual. Starr gets a northern lights suplex and floats over into a chickenwing attempt. I think he was trying for a pin and remembered the rules halfway through it.
TNA really needs to stop with the weird camera angles. It was almost turned sideways on a shot of Aries dropping an elbow. Starr goes up and here comes Backlund. Senshi goes Kobashi with chops as he’s favoring his left shoulder. Here come the kicks as Senshi channels his inner Rockette. Shining Wizard misses but a shot to the back of the head doesn’t as Starr is in trouble.
Starr goes after the knee for no apparent reason at all. Starr gets a Chickenwing on for only a few seconds before getting dropkicked down again. The problem here is it’s a regular match and the chickenwing is just there because of Backlund whose involvement isn’t really explained that well. Brainbuster by Starr is reversed into a chickenwing attempt for both which gets nowhere. Senshi’s arm goes into the post but he makes the ropes to break the hold. Starr yells at Backlund and the hold goes on to give Senshi the win.
Rating: D. Match was just barely ok due to it being really weird. The whole ending submission idea was really out there and it held things way down. The psychology was way off also as they were doing very little arm work other than here and there and it made the whole thing not work for the most part. As a regular match this was fine but with the gimmick (third in a row to start things off) it got dragged way down.
One more TNA match from this stretch at Bound For Glory 2007.
LAX vs. XXX
This is an Ultimate X match and the winners get a Tag Team Title shot at some point in the future. XXX is Elix Skipper and Senshi who teamed together with Christopher Daniels and are the heels in this one. Homicide hammers on Skipper in the corner to start while the other two fight on the floor. Senshi dives back in to take down Hernandez and Skipper stops Homicide from pulling down the X.
Hernandez gets back up and starts throwing people around like only he can. An over the shoulder backbreaker drops Skipper and Homicide goes for the X again, only to have Senshi climb the ropes and kick Homicide down. Senshi cranks on a dragon sleeper to hold Hernandez against the ropes but the big guy just powers out of it. He shrugs off a bunch of strikes from Senshi and bull rushes him out to the floor. Homicide adds a big flip dive and LAX is in full control again.
Paul Lloyd vs. Kaval
FCW TV, February 8, 2010.
Kaval vs. Bryan Danielson
Rating: B. This is a great example of a one dimensional wrestler against a well rounded wrestler. They started off by trading kicks but Bryan easily shifted into the arm work followed by some high flying and suplexes. Kaval on the other hand was almost all kicking, which is fun for awhile but makes you roll your eyes by the end.
Danielson would make it to the first season of NXT while Kaval would be on the second. Here he is on NXT, July 27, 2010.
Kaval vs. Husky Harris
This should go short as it’s getting close to 10:45 and we have a poll to do. Kaval was at a Lady Gaga concert apparently with Laycool. We talk about the Cowboys for a bit regarding the Dez Bryan/Roy Williams incident which was overblown. Kaval uses stuff other than kicks here which is a nice perk for him. Laycool gets knocked to the floor and Kaval checks on them. A reverse suplex and the back splash end Kaval.
Rating: C-. Kaval uses stuff other than just kicks here which is a big step up for him. That’s his main issue: he needs to vary up his offense which is what he did. Harris is still not someone I can get into but I can tolerate him more now than I could before. This was fine for what it was and Kaval showing concern for his pros was cool.
Kaval would win the competition and earn a title shot on PPV. He picked the Intercontinental Title for no apparent reason and had his shot at Survivor Series 2010.
Intercontinental Title: Kaval vs. Dolph Ziggler
Kaval comes back with a handspring into a kick to the face in the corner which looked pretty awesome. Kaval goes up with his back to the ring, allowing Dolph to put on a sleeper on the top rope for some reason. Dolph gets knocked back and Kaval misses a big flip dive, allowing Dolph to hit the Fameasser for two. The sleeper goes on (on the mat this time) but Kaval escapes and is launched to the top rope where he springs off and hits a spin kick to the face in ANOTHER awesome looking move. Ziggler misses a charge in the corner and gets rolled up for two before Ziggler gets a rollup of his own with tights to retain.
That loss pretty much signaled the end of Kaval and it was back to TNA, including this match at Destination X 2011.
Austin Aries vs. Low Ki vs. Zema Ion vs. Jack Evans
Christy of course messes up something, in this case Aries’ entrance. We get some clips of their qualifying matches during each guy’s entrance. Winner gets a contract of course. No tagging here thank goodness. Aries gets a quick two count on Ion as the fans chant “everybody.” Aries and Low Ki (Kaval for the uneducated) square off and Evans starts flipping.
Spin kick by Evans gets two on Ion. Low Ki takes over again and hammers on Evans in the corner. Aries takes Low Ki down and uses some Hogan in late 90s offense for some reason. He beats up everyone but takes a triple dropkick to send him down. Evans starts flipping again and hits a dropsault to get two on Ion. Ion gets his turn to be on offense and gets a bunch of two counts.
Aries takes Ion down and has another showdown with Low Ki. After getting attacked they both throw submissions on the guys that jumped them. They manage to yell insults at each other while they have the holds. Ok that was cool. With the others outside they argue again and chop it out. Aries loads up the brainbuster but Low Ki escapes and gets a big kick to Aries’ back. Evans and Ion are back in now and Ion gets a knee to Evans’ face for two. Pendulum elbow gets two for Aries.
Ion clears the ring and takes over but Aries stops a dive. Aries tries a suicide dive but Low Ki gets a fast kick up to send him flying backwards. Evans comes in and flips a lot but spins around too much as Aries takes him down with a spinning forarm. The fans chant sign them all. Ion and Aries are the only ones up right now. Aries gets a neckbreaker on the rope to put Ion down. Low Ki gets a cartwheel into a kick to knock Aries off the top and also get two.
Evans blocks a Warrior’s Way to Aries with a rana, getting two. He calls for the 630 but Ion breaks it up. Ion hits the 450 on Low Ki but Aries makes the save. Using the distraction, Evans fires off the 630 but eats knees. Aries hammers on Evans and hits the brainbuster on Low Ki to win the contract. Probably the best choice.
Rating: B. Can’t really complain here as this was what the X-Division was built on. The fans got their flips and probably the best possible outcome here with Aries arguably being the best guy here. I’d expect to see all of them again in the future which is probably the best thing, especially with how weak the division has been lately. Fun match.
Junior Heavyweight Title: Prince Devitt vs. Kota Ibushi vs. Low Ki
Kota drops to the mat as they run the ropes but Devitt hits a dropkick to his ribs, knocking Ibushi to the floor. Ki comes back in to jump the champion but Kota follows him in and sends Ki back outside, setting up a springboard moonsault to take him down. Back in and Kota fires off kicks to the chest for two on Devitt before hooking a chinlock. A back elbow gets two on Devitt but the Prince goes to the apron for an enziguri, only to be pulled to the floor by Ki.
Devitt hits a spinning enziguri on Low Ki but Ki jumps out of a reverse suplex attempt. Prince kicks Kota in the head but Ki hits a rolling Liger Kick to send Devitt to the floor. Kota and Low Ki trade what look to be suplex attempts until Kota dropkicks him out to the floor again. Ibushi hits a HUGE springboard corkscrew moonsault to take everyone down and pop the crowd something fierce.
Before Ki can stomp on his face, Kota springboards up to the top for a hurricanrana on Ki for a VERY close two. Ibushi misses a Phoenix Splash and rolls into a top rope double stomp to the back from Devitt, but Ki hits a hard running dropkick to send Prince into the corner for two. Ki loads up a top rope Ki Crusher on Devitt but gets kicked to the floor. Kota goes up for something as well but gets DDTed from the top by Devitt to retain the title in a sweet looking finish.
X-Division Title: DJZ vs. Low Ki vs. Tigre Uno vs. Manik
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