The night before Fear & Loathing X saw ICW return to The Garage in Glasgow for France ’98. With the anticipation for the next night at its highest, everyone was wanting to have some fun before the biggest show of the year.
After Billy Kirkwood and William Grange kicked off the show, it was time for the first match of the evening, featuring the return of a man not seen in ICW for 5 years.
Kenny Williams def. El Ligero by Pinfall
Kicking off the night was “The Bollocks” Kenny Williams facing the returning “Mexican Sensation” El Ligero. Ahead of his big match against Rey Mysterio the next night, Williams found himself tangled in the ropes early on as Ligero showed him just how easy it was for Rey to attempt the 619. Later on, Kenny used a whole variety of back elbows to down The Mexican Sensation. As he went for the Clothesline From Hill Valley, Ligero countered with a sitout belly to back facebuster for a close count. As the Mexican went for his signature C4L springboard DDT, Kenny caught him mid-air and took him down to the mat. Kenny soon followed up with his tilt-a-whirl DDT known as The Quiff Buster for the three count. Williams and Ligero shared a hug after the match, showing respect for each other. The Bollocks now looked ahead to his match with The Master of the 619 at The Hydro.
Kay Lee Ray & Katie Forbes vs Kasey & Viper ended in a No Contest
Women’s tag action was up next as the ICW Women’s Champion and Filthy Generation member Kay Lee Ray teamed with the debuting Katie Forbes to face her two challengers at Fear & Loathing in the form of former champions Kasey and Viper. Katie Forbes seems like someone I would really, really hate if we were to meet. The action kicked off quick as Forbes used her athletic ability to down Kasey before KLR entered. As she attempted a Dirty Bomb on the bigger Viper but The Vixen of Violence was able to get down. Kasey performed a Killing Joke to Forbes towards the end, followed by a Viper jumping senton. The Queen of Hardcore came back in to the ring and hit both opponents with her title belt, before clobbering Forbes with the gold aswell. The referee soon tossed the match out, ruling it a no contest.
As The Kings of Catch made their way to ringside to help Kay Lee beat down on her two Fear & Loathing opponents, they were interrupted by the returning ICW Hall of Famer, “The Pipebomb Princess” Carmel! The former Women’s Champion took out The Filthy Generation with a steel chair before grabbing the mic and doing what she does best. Carmel thanked Mark Dallas and everyone else for giving the women the chance to prove they’re just as good as the men. ICW’s first ever Hall of Famer then announced herself as the Special Guest Enforcer for the Women’s Championship Steel Cage Match. Stevie Boy came through the curtain and The Filthy Generation surrounded the ring, beating up Kasey, Viper and Carmel until Jody Fleisch and The Kinky Party made the save.
The Filthy Generation (Stevie Boy & The Kings of Catch (Aspen Faith & Lewis Girvan)) def. Jody Fleisch & The Kinky Party (Jack Jester & Sha Samuels) w/Raul by Pinfall
All 6 men got straight into the action, spilling down to ringside where Girvan nailed a somersault dive over the ropes and landed on his feet. The East-End Butcher was up next, coming off the top rope with a huge moonsault to clear out the opposition. Jody Fleisch connected with a springboard moonsault, upsetting Samuels. As Jester attempted to climb to the top rope, Sha wanted a second go. Big Kink shoved his own partner off the ropes, where he landed on everyone at ringside. With a steel chair being introduced late in the match, Sha accidentally hit Jester in the head. With Samuels distracted, The Filthy Generation connected with a triple superkick to East London’s finest. Fleisch came back into the fray but was soon taken down with a vicious Glasgow Destroyer, spiking him right on his head. Aspen put The Phoenix in position as The Icon Killer nailed a superkick, allowing The Kings of Catch to perform The Apter Burner for the three count.
As the six men left ringside, commentator William Grange entered the ring to announce the next match as the Carlos Valderrama Invitational Battle Royal. However, Simon Cassidy informed him there was something else to happen before that. Poor Grange.
Joe Hendry Sport and Entertainment Challenge
As an embarrassed William Grange returned to commentary, ICW’s roaming interviewer The Sam Barbour Experience emerged from backstage as he introduced “The Prestigious One” Joe Hendry along with his intern Clayton. After establishing his dominance in amateur wrestling over the last few weeks, Hendry was there to host a Sport and Entertainment Challenge. Taking the challenge up first was audience member David. David was pinned to the mat in a number of seconds. Joe went looking for his next challenger, taking up Matthew. Matthew was forced to entertain Hendry, so he gave referee Thomas Kearins his phone. A classical song started to play on the PA system and Matthew started to sing and my God, can the man sing. Hendry, obviously not impressed with Matthew, nailed him with a low blow and a Freak of Nature. As SBX tried to break it up, he too was planted with The Freak of Nature. Hendry and Buzzard put the boots to the two men before heading backstage.
Carlos Valderrama Invitational Battle Royal
DCT last eliminated Dickie Divers to win
Up next was the highly anticipated Carlos Valderrama Invitational Battle Royal. As the entrants flowed out from backstage, Aaron Echo appeared on stage randomly dancing until being taken away. The match featured the likes of DCT, everyone’s favourite Thatcher Wright, Pure Gangster’s Prince Asad and Saqib Ali and both of the inaugural ICW Tag Team Champions in The STI of William Grange and Dickie Divers. Everyone ganged up on Thatcher right off the bat, sending him packing. Eliminations followed quickly from that point on, with Donnie T catching Prince Asad on his shoulders to avoid him being eliminated. Cousin Zander brought out a bag of powder and tossed it in the face of The Wee Man which appeared to fire him up. For a few minutes at least. After taking some of the other guys down, he climbed over the ropes and ran away backstage. As we were down to the final 6, referee Sean McLaughlin brought out a bag of oranges for everyone. After more eliminations, we had a stare down as DCT and Coach Trip stood across the ring from William Grange and Dickie Divers. But Divers tossed out Grange then Coach Trip before being tossed out himself by DCT for the win.
Order of elimination;
Thatcher Wright, Prince Asad, Saqib Ali, The Wee Man, Kez Evans, Cousin Zander, Leyton Buzzard, William Grange, Coach Trip and Dickie Divers
As DCT and Coach Trip celebrated in the balcony with the trophy, Dickie Divers got on the mic and said he hadn’t been getting the recognition and respect he deserves. He was then interrupted by a man who apparently hadn’t been seen since The Infamous ICW (turns out his name is apparently Tor Atterhagen) who then faced Divers in singles action.
Tor Atterhagen def. Dickie Divers by Pinfall
A huge spear right off the bat allowed Atterhagen to pick up the win in record time.
As the show came back from a break, it was time for the waiver signing for the King of Insanity Match. Chris Renfrew, Mikey Whiplash, Stevie Boy and Jimmy Havoc all made their way to ringside as Mark Dallas announced that for 24 hours, all four men wouldn’t be his concern. Renfrew and Stevie both signed the contract and headed back through the curtain, but back in the ring Whiplash ambushed Havoc from behind with a pair of scissors. As referees tried to break it up, Jokey took them out with a huge missile dropkick. The Necromancer then planted Havoc through a table with a huge Zombie Maker before signing the contract on Havoc’s busted forehead.
If Ravie Davie wins, he’ll be added to the #1 Contenders Ladder Match
Special Guest Commentator – Red Lightning
Ravie Davie def. Bram w/Red Lightning by Pinfall
As Bram made his way to the ring alongside his sports and entertainment agent Red Lightning, Ravie Davie burst through the curtain. Without any of his usual pre-match schtick, The Fresh Prince of Drumoyne Square went straight to town on The King of All Evil. The two brawled all over The Garage and even outside the venue in the freezing cold, where Davie attempted to use a glass bottle on Bram. As they headed back inside, Bram delivered a beating to Davie in the ring. But it wasn’t enough to keep Ravie grounded, as a surprise rollup caught Bram and downed him for the three count! Ravie Davie was going to The Hydro!
As he celebrated his win after the match, Bram attacked him from behind and pounded the back of his head into the floor with a steel chair. Security and officials tried tending to Davie, but Red Lightning wasn’t letting them past. Mark Dallas was eventually able to help Davie back to his feet and back through the curtain.
The Fite Network (Lou King Sharp & Krieger) def. The Purge (Stevie James & Krobar) by Pinfall
The next contest saw a tag team rivalry that’s been going on for many months now, as The Fite Network’s Lou King Sharp and Krieger took on The Purge. These two teams went right at it, wasting no time. The action soon spilled out in to the crowd and up the stairs, where Stevie James tossed Lou King Sharp down on top of everyone else below. Somehow, the match continued. After taking a table out from under the ring, The Purge planted LKS through it with a powerbomb/diving clothesline combo they call The Death Row but as they went to win the match, Kid Fite appeared on stage as a distraction. This allowed Krieger to grab Krobar’s crowbar and use it on The Purge before draping Sharp on top for the win. The Fite Network continued their beatdown of The Purge after the match, with the rivalry between these two groups seemingly far from over.
Special Guest Commentator – Mike Bird
Iestyn Rees w/The Marauders (Mike Bird & Wild Boar) def. Aaron Echo by Pinfall
The penultimate match of the show saw The Marauders’ Iestyn Rees taking on Aaron Echo, with Mike Bird joining commentary. The larger Rees used his superior size and power advantage to down The Author of The Echo Bible, including getting some height on a jumping elbow drop. Impressive for a man of his stature. Echo retaliated with a beautiful rolling forearm smash to knock the big man off his feet. As the match progressed, it looked like Echo was going to somehow pick up the win over The Alpha Male but it wasn’t to be. Iestyn planted Aaron into the mat with some sort of a kneeling suplex that Billy Kirkwood called The Wyn Jones Driver for the three count. The Marauders beat down on Echo after the match before making a statement towards Polo Promotions for the next night.
Joe Coffey and BT Gunn Official Weigh-In
A scale was brought out to the stage as it was time for the official weigh-in for Fear & Loathing’s main event between World Heavyweight Champion “The Iron King” Joe Coffey and Zero-G Champion “The Oddity” BT Gunn. Coffey weighed in at 240 lbs, while Gunn came in at 195 lbs. Coffey proclaimed he would be leaving The Hydro even heavier with both titles over his shoulders, before they posed for the official photo. Out of nowhere, Bram burst through the curtain and ambushed Gunn. A whole number of other stars would start to emerge, with the likes of Lionheart, Zack Gibson, Chris Renfrew and Mikey Whiplash making their presence known. Gunn and Renfrew embraced in the ring with a New Age Kliq reunion for one night only, as they planted one of Whiplash’s followers with a superkick/T-Virus combo. As Joe Coffey’s side took control of the ring, Rob Van Dam entered The Garage to a huge ovation as he disposed of the opposition. Mark Dallas then made a huge eight man tag team match to round off the show!
BT Gunn, Chris Renfrew, Lionheart & Rob Van Dam def. Mikey Whiplash, Zack Gibson & RUDO Sports & Entertainment Brand (Joe Coffey & Bram) w/Red Lightning & Jokey by Pinfall
The action was all over the place in this one, making it hard to keep up with. Gunn and Coffey became the only two in the ring at one point and traded blows, with officials trying to break it up ahead of their huge match the next night as they brawled up to the backstage area. Whiplash was in the ring with Rob Van Dam on the top rope but before he could dive off, Jokey got on the apron to distract him. Enter Jimmy Havoc to drop Whiplash with an Acid Rainmaker before chasing Jokey back through the curtain. This allowed RVD to dive off and connect with a Five Star Frog Splash for the victory. The show came to a close with the locker room emptying and dancing in the ring, with their version of a World Cup.
If there was ever a way to put on a wrestling show, this is it. The show had everything. Surprise returns, huge unannounced appearances, people being tossed off of high places and most importantly, it had Thatcher Wright. A fine way to head towards The Hydro. Look out for that review over the next few days.
Quick Results
Kenny Williams def. El Ligero by Pinfall
Kay Lee Ray & Katie Forbes vs Kasey & Viper ended in a No Contest
The Filthy Generation def Jody Fleisch & The Kinky Party w/Raul by Pinfall
Carlos Valderrama Invitational Battle Royal – DCT last eliminated Dickie Divers to win
Tor Atterhagen def. Dickie Divers by Pinfall
Ravie Davie def. Bram w/Red Lightning by Pinfall
The Fite Network def. The Purge by Pinfall
Iestyn Rees w/The Marauders def. Aaron Echo by Pinfall
BT Gunn, Chris Renfrew, Lionheart & Rob Van Dam def. Mikey Whiplash, Zack Gibson & RUDO Sports & Entertainment Brand w/Red Lightning & Jokey by Pinfall
SCOTTISH WRESTLING NETWORK | SWN 