The 2017 Battle of the Nations is in the history books and it was certainly a history-making night of action. All three of WrestleZone’s titles were on the line, Crusher Craib competed for the first time since Aberdeen Anarchy 2016 and the first ever WWE United Kingdom Champion Tyler Bate made his Granite City debut. Coming out of the show, what were the 10 main talking points?
10. Anarchy is Coming
Before the evening’s main event, management representative Chris McDonald got on the mic to announce that WrestleZone would be returning to the Beach Ballroom in 2018 for the next instalment of Aberdeen Anarchy. Chris also announced that due to it being WrestleZone’s 10 year anniversary, the show would be held a little late in the year than when it usually is to ensure they can make the show as great as possible. More details, including news on tickets and a date, will be revealed on WrestleZone’s social media very soon.
9. The Return of the Century
Tamina. Gillberg. The Great Khali. What do all these people have in common? They all made their WWE returns this year and were welcome back with open arms. But nothing will beat the return that happened during the pre-show (is it a return if he was there last month?), as a humpless Jeeves Winchester entered as Nathan North’s new manager. With Lord Mr Malice having seemingly left WrestleZone after abandoning his crown and cape in Laurencekirk last month, Jeeves needs someone new to work for and he’s found just the person. He is now The Vice Executive of Vintage Relations…
8. The Formation of a New Alliance?
On the pre-show for VIP ticket holders, “Vintage” Nathan North introduced Jeeves Winchester as his new manager. After coming up short, Nathan returned to ringside during Andy Wild’s match with Mr P, drink in hand. After tossing the drink in P’s face to help Andy pick up the win, Nathan and Jeeves quickly disappeared. A few months ago in Ellon, Andy and Nathan teamed up in an unsuccessful attempt at The Rejected for their Tag Team Titles. I assumed they were just two guys put together to make a random team, but it looks like they could be a permanent alliance going forward. There’s only one thing to say about that: this team will be vintage.
7. The First, The Only, The King
Kicking off the main show was a Tri-Counties Championship match between challenger Johnny Lions and champion Aspen Faith, accompanied by Sammii Jayne, in a battle of student vs teacher. With the 10 minute time limit in place, both men gave it all they had to walk out with the gold. Despite taking an accidental suicide dive from Sammii, Aspen was able to hang on to his title after a superkick and a Tombstone Piledriver for the three count.
6. Scotland Falls Again
The Scotland vs England bout has become a Battle of the Nations tradition with national pride at stake. Representing their countries this time around where Mr P and Andy Wild. Andy won the match for his country last year against Johnny Lions, but Mr P was going full-on patriotic for this match with Bravehart face paint and kilt. As the former WrestleZone management representative looked like he was going to pick up the win, Nathan North and new manager Jeeves Winchester entered from backstage. As Jeeves distracted the referee, Nathan tossed a drink in Mr P’s eyes before Wild connected with the Wildest Driver to go 2-1 in Battle of the Nations Matches.
5. Five-Time Champs
The biggest show of the summer saw The Rejected once again put their Tag Team Championships on the line against former champs The Sterling Brothers, this time in an Anything Goes Tornado Tag Team Match. Several chairs were introduced throughout the match and several chairs were broken. The audience were overjoyed when Richard R. Russel’s hair transplant (it’s not a wig!) was pulled off to reveal his bald head. Alan took Archer out of the equation with a low blow, allowing himself and William to drop Vago with the Oil Crash to become the first ever five-time Tag Team Champions in WrestleZone history.
4. The Golden Boy Retains… Just
This year’s Battle of the Nations was main evented by Sterling Oil’s golden boy Shawn Johnson putting his Undisputed Championship on the line against Zach Dynamite and Joe Coffey in a Triple Threat Match. Throughout the contest, there were several moments when either Zach or Joe could pick up the gold but none more so than when referee Mikey Innes was accidentally taken out by a Joe Coffey dropkick. With Mikey knocked down and the other two referees likely helping out with Scotty Swift, there was no-one to count the three after Zach nailed Shawn with his flying knee strike. Another point came when Coffey turned Dynamite inside out with his trademark discus lariat, but Johnson grabbed Innes’ arm before it could hit the mat for the third time. Finally, Shawn broke up a Joe Coffey pin attempt with a diving double foot stomp to the back to cling on to his gold once more.
3. WrestleZone’s Monster is Back
When Crusher Craib was injured at last year’s Aberdeen Anarchy, he was put on the shelf for a year with a broken hip socket. The fans were shocked and saddened when he returned at this year’s Anarchy to cost Scotty Swift his Undisputed Championship and rejoined Sterling Oil. Since that night, Crusher has been costing Scotty his matches against Lord Mr Malice and Alan Sterling with a match scheduled between them for Battle of the Nations. As Scotty attacked Crusher during his entrance, The Creator of Carnage soon took control as the action entered the ring. After nailing around 2 or 3 Big Boots, Craib punched and punched the back of Swift’s head which forced referee Dennis Law to stop the match. Crusher followed with a curb stomp after the match, before heading backstage as The Red Haired Warrior had to be helped back through the curtain after seemingly being knocked out.
2. Best of British
When WrestleZone revealed they had signed the current WWE United Kingdom Champion Pete Dunne, fans were excited to see The Bruiserweight. Unfortunately, Pete was needed for a WWE media day in London so replacing him would be the first UK Champion Tyler Bate. Now, everyone knows how good Tyler is but you never realise just how good he is until you see him in person. His match against Damien was something truly special with Damien proving how great he is in the ring when given the right opportunity. Despite failing to pick up the win, Damien earned the respect of Tyler and the fans on this night.
1. The Rise of a Revolution
At the end of the show, Sterling Oil emptied from the backstage area to show their appreciation for Shawn Johnson after he retained the Undisputed Championship. While Alan, William and Crusher all showed their love and support for Johnson, Damien had something else in mind. The roof came off The Northern Hotel when Damien superkicked Shawn right in the jaw, with The Revolutionary finally showing his true colours. What does this mean for the future? Does Damien go straight for the Undisputed Championship? Does he wait and work his way through the rest of Sterling Oil first? It’s certainly a fantastic time to be a WrestleZone fan.
What a great night produced by WrestleZone. A match of the year candidate, the possibility of a new tag team, two big stories heading out with Damien’s departure from Sterling Oil and the condition of Scotty Swift. Whenever the DVD comes out, please buy it. You simply will not regret it.
SCOTTISH WRESTLING NETWORK | SWN 