Game Changer Wrestling is 0-2 at the Hammerstein Ballroom.
Three years after its first event at the historic venue, a show that was plagued by timing issues and criticized by some for its booking decisions around the homegrown talent, GCW returned to the building that hosted many ECW and Ring Of Honor events in their respective heyday. In an interesting marketing strategy, GCW owner, Brett Lauderdale not only recognized the criticism, but used it as a part of the marketing campaign for this venture in New York. It was a way to be direct with the fans, the audience is going to be more willing to give a promotion another chance if the office is upfront rather than trying to convince them something was stellar if it clearly wasn’t. At the same time, with that second chance, especially with that premise, it puts even more pressure on the company to deliver. If it doesn’t work this time, and it definitely didn’t, it reinforces the original notion that this was simply too big of a stage for GCW to flourish.
They might tour semi-nationally, which is a tremendous accomplishment because of how much it takes to truly establish a money-drawing brand in professional wrestling, and they might be the biggest independent group in the United States, but after the train wreck of a pay-per-view last time, one thing is crystal clear, Game Changer Wrestling is much closer to a regional indy that runs in VFW halls than being the ECW of the modern era.
That’s not a knock on their efforts, but rather the harsh reality of the situation.
Unfortunately, the event was snake bit more or less before it even started. During a pre-show battle royal, PCO, who became a cult favorite during the past several years and had a notable run despite being in his 50s, went on a bizarre rant after he won the match. Given the nature of his character and the cynical nature of professional wrestling, I assumed that when he took a sledge hammer to the TNA Digital Media championship that it was some type of storyline. I thought it was odd that there would be an angle involving at TNA title on a GCW show because of the working agreement that was just announced with the WWE, but again, it was a pre-show battle royal, maybe it was just to get some buzz for PCO before he finished up with the company? However, PWinsider’s Mike Johnson, the most accurate reporter in the business, has said that the title-smashing rant was legitimate. The ring announcer attempted to take the mic away from the French-Canadian grappler and the broadcast cut away to video packages.
I think it goes without saying that this was a terrible decision by PCO, especially if nobody from management knew what he was going to do. It could become a headache for the company, and at the same time, it almost emphasizes how much Game Changer isn’t ready for something at the level of The Hammerstein.
The opening match was a wild nine-wrestler ladder match to unify a few of the death match championships in the organization. This is where management probably should’ve learned from the initial Hammerstein show, the state of New York has one of the strictest athletic commissions in the country, partially because of how much indy groups tried to push the envelope after ECW folded, and you simply can’t perform many of the dangerous stunts that GCW is known for. If it’s a wise decision to promote that type of style is a different discussion for a different time, but the bottom line is, you can’t present a typical GCW event in New York. Furthermore, this opening segment exposed GCW’s limited production abilities, which is surprising because their video packages are extremely well done, but the live production, including the camera work, looked very amateur hour. Seats were sold on the stage of the entrance way, and on several occasions throughout the broadcast, you could see fans walk into the shot of the hard camera as they were going back to their seats or on the floor of that side of the building. Matt Tremont won, but the car crash match was very clunky between the limited space around ringside and the camera work.
There was Effy vs. Allie Katch in a bout to determine who would challenge Mance Warner for the world title in the main event. Sadly, less than two minutes into the match, Katch went for a dive through the ropes and somehow her ankle got caught underneath her on the landing. The mishap broke her leg in two places and the gruesome injury was reminisce of Sid’s infamous leg break in 2001. It was so terrible hearing Katch in agony, as Effy checked on her despite the on-screen rivalry. I’ve actually met Katch and called two of her matches through my work as an announcer in Pittsburgh, and she’s extremely polite so I wish her a speedy recovery.
This is where the event went completely off the rails because the broadcast never recovered from the incident. Understandably, medics had to tend to Katch, and if I had to guess, judging by the reaction from the performers involved, I’d say that she was probably scheduled to win the championship that night. Warner attacked Effy and put him through a table at ringside and then the pay-per-view cut to video packages so that Katch could be taken to the hospital. There was a six man tag scheduled next, but with the legitimate athletic commission getting Katch sent to the hospital, the event basically had to pause until another ambulance was on site. Again, it was a terrible situation that Katch was injured and medical attention for her should’ve undoubtedly been the priority, but would a major league company have to stall for more than twenty minutes because they have to wait for the required amount of medical staff to be in the building?
God bless Kerry Morton, the guy tried his best, but the task to stall for twenty minutes without knowing how long you have to stall for would be tough for anyone. Eventually, the ring announcer informed the crowd that they were waiting for the commission to get back to ringside. Homicide, Amazing Red, and Grim Reefer won the bout, but the show never recovered from this delay.
The 12-minute cage match that followed was too tedious, and again without the blood involved, it came up very short of what fans would expect for a GCW cage match. Also, the cage itself looked like it was going to collapse, with members of the staff actually holding the cage to keep it secure around ringside. Vikingo vs. the former Reggie, Sydney Akeem, was a fun spot fest. Masato Tanaka vs. Joey Janela might’ve been the strongest showing on the card, as it was a physical bout that brought back a lot of the ECW elements that made Tanaka a star in America a quarter century ago. The six man tag that involved some other ECW talent was fun for what it was, but the event was such a tedious viewing experience that nothing was going to revive the card. The blood sport match between Josh Barrett and the former Baron Corbin just wasn’t what the New York crowd wanted to see, especially the further delays involved with taking the ropes down and putting them back up. The Matt Cardona mystery opponent segment was underwhelming, especially since the original announcement for his opponent was supposed to be Ricky Starks.
By the the time the main event was in the ring, the crowd just didn’t care and they were mostly quiet. The Effy win got somewhat of a reaction, but given his popularity, and Warner’s solid work as a heel, this probably would’ve gotten a much better response under different circumstances.
Promoter Brett Lauderdale said on a podcast prior to the event that the show would be a six-figure gate so from his perspective, he was probably satisfied regardless of the lackluster quality of the show. That being said, I’m not sure how GCW as a brand will realistically be considered a force within the industry again. Sure, every group has peaks and valleys, that’s part of the business, but this wasn’t subpar because of a lack of available talent, it was lackluster because the company was unprepared and the presentation was a mess.
Keep in mind, the premise of the marketing of this pay-per-view was that GCW wanted to show the wrestling world that the first Hammerstein show wasn’t representative of the brand. Unfortunately, this Hammerstein event more or less confirmed the criticisms of the organization previously. Make no mistake about it, GCW isn’t going to fold because of this, they’ve weathered literally the same negative feedback before, but the biggest takeaway from this situation is that instead of maintaining its status of somewhat of a bridge between AEW and WWE for talent that look to rejuvenate themselves, it will be regulated to a regional independent organization.
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Until next week
-Jim LaMotta
E mail [email protected] | You can follow me on Instagram, Facebook, & Threads @jimlamotta89
