Will Ospreay, dream matches help Warrior Wrestling evolve
By Mike Pankow
January 20, 2022
In less than four years, Warrior Wrestling has become a leader in independent wrestling in America.
Superstars from AEW, IMPACT Wrestling, Ring of Honor, MLW, Japan and Mexico, plus future and former WWE and NXT stars, have graced the ring at 17 Warrior Wrestling events since May 2018, providing dream matches, nonstop entertainment, great storytelling and an excellent bell-to-bell wrestling.
Will Ospreay walked out of Warrior 17 as the new Warrior Wrestling Champion. Ospreay’s mere presence gives the company more legitimacy around wrestling circles (Photo by Mike Pankow)
What may have really put Warrior on the map was international superstar Will Ospreay winning the promotion’s championship in a triple-threat match over defending champ Trey Miguel and Blake Christian at Warrior 17 last month at the Tinley Park Convention Center.
Already regarded as the best wrestler in the world in many circles, Ospreay gives Warrior worldwide credibility as it ventures outside the Chicago area for the first time this Saturday (Jan. 22).
Warrior Wrestling 18 takes place at the Bendix Arena in South Bend, Ind. – in a facility that was originally built as an eSports arena, which should provide an interesting perspective for the fans in attendance. The show also will be broadcast on FITE.
Ospreay will defend the Warrior Wrestling Championship against “The Machine” Brian Cage in the main event of Warrior 18. It will be the British star’s third appearance for Warrior and his first since he wore the Warrior belt to the ring during Wrestle Kingdom at the Tokyo Dome earlier this month.
Cage was the company’s first champion, crowned at Warrior 2 after he won the first-ever War of Attrition match against the likes of Rey Mysterio, Rey Fenix, Penta El Zero Miedo and Jeff Cobb. He defended title against several opponents until he had to relinquish the belt due to injury at Warrior 8, where the vacant championship was won by Brian Pillman Jr. in another War of Attrition match.
Cage has competed at various Warrior events since then, but it has been nearly two years since the Northern California native has tasted the gold. He may also have more of an edge since he has barely been used by AEW over the last few months since he was dropped from Team Taz.
Ospreay’s victory at Warrior 17 shocked the wrestling community as many figured he was the third man in a really good three-way match with Miguel and Christian with either Miguel retaining or Christian eking out the victory and title. Lo and behold, Ospreay pinned Christian, who had recently been released by NXT to win the title to an awesome pop. Many probably assumed Ospreay was a guy who wouldn’t be frequenting too many Warrior events, so it wouldn’t make sense from him to leave with the promotion’s top championship.
Warrior management Steve Tortorello and Eric Hamilton reveled in joy when they heard the crowd’s surprised reaction. Tortorello announced the company was taking the next step in its evolution with Warrior beginning to take the show on the road and in new venues, beginning with this weekend’s stop in South Bend (about 90 minutes outside Chicago) and next month’s event at Cicero Stadium, just a few miles outside downtown Chicago.
Warrior Wrestling brass Eric Hamilton, left, and Steve Tortorello, right, stand in the ring with Frank the Clown at Warrior 17 in Tinley Park on Dec. 12, 2021. (Photo by Mike Pankow)
Tortorello, whose day job is being the principal at Marian Catholic High School in South suburban Chicago Heights, holds South Bend dear to his heart as a Notre Dame alumnus and a die-hard Fighting Irish football fan. He also told Windy City Slam Podcast during the 100th episode All-Star extravaganza that South Bend hasn’t a major wrestling show in decades. At one point in the late ‘80s, WWE ran television tapings at the Joyce Center, including episodes of NBC’s classic Saturday Night’s Main Event program.
Saturday’s event in South Bend should draw fans from Warrior’s home base of Chicago in addition to Indiana, Michigan and possibly Ohio among other states.
Warrior Wrestling Women’s Champion Thunder Rosa is not booked for the show, but she will return to action in the company’s show in Cicero next month after her first successful title defense against now-fellow AEW star Mercedes Martinez back at Warrior 17.
Warrior Wrestling Lucha Champion Aramis will be on the card at Warrior 18 and he faces a stiff test in a five-man scramble match which features newly-crown GALLI Lucha Libre Undisputed Champion Sam Adonis, Chicago lucha legend Gringo Loco, ASF and Drago Kid.
Also on the card, there will be an incredible intergender tag team match as Dante Martin and rising Chicago star Skye Blue face Freelance Wrestling favorites Isaias Velazquez and his fiancée Kylie Rae. “Filthy” Tom Lawlor returns to Warrior to face former EVOLVE and NXT star Anthony Henry. WARHORSE brings his intensity and mayhem in a faceoff against former IMPACT X Division Champion and former AAW Heritage Champion Rohit Raju (aka Hakim Zane).
Pillman, the former Warrior Champion, takes on Milwaukee native and ROH mainstay “The Last Real Man” Silas Young. Myron Reed faces KC Navarro, who has become a staple at Warrior and current holds the promotion’s championship medallion (which he can cash in at any time for a championship match). In a battle of behemoths, legendary Mil Muertes takes on fan favorite Beast Man.
Frank the Clown hasn’t been announced for South Bend, but that doesn’t mean he won’t make his presence known. At last month’s show in Tinley Park, he nearly held up the event until Warrior brass acquiesced to his demands of coming and going whenever he pleases and a future Warrior Wrestling Championship match.
As with Warrior shows of the past, the South Bend event features a pre-show VIP meet-and-greet with all the talent on the card where fans can get autographs and pictures with all of the stars. The VIP is separate from admission to the main card of matches.
As with most Warrior events, they will be out to top the last show in Tinley, which was a stellar event which included the great Ospreay and Thunder Rosa victories.
Sam Adonis, left, who has been a regular at Warrior Wrestling and has gained respect from the fans during his tenure, faced Matt Taven at Warrior 17 in Dec. 2021. (Photo by Mike Pankow)
Adonis, one of the company’s regulars who has appeared on almost every Warrior show, defeated ROH star Matt Taven of The Kingdom in a strong match. Adonis was one of Warrior’s most despised figures early in the promotion’s existence, is now getting cheered and respected by the faithful fans. Taven was a last-minute fill-in for Brody King, who couldn’t appear.
In other matches, Aramis successfully defended the Warrior Lucha Championship with a victory over Demonic Flamita in the opener. Rocky Romero, who has recently appeared more often in the U.S. with AEW, picked a victory over Navarro. AEW’s Fuego Del Sol defeated Carlos Romo in a competitive, athletic affair. In a four-way intergender match – a showcase of Chicago-area and Midwestern talent – Skye Blue defeated Gringo Loco, Axel Rico and Billie Starkz when Skye pinned Rico in a throwback to their GALLI feud. Dante Martin defeated fellow AEW star Joey Janela, who was a late replacement for Bandido.
Whether it’s the lineups of fantasy faceoffs turned into real matches, Janela diving off a goal post at Stadium Series, Lance Archer throwing Frank the Clown off the bleachers, Adonis and Project M.O.N.I.X. brawling all over Marian Catholic’s gym, crazy Lucha Libre matches, unforgettable multi-man mayhem, great women’s and intergender action or the fan-friendly atmosphere, Warrior Wrestling has made its mark not only on the Chicago scene, but across the country – and the world – as well.
What will Warrior do to make an even bigger footprint? Find out on Saturday in South Bend.
Catch Warrior Wrestling promoter Steve Tortorello and international superstar Sam Adonis as part of Episode 100 of Windy City Slam Podcast: https://apple.co/3zqy1Qq.
Catch Windy City Slam editor Mike Pankow talking local and national pro wrestling every week with Chicago-area wrestling guests on Windy City Slam Podcast, part of the Broadcast Basement On-Demand Radio Network. Episodes drop early Tuesday morning wherever you download podcasts or at https://windycityslam.podbean.com/.
We are looking for guests to appear on future episodes of the Windy City Slam Podcast! Please contact Mike at mikepankow@windycityslam.com, message him on Facebook or DM him on Twitter.
