Preview // Pro Wrestling GRIND "Doctor, Doctor!" (7/1)

Pro Wrestling GRIND returns to the Pulaski Club in Easthampton, MA for their seventh event- "Doctor, Doctor!" and it's going to be a big one as we found out at "Come And Get It" that the title tournament would begin later this year.    While it feels like there are certain mainstays within GRIND who should be in a title tournament (The Top 8 in no particular order would be: Rip Byson, Travis Huckabee, Delmi Exo, Perry Von Vicious, Logan Black, Jay Freddie, Ryan Mooney and O'Shay Edwards) there are also those who have only made one appearance but still should get a shot.

Names like BEEF, Derek Neal, Jaden Newman, Cabana Man Dan and WARHORSE all feel like they could be in a potential tournament.   But then we also must not overlook the younger wrestlers coming up in GRIND such as Channing Thomas, Myung-Jae Lee, Mike Skyros and Joseph Alexander.   So the possibilities are certainly there for this tournament to be interesting and a lot of fun but most importantly whoever comes out of it as the first ever Champion will definitely deserve it because with all these names as possible entrants the tournament will certain be all killer and no filler.  

I'm also not opposed to the idea of placing competitors into the tournament based upon their rankings, so to take the Top 8 based on win-loss records and have 1 vs 8, 2 vs 7, 3 vs 6 and 4 vs 5 could also make for an overall great experience.  But that's why the wins and losses are also so important and could be emphasized more on this show than on any other show before it!

MSP (1-2) vs Brick City Boyz (NA)

While the Brick City Boyz are making their debuts in GRIND, MSP hasn't been seen for a while and they're returning with a 1-2 record, which means that they should really be hoping to win this one to stay on the positive side of 2-2 rather than sinking to 1-3.   The Brick City Boyz are big and tough though.  In many ways, hitting them can feel like hitting a brick wall.   BCB have proven this throughout New England lately.

The biggest difference, perhaps, between MSP and BCB are their attitudes.  Brick City tends to be a place of upsetting fans and using underhanded tactics to win.   MSP have the best of vibes with the crowd and win without cheating.   In GRIND, everyone is shown respect until they decide to have it taken away so whether or not the Brick City Boyz decide to come out and act as they have in other promotions might be a factor in this match as well.  With the crowd behind MSP though, it feels as if MSP can't lose.

Channing Thomas (0-2) vs Max ZERO (NA)

Channing Thomas has had a bit of a rough go thus far in GRIND.  After his initial loss to Jaden Newman it felt like he might be finding that mentality he needs to win inside the GRIND ring against Ryan Mooney.  But that's the thing about GRIND- no matter how many wins, how many championships, etc you might have in other promotions, GRIND isn't the same.  There is a certain toughness both physically and mentally which one must have to compete in GRIND.

While Channing Thomas is finding that out, Max ZERO will be making his debut for GRIND in this match.   Max ZERO is someone I've personally wanted to see fight in GRIND for some time now and as someone who has been in PPW under the UWFi rules, Max ZERO will certainly fit into this scene like a glove.    Most competitors seem to lose their debuts in GRIND because they're prepared but not quite fully.  Max ZERO seems to know what he's getting into here and yet Channing Thomas also might have cracked the code to victory.  These are two combustible elements ready to explode.

The Mane Event (3-0) vs Miracle Generation (NA)

While Jay Lyon and Midas Black have not been in GRIND since March, The Mane Event still remains the only undefeated tag team in GRIND with a 3-0 record.    Miracle Generation has been making more of a name for themselves this past year and all of those clichés in wrestling about fast paced, high flying matches apply here.   This is going to be one of those blink and you might miss it type of matches as both of these teams are known not just for their speed but for their air time as well.

What also makes this match intriguing is that like all of the tag teams in GRIND, this isn't just two wrestlers thrown together to see if it works or not.   Dustin Waller and Kylon King know each other to the point where they can seemingly predict what the other is about to do and this just means that this match is also going to have a lot of moves hit in tandem.   This truly could be one of the best matches anyone sees this year and that's really saying a lot when you look at the ta team matches GRIND has been delivering.

Rip Byson (5-0-1) vs Perry Von Vicious (3-3)

So it has come to this.  Mutually Assured Destruction is imploding.   Now, here is a fun little fact about this match that may or may not mean something with how it plays out.    Perry Von Vicious has only two losses in GRIND and they were to Travis Huckabee and Jay Freddie.  If you look at the records of Huckabee and Freddie, you'll find that they each only have one loss and that loss is to the same person: PVV's opponent here, Rip Byson.  

[Note: CageMatch told me that PVV defeated O'Shay Edwards.   O'Shay Edwards in fact submitted PVV in their match.   Soo... O'Shay vs Ripper when?]

Whether or not this might favor Rip Byson remains to be seen because under normal circumstances you might say that it would be these are two wrestlers who know each other very well and that might be the difference between Perry Von Vicious and everyone else.  The ability of PVV to potentially know what move Ripper will hit before he even hits it could be the very thing to give him a win and we could see Byson's first loss in GRIND here.   

Mike Skyros (0-1) vs Joseph Alexander (0-1)

I've always felt like there was something primal about wrestling.  Maybe it goes back to how wrestling was around during the era of Rome when it was acceptable to fight to the death.  But there is this animalistic instinct within wrestlers, right?  Being that Mike Skyros and Joseph Alexander are both down 0-1 in GRIND, this feels like a match of survival.   This is when a mother wolf has a litter of pups and those pups that don't get to eat die (it's nature, look it up) so both of these wrestlers are looking to eat.

At "Antisocial" Joseph Alexander demonstrated a great technical game, throwing suplexes and reversals against his trainer Logan Black.   Mike Skyros has been known as a striker but he can throw a suplex just as well.  This match might just come down to the striking game of Joseph Alexander and whether or not he can stand toe-to-toe with Mike Skyros.  Alexander has likely been trained in striking but is anyone ever really ready for Skyros?  We're about to find out.

Jay Freddie (3-1) vs Gary Jay (0-1)

Growing up, I would use my VCR to record ECW's weekly television show because it was on at 2 am but ECW also had this great thing which doesn't exist as much anymore: VHS tapes full of their greatest matches.   It'd be like musical version of a greatest hits.   If you were going to create such a VHS to release for GRIND and fill it with their best matches from their first year, even though it's not even over yet I think everyone would whole heartedly agree that one match which should be on there without a doubt is Gary Jay vs Ryan Mooney from "Price Of A Mile".  

Gary Jay may have lost his GRIND debut but he did so in spectacular fashion.  That match was just such a war and it is so much unlike anything we may ever see again.  Years from now, people will write books about that match.   But Gary Jay must know that coming into this match he isn't only going to make a statement, but he is going to win.

Jay Freddie has faced some tough competitors in GRIND and yet his only loss is to Rip Byson.  Jay Freddie seems tailor-made for GRIND and so it was somewhat surprising when Gary Jay called him out.  But this will be that match of two wrestlers who have been doing this for a bit now but also have been quite overlooked because no matter how much they're talked about it still just doesn't feel like enough.

Travis Huckabee (4-1) vs Anthony Henry (NA)

Anthony Henry has only appeared in GRIND once and it was as part of a tag team match with JD Drake, so this is going to be his singles debut but not his GRIND debut.   Travis Huckabee has been on an absolute tear and though he has one loss, which is to Rip Byson, it is worth noting that was also on the GRIND debut show "Who Made Who".   So those four wins Travis Huckabee has are all in a row.   That just somehow makes it even more impressive.

When you talk about old fashioned wrestling, grappling and what really brought this all about in the United States with wrestlers like Lou Thesz, Bruno Sammartino, Dory Funk Jr and Verne Gagne, the truth is that this match has all of the makings to be that type of technical masterpiece.   However, at some point, I do expect someone to try something dirty (Looking at you, Huckabee) and that might turn this into a different kind of match and that will work too.

There are a lot of factors to take in when it comes to professional wrestling.  But when you take away the ability to cut a promo, the ring entrances and attire, and most importantly when you take away social media and how many "likes" you get, when you strip it all down to just what happens inside of that ring, this right here might be that showcase of pure athleticism because they are certainly two of the best in the world today.

"Doctor, Doctor!" takes place on Friday, July 1st, 2022 live from the Pulaski Club in Easthampton, MA.   For tickets and more info please visit: https://twitter.com/GRINDpuro