For those heading to Atlanta, Georgia this weekend for Super Bowl LII between the New England Patriots and the Los Angeles Rams, McAloon Productions – a special events promotion run by one of the co-promoters of Texas’ Inspire Pro Wrestling – is throwing two events this weekend on Friday and Saturday for the wrestling fans in town for the NFL’s Big Show. It all starts on Thursday with Ultimate Bar Brawl, which features some solid indie matchups plus a return to pro wrestling in the US for former WWE Intercontinental Champion and NWA World’s Heavyweight Champion Ken Shamrock. It airs live on Fite.tv and is a short two-hour event with four solid matches.
Darby Allin & Priscilla Kelly vs. DoomFly (Eli Everfly & Delilah Doom)
EVOLVE‘s Prince and Princess of Pain, Darby Allin and Priscilla Kelly, will team up in an intergender tag team match that could just steal the show. The daredevil Darby Alin has become one of EVOLVE (and the US indie scene in general)’s most enigmatic superstars, while Priscilla Kelly made a national buzz in the 2018 Mae Young Classic, as well as competing for Shine, Bar Wrestling and Japan’s Tokyo Joshi Pro and DDT Pro. They team up to face one of the most exciting tandems of 2018, DoomFly, featuring Eli Everfly and Delilah Doom, West Coast stars who have become regulars with Bar Wrestling, as well as Limitless, Maverick Pro and others.
Four Way Elimination Match: EFFY vs. Casanova Valentine vs. “All Ego” Ethan Page vs. Matt Cross
Four distinctly different personalities and wrestling styles clash in a Four Way Elimination match. EFFY has worked for many promotions in the past year, including FEST Wrestling, Full Impact Pro, and Premier Wrestling Xperience (PWX), as well as having a polarizing match against WWE Superfan Izzy. New York City’s Casanova Valentine is a rough and tumble brawler looking to put on the hurt, plying his wares in New York Wrestling Connection (NYWC), Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW), H20, and more. Ethan Page has been one of IMPACT Wrestling‘s most exciting new stars, while dominating the indies with his own Alpha-1 in Canada, plus Black Label Pro (where he’s the reigning Champion), Freelance Wrestling, Game Changer Wrestling (GCW), Absolute Intense Wrestling (AIW) and a tour with Japan’s DDT Pro. Matt Cross is an indie legend, working with everyone from AIW to Beyond, PROGRESS to Bar Wrestling, who gained national exposure with Lucha Underground as Son of Havoc and was the first ever Smash Wrestling Champion in Canada.
ODB vs. Penelope Ford
In women’s action, two of the toughest women of the past two decades collide in a battle fit for a bar fight. Former 4x IMPACT Knockouts Champion ODB returns to the ring to face the new “Bad Girl” of pro wrestling and only the second woman signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) in Penelope Ford. This won’t be pretty, but it could get pretty ugly.
“Filthy” Tom Lawlor vs. Ken Shamrock
It’s an MMA dream match, pitting two former UFC stars who had great success in the world of pro wrestling. Ken Shamrock is returning to pro wrestling, making his return in New Zealand late last year. The former WWE Intercontinental Champion and NWA World’s Heavyweight Champion (won in the early days of TNA/IMPACT Wrestling) is returning to face one of the new faces of the US indies. “Filthy” Tom Lawlor gained a legion of fans during his UFC days, but like Matt Riddle, his charisma transcended the world of MMA. He’s now focusing on pro wrestling instead, where he’s a main event player for Major League Wrestling (MLW), where he faces Low Ki for the MLW World Heavyweight Championship on Saturday at MLW SuperFight. But first, he faces Ken Shamrock in a test of styles and generations on Thursday at the Ultimate Bar Brawl.