Freelance Wrestling is back home in Chicago this Friday night with Things That Go Bump In The Ring, their first solo production since last month’s I Want To Believe. Another intense card from one of Chicago’s top indie promotions, and as usual, the event will be airing live on IndependentWrestling.tv at 10pm EST, part two of a double header that sees ICW New York at 8pm.
Tripp Cassidy vs. Robert Anthony vs. Craven
A triple threat featuring three very different styles of wrestling. Tripp Cassidy is one-third of the trio The Carnies, but he’s also the one who works singles matches more often than teaming with the rest of the crew. A regular with Bizzaro Lucha, IWA Mid South, Southern Undeground Pro (SUP), Bar Wrestling and more, he’s a severely twisted individual who will do anything to get the job done. Robert Anthony is a former Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW) World Heavyweight Champion (also known as Ego Fantastico) who has been on a bit of a losing streak of late in Freelance – hopefully, a win on Friday night will get his game back on track. Craven is a veteran of the Australian indie scene who is breaking out in 2019, working with Freelance in the US and The Crash Lucha in Mexico. A former 5x All Action Wrestling (AAW) in Western Australia, a big win on Friday would go a long way.
The N Words (Acid Jazz & Bryce Benjamin) vs. The Following (Pariah & Elayna Black)
The reigning 2x Berwyn Championship Wrestling (BCW) Tag Team Champions The N-Words haven’t frequented Freelance this year as much as they have in the past, but they’re looking to get deeper into the Freelance tag team division and get back in contention for the Freelance Tag Team titles. But first, they’ll have to get through The Following, as the relative newcomers to Freelance look to make a statement. Elayna Luck has been making waves in the women’s scene in the Midwest, and now teaming with Pariah look to make their own claim on getting a shot at the Freelance tag team gold.
Take It Homewreckers (Darin Corbin, Bucky Collins & Kenny Sutra) vs. 1 Called Manders, Atticus Cougar & Arik Cannon
The feud between Darin Corbin and Arik Cannon has been going on for years now, and in Freelance, the two have been waging gang warfare for most of the year. While Corbin has safely relied on his fellow Take It Homewreckers to get the job done, Arik Cannon has sought new soldiers each encounter and on Friday he pairs up with two rising stars from the US indies. 1 Called Manders is a three-year pro who has risen quickly through Iowa’s SCW Pro Wrestling, as well as IWA Mid South, SUP, Glory Pro and more, including his recent debut with Beyond Wrestling. Atticus Cogar is another emerging star from the vibrant Midwest, who has been a force with Ohio’s Premier Championship Wrestling (PCW) and Pennsylvania’s International Wrestling Cartel (IWC). He’s also set for his GCW debut this coming Monday.
Isaias Velazquez vs. Shotzi Blackheart
With word spreading fast of Shotzi Blackheart gearing up to head to the WWE Performance Center to join NXT, she’s winding down her indie career over the next few weeks. She’s making her last appearance with Freelance on Friday night, where she’s facing one of the faces of Freelance Wrestling. Isaias Velazquez is a Chicago-area veteran who has been one of the region’s top stars for over a decade, as both a former 2x Freelance World Champion as well as working with Zelo Pro Wrestling and Warrior Wrestling. This past year he’s also appeared for Major League Wrestling (MLW), IMPACT Wrestling, EVOLVE Wrestling, Black Label Pro, GCW and others.
GPA vs. Gregory Iron
Former Freelance World Champion GPA is another Chicago veteran, who spent years with GALLI Lucha. Now that his lengthy feud with Kylie Rae is out of the way, GPA is looking to get back into the World title hunt in Freelance, but first, he’s going to have to go through another Midwest veteran in Ohio’s Gregory Iron. Gregory Iron has fought living with cerebral palsy his entire life and become one of the most trusted veterans in the US and Canadian indies, where he competes for the likes of Alpha-1 in Canada and Freelance, Empire State Wrestling (ESW), Glory Pro, Bar Wrestling and more in the US.
Freelance Tag Team Championship: Space Pirates (Shane Sabre & Space Monkey) (c) vs. RockNES Monsters (BHK & Yuma)
The Freelance Wrestling Tag Team titles will be decided with an international showcase of East meets West, as the Canadian duo (and tag team champions) Space Pirates face off with some West Coast vets. Space Monkey and Shane Sabre won the Freelance Tag Team Championships back in August, upsetting the Work Horsemen at Get Over or Die Tryin’, and defended them last month at I Want To Believe against Team Sea Stars. On Friday night, they face West Coast veterans RockNES Monsters, regular competitors with Bar Wrestling, Championship Wrestling From Hollywood, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla (PWG), and others. RockNES are looking to finally make a big break outside the West and a big title win in the Midwest would be a great announcement.
#1 Contenders Match for the Freelance World Championship: Craig Mitchell vs. Kobe Durst vs. Tony Deppen vs. Rickey Shane Page
While Freelance World Champion Ethan Page is in Canada taping for IMPACT Wrestling, on Friday night four men will compete to become the #1 contender to his title. Craig Mitchell has been a Freelance staple since the promotion began, and his rough and tumble style has also endured himself to their hardcore sister promotion, Freelance Underground. He recently made his EVOLVE debut and is looking to get his shot at Page’s Freelance Championship. Kobe Durst is no stranger to Ethan Page – the fellow Canadian is a protegee of Page, working for Page’s Alpha-1 in Hamilton. He’s also been feuding with Page for nearly the past year in Black Label Pro, where he’s the reigning BLP Heavyweight Champion – a title he beat Page for over 200 days ago. Tony Deppen has quietly become one of 2019’s breakout stars, with solid work in both GCW and CHIKARA the past two years, as well as his work with Beyond Wrestling’s Uncharted Territory. After making his PWG Battle of Los Angeles debut this past year, 2020 is Deppen’s year, and getting into the Freelance title picture is another big step. Rickey Shane Page is always lethal – the former CZW World Champion is as tough as they come. He’s currently carrying the GCW World title (which he stole from Nick Gage) and touring the world, but he’s back on US soil to try and add the Freelance title to his trophy case.
Freelance Legacy Championship: Eye Candy Elliott (c) vs. Project MONIX
Eye Candy Elliott became the inaugural Freelance Legacy Champion when he defeated Alex Ohlson, Gringo Loco, Kobe Durst, Matt Knicks & Thunder Rosa in a 6-way match at Freelance vs The World: 5th Anniversary Show this past June, and he still carries the title to this day. On Friday, he may have his toughest challenger to date, in former tag partner Project Monix. Monix is on the verge of a breakout year himself, and the former 2x IWA Mid South Junior Heavyweight Champion knows Elliott better than anyone – they both held the IWA Mid South Tag Team titles together last year.
Stay tuned to the Last Word on Pro Wrestling for more on this and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world. Freelance Wrestling “Things That Go Bump in the Ring” will be airing live on IndieWrestling.tv directly following ICW New York “Return to the Concrete Jungle” around 10pm EST.
