On August 27, the National Wrestling Alliance held Night 1 of its two-night NWA 74 event. Celebrating 74 years of the NWA, this particular event started off with a number of key matches. One of the major items heading into the first night of NWA 74 was the return of the Burke Invitational, a gauntlet match featuring 10 women’s wrestlers not only in the National Wrestling Alliance but the independent scene across the board. Furthermore, multiple championships changed hands within Chase’s Khorassan Ballroom in St. Louis, Missouri. Here’s what to know coming out of the first night of the festivities.
NWA 74 Night 1: Burke Invitational and Title Matches
Max The Impaler has won the Burke Invitational!@_theyaremax_ #NWA74 pic.twitter.com/I4pwRUHc9d
— 𝐃𝐫𝐚𝐕𝐞𝐧 (@WrestlingCovers) August 28, 2022
Max the Impaler Wins Burke Invitational
As mentioned earlier, one of the key matches heading into NWA 74 Night 1 was the Burke Invitational gauntlet match. Pitting 10 women’s wrestlers against one another, the ultimate prize was an NWA World Women’s Championship match on Night 2. Max the Impaler entered the match at number 7, quickly establishing their dominance from that point. “The Non-Binary Nightmare” eliminated such names as Samantha Starr and Angelina Love. Ultimately, the final two competitors standing were Max and Natalia Markova, the latter of whom wowed viewers with her in-ring technique. Despite her best efforts, Markova was unable to best her opponent, as Max planted her in the center of the ring to win the Burke Invitational. With this victory, Max the Impaler will go onto NWA 74 Night 2 to challenge NWA World Women’s Champion Kamille, who successfully defended her title against Taya Valkyrie in Night 1’s main event.
Now the work begins! Im ready to take this show on the road. @nwa #NWA74 pic.twitter.com/6n1yYf4LQL
— Cyon (@NWA_Cyon) August 28, 2022
Cyon Wins NWA National Heavyweight Championship
In the first match of NWA 74 Night 1 that saw a title change, Cyon challenged Jax Dane for the NWA National Heavyweight Championship. In this bout, Dane had Chris Silvio, Esq. in this corner, meaning that the champion entered this match with something of a psychological advantage. This would prove to be true, too, though not at the hands of Silvio. Instead, Anthony Mayweather entered the ring while the referee was distracted, planting Cyon with a chokeslam. Despite this, the challenger stayed in the match. Cyon seemed to have the match won when he applied a sleeper hold, though this went unnoticed by the referee. The match concluded when Cyon executed a Death Valley Driver, pinning Dane thereafter to capture his first NWA National Heavyweight Championship, not to mention first NWA title in general. Since hitting the scene in the National Wrestling Alliance, Cyon made it explicitly clear that he looked to capture championship gold; NWA 74 Night 1 appears to be the official start of this conquest.
Congratulations to TNT Tag Team Champions La Rebelión @Bestia666tj and #MechaWolf who are once again @nwa World Tag Team Champions pic.twitter.com/OZHmGLmb9X
— TNT Extreme Wrestling (@TNTExtremeWres) August 28, 2022
La Rebelión Win NWA World Tag Team Championship
Originally, La Rebelión (Bestia 666 and Mecha Wolf 450) were scheduled to challenge the Commonwealth Connection for the NWA World Tag Team Championship on Night 1. However, early in the evening, it was revealed that one-half of the champions, Harry Smith, couldn’t compete due to illness. As a result, Smith and Doug Williams were forced to relinquish the titles. Instead, at NWA 74 Night 1, La Rebelión challenged Hawx Aerie, the father-and-son duo of Luke and PJ Hawx, for the vacant titles. Hawx Aerie proved to be formidable opponents for the former NWA World Tag Team Champions, especially PJ, who put on a spirited performance. However, the involvement of Damián 666 proved to be an equalizer, as he sprayed mist in the eyes of Luke when the official wasn’t looking. This allowed La Rebelión to secure the victory following a roll-up, resulting in Bestia 666 and Mecha Wolf 450 becoming 2x NWA World Tag Team Champions. Following the match, Williams shook hands with the new titleholders.
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. NWA 74 can be seen on FITE.
