{"id":86627,"date":"2021-03-17T13:00:38","date_gmt":"2021-03-17T17:00:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/?p=86627"},"modified":"2021-04-06T11:46:52","modified_gmt":"2021-04-06T15:46:52","slug":"preview-icwnhb-pit-fighter-x-tournament-4-9-21","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2021\/03\/17\/preview-icwnhb-pit-fighter-x-tournament-4-9-21\/","title":{"rendered":"Preview: ICW:NHB &#8211; Pit Fighter X Tournament (4\/9\/21)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em><strong>ICW: No Holds Barred<\/strong><\/em> brings the Pit Fighter concept to <em><strong>WrestleMania<\/strong><\/em> weekend.\u00a0 <em><strong>Pit Fighter X<\/strong><\/em> will be a two-show tournament featuring 16 of the toughest competitors in the United States locked in an MMA-style cage.\u00a0 This tournament takes place across two shows on April 9th at 8 PM and midnight EST.\u00a0 Let&#8217;s take a look at the competitors taking part in Pit Fighter X.<\/p>\n<h2>JD Drake<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/uSpQdCO\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone\" title=\"source: imgur.com\" src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/uSpQdCO.jpg\" alt=\"JD Drake\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Recent <strong>All Elite Wrestling\u00a0<\/strong>debutant,\u00a0<strong>JD Drake<\/strong>, kicked this tournament lineup off in style as the first entrant.\u00a0 Drake is as tough as they come.\u00a0 The former WWN Champion and <em><strong>EVOLVE<\/strong><\/em> Tag Team Champion has shown his pedigree time and again in his seven-year career and will be tough to beat.<\/p>\n<h2>SHLAK<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/XYtVj2u\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone\" title=\"source: imgur.com\" src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/XYtVj2u.jpg?1\" alt=\"Pit Fighter X SHLAK\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>SHLAK<\/strong> is mostly known for his deathmatch work which is among some of the craziest on the scene.\u00a0 He has appeared in three previous Pit Fighter matches and only has one win which doesn&#8217;t bode well for his chances in the cage this time around.<\/p>\n<h2>Brett Ison<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/7RTqCFS\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone\" title=\"source: imgur.com\" src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/7RTqCFS.jpg\" alt=\"Brett Ison\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>With a nickname like &#8220;The Human Shotgun&#8221; you just know <strong>Brett Ison<\/strong> is one of the hardest-hitting brawlers on the scene today.\u00a0 He is a relative newcomer to ICW:NHB but has competed in the pit before where he defeated<a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2021\/03\/01\/indie-watch-alex-ocean\/\" target=\"_self\">\u00a0<\/a><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2021\/03\/01\/indie-watch-alex-ocean\/\" target=\"_self\">Alex Ocean<\/a>.\u00a0<\/strong> While Ison is new to ICW, he has been a regular in a number of southern indies like <strong>ACTION Wrestling\u00a0<\/strong>and\u00a0<strong>S.U.P<\/strong> &#8211; where he is a former Bonestorm champion- and has even competed for <strong>Game Changer Wrestling\u00a0<\/strong>(GCW) in the past.<\/p>\n<h2>Kevin Ku<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/mJ0BWHd\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone\" title=\"source: imgur.com\" src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/mJ0BWHd.jpg\" alt=\"Pit Fighter X Kevin Ku\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Kevin Ku<\/strong> is one of the perfect wrestlers for this setting.\u00a0 The <strong>Violence Is Forever<\/strong> member is a purveyor of violence and has learned from <strong>Dominic Garrini<\/strong> and\u00a0<strong>Tom Lawlor <\/strong>in <strong>Major League Wrestling<\/strong> to excel as an all-arounder with\u00a0<strong>Team Filthy<\/strong>&#8216;s realistic influences rubbing off on him.\u00a0 While the majority of Ku&#8217;s success has come as a tag team wrestler he has held singles gold in the past, Pit Fighter X presents a chance for him to prove himself on his own<\/p>\n<h2>Reed Bentley<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/1LdWFxW\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone\" title=\"source: imgur.com\" src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/1LdWFxW.jpg\" alt=\"Reed Bentley\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Reed Bentley<\/strong> is no stranger to violence as he spent years competing primarily in\u00a0<strong>IWA: Mid-South\u00a0<\/strong>where he is a three-time world champion.\u00a0 In recent times, Bentley has been successful in tag team action as part of <strong>The Rejects<\/strong> alongside <strong>John Wayne Murdoch<\/strong>. Bentley has a winning record in Pit Fighter as he is 3-2 inside the cage.<\/p>\n<h2>Nolan Edward<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/RupxE0Q\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone\" title=\"source: imgur.com\" src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/RupxE0Q.jpg\" alt=\"Pit Fighter X Nolan Edward\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Nolan Edward<\/strong> is a rising star on the U.S. indie scene and is no stranger to the pit fighter cage.\u00a0 Edward has yet to get a win in a pit fighter match which will put him at a disadvantage going into this tournament.<\/p>\n<h2>Calvin Tankman<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/v4QY6sy\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone\" title=\"source: imgur.com\" src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/v4QY6sy.jpg\" alt=\"Calvin Tankman\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>The MLW star, <strong>Calvin Tankman<\/strong> is an absolute physical specimen who should excel in the pit fighter environment.\u00a0 Tankman has competed at <em><strong>Bloodsport<\/strong>\u00a0<\/em>and as part of\u00a0<strong>Paradigm Pro Wrestling<\/strong>&#8216;s UWF-I rules matches, which means he will feel at home in the cage at Pit Fighter X.\u00a0 With his experience and physical attributes, Tankman may be unstoppable.<\/p>\n<h2>Dom Garrini<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/R0EbqNq\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone\" title=\"source: imgur.com\" src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/R0EbqNq.jpg\" alt=\"Pit Fighter X Dom Garrini\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>MLW star and member of Violence Is Forever, Dominic Garrini has a background in Brazilian ju-jitsu.\u00a0 He has put that background to use in the Pit Fighter setting on three previous occasions and has walked away with the win each time.\u00a0 With a background and undefeated track record like his, the former SUP Bonestorm champion has to walk into this tournament as one of the favorites.<\/p>\n<h2>Daniel Garcia<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/eTsv9iF\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone\" title=\"source: imgur.com\" src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/eTsv9iF.jpg\" alt=\"Daniel Garcia\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Red Death&#8221; <strong>Daniel Garcia<\/strong> returns to ICW: NHB at Pit Fighter X.\u00a0 He has previously competed in the pit twice, losing on both occasions.\u00a0 Mostly making his name across the border in Canada, Daniel Garcia has a lot of eyes on him as he has competed for both AEW and WWE in the past 12 months.\u00a0 There was some speculation that <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2021\/02\/02\/daniel-garcia-be-wwe-bound\/\" target=\"_self\">he had signed for WWE recently<\/a> following a trademark filing.\u00a0 The young Garcia is clearly talented but this has not yet translated to the Pir Fighter environment.<\/p>\n<h2>Gary Jay<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/nsEQM3R\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone\" title=\"source: imgur.com\" src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/nsEQM3R.jpg\" alt=\"Pit Fighter X Gary Jay\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Gary Jay<\/strong> is a veteran if there ever was one.\u00a0 In his 16-year career, he has competed all over the indies for a variety of promotions like IWA-MS,\u00a0<strong>Combat Zone Wrestling\u00a0<\/strong>(CZW), GCW,\u00a0<strong>Beyond Wrestling<\/strong>, and many others.\u00a0 Despite this experience, Jay has yet to win in a Pit Fighter match and we will likely see that streak continue here.<\/p>\n<h2>Jon Davis<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/rKhml2m\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone\" title=\"source: imgur.com\" src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/rKhml2m.jpg\" alt=\"Jon Davis\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Jon Davis<\/strong> is another veteran and another tough SOB who will be right at home in the Pit Fighter ring.\u00a0 This powerhouse is a very decorated performer who has held gold in a number of companies over the years.\u00a0 This is his debut in the pit but we&#8217;re sure he will excel in this environment regardless.<\/p>\n<h2>Dan Maff<\/h2>\n<h2><a href=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/xPKCKC8\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone\" title=\"source: imgur.com\" src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/xPKCKC8.jpg\" alt=\"Dan Maff\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" \/><\/a><\/h2>\n<p><strong>Dan Maff<\/strong> is a bad, bad man with two decades of experience under his belt.\u00a0 He&#8217;s made a career of being a wreckless brute willing to take pain as much as he dishes it out.\u00a0 We have already seen what he can do in the pit as he defeated Nolan Edward in his Pit Fighter debut.\u00a0 There are few people who will be more at home in a pit fighter match than Dan Maff and that makes him a dangerous competitor in this tournament.<\/p>\n<h2>Justin Kyle<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/fgXbx5A\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone\" title=\"source: imgur.com\" src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/fgXbx5A.jpg\" alt=\"Pit Fighter X Justin Kyle\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Justin Kyle<\/strong> is a rising star on the U.S. indie scene and a physical specimen to boot.\u00a0 He is no stranger to pit fighter matches with a 3-1 record in this style of match.\u00a0 His only defeat came to <strong>Bruce Santee<\/strong>.\u00a0 Justin Kyle is an instant favorite to win this tournament but even if he doesn&#8217;t, he might walk out of WrestleMania weekend as one of the hottest names in all of the independent scene.<\/p>\n<h2>AKIRA<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/NB1IHcc\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone\" title=\"source: imgur.com\" src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/NB1IHcc.jpg\" alt=\"Pit Fighter X AKIRA\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Update April 5th: AKIRA has <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/theakiraway\/status\/1379092443900039170\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">tested positive for COVID-19<\/a> and will miss this event)<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>AKIRA<\/strong> was a breakout star in the deathmatch scene in 2020 as he not only became a regular for ICW:NHB but he had some huge matches, and wins, against various deathmatch legends.\u00a0 He is no stranger to this environment as Pit Fighter X will mark his seventh appearance in the pit.\u00a0 He currently has a 3-3 record in pit fighter matches and will be looking to put that extensive experience to use in this tournament.<\/p>\n<h4>AKIRA&#8217;s Replacement is 6 foot 5 eight-year veteran Ruben Steel<\/h4>\n<h2>Bruce Santee<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/oaFKuZ3\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone\" title=\"source: imgur.com\" src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/oaFKuZ3.jpg\" alt=\"Bruce Santee\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Bruce Santee<\/strong> is a rugged veteran who personifies everything Pit Fighter is about.\u00a0 He uses his fists first and asks questions later.\u00a0 As evidenced in his matches with Justin Kyle in the pit, he has some of the most lethal hands in all of independent wrestling and can knock any competitor out cold.<\/p>\n<h2>John Wayne Murdoch<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/9l3D8tm\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img decoding=\"async\" title=\"source: imgur.com\" src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/9l3D8tm.jpg?1\" alt=\"\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>It just wouldn&#8217;t be an ICW:NHB show without deathmatch icon <strong>John Wayne Murdoch<\/strong>.\u00a0 The former <em><strong>King Of The Death Matches<\/strong><\/em> winner is a four-time IWA Mid-South Heavyweight Champion who is currently undefeated in pit fighter matches with five wins and one no contest to his name.\u00a0 Years of violence have molded Murdoch into an absolute machine and that makes him a dangerous customer and one of the favorites for this tournament.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>Where To Watch Pit Fighter X Battle Of The Tough Guys<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>This show will air <a href=\"https:\/\/independentwrestling.tv\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">LIVE on IWTV<\/a>.\u00a0 You can get five free days of an IWTV subscription using the code ICWNHB.<\/p>\n<p><em>Stay tuned to\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/\" target=\"_self\">Last Word on Pro Wrestling<\/a>\u00a0for 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.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Looking to talk wrestling, pro football, or any number of sports? Head on over to the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/boards\/index.php\" target=\"_self\">LWOS Boards<\/a>\u00a0to engage in conversation with fellow fans!<\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"entry-content\">\n<div class=\"code-block code-block-1\">\n<div id=\"rc-widget-6e0e4e\" data-rc-widget=\"\" data-widget-host=\"habitat\" data-endpoint=\"\/\/trends.revcontent.com\" data-widget-id=\"175604\">\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>ICW: No Holds Barred brings the Pit Fighter concept to WrestleMania weekend.\u00a0 Pit Fighter X will be a two-show tournament featuring 16 of the toughest competitors in the United States locked in an MMA-style cage.\u00a0 This tournament takes place across two shows on April 9th at 8 PM and midnight EST.\u00a0 Let&#8217;s take a look [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2013,"featured_media":86911,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6,2192],"tags":[6740,6039,3657,6456,3790,7365],"class_list":["post-86627","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-north-america","category-wrestling","tag-akira","tag-calvin-tankman","tag-daniel-garcia","tag-icw-no-holds-barred","tag-jd-drake","tag-nolan-edward"],"modified_by":"Alex Richards, LWOF Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/86627","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2013"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=86627"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/86627\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/86911"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=86627"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=86627"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=86627"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}