Hat City Havoc III: Northeast Wrestling Returns to Danbury
Northeast Wrestling once again hit Danbury for its third annual “Hat City Havoc” event on Saturday, bringing an action-packed card to Abbott Tech High School. The card featured big names in the world of professional wrestling like Nic Nemeth and Matt Riddle while highlighting up-and-coming talent like Brad Baylor and KC Navarro.
The show was opened by Swipe Right, a stable consisting of Brad Baylor, Ricky Smokes and Zayda Steele, all members of WWE’s ID program. The group insulted the Danbury crowd, while claiming all three would win their respective singles matches before heading back to Orlando for WWE NXT on Tuesday.
Ricky Smokes vs. DJ Powers
Smokes kicked off the action Saturday night against DJ Powers in a fast-paced match complimented by high-flying moves. Powers controlled the “Smokeshow” early on, but a frog splash attempt resulted in Smokes raising his knees, driving into the mid-section of a soaring DJ Powers. This allowed Smokes to take control, assaulting his opponent with elbow drops, chops, and a big suplex. Rolling through another splash by Powers, Smokes planted him face-first to the mat, scoring the victory.
Chris Battle vs. Randy Shawn
The next bout saw Chris Battle go one-on-one with Randy Shawn. Shawn gained the upper hand early with a hip toss followed by a hurricanrana that saw the match spill out onto the entrance ramp.
Back in the ring, Battle hit a backstabber, taking control and slowing down the match. An attempt for a comeback from Shawn was thwarted by a big superkick from Battle, who then began to line up his opponent for a match-ending spear. Shawn then intercepted with a spear of his own, stacking up Battle for the three-count.
Zayda Steele vs. Rebecca J. Scott
Zayda Steele then made her way to the ring, flanked by Ricky Smokes, to take on Rebecca J. Scott. The match began in a lockup, with Steele controlling Scott into the corner. Scott took the lead with a big knee in the corner followed by a missile dropkick, but a distraction from Smokes outside allowed Steele to take advantage, delivering a big power slam to Scott.
Late in the match, Scott would once again take control with a superman punch, a standing fireman’s carry powerslam and a backstabber to Steele. Just as it seemed she had victory in sight, Smokes grabbed Scott’s foot from outside of the ring, allowing Steele to hit an unprettier maneuver off the distraction for the win.
Vargas vs. Dark STG
The “Dominican Destroyer” Vargas then made his way to the ring, along with his manager, Jared Silberkleit, to take on Dark STG. The two big men stared each other down, before Vargas landed a big splash in the corner, taking control early on.
STG leveled the playing field outside, landing a high-impact suicide dive seconds before driving Vargas headfirst into the ring post. Vargas, however, took control back in the ring, delivering chops, clotheslines, and power slams.
The two ended up grappling on the top rope, before Silberkleit interfered, grabbing STG’s foot. This allowed Vargas an opening to land a big powerbomb, pinning STG for the win.
Matt Riddle vs. Brad Baylor
The next match saw former WWE star Matt Riddle take on Brad Baylor in a back-and-forth, hard-hitting match. Riddle tried to show respect to his young opponent with a handshake, but Baylor refused. Riddle tried to hit an RKBro early on, but Baylor evaded.
Riddle, however, applied pressure on Baylor in the early stages, hitting three big fallaway slams on the WWE ID prospect. Baylor then began to fight back, overwhelming Riddle with strikes in the corner. A chop-fest ensued shortly after, with both competitors going back – and forth.
Ricky Smokes once again made his way to the ring but caught a clothesline from Riddle as he stepped onto the ring apron. This distraction gave Baylor enough time to recover, meeting Riddle on the top rope for a superplex.
Late in the match, Baylor teased hitting an RKO of his own, mocking the taunt of Randy Orton, the move’s originator. Riddle countered, hitting the RKBro followed by his Bro Derek finishing move to win the match.
NEW Tag Team Championship Match: Waves and Curls vs. The Residency
NEW Tag Team Champions Waves and Curls (Jaylen Brandyn and Traevon Jordan) entered the ring to announce that Jordan has a concussion and was not able to compete in their title defense. Jordan announced that he found a substitute for himself in Jermaine Marbury, who then made his way to the ring, alongside the Benny the Basketball mascot.
Brandyn and Marbury faced off against The Residency (RJ Rude and Nick Robles). Marbury and Rude started things off, with Marbury taking the lead, juking out Rude before landing a big neckbreaker.
Rude and Robles isolated Marbury, wearing him down. The crowd cheered for Marbury, trying to rally him until he made the eventual tag to Brandyn, who evened the score with crossbodies and DDTs.
Marbury tagged in after Brandyn was hit with a backstabber/powerbomb combination by Robles and Rude. Brandyn sailed over the top rope, plummeting onto Rude to prevent him from interfering as Marbury scaled the turnbuckle to deliver a big splash to win.
Brian Anthony meets face-to-face with Vito
Just over one year after his retirement match against Vito, NEW General Manager Brian Anthony hit the ring to a grand ovation from his hometown audience. He hyped up the crowd, while promoting next Saturday’s Wrestlefest in White Plains, NY.
Vito, Anthony’s longtime rival, then hit the ring, insulting Anthony by mocking him for his injury. Silberkleit then entered the ring, causing a distraction that allowed Vito to blind Anthony with a handful of chalk. Anthony re-entered the ring, taking both managers out before hitting a cutter on Silberkleit as Vito slipped away.
NEW Live Championship Match: Brett Ryan Gosselin vs. Wrecking Ball Legursky
Brett Ryan Gosselin was originally slated to challenge Matt Taven for the NEW Heavyweight Championship, but the match was cancelled due to scheduling conflicts with Taven. This resulted in Gosselin defending his NEW Live Championship against Wrecking Ball Legursky instead.
Legursky stared down the NEW Live Champion, before tossing Gosselin around the ring for several minutes. Every attempt at any offense from the “Victorious BRG” was thwarted by the powerful Legursky.
Gosselin finally landed a dropkick that sent Legursky outside, where Gosselin was able to take control. He overwhelmed Legursky with stomps as he entered the ring, slowing things down.
Legursky attempted a corner splash late in the match, but caught the referee instead. He then chokeslammed Gosselin but was unable to get the win due to the referee being out cold. Gosselin used the title as a weapon against Legursky, before calling for another referee to count the pin. Legursky kicked out and planted Gosselin to the mat with a powerful slam, scoring the pin and winning the match.
However, once the original referee woke up, he disqualified Legursky for attacking him, declaring Gosselin the winner, retaining the championship. This resulted in Legursky delivering a big slam to the referee for costing him the championship.
Main Event: Nic Nemeth vs. KC Navarro
KC Navarro made his entrance to face former WWE star, current TNA World Tag Team Champion Nic Nemeth (FKA Dolph Ziggler). This was billed as a “first time ever” match, as it was the first singles encounter between the two competitors.
The match began with a lockup, with Nemeth powering Navarro into the corner. Navarro then locked in a headlock, before Nemeth rolled out of it. A back-and-forth technical showcase ensued, with both wrestlers grappling each other on the mat. Each competitor taunted the other, showing off for the crowd in between maneuvers.
Navarro attempted a top rope dive, but Nemeth dodged it, nearly landing a swift kick on an evading Navarro. Nemeth acknowledged Navarro’s abilities, offering his hand for a handshake before getting back to the action with a kick to the gut.
Nemeth began to hit his signature series of elbow drops, but Navarro dodged the fourth and final elbow. Nemeth did not let him take control though, planting Navarro to the mat.
Navarro found an opening after landing a high-flying DDT and tried to maintain the momentum with a frog splash but missed as Nemeth caught him with a famouser. Once Navarro made it back to his feet, the two went back-and-forth with strikes, both landing big shots on one another. Nemeth then hit his finishing move, the Danger Zone, but only scored a two count.
Navarro scored a two-count of his own after hitting a big kick to a seated Nemeth in the corner, followed by a successful frog splash. Navarro leaped off the ropes once more but was caught with a superkick and another Danger Zone by Nemeth.
A kickout at two gave Navarro the adrenaline rush he needed to fight back with strikes and kicks, before delivering his finishing maneuver for the three count to secure a monumental win over Nemeth.
After the match, Nemeth showed the up-and-coming star respect with a handshake, and the two shared words, praising each other’s abilities.
“A lot of people compared me to a lot of big-time stars,” said Navarro, after his victory. “One in particular, was you. You inspired me, and tonight you showed up here for all these people, and you showed up for me.”
The crowd chanted “Thank you Nemeth” as Navarro walked up the ramp, before Nemeth stopped him.
“He made his opportunity happen. That’s how you get ahead in this business,” Nemeth told the crowd, putting over his opponent. “That’s why everyone in the back is rooting for him, that’s why everyone at TNA wants this kid to be the next X-Division Champion.”
After congratulating his opponent, Nemeth thanked everyone for coming out and promised the Northeast Wrestling faithful that he’d see them again soon.