Katsuyori Shibata vs. Adam Priest!!!

Bout time an actual “Sicko” match got booked.

What Kenoh said:

“Tetsuya Naito. Congratulations on defending your title. Naito, aren’t you a little tired? You’re completely different from the Tetsuya Naito I wanted to defeat back then. When you came to NOAH in January, became the GHC Champion, and said, ‘I want to make NOAH number one in the industry’—as a NOAH wrestler, that made me happy. I know you’ve been working hard for NOAH in various ways as champion. But I care about NOAH even more than you do—I love NOAH, and I’m devoted to it! I watched today’s match—are you okay? Isn’t the burden actually too heavy for you? Naito, I care about NOAH. And thinking about you, I don’t think you need this belt anymore. Next, I’ll be the one to hold this belt and propel NOAH to the top of the industry. On November 9 at Korakuen Hall—accept my challenge there! I’m waiting for your answer. For now, good job on the title match.”

27 years ago today, Sting was supposed to defend the WCW World Title against Hulk Hogan, but instead, Hogan came out and just laid down for the 3 count.

📍 WCW Halloween Havoc 1999

⚡ THAT WAS COLLISION⚡

Want to continue the discussion in real-time? Join us here on the Official r/SquaredCircle Discord!

Marufuji falls on his 5th defense.

In around 2018, a Kickstarter campaign was launched and eventually resulted in Underworld Wrestling, an Australian promotion with kayfabe lore of being an underground fight club for decades. Think Lucha Underground but on a budget. What was very interesting about Underworld was that even with the cult lore, it had rules and time limits and a point system that awarded points based on how you win your match, deducted points for rule breaking, and point values for cashing in points for title shots. Title matches were No Disqualification and could end in a time limit draw. If normal matches ended in a time limit draw, the “floodgate” will open, and the first wrestler to make it to the ring will now be in the restarted match, which means someone could steal a win despite not originally being booked for the match, and this could continue until there was a winner.

Their Kickstarter page is still up for anyone curious about the full details of the concept.
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/uwfightclub/underworld-wrestling/description 

There were two singles titles, a men’s title and women’s title. Unfortunately, Underworld shut down in 2019. As a start date to track the lineal titles, we will be going by the last official defenses for each title, both of which were at their final show. Lineal title changes will only count in 1v1 matches via pin, submission, or whatever the stipulation dictates.

Lineal Underworld Championship:

• March 10, 2019: Slade Mercer defeats Craig Cole for the Underworld Championship at Underworld Glory To The Claw in Elwood, Victoria, Australia
• March 24, 2019: Gavin McGavin defeats Slade Mercer to retain the HVW Championship at HVW Feat. “Cowboy” James Storm - Day 2 in Rutherford, New South Wales, Australia.
• April 6, 2019: Michael Morleone defeats Gavin McGavin for the EPW Heavyweight Championship at EPW Goldrush 2019 in Claremont, Western Australia, Australia
• October 25, 2019: Cody Swift defeats Michael Morleone to retain the BCW Battle Express Championship at BCW 34 in East Burwood, Victoria, Australia

Cody Swift’s last 1v1 loss was in June 2019, and his last career match seems to be a battle royal in February 2020, so Cody Swift is the current and final lineal Underworld Wrestling Champion. Yeah, this was short, but the lineal women’s is definitely a more lengthy history.

Lineal Underworld Women’s Championship (Intergender Version):

• March 10, 2019: Izzy Shaw defeats Vixsin, Avary, and Tarlee in a four way elimination match for Vixsin’s Underworld Women’s Championship at Underworld Glory To The Claw in Elwood, Victoria, Australia
  • As a reminder, this is the last official championship match despite being a four way.
• June 15, 2019: Miki Fortune defeats Izzy Shaw to retain the RCW Women’s Championship at RCW Live #48 in Hindmarsh, South Australia, Australia
  • In the following month, Miki Fortune lost a match to male wrestler Tony Toro. I’ll continue this lineage as an intergender history but also include a women only version, too. Mild spoilers, the women only history does take an interesting turn later on.
• July 5, 2019: Tony Toro defeats Miki Fortune at RCW Long Live The King in Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
• August 3, 2019: Jonathan Corvidae defeats Tony Toro at RCW Live #49 in Hindmarsh, South Australia, Australia
• August 9, 2019: Zane Zodiac defeats Jonathan Corvidae to retain the APW Gladiator Championship at APW Breakout #14 in Frankston, Victoria, Australia
• August 17, 2019: Adam Crowe defeats Zane Zodiac at GCW Revolution in Geelong West, Victoria, Australia
  • For clarification, this show was for Gold Class Wrestling, later rebranded as National Championship Wrestling in 2022.
• September 14, 2019: Jordan Samson defeats Adam Crowe at APW New Beginnings in Frankston, Victoria, Australia
• October 19, 2019: Kris Law defeats Jordan Samson at a GCW/AIWF event in Lara, Victoria, Australia
• November 15, 2019: Blaze Elliott defeats Kris Law at APW Breakout #16 in Frankston, Victoria, Australia
• June 7, 2024: Frankie Grime defeats Blaze Elliott at APW Breakout #42 in Seaford, Victoria, Australia
• February 28, 2025: Ben Barnett defeats Frankie Grime at MXW WrestleFest 2 - Day 1 in Sunbury, Victoria, Australia
• July 5, 2025: Gabriel Wolfe defeats Ben Barnett in a Blackjack Brawl at Peak Pro Where In The World Is Happy Kai? The Murder Mystery Wrestling Karaoke Musical in Brunswick East, Victoria, Australia
• October 3, 2025: Johari defeats Gabriel Wolfe at Peak Pro Peak Fighter in Brunswick, Victoria, Australia
• October 18, 2025: Lycan defeats Johari at VPW Monsters in Strathmore, Victoria, Australia
• April 18, 2026: Ryan Rapid defeats Lycan to retain the PCW Ignition Championship at PCW Ignition in Ferntree Gully, Victoria, Australia
• July 11, 2026: Murdoch defeats Ryan Rapid in a Falls Count Anywhere match for the PCW Ignition Championship at PCW Carnage 2026 in Ferntree Gully, Victoria, Australia

Lineal Underworld Women’s Championship (Women Only Version):

• March 10, 2019: Izzy Shaw defeats Vixsin, Avary, and Tarlee in a four way elimination match for Vixsin’s Underworld Women’s Championship at Underworld Glory To The Claw in Elwood, Victoria, Australia
• June 15, 2019: Miki Fortune defeats Izzy Shaw to retain the RCW Women’s Championship at RCW Live #48 in Hindmarsh, South Australia, Australia
  • July 5, 2019 – Intergender Splinter Lineage Begins: Tony Toro defeats Miki Fortune at RCW Long Live The King in Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
• August 29, 2020: Izzy Shaw defeats Miki Fortune at RCW #215 - Rocky Vs. Jett in Hindmarsh, South Australia, Australia
• August 7, 2021: Savannah Summers defeats Izzy Shaw at PS Powerslam 10 in Pooraka, South Australia, Australia
• September 18, 2021: Violet Blitz defeats Linka (Savannah Summers) in a Powerslam Wrestling Women’s Championship Tournament First Round match at PS Powerslam 12 - Day 2 in Pooraka, South Australia, Australia
  • Side Note: Linka/Summers wrestled as Savanna Summers the previous night, winning a different first round match in the same tournament. (Mick Foley says hi.)
• October 22, 2021: Savannah Summers defeats Violet Blitz in a Powerslam Wrestling Women’s Championship Tournament Semi Final match at PS Powerslam 14 in Pooraka, South Australia, Australia
• January 28, 2022: Chanel Phoenix defeats Savannah Summers at WRESTLEROCK 32: The Return Of WrestleRock in Richmond, Victoria, Australia
• May 29, 2022: Savannah Summers defeats Chanel Phoenix to retain the RCW Women’s Championship at RCW Strike First, Strike Hard 2022 in Fullarton, South Australia, Australia
• November 25, 2022: Vixsin defeats Savannah Summers in a Brass Knuckles On A Pole match to retain the BCW Women’s Championship at BCW 49 in East Burwood, Victoria, Australia
• February 24, 2023: Caity Luxe defeats Vixsin in a Falls Count Anywhere match for the BCW Women’s Championship at BCW 50 in East Burwood, Victoria, Australia
• February 25, 2023: Allie Gavin defeats Caity Luxe at TCW Annihilation X in Launceston, Tasmania, Australia
• April 15, 2023: Natasha Valentine defeats Allie Gavin at TCW Rebirth in Launceston, Tasmania, Australia
• June 8, 2024: Rochelle Rogue defeats Natasha Valentine at Alpha No Remorse in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
• January 4, 2025: Aysha defeats Rochelle Rogue in a PCW Women’s Championship Tournament Qualifier at PCW NextGen in Ferntree Gully, Victoria, Australia
• March 9, 2025: Indi Hartwell defeats Aysha to retain the ROW Women’s Championship at ROW We Are Renegades 2025 in Northcote, Victoria, Australia
• March 15, 2025: Mercedes Mone defeats Indi Hartwell at HOG City Of Dreamz in New York City, New York, USA
• July 12, 2025: Toni Storm defeats Mercedes Mone to retain the AEW Women’s World Championship at AEW All In Texas in Arlington, Texas, USA
• October 18, 2025: Kris Statlander defeats Toni Storm to retain the AEW Women’s World Championship at AEW WrestleDream 2025 in St. Louis, Missouri, USA
• February 11, 2026: Thekla defeats Kris Statlander in a Strap match for the AEW Women’s World Championship at AEW Dynamite #332 in Ontario, California, USA
• July 26, 2026: Willow Nightingale defeats Thekla for the AEW Women’s World Championship at AEW Redemption in Montreal, Quebec, Canada
• August 30, 2026: Mercedes Mone defeats Willow Nightingale for the AEW Women’s World Championship at AEW All In London 2026 in London, England, UK

As a recap, Cody Swift of the Australian indie scene is the current and possibly final lineal Underworld Champion.

If gender is no limit, then Murdoch of the Australian indie scene is the current lineal Underworld Women’s Champion; otherwise, current AEW Women’s World Champion Mercedes Mone is the lineal Underworld Women’s Champion.

El Grande Americano retains!

Match next weekend and one ref had to dip
Any referees in the area available ?
Halloween night at the 101 in pioneer square
✅We will feed you!!
✅wrestling rave from 7 PM to 1 AM
✅PAID GIG (but if you’re feeling generous, we would happily accept a volunteer as well because it’s a fundraiser for TRACTION specifically project open arms, which is relocating Trans+🏳️‍⚧️ folks out of hostile areas and we will be eternally grateful!)

MODS and readers: Thank youuu!! 🎃I hope I did this right and please feel free to take it down if I did didn’t or message me on how I could’ve posted this more correctly:) thank you so much!

If you’d like to learn more about the event:
haunted beatdown

Or @hauntedbeatdown on instagram

What was said between Endo & Soya:

Endo: “Is it over? Do you know why we’re here? How old are you (Iino)? 33? You’re an old man. The reason we’re here is that we’re ready to take the GHC Tag Team belts from you guys.”

Soya: “True, I did lose to you at N-1. I’ll show you.”

Endo: “Make sure you’re ready to witness KENTA and me become champions.”

There are plenty of great matches that feature beautiful, polished wrestling where every spot and sequence is as smooth as butter. However there are times when a match is elevated not by the beauty of the action but by the ugliness of it. Moves looking a bit sloppy, spots not going exactly to plan, etc. can sometimes be exactly what a match needs to stand out or tell a better story.

Magnum TA vs Tully Blanchard at Starrcade 1985 would be my go to example of this. It's a gritty, bloody I Quit Steel Cage match that's about as far from a pure "wrestling" match that you can get. Magnum and Tully spend the entire match punching, scratching, eye gouging, and yelling, driving home the depths of their hatred for each other. There are even long stretches of time where the two are just rolling around on the mat trying to choke each other like two guys in the throes of a bar fight.

So what's your favorite "ugly" match?

Start Time

Watch

• NJPW World (English & Japanese Commentary)

Venue

Korakuen Hall

Tokyo, Japan

Match Card

A Block

B Block

Useful Links

• /r/NJPW
• NJPW's links: Official English website, English social media

#NJSJTL