Wrestling Videos I Watch Over and Over and Over (Part 10)

 

Brad Rochelle vs Patrick Donovan,  Wrestlefest 2 (BG East)

A super-terrific showdown between two of BG East's classic ring (and mat) wrestlers, Brad-vs-Patrick is a BGE rarity; that is, it's a match with a live audience, brimming with excitement. The contrast in styles--energetic roughneck versus snooty WASP--makes the match inherently dramatic. Even Rochelle's multicolor stripes are a direct assault on Donovan's pristine white. Both are top-grade wrestlers. Patrick does not have to act to look classy and privileged, or even slightly contemptuous of Brad and the proletarian crowd: he just has the bearing of a snob or, worse, a puritan. Of course I have no reason to believe he is a bad guy in real life, but I've wanted to beat Donovan up from the first day I saw him. In contrast, Brad is a bundle of raw energy, game for anything, ready to play to the fans, and increasingly ticked-off by Donovan's superior attitude. At first Brad is the underdog, but suddenly he is kicking ass and, in a sterling moment of comeuppance, holding Patrick in place so that, one at a time, the attending fans get a crack at punching dents into Donovan. This is one of those matches I get hard just thinking about.

 

 

Vic Capri vs Ace Steel, IWA Mid-South Wrestling
The full match can be viewed on YouTube here and here and here.

A 2009 light heavyweight championship match with Vic, then 35, 5'7", 195#, against strawberry blond Ace, 36, 5'9", 215#. I have only three previous blog posts on Capri. That's less than 5% the attention Bruno at Beefcakes of Wrestling has paid him in the same time span. Shame on me. This match is a favorite, a 30-minute iron-man match, the winner being the man with the most falls within the time limit. This battle is probably Capri's best, homosexually speaking. The handsome bodybuilder and the volatile surfer go old-school all over each other, inside and outside the ring, breaking into a hard sweat in minutes and tangling up tighter than nightcrawlers in shrink wrap. I've never seen Vic this brutal, and Ace is ideal in size and build and age (and hair style) to oppose him. It's one of those rare battles that I'd happily take either man's place for 30 minutes. The results are history by now, but I'll leave off the spoilers for the sake of those of you just discovering this beaut. Suffice it to say, the five moments captured in the GIFs above are tattooed on my imagination forever.

 

Scotty Mac vs Jä Jakobe, Cyberfight 50 (Cyberfights)

Maybe there's a subliminal theme to this posting because Cyberfight 50 too is an act of class warfare: in this case, hot-blooded jock (Scotty) versus snarky hipster (Jä). I have plenty of favorite wrestlers who have been showcased in the Cyberfights series (Tyler Black, Marek Brave, Kurt Sterling), but for fight, this match is hands-down my favorite. The guys are pros at tormenting each other, and they play directly to the camera (noses practically fogging the lens), bringing us right into the battle with them. It's easy to believe there is genuine bad blood between these guys, and though the antics are often over the top, they never seem anything less than authentic. I have often thought Mac bears a passing resemblance to eroto-wrestling god Aryx Quinn, and both remind me of John Cena a bit, though Cena, the biggest name, is the least exciting of the three. Jä, slimmer and more sophisticated than his opponent, is nevertheless well matched against Scotty in durability, character, and violence. And for all its tough qualities, the fight is still bouncy, light, and fun.