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Jessie Lee vs Erik the Viking, Match 676 (UCW)

It's been nine months since I last saw the Viking. I was beginning to fear he wasn't coming back. Jessie arrived while Erik was away, and he's a fantastic "Welcome Home" surprise. They are awesome in the ring together, both men meatier than the UCW norm, yet faithful  to the company style of no holds barred.

They enter the ring at the same time and immediately get in each other's face. "What the hell is going on here in UCW? We went from little people to dwarfs!" alluding to Jessie's below-average height. "I can say the same for you," Lee replies, adding, "skinny fuck!" Lacking further rejoinders, the two lock up, and the bell sounds.

Erik gets a quick wrist lock on Jessie, stomping on the mat to get some tension in the hold. Jessie struggles to break loose, but Erik prevents his escape by switching to a side headlock. Jessie pulls the legs out from under the Viking, and both hit the mat, with Erik now caught in a chin lock. Lee taunts him some more, repeating the regrettable "skinny fuck" line, which only fires Erik up to hammer his elbow to Jessie's ribs and force an escape.

The exchanges accurately predict the give and take pattern that the rest of the fight adheres to. Neither man seems in a clear position to win until one of them actually does win. Both wrestlers prove themselves worthy of victory, and the victor achieves it with a body slam from a fireman's carry vantage. He even announces "This ... Is ... The ... End" in case viewers missed it.

Erik especially stands out on the basis of his understanding of ring drama. Jessie is strong, but Erik is more vicious and, I imagine, set on proving he hasn't lost his mojo after a long hiatus.

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