Slaughtered

Brendan Byers vs Joey McCoy, Catalog 17 - The Muscle Boys Call the Shots (MuscleBoy Wrestling)

I assume anyone who's interested will watch the beginning and the end of this match. I will tell you this much: it starts with three strenuous collar-and-elbow lockups and ends with three consecutive piledrivers. Today I'm focusing on the sweet, creamy center. This is the point of multiple turning points, when the action moves between cool-and-scientific to sweaty-and-rough. As you can see, pint-sized hellraiser Joey McCoy has everything under control, twisting his opponent into knots, until Brendan Byers throws his weight behind a hailstorm of ball-jangling payback - and the two mismatched wrestlers slide down the slippery slope towards the piledrivers I mentioned.

Catalog 17 boasts that the wrestlers "call the shots." In this case, the wrestlers call different shots, and the clash in styles, no less than the distinctly different physiques, is what makes the fight sizzle. Joey focuses on well-planned and well-executed assaults - clean as whistles - that catch big Brendan off-guard and utilize Joey's wiry and nimble body to good effect. Brendan, in turn, prefers mangling - his backbreakers are pure medieval - I'm amazed McCoy survives them (seriously) - and he reinforces his attacks with a quick and cruel reiteration (as seen in the last GIF) ... for emphasis.

Joey is impossibly cute yet strong and resourceful in a fight. However, it is Brendan who makes this video a must-see for me. The man has barreled through the last year leaving his mark on several promotions. His heavy brow and lipless sneer are the stuff of comic-book villains, and he plays these assets to the max. His smooth and surging torso excites me, more so when wringing wet with perspiration.  Everything he's done in 2019 has made my mouth water. Now I barely remember what he looked like 10 years ago, in his twink days.

The combustibility of these two men on the mat fascinates me. Brendan brings up the best in Joey, who manages the David-and-Goliath angle convincingly and with such innovation that I forget it's a cliche I usually steer clear of. But the spectacle of Byers's glowering visage and steaming muscle is what will keep this match on redial for me for years to come.

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