Collision Course

Kirby Stone vs Austin Cooper, Big Boy Battles 2: "Ring Beef" (BG East)

This contest caps off BG East's tribute to the big boys who make the wrestling ring roar. It's Austin Cooper's best match in a long time (evidently a match rescued from the BGE vault), and a rare view of Kirby Stone rising above the "pink trunks" curse to go neck and neck against a worthy opponent. The first half sets a standard for give-and-take ring wrestling; the last half is a gut-wrenching struggle for survival by a wrestler who "hangs on" even as the odds mount against him. Both of these big boys job like nobody else, and both know how to command the squared circle, too.

It's exciting to watch an underdog take licking after licking and refuse to submit. Perseverance at this level is a sign of good character, with a tincture of masochism. I find myself rooting for such a guy even after he's reached a point of no return and his doom is seemingly inevitable. Is that admiration or pity? The second half of Cooper vs Stone depicts a struggle against what appears to be an unavoidable downfall. Austin plays the struggle with such heart (see all the images above) even though he's got next to zero chance of survival, much less a heroic reversal.

Like Coop, Kirby has been an object of fascination and lust for years. The guy has taken lickings from the best - Jonny Firestorm and Cameron Mathews, most notably. Despite his callow good looks, Kirby consistently puts up a top-notch fight. Watching Stone in action, I'm persuaded the pink trunks are designed to draw fire. Kirby thrives on his opponents' underestimation of him as a wrestler. He's anything but a pushover, as Austin discovers, but he's vulnerable, too. The sight of a totally destroyed Kirby Stone is as titillating as the sight of him victoriously mounting his exhausted opponent. In either event, voluminous sweat is a certainty.

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