May Day

Daniel Garcia vs Jeremiah Richter 24 March 2021 (Daddy Yeah Productions)

They don't come any rawer than Daniel Garcia. Thank you to Dr. L, again, for recommending this match from March, which pits Garcia against bigger, beefier Jeremiah Richter, but you almost have to feel sorry for Richter. Garcia shrinks from Richter and straddles the ring ropes, cowering, presumably intimidated. When the two do lock up, Richter lifts Garcia as if he were a feather and slaps him face down on the canvas. The big guy looks ready to announce himself the winner as his lean opponent circles back in, grabs him by one arm and twists it (first GIF), cranking it over his (Garcia's) shoulder, numbing it before twisting it behind Richter's back (second GIF).

Both men look sweaty from the start, a good sign. The sixteen-minute match is give and take throughout, but it's clear to all (well, maybe not Richter) that Garcia is the man in control. He wears Richter down bit by bit. His advantage is brutality, not size. Garcia is eerily gifted at annihilating his opponent; size and muscle offer Richter no protection against Garcia's assaults. The tangible gloom, the hollow resonance of the fight space, and the crowd's scattered applause provide the match with a seedy tone, perfectly matched by the desperation and recklessness of the two brawlers.

Twenty-two-year-old Garcia has been wrestling professionally for four years. He's already comparable to technical wrestlers like Zack Sabre Jr. and Bret Hart and danger-junkies like Jon Moxley and Chris Ridgeway. It doesn't hurt that he looks like a jacked-up Nick Jonas. He doesn't fit easily into any category. He is and isn't a heel. It's perhaps best to refer to him as a fearless and merciless roughneck, an equal-opportunity antagonist of heels and babyfaces alike.

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