By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
GCW “So Alive”
March 7, 2026, in Columbus, Ohio, at Valley Dale Ballroom
Streamed live on TrillerTV+
I’ve always loved this two-level ballroom. It’s really well-lit and has a high ceiling. It feels like it’s been a long time since they’ve been here. The crowd was maybe 400. John Mosely and Emil Jay provided commentary.
* Due to travel issues, Bear Bronson announced earlier in the day he was unable to make it. He should be at the show in Chicago on Sunday. A very different roster than Friday’s event.
* Like Friday’s show, it opened with a video of teenager Brodie Lee Jr. challenging Joey Janela to a match, and Janela responding by beating him up. Joey Janela then came to the ring to open the show. He grabbed the mic from Emil Jay. He said that “tough love makes tough people.” He said he showed Brodie some tough love. “You are just a little wise-ass kid with a big, damn mouth,” Janela said. He proclaimed he’s the most influential independent wrestler today. He said Brodie is better off being “beaten and battered” by him. He then ripped on the crowd, saying that all their parents were addicted to meth. This brought out the ultra-scrawny, spaghetti-limp-armed, emo kid Anakin Murphy!
1. Joey Janela vs. Anakin Murphy. Murphy jumped into the ring and attacked. Joey hit some chops in the corner. Murphy has been wrestling for a few years, but has just not put on any size whatsoever. Janela hit a snap Dragon Suplex on the floor at 1:30. They got back in the ring, and Anakin hit a second-rope crossbody block. Joey hit a superkick, then a brainbuster for a nearfall at 4:00. Joey left the ring, grabbed five chairs, and threw them into the ring. Murphy hit a tornado DDT, dropping Joey onto the pile of folded chairs at 6:00.
Joey made a weird house of open chairs. They fought in the corner, and Joey tossed Anakin onto the chair structure. Joey hit a piledriver onto an open chair for a believable nearfall at 7:30; that should have been it. Anakin hit an enzuigiri, then a twisting fisherman’s suplex onto an open chair for a nearfall. Joey hit a top-rope superplex, right into a powerbomb. Joey hit a buzzsaw kick, then a Burning Hammer onto an open chair for the pin. Violent. Joey hit a second Burning Hammer, just for the heck of it, and got more boos.
Joey Janela defeated Anakin Murphy at 9:41.
2. “Violence is Forever” Kevin Ku and Dominic Garrini vs. “The Outbreak” Abel Booker and Jacksyn Crowley (w/Barnabus). I’ve only seen the Outbreak maybe twice before; they look like the zombies from The Walking Dead, and they are interchangeable. Ku started but shouted at the crowd, “What do I do?” He tied up the zombie by the waist but backed off. Ku scooped him up, slammed him back-first into his corner, and ViF worked him over. Barnabus (a carnival barker) pushed Ku into the ring post on the floor. The Outbreak worked over Dominic in the ring. A zombie hit a Slling Blade clothesline. (The commentators aren’t guessing which zombie is which, either.)
Ku tagged back in at 5:00 and hit a back suplex. He hit a sit-out powerbomb for a nearfall. A zombie bit Ku’s fingers! Garrini hit a release German Suplex at 7:30, then a neckbreaker over his knee. Ku hit a double stomp to the chest for a nearfall. One of the zombies stood up on the floor and creepily pulled Ku over the top rope to the floor! The Outbreak worked over Garrini in the ring. Garrini hit a piledriver on one, then a Muscle Buster on the other one at 10:00. ViF hit front-and-back strikes, then the Chasing the Dragon (spin kick-and-brainbuster combo) for the pin.
“Violence is Forever” Kevin Ku and Dominic Garrini defeated “The Outbreak” Abel Booker and Jacksyn Crowley at 10:23.
3. Beastman vs. Gary Jay. Again, Gary is like a red-headed version of Brodie Lee. Gary immediately dove through the ropes onto Beastman and hit some chops at ringside. Beastman threw a board at him and brawled around the room. Beastman hit a powerbomb onto the floor. In the ring, Jay hit some chops, but Beastman hit a back suplex, then he splashed onto Jay for a nearfall at 3:30. Beastman missed a rolling cannonball, and Gary hit a stomp on Beastman’s head.
Jay laid in more chops in the corner and was fired up. Beastman hit a Black Hole Slam for a nearfall at 5:00. Jay hit a doublestomp as Beastman was in the ropes, and he got a nearfall. Beastman hit a second-rope leaping piledriver onto a door bridge, but only got a two-count at 7:30. They hit each other over the head with the door debris. Gary hit one more doublestomp to the back of the head and got the pin. Emil was surprised that was the finish.
Gary Jay defeated Beastman at 7:59.
4. Gringo Loco vs. Marcus Mathers. To me, this is the main event — nothing else on this show comes close. Marcus has been in Japan, competing for Dragon Gate. Cagematch.net shows he’s had 20 matches there over the past six weeks, and this is his first match back in the United States. Marcus came out first and told the camera, “It’s been two long months, but I’m back!” Cagematch.net records show these two have shared the ring 15 times since 2021, but this is a first-ever singles match!
They opened in a knuckle lock and a test of strength. They sped it up and traded faster reversals. As usual, Loco paused to swivel his hips at 2:00. Mathers hit a mule kick for a nearfall. Loco dropped Mathers stomach-first to the mat for a nearfall at 4:00. Loco hit an Ospreay-style Stormbreaker (spinning slam from your shoulder to the mat) for a nearfall. Loco went for a handspring move but Mathers caught him with a basement dropkick at 6:30. Mathers hit his picture-perfect flip dive to the floor on Loco.
Back in the ring, Mathers took charge and hit some blows in the corner. Loco hit a corner moonsault to the floor on Marcus at 8:30, with his legs landing on these hard (non-folding) chairs. In the ring, Loco hit his split-legged moonsault for a nearfall. Mathers hit a superkick to the jaw at 10:30. Loco set up for an Air Raid Crash but turned it into a faceplant. (He did that Friday, too.) They got up and traded more strikes. Mathers nailed a Poison Rana at 12:00, but Loco hit a mid-ring Spanish Fly, and they were both down. This has been really good, as expected.
Mathers hit his second-rope Canadian Destroyer for a nearfall, but Loco grabbed the ropes, and they were both down at 14:00. Mathers missed a top-rope doublestomp, but he hit a huracanrana for a nearfall. Mathers nailed an Ospreay-style heel hook kick to the jaw! Ouch! They fought on the ropes, and this time, Loco hit a top-rope Spanish Fly for a nearfall at 15:30. Marcus dragged Loco to a corner and set up for a move, but Loco got underneath him and hit the second-rope Base Bomb (swinging powerbomb) for the pin. Yes, that’s gonna be match of the night. They rightfully earned a “both these guys!” chant, and they hugged.
Gringo Loco defeated Marcus Mathers at 16:55.
5. Nate Webb vs. Shotzi Blackheart in an intergender match.The sounds of Wheatus’ “Teenage Dirtbag” can only mean one wrestler! The crowd sang along as Webb made his way through the crowd. He went up into the balcony to be the orchestra conductor and lead the crowd in the sing-along. Awesome. Shotzi put him in a headlock and sang that Nate is “an old-man dirtbag.” She tied up the left arm and bit his fingers! Shotzi dove through the ropes and barreled onto him at 2:00.
Back in the ring, she hit a top-rope crossbody block and sang some more. Shotzi hit a running somersault off the apron and barreled onto him on the floor at 3:30; he hasn’t landed a move yet! Shotzi hit a running Meteora onto Webb, who was seated at ringside. Webb whipped her into the rows of chairs, and now they brawled through the crowd. He hit a snap suplex on a thin rug at 6:00. They fought up the stairs; she punched him, and he rolled down the stairs! Shotzi leapt off the railing (maybe four feet up) and splashed onto him on the floor.
They finally returned to the ring, where Webb hit a swinging faceplant and dragged her to a corner. He grabbed a chair, but he missed a moonsault with it in his hands at 8:30. She wedged the chair between his legs, and swung another chair onto that chair. Ouch! They fought on the top rope, and she pushed him to the mat, with him landing on a folded chair. She then hit the top-rope senton splash for the pin. Fun action.
Shotzi Blackheart defeated Nate Webb at 9:50.
* They shook hands and hugged, and she insisted they play “Teenage Dirtbag.” They poured beers into her Viking helmet, and he drank from it. Fun.
* “Bustah & The Brain” Jordan Oliver & Alec Price came to the ring. Flyin Ryan O’Neill joined them. They don’t have an announced opponent tonight. Oliver said he was surprised they didn’t have a match set yet, so they made an open challenge. First, a team led by the arm-pumping dork Bobby Flaco came out… but then another three-man team led by Juni Underwood came out! Then, another team led by Jeffrey John came out!
6. Flyin’ Ryan O’Neill and “Bustah & The Brain” Jordan Oliver and Alec Price vs. Terry Yaki, Bobby Flaco, and Gavin Ash vs. Juni Underwood, Facade, and Logan Cavazos vs. Kristian Robinson, Rachel Armstrong, and Jeffrey John. Flaco is over with the fans; his dorky entrance music fits him. I’ve never heard of Logan Cavazos before; he’s a young kid with short blond hair. He’s not in the cagematch.net database yet. Kristian Robinson is a young Black man; I’ve seen him maybe twice in Unsanctioned Pro here in Ohio. Oliver got on the mic and said, “No more teams are allowed to enter.”
One guy from each team started. This will be impossible to keep up with. If you subtract ring veteran Facade, the other 11 competitors in this match probably average an age of 23 or so, with Ash and Cavazos both probably teens. Everyone was flowing in and out; this feels like lucha rules. Everyone started fighting on the floor at 4:00. Juni hit a plancha onto a bunch of guys. Flaco dove off the top rope onto everyone. O’Neill hit a top-rope flip dive to the floor. Robinson and Armstrong hit stereo dives through the ropes. Ash and Yaki hit stereo flip dives over the top rope. Facade did a Sabu-style launch off a chair and hit a springboard flip dive at 6:30.
Price and Oliver hit a flip dive onto everyone. Robinson hit a Fosbury Flop to the floor. In the ring, Robinson hit a flipping senton Facade at 9:30, and I think Facade was legit injured; he rolled out of the ring. The room got a bit quiet for a minute as everyone else continued the match. Juni hit a Canadian Destroyer on the apron. Facade stood up and now appears to be okay. We had a Tower of Doom spot from the corner. Flaco hit a top-rope double stomp on O’Neill at 11:30. Ash hit a Sister Abigail-style faceplant. Yaki hit an Asai Moonsault.
Ash hit his impressive Shooting Star Press for a nearfall, but a half-dozen guys made the save. (Ash really goes toward the center of the ring on that move; it’s rather impressive.) All 12 began fighting in the ring. “Now it just looks like a battle royal in there,” Emil said. Jeffrey John tried a top-rope splash towards the center of the ring, but everyone parted ways, and he crashed! The crowd laughed. Nine opponents all superkicked John for good measure. Logan powerbombed Rachel over the top rope onto several guys on the floor.
Facade hit a Doomsday kick on O’Neill for a nearfall at 15:00. This has been messy chaos, but I’m amused. Six guys fought in the ring and traded forearm strikes. John’s team hit stereo German Suplexes. Flaco’s team hit stereo stunners. O’Neill hit a series of kicks on several guys, and he was fired up. Price and Oliver hit some quick team moves on Rachel. Oliver hit a HARD dropkick on Ash that sent him flying! O’Neil hit a Doomsday Canadian Destroyer on Logan for the pin. (No surprise the rookie I hadn’t seen before takes the pin.) Messy but fun.
Flyin’ Ryan O’Neill and “Bustah & The Brain” Jordan Oliver and Alec Price defeated Terry Yaki, Bobby Flaco, and Gavin Ash, Juni Underwood, Facade, and Logan Cavazos, and Kristian Robinson, Rachel Armstrong, and Jeffrey John at 17:59.
* Oliver got on the mic and thanked all the opponents, noting some of them were there early, setting up the ring, and he was glad to get to fight them. A good, fiery promo.
* Footage aired of the feud between Effy, Allie Katch, and 1 Called Manders. Joshua Bishop came to the ring. He was supposed to face Bear Bronson, so I’m not sure what he’s doing now.
7. Joshua Bishop vs. Sam Holloway. WWE ID prospect Sam Holloway is a pleasant surprise! Two big guys here; this could easily have been the main event. Cagematch.net shows they’ve shared the ring eight times, with Bishop holding a 2-1 advantage in singles matches. Sam hit a shotgun dropkick at the bell, then an impressive dive over the top rope onto Bishop. (It looks like a much younger Undertaker when he hits that!) Bishop hit a plancha onto Sam at 2:00, and they fought on the floor.
Bishop hit some chairshots to the back. Sam accidentally chopped the ring post. Josh picked up a kid (maybe age 5) and rammed the girl’s feet into Sam, drawing some cheers. They got back into the ring; there were doors, a table, and chairs in there already. Bishop hit a back suplex at 4:30. Sam got a chair and struck Josh in the back and jabbed it onto him. Josh hit a fallaway slam at 6:00. Sam threw a chair at him, then hit a spinning uranage (it could have been a chokeslam) for a nearfall.
Josh hit a spinning Black Hole Slam for a nearfall at 7:30. Sam suplexed Josh onto a chair in the corner and got a nearfall. Sam set up a door bridge, but Josh hit him with another door. Bishop hit a second-rope superplex through the door bridge at 10:00. Josh hit a powerbomb onto the broken door and scored the pin. Good brawl. I can do without that thrown chair, but the rest of the action was fine.
Joshua Bishop defeated Sam Holloway at 10:30.
* A video aired of Atticus Cogar talking about the assault on Matt Tremont last week.
8. Davey Bang and August Matthews vs. “The Brothers of Funstruction” Ruffo the Clown and Yabo the Clown. The BoF are among my least favorite acts on the indy scene today, while Bang and Matthews are arguably the best tag team in the Midwest… so I guess I’ll watch it. I refuse to learn which clown is which. Bang hit his axe kick to the back of the head. A clown hit an Eat D’Feat on August at 3:30. One clown dropped the other on Matthews for a nearfall. One of the clowns tickled Matthews with a rubber chicken. So dumb. Bang and Matthews hit stereo handspring-back-elbows. The Clowns hit a team stomp on Bang and pinned him. Meh.
“The Brothers of Funstruction” Ruffo the Clown and Yabo the Clown defeated Davey Bang and August Matthews at 7:12.
* The next match was billed as Vipress vs. Christian Napier in an intergender match. Vipress came out first, but was attacked from behind by Brittnie Brooks!
9. Vipress vs. Brittnie Brooks. Brittnie stomped on her. Vipress was finally able to remove her jacket. She set up for a dive to the floor, but Brooks hit her in the head with a chair. They brawled on the floor. Brooks was wearing new black-and-gold gear. She rammed Vipress shoulder-first into the post at 3:00 and celebrated. They got back into the ring with Brooks in charge. Brooks hit some rolling German Suplexes, but Vipress blocked a third one and got an inside cradle for a nearfall.
Vipress hit a pumphandle powerbomb for a nearfall at 4:30. Brooks hit a double knee strike on the damaged arm and stayed focused on it. Brooks set up for It’s Brittnie Bitch (Eye of the Hurricane), but Vipress escaped it, and Vipress hit a DVD for a nearfall at 6:00. Vipress went for a frog splash, but Brooks got her knees up. Brittnie hit a DDT for a nearfall, and she screamed at the ref. Brooks again couldn’t hit the It’s Brittnie Bitch. Vipress hit a running knee to the chin, then a sudden piledriver for the pin. Good action. That was much better than what was announced.
Vipress defeated Brittnie Brooks at 8:16.
10. “The Second Gear Crew” Matthew Justice and AJ Gray vs. “VNDL 48” Otis Cogar and Atticus Cogar. I doubt I saw AJ wrestle more than once in the past year. The Cogars each carried their respective belts, which aren’t on the line. AJ and Atticus opened. Gray hit a spinning heel kick at 1:30. Justice entered and hit some chops on Atticus. Otis entered and chopped Justice. Matthew hit a tornado DDT for a nearfall at 4:00. Atticus suplexed Gray into a corner.
The Cogars continued to work over Gray. Atticus hit a suplex at 6:30. Christian Napier jumped in the ring and helped the Cogars beat up Gray. This has become a three-on-two beatdown. Atticus hit an Air Raid Crash on Gray at 12:00, slamming him through a door in the corner, for a nearfall. Atticus and Napier hit their opponents with table debris. Mance Warner and Steph De Lander emerged from the back at 14:00 to even the odds, and they got a huge pop! This has just become a six-man tag! Mance kicked Otis in the face, sending him to the floor. He hit some jab punches on Atticus. They cleared the ring, and Mance hugged the other babyfaces.
They continued to brawl to the floor, beating each other over the head with the table debris. “This is the kind of mayhem I love,” Emil said. They climbed over chairs and brawled through the crowd. I don’t know if this match is technically even over. Mance hit a hard chairshot to the back at 18:00, and Justice hit a chairshot to Atticus’ head. The crowd was loving this fight! Again, no one is in the ring, no one is going for covers. Mance hit more shots over the head with door debris. SDL was looping the ring but wasn’t getting physically involved.
Okay, Gray and Napier got in the ring. Napier tried to leave, but Effy appeared and threw Napier back in the ring! Mance and Effy hugged! The four babyfaces lifted Christian and slammed him at 22:30 for a nearfall, but Atticus pulled the ref to the floor. Gray hit a clothesline on Otis. The Cogars hit a team Tower of London for a nearfall on Gray. Mance got cooking skewers and jabbed them into Atticus’ head. Steph got in the ring and she speared Atticus! Justice hit a coast-to-coast dropkick on Atticus in the corner and went for a cover but Effy pulled him off because he wanted to continue beating up the heels! They ejected Effy from the ring and were upset with him! Napier rolled up Gray for the flash pin!
“VNDL 48” Christian Napier, Otis Cogar, and Atticus Cogar defeated “Second Gear Crew” AJ Gray, Matthew Justice, and Mance Warner at 25:33.
Final Thoughts: Gringo Loco vs. Marcus Mathers is definitely the match to watch here. The main event was a solid brawl and the Mance Warner return was a well-kept secret. I don’t think that match needed to go anywhere near 25 minutes, but the crowd enjoyed it. Bishop and Holloway had a good big-man match.
I have no doubt whatsoever that Shotzi is having far more fun on the indy scene than she ever did in WWE. I’ve seen her have a number of these matches in the past year, getting to throw around guys and dominate the action.