#Preview: GCW Presents No Sleep

Just following its farewell showing to Joey Janela. Game Changer Wrestling (GCW) returns to Asbury Park, NJ for No Sleep on October 12th.  On the card. If you can’t make your way to NJ for the live show, of course, Fite.TV will be airing live at 5:00pm PDT time.

No Sleep
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Main Event: Nick Gage vs Matthew Justice – GCW World Championship

The absent GCW Championship is on the line as Nick Gage defends it against Matthew Justice at No Sleep.  Last month, at Black Label Pro – TURBO GRAPS 16, CZW mainstay Rickey Shane Page shocked the world when he invaded the ring to attack Gage and left the venue with his GCW Championship belt.  “Come get your f****ing belt convict”, Page told Gage in a video on social media. But not before spray painting the initials “RSP” across the belt.

While the two may inevitably meet in the near future, as would events suggest, Gage will still have to get through Matthew Justice in defending his absent belt if such a championship should take place in the near future.  It will not be the first time these two competitors have crossed paths, namely Absolute Intense Wrestling where Nick Gage defeated him to retain the Absolute Championship. Once again, Gage will have to prove himself the better man against a competitor with a clear and intimidating size advantage, and one who has defeated Gage before in non-singles competition. 

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Shlak vs Tony Deppen

Perhaps the most standout match of this show is the raging giant and deathmatch extraordinaire, Shlak, taking on one of the best wrestling purists in independent wrestling today, Tony Deppen at No Sleep.  Both are GCW mainstays from totally different wrestling style paradigms. However, they share a will of iron and stubbornness for loss as similar tempers often flare and carry on matches well past their expected ending pointing. 

Tony Deppen’s diverse ability to adapt to different styles has led him into west coast wrestling this year, including Oregon’s Prestige wrestling, and of course PWG.  Can Tony Deppen overcome the beast from New Jersey, or will he find himself Shlak’ed and out cold when the smoke finally clears? Find out this Saturday.

No Sleep
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Orange Cassidy vs Matt Tremont

The enigmatic Orange Cassidy takes on deathmatch legend and former CZW champion Matt Tremont in another booking one could describe as chemistry gone totally haywire, but the end results certainly have us salivating with curiosity at No Sleep.  Perhaps Cassidy have some tricks up his sleeve in taking on a bulldozer twice his size, or else Tremont may just do what he does best and skewer the living hell out of the lethargic one and leave him bloodied and beaten.

 

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Jake Atlas vs Ophidian

Jake Atlas quickly burst out of California’s PCW Ultra making a name for himself as one of the top pure wrestling cruiserweights in the business today.  He has an extraordinary talent for agility that matches the mathematical perfection of every maneuver he pulls off in the ring which makes even simple offenses, such as a beautifully executed springboard arm drag, bring fans to their feet. 

It was at LA Confidential last year in which Atlas made his GCW debut, and has since worked multiple bookings for both Ring of Honor and IMPACT, and even a championship matchup against Artemis Spencer at DEFY wrestling in Portland. His blazing speed and ability to keep his opponents on their toes has certainly caught the attention of Chikara veteran Ophidian.  There is no underdog in pit these two magnificent talents against each other, but it would certainly add some extraordinary weight and attention to Atlas’ career if he can squeeze out a win from this one.

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Alex Zayne vs Zachary Wentz

Get out the popcorn, but make sure not to blink, because GCW’s homegrown talent Alex Zayne is taking on Zachary Wentz in a matchup that will be fueled to maximum capacity with high flying risk-taking and high spots.  Zayne has certainly made a name for himself in GCW over the last year, not only as a natural-born high flyer and gymnast but also as a fearless risk-taker who’s willing to utilize and go the extra height oftentimes, literally.  When he takes on IMPACT wrestling’s own Zachary Wentz, also an accomplished aerialist, expect these two to bring out the best in each other and leave room for plenty of innovation, as well as perhaps some maneuvers we’ve never seen before. 

No Sleep
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Alex Colon vs Rich Swann

Alex Colon, a hybrid wrestler who can stand his own ground against wrestling purists while putting it all on the line within the paradigm of the ultraviolence, takes on Rich Swann.  If one characteristic drives this card as a whole, it’s filled with bookings such as this one which pit wrestlers from extremely different backgrounds and styles simply for the sake of seeing what in the living hell can possibly transpire. 

Alex Colon was this year’s winner of the GCW Tournament of Death – one of the most violent deathmatch tournaments in the world. On the other side of the equation, Rich Swann is a former IMPACT X-Division Champion and WWE Cruiserweight Champion.  While Colon can stand his ground in both the ultraviolent and purist worlds -and often indulges in both simultaneously- the question on many people’s minds is whether Swann can hold his ground and handle matters if things turn bloody?

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Chris Dickinson vs EFFY

Chris Dickinson has been on fire these last couple years, not only displaying some incredible hoss fights against competitors of the larger size but also displaying some of the most cringe-worthy hard-hitting matchups in recent memory.  Effy has made a name for himself recently, especially in leagues such as Black Label Pro. There’s no question that EFFY’s self-described feminine-like attitude -fishnets and glamorous studded jackets and all- is on a collision course of attitudes with the typically machismo display of the “Dirty Daddy” and the absolute monster that is Chris Dickinson. 

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Jimmy Lloyd vs Shane Mercer vs Blake Christian vs Jordan Oliver vs Jon Silver

It would not be a classic GCW card without at least one of these all-out every man for himself largescale matchups, often hailed as F****fest matchups.  However, unlike previous matches of this sort, which are usually viewed as popcorn matches or fillers, there are some fairly big names going into this matchup. 

GCW mainstay and main eventer Jimmy Lloyd certainly sticks out, especially as one headlining his own show later this month, Halloween F**ckfest later this month.  But the juggernaut brute KTB is also a force to reckon with, coming off a number of wins in these types of every-man-for-himself largescale matchups in recent history. 

And then, of course, there are 2019 GCW newcomer gems such as the pure powerhouse  Shane Mercer, who has the ability to tear this match up completely with his dominance and strength.  With three goliaths entering this matchup, the chemistry of this matchup quickly becomes a hybrid of high flying all-out warfare with the likes of Jon Silver, reckless Jordan Oliver and newcomer sensation within GCW’s cruiserweight division, Blake Christian at No Sleep.  

It’ll be all out uncontrolled chaos where anything can go in a matchup like this, mixed with wrestling purists, juggernauts, a deathmatch mainstay, and aerial daredevil’s alike at No Sleep.

Micah Shapiro, a native of Seattle, a father, and a husband, holds a Master of Science degree in Conflict Analysis and Resolution from George Mason University, and is a war and history junkie with a fascination for the dramatization and narration of human conflicts (obviously, pro wrestling fits that spectrum very well). He avidly watches independent pro wrestling as an escape from the daily anxieties of life in general, and his logistics day job. Though a typical hermit, sometimes he'll actually leave his house to go to DEFY's shows. Besides pro wrestling and global conflicts, he enjoys BBQ'ing (his specialty is Turkish Aleppo-pepper chicken kabobs), playing adventure and RPG video games, board games, painting war game miniatures, and reading science fiction, horror and fantasy novels.