In news that should surprise no one, Vinny Dunn has retained his IPW Championship via underhanded tactics at IPW New Year’s Takeover.
The triple threat match between Dunn, James Shaw and Travis Banks had been promised earlier in the night to be clean and without ambushing from The Investment. With that in mind, Vinny Dunn appeared to be alone in his title defence.
The match began with Shaw and Banks trying to one up each other until they decided two-on-one attacks would work better. However, the alliance was short lived as Dunn would be ejected from the ring early and the match truly turned towards every man for himself.
Shaw and Banks would try and get victories early over one another using a Stretch Muffler and a Lion Clutch respectively. However, Dunn managed to keep breaking up the possible submissions before he could lose his championship.
After breaking up the Stretch Muffler and sending Shaw to the outside, Dunn took control for the first time in the match. The next few minutes would see Dunn maintain control over Banks until Shaw re-entered the ring and took control, followed by Dunn turning the tables and forcing Shaw into the tree of woe, followed by Banks jumping back into the mix and hitting a big bulldog combo taking down Dunn as well as inflicting damage to the still vulnerable Shaw. It was truly fast-paced action.
Trying to capitalise on his momentum, Banks sent Dunn back into the ring and locked on his patented Lion Clutch. Just as it looked as though Banks was closing in on his second IPW championship, Shaw broke up the possible submission and went back on the attack. In what could have been one of the greatest feats in New Zealand professional wrestling, Shaw attempted a double DVD but was unable to hold the weight of both Banks and Dunn.
With Dunn falling to the outside and Shaw nursing his neck and back, Banks attempted to make the most of the situation with some brutal kicks to Shaw. However, after one kick too many, Shaw managed to reverse and lock on the Stretch Muffler once again.
Now it looked as though Shaw was closing in on his first IPW championship. However, at the crucial moment, The Investment’s Curt Chaos and Pat Schisk interfered. Just as it looked as though Shaw and Banks had control over the two, The Agents of Change also came down to the ring to aid their IPW Champion. This led to the referee ending the match and calling it a no contest.
Ignoring the bell, The Investment continued their attack until The Origin – Kingi and Alfred Valentine who had debuted their new team earlier in the evening – came to the aid of Shaw and Banks. After clearing house, it was The Origin, James Shaw and Travis Banks who were left standing tall. But it was Daniel Burnell who would have the last laugh, banning The Origin from the next IPW event and saying they would never be back.
IPW New Year’s Takeover Results:
- Liam Fury def. Khan
Fury forced Khan to submit with a Boston Crab. - Curt Chaos & Pat Schisk def. Joel Clementson & Pirate Burns
Chaos scored the pinfall on Clementson following a spinning facebuster and placing his feet on the ropes for a leveraged pin. - Aaron Henry w/ Jakob Cross def. TK Cooper w/ Lil T
Henry pinned Cooper after hitting him in the head with a tag team championship belt. - Liger def. Mason Daniels
Liger pinned Daniels following a Backdrop Driver. Fury saved Daniels from a post-match beat down. - Lil T w/ TK Cooper def. Jakob Cross w/ Aaron Henry
Lil T scored the win after hitting a low blow while the referee was distracted. The Origin then made their debut by attacking the Agents of Change before escaping through the crowd. - IPW Women’s Championship:
Evie (c) def. Carmen Rose
Evie retainer her title following a diving double foot stomp. Britenay then stormed the ring to prevent a post-match beat down on the debutant.
- IPW Championship:
No Contest: Vinny Dunn (c) vs. James Shaw vs. Travis Banks
The referee called the match a no contest when The Investment interfered on Dunn’s behalf. The Origin then came to the ring to help Shaw and Banks fight off The Investment.
