Excalibur and Dino Winwood are in the ring next to introduce all the participants and referees. All 24 guys are introduced and they pose for a picture with the trophy.
1) The Young Bucks vs. Los Luchas (Pheonix Star & Zokre)
What better way to kick off the festivities than with some awesome tag team action. At the time, The Bucks were new to PWG while the Luchas had been around since the early days so this was basically new vs. old. These two teams put on a show as the action never stopped. There were several great exchanges and jaw dropping spots. You can't ask for a better opener than this. Great match.
Match rating - ***1/2
2) Chris Hero vs. Joey Ryan (w/ Jade Chung)
This is the first tournament match of the evening and it features the longest reigning PWG champion (at the time), Joey Ryan facing off against Chris Hero. I'd seen these two face off before and it wasn't that good so I wasn't expecting much here, but I was actually pleasantly surprised. This wasn't an outstanding match, but it was much better than the other match I've seen between Hero & Ryan. They mixed things up by doing some innovative spots that I wasn't expecting and there was even some comedy here as Joey tried to nip up, but repeatedly failed. Decent match that was pretty enjoyable despite there being a screwy finish.
Match rating - **3/4
3) Austin Aries vs. Roderick Strong
These two guys are former tag team partners so they know each other very well. With that being said, it was no surprise that they worked well together. The action here was fast paced and hard hitting. Everything you would expect from a match involving these two guys. Not much else I can say, besides that this was a good match.
Match rating - ***
4) Matt Sydal vs. Jimmy Rave
Sydal and Rave start the bout off with some technical wrestling which was nice to see. Sydal is known for his highflying, but he's pretty underrated on the mat and the showcased in the early moments of this match. Unfortunately these two didn't work that well together so there were a few moments of miscommunication that resulted in some botches. Aside from that, this was a decent encounter, but not as good as you would expect.
Match rating - **1/2
5) Alex Shelley vs. Tyler Black (Seth Rollins)
Both of these men have similar styles so I was really looking forward to this match up. With that being said, I had high expectations for the bout and thankfully they were met. Shelley and Black put on a technical showcase in the early going, but it soon turned into a battle of supremacy. Shelley got the first real advantage, but the match was pretty back and forth for the most part. Both men worked hard and the result was a great match. Best of the night so far.
Match rating - ***3/4
6) Claudio Castagnoli (Cesaro) vs. Doug Williams
Here we have a battle between two wrestling purists. Both men are known for their catch as catch can style which was showcased at the beginning of this match. Claudio and Williams went back and forth trading submissions and keeping things pretty clean, but it soon turned into an uppercut battle which was absolutely epic. Williams got the upperhand and dove to the outside only for Claudio catch him with an uppercut in mid air. The two men have an exchange around ringside exchanging shots which sees Williams send Claudio into the ring apron only for Claudio to jump up and spring off the ropes back into Williams knocking him into the crowd. Fantastic exchange! This was a great match that featured a good mix of strikes, submissions, and some catch as catch can wrestling. Awesome stuff, very fun to watch.
Match rating - ***3/4
7) Pac (Adrian Neville) vs. Jack Evans
Just like the previous match was a battle between technicians, this was a battle between aerialists. And for fans of spotty highflying wrestling like myself, this was somewhat of a dream match. It certainly lived up to expectations as we got an array of fast paced and jaw dropping offense from both men throughout. The closing sequence just absolutely blew me away as Pac hitting slingshot neckbreaker from the top rope followed by a vicios tiger suplex, both of which dropped Evans right on the back of his head. Awesome match!
Match rating - ****
8) Kevin Steen & El Generico vs. Dragon Kid & Susumu Yokosuka - PWG World Tag Team Title Match
The night started out with tag team action and it's going to close with tag team action as Kevin Steen & El Generico put their titles on the line against Dragon Gate's Susumu Yokosuka and Dragon Kid! While the opening tag team contest was fun, this bout was much better as we saw both teams give it their all for the PWG Tag Team Titles. It was interesting seeing how the Dragon Gate talent would mesh with Steen & Generico. Generico had some very nice exchanges with Dragon Kid throughout the match as they are a bit similar in style. Steen was a bit out of place in this match since he's more of a brawler than any of the other three men, but he put his skills to good use and helped his team earn the victory. Fanatastic tag team match and a great way to cap off Night 1 of the 2007 Battle of Los Angeles!
Match rating - ****
Overall thoughts: The show started off hot with The Bucks and Los Luchas tearing the house down in a spotty opening match. It slowed down a bit with Hero/Ryan and Sydal/Rave, but the final four matches picked up the slack. Black/Shelley, Pac/Evans, Claudio/Williams, and the main event tag are all worth seeing. With that being said, I recommend checking this out since half the matches got high ratings and there's really not a bad match on this show. Plus it's only $5 on Highspots right now and it's easily worth that just for the final four bouts and the opening tag match. Very good show.
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