Ode To A Sami Callihan

Sami Callihan vs BJ Whitmer, CZW "Tangled Web 4"

Solid match that may have been really good had the crowd not been so obnoxious. It started off pretty well with both guys trading blows and going to war, but after once Whitmer gained control it kind of lost steam. Sami did some really brutal facewashes made nastier by the great camera angle, but I thought the spot with him trying to hit dive in between two rings was kind of retarded (you have to see it to understand that). I liked Whitmer's knees and crazy new MMA-esque submission, but the crowd totally shat on him to the point where it wasn't good heat but "go away" heat, and while he kinda worked it at first it looked like it threw him off and he became lost afterwards. Shame.

Sami Callihan vs Finlay, EVOLVE 9

This was excellent. Not only one of the most hard-hitting matches I have ever seen, but they told the veteran vs upstart story amazingly. Right at the bell, Sami tried to rush Finlay only for Fit to blast him straight in the face. What a great way to set the tone for the rest of the match. Finlay was amazing in this, never getting drawn into Sami's attempts at striking exchanges and cheapshotting him like a fucking asshole. Sami getting in his face only for Finlay to headbutt him was so great. The beatings dished out were insane, every shot was stiff as all fuck, making both guys look like the two baddest sons of bitches on the planet. Finlay worked over Sami's leg, busting out all sorts of nasty, creative holds you'd never see in WWEland. Finlay makes simple bodyslams look devestating, and the spot where he distracted the ref so he could cheapshot Sami in his bad leg just BECAUSE HE COULD was a total dick move. Towards the end of the match, Sami went for a suicide dive and flew flat-out into the rail face first. And the finish was worth a million stars, Sami is pretty much done for, but remains defiant to the end, giving Finlay the finger before Finlay kills him with the returning tombstone. Such a deeply brutal match and a total war, littered with so many great individual moments it would be impossible to list them all. Finlay finished looking like the toughest guy in pro wrestling history, Sami took his lumps and came out looking like a world beater. Just an excellent match and up there with Punk vs Cena as being truly transcendant.

Sami Callihan vs Necro Butcher, CZW "New Heights"

This was barely even a match, and a dissapointing one at that. Mostly just an angle in the Sami vs DJ Hyde feud, with Hyde telling Necro if he doesn't beat up Callihan he doesn't get paid. After that it's basically a staple gun match, and I kind of blame Necro for it as he introduced the staple gun. Granted, they staple each other in some legit nasty places, like the armpit and side of the head, but this is the sort of gross-out garbage I try to avoid in hardcore wrestling.