Forged in the furnace that was the CHIKARA gauntlet, Sara Del Rey vs Kana (now Asuka) will now be put through the STAR rating grinder. Despite missing both a third rope and a hot program to raise the stakes, these two supremely talented wrestlers put on a match that CHIKARA proudly points to as it's first all-female main event.
But despite all of that, can the match overcome some particularly indie-rific atmosphere as well as the inherent challenges in being what amounts to an exhibition match to be counted among the greatest of all time? Listen and find out!
Joining the regular team of pseudo-scientists in the lab for this episode is Alex Keller!
[Sara Del Rey vs Kana, CHIKARA Klunk in Love, October 8 2011]
It's the return of the Gauntlet episode! For the season 9 edition your intrepid hosts are sifting through FIVE audience suggested matches from the now-defunct promotion: Chikara.
Joaquin, Chuck and Frank watch and discuss each match, putting them into a weighted ranking with the match that comes out on top becoming the subject for the next episode of TIA!
The Matches entering the gauntlet are:
1. Chris Hero vs Mike Quackenbush, Aniversario?, May 26 2007
2. Claudio Castagnoli vs Brodie Lee, Style and Substance, September 7 2008
3. Bryan Danielson & Claudio Castagnoli vs. Mike Quackenbush & Jigsaw, Hiding in Plain Sight, September 13 2009
4. Madison Eagles vs. Daizee Haze, Chaos In The Sea Of Lost Souls, January 23 2011
5. Sara Del Rey vs Kana, Klunk in Love, October 8 2011
We could open an In n Out with this many potatoes!
This episode, for AJW's prestigious Red Belt, comes with a pretty big content warning. Despite there being zero thumbtacks and not an an inch of barb-wire there is still a significant amount the juice - so word of warning for our listeners who choose to become viewers.
Aja Kong, the Ace of AJW defends against the stoic Yumiko Hotta in a classic Joshi clash that can be summed up with a single inspired word: Violent.
Assisting in applying soft science to this fake fight is Ryan Saucier who joins the prestigious TIA three-timers club.
[Aja Kong vs Yumiko Hotta, AJW Ota Ward Champion Legend, January 24 1994]