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[2000-06-23-ECW-TNN] Yoshihiro Taijiri vs Steve Corino


soup23

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A really good match that was trending to a great one until the shoddy finish. This opened up uniquely with basic wrestling holds and sequences including arm drag takeovers and criss crosses leading into a nice looking powerslam by Corino. Once Tajiri goes on offense, he continues to be one of if not the best person in wrestling in 2000 performing offense. Chairs being hit in unique angles and deadly precision on his kicks. Corino bleeds and as usual it looks great with his blonde hair. The finish sees Tajiri misting special referee Jerry Lynn and then he hits a superkick from Corino for the pin. Really cheap finish with Cyrus continuing to be annoying as shit in this network role. ***1/2 (6.9)

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  • 1 month later...

The angle here is standard 2000 ECW lame. The match, though, is another terrific war between these two. Love the handspring kick leading to Corino's blade job, as well as Corino using the chair to counter the handspring elbow.

 

It's interesting how Corino really elevated himself in this year by willing to bleed way more than anyone else at the time. I wonder if there's a space left for someone to do that in 2017 given the various standards of the even semi-major promotions.

 

Not as good as Hardcore Heaven, but a very good TV match.

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  • GSR changed the title to [2000-06-23-ECW-TNN] Yoshihiro Taijiri vs Steve Corino
  • 5 months later...

Cyrus, on behalf of the Network, instructs referee Mike Kehner to favour Corino in this bout.  When he tells him that he’ll call it like he does every other match, fair and square right down the middle, Cyrus attacks him.  Jack Victory then throws Kehner out the ring and Cyrus introduces the special guest referee, only in the interest of good ratings mind, Jerry Lynn.  Joey Styles thinks this stinks after what’s gone on recently and that Lynn must be in the pocket of The Network.  The camera catches Cyrus telling Corino that “just like Montreal it’s in the bag”, making Styles even more convinced that Lynn has taken a payoff.  Awesome looking powerslam by Corino which only gets him a one count, so there’s no early favouritism being shown.  Tajiri with a handspring elbow followed by a Hangman’s neckbreaker.  After a spinning heel kick Tajiri dumps Corino under the bottom rope out to the floor.  He grabs a chair from ringside and brings it up on to the apron, but Tajiri with another handspring, this time kicking the chair plum into Corino’s own face.  That not only looked and sounded great but also busted Corino open.  He ties him in the ‘Tree of Woe’ and, unlike at Hardcore Heaven, baseball slides that chair into his face.  Tajiri grabs a table from under the ring, however Corino reverses the hip toss and suplexes Tajiri through it.  While not quite at the level of the PPV, Corino’s blonde hair is again turning red.  Tajiri kicks out of the cover and Cyrus is screaming at Lynn for not favouring his man. Handspring number three, although this time Corino counters with a chair shot to the back.  Nice.  Bionic elbow for a near fall.  Tajiri fights his way back into it with those rapid flurry of kicks and punches, blows the mist, but Corino ducks and it blinds Lynn.  He locks on the Octopus hold, Corino screams “I Quit” while at the same time Jack Victory also throws in the towel.  Tajiri goes over to check on Lynn who decks him.  Superkick by Corino, Cyrus uses the towel to clear Lynn’s eyes and he counts the fall.  A very suspect Joey Styles can’t believe that Lynn didn’t see any of that and is back wondering if he is in The Network’s pocket after all.

Corino does take one great ass kicking and I really liked this one a lot.

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