By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
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Blood Sweat Tears Wrestling “Sweet Surrender”
June 20, 2025, in Bridgeport, Connecticut, at Foolproof Brewing
Available via IndependentWrestling.TV
Great, now I have Sarah McLachlan in my head. This is a big factory-looking building. The crowd was sadly only 80-120. The commentary is far too quiet. I heard Alyssa Marino and a male voice on commentary, but they were very distant. I was able to hear the ring well. They had good on-screen graphics, which should help during the Rumble main event.
1. Sidney Akeem vs. Andy Brown. Brown is a thick, bald man; he recently returned from a lengthy hiatus due to an injury. Akeem was WWE’s Reggie/Scrypts. Akeem hit some armdrags early on, and Brown went to the floor to regroup. He tripped Akeem on the ring apron at 3:00, and they brawled on the floor. In the ring, Brown choked Akeem in the ropes, was booed, but was in charge. He hit a spinebuster and a senton for a nearfall at 5:00.
Akeem fired up and hit a series of kicks and his twisting crossbody block, then a step-up mule kick. Akeem went for the Final Act (double backflip-into-a-stunner), but Brown caught him and slammed him at 8:00. They fought on the ring apron and traded forearm strikes. Brown went to the floor, so Akeem hit the Final Act on the floor! (This looked very much like what Ninja Mack did in New Japan’s “BOSJ” tournament.) They got back into the ring, but Akeem missed a 450 Splash. Brown immediately hit a stiff clothesline. Akeem hit another Final Act to score the pin. A really fun match.
Sidney Akeem defeated Andy Brown at 10:30.
2. Amity LaVey vs. Jazmyne Hao vs. Delmi Exo in a three-way. Two straight nights of seeing LaVey in action; she’s the scary version of DC’s Harley Quinn. LaVey fought Hao on Thursday at Wrestling Open, so this is almost a rematch. I compared Hao to Trish Adora. They all went for early pins. Hao got kicked to the floor, and LaVey got a nearfall on Exo at 2:00. Amity hit a double-handspring into a back elbow in the corner. Hao and Amity traded forearm strikes; Delmi hit a double missile dropkick on both of them at 4:00.
Delmi hit a double-underhook suplex on Hao. Hao hit a Samoan Drop for a nearfall, and she argued with the ref. Suddenly, all three were down at 7:00. They all started trading forearm strikes and LOUD overhand chops while on their knees. Amity hit a spin kick to Delmi’s head. Hao hit a Reigns-style Superman Punch on LaVey. Hao got Delmi on her shoulders, apparently going for a Death Valley Driver, but Delmi escaped, got a rollup, and pinned Hao. Not the smoothest of matches, but I really like the potential of the newcomers. Delmi left; Hao and LaVey beat each other up some more.
Delmi Exo defeated Amity LaVey and Jazmyne Hao in a three-way at 8:42.
3. Donovan Dijak vs. Richard Holliday. The commentators said this is a first-time-ever meeting anywhere. They locked up, and of course Dijak has a big height and overall size advantage, and he easily shoved Richard to the mat. Dijak hit a backbreaker over his knee at 3:30. Holliday rolled to the floor to regroup, and he sold the pain in his back. Back in the ring, Holliday did an eye poke, but Dijak hit a back-body drop. Holliday shoved him shoulder-first into the corner and stomped on Dijak. Holliday tied him in a top hammerlock and kept Dijak on his knees. Dijak fired up and hit a clothesline. He slammed Holliday to the mat and got a nearfall at 8:30.
Dijak nailed a Choke Bomb for a believable nearfall, and we got a “This is awesome!” chant. Holliday hit a running powerbomb for a nearfall, and they were both down at 11:00. They hit stereo clotheslines, got back up, and again hit stereo clotheslines. Dijak hit a release suplex, tossing Holliday across the ring! Such power! He hit the Feast Your Eyes pop-up knee strike, but Holliday rolled to the floor at 12:30 to avoid being pinned. Dijak rolled him back into the ring, and he hit his discus Mafia Kick. He went for a second Go To Sleep, but Holliday escaped and got a rollup. Holliday hit a low blow uppercut! He followed up with the 2008 swinging suplex and scored the tainted pin. Good action.
Richard Holliday defeated Donovan Dijak at 14:02.
4. Jeremy La Croix vs. Shawn Knyte (w/Brother Greatness). I know I’ve seen La Croix at least once before; he wore a basic red singlet, and he jawed at fans as he walked to the ring. He’s white with wet, curly brown hair reaching his shoulders. I’ve seen Knyte several times (usually in tag action), notably in Fight Life Wrestling, and he’s like a young Kofi Kingston, and he got a nice babyface pop. (A quick cagematch.net check shows they fought earlier this year.) Basic offense early on; it appears La Croix is taller. Jeremy hit some European Uppercuts in the corner. Knyte hit a crossbody block. La Croix tied him in a bow-and-arrow at 4:00. Knyte hit a Superman Punch. Knyte hooked a leg and hit a powerbomb move for the pin. Solid match.
Shawn Knyte defeated Jeremy La Croix at 5:47.
5. Sammy Diaz vs. Dezmond Cole for the BST Title. Cole just returned to the ring after an injury, too. I’ve loosely compared him to Ricochet, and he’s one of my favorite Northeast talents. Diaz had the best match of Thursday’s Wrestling Open show, so I’m seeing him a second straight night, too. They are both babyfaces and immediately went to the mat and traded holds. They sped it up, blocked each other’s moves, and had a standoff at 1:30, and the crowd chanted “Both these guys!” They got up and traded chops. Diaz hit an inverted DDT for a nearfall at 5:00.
Diaz hit a stiff kick to the spine and stayed in charge. He hit a backbreaker over his knee for a nearfall, then a back suplex for a nearfall. Cole hit a jumping knee; Diaz hit one. They hit stereo crossbody blocks, and Cole hit a moonsault press on a standing Diaz at 9:00, and they were both down, and we got a “This is awesome!” chant. Cole hit a bodyslam and a guillotine leg drop for a nearfall. Diaz went to the floor, so Dezmond hit a flip dive onto him. In the ring, Dezmond hit a Helluva Kick and a German Suplex out of the corner, then a Shining Wizard for a believable nearfall.
Cole hit a frogsplash, going more than halfway across the ring, for a nearfall at 12:30, and we got a “BST!” chant. Diaz hit a powerslam and a moonsault for a nearfall. He hit a top-rope frogsplash for a believable nearfall. Cole hit a suplex, and they were both down. This has been really good. They got up and traded forearm strikes. Cole again went for a moonsault press, but this time, Diaz caught him with a jumping knee! Cole then hit a Sabin-style Cradle Shock slam for the pin. They shook hands. Really good action.
Sammy Diaz defeated Dezmond Cole to retain the BST Title at 15:30.
* Next up is a memorial rumble. We saw the commentators, and they talked about Big Jym, and they said a special 21st person has been added to what was slated to be a 20-person rumble match. The winner will be the No. 1 contender. The commentators said they will come out in two-minute intervals, so we’ll see how close they are.
6. A 21-person Big Jym Memorial Rumble. I glanced at the BST Twitter page and I see they announced a handful of competitors. Drawing No. 1 was Angelo Reyes, and No. 2 was Gabriel Skye. Skye has the potential to be around at the end of this one. They each had a near-elimination, and Reyes hit a top-rope flying forearm. No. 3 was Kylon King at 3:00 (so they are already behind pace!) Kylon has a big shoulder brace on today. He’s also a guy who has to be a favorite. (I’m again channeling my inner Heenan and picking many winners.) Mike Skyros was No. 4; I’ve seen him just a few times.
Jarrett Diaz was No. 5 at 7:30; I’ve seen him in NY-based HOG Wrestling. No eliminations so far. Peter Gianni was No. 6; I don’t know him. He’s white with his hair in a ponytail. (I checked; he’s not in the cagematch.net database yet.) Kickboxing specialist Georgio Lawrence was No. 7 at 12:30; he’s competed a lot lately in Wrestling Open. (I’ll point out they are 2 1/2 minutes behind pace.) Still no eliminations. Steven Lust was No. 8; he’s another guy I’ve seen in Fight Life and he looks like a shorter Damian Sandow. Jay Lyon was No. 9; he’s in a new red-and-black costume that makes him look like a devil.
Lyon hit a back suplex on a couple of guys. Midas Black (Lyon’s teammate!) was No. 10 at 19:30. Steven Stetson was No. 11 at 22:30; the commentators talked about how Stetson just returned from three months of training at the LA Dojo. We finally had our first eliminations; I see the rookie Gianni is gone, and at least one other person. Dijak was No. 12; he should clear the ring quickly, right? He began punching and dropping guys. He kicked Diaz off the apron to the floor, then he powerbombed Stetson. Corey Duke, a cowboy with a big black hat, is No. 13. I haven’t seen him before, but he’s got some size. (He also is so new he doesn’t have a cagematch.net bio.)
AJP was No. 14; I’ve seen him in Fight Life. Angelo Carter was No. 15 at 32:00; I’ve seen him in Blitzkrieg Pro; he’s a Black man with long blond hair. Joseph “A-Game” Alexander and Kwesi Asante hopped in the ring; those two and Angelo Carter tossed Lyon! Are A-Game and Kwesi officially in this? The trio of heels just tossed Midas Black, too, so they eliminated both members of the Mane Event. Dijak stood up, hit a double chokeslam, and eliminated Carter and Kwesi. Dijak caught Alexander in his arms and tossed him to the floor onto his faction partners, so he’s gone too.
HOG star Mantequilla entered at 36:00, and the commentators said he’s No. 16, so they aren’t counting Carter’s partners as official entrants. He tossed someone. Andy Brown was No. 17 at 37:30. Skyros was eliminated. King rolled to the floor but wasn’t eliminated. Brown hit a spinebuster on Skye. (Yes, Skye is still in after starting the match.) I’m seeing eight in the ring, and a commentator just confirmed that. “Handyman” Jake Gray, another Wrestling Open rookie, was No. 18. The commentator said this is now Gray’s 92nd match in just over a year since his debut, which is astounding.
Okay, I see Kylon back in the ring; I thought maybe he was going to hide on the floor. Gray dropped Stetson over the top rope and to the floor at 41:30 and that got massive cheers. (Stetson is a heel wherever he goes!) Rip Bison (think a shorter version of TNA’s Elijah) was No. 19. Gray was on the floor on his butt, but his feet never touched the floor. He got up onto a chair and back into the ring. (I always thought it was like football; a butt down was the equivalent of two feet down.) Red Sawyer, with long frizzy red hair, was No. 20; he’s new to me, too. Sawyer tossed Bison, so Bison immediately pulled Sawyer off the apron to the floor (even though he had been eliminated.)
We have eight in the ring and our last entrant coming. Darius Carter was No. 21; he’s alright but hardly a ‘big surprise’ worthy of a major buildup. He took his time getting into the ring, hopping off the apron before climbing in at 51:00, but he rolled right back to the floor. (If we had two-minute intervals, the last entrant would have been in at 38:00, so they were really off on their timing!) Carter got back in the ring and fought Mantequilla and knocked Mante to the floor. Carter kicked Jake Gray off the apron to the floor. Darius and Kylon brawled; everyone else was down.
We have seven left. King and Reyes fought on the ring apron. (Reyes has been in since the beginning.) Kylon was tossed. AJP was tossed. Reyes kicked Andy Brown to the floor, so we are down to Dijak, Carter, Reyes and Skye. However, Dijak was down on the floor. Reyes was eliminated at 57:00. With Dijak still not in the ring, Skye and Darius traded European Uppercuts. (The commentators kept pointing out that Dijak hasn’t been eliminated. I think they are supposed to be ignorant of that fact.) Darius tossed Skye, and Darius celebrated, thinking he had won. Of course, Dijak got back into the ring behind him. Darius low-bridged the top rope and Dijak got crotched on the ropes. Darius kicked at him but Dijak held on, and Dijak flipped Darius to the floor to win, just over an hour into the match!
Dijak won the 21-man Rumble at 60:00:36 to earn a title shot.
* Sammy Diaz got into the ring, title belt over his shoulder, and shook hands with Dijak. The show went off the air with no punches thrown.
Final Thoughts: A fun show. They might not be as well-known, but Diaz-Dezmond stole the show with that title match. Dijak-Holliday narrowly takes second ahead of Akeem-Brown. The Rumble was fine, with just three guys new to me. Dijak was a logical choice to win this… but why were he and Andy Brown the only guys who had a singles match earlier in the show and also in the Rumble? Didn’t the other guys want, or deserve, to be in a match where they could earn a title shot? Kayfabe, it doesn’t make sense. I watched this live; it should be posted soon on IWTV.
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