Kind of GCW to put the only match on this card I wanted to see first on the show.
This is the second of a pair of strong matches that Moriarty wrestled that day. His first one against Wheeler YUTA on the Beyond show was a very good showcase but here against Tony Deppen, Moriarty gets to do something a little more substantial.
There’s a lot of chain wrestling early on which is firmly Moriarty’s strength but Deppen keeps up well. It’s the personality and roughness Deppen introduces that really adds a layer of substance to this match however. Little things like doing a snot rocket as a transition move (both brilliant and wildly stupid given the hellworld we live in) or faking a knee injury to lure Moriarty into a trap do a lot to make Moriarty feel like he’s up against a real dangerous threat here.
Moriarty builds the match around working over Deppen’s arm which he sells just wonderfully. There’s a lot of great nerdbait here like being unable to use his arm to trade strikes with Moriarty or having to take a moment to pause before being able to get a grip on him. It’s an incredibly strong match that’s fundamentally sound, filled with a lot of personality, and structured perfectly to get the best of what they were given. Awesome stuff from two of the best on the indies.