Southern Underground Pro returned to The Basement East in East Nashville on Sunday for You’re Next. It marked a momentous occasion in Southern Underground Pro – Brett Ison’s epic nearly year-long reign as Bonestorm Champion came to a screeching halt when A.C. Mack kicked him in the dick approximately 18 times and delivered the Mack 10 off the middle rope.
HONORABLE MENTIONS
Big time props to Shotgun Lee Johnson for coming out cold and making an impact on the SUP faithful right away. That’s how you make an impression, folks.
Though IFHY won the inaugural YEETFest in grand fashion, I have to give a shout out to the Smokin’ Budz, The Lost Boys, and PME. That match was a grand symphony of YEET. All teams showed exactly why their YEET was good enough to be in that ring on Sunday. A lot of hungry dudes who made the most of the opportunity to YEET like no one was watching. I’m already crossing my fingers for YEETFest II. *applause*
Do we know that Matthew Justice is okay? He practically dove out of the Basement East rafters on Sunday. Between the ‘Match of the Year’ contender against Warhorse and the bout with Cabana Man Dan from earlier in the year, Justice has had quite a 2019 under the SUP banner.
Craig Mitchell wasn’t able to compete at You’re Next, but he still holds that impressive win over Alex Zayne at SUP from August in his back pocket. I imagine it won’t be long before we see him back in a SUP ring, asserting himself into the Bonestorm Championship conversation.
The 1 Called Manders has some soul-searching to do now. After a literally perfect start to 2019, Manders finds himself on the losing end of three consecutive matches (Dominic Garrini, Jaden Newman, and now O’Shay Edwards).
SUP POWER RANKINGS: YOU’RE NEXT
10. Zach Cooper – We’ve seen Cooper deliver some memorable matches in The Basement East. But, it’s his big time win over Thomas Shire in a big time hoss battle at You’re Next that has him making his SUP Power Rankings debut. We could be seeing Cooper picking up momentum for a big 2020.
9. Logan Stunt – There’s definitely a heralded lineage of winners when it comes to the Trick or Treat Battle Royal. This year’s was the biggest yet! Stunt emerged victorious from a talented field, and given the opportunity to name a match of his choosing, he called out “The Bone Collector” Dominic Garrini. Time will tell if Stunt has bitten off more than he can chew, but no one can argue his rise through the SUP ranks.
8. IFHY – That YEETFest was something else. Personally, I’m just happy that Johnathan Wolf and Shawn Kemp made it out alive. The electric duo made their return to Southern Underground Pro on Sunday, and outlasted three other teams in front of a hot crowd to win. After a match like that, you can’t help but wonder if they should be considered for a shot at the SUP Tag Team Championship.
7. Jaden Newman – Besting Alan Angels, who has been on a roll of his own in SUP, wasn’t easy. But, El Numero Uno was up for the task! After struggling to get that first SUP win for so long, Newman suddenly finds himself in the midst of a win streak. Bonus points for getting engaged at the show. Congrats!
6. Warhorse – Warhorse returned to The Basement East and brought the IWTV Championship with him. It took a barrage of chair shots and swingin’ trash cans to do it, but he finally beat Matthew Justice in a match that many were calling an instant ‘Match of the Year’ contender. No doubt he’s been one of the hottest names in all of independent wrestling this year, and that run continued at You’re Next.
5. O’Shay Edwards – The Big Bad Kaiju got back in the win column with an impressive defeat of Manders on Sunday. He still hasn’t been granted a one on one rematch for the Bonestorm Championship since March, but if he keeps stringing together wins, he may make his case for a match undeniable.
4. Cabana Man Dan – It’s officially time to put Cabana Man Dan in the Bonestorm Championship contention conversation. Dan went to war with Gary Jay on Sunday and came out on top. If you look back at his body of work in SUP over the course of 2019, it’s one of the best in the promotion. Dan has put in the work to become one of SUP’s top wrestlers.
3. Violence Is Forever – No Kevin Ku and Dominic Garrini at You’re Next this past weekend, as those dudes are tearing it up in Germany right now. But, by virtue of remaining the SUP Tag Team Champions, they’re still going to get a high spot in the rankings.
2. Brett Ison – For a nearly a year, “The Pitbull” carried the Bonestorm Championship with tenacity. He’s been #1 in the SUP Power Rankings since winning that title on 11/4/18. But, if you look at the run he went on as champion, it’s something that the entire SUP brand can be proud of. He was Nashville’s champion, and even though he lost on Sunday, SUP still feels like his territory.
1. A.C. Mack – It pains me to write this, and I hope you sick fucks that actually approve of Mack’s tactics are enjoying yourselves, but I’m willing to give credit where credit is due. Mack defeated Ison. He’s the Bonestorm Champion. To be the man, you have to beat the man. Like it or not, whether you think the official let a little too much go in that match or not, you can’t argue with the results.
Mack has done nothing but tell us about how he is going to take over SUP for months now. We didn’t want to believe it. But, in the end, he was right.
And, though a lot of us are mad, let’s not lose sight of the fact that you can’t just win championships on dick kicks alone. Mack has all the talent in the world. He’s a cunning competitor that isn’t popular because he’s not afraid to bend the rules and rub it in your face when he gets away with it.
I don’t condone that sort of behavior at all. But, I’m willing to respect the fact that “cheating” is not the only reason Mack is in the position he’s in. Whether Nashville wants to accept a new champion or not is irrelevant. The checks cash all the same.
The Title Snatcher strikes again.
For John Mosley’s recap of You’re Next, click here.
Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD and #BeBetter. “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, Nashville, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley
Check out the SoBros Shop. Become a Patron. Give us money for no reason. Like us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter @SoBrosNetwork. Watch on YouTube.
