IRON GRIP PRO WRESTLING: SHOW 37 — “FALL OF THE EMPIRE”
Opening Video Package
A cinematic montage unfolds in black and white: shots of CM Punk raising the Iron Grip World Title high above his head; the steely glare of Brody King; flashes of backstage confrontations; the brutal cage match between Drew McIntyre and Kevin Owens; Kevin Knight’s lightning-fast agility; and ominous images of Dark Reign’s shadowy influence creeping over the company. The words “Fall of the Empire” fade onto the screen, setting the tone of a world on the brink of change.
Segment 1: CM Punk Promo – “Traitors & Shadows”
The lights dim, and the crowd explodes as CM Punk’s music hits. Punk walks confidently to the ring, championship belt gleaming under the lights, with a mix of intensity and resolve on his face. He climbs into the ring and, microphone in hand, gazes out at the roaring crowd.
CM Punk:
“You know, empires are built on loyalty. On trust. But Dark Reign? They’re built on lies and betrayal. And Brody King? He was supposed to stand with me — but instead, he turned his back like a coward. You want to claim the world title? Fine. But know this: I’m not just defending a belt tonight. I’m defending everything this empire means. And I’m ready to burn it all down if I have to.”
Brody King’s music cuts through the tension. He emerges, cold and silent, locking eyes with Punk. The atmosphere turns electric.
Brody King:
“I didn’t betray anyone. I evolved. The old empire is dead, Punk. You’re just the last ghost trying to haunt what’s already gone. Tonight, I bury the past.”
William Regal appears on stage.
Regal:
“Enough talk. CM Punk will defend the Iron Grip World Title against Brody King… tonight.”
The crowd erupts as the main event is set.
Match 1: Kevin Knight vs “Speedball” Mike Bailey
The bell rings, and the two cruiserweights explode into action with rapid-fire exchanges. Bailey’s lightning-quick kicks and technical prowess meet Knight’s crisp counters and measured strikes.
Knight uses quick arm drags and a perfectly timed standing moonsault to take early control, but Bailey’s resilience shines through as he counters with a series of spinning heel kicks and a breathtaking springboard missile dropkick that nearly floors Knight.
As the match progresses, Knight uses a mix of power and agility—launching Bailey into the corner and executing a stunning running knee strike. Bailey responds with a flawless Triangle Moonsault, eliciting a thunderous “This is awesome!” chant.
Near the finish, Bailey locks in his signature submission, the Ultima Weapon, but Knight powers out, gathering momentum. He climbs to the top rope, delivering a perfectly timed Sky High Sit-Out Powerbomb followed by a crisp Thunder Clap Dropkick to Bailey’s face.
The referee counts three.
Winner: Kevin Knight
Match 2: War Raiders vs DIY vs MCMG vs Santos Escobar & Dominik Mysterio – Tornado Tag Team Match for Future Tag Title Shot
From the opening bell, chaos ensues as all eight men collide in a whirlwind of high-impact moves and coordinated team maneuvers.
The War Raiders showcase their brutal power, sending opponents crashing into the barricades with brutal shoulder tackles and powerslams. Hanson performs a spectacular suicide dive, taking out multiple opponents ringside.
DIY (Johnny Gargano & Tommaso Ciampa) employ their finely tuned tag team chemistry, isolating Dominik Mysterio and executing quick double-team moves.
MCMG utilize speed and technical skill to keep opponents off balance.
Escobar and Dominik, desperate and cunning, cheat at every chance—using illegal holds and distractions to keep themselves in the fight.
In the climax, War Raiders hit their signature finishing move, The Fallout (a double powerbomb), on Dominik Mysterio. The referee counts the pin.
Winners: War Raiders
Match 3: Drew McIntyre vs Kevin Owens – Steel Cage Match
Before the bell, Owens storms the cage, slamming Drew into the steel bars. The brutality is immediate and relentless.
Inside the cage, Owens uses speed and dirty tactics—raking eyes, chokeholds, and chair shots. Drew fights back with raw strength, delivering a spinebuster against the cage and a punishing powerslam.
The cage becomes a weapon itself: both men slam each other against steel walls repeatedly.
Owens attempts a Pop-Up Powerbomb early, but Drew reverses into a powerbomb of his own.
The fight spills outside the ring briefly, with Owens delivering a Swanton Bomb off the cage to Drew, drawing gasps.
Back inside, Drew hoists Owens for a massive Claymore Kick that nearly ends the match. Owens kicks out at two.
After a grueling exchange, Drew lands a second, thunderous Claymore Kick.
He pins Owens. The referee counts three.
Winner: Drew McIntyre
Match 4: Will Ospreay vs Swerve Strickland vs Zack Sabre Jr. vs LA Knight – #1 Contender for Iron Grip World Title
The pace is blistering from the bell.
Sabre Jr. dazzles with technical grappling and submissions. Ospreay responds with breathtaking aerial maneuvers—450° splashes and corkscrew moonsaults.
Knight impresses with a combination of power and speed, avoiding Sabre’s holds and matching Swerve’s strikes.
Swerve survives a near elimination after absorbing a brutal submission but rallies back with hard-hitting strikes and a House Call DDT on Sabre.
Sabre is eliminated first tapping to Swerve’s modified stretch muffler.
Knight is eliminated next after Ospreay nails his devastating Stormbreaker knee strike.
The final showdown sees Swerve and Ospreay trading rapid fire strikes. Swerve lands a crushing Swerve Stomp and covers Ospreay for the pin.
Winner: Swerve Strickland
Match 5: Ricochet & Young Bucks (Trios Champions) Open Challenge
Ricochet and the Young Bucks strut confidently, throwing down the gauntlet for any challengers to step up for their Trios Titles.
The arena shakes as two teams respond: Rey Mysterio, Andrade, and Dragon Lee — followed by Bobby Lashley, Carmelo Hayes, and Cedric Alexander.
The match explodes into a high-energy showcase of aerial maneuvers, hard strikes, and rapid tags.
Lashley dominates early with power moves, spearing Nick Jackson through the barricade.
Hayes and Dragon Lee exchange quick strikes, each trying to gain momentum.
Alexander lands a Lumbar Check on Ricochet mid-air, staggering the champion.
The finish comes when Lashley, Hayes, and Alexander deliver a triple-team sequence culminating in Lashley’s devastating spear on Matt Jackson. Cedric covers for the pin.
Winners & NEW Trios Champions: Bobby Lashley, Carmelo Hayes, Cedric Alexander
Match 6: Hiromu Takahashi (c) vs Mustafa Ali – Cruiserweight Title
Hiromu opens with unorthodox strikes and rapid-fire kicks, trying to frustrate Ali, who counters with smooth agility and aerial moves.
Ali lands an inverted 450° splash, nearly winning the match. He attempts a Phoenix Splash, but Hiromu narrowly rolls out of the way.
Suddenly, Karrion Kross appears on the ramp, his dark stare focused on Ali.
The referee is distracted by Kross as Priest slides in and hits Ali with a big boot.
Hiromu capitalizes, hitting his brutal Time Bomb II to pin Ali.
Winner: Hiromu Takahashi (retains Cruiserweight Title)
Post-match: Kross and Priest help Hiromu to his feet. Hiromu nods solemnly, raising his title as Dark Reign’s menacing theme hits. Hiromu officially joins Dark Reign, solidifying the faction’s power.
Match 7: AJ Styles, Wardlow & Paragon vs Luchasaurus, Jack Perry, Sammy Guevara & El Phantasmo
The match opens with Wardlow showing overwhelming power, taking down multiple opponents with crushing powerbombs and suplexes.
Styles and Guevara engage in rapid-fire strike exchanges, keeping the pace high.
Paragon isolates Luchasaurus, hitting double-team moves to wear down the powerhouse.
Luchasaurus fights back with a thunderous jawbreaker to Wardlow and a series of heavy strikes.
In the final moments, Wardlow lifts Sammy Guevara high and delivers a triple powerbomb. Styles finishes off El Phantasmo with a Phenomenal Forearm.
Winners: AJ Styles, Wardlow & Paragon
Match 8: Bronson Reed & Kyle Fletcher vs Damian Priest & Karrion Kross – Tag Team Titles
Reed and Fletcher start strong, blending power and technical precision.
Fletcher isolates Priest with quick strikes but Kross’s aggression turns the tide.
Kross and Priest exhibit near-perfect tag team chemistry, trading brutal strikes and finishing moves.
Fletcher’s Hammerlock Tombstone is narrowly escaped as Kross counters with the Final Reckoning.
Priest finishes Reed with the Reckoning.
Winners & NEW Tag Team Champions: Damian Priest & Karrion Kross
Match 9: Finn Bálor vs Kazuchika Okada vs Adam Cole – Intercontinental Title Elimination Match
Adam Cole aggressively targets both men early, but is first eliminated after Okada lands a perfectly timed Rainmaker.
Okada and Bálor go to war, trading finishers, counters, and near falls.
As this intense battle rages on, Hangman Page’s music hits. Page storms the ring, coming to the aid of Bálor who’s been targeted by sneaky attacks from Okada and Cole earlier.
Page and Bálor fend off Okada and Cole with a flurry of strikes and double-team moves, allowing Bálor to regain control.
Bálor dodges Okada’s Rainmaker, lands a Coup de Grace, then a surprise Tombstone Piledriver for the pinfall.
Winner: Intercontinental Champion: Finn Bálor
Match 10: Cody Rhodes vs Randy Orton – Street Fight
From the opening bell, chaos erupts. Both men waste no time turning the match into an all-out brawl.
Weapons are legal and plentiful: chairs, kendo sticks, tables, and trash cans litter the ringside area.
Rhodes brings in a steel chain, wrapping it around his fist and landing a brutal series of punches.
Orton responds with a devastating RKO onto a steel chair.
They brawl through the crowd, with Rhodes sending Orton crashing into the barricade and using a trash can lid to slam Orton’s head repeatedly.
Back in the ring, Rhodes hits a Cross Rhodes onto a steel chair through a table.
Orton, refusing to stay down, locks Rhodes in a vicious sleeper hold, nearly putting him to sleep.
Rhodes fights out and counters with a disaster kick, followed by another Cross Rhodes for the pin.
Winner: Cody Rhodes
Main Event: CM Punk (c) vs Brody King – Iron Grip World Title
The crowd is electric as Punk and King circle each other, exchanging hard strikes and punishing forearms.
Brody King’s raw power dominates early, as he batter’s Punk into the corner and hits a thunderous powerbomb.
Punk rallies with a flurry of chops and his trademark running knee.
Dark Reign’s presence is felt immediately; they swarm the ringside area, banging on the steel guardrails and shouting threats.
Several times, they distract the referee, allowing King to use illegal tactics: chair shots, choking against the ropes, and targeting Punk’s injured arm.
Punk fights through the pain, landing a devastating GTS that nearly ends the match — but the referee is knocked down accidentally during the chaos.
Suddenly, the arena plunges into darkness. Malakai Black’s eerie theme fills the arena.
Black appears on the ramp, eyes locked on Brody King, who pauses, sensing the danger.
Black slides into the ring and immediately targets King, delivering a brutal Black Mass kick that floors him.
Dark Reign scrambles, trying to stop Black, but Hangman Page runs down and joins the fray, fighting off Bálor.
With Dark Reign momentarily neutralized, Punk regains his focus, lifts King, and hits a second, more decisive GTS.
The referee recovers and counts the pin.
Winner & STILL Iron Grip World Champion: CM Punk
Post-show atmosphere: Dark Reign retreats, angry they didn’t capture the World Title. Punk, Black, and Hangman Page stand tall as the crowd chants their names, signaling a new era of defiance and unity against the darkness. However the Dark Reign now has the Intercontinental, Tag, and Cruiserweight Titles and have their eyes on the World Title.
