On Saturday, May 6th, All Pro Wrestling presented “Cow Palace Royale” at the legendary Cow Palace in Daly City.
For the first time in 35 years, a Bay Area based wrestling promotion took over the Cow Palace. My brother Tommy, Bimbo Jimbo and myself were very excited when news first broke out about this event. In case you missed my previous article about the Cow Palace Royale, the Cow Palace is a special place for my brother Tommy and me because this was the first venue our parents took us to watch Pro Wrestling live and in person.
Needless to say, we counted down the days for this event to happen. When we arrived to the Cow Palace, there was a huge line out the door waiting anxiously to get inside. Once we got in you can feel the excitement as fans waited for the bell to ring and the first match to begin. Before the matches started, fans were able to meet all the wrestlers and get photos and merch. It felt like a wrestling convention inside the Cow Palace. After we found our seats, we went around to say hi to all the wrestlers and everyone was in high spirits and for some sill in shock that All Pro Wrestling was inside the Cow Palace.
The room filled up fast and it’s estimated that 2,500 to 3,000 fans were in attendance. Once the matches started, you can feel the electricity from the fans as they cheered on the baby faces and heels throughout the night.
Some of the highlights from the night included the inaugural Cow Palace Royale, wrestling stars from the past, present and future were apart of the 30 man roster. I have to admit I got goosebumps when X-Pac’s music hit and the original DX theme song was blasting all over the arena, felt like a match from WWE’s Attitude Era. A lot of great spots from the wrestlers, including Jungle Boy hitting a stunner the second he jumped and enter the ring. Jacob Fatu defeated Willie Mack, who were the final two men in the match and Jacob walked away with the trophy.
Another highlight was the Will Cuevas and Karl Fredericks match for the APW Internet Championship. Both guys had big spots. Will Cuevas paid tribute to the late Eddie Guerrero (who won the WWE Championship at the Cow Palace back in 2004) by doing some of famous dance moves in the ring and even copied Eddie Guerrero’s triple suplex. Karl Fredericks edged out the win and is now the new APW Internet Champion.
The original match for the APW Universal Championship between Luster The Legend and Adam Thornstowe was canceled due to Thornstowe’s injury, so Luster’s new opponents became Jeff Cobb, Johnny Mundo and Brian Cage, who the three were already scheduled for a triple threat match, but now became a fatal four way for the APW Universal Championship. The match was filled with a lot of chaos as bodies were flying in and out of the ring, everyone landed some big spots all over the ring but Jeff Cobb was able to pull out a huge win and become brand new APW Universal Champion.
The last match of the night was Cody Rhodes versus Joey Ryan in a steel cage match. This rivalry stems from their original match against each other in APW back in November 2016, followed by Joey Ryan interfering in Cody Rhodes match in February 2017 and busting his head open which led to Cody Rhodes making the challenge against Joey Ryan for a steel cage match at Cow Palace Royale. This had all the feels of an old school match one would have seen back in the day at the Cow Palace. The chain linked fences around the ring looked older and worn down. Both guys went back and forth and even landed some big spots. As Cody Rhodes tried to escape the cage, a woman in a jumpsuit and Stardust kid’s mask blocked his escape through the door. It was revealed to be Candice LeRae. The crowd popped as Candice LeRae gave Cody Rhodes a Ball-Plex which is a German Suplex where she grabs Cody in the balls. Eventually, Brandi Rhodes ran in to even up the odds for her husband. Cody Rhodes took down Candice LeRae accidentally by hitting her with a beautiful disaster kick. The move of the night was Cody Rhodes and Joey Ryan on the top of the cage corner. Cody Rhodes pulled off a superplex on Joey Ryan from the top of the cage, see the video below. Cody Rhodes then escaped the cage and the crowd exploded with cheers.
Overall, it was a very fun night. I was very happy to see this event was a huge success and ring announcer AJ Kirsch announced All Pro Wrestling will return to the Cow Palace this September. I’m already looking forward to the next show.
Click here to see photos from Kenny Sinatra.
Below is a list of the results from the matches at Cow Palace Royale match.
1. Jacob Fatu defeated Willie Mack to win the inaugural 30 man Cow Palace Royale.
2. Rachael Ellering defeated Shotzi Blackheart and Candice LeRae via pinfall.
3. Lion Power defeated The Classic Connection via pinfall to become the new APW Tag Team Champions.
4. Shayna Baszler defeated Ruby Raze via submission to retain the APW Women’s Championship.
5. JR Kratos defeated Jeckles The Jester via pinfall in a San Francisco Death Match with Kevin Sullivan as the ringside enforcer.
6. Karl Fredericks defeated Will Cuevas via pinfall to become the new APW Internet Champion.
7. Jeff Cobb defeated Luster The Legend, Johnny Mundo and Brian Cage via pinfall to become the new APW Universal Champion.
8. Cody Rhodes defeated Joey Ryan in a cage match.
Click here for a summary about the matches.
Here is a highlight video from Cow Palace Royale.
Here are some photos from All Pro Wrestling’s Instagram:
Here are some photos from Baby Huey’s Instagram:
Here are some photos from Bimbo Jimbo’s Instagram:
Here are some photos from Baby Huey’s Brother, Tommy’s Instagram:
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