Terminus 2 Report: Jonathan Gresham vs. Santana, Jay Lethal vs. Baron Black

Originally published at Terminus 2: Jonathan Gresham vs. Santana, Jay Lethal vs. Baron Black

Terminus 2

February 24th, 2022

Oasis Event Center – Atlanta, GA

By: John Siino

Commentary: Dave Prazak & Lenny Leonard

Terminus Directives

  • All matches must be won by pin, submission, KO, or DQ (unless substitute stipulation agreed upon by grapplers)
  • Time Limits (Strictly Enforced): Singles 15, Tag/Multi-man 15, Championship Bouts 20
  • Overtime: A 90 second overtime period occurs if there is no winner after the time limit expires. Grapplers will start the OT period in a neutral position. If there is no decision when OT expires, the result is a draw.
  • Disqualification criteria: Two technical fouls, foreign object usage, outside interference
  • Technical fouls: throwing the opponent over the top rope, 10-second tope rope count, 5 count rope/corner break, intentional physical contact with the referee, intentional low blow, intentional eye gouge, fish-hooking, intentional hair pulling, spitting, closed fist punches to face
  • Technical fouls are given at the referee’s discretion
  • Count outs: 5 seconds
  • Any weapon usage will result in immediate disqualification and expulsion from Terminus

Pre-Show

Invictus Kash def. Adam Priest by submission at 11:11

Terminal Eliminator Match: Chris Sabin vs. Tre Lamar vs. Kenny Alfonso vs. Leon Ruff

This match has a 15-minute time limit with all Terminus directives applied, except no count-outs. Eliminations by pin, submission, KO, or DQ. Begins as a four-way survival with tag format, two grapplers start the match in the ring, while the other grapplers wait on the apron for a tag from another grappler. After the first fall, the match becomes a three-way. All grapplers are in the ring at once. Once down to the final two grapplers, the match becomes 1v1 sudden death, and the winner gets to choose their next opponent. Sabin and Alfonso start the match by running the ropes and emulating each other’s moves with a double dropkick until Sabin starts chopping him, running into a dropkick, and tagging in Ruff. Ruff takes him down with a head scissors as Lamar tags in next with the tidbit here being Lamar was trained by Johnny Gargano, who Ruff defeated for the NXT North American Championship. Sabin and Alfonso go at it, with Sabin hitting a suplex but getting a close two count. Alfonso comes back with a flurry of kicks and a stunner, followed by an STF. Lamar, Alfonso, and Ruff all go at it with Alfonso hitting them with elbows in the corner. Alfonso goes to make a dive, but Sabin stops him with a superkick before taking out Tre Lamar on the outside. With the rest on the outside, Alfonso dives onto them. Lamar knocks Alfonso down and hits a froggy elbow off the top rope for the cover and first elimination making this a three-way. Lamar and Ruff tie up until Sabin breaks them up with a top rope crossbody. Sabin and Ruff go at it, with Ruff hitting a neckbreaker, but only gets a two. Lamar distracts Ruff while on the apron and ends up taking both Sabin and Ruff down with a dropkick off of the ropes, in a real innovative fashion. Lamar goes to put a hammerlock on Sabin, but Ruff stops him and hits a cutter off the ropes to pin and eliminate Lamar. As it’s down to Ruff and Sabin with a minute left, the crowd gets behind Ruff. Ruff right away hits a frog splash and gets a two count. Sabin catches Ruff for a release German, hits a kick, and hits Cradle Shock for the pin and the win.

Winner: Chris Sabin by pinfall at 14:47

Killa Kate vs. Queen Aminata

They shake hands as Aminata makes sure Kate knows they are chanting her name and is able to tackle Kate right away. Aminata runs the ropes, but Kate stops her and puts her right into a half Crab and then an ankle lock, but Aminata escapes out and rolls her up for a two, but Kate goes right into a kneebar before Aminata grabs the ropes. They go into a shoving contest, until Kate ties up Aminata into a submission, before rolling her up for a two. Aminata knocks Kate down by her hair and the referee announces a warning for Aminata, with a second one causing a DQ if it happens. Aminata starts toying with Kate and chops her all around in the corner. Kate is able to put on body scissors, but Aminata rolls back for a pin attempt and then a small package for near falls. Aminata sends Kate in the corner with a German suplex, before splashing her in the corner followed by a running boot but only gets a two. They start trading kicks and small packages until Aminata is able to trap and pin her.

Winner: Queen Aminata by pinfall at 7:58

Daniel Garcia & Kevin Blackwood vs. Joe Keys & Dante Caballero

Keys & Caballero come out to ‘Burning Heart’ by Survivor from the Rocky IV soundtrack and I freaking love it. Keys and Garcia start the match, as Garcia plays Keys and doesn’t give him a handshake, just for Blackwood to distract him and Garcia to take advantage. Keys and Blackwood go at it, with Keys working on Blackwood’s back. Garcia and Blackwood take turns choking out Keys in the corner before Keys tumbles to the outside but quickly goes back in due to the 5 second count-out rule here. Caballero and Keys now start trading tags and working on Blackwood, as Keys hits a pump handle/backbreaker for a two. Blackwood finally makes the hot tag to Garcia, who goes to work on Caballero hitting a falling knee drop for a two count. Garcia starts working on the wrists, arms, and legs of Caballero in rotation before getting in Keys’ face. Blackwood and Garcia take turns tagging in and working on Caballero, with Blackwood hitting three German Suplexes on Caballero. Throughout the match, Garcia and Blackwood keep breaking the rules, but behind the referee’s back. Caballero is able to fight them both off and makes the hot tag to Keys, whose forehead is now busted open from doing headbutts. Keys takes Garcia down with a spear and hits a Northern Lights Suplex for a two. Keys locks Garcia in a chokehold, as his blood is dripping down onto the face of Garcia. Garcia escapes, licks the blood but Keys hits him with a brainbuster for a two. Garcia hits a backslide for a two, as Blackwood powerbombs Keys, and Garcia’s pin attempt gets broken up by Caballero. Keys fights them both off and tags Caballero, as they hit a double team facebuster combo on Blackwood for the pin.

Winners: Joe Keys & Dante Caballero by pinfall at 13:21

Serena Deeb vs. Liiza Hall

Liiza Hall makes her Terminus debut after not being able to appear on the first show due to the snowstorm. Right away Deeb is able to take Hall down as the crowd seems behind her. They continue to tie each other up with hammerlock attempts, before Deeb takes Hall down, only for Hall to reverse it on her. They go for a test of strength with Deeb getting the advantage and into an arm snapper. Deeb continues working on the left arm and wrist, including snapping back on it with her feet and getting a two count. Deeb goes right into another arm lock, but Hall escapes for a near fall, followed by a senton for another two. Hall puts on a rear-naked chokehold, but Deeb is able to escape by twisting Hall’s ankle and snapping Hall’s face onto the ropes. Deeb traps Hall on the ropes with a chokehold and hits a neckbreaker onto the second rope. Deeb continues by delivering uppercuts on Hall, right into an abdominal stretch. They fight with backslide attempts, before Hall hits a couple kicks and a knee strike for a two. Hall hits a cannonball in the corner and gets another two, before transitioning into an arm trap submission, but Deeb gets out. Hall goes for another cannonball but misses as Deeb grabs her leg and starts slamming it onto the ring post. Back inside, Deeb ties up Hall in a leg lock, but Hall crawls over and grabs the rope for a break. Deeb hits a swinging neckbreaker for a two-count, followed by a piledriver attempt, but Hall escapes and hits a kick and a snap German suplex. Hall picks up Deeb on her shoulders and hits a Death Valley Driver for two. Hall puts on the half Crab, but Deeb inches over and grabs the rope. Hall picks Deeb up, but Deeb escapes and puts on the Serenity Lock as the time runs out and we go to 90 second overtime. Right away they go for submission and pin attempts, but Deeb is able to trap her in a sunset flip for the pin and the win.

Winner: Serena Deeb by pinfall at 15:25

Davey Richards vs. Sw3rve the Realest

Sw3rve is Shane Strickland aka Isaiah ‘Swerve’ Scott, and he comes out to Rufus & Chaka Khan’s ‘Ain’t Nobody’. Sw3rve was originally supposed to face Lio Rush, as Richards was going to wrestle Gabriel Kidd. They start the match with waist lock attempts, taking each other down, until Richards puts on a pin attempt for a two. Sw3rve holds Richards down and tries on a crossface, but Richards is able to escape and put on a choke of his own. Sw3rve goes for a sunset flip, but Richards escapes and hits a double stomp to the chest. Richards applies a leg lock while twisting Sw3rve onto his head, but Sw3rve grabs the rope for a break. Richards hits a hard kick knocking Sw3rve down fast and getting a big reaction from this crowd, before hitting another one. He hits a third one, but that fires Sw3rve to get right back up and connect with a right hook on Richards before they go face to face and start trading off forearms and kicks. Sw3rve hits a right hand, as the referee gives him his first warning, but Sw3rve comes back with a backbreaker over the knee and a couple clotheslines. Sw3rve gets on the second rope and hits an elbow drop for a two count. Richards goes for the Gotch piledriver but ends up hitting a sunset flip and right into an ankle lock. Sw3rve comes back with a kick and a cutter for a two-count. They go back and forth until Richards puts the ankle lock on again, let’s go, hits a penalty kick and a brainbuster for the two count, but holds on to the ankle for another lock, but Sw3rve quickly grabs the rope. Richards goes for the Gotch piledriver on the apron, but Sw3rve is able to fight out of it, trips Richards off the apron and hits him with a kick and a double stomp as they both fall over to the outside. Sw3rve gets in at the 4 count, but Richards cannot, and the match is over.

Winner: Sw3rve the Realest by countout at 13:07

Baron Black vs. Jay Lethal

Jay Lethal was another wrestler who was supposed to be in the debut show but got held back by weather issues. They go back and forth with multiple arm ringers, until Lethal stops it with a headlock. Lethal starts strutting around the ring as the crowd gets behind him. They take it to the mat with submission and pin attempts before Lethal takes him down but gets taken down with an arm drag by Black. Black blocks Lethal’s dropkick before getting tossed onto the apron and dropkicked off, as the referee issues Lethal a warning for throwing him over the top rope. The crowd chants ‘Ref, you suck’, to him. They trade suplexes before Lethal hits a big European uppercut and chops Black for a two count. Lethal puts on a leg lock, then into chops and leapfrogs, until Lethal hits a dropkick for a two. Black corners Lethal with chops, before working on the arm and putting on a stretch. Lethal fights out, gives a couple chops but Black comes back with a rolling clothesline and a suplex for a two. Black puts on a couple small packages, but Lethal gets out and hits a superkick. Black fights back and hits a brainbuster. Lethal puts on a figure four lock in the middle of the ring, but Black eventually reaches the rope. They go back and forth with a minute left, and Lethal kicks out of a pin attempt and hits a cutter and a backbreaker, followed by a Lethal Injection attempt, but Black stops it with a sleeper with 30 seconds left on the clock. They roll over into a crossface, but Lethal puts his foot on the rope as time runs out and they go into overtime. Right away they exchange forearms and chops. Black tries a cradle, but Lethal reverses out and hits the Lethal Injection for the pin.

Winner: Jay Lethal by pinfall at 15:36

ROH World Championship: Jonathan Gresham (c) vs. Santana

Santana, announced as Mike Santana, gets on the mic before the match and tells Gresham he’s from New York where he fights and not wrestles and asks Gresham if he wants to fight or wrestle, but Gresham just shakes his hand as it’s presented that this match is following Ring of Honor Pure Rules with a 60 minute time limit, 20 count on the outside and three rope breaks. Right away Gresham toys around with Santana and sends him to the outside. Santana comes back with head scissors as Gresham tells the crowd that look, Santana can indeed wrestle. Gresham puts his arm out to test Santana, but he puts him right into a headlock. Santana ends up sending Gresham to the outside and hits him with a suicide dive before they start brawling on the outside. Santana continues to stay in control on the outside and back drops Gresham onto the apron and pulls him back to the outside when he tries to enter the ring. Santana tells the fans to move and tosses Gresham right into the empty chairs. Gresham again tries to go back inside, but Santana pulls him out, before Gresham escapes and slides back inside finally after a few minutes on the outside. Gresham starts working on Santana’s arm and twisting his ankle back into a pin attempt for a two, before going back to the arm. Gresham ends up pulling Santana to the outside by his arm, and then right back into the ring, the entire time holding his arm before Santana grabs onto the rope for his first rope break. Santana kicks Gresham in the corner and hits a rolling cutter for the two. Gresham goes back to Santana’s arm, but Santana punches his way out but that causes a warning from the referee and one more will cause a disqualification. Gresham sends Santana to the outside where he hits a suicide dive, and they quickly run back inside with crazy fast offense and a pin attempt by Gresham, but Santana comes back with a lariat for a two count. They slowly get back up and trade chops and forearms, but Gresham hits an Enziguri and into a couple of pin attempts for a two before Santana hits a rolling lariat for a two. They go back to pin attempts, rolling all over the ring until they get up and exchange strikes and back into pin attempts with Gresham coming really close, but Santana’s shoulders seem to be out. They go back to trading pins with Gresham eventually getting the pin in a real sloppy-looking pin that had the crowd in a bit of confusion and the referee looking even more confused when he said to ring the bell.

Winner: Jonathan Gresham by pinfall at 19:15, to retain

What the Fuck Was That?

Gresham gets right on the microphone after and says, ‘what the fuck was that?’. Gresham asks if they should get rid of referee Michael Black or if they want another rematch between himself and Santana. The crowd says ‘hell yeah’ for the referee being fired and then says ‘hell yeah’ for the rematch as well. Gresham says the only way to settle this is to have two handpicked individuals stand on the outside and tells Santana to pick a lucky fan. Santana picks a fan but only if he wears his ‘Pretty’ Peter Avalon shirt next time but has to wash it first. Gresham then asks the crowd who wants to be in his corner before surveying which side is louder and ends up picking someone who seemed to be not interested at all and tells these two fans to have a rock, paper, scissors battle to see if there’s a rematch or the referee gets fired. It ends up with the referee getting fired. Gresham and Santana shake hands as Gresham thanks Santana for being part of his journey and Santana says to never let anybody tell you that you can’t do it and Gresham says he will see everybody at Terminus 3 to conclude this show.

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