Mad Dog Connelly and 1 Called Manders Get Rough

When I first saw Mad Dog Connelly last year, I knew I had to see more. With such absolute hits like the Uncharted Territory bout against Adam Priest and the bloodbath against Jake Lander, Mad Dog quickly became a “must-see” wrestler for me and a few friends. There’s just such an immediacy to his work, this rough and tough brawler who can throw hands and absorb blows like few others on the indie scene today. Mad Dog hits and gets hit with enough power to restore one’s faith in the “legitimacy” of professional wrestling, and that’s perhaps one of the highest compliments I can pay to any wrestler.

This match against 1 Called Manders from St. Louis Anarchy earlier in the year makes for a perfect gateway to Mad Dog’s work. I don’t see enough of Manders, and while I think he’s a good wrestler, I often find that his best work comes against the wrestlers most willing to engage his most violent abilities. That’s why him throwing Masha Slamovich around the ring at last year’s SCI worked so well, and it’s why he works so well against someone as scrappy as Connelly here.

There’s zero fat on this match, it’s a little under ten minutes of just crashing into each other in interesting ways. Structure is a vague suggestion in this match, perhaps not entirely absent but also not nearly rigid enough to be worth picking apart. Instead, this is a match that moves from moment to moment, something that’s hard to do in an especially engaging way. It has its rough edges, but in a fight like this that feels more like a feature than a bug.

There’s a real sense that nothing happens in this match without it being earned. They’re fighting for everything they can get, and it makes the cut offs all the more brutal than they might have been. On commentary, J-Rose makes note of the fact that Mad Dog opponents often have to make a choice between stooping to Connelly’s dirty approach to wrestling or trying to rise above it. To the match’s benefit, Manders chooses the former, manifesting itself in great ways like going to Mad Dog’s eyes and nose at key points to try to wrest control back. There’s also the great bit of Manders biting at Mad Dog’s foot which leads to Connelly responding by biting the fingers. In a lesser setting, something that could come across a little cheese, but two sell it for quite a while after too as though it genuinely took a toll on both men to endure.

There’s also a general sense of the two being uncooperative throughout the match. There’s a point early on where Manders throws Connelly towards the ropes, either expecting him to rebound off the ropes or stumble to the floor. Mad Dog does neither, shifting directions immediately to blast Manders with a chop. It’s that kind of small moment, one that rewires the viewer’s expectations from the match. Nothing will come easy, every movement is towards victory or malice.

That being said, it’s not a perfect thing. Something like grabbing the bullrope and chain for a stand off feels forced in a match that’s primarily been about rather organic, free-flowing violence. Also, as much as they do nail so many of these great strikes, it makes things like a clearly worked headbutt have a little less impact than it probably should.

Otherwise though, it’s exactly the kind of thing I love from tiny indies like this. Two guys having a tight, compact brawl that they could have the chance to build upon later.

Wrestling isn’t hard sometimes, you’re just not hitting hard enough.

Rating: ****