Review: Young Ady vs. Max Morrison (Spotland Scrappers)

I would be a terrible eyewitness, apparently. When I bought Young Ady vs. Max Morrison from Spotland Scrappers, I briefly looked at one preview image on their transactional site and saw a rugged badass who I assumed to be Max Morrison. I liked Young Ady against Rob Palomino, so I thought, "Oh cool, I want to see him face this guy!" Yeah, turns out that guy is Young Ady, just with a different haircut.

Like literally, that's the only difference. Same guy. Same GIANT pec/shoulder tattoo that I somehow missed? The guy I wanted to see face Young Ady is ... Young Ady.

See, doesn't he look rough and tough?

So, who the heck is Max Morrison? Well, he's a lean, fit and swarthy young man. Max is decked out in shiny purple pro gear and has a rookie vibe right from the start. It's a complete contrast from Young Ady. While the beefy pro stud didn't look like how I remember, he looks good enough to make me buy this. Like a classic pro. The short hair gives him a more brutish, more serious vibe.

It's not a big deal. It's just that when I started the match, this was not at all what I expected. It's not a knock-down-drag-out battle to see which roughneck wrestler can knock the other guy out. It's a thick-bodied badass manhandling a skinny punk (who deserves the modifier "Young" more than beefy Ady). Young Ady is shorter but stronger and more experienced than youthful Max.

Max just needs a break.

Sorry, we're fresh out of breaks.

The younger wrestler has to avoid being knocked out.

There's no story here and not much talking, other than repeated ten-count attempts. I filled in the gaps using my imagination, as I often do. There's no overt animosity or hostility here. So, it's not a grudge or rivalry match. My brain made this a training session with Ady as teacher and Max as student. It's just a simple training/hazing session designed to test the rookie and show him who's boss.

"It's a Knockout" is an appropriate title for this one. There are a lot of attempted ten-counts, many are close as Max gets put down then has to struggle to get up in time. It seems like in Brit pro, you don't lift the arm three times. Instead, the guy has a ten-count to rise. And so, it's what I'd call an "iron man" or "last man standing" match. I actually wrote one of these when The Bat faced Ram (here).

Ah yes, the macho butt slap of encouragement.

If you can't get up, bring the other guy down.

Ady is relentless in trying to break the kid down.

Action-wise, Young Ady pulls out all the stops to break down the younger wrestler (hopefully to build him back up later?). It's a ton of pro moves and relentless punishment. As the match wears on, the teacher does get noticeably frustrated, probably wondering what it'll take to keep the student down for good. Max proves to be quite resilient, unwilling to go down easy. This fits with my "proving yourself to teacher" scenario.

And on two occasions, the rookie gets to shock the teacher, putting him down. It's really hot to see Ady lose consciousness then struggle to beat the count. How humiliating. I like when jobbers show some fight. Max is pretty helpless for most of this, so those two moments got my heart racing.

Okay, surely that will do it?

Kid, he's out! Hurry and get counting!

I like short-hair Ady.

In the end, I enjoyed this, even though it wasn't what I expected. My head canon made it fun for me as I gave context to the domination. I like Young Ady's short hair look. He looks more intimidating. Max is well-suited to the role of trainee and his repeated struggles to rise are the point of the video. If you like that, you'll like this.

And so, a potential mistake that turned out fine after all. Not that the $8 would've been that big a deal, but still, how did I forget that tattoo?

So, that's my take. What's yours?

Alex