10 Things We Learned From Dark Side Of The Ring: Necro Butcher vs. Samoa Joe

Samoa Joe and Necro Butcher weren't on a collision course until a fateful tag-team tournament in off the wall indie Chikara changed everything. Butcher and opponent/partner Mad Man Pondo signed up for a tag tourney put on by the promotion, but it was supposed to be a kid-friendly show. At first, Summers wasn't too into it, but he couldn't knock back any bookings.

The pair were put up against ROH trainees Anthony Franco and Matt Turner (Andrew Rugh). In truth, Honor had sent those guys because they wanted to give them experience and didn’t want bigger names involved. The general consensus amongst fans and some insiders was that Necro and Mad Man bullied the younger guys and went too far, but Butcher defended it by saying he had to get wild because the trainees were “stinking the place up”.

Both ROH trainees got knocked out during the match. Being brutally honest about things, Necro does not come across well here at all. As the story went, Joe was mentoring both ROH guys, so he reportedly wasn’t happy at all, but that wasn't strictly true. It was a narrative some opportunistic promoters were happy to push in hopes of putting a 'dream match' on though.

VICE managed to get both Franco and Turner/Rugh into the studio for some interviews. They didn't outright bash Necro and Pondo, but do recall thinking they'd have an easier night of action than they did. So much for that. Both guys got KO'd and set wheels in motion that'd change independent wrestling history.