Crisis of Infinite Wrestlers - Merged Worlds Diary

[LucianCarter]

HW Red Carpet

Tuesday, Week 2, November 2015

Target Center, MN

Attendance: 9,283

 

DARK MATCHES

 

T-Rex and Austin Aries defeated 420 Somewhere

(50)

 

Bobby Ruiz vs Wilson Hancock

(66)

 

MAIN SHOW

 

The show opened with a match, James Prudence versus Atonga. Atonga’s savagery contrasted sharply with Prudence’s easy going ways. Nonetheless, both held their own quite well. Atonga finally seized the advantage when Prudence was charging him. Atonga pulled referee Shane Tedeschi into Prudence’s path. Prudence was able to stop himself in time; but as he moved the referee out of the way Atonga levelled him with a Charging Headbutt and picked up the win.

(69)

 

Now it was time for The Rock to speak his mind.

 

“I don’t know how you pulled it off Rogue, you jabroni roody poo, but you weaseled your way into a #1 contender’s match before The Rock. Now, The Rock figures you’re no match for Joey Mercury. But if you think you can threaten The Rock, then cruise into the championship, you’ve got… who is The Rock kidding? To think you need a brain, and if you called out The Great One you’re dumber than a dinosaur. So go ahead, try to cheat your way to the top. Steal things, break things, pick locks. But when you come up against The Brahma Bull, he’s going to take your little lock picks, he’s going to shine ‘em up real nice, and he’s going to stick them straight up your candy ass! If ya smellllllllllll what The Rock is cookin’!”

(92)

 

Cloud James and Troy Tornado fought next. It was a barn burner of a match, as both men looked to literally be trying to kill each other. Eventually, the referee got so tired of being ignored and pushed around by both men, he threw the match out. He got a lot of boos, the crowd had been really into it.

(79)

 

Another match followed, Valiant took on Bobby Roode. Roode tried, but Valiant was in control for most of the match. James Gilmour-Hart was on commentary and he spent much of the match yawning and complaining how boring and ugly both men were. Valiant picked up the win fairly handily.

(68)

 

VIP and Theodore Reed came to the ring.

 

“Do you know why cops become cops?” asked Reed.

 

“Because they got all Cs in high school?” VIP offered.

 

“And?”

 

“Because dentistry takes skill?”

 

“And?”

 

“Because a vet has to heal animals, not just kill them?”

 

“And?”

 

“Because they are content to aim low?”

 

“That about covers it. Now, why does a cop become a wrestler?”

 

“Because they’re too stupid to realize they’ll be the ones getting their ass kicked?”

 

“Exactly.”

 

“Rick Law, tonight you face Mo Fury. When he beats you, you’ll realize just how outclassed you really are around here. Meanwhile, I’m going to crush Remmy Skye, one more minor annoyance and show the powers that be they shouldn’t waste my time facing nobodies.

(74)

 

VIP crushed Remmy Skye in two and a half minutes, hitting a VIPiledriver that knocked Skye clean out.

(54)

 

Mick Foley brought Danny Fonzarelli to the ring.

 

“Danny, congrats on defending your Rising Star Championship. So I have to ask, who would you like to face next.”

 

“Towerblock.”

 

“Ok, sure. Everybody wants to beat the Global Champion. But I was thinking more about a challenger for the belt you already have.”

 

“There are a lot of choices but-“

 

Suddenly, Tyler Mercury ran into the ring with a steel chair and waffled Fonzarelli with it. The champ went down hard. Mick backed off, watching with an expression that was hard to read. Mercury dropped the chair and picked up Danny’s title belt. Danny tried to fight to his feet, but Mercury hit him with a charging belt shot to the face. Danny was down and out. Mercury laid the belt across the back of his head then gave Foley a mocking salute before he headed to the back. Foley motioned for trainers and medics to take care of Fonzarelli, then watched as Mercury made his way up the ramp.

(65)

 

Des Davis and Joshua Taylor teamed up to go after Big Smack Scott and Kurt Laramee. The two makeshift teams were ok. It was an even fight. Laramee almost got DQed for an Eye Rake that led to Big Smack Scott getting a blind tag. It was a mistake as that let Taylor tag too and Des Davis took Scott down and beat him with an Armbar.

(57)

 

Rick Law had to face Mo Fury. VIP stayed backstage, but Theodore Reed was there to help his other client. Law looked strong throughout. As his desperation mounted, Reed tried to trip Law. Law fell forward, but landed a falling Long Arm of the Law on Fury as he fell. He wound up in a pinning position, perhaps without even intending to, and got the 1…2…3!

(74)

 

We cut backstage where Cross and Elmo Benson were beating the hell out of each other. Security split them up.

(62)

 

Jerry King was with Raven and Towerblock in the ring.

 

“So, Raven. Tonight Rogue takes on Joey Minnesota in a #1 contender’s match.”

 

“And?”

 

“I wanted your thoughts, or your client’s if he would care to say something.”

 

Towerblock glared down at him.

 

“My client is not concerned about Rogue, and certainly not about Joey Minnesota. My client is not concerned about anyone on this roster. He’s beaten Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. After that, anyone else around here is second rate. Kind of like you Jerry. You’re nothing but an old man trying to grab one last taste of fame and glory by getting the rub from me and my client. Well Jerry, just remember where your bread is buttered and stay on our good side. Or retirement may come sooner than you’d like.”

(69)

 

Tyler Mercury vs Garrett South was next. Tyler went for his usual tactics, picking a body part and trying to dismantle it. This time, he chose South’s right wrist, his drinking wrist as Rudy Single pointed out, and went to work on it. South didn’t let that stop him from throwing hard right hands, but as the match went on they started to hurt him almost as much as his opponent. As the match went on Derrick Rollins showed up. Mercury locked on a top wrist lock. South went for the ropes, only to have Rollins pull them out of his grip. Mercury twisted South off his feet and transitioned into an arm breaker with the force on the wrist. South was forced to tap out.

(71)

 

A laughing Rollins retreated up the entrance ramp. As he reached the stage, pointing and laughing at South, Ethan Rollins exploded out from the back and smashed him in the back of the head. Tyler Mercury fled through the crowd and Rollins gave South a nod as South got back to his feet.

(60)

 

Jungle Jack was making his way towards the gorilla position when Jumbo Jackson ambushed him. But Jack managed to turn things around and drive Jackson off.

(66)

 

Jungle Jack’s match was against James Gilmour-Hart. Hart’s macho posing was matched by Jack’s chest beating and jungle calls. Once the bell rang, however, both men were completely serious. The brawlers threw all their best offense at each other. Jack barely avoided getting caught with the Hart Attack (Sit-Out Facebuster) but Hart wasn’t so lucky. He got caught by a Jackknife Powerbomb and ended up being pinned.

(75)

 

Jesse Van Holt was backstage reading a newspaper when Frederique Antonio Garcia, accompanied by eight women, walked up to him.

 

“A newspaper? What are you, a senior citizen? There is a thing called a computer now. You can find news on it. You can play Angry Birds; you can even meet beautiful women.”

 

“That’s true.” Jesse replied. But you can’t roll up a computer and wack an annoying idiot on the nose with it.” He proceeded to demonstrate.

 

Garcia seethed. “How dare you?”

 

“Yeah, you’re right. That wasn’t right.”

 

“I’m glad you see the light.”

 

“This… this is right.” He smashed Garcia with a huge right hook. Garcia fell to the floor and Jesse winked at one of his women, who seemed impressed, then walked off.

(58)

 

Now it was time for the big match of the night. Dwayne Johnson joined commentary for the number one contender’s match. Rogue came out first, looking none too happy to see The Rock. Joey Minnesota was next and he didn’t even spare Rock a glance; he went after Rogue with incredible focus. The match started with each man feeling the other out. Rock heaped praise on Minnesota, and only grudgingly acknowledged Rogue’s successes. Rogue cheated constantly. After a while, Joey got tired of it and threw in a few dirty tricks of his own. The crowd loved it. Rogue went for a low blow, got caught, but spun into an Enzugiri and came incredibly close to a three count. Soon after, Joey whipped Rogue back-first into the corner and hit him with a Corner Spear. But when he tried to drag him out of the corner for a pin attempt, Rogue managed to grab the ropes and force a break for him to recover. The match wore on. Rogue went up top and hit a Crossbody, trying to steal a win by grabbing the tights. Joey still kicked out and managed to get up first, pick Rogue up over his shoulders and hit the Minnesotan Drop (Samoan Drop) for a victory and a shot at the title.

(77)

 

Final rating: 78

Popularity increase in 16 regions

[LucianCarter]

Now Big Smack Scott was acting up. A nasty prank he played on Ethan Paro almost led to yet another backstage fight. I gave him a warning, but the reason he and Laramee were teaming up was so neither would be indispensable.

 

I noticed for the first time that VIP was being overshadowed by Theodore Reed, despite actually being the better speaker. It might be time to look at other options… At the same time, Cloud James and Troy Tornado had unmistakable chemistry. Handling their current feud was going to be an exercise in caution and planning. If I managed it right it might give both men a big boost.

 

The buy rate had shot up to 0.07. That was encouraging; word of our TV deal was drawing some eyes to our remaining PPVs.

 

I signed Richie Santana as a new road agent. He’d join us in a week and I could do something about Rudy Single’s issues with his push.

 

Now, what to do for matches?

 

Towerblock and Rogue vs The Rock and Joey Minnesota

Cloud James vs Troy Tornado

Frederique Antonio Garcia vs Remmy Skye

James Prudence vs Cross

Elmo Benson vs Atonga

Ethan Paro and Garrett South vs Derrick Rollins and Wilson Hancock

Mo Fury vs Matt Hocking

T-Rex vs Rick Law

Valiant vs Bobby Roode

[LucianCarter]

OOC

 

I'd really love some feedback if anyone is reading this

 

I'm having fun, but if this style of diary or subject matter isn't what people are interested I could always scrap it and start something different.

[LucianCarter]

HW Red Carpet

Tuesday Week 3, November, 2015

Tucson Convention Center, AZ

Attendance: 9,275

 

DARK SEGMENTS

Bobby Ruiz, Travis Diekman and Des Davis defeated Big Smack Scott, Kurt Laramee and Austin Aries

(59)

 

Joshua Taylor, with Ernie Turner, cut a promo.

(55)

 

MAIN SHOW

 

Mo Fury opened the show in a match with Matt Hocking. The tag team specialist Hocking never seemed able to pose a real threat to Fury. A distraction from Theodore Reed sealed the deal and a Mo Furious (Torture Rack Slam) put Hocking away.

(59)

 

Out came The Rock.

 

“Rogue, you think you’re some master criminal. I’m here to tell you, you are worse than The Hamburglar. Go have another cheeseburger and leave the wrestling to the professionals! You want to take out The Rock? You don’t even take out dates you jabroni roody poo. You’re so busy eating burgers you never even eat pie. Not like The Rock eats pie! You like burgers? You should check out The Great One’s barbecue skills. But you can’t. You know why? Because you’re not invited to The Rock’s barbecue. So stay home, play on the Internet and cry yourself to sleep! If ya smellllllllll what The Rock is B-B-Qing!

(100!)

 

Bobby Roode hoped to secure a win when he took on Valiant. He didn’t.

(68)

 

Rick Law was out next, to take on T-Rex. Veda Scott was in Law’s corner, but contributed little. The match was awkward, neither man seemed to know how to approach the other. As T-Rex tired, Law amped up his offense and put him away with a Long Arm of the Law.

(64)

 

As Law celebrated the whole of ABM surrounded him. Law went after VIP with all his fury, but the numbers game was too much for him and he was beaten to the mat.

(64)

 

Jesse Van Holt joined the announce desk to watch Frederique Antonio Garcia take on Remmy Skye. Van Holt was terrible. Garcia repeatedly mocked Skye, who tried his best to make him pay for it. Garcia stopped him at every turn and beat him with a simple Small Package, though he did have his feet on the ropes.

(60)

 

Raven and Towerblock were in the champ’s dressing room.

 

“Ok big guy. Tonight you and Rogue take on The Rock and Joey Minnesota. I don’t need to tell you how important this match is. I’ll be by your side but you need to channel your inner monster. You need to be unstoppable. You need to crush. You need to break them. You need to be the pitbull I know you are. Don’t overthink. Don’t play games. Destroy.”

 

Towerblock’s grin was pure evil.

(75)

 

James Prudence had a match with Cross. Prudence attempted to outspeed Cross and managed to avoid a lot of his offense. He got some offense of his own in. But Atonga crept to the ring and clocked James in the back of the head while referee Francis Long wasn’t looking. Cross hit a Crossbody for a pinfall.

(72)

 

Backstage, Jungle Jack confronted Jumbo Jackson about ambushing him last week. Jack called Jackson a coward who wouldn’t face him head on. Jumbo responded by attacking him head on. The two had a violent battle before being separated.

(71)

 

Atonga and Elmo Benson were up next. Benson came to the ring with a lime green jacket on, complete with a flower lapel. He offered a pre-match handshake, only to squirt Atonga in the face with the trick flower. Atonga was furious. But despite being something of a joker, Elmo was a talented wrestler and he held his own very well. Cross attempted to return the favor from earlier by helping Atonga win, only to screw up and hit him instead. Elmo took advantage and got the win.

(68)

 

Cross and Atonga weren’t done. They proceeded to beat down Benson. From the back, James Prudence came running out to make the save. But, with Benson out of it, Cross and Atonga beat him down too and left triumphant.

(58)

 

Ethan Paro joined forces with Garrett South to square off with Derrick Rollins and Wilson Hancock. South was isolated and beat on for most of the match. When he finally made the tag to Paro the bionic redneck came in and cleaned house. Paro hit a Paroplex on Rollins, but Hancock ran in and clocked him then took out South as well. Rollins got a Heel Hook in place and Paro was forced to tap out.

(61)

 

General Manager Mick Foley appeared on the JumboTron. He said he was so impressed with Troy Tornado and Cloud James’s match from last week he was booking them in a best of five series. The first match? Next!

(67)

 

The match was a barn burner. Cloud kept going for his finisher, but Troy countered every time. Troy punched and kicked at Cloud, trying to batter him down. Cloud fought back with a string of knee strikes to the face that left Troy reeling. Another attempt at a Country Mile, but Troy grabbed the ropes to prevent it. Thirteen minutes in, Troy finally managed to keep Cloud down long enough to lock on a Tornado Lock (Octopus Stretch) and force Cloud to submit. Troy was up one to nothing.

(81)

Danny Fonzarelli came to the ring with a microphone in his hand. But, before he could speak, Tyler Mercury ran in and attacked him. Mercury knocked him to his chest then locked Fonzarelli’s own finished, the Cool Lock, on him until he passed out.

(69)

 

It was main event time. Two makeshift teams, Rock and Joey Minnesota versus Rogue and Towerblock. Both teams had members from different Earths and had little experience about the other. Still, all four men were game. It took some time for them to build up a strategy, but both teams found their groove. Towerblock seemed vulnerable on a few occasions, as both his opponents gave him some trouble. Rogue cheated, Towerblock simply tried to overpower his foes. In the end, it took Raven interfering for Towerblock to manage to Superplex Joey Minnesota and keep his undefeated streak alive.

(77)

 

Overall rating (80)

Popularity increase in 16 regions

[LucianCarter]

Troy Tornado and Cloud had not disappointed. In fact, it was the second best match we had ever had. Perhaps they deserved a shot at the main event? And not to toot my own horn, but my promo had kicked ass. Overall, it was our best show ever.

 

That wasn’t the big shock though. The big shock was we were suddenly the 6th ranked company in the world. We’d even passed USPW.

 

(OOC we hit 65 popularity across the US and popped up in the rest of the world)

 

It was time to challenge WWE more directly. That meant trying to steal their talent when contracts came up. There was one such person right now. So I made a bid. Odds are he would turn me down, but it might force WWE to up their offer. Every extra cent I could cost them was one cent they didn’t have to expand.

 

Now was the time to make more offers to smaller feds to become feeder leagues. I gave Combat Zone Wrestling a call to make the offer. Rejected. Pittsburgh Steel Wrestling, #159 in finances overall, turned down our takeover bid and our offer to become their parent company. CHIKARA was next. Another rejection. L-Ring was my last shot for now, they said no too. I decided I’d wait until next month and see if any of the smaller feds landed TV shows. If they did, they’d be a far better choice. And, if not, somebody was bound to hit financial trouble eventually. After all, there were regional battles going on all over the world. In some US areas there were nearly 20 feds cannibalizing each other.

 

Rogue called me and pointed out if he was going to be in the main event, he should be treated like a main eventer. I had to agree.

 

Richie Santana joined our company. He revealed to me he had been working for 18 federations previously! He’d have a lighter schedule with us, even as we went to 6 shows a month.

 

Rudy Single got moved to the active roster, as a midcarder. He was almost a decade past his prime so I expected he would wrestle rarely and I left him on Color duty. Other wrestlers who were showing their age were Big Smack Scott, our champion Towerblock, Kurt Laramee and even Danny Fonzarelli. Danny was just starting to fade. Strangely, I didn’t feel like I’d lost a step at all, and Richie agreed.

 

Booking the show I decided to have a bunch of matches with what I knew would be great chemistry between the workers. The last of the weekly PPVs needed to go out with a bang.

 

Troy Tornado vs Cloud James (match #2)

Frederique Antonio Garcia vs Bobby Ruiz

T-Rex vs Des Davis

Wilson Hancock and Derrick Rollins vs 420 Somewhere

Cross and Atonga vs Prudence and Benson

Mo Fury and VIP vs Ethan Paro and Garrett South

Jungle Jack vs Bobby Roode

Valiant vs Kurt Laramee

Tyler Mercury vs Jesse Van Holt

[LucianCarter]

HW Red Carpet

Tuesday Week 4, November

The Carnegie, NY

Attendance: 13,178

 

DARK MATCHES

 

Joshua Taylor defeated Austin Aries

(60)

 

Rudy Single defeated Big Smack Scott

(54)

 

MAIN SHOW

 

The Rock came to the ring.

 

“Rogue, you think you can take me out. We have a match at Ring of Fame. Prove it. I’m not just The Great One, I’m a legend in this business. I-“

 

Rogue’s music cut him off. Rogue strolled to the ring, mic in hand.

 

“Rock, I know you are a legend. That’s why I want to do this.”

 

He clocked Johnson in the head with the microphone then stomped the hell out of him.

(74)

 

The first of our “chemistry matches” of the night was next as Frederique Antonio Garcia faced Bobby Ruiz. It looked great and the crowd got into it. Garcia didn’t even try to cheat. He beat Ruiz clean with a Playboy Plunge (Second Rope Fireman’s Senton).

(72)

 

Another chemistry match, T-Rex versus Des Davis. Even great chemistry was not enough to make the audience care much about this one. T-Rex looked dangerous, but even at eight minutes the match was getting too long for him. T-Rex cheated relentlessly and Davis finally got fed up and turned the tables, using a Schoolboy roll-up then putting his legs on the ropes to pick up the win.

(57)

 

VIP and Theodore Reed were in ABM’s dressing room.

 

“Vincent,” Reed began. “At Ring of Fame you have a chance to fulfill a dream. You get to beat the hell out of a cop in a No Disqualification match.

 

“It’s going be Rodney King in reverse, man.”

 

“Make me proud.”

(71)

 

It seemed like everyone was trying to outdo each other tonight. Jungle Jack and Bobby Roode, with Jumbo Jackson on commentary, was no exception. Roode was becoming increasingly desperate as his losses mounted up. He came at Jack, determined to take him down. Jack wasn’t intimidated and he pounded back, putting Roode on the defensive. Roode put everything he had into a simple running slam, only to be reversed into a Jackknife Powerbomb and taken out.

(76)

 

Rudy Single held a microphone as Raven spoke for Towerblock.

 

“Minnesota, you’re fading fast. You’re not a main eventer anymore. So why are you getting a title shot? Is Mick Foley going senile. You’re mere presence near the top of the card is going to tank buy rates so hard you’re threatening to bankrupt the company. Just concede now and let Cloud James and Troy Tornado headline. People care about them. My client doesn’t mind an easy win, but a night off is just as good. If you insist on wrestling, Towerblock is not going to take it easy on you. He’s not going to take pity on you. He’s not going to treat you like nice guy. He’s going to treat you like garbage, and he’s going to take out the trash.

(66)

 

Wilson Hancock and Derrick Rollins faced 420 Somewhere. It looked like they would win easily, even without cheating. That didn’t stop them. Hancock low-blowed Travis while Rollins distracted the ref. It was over.

(63)

 

Cloud James finally got to sing a song! He played “Dirty Old Egg Sucking Dog” in honor of Troy Tornado. It was awful. Jillian Hall bad. The crowd hated him.

(64)

 

Atonga and Cross teamed up against Elmo Benson and James Prudence. Cross and Atonga were close to victory when the pair accidentally collided and Prudence was able to roll Cross up for the win.

(66)

 

Rick Law usually let actions speak louder than words. But, with Veda Scott standing in the background, he finally spoke his mind about ABM.

 

“ABM, I’ve sat back and let you smack talk me. But no more. I am not what you say I am. I did well in high school. I never wanted to be a dentist, or a vet. I am not a sadist. I am not unfair. I am certainly not-“

 

Veda cut him off.

 

“My client is a good man. He follows the rules. But in a No-DQ match, there are no rules. And he’s going to show you he can get as down and dirty as you can.”

 

Rick continued, “Because nobody is above the Law.”

(72)

 

Law stuck around to guest commentate on Mo Fury and VIP against Ethan Paro and Derrick South. The match was a back and forth affair. VIP was clearly the better man on his team but, when Theodore Reed interfered, it was Fury who picked up the victory by hitting South with a Mo Furious.

(76)

 

James Gilmour-Hart was shown working out furiously to prepare for his match against Valiant at Ring of Fame.

(67)

 

Valiant, on the other hand, chose to warm up by facing Kurt Laramee. This wasn’t one of the great chemistry matches of the night. Valiant forced Laramee to tap out to an Armbreaker in 8 minutes. Big Smack Scott was at ringside and he just shook his head at Laramee.

(64)

 

Danny Fonzarelli barged into Mick Foley’s office demanding a match against Tyler Mercury at Ring of Fame. Foley agreed, but insisted he put the Rising Star title on the line. Danny readily agreed.

(65)

 

The co-main saw two potential stars, Tyler Mercury and Jesse Van Holt, face off. Mercury targeted Van Holt’s left knee through the entire match. Van Holt was struggling as the 11 minute mark passed. But Frederique Antonio wasn’t going to leave matters to chance. He interfered, only to hit the wrong man and let Van Holt pick up the win.

(77)

 

It was Joey Minnesota’s turn to speak.

 

“Raven, I’m sick of hearing your voice. Towerblock, learn to talk. You say I’m falling down the card? You say I can’t main event anymore. Well I’m going to. And you know what cements a man into the main event? The main title. I’m taking it from you. I’m taking your oh so impressive five-match winning streak away from you. And Raven, if you interfere, I’m taking your teeth away from you.”

(65)

 

Cloud James and Troy Tornado matched up for the second in their best of five series. It was another incredible match, more than worthy of the main event. Cloud went for a guitar shot, but the referee was ready and he took the guitar away. As Cloud yelled at him, Troy Dropkicked him in the face and he went down. Troy locked on the Tornado Lock and Cloud once again tapped. Troy was up 2-0 in the series and looked to sweep at Ring of Fame.

(81)

 

Overall rating: 77

Popularity increase in 16 regions

[LucianCarter]

Jerry King provoked a huge argument with Mick Foley. I didn’t want to piss off either man so I opted to just give King a warning. King was receptive, but our gawdawful backstage got even worse as a result.

 

I hadn’t been paying a lot of attention, but Duane Fry pointed out to me just how bad the US economy was right now. If it ever turned around we might make a lot more money. The wrestling industry itself was in a middling state, but it looked to be getting better.

 

Atonga and Cross were a great team. It was time to make them official. Maybe we should even add a tag title…

 

We juggled our event schedule, changing the Red Carpet event into a monthly event held on the second Saturday of the month. The new name would be HW Stars Aligned.

 

Booking the month’s big card was fairly easy. Choosing winners would be harder; it was time to juggle storylines again for a largely fresh start to TV. So who won would have a bigger impact than usual.

 

Towerblock vs. Joey Minnesota – Global Championship

Cloud James vs. Troy Tornado- Match 3 in a best of 5

The Rock vs Rogue

Frederique Antonio Garcia vs Jesse Van Holt

Big Smack Scott and Kurt Laramee vs. Des Davis and Joshua Taylor

Rick Law vs. VIP – No DQ

James Prudence and Elmo Benson vs. Cross and Atonga

Tyler Mercury vs Danny Fonzarelli – Rising Star Championship

Ethan Paro vs Wilson Hancock vs Garrett South vs Derrick Rollins – 4-way Dance

Rudy Single vs T-Rex

Jumbo Jackson vs Jungle Jack

James Gilmour-Hart vs Valiant

[LucianCarter]

HW Ring of Fame

Saturday Week 4 November, 2015

XL Center, CT

Attendance: 10,799

 

DARK MATCH

 

Austin Aries and Bobby Roode defeated Remmy Skye and Bobby Ruiz

(61)

 

MAIN SHOW

 

Elmo Benson and James Prudence faced Cross and Atonga, who were now calling themselves The Lost Souls. The Lost Souls performed like they had tagged for years. Prudence and Benson stayed in the match, but acted like a makeshift team. Cross tagged in at the end and Atonga picked him up and hurled him at Prudence for a huge Crossbody that got the pin.

(81)

 

The Rock spoke next.

 

“Rogue, what more is there to say? You think The Rock is a stepping stone. The Rock thinks he’ll step on you like a bug. You like cheeseburgers. The Rock likes pie. You’re a jabroni. The Rock is The Great One. You’re boring. The Rock is the most electrifying man in all of sports and entertainment. The Rock is going to take you to school, and don’t even think about playing hooky. If ya smelllllllllll what The Rock is cookin’.

(81)

 

Frederique Antonio Garcia and Jesse Van Holt met in a grudge match. Garcia tried to show off, but Van Holt fought back hard and made him pay for it. Garcia tried to set up the Playboy Plunge on three separate occasions, Van Holt fought out of it every time. Finally, Garcia managed a high head kick and rolled up Van Holt with a handful of tights. It was just enough to get the win.

(67)

 

The No-DQ match between Rick Law and VIP was a brutal affair. Law brought a nightstick to the ring and used it numerous times. VIP busted out brass knuckles and landed a few nasty shots. Mo Fury attacked Law, only to get Long Armed for his trouble. Veda Scott hit VIP with a chair but it only ended up in a near fall. Finally, Law hit a Long Arm of the Law using the nightstick instead of his arm and picked up the 1..2…3!

(76)

 

Mick Foley came to the ring and gave a quick promo plugging the new TV show and the change to PPVs.

(62)

 

Big Smack Scott and Kurt Laramee teamed up against Des Davis and Joshua Taylor one more time. Taylor got Laramee into a Taylor Hitch and Kurt was forced to tap out. Scott looked very unhappy.

(62)

 

Duane Fry caught up with Raven and Towerblock backstage.

 

“Raven,” asked Fry. “What is your strategy going into tonight’s match?”

 

“Why do you so called journalists always ask that? Who /ever/ gives away their strategy? Well, I’ll tell you something. My client doesn’t have a strategy. My client doesn’t need a strategy. My client is a mountain of a man. My client is a master wrestler. My client has the experience to beat anyone on this roster. My client will retire as an undefeated champion. Joey Minnesota is nothing more than a speed bump on the path to the Hall of Immortals. Quoth the Raven, nevermore.”

(69)

 

Troy Tornado gloated about being up 2-0 in the best of five series and vowed to end it tonight.

(71)

 

A Four-Way Dance was up next. Derrick Rollins, Ethan Paro, Garrett South and Wilson Hancock. It was a toss-up, any one of them could have won. Hancock pinned Paro first. He was the next to fall as South pinned him. But Hancock didn’t leave the ring, instead he hit South with a Piledriver allowing Rollins to sneak in and steal a victory.

(76)

 

Danny Fonzarelli put his title on the line against Tyler Mercury. Mercury went to work on Dany’s jaw and neck. He attempted to finish it off with Fonzarelli’s own finisher, the Cool Lock. But Danny had mastered the move and reversed into his own version. Mercury was forced to tap out.

(77)

 

Rogue had his turn on the microphone.

 

“Rock, you are right, there is nothing more to say. You are a legend I intend to surpass. If that means ending your career, then tonight I will do just that.”

(73)

 

The match followed. Rock showed, once again, he hadn’t lost a step to age. He had an answer to every dirty trick Rogue played. He didn’t dominate buy any means and, while it wasn’t the best match of his career it was highly entertaining. When The Rock hit a Rock Bottom and secured the pin there was a huge pop from the crowd.

(85)

 

James Gilmour-Hart and Valiant did their best to follow that. They did a decent job. Many near falls and a lot of big moves kept the crowd interested. When Hart managed to remove a turnbuckle cover and Snake Eyes Valiant into it he was able to pick up a tainted win. The crowd booed, but the match was good regardless.

(80)

 

Jerry King interviewed Jumbo Jackson. Jackson was clearly pissed at Jungle Jack and only growled out a vow to destroy him

(73)

 

Jumbo and Jack locked up next. They fought hard. Jackson tried to win fair but couldn’t manage it and barely kicked out of a number of power moves by Jack. In the end, Jackson needed an eye rake to set up the Jumbomb for the win.

(70)

 

Troy Tornado and Cloud James had their third match in the best of five series. Troy kept trying to put Cloud away with pinning combinations, wanting to sweep the match. He was ahead for the bulk of the contest but his frustration grew as he couldn’t put Cloud away. Tornado whipped Cloud at the corner, but the ref got in the way and James almost took him out. While the referee was trapped in the corner, Cloud mule kicked Tornado in the junk, hit the Country Mile and forced a match #4.

(75)

 

Raven and Towerblock waited in the ring.

 

“Minnesota, come out here and get your ass whupped.”

 

Towerblock roared and raised his arms to the sky. He was clearly ready.

(73)

 

Minnesota came racing to the ring. For the next 15 minutes, Joey furiously tried to chop the big man down. He hit the legs, the arms, the chest, looking for any opening he could find. Towerblock fought back with fewer, bigger moves. He slammed Joey numerous times, but Joey always kicked out. Towerblock finally caught him in the corner and hit the Superplex. He covered. Joey kicked out! Raven and Towerblock were both shocked. Even the announce team couldn’t believe it. Towerblock gave up on getting a pin and caught Joey in a Torture Rack Backbreaker. Joey refused to tap out, but the referee stopped the fight when he clearly had no hope of escape. Towerblock had defended the title once again.

(81)

 

Final rating: 80

Popularity gain in 16 regions

[LucianCarter]

I had stolen the show again. I needed to have more faith in myself. Needing to protect Troy Tornado had hurt his match with Cloud and kept it from being a worthy semi-main. My post-show speech praised Towerblock as a worthy champion. I knew Mick Foley’s momentum was stalled and he wasn’t getting the response from the crowd he wanted, but I encouraged him to keep trying. Lastly, I talked about how Cloud agreeing to eat a loss to the boss for the benefit of the show was model employee behavior.

 

Jesse Van Holt’s attitude was becoming a problem. My attempts to be reasonable about it didn’t go so well. At least it showed the rest of the locker room I had noticed.

 

We celebrated our best buy rate ever, 0.32. We lost slightly less in November, $369,000. If we could turn things around with the TV show we’d be sitting pretty. If not, we had enough in the bank to carry us for a while.

 

It hadn’t been obvious at first, but I realized our announce team had reached a point where they were comfortable enough with each other they were no longer hurting the matches.

 

November came to an end, with just days before our TV debut. I rechecked the roster for everyone’s position on it.

 

 

MAIN EVENTERS

Towerblock – H

Cloud James – H

Rick Law – F

Derick Rollins – H

Jumbo Jackson – H

Fredrique Antonio Garcia – H

Rogue – H

 

UPPER MIDCARDERS

Jungle Jack – F

James Gilmour-Hart – H

Troy Tornado – F

Tyler Mercury – H

Cross – H

Valiant – F

Danny Fonzarelli – F

 

MIDCARD

VIP – H

Jessie Van Holt – F

T-Rex – H

Rudy Single - F

Mo Fury – H

Joey Minnesota – F

Wilson Hancock – H

Elmo Benson – F

Garrett South – F

Ethan Pro – F

Des Davis – F

 

LOWER MIDCARD

James Prudence – F

Bobby Ruiz – F

Big Smack Scott – H

Atonga – H

Joshua Taylor – F

 

OPENER

Travis Diekman – F

Bobby Roode – H

Remmy Skye – F

Kurt Laramee – H

 

ENHANCEMENT TALENT

Matt Hocking – F

Austin Aries – H

 

OCCASIONAL WRESTLER

The Rock – F

 

It was clear, heels were running roughshod over the upper echelons. Some of them were going to have to get knocked down the card. I juggled storylines with that in mind.

 

A lot of companies were hurting given the numerous regional battles going on. But there were no National battles going on whatsoever.

 

Richie Santana had a surprise for me. I had given him a role in media relations and he revealed he had secured Mexican Pay Per View coverage! We’d had a few options, we went with View Mex. It was only a six month deal, and we’d only get to keep 10% of the revenue, but it meant we’d be growing in four markets now. I figured, if that worked, we could try the UK too. There were some very small carriers there we had a snowball’s chance of making a deal with.

 

We were #5 in the world now, we’d passed TCW.

 

17 new wrestling TV shows had debuted this month. It was a golden era for wrestling, but could it last? PWI had made a deal with ABC. Lucha Underground had been kicked off El Rey earlier and now were stuck on The Fight Network. Meanwhile, El Ray had picked up CZW. TCW had a show on MTV. But somehow, SWF hadn’t secured a TV show? How was that possible? And would they stay alive without one?

 

Now, we needed a card for our first TV show. I knew Cloud James and Troy Tornado would headline. But with only 90 minutes to work with, it was going to be a challenge to get even 7 matches in. Sure, the matches would be shorter, but the show was half the length we were used to. I put something together I thought would work and paced all day as we headed to Utah for the show.

 

Cloud James vs Troy Tornado – Match #4 in a best of 5 series

Rick Law vs Wilson Hancock

Garrett South vs Austin Aries

Valiant vs Cross

VIP vs Des Davis

Jesse Van Holt vs James Gilmour-Hart

Danny Fonzarelli vs T-Rex HW Rising Star Championship

[LucianCarter]

HW Red Carpet (TV)

Tuesday Week 1, 2015

Burns Arena, Utah

Attendance: 5,000

 

DARK SEGMENTS

 

Atonga defeated Remmy Skye

(56)

 

Elmo Benson and Rogue had a debate about traffic laws. Elmo argued they needed to be followed more carefully. Rogue argued people should be able to do whatever they want. The audience mostly sided with Benson.

(68)

 

MAIN SHOW

 

We opened with a title defense. Danny Fonzarelli versus T-Rex for the Rising Star Championship. Frederique Antonio Garcia joined the announce desk, making no bones about the fact he was checking out the match since he wanted a title shot of his own. Fonzarelli looked good, T-Rex not so much. Fonzarelli managed to lock on a Cool Clutch and retain the title by submission.

(66)

 

The Rock came to the ring.

 

“Welcome fans to the first ever Hollywood Wrestling television show! To our viewers at home I want to say, thank you for giving us a chance. We promise we won’t let you down.”

 

Jumbo Jackson’s music hit. The Rock raised the People’s Eyebrow as he came to the ring.

 

“What the hell are you doing interrupting The Rock?”

 

“If there’s one thing I hate, it’s people who kiss up to these losers.” Jumbo replied.

 

“These ‘losers’ pay your salary. These ‘losers’-“

 

He was cut off as Jumbo head butted him and grabbed him for a Jumbomb (Sit-Out Powerbomb)! The crowd booed him loudly as he gave The Rock one last kick before he headed backstage. Medics came to check on The Rock.

(78)

 

Cross took on Valiant once The Rock was out of the ring. Cross showed some incredible skill, but Valiant’s heart was unquestionable. They kept at it until Derrick Rollins ran to the ring and leapt on the apron. Valiant turned to look at him, confused. That was enough of an opening for Cross to hit him from behind with a big Crossbody and roll him into a flash pinfall. Rollins smiled as he left.

(80)

 

ABM were backstage. Theodore Reed spoke.

 

“We’re here in Utah. Land of the Mormons. You would think a people who get mocked and put down would understand what it felt like. But no, once again we are being held back. Did Mo Fury get the Rising Star shot? No. And now, VIP gets stuck fighting Des Davis, a man who should be standing with us. But no, he thinks he can do better by getting in line and waiting his turn. Well Davis, that turn will never come and by not standing with us, you stand against us.”

(67)

 

Garrett South had a quick match against Austin Aries. South had Aries set up for the Southsayer when Bobby Roode ran in and attacked him causing a DQ.

(74)

 

The former TNA wrestlers beat on South. Ethan Paro’s music hit and he raced to the ring to help South. It was to no avail as Aries and Roode beat him down as well.

(50)

 

VIP and Des Davis were up next. Des looked none too happy about ABM’s earlier comments. Hecame out fighting, but VIP’s cool head meant he constantly stayed one step ahead. In the end, he caught Davis in a Sleeper and put him out.

(72)

 

Jungle Jack came to the ring to check on Des Davis. VIP stepped aside to let him approach, then jumped him from behind! Parker left Jack lying beside Davis and walked off grinning.

(70)

 

Jesse Van Holt and James Gilmour-Hart are fighting over the last protein bar at concessions when Mick Foley wanders by and tells them to settle it in the ring. Right now!

(66)

 

The match was next. Gilmour-Hart used his power to try to simply overwhelm Van Holt, but the Dutchman was up to the challenge. Hart finally needed to loosen a turnbuckle cover and, when the ref was fixing it, Hart low blowed Van Holt and got a pinfall.

(77)

 

Back at concessions, Joey Minnesota bumped into Tyler Mercury and spilled his coffee. Furious, Mercury slammed him face first into a cake on the table, then walked off.

(67)

 

The co-main was up next as Rick Law faced off against Wilson Hancock. Raven and Towerblock came to ringside. Raven took a spot on commentary while Towerblock stood behind him menacingly. The match was rolling along well when Towerblock decided to run in and slam down Law, drawing a DQ.

(81)

 

As Towerblock and Raven left, Law grabbed a microphone.

 

“Big man, jumping a guy fighting another guy. Well, if I wasn’t determined to win the title before, I sure am now. I’m coming for you Towerblock. Your belt, and your ass, are mine!”

(80)

 

Now it was time for Cloud James and Troy Tornado to have match four in their best of five series. Troy needed the win to end it, Cloud was fighting to stay alive. The pressure was showing on Cloud. He blew several big moves. Troy stayed on him and made a number of submission attempts. It was clear Cloud was hurting as he tried dirty trick after dirty trick to pick up the win. But when Troy went for a Crossbody and Cloud pulled the ref into his path; it backfired. Cloud had Troy pinned, but the ref couldn’t count. When Cloud went and revived the ref, Troy surprised him and caught him in a Tornado Lock. Cloud fought for a long time, but had to tap out. Troy Tornado won the best of five series in match four.

(79)

 

Final rating 79

Popularity increased in 21 regions

[LucianCarter]

There was a reason Kurt Laramee wasn’t on the show. He’d been fired. After sparking a nasty argument with Joey Minnesota he got on my last nerve and went to the unemployment line. Cutting him actually helped the backstage considerably. Big Smack Scott was on thin ice too, if he gave me an excuse he’d be gone as well. Joey Minnesota had also been incredible grateful. He pledged his loyalty to me moving forward.

 

Selling out the arena was nice, but it was half what we were getting for the weekly events. We got a 2.54 rating, which I thought was great for an afternoon slot. TV revenue was $40,000. That was nice, but it looked like we’d make less on our TV shows than we did on our weekly PPVs. That could be a problem, depending on how well the two monthly events worked out.

 

Cloud and Troy had done well, but Cloud had an off night, the pressure got to him, and both men were starting to tire by the end. I was considering keeping their feud going a little longer, but I wasn’t sure how. T-Rex was really looking like a liability. I was considering eating his contract, letting him go and finding a new wrestler to take his spot.

 

UKB On Demand signed a deal with us! We were really rolling now. More PPV revenue, even a little, would also help. And, since that worked, I took a shot with carriers covering the rest of the world. Jade 237 in Japan came through, and we found an internet carrier for Australia. That just left Europe to complete our global footprint. We had offers out, I expected someone would bite.

 

I had succeeded. I had stolen a pretty big name out from under WWE. He would be a big boost to my main event faces once he finished his contract in 14 days’ time.

 

For TV show #2 I decided to try just having six matches, but include two team-based ones. Without a longer show, it was going to be tricky to keep everyone occupied.

 

The Rock vs Derrick Rollins

Troy Tornado and Joey Minnesota vs Cloud James and Tyler Murphy

VIP vs Bobby Ruiz

Des Davis vs Cross

Bobby Roode, Austin Aries and Rogue vs. Elmo Benson, Ethan Paro and Garrett South

Jesse Van Holt vs Big Smack Scott

[LucianCarter]

Unless someone really cares about it, I'm going to pull the plug on this diary. I'm going to work on my Michael Moore diary and maybe start another one with actual pictures and more developed text.