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OVW fans may have enjoyed a moment of respite last week from the torment and abuse of Doug Basham (probably not, as Miss Gannon wreaked just as much havoc), but Leather Daddy Doug promised to return to the HotPoint Davis Arena this week, resuming his reign of terror over the OVW locker room with an iron fist.
As good as Revolution looked last week, the momentum of rising stars like Freya The Slaya and Dustin Jackson, combined with the efforts of mainstays like Kal Herro and Super-Z have sent a serious message to Revolution: The rest of OVW won’t be going down without a fight.
As polarizing as Basham is, you can’t deny he knows how to put together a great show. Rise 1318 promised two championship matches, a number one contender’s match, and multiple other high-stakes contests that presented opportunities for rising stars to catapult themselves closer to the top of the mountain. So if you didn’t have time to watch the show, sit back, relax, and read everything you need to know about Rise 1318!
At a Glance
Doug Basham Returns To Address Kal Herro
Ashton Adonis (W/ Leela Feist) Vs. Erik Surge
Ryan Von Rockit Vs. Leo Fox (W/ Shannon The Dude)
Tony Evans Vs. Will Austin
The Blockbusters (C) Vs. Beaches N Cream (OVW Tag Team Championship Match)
Jota Peso Vs. Icon Lee Vs. Maximo Suave Vs. Super-Z (#1 Contender’s Match for the Rush Division Championship)
Doug Basham Addresses Freya The Slaya; Freya The Slaya and Hollyhood Haley J Vs. J-Rod (C) and Tatevik
Mount Kadeem (C) Vs. Donovan Cecil
Tony Gunn (C) Vs. Dustin Jackson (OVW Media Title Match)
Opening: Doug Basham Returns To Address Kal Herro
Doug Basham returned to the HotPoint Davis Arena, with Miss Katie and Tony Gunn in tow, and welcomed himself back to OVW after his Bahamas retreat. He called out Kal Herro for being disruptive last week, as he and Gunn’s brawl spilled out of the backstage area and into the arena multiple times. He told Kal that due to his “toxicity” and actions last week, he would be banned from the arena for the rest of the night.
Match 1: Ashton Adonis (W/ Leela Feist) Vs. Erik Surge
In the first matchup of the night, two athletes looking to make names for themselves in OVW competed in a fast-paced bout that saw Adonis take early control with a cheap shot. The larger and stronger Surge shrugged off the “End All’s” offense, turning him inside out with giant shoulder tackles and a delayed Vertical Suplex.
Before he got rolling past the point of no return, Leela Feist distracted Surge on the outside, allowing Adonis to send him head-first into the ring post to regain control. As the match continued, Feist continued making her presence known but went to the well one too many times. The referee caught Feist red-handed, ending the match in a DQ win for Surge.
Result: Erik Surge DEFEATS Ashton Adonis (W/ Leela Feist) Via Disqualification
Match 2: Ryan Von Rockit Vs. Leo Fox (W/ Shannon The Dude)
As soon as Von Rockit hit his first offensive maneuver at the beginning of the match, Shannon The Dude got involved by grabbing the former TV Champion’s leg. Von Rockit chased after Shannon, allowing Fox to take advantage with an attack from behind. Besides a beautiful Spinebuster by Von Rockit, Fox kept his foot on the gas for 90% of the match, finishing things off in fast fashion with a Lariat.
Result: Leo Fox (W/ Shannon The Dude) DEFEATS Ryan Von Rockit
Match 3: Tony Evans Vs. Will Austin
Evans made his way to the ring, noticeably without Jay DiNero, claiming that he could beat anyone in the locker room on his own. Will Austin enthusiastically answered the challenge in a rematch from last week, and the two began exchanging stiff blows early on. As the match progressed, their pace didn’t slow. Both men got their licks in during this hard-hitting contest, culminating in Jay DiNero emerging from the locker room to help Evans.
As DiNero put on his infamous loaded glove, Austin threw Evans in his direction, causing the two partners to collide before Austin rolled up Evans for the victory. Meanwhile, the relationship between Evans and DeNiro continued to decline.
Result: Will Austin DEFEATS Tony Evans
Match 4: The Blockbusters (C) Vs. Beaches N Cream (OVW Tag Team Championship Match)
Blockbusters tried rushing the challengers just as the bell rang, but Amir and Lawrence were prepared, getting off to a hot start including a tandem Gorilla Press Slam that left the Champs reeling. Lawrence looked to continue his momentum, climbing to the top rope before Sparks, the non-legal man of the Blockbusters cut him off.
Then the Champs cut the ring in half, working like a well-oiled machine as they first delivered tandem offense to Lawrence before sending Amir into the ring post to the outside once he tagged in. As the Champs closed in on a victory, a last-ditch effort to tag in a fresh Lawrence succeeded.
Beaches N Cream stormed back, swinging momentum back in their favor before Blockbusters hit their finisher, an assisted spinning Uranage on Amir. Shockingly, Amir kicked out, giving the challengers just enough time to recover before Amir hit a Spinebuster of his own, followed by a Split-legged Leg Drop for the shocking victory.
Result: Beaches N Cream DEFEAT Blockbusters to Become NEW OVW Tag Team Championship
Match 5: Jota Peso Vs. Icon Lee Vs. Maximo Suave Vs. Super-Z (#1 Contender’s Match for the OVW Rush Division Championship)
In a high-stakes match that promised to be nothing short of spectacular, it was Super-Z who found himself on top early on after his flurry of high-flying moves caught the rest of the field off guard. But in a fast-paced, every-man-for-themselves match, Super-Z’s lead didn’t last long. Everything from broken pinfall attempts to unexpected alliances, to moves “outta nowhere” came into play in this bout, making it a must-see for fans of multi-man matches.
In the end, Super-Z went for his patented Crossbody from the top rope, but Icon Lee rolled through for the unexpected victory.
Result: Icon Lee DEFEATS Jota Peso, Maximo Suave, and Super-Z to Become the #1 Contender for the OVW Rush Division Championship
Segment: Doug Basham Addresses Freya The Slaya
Much to the dismay of the OVW faithful, Basham and Gannon returned to the ring, this time calling out Freya The Slaya, the only woman to defeat the Women’s Champion in J-Rod. They berated her for interrupting a scheduled match, and for causing “physical and mental harm” to the acting GM in Gannon during Doug’s vacation. Just then, Haley J interrupted to back up Freya, only for the two to be thrown into an impromptu match against J-Rod and Revolution’s newest member, Tatevik.
Match 6: Freya The Slaya and Hollyhood Haley J Vs. J-Rod (C) and Tatevik
The team of Freya and Hollyhood had their work cut out for them as they contended with two surprises in one match- an impromptu battle and a new member of Revolution in Tatevik. Before Revolution could even reach the ring, Haley hit the duo with a suicide dive before she and Slaya continued their punishment.
Team Revolution found themselves in serious trouble, only mounting a comeback after taking advantage of the number’s game. They proceeded to beat down Haley, hitting a Snap Suplex, DDT, and a thunderous Bodyslam among many other maneuvers- but Hollyhood’s resilience kept her in the match. Finally, a fresh Queen of the North was able to tag herself in and briefly dominate, but turned her back to J-Rod who made her pay with a Spear for the Revolution win.
Result: J-Rod (C) and Tatevik DEFEAT Freya The Slaya and Hollyhood Haley J
Match 7: Mount Kadeem (C) Vs. Donovan Cecil
After coming up just short in his first attempt at Kadeem’s title, Donovan Cecil looked to prove it was just a fluke in a rematch between two of OVW’s biggest stars. As expected, both men tried using their size to take advantage early on but began showing off their deceiving agility to capture control. Eventually, the fight spilled to the outside with Kadeem nearly throwing Cecil through the barricade before the champ missed a senton bomb to even the playing field.
In the end, Kadeem shocked us all by pulling out a Flying Crossbody before a Discus Lariat ended Cecil’s dreams of earning a title rematch.
Result: Mount Kadeem (C) DEFEATS Donovan Cecil
Match 8: Tony Gunn (C) Vs. Dustin Jackson (OVW Media Title Match)
Dustin Jackson’s win streak, growing popularity, and tip-top physique caught the attention of the right eyes in OVW, as he was awarded arguably the biggest match of his career as he took on Revolution’s Tony Gunn in the main event for the OVW Media Title.
The challenger looked to cash in on his opportunity, bursting out of the gate hot with a flurry of moves that sent Gunn to the outside for a breather. Jackson followed him, not allowing the champion a single moment to recover. A possibly overexcited Jackson looked to put things away early, but Gunn was able to slow down the pace, dodging a Shotgun Dropkick that left Jackson tumbling to the mat from the top rope.
From there, Gunn did what he does best: Methodically wear down his opponents. Besides a Tope Con Hilo from Jackson, the Champion remained in firm control for the majority of the middle section of this contest. As Gunn looked to close things out with a Killshot, Jackson nailed him with two Superkicks out of nowhere to rock the Champion. With the referee tending to Gunn, Jackson climbed to the top for arguably the biggest win of his career, but AJZ knocked the challenger off the top rope.
Gunn looked to take advantage of the cheapshot, hitting a Fisherman Buster that Jackson somehow kicked out of to keep his championship hopes alive. Whether accidental or not, Gunn’s next move was to throw Jackson into the corner, accidentally knocking the referee unconscious in the process. With the referee down, Kal Herro snuck into the ring, hitting a Fanny Pack Knee on his former friend, allowing Jackson to recover and hit a Frog Splash for the championship win!
Result: Dustin Jackson DEFEATS Tony Gunn to Become the NEW OVW Media Champion
Overall:
One week you’re on top of the world- the next you’re starting from square one. Much to the delight of OVW fans, this week was one of those “off” weeks for Revolution. Although they gained a new member in Tatevik who helped J-Rod pick up a huge victory over Haley J and Freya The Slaya, both Blockbusters and Tony Gunn lost their titles.
Rise 1318 delivered on all fronts, but especially in-ring this week. The fatal four-way match to determine a new number one contender for the Rush Division Championship was spectacular. The main event was unbelievable. The Tag Team Championship match was incredible- and everything in between proved why OVW’s roster is one of the most talented in all of professional wrestling.
While most fans would file this week in the “win” column for most of the OVW roster, we can expect Revolution to do everything in their power to regain their gold.
