Greetings from the ALLTEL Arena in Little Rock, Arkansas, for the post-Proving Ground edition of Monday Night Explosion! The trek toward Deadly Draw has begun, and it all started right here tonight! By the end of the night, the first ten competitors for the Deadly Draw match would be announced, in addition to a night of great action! In a rematch from last night, CM Punk would defend his Television Title against Matt Hardy, this time in a 2 out of 3 falls match! Also, he didn't earn the right to wrestle at Deadly Draw for the Television Title, but tonight "The Man Beast" Rhyno will challenge the man who almost won the World Heavyweight Title 24 hours ago, the current North American champion "The Alpha Male" Monty Brown! It should turn out to be a hot night of action!
The night kicked off with an enraged "Crippler" Chris Benoit doing everything he could to get into the building, wanting desperately to get his hands on Steve Bradley. Commissioner Tommy Dreamer had a good feeling that Benoit would arrive in a mood like this so he sent security to meet Benoit at the door to tell him he had the night off. Benoit didn't take kindly to this news, but after putting up a fuss, he got back in his car and left without incident. This may have been a successful means to keep things civil for now, but Dreamer can't keep Benoit out of the arenas forever. Benoit and Bradley are going to cross paths, and Lord only knows what will happen when they do.
The World Heavyweight champion Kurt Angle came out for an interview flanked by the World Tag Team champion World's Greatest Tag Team and the aforementioned Steve Bradley. Eric Angle was not here tonight as he was recovering from injuries sustained last night in the I Quit match with Chris Benoit. This was your typical arrogant promo out of Team Angle, with Angle, Benjamin, and Haas all bragging about retaining their titles at Beat Your Valentine. They would later go on to say that Benjamin, Haas, Eric Angle, and Bradley were the first four names to be announced as being participants in the 30-man Deadly Draw match on April 17th. Of course the winner of Deadly Draw is granted a World Heavyweight Title shot at Super Cade II, and with four members of Team Angle being involved, it helps Angle's odds of protecting his title reign. That is, of course, if Kurt Angle can hold on to the title until June.
Kid Kash has looked highly impressive in his short time here in GCW, but he had his biggest test to date when he took on the number-one-contender to the Television Title, Rey Mysterio Jr. With all due respect to Shark Boy and The Hurricane, Mysterio they are not. Kash found things to be far more difficult than he would have liked, Mysterio staying one step ahead of him. There's no shame in that though, as most are one step behind Mysterio. Kash has a notorious meanstreak working for him though, and he regained the edge by nailing the Bank Roll out of nowhere. Kash can fly, but he generally chooses to brutalize opponents, and he did that with a back suplex and a huge power bomb that garnered him a nearfall. Mysterio took back control when Kash missed a springboard moonsault. Kash took a powder to the floor to put some distance between him and Mysterio, but the floor is just as dangerous as in the ring when Mysterio is wrestling, as he hit an impressive corkscrew plancha. Kash was thrown back in the ring, and while referee JD Sanders was checking on him, RHYNO ran down and slammed Mysterio into the post! Rhyno quickly threw Mysterio back in the ring where Kash hit the Dead Level, a huge brain buster.
Kid Kash pinned Rey Mysterio Jr. with the Dead Level in 0:07:16.
Rating: *** 1/2
Rhyno's not going to let his loss to Rey Mysterio Jr. sit well, and he cost Mysterio a match here. Kid Kash celebrated his biggest victory to date, while Mysterio was seething over what went down. We have learned that a rematch between Rhyno and Mysterio has been signed for next week on Explosion.
Justin Credible burst into Tommy Dreamer's office and immediately tore into him, saying that he got screwed last night and that he would be the Cruiserweight champion right now if he didn't have to wear the chicken suit. Dreamer empathized with Credible (accidentally calling him "Chicken Boy" at one point), saying he was sorry, but he was going to make everything right. Dreamer proceeded to tell Credible he had found him a manager, someone that will lead him to a better and brighter future. When Credible inquired further, Dreamer told him not to worry about it not as he would be introduced in two weeks time. Credible left no more pleased now than he was before.
We next saw the return of the "new" Jeff Hardy, his first match as a member of the Prophecy. We still have some unanswered questions as to why Jeff has turned on his brother Matt and aligned himself with CM Punk, but I suppose those will be answered in time. The appropriate question tonight though would be where Jeff Hardy found this new aggression. I don't think Shark Boy even got an offensive move in. Hardy's assault was so brutal that he didn't even get a chance to make a pinfall, as he obliterated Shark Boy on the outside to get the countout win.
Jeff Hardy defeated Shark Boy by countout in 0:03:17.
Rating: ** 3/4
Jeff Hardy's new attitude seems to be working in his favor as he wins in convincing fashion. I don't think he is going to have the same kind of ease when he inevitably takes on Matt Hardy.
Star Quality formally announced their desire to be in the tag team scene, and they were looking to make tonight's Explosion their official coming out party. "Ravishing" Rob Conway and "The Blueprint" Matt Morgan were going to have their hands full though, as they were taking on the former World Tag Team champions, the Basham Brothers, piping mad after falling to The Hurricane and Abyss one night ago. At Shaniqua's urging, the Bashams did everything they could to keep Conway in the ring, seeing him as the weak link. No offense to Conway, but that's good strategy as at 7-foot tall and 320 pounds, Morgan is a mountain of a man. Conway managed to keep himself alive long enough to tag Morgan in, who absolutely cleaned house. Conway has been able to teach Morgan a lot since they've been teaming and traveling together, and the Blueprint's improvements are easy to see. Even still, it was a shock when Morgan goozled Doug Basham and drilled him with the Choke Slam. Conway prevented Danny Basham from breaking up the fall, and Star Quality had scored the huge upset!
Star Quality (Matt Morgan and Rob Conway) defeated The Basham Brothers (Danny Basham and Doug Basham) when M. Morgan pinned Doug Basham with the Choke Slam in 0:06:34.
Rating: *** 1/2
The Bashams were wrestling angry, and as a result, were unfocused and had their asses handed to them here. Give Star Quality all the credit in the world. They're a much more confident team now and it showed tonight with this win. Word has it that John Bradshaw Layfield is furious with the Bashams and has arranged for them to meet The Hurricane and Abyss one more time next week to prove themselves. They had better be more prepared than they were here, or the result could be the same.
Randy Orton came out and promptly asked Chris Jericho to join him in the ring. Orton was treading on a thin line as he spoke to Y2J, giving him vague compliments that could be taken as veiled insults. Orton kept pushing the fact that they were still "friends," and told him it was "okay that you were pinned in humiliating fashion. It's all water under the bridge... once you apologize of course." Jericho wasn't about to apologize, and he retaliated with some veiled insults of his own. Jericho was on the verge of losing his temper, but Orton talked him back down and they ended up shaking hands, which got a nice reaction from the crowd. Jericho tried to leave the ring, but Orton held onto his hand. "Just one more thing, Chris." When Jericho turned around, Orton pulled him in by his arm and dropped him with the R.K.O.! Orton stood over Jericho's motionless body with a huge smile etched across his face as he struck the patented Randy Orton pose.
Randy Orton thought he pulled one over on Chris Jericho, but Commissioner Tommy Dreamer had other ideas. He informed Orton that he shouldn't be too proud of himself as his actions just earned him a match tonight... against EDDIE GUERRERO! Orton pleaded with Dreamer to reconsider, but the match has already been made and Dreamer told Orton he had better go get ready.
Matt Hardy was all but hosed out of the Television Title last night at Proving Ground when his brother Jeff Hardy returned and nailed him with a pair of brass knuckles. Matt Hardy was granted the rematch tonight under 2-out-3 falls rules. CM Punk is manipulative, sneaky, and downright evil, and what makes it all the scarier is how gifted he is in the ring. Matt Hardy and he were in sync tonight and this was one helluva match. The pace was slow to start with both men knowing that they couldn't use all of their energy to get the first fall only, and then be too exhausted to capitalize later. Hardy took the first big risk of the match and it backfired on him as he went to the top rope, but Punk crotched him on the top turnbuckle. The Pepsi Plunge followed, and Punk had picked up the all important first fall.
Matt Hardy had to find a way to recover quickly and get some offense going being one fall down. Punk went right back on the offensive though, getting a couple nearfalls after a spinebuster and a power bomb. Punk got a little careless as he could sense victory was on the horizon, and he took too much time following up his moves, and Hardy made him pay for it when he sprung up and hit the Twist of Fate out of nowhere and got a surprise three count! We were now tied at one fall a piece!
Things seemed more desperate for Punk knowing that one more fall and his Television Title reign was over. As a result, we saw Punk unravel for the first time since he came to GCW. Hardy stayed a step ahead of Punk, getting him with several armdrags. Hardy had another Twist of Fate all set up, but he released it when he saw JEFF HARDY come down to the ring. Jeff jumped on the apron, prompting Matt to advance on him. Referee Antonio Santangelo went out to send Jeff Hardy to the back, but in the exact opposite of last night, SEAN O'HAIRE came in and flattened Matt Hardy with a lariat that turned him inside out. Hardy slowly got to his feet only to be met with a flying somersault neckbreaker.
Two-out-of-three-Falls Match:
CM Punk beat Matt Hardy 2 falls to 1:
x Punk beat M. Hardy via the Pepsi Plunge in 0:09:30
x M. Hardy beat Punk via the Twist Of Fate in 0:15:50
x Punk beat M. Hardy via a flying somersault neckbreaker in 0:21:42
Rating: ****
(CM Punk retained the GCW Television Title.)
Matt Hardy has had two opportunities to win the Television Title and has been screwed over twice by the Prophecy. The Prophecy all left after a job well done, and Matt Hardy and Lita were left fuming.
Abyss and The Hurricane showed that they could function very well as a tag team when they defeated the Basham Brothers at Proving Ground. They had to keep building momentum though, especially with John Bradshaw Layfield dead set on taking Abyss out. They had to thwart the challenge of Petey Williams and Teddy Hart, Dawn Marie's Team Canada. Abyss almost outweighed Team Canada by himself, and he definitely made his size known. Petey and Teddy tried to keep Abyss off his feet, but that's much easier said than done. Abyss dished out two large helpings of a beatdown, and set the table for The Hurricane, who pinned Petey Williams after the Eye of the Hurricane.
Abyss and The Hurricane defeated Team Canada (Teddy Hart and Petey Williams) when Hurricane pinned P. Williams with the Eye Of The Hurricane in 0:03:53.
Rating: ****
Another impressive win over an established team by Abyss and The Hurricane. Abyss seemed truly happy as The Hurricane is not out to take advantage of him and legitimately is his friend. This has to be eating at JBL.
Tommy Dreamer asked CM Punk to come to his office. After seeing the result of the TV Title match earlier, Dreamer was not happy with Punk and he let him know it by chewing him out. Dreamer told Punk that he didn't want any more repeats of the past two nights and told him that the Prophecy wouldn't be allowed anywhere near ringside at Deadly Draw when Punk defends against Rey Mysterio Jr. Punk remained stoic the entire time and left after only saying, "I understand," which left a very uneasy feeling hanging in the air. Punk is up to something, but what exactly?
Elix Skipper and Low-Ki are not allowed to challenge for the World Tag Team Titles until the World's Greatest Tag Team lose the titles, so they have decided to dabble in the singles area a bit more until that time comes. Skipper went out against Frankie "The Future" Kazarian, who is riding around with a lot of confidence after putting "The Phenomenal" AJ Styles out of commission. Kazarian is wrestling with that confidence, and what resulted was a fantastic match against the former World Tag Team champion. This match could have ended in different fashion had a move or two fell a different way, but Kazarian used some great counters and nailed the Wave of the Future out of nowhere and had himself another win.
Frankie Kazarian pinned Elix Skipper with the Wave of the Future in 0:08:55.
Rating: ****
The current Cruiserweight champion Paul London came out next with a microphone as Kazarian was celebrating his win. London reiterated to Kazarian that what he did to AJ Styles last night was over the line. "It's one thing to have a grudge, to not like a guy, but that's not how you settle something. And since AJ Styles can't do anything about, I'm going to. If you think you're the Future, you have your chance to prove it. You and me, one-on-one at Deadly Draw for the Cruiserweight Title!" Kazarian smiled and accepted the match. Kazarian seems to be a calculative man, and his actions might be deplorable, but they've earned him a shot at the prestigious Cruiserweight Title.
Monty Brown was disappointed not to take the World Heavyweight Title at Proving Ground. However, he was still the North American champion and put it up for grabs against a man that can match him in power, "The Manbeast" Rhyno. Although I don't like it, Rhyno's new attitude is probably going to do him a lot of good. Brown was sporting a large bandage on his head from getting hit in the head with the World Heavyweight Title 24 hours ago. Rhyno exploited that by trying to work over the head of the Alpha Male, busting him open at one point after slamming him head first into the steps on the floor. Brown was in serious trouble of losing the North American Title he has held for five months, but his strength got him back in this one when he powered out of a reverse chinlock from Rhyno and countered with a back suplex. Brown strung some offense together, but it was cut short after an eye gouge. Rhyno got in position for the Gore, but Brown got out of the way just in time, bounced off the far ropes and hit the Pounce! Three seconds later and Monty Brown had himself a tough title defense.
Monty Brown pinned Rhyno with the Pounce in 0:10:11.
Rating: *** 1/2
(Monty Brown retained the GCW North American Title.)
Monty Brown is still the North American champion, and we received a bit of information telling us what his next move is. He is officially entered into Deadly Draw, trying to earn himself another shot at the World Heavyweight Title. Rhyno too looked impressive tonight, and he will also be participating
Randy Orton might be regretting his decision to turn on Chris Jericho earlier tonight, flattening him with the R.K.O., as it earned him a place in this match with the unstable "Latino Heat" Eddie Guerrero. Eddie wanted the opportunity to hurt Randy Orton, and he had that chance here. Orton did a good job at stalling in the early going, frustrating Guerrero and working him into a frenzy. What resulted for Orton was that he took a few hard punches and chops when Guerrero caught him, but Latino Heat as going too fast for his own good and drilled his own shoulder into the ringpost when he went for a shoulder to the midsection on Orton in the corner. The complexion of this match changed drastically from that point on with Orton assaulting the arm of Latino Heat. Guerrero had brief glimpses of offense, but because of the damage his arm had taken, he was unable to stay on top of Orton for too long. Orton is a very gifted young athlete, but the key word in that phrasing tonight was "young" as Orton made a mistake of inexperience. After dropping Eddie with his modified backbreaker, Orton took time to soak in the jeers of the crowd instead of finishing the match off. When he finally went over to Eddie, he got him in a standing headscissors and looked to be going for a piledriver. He lifted Guerrero up, but Latino Heat pulled himself up and rolled down Orton's back for a sunset flip. With the aid of his feet on the ropes, Eddie Guerrero picked up the improbable three.
Eddie Guerrero pinned Randy Orton after a sunset flip in 0:13:50.
Rating: *** 1/2
In the past two nights, Eddie Guerrero has defeated not only Chris Jericho, but Randy Orton as well. As a result, in a press release issued after the show went off the air, Eddie Guerrero has been named the number-one-contender and will challenge Kurt Angle for the World Heavyweight Title at Deadly Draw. Kurt Angle and Eddie Guerrero have met in singles action once before with Angle pulling out the win. That was before Guerrero fell off the deep end though, so this match at Deadly Draw is definitely up in the air.
On April 17, 2005, Global Championship Wrestling presents Deadly Draw, live from the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas! Four matches have already been announced and are as follows:
30-man Deadly Draw Match - Winner receives World Heavyweight Title shot at Super Cade II
PARTICIPANTS: Monty Brown, Rhyno, Steve Bradley, Eric Angle, Charlie Haas, Shelton Benjamin, Abyss, The Hurricane
World Heavyweight Title Match - Kurt Angle (c) vs. "Latino Heat" Eddie Guerrero
Television Title Match - The Prophecy barred from ringside - CM Punk (c) vs. Rey Mysterio Jr.
Cruiserweight Title Match - Paul London (c) vs. Frankie "The Future" Kazarian