Global Championship Wrestling went north of the border, heading to the great country of Canada for the first time as Toronto, Ontario was home to this week's edition of Monday Night Explosion! We had a huge night of action for our friends to the north, including Triple X taking on the team of The Amazing Red, Cruiserweight champion Rey Mysterio Jr., and the man who will meet Mysterio at Super Cade, Teddy Hart! Also, we heard from the top of the show that Chris Jericho and Steve Bradley of the Sensationals were teaming up to take on Lance Storm and Justin Credible! But we started things off right away with a huge match!
We had a heated tag team match to open up the evening as the team of "The Heartbreak Kid" Shawn Michaels and Goldust took on the North American champion Randy Orton and the Television champion AJ Styles. This match came about as a result of HBK is obviously very upset with Randy Orton, blaming him for costing him the chance at being number one contender for the World Heavyweight Title. Also, last week, the Sensationals helped AJ Styles retain his Television Title against Lance Storm, and Orton basically threatened Styles into returning the favor. Styles did, helping Orton to defend the North American Title against Goldust.
This match was fast and furious, the perfect way to get Explosion up and moving. Much of the early part of this match, Randy Orton did everything he could to keep away from Shawn Michaels, who wants nothing more than to tear the third generation superstar apart. Orton finally did get in the ring with HBK, but only after Styles had blasted Michaels from behind with a jumping enzuigiri while HBK was yelling at Orton. Orton quickly tagged himself in and went to work on Shawn Michaels, yelling verbal taunts at him the entire time. Orton did a lot to work over the infamous bad back of the Heartbreak Kid, locking him in a bodyscissors/chinlock combo. Michaels would fight out of it though, getting back to his feet and sending the North American champion reeling with with right hands and chops. Michaels caught Orton with an inverted atomic drop, but when he hit the ropes, Styles caught him in the back with a hard kick and then Orton brought him down with a loud clothesline.
Orton worked HBK's back over some more with a variety of backbreakers. Orton set Michaels on the top and went for a superplex, but HBK shoved him to the mat and came flying off with a flying elbowdrop! Michaels couldn't capitalize as he was still exhausted, but he did manage to crawl over and tag in Goldust. Goldust fired up on Orton, taking him to the mat several times. However, just as quick as Goldust got fired up, his fire was extinguished, as Styles nailed Goldust in the back of the head as he hit the ropes. Goldust stumbled forward right into a desperation RKO from Randy Orton. HBK tried to break up the count, but Styles cut him off, giving his team the win.
AJ Styles and Randy Orton defeated Shawn Michaels and Goldust when R. Orton pinned Goldust with the RKO in 0:09:26.
Rating: **** 1/4
AJ Styles and Randy Orton quickly got out of Dodge as a pissed off Shawn Michaels lunged at them. With as fired up as Michaels is, Orton was lucky to get out of here alive tonight.
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[As we return from commercial break, Brock Lesnar is standing in the ring by himself. He looks about as angry as a man his size can look, which is a scary thing. He has the microphone in hand already.]
BL: Kurt Angle, get your ass down here, NOW!
[The crowd actually pops for Lesnar here, as the last person we expected him to be calling out at this juncture was Kurt Angle. After a few moments, there is still no sign of Angle.]
BL: Angle, you got two choices. You can either get down to this ring and face me like a man, or I can come back there and find you. And trust me, you don't want that second option.
["Medal" plays to a huge chorus of boos. As the Toronto fans scream "YOU SUCK!" in tune to the music, Kurt Angle makes his way out to the top of the entrance way, surprisingly, alone. Angle has a microphone in hand as well and he brings it up to his mouth as his music dies out.]
KA: What do you want, Brock?
BL: You know exactly what I want! Last week, you put your bald head in my match with Chris Benoit. You cost me the World Heavyweight Title! That doesn't leave me very happy!
KA: Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Let's hold on a freakin' minute! If I remember correctly, and being a man of integrity, I do, because I would never lie, you were about two seconds away from tapping when I saved your butt!
[The crowd pops for this, as if you remember, Chris Benoit did have Lesnar in the Crippler Crossface when Angle got involved.]
KA: If it wasn't for me, you might be in a hospital right now, instead of out here running your freakin' mouth!
BL: You better watch what you say to me, Kurt. I wasn't about to tap. I had Benoit exactly where I wanted him. I was just seconds away from taking my rightful place as World Heavyweight champion, and then you got involved. But you know what, Kurt? I don't get mad... I get even. I let my actions in the ring do the talking, so that's why I'm going to kick your ass here, TONIGHT!
[The crowd pops huge as Brock Lesnar has just challenged Kurt Angle to a match here tonight.]
KA: You want a match with me, Brock? You want a match with an Olympic gold medalist? That's right, you heard me... GOLD MEDALIST. We're not talking NCAA championships here, Brock. I proved I was the best wrestler in the world in 1996, beating all the pathetic athletes of the world, especially those Canadian ones!
[The crowd boos Angle mercilessly for his cheap heat tactics.]
KA: In winning a gold medal, I've already proven to be far better than you, Brock! I have a World Heavyweight Title match coming up at the biggest event of the year, Super Cade on June 27th, and I'll be damned if I'm going to waste my time wrestling a big oaf like you!
[The crowd boos as Angle is ducking Lesnar's challenge.]
BL: You won't "waste your time?" In that case, what you won't give, I'll just take!
[Lesnar starts to head out of the ring when he is stopped by the appearance of GCW President Ryan Niemiller on the GCW VideoTron.]
RN: Hold on, Brock. Stay in that ring before this gets out of hand. I have a couple of announcements. [Surprisingly, Lesnar stops.] Now Mr. Lesnar, I understand your frustration... you feel as though you've been slighted. But you're not just going to run rampant around here attacking whoever you want when you want! Not on my watch at least. You want a match with Kurt Angle? You got it!
[The crowd pops huge. Lesnar gets a huge sadistic smile on his face as Angle is throwing a fit.]
KA: You can't do this, Niemiller! You can't!
RN: I just did, Kurt. But don't worry... you'll have one week to prepare, as it will be Kurt Angle vs. Brock Lesnar next week on Explosion!
[The crowd boos as they were hoping to see that match tonight.]
RN: The reason you two won't be meeting this week is because you're both already scheduled in matches tonight. Tonight, right here in Toronto, it will be Booker T and World Heavyweight champion Chris Benoit teaming up to meet the team of.... Kurt Angle, and Brock Lesnar!
[The crowd pops huge for this big time main event match. Angle and Lesnar are both less than pleased. How will they be able to co-exist when Lesnar looks like he wants to break Angle in half?]
RN: Have fun tonight, gentlemen.
[The VideoTron shuts off as Brock Lesnar's music than plays. Lesnar and Angle stare each other down as we cut to commercial.]
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Rob Van Dam has been meeting a great deal of disappointments in recent weeks. He's been wrestling good matches, but he hasn't been able to put anybody away. He was looking to buck that trend tonight as he met Tommy Dreamer. These two have a lot of history, spawning back to their days in ECW, so they know each other pretty well. Dreamer was not as overwhelmed with RVD's unique style as a lot of other wrestlers are, taking it straight to RVD. RVD, however, looked to have things in control when he hit Dreamer with the stepover spin kick, followed by the Rolling Thunder. RVD went up for the Five Star Frog Splash, but as he jumped off, Dreamer got his knees up. This knocked all of the wind out of RVD. Dreamer capitalized on this nicely, following up with the Dreamer DDT. In what has to be considered quite the upset, Tommy Dreamer defeated Rob Van Dam!
Tommy Dreamer pinned Rob Van Dam with the Dreamer DDT in 0:07:37.
Rating: ** 3/4
After the match, a frustrated RVD got back to his feet. Dreamer offered his hand to RVD in a sign of sportsmanship, but RVD simply swatted it away and headed to the back, which garnered him some boos from the Toronto crowd. What is going on with Rob Van Dam lately? Regardless, your winner tonight is Tommy Dreamer.
Eddie Guerrero is a man obsessed as of late. The hatred that has developed between Guerrero and Chris Jericho since GCW opened for business has really been something to see. Guerrero looks like he could just snap at any given moment, which never bodes well for his opponents each week. This week, he took on one half of the World Tag team champions, Doug Basham, who had himself some backup in the form of his brother Danny Basham and their sadistic manager, Shaniqua. Not a bad little match between these two, considering that Doug Basham has wrestled primarily in singles matches in Global Championship Wrestling. Guerrero, however, looks better in the ring these days than he ever has in his career if you ask me. After a good, solid match, and despite interference attempts by Danny Basham and Shaniqua, Eddie Guerrero pulled off the victory tonight with his Frog Splash.
Eddie Guerrero pinned Doug Basham with the Frog Splash in 0:11:34.
Rating: *** 3/4
The Bashams and Shaniqua were not happy with this result, as they all three assaulted Guerrero after the match. The Bashams nailed Guerrero with a huge double flapjack, which prompted SHAWN MICHAELS to hit the ring for the save. After some brief exchanges, the Bashams were sent out of the ring by Michaels. Latino Heat and HBK stood in the ring as the Bashams headed to the back.
The World's Greatest Tag Team have been looking for a way the past week to get a rematch for the World Tag Team Titles, but their efforts thus far have been thwarted by Shaniqua's refusal to grant them a title match. So for now, all that Charlie Haas and Shelton Benjamin can do is keep on working at winning some matches to stay in contention. They wouldn't have an easy go at it tonight though as they took on the very able Billy Kidman and Paul London. A good (but not great) match between these two teams. Kidman and London work very well together, offering a high-flying tag team style that reminds me a lot of the Rockers from the 80's. They just haven't been able to get things full together. That wouldn't change tonight as the end of this match would come when Charlie Haas reversed a flying crossbody attempt by Billy Kidman into a big powerslam to get the duke.
The World's Greatest Tag Team (Charlie Haas and Shelton Benjamin) defeated Billy Kidman and Paul London when C. Haas pinned Kidman after a powerslam in 0:07:57.
Rating: ** 3/4
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[As the World's Greatest Tag Team congratulate themselves after a good win, we hear the music of the Basham Brothers. Instead, out from the curtain came Shaniqua, the World Tag Team champions' manager. She had a microphone with her, and you could tell that Shelton Benjamin was not at all happy to see her.]
S: Well, well, well boys. Congratulations on your big win. You looked especially good, Shelton.
[Shaniqua eyeballs Benjamin and licks her lips, which causes Benjamin to turn away.]
S: But as much as I would love to talk about that sweet sweet bit of dark chocolate standing in the ring, I'm here on business. Boys, last week you said you wanted a World Tag Team Title shot against the roughest, ruggedest, kinkiest team in the world, the Basham Brothers. The fact is, boys, Danny and Doug don't owe you a damn thing! They beat you fair and square at Mayhem, so as far as I am concerned, the World's Greatest Tag Team should NEVER get another title shot!
[The crowd boos a little at this. I think the crowd is having a difficult time deciding if it's okay for them to cheer for the WGTT or not.]
S: However... for you, Shelton, you big heap of man meat, I'm willing to make an exception. On behalf of the Bashams, I will give you a World Tag Team Title shot. BUT.... but before any contract is made, you two are going to have to offer me something. A sort of collateral. No, don't talk, baby... you don't have to answer now, Shelley. I'll give you two a week to offer me something, or your title shot is gone! Ooh... it hurts so good...
[The Bashams music starts up again as Benjamin and Haas both give Shaniqua a stare of disbelief. Cut to commercial.]
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A week ago, Justin Credible was seemingly on top of the world, fairly secure in his impending position with the Sensationals. That all came crashing down on him last week when he was not only told both verbally and physically that he would never be a member of the Sensationals, but in his weakened state, he also received quite the beating from Steve Bradley. Credible found himself an unlikely partner for this week though to battle his former mentor and the man who took his place. Lance Storm and Justin Credible were a very successful team many years ago back in ECW, but they haven't teamed in awhile. As of eight days ago, they were wrestling against each other at Mayhem. Tonight, they were partners.
This was a very physical match right from the get-go. Jericho and Bradley are extremely cocky, no doubt about it, but they have a ruthless aggressive streak to them that is sometimes overlooked. Credible and Storm are working very much on emotion right now, as the Sensationals haven't been making their lives any easier these days. This match didn't slow down from the opening bell, and the crowd really got into it. You can tell Lance Storm is having some fun in the ring these days, as he looks as sharp as ever. Storm and Credible worked very well as a team, showing some of the fire that the Impact Players once had. However, one thing that Credible and Storm didn't have was backup, but the Sensationals did in the form of North American champion Randy Orton. Late in the match, Orton came down to ringside and tripped Justin Credible up. Lance Storm wasn't going to stand for this as he jumped to the floor and started brawling with Orton to the back. Orton was out of the picture, but unfortunately, Credible was now by himself. It was only a matter of time before Credible was overwhelmed as he was put away by a vertical facebuster from Steve Bradley.
The Sensationals (Chris Jericho and Steve Bradley) defeated Lance Storm and Justin Credible when S. Bradley pinned Credible after a vertical facebuster in 0:07:01. Rating: *** 3/4
A good night so far for the Sensationals. Since Mayhem, they have really been on a roll. With their roster of talent, that's a mighty scary thing.
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[Backstage we see Booker T walking into a locker room. As he swings open the door, World Heavyweight champion Chris Benoit is stretching, getting ready for the big tag team main event tonight. When Benoit sees Booker, he gives him a very cold stare. The lines of communication are obviously not very strong here.]
CB: What do you want, Booker?
BT: I just want to make sure your head is in the game, sucka. Tonight, we gots a big match against those punk asses Kurt Angle and Brock Lesnar. I want to make sure you're gunna be ready and not leave me hangin'.
CB: Listen, Booker. I'm always ready. I've been in this business for 18 years. I've bled, I've sweat, and I've worked my ass off to become the World Heavyweight champion. So you don't need to worry about me, Booker.
BT: Good, because you've seemed a bit rattled by the fact that you can't seem to get it done against Brock, and...
CB: Shut it right there, Booker. Let's get something perfectly clear here. I can beat Brock Lesnar. If it wasn't for Kurt Angle, I would have last week, I would have made him tap, and if it weren't for you [Pokes Booker hard in the chest with his finger], I would have done the same at Mayhem!
BT: If it wasn't for me, Vanilla, Brock Lesnar would be carrying that gold belt right now, and not you! And hell, if it weren't for Lesnar, Booker T would have been World champion, and not you!
CB: Is that so?
BT: Yeah, that's so, sucka.
CB: You think you can be World champion? I disagree. But Booker T, next week, I'll give you the chance to PROVE ME WRONG!
BT: Tell me you didn't just say that! You're dumb enough to give Booker T a World Title shot next week? You're on, sucka. Jus' you hold up your part of the bargain here tonight. Now can you dig that... SUCKA!?
[Booker T stares at his hand for a second before exiting the locker room, leaving Benoit fuming.]
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[As we cut back from commercial, Hardcore Holly and The Hurricane are already standing in the ring ready for their upcoming match. The Hurricane has a microphone in hand.]
H: Excuse me, citizen. Before you and I engage in an epic struggle, if you have any information on the identity of the thug who assaulted The Hurricane at Mayhem, I implore you to tell me right here in Toronto, Ontario, Canada!
[Huge pop for the mention of the hometown.]
H: They love me in Toronto. Do you have any information, kind sir?
HH: Listen, freak. I don't know if you think you're some sort of superhero or something, but I wouldn't tell your stupid ass who attacked you, even if I did know. But from just listening to you and watching your parade around here like you're something special, I wish I was the one who kicked your ass at Mayhem. But since I wasn't, I'll gladly kick your ass now!
H: I respect your vow of silence, but now you must pay the price! Through howling winds and pouring rain, all evil shall fear THE HURRICANE!
[The Hurricane strikes his signature pose, only to be caught by a hard boot to the midsection from Holly. The bell rings, and the match is under way.]
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On paper, this match looked very one-sided as Hardcore Holly is generally considered bigger, stronger, and meaner than The Hurricane. However, here in Global Championship Wrestling, the matches are fought in the ring, not on paper. The Hurricane did everything right tonight. Every time Holly would get the advantage, The Hurricane found some way to get around it and take the advantage back. For instance, early on in the match, Holly telegraphed a backdrop and out of nowhere, The Hurricane blasted him with a Shining Wizard. Holly got in a few of his signature moves, including what has to be considered one of the best dropkicks in the business, but in the end, tonight was just The Hurricane's night. Our friendly neighborhood superhero picked up a huge win via the Eye of the Hurricane over the veteran Hardcore Holly.
The Hurricane pinned Hardcore Holly with the Eye Of The Hurricane in 0:07:36.
Rating: ***
Hardcore Holly couldn't seem to believe that he lost to The Hurricane. Holly was fuming as the Man In Green celebrated his victory with the fans in Toronto.
We had an interesting six-man tag match involving six of the best cruiserweights in Global Championship Wrestling with Christopher Daniels, Elix Skipper, and Low-Ki, collectively known as Triple X, taking on The Amazing Red, Teddy Hart, and the Cruiserweight champion Rey Mysterio Jr. It was interesting to note that Mysterio and Hart were on the same team, considering Teddy Hart is the number-one contender for Mysterio's title and will be meeting him for that gold at Super Cade. These six individuals put on an outstanding display of wrestling that the people of Toronto greatly respected. Global Championship Wrestling is home to some of the most exciting cruiserweights in the world today, and the fans really appreciate that they have a forum to show their skills.
This was a very even matchup with all the competitors hitting all of their signature spots. It became somewhat of a spotfest in the middle sections, but the crowd didn't seem to mind. The ending of this match was chaos. After some confusion, Elix Skipper and Low-Ki ended up on the floor. Rey Mysterio Jr. leaped over the top with a corkscrew plancha, taking out both men (and himself in the process). While referee Petey Pluck tried to clear up the mess on the floor, the legal men in the ring were Christopher Daniels and Red. Red brought Daniels down with the 7-1-8 and went up top, presumably for the InfraRed, but out of nowhere, Teddy Hart shoved Red off the top to the canvas! The crowd was in shock as their home country boy had turned his back on his partners. Daniels recovered and hit the Last Rites on Red, who was easy pickings by that point. Pluck made it back in the ring and made the 3-count, giving Triple X the win.
Triple X (Christopher Daniels, Elix Skipper and Low-Ki) defeated Red, Rey Mysterio Jr. and Teddy Hart when Daniels pinned Red with the Last Rites in 0:16:44.
Rating: **** 1/4
Rey Mysterio Jr. jumped back in the ring to check on Red, but as of this point, he was unaware that Teddy Hart had caused Red to be pinned. As Mysterio bent down to see if Red was all right, Hart blindsided him from behind with a thrust kick to the head. Hart grabbed Mysterio and dropped him with a Tombstone piledriver. Hart wasn't quite done yet though, as he locked the Cruiserweight champion in the Sharpshooter, the patented move of his uncles Bret Hart and the late Owen Hart. The GCW Official Brigade ran down and finally pulled Hart off of Mysterio. Hart turned his back on Red and Mysterio, and we're not sure why just yet. Was it out of greed and want of the Cruiserweight Title, or for reasons yet unexplained? Either way, Triple X walks away with a big win tonight.
A very intriguing and power-packed main event closed out our night with World Heavyweight champion Chris Benoit teaming up with Booker T to take on Brock Lesnar and the number-one contender Kurt Angle. What made this match so interesting right off the bat is that it was announced officially that next week on Explosion, Kurt Angle and Brock Lesnar will meet one-on-one, as well as now Chris Benoit defending the World Heavyweight Title against Booker T! You could tell that neither of these teams was a very cohesive unit because of these matches signed for next week, nobody wanting to put too much trust in anyone but themselves.
This match served as a great preview of what we're likely to see at Super Cade as this is the first direct in-ring contact between Chris Benoit and Kurt Angle in Global Championship Wrestling rings. When they both first locked up, it became a game of one-upsmanship, each man trying to outwrestle the other. I think these exchanges started to frustrate Angle, as since he is an Olympic champion, he honestly believes he can outwrestle anyone in the world. He was getting cocky though, and Benoit was getting the upperhand in these situations. Angle changed his tactics, catching Benoit with a thumb to the eye, before hitting a belly-to-belly suplex and tagging in Brock Lesnar.
Benoit and Lesnar squared off, but Booker T was practically begging Benoit to tag him in. It was Lesnar who put Booker T out of action for several weeks, keeping him out of Deadly Draw and a potential chance at becoming the World Heavyweight champion. Benoit obliged Booker and tagged him in, and Booker wasted no time in going right after Brock Lesnar! Booker surprised Lesnar with his aggressiveness, not even giving the former NCAA champion room to breathe. Booker T would go for his Scissor Kick, but it was too early as Lesnar avoided it and dropped Booker hard with a big time clothesline.
From there, the match went pretty back and forth with neither of these two makeshift teams being able to pull away, mostly due to the mistrust each team had for their respective partners. In became obvious that it was just a matter of time before one of these teams had a major meltdown, and that's exactly what happened. Brock Lesnar was in the ring with Chris Benoit and had just dropped him with a brutal power bomb. Lesnar rushed Booker T and knocked him off the apron hard into the guardrail. Lesnar was parading around the ring, showboating a little bit, thinking he had this one well in order. When Lesnar got near his corner, Kurt Angle tagged himself in. Angle got in and immediately went for a pinfall attempt on Benoit, but Lesnar grabbed Angle and broke it up. Lesnar was none too happy with Angle trying to take the glory, and he got in Angle's face about it. Angle brushed Lesnar off and went back toward Benoit, but Lesnar didn't like this at all, as he grabbed Angle and brought him down with the F-5! Lesnar jumped out of the ring and stormed to the back, leaving his partner laid out in the ring. Benoit recovered and put Angle in the Crippler Crossface, and Angle was in no condition to fight it as he was out. Referee Jimmy Appleseed called for the bell.
Booker T and Chris Benoit defeated Brock Lesnar and Kurt Angle when Benoit defeated K. Angle when K. Angle passed out in the Crippler Crossface in 0:10:17.
Rating: *** 1/4
Chris Benoit has struck first blood, getting a decision over Kurt Angle before Super Cade! As Angle rolled out of the ring, Booker T got back in the ring and got face-to-face with the World Heavyweight champion. The show came to a close with Benoit and Booker nose-to-nose.
We have a gigantic Explosion scheduled for next week, coming to you live from Hartford, Connecticut! Four matches have been signed thus far. In addition to the huge double main event of Chris Benoit defending the World Heavyweight Title against Booker T and Kurt Angle taking on Brock Lesnar, we have learned that the Basham Brothers will be defending the World Tag Team Titles against the team of Shawn Michaels and Eddie Guerrero! Also, as a result of Teddy Hart's despicable actions tonight, he will be going one-on-one with The Amazing Red! You won't want to miss this show!
We also found out after tonight's show that some new matches have been signed for Super Cade, coming from New York City on June 27th! Here's what the card looks like so far:
World Heavyweight Title Match - Chris Benoit (c) vs. Kurt Angle
Cruiserweight Title Match - Rey Mysterio Jr. (c) vs. Teddy Hart
Booker T vs. Brock Lesnar
Lance Storm vs. Steve Bradley
When more matches have been signed, you will hear it here first!