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sidmillervp · 4 years

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Introducing Sid Miller !

T H E B A S I C S

NAME : Siddharth Miller

NICKNAME : Sid

AGE : 38 Years Old

BIRTHDATE : November 30th, 1981

OCCUPATION : Owner of Scorpion Studios & Street Fighter

OREIENTATION : Heterosexual

MOTHER : Ingrid Miller

FATHER : Owen Miller

SIBLINGS : Two Sisters

PARTNER : None

CHILDREN : A daughter (21)

HEIGHT : 6′2″

EYE COLOR : Dark Brown

HAIR COLOR : Darkest Brown

RECOGNIZABLE FEATURES : Stubble or a slight beard at all times,

TATTOOS : TBA

B A C K G R O U N D

TW : PROSTITUTION, DRUG ADDICTION, CHILD NEGLECT

Born in San Bernardino, a string of misfortunes followed Siddharth in his early years of life. His mother was a prostitute and druggie, ‘owned’ by a a pimp whom she was paying off her drug debt to though really only falling deeper into the hole as he encouraged and facilitated her addiction more. Sid was born a few weeks early and not exactly the healthiest considering his mother took a fix over a proper meal for herself and her growing baby more often than not throughout the pregnancy. The years as an infant he has no memories of he can’t speak for but his earliest childhood memory was waking to find his mother hurt and fast asleep, not waking up no matter how loudly he wailed. Sid had been just four years old when his mother was beaten to death by some faceless john.

The other women his mother ‘worked’ with tried looking after him rather than leaving him on the streets. This was only because the pimp they worked for had other plans for him. By the time Sid was maybe six or seven he’d already more grown up than most kids have to be, he already had to worry about how he was going to eat any given day, how he was going to avoid a beating, and just how to survive another day. It made him smart and quick on his feet. One of his regular gigs was pick pocketing, and passing on information about the happenings of the area his ‘boss’ had him at. That day when he’d met his would be father, was the first time he’d gotten caught while trying to slip a sizable bundle of cash from a harley side saddle. When faced with the hulking man, the VP of the Devil’s Disciples, cut and all, Sid stood his ground. He showed no fear, and even attempted to stab the man in the femur to make his escape.

Owen Miller was impressed by his show of force, and bravado. He asked if he was living in the streets, and after some resistance he admitted that was close enough to the truth. He hung around them through the duration of their stay in the area. Come time to return home, Owen asked him if he wanted to come with, with the promise of a less shittier life in Charming. With nothing to lose and harbouring growing respect for him and the other bikers with the way they carried themselves it was an easy answer. And that is how Sid landed up in Charming all those years ago. Owen with no kids of his own at the time though newly married, officially adopted him a year later. Sid can’t imagine his life going any better, he’s never once regretted his decision to go with him.

Having pretty much worshipped his father from day one, the club was always Sid’s biggest aspiration, so much so that he chose to give up other opportunities for it. Always a brawler, Sid took up wrestling in high school and did really well in it, so much so that his coach began giving him MMA lessons on the side, in hopes to prepare him for the pros. His senior year he was already eighteen as he’d been held back a year when he was younger since he’d missed kindergarten and first grade. That year along with wrestling championships, and beginning to prospect for the club, his coach was having him get a feel for the minor leagues. Managing all three of those with some semblance of a social life he was run ragged. He’d be done with wrestling once he graduated highschool, but he knew things would only get more intense if he stayed the course for fighting pros, he might even have to leave Charming for extended periods of time. The choice wasn’t hard. He chose the club, his family, and his town over a shot at the pros.

His dedication and loyalty to the Devil’s has taken precedent over nearly everything else in his life, he likes to say he’s married to his cut when asked why he never took the plunge. Outside commitments were never really his strong suit, the one time things did get a little serious he ended up breaking things off when she nearly got in the line of fire, he chose to run from the possibility of ever carrying such a guilt on his conscious and made sure to keep things simple from then on. The shorter the romp the better. He has his flaws but doesn’t have a bad heart and has never tried to intentionally hurt someone, or make false promises he knows he has no intention of keeping.

A bit of a crazy bastard, Sid is pretty reckless with his own safety at times, always the first to put himself on the line of fire, out of love but also the thrill he gets out of the chaos. He wouldn’t think twice before taking a bullet for any of the guys in the club or anyone in town for that matter, he has plenty of love for the small town and it’s people. His overall laidback demeanor makes him pretty accessible, and people never hesitate to come to him if they ever have a problem big or small. In his late twenties he took over ownership of the Tattoo parlor in town, though no one should ever trust him with a needle in hand. He has little to no artistic talent and gladly leaves the day to day run of the shop on his crew. The investment just made sense to him at the time and he learned quickly he has a knack for the business management side of things. At one point he got so into his role that he even took a certification course at the community college for it.

Now and again you’ll still see him in a ring, far from the pros but still a force to be reckoned with. Overall he’s pretty chill guy, with a wicked sense of humor, maybe a little too comfortable with violence and throwing himself into any fight without a thought for his own wellness. Though still a decent man with morals, and deep love for his family and community.

W A N T E D C O N N E C T I O N S

Close Friends - People outside the club he’s tight with.

Sponsored Prospect - Could be someone whose currently prospecting or has already been patched in as a member. He would see this person as almost a protégé!

First Love - The relationship I briefly mentioned in the bio, the first person things were getting a little serious with until she almost got hurt cause of some club business. He ended things right away citing it could never work out and she’d be better off, and that was that. It’s probably been at least 6-10 years since that relationship ended.

FWBs - Casual, friendly, and most importantly mutually satisfying. Only rule to keep things going is not to catch feels.

Past Flings - Some scorned lovers maybe? Or amicable, and anything in between it can be as dramatic or chill as you want!

Literally anything, just hmu and we can work something out!

@charmingintro

#charming.intro #❛ ･ﾟ× ( development › sɪᴅ )

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hazyheel · 5 years

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AEW All Out Review

Ah, the show that will go down in history as the first huge one of AEW’s hopefully long and illustrious time in the spotlight. All in all, this was a great show. It didn’t get into A territory overall, but a B+ is damn good. There was something for everyone on this show, so I don’t think there was anyone out there who thought it was bad. Tonight, Tony Khan and his team of Vp’s made history. They crowned a their first World Champion, which is kinda symbolic of them staking their claim in the business. Watch out guys, this t-shirt company is taking over the world. There was way too much exciting wrestling to fit here. So I’ll just hop right into this.

21 Woman Casino Battle Royal for #1 contendership to the AEW Women’s Championship: Leva Bates, Pricila Kelly, Nila Rose, Shalandra Royal, Faby Apache. Everyone started by attacking Rose, but she fought them off by herself. She nearly eliminated Bates, but Peter Avalan put some books down so she didn’t get eliminated. Rose beat everyone down and threw them out, including Bates, after she tried to attack Rose with a book. She also took out Peter Avalon when he tried to attack.

Out next was Penelope Ford, Shaza Mackenezie. Big Swol, Britt Baker and Sadie Gibbs. At one point, Baker eliminated Mackenzie by pulling her out by her teeth. Big Swol and Rose squared off with Rose, and showered her with strikes. Rose eventually eliminated Swol with a uranagi on the apron.

Out next, Tenile Dashwood, Brandi Rhodes Bea Priestly, Awesome Kong, and Ivelisse. Everyone naturally teamed up on Kong, while Brandi actually hit some offense on Rose. Meanwhile, Baker and Priestly brawled on the outside. Unfinished business from Fight for the fallen.

Out next, Teal Piper, ODB, Allie, Jazz and Nicole Savoy. Piper hit a bunch of her dad’s offense, as well as a suicide dive. Allie went right after Brandi because of their past business. We also saw the powerhouses of the match face off in the middle of the ring. Awesome Kong, ODB, Nila Rose and Jazz all went face to face. It was right at the end of this phase that Brandi and Kong were eliminated by Baker and Priestly respectively.

And as the final entrant. Mercades Martinez came out. She ran in and destroyed everyone with suplexes and strikes, including a huge one to Rose. The final four were Priestly, Rose, Baker and Martinez. The three smaller women teamed up on Rose, but Priestly was only out for herself. She put everyone on the apron, and Baker gave Martinez a superkick to eliminate her. Baker and Priestly nearly eliminated Rose with knees and huge kicks, but Rose gave them a cartwheel kick. Baker then gave Priestly a canadian destroyer, followed by a vertical suplex to Rose. Priestly then tried to go to the top, but Baker tripped her up and gave her a forearm to take her out. But then Priestly helped Rose get the win by pulling her arm, so Rose got the win.

Grade: C-. Not very good. I’m really not a fan of the Casino Battle Royal stip. I think that all these people coming out at once is confusing and things get a bit too jumbled. There weren’t a huge amount of rivalries to really hold this together, so I didn’t like it that much. Rose was a good choice for the win though, she is an impressive wrestler. But Baker, Priestly and Martinez all impressed, and so did Big Swol and Sadie Gibbs. This brand has a lot of Talent in its women’s division, and I can’t wait to see what they do with it, but this match was killed by it’s stip.

Angelico and Jack Evans vs. Private Party: This was a match I was looking forward to. I haven’t seen Private Party in a straight up tag match yet, so I’m excited to see them. Angelico and Isaiah Kassidy started things up with some grappling. Kassidy got the win in the first interaction, and he was plenty cocky about it, so Evans and Marc Quen tagged in. They both flipped out of each other’s moves, and wrestled mostly to a stalemate until Quen gained the advantage. However, Evans did hit an awesome springboard corkscrew kick to get the advantage back. Evans also showed off his technical ability by locking in a very unique armbar after using a flying approach. We then saw Quen get an awesome hot tag by springing off one side of the ring to the other to get the tag to Kassidy, who took out Angelico with a springboard moonsault to the outside. Private party didn’t stop there, as they hit Evans with a double stomp to the back of the head out of a camal clutch, and then an assisted tornado DDT to Angelico. From there Quen hit a huge shooting star press, but Kassidy was out of position to get the pin, so it was just a near fall. Kassidy tried for another move off the top, but Evans nailed a spider german suplex, and then a huge series of tag team offense from him and Angelico, all for a near fall. They tried to go the top to take out Quen for good, but Private party both met them at the top. Quen then gave Evans a totally botched poison rana off the top, which was scary as shit, so Kassidy gave him a standing poison rana. The then gave Angelico a top rope rana into a cutter for the win.

After the match, everyone shook hands until Angelico and Evans attacked. They locked in submissions on their opponents legs, and walked away yelling about how they were the best.

Grade: B. Good stuff here. Everyone got their offense in, but things weren’t void of psychology. This was a clash of two super cocky teams that believed that they are the best team in the world, so there was bound to be some animosity. I’m glad that Private Party got the win, they definitely deserved it, and the attack afterwards clarified that Angelico and Evans would be heels. Important stuff going into the tag tournament on TV.

Jurassic Express vs. SoCal Uncensored: Jungle Boy and Frankie Kazarian started things off with some fast paced grappling, and ended up going to a stalemate. Kazarian took control, and tagged in Daniels with him. Luchasaurus tagged in as well, and the two started to beat each other down. Marko Stunt was in next, and was incredibly high energy. Jurassic express then gave their opponents suicide dives one at a time. Jungle boy stayed in the ring, and SCU started to work him over. Luchasaurus then tagged in, and absolutely destroyed all of SCU with various kicks and slams. He hit an awesome combo of a hook kick to Daniels, a roundhouse to Scorpio Sky and then a chokeslam and moonsault press to Kazarian. Stunt then gave Kazarian a tornado DDT, assisted by Jungle boy who spun him around, and scored a near fall. SCU fought back into it, as Kazarian gave Luchasaurus a suicide rana, who in turn speared both of his teammates. Sky then gave him a tope con hilo to take out Luchasaurus, and Kazarian hoisted both Jungle boy and Stunt up in a tombstone position. Daniels then gave them the Greatest Meltzer Driver Ever for the win.

Grade: B+. Lots of action here. Just a whole bunch of guys in the ring at one time, hitting a bunch of high spots and impressing everyone as a team. I’m surprised that SCU went over, as Jurassic Express was a much newer team. But it was a pretty good match, mostly a spotfest because they didn’t build a story around it, but it was pretty good.

Kenny Omega vs. Pac: I was shocked when this one came on second, considering the name values involved. But might as well, I was really excited. The two just started by soaking in the cheers of the crowd. Pac disrespected the hell out of Omega in the early goings, and was bending the rules right away. Pac also flipped out of a whole bunch of Omega’s moves early on. The two eventually made their way to the outside, and started a hard hitting brawl where Omega slammed Pacs face into a chair over and over. They both started to throw each other into the barricade and apron’s all the time until they both collapsed. Pac had the advantage, eventually putting Omega back in the ring and giving hit a huge missile dropkick. The two then started to exchange chops back and forth, but Omega eventually put Pac on the outside and nailed a tope con hilo, followed by a brainbuster in the ring for a near fall. Pac fought back into the match, at one point going for a moonsault that Omega caught, and then transitioning into a DDT. Pac then went for a moonsault to the outside to hit Omega, and both his legs nailed the barricade as he came down, which totally looked brutal. The two then got back in the ring, and Pac hit a 450 splash for a near fall. They started to beat the crap out of each other in the middle of the ring again, with Kenny absolutely peppering Pac, who fired right back. Omega then hit a pump kick into the corner, followed by a buckle bomb and then a spinebuster for a near fall. He went to go for a v-trigger, but Pac grabbed the ref and hid behind him. Kenny then fought right through the ref, nailed a V-Trigger, and when he couldn’t hit One Winged Angel, he hit a high angle german suplex for a near fall. The two continued to fight, with both starting to rev up. Pac nailed a slinghot cutter, followed by a pair of german suplexes. Kenny then started to fire up a bit as well, hitting a dragon suplex and a v-trigger for a near fall. He tried for another V-trigger, but Pac nailed him with a series of kicks to the chest and face, only for Omega to hit a high knee anyway, followed by another as they both ran the ropes. Pac then tried for a poison rana, but they botched it and it looked bad. The two weakly started to exchanged strikes, until Omega went for One Winged Angel, but Pac locked in the Rings of Saturn to a standing Omega, and forcing him to pass out for what I genuinely thought was a shock win.

Grade: A. I thought this was a great match for two guys that had no story. They were going at a million miles an hour, countering move after move after move until each guy scored a lucky hit. I was worried after the moonsault botch when Pac seemed to really hurt his legs, but it didn’t seem to detract from anything. I was shocked by the win, although it was Pac’s debut, I though Omega would get a big win going into TV. But Pac had a huge win in this match, and they had a great match, better even than I thought it’d be. Match of the night, and it was on right at the top of the show.

Darby Allin vs. Jimmy Havoc vs. Joey Janela in a Cracker Barrel Clash: Havoc instantly grabbed a staple gun, and while both of his opponents wanted it, he stapled his arm. So, Allin and Janela teamed up on Havoc, and duct taped him to a chair. Then they put thumbtacks in his mouth and taped it shut. Janela then superkicked Allin, and the two started to fight in the ring. Allin gave Janela a flip over stunner, and then a senton to Havoc still sitting on the outside, which destroyed the chair. Janela followed that up with an Emerald Fusion to Allin on the apron, which totally dropped him on his head. Janela and Havoc then brawled, with Janela trying to put Havoc through a table, but Havoc spat the thumbtacks at Janela, and poked him in the eyes. Havoc started to follow up with paper cuts between Janela’s fingers, and stapled him on the forehead. Havoc then sat Janela down in a chair and tried to monkey flip him out of it, but Janela landed on his feet, only to eat a paper cut in the mouth. Janela then countered an acid rainmaker with a brainbuster on the chair, and then gave Allin a huge fucking piledriver through a table. From there, Janela wiffed a moonsault to the outside in brutal fashion, so Havoc nailed him with tray of biscuits. Allin then grabbed a skateboard covered in thumbtacks, and used it to jump on Janela’s back, and nearly got the pin if Havoc hadn’t pulled him out. Allin then gave Havoc a smaller Coffin Drop through a table, and chucked him into the steel stairs. Allin tried to give Havoc another Coffin drop off the top, with a cracker barrel, and onto the stairs, but Havoc dodged so he crashed and burned. Janela then gave Havoc a hangman’s DDT off the top and an elbow drop for a near fall. Havoc then followed up by giving Janela a superplex, and then an Acid Rainmaker into a cracker barrel for the win.

Grade: B+. A hardcore match that was fit for the ages. They destroyed themselves for our entertainment, and I thought it turned out pretty good. I hope that these two can still walk tomorrow, because they took some rough bumps. I’m surprised that Havoc got the win, but I’m totally fine with it. He is super talented, and hopefully he will be important when TV starts up. Allin and Janela impressed too, and I’m excited to see them all sooner rather than later.

Best Friends vs. The Dark Order for a BYE in the AEW World Tag Team Championship tournament: Chuck Taylor started with Stu Grayson, with Grayson quickly getting the advantage and putting him in the corner with Evil Uno. Trent quickly ran in and put the Order on the outside before hugging. Trent and Grayson started to fight each other, with Grayson again coming out on top and beating him down. Trent nearly got the tag, but Grayson pulled Taylor off the apron, and the Order hit an ensiguri into a brainbuster for a near fall. Eventually Taylor got the tag, giving Uno a standing sliced bread and then Grayson a powerbomb, before giving them both a tope con hilo. Best Friends then gave Grayson a pop up german suplex, followed by an Ace Crusher for a near fall. As they continued to fight, Grayson tagged out and gave Taylor a springboard twisting suicide dive which looked awesome. Uno and Grayson continued to destroy Trent in the ring, but he just kept getting up. They went for Fatality, but Taylor pushed Grayson out off the top, and tagged himself in to give a pair of knees to Uno and then a soul food into a half and half suplex. Taylor then nailed Uno with a one legged missile dropkick, and awful lawful to Grayson. They nearly got the win off of that, but Uno pulled Trent out of the pin, and the minions beat down Taylor. The Dark Order hit Fatality for the win.

After the match, The Dark Order continued to beat down Best Friends, and they tried to kidnap Trent, but the lights went out and Orange Cassidy showed up, and gave the minions a suicide dive with his hands in his pockets. The Best Friends then gave him a hug and they all celebrated.

Grade: A-. This was a good tag match with lots of fundamentals. Not much BS until the end, and they had all action. I was really into it, and I thought that The Dark Order was the right winner. Cassidy showing up was a great surprise and definitely popped me. But the match itself was a lot of action and a great way to blow off the feud.

Hikaru Shida vs. Riho for #1 contendership to the AEW Women’s Championship: The two started with some quick grappling and striking, with Shida using her strength advantage and Riho her agility. Shida quickly took control with a brutal high knee, and started to work over the back and the legs. Shida tried to give Riho a superplex to the outside, but Riho hit her onto the apron and gave her a double stomp on the apron which looked rough. Riho then went for a 619, but Shida caught her and locked in a stretch muffler for a submission sequence. Just as Riho looked like she was gaining control, Shida nailed a high knee and put her down. Shida then nailed a deadlift vertical suplex. No matter what Riho tried, Shida kept putting her down. Shida even hit a deadlift superplex for a near fall. Shida tried to follow up as well, but Riho countered with a northern lights suplex. The two then battled to the top rope, where Riho went for a double stomp in the corner, and then knees to the back of the head, only for Shida to answer with a backbreaker. The tow then traded counters and rollups back and forth, until Riho gave a hurricanrana all around Shida and scored a rollup for the win.

After the match, Nila Rose came out to stare down Riho.

Grade: B. Another pretty good match, where it seemed like Riho was going to lose, but she fought back into the match. Shida did not look like she was weak in defeat, but we already know how good Riho is. Riho vs. Rose should be a good main event for the first episode of AEW on TNT. This was good though, just a little too one sided to break into A territory.

Cody vs. Shawn Spears: we started things out with Spears sitting in a chair at the top of the ramp, before folding it up and taking it with him to the ring. Tully Blanchard came out next for Spears’ corner. Cody had a huge entrance with pyro. Brandi, DDP, MJF and Pharoh (who definitely didn’t want to be there) all came down, but MJF stayed in his corner. Before the match started, Cody jumped off the top and attacked Spears, and gave Blanchard a cheap shot as he did. Spears and Cody brawled through the crowd. The match started up right as Cody gave Spears a powerslam on the outside. Spears got control after a low blow to Cody while the ref was yelling at MJF. The two then brawled back into the ring and to the top rope, with Cody nailing Spears with a rana off the top. Cody tried to follow up with a suicide dive, but Spears nailed a back elbow, before nailing him with a pump kick as well. The went back into the ring and delivered blow after blow to one another. The brawled all around, and Spears stole a bottle of water from a fan to spit at Cody. Back in the ring Cody tried to gain control, but Spears sent him into the post and gave him a hangman’s DDT on the apron. Spears then removed Cody’s weight belt, but the ref who was Earl Hebner, made him throw it away, only for Blanchard to give him his belt, and nail Cody in the back with it a couple times. Cody then fired up, ate a belt shot to the chest, and beat down Spears. He nailed a springboard cutter, and an Alabama Slam, followed by the Figure Four, only for Spears to reverse it right away. Cody eventually got to the ropes, but during that time Blanchard helped to increase the the pressure by pulling Spears’ arm. Spears then nailed a death valley driver on the ramp. Cody was nearly counted out, but MJF pulled him closer to the ring to help, and he barely made it back in. The two then stood up to continue the fight, when Cody hit the Cross Roads out of nowhere, but Blanchard distracted the ref. Blanchard and MJF then both got in the ring. MJF threw his scarf at Blanchard, and the two started to lock up, but Spears nailed MJF with a pump kick. Blanchard continued to attack MJF on the outside, which Hebner then tried to handle, only for Arn fucking Anderson to show up and give Spears a spinebuster out of nowhere. He and Blanchard walked out, and we were left with a one on one match. Spears grabbed a chair, but Cody continued to beat him down. Cody grabbed the chair himself, but didn’t use it, he gave Spears the Atomic elbow, a disaster kick into a chair, and then a Cross Roads for the win.

After the match, MJF teased the betrayal, but didn’t do it and hugged Cody, and celebrated heavily.

Grade: A-. This was overbooked, so it wasn’t for everyone, but I think the fun story and the hot crowd was enough to put this in the A territory. We saw a lot of nice story elements, and some nice striking. The match was about how both of them were giving everything that they had to get the win. I have no clue why Arn Anderson came out.

The Lucha Bros vs. the Young Bucks in Escalara de la Meurte for the AAA World Tag Team Championships: Lucha bros got a whole bunch of pyro, while the Bucks came out in deer masks. They started things out by yelling Cero Miedo a whole bunch, and the Bucks spitting their gum at The Lucha Bros, and they were off to the races. The Lucha Bros tried for a double suicide dive, but the bucks threw a ladder at them. Fenix quickly went for a suicide dive over the ladder to wipe everyone out. They then started to duel on the ladder, as Matt Jackson and Pentagon fought over the belts, but Fenxi and Nick gave their opponents rolling cutters off the ladder. Fenix and Nick then fought on the apron, giving each other a pump kick at the same time, only for Matt and Pentagon to spear them through tables on the outside. Not long after, Nick gave Pentagon a twisting suicide dive, followed by Matt giving Fenix four northern lights suplexes, with the last landing on a ladder in the corner. The Lucah Bros then took control with a series of flying offense using just about anything they could find. At one point, Nick went up a ladder to grab the belts, but Fenix pushed it over, so he gave Penta a suicide dive, followed by the same situation from Fenix, but with a moonsault. Penta and Matt then dueled on the top of the ladder, with Penta ending things with a slingblade off the ladder. Nick then gave Pentagon a suicide dive through a ladder, followed by Fenix giving Matt a Canadian destroyer through the ladder. Fenix then set Matt up on a table and went to put him through it off a ladder, but Matt met him there. Penta saved Fenix from a superplex by giving Matt a canadian destroyer through the table. Nick then set Penta up on a table on the outside, while Fenix did the same to Matt. They then looked each other in the eyes, daring each other to do it, and they put their opponents through the tables with stereo splashes. Nick then met Fenix as he set up a ladder bridge, and he gave him a Tornado DDT on the outside. Nick then set up a pair of tables at the foot of the ramp, and met Fenix in the middle of the ring. He was going to powerbomb him into the tables, but Fenix fought out and gave him a superkick, only for Matt to give him a superkick of his own. Penta tried to scale the ladder, but Nick trapped him in a sharpshooter, while Matt put the ladder over his back. Matt then grabbed Fenix in a tombstone as Nick climbed the ladder, and he debated going or the Meltzer driver or getting the belts. Penta superkicked Matt before he could decide, which Tombstoned Fenix, and Penta pushed over the ladder. Nick tried to hit the tables on the outside, but he botched it hard and his foot hit the ropes, nearly crashing headfirst into the floor, and cutting his hand brutally. Matt and Penta fought on the top of the ladder, but Matt unmasked Penta (a little too quick because we totally saw his face), and he fell. Fenix tried to take Matt out with by jumping off the top rope, but Matt nailed him with a superkick, and Penta knocked over the ladder to hang him up in the ropes. The then gave Matt Fear Factor on the ladder bridge to take him out, and then they grabbed the belts for the win.

After the match, two figures in regular masks attacked and started to beat them down. They gave Fenix a doomsday neckbreaker, and unmasked to see LAX! I popped huge.

Grade: A. Car crash of a match. This was insane, just as scary as I thought it would be, even scarier. I thought that they mixed the high spots and their normal stuff really well. I sincerely doubt that Nick will be wrestling on TV soon, he probably broke his arm. It was super scary, and I wish the best to him. But the booking was good, the Lucha Bros got a strong win. And LAX had a perfect debut. I popped hard, I’d completely forgot that they may be coming this way. But this was a great match, nothing more I can say about it.

Adam Page vs. Chris Jericho for the inaugral AEW World Championship: Adam Page road out on a horse, which was cool. They made this feel absolutely huge, which it was. Page quickly showed his strength advantage, and the two started to deliver strike after strike to each other. Jericho quickly tried to get the lion tamer, but Page forced him to the outside and gave him a suicide dive for a near fall. Page tried to nail a shooting star press off the apron, and Jericho caught him with knees to the gut. Page nearly got counted out, but the ref called it as he got on the apron, and Jericho gave him a running forearm that sent him into the barricade. Jericho then pulled Page’s arm through the barricade and kicked it, before ringing the bell himself, which pissed off the ref. Jericho started to work over the arm, and also flipped off the crowd a whole bunch. At one point, Jericho went for a crossbody off the top, but Page rolled through and gave him a fall away slam. Page used that to get control, hitting a samoan drop, a sliding lariat and a shooting star press for a near fall. Jericho then went for the lionsault, but Page met him on the middle rope and gave him a Russian Leg sweep off of it. Jericho got up first though, and locked in the best Walls of Jericho that he has in years, but Page fought out and hit a discus forearm right to the eye, which busted him open. Page followed Jericho to the outside and fought him tooth and nail. Before coming back into the ring, and brought him to the mat. Page started to target the wound a bit, and even gave Jericho a swinging neckbreaker off the top for a near fall. Page took off his elbow pad, and gave him another discus elbow, and tried for a suplex to the outside, but he hung Page up on the ropes instead. Jericho then went for a dropkick off the middle rope to Page on the apron, but Page hit a superkick and then the buckshot lariat, only for Jericho to lock in the Walls of Jericho, but Page made it to the ropes. Jericho even pushed the ref a bit, who totally screamed at him for it, and Page used that to lariat Jericho to the outside and then give him a moonsault. Page threw him back in and went for the Buckshot lariat, but Jericho countered with a codebreaker, only for Jericho to hit a codebreaker, but Hangman kicked out. The two slowly rose to their feet, with Page hitting another rolling elbow, but Jericho got his knees up for a shooting star press. The two then desperately tried to hit their finishers, with Page nailing the deadeye, but Jericho didn’t stay down. Page then hit another Buckshot Lariat, and then he tried for the Deadeye, only for Jericho to backslide out of it. Page went for another discus lariat, which Jericho caught with a Judas Effect for the win! CHRIS JERICHO IS THE FIRST AEW WORLD CHAMPION!!!!!!

Grade: A-. This match started out a bit slow and shaky, but by the end it became the epic that it needed to be. It had a lot to live up to after that ladder match, and while I don’t think it was as good, it certainly was dramatic enough to be great. Jericho was the right call here, although Page is kinda a made man now. As long as they keep up his mystique and keep him at the top of the card, Page is big enough to be a world champion. Jericho is just the right choice, he is a huge name for their first TV show. He deserved the first title, and that’s what he got. Congratulations Jericho, and thank you.

Overall Grade: B+

Predictions: 6/10

Pros: Private Party vs. Evans & Angelico; 6-man tag; pac vs. omega; crackle barrel clash; dark order vs. best friends; riho vs. shida; spears vs. cody; escalara de la meurte; main event

Cons: Casino battle royal; Pharoh was scared and he didn’t deserve that; nick jackson botch (I hope you’re okay)

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niafrazier · 5 years

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Making the Case for Beto O’Rourke

Full disclaimer: Beto is one of my top picks amongst the 2020 democratic field as of now. I’m a supporter but am in no way affiliated with his official campaign.

At a certain point, Beto O’Rourke was hailed by the media as basically the second coming of Obama, RFK, JFK, [insert any popular democratic figure from this past century… oh and Abe Lincoln]. After he unsuccessfully attempted to unseat Ted Cruz in the senate race, many people across the country were calling him to run for the presidency. He even surged in polling being just behind Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders, both who virtually have 100% name recognition. His senate race garnered national attention and even caught Oprah’s attention (she practically begged him to run on her show FFS). Many (including me) grew to admire his authentic, organic, and down-to-earth approach to politics, which is especially refreshing to see given the fact that everything seems so contrived nowadays. So, he wrestled with his decision thoughtfully and eventually came around to the idea, officially tossing his hat into the ring on March 14th, 2019. But now? Right out the gate, the narrative has shifted, and to the mainstream media pundits and Twittersphere, he is seen as an empty-suited, entitled, misogynistic, arrogant dude dripping with white male privilege. What changed? How is it that the media, the very one that contributed to the rise of “Betomania,” subsequently went into a frenzy and poo-pooed all over his rollout? The faux outrage, double standards, and cynicism directed at Beto by opinion writers, pundits, etc. have basically motivated me to give my own takes on the most common criticisms I’ve seen thus far. So, here we go:

“ ‘Man, I’m just born to be in it?’ ”

I’m not gonna lie, taking a look at the Vanity Fair cover and seeing that quote was a facepalm moment. As predicted, this quote sparked outrage fairly quickly… given the optics of a privileged straight white man joining a race of several qualified women and POC… Understandably so. However, upon reading through the whole article, I was able to grasp the essence of Beto’s words. Here’s what he says leading up to his declaration, expressing urgency:

“This is the fight of our lives…not the fight-of-my-political-life kind of crap. But, like, this is the fight of our lives as Americans, and as humans, I’d argue.”

And now here’s the full quote: “Man, I’m just born to be in it, and want to do everything I humanly can for this country at this moment.”

He’s not so much saying that he was born to be in a position of power, rather, he’s expressing that during such dire times, especially in U.S. democracy, he could not in good conscience be complacent and not take action. Just as he was drawn to serve his district in El Paso as a 6 year city council member and a 3-term congressman, he believes that at this moment, he has a purpose to serve the whole nation by being as actively involved in the national discussion as possible—to stand up to bigotry and divisiveness displayed by the current administration of the White House. Beto basically confirmed what I had thought after further inspection when he clarified his statement later (Google it. I’m having trouble with my hyperlinks right now). Could he have worded it better? Sure. I just reject the notion that this one gaffe is supposed to sum him up as an egotistical maniac… please.

“He adds absolutely no value to the race”

This is arbitrary depending on what your key issues are, but I’m gonna give my take on why I think he’s an excellent addition to the race. So, I’ve been intrigued about the possibility of an O’Rourke presidential run since he’s hinted at it back in November. I really didn’t know much about him until toward the end of Midterm season, but the more I learned, the more impressed I became. (Side note: it was this clip that first caught my full attention.) What really fueled my interest in Beto though, was his stance on immigration. As a first generation Nigerian American, this topic is pretty personal to me. My parents were fortunate enough to have the opportunity to immigrate to America and raise me and my three other siblings. However, I’ve also seen firsthand the difficulty of not only getting through with the ridiculous process but also assimilating into this country. For so long, the Democrats haven’t really made immigration a central issue, until the Trump administration hijacked it and pushed the Overton window all the way to the right. With heightened xenophobia running rampant in this country as a result of this abhorrent presidency, it is pertinent that the Democrats not merely pay lip service to this issue any longer and take serious action. Beto has an advantage here: He’s grown up in and served as a U.S House Rep. in the border district of El Paso, also home to the largest binational community in the Northern hemisphere. He can add a lot to the national discussion and debate on the matter. When Trump came to El Paso, the local community organized a counter rally where Beto gave an impassioned speech about the border wall and immigration. It’s pretty long, but I highly recommend the watch. Furthermore, Beto has outlined a 10 point proposal on how best to approach the immigration issue, along with some facts about the border’s history, which you can read here. Immigration hasn’t really been a winning issue, and I honestly don’t see it being one in 2020. With that being said, I respect the fact that despite this, Beto has shown that this is an issue that he deeply cares about. If I’m being honest, even though comprehensive immigration reform is universally called for amongst Democrats, I doubt that anyone in the field will truly make immigration a main priority in their prospective presidencies. To me, Beto has shown that he will. Even if he doesn’t clinch the nomination, it still means a ton to me that we can have the potential to change the narrative of immigration in this country with serious discussion. With the way Beto is able to convey his message, I am hopeful for what’s to come.

So, let’s talk about Texas. With the way Beto was able to energize the Democratic base in Texas, Democrats have the opportunity to put the Republican bastion state into play. With 38 electoral votes at stake, Texas is extremely crucial for the GOP. To put things in perspective, if Texas turned blue in 2016, President Hillary Clinton would have been a thing.

*Bonus: “He Lost to Ted Cruz lol… already a nonstarter”

Yes. But you know who else lost to Ted in Texas? Donald Trump. Cruz obliterated him in the Texas Republican primaries. I’m not saying Texas is guaranteed to turn blue with Beto on the ballot, but if we learned anything in 2016, it’s not to underestimate the possibility of seemingly blue or red states to flip at any given moment. The GOP has taken note of this. We’ve seen that Beto has a ton of appeal in Texas amongst not only Democrats but Never-Trump-Republicans and independents as well! If Beto is on that ballot, the GOP will most likely exhaust a ton of resources and money into Texas to keep it from going blue. This will only make other states that Trump won with the slimmest of margins vulnerable. Also… I find it disingenuous to make comparisons between Beto and other senators that hail from deeply blue states regarding electability. If Beto lost to Ted in California, then yeah… we could have a conversation about that.

“A woman running mate is his preference? Who does he think he is?”

The backlash on this surprised me, to be honest… Even Whoopi Goldberg blasted his ass for the statement on The View. If I had to go on a whim here, I feel like it was the Vanity Fair article that sort of set the mood for Beto’s campaign thus far… because otherwise, I believe that this really wouldn’t have been a story. In fact, Beto is not the only male candidate to call for a woman VP. Cory Booker and Bernie Sanders have strongly hinted at choosing a woman running mate. Interestingly enough, I didn’t recall there being any backlash. Here are Beto’s full remarks on choosing a woman as his running mate:

"It would be very difficult not to select a woman with so many extraordinary women who are running right now, but first I would have to win and there's-- you know, this is as open as it has ever been."

This is very much the response I expected from Beto. Time and time again, he has openly acknowledged his privilege, even before getting hammered about it on social media. In the Vanity Fair article, he states his stance on lack of representation in Washington:

“The government at all levels is overly represented by white men,” he says. “That’s part of the problem, and I’m a white man. So if I were to run, I think it’s just so important that those who would comprise my team looked like this country. If I were to run, if I were to win, that my administration looks like this country. It’s the only way I know to meet that challenge.”

Furthermore, he is understanding and considerate of the fact that people are craving for diversity. Here’s what he says:

“But I totally understand people who will make a decision [cast a vote in the primaries] based on the fact that almost every single one of our presidents has been a white man, and they want something different for this country. And I think that’s a very legitimate basis upon which to make a decision. Especially in the fact that there are some really great candidates out there right now.”

I know I don’t speak for all POC or women, but as a WOC myself, I took no issue to his statements. In fact, I appreciate his sensitivity to the issue and the fact that he doesn’t shy away from addressing uncomfortable topics in politics, such as race and representation.

Let’s just be glad he didn’t pull a Hickenlooper…. Jesus.

“Light on policy… but he stands on counters amirite?”

To discuss this point, it’s important to understand Beto’s campaign style. Beto is more like a blank canvass. What he does is first listen to people and their concerns, and then from there, he shapes his policies around that. He feels that this is the best way to serve the people. The point of his road trips and tours was not to lecture people on full fleshed policy proposals. There is debate on whether or not this is an effective strategy, and I do understand that people do like to know exactly what they’re signing up for before casting a vote. That’s why some people will more likely gravitate toward candidates like Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren who have been consistent in their messaging. However, I also think people underestimate the power of simply listening. Take these comments that a potential voter made concerning Beto’s ability to listen during his stop in South Carolina for example:

"I think if he keeps talking to the people and being able to listen, and not talk at the African-American voters. Talk to us. Listen to what we have to say… As long as you listen and then actually put forward ideas that are legitimate ideas to do things, then he will be fine.”

While policy specifics are important, this is still the early stages of Beto’s campaign. Specifics, of course, will have to come at some point, especially when debates come around. Another critique I hear is Beto not having any policy proposals on his website yet. He’s not alone though. Several candidates who have been running longer than he has don’t either. It’s also important to note that while people in the race most likely have been mulling a presidential run for several months or years, this has been something that came around to Beto as recent as November 2018. Stuff like this takes time. I think he has potential, however, in this area. For instance, as I mentioned earlier, he has put out a 10-point proposal on immigration. He also has a brief 5-point plan regarding criminal justice reform and legalization of marijuana. (Fun fact, he even coauthored a book concerning the legalization of weed.) And it’s not like he hasn’t taken stances on issues ever either… I mean, he has a whole congressional record, and his townhalls give you an idea of where he stands on key issues.

Oh... and about the countertops. Ugh. The fact that this really sparked outrage is comical. I’ve seen all sorts of takes on this from asserting his male dominance to throwing his youth in Bernie and Biden’s faces (lmao). At a campaign stop, the owner of the coffee shop that he was at asked him to stand on the countertop because people complained that they weren’t able to see Beto amongst the crowds and camera equipment (despite him being 6’4’’, ha). So then it just became a thing since. And he’s respectful about it in case anyone was wondering, lol. But there’s one thing I think both the Beto detractors and I can agree on: why tf is this getting media coverage? I do agree that there should be more coverage for other candidates concerning the real issues. However, the response shouldn’t be to go after Beto or chastise him for doing harmless acts during his campaign stops… Talk that up with the media. The ironic thing about this is that some of the media pundits complain about giving Beto so much coverage… all while giving Beto more coverage about the coverage he’s receiving… 🙄

So if you made it to the end of this extremely long effortpost, thank you. I actually had tons more to discuss but I’m not trying to make this into a novel. Anyways, I’ll say one last thing:

Before going along with groupthink or engaging in the toxic political echo chamber that is Twitter, I implore you all to take a step back and actually get to know these candidates. Seek after local news outlets when candidates visit to get a feel of the vibes from locals. Go to Beto’s Facebook page and watch a town hall or two. You may come home with a different impression than what is portrayed in mainstream media. I can tell you that when I did this, the difference was night and day. We have such an amazing field of contenders to choose from, and I’d hate for misinformation or bad-faith arguments to warp perceptions.

#beto o'rourke #2020 #democratic primary #2020 election #politics

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wrestlingisfake · 7 years

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Wrestle Kingdom 12 preview

This is set to start around 2am Eastern time Thursday morning and go maybe five or six hours, so lllllet’s get ready to make bad decisions about our sleep schedule!

Kazuchika Okada vs. Tetsuya Naito - Naito defeated Kenny Omega to win the G1 Climax tournament in August, earning the right to challenge for the IWGP heavyweight title here. Okada has held the title for 564 days, far and away longer than any other reign with this championship.

Okada vs. Naito was famously supposed to headline Wrestle Kingdom 8, but fans turned on the idea. In the end, the intercontinental match (Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi) went on last, forever putting a footnote on what was supposed to be Okada’s first Tokyo Dome main event outside of Tanahashi’s shadow and Naito’s first Dome main event period. Four years later, both men have earned the respect they were denied then. So it’s morbidly amusing that fate has yet again cast doubt on whether Okada vs. Naito is “really” the main event, thanks to the buzz surrounding Jericho vs. Omega. Obviously Okada and Naito have something to prove. Again.

Okada had a hell of a year in 2017. Kenny Omega tends to get most of the press for the three matches that Dave Meltzer rated six stars or better, but I watched all three and frankly I’d give Okada just a smidge more credit for those performances. It’s also worth noting that Okada had epic matches against other opponents, like Katsuyori Shiabata, Minoru Suzuki, and EVIL. The man’s a wrestling machine, and while he’ll never be my sentimental favorite in NJPW, he’s got my confidence as the man who makes the belt feel important.

Naito did pretty well for himself this past year as well, although I’d argue that’s more from a storytelling and entertainment standpoint. Little things like his treatment of the intercontinental title belt and his interplay with his stablemates have added that little extra something to his game. The Japanese audience already loves him but it’s getting easier to for the rest of us to get into his head, and see what the appeal is.

Either man can win here. If Naito wins, it’ll be the much-delayed Tokyo Dome coronation that he’s been chasing for four years, and a proper milestone in the ascendance of Los Ingobernables de Japon as a key faction in the company. If Okada wins, it will be his 9th consecutive successful title defense and his second consecutive title defense at the Tokyo Dome; he looked unstoppable after last year’s show, and now he’d be practically godlike. The only thing for sure here is they’re going to fight and fight for like half an hour, and they’ll leave it all in the ring.

Kenny Omega vs. Chris Jericho - Omega’s IWGP United States championship is on the line. The match is no-disqualification, which is itself interesting because it’s already pretty hard to get disqualified in New Japan, suggesting that these guys are going to go far beyond the carnage that usually gets a pass.

The backstory here is that Omega got his old buddy Don Callis a job in the commentary booth, and then Callis helped his old buddy Jericho get in touch with New Japan to put this match together. So it’s the battle of an NJPW guy who leads the hottest faction in ROH against a longtime WWE guy, and the guy who made it happen is now VP of Impact Wrestling. Weird.

Jericho is specifically here to try to do his own version of the Connor McGregor/Floyd Mayweather fight that generated so much buzz and money. To that end, the buildup to this match has been extremely heated. The two of them have barely coexisted in the same building for more than five minutes without beating each other senseless. Jericho has vowed this will be Kenny’s last match in Japan. We’ve been assured this will not be about getting star ratings or match of the year votes--it will be a brawl.

These guys had me hooked in with the press conference. I don’t really care who wins, but you’d figure it has to be Omega unless they’ve got something else lined up for Jericho later in the year.

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Jay White - White is challenging for the IWGP intercontinental title. This is kind of cool for me because I got into New Japan when White was still a rookie jobbing in the openers with the plain black trunks, and then I watched him say farewell before going on excursion, and now he’s back with this wacky new “switchblade” gimmick. It’s pretty incredibly to think of him advancing to the #3 match on the biggest show of the year, so it’ll be interesting to see if he can deliver the goods.

Tanahashi is hurting. Aside from the torn biceps he’s been working through since the summer, he’s got a knee injury too, and that’s on top of all the usual wear and tear to a top wrestler in a Japanese group. Ideally they’d let him gut it out for this one night, put the other guy over, and then send him the fuck home to heal up. But if NJPW or Tanahashi were going to make such a rational decision, they wouldn’t have booked him for the G1 Climax last year. So this could get excrutiating to watch, especially if Tanahashi just wins and therefore is set up to keep defending his title through the next couple of months.

I’m a Tanahashi fan and I hope he can deliver a good match, but I gotta root for White to just win quickly and decisively to give the poor guy a break.

Cody Rhodes vs. Kota Ibushi - This was booked to be a defense of the ROH world championship but Cody lost it to Dalton Castle a few weeks ago.

You can look at this match as a sort of consolation prize, in that both guys were viewed as top choices for Kenny Omega’s opponent on this show until the Jericho thing came up, and now they’re pitted against one another. The problem with that is that neither guy has much in the way of upward momentum. Cody is primarily an ROH guy, and there seems to be no interest in putting him in line for an IWGP or NEVER title. Similarly, Ibushi is a free agent, and the issue with him has always been that NJPW will only push him so far without a contract. So it’s hard to buy that the outcome of this match matters. Maybe they can defy expectations or steal the show, but as it stands I’m just not worked up about it.

As far as predictions go, I’m vaguely leaning towards Cody.

Minoru Suzuki vs. Hirooki Goto - Suzuki’s NEVER openweight championship is at stake, as is the hair of both participants. The winner of the match gets the title; the loser gets his head shaved. Additionally, Suzuki’s henchmen in Suzuki-gun and Goto’s associates in CHAOS are barred from ringside, to prevent the usual clusterfuck finishes that happen with Suzuki-gun matches.

This could go either way, although a Goto loss would be pretty humiliating and send his storyline in a very dismal direction. After weeks of just trying to get this match, Goto really needs to get the last laugh.

Marty Scurll vs. KUSHIDA vs. Will Ospreay vs. Hiromu Takahashi - This is a four-way match, and the first man to score a fall on any of his opponents will win Scurll’s IWGP junior heavyweight championship. Basically the minute Scurll won the title, the three previous champions all demanded a title shot, so he offered to face them at the same time. Not sure that was such a bright idea.

This will surely be an entertainingly flippy diversion form strong style and big mean guys. I’m not sure it matters who wins, but I gotta pull for my man Hiromu and his cat Daryl.

Davey Boy Smith, Jr. & Lance Archer vs. EVIL & SANADA - Evil and Sanada won the 2017 World Tag League tournament to earn this shot at the IWGP heavyweight tag team championship, held by the Killer Elite Squad (Smith & Archer). You know it’s gonna be a mean guy match when one side’s best line is “EVERYBODY DIES” and the other side’s best line is “EVERYTHING IS EVIL.” I smell a title change coming.

5-team gauntlet match - This is for the NEVER six-man tag team championship. The gauntlet starts with two trios wrestling a normal six-man tag match. Once a fall is scored, the losers are eliminated and another team comes out. This continues until the final team enters the match, and the winners of the final fall get the title. They did this kind of match last year and the teams entered at random except for the champions who got to enter last, so I assume that’s the rule here, too.

The teams are:

Bad Luck Fale & Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa (the defending champions, representing Bullet Club)

Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano & Beretta (representing CHAOS)

Michael Elgin & Raymond Rowe & Hanson

Ryusuke Taguchi & Juice Robinson & Togi Makabe

Zack Sabre Jr. & Taichi & Takashi Iizuka (representing Suzuki-gun)

A title change seems inevitable, since the NEVER tag belts are the hot potato of the promotion. Of the fifteen guys in the match I think Ishii is the most protected, so I tend to favor his team to win, although Sabre is overdue to get some gold.

It’s worth noting that War Machine (Rowe and Hanson) are wrapping up their New Japan commitments and are widely expected to be reporting to WWE soon, so I wouldn’t bet on them to win here.

SHO & YOH vs. Nick Jackson & Matt Jackson - Roppongi 3K (Sho/Yoh) are defending the IWGP junior heavyweight tag team title against the Young Bucks (Nick/Matt). The Bucks are so dominant in the junior tag division, and 3K is still so new, that a win for the Bucks will accomplish absolutely nothing. There’s an opportunity here to help make 3K into the future of the division, so all we can do is see if they’ll take it. I expect we’ll be seeing these teams trade the belts for many years to come, but I don’t think it’ll happen just yet.

New Japan Rumble - This will most likely be on the pre-show. It’s a gauntlet battle royal, with wrestlers entering the match at one-minute interval; eliminations can occur via pinfall, submission, or exiting the ring over the top rope to the floor.

This is typically used to get people on the show who aren’t otherwise booked, so I’d expect to see:

Satoshi Kojima

Hiroyoshi Tenzan

YOSHI-HASHI

Yuji Nagata

Jushin Thunder Liger

Tiger Mask

Yujiro Takahashi

Hangman Page

Leo Tonga

El Desperado

TAKA Michinoku

Chase Owens

Gedo

Jado

ACH

Yoshinobu Kanemaru

Manabu Nakanishi

David Finlay

Yoshitatsu

New Japan usually brings in some old-timers and joke entrants for this thing, so you never know who’s coming or how many participants there will be. I could imagine some of the Young Lions being in this, but if so they’ll just get clobbered so it kind of doesn’t matter. Typically the winner is someone credible but not necessarily in line for a push, so that has me thinking Liger or Kojima could come out on top. But really, who’s to say if Billy Gunn shows up at the last minute and shows us all who the ass man really is?

#njpw #wrestle kingdom #kazuchika okada #tetsuya naito #chris jericho #kenny omega

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