Post by EXODUS News Collective on Jul 22, 2014 21:28:48 GMT -6
Hello, wrestling fans, Dick Morosi here! You might know me as the "Voice of EXODUS Pro Wrestling," but I'm also now the head of the new "EXODUS News Collective," a group of writers to give you all the latest news and rumors happening in EXODUS. Not only that, but we'll be bringing you recaps of every EXODUS show, beginning with this past Monday's "Ascendancy"!
EXODUS encroached upon Tokyo's legendary Korakuen Hall for their latest iPPV, Ascendancy. The show opened for the live fans with a special (R)Evolution Wrestling match; for the uninitiated, (R)Evolution Wrestling is the development camp for the future stars of EXODUS Pro Wrestling, under the leadership of Darrin Stearns. Aries Reed, a student of "The Big Bad Brooks," Justin Brooks, took on the newest student of Director Jonathan Collins, Carey Dean. Carey, known for his short temper, attacked Aries outside of the ring with a lead pipe provided by his manager/friend, Tom Higashikata, drawing a DQ victory for (R)Evolution's master of the Dragon Sleeper!
1,800 fans greeted the world in Tokyo as Ascendancy went on the air, kicking off with a match between two exciting newcomers; the masked Demento, and the Global Division of Wrestling veteran Samantha Raine. The two brawled, spilling to the outside and spilling color commentator Seth Ericson's popcorn! The result was both competitors struggling, but failing to reenter the ring before the referee's count reached its apex, a double countout draw!
The mood changed swiftly as Gods and Monsters made their entrance. The faction, led by EXODUS World Champion Christum Furor, also features San Diego Bay Champion Savannah Taylor, as well as former "Survive & Conquer" participant Sally Talfourd. G&M, which formed on the night of EXODUS' debut on the FX network, has terrorized EXODUS for nearly an entire year, and currently holds half of EXODUS' title belts. Savannah Taylor, ahead of her title defense against Jessica Lasiewicz, addressed the audience, followed by Sally Talfourd, herself paired against the mysterious WEAPON, then told the fans to remember the night ahead of them for the rest of their lives. Finally, the microphone was turned over to the World Champion himself, as he heralded the end of his opponent, Fiona Collins.
Backstage, a shadowy figure lockpicked his way into the office of 40% owner of EXODUS, Cleon Gray. Gray, the brother of majority owner Nicholas Gray (though we're still not sure how), was addressing his "Right Hand of Discipline," only to find that he was being eavesdropped on by EXODUS' #1 dissident, Zack Lifer! Lifer, the thorn in the side of both Christum Furor and Cleon Gray, has been stuck in "Detention" by Gray, resulting in handicap matches and one match against Furor with an arm tied behind his back! The "Right Hand of Discipline," Justin Brooks, then attacked Lifer, but was called off by Gray before he could do any real damage before the two met in the ring later that night!
Back in the ring, it was time for the debut of EXODUS' newest addition, Deron Franklin and The #Derontourage! Taking on Joey Edwards, Deron and Edwards engaged in a fast-paced, high impact match that ended with Deron kicking out of Edwards' End Product backbreaker, and hitting his Chocolate Thunder 630 degree senton for the win.
After an announcement of the next iPPV, "Long Way Down," it was time for the next match; Kliff Ulysses taking on former Insurgency Wrestling Federation star Chuck Matthews. The match looked well in the hands of Kliff Ulysses, but he jumped off the ropes and right into a Hollywood Impact, with Chuck picking up the win, and a big step of momentum toward a title opportunity!
(R)Evolution Wrestling's Carey Dean was backstage, having a conversation with Cailey Carter, the sister of Knoxville Wrestling Institute's Cassidy Carter, herself another student of Jonathan Collins. Cassidy was recently kidnapped and possibly brainwashed at the hands of SCW's Rachel Foxx of the Sinistry. In an attempt to "rescue" Cassidy, Jonathan encouraged Cailey and Carey to take off for Knoxville, where this week KWI presents "Lightning in a Bottle," to track down and at least talk to Cassidy, if not also handle Celeste Archer and Jaina Frost, two more students of Foxx.
The earlier attack was merely a prelude to our next match; Zack Lifer one-on-one against "The Big Bad Brooks," the former three-time Universal Wrestling League champion, Justin Brooks! The powerful Brooks controlled the match early on, his unmatched power game being used to throw Zack Lifer around like a child. Lifer seemed to mount a comeback several times, but each time Brooks used his strength to regain control of the match. However, when Justin went for his Hook 'N Ladder finisher, Lifer saw an opportunity, rolled him up, and even used the ropes for extra leverage to pick up the win! Post match, Cleon Gray distracted Lifer just long enough for Brooks to his his Reminder lariat, followed by locking in the Flashover rear naked choke to make Lifer pass out. Safe to say, the feud between Lifer and Cleon Gray/Justin Brooks isn't over just yet.
Tom Matheny was backstage, and with him was EXODUS Pro International Champion, Lexy Chapel! Chapel was preparing for her title defense against Kerry Windsor, and was very candid with her thoughts. Lexy was unsure of her chances in tonight's title defense against the world class challenger, but promised that her focus wasn't on anything in the future, but on the International Title that sits on her shoulder!
The first title match of the night was up next, as Savannah Taylor put her San Diego Bay Title on the line against the daughter of former EXODUS World Champion Andreas Lasiewicz, Jessica Lasiewicz! What started as an even match devolved into an even all-out brawl, ending with both women on their back as the ref attempted to count them out! In the end, both women arose, but it was Savannah Taylor who hit two forearms, followed by the Siren's Song for the win and retaining the San Diego Bay Title!
After his loss earlier, Kliff Ulysses ran into a different threat; three members of The Derontourage! O'Shay Edwards, Walt Franklin Jr, and DaShaun Thompson all antagonized Kliff, telling him that Deron Franklin was not only gunning for him, but "obviously" better in the ring! Kliff was perplexed, not only at the situation, but at the existence of, as he put it, "Dijon" Franklin.
Elsewhere, a victorious but beaten down Zack Lifer encountered Dragons Unleashed, the former Pro Wrestling FRONTIER Tag Team Champions. The three seemed to form an alliance; separate from the EXODUS Sekigun, which has had issues with Zack Lifer in the past, but also separate from the various factions aiming to destroy the promotion, such as Gods & Monsters and HATE.
Speaking of HATE, its leader, Daisuke Iwakuma, was in action next! The former leader of LEGION took to the ring against a (R)Evolution Wrestling member who has had recent issues with him, Sydney Christensen. Two weeks prior, Iwakuma and partner Kameron Chase took on the unlikely duo of World Champion Christum Furor and Fiona Collins; when Furor abandoned his Ascendancy opponent, Christensen tried to enter the match herself, almost leading to her and Fiona winning the match! Regardless, these two faced off at Ascendancy, with nothing but pride on the line. Iwakuma isn't a seasoned veteran, but he knows EXODUS like the back of his hand, and spent several months in Kingdom of Japan Pro Wrestling, learning the intricacies of Japan and puroresu. But the catalyst in this match was the addition of a referee at the behest of Cleon Gray; prized student Brianna Singer! Singer hid nothing in her disdain for Sydney, as well as her preference for Iwakuma, with slow and fast counts throughout the match. After a Dead Space by Iwakuma, a fast count from Singer led to the win for the HATE leader! Iwakuma's student, Eve, attacked Sydney post match, while Angela Jameson, one of the teachers of Sydney, attempted to attack Singer, only to see her saved by Iwakuma.
One half of the (R)Evolution Wrestling Tag Champions, Black Jones of Rush Hour, interrupted Tom Matheny backstage. Black threw shoutouts to his friends, his tag partner, and his family back in Philadelphia.
Keeping the spotlight on (R)Evolution, their Title was on the line next, as champion Brando Martial took on challenger Shinji Uchikawa. Indeed, the (R)Evolution Wrestling commentary team of Darrin Stearns and Minoru Asano took over the broadcast as the crowd rallied behind the home country star, Shinji. The two put on a showcase of what EXODUS' future will be, with Brando hitting his second Atlas Shrugged to pull out the win and retain his title!
Up next was a pair of looks into the preparation of two different entities; first, Kerry Windsor was joined in the locker room by his wife Sheree in anticipation of his International Title opportunity. Elsewhere, the former EXODUS World Tag Team Champions, the Short Change Heroes (Abby Park & Johnny Cannon) prepared for an opportunity to regain their titles.
It was one of the most anticipated matches of the evening, as the newly crowned World Tag Team Champions, The Generation of Miracles, defended against two pairs of former champs, TROUBLE and The Short Change Heroes, as well as Dragons Unleashed! Leading off were Evangelista of Dragons Unleashed, and former EXODUS World Champion Johnny Cannon of the Short Change Heroes. The pairings fluctuated throughout the match, with Vanessa Cade of The Generation of Miracles and Laurel Anne Hardy faced off in an evenly contested portion. Abby Park inserted herself into the match, facing off with Cade, nearly pulling off the win...until her partner tagged himself in! Cannon went on a tear, and prepared to finish Vanessa with his trademark Roundhouse Kick...until Abby tagged herself back in! This was too much for "Mr. EXODUS," who had all he could take and used that Roundhouse...on ABBY! With Park out cold, and Cannon leaving her for dead, the Short Change Heroes were eliminated...not just from the match, but from existence!
Both Leander Apollo (Generation of Miracles) and "The Big L" Steve Lenton of TROUBLE entered the match for the first time. In what would be considered a "dream match" all on its own, one of the homegrown stars of EXODUS took the fight to Leander, the two men trading holds and blows. Lenton gained the advantage, bringing in his partner, Wulf Erikssen, to try and take the Champions out of the match. From there, it devolved into a standard tag match, letting Dragons Unleashed catch a break from earlier in the match. In the end, the Golden Elbow of Vanessa Cade found the cranium of Wulf Erikssen, eliminating TROUBLE from contention and leaving only two teams!
Everyone from the fans in the back row, to the announcers at ringside, were sure that The Generation of Miracles had retained their titles when Leander hit an Avalanche Exploder Suplex on Laurel Anne, but she somehow kicked out! Instead, it was the Snap Dragon stereo spinning kicks from Laurel Anne and Evangelista to secure the win and the first title change of the night! Dragons Unleashed claim the EXODUS World Tag Team Titles, becoming the 8th champions in a potentially show stealing encounter!
Backstage, Jonathan Collins was met with a visitor...the former Turk, and former EXODUS World Champion, Andreas Lasiewicz! But Andreas wasn't here for a tender reunion between friends; instead, he was here to accuse Collins of not being the leader he claimed to be. Lasiewicz revealed his fate; confined to a wheelchair since his World Title loss to Johnny Cannon. He jabbed an accusatory finger at Collins, calling him "the greatest coward of all," and calling the war against G&M lost.
The action in the ring resumed with the International Title match, pitting champion Lexy Chapel against challenger Kerry Windsor! Early on it seemed that Windsor had his back against the ropes, but his experience allowed him to take advantage. As the match wore on, Kerry began taking out the leg of Chapel, limiting her speed advantage and exploiting his ring savvy. Kerry hit his Change In Plan combo, and nearly had the win, but Lexy kicked out at two! The champ regained control, hitting her modified STO, the Union Jack Attack, for two. Lexy attempted to head up top, but was caught, then dropped with a top rope neckbreaker that ALSO only got two! The pair battled some more, before Lexy hit a Dental Check springboard kick, but was unable to capitalize, due to her injured leg! All looked lost for Chapel as Kerry Windsor regained the advantage, even locking in his Cold Zero cross-legged STF, but somehow...Lexy made it to the ropes. Lexy tried once more to head up top, but was caught...only to fight her way out of being thrown off the top rope, and risking everything on her London's Falling double stomp...which was JUST enough to get the three and retain her title in an incredible match!
After peeking in on Jonathan and Fiona Collins, it was back to the ring for the second Gods & Monsters match of the night, with Sally Talfourd taking on WEAPON. Before the match, WEAPON promised on Twitter that his mask would come off tonight; however, Sally promised to remove the mask herself, presumably to keep it as a trophy. The "Fail-Safe" of EXODUS seemed to almost pick up the win early, using green mist to blind Sally before rolling her up, but only for two. The match was even after that, but Sally assumed control, taking out WEAPON's arm. She spent the next several minutes thrashing the left arm of WEAPON, which eventually worked against the Fail-Safe, as Sally rolled him up for a three count after a low blow! G&M improved to 2-0 on the night, with only the World Champion remaining.
However, WEAPON wasn't done for the night, hitting Sally with the Meteor, then dropping her through the table reserved for the Japanese commentary team with the Megaflare! He made no bones about it; his next target? Christum Furor himself! Backstage, Darrin Stearns came across Jonathan Collins' bag...where he found the blue mask of WEAPON?
The semi-main event was up next; the long standing feud between Christian Kane and Brett Sands finally came to a head. The rivalry which had stretched back to the time Kane filled in as Director of EXODUS had finally reached its apex, as both men met for likely the final time. With no holds barred, plenty of weapons came into play, including the steel post, the ring stairs, and the barricade separating ringside from the fans! Kane had an early opportunity to win with his STKO and a moonsault, but neither could put Sands away. Brett used a giant swing, as well as a vicious discus lariat to claim the advantage, but after a Dream Killer, it was CK's turn to surprise the fans with a kickout! Kane hit his Shocker scissor kick, but even that only produced a two count! In the end, however, it was Kane's SSK that put the lights out for Brett Sands, and ended the rivalry once and for all! If the victory wasn't enough...fans were surprised to see Brett actually HUG his blood rival before seemingly leave EXODUS.
In his final comments before the main event, Christum Furor recalled his last singles match with Fiona Collins (then Fiona Rourke), at EXODUS Endgame last year. The show that saw the end of LEGION (and heralded the birth of Gods & Monsters) began a path that led to this night; the first one on one match between Furor and Collins since that date.
Despite the bad blood between the World Champion and his challenger, both acknowledged going into the match the respect each held for the other. Thus, the World Title match between Champion Christum Furor and Challenger Fiona Collins began with a battle of technical prowess. An early attempt at a Shinigami from Fiona sent Furor to the outside, but the chance to catch his breath did not last long, with Fiona chasing after him! Furor used his strength advantage to regain control of the match, but then turned his eyes to one of the (R)Evolution students working as ring crew...the ubiquitous Black Jones! His attempt to take out the student failed, however, as Jones hit a corkscrew kick, catching the champion off guard! The distraction of Jones being ejected and escorted from ringside was enough, however, for Fiona to regain control of the match.
Even without the power advantage, Fiona's speed and high flying ability kept her on the offensive, even when Furor attempted to turn the tide. The owner of the most defenses in EXODUS World Title history, Collins used her big match experience to nail her signature "Clear Eyes, Full Hearts, Can't Lose" combo! After locking in the OMEGA-16, Fiona seemed poised to reclaim the title that was once hers with a Shinigami! However, Savannah Taylor made her presence known, pulling the referee out of the ring! Fiona took her out with a dive, and looked for a second Shinigami...only to be CRUSHED with Furor's Hammer of Dawn...for the three...and the win. Christum Furor retained his title, with Gods & Monsters going 3-0 on the night.
But before the show could end, WEAPON made his presence known once more, taking Savannah Taylor back out of the equation, leaving only himself and Christum Furor in the ring! With every fan (and Furor himself) buzzing, WEAPON undid the mask, removing it to reveal...CHRIS STRIKE! Strike, who had been on hiatus from EXODUS, returned in dramatic fashion, revealing himself as the Fail-Safe of EXODUS, hitting the Champion with the Relampago and standing tall with Fiona, showing that EXODUS isn't dead just yet!
All this leads to EXODUS' return home to the RIMAC Arena in San Diego, California! Check out the card at exoduspro.boards.net/thread/2472/expro-on-fx-20 and we'll be back soon with our TV recap, "The Ups & Downs of EXPRO on FX."
EXODUS encroached upon Tokyo's legendary Korakuen Hall for their latest iPPV, Ascendancy. The show opened for the live fans with a special (R)Evolution Wrestling match; for the uninitiated, (R)Evolution Wrestling is the development camp for the future stars of EXODUS Pro Wrestling, under the leadership of Darrin Stearns. Aries Reed, a student of "The Big Bad Brooks," Justin Brooks, took on the newest student of Director Jonathan Collins, Carey Dean. Carey, known for his short temper, attacked Aries outside of the ring with a lead pipe provided by his manager/friend, Tom Higashikata, drawing a DQ victory for (R)Evolution's master of the Dragon Sleeper!
1,800 fans greeted the world in Tokyo as Ascendancy went on the air, kicking off with a match between two exciting newcomers; the masked Demento, and the Global Division of Wrestling veteran Samantha Raine. The two brawled, spilling to the outside and spilling color commentator Seth Ericson's popcorn! The result was both competitors struggling, but failing to reenter the ring before the referee's count reached its apex, a double countout draw!
The mood changed swiftly as Gods and Monsters made their entrance. The faction, led by EXODUS World Champion Christum Furor, also features San Diego Bay Champion Savannah Taylor, as well as former "Survive & Conquer" participant Sally Talfourd. G&M, which formed on the night of EXODUS' debut on the FX network, has terrorized EXODUS for nearly an entire year, and currently holds half of EXODUS' title belts. Savannah Taylor, ahead of her title defense against Jessica Lasiewicz, addressed the audience, followed by Sally Talfourd, herself paired against the mysterious WEAPON, then told the fans to remember the night ahead of them for the rest of their lives. Finally, the microphone was turned over to the World Champion himself, as he heralded the end of his opponent, Fiona Collins.
Backstage, a shadowy figure lockpicked his way into the office of 40% owner of EXODUS, Cleon Gray. Gray, the brother of majority owner Nicholas Gray (though we're still not sure how), was addressing his "Right Hand of Discipline," only to find that he was being eavesdropped on by EXODUS' #1 dissident, Zack Lifer! Lifer, the thorn in the side of both Christum Furor and Cleon Gray, has been stuck in "Detention" by Gray, resulting in handicap matches and one match against Furor with an arm tied behind his back! The "Right Hand of Discipline," Justin Brooks, then attacked Lifer, but was called off by Gray before he could do any real damage before the two met in the ring later that night!
Back in the ring, it was time for the debut of EXODUS' newest addition, Deron Franklin and The #Derontourage! Taking on Joey Edwards, Deron and Edwards engaged in a fast-paced, high impact match that ended with Deron kicking out of Edwards' End Product backbreaker, and hitting his Chocolate Thunder 630 degree senton for the win.
After an announcement of the next iPPV, "Long Way Down," it was time for the next match; Kliff Ulysses taking on former Insurgency Wrestling Federation star Chuck Matthews. The match looked well in the hands of Kliff Ulysses, but he jumped off the ropes and right into a Hollywood Impact, with Chuck picking up the win, and a big step of momentum toward a title opportunity!
(R)Evolution Wrestling's Carey Dean was backstage, having a conversation with Cailey Carter, the sister of Knoxville Wrestling Institute's Cassidy Carter, herself another student of Jonathan Collins. Cassidy was recently kidnapped and possibly brainwashed at the hands of SCW's Rachel Foxx of the Sinistry. In an attempt to "rescue" Cassidy, Jonathan encouraged Cailey and Carey to take off for Knoxville, where this week KWI presents "Lightning in a Bottle," to track down and at least talk to Cassidy, if not also handle Celeste Archer and Jaina Frost, two more students of Foxx.
The earlier attack was merely a prelude to our next match; Zack Lifer one-on-one against "The Big Bad Brooks," the former three-time Universal Wrestling League champion, Justin Brooks! The powerful Brooks controlled the match early on, his unmatched power game being used to throw Zack Lifer around like a child. Lifer seemed to mount a comeback several times, but each time Brooks used his strength to regain control of the match. However, when Justin went for his Hook 'N Ladder finisher, Lifer saw an opportunity, rolled him up, and even used the ropes for extra leverage to pick up the win! Post match, Cleon Gray distracted Lifer just long enough for Brooks to his his Reminder lariat, followed by locking in the Flashover rear naked choke to make Lifer pass out. Safe to say, the feud between Lifer and Cleon Gray/Justin Brooks isn't over just yet.
Tom Matheny was backstage, and with him was EXODUS Pro International Champion, Lexy Chapel! Chapel was preparing for her title defense against Kerry Windsor, and was very candid with her thoughts. Lexy was unsure of her chances in tonight's title defense against the world class challenger, but promised that her focus wasn't on anything in the future, but on the International Title that sits on her shoulder!
The first title match of the night was up next, as Savannah Taylor put her San Diego Bay Title on the line against the daughter of former EXODUS World Champion Andreas Lasiewicz, Jessica Lasiewicz! What started as an even match devolved into an even all-out brawl, ending with both women on their back as the ref attempted to count them out! In the end, both women arose, but it was Savannah Taylor who hit two forearms, followed by the Siren's Song for the win and retaining the San Diego Bay Title!
After his loss earlier, Kliff Ulysses ran into a different threat; three members of The Derontourage! O'Shay Edwards, Walt Franklin Jr, and DaShaun Thompson all antagonized Kliff, telling him that Deron Franklin was not only gunning for him, but "obviously" better in the ring! Kliff was perplexed, not only at the situation, but at the existence of, as he put it, "Dijon" Franklin.
Elsewhere, a victorious but beaten down Zack Lifer encountered Dragons Unleashed, the former Pro Wrestling FRONTIER Tag Team Champions. The three seemed to form an alliance; separate from the EXODUS Sekigun, which has had issues with Zack Lifer in the past, but also separate from the various factions aiming to destroy the promotion, such as Gods & Monsters and HATE.
Speaking of HATE, its leader, Daisuke Iwakuma, was in action next! The former leader of LEGION took to the ring against a (R)Evolution Wrestling member who has had recent issues with him, Sydney Christensen. Two weeks prior, Iwakuma and partner Kameron Chase took on the unlikely duo of World Champion Christum Furor and Fiona Collins; when Furor abandoned his Ascendancy opponent, Christensen tried to enter the match herself, almost leading to her and Fiona winning the match! Regardless, these two faced off at Ascendancy, with nothing but pride on the line. Iwakuma isn't a seasoned veteran, but he knows EXODUS like the back of his hand, and spent several months in Kingdom of Japan Pro Wrestling, learning the intricacies of Japan and puroresu. But the catalyst in this match was the addition of a referee at the behest of Cleon Gray; prized student Brianna Singer! Singer hid nothing in her disdain for Sydney, as well as her preference for Iwakuma, with slow and fast counts throughout the match. After a Dead Space by Iwakuma, a fast count from Singer led to the win for the HATE leader! Iwakuma's student, Eve, attacked Sydney post match, while Angela Jameson, one of the teachers of Sydney, attempted to attack Singer, only to see her saved by Iwakuma.
One half of the (R)Evolution Wrestling Tag Champions, Black Jones of Rush Hour, interrupted Tom Matheny backstage. Black threw shoutouts to his friends, his tag partner, and his family back in Philadelphia.
Keeping the spotlight on (R)Evolution, their Title was on the line next, as champion Brando Martial took on challenger Shinji Uchikawa. Indeed, the (R)Evolution Wrestling commentary team of Darrin Stearns and Minoru Asano took over the broadcast as the crowd rallied behind the home country star, Shinji. The two put on a showcase of what EXODUS' future will be, with Brando hitting his second Atlas Shrugged to pull out the win and retain his title!
Up next was a pair of looks into the preparation of two different entities; first, Kerry Windsor was joined in the locker room by his wife Sheree in anticipation of his International Title opportunity. Elsewhere, the former EXODUS World Tag Team Champions, the Short Change Heroes (Abby Park & Johnny Cannon) prepared for an opportunity to regain their titles.
It was one of the most anticipated matches of the evening, as the newly crowned World Tag Team Champions, The Generation of Miracles, defended against two pairs of former champs, TROUBLE and The Short Change Heroes, as well as Dragons Unleashed! Leading off were Evangelista of Dragons Unleashed, and former EXODUS World Champion Johnny Cannon of the Short Change Heroes. The pairings fluctuated throughout the match, with Vanessa Cade of The Generation of Miracles and Laurel Anne Hardy faced off in an evenly contested portion. Abby Park inserted herself into the match, facing off with Cade, nearly pulling off the win...until her partner tagged himself in! Cannon went on a tear, and prepared to finish Vanessa with his trademark Roundhouse Kick...until Abby tagged herself back in! This was too much for "Mr. EXODUS," who had all he could take and used that Roundhouse...on ABBY! With Park out cold, and Cannon leaving her for dead, the Short Change Heroes were eliminated...not just from the match, but from existence!
Both Leander Apollo (Generation of Miracles) and "The Big L" Steve Lenton of TROUBLE entered the match for the first time. In what would be considered a "dream match" all on its own, one of the homegrown stars of EXODUS took the fight to Leander, the two men trading holds and blows. Lenton gained the advantage, bringing in his partner, Wulf Erikssen, to try and take the Champions out of the match. From there, it devolved into a standard tag match, letting Dragons Unleashed catch a break from earlier in the match. In the end, the Golden Elbow of Vanessa Cade found the cranium of Wulf Erikssen, eliminating TROUBLE from contention and leaving only two teams!
Everyone from the fans in the back row, to the announcers at ringside, were sure that The Generation of Miracles had retained their titles when Leander hit an Avalanche Exploder Suplex on Laurel Anne, but she somehow kicked out! Instead, it was the Snap Dragon stereo spinning kicks from Laurel Anne and Evangelista to secure the win and the first title change of the night! Dragons Unleashed claim the EXODUS World Tag Team Titles, becoming the 8th champions in a potentially show stealing encounter!
Backstage, Jonathan Collins was met with a visitor...the former Turk, and former EXODUS World Champion, Andreas Lasiewicz! But Andreas wasn't here for a tender reunion between friends; instead, he was here to accuse Collins of not being the leader he claimed to be. Lasiewicz revealed his fate; confined to a wheelchair since his World Title loss to Johnny Cannon. He jabbed an accusatory finger at Collins, calling him "the greatest coward of all," and calling the war against G&M lost.
The action in the ring resumed with the International Title match, pitting champion Lexy Chapel against challenger Kerry Windsor! Early on it seemed that Windsor had his back against the ropes, but his experience allowed him to take advantage. As the match wore on, Kerry began taking out the leg of Chapel, limiting her speed advantage and exploiting his ring savvy. Kerry hit his Change In Plan combo, and nearly had the win, but Lexy kicked out at two! The champ regained control, hitting her modified STO, the Union Jack Attack, for two. Lexy attempted to head up top, but was caught, then dropped with a top rope neckbreaker that ALSO only got two! The pair battled some more, before Lexy hit a Dental Check springboard kick, but was unable to capitalize, due to her injured leg! All looked lost for Chapel as Kerry Windsor regained the advantage, even locking in his Cold Zero cross-legged STF, but somehow...Lexy made it to the ropes. Lexy tried once more to head up top, but was caught...only to fight her way out of being thrown off the top rope, and risking everything on her London's Falling double stomp...which was JUST enough to get the three and retain her title in an incredible match!
After peeking in on Jonathan and Fiona Collins, it was back to the ring for the second Gods & Monsters match of the night, with Sally Talfourd taking on WEAPON. Before the match, WEAPON promised on Twitter that his mask would come off tonight; however, Sally promised to remove the mask herself, presumably to keep it as a trophy. The "Fail-Safe" of EXODUS seemed to almost pick up the win early, using green mist to blind Sally before rolling her up, but only for two. The match was even after that, but Sally assumed control, taking out WEAPON's arm. She spent the next several minutes thrashing the left arm of WEAPON, which eventually worked against the Fail-Safe, as Sally rolled him up for a three count after a low blow! G&M improved to 2-0 on the night, with only the World Champion remaining.
However, WEAPON wasn't done for the night, hitting Sally with the Meteor, then dropping her through the table reserved for the Japanese commentary team with the Megaflare! He made no bones about it; his next target? Christum Furor himself! Backstage, Darrin Stearns came across Jonathan Collins' bag...where he found the blue mask of WEAPON?
The semi-main event was up next; the long standing feud between Christian Kane and Brett Sands finally came to a head. The rivalry which had stretched back to the time Kane filled in as Director of EXODUS had finally reached its apex, as both men met for likely the final time. With no holds barred, plenty of weapons came into play, including the steel post, the ring stairs, and the barricade separating ringside from the fans! Kane had an early opportunity to win with his STKO and a moonsault, but neither could put Sands away. Brett used a giant swing, as well as a vicious discus lariat to claim the advantage, but after a Dream Killer, it was CK's turn to surprise the fans with a kickout! Kane hit his Shocker scissor kick, but even that only produced a two count! In the end, however, it was Kane's SSK that put the lights out for Brett Sands, and ended the rivalry once and for all! If the victory wasn't enough...fans were surprised to see Brett actually HUG his blood rival before seemingly leave EXODUS.
In his final comments before the main event, Christum Furor recalled his last singles match with Fiona Collins (then Fiona Rourke), at EXODUS Endgame last year. The show that saw the end of LEGION (and heralded the birth of Gods & Monsters) began a path that led to this night; the first one on one match between Furor and Collins since that date.
Despite the bad blood between the World Champion and his challenger, both acknowledged going into the match the respect each held for the other. Thus, the World Title match between Champion Christum Furor and Challenger Fiona Collins began with a battle of technical prowess. An early attempt at a Shinigami from Fiona sent Furor to the outside, but the chance to catch his breath did not last long, with Fiona chasing after him! Furor used his strength advantage to regain control of the match, but then turned his eyes to one of the (R)Evolution students working as ring crew...the ubiquitous Black Jones! His attempt to take out the student failed, however, as Jones hit a corkscrew kick, catching the champion off guard! The distraction of Jones being ejected and escorted from ringside was enough, however, for Fiona to regain control of the match.
Even without the power advantage, Fiona's speed and high flying ability kept her on the offensive, even when Furor attempted to turn the tide. The owner of the most defenses in EXODUS World Title history, Collins used her big match experience to nail her signature "Clear Eyes, Full Hearts, Can't Lose" combo! After locking in the OMEGA-16, Fiona seemed poised to reclaim the title that was once hers with a Shinigami! However, Savannah Taylor made her presence known, pulling the referee out of the ring! Fiona took her out with a dive, and looked for a second Shinigami...only to be CRUSHED with Furor's Hammer of Dawn...for the three...and the win. Christum Furor retained his title, with Gods & Monsters going 3-0 on the night.
But before the show could end, WEAPON made his presence known once more, taking Savannah Taylor back out of the equation, leaving only himself and Christum Furor in the ring! With every fan (and Furor himself) buzzing, WEAPON undid the mask, removing it to reveal...CHRIS STRIKE! Strike, who had been on hiatus from EXODUS, returned in dramatic fashion, revealing himself as the Fail-Safe of EXODUS, hitting the Champion with the Relampago and standing tall with Fiona, showing that EXODUS isn't dead just yet!
All this leads to EXODUS' return home to the RIMAC Arena in San Diego, California! Check out the card at exoduspro.boards.net/thread/2472/expro-on-fx-20 and we'll be back soon with our TV recap, "The Ups & Downs of EXPRO on FX."