Post by fifthhorseman on Apr 28, 2019 22:48:00 GMT -5
MLW FRIDAY NIGHT HEAT
EPISODE 28
EPISODE 28
60-second video montage recapping the events of last week’s show, followed by title graphics and explosive pyro.
Joey Styles: “Good evening, wrestling fans, and welcome to MLW Friday Night Heat – the most exciting 90 minutes of wrestling on television today! I’m Joey Styles, and to my left, a man who wields a considerable amount of power in Major League Wrestling right now, the one and only ‘Rowdy’ Roddy Piper. He’ll help me call the action tonight, but… wait, I’m being told that we’re going to go to the ring for some sort of announcement.”
Howard Finkel: “Ladies and gentlemen, the MLW World Heavyweight champion, the ‘Million Dollar Man’, Ted DiBiase!”
The curtain parted for the arrogant DiBiase, who was followed by Irwin R. Schyster, Keith Lee, and John “Bradshaw” Layfield. The quartet sauntered to the ring, and upon entering, it was the big Texan who spoke first.
JBL: “Let me tell you, it is a honor to share the ring with these men right here. And if you can’t figure out why I’m standing in this ring with them, then that’s your fault. I’m a businessman, plain and simple, and Mr. DiBiase and myself, we’ve formed an alliance. All of my skills and assets, together with all of his. A conglomerate, if you will.”
“After I took care of Bobby Eaton last week, I went to the locker room, shaved and got a quick haircut, and made it official. I wasn’t trying to trick anybody, or fake anyone out – nope. Just felt like cleanin’ up, that’s all. And now I’m here, as part of this incredible organization, and you can expect some changes. In fact, Ted, I know that you have some news of your own, right?”
DiBiase chuckled as he took the microphone from JBL. “That’s absolutely correct. You probably know that I helped facilitate the MUW World championship match taking place at Heatwave in just a couple of weeks. MLW’s very own Roddy Piper” – and he paused, and smirked at the equally heelish Piper on commentary – “versus Seth Rollins. Isn’t that going to be a fantastic match?”
The crowd replied with a mixture of cheers and boos; it was obvious that DiBiase didn’t want to put himself in a situation where Piper could call in his MLW World title match at a moment’s notice, and he found a way out of it. He continued: “And I don’t know if you;ve heard, but Commissioner Norris also scheduled a four-team tournament, starting tonight, to determine the number one contender for the World Tag-Team titles. Unfortunately, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I’ve been told that one of those teams, the Road Warriors, won’t be here tonight. They took a previously-scheduled booking overseas. Of all the luck! So, Mr. Steinbrenner called me and said, ‘Ted, I know you aren’t on the Heatwave card yet, but would you mind stepping in to take the Road Warriors’ place in the tournament? Maybe you’ll get on that big show after all.”
All four men laughed, and DiBiase went on. “Well, we obviously haven’t time for prepare, so I said we would on one condition. Our opponents have been preparing all week for this, and why, we just found out about it! So, it’ll be a handicap match, a small, small measure to help even things up… and guess what? Howard, we’re here, we’re ready to go – call them out!”
The REVIVAL vs. MONEY INC. and JBL (w/Keith Lee):
vs.
vs.
Dawson and Wilder were furious. They had been notified earlier in the week that they’d be facing Money Inc., not the Road Warriors – despite the way DiBiase spun and glossed over the details - but not under handicap rules. They marched down to the ring, determined to figure out a way to get past the three formidable opponents in front of them.
Surprisingly, the stipulation was not as critical as one might imagine. As Piper of all people noted, in a traditional handicap match (two on one), the single man never has a chance to tag out. In a three on two, it did at least afford the short-handed team a chance to get a fresh man in the ring. That all said, the Revival was still up against a trio that had about a dozen World Tag-team belts between them, as well as their massive executive assistant on the outside.
The heels dominated in large stretches, using their mass to slow the pace. JBL was impressive in his MLW debut, and rag-dolled both of his opponents throughout the bout. However, the former Horsemen bucked the odds; after all five men exchanged a variety of near-finishers, Dawson hit IRS with a spinebuster, and Wilder hit a plancha to neutralize DiBiase and JBL on the floor. It was a hard-fought victory for the Revival – and perhaps their biggest ever – and they took the contest at 13:32.
The winners slowly backed up the ramp, wary of any sneak-attack. They were shocked to see Lee gently pick Schyster up, only to have JBL deliver a decapitating clothesline from Hell to “the Taxman”, and then it went to
COMMERCIAL
A 60-second American Alpha vignette was aired, showcasing the team’s amateur and professional accolades. After it played, Styles and Piper discussed the shocking events that transpired just a couple of minutes earlier, and they told the audience that DiBiase, JBL, and Lee left Schyster lying in the ring until officials helped him to the backstage area.
Piper thought it was funny.
TULLY BLANCHARD and ARN ANDERSON (w/JJ Dillon) vs. EDGE and CHRISTIAN:
vs.
vs.
The multi-time WWE champs entered the ring first, followed by the Horsemen, whose faces betrayed no emotion. Styles wondered aloud what Tully and Arn’s motivation was in this match; after all, if they defeated E&C tonight, and the Revival next week, they’d be facing their colleagues for the most prestigious tag title in MUW.
This was a dream match. Equally sized, equally experienced, the epitome of wrestling as a unit. The advantage switched between the two teams several times, and Dillon was the X-factor on the floor, aiding his duo and barking at the referee whenever he could. The match rocketed past the 15-minute mark, and Styles wondered if either team could score before the 20-minute time limit. Luckily, it did, with seconds to spare.
Edge was outside the ring, a fistful of Dillon’s shirt in his hands; the manager tripped him moments earlier, and the “Rated-R Superstar” had had enough. The referee was also out there, trying to break it up, which gave the brain-busting heels on the inside time to set up Christian for a spike piledriver. But Edge spotted it out of the corner of his eye, and tripped Blanchard off the middle turnbuckle. Christian shocked everyone in attendance by reversing “Double-A’s’ grip on him, and he hit him with a Canadian destroyer. The crowd erupted as the “Instant Classic” finished off a classic of a match, pinning Anderson at 19:47.
COMMERCIAL
A camera was situated in one of the USF Sun Dome locker rooms, where Edge and Christian were congratulated by Owen Hart and Davey Boy Smith on their victory. As the winners departed, Smith said to Hart, “That should have been us, mate. We’re just as good as any team here.”
Hart: “And don’t you forget it… but the problem is, and even you have to admit… we’ve been in a bit of a slump lately. A few months ago, you could put us in the main event slot any night of the week and we’d deliver. Heck, you were the Wild Card champ for almost four months! But lately… well... there’s just something missing.”
The “British Bulldog” scowled. “What are you getting at?”
Hart: “Two things. We need a good kick in the butt to get us motivated again. And, there’s strength in numbers here in MLW, now more than ever – look at the Horsemen, or DiBiase’s crew… even the so-called 'Real Main Event'. So I made a call. Trust me, everything’s gonna be alright.”
MLW INTERCONTINENTAL TAG-TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
The ADDICTION (c) vs. the REAL MAIN EVENT (w/Roddy Piper):
vs.
The ADDICTION (c) vs. the REAL MAIN EVENT (w/Roddy Piper):
vs.
Highlights from the Addiction’s win over the Heroes of the Republic were shown, and this match was their first televised title defense. Big-time intros from Finkel before the bell rang, and the two teams stared each other through experienced eyes; all four were ring veterans, there would be no surprises in this battle.
The champions were outweighed by about 60 pounds, but that was nothing new to Daniels or Kazarian. The RME, with Piper in their corner (leaving Styles on commentary by himself), sought to slow things to a crawl, and to ground and pound their foes. Conversely, the “Fallen Angel” and the “Heavy Metal Rebel” wanted to isolate one of their opponents, and work a high-tempo offense on their half of the ring.
Thus, it was a battle to see whose strategy would work – and as Mike Tyson once said, “Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.” It was a see-saw struggle, and it wasn’t always pretty; Orndorff and Orton broke the rules whenever they could, but their opponents were no stranger to that side of wrestling, either. In the end, though, it was Piper’s antics on the outside that caused Daniels to slip off the top rope on a BME moonsault attempt; “Mr. Wonderful” wasted no time laying him out with a vicious piledriver, winning the match – and the titles – at 12:08. As the RME celebrated in the center of the ring, the “Hot Rod” looked at the camera and shouted, “We’re gonna win them all!”
COMMERCIAL
A vignette for the Hardy Boyz was shown, similar to last week’s video, but with a twist – at the end of the clip, Matt and Jeff issued an open challenge to any team in Major League Wrestling to meet them in their debut match at MLW Heatwave.
Styles: “I’ll be finishing off this broadcast solo, as the Real Main Event – your new MLW Intercontinental Tag-Team champions – are already gone, they’ve left to go celebrate, and I’m here by myself. But fans, that was only the first of two championship matches tonight! Let me remind you, Jay Briscoe will be defending the MLW Intercontinental Heavyweight gold in just a few moments, and as stipulated by Commissioner Norris, he will retain the title if he pins or submits either of his challengers. However, his challengers – Cactus Jack and Dave Batista – can only win by doing the same to each other!”
MLW INTERCONTINENTAL HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
DAVE BATISTA vs. JAY BRISCOE (c) vs. CACTUS JACK:
vs. vs.
DAVE BATISTA vs. JAY BRISCOE (c) vs. CACTUS JACK:
vs. vs.
Each man was seconded to the ring by his partner (Sid Vicious, Terry Funk, and Mark Briscoe), but all were told to go backstage before the match got underway. The referee had enough to worry about with these three maniacs; he didn’t want the other three madmen lurking at ringside.
Standard triple-threat rules: one fall to a finish, no countouts, no DQs. Once Finkel finished the introductions and the bell rang, it was semi-controlled chaos. Styles noted that Briscoe did have a bit of an advantage, in that the challengers would no doubt focus on pinning each other, leaving him relatively fresh. However, he also said, they both would also want to make sure that Jay was thoroughly incapacitated before they went for the fall.
The ring could not contain the action. Cactus Jack threw caution to the wind, as usual, using his body and whatever else he could get his hands on to thrive. Batista, on the other hand, wasn’t as eager to sustain such damage, as if protective of his body and Hollywood looks. Meanwhile, the champion attacked both men with reckless ferocity. Despite his appearance, the ROH stalwart was a shrewd competitor with plenty of championship experience; he felt in control.
Five minutes became ten, and the blood began to flow. Naturally, the wild man from Truth or Consequences was the worst for wear, and he bore a huge cut somewhere on his head. Briscoe had a wound above his right eye, and a longer cut across his back. Even “the Animal” was bleeding from the mouth. The tension was mounting – there were very few pin attempts thus far, so each one mattered.
Batista missed a spear, and he went flying to the floor. Inside the ring, Briscoe and Jack traded headbutts, and the champion took the worst of it. He collapsed to a knee, and Cactus set him up for a double-arm DDT. However, Briscoe backdropped him, but bridged back for the pin as well. Jack kicked out at two, but Briscoe stayed on him, hoisting the near-300-pounder up for the Jay Driller. He brought the challenger down with a devastating crash.
He rolled Jack over… and from out of nowhere, Batista was suddenly flying halfway across the ring with a shoulder-tackle, launching the champ between the ropes. He crawled over to Jack, and vultured the win at Briscoe’s expense. It was called at 13:10, and the crowd was stunned. Two matches, two title changes, and the night ended with Dave Batista holding the MLW Intercontinental title belt high overhead.