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OVW Rise 1298 Recap
With Independence Rage only days away, Rise 1298 felt extra important. The go-home show represented one final opportunity for everybody to garner their last ounces of momentum as we steamroll toward the pay-per-view special this Saturday night. On the flip side, the show also gave competitors room to crash and burn, suffering possible setbacks mentally and physically mere days before Independence Rage.
As expected, Rise 1298 was another must-see for OVW fans and anybody excited for Independence Rage (All of us). Fans at the Davis Arena were treated to another action-packed card featuring Women’s Champion Leila Grey and a mystery partner of her choosing against number one contender, Tiffany Nieves and a mystery partner of her choosing, along with high-profile matches featuring OVW’s biggest names including the likes of Carson Drake, Kal Herro, Crixus, Jack Vaughn, Will Austin, Tony Gunn, Luke Kurtis, and EC3 respectively!
At a Glance
Mount Kideem Vs. Sebastian
AJZ and Dalton Mckenzie Vs. Boy Toy Troy and Star Player Prime
Orion and Brandon Lee Vs. Dustin Jackson and Jake Lawless
Carson Drake Vs Koda Jacobs
Amir Vs. Super-Z
EC3 and Revolution Talk Independence Rage
Will Austin Vs. Iceman Justice Davis
Jamin Olivencia Vs. Star Rider
Leila Grey (C) and Mystery Partner Vs. Tiffany Nieves and Mystery Partner
Contract Signing Plus Kal Herro (C), Luke Kurtis, and Jack Vaughn Vs. Tony Gunn, EC3 (C), and Crixus (C) (Special Guest Referee Doug Basham)
Match 1: Mount Kideem Vs. Sebastian
Sebastian looked to impress the OVW faithful in his debut match against the Immovable Mount Kideem. Sebastian is a big man in his own right, but dwarfed in size standing across the ring from the big man from St. Louis.
Unsurprisingly, Kideem used his size as a weapon while simultaneously showing off his impressive speed reminiscent of his days as a CFL football player. While Sebastian showed his raw potential, a few two-handed Chops, Biel Throws, and a thunderous Samoan Drop later, the match was over.
Result: Mount Kideem DEFEATS Sebastian
Match 2: AJZ and Dalton McKenzie Vs. Boy Toy Troy and Star Player Prime
Before the show began, the newest members of the OVW roster, The Revolution, announced AJZ as their newest member as he tagged with Dalton McKenzie against the team of Boy Toy Troy and Prime.
Prior to the bell, AJZ and McKenzie attacked an unsuspecting Prime and Troy, giving them the advantage before the contest even began. Once the bell rang, the savage beating, which included AJZ biting the head of Boy Toy Troy and a double Back Body Drop, continued.
The Revolution members effectively cut the ring in half, continuing the brutal beating of Troy before allowing him to tag in his partner Prime. The ladder had no better luck as a Rolling Spear from AJZ and a Splash from McKenzie put Prime and Troy away.
Result: AJZ and Dalton McKenzie DEFEAT Boy Toy Troy and Prime
Match 3: Orion and Brandon Lee Vs. Dustin Jackson and Jake Lawless
Ahead of their Tag Team Title match on Saturday, Tusk N Chains joined the commentry table to watch the red-hot Number One Contenders in Jackson and Lawless square off against Orion and OVW newcomer Brandon Lee.
With the match underway, Orion and Lee took it to the Number One Contenders, shrugging off an early assault and isolating Lawless. The underdogs worked like a well-oiled machine until the Flawless made a tag to the former five-time OVW Tag Team Champion Dustin Jackson who cleared the ring to regain control for his team.
After an assisted Moonsault from Lawless took out Lee and Orion ringside, the Number One Contenders hit their Thunder Valley finisher for the win despite a good outing for Orion and Lee.
Result: Dustin Jackson and Jake Lawless DEFEAT Orion and Brandon Lee
Match 4: Carson Drake vs Koda Jacobs
Fresh off of getting the news that Al Snow made his match with Tony Evans at Independence Rage official, Carson Drake interrupted Koda Jacobs mid-speech as he bragged about being trustworthy during this critical time in our nation’s crossroads. Predictably, Jacobs didn’t take too kindly to being interrupted, throwing his campaign sign at Drake before transitioning to the attack. Drake reversed, hitting an Atomic Drop and Bodyslam before using the sign to show off and give Drake a taste of his own medicine.
Suddenly, Tony Evans emerged, entering the ring mid-match to deny his beat down on Mick Foley. While distracted, Dinero attacked Drake from behind before the three ganged up on a defenseless Drake, ending the match in a Disqualification. Drake suffered at the hands of Jacobs, Evans, and Dinero, taking a shot from the sign to the face as well as Dinero’s knockout punch.
Result: Carson Drake DEFEATS Koda Jacobs (Disqualification)
Match 5: Amir Vs. Super-Z
While still making his entrance, Super-Z was attacked from behind by Amir, setting him up for failure before the match even began. Add in the other half of Beaches and Cream and Crystal White beating Super-Z on the outside, he also found himself battling the numbers game.
The high-flyer taught OVW fans about his deep levels of resilience, however, as he fought to claw back into the match with a rolling Jawbreaker and Super Hurricanrana. The two men continued exchanging maneuvers until the superhero Luchador hit a Springboard Crossbody for a surprise three-count victory.
Result: Super-Z (W/ Shera) DEFEATS Amir
Segment: EC3 (C) and Revolution Talk Independence Rage
Entering with the rest of The Revolution, EC3 hyped up Crixus and company before Luke Kurtis emerged, calling EC3 selfish for not defending the OVW National Heavyweight Championship consistently over the last year. He vowed to bring the title back to Davis Arena consistently, also informing Revolution that he’ll have Doug Basham in his corner to even the odds.
Match 6: Will Austin Vs. Iceman Justice Davis
Will Austin looked to end his streak of bad luck ahead of his OVW Rush Division Championship rematch against Buzz Backlund at Independence Rage when he took on Iceman Justice Davis.
Austin wrestled angrily, like he had a chip on his shoulder, as he targeted Davis’s leg from the get-go. Despite a few moments where Iceman landed a couple of strikes, he was never able to fully get out of the gate. Austin locked in the Figure Four with extra force and emotion for a quick submission victory over Davis.
After the bell, Austin refused to let go of the hold, wrenching on the leg of the helpless Davis before Buzz Backlund emerged to make the save in the nick of time before challenging Austin to a Submission Match at Independence Rage.
Result: Will Austin DEFEATS Iceman Justice Davis
Match 7: Jamin Olivencia Vs. Star Rider
Representing The Revolution, Jamin Olivencia looked to defeat Star Rider in what promised to be a thrilling matchup between two of OVW’s brightest young stars. Both men traded blows before Olivencia caught Star Rider on the top rope with a Superplex, both preventing the high-flying offense that Star Rider relies on and giving the early advantage to the Revolution member.
He slowed the pace down, continuing the attack with a Snap Suplex, Back Body Drop, and German Suplex to ground the flier. While Star Rider mounted a mini comeback culminating in a Slingblade Neckbreaker, a misstep allowed Olivencia to hit the Standing O for the massive win.
Result: Jamin Olivencia DEFEATS Star Rider
Match 8: Leila Grey (C) and Mystery Partner Vs. Tiffany Nieves and Mystery Partner
OVW fans rose to their feet as they thought they were moments from seeing OVW Women’s Champion, Leila Grey, but after a few seconds, the infamous sound of a steel pipe echoed through Davis Arena from the backstage area. The camera caught Nieves red-handed, beating Grey with the pipe before Grey’s mystery partner Sophia Rose came to the rescue.
Rose dragged the Number One Contender outside before beating the daylights out of Nieves all around the ring. Nieves was only able to stop the beating after a strike to the throat of Rose, allowing Nieves to throw salt, yes salt, into the eyes of Sophia effectively blinding her. Nieves added insult to injury, locking in the Texas Cloverleaf before finally leaving the ring.
Result: No Contest
Segment and Match 9: Contract Signing for OVW Media Championship Plus Kal Herro (C), Luke Kurtis, and Jack Vaughn Vs. Tony Gunn, EC3 (C), and Crixus (C) (Special Guest Referee Doug Basham)
Before uttering a single word, an arrogant Tony Gunn signed the contract before carelessly tossing it across the table to the current Champion. Herro didn’t hesitate before signing as well.
It wouldn’t be a professional wrestling contract signing without fireworks, however, as Gunn began speaking about why he turned on Kal and the rest of OVW. He claimed Al promised him a championship match more than two years ago which he has yet to receive, yet Kal has been involved in title pictures since the moment he walked into OVW.
Tired of defending himself against accusations of nepotism, Kal reminded everyone that he earned every title shot, and he’s simply “just that good.”
Gunn reminded everyone that come this Saturday, neither Snow nor Kal’s dad David will be in the ring. He ended by giving Kal and David a literal gift, a T-shirt saying “Suck it up, Buttercup. This is pro wrestling.”
Understandably, this set Kal over the edge who threw the table to the side and began teeing off on Evans. This evidently brought out Crixus and EC3 to make the save, which of course brought out Kurtis and Vaughn to even the odds. Naturally, all six men were ready for battle.
From the get-go, it was clear that special guest referee Doug Basham would play a pivotal role in this matchup as it would be hard for him to remain unbiased given his injuries at the hands of The Revolution. The trio of Kurtis, Herro, and Vaughn punished Crixus early, but the Revolution members and EC3 were able to withstand the assault, turning the tables by isolating Herro.
Crixus, EC3, and Evans used frequent tags, constantly changing up their offense and keeping a fresh man in the ring to wear down Herro. Finally, the current Media Champion hit a Back Suplex on his Independence Rage opponent to create some much needed separation, tagging in Luke Kurtis. The Certified one didn’t have much better luck, getting distracted on the top rope by EC3 which allowed Evans to hit a Superplex to continue the beating.
In the end, Evans looked to hit Kurtis with s Killshot, but referee Doug Basham got in the way, letting Evans know he wasn’t the legal man. Evans shoved Basham to the side, giving Herro enough time to push Kurtis out of the way and roll up Evans for a huge victory.
Result: Kal Herro (C), Luke Kurtis, and Jack Vaughn DEFEAT Tony Gunn, EC3 (C), and Crixus (C) (Special Guest Referee Doug Basham)
Overall
Wow. Let’s all take a collective sigh of relief as Independence Rage is in fact, this Saturday. The show can’t come soon enough as tensions within the OVW locker room have officially reached a breaking point. After one of the most star-studded main events in OVW history, it was Jack Vaughn, but especially Luke Kurtis and Kal Herro, who secured big boosts of momentum heading into Saturday’s special. What does a pinfall victory over the Number One Contender do for the psyches of Herro and Evans respectively?
On the flip side, the Women’s Title match is looking extra competitive after Nieves assaulted the champion with a steel pipe. Nieves needed every bit of momentum after a disappointing Rise 1297, and she succeeded in doing so. Additionally, the Tag Team title picture is looking equally as competitive as both Tusk N Chains and Lawless and Jackson look unstoppable.
By this time next week, OVW Rise will most likely look a lot different as Independence Rage promises to be one of the most important shows in OVW history.
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