Post by Caleb Lockwood on Mar 23, 2013 1:11:39 GMT -6
”Two matches…two former World Champions…two victories. It seems that, instead of carrying that momentum through, those in charge have gone the ‘and now for something completely different’ route. A triple threat with someone else who’s clawing his way back into relevance…and someone who’s been lucky enough to get hauled along by a wrestler of far greater accomplishment and stature than him. Well, metaphorical stature. This is good, though. It’s a match, it’s an opportunity to make my case…for why I think I should get a shot at the Coliseum.”
“You heard me right. The X Title is a fantastic prize, and I would love to redeem myself by taking it from James Warren. The man doesn’t embody the spirit that that title represents...say what you will about Alex Jones, and many will do just that, but he was the kind of man that laid the groundwork for that title’s being. The National Title’s in the hands of a man whose reputation does nothing but bolster the already great prestige of being its holder. I’m short a partner to challenge for the Tag Titles. But the World Championship…my trainer once told me—my entire class, as a matter of fact—that if we weren’t in this business to be the World Champion, to be the very best there was, that we could turn around and walk out the door. I’ve wanted to be the very best there was since Day One. And I’m ready to prove it further.”
“I’ve ramped up my game. Kicked things into a higher gear, so to speak. I pinned Steve Awesome on pay-per-view, I pinned Jack Hammond for the whole world to see…but now, I have to manage two opponents. That’s quite the task, even for the Master of Gravity. I know I can do it, though. See, if I were a lesser man, I would be nervous about stepping into the ring with two athletes on the level of Stephen Kingsley and El Dragon de Valor. But then, if I were a lesser man, I wouldn’t have wins over men like Xavier Williams, Steve Awesome, Jack Hammond and Philip Burns. I would have walked out that door. But here I am.”
“Dragon, you and I both want the same thing: dignity. We’re both ready to earn it with our blood, sweat and tears, in the middle of this ring. You’re a former Tag Team Champion. People know just how good you are. And, no pun intended, it’ll be an honor to wrestle you. We both need to prove ourselves worthy of something bigger. It’s the question of who’s hungrier. Who wants this more. And trust me…I’ve been starved for so long that it’d take a truly titanic effort to put me down.”
“I invite you to do what you can, though, I want to see you break out on your own, Dragon. I want this to be the match where the world realizes that you’ve got all the makings of a star. You’ve got the skill, you’ve got the presence, you’ve got the look…the door’s right there, waiting for you to step through it. This match is the key to unlocking that door. And the greatest part? You don’t even have to win. Some people might write you off because you were a tag team specialist before this. What those people don’t realize is that knowing how to be an effective tag team member doesn’t make you a worse wrestler. Far from it. There are doubters out there, people who say you can’t go without Bushido. I say you show them EXACTLY what you’re capable of. Trust me. You’re gonna knock ‘em dead.”
“As for our mutual opponent…things haven’t been going too well for the Church of Thor, have they? Sure, you picked up a win over Close Encounters of the Awesome Kind last week, but there was definitely some fracturing in the ranks. Seems your buddy Cyrus, at least in the eyes of Grand High Wizard Curtis Kanyon, hasn’t been pulling his weight. Now, I don’t know about you, but if I had a guy who waved around a hammer and talked about how Thor was communicating his will through him telling me that my friend, the guy who I’d been to hell and back with, wasn’t living up to his standards, I’d tell him exactly what he could do with that hammer. And you’re a far more direct individual than I am, I’m willing to bet. So here’s my question: why don’t you?”
“Why don’t you just tell Kanyon to take that hammer, turn it sideways, and finish that sentence? You and Cyrus didn’t need him. You were one of the most powerful tag teams this company had. You could have been champions. Instead, you ended up playing second fiddle to a lunatic. Doesn’t that just chafe, Stephen? Doesn’t that just burn you up inside to know that he’s the one getting all the glory? When things go right, it’s because of him. When they go wrong, it’s because of you or Cyrus. Doesn’t seem like the math adds up there. You deserve better. Take it from someone who’s had to deal with the most demeaning of tasks…you deserve much better.”
“It seems like we’ve all got something to prove here. Stephen, you can prove that you’re more than dumb muscle for even dumber muscle. You can prove that you don’t need to have someone else sneering down their nose at you while you bust yourself trying to make a name for yourself in this business. Dragon, you can prove that you can succeed on your own, without having to have someone to tag in. You can work your way back up, just like you have been, and you can show the world the true meaning of valor. And as for me…I can take that one more step towards the big time. That shot at glory, that moment of validation…I want to step out of the shadow in which my entire career’s been conducted. I am my own man. I am my own wrestler. And I’m ready to be the man who Roberto Verona has to defeat come A Night To Remember. So…if you’re watching this, and I doubt you are, because I’m beneath your notice…don’t blink, Roberto. Don’t even blink. You might miss something...the rise of a new challenger, perhaps? Watch and see.”
“You heard me right. The X Title is a fantastic prize, and I would love to redeem myself by taking it from James Warren. The man doesn’t embody the spirit that that title represents...say what you will about Alex Jones, and many will do just that, but he was the kind of man that laid the groundwork for that title’s being. The National Title’s in the hands of a man whose reputation does nothing but bolster the already great prestige of being its holder. I’m short a partner to challenge for the Tag Titles. But the World Championship…my trainer once told me—my entire class, as a matter of fact—that if we weren’t in this business to be the World Champion, to be the very best there was, that we could turn around and walk out the door. I’ve wanted to be the very best there was since Day One. And I’m ready to prove it further.”
“I’ve ramped up my game. Kicked things into a higher gear, so to speak. I pinned Steve Awesome on pay-per-view, I pinned Jack Hammond for the whole world to see…but now, I have to manage two opponents. That’s quite the task, even for the Master of Gravity. I know I can do it, though. See, if I were a lesser man, I would be nervous about stepping into the ring with two athletes on the level of Stephen Kingsley and El Dragon de Valor. But then, if I were a lesser man, I wouldn’t have wins over men like Xavier Williams, Steve Awesome, Jack Hammond and Philip Burns. I would have walked out that door. But here I am.”
“Dragon, you and I both want the same thing: dignity. We’re both ready to earn it with our blood, sweat and tears, in the middle of this ring. You’re a former Tag Team Champion. People know just how good you are. And, no pun intended, it’ll be an honor to wrestle you. We both need to prove ourselves worthy of something bigger. It’s the question of who’s hungrier. Who wants this more. And trust me…I’ve been starved for so long that it’d take a truly titanic effort to put me down.”
“I invite you to do what you can, though, I want to see you break out on your own, Dragon. I want this to be the match where the world realizes that you’ve got all the makings of a star. You’ve got the skill, you’ve got the presence, you’ve got the look…the door’s right there, waiting for you to step through it. This match is the key to unlocking that door. And the greatest part? You don’t even have to win. Some people might write you off because you were a tag team specialist before this. What those people don’t realize is that knowing how to be an effective tag team member doesn’t make you a worse wrestler. Far from it. There are doubters out there, people who say you can’t go without Bushido. I say you show them EXACTLY what you’re capable of. Trust me. You’re gonna knock ‘em dead.”
“As for our mutual opponent…things haven’t been going too well for the Church of Thor, have they? Sure, you picked up a win over Close Encounters of the Awesome Kind last week, but there was definitely some fracturing in the ranks. Seems your buddy Cyrus, at least in the eyes of Grand High Wizard Curtis Kanyon, hasn’t been pulling his weight. Now, I don’t know about you, but if I had a guy who waved around a hammer and talked about how Thor was communicating his will through him telling me that my friend, the guy who I’d been to hell and back with, wasn’t living up to his standards, I’d tell him exactly what he could do with that hammer. And you’re a far more direct individual than I am, I’m willing to bet. So here’s my question: why don’t you?”
“Why don’t you just tell Kanyon to take that hammer, turn it sideways, and finish that sentence? You and Cyrus didn’t need him. You were one of the most powerful tag teams this company had. You could have been champions. Instead, you ended up playing second fiddle to a lunatic. Doesn’t that just chafe, Stephen? Doesn’t that just burn you up inside to know that he’s the one getting all the glory? When things go right, it’s because of him. When they go wrong, it’s because of you or Cyrus. Doesn’t seem like the math adds up there. You deserve better. Take it from someone who’s had to deal with the most demeaning of tasks…you deserve much better.”
“It seems like we’ve all got something to prove here. Stephen, you can prove that you’re more than dumb muscle for even dumber muscle. You can prove that you don’t need to have someone else sneering down their nose at you while you bust yourself trying to make a name for yourself in this business. Dragon, you can prove that you can succeed on your own, without having to have someone to tag in. You can work your way back up, just like you have been, and you can show the world the true meaning of valor. And as for me…I can take that one more step towards the big time. That shot at glory, that moment of validation…I want to step out of the shadow in which my entire career’s been conducted. I am my own man. I am my own wrestler. And I’m ready to be the man who Roberto Verona has to defeat come A Night To Remember. So…if you’re watching this, and I doubt you are, because I’m beneath your notice…don’t blink, Roberto. Don’t even blink. You might miss something...the rise of a new challenger, perhaps? Watch and see.”