Most Valuable Elitist #142

Rising Star of the Week

Mark Michaels

Mark Michaels is the Rising Star of the Week. The reason for that is because he won the fatal-five-way to determine the number one contender for the Hardcore Championship. In the match, there was a lot of impressive competition. From the likes of Lucas Johnson to Erebus Jennings and Ryan Wilson, it seemed like this match was anyones for the taking. I am quite surprised to see Mark Michaels be the one to walk away with the victory. He did a great job with taking advantage of the opportunity given to him and now find himself with a huge opportunity to become champion. To me, it seems like this will be one of Johnny Ventura’s more easier challengers, but Mark is someone not to underestimate, but I do not see Ventura losing the title in the first defense. I think that Ventura will keep the title for a little while longer. As for Mark, I do think that he will put up a fantastic showing and I’m glad that he is getting this opportunity, but it sucks being the first title defense because it can go any other way.

Beef of the Week

See MOTW

Show of the Week

Empire

As for Show of the Week, I give it to Empire. From beginning to end, I was impressed with the showing on this brand. Beginning the show with Flannery McCoy was great and different from the rest of the brands. It was nice to give a little recap of everything we have been through the rest of the season. It also raised some suspicions about who could be the Assistant General Manager of Empire? I expect him or her to compete with Flannery in a little of a power struggle We also begin the anticipating for Empress of Elite, which I believe will be anyones for the taking. I thought we had some great showings from the likes of Toni Gunn and Mali Evans. I am glad to see The Crowe’s Nest bounce back from their crushing losses at Pain for Pride. Whoever faces one of them should be very concerned. :lupe: We saw a great showing from our Openweight Champion, Andrea Valentine and cannot wait for whoever Showdown decides as their representative. As for the main event…

Match of the Week

Stephanie Matsuda vs. Astraea Jordan

…It is our Match of the Week! This was THE match in which to start of this Empire season quite well! I thought both girls did amazing and I would have been okay with either of them winning. There were multiple occasions in which Astraea Jordan could have walked away with the championship. I thought the moment Malcolm got the Joneset involved, I thought we were going to see some screwjob and Astraea to walk away from the victory. That moment got me on the edge of my seat and it would have been a pretty cool way to win the title. I love how Astraea did not give up even after ten C-Triggers. Almost reminds me of Chris Elite being hit with like five Kingslayers that one time. I thought she looked incredibly strong despite the loss. I’m not too concerned about her because I do think she will get her first title in the Unified Tag Team Championship on Showdown this weekend. As for Stephanie, I am not quite sure who will be the one to dethrone her, but I do think whoever wins Empress of Elite will have the best shot out of anyone. It should be interesting to who will be the one to take the title from the Iconic War Queen.

Promoer of the Week

Rex McAllister

For Promoer of the Week, I give it to Rex McAllister. Ever since losing the EAW Championship, I do think this man has been on fire. I think he is more than hungry to get a World Championship back on his shoulder. With this Triple Threat with Scott Diamond and Devan Dubian, I feel like the match could have gone any other way. I wasn’t quite sure if they wanted Rex back in the title picture so soon, but I do think that he will be Chris Elite’s biggest challenge to date. Rex has shown to be one of the best talkers in the locker room. He has shown to be one of the hungriest opponents you can be in the ring with. He is not an easy person to go against, so Chris better prepare for him because Rex can possibly take his title from him. I would not be shocked if that happens, but Chris has overcome his obstacles and has proven to be a strong champion in his own right. This match should be very exciting and one of the ones that I will be looking forward too.

Champion of the Week

Diamond Cage

Congrats to Diamond Cage on making it through his first title defense as EAW Champion! To me, it was kind of unexpecting for an EAW Championship match to happen on the season premiere of Showdown. If Empire can do it, why not Showdown? I thought it was a great way to start off the season! I thought it gave us a great idea to see what fire Diamond Cage had inside him and what we can expect approaching Midsummer Massacre. As for his next challenger, I think that may be The Revenant. It seems like all signs point to him. I think the Revenant will be a much more difficult challenger, but I think that Diamond Cage will be able to handle him. I don’t see him dropping the title yet. I think it will be too soon to determine who will be the one he will drop the title too, but as of right now, I have no clue who it can be. It safe to say that he will be champion for the long haul. I hope that his reign is longer than his last one, but with some of the competition on Showdown, it may not happen. :lupe:

Most Valuable Elitist

Stephanie Matsuda

For Most Valuable Elitist, I gotta give it to Stephanie Matsuda. Just like Diamond Cage, she was successful in her first title defense as the Undisputed Women’s World Champion against Astraea Jordan. I thought it was an impressive showing from the champion and this was a match in which I could have seen Astraea win and to me, it’s shocking that she didn’t, but just shows how unpredictable Empire can be at times. The next question in mind is who I think is going to be Stephanie’s next challenger? I assume it’s no one from the Empress of Elite tournament. The winner will face her in December (that’s if she’s holding the title then). It makes me think that she will be hanging around the commentary booth as she watches this tournament happen. I have no clue who can be up next in line for the title? I could see her pulling a Diamond Cage and just be giving title shots to newcomers. Maybe, those that get eliminated in the first round of the tournament, but as of right now, I have no clue at all. But, still, congrats to Stephanie for retaining!