Shivam’s long reign ends after furious ‘final battle’
Photos: Veerapon Samanmoo
In their third and final fight, Singapore’s Andruew ‘The Statement’ Tang ripped the AWGC Jr. Heavyweight championship from long-reigning local Shivam in the main event of SETUP Thailand Pro Wrestling Episode 11.
In a fitting conclusion to a rivalry that dated back three years, the pair clashed for the gold in a “two out of three falls” thriller that would settle the matter once and for all.
In doing so, Tang left SETUP’s Circus Studio HQ with a new belt to add to his extensive collection – but not before firing a verbal challenge to yet another champion.
Tang sealed victory here by capitalising on a twist of irony, with Shivam having inadvertently incapacitated the referee as he tried to use his belt as a weapon. With the ref down, Tang introduced some hardware of his own, blasting Shivam with a series of chair shots and then hitting a backdrop to the steel furniture, just as the official regained his sense. The referee crawled into position and administered an agonisingly slow count, but Shivam was too spent to recover even so. With the third strike of the mat, a new champion was crowned.
But no longer had one rivalry, and champion, been decided than Tang trained his sights on a new one – SETUP Openweight ruler Monomoth, who earlier that night had repelled the challenge of ex-champ Terry Diesel.
Tang took to the mic to call out Monomoth, and that would be a compelling unification match if it comes off. It would also create the first two-belt champion since Shivam held both straps earlier this year.
Shivam may have earlier thought he was heading towards this same opportunity, as he went agonisingly close to victory here. He had taken the first fall with a rollup pin, and the defending champion largely made his strength tell in the lead up to the second fall. He’d upped the physicality of the match, hitting Tang with big moves inside and outside the ring, and making shrewd use of the architecture by sending the challenger flying into cornerposts, ring aprons and even the front row of spectators. But this momentum was snapped by a double knee against the run of play and a Shell Shock finisher to level the scoreline.
Tang then turned the match into a more tactical affair and largely got the better of an exciting segment of chain wrestling. And yet, much to Shivam’s regret, it wasn’t until matters took a more industrial turn – with weapons and rule-breaking – that victory was finally secured.
New direction for Diesel after Monomoth wins and monsters reign
If Tang’s success was a triumph for experience, Terry Diesel, one of Thai wrestling’s founding fathers, was outsmarted by the younger generation in SETUP title action.
Openweight champion Monomoth has scored an upset over Diesel at Ep.10 to take the belt from the only two-time SETUP titleholder – and he repeated the feat here despite a ferocious effort from the ‘Bangkok Rockstar’.
It had looked for so long as though the gold would be returned to its former keeper, as Diesel channelled his anger at being an ex-champ into a focused and hard-hitting assault. He opened strongly and it would be a full six minutes before Monomoth could get in any offense of his own.
Even then, the fleeting momentum he had built with his advantages in speed and reflex was brought to a crashing halt as he twisted an ankle. Diesel thereafter kept him on the deck and in corners, but the champ exhibited the same tenacity that had taken him to the title in the first place.
The hot pace ended up to the younger man’s advantage, as he pulled off some impeccable counters before landing a jumping DDT for the finish.
Now, it appears as though Monomoth could be heading for a title unification bout with ‘The Statement’. Diesel, meanwhile, will have to regroup – and a second consecutive defeat may have given him pause to consider a character overhaul.
It was perhaps through necessity that he had recently traded as a hard-edged heel, with this approach earning him titles and main event matches, but adversity often reveals a man’s true self – and, it turns out, Diesel might not be such a bad guy after all.
First of all, he accepted his defeat with grace and humility and handed the plaudits to the young champion. And then, when matters in the SETUP universe turned dark, he valiantly attempted to play saviour.
This followed the shockingly quick destruction of Kappa Kozo in a battle of Japanese monsters. Kozo had been crushed with three pedigrees from the stone golem Great Kappa in just 71 seconds as the former UMA Corp assassin fought for his freedom.
With defeat, Kozo would be consigned to return to UMA as their slave, but this was not enough for Great Kappa, which sent two of its minions in to further punish and torture the renegade.
As Kozo was being throttled with a strap, none other than Diesel ran in to the rescue. But as soon as he laid hands on Great Kappa, the lights went out. When they were restored, Diesel found himself surrounded – and then knocked out – by three armed monsters.
These were stunning developments on several fronts. Kappa Kozo’s fate is unknown, but it’s sure to be a dire one. The Great Kappa looks an incalculably bigger threat than Kozo ever was (and that was a serious one!). And Diesel’s brave attempt at playing the hero points to a fascinating shift in tone – and, perhaps, a quest for revenge.
Martini bites off more than he can chew in hardcore title challenge
The fatal four-way match for the WrestleSquare Hardcore Championship was fascinating enough on paper, but the stakes went beyond sport and titles on the night, with the pre-fight behaviour of Gabriel Martini almost threatening to trigger an international incident.
The Italian had arrived in Thailand for his collision with champion Paksa and co-challengers Bital Hasdin and Big T dripping with arrogance and condescension. He sneered at the country, its people, the wrestlers of SETUP and, most offensively, the Kingdom’s approach to pizza.
Clearly, Martini was not enjoying his time in Thailand, so he wanted to get out as quickly as possible – and take the belt with him. Paksa and co helped him in the former regard, and embraced the hardcore stipulation by introducing some foreign objects – including a pineapple pizza that was forced into the outraged Italian’s mouth, putting him out of competition while he tried to purge the taste.
With Martini incapacitated, the three remaining men fought to the finish, which saw Paksa blast Hasdin with the belt and then stomp Singaporean Big T’s face into it before the pin.
While these three fought bitterly for the gold, it was done with respect and a level of cooperation to ensure anybody but Martini won it. Paksa’s guile, agility and experience blended perfectly with the strongarm tactics of Hasdin and the immovable presence of Big T to make for a thrilling spectacle.
It is unlikely that Martini will be welcomed back, though – and Paksa sent him scurrying home to Italy with his national flag literally staple-gunned to his flesh after a shocking display of post-match violence befitting of the hardcore division.
Undercard: Visitors shine, and Akaradeth graduates
Malaysia’s MCW Intercommonwealth Champion Emman Azman champion dazzled in the tag team match that pitted him and his partner, Sunny Z of Hong Kong, against Thai duo Johnathan Johnson and P’Suchart.
Tiny but talented Azman dazzled with aerial attacks an blinding speed en route to the win, which he scored with a pinfall on P’Suchart courtesy of a flying elbow.
Johnson was angered by being adjudged a loser despite not being pinned, and directed his fury towards his team-mate. Meanwhile, Sunny Z would later stake a claim for a shot at Paksa’s hardcore title.
* Another impressive overseas competitor was the glamorous Yuki Kamifuku, who entered the ring to a warm welcome. This appeared to annoy her opponent, Matcha, who is used to being the fan favourite. Perhaps knocked out of her emotional stride, Matcha was then put down by the long legs of Kamifuku as they wrapped around her for a Famouser that led to the pin.
* Finally, the man who will lead the next generation of SETUP stars was confirmed as Nont, as he won an exhibition match against Akaradeth to secure a main roster contract. After an exciting back-and-forth affair stacked with near-falls, Nont hit a chokeslam that won him the match and booked his pro debut at Ep.12.
LINKS
Titles and rivalries galore at SETUP’s latest international spectacular (Ep.11 preview)
Ep.11 event page
SETUP Thailand Pro Wrestling company page
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