TAP OUT WRESTLING 8: LONG VS DIAMOND PREVIEW

[Cross Recoba]

PRESENTS
TAP OUT WRESTLING 8: LONG VS DIAMOND

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Date:  Sunday, 13^th November 2022
Venue: Lansky Ballroom The Sands Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada
Capacity: 1000

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MAIN EVENT
TAP OUT WRESTLING OPENWEIGHT TOURNAMENT SEMI-FINAL

Jason Long (#5) vs Jack Diamond (#3)

Our show climaxes with an Iconic Civil War.

Long started his tenure in Tap Out with an unexpected loss at Tap Out Wrestling 1 to Close Collins but since then he has run through opponents without a thought to the blip on his record. Displaying a more clinical approach over the course of his streak, we've seen him run through Jackalope, put Danni Anderson away with a potential spot of the year and then eliminate both Isabella von Krauss and more shockingly, NOMAD by DQ. With each match presenting its own challenges, he'll surely be relishing facing off against an opponent which he has studied up close.

Diamond now has the only undefeated streak in the company, standing at 4-0 at the time of writing. Having taken down Adrien Cochrane, besting Close Collins twice and at Tap Out Wrestling 7, somehow pulling something out the bag to take down Poena. Where some critics might point to as a potential banana skin is that Poena didn't leave him unharmed, working his arm over and at one point using the exposed turnbuckle to deliver a Top Rope Shoulder breaker. A month off would help heal the damage but Jack doesn't have that luxury, the End of Days tournament could see him competing every week in October giving him precious time to rehab, let alone prepare a camp for the match

When that bell rings, both men will want to best the other - though they may be Icons, they're both incredibly competitive and with the winner getting a month off to prepare for the final, neither will want to risk putting more matches on the clock to try and get back out from the Losers' bracket. Will it be the striking prowess of Long or the technical game of Diamond that prevails? We can't wait for this match to come around and deliver a potential Tap Out Match of the Year!

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CO-MAIN EVENT
TAP OUT WRESTLING OPENWEIGHT TOURNAMENT

Poena (#2) vs Isabella von Krauss (#4)

Operating within the rules of the game has never been on the mind of Poena. Last month he did everything he could to get into the mind of Jack Diamond and though he lost, it's hard for anyone to say that he's bluffing after all he did to live inside the head of Diamond. When the bell rang he operated with a calm sanity that only pointed out how insane he was. Showing a methodical ruthlessness, The Sanctified One broke down the arm and shoulder of Diamond bit-by-bit to ensure that he left his mark on the Ace of Spades. Now on the wrong side of the brackets, will Poena react with vengeance and fury or will he try to use von Krauss as an example for what he might do to anyone who stands between him and the Tap Out Openweight Title?

Isabella isn't shy of making headlines herself, eliminating Adrien Cochrane with a very large assist from the clowns that constantly accompany her to each match. She has also displayed her own brand of cruelty inside the ring, taking opponents out by means legal and not. Thriving on her belief that she's above each and every person not just inside the ring but watching live and at home, IVK almost sees her coronation as the first Tap Out Openweight champion as a birthright.

With these two displaying little to any regard for the rules, this match has the opportunity to be an absolute war between two competitors who will stop at nothing to inflict pain on their opponents. Will Poena be able to save the callous and vacuous Isabella von Krauss and deliver her to his Lord or will Isabella von Krauss be able to take one step closer to taking the title she already sees as her own?

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TAP OUT WRESTLING OPENWEIGHT TOURNAMENT

NOMAD (#1) vs Close Collins (#6)

Tap Out Wrestling 7 was a bad day at the office for NOMAD. That's what his fans have been saying in the immediate aftermath of his first loss, clean or not. Still without a pinfall or submission loss, NOMAD found himself out-thought by Long and a disqualification loss puts a blemish on a very proud man's record. NOMAD will be hoping that he can get back to overpowering and outwrestling everyone in his way like had done up to the match with Long. With a potential rematch against Poena on the cards, NOMAD would take great delight in being the one to eliminate someone he sees as beneath him. The Violent Wanderer will be only too aware that his elimination would be seen as an underachievement at this stage and he'll be sure to try and impose his will and power at every step in this match.

For Close, the last show was a great confidence boost after two close but frustrating losses against Jack Diamond with a win against Erin Gordon, eliminating the third favorite for the tournament before it began. Against Gordon he showed a killer instinct in the ring by avoiding her Spinning backfist and hitting the Last Call Suplex for victory, demonstrating how quickly he can turn a match on its head. With NOMAD the far more experienced wrestler, Collins will be hoping he can make this his third scalp of his career with Gordon joining Long as veterans taken down by the impressive rookie. If he wins he gets an opportunity to get a win back against Poena or if IVK wins, he knows his father Tuff can help to even the odds against the clowns of von Krauss. Regardless of who he faces in the next round, one thing doesn't change - if he becomes the first wrestler in Tap Out to put down NOMAD, he'd become one of the hot favorites to go all the way!

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GUEST MATCH

Sam Sawyer vs Rat Bastard

Since their debut at Tap Out Wrestling 6, Sawyer has consistently impressed management. By the time that this match rolls around, Sawyer may well walk in as XHF's Junior Heavyweight title after Cross Recoba announced they'd face off against Daigo Arakawa at XHF's End of Days event on October 30th such is the belief in their talent. Having caught the experienced James Dragon out at almost every turn in their match, they put them away with a modified Sawyersault that, with the voting open, may be this writer's tip for Spot of the Night. This match represents their toughest challenge in Tap Out as they take on the first ever XHF X*Crown Champion. A win here would continue their ascent up the Tap Out rankings and make a large majority of the XHF Network sit up and notice.

Coming in for one night only is the infamous Rat Bastard, a man so dastardly and cunning that if you haven't faced off and been outsmarted by him at least once, you're a nobody on the Network. Wrestling for HardKore World, expect to see some advertising of the HKW brand throughout the show but the particulars as to why Ratty has decided to agree to this match are unclear. The shortest odds are that he plans to continue to antagonise Jack Diamond after being eliminated from the End of Days tournament at our last show. Sure to make the match officials earn their paycheck and surely armed with more merchandise for the Awesome Bastards than the Jamrockers could think of, Rat Bastard won't make it easy for Sawyer nor anyone who gets in his way when this show comes around!

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OPENING MATCH
Tag-Team Match

Aiden Merric/Wildcat Capone vs Tommy Strychnine/Jackalope

One thing is for certain, The Hunter and Wildcat have to form a team and find common ground  to get anything out of this match. Merric was unlucky to advance at our last show in the End of Days tournament and he'll be keen to open his Tap Out account with a win. Having already put himself on the radar of Poena, a strong showing here would remind people of what he managed to achieve in AWF. His brand of smash mouth brawling will pair up well with the strong-style offense that takes more than a small influence from Capone's time coming up on the streets. Capone showed himself again to be growing with each performance when he and Jackalope came up victorious at our last show with his Rolling Koppu Kick providing the killing blow. Sitting well in the rankings for his rookie year, Capone will look to learn from the experience of wiliness of his partner and if they gel? They could well be a formidable team.

Strychnine and Jackalope have traded wins and losses since Tap Out began, now they need to find a way to get on the same page. Will their familiarity with each other make for easy bedfellows or will they be a powder keg waiting to explode? Strychnine showed off a more vicious side to his game in his last match against Jackalope and Wildcat but he couldn't stop them putting away his partner with a double-team he was powerless to stop. With less pandering to the crowd, Tommy already looks ready to arrest his losing streak and could someone he has faced so many times make for the perfect partner to do that? Jackalope continues to grow in his stride with each match and with both he and his partner's ability to take to the air, we could be in for some amazing tandem wrestling if they can form a cohesive unit. With the two men looking to bigger things than the opening match, it's in their own best interests to put their differences aside to get the win, the question is - how long can the alliance last?

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PLUS

Half-time show: TBC

Promo Deadline: 11/11 - 5 AM (GMT) || 11/10 - Midnight (EST) 
Segment Deadline - 11/11 - 5 AM (GMT) || 11/10 - Midnight (EST)
 RP Limits: Singles: 2 Promos @ 2k a piece / Tag: 1 Promo @2k for each competitor 

Segments to be sent to the TOW Admin team.