After a status-quo shattering show last month at Vendetta, Explosive Pro Wrestling (EPW) returns to the Aberdeen Hotel in Northbridge, Western Australia for EPW at the Deen. In addition the Block Finals for the EPW 2018 Invitational Tournament, there’s also two singles matches pairing up members from the Street Gang Hooligans and the Untouchables, ahead of their ladder match clash at ReAwakening later this year.
Logan Grey vs. Marcius Pitt
The feud between the Street Gang Hooligans (Logan Grey and Alex Kingston) and the Untouchables (Damien Slaer & Marcius Pitt) really goes back to last year at ReAwakening, where the two teams faced for the tag team gold. The match got rave reviews, and so they had a Three Stages of Hell rematch at Hot Summer’s Night this year, which was also stellar. Now, after circling each other for months, the Hooligans defeated David Nero & Kiel Steria to earn their number one contender’s spot. Finally, the two teams will settle their score in a Ladder match in November. But first, the two teams have paired off, and will compete in singles matches at the ‘Deen. First up is Grey and Pitt, and if you’ve ever seen Grey perform, you know he will do anything to steal the show. Pitt is coming off of a win against Robbie Eagles in a singles match in July, and a tag team win against the Nacho Friends at Vendetta a few weeks ago. Amber, the Untouchables’ manager, was a factor in both of those matches, so while not announced, she’ll no doubt be causing trouble for Grey in this one. I think the Hooligans will take the gold at ReAwakening, so expect the Untouchables to look good here, and that will translate into a win for Pitt.
Prediction: Marcius Pitt
Block A Final of the EPW Invitational Tournament: Kiel Steria vs. Taylor King
We’re down to the final four in the Invitational Tournament, and the first of the block finals sees the impressive Steria take on the Child Star, Taylor King. Yes, King’s Hannah Montana gimmick is amazing. And yes, Steria can do things, both in terms of strength and high flying, that drop jaws. So, this should be fun. King defeated Kraven at Hell or High Water to advance to the Block Finals, while Steria beat one of King’s cronies, Tipene. Steria will put on exciting moves, but King’s TK Taskforce, made up of Tipene and Jack Edwards, in the end will give him the advantage. King will be heading to the tournament finals, for a date with a certain gorgeous someone…
Prediction: Taylor King
Block B Final of the EPW Invitational Tournament: Gorgeous Gary vs. Tyler Jacobs
When EPW was at the ‘Deen earlier this year, Gorgeous Gary returned to EPW for the first time since 2014, and interrupted Taylor King. Since then, Gary has defeated both members of the TK Taskforce, and has only one loss since his comeback: Taylor King. It seems that Gary has a date with destiny at ReAwakening, if he can overcome Tyler Jacobs. Jacobs has not had the best year in terms of wins and losses, put picked up a solid victory over Hayden Zenith at Vendetta. This match will be a little bonkers as both men have strong gimmicks, but it looks like all signs point to Gary versus King for the finals.
Prediction: Gorgeous Gary
Alex Kingston vs. Damien Slater
In the second singles match between the Hooligans and Untouchables, we see Damien Slater of Cruiserweight Classic fame, against the twelve-year vet, Alex Kingston. This match will have a similar overall story as Pitt versus Grey, but I expect even more shenanigans in this once. Look for Pitt, Amber, and Grey to all interfere in some way, to build towards their big blowoff in November. I also expect a ladder spot to take place after the match. Before all the craziness will set in, though, Slater and Kingston will have solid match, as both are technically sound, and look for Kingston to take it to the air. But all the pandemonium will lead to a DQ win for Kingston, and set up the excitement for their ReAwakening showdown.
Prediction: Alex Kingston
Gauntlet Match for Number One Contender for the EPW Championship: Julian Ward vs. Michael Morleone vs. Billy Williams vs. Scotty Ryan vs. Jay Taylor vs. Craven
Morleone lost his EPW Championship to Gavin McGavin a few weeks ago at Vendetta in a steel cage match. Now he has an opportunity to get a chance at it. This one though will be complex and layered, with several stories converging in one match. Morleone obviously wants his belt back, but he may have to cross stablemate Scotty Ryan to do it. The two are members of Generation Zero, and there have been…well, complications within the group recently. Hayden Zenith, another Gen Zero member, hit Morleone with a steel chair in his championship loss to McGavin, and obviously that has not gone over well. Look for Zenith to interject himself into this one as well, and cost Morleone this match. Ward also has a bone to pick with McGavin. He feuded with him for much of the year, before McGavin eventually bested him in a Last Man Standing Match. Ward would love another crack at him. Billy Williams is undefeated this year in EPW, and his henchmen known as THEM have helped him every step of the way. But they have attacked and insulted Davis Storm, who has yet to retaliate, and it would seem unlikely that Storm would let Williams get a title shot at this junction. Look for him to interfere as well. Taylor and Craven haven’t gotten any kind of push this year that would indicate that either one of them would be headlining EPW’s biggest show of the year. So that leaves to most likely choice of Scotty Ryan. He’s been the EPW Coastal Champion for over a year now, and has beaten some of the bigger names in EPW during his reign. This could mean that Ryan will have to defend his belt and challenge for McGavin’s on the same night, or do title versus title, or maybe he’ll lose it along the way. Any of those avenues are interesting, and would play into Ryan’s relationship with Morleone. How would he feel about Ryan getting the shot instead of him? There’s so many different ways to go with it. This match be a lot of fun, lots of interference, storylines converging, and surprises. It’ll lean into the madness.
Prediction: Scotty Ryan
You can watch past events from EPW on Powerslam.tv. You can download Powerslam TV for Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Prime and Google Play.
