{"id":79984,"date":"2020-12-03T13:05:43","date_gmt":"2020-12-03T18:05:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/?p=79984"},"modified":"2020-12-03T13:05:43","modified_gmt":"2020-12-03T18:05:43","slug":"shotzis-army-shirai-rounds-out-team-blackheart","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2020\/12\/03\/shotzis-army-shirai-rounds-out-team-blackheart\/","title":{"rendered":"Shotzi&#8217;s Army: Io Shirai Rounds Out Team Blackheart"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Last week on<em>\u00a0<strong>NXT<\/strong><\/em> <strong>Candice LeRae\u2019s<\/strong> <em>\u00a0<strong>TakeOver War Games<\/strong><\/em> team assembled with a vengeance. No one was safe in her quest to prove herself, and her team, a force to be reckoned with, as they attacked <strong>Rhea Ripley<\/strong>, <strong>Ember Moon<\/strong>, and <strong>Io Shirai <\/strong>to prove themselves. However, it is <strong>Team Blackheart <\/strong>that enters War Games with the advantage after Shotzi\u2019s victory in a ladder match with <strong>Raquel Gonzalez <\/strong>on the December 2 episode. Shotzi\u2019s team also boasts an impressive fourth member, as reigning <em>WWE NXT <\/em>Women\u2019s Champion Io Shirai was added to the Blackheart squad and helped her captain score the win.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Sheer GENIUS. <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/WWENXT?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">#WWENXT<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/WeAreNXT?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">#WeAreNXT<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/WarGames?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">#WarGames<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/shirai_io?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@shirai_io<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/9SDisQ89yE\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/9SDisQ89yE<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; WWE NXT (@WWENXT) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WWENXT\/status\/1334332102658187264?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">December 3, 2020<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>With their teams looking on, Gonzalez and Blackheart each took the ring, Shotzi without her trademark tank due to LeRae. Gonzalez started her campaign of domination against Shotzi\u2019s lithe, limber frame, bending, twisting, lifting ant throwing the energetic Blackheart. While lacking the mass and height to physically equal Gonzalez, Shotzi is never lacking in moxie. She turned to quicksilver wiliness as an offense to evade Gonzalez or unbalance her when she could. When that failed, Shotzi resiliently clung for dear life to Gonzalez\u2019s back, legs around her waist, arms around her neck, trying to bring one fourth of Team Le Rae into submission. Shotzi brought one of the ladders into play, directing it at Gonzalez, and the two athletes ended up in a tug of war for it that did not end in Shotzi\u2019s favor, with her splayed in the ring.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Indi Hartwell<\/strong> saw an advantage, and used one of the ladders to lower herself and the rest of Team LeRae (<strong>Toni<\/strong> <strong>Storm<\/strong> and captain Candice) from the viewing platform and into the action. It was clear that they intended to interfere in Gonzalez\u2019s favor, and secure a victory while Shotzi was down.<\/p>\n<p>However, Team Blackheart was having none of it. Ember Moon and Rhea Ripley also scrambled down to ringside, and the two War Games teams skirmished outside the ring. When it seemed that Team LeRae was set to dominate as they had done the previous week, Io Shirai entered the fray.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"it\" dir=\"ltr\">IO. SHIRAI. \ud83d\udc51 \ud83d\ude08 <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/WWENXT?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">#WWENXT<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/WarGames?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">#WarGames<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/shirai_io?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@shirai_io<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/RaquelWWE?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@RaquelWWE<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/9YAP4eYBgV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/9YAP4eYBgV<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; WWE (@WWE) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WWE\/status\/1334331680212086784?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">December 3, 2020<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Last week, Shirai was surprise attacked and rendered unconscious by Team LeRae and presented like the spoils of war as they confronted Ripley. This week she was ready for vindication. She acrobatically overwhelmed Gonzalez, and then proved why she is called the Genius of the Sky by mounting the turnbuckle and taking flight, into a dive bomb that wiped out both teams. Teams LeRae and Blackheart lay supine from Shirai\u2019s impact, Shotzi recovered, fighting the pain as she willed herself up the rope, to retrieve the briefcase. She retrieved it, and secured the victory. Team Blackheart is heading to War Games with a fresh win.<\/p>\n<p>They can also boast of the reigning\u00a0 NXT Women\u2019s Champion added to their roster, joining her longstanding rival, the towering Rhea Ripley, a reinvigorated Ember Moon, and Shotzi Blackheart, who has heart, grit, and a quest to make Candice LeRae pay. With a secret weapon like Shirai now revealed, Team Blackheart looks primed to take the day at War Games.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">EXCLUSIVE: Team <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ShotziWWE?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@ShotziWWE<\/a> is complete with <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/WWENXT?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">#WWENXT<\/a> Women&#39;s Champion <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/shirai_io?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@shirai_io<\/a>! But there are&#8230;more surprises?! <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/NQ11NU1ccU\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/NQ11NU1ccU<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; WWE Network (@WWENetwork) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WWENetwork\/status\/1334367417171120130?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">December 3, 2020<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Stay tuned to the<a href=\"http:\/\/lastwordonprowrestling.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">\u00a0Last Word on Pro Wrestling<\/a> for more on this and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world. Be sure to catch all of the NXT action via the <a href=\"https:\/\/watch.wwe.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">WWE Network<\/a>. Looking to talk wrestling, pro football, or any number of sports? Head on over to the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/boards\/index.php\" target=\"_self\">LWOS Boards<\/a>\u00a0to engage in conversation with fellow fans!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Last week on\u00a0NXT Candice LeRae\u2019s \u00a0TakeOver War Games team assembled with a vengeance. No one was safe in her quest to prove herself, and her team, a force to be reckoned with, as they attacked Rhea Ripley, Ember Moon, and Io Shirai to prove themselves. However, it is Team Blackheart that enters War Games with [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3715,"featured_media":80007,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[12,317,4,5,3,320],"tags":[738,3491,304,3848,6991,3207,1555],"class_list":["post-79984","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-women","category-wwe","category-nxt","category-wwe-universe","category-wwe-women","tag-candice-lerae","tag-indi-hartwell","tag-io-shirai","tag-nxt-takeover-war-games","tag-raquel-gonzalez","tag-shotzi-blackheart","tag-war-games"],"modified_by":"Brandi Wagner","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79984","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3715"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=79984"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79984\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/80007"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=79984"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=79984"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=79984"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}