While the most iconic title in the National Wrestling Alliance is the Ten Pounds Of Gold, their television title has a storied history as well. As part of the revivial under Billy Corgan, it has returned once again. At NWA Hard Times PPV, 16 men would enter a one night tournament to try to become the new champion.
First Round Action
In the first round, we saw Tim Storm go past Ken Anderson after Anderson wouldn’t be able to compete, Ricky Starks defeat indy star Matt Cross, Ring of Honors Dan Maff defeat Zicky Dice, and Trevor Murdoch defeat Question Mark. The only stand out match in the first round was that of Starks & Cross, who gave a fast paced and frantic match. The matches all had a 6 minute time limit, and they used that time perfectly.
Semi-Finals
Trevor Murdoch met Dan Maff in the semi finals, and it was the hardest fitting match of the night. With both men over 250 pounds, it was a classic hoss fight. Trevor Murdoch would hit his signature diving bulldog on Maff to make his way to the finals, but showed the damage a hard fought match will cause. Ricky Starks would have a hard task ahead of him, as Tim Storm was still a fresh man entering the match. Despite this, the rising star of the NWA would be able to overcome the former holder of the Ten Pounds Of Gold to make it to the finals.
New NWA Television Champion Crowned
It was a battle of experience vs. young and size vs. speed as Murdoch & Starks would enter the finals. While both men would put on great performances, you could see they were both tired after having to work two prior matches on the night. In the end, Ricky Starks would hit his Double Underhook Facebuster known as The Buster Keaton to become the new NWA Television Champion. After strong performances on this night, and in the past against NWA Champion Nick Aldis, it is clear that the future is bright for Ricky Starks. It won’t be easy to maintain his status as champion, but he proved himself very worthy.
Are you happy to see a young star like Ricky Starks finding championship success in NWA? Let us know what you think in the comment section down below.
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