In less than a week, Shine Wrestling will be back in action with their milestone twentieth IPPV, which is loaded with a captivating match card. The main event of this upcoming Friday's SHINE 20 will feature the long awaited SHINE Championship bout between Ivelisse and Valkyrie leader Serena Deeb, which I previewed in my previous blog. Now, let's take a look at what else is in store for the big event.
The ongoing rivalry between Jessicka Havok and Allysin Kay will continue on this Friday, and this is a bitter feud that has evolved in the last six or seven months and is actually a couple of years in the making. For a long time, Havok and Kay were allies in the Midwest Militia with Sassy Stephie, but all of that changed at Shine. The backstory in this rivalry had Kay suggesting to Havok that they join the then-new Valkyrie stable, but Havok turned it down. When Kay returned from her 90-day suspension, Havok told her what her sisters-in-arms had been doing to her and informed her to make a choice: either Valkyrie or her. At SHINE 14, Kay did leave with Havok, but she would betray her and cause her to lose to Saraya Knight in a Last Woman Standing Match.
Havok/Kay I happened at SHINE 15 in December, but that ended in a double DQ. SHINE 16 this past January was the site for Havok/Kay II, which ended in a double countout. They didn't face each other at SHINE 17, because Kay was with her tag team partner, Taylor Made, competing in the SHINE Tag Team Championship tournament. They reached the finals against The Lucha Sisters, but Havok appeared and caused a distraction that led to Made In Sin losing. This led to Havok/Kay III at SHINE 18, an Ybor City Street Fight that again had no winner due to someone running down Havok in the parking lot. Both women were part of the elimination tag team main event at the last show, and as I expected, they canceled each other out. I think Havok/Kay IV (or Havok/Kay V if you want to count the tag match) will have a definitive winner. But I don't know who that is. Fittingly, Havok and Kay will face each other in a Last Woman Standing Match; the exact type of match that started this rivalry in the first place.
I do hope that we find out the identity of the driver who ran down Havok at SHINE 18. The easy answer would be Taylor Made, but I hate quick fixes. I have a wild suggestion for this angle. I think they should have Reby Sky be revealed as the one who ran over Havok. Why? Those of us who follow Shine Wrestling know that Reby was part of Havok's villainous past at the promotion, as she spent numerous events tormenting her physically and verbally. Reby defeated Havok in a Career vs Respect match at SHINE 8, but despite saving her career, she has not appeared for Shine since then. I would think that Reby would still want some measure of revenge against Havok, so having her as the driver would make sense. Not only would Reby become a villainess at Shine (if this happens) but she would at least be aligned with Made In Sin, if not with Valkyrie as a whole.
When I saw the match card for SHINE 20, I noticed that a number of tag teams who participated in the tournament at SHINE 17 were listed to appear. I figured that it had something to do with the SHINE Tag Team Championship, and I was correct. A Four Corner Survival Match will take place this Friday, and it will feature The Buddy System, The S-N-S Express, Kimber Bomb, and Legendary all competing for a shot at the tag titles. The winners' opportunity will come later in the evening. As for Nevaeh, the third member of the Express, she will be facing off against Candice LeRae, who will be making her Shine debut. I watched Candice for a long time back when she was competing for Championship Wrestling From Hollywood, and she's been making waves recently for competing in mixed tag matches with Joey Ryan as her partner.
Su Yung will compete in her first singles match as a member of Valkyrie against Justine Silver, who will be making her third straight appearance for the promotion. I was hoping that Su would face her former West Coast Connection partner, Tracy Taylor, but I think that still may happen at a future show. I'm a bit intrigued at how Su has been portrayed since her heel turn at SHINE 18. As I expected, Su has been playing a bit of a disturbed and demonic character, but another trait has her acting as if she's with Valkyrie against her will. However, from what I saw at the last event, Su is capable of dishing out a good amount of vicious and evil aggression to her opponents, and I see her doing just that on Friday.
Leah Von Dutch will compete against Amber O'Neal at the event, and I've been a huge fan of LVD lately. I'm still shocked that Von Dutch is a heel, because, IMO, she has such a babyface look to her. But she has clearly grown as a villainess in the last few months, and not just in Shine. I really enjoyed her match against Taeler Hendrix at the last event, because it was a case of one heel outcheating the other. In this case, the evil Von Dutch defeated Taeler after she struck her with a wooden clog; right before Taeler could use a curling iron on her. It was LVD's first Shine victory and I think Friday will be her second. Also, La Rosa Negra will be back in action against the aforementioned Taylor Made. La Rosa Negra will have boxer Noemi "La Rebelde" Bosques in her corner; a show of continuation from the last event, where Bosques supported La Rosa Negra in her victory over Niya Barela.
SHINE 20 definitely has the makings of a truly awesome event! I expect many, many twists and turns to occur at the event, which I am heavily looking forward to!