What does it mean to be a champion?
I think that’s a question that almost every wrestler has contemplated at least once; I know it’s a question that I’ve thought about many times. I thought about it before I won the FGA Pride title; and, I thought about it again before walking into Cardinal Sin.
What does it mean to be a champion?
I guess that answer varies depending on who you ask. And, as I continue to grow and walk as a wrestler, I’ve realized that no particular answer is “right” or wrong,” per se; it’s all about perspective.
Some people believe that simply holding the belt makes you champion. It doesn’t matter how you got the belt, it doesn’t matter how you went about it. As long as you are holding the belt, you are the cream of the croup.
Others believe that a champion has to be ruthless and savage. When you are a champion, people are always coming after you; you can’t trust anyone, because you never know people are sincere or not. These theorists believe that you have to be ruthless; you have to do whatever it takes to hold on to that belt that you’ve obtained. And according to them, because you are willing to do anything to retain, that then makes you a true champion.
Both of those are common theories of what it means to be a champion. But you know what? I honestly don’t subscribe to either theory, not in full anyway.
Maybe…maybe I just have a different perspective than most.
So, let me tell you what it means to me to be a champion.
For one, a true champion is battle-tested; he or she has some type of experience. We talk a lot about “paying dues” in this Business. Well, a true champion has worked his or her way up the ladder; he or she has fought hard with honor, and has paid said dues. Second, a champion is a courageous. There is little room in professional wrestling for cowards; and, there certainly isn’t any room for cowards in the champion’s circle. A champion is a fighter; he or she will never run way from a challenge, no matter how impossible the odds may seem.
And, lastly, a champion is honorable, inside the ring and out. If you are really the best of the best, then why would you have to resort to deception, crazy antics, or dirty tactics? A true champion doesn’t need to utilize those options; he or she knows and understands that they can get it done it the ring, the legal way. True champions also realize that they are reflections of the company. So, they don’t get on in the streets and act a fool; they don’t cause problems for the company. If anything, a champion’s job is to bring more fans and positive publicity to the company.
That’s what is means to be a champion—to me anyway.
Ha, you know what’s kind of crazy? I never really intended to come to Second City to win a championship; I never came here to win titles honesty. Truth be told, I came to 2CW because of the competition. I wanted to step in the ring with guys like Pat Gordon, Jr., Adam Stryker, Ryan Kidd, and John Pariah. Second City is one of the few promotions in a world with a vast and open roster like this; I knew that if I came in here and worked hard, then it would increase my skills in the ring.
I wouldn’t say that winning the Heritage Champion was an accident, because it wasn’t. I worked hard to defeat everyone in that Heritage Classic; that was no mistake.
I guess you could call the Heritage title the fruits of my labor; it was a reward, an added bonus for all the hard work I’ve put in during my time in this company.
Am I the top champion in the company? No I am not; I’m not Jason Aries. But, I’m very proud of what I’ve done here in 2CW; I’ve had a series of awesome matches. And I’m very proud to be called your Second City Heritage Champion!
…
“A champion is a fighter.”
That’s exactly what I am; I’m a fighting champion! And at Cibernetico Assemble I’m going to prove to everyone in this company that I’m a fighting champion when I defend against Anton Chase.
You know what Anton; I’m going to be completely honest here. In all truthfulness, I was a bit taken a back when it was announced that I would be defending my title against you. Anton, you aren’t a bad wrestler by any stretch of the imagination; you’ve accomplished a lot in this business. But, to me, and probably to a lot of fans, you were an odd pick.
Like I said in an interview this week, I honestly feel that there were a lot of people in line in front of you. Off the top of my head, I can think of:
Ryan Kidd…
Rommie Sharpe…
Adam Stryker…
Equinox…
You know, just to name a few. Hell, you might as well add John Pariah to that list. John carried this company through his first few shows; I certainly say he deserves another shot at some gold. And, I’m not sure of his current status with the company, but Jackson comes to mind as well; I mean, he does have a win over the former 2CW Heavyweight champion.
And yet…you were chosen to face me.
I didn’t understand the decision at the time. And to be perfectly honest; I still don’t fully understand the decision. Now, don’t take that as a diss Anton, because it’s not a diss. Like I said before, you are a 16-time champion.
But, since day one 2CW has prided itself on records and match quality. And the fact of the matter is you’ve obtained one quality win, one really sub-par wins in 2CW, and one loss; does that really justify you getting a title shot?
At Redefine you defeat Rommie Sharpe; she’s a world class wrestler, so that’s something to be proud of. And at Cardinal Sin you beat Christian Rhodes. Anton, you might be proud of that win, but let’s be for real here. Rhodes has been on the decline for the past two months or so; a win over him isn’t impressive—you and I both know that.
And, lastly, you lost to Ryan Kidd. Now Ryan is one hell of competitor, so there’s no shame in that.
But, you do see what I’m saying? Anton, you time here in 2CW had been “meh,” to say the least.
And at the risk of sounding cocky, my time here in 2CW on the other hand, has been nothing short of spectacular!
AJ Fairchild…
Pat Gordon, Jr…
Derrick Wiland…
Tim Hunt…
Ryan Kidd…
Rommie Sharpe…
Those are the people that I’ve defeated here Anton; those are all the people I had to fight through to get to this Heritage title. My road to becoming the Heritage title wasn’t easy; it wasn’t easy at all! I had to fight and struggle to get to where I am now!
I didn’t simply get handed an opportunity…like you.
…
Anton, let me ask you this question. Now, you were originally in the Heritage Classic correct? That was the night you went up against Ryan. And, like I said, before, you lost that match. Now Anton, I want you to think about what I’m about to say. If you would have defeated Ryan, then you would have gone on to that title match. Who knows, you might have ridden that momentum wave; you could have defeated me and everyone else!
But, you didn’t did you Anton?
The fact of the matter is you couldn’t get the job done; you lost to Ryan. Ryan was better than you that night; and most would argue that Ryan is better than you every night.
And—Ryan lost to me!
If Ryan couldn’t get it done in the ring, if Ryan couldn’t defeat me, how exactly do you think you are going to defeat me?
Are you going to rest and rely on your lineage? Are you going to tell me some bull; are you going to throw out the fact that you are a 16-time champion.
Speaking of which, let’s talk about that for a moment shall we.
Does…does winning 16 titles make you some kind of a legend. Sure, it certainly means that I have to refer to you as ‘accomplished,” but, does it mean I have to call you a legend. Because truth be told, I had never heard of you until I came here to 2CW; and, I didn’t pay too much attention to you until your match with Ryan.
Anton, I love wrestling, and I love to watch wrestling. I love to study matches. Needless to say, I keep my ear to the ground; I know who is good and how is not. And, I awesome know who is popular; I know whose name is getting buzz.
You may be a 16-time champion, but in my five years of wrestling, I’ve hardly heard your name uttered; not by the internet, not by the fans, and certainly not by most promotions.
Let’s compare you with my mentor Flex Johnson. Flex wrestled for eight years in about six or seven different promotions; and you know what, he was the talk of the town everywhere that he went. In total, he won 11 champions and was a two-time world champion; now five less than you Anton. And, during his short career he amassed two Hall of Fame inductions.
EVERYONE calls Flex a legend, whether they like him or not. Even now in retirement, his name is still buzzing, unlike yours Anton.
Now, you are probably going to say I’m biased or something. So, let’s compare you to one last person…that person would be John Pariah. He’s another man who is highly respected in this Business. John has a held a world championship or heavyweight title a total of 23 times. Do you understand how amazing that is Anton? And, that’s excluding U.S., International, and Hardcore championships.
Oh, and let’s not forget the six tournaments that he’s has also won.
John has stated many times that his career is winding down, and yet, his name is even bigger than ever.
Anton, THOSE two guys are legends. Those two have worked their asses off, not just for titles; those two have worked to become the best they could possibly be. And they achieved those goals.
…What about you Anton?
Similar to John and Flex, I’m focused on becoming the best wrestler in the world. That’s why I fight so hard; that’s why I wrestle the way that I do.
That’s what makes me a TRUE champion; and, that’s what makes me a legend-in-the making!
That’s also what separates me from you Anton.
Anton, you don’t care do you? You don’t care about going out there and having the best match of the night; you’ve already proven that by your actions in 2CW. You don’t care about going out there and fighting with honor and pride!
For you, winning the Heritage belt would be just that—winning another belt! It wouldn’t have meaning to you; it wouldn’t have significance to you.
For you, it would be another failed attempt to try and thrust yourself into Fame and Glory.
Ha, well I’m not going to let this Heritage Championship be just another feather in your cap—not if I can help it!
…
Anton, in preparation for this match, I have struggled and tracked down some of your matches, particularly in WARPED. And, while I was watching your matches and going through your history, I discovered something every interesting.
Very interesting indeed.
You were in WARPED a long time weren’t you Anton? You would probably be considered one of the originals of the company.
Very nice; that’s nothing more noble than company loyalty.
During your time at WARPED, you captured a total over three titles. Your first taste of gold in WARPED was the Evolution Championship; you held it for a hot month before dropping it.
That was back in 2011.
You didn’t get gold again in that company until 2013. You started off recapturing the Evolution title, which you held for about two months. Month later, you became one half of the tag-team champions; that is, until your partner turned on you and took ahold of both tag-team belts.
I could never imagine why he did such a thing.
And for the most part, that’s all you really did WARPED. By the way, I looked at your WARPED career because it was the most recent.
Three title reigns in WARPED, what an accomplishment that was. But, that is only half of the story, isn’t it Anton?
Anton, how many title shots total did you receive in WARPED? Let’s count them shall we?
The WARPED World Championship, it always alluded you Anton. But, you did have plenty of times to capture it didn’t you? Both William Wallace and Alexander StarrZoe defeated you respectively the two times that you challenged for that belt; you never where able to win the big one huh? But, let’s move on shall we; let’s go to the Evolution title that you held twice. And, while you held that title twice, you had the chance to capture it a bunch of times didn’t you? In total, you had nine separate chances to walk away with the Evolution title; and yet, you only won it twice.
Anton, sir, you had NINE chance to become a champion and you only walked away with the title TWICE? So, in other words, you walked away defeated on seven different occasions.
So, including your tag-team title reign, you were 3 and 9 when it came to winning title matches.
Ha, how do you explain that sir?
It’s alright; you don’t have to answer that question.
But, those statistics are very revealing sir; those stats mean one of three things. One, you are prone to choke when it comes to the larger matches; the stats say you just can’t get it done with any regular consistency. Two, maybe you aren’t as great as you think you are. I’ve heard your promos before Anton; you make it seem as if you are the best wrestler walking on this earth. But, the numbers say the opposite.
Or option Three, which is a combination of the two previous statements.
The fact of the matter is you don’t seem to get it done in title matches Anton; you make it to the match, but then you crash and burn. And heck, I just looked at your history in WARPED. I wonder how many hundreds of titles shots you needed to win those other titles that you held.
Anton, you aren’t going to win this Heritage Championship, not from me anyway. Here’s what’s going to happen. We are both going to walk to that ring. And then, we are going to have a good match. And yet, in the end, you are going to crash and burn. In the end, you are going to walk away broken and defeated.
And I’m going to walk away with the Heritage title around my waist!
…
Anton, at School of Hardknocks, you made very bold prediction. Anton, you told the world that you were going to defeat Jason Aries and me; and then you told the world that you were going to defeat me for my belt.
Ha, I bet you said something similar before all those title shots that you blew, right?
And once again, you failed to follow through on your word. Once again you lied to all your fans; and, you lied to yourself.
You didn’t win that match Anton. Point blank—you and Ryan weren’t good enough to win that match; that’s why it broke down into a no-contest.
So, what does that mean Anton?
That means that Riley Owens is STILL perfect in singles competition here in Second City!
I’ve beaten everyone that the company has thrown my way; I’ve taken on every challenger! My 4 and 0 record, it isn’t just a fluke Anton; I didn’t win my matches because I’m lucky. I’ve fortified my place here in 2CW because of my matches and my skills.
I’ve EARNED the right to be the 2CW Heritage Champion!
You haven’t!
At Cibernetico Assemble I’m going to show you why I haven’t been defeated in singles competition in 2CW. You are going to see why I am the champion; and you are going to realize that you have to business being in the ring with me.
See you in a little bit Anton.