Universal Circuit Title Tournament

[OrochiGeese]

Hello fans and welcome to the Universal Circuit Title Tournament channel. #UCCT for short. #UBBLE

We will be using this online channel to post the first and second round of the Universal Circuit Title Tournament -  with the Championship finaes match occurring at "Lunar Eclipse of the Heart" in October.

This first round match is between THRASH Ogawa and Thomas Mills. They are seeded second and seventh, respectively, as a result of their performances during the Battle Royale at Base 11. THRASH had a very impressive feat in being the runner-up and pushing Wang Gom-Bu, the eventual winner of the match, to the limit. Thomas Mills struggled, being the second one eliminated, but looked very motivated in his following promo a few weeks back.  Both of these men have spent considerably time in the Basic Training program and UBL Dojo over the past few years, meeting a few times in the past.  Thomas has defeated THRASH before, despite taking heavy punishment, due to a sense of calm and a plan to target Ogawa's legs. 

I talked to Matt Rivers, NEXUS Champion and a friend of Thomas, about this match for some insight. He told me that Thomas' in ring acumen has only increased in his time with Prestige PayWall Wrestling but that he believes a greatly improved THRASH will test Mills' mental resiliency and cranial durability.

Matt said, "it's considerably hard to keep to a game plan when you are getting repeatedly clocked in the head by a man who seemingly doesn't care if he's doing more damage to himself than he is to you."

Will THRASH make good on his promise to bash Thomas in the head en route to the next round or can Thomas use his growing technical expertise and poise to advance?


UCTT Round 1 - THRASH Ogawa vs. Thomas Mills



- John Randolph

[OrochiGeese]

This next match in the first round of the #UCCT is between Kurt Sanders and Jean Dubreil. They are seeded fourth and fifth, respectively, as a result of their performances during the Battle Royale at Base 11.

Kurt Sanders had some rather strong words for Jean a few weeks back. Granted, Kurt has strong words for everyone but these seemed to cut extra deep. However, the idea that being in UBL for over 10 years is somehow a negative was disproved rather forcefully when the returning Geese Walker defeated RYOMA. Experience is not a bad thing, especially in an environment like this. But Kurt also made light of the fact that Jean hasn't had a lot of success in his singles career, tending to make the biggest impact in tag matches as part of the Fuzen Tara Seitan stable. Kurt, on the other hand, has spent most of his career wrestling one on one. So, rather ironically, I think that experience actually favors Kurt in this match. He's been in the UBL for over five years  now and has amassed an impressive record. 

Matt Rivers has seen a lot of improvement in Kurt's in ring abilities and focus, largely as a result of Kurt's training with Charles Langford over the past few years.  Kurt may talk like the same old troublemaker outside the ring, but he's been increasingly able to back up his words inside of it. Jean Du Breil has a lot to prove tonight, not the least of which being the question of whether his adherence to certain spiritual practices of his is a benefit or liability.  His in ring abilities can disarm anyone given his ability to strike, fly, and focus on multiple body parts simultaneously.  But he's had problems closing out matches where he initially had the opponent prone, only to have them come back to earn the victory.  For Jean to have a chance in this tournament, and in this match, he has to maintain his level of aggressiveness, intensity, and confidence.  


UCTT Round 1 - Kurt Sanders vs. Jean DuBreil


- John Randolph

[OrochiGeese]

This final match in the first round of the #UCCT is between Wang Gom-Bu and Tsaoring Chou. They are seeded first and eighth, respectively, as a result of their performances during the Battle Royale at Base 11.  

Wang Gom-Bu dominated the Battle Royale whereas Tsaoring Chou was the first one eliminated. Both men shrugged off the significance of the resulting seeding when discussing their preparation for this match but everyone else has been playing up the potential "Cinderella" role of Chou given that Wang and his manager Archibald Snow are underestimating him.  However, to Wang and Archibald it isn't about the contrast in seeding that matters but in size between the two men.  Wang and Chou have the largest size differential between them in this tournament and that will certainly come into play more than the seeding aspect. Chou has long been underestimated in the UBL but I think he will show why Drake Yoshida selected him to be in this tournament. Whether his performance here will be enough to defeat Wang is another matter. Remember that Wang has spent the most active time as a singles wrestler on the main roster in comparison to the rest of the tournament participants. And given the near invincibility that we saw from him during the Battle Royale, it's going to take a focused and effective plan from Chou plus a ton of defensive resiliency to win this match.

Let's see who advances to the next round to face Kurt Sanders.


UCTT Round 1 - Wang Gom-bu vs. Tsaoring Chou


- John Randolph

[OrochiGeese]

Before we start the second round, I have an important announcement to make.

October 14th was originally slated to be the date for our "Lunar Eclipse of the Heart" event where every Championship was on the line.  Unfortunately, it proved more difficult than expected to secure funding to conclude this Base 11 Tour. That is the reason for the delays over the past three months. However, with just two matches left of the Universal Circuit Title Tournament, we are fully confident that "Lunar Eclipse" will be ready to be held before the year is over.

Therefore, we have rescheduled it to the date of December 13, 2018 - the 15th Anniversary of OG-FPD!! We intend to make this event even grander to earn the honor of being held on that day.

---

The first match in the second round of the #UCCT is between Tetsu Gushiken and THRASH Ogawa.

THRASH was the first runner-up in the Battle Royale and steamrolled past Thomas Mills in their first round tournament match up.   THRASH's victory was probably the most decisive one in the tournament up to this point. Tetsu was the only man in the Battle Royale to eliminate an opponent by submission: JET Hamada.  Despite JET not cooling, Tetsu went on to beat him in their first round match.  Neither Tetsu nor THRASH are intimidated by each other despite most wrestlers having legitimate reason to be. Tetsu is as stoic as they come and I don't think THRASH has ever been scared of anything. Tetsu isn't THRASH's typical opponent. He doesn't play to the crowd even though the crowd respects him. And he doesn't mind getting hit in the face as long as he can deliver a bigger hit in return. THRASH isn't Tetsu's typical opponent either since he isn't scared of limping home and will even put his own body at risk to do damage to an opponent. I don't see Tetsu fainting at the sight of his own blood but I also don't see THRASH submitting even if Tetsu breaks both of his legs. This match may require a knockout to end but it also may require the entire team of UBL ring medics. 

As for abilities, we know more about what Tetsu is capable of. His arsenal of knees, kicks, submission moves, and suplexes are well documented.  THRASH still remains a mystery. He has changed his style up considerably from previous years ever since entering this tournament and seems like the kind of guy who will always keep his opponent guessing.  His biggest offensive asset is definitely his brutal headbutt which he is capable of hitting from many different situations, including up on top.  If there was ever an example of "high risk offense,"  it's THRASH jumping off the top turnbuckle head first onto an opponent. And if there was ever an example of "scientific wrestling" - as they used to call it in the 80's, it's Tetsu Gushiken using his mental protractor to twist his opponent's leg in every angle possible.  Math is the root of science. Look it up.

Let's get to the match!


UCTT Round 2 - Tetsu Gushiken vs. THRASH Ogawa


- John Randolph

[OrochiGeese]

The second match in the second round of the #UCCT is between Wang Gom-Bu and Kurt Sanders

Wang decisively won the Battle Royale that seeded this tournament and then defeated Tsaoring Chou in their first round match. Just as it looked as Tsaoring was going to claim victory, Wang dropped the hammer in the form of a vicious chop off the top rope. We've never seen Wang take to the air like that before and it just shows how motivated he is to win this tournament as well as how hard he has been training since his first accomplishment of making it onto the main UBL roster.

Kurt Sanders used every dirty trick in the book to out-do Jean DuBreil attempting to use every voodoo trick in the book in their first round match-up. I'm not a fan of the UBL rulebook being used as a coaster but I have to admit how entertaining it was to watch both of them holding nothing back. Kurt has promised to do exactly the same against Wang but Wang's manager, Archibald Snow, expects that and more.   Both men are ready for the best and worst that each other is capable of.  Wang will use his power and size to ground Kurt into a fine paste.  Kurt will target every weak spot imaginable to punish Wang and taunt him the whole time.   Kurt relies on trolling his opponent until they lose their temper and make a mistake but Wang doesn't easily lose his cool.  Wang relies on his size to intimidate opponents before the match even begins but Kurt seems to love the mental warfare.  This really is the "immovable object vs. the irresponsible farce." Given Kurt's antics, I hope Wang is wearing a cup.  And, ugh, I wish that sentence didn't just come out of my mouth. I owe you $10, Saji.

Let's get to the match!


UCTT Round 2 - Wang Gom-Bu vs. Kurt Sanders


- John Randolph