With the results of Refueled XVII now in the books we now know who the Final Four will be for the Lee Best Invitational:
- Alex Redding wins the Narcotic Group with a 4-0 record. Alex started fast and when he defeated No. 1 ranked wrestler at the time Steven Solex, and gained the tiebreaker over him, it became a daunting task for the rest of the group to catch the HOW newcomer. With his win last night over Rick Dickulous he secured his perfect record and has all the momentum heading into the knockout stage.
- Teddy Palmer wins the Embosser Group with a 3-0 record with three points coming from a bye from the Crash Rodriguez firing. Although Teddy did not have four matches in the ring his dominance mirrored his tag team partner Alex Redding. Palmer effectively won the group with his wins over Deacon as he secured the all important tiebreaker in head to head matchups. Palmer, like his tag partner, has all the momentum heading into his singles match against Alex Redding in the knockout stage.
- Max Kael wins the DeNucci Group with a 3-1 record. This group was all set for the ultimate tiebreaker until the firing of Warrick Hill. Without that firing we could still be in wait and see mode for this group. But as he has often done over the last decade plus, Max Kael finds a way to get it done, and advances once again to the knockout stage of the LBI. With more LBI experience than everyone else left combined, Kael is easily the most dangerous of the four wrestlers remaining as he heads towards the knockout stage.
- Lindsay Troy wins the Group of Death be securing all the important head to head tiebreakers. With one match left versus High Flyer the worst she can finish is 3-1. Her wins over Dan Ryan and Mike Best secured the tiebreakers over both men and made their final match meaningless when it comes to the LBI. Lindsay will now have to navigate her last match while keeping one eye open on Max Kael who will be her opponent in her first ever LBI Knockout Stage match.
So as you can see most of the groups came down to the head to head tiebreaker with only one group really seeing a firing affecting the potential outcome.
As with every LBI we see some people fall off after losing, someone will do something stupid to get fired, and we will see folks that we were not expecting to step up to ultimately doing some serious damage in the tournament. It is why I love starting the year out with the LBI because, and I have said this many times, it gives everyone a fresh start and everyone an idea of who is going to stick around and who ultimately would have flaked out on ya.
Now I think everyone knows WHY there was one legit OOC firing this year in the LBI so I will not go into it. The rest of the firings were based off folks no showing a match and when I was able to talk to them, to a person, they all admitted that they weren’t going to carry on. So there was not one person that just no showed to never have been heard from again. I appreciate everyone that has, and will, taken time to role-play for the LBI and future HOW Events.
Kudos to everyone so far and although the groups are done we still have matches to finish out. With that in mind I am working on some stuff to add something to the remaining group stage cards. The first of these instances was adding the Tag Team Title match to the next weeks show.
Not only has Red and Ted EARNED the right to wrestle for the Tag Titles but it also allows to build some heat for potential match ups as you have three group winners and the World Champion in this match. Booking 101 really.
Speaking on the Tag Titles…..as with every year during the LBI….they take a back seat. That changes and it changes quickly once the group stage is over. You will see a great emphasis on the Tag Titles and I will rely on the singles champs to keep heat on their own belts, as I pivot my attention to the booking and organizing of the Tag Division post LBI.
We have a very deep roster at the moment and it is, and always has been, my job to help keep people engaged and invested. We have several new folks that are quickly establishing themselves here in HOW but that does not mean that they still will not need some help. The LBI is very tough on gaining traction regarding feuds but that quickly changes as well with the group stage ending. Those that have been eliminated……NOW is the time to pivot to a singles or tag feud. If you need any help with direction please reach out to me as I can help with that regard. There are some very interesting tag teams that will be revealed shortly and of course you have some folks that just joined who have heat with the whole fed…..so ya….pick a target!!
Reach out as always if needed.
–Lee Best