NIGHT ONE – Saturday October 19, 2024
Three of Canada’s best athletes – former 2x TNA World Champion Josh Alexander, ELP, and Stu Grayson – team up to represent Canada versus the international contingent of Alex Zayne, Trevor Lee, and Rocky Romero in a huge six-man tag match! The international duo boasts many titles in their collective display case, including three X-Division titles, one NXT North American Championship, eight IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team titles, and an IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion, but the Canadian side is no slouch. Josh Alexander is a former 2x TNA World Champion, X-Division Champion, and 2x TNA World Tag Team Champion, while ELP boasts three IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team titles and two turns as NJPW STRONG Tag Team Champion.
AEW’s QT Marshall brings his years of experience against one of the hot, young stars of TNA Wrestling, when QT locks up in the ring against Bhupinder Gujjar! Bhupinder better keeps his eyes open though, as QT is bringing AEW star Harley Cameron as his manager!
Four strong women compete in a Four-Way Match that sees Chicago’s Laynie Luck and Kylie Rae in the same ring as Canada’s Taylor Rising and Aurora Teves. Worlds will collide, but which lone woman will emerge victorious?
This past week, New Japan’s Intergalactic Jet Setters duo of KUSHIDA and Kevin Knight become two-time IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions at NJPW King of Pro Wrestling. On Saturday, they’re putting their new belts on the line! They’re going to defend against reigning Border City Wrestling Can-Am Tag Team Champions Aiden Prince and El Reverso, and former BCW Tag Team Champions Rogue Squadron (Rohit Raju & Sheldon Prince), as well as the unorthodox pairing of Toronto’s Brent Banks and former ECW, WCW, ECW and TNA Wrestling star Johnny Swinger!
MAPLE LEAF PRO (MLP) and the Pro Wrestling Alliance (PWA) proudly introduce the Champion’s Grail, a symbol of wrestling greatness forged from the legacies of two historic championships. Set to be defended across all PWA member promotions in the coming months and years, the Champion’s Grail holders will inherit decades of prestige in professional wrestling.
The origins of the first Champion’s Grail date back to July 1, 1962, when the legendary Rikidōzan and his partner Toyonobori triumphed over Mike Sharpe and Buddy Austin in Toyonaka, Japan, and were awarded magnificent eagle-topped trophies with a chalice. Following Rikidōzan’s tragic passing in 1963, his trophy remained a sacred family heirloom, preserved for over sixty years.
Until now.
With the blessing of Rikidōzan’s family, MAPLE LEAF PRO and the PWA have reimagined the Champion’s Grail for the modern era. This new title also integrates the legacy of the second Champion’s Grail, which was claimed by Canadian wrestling icon Kenny Omega in 2011. Omega emerged victorious in a legendary tournament featuring names like MVP, LA Knight, Chris Hero, Adam Pearce, Brian Cage, The Good Brothers, and “Psycho” Mike Rollins, solidifying his place in wrestling lore.
The new PWA Championship Belt will honor the legacies of both Rikidozan and Kenny Omega, combining the visual grandeur of both Grails. Designed to be defended by the best talents across the globe, the belt features intricate details, including English, Japanese, and Latin text, and a front plate that pays homage to Rikidōzan’s 1962 trophy. This prestigious belt will be a true world championship. In this exciting new chapter, the Champion’s Grail symbolizes perseverance, strength, and the timeless spirit of wrestling’s greatest champions. Embodying the motto “Per Ardua Ad Astra” – Through Adversity to the Stars – this championship is set to inspire the wrestling world.
Who will be the first to hold this illustrious prize? Witness the crowning of the inaugural Champion at MAPLE LEAF PRO’s Forged in Excellence, live from Windsor, Ontario, Canada, on Night One, October 19, as TNA Wrestling’s Jake Something and former NXT UK star Rohan Raja battle it out for the right to become the inaugural PWA Champion’s Grail Champion!
Former WWE World Champion Raj Dhesi is entering dangerous waters by agreeing to a Tables Match against one of the men who arguably created the stipulation, Bully Ray of the legendary Dudley Boyz tag team. Will The Maharajah be able to withstand the onslaught of Bully Ray, or will the former 2x TNA World Champion hinder?
“The Quintessential Diva” Gisele Shaw is already set for a major match-up on Night Two when she faces off against Ring of Honor Women’s World Champion Athena, but on Night One she faces one of the most explosive wrestlers from Japan in Miyu Yamashita of Tokyo Joshi Pro. Yamashita has been seen competing around the world, in the likes of TNA Wrestling and Ring of Honor, and now Yamashita is coming to MAPLE LEAF PRO. There’s added pressure on Gisele Shaw in this match – if Miyu Yamashita wins their contest, she will be added to the Night Two ROH World title match!
These two superstars of international professional wrestling have captivated audiences around the world, both as partners and foes. These two have won tag team championship gold together during their time in DDT Pro in Japan, and have faced off as opponents as well. Their last match against each other was in the finals of the 2023 Pro Wrestling Guerrilla (PWG) Battle of Los Angeles tournament, with Canada’s own Mike Bailey scoring the victory. Now these two have gone on to become two of the biggest stars in their respective companies, with Mike Bailey a former two-time TNA X-Division Champion, while Konosuke Takeshita is a perennial contender
for gold as part of the Don Callis Family.
NIGHT TWO – Sunday, October 20, 2024
IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions KUSHIDA and Kevin Knight, collectively known as the Intergalactic Jet Setters, teams up with BCW Tag Team Champion Aiden Prince to form a high flying trio, who will take on the unit comprised of Rocky Romero from NJPW teaming with former NXT UK star Rohan Raja and former X-Division Champion Rohit Raju in should be an athletic showcase for the ages!
In partnership with our Pro Wrestling Alliance partner Qatar Pro Wrestling (QPW), Classy Ali will be defending his QPW Qatar Championship against Windsor’s own El Reverso in a clash of athleticism and high flying!
In tag team action, the union of Laynie Luck and Harley Cameron will test their mettle against a duo of skill and speed in Kylie Rae and Miyu Yamashita. For Laynie and Kylie Rae, this match is personal – the two Chicago natives have been battling each other since 2017, with Kylie Rae picking up the win in their four-way match on Saturday night. Now Laynie is teaming with AEW star Harley Cameron against Kylie Rae and her partner, the explosive Miyu Yamashita from Tokyo Joshi Pro – who will no doubt be fired up after falling short in her match on Night One!
Six names compete in an all out war at MLP Forged In Excellence as BCW Can-Am Heavyweight Champion Jake Something enters the ring to face the likes of former 3x TNA X-Division Champion Trevor Lee, the hard-hitting brutality of Stu Grayson, the eclectic stylings of Psycho Mike Rollins, the all-around athleticism of “The Canadian Gangster” Sheldon Jean, and the innovative aerialist Alex Zayne, in a chaotic mix of strength and speed!
Six years ago, “Speedball” Mike Bailey and El Phantasmo fought all across Europe, from Wales to England to Germany, showing the world what Canadians can do in the ring. On Night Two of MLP Forged In Excellence, two of the top Canadian wrestlers in the world will rekindle their old rivalry and bring it to North America for the first time!
Following the cowardly actions of Bully Ray and QT Marshall against “The Maharaja” Raj Dhesi on Night One – and the heroic back-up in the form of TNA Wrestling’s Bhupinder Gujjar – there will now be a huge tag team match-up on Night Two to settle the score. Bully Ray and his new associate QT Marshall will team up to face the tandem of Raj Dhesi and Bhupinder Gujjar, who will be looking to exact their revenge from Saturday night’s attack!
Athena wowed the world as Ember Moon in WWE, but as Athena she’s climbed even higher heights, as she’s been the reigning ROH Women’s World Champion for over 600 days and counting, defending against many top challengers! At Forged in Excellence, she’ll be stepping in the ring against former TNA Knockout Gisele Shaw, who has had multiple Knockouts World title opportunities throughout her TNA run. Gisele Shaw brings years of international experience competing not only in North America but across Europe, as she looks to take down the ROH Champion in Windsor!
In an international showcase of the best two countries have to offer, at Forged in Excellence, Canada’s “Walking Weapon” Josh Alexander will go head-to-head against the most lethal member of AEW’s Callis Family, Japan’s Konosuke Takeshita! The former two-time TNA World Heavyweight Champion will lace up against the newly crowned All Elite Wrestling (AEW) International Champion in what is sure to be a hard-hitting affair for international dominance! These two warriors have met only once before and it ended in a 20-minute time limit draw – at Forged in Excellence, we will have a winner!