Post by Mark Mania on Jan 2, 2013 19:11:06 GMT -4
I lay on my bed, cut on my cheek, bruises around my eye still not fully healed. The Overdrive title lays next to me as I stare up at the ceiling. I’ve been resting like this basically since the end of Christmas Chaos. After a quick swing by the hospital, I went directly to my home in Boston, MA. I know that I have to start the London tour on January 3rd, but there is no rest like the type of rest you get at home. After seeing the card for this upcoming week, I need all the rest I can get.
“I can’t believe they’re doing this to you.” Rosa walks in the room and says this as she sits down on the edge of the bed.
“Who’s doing what now?” I respond back, sitting up slightly.
“After that brutal match against Goeren they put you in ANOTHER hardcore match, this time with the Xtreme Champion? That’s insane!”
I shake my head, “It’ll be fine Rosa, I’m fine.”
“You’re not fine.” She looks at me and the cloth next to me that still has blood stains from the cut in my cheek. “Goeren put you through hell.”
“I won Rosa, I put Goeren through hell.” I tap the title.
“Either way, you went to hell, now they want to send you there again.”
“It’s not like Smith hasn’t had to deal with the same thing.”
“He’s the Xtreme Champion, he knew what he signed up for, you only did this last match to prove a point to Goeren.”
“I can still handle it Rosa, don’t worry.”
“You’re old Mark, you shouldn’t be doing this to yourself.”
I sit up fully and glare at Rosa.
“Old? C’mon now, I’m not old. I can still put myself through anything. I don’t care if it’s a hardcore match or not.”
“Well maybe you should care, God knows your real desire is to eventually win the Undisputed Title. You don’t want to injure yourself in a match like this.”
“What do you mean a match like this? This is just important as any.”
“Is it though?”
“Of course it is. They book matches like this every now and then to see what title holds dominion over the other. I’d be doing the Overdrive title a great disservice if I were to lose against the Xtreme Champion, no matter who it is.” I pull the title closer.
“You haven’t done it enough service by beating a former CWC World Champion and the runner up to Survive & Conquer last year?”
“You know how people are, Rosa. It’s always about what I’ve done for them lately. They don’t want to see their champion lose, and god knows I have no plans of losing.”
“I just don’t want you to hurt yourself, especially when you’re competing in Survive & Conquer in just a few weeks.”
“I’ll be fine, you don’t need to watch over me, I’m Mark fucking Mania, I can rebound.”
“It’s been over a week since the match and you’re still on your ass.”
“Do you want me to get better or not!? I’m resting because I have the time to rest, I’ll be ready to go when the bell rings. Don’t you worry yourself.”
Rosa scoffs and stands up off the bed.
“Then let’s go, we’ve got to get to England for the APW Year End Awards.”
“Ah, fuck.” I forgot about that, I needed more time to rest.
I couldn’t let on to Rosa, but it is a complete pain in the ass to have to go from one of the most brutal matches I’ve had lately right into a Hardcore match against the Xtreme Champion. Obviously he has the upperhand just based on what type of match it is. I’m never going to say no to a match nor am I ever going to fear going into a match. But there’s no denying that I’m not looking forward to it.
But, I don’t want to start thinking into the future yet. Winning against Azrael Goeren was a great accomplishment for me. When he came into the APW it was with so much hype and with such a reputation that everyone wanted a piece of him. That’s how it is in the APW, people don’t shy away from a challenge, everyone is chomping at the bit to stand up to it.
So, Goeren comes to APW, goes on a nice little winning streak, taking down guys left and right. Then he’s got some momentum right before he gets put into a match with me. We had a wild match, back and forth, and finally it ended in controversy. Technically I won, it may not of looked like I had, but I did. For most people, they’d look at that and think that it shouldn’t bring Goeren down too much because he clearly had the upper hand. But something happens when you’ve won all your matches and suddenly you get a loss. Something changes inside of you, no matter how that loss came.
Azrael gets that loss against me and then we spiral into a dislike for each other that ends with us at Christmas Chaos for my Overdrive title in a No-Disqualification match. I don’t think Azrael was outmatched, I don’t think that he wasn’t ready, and I don’t think that I destroyed him. He’s a hell of a competitor. He’s a true stud. But this was more than just about me and him. This wasn’t Mark Mania vs. Azrael Goeren. It was APW vs. The best of the best. Azrael came in as the biggest Free Agent of the year. Without a doubt the biggest. He gets put in a match with me. A person that some call, “washed up” or “has-been”. Granted I won the Overdrive title, but that was explained away by saying that I truly “hated” Delikado. People know that I was one of the best back ten years ago. But they assume I don’t have it unless I really need it. Why would I need to ramp it up against Goeren? I didn’t hate him. So we have the top free agent versus a has-been.
Everyone in the APW world picked Azrael. Everyone said he was CWC champ for a reason. Everyone chose him. Everyone was wrong. Mark Mania steps up no matter who the opponent is. Mark Mania doesn’t need to hate someone to beat them, Mark Mania just needs to WANT to beat them. And I wanted to beat Azrael Goeren. That’s why we’re here now, with Mark Mania as Overdrive Champion, and Azrael Goeren just another man who couldn’t cut it against me.
“What are you thinking about?” Rosa asks as she sits across from me in the plane.
“Christmas Chaos.”
“Can’t live in the past, Mark.”
I look at her and laugh, “It was last week! It was an intense match, I have to be able to think about it a little bit.”
“If you’re too busy thinking about Azrael Goeren, you’re going to lose to AC Smith.”
“Oh fuck, AC Smith, I forgot about him.”
“See!”
“I know, I know. He beat me the last time I faced him too, I can’t have that happen again.”
“Wouldn’t look very good if you did would it?”
“You’re right, you’re right. I’m impressed the guy won the Xtreme Title, him getting a title was overdue.”
“Yeah, Watson wasn’t really holding his own, when I saw them up against each other, I figured that was a good chance for him.”
“I mean, he’s a monster of a guy, you knew it was only a matter of time.”
“Can you beat him?”
“Oh come on, I can beat anyone. I’m not even going to dignify that with a response.”
“I’m just saying, he beat you last time.”
“I know, I know, that was last time, that was a different Mark Mania.”
“I hate when people say that. It wasn’t a different person, you were still you, you just sucked.”
I look at her and raise an eyebrow, “No beating around the bush, eh?”
“Are you Canadian?”
“Mother was, all I picked up was the ‘eh?’”
“Weird.”
“Funny coming from a ‘Ramirez’.”
“I’ll say this for you, Smith, you’ve really started to come through in the APW. For a long time I’ve seen you hang out around here and not make much of a dent. When you and I faced off a few months ago I was definitely impressed with what I saw. But then I kept seeing you get close but not really finishing. Which was too bad, you’re a solid guy, the crowd loves you and you were doing good things.”
“Some people even thought that maybe you’d win the Test for the Best and shoot yourself into superstardom. Never quite worked out that way though, did it? Then some people thought you’d challenge Terry and then Delikado for the Overdrive title. You came up short again there though. Then you battled back and forth with Nick Watson and Evan Envi for what seemed like a lifetime.”
“Then, Evan won the Xtreme Championship, which was huge, because now AC Smith was definitely going to get a chance, right!? Finally get that title? Nope, Nick Watson pulls it off. The guy who had been a pain in your ass for so long, he was holding the title that you had set your eyes on. But then finally, finally you’re going to face him, you’re the number one contender, Christmas Chaos is where you’ll finally come home with the title!”
“Oh, but wait, you weren’t even allowed to do that were you? You got to fight on Meltdown! Well, you must’ve headlined it, right? Oh, guess not. Didn’t get to do that either. So, wait, you did win right? I don’t watch that third tier show. I’m just assuming you won because we’re in a Title v. Title match. I’m sure you did great, bud! I bet you really showed that Meltdown crowd how good you can be. Maybe next you can challenge for the North American Title, another title you can have after Envi has it. Seems like you’re just playing sloppy seconds to him.”
“But, I don’t want to take anything away from you, you won the match, Xtreme title, it’s definitely a big accomplishment. In this federation it’s definitely a big thing. I mean, I held the Xtreme title like three years ago, I understand how important it is. Carrying around that tin can cover really feels good.”
“Man, I can’t help but keep putting my foot in my mouth. I’m not meaning to do that, it really is an accomplishment and I’m happy for you that you finally pulled it off, I just don’t want it to go to your head. Obviously you hold that victory over my head, and I can’t blame you for assuming that you’re better than me because of it. But you know as well as I do that when we got in the ring we were two different guys. You were still on the upswing and I hadn’t quite found my groove.”
“Now here we are, both having everything come up as roses for us. Both of us competing in huge matches last week and walking away holding a title over our shoulders. I have a feeling that this match is going to be a much better indicator of how we match up in the ring. Which I’m glad about, I don’t like anyone holding a victory over me. So I can’t wait for us to get in the ring together in Leeds and settle not only who the better out of us but who is better, the Overdrive Champion or the Xtreme Champion.”
“I’m not one to over-exaggerate the importance of things, but I think this match probably means a lot to the both of us. You don’t want to have to deal with people wondering if you’re not really championship material. I mean, you’ve held the title for about eleven days or so, this will be your first match with the title. This is an important match for you. I mean, for me, I’ve been the champ for a few months now, had a high profile match against Goeren to retain the title, so while obviously I’d love to beat you for the mere fact that I haven’t yet, I don’t have anything to prove to anyone.”
“If I lose this match, the only thing people will think is, ‘Well, sure he lost, he just went through a brutal match with Azrael Goeren, one of the best in the business today.’ But what happens if you lose? If you lose people start to question how much you’re actually worth. People start to wonder if you were just lucky against Watson. Maybe he had a bad night, maybe it was a fluke win for you. Do you really need that kind of heat on yourself? I certainly don’t think so.”
“Also, let’s not forget that this match has been booked to be right up your alley. Title versus title in a hardcore rules match? Come on, let’s not pretend like that’s going to benefit me whatsoever. You’re the Xtreme Champion, you’re supposed to be the most extreme and hardcore person in all of APW. And Johnny Rebel’s answer to that is, hey, let’s put Mark Mania, who just fought in a hardcore match agains Azrael Goeren against the ‘Xtreme’ champion. Seems like someone is trying to put me through a little pain.”
“It’s fine with me, I never back down from a challenge. I don’t want it to sound like I’m saying the cards are stacked against me or that I’m upset at all, because I’m not. I’ve never said no to any challenge, it’s not going to happen now. I won’t lie, originally when I saw the card, I thought it was a little fucked up. But once I thought about it, I realized, it’s not a big deal, we’re all in this together. I’ll face whoever, wherever, whenever. I’m just glad to still be in the APW and to still be able to take care of business every week.”
“Because I started thinking about it this way, if I win the match, what’s the worst that can happen? I win the match and then I show that the Overdrive title is still the best and that even when the Overdrive champion has to face off in a Hardcore match, he still has the ability to win. When the odds are against him and the match is tailored towards his competitor, he can still win.”
“That’s all I’m here to do, is prove people wrong, over and over again. I did it at Christmas Chaos and I’m damn happy to do it again during our first Overdrive of 2013. It’s funny, my entire life, thirteen was my lucky number. I was born on the thirteenth during the thirteenth hour and it was a Friday the Thirteenth of all days. It makes me feel like this is going to be my year. Despite my age, I wasn’t actually alive in 1913, so this will be the first, and most likely only time in my life when it’s the year 13. I have no problem fighting against the odds in the first Overdrive of ’13.”
“So AC Smith, I’m glad to be facing you this week because I can’t wait to prove that I don’t give a shit who you are, what title you have, or what the rules are for the match. I want to get in the ring with you and show that I can take any challenge give to me.”
“I’ll see you on Thursday, Smith, should be fun.”
“I can’t believe they’re doing this to you.” Rosa walks in the room and says this as she sits down on the edge of the bed.
“Who’s doing what now?” I respond back, sitting up slightly.
“After that brutal match against Goeren they put you in ANOTHER hardcore match, this time with the Xtreme Champion? That’s insane!”
I shake my head, “It’ll be fine Rosa, I’m fine.”
“You’re not fine.” She looks at me and the cloth next to me that still has blood stains from the cut in my cheek. “Goeren put you through hell.”
“I won Rosa, I put Goeren through hell.” I tap the title.
“Either way, you went to hell, now they want to send you there again.”
“It’s not like Smith hasn’t had to deal with the same thing.”
“He’s the Xtreme Champion, he knew what he signed up for, you only did this last match to prove a point to Goeren.”
“I can still handle it Rosa, don’t worry.”
“You’re old Mark, you shouldn’t be doing this to yourself.”
I sit up fully and glare at Rosa.
“Old? C’mon now, I’m not old. I can still put myself through anything. I don’t care if it’s a hardcore match or not.”
“Well maybe you should care, God knows your real desire is to eventually win the Undisputed Title. You don’t want to injure yourself in a match like this.”
“What do you mean a match like this? This is just important as any.”
“Is it though?”
“Of course it is. They book matches like this every now and then to see what title holds dominion over the other. I’d be doing the Overdrive title a great disservice if I were to lose against the Xtreme Champion, no matter who it is.” I pull the title closer.
“You haven’t done it enough service by beating a former CWC World Champion and the runner up to Survive & Conquer last year?”
“You know how people are, Rosa. It’s always about what I’ve done for them lately. They don’t want to see their champion lose, and god knows I have no plans of losing.”
“I just don’t want you to hurt yourself, especially when you’re competing in Survive & Conquer in just a few weeks.”
“I’ll be fine, you don’t need to watch over me, I’m Mark fucking Mania, I can rebound.”
“It’s been over a week since the match and you’re still on your ass.”
“Do you want me to get better or not!? I’m resting because I have the time to rest, I’ll be ready to go when the bell rings. Don’t you worry yourself.”
Rosa scoffs and stands up off the bed.
“Then let’s go, we’ve got to get to England for the APW Year End Awards.”
“Ah, fuck.” I forgot about that, I needed more time to rest.
I couldn’t let on to Rosa, but it is a complete pain in the ass to have to go from one of the most brutal matches I’ve had lately right into a Hardcore match against the Xtreme Champion. Obviously he has the upperhand just based on what type of match it is. I’m never going to say no to a match nor am I ever going to fear going into a match. But there’s no denying that I’m not looking forward to it.
But, I don’t want to start thinking into the future yet. Winning against Azrael Goeren was a great accomplishment for me. When he came into the APW it was with so much hype and with such a reputation that everyone wanted a piece of him. That’s how it is in the APW, people don’t shy away from a challenge, everyone is chomping at the bit to stand up to it.
So, Goeren comes to APW, goes on a nice little winning streak, taking down guys left and right. Then he’s got some momentum right before he gets put into a match with me. We had a wild match, back and forth, and finally it ended in controversy. Technically I won, it may not of looked like I had, but I did. For most people, they’d look at that and think that it shouldn’t bring Goeren down too much because he clearly had the upper hand. But something happens when you’ve won all your matches and suddenly you get a loss. Something changes inside of you, no matter how that loss came.
Azrael gets that loss against me and then we spiral into a dislike for each other that ends with us at Christmas Chaos for my Overdrive title in a No-Disqualification match. I don’t think Azrael was outmatched, I don’t think that he wasn’t ready, and I don’t think that I destroyed him. He’s a hell of a competitor. He’s a true stud. But this was more than just about me and him. This wasn’t Mark Mania vs. Azrael Goeren. It was APW vs. The best of the best. Azrael came in as the biggest Free Agent of the year. Without a doubt the biggest. He gets put in a match with me. A person that some call, “washed up” or “has-been”. Granted I won the Overdrive title, but that was explained away by saying that I truly “hated” Delikado. People know that I was one of the best back ten years ago. But they assume I don’t have it unless I really need it. Why would I need to ramp it up against Goeren? I didn’t hate him. So we have the top free agent versus a has-been.
Everyone in the APW world picked Azrael. Everyone said he was CWC champ for a reason. Everyone chose him. Everyone was wrong. Mark Mania steps up no matter who the opponent is. Mark Mania doesn’t need to hate someone to beat them, Mark Mania just needs to WANT to beat them. And I wanted to beat Azrael Goeren. That’s why we’re here now, with Mark Mania as Overdrive Champion, and Azrael Goeren just another man who couldn’t cut it against me.
“What are you thinking about?” Rosa asks as she sits across from me in the plane.
“Christmas Chaos.”
“Can’t live in the past, Mark.”
I look at her and laugh, “It was last week! It was an intense match, I have to be able to think about it a little bit.”
“If you’re too busy thinking about Azrael Goeren, you’re going to lose to AC Smith.”
“Oh fuck, AC Smith, I forgot about him.”
“See!”
“I know, I know. He beat me the last time I faced him too, I can’t have that happen again.”
“Wouldn’t look very good if you did would it?”
“You’re right, you’re right. I’m impressed the guy won the Xtreme Title, him getting a title was overdue.”
“Yeah, Watson wasn’t really holding his own, when I saw them up against each other, I figured that was a good chance for him.”
“I mean, he’s a monster of a guy, you knew it was only a matter of time.”
“Can you beat him?”
“Oh come on, I can beat anyone. I’m not even going to dignify that with a response.”
“I’m just saying, he beat you last time.”
“I know, I know, that was last time, that was a different Mark Mania.”
“I hate when people say that. It wasn’t a different person, you were still you, you just sucked.”
I look at her and raise an eyebrow, “No beating around the bush, eh?”
“Are you Canadian?”
“Mother was, all I picked up was the ‘eh?’”
“Weird.”
“Funny coming from a ‘Ramirez’.”
“I’ll say this for you, Smith, you’ve really started to come through in the APW. For a long time I’ve seen you hang out around here and not make much of a dent. When you and I faced off a few months ago I was definitely impressed with what I saw. But then I kept seeing you get close but not really finishing. Which was too bad, you’re a solid guy, the crowd loves you and you were doing good things.”
“Some people even thought that maybe you’d win the Test for the Best and shoot yourself into superstardom. Never quite worked out that way though, did it? Then some people thought you’d challenge Terry and then Delikado for the Overdrive title. You came up short again there though. Then you battled back and forth with Nick Watson and Evan Envi for what seemed like a lifetime.”
“Then, Evan won the Xtreme Championship, which was huge, because now AC Smith was definitely going to get a chance, right!? Finally get that title? Nope, Nick Watson pulls it off. The guy who had been a pain in your ass for so long, he was holding the title that you had set your eyes on. But then finally, finally you’re going to face him, you’re the number one contender, Christmas Chaos is where you’ll finally come home with the title!”
“Oh, but wait, you weren’t even allowed to do that were you? You got to fight on Meltdown! Well, you must’ve headlined it, right? Oh, guess not. Didn’t get to do that either. So, wait, you did win right? I don’t watch that third tier show. I’m just assuming you won because we’re in a Title v. Title match. I’m sure you did great, bud! I bet you really showed that Meltdown crowd how good you can be. Maybe next you can challenge for the North American Title, another title you can have after Envi has it. Seems like you’re just playing sloppy seconds to him.”
“But, I don’t want to take anything away from you, you won the match, Xtreme title, it’s definitely a big accomplishment. In this federation it’s definitely a big thing. I mean, I held the Xtreme title like three years ago, I understand how important it is. Carrying around that tin can cover really feels good.”
“Man, I can’t help but keep putting my foot in my mouth. I’m not meaning to do that, it really is an accomplishment and I’m happy for you that you finally pulled it off, I just don’t want it to go to your head. Obviously you hold that victory over my head, and I can’t blame you for assuming that you’re better than me because of it. But you know as well as I do that when we got in the ring we were two different guys. You were still on the upswing and I hadn’t quite found my groove.”
“Now here we are, both having everything come up as roses for us. Both of us competing in huge matches last week and walking away holding a title over our shoulders. I have a feeling that this match is going to be a much better indicator of how we match up in the ring. Which I’m glad about, I don’t like anyone holding a victory over me. So I can’t wait for us to get in the ring together in Leeds and settle not only who the better out of us but who is better, the Overdrive Champion or the Xtreme Champion.”
“I’m not one to over-exaggerate the importance of things, but I think this match probably means a lot to the both of us. You don’t want to have to deal with people wondering if you’re not really championship material. I mean, you’ve held the title for about eleven days or so, this will be your first match with the title. This is an important match for you. I mean, for me, I’ve been the champ for a few months now, had a high profile match against Goeren to retain the title, so while obviously I’d love to beat you for the mere fact that I haven’t yet, I don’t have anything to prove to anyone.”
“If I lose this match, the only thing people will think is, ‘Well, sure he lost, he just went through a brutal match with Azrael Goeren, one of the best in the business today.’ But what happens if you lose? If you lose people start to question how much you’re actually worth. People start to wonder if you were just lucky against Watson. Maybe he had a bad night, maybe it was a fluke win for you. Do you really need that kind of heat on yourself? I certainly don’t think so.”
“Also, let’s not forget that this match has been booked to be right up your alley. Title versus title in a hardcore rules match? Come on, let’s not pretend like that’s going to benefit me whatsoever. You’re the Xtreme Champion, you’re supposed to be the most extreme and hardcore person in all of APW. And Johnny Rebel’s answer to that is, hey, let’s put Mark Mania, who just fought in a hardcore match agains Azrael Goeren against the ‘Xtreme’ champion. Seems like someone is trying to put me through a little pain.”
“It’s fine with me, I never back down from a challenge. I don’t want it to sound like I’m saying the cards are stacked against me or that I’m upset at all, because I’m not. I’ve never said no to any challenge, it’s not going to happen now. I won’t lie, originally when I saw the card, I thought it was a little fucked up. But once I thought about it, I realized, it’s not a big deal, we’re all in this together. I’ll face whoever, wherever, whenever. I’m just glad to still be in the APW and to still be able to take care of business every week.”
“Because I started thinking about it this way, if I win the match, what’s the worst that can happen? I win the match and then I show that the Overdrive title is still the best and that even when the Overdrive champion has to face off in a Hardcore match, he still has the ability to win. When the odds are against him and the match is tailored towards his competitor, he can still win.”
“That’s all I’m here to do, is prove people wrong, over and over again. I did it at Christmas Chaos and I’m damn happy to do it again during our first Overdrive of 2013. It’s funny, my entire life, thirteen was my lucky number. I was born on the thirteenth during the thirteenth hour and it was a Friday the Thirteenth of all days. It makes me feel like this is going to be my year. Despite my age, I wasn’t actually alive in 1913, so this will be the first, and most likely only time in my life when it’s the year 13. I have no problem fighting against the odds in the first Overdrive of ’13.”
“So AC Smith, I’m glad to be facing you this week because I can’t wait to prove that I don’t give a shit who you are, what title you have, or what the rules are for the match. I want to get in the ring with you and show that I can take any challenge give to me.”
“I’ll see you on Thursday, Smith, should be fun.”
