Hello Ring Time Pro Wrestling Fans!
This is Keshia, your official RTPW correspondent for the 2018 Mae Young Classic, exclusively on the WWE Network. We have seen the first round of the tournament, and so far, the matches have been incredible. I am here to bring you the results of the first round, and I am also going to give you some insight on some of the matches in the first 16 matches of the tournament, highlighting some of our favorite competitors. The commenters for this year are Renee Young, Michael Cole, and Beth Phoenix, placing two women on the announce team for a WWE event for the first time. Each match will be listed with the country that each wrestler is representing next to her, and the winner will also be listed with the style in which she won. This year’s tournament has nine returning superstars that are looking for redemption from last year’s MYC, but the other 23 women are looking to stop this from happening. You ready? Let’s begin with discussing what some of the highlighted matches first!
MJ Jenkins makes her debut in a WWE ring in this tournament, representing the United States. She worked the independent scene for 7 years before she signed a contract with the WWE Performance Center, facing Mae Young Classic repeat competitor Rhea Ripley for her first match. Ripley was the youngest competitor in last year’s tournament, and she has come back this year to win it all. Ripley got off on a good start by defeating Jenkins by pinfall.
Lacey Lane graduated from Shaw University a 2012 basketball champion and decided to throw her hat into the wrestling ring, having been trained by WWE Hall of Famers The Dudley Boyz. She is a Florida native that just got signed to the Performance Center and is participating in this tournament for the first time, using the training that she has received from the tag team and her time in Mexico against Vanessa Kraven, a 6’2 powerhouse that has been on the independent circuit for 14 years, exhorting her size and strength in Canada, the U.S., and Japan. Unfortunately for Kraven, she faced a severe upset in the first round as she was pinned by Lane in a rollup, allowing Lane to continue to the second round.
Meiko Satomura has a very interesting fact about her: she appeared on Monday Night Nitro several times in women’s matches, and she revered as a legend in the ring as she has been wrestling since she was 15 and founded her own wrestling company for women, being a role model to many of the ladies that are participating in this year’s tournament. She faces Killer Kelly, the first Portuguese woman to step into the WWE ring. Kelly can be found on NXT UK as she is a predominant wrestler in England after receiving wrestling training in Germany. Satomura moves on in the tournament after defeating Kelly via pinfall.
This match has to be spoken about for two reasons: it features a MYC returner against a first timer in the WWE ring that has been well-known in the independent circuit for years. Mercedes Martinez made it all the way to the semifinals before she was defeated by Shayna Bazler in last year’s MYC, so she knows what it feels like to be a step away from the prize that she has come back to fight for this year. If anything, she believes that she can finally get to the stop spot as she did fell short of before by doing what she has already shown that she can do, and that is take down anyone in her path. If you have watched TNA or Impact Wrestling, then you know the name Rayne. Also known as Madison Rayne, Ashley Rayne has been wrestling for 13 years all over the world, but she took on the opportunity to wrestle in a WWE ring to test her abilities and skills against some of the toughest women in the world in this tournament and live up to the name she has been given. Martinez, however, has proven so far that her return is not a fluke as she defeated first-timer Rayne via pinfall.
Mia Yim was very disappointed when she was defeated in the second round of last year’s MYC by Shayna Bazler, and she was taken out of action for a while after the tournament, giving her more drive and motivation to enter into this year’s classic and try to make her mark in the WWE by winning it all. Her first round opponent is Allysin Kay, a Detroit native that has taken her talents all over the world and has wrestled alongside the likes of Sarah Logan, Ashley Rayne and Serena Deeb. Some may recognize her as two-time Knockouts Champion Sienna, and she has entered her 5’10 frame into this tournament to prove why she has been able to achieve such success. Kay’s stay in the MYC was cut short by Mia Yim via pinfall as Yim continues on to win the tournament that she sought to win one time before.
Xia Brookside has been wrestling since she was 16, and she is only 19 years old! Despite being such a young competitor, she has wrestled in different countries and considers herself ready to take on any woman that will stand in the way of her winning the MYC. The wrestler that is on the opposite side of the ring from her is Io Shirai, who is entering the MYC just a few months after becoming a new member of the NXT Universe. Shirai is a former multi champion of World Wonder Ring Stardom and has proven to the world in Mexico, Japan, and the United States that she cannot be underestimated. This match ended in pinfall as Io Shirai moves on to the quarterfinals and her dream of winning this year’s MYC.
The results of the other matches are as follows:
Tegan Nox (United Kingdom) defeated Zatara (Chile) by pinfall
Deonna Purrazzo (United States) defeated Priscilla Kelly (United States) by submission
Zeuxis (Mexico) defeated Aerial Monroe (United States) by pinfall
Kacy Catanzaro (United States) defeated Reina Gonzalez (United States) by pinfall
Kaitlyn (United States) defeated Kavita Devi (India) by pinfall
Toni Storm (Australia) defeated Jinny (England) by pinfall
Xia Li (China) defeated Karen Q (United States) by pinfall
Hiroyo Matsumoto (Japan) defeated Rachel Evers (United States) by pinfall
Taynara Conti (Brazil) defeated Jessie Elaban (United States) by pinfall
Nicole Matthews (Canada) defeated Isla Dawn (Scotland) by submission
Stay tuned into Ring Time Pro Wrestling as I cover the quarterfinals next and report what 8 ladies will be continuing on in the 2018 Mae Young Classic! See ya later!
Written By
Keshia Holt
Follow on Twitter @ReallyNoKesh
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