Remaining SHINE title tournament qualifiers announced for SHINE 10
At SHINE 9, four women – Saraya Knight, Rain, Jessicka Havok & Jazz – qualified for the promotion’s upcoming title tournament due to take place in July. On May 24, the remaining four women will compete to qualify as part of the SHINE 10 lineup.
Fresh off her victory in the main event of SHINE 9, Leva Bates will look to get into the title hunt when she faces Valkyrie member Taylor Made. Elsewhere, the loser of the Arkham Asylum Cage Match, Kimberly, will look to get back to winning ways when she takes on SHINE’s rising star and ultimate baby face Santana Garrett.
Mercedes Martinez – who seems to have incurred the ire of Daffney through her actions at SHINE 9 where she gatecrashed and spoiled Nikki Roxx‘s birthday celebration – wrestles Mia Yim, who was part of the main event of SHINE 8 and was a sixth of the trios tag at SHINE 9, while Roxx rounds off the last of the qualifying matches, when she steps into the ring against Taylor’s Made In Sin tag team partner and fellow Valkyrie member Allysin Kay. (more…)
SHINE 9 results: Eagles vs Havok steals the show, plus Leva finally commits Kimberly to Arkham Asylum
SHINE Wrestling returns to iPPV this evening with what is without doubt the most stacked card in company history – featuring, as it does, a Steel Cage Match main event to (presumably) cap off the long standing rivalry between Leva Bates & Kimberly, which currently stands at 2-2 after four matches (Bates won at SHINE 3, then after Kimberly turned heel at SHINE 5, she won their rematch at SHINE 6. On SHINE 7, Leva won a Last Woman Standing match, only to see Kimberly win the Fans Bring The Weapons/I Quit match at SHINE 8).
The show also sees the first Qualifying round of the SHINE Title tournament, which takes place at SHINE 11 in July – with eight hopefuls looking to advance to the single elimination tournament. In a first time ever dream match, Madison Eagles takes on Jessicka Havok, while Sweet Saraya Knight battles Su Yung. VALKYRIE stable members Rain & Ivelisse Velez will also see tournament action, against Jazz & Angelina Love respectively. And that’s not even all. Jump through after the page break to follow results as they come in from the Orpheum in Ybor City, FL. (more…)
SHINE 9 card: “Arkham Asylum” Steel Cage match, plus Qualifiers for first SHINE Title tournament
With SHIMMER weekend done, all roads lead to Ybor City this Friday night for SHINE 9 on iPPV via WWN. Although news of the main event – billed as an “Arkham Asylum” Cage Match between Leva Bates & Kimberly (watch Bates lay down the challenge here) – has been known for a couple of weeks, some of the other marquee matches have now been announced for what is looking like it could be one of SHINE’s biggest shows to date.
With SHINE now on the verge of creating their first champion, the promotion have announced that they have selected 16 competitors, the first eight of which will first battle in four one-on-one Qualifier matches at SHINE 9 this week. Next month at SHINE 10 on May 24th, the next eight challengers will make up a further four Qualifiers. This all leads to SHINE 11 on July 12th, which will see the eight final competitors battle it out to be crowned the first SHINE Champion in a one night single elimination tournament. With the roster for SHINE 9 full to the brim with international competitors coming off SHIMMER last weekend, the talent pool for the Qualifiers so far is deep and rich, and features two former SHIMMER Champions, current champions in WSU & PWWA, a former WWE Women’s Champion and a former TNA Knockouts Champion. (more…)
SHINE 8 results: Valkyrie remain unbeaten, Havok forced to respect Sky, Bates/Kimberly in insane brawl
Since the formation of Rain‘s Valkyrie stable at SHINE 6, the group has been on a tear – going 3-0 against SHINE talent at SHINE 7 – but with the roster banding together against the renegades at the conclusion of the last show, and the addition of the debuting Angelina Love – it just might be the start of the turning of the tide – with the team of Angelina Love, Amazing Kong, Mia Yim & Christina Von Eerie combining to take on Rain (making her return from injury), Ivelisse and Made In Sin in the main event.
Also on the show, Kimberly and Leva Bates have each picked a “poison” for the other in their potentially feud-ending double stipulation match. Leva chose “Fans bring the weapons”, and Kimberly selected “I Quit”. High stakes also in the match between Reby Sky and Jessicka Havok, which is being billed as a “Career vs Respect” match. Simply put, if Havok beats Sky, Sky’s time in SHINE is over, but if Sky can overcome the larger, stronger and more vicious Havok, Havok will have to stand in the middle of the ring and admit on the mic that she respects Sky.
Follow results as they come in with us after the jump. (more…)
SHINE 8 card: Eight Woman Warfare, Leva & Kimberly pick some poison and a career is on the line
On the heels of a well received SHINE 7 iPPV which saw the newly formed VALKYRIE stable complete a clean sweep of victories, going 3-0 across the board, the newly released SHINE 8 card offers the Home Team a chance to gain a measure of revenge in the form of an eight-woman tag team main event. Rain will lead VALKYRIE, consisting of Made In Sin (Allysin Kay & Taylor Made) and this week’s TNA Gut Check contestant Ivelisse Velez, against a team consisting of Amazing Kong, Mia Yim, the returning Christina Von Eerie and the debuting Angelina Love. The heel team picks itself, naturally, but it’s an interesting choice on the Kong side, as it seems that the people who ran in to help at the end of SHINE 7 (Nikki Roxx, Santana Garrett, Tracy Taylor & Su Yung) have all been passed over in deference to Von Eerie & Love. We have no great issues with the choice, as the match looks tasty in any event, but it seems a shame that someone like Santana, who has been quietly improving show by show and looked to potentially have a chance to move up the card, remains anchored to the midcard. (more…)
Ringbelles Retro: Valkyrie v OI4K
Since this match on February 7, 2009, life has taken some twists and turns for Rain and Nevaeh. At the time, both were part of strong tag teams in SHIMMER – Rain was teaming with Jetta in the International Home Wrecking Crew while Nevaeh and Ashley Lane were the promotion’s Tag Team Champions. These days, Rain is the leader of the stable in SHINE known as Valkyrie – alongside April Hunter, Ivelisse Velez, Allysin Kay and Taylor Made – and Nevaeh is the sole female member of the Combat Zone Wrestling faction the OI4K, with running buddies Sami Callihan, Dave Crist and Jake Crist.
While neither are SHIMMER regulars these days, they’re not short of work, with Nevaeh also working in Women Superstars Uncensored as well as CZW, and Rain headlining SHINE as part of what she insists is her final year of competition.
This Retro comes from UnderGround Wrestling‘s A Night Of Heartache in Joliet, IL, which you can see after the jump. (more…)
SHINE 7 results – Valkyrie does the clean sweep while Leva Bates beats Kimberly
After aligning at the conclusion of SHINE 6 – the video of which you can watch after the jump – the five members of Valkyrie are all in action tonight as part of three matches which form the card for SHINE 7, taking place this evening at the Orpheum in Ybor City, FL. The highest-profile match features Rain returning from a wrist injury suffered at SHINE 5 against the woman who was used as the target for the formation of the stable, Amazing Kong.
Elsewhere, April Hunter debuts alongside her buddies in Made In Sin (Allysin Kay & Taylor Made) to take on Mia Yim and the West Coast Connection of Su Yung & Tracy Taylor. The final Valkyrie member, Ivelisse Velez, faces the debuting LuFisto in what is an intriguing match.
The main stipulation match on the event sees Leva Bates and Kimberly square off again, only with it being a Last Woman Standing match. We will see if Kimberly can double her win count in SHINE, or if Leva can tame her unhinged former tag team partner. We discuss the match in greater length in our preview which was written when the card was announced, which you can jump to by clicking here.
You can order the event right now by clicking here to go to WWNLive.com. If that’s not possible, click the jump to see the results as they happen by hitting refresh – and later on, we’ll offer our thoughts on the show, which is likely to produce a number of developments. (more…)
SHINE 7 card: Valkyrie in action, LuFisto debuts, plus Leva & Kimberly knock it up a notch
Afer last month’s big conclusion to the SHINE 6 iPPV, we’ve been having a look down the card for SHINE 7, which lands two weeks from now in Ybor City, FL. Surprisingly, all the members of the quintet known as Valkyrie will be in action, which means one wrestler returning from injury, and another making her SHINE in-ring debut.
In the main event, Amazing Kong - the woman who suffered the beating at the end of SHINE 6 at the hands of the stable – looks to gain a measure of revenge against Valkyrie’s leader Rain, who will be returning after breaking her wrist at SHINE 5 back in November in a tag match where she and Mercedes Martinez took on Kong and Jazz, with the Rhythm and Bruise tandem gaining the victory. Elsewhere, April Hunter officially steps into the ring with her Made In Sin charges of Allysin Kay and Taylor Made to face the trio of Mia Yim, and the West Coast Connection of Su Yung and Tracy Taylor (with Taylor making her first SHINE appearance since SHINE 3 back in September). On paper, this seems to be set up for a heel win, though stranger things have happened in wrestling.
The final Valkyrie member faces her biggest challenge so far in SHINE, as Ivelisse Velez faces the debuting LuFisto in singles action. The outcome of this encounter is harder to predict, as even though the Super Hardcore Anime has more experience under her belt, Velez has four other women watching her back and protecting her interests. This is set to be an explosive encounter, though for us at Ringbelles, we feel the real money match is away from the Valkyrie action… (more…)
Rematches ahoy at SHINE 6
After a month off, SHINE Wrestling returns on January 11 with SHINE 6, and a number of long-standing feuds may be settled, or more fuel may be thrown onto these fires…
For starters, Jessicka Havok and Reby Sky will collide once again after Havok won their match at SHINE 2 and then went after her opponent after the bell. The pair also had a face-off at SHINE 4 when Sky prevented her rival from delivering further punishment to Leva Bates after their contest.
The main event was meant to be a rematch between Jazz and Mercedes Martinez after their match at SHINE 2 was thrown out before it even started and after facing each other in tag team action at SHINE 5 in November. However, Jazz has had to remove herself from the card – marking the first show she will have missed – and Martinez will now face Jazz’s partner on SHINE 5 - Amazing Kong, which is more than a suitable replacement… (more…)
Ringbelles Roundup (20 November 2012) – Divas then and now, Amazing Kong’s return, NWA Hall of Fame
While being interviewed for the new WWE 13 video game, Amy “Lita” Dumas explained the difference between the Divas now and the ones from the Attitude era:
I think the women of The Attitude Era really did a good job at figuring out who they were and what they wanted to portray to the fans. So each woman was such an individual — you were never going to get Lita and Ivory confused. You’re not going to get the two confused, as opposed to now, is it the hot athletic girl with the short shorts on? No, it’s the other hot athletic girl with the short shorts on.
It’s harsh, but fair, and she has a point.
There are eight women on the main roster who are considered wrestlers rather than valets or managers, and for the most part, they are interchangeable curvy shapes with little character to speak of. The obvious exception which jumps out is AJ Lee, who despite being tiny, geeky and – compared to the others but probably not in real life – could be considered mousey or plain, is the most developed personality of all the women who step into the ring… and that’s something that Dumas pointed out:
I think it’s interesting to see the Divas of today and to see who the fans are attaching to. Obviously, right now, it’s AJ Lee, who’s not the strongest; she’s not one of those classically hot chicks. But she sets herself apart, and you have emotion when she’s out there and you get a sense of who she is, and so I think that’s really cool to see the kid that wasn’t supposed to make it being the one that’s out there, and that’s who the fans want to know more about.
SHINE 5 results – the return of Amazing Kong (now updated with thoughts)
SHINE Wrestling headlines its SHINE 5 show with the worldwide return of the former Kharma in her first match since January, with Amazing Kong teaming up with Jazz as Rhythm and Bruise to take on the tandem of Rain and Mercedes Martinez.
It’s the main event of a pretty stacked card in Ybor City, FL, with another of the mouth-watering outings being Jessicka Havok facing Nikki Roxx in a rematch of the Women Superstars Uncensored contest which helped to put Havok on the path to the top, while Kimberly looks to end her run of losses by teaming with Leva Bates against Made In Sin – Allysin Kay and Taylor Made – video of which you can see in this month’s SHINE Scouting Report.
We’ll be bringing you results as they happen, but why not buy the show for yourself, watch live and leave a comment with what you think about the show…? (more…)
Ringbelles Roundup (4 September 2012) – Ice Ribbon exodus, Cameron’s woes, WSU & more
As we reported at the weekend, Riho is leaving Ice Ribbon after being with the promotion for the entire existence of the company. She’s leaving following her match against Aoi Kizuki on September 23 to focus on her high school entrance exams. Now 15 years old, Riho debuted at the age of 8 and won the ICEx60 Championship when she was 12. When she returns, she says it will not be for Ice Ribbon but for her trainer Emi Sakura in Thailand.
Riho’s departure is the latest in an expanding list of wrestlers who have left Ice Ribbon in the last 12 months or so. Chii Tomiya (now Micro), Ray, Makoto and founder Emi Sakura have all said their farewells, while Dorami Nagano has been missing since June, Sayaka Obihiro hasn’t had a match since July and Hikari Minami is also taking some time away to prepare for high school. For the most part, none of these acts have been replaced, and precious few have debuted in the last year.
Some have benefited. Kurumi has come on leaps and bounds to the point where she is one half of the International Ribbon Tag Team Champions; Aoi Kizuki returned at Christmas and has been a smiling presence since then; Maki Narumiya has improved too, and names like Hamuko Hoshi and Maeri Naito have also had more attention bestowed onto them. However, the top of the card looks a little sparse these days, with ICEx60 Champion Hikaru Shida and Tsukasa Fujimoto heading things up, names like 14-year old prodigy Tsukushi the next level down (and presumably will also be thinking about school soon), and Narumiya and Kizuki also around there. (more…)
SHINE 2 results; Martinez v Jazz; updated with images and thoughts
Tonight at The Orpheum in Ybor City, FL – in conjunction with WWN – Shine Wrestling presents its second iPPV, headlined by Mercedes Martinez taking on former WWE Women’s Champion Jazz, who beat Sara Del Rey on SHINE 1 last month. You can read the results and our thoughts on the inaugural show by clicking here.
With a hand picked roster representing some of the best in the country mixed with some local talent and promising stars, Shine promises a heady dose of youth and experience. Order the show, or watch on VOD (or get both *and* a DVD) with the purchase options on WWN and join live event hostess Daffney – but if you’re unable to be in front of a screen, click through to after the jump and join us for live coverage of the show.
Also, take a look at the new addition to the roster with the Scouting Report which we posted yesterday, which includes Jessicka Havok, Sassy Stephie, MsChif, Mia Yim and three members of the Ohio Valley Wrestling roster… (more…)
Ringbelles Roundup (24 July 2012) – SHINE, PWWA, Raw 1000 & more
There was been a lot of talk about SHINE Wrestling in the lead up to the first Internet PPV on Friday night, and plenty more afterward, with plenty of comments from both people who where there, as well as fans who watched online.
For that reason, we asked Joe Vitale – who was at the Oprheum in Ybor City, FL – what he thought of the show, as he got to experience the atmosphere first hand. Below are some of his reactions:
“I like the setup for the show; it felt like a good introduction to the characters and styles of the workers and it was nice that almost all of the ladies came off like individuals to be interested in rather than “Brunette girl 1″… I really like how well the heels interacted with the crowd, Jayme Jamison and Allyson Kay/Taylor Made made fans out of my non-wrestling friends.”
Overall, one can view the show as being a big success, which built to a tremendous crescendo with Sara Del Rey falling to Jazz in the main event. Nikki Roxx and Rain may only wrestle on a limited basis these days but had a good outing which shows that they have a lot to offer both in in-ring activities but also knowledge that they can impart onto younger talent. Mercedes Martinez and Leva Bates had a tidy outing that set Martinez up for an apparent match against Jazz on SHINE 2 on August 17, and Bates proved that despite wearing a Spider-Man outfit, slinging webs and hanging upside down, there is a wrestler in there who can work, and is ready to get serious. (more…)
SHINE 1 results – updated with images and thoughts
Take a look at the front page – there’s a lot to do with SHINE on there, and with good reason, as this could be the start of something pretty exciting. Monthly Internet pay-per-views featuring women’s wrestling – it’s an enticing prospect, and we at Ringbelles are looking forward to seeing what happens.
It all kicks off tonight with SHINE 1 from the Orpheum in Ybor City, Florida (order here), headlined by the “Queen of Wrestling” Sara Del Rey meeting the “Female Fighting Phenom” Jazz, and also features seven other matches. We urge you to buy the iPPV to check it out for yourselves, or watch the replay on Video On Demand – but if you can’t, we have the results and goings-on after the jump, and will also have some thoughts on the show coming too. Keep refreshing the page for results and developments as they happen as we jump into SHINE… (more…)
Shine Wrestling: Scouting Report

This Friday, Shine Wrestling debuts with their first of what is planned to be monthly iPPVs through WWN. A sister promotion to SHIMMER, Shine has really impressed with its roster to date – an interesting mix of big names, cult favourites and promising indy stars. As a handy reference tool, we’ve knocked up mini scouting reports for each of the women involved. Keep it to hand when watching the show, and if you don’t recognise somebody, scroll down and you’ll know all you need to know in seconds
Sara Del Rey
Queen of Wrestling … Former SHIMMER singles and tag team champion … almost universally praised as the “Best In The World” … regular in Chikara, where she achieved her career dream of facing (and defeating) Aja Kong at last December’s JoshiMania … earlier this month main-evented for NCW: Femmes Fatales in Montreal … California native now lives in Florida … Originally trained by (amongst others) Bryan Danielson, she has adopted his LeBell Lock as one of her finishers … Master of inter gender matches, Del Rey will challenge Eddie Kingston for the Grand Championship of Chikara next weekend in Portland.
Jazz
Female Fighting Phenom … Louisiana native is the oldest woman on the active Shine roster … Former competitor in the original ECW and in WWE … Two time former WWE Women’s Champion, defeating Trish Stratus both times … Inducted into WSU Hall of Fame in 2010 … Main-evented WSU’s first ever iPPV ‘Breaking Barriers’ vs Mercedes Martinez in 2010 … Had a memorable brawl with LuFisto at NCW: Femmes Fatales VIII in Montreal in March … Married to former WWE wrestler Rodney Mack, with whom they run a wrestling promotion and training school in Louisiana … Still has a lot to offer.
Ringbelles Roundup (12 June 2012)
It’s the end of an era as far as Women Superstars Uncensored is concerned on Saturday. At the conclusion of the Uncensored Rumble V iPPV from Deer Park, NY, the WSU founder Sean McCaffrey will hand over the reins to another group, described to us as a promotion which is as major as an indie promotion can be.
A month ago, WSU made the announcement that it had been sold to an “independent buyer”, but the initial buyer was said to have fallen through, with other options being explored. Clearly, one of those options paid off, as everything has been sorted out ahead of the Uncensored Rumble, where we will all find out just who has acquired the promotion.
It is an uncertain period though, as there is no guarantee that the new owners will share the same vision of WSU. There is a possibility that things will progress as planned, but there is also a chance that whoever Is taking over will have new ideas and suggestions for storylines and talent, so there could be some shake-ups to come too. WSU’s outlook may change over time, but it is unlikely that if there will be any alterations, they won’t happen immediately. After all, the fans are the ones who finance things in the long run, and to make changes immediately and in a big fashion could be too jarring to the WSU faithful and possibly drive them away. Much more likely would be a subtle movement in direction to enhance what already exists.
WSU: WTF?
While we updated last night’s Women Superstars Uncensored double DVD tapings (click here for results) featuring the J-Cup and Jessicka Havok v Mercedes Martinez, among others, our Twitter and Facebook accounts were flooded with comments about the booking. Messages we received included terms such as ‘confused’, ‘silly’, ‘pointless’ and ‘ridiculous’. Because of these references, as well as the official release from WSU, we felt there was enough to dive into the debate and release a few feelings of our own.
First though, a recap…
• Brittney Savage won the J-Cup for the second year running, defeating Ezavel Suena, Annie Social and Athena to take the tournament and earn a WSU Championship match on the subsequent DVD taping.
• Allysin Kay and Sassy Stephie held onto the Tag Team Championship by defeating the team that they beat to win the belts in the first place, Jana and Luscious Latasha.
• Tina San Antonio defeated Marti Belle in an Uncensored Rules match after bleeding all over the place following being hit in the head with a bottle.
• Martinez regained the WSU Championship by beating Havok, who lost the belt on her first defence. Havok’s foot was under the bottom rope, which caused her much anger when the result stood. The loss was also Havok’s first in singles competition in the promotion.
• Havok destroyed Marti Belle to retain the Spirit Championship.
• Queen of the Ring Jennifer Cruz beat Jana to remain undefeated in 2012.
• Alicia defeated Allysin Kay, causing another blip in the Midwest Militia‘s dominance.
• After defeating Athena, Rain promised to retire if she could not win the Uncensored Rumble on June 16. Earlier in the show, Lexxus promised to win the Rumble for the second straight year.
• Savage v Martinez for the WSU Title became a triple threat when Havok invoked her rematch clause and won the belt by pinning Martinez after Savage nailed the titleholder with a diamond cutter, but was thwarted by Stephie.
So they are the talking points – after the jump, we’ll look at who has benefited and who has suffered… (more…)
2012 Diva of the Year (named by both WWE Magazine and the WWE fans via the Slammy Awards) AJ Lee is about as far away from WWE’s idea of what a Diva should be as you can imagine. Short, quirky, geeky, lacking the body shape that others have had in the past, she comes across as the person you would be more likely to meet over an Xbox Live session of Call Of Duty Black Ops 2 than at an awards ceremony or a fancy bar. She’s your friend, your buddy – she’s not what WWE would perceive to be the ultimate in femininity.

As we discussed in
Last night, Women Superstars Uncensored presented its 

Twitter drama: Alicia & Brittney Savage attack WSU; WSU responds
The situation appeared to arise from a perceived knock on Alicia by WSU who, when answering a fan’s question on whether they can expect to see Alicia brought back to the WSU roster, responded with a simple “Not Happening”. Picked up on by fellow wrestler, Missy Sampson, who tweeted “It’s disgusting watching you be so disrespectful to someone whose back your company was built on! @AliciaDidIt”.
Alerted to the slight, Alicia posted a multi-tweet exposé of her thoughts on WSU. She tweeted… (more…)
February 21, 2013 | Categories: Commentaries, News | Tags: Alicia, Brittney Savage, Drew Cordeiro, Luscious Latasha, Rain, WSU | 2 Comments »