POWER X (February 2015)

It could be ten, but then again, I can't remember half an hour since a quarter to four.

Throw on your clothes, the second side of Surfer Rosa, and you leave me with my jaw on the floor.

Just when you think that you're in control,

just when you think that you've got a hold,

just when you get on a roll,

here it goes, here it goes, here it goes again.

Oh, here it goes again.

I should have known,

should have known,

should have known again,

but here it goes again.

Oh, here it goes again.

-      “Here It Goes Again” -OK Go

Oh, its good to be doing this again! 

After almost a full year, the monthly Power X has returned, and well, do we have some surprises in store for you.  The votes are tabulated, the logorhythms set, the XPuter debugged, and we are rearin’ to go.

Since it’s been a year, should refresh everyone on how this works.  Wrestlers are ranked based on wins and losses, titles held, tournaments won, booking frequency, overall impact on the company as a whole.  Every eligible wrestler is ranked, and eligible wrestlers are

1: Members of the active roster who have either competed in the past two months, or are imminently booked on an upcoming show.

2: Wrestlers who have left FFW, but wrestled their last match in the past month.  These are considered their “Final Ranking”

All for the purposes of the Power X, December does not count as a month, with Anarchy considered a part of November.  Got it?

Good.

Sixty-five women made the cut this week, but in traditional Power X tradition, only the Top 40 get highlighted.  The rest of you get acknowledged here, in a nice, long, impersonal list.  Enjoy.

#65: ARABELLA BLACK

#64: SHIZUKA MIYAMOTO

#63: CHRYSTA

#62: STACEY

#61: ELISSA HEAFY

#60: TIFA HEAFY

#59: WENDY HOUSE

#58: INGE SCHWARZ

#57: SABINE KLOSE

#56: AMANDA GRAY

#55: LOLLIPOP
#54: SHAUGHNESSY O’NEIL
#53: CHARLOTTE HARKER
#52: KAYLEE CLARKE

#51: SAMANTHA TOLSON

#50: KANNA HAROSHI

#49: MEGAN CARAWAY

#48: STEPHANIE SULLIVAN

#47: NATALYA DEMIDOV

#46: REBECKA HATE

#45: PENNY BUCHANAN

#44: MILEENA SAVAGE

#43: MISTY WHITMORE

#42: DAWN WARREN

#41: ANGELA HINCHCLIFFE0

Don’t like where you’re ranked?  Wrestle better.  Or have more matches- you may notice that most of the newcomers factor into the above group.  Don’t take it personally, keep wrestling and you’ll  make it to the big time.  Maybe.

TOP FORTY GO!

#40: SOPHIE RICHARDS

Sophie kicks off her 2015 campaign against Summer in what’s being billed as a television title throwback rematch.  However, it goes a little more than that- both women are Evolution division competitors right now, and both need momentum garnered up for a run at the title. 

#39: STARDUST

The Rudos started the year off right, picking up a solid win over the Heafy’s.   It seems weird that they haven’t had a Unity shot since their Future Shock prize cash-in, but they might be getting close with a few more wins.

#38: JEM MICHAELS

Jem’s partner just misses the cut, but Michaels sneaks on here, in the highest ranking either woman’s had in the Power-X.  And with good reason too- after a win over the Femme Fatales, Union Jacked is starting go gain traction!

#37: METEORA

The galactic showdown between the Burning Star Express and the Rudos grows ever closer, with expectations being absurdly high, considering one of the teams has yet to even wrestle.  How will the Rudos cope with the fact that there might be a team even weirder than they are?

#36: LEAH O’QUINN

Leah’s been in full on damage control mode since Saturday night thanks to the Megangate scandal backfiring on her to an almost hardcore level.  On the bright side, a match with Sylvia Crowley awaits that will shoot her into Ultraviolence contention if she can pull it off.

#35: KIMMI HATE

Kimmi’s benefitting from being a part of the New Social Elite- especially given that she’s got a television champion and Femme For All finalist to help carry the weight.  She and Neveah can move into Unity discussion if they can knock off KO/TO on Saturday.

#34: CASEY ATHERTON ***TRIOS CHAMPION***

Casey picked up the fall in the Trios Championship match to help Triple Threat vanquish the Shades once and for all.  She has not competed as a singles wrestlers since March 13 of last year. 

#33: KELLY MCGUFFIN

Kelly’s attention’s slowly migrated towards SVW, probably even moreso now that her Television run is over, and she has a belt over there.  We here in FFW won’t be seeing her until after Chaos Theory, it seems.

#32: MEL AVILO

Mel’s done well to push herself into that final match for the Future Shock Cup, but she’s come close quite a few times since the end of Season Five.  It’s time for her to get it done.

#31: SAMARA STEELE

We haven’t seen Samara since she lost the Evolution Championship at Sin & Sacrifice, and now she cashes in on her rematch clause.  Doubtful she’s happy about the party being crashed- by her sister, nonetheless- but such is life.

#30: FREYA KANE

Freya closed last year on a six match winning streak, but sadly, was not to be, as she came up on the wrong end of the decision on both her matches this year, including a loss to Neveah Summers in a television title bid.  She departed the company after that loss, so this is her final ranking.

#29: LIGHTNING

Sparky finished 2014 with three big matches, but the biggest one- a shot against former tag partner Aimee Easter for the Evolution Championship- she couldn’t make do on.  Her claw back to a shot starts at Chaos Theory, when she faces Valentina Lozano.

#28: STARLA MCCLOUD

Starla’s generosity and bravery didn’t pay off for her at Anarchy, with Jo McFarlane capitalizing on the title shot that she herself offered.  The rematch was originally set for the show just before Chaos Theory, but was pushed back from some reason.   We will be having it soon, no doubt about that.

#27: SYLVIA CROWLEY

Sylvia wants Ultraviolence, and Sylvia gets Ultraviolence, wisely cashing in her Pick Your Poison on the current Champion Destiny Campbell, and a win almost certainly puts her in line for a shot.  She’s going to have to worry about Leah O’Quinn first, though.

#26: CLAIRE BLACK   ***UNITY CHAMPION***

Claire’s keeping busy with the Future Shock All-Star season, which is good, because she hasn’t been in the main roster’s ring since Sin & Sacrifice.  That changes with KO/TO taking a tough defense against Dark Fantasy at Chaos Theory, so here’s hoping she put the layoff to good use.

#25: RAVYN TAYLOR

Speaking of Dark Fantasy, we know they’ll be ready to challenge for the belts come the twenty-eighth, but they’d be unwise to overlook DreamBloom, who they face next Thursday.  Hardly a simple warmup match.

#24: IGNIS

Hopefully Ignis is enjoying the last few days she has with the Future Shock Championship belt before she’s required to turn it back in.  With the skid she’s on, its unlikely she’ll be getting it back soon, no matter how many innocent people’s arms she breaks.

#23: JENNIFER WILLIAMS ***TRIOS CHAMPION***

Jenny’s been hard at work learning how to be a Jedi, so hopefully when she faces a team called DARK Fantasy, she’ll be more than prepared to handle it.  Keep that lightsaber blue, Jennifer!

#22: UNDINE

‘Diney came heartbreakingly close at Anarchy to earning another Ultraviolence Championship opppotunity, but just came up shy.  Once the current pecking order sorts itself out, expect her to get another shot and be right back into the mix.

#21: JODIE GRAY

February is, quite simply, the biggest month of Jodie’s career.  She’s got two matches, and if she wins both, she’s got an FFW Championship shot.  And if not, well, we’ll probably still have to hear about how she belongs.

#20: SUMMER

Summer righted the ship somewhat with her win over Kaylee Clarke, and can get back under steam with a win over Sophie Richards at Breaking Point.  She’d be unwise to overlook the hungry Samantha Tolson at Chaos Theory, however.

#19: SYREN

So with Madelyne McTaggert running around the parking lot attacking various FFW personnel and giving them makeovers, you have to wonder what her former running buddy thinks of this.  Will she be ashamed of McTaggert’s actions, or will she welcome Maddie back with open arms?

#18: SERAFINA DECARO ***UNITY CHAMPION***

Serafina came through strong with a big win over Ignis at Breakdown.  It’ll be even bigger if she and Claire rally to knock off Dark Fantasy and retain their Unity titles at Chaos Theory.

#17: LILLY SHEFFIELD

Lilly continues to impress, both in the ring and with a maturity that goes far beyond her experience.  She’s not a rookie anymore, and right now, she has more potential than anyone else to rise up through the ranks to even a possible FFW Championship.

#16: DESTINY CAMPBELL ***ULTRAVIOLENCE CHAMPION***

Destiny kicked the tires, lit the fires, and slammed Emma Mac through a table to retain her UV championship.  She’s also won five of her last six, a lone blemish coming as the Art of Violence against the Rudos.

#15: CAROLINE STARK

Not bad for having just two matches since returning from injury.  We’ll be seeing a lot more of Caroline in the coming weeks, I gather, given that she’s pretty much Cody Kincaid’s official champion in his ever-intensifying rivalry with Isabella Pazzini.

#14: EMMA MACNAMARA

The last time Isabella stuck a non-UV wrestler in an Ultraviolence match against Emma to prove a point, it backfired hardcore.  Of course, Caroline isn’t nearly as fettered as Wendy Briese is, which is both good and bad for Emma Mac.  One thing that’s all good?  The reformation of Nightmare, Inc, busting into an already crowded Unity Division.

#13: TARA THUNDER

Tara’s never lost two singles matches in a row before, but she finds herself in that situation with her being pinned by Wendy in the Fatal Four Way match at Velocity.  Things are definitely tougher up at the top of the company, and Tara’s seemingly failed to bring her A-game several times now.  She best do so against Jodie, or else she’ll be eating the first three-match losing streak of her FFW career.

#12: ALYSSON GARDNER

Like she said, Aly’s victory over Jodie was her first earned fall since June, and her first in a 

singles match since pinning Kate Steele- well over a year ago.  (she did beat Penny to defend her UV title, but that was in a TLC match).  With her wheels getting traction again, another run at the Evolution Championship is in order.  But can she do it, as cluttered as the division already is?

#11: GABRIELLE GARDNER ***FUTURE SHOCK CHAMPION***

What a turnaround for Gabby, who was isolated and damn near left for dead thanks to Triple Threat taking out the rest of the team and then destroying her to retain their titles.  She went from that to beating Ignis, despite being injured by a cheapshot early on. Heart- it wins you shit.  And Gabby’s got a lot of heart.

#10: VALERIE LAMB

Valerie Lamb is the FFW Challenger who just will not fucking die.  Every time you think she’s out of contention, she pulls off some miracle victory to get right back in it, and her taking down Scarlett in the Superdome is as out-of-nowhere as it gets.  Of course, now she has to go for the title itself, and that’s going to be an entirely new set of challenges.

#9: KATE STEELE

You can’t keep a good Kate down, and Kate, well, has been damn good lately.  She’s carving up Future Shock right now (which doesn’t count for these rankings, but still!).  And she just snapped a three match losing streak with a phenomenal, gutsy win over Aimee Easter.  She’s heading to Chaos Theory hoping to grab the title, and if she’s starting this year anywhere close to the way she started 2014, Aimee is in deep trouble.

#8: NEVEAH SUMMERS ***TELEVISION CHAMPION***

Neveahs’ pushed her current winning streak out to six, and can push it out further in a champion/champion showdown against Jo McFarlane on Saturday.  Easier said than done of course, but Neveah can at least enter Chaos Theory knowing her title is safe for the time being- although it sure as hell won’t be if she falls to Leona Vega.

#7: VALENTINA LOZANO

Despite earning runner-up status in the Femme For All, Valentina’s been shuffled back into the Evolution division, which is probably a better move for her at the moment.  Her road up won’t be easy too- she starts off with Misty Whitmore, and then Lightning.  Neither woman is a pushover, and both are former Television Champions, which means they’ve both had something Val’s never had: gold that can’t be bought on Rodeo Drive.

#6: MIKA DEMIDOV

Mika’s lost three of her last four, but still remains extremely dangerous, and does have a guaranteed FFW Championship coming sooner or later.  We all know she can punish people severely if they don’t manage to see her coming, but the question remains to be answered- how effective is she when they do?

#5: JO MCFARLANE  ***NO SURRENDER CHAMPION***

Despite a tough loss to Caroline Stark at Ascencion, Jo remains on a hot streak stemming from her No Surrender Championship win.  Her tour-de-force continues Saturday with Neveah Summers in a rematch that Neveah took last August.

#4: WENDY BRIESE

Wendy went down to New Orleans with a head full of nostalgia and steam, and choo-chooed her way through three of FFW’s best to earn the main event of Chaos Theory.  Her prize: an extremely miffed Scarlett Kincaid and a revitalized Val.  Enjoy!

#3: AIMEE EASTER ***EVOLUTION CHAMPION***

Despite a hiccup to Kate Steele that just made her job at Chaos Theory a hell of a lot harder, this is still a woman who’s won four of her last five, three of those matches for the Evolution Championship.  Her early 2014 struggles seem a long time ago, now.

#2: CRYSTAL HILTON  ***TRIOS CHAMPION***

Crystal’s had some bad luck in 2015, with a grabbed rope and a knocked head, but she’s still riding hard off the momentum she gained in winning the Femme For All, and will more than likely be the favorite heading into the contenders match at Chaos Theory, whether it’s three people or four.  Still, don’t look too far ahead, DreamBloom’s got Dark Fantasy to worry about first.

#1: SCARLETT KINCAID ***FFW CHAMPION***

Scarlett has to be seething after a shock loss to Valerie Lamb in her hometown, and that’s going to make her all the harder to beat at Chaos Theory- and remember, she already beat both her challengers in the exact same match last year.  Shit just got real.  Cajun real.