• Look Back In History
• Pmessages
• Quiz
• Stump The Staff
• Top Fifty
• Close

Gatekeeper Bets On Himself And Wins the ASP Title

Posted: Jul 11th 2024 By: CMBurnham

What does it mean to be a champion?

It means you are the best. You have ascended a mountaintop, conquering the competition and declaring that you are the standard that all others have to meet in order to be mentioned in the same discussion.

All wrestlers want that level of recognition. Because with it comes more money, more prestige, more notoreity. And to gain that by holding a championship adds to all the adrenaline that already comes with being a pro wrestler.

But what if you could do that in 2 companies? Or in 3? To achieve that level of success is very difficult in this business and certainly adds to the discussions of whether you are the best in the area you are competing in.

Since November 6, 2022, The Gatekeeper has been a recognised champion in the state of Oklahoma. On that date, he defeated Mr. Nasty for the ASP 5-Star Title. Over the next 17 months, he would defend his title against the likes of Malik Mayfield, Tego and Jake Swayze. But 1 title was not sufficient for Gatekeeper.

January 14th, 2023 saw Gatekeeper add the NCWO Title to his conquerings. He defeated Al Farat, who was substituting for his nephew Akbar Farat, to gain the belt. He then went on to defend it against the likes of Logan Knight, Romeo Reese, Tego and most recently NCWO Oklahoma Champion Tino Valentino in a title-vs-title match. That match went to a 30-minute draw, but it showed that Gatekeeper was not satisfied with the gold in his possession. He still wanted more.

His patience was rewarded on June 15, 2024 when he ended the reign of EPW All-American Champion Rick Russo. Gatekeeper had now achieved the relatively elusive Triple Crown. 3 titles in 3 different federations. And all of them were singles titles. Few other competitors could say they had done the same.

But still, it was not enough.

Just over 2 weeks later, ASP returned to its home at Venue 23 in Bethany, OK. And ASP Champion Tino Valentino was there to face ASP Mid-American Champion Johnny Kove in a title-vs-title match. But Johnny Kove did not show up and was stripped of his title. This left Valentino without an opponent, but that situation was soon rectified as Gatekeeper came out to talk with Valentino. Gatekeeper said that he was willing to bet on himself and was so confident in his victory that he was willing to relinquish the ASP 5-Star Title to gain an opportunity for the ASP Title. Valentino didn't even wait for approval on that as he accepted the match and said that they would give the fans the match they had been waiting to see.

That match came in the main event. And what a main event it was. The familiarity these men had with each other made it apparent that this was not going to be a short match and for almost 20 minutes, Valentino and Gatekeeper went after each other. Move for move, shot for shot. The crowd clearly split in terms of who they were supporting. Neither man giving an inch and both knowing that it would only take one split-second for the match to end. That split second came with a resounding spear by Gatekeeper on Valentino, leading to the 3-count and Gatekeeper once again was a Triple Crown Champion.

Gatekeeper now has to look forward to defending these 3 titles at future events. And Valentino obviously still has to protect the NCWO Oklahoma Title and his status as the longest current champion in Oklahoma. But Gatekeeper may not be complacent in his position as there IS another Triple Crown Champion out there: Trench Blythe, who hold the WAH Spotlight Title, the EPW International Title and one-half of the CPW Tag Team Titles. Could there be a clash between these two men to determine who the most dominant champion is? Or could there be another challenger waiting in the wings to dethrone either (or both?) man?