OFFICIAL: Gold Rush Tournament Discussion

[FlexAmerican Dynamite]

Cooper vs. Krypto as the final match! Mark it down right now.

Really the only option.

 

[FlexAmerican Dynamite]

Proven wrong Kermit, praise me.

 

[Dirk]

Blade proved more people wrong.

 

[Blade]

Blade proved more people wrong.

I know you're a major Blade mark, but I would like to point out that I was 3rd favourite for the tournament.

 

[FlexAmerican Dynamite]

I don't see how Blade proved anyone wrong, I had him pegged to beat Stone in their first encounter, there was no way he was losing this round.

Me on the other hand, I avoided KJ's creative clout. I'm actually starting to worry he doesn't have any though.

 

[GI Cake]

I don't see how Blade proved anyone wrong, I had him pegged to beat Stone in their first encounter, there was no way he was losing this round.

Me on the other hand, I avoided KJ's creative clout. I'm actually starting to worry he doesn't have any though.

You're making it very difficult to congratulate you.

 

[ABMorales787]

I don't see how Blade proved anyone wrong, I had him pegged to beat Stone in their first encounter, there was no way he was losing this round.

Me on the other hand, I avoided KJ's creative clout. I'm actually starting to worry he doesn't have any though.

Congrats, Mr. Modest.

 

[Skairipa Matrix]

How about The Beard? I'm sure most people didn't have him pegged to go this far in the tournament. Personally I want Beard to win the whole tournament.

 

[a0161613]

Dynamite is throwing his underdog tag down the ego toilet.

 

[GI Cake]

Dynamite is throwing his underdog tag down the ego toilet.

He's not throwing it away, he merely mighty morphed from the underdog to the Power Douche Ranger.

 

[Da Prophet]

I really hope Dynamite wins this tournament now. I wanted him to win at the start but seeing the reactions of people makes a victory for Dynamite even more exciting.

 

[Dirk]

Blade vs Beard in the semi's... Hoochie mama!

 

[FlexAmerican Dynamite]

Dynamite is throwing his underdog tag down the ego toilet.

He's not throwing it away, he merely mighty morphed from the underdog to the Power Douche Ranger.

I'll admit I got a bit carried away yesterday.

Congrats, Mr. Modest.

If it makes you feel better I thought you had the better RP, plus I was obviously joking.

 

[Kermit]

I thought I would go back and grade my picks for the sake of discussion.

Stone vs. Blade
Prediction: I'm giving Blade the nod here. I said it on the podcast and I will say it again, I don't see Stone going over Blade twice. Granted, I think Blade skinned past Wasabi, but I feel as though as the tournament progresses, so will Blade's RPs.

Stone helped me out on this one by directly replying to Blade's Rp. Anyways, prediction was: Correct.

Cooper vs. Beard
Prediction: I'm sure Cooper will give me some flack for this, but I'll say it right now. He is a one-trick pony (watch this space because I'm sure as soon as I say it he will go on to win the whole damn thing). However, it seems that Cooper only thrives when he's shooting on good ole' KO. Now, he is going to have to move past lingering on that because quite frankly he has a grander opportunity than the EurAsian Title. For the record, I voted for him this round so don't think I don't enjoy little his shoots either, but I want to see something deeper. In my opinion, he's going to need to steal more than just Black Dragon's font to get through this tournament. With his inconsistency in the past and Beard's stellar RP in the first round, I smell a dead-end for Mr/Reverend/Bishop Cooper.

This Beard is on fire. Correct.

Tastic vs. Krypto
Prediction: This is a tough one seeing as I didn't predict either of these two men to go over their counterparts in the first round. Tastic has been on the cusp for so long that I don't think he is going to go down easily. Where as I see Dynamite being comfortable with where he is even if he gets bumped out. I think the ending vote is close here, but I see Tastic trumping Krypto. Prove me wrong Dynamite. <3

The voting wasn't as close as I thought it would be, but I don't think that is indicative that Tastic didn't put out a good showing. The match was solid and Krypto proved me wrong. Incorrect.

Runn vs. Stormage
Prediction: Truth be told, I thought Stormrage's RP was severely lacking as Falk addressed in his feedback. Yaz left us with a great taster, but he is going to have to really bring the heat and find a comfortable balance with character development and addressing his opponent, who he has rich history with. With the amount of work that has to be done and the finesse that has to be used, I think the safe bet would be Runn. I can't believe I'm saying that, but it's true. In my opinion, he has morphed into a very smooth gimmick that he seems to have a solid grasp on. With the momentum he is riding from round 1, and having already beaten one-half of Strikeforce, my money is on Runn.

He shoots, he scores! Ricky Runn is on a role and he is really driving full-steam ahead with his new gimmick. Correct.

----------------

75% isn't bad. I'll save my final four predictions for the Redemption discussion threads.

 

[Beastmode 24]

The tournament has really done what it was supposed to in my opinion.
No heavy favorites like Sam Smith, and everyone that has been in the tournament has put on a good showing. Congrats to the final 4!

Krypto, my money's on you!

 

[JGlass]

Right now, the man to beat in my book is Ricky Runn. After two years of searching, the man finally found his gimmick, and got damn if he isn't nailing it every single week.

 

[Dirk]

I can't pick a favourite before Blade vs Beard, but whoever wins that one.

 

[Skairipa Matrix]

I still got my money on Beard. Theo has been putting out great stuff since Kingdom Come and I love the story going in his RP's the last two rounds.

Who would have expected this final four when this whole thing started? I love it.

 

[Richard Blonoff]

If I was a betting man I'd put money on a Beard vs. Runn final. Pancake has been killing it with swag Ricky and Beard has taken a bit of a darker route. Blade is an established veteran(and his mom an established ****e) and Krypto has shown the ability to knock out some good RPs, but I think the momentum Theo and Pancock are riding will prove to be too much.

 

[gd]

Hmm, lets see what's going on here. Now while I love the Beard's work, Blade seems to be on the right kind of roll as a late and I'd give him a slight edge. Krypto vs Runn is quite near impossible to call as Krypto has been consistently enjoyable and Runn has suddenly become a major threat of of nowhere. It's a coin flip, but I'll go with Ricky.

In the end I just don't see Blade losing this. He has been nothing less that solid of late and after years of not really doing anything winning this tournament just seems like destiny

 

[Dirk]

I am WET with anticipation. I've been ragging on how cool Blade/Beard will be, but Krypto/Runn is bound to be amazing as well.

Blade is up against Beard, whose gimmick tweak hasn't gotten nearly enough buzz, because it's great.

On the other hand, this tournament is a perfect fit for Krypto, but he's up against Ricky Runn 3.0, who's hitting a purple patch.

From a kayfabe standpoint, Blade has more than enough experience, but anything can happen. Whoever sends me the most cigarettes will get a plug in my next RP

 

[Dan Severn's Moustache]

I think the advantage that Beard and Ricky have in this match is that they have something new and a new direction. Both of these guys have worked on doing something new with their characters, and look where it's got them. Nobody would have expected these guys to make it as far as they did initially, and I really think they deserve to be commended here.

Krypto has the enjoyment factor to his RP's. Whether Krypto wins or loses, I always enjoy reading Dynamite's RP's, and he's always been a favourite of mine. But having said that, the other 3 outclass him in both experience and direction here, and Krypto is just lacking that here. I wouldn't be surprised at all if Krypto wins, but the other 3 just outmatch him here.

Blade however has the experience. And Blade is probably the safest guy to bet on out of these 4 guys. His RP's have been consistently good recently, and as said by GD, he's been on a roll recently. It's only fitting that he brings it home and challenges the champion at Apocalypse, as I really think Blade COULD win the big one. And that's what I think is the deciding factor here. Blade COULD win the big one. Don't get me wrong, the other 3 could certainly give Showtime or Barbosa a run for their money, but I feel Blade is far more likely to pick up the victory against them (unless Showtime or Barbosa throw a very average RP, in which case the other 3 could win).

Blade goes over Beard, Ricky goes over Krypto and Blade wins the tourney.

But to all 4 of you, thank you for making this such an enjoyable tournament. Whether you win or lose, I guarantee that this'll be great for your WZCW career, and you'll be up the card after this tournament is over, I'm sure of it.

 

[Da Prophet]

Krypto winning would best amazing and I hope he can do it.

 

[Viola Moonlight]

Logic dictates that Blade will win this, considering he has the most experience out of all four men. He's taken his best against the best and more often than not, he's come out on top. If he were to win, he has the most likely chance of defeating whoever becomes World Champion at Apocalypse. As a betting man, I shouldn't be considering anyone else.

However, I feel that this is the Beard's time. His impressive win over Grizzly Bob and his slow ascension to the top has got my brain thinking twice. He has tough competition in Blade to get through but I think he can pull this one out and, although I have enjoyed Krypto/Runn's RP's in the past/present, I don't see them getting past the big man. Fear the beard, gentlemen. Fear the beard.

Prediction: The Beard

 

[FlexAmerican Dynamite]

If I feel as though Beard, Runn, or that alien guy should win just to add something new to the main event. After all Blade will be fine regardless of the outcome, at this point trying to keep him away from the main event is like trying to keep Alberto Del Rio from mediocre WHC reigns, unfortunately both are destined to happen eventually.

With that said anybody could win any match, anybody could be beaten and nothing's set in stone. Any winner could lead to interesting scenarios down the road.