A black screen is interrupted with the Ringside Wrestling logo fading in and then slowly fading back out. Then, ‘Shine’ by Collective Soul begins to play and a video of moments from previous episodes of Tradition is aired. The video continues to play highlighting the thirty episodes of Ringside Wrestling’s short history. Moments including title changes, extreme matches, and much more are shown. Finally, as the song comes to an end, the video fades to a black screen and three words written in white fade in.

The Traditions Continues

The three words written in white fade out into the black screen and then the video fades into a studio set. Ringside Wrestling commentators Chuck Thompson and Howard Sanford are sitting on stools in front of the Ringside Wrestling backdrop. The camera closes in on their faces as Chuck begins speaking.

Chuck Thompson: Happy New Year to all the fans of Ringside Wrestling watching us this evening on YouTube. This past year has been a year of greats and a year of not-so-greats for us here at Ringside. At the end of November, Versus television network ended our season and our contract of airing shows on their channel. Tour dates had to be cancelled and Ringside Wrestling’s parent company, Ringside, LLC, went through some heavy lay-offs that led to us being out of action for the past month.

Howard Sanford: It was definitely a tough time in the life of Ringside Wrestling, especially when our President was involved in an automobile accident and has been out of action nearly the entire time. John Mark Blackburn finally came back to the office in mid-December to take up the reigns of the company that seemed to be falling apart.

Thompson: It was great to see John back in the office after being gone for so long. I know he was itching to get back. I can’t imagine how hard it was to sit back on the sidelines and watch the company he built from the ground up crumble beneath its own weight.

Sanford: Blackburn didn’t leave the company in incapable hands though. His wife, Sarah, led the regime with grace and brought in consultants who knew how to do the things she was unfamiliar with. Over the past month we’ve seen some pretty famous faces from the wrestling management aspect. Matthew Lanier from Core Wrestling stayed around quite a bit to help out. We even saw Robert Maxwell show up. For those of you who don’t know, Maxwell was the consultant Lanier brought into Core Wrestling during a slow period.

Thompson: Maxwell has certainly brought in some great ideas with him. Another big consulting party this past month has been a man named Robbie Clavey. Clavey has brought a unique knowledge of the Independent Circuit to Ringside Wrestling.

Sanford: From what I understand, Blackburn has actually restructured the Administration Team of Ringside, LLC and has actually hired Clavey has the new Vice President of Operations. Clavey will pretty much be in charge of productions and operating aspects of the company. Blackburn has given his full confidence in Clavey to bring to Ringside what Ringside needs.

Thompson: One of the big changes Blackburn did leading into the New Year was, like you said, reorganize the Administration Team. Blackburn has decided that instead of accomplishing all the tasks on his own, he has brought in people with specific knowledge and talents to do specific tasks in the company. I for one really believe this is the best move for Ringside. Sure, it adds a lot to the management team, but an organization is only as strong as its leaders.

Sanford: You are exactly right. What other changes have you heard are going to take place for the New Year?

Thompson: Well, with Versus network ending Ringside’s contract, Ringside is going to take full advantage of one of the greatest resources out there, the Internet. Ringside is going to continue to use YouTube to broadcasts its shows, as well as work towards beginning an Internet Radio show. The Internet is a great way to get your name and your product out in the public, and while Blackburn and his team look to get back onto television either in syndication or network, the Internet is the best way for Ringside to continue doing what Ringside does best.

Sanford: This downtime has definitely hurt the company financially and besides that, the company was already hurting financially. Are any of the talent that Ringside showcased still going to be around for the New Year?

Thompson: You know, to answer these questions, I think its best if we bring in someone who can answer these questions better than me. So ladies and gentlemen, the President of Ringside Wrestling, John Mark Blackburn.

Interview with John Mark Blackburn

Blackburn walks in from stage right using a cane for support as the camera pans back and reveals that a third stool had been brought out. Blackburn takes the seat after shaking the hands of both Thompson and Sanford.

Thompson: Welcome Mr. Blackburn.

John Mark Blackburn: Hey Chuck, John is fine. Thanks for asking me to come on your New Year’s Eve show.

Thompson: Thank you for coming in John. First thing is first, how are you doing physically since the accident?

Blackburn: Well, the accident was pretty bad. Busted my leg up, which after six weeks, I am finally able to go without a cast. I still have to use this cane to get around, but I am making it. Sarah says it makes me look distinguished. So Chuck, what else is on your mind?

Thompson: Well, Howard and I have been discussing about what we get to look forward to in the New Year for Ringside Wrestling. We talked about utilizing the Internet to our benefit and then Howard asked about the financial stability and how it affected the talent we had.

Blackburn: Well, let me be the first to come out and finally say, Ringside Wrestling is now operating in the black. We have caught up with the money we owed thanks to some generous investors as well as some promising sponsorship deals. All talent contracts have been renegotiated. All wrestlers and performers are now contracted under a per-diem contract. Whenever they are called out do something for Ringside Wrestling, they will be paid.

Sanford: So Chuck and I are basically getting paid for show nights?

Blackburn: You will get paid for show nights, and any appearances you make and represent Ringside Wrestling. Ringside Wrestling is going to be more than just a weekly show. I can promise you that. There will be non-broadcasted shows held out the Ringside Complex as well as shows held in different locations throughout the New England area. Also, Ringside is paying in full, all health and dental benefits for the talent as well as all reasonable travel expenses. Ringside will also cover have the difference if a talent member adds a family to the health and dental plan.

Thompson: So instead of paying someone a weekly salary, you are paying per appearance, but you’re also covering travel and health expenses. To me that would make things come out even.

Blackburn: The only thing is wrestlers and performers are considered contracted workers, so they will be responsible for reporting their own earnings for tax purposes. On the flipside of that to break kayfabe for a second, Ringside Wrestling will hold no ownership of a name or character.

Thompson: So what talent have agreed to stay on and are their any new talent coming in?

Blackburn: A good number of talent have agreed to stay on. I know Ringside Champion Derek Barlow will be staying on as well as Commonwealth Champion Infamous. Tyler Justice, Eugene FitzPatrick, Jimmy Thunder, Steve Solex and William Gwynn have all agreed to be a part of Ringside’s fresh start. I even believe on tonight’s show we have Infamous defending the Commonwealth Championship against Tyler Justice that was taped awhile back. Also, our new VP of Operations has been in talks with some names from outside of our company about making appearances. So on January 7th, we’re going to announce a comeback back, and it’s going to blow your mind what we have in store.

Sanford: You’re right about that match. We’ve got that match queued up to close this special broadcast. Can you give us a special preview of what the comeback show is going to entail?

Blackburn: I don’t want to give away too much, but I will let you in on one match. Jimmy Thunder and Eugene FitzPatrick are going to finally put an end to their bitter rivalry and meet one more time in the squared circle. The winner of that match will be named the Number One Contender to the Ringside Championship and will be Derek Barlow’s next challenger.

Thompson: That is going to be a huge match.

Blackburn: We’re going to pull out all the stops in our comeback show. We’re looking to get Ringside’s name back out in the market and show the world what we can do.

Sanford: So what other things have you and your team got in store for 2009?

Blackburn: You’ve already mentioned one of them earlier with the addition of an Internet Radio show. I’m also planning on getting back in the habit of doing the Blackburn Blog weekly. Austin Andrews is planning for some new content for the web site and will be working the Vice President of Talent Relations to make sure events and appearances are all covered on the web site. We’re also in talks with Lee Best over at High Octane Wrestling. Best is looking to begin work on a wrestling network that would showcase a handful of promotions. Right now, our team is looking into seeing whether this would be a good fit for Ringside Wrestling, but so far, things are looking promising.

Thompson: So Ringside Wrestling would be in direct competition with other promotions?

Blackburn: That is my understanding. Also come mid-year, we’re looking to bring HYPE! back to broadcast. One of the great things about using the Internet for broadcasting shows, is that we will not be under a time restraint. However, no one wants to sit at their computer to watch a six hour wrestling show. We’re going to look to keep the shows under the two hour mark for the Internet broadcast, and you can’t obviously showcase everyone in two hours. So that is why we are looking to bring back HYPE! We’re also wanting to rebuild our Fellowship Division. The division got off to a rough start, but I think when the division builds back up and I can probably strike a deal with current champions Steven Holt and Hiroshi Ryusaki to come defend the belts in some fashion or present them to new champions.

Thompson: It sounds like you have high hopes for Ringside Wrestling.

Blackburn: I really do. I have brought in a great consulting team as well as new members to the Administration Team. We’ve got everything we need to be successful. It’s all a matter of getting our name out there. We’re financially stable and ready for the new fiscal year. I’ve brought in some talented accountants to watch our financing to make sure what happened before doesn’t happen again. 2009 is going to be a fresh start for Ringside Wrestling, and I am looking forward to it.

Thompson: We’re all looking forward to it. I know we’ve all been busy working on side projects you’ve been having us do to get ready for the comeback, and I think all of our efforts are going to pay off in the end.

Blackburn: I know we’ve had to cut back on some production people and talent, and it seems like a pointless way to save money when we beef up our management team like we did. However, we’ve done some cost cutting, and some salaries aren’t as high as they use to be, and some of us have been working multiple jobs, but in the end, it’s all going to pay off. Hard work will be rewarded.

Thompson: Well, thank you John for coming out and letting us know some of the behind the scenes status of Ringside Wrestling. It seems that while some companies are putting their eggs in one basket before actually having the basket, Ringside has acquired the basket needed for success. The economy may be hurting many businesses, but with the right people behind the scenes, the business can succeed.

Blackburn: Thanks for having me, and you are exactly right.

Thompson: As Mr. Blackburn makes his way off stage, Howard and I are going to go ahead and say goodnight and Happy New Year. We’re going to leave you with Infamous versus Tyler Justice for the Commonwealth Championship. This match was taped earlier this month and is finally being broadcasted.

Sanford: We hope you enjoyed the show and will join us next year as Ringside Wrestling sets new standards. Goodnight and Happy New Year.

Tyler Justice versus Infamous
Commonwealth Championship

Andrews: It’s time for the Commonwealth Championship Match! Tyler Justice will challenge Infamous for the title after losing that grueling three way dance to the same man at Revival.

Sanford: That’s right and if I know anything about wrestling this is going to be on e hell of a match.

'Injection' by Rise against hits the system and the lights begin to flash lightly. As the beat picks up Tyler busts through the curtain and throws his arm into the air. He briskly makes his way to the ring, slapping hands with fans sporadically as he does. Once he gets to ringside he runs around the ring, giving high fives to the fans in the front row. After two laps he slides into the ring and begins hitting the ropes as his music fades.

Andrews: Tyler Justice seems to be dead set on winning the Commonwealth Title as this is his second chance at since he was hired by Ringside.

Sanford: Which was what three weeks ago?

Andrews: Indeed.

Tyler looks towards the entrance as ‘Gin and Juice’ hits the P.A. system and the crowd erupts into boos. The lights go dark and soon the figure of the Commonwealth Champion is seen coming from behind the curtain. He stops on the stage and thrusts his belt high into the air as a little bit of pyro explodes behind him. The crowd continues to boo him as he slowly saunters to the ring, jawing with the fans as he does. Finally he climbs into the ring and hands his title belt to referee Sam Worth.

Flyfield: The following contest is scheduled for one fall and it is for the rW Commonwealth Championship. Your referee is Sam Worth. Introducing first hailing from an Undisclosed Location he is the challenger, Tyler Justice!

Tyler pounds the mat with both fists and pops up from his squat, thrusting both hands into the air. The crowd reacts with a smattering of cheers and quiet after a few moments.

Flyfield: And his opponent; hailing from Oakland, California he is the rW Commonwealth Champion. This is Infamous!

Avis Flyfield steps from the ring as referee Sam Worth checks both men for foreign objects. When he is satisfied he turns towards the time keeper and signals for the bell.

DING

DING

DING

Andrews: Here we go! These two men are set to do battle here for the third week in a row.

Sanford: I can’t imagine that there will be much of a feeling out process for that very fact.

Tyler begins clapping his hands to get the crowd into the match before coming forward and going for a leg. Infamous side steps him and Tyler gets back to a standing position. The two circle each other twice more and then come together with a collar and elbow tie up. Infamous gets the advantage and takes Tyler’s arm into a hammerlock. Tyler pats his arm in pain and looks for a way out, finally finding it by spinning around into a hammerlock of his own. He doesn’t hold it for long as he spins around his opponent a few times, finally latching onto his wrist.

Andrews: Infamous is surely going to have the strength advantage in this one.

Sanford: But right there is what Tyler’s best friend is, his speed.

Tyler hangs onto the wristlock for a few seconds before he spins around to relieve the pressure and unloads a forearm to the side of the head of Tyler. Tyler stumbles backward, releasing the hold. He sighs and rubs his jaw before hitting the ropes and coming back with one of his own. Infamous is surprised when he takes a couple of steps backward from the blow.

Andrews: Not to mention his striking ability! Tyler Justice can deliver some of the stiffest shots I’ve ever seen as we just saw right there.

Sanford: He rocked the big man there.

Infamous catches his balance and looks to the smaller man in disbelief. He runs towards Tyler and fires a clothesline attempt but Tyler ducks and runs past, hitting the ropes. Justice rebounds and comes running at Infamous, looking for a shoulder tackle, but the big man doesn’t budge. Infamous laughs and points to the ropes, asking for him to try again. Tyler obliges and hits the ropes and coming back. He lowers his shoulder but gets the same effect. Tyler rubs his shoulder for a moment and then comes up with an idea. He raises his arm for a test of strength.

Andrews: Tyler cannot be serious here. A test of strength?

Sanford: I have to agree, this isn’t a smart move.

Infamous shakes his head and takes Tyler’s hand in the Grecco-Roman knuckle lock. Tyler raises his other hand, but quickly stomps on the foot of the big man and hits the ropes. Infamous grabs his foot in pain and begins hopping on one leg. Meanwhile Tyler comes back and hits a shoulder tackle that takes the big man off his feet.

Andrews: Tyler Justice is playing a little bit of a mind game with the champion here!

Sanford: It’s smart now, but I wouldn’t want to piss that monster off.

Tyler laughs and hits the ropes again. When he rebounds Infamous has turned to his belly looking for the trip but Tyler jumps over him and hits the ropes again. The champion gets to his feet quickly and is able to catch Justice with a clothesline. The challenger gets to his feet quick and charges again but is taken down with another clothesline. He gets to his feet again and charges forwards, ducking the third clothesline from Infamous. He hits the ropes and comes back towards the big man, but gets lifted up into a military press.

Andrews: Look at the power displayed by the Commonwealth Champion! He is just holding Justice above his head like he’s a pillow!

Sanford: and Tyler is not a small man in his own right.

After holding his challenger in the air for ten seconds he pushes him into the air and steps forward, allowing him to crash to the mat. Tyler holds his midsection as Infamous smiles at the camera and yells a few things at the fans. He turns his attention back to Tyler, who is finally stirring and lays a few boots on him. Tyler staggers to his feet with a little help from the champion. Infamous grabs a front face lock and lifts Tyler into the air, holding him there for a few seconds before falling back to finish off the suplex. He rolls through into the lateral press and Sam Worth counts two before Tyler kicks out.

Andrews: The first pinfall attempt of the contest results in a near fall by the champion.

Sanford: I know Tyler’s drive for the title is big, but I don’t know if it can overcome the power of Infamous.

The champion takes a moment to argue the count with Ringside’s senior official before getting back to work. He lifts Tyler to a vertical base and backs him into the corner with a series of thunderous chops. Infamous grabs Tyler’s arm and sends him across the ring into the opposite corner. Justice takes the buckle hard and stumbles out, right into the grasp of the champion. Infamous wastes no time dropping his challenger with a DDT.

Andrews: A vicious DDT by the champion!

Sanford: But he’s not going for the cover.

Indeed. Infamous gets to his feet and stands over Tyler as he begins to stir. Infamous slaps the back of Tyler’s head as he climbs to his feet and then grabs his arm again. He whips Tyler towards the ropes, but Tyler leaps onto the second rope and springboards backwards with a cross body block. Infamous is able to catch him and throw him up into the air, catching him on his shoulders. He quickly falls backward with a Samoan drop and goes for the pin. Sam Worth slides into position and gets two before Tyler lifts his shoulder.

Andrews: Another near fall by the champion there!

Sanford: Tyler showed a bit of life there but was shut down by the power of Infamous.

The champ takes a second to argue with the referee again before lifting Tyler to his feet. Infamous grabs an arm and whips Tyler towards the ropes but it gets reversed. Tyler yanks with all his might, but he can’t whip the champion. Infamous yanks Tyler back in and takes him over with a HUGE powerslam. The champion goes for the cover but Tyler lifts his shoulder at two and a half.

Andrews: I’d have to think that that would have been it if he would have hooked the leg,

Sanford: That’s just a fundamental of wrestling and he failed in doing it.

Infamous doesn’t waste time arguing the count. Instead he immediately gets to his feet and backs off, stalking his opponent. He waits for Tyler to get to his feet across the ring and then charges. Just as Tyler turns Infamous raises his leg, looking for the big boot, but Tyler ducks. When the big man turns around Tyler plants a thunderous superkick on the point of the chin but Infamous doesn’t go down. He staggers a bit and Tyler runs up and ducks underneath one of his arms, taking him over with a Saito Suplex.

Andrews: JUSTICE DROPS INFAMOUS RIGHT ON HIS HEAD!

Sanford: This could be the opening he needs!

Tyler hooks the champion’s leg and Sam Worth slides into position for the count. The crowd, going nuts from the offense from Tyler Justice count’s along.

ONE…TWO…THR---OHHHHH!

Andrews: Infamous kicks out!

Sanford: I thought that was it.

Tyler gets to his feet, still a bit weary from the punishment he’s taken thus far. He waits for the champion to get to his feet in the far corner and then comes charging. Infamous sidesteps at the last second and sends Tyler crashes sternum first into the turnbuckle. Tyler stumbles out and turns, catching a boot to the gut from the champ. Infamous shoves Tyler under his legs and lifts him up into a powerbomb position. Infamous begins running towards the corner, still holding his challenger in the powerbomb position.

Andrews: The O Bomb! He’s going for that powerbomb into the corner!

Sanford: He used this to win the title!

Tyler wiggles and slides down Infamous’ back. Before the champion can turn around Tyler leapfrogs over him and turns, LEVLING him with a vicious lariat. The champion goes down and Tyler rushes over to cover, smartly hooking the leg. The crowd goes nuts as Sam Worth slides in for the count.

ONE…TWO…THRE—OHHHHHHHHHHHH!

Andrews: Infamous kicked out! That was one of the sickest lariats I’ve ever seen!

Sanford: Tyler looks dumbfounded!

Tyler lifts the champion to his feet and fires a forearm. Not to be outdone the champion fires one of his own. The two begin trading stiff forearms one after another, each one with more force than the last. Finally both men stumble backwards and come together, landing forearms at the same time. They both fall and Sam Worth is forced to begin his ten count. At five neither man is stirring. At seven they begin getting to a knee. At the count of nine they are both on their feet and charge towards each other. Tyler ducks a clothesline from the champ and ducks under an arm. Tyler lifts the big man up and dumps him on his head with the Backdrop Driver. Infamous lands so high on his head and neck that he rolls right back to his feet.

Andrews: Another high impact move to the champion’s head and neck!

Sanford: Uh-oh. Uh-oh. What is Tyler doing here?

Tyler rushes up to the dazed champion and struggles to lifts him up into a torture rack position and steps into the middle of the ring. He pushes with all of his might and sends Infamous into the air, falling to his rear. The champion’s head crashes to the mat and Tyler releases the hold.

Andrews: JUSTICE DRIVER!

Sanford: Could this be it?!

Tyler scrambles over and hooks the leg. The crowd goes into a craze as Sam Worth slides in and begins to count.

ONE…TWO…THREE! RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

DING

DING

DING

Andrews: Tyler Justice has done it!

Sanford: Amazing!

Flyfield: Your winner of the match and the NEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEWWWWWWWW Ringside Wrestling Commonwealth Champion, TYYYYYYYYLLLLLEEEEERRRRRR JUUUUUUSSSSSTIIIIICCCCCCEEEE!

Tyler is handed the title belt and he grasps it for the first time. The crowd continues cheering as Infamous rolls from the ring and begins retreating to the back. Tyler thrusts the belt high into the air and celebrates his title victory. The special New Year's Eve preview show then fades to black with the Ringside Wrestling logo fading in.

SETTING NEW STANDARDS