We have arrived at the premiere Deathmatch Tournament on the American Deathmatch scene as Game Changer Wrestling presents Tournament of Survival VIII. This year, the usual eight-person bracket has expanded to twelve as some of the best the Deathmatch world has to offer all converge for a chance to etch their name in the history books. But they’re not just fighting for a trophy this year, as the winner’s pot has been sweetened. At the end of the tunnel lies a date with destiny: a GCW World Championship opportunity against Masha Slamovich inside of the Cage of Survival the following day. Only one will walk out of TOS VIII with the trophy and title shot in hand, so lets meet our entrants.
Tomoya Hirata
Country: Japan
Highlights: Current King of FREEDOM World Champion, Former King of FREEDOM World Tag Team Champion
Number of TOS Tournaments: Debut
Tomoya Hirata comes into Tournament of Survival VIII with much momentum behind him. TOS VIII marks Hirata’s first ever excursion to the United States from his native Japan. Hirata is also coming to the United States as the current reigning and defending King of FREEDOM World Champion. He has guaranteed this fact with a recent successful defense against “Psychopath Boy” Toshiyuki Sakuda in FREEDOMS. And as the first entrant announced for this year’s Tournament of Survival, Hirata has everything to gain from a win in this tournament. Especially where a GCW Title match awaits the winner at the end of the tunnel. But can Tomoya Hirata go all the way?
Rina Yamashita
Country: Japan
Highlights: Current GCW Ultraviolent Champion
Number of TOS Tournaments: 1 (Semi-Finalist: TOS VII)
Ever since Rina Yamashita first graced the Game Changer Wrestling fateful, she has completely endeared herself to the audiences of the United States. Despite making two unsuccessful GCW tournament bids in NGI VI & TOS VII, Rina stands as the current reigning and defending GCW Ultraviolent Champion of nearly three-hundred-days. A win here in TOS VIII would most certainly cement Rina as one of the absolute best in the world. And if she decides to defend her championship through TOS, she’d also become one of the most dominant champions on the Deathmatch scene.
Toru Sugiura
Country: Japan
Highlights: Former King of FREEDOM World Champion & Tag Team Champion
Number of TOS Tournaments: 1 (Semi-Finalist: TOS VII)
On a Pro Wrestling FREEDOMS roster that oozes with top tier talent, Toru Sugiura still manages to stand out. With both the expressions of his face and violence, Sugiura has won both major championships that FREEDOMS has to offer. What he has yet to win is a Tournament of Survival; having only made it to the Semi-Finals last year before being eliminated by Matt Tremont. Now, Toru finds himself back in TOS just one year later where he has an opportunity to win it all once again. And with his Soul Meat tag team partner: Tomoya Hirata in the mix, things could get interesting.
Joey Janela
Country: United States
Highlights: Current GCW Extreme Champion,
Number of TOS Tournaments: Debut
Despite being a cornerstone of Game Changer Wrestling, Tournament of Survival VIII marks Joey Janela’s first ever Tournament of Survival. In tournaments past, Joey has locked up with the likes of PCO, Joker, and soon-to-be Deathmatch Hall of Famer: Zandig in non-tournament action. Even if this is his first TOS Tournament, Joey is no stranger to Deathmatches. In the past, Joey has faced off with the likes of Drew Parker, Pagano, and Atticus Cogar. Now, in arguably his strongest Independent run, the current GCW Extreme Champion looks to add the TOS VIII trophy to his mantle. But can he come out on top in this tournament where he is arguably the underdog?
Sawyer Wreck
Country: United States
Highlights: Wrestled a Deathmatch for TJPW, H2O Angels of Death winner
Number of TOS Tournaments: Debut
The Matriarch of Mayhem has absolutely established herself as a threat in just the first half of this year alone. Despite losing in NGI VI towards the end of 2022, Sawyer has gone on to win H2O Wrestling’s Angels of Death Tournament, and has even had the opportunity to show off her brand of ultraviolence in Tokyo Joshi Pro Wrestling. Sawyer has also racked up wins against the likes of Los Macizos, Matt Cardona & Steph De Lander, Kidd Bandit, and Billie Starkz. Now, Sawyer looks to win her first ever Deathmatch Tournament in GCW, and possibly the World Title all in one weekend. Will we see the reign of the Matriarch by the end of TOS Weekend?
Kasey Kirk
Country: United States
Highlights: Only woman to hold the ICW American Deathmatch World Championship
Number of TOS Tournaments: Debut
Kasey Kirk is coming off of an absolutely meteoric year in her career. She slowly but surely worked her way up to becoming the ICW American Deathmatch World Champion; being the first and only woman to hold the title. On top of this, Kasey made her debut in GCW proper this past March by facing off against fellow TOS competitor Rina Yamashita for her Ultraviolent Championship in a nearly twenty minute classic. Now, Kasey gets to enjoy the fruits of her labor as she joins some elite Deathmatch talent in Tournament of Survival VIII. Can Kasey fulfill her Deathmatch Fantasy here with a huge tournament win?
John Wayne Murdoch
Country: United States
Highlights: Inaugural ICW American Deathmatch World Champion, Former GCW Ultraviolent Champion, NGI VII Winner
Number of TOS Tournaments: 1 (Finalist: TOS I)
The Duke of Hardcore has cemented himself as one of the top Deathmatch Wrestlers in the United States over the past three years. From becoming the first ever ICW American Deathmatch World Champion in 2021, to competing in the first Cage of Survival and winning NGI VII last year, John Wayne Murdoch is a much revered name on the Deathmatch scene. Now, John has the opportunity to add TOS VIII Winner to his extensive resume as he steps up to talents that are just as revered as he himself is. And with a win here, John may find himself in the same place he was last year: competing in Cage of Survival with GCW gold on the line.
Ciclope
Country: Mexico
Highlights: Former GCW Tag Team Champion, Former Zona 23 Extremo Champion
Number of TOS Tournaments: 1 (Winner: TOS III)
Typically, you find Ciclope walking down the aisle as one half of Los Macizos. But at Tournament of Survival VIII, it will be every person for themselves. In Ciclope’s case, that is a non-issue. Ciclope has been through Deathmatch Tournaments in the past, and especially TOS. In fact, in a field full of past Finalists, Ciclope is the only person in competing in the tournament who has actually won a TOS; coincidentally, beating his tag partner, Miedo Extremo in the Finals of TOS III. Five years later, Ciclope is looking to go two-for-two in his second ever TOS. But can he rise above eleven other competitors to win it all again?
Matt Tremont
Country: United States
Highlights: Former GCW, CZW & H2O Champion, 8x Deathmatch Tournament Winner
Number of TOS Tournaments: 2 (Finalist: TOS II & TOS VII)
If you know Deathmatch Wrestling, then you know “The Bulldozer” Matt Tremont. The man is the most decorated American Deathmatch Wrestler in the history of the genre; holding world titles in GCW, CZW and H2O. In tournaments, he has won just about every notable one; including Tournament of Death, the Nick Gage Invitational, and King of the Deathmatch amongst others. The only tournament that continues to allude Tremont is the Tournament of Survival. Both times Tremont has entered TOS, he has lost in the Finals; losing to Nick Gage in TOS II and to Drew Parker last year. Could the third time prove to be the charm for Tremont?
Miedo Extremo
Country: Mexico
Highlights: Former GCW Tag Team Champion, Former Zona 23 Extremo Champion
Number of TOS Tournaments: 1 (Finalist: TOS III)
Where we’ve already talked about one Macizo, it is now time to talk about Miedo Extremo. He and Ciclope have been intertwined as both tag team partners and combatants for quite some time. While they’ve won their share of tag team gold together, Ciclope always seems to beat Miedo in their big time matches; with Ciclope taking both TOS III from Miedo and also taking Miedo’s Zona 23 Extremo Title back in 2020. With TOS being all for themselves, Miedo will certainly be thinking about getting even with his partner on his way to a possible TOS VIII win.
Green Phantom
Country: Canada
Highlights: Three Time IWS World Champion
Number of TOS Tournaments: Debut
Green Phantom certainly has the most experience out of all the contenders in this year’s field, with over two decades in wrestling. Being the lone representative of Canada, Green Phantom is an icon of the Canadian scene; sharing the ring with the likes of Sexxxy Eddy, PCP Crazy F’n Manny, and Buxx Belmar amongst others over the years. He’s also seen his share of Deathmatch Tournaments; taking part in Tournament of Death III and King of the Deathmatches 2015 here in the US, with others under his belt in his native Canada. Now the veteran looks to win the Deathmatch scene’s biggest Tournament of the year. Will Green Phantom take that TOS trophy back home to Canada?
El Desperado
Country: Japan
Highlights: 2x IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion, 4x IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Champion
Number of TOS Tournaments: Debut
When GCW originally confirmed the mystery entrant, I was personally thinking of names like Violento Jack, Neil Diamond Cutter and Mickie Knuckles to fill that twelfth entrant role. To say that El Desperado is a surprise is an absolute understatement. El Desperado is best known as a Junior Heavyweight competitor in New Japan Pro Wrestling; standing alongside the legendary Minoru Suzuki as a member of Strong Style, and formerly, Suzuki-gun. While some may be confused with his inclusion, Despy had arguably one of the best Deathmatches of 2022; going nearly thirty minutes in a victory over Deathmatch legend, Jun Kasai. Now, El Desperado stands to not only shake up the whole of this tournament, but also to potentially win the first Deathmatch Tournament he has ever entered.
Predictions
With the strong field of contenders that Tournament of Survival VIII has, and the lack of a bracket, it is hard for me to truly nail down a certain guess on how the tournament will go. But to remedy this, I have a few predictions that I would like to share. I personally have high hopes and expectations for Tomoya Hirata. He’s coming into the United States as a lesser known competitor to most fans I’d imagine (unless you follow FREEDOMS), and I’m anticipating that he will be showing out across the weekend, and not only getting the coveted please come back chant, but also showing the GCW fateful why he is FREEDOM’s champion in the first place.
As for picks, I have two different trains of thought. While I’ve been juggling back and forth between competitors, my brain says that Rina Yamashita wins it all. With Rina being such an imposing beast in the Deathmatch world, her as the Deathmatch Champion of GCW facing off against GCW’s work-rate general that is Masha in a Champion vs Champion would make for an epic encounter for the ages. While my brain and senses say this, my heart however, says that Matt Tremont will finally win it all. With Tournament of Survival being the only tournament Tremont needs to win to have truly done it all, it make for a heartwarming moment to see him finally go all the way in his third TOS bid. And whether Tremont won or lost in the Cage of Survival, he would still have that TOS win as a feather in his cap.
And of course, all of this goes down over the course of Tournament of Survival Weekend this coming weekend: June 3rd and 4th. Tickets for all events at The Showboat Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey are still available now. If you can’t make it to Atlantic City, the weekend’s events will be streaming live on FITE+, with JCW After Hours III streaming live and free on YouTube. And of course, you can follow GCW on Twitter for updates.
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