RTX World On Fire: Night 1 - July 16, 2016:

It's the biggest RTX PPV of the year! Two nights! Two huge main events! It's RTX World On Fire! Tonight there will be multiple championship matches: Gail Kim vs. Riot vs. Victoria Muharsky for the Divas' Championship, Shandi Essick vs. Jay Lethal vs. Chris Hero for the RTX World Championship, a Three Way Match for the vacated Tag Titles, as well as Eddie Edwards vs. Roderick Strong for the RTX Championship!

RTX Divas' Championship Match:

Gail Kim (c) defeated Victoria Muharsky and Riot:

Kim won the title in a Four Way Match that also included Danger about three weeks ago. However, Kim did not have the "champion's advantage" in this one. The stipulation was added, however, that Riot was prohibited from using her bat in this match. Danger was also banned from interfering to make it a fair defense for Gail. Ironically enough, Victoria targeted Riot from the opening bell. As Victoria looked to give Riot the wheelbarrow facebuster, Kim dropkicked her in the back and both Victoria and Riot fell outside. Kim dove onto both of them with a cross body. Kim put Victoria back in the ring and tried the pin but Victoria kicked out. Kim quickly delivered a straitjacket neckbreaker on Victoria but Riot broke it up. Riot tried for a powerbomb on Kim but was suddenly smacked with a superkick from Victoria. Angry, Riot grabbed her bat but Victoria grabbed it out of her hand and threw it away. Kim hit a baseball slide, knocking Victoria into Riot. Kim put Riot back in the ring and landed the Eat Defeat for the pin to retain the title.

Grudge Match:

Dalton Castle defeated Claudio Castignoli:

This spurred over from a few weeks ago during a Gauntlet Match to determine the two Number One Contenders to the RTX World Title. Castignoli turned on Castle to help Hero and Lethal win the title shot. And yes, as you'd expect, Chris Hero interfered in this match, shoving Castle off the top rope into an uppercut by Castignoli. Castle kicked out. Hero tried to give Castle a discus elbow but Castle ducked and Hero elbowed Castignoli. Castle clotheslined Hero outside and hit the Bang-a-Rang on Castignoli to gain revenge.

RTX World Championship Match:

"The Bloodrayne" Shandi Essick (c) defeated Jay Lethal and Chris Hero:

Shandi retained the RTX World Title at
World On Fire.

This was Shandi's first appearance under her new moniker, "The Bloodrayne". A darker side to her character had recently began to take shape. She began donning black and red, not to mention wearing red contacts, and even began carrying a small vial of red liquid we're supposed to believe is blood. In fact, Claudio Castignoli came out with Hero but Shandi spit a red mist into his face. In response Hero blindsided Shandi and delivered the discus elbow on her. Hero then turned his attention to Lethal and the two slugged it out in the middle of the ring. Lethal got the better of the exchange and eventually was able to put Hero down with a plethora of superkicks. Lethal tried a cover and only got a two. Lethal went for the Lethal Injection but Hero caught him with a discus elbow to the back of the head. Hero covered and he got a two count. Hero went for the Hero's Welcome but Shandie flew off the top rope with a clothesline. Shandi lifted Hero up and landed a Tombstone (Shandi hasn't used this move as a finisher since 2009). Shandi covered but Lethal broke it up. Shandi tried to spear Lethal but got hit with a superkick. Lethal went for the Lethal Injection on Shandi but she caught him and managed to reverse it into another Tombstone. Shandi covered Lethal and was able to retain her title. After the match, Shandi emptied the vial of "blood" into her mouth and let it run down her chin.

Fight Without Honor:
Chris Sky defeated Mike Bennett:

Chris Sky making his entrance for
the Fight Without Honor

Easily one of the most violent and bloodiest matches in RTX history, as well as one of the most personal. This feud really began back in May, when Bennett attacked Eddie Edwards after his debut match and powerbombed him off the stage, angering Chris and bringing out and new, darker, Undertaker-like side of Chris. However, no amount of evil inside him could protect him from perhaps the most painful match of his entire career. Both competitors were already bleeding in the first five minutes of the match: Bennett after being hit in the face with an announce table monitor, and Chris after being hit in the face with a steel chair laced in barbed wire after a distraction by Maria. It was, in fact, Shandi who came out and carried Maria away. Bennett looked on in shock and turned only to have Chris somersault onto him from the top rope. Chris pulled back the floor mats, exposing the concrete underneath, and appeared to be setting Bennett up for a powerbomb, but Bennett reversed and backdropped Chris on the floor. When Bennett tried to hit Chris with the steps Chris tripped him and Bennett's face hit the steps. Chris put Bennett back in the ring, and follows with a deadlift German suplex for a two count. Chris grabs a sledgehammer from under the ring, but doesn't see Bennett grab a chain. Chris charges Bennett but Bennett punches him with the chain. Two count is all he gets. Bennett hit the Box Office Smash and gets another two count. In frustration and desperation, Bennett grabs two bags from under the ring. One has thumbtacks and one has broken glass shards. He pours them on top of each other but turns and gets dropkicked by Chris and falls into the tacks and glass. Chris goes up top for the Air Psycho but Bennett moves and Chris lands in the tacks and glass. Bennett covers for another two count. Bennett goes for the Box Office Smash onto the glass and tacks but Chris flips out of it and reverses into a Tombstone Piledriver. Another TWO!!! The crowd is chanting "That was three!". Chris throws Bennett outside and hammers him repeatedly with a steel chair before placing him on the steps. Chris goes up top for another Air Psycho and again misses, landing on the steel steps. Bennett pulls out a table and lights it ablaze, then hits the Box Office Smash off the apron through the flaming table!!!! Bennett puts Chris back in the ring and tries the pin but the lights go out. The fans are stunned when they come back on to see James Storm in the ring!! Storm nails Bennett with his trademark beer bottle, then lays Chris on top of Bennett!! And it's enough for Chris to win it!! After Chris regains his senses he is shocked to see that Storm has helped him!!

Triple Threat Match for the vacant World Tag Team Championship:
The Young Bucks defeated Davey Richards & Kyle O'Reilly and Bear & Tiger:
To pretty much sum this one up: Bullet Club rules this one. Kenny Omega and Adam Cole attacked

The Young Bucks after winning the vacated titles

Kyle O'Reilly as he and Davey Richards were making their entrance, taking O'Reilly out. Richards was forced to fight four members of Bullet Club alone. Davey fought valiantly until the Bucks dropped him with a double superkick. As the Bucks got him set for the Meltzer Driver, Bear caught Nick in mid-springboard and powerbombed him over the top rope, through a table that Tiger had set up. Due to the Triple Threat rules, there were no disqualifications. Matt hit a Tombstone on Davey and turned into a spear from Bear that nearly turned Matt inside out. Bear covers Matt but O'Reilly manages to slide in and break it up!! O'Reilly helps Davey up and the duo hit a brainbuster/shoot kick combo on Matt. O'Reilly ducks a Superman Punch by Bear and rolls Bear up from behind but Bear kicks out and Tiger reverse suplexes O'Reilly. Bear also gets double superkicked by the Young Bucks, who then Meltzer Drive Davey. The Bucks zip tie Davey's hands to the ropes and takes turns superkicking him over and over. Suddenly, Chris Sky and Zack Ryder (the newest member of the No Remorse Corps) run out with steel chair and chase the Bucks out of the ring. Ryder and Sky suddenly slam Richards' head with the steel chair and untie him from the ropes. Richards lays face-down and limp on the mat as Ryder and Sky exit the ring and Nick rolls Richards over and pins him, giving us new champions! After the match, Sky grabs a microphone and reminds everyone that this is the second time he has "handed the Young Bucks the Tag Team Title". Chris and Ryder then subsequently challenge the Bucks to a Tag Team Championship Match on Night 2 of WOF.

45-Minute Ironman Match for the RTX Championship:
Eddie Edwards (c) defeated Roderick Strong 4 pins to 3:

Edwards cutting a promo on Strong before the match

In all fairness, I know there wasn't a lot of buildup to this one, but it is the kickoff of a storyline featuring both these men. How else can you describe this match? 45 minutes of the damndest, hardest hitting action in RTX history, and a shocking twist at the end to close the night. After many near falls and reversals just in the few first minutes alone, Edwards finally gains the first pinfall with almost 13 and a half minutes gone after the Die Hard on Strong. Edwards immediately tries for the foot stomp after but Strong blocks it and turns it into a superplex. Strong gets a two. Strong tries to put Edwards in the Strong Hold, but Edwards manages to flip out into a pin but Strong kicks out. Strong and Edwards trade pins before Strong gets the three count on Edwards with a backslide at the 16:07 mark. By the twenty minute point, both men are exhausted already. Edwards clamps on the Achilles' Lock but Strong makes it to the ropes. Edwards and Strong go outside where Edwards tries to chop Strong's chest but misses and chops the post. Strong capitalizes back in the ring with the Sick Kick and the third successful pin of the match. Strong's arrogance then gets the better of him, as he tries to put the Achilles' Lock on Eddie but Eddie kicks Strong away and hits the Boston Knee Party for two. Edwards goes back to the top and hits the foot stomp to the back of Strong and gets an arm over him for the fourth pin, tying it up with 2 pins a piece. At one point after this, Strong lifts Edwards onto his shoulders and dumps him off the apron and Edwards hits the steps. Strong gets Edwards in the Strong Hold back in the ring. Edwards tries to escape but Strong catches him in a pin. Edwards rolls forward into a pin of his own and gets the three. Strong's evil side really shows after this, as he thumbs the ref in the eye and punches Edwards with something metal he put on his hand. Strong hits the Gibson Driver and stacks Eddie up for the pin, and as the ref comes to, Strong puts his feet on the ropes and gets the three. In turn, before the final pinfall, Edwards low-blows Strong behind the ref's back, and hits the Boston Knee Party. Edwards gets the final pin at 44:26. Neither man scores another pin when the time expires, so Edwards retains. After the match, Edwards grabbed a microphone and kicked Strong out of the No Remorse Corps. Strong slapped Eddie and started to stomp him in the corner but Chris Sky ran out with a bat and hit Strong in the knee with it. Edwards and Sky stand over Strong as the show is over.