Pyros light up the HWL Arena in St. Louis as we kick off this week’s edition of Overdrive and tonight, we will determine who will challenge for all four championships one week from Saturday at Starrcade. We’ve also got a title match signed to take place here tonight as The Briscoes put up the tag team championships.

Speaking of tag teams, we’re starting things off tonight with the finals of the Tag Team Road to Starrcade Tournament as the Authors of Pain and War Machine.

Match #1 – Road to Starrcade Tag Team Tournament – War Machine vs. The Authors of Pain

Adam and Hanson start things off for their respective teams and the two men slug it out. Hanson then bounces off the ropes, but Akam catches him in a big Bear Hug. Hanson claps Akam a couple of times over the sides of the head and then connects with a huge Headbutt to break free. Hanson then bounces off the ropes and Rowe makes a blind tag as Hanson nails Akam with a Spinning Heel Kick. Hanson then Spears Rezar from the ring apron out to the floor. Rowe then comes off the top rope, dropping a Flying Knee across Akam’s chest and covers him for the three count.

War Machine moves on to the Tag Team Championship match at Starrcade, where they will face whoever leaves tonight with the titles. These guys don’t get paid by the hour and since they worked through this match so quickly we’re going to hold off on commercial and go right to our next match as we clear these guys out of the ringside area as Kelly Klein and Shayna Baszler make their entrances.

Match #2 – Road to Starrcade Women’s Tournament – Kelly Klein vs. Shayna Baszler

The two women square off as the match gets under way and Klein kicks Baszler in the gut and hoists her up for a Running Powerslam, but Baszler rakes her eyes and slips down behind her and connects with a Reverse DDT. Baszler then locks in a Rear Naked Choke with a Body Scissors and forces Klein to tap out.

Shayna Baszler advances to challenge Nikki Cross one-on-one for the championship at Starrade. Two other wrestlers will share that same fortune tonight in the Cruiserweight and Heavyweight divisions while two more will share the same fate of Kelly Klein and the Authors of Pain, falling one step short. Stay tuned to find out how it all shakes out after this commercial break.
 

Back from the break, Bandido and TJ Perkins make their entrances for our next contest, the finals of the Cruiserweight Road to Starrcade Tournament.

Match #3 – Road to Starrcade Cruiserweight Tournament – TJ Perkins vs. Bandido

The two men square off as the match gets under way and they engage in a Knuckle-lock, but Bandido flips over onto his back and Monkey Flips Perkins over top of him. Bandido then flips over onto Perkins in a pinning combination, but Perkins kicks out, bucking Bandido off into a flip back over onto his back and now Perkins flips over onto Bandido, but instead of going for the pin breaks up the Knuckle Lock and tries to lock in an Armbar, but Bandido slips free and rushes back up to his feet and hits Perkins with a Dropkick, knocking Perkins out through the ropes and to the floor.  Bandido then builds up a head of steam and takes Perkins down out on the floor with a Suicide Dive. Bandido then drags Perkins back up and throws him back into the ring and heads up to the top turnbuckle, but Perkins dives against the corner and crotches him on the top rope. Perkins then climbs up after him and pummels Bandido with a flurry of punches and then delivers a Frankensteiner out of the corner. Perkins makes the cover, but Bandido kicks out for a near fall. Perkins puts the boots to Bandido and then drags him back up by the hair, but Bandido fires back with a flurry of punches and then whips Perkins into the corner and follows him in with a Spinning Heel Kick, allowing himself to fly out over the top rope and out to the ring apron. Perkins then stumbles out of the corner and Bandido springboards in off the top rope and flies at Perkins, but Perkins catches him on his shoulders and connects with the Detonation Kick and covers Bandido for the three count.

Perkins picks up the win and advances to challenge Teddy Hart for the Cruiserweight Championship at Starrcade. In the back, the Briscoes are going through their final preparations as they get set to defend the Tag Team titles right after this word from our sponsors.
 

Back from the break, Dave and Jake Crist of OvE, the Young Bucks and the Briscoes make their way to the ring.

Match #4 – Tag Team Championship – Triple Threat Match – The Briscoes vs. The Young Bucks vs. OvE

Mark Briscoe, Jake Crist and Matt Jackson start things off and Jake demands the center of attention, prompting a Double Superkick from Mark and Matt and Jake rolls out to the floor. Mark then whips Matt off into the ropes and goes for an Elbow Smash, but Matt ducks out of the way and comes off the ropes with an Asai Moonsault. Matt then bounces off the ropes and takes out Jake out on the floor with a Tope Con Helo. Matt then slides back in and kicks Mark in the gut and tags out to Nick and Nick catapults over the top rope, falling onto Mark in a DDT on the way down. Nick then makes the cover, but Mark quickly kicks out. Nick then heads up to the top rope, but Jake climbs up on the ring apron and shoves him off, sending Nick crashing to the mat. Jake then heads up to the top turnbuckle and goes for a Senton Bomb on Mark, but Mark drives both knees up into his back. Mark then makes the tag to Jay and Matt Jackson charges in and Mark Back Body Drops him out over the top rope and sends him crashing to the floor. Jay then hits Nick Jackson with the Jay Driller and Dave Crist comes charging in and tries to grab both Briscoes from behind for a Double Bulldog, but the Briscoes Block it and plant Dave with a tandem Sidewalk Slam. Jay then follows up with a Jay Driller on Jake, sending him crashing down onto Dave in the process and Dave rolls out to the floor as Jay hoists Jake up and Mark heads up to the top turnbuckle and connects with the Doomsday Device and Jay makes the cover and picks up the three count.

The Briscoes are your winners and STILL the tag team champions, advancing to defend the gold against War Machine a week from Saturday at Starrcade. Folks, we are going to take one last commercial break and when we come back it’s Tomasso Ciampa against Austin Aries to determine the #1 Contender for the World Heavyweight Championship. Stay with us, we’re coming right back.
 

Back from the break, it’s Main Event time as Austin Aries and Tomasso Ciampa make their way to the ring.

Match #5 – Road to Starrcade Heavyweight Tournament – Tomasso Ciampa vs. Austin Aries

The two men tie up as things get under way and Aries goes to a Side Headlock, but Ciampa quickly slips free and shoves Aries off into the ropes, knocking him flat with a Shoulder Block. Ciampa then bounces off the ropes as Aries gets back up and Ciampa goes for a Running Shoulder Tackle, but Aries Leap Frogs over him and Ciampa spins back around as Aries connects with an Enziguri. Aries then follows up with a Swinging Neckbreaker into the cover, but Ciampa kicks out.  Aries then heads up to the top turnbuckle as Ciampa stumbles back up and Aries connects with a Flying Bulldog. Aries then follows up into the Last Chancery, but Ciampa is able to tie himself up in the ropes and force a break. Aries then drags Ciampa to the middle of the ring and sets up for a Brainbuster, but Ciampa twists out of it on the way up and lands on his feet behind Aries and then turns and pins him in a Backslide, but Aries kicks out for a near fall. Ciampa then kicks Aries in the gut and sets up for the Fairytale Ending, but Aries counters into a Back Body Drop over the top rope and Ciampa lands on his feet out on the ring apron and then knocks Aries down with a Clothesline. Ciampa then drops to the floor and pulls Aries head first out of the ring and DDTs him from the ring apron to the floor. Ciampa then pulls away the top portion of the ring steps and then drags Aries up and tries to set up for a Piledriver onto the steps, but Aries frantically fights him off and then connects with a Facebreaker. Aries then propels Ciampa head first into the ring post, opening up a gash over his right eye. Aries then rolls back into the ring and quickly rolls back out, breaking up the count and cockily stalks Ciampa as he crawls across the floor.  Aries then kicks Ciampa over, putting him on his back and Aries drops down and pummels Ciampa with a flurry of punches, opening up that cut even more. Aries then puts Ciampa back in the ring and then springboards in off the top rope into a Flying Elbow Drop right square in the middle of Ciampa’s chest. Aries then makes the cover, but Ciampa kicks out.  Aries puts the boots to Ciampa and then drags him back up and sets up for a Brainbuster, but CIampa counters into an Atomic Drop.  Ciampa then locks his hands together and knocks Aries flat with a Double Sledgehammer shot across the chin. Ciampa then connects with a Cactus Piledriver and makes the cover, but Aries shoots his shoulder up at the last second for a near fall. Ciampa then pummels Aries and then drags him back up to his feet, but Aries digs his fingers into the open cut on Ciampa’s head and tries to pull it further apart. Aries then elbows Ciampa in the face and then bounces off the ropes, but runs right into a Big Boot from Ciampa, who then follows up with a Double-arm DDT. Ciampa then frantically drags Aries back up and connects with the Fairytale Ending and covers him for the three count.

Ciampa slowly rolls over and sits up as blood continues to pour down his face, but the Blackheart is moving on to wrestle for the World Heavyweight Championship. Up in the rafters, we see Suicide looking down and slowly clapping. Ciampa is the last chance for the HWL locker room to take the title back from the intruding Suicide before the end of the year. That match takes place a week from Saturday at Starrcade, our final show of the year. Tune in to find out if Ciampa can be the one to solve the riddle. We have one more week of Overdrive next Wednesday, the final stop before Starrcade. Are there any twists left to be turned before we get to the final show of the year? Join us next week. For now, it’s time to sign off.