10/18/2023
For over 2 years, since his debut in RCW, Marcus Jonston has been a champion of the people. Our faithful RENEGADES have been steadfast by his side through his ascension in the tag ranks as one half of The New Guard with his partner Sama Tamu. Perhaps even moreso the fans stood behind him as he clawed his way up the singles ranks, even challenging then RCW Ultimate Champion The Madman from the Badlands Samuel Gjesfjeld for the company's top prize. But after what transpired at our last event, Never Surrender on October 7th, you may be hard pressed to find anyone who would consider themselves still a supporter of Marcus Jonston.
For those who were not in attendance at Never Surrender, what we witnessed was nothing less than a travesty. To begin with, the main event of Never Surrender was scheduled to be a triple-threat match featuring Jonston, Jack Dylan, and The Livest Mexx Plexx to crown the first ever RCW Rogue Champion as the three fighters had previously won qualifying matches to earn their opportunity. This match, however, would not take place. As Never Surrender kicked off, Isaiah Cooks, bitter over losing his own qualifying match, revealed video footage showing that he had ambushed Plexx on his way into the arena, leaving him medically incapable of competing and demanding to be inserted into the title match in place of his victim. A seemingly enraged Marcus Jonston entered the discussion, stating that he'd found Plexx unconscious behind the building and also demanded that Cooks be placed in the match in order to exact a measure of revenge for his friend. With the insistence of Jonston, RCW C.O.O. Jason Lee made the change official and also name himself as the referee for the contest Our main event would now be Jonston versus Dylan versus Cooks with RCW's newest title in the balance.
As the bout got underway, it appeared Marcus was fighting an uphill battle against both of his foes as Dylan and Cooks had apparently decided to work together in order to eliminate Jonston from the equation. Marcus fought valiantly against the odds for several minutes before succumbing to being outnumbered. That is until friction arose between Jack and Isaiah. Having seemingly taken Jonston out of contention the two took issue with each other for each attempting to claim the victory and the title for themselves. The disagreement seemed to allow for Marcus to regroup for a moment while his competitors disagreement turned physical.
At a moment when it appeared as though Cooks was in firm control of the match, the familiar strains of Plexx's entrance music blared throughout the arena. A clearly beaten and hobbled Plexx made his way to the ring accompanied by his manager, an RCW face from the past, J-Sizzle. Plexx entered the fight with visible determination to claim retribution from his attacker, Cooks.
With all of the anger, adrenaline, and sheer fortitude of the now four men competing for championship gold, it didn't take long for the match to break down into an all out brawl. One side of the arena was treated to the intense physicality between Marcus Jonston and Jack Dylan while the other side got to be up close and personal for the brutal altercation between Plexx and Isaiah Cooks.
Having beaten each other literally from one end of the building to the other, the four men eventually fought their way back into the ring. In a feat of pure determination, Plexx appeared poised to take advantage of circumstances as he had laid out Isaiah just as Dylan was discarding Marcus from the fray. Dylan though took just a moment too long to discourse with the crowd, clearly feeling good about his achievement, and turned around just in time to receive a Pop Trunk from Plexx. Plexx would then notice Cooks getting back to his feet and would counter an attempted attack to hit a Pop Trunk on him as well. The victory and Rogue Championship were clearly his on this day. . . but for the actions of Marcus Jonston.
While Plexx made his way to cover Cooks for the pinfall, Jonston entered the ring with a steel chair. Before the referee, Jason Lee, could finish his three count, Jonston viciously blasted Plexx across his back which had already been injured from the attack earlier in the day by Cooks. Lee looked up in disbelief as Marcus delivered a chair shot to Cooks as well. Witnessing all of this from outside the ring, Jack Dylan seemed to reason it to be smarter not to enter the ring and face a chair wielding Jonston. As if that weren't enough, in a move that can be called nothing short of disgusting, Jonston picked Plexx up onto his feet, and berated him for "trying to steal my spotlight". The awestruck crowd could merely look on in silence as Marcus delivered a devastating blow to Plexx's head with the steel chair. Jonston then covered Plexx's prone body as Jason Lee begrudgingly counted the pinfall.
Marcus would once again lay into Cooks with the chair causing his exit from the ring. A shocked Jason Lee then held tightly onto the new RCW Rogue Championship belt rather than presenting it to the new champion as he continued to assault the fallen Plexx multiple times with the chair. This was an act that clearly frustrated Jonston. Frustration which he took out on the C.O.O. in the form of a low blow followed by a chair shot across Lee's back. Actions for which at the time of this writing are being looked into for disciplinary actions by the RCW board of directors.
Following the assault on Plexx and Lee, several members of the RCW roster cleared the locker room to check on them. RCW newcomers Michael DeCarlo and Damian Knox entered the ring alongside RCW Champion Kam Drexel. Drexel and Jonston shared a brief yet intense stare down and exchanged words before Jonston finally left the ring. While making his way to the locker room, Jonston declared "anyone can get it!" to which a headstrong DeCarlo charged at Jonston. He was met with a blow to the head from the Rogue Championship belt for his troubles before Marcus made his way out of the arena.
What could possibly have changed inside Marcus to bring about such severe actions? Why did he choose to, in one night, go from being a man of the people to a man alone? Perhaps we'll get some answers at our next event, Saturday November 4th, when RCW presents Domination, live at Red Barn Banquet Hall - 3320 Arena Rd. in Pueblo.
General admission is just $15 at the door, children 5 and under get in FREE with a paid adult.
