PWR Kingdom Come: Full card preview

After a month's rest, PWR returns with "Kingdom Come", new co-owner John Sebastian will be coming into full existence after eliminating General Manager Mr. Sy in November's "Vendetta."

Only one thing is certain coming into Kingdom Come this January 21, and that is Sebastian using his newfound power as GM to "cleanse" PWR of what he considers unworthy with the team that helped him seize the power he craved for.

PWR CHAMPIONSHIP: Chris Panzer (c) vs. Ralph Imabayashi

One of the first edicts handed down by Sebastian is a title shot for Imabayashi, the last man standing for Team Sebastian in the five-on-five elimination match against Team Sy last year.

Imabayashi has a huge chip on his shoulder coming into this match: the so-called Best Pure Wrestler in PWR believes he is entitled to his shot after being supposedly overlooked for a singles titles shot for two years.

He's also yet to buck off the loss at the "Path of Gold" multi-man elimination match last year, where Panzer removed him from the title picture with a tombstone that Imabayashi has since adapted into a Gotch-style piledriver called Senketsu.

Panzer, however, is completely unfazed by Sebastian's "punishment." And after the 2017 he's had, it's hard to blame him: after winning the PWR Championship off Sebastian in "Wrevolution X", Panzer's had excellent back-to-back title defenses and picked up the belt again after temporarily losing it to "Beautiful" Billy Suede in "Sugod!".

While Panzer will no doubt put up a fight, there's no telling what the challenger's cunning will bring -- from underhanded tactics, to help from Imabayashi's partner Rederick Mahaba, Panzer has his work cut out for him in his first title defense of 2018.

John Sebastian vs. Miguel Rosales

So far the most insidious action by Sebastian in his celebratory power trip is suspending Fighters 4 Hire (Rosales and Joey Bax), whom the GM and Peter Versoza repeatedly attacked until F4H joined Team Sy for vengeance.

The sanction was blamed on Rosales who, as the sole survivor of Team Sy, supposedly prolonged Sebastian's victory after he eliminated Sebastian and Jake De Leon before falling to Imabayashi.

The injustice was great enough for Rosales to break his silence and challenge Sebastian to an unsanctioned match, one that would have boded ill for the budding tyrant if the fighter got his way.

Sebastian accepted the challenge, albeit on the grounds of allowing himself to wrestle without rules while binding Rosales to the stipulations of a regular match.

If he tempers his anger and wins, Rosales will be reinstated to the roster. But given his fury, it would almost be a miracle if the ruthless half of F4H keeps himself in check long enough to restore his place in the roster.

Mike Madrigal’s #PHXcellence Open Challenge

Even in PWR's off-season, "The Walking Death" Mike Madrigal continued his streak of successful PHX Championship defenses by winning against Trian dela Torre in the first-ever Pabitin match.

This — and his dubious win over Zayden Trudeau and Bolt in "Vendetta — boosted his ego through the stratosphere, and lead him to issue an open challenge for the PHX title.

Even with his former partner Vlad Sinnsyk winning the All Out War Championship, Madrigal still has quite the pool of challengers.

Some notables include inaugural AOW champion The Apocalypse, Robynn, and Vintendo and McKata, who spent half of 2017 in a series of matches against each other.

2/3 Fall PWR Tag Team Title Match: The Network (Alexander Belmonte III & James "Idol" Martinez) (c) vs. The YOLO Twins (Yohann & Logan Ollores)

Both The Network and The YOLO Twins are coming in hot to Kingdom Come after extraordinary performances in Vendetta.

The Network emerged victorious in a triple threat match against The Kakaibros, Kh3ndrick and Mh4rckie, and Evan Carleaux and Trian Dela Torre despite nearly being put away by finishers from both teams.

The YOLO Twins, meanwhile, put on a showcase against London Lucha League's The Regime, represented by Tengu and Doctor Hertz, that completely justified their status as PWR's first tag team champions.

Yohann and Logan aim to capitalize on this by retrieving their belts from the men who took them from the twins at APCC and becoming the first two-time PWR Tag Team Champions.

PWR Tag Team Tournament

A tourney for a shot at the PWR Tag Team Championship, the PWR Tag Team Tournament caused former rivals and conflicted teammates to put aside their differences and challenge veteran teams to try and grab the gold.

The first of these teams is SANDATA and Dax Xaviera, alumni of Team Sy, who will go up against former tag team contenders Dela Torre and Carleaux.

While the two truly-Filipino fighters have been on the same side in "Vendetta," SANDATA and Xaviera are an unproven commodity as a team, whereas Carleaux and Dela Torre are a solid team inside the ring, on social media, and on merch sales.

Trudeau and Bolt are similarly unproven and have the added complication of their friendly rivalry over the PHX title.

It may serve them well to work on their partnership a little more as they face their fellow rookies the Kakaibros, who proved themselves as dangerous contenders in their triple threat match last November.

Peter Versoza vs. Martivo

Versoza is a paradox of progressiveness. On the one hand, he will wrestle anyone and everyone, regardless of gender identification or sexuality. On the other hand, he is a flat-earther misogynist "macho man."

In short, someone who will have no problem fighting Martivo, the Man Doll.

Martivo's no pushover though, and will give P to the V more of a fight than he's probably expecting, as there will be no chance of the Man Doll getting distracted by an irate Crystal looking to avenge her loss.

Crystal temporarily put her mysterious campaign against Martivo on hold in favor of continuing her wrestling career abroad.

This time, the self-proclaimed Queen of PWR will compete at AWE: Carnage in Malaysia in a triple threat match against Nikki Nitro and Nor "Phoenix" Diana on January 20.

Jake de Leon vs. Brad Cruz

It may seem odd for Mr. Philippine Wrestling to put himself in a match with Panzer's doppelganger, Brad Cruz, but it seems that De Leon and Sebastian have taken umbrage at Cruz' confidence in his looks.

Cruz took the challenge with grace, and even greeted De Leon in his native Hiligaynon, further enraging his foe.

However this match shakes out, one thing's for certain: De Leon's extended training montage for this match is something fans shouldn't miss out on.

***

A bold and well-founded guess for the undercard of Kingdom Come is the fallout from Trabajador Quatro winning The Council of Trabajadores their first match since their formation centuries ago.

It would be intriguing to see how The Council will avenge themselves against Quatro and his newfound allies Kapitan PWR and RevoRanger, as they must continue their losing streak and break Quatro's confidence by winning.

Mahabang Usapan will also return with host Rederick Mahaba, who will surely have Team Sebastian on to gloat about their takeover of PWR.

PWR Live: Kingdom Come will begin promptly at 2 p.m. at the Power Mac Center Spotlight in Circuit Makati on January 21.

Tickets are available online through PWR's social media accounts, at their partner ticket sellers, and at the venue on the day of the event.