If you go back in time to some of the greatest factions, there has always been a wrestler that seems to be the complemental piece. That person who is there to be the minor player in a bigger storyline. The Four Horseman always had Barry Windham and Lex Luger. Evolution had Randy Orton or Batista. The Ministry of Darkness had… well… a few parts. You get the point. But when it comes to these people, sometimes it takes them branching out on their own to show. What talent they truly have as the forging of Steele.
In Alberta, that man is Sydney Steele. For the better part of two years, he was a part of the faction known as the One World Empire. After Chris Perish and Meniac took over a year to recruit Steele into the fold, the OWE dominated Monster Pro Wrestling and Pure Power Wrestling. However, Sydney’s role in the group was to be the cannon fodder, to take all the abuse. I really can’t see it going any other way, with a member of the PWI 500 and Mr. “PWI 501” in the faction. Hard to get the spotlight with those two in the group.
The Forging of Steele
Following being removed from the Empire, Sydney Steele teamed up with former CNWA and Monster Pro Heavyweight Champion Tyler James, forming the Shark Club. Once again, the team dominated Alberta, with the Shark Club holding onto the MPW Tag Team Championships on multiple occasions. However, most fans considered the team as Tyler James…. And Sydney Steele. Many questioned if Steele could hold his own in single’s competition, or was he destined to just be a complimentary piece. This week’s tale goes back to November 2017, when Steele finally broke through and won the PPW Leo Burke Cup.
For those that are not familiar, Leo Burke is a legend in Canadian Wrestling. He has worked not only in the Maritimes, but also Stampede Wrestling in Alberta. As well, Burke is responsible for training many of the athletes you see competing in Alberta today. Winning a tournament like this is a very prestigious honour. I normally don’t get a chance to get to Lethbridge for shows, but this one was something special.
Tyler James
In the first semifinal, Steele’s former tag team partner Tyler James defeated Cyanide in a PPW record six seconds. The second semifinal pitted Chris Perish against the Irishman. While Perish did win the match through dubious means, the Irishman took out his frustrations on Perish, and left Perish unable to compete in the final. In the final semifinal, Sydney Steele took on his biggest rival over the last three years, the Asian Adonis Kato. Despite going in as a huge underdog, Steele took advantage of a distracted Kato to roll him up for the 1-2-3. (Kato seemed to be more distracted with Steele’s manager Angelica, a poor move by the veteran.)
The Forging of Steele
This set up a Leo Burke Cup Final between the members of the Shark Club. To start out, these two played a game of “Can you top this?” with each of them trading hold-for-hold, with technical precision. Throughout the match, James worked on the upper body on the beaten-down Steele, trying to set up for his Cross-face finisher. Being through a grueling match earlier in the night, Sydney had to worry about his level of stamina, as James was as fresh as a daisy.
This match was quickly turning into a pure pick ‘em. However, Steele got caught in a triangle choke by James, and it seemed like the dream was over. At the last second, Mr. Flex O’Clock finds a final adrenaline boost and turns the choke into a pin for the deciding cover and the win. The crowd erupted as Sydney Steele was announced as the 2017 Leo Burke Cup Winner. The runt of the team had become The Real Deal!!!
Since the win, Sydney Steele has proven himself on many more occasions. He has won the Monster Pro Wrestling Provincial Title. He has debuted in Real Canadian Wrestling and has proven to be a Real Threat under the tutelage of Dirty Mike Jones as part of Dirty Inc. And just last week Steele just survived the Pure Power Wrestling Power Rumble to become the Number One Contender for the PPW Heavyweight Championship. Steele has also traveled to British Columbia and is looking to expand his horizons in 2019.
For my money, Sydney Steele, despite the promos he shoots at his former General Manager (ie. Me), is one of, if not the number one, underrated wrestler in Alberta today. He truly is The Real Deal!!!
Match is available on Powerslam TV and Backbreaker Media VOD
