At Maple Leaf Pro Wrestling‘s Northern Rising event, we witnessed the finals of the MLP Women’s Canadian Championship tournament as “Smiley” Kylie Rae faced Gisele Shaw. The tournament began on March 14th at the MLP Mayhem PPV at St.Clair College in Windsor.
The WWE ID and TNA standouts defeated indie darling Taylor Rising and AEW’s Serena Deeb respectively to earn a chance to become the inaugural champion.
However, Shaw captured the Women’s Canadian Championship under controversial circumstances. Join us as we break down the events that led to Gisele Shaw lifting the MLP Women’s Canadian Championship.
Before the match, TNA’s The Personal Concierge interrupted ring announcer Jade Chung to give Gisele Shaw’s introduction, adding a nice heelish touch before the bell even rang.
However, when the competitors did lock up, we saw a contest of strength before Rae took over with snapmare and a crossface hold. The Concierge helped Shaw to the ropes, leading the MLP official to eject him from the arena. Distraught, Shaw almost found herself the victim of a roll-up pin.
Wrestling her way out of an armbar, Shaw then took it upon herself to absolutely batter Rae around the ring before sending her to the outside.
While Rae got her bearings back, Shaw did some showboating in the ring. After some environmental offense using the ring posts, Shaw tried to press her luck around the ropes, but Kylie Rae managed to send her opponent over the top and onto the floor.
MLP Women’s Canadian Champion – Gisele Shaw | #AndNEW
Back in the ring, Shaw eats some clotheslines before trying to gain the upper hand, only to eat a snapmare for her troubles. After taking back control with a back breaker, Shaw headed to the top turnbuckle, but Kylie came back with a superkick.
She then followed up with a crossface, but Shaw powered out to deliver a tombstone piledriver for a 2-count. Then, she applied a crossface of her own, only for Rae to wriggle out. Some more striking and kicking, and Shaw goes to the top for a diving cutter.
By this point, the action seemed to look evenly matched, as the two women matched each other strike for strike, and kick for kick.
Shaw would get her revenge when Kylie Rae attempted some aerial offense, only for Shaw to dodge and set up a 2nd piledriver.
However, the smiley one saw this coming and dropped Shaw with a tombstone of her own. Rae than applied the crossface again, holding on as Shaw attempts to roll through.
Shaw then edged herself under the ropes, forcing the break. But Rae held on just a bit too long, leading to a short argument with the referee.
MLP Women’s Canadian Champion – Gisele Shaw
Short as this conversation was, it was just long enough for Shaw to retrieve a knuckle duster and deck Kylie Rae in the face. A piledriver and a 3-count later, and Gisele Shaw was hoisting a brand new championship belt.
It’s a difficult look for MLP and the inaugural women’s champion to capture the title in such controversial circumstances, however the competition is only beginning.
Perhaps it’s up to Taylor Rising or Laynie Luck, or any number of Canadian women in wrestling to right this injustice. We’ll find out on July 5th, when Gisele Shaw defends her shiny new belt for the first time at MLP: Resurrection in Montreal.
While Maple Leaf Pro Wrestling intends to operate as a spiritual successor to Frank Tunney’s Maple Leaf Wrestling, the original MLW did not recognize a women’s champion in their original run from 1930 to 1984.
With this new championship, MLP will elevate women’s wrestling in Canada to the same degree WWE has elevated women’s wrestling with the introduction of women’s Intercontinental and United States Championships.
