Who better to lead off an event like Hardcore Carnage than ‘Psycho’ Dylan Starr? Manny Domingo would be given the unenviable task of facing the Psycho One in a First Blood match. As expected, Starr showed no restraint in the contest, targeting Domingo’s face with both fists and foreign objects. Manny was able to deliver occasional offense, but appeared to be quickly fading and heading towards a loss. Then, unexpectedly, Zenzen arrived on the scene and motioned for Dylan to hold Domingo in place for a shot with a street sign. Manny miraculously dodged the shot, which instead simultaneously crushed and sliced open Starr’s head. Thanks to this turn of events, Domingo not only survived, he pulled off a win! Zenzen’s behavior afterwards was somewhat suspicious, not checking on the man he had (supposedly?) come to the ring to aid. There could be more to this story than meets the eye.

Next up, Jesse Logan returned to TASW, pumped up for his match against Big Nate Slater. Even before Nate’s music had ceased, the fans had begun a chant of “We Want Tables!”. Slater was happy to oblige, pulling a table from under the ring before even entering the squared circle. Logan wasted no time, ambushing the big man from behind. The two would battle both in and out of the ring, taking full advantage of the no disqualification stipulation. Unfortunately for Jesse, it only took one mistake, in this case, a missed enzuguri on the outside, to seal his fate. Soon after, he found himself suplexed over the top rope and through the table on the floor, giving Slater the victory.

Chip Dumas and Nick Daniels are no strangers to one another, having battled numerous times over the last three years, with neither individual showing clear dominance. On this night, they would meet in a Falls Count Anywhere match up, adding another chapter to their saga. As expected, the two traveled all over the TASW Arena, with both men using everything in their paths as weapons. The two grapplers even ended up inside the women’s bathroom! Both men would pick up several near-falls before making it to the merchandise table. The fans erupted when it appeared that Nick would power bomb Dumas from the elevated platform through the tables below. But Chip, possibly fighting for his life at that point, was able to wrangle free and escape back to the ring. Nick followed and almost picked up the win, but Chip would capitalize on a Daniels mistake, and waylaid Nick with his Cruiserweight Title belt, to notch the three-count.

Next, TASW Heavyweight Champion Anthony Stevens arrived, with Bones in tow. To no one’s surprise, they would gloat about their “victory” at Summer Jam and sicken everyone with a hug while proclaiming their admiration for one another. These two obviously could have carried on all night in this fashion. But the “Boss” had other ideas. To a thunderous ovation, Bob Murphy emerged from behind the curtain, ready to lay down the law. Mr. Murphy explained that there was a meeting held earlier in the week regarding the Summer Jam incident, and that he would decide then and there what actions would be taken. He first gave Stevens the option of defending his title against Bones in a Barb wire match, that would take place in a few minutes as soon as the Barb wire could be put around the ring. The champion declined, claiming that his neck was injured and that was not an option. Mr. Murphy then declared that instead, Bones would defend the title in Stevens’ place in the 10-man "Humble Street Fight" later that night. Again, the duo were able to come up with reasons as to why that was not possible. At that point, Mr. Murphy had heard enough. Noting that Zenzen had a 2 year title reign because of Bones’ constant manipulation and interference, he would not be a factor in TASW Title matches for a while--Bones was suspended for 30 days without pay! When Bones objected, the boss kept adding to the number, and now, Bones is suspended and banned from Texas All-Star Wrestling for 60 days! Next, because Anthony Stevens refused to defend the title, while obviously healthy, for lying to the boss, and for conduct unbecoming a champion, Bob Murphy FIRED Anthony Stevens on the spot. Stevens and Bones were livid and crying foul after these announcements; fitting, as the TASW fans were in the same state after the Title match at Summer Jam. After a brief discussion between one another, and surrendering the title to official TS Pierce, the duo attempted to return to the locker room. They were stopped by Mr. Murphy, who explained that Stevens was fired, and Bones was suspended--they had no business in the building. With the aid of security, police, and several Superstars, Bones and Stevens made a rather non-triumphant exit from Texas All-Star Wrestling.

Bob Murphy was not done. He announced that at Off The Hook, September 13^th, there would be a one night tournament. Seven single-elimination matches would be held, and the winner would be declared the new TASW Heavyweight Champion. He and other TASW officials would immediately begin preparing the list of competitors entered in the tournament, with three already confirmed. The first three entrants would be those three competitors who were screwed over in the cage at Summer Jam. Zenzen, Neico, and Wildcat Scoby Gober. The final five entrants would be announced by the end of the evening.

After all of that drama it was time to get back to business inside the ring. It was announced that due to circumstances beyond the control of TASW, T-Bone would be unable to compete against Darkstar. Instead, a new competitor, named Big Dog, would fill in--even coming to the ring to T-Bone’s music! Unfortunately for the newcomer, he didn’t seem to know what he was in for against the crazed TASW Hardcore Champion, Darkstar. They would get it on in a TASW original: a Lucky Seven Staple match! The only way to win was to staple your opponent anywhere on the body 7 times. Big Dog was certainly entertaining in defeat, and even managed to bring it down to the wire, tying the score at 6 to 6. Darkstar’s experience in these types of matches would prove to be the difference and he would fire the final staple directly into Big Dog’s crotch for the win.

Constant rivals, Zenzen and Scoby Gober would next meet up in a Texas Bullrope match. With their wrists bound by a 7-foot rope, and with a metal cowbell fastened in the middle, the two would battle to see who could touch the 4 corners of the ring first. Neither man made many attempts at the corners, as they relished the idea of bloodying one another with the cowbell. Although it was the King of Humble who was busted open by the bell, he would garner the victory in the end. Zenzen carried a non-moving Gober around the ring on his back, touching each corner, unaware that Scoby was touching each corner after his opponent. Then, at the last possible moment, Gober came alive and tagged the final turnbuckle before Zenzen!

Zenzen would not curse the defeat for too long, as he knew he would have another chance at Gober shortly, in the main event. The annual Humble Street Fight was up next, and nine men looked to position themselves as threats to Darkstar’s Hardcore Title. It’s impossible to describe the carnage seen in an Humble Street Fight--you literally have to be there. In the end, Zenzen would avenge his earlier loss against Gober, pinning him to eliminate the Wildcat. However, Zenzen’s final opponent happened to have hard feelings against him. Dylan Starr, 2-time former Humble Street Fight Winner took it straight to the former TASW Champion, looking for revenge from earlier in the evening. Eventually, Dylan would up the ante by pouring out thousands of thumbtacks onto the mat. The two men would jockey for position and both would reverse a number of moves with each man trying to maneuver the other into the tacks. One final reversal later, and Starr found himself drove into the thumbtacks, making the pinfall a formality. With that, Zenzen is your 2008 Humble Street Fight winner.

The action was not yet over, however. As official TS Pierce attempted to aid Starr in leaving the ring, he was attacked by the ‘Psycho’, and found himself power bombed into the thumbtacks as well. Luckily, Starr’s attack ended there. Pierce was eventually able to return to the backstage area on his own power, but is said to have collapsed after reaching the locker room. Also, the final entrants in the TASW Heavyweight Title tournaments were announced, giving us these 8 participants. Zenzen, Neico, Scoby Gober, Steve DeMarco, Justin Walker, Steven Cody, Nate Slater, and Nick Daniels. Keep checking back here for more news and tournament brackets.

Once again, history was made at the TASW Arena, proving that you can’t afford to miss a single show to keep up with this action. Bob Murphy certainly proved that TASW listens to its fans and will go that extra mile to make sure that you are entertained and satisfied. Anthony Stevens is gone from TASW and Bones has been suspended for two months, thanks solely to the amount of mail received after the Summer Jam debacle. Don’t stop now, keep sending those emails, and let us know who and what you want in TASW, and where you want it! Well folks, for the first time in almost a decade, there is no Texas All-Star Wrestling Heavyweight Champion. When you go into the TASW Arena on September 13^th, you know for a fact that there will definitely be a new champion crowned on that evening. Thanks again to all the fans for making it out for Hardcore Carnage, and we’ll see you at Off The Hook!