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Never Say DieNever Say Die, initially known as Liberty or Death, is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event, broadcast annually in July by the professional wrestling promotion MECCA. The first event was a bi-monthly special, which took place on July 30, 2005, from the Wharton Center in Lansing, Michigan. In 2007, the event was brought to pay-per-view when MECCA increased its PPV schedule to one per month. It was rebranded as Never Say Die in 2010. Contents |
HistoryWhen MECCA began, its pay-per-view schedule was only bi-monthly. During the off months, MECCA presented a bi-monthly special event which was broadcast on local affiliates throughout the Midwest. The July special was named Liberty or Death. It eventually became an annual pay-per-view event in 2007, and was rebranded as Never Say Die in 2010. Liberty or Death 2005BackgroundLiberty or Death was the fourth bi-monthly special presented by MECCA, broadcast across local affiliates in their Midwest home base. It took place at the Wharton Center in Lansing, Michigan, on July 30, 2005. The event was released on DVD via the MECCA website several weeks later. In mid-2005, CM Punk and his faction SELF were on a roll. Punk became the first holder of the MECCA Championship at The MECCA Challenge and had turned back challenges from Alan Mayse and Cynric. However, a rivalry erupted with The Eccentric Alliance after Spanky won a wild card battle royale on Go Time to receive a shot at Punk's title. Punk retained the title on July 5, but due to help from his protege Eddie Crowe. The next week, Cheesecake issued a challenge to Punk for the Eccentric Alliance to face SELF in an eight-man tag team elimination match at Liberty or Death. In June, Low Ki viciously attacked Nykk after an an altercation in which Ki accused Nykk of never paying his dues in wrestling. They met at Midsummer Night Slam, with Ki coming out on top. However, Nykk was hell bent on payback and was granted a rematch with Ki at Liberty or Death the next month, with the winner receiving a future shot at the World Title, provided the winner could stay on the Contender Star. Ki accepted the match, but again cheapshotted Nykk. Two weeks later, Nykk retaliated by costing Low Ki his spot on the Contender Star to Huh. Ki was granted a rematch the next week and took his spot back, but not before providing his own security force to make sure Nykk did not interfere. In July of 2005, Kevin Stone was showing a change of attitude. Desperate to win any title he could, he became upset when his partner Cynric chose a World Title shot at Midsummer Night Slan over a tag title shot they had already earned. After coming close to winning the Wild Card Battle Royale for a title shot on June 28 but still losing, Stone's frustration reached a boiling point. The next week, he and Cynric received a shot at the tag belts but again came up short when Cynric accidentally hit his own partner. Stone attacked Cynric after the match. The next week, Stone stated that he was tired of being a nice guy, and he liked the old him better, and all that that Kevin Stone had lacked was experience. He won a match against Joey Sprinklers later on, but beat him senseless with his own skateboard after the match. Cynric made the save, but was ambushed by Kevin Stone backstage on July 19. Stone then informed him they would be facing each other at Liberty or Death. Results
Liberty or Death 2006BackgroundIn August of 2005, MECCA struck a deal to air their bi-monthly specials live on FSN, the same network that hosted Go Time. Liberty or Death was broadcast live on FSN on July 29, 2006. It emanated from the Hara Arena in Dayton, Ohio. At Midsummer Night Slam, Bryan Danielson won the Six Pack Apocalypse Match, earning him a shot at the World Title at Summertime Showdown in August. MECCA authority Katie Piehl decided to put Danielson and the champion, Eddie Crowe, against each other at Liberty or Death in a dream partner tag match, where they would be allowed to team with anyone on the roster. On July 12, Danielson revealed his partner would be Kevin Stone, the man Eddie had beaten for the title and who knew him very well. Eddie responded by choosing Low Ki, who had shown him respect after their title match back at Punked Out. However, Low Ki did not come to the ring, giving Danielson and Stone free reign to beat down Eddie. He speculated there may be some hard feelings still on Ki's part for losing that match, and the next week made a plea for Ki to show up and get on the same page so they didn't lose to their opponents at Liberty or Death. Stone and Danielson attacked Eddie again at the end of the night, but Ki appeared this time, making the save and shaking Eddie's hand. In mid-2006, Nykk and Lisa Letty had gone from co-workers to friends to potential romantic partners. However, Nykk couldn't seem to share his feelings with Lisa, and Trent Acid swooped in to hit on her, which Lisa did not appreciate. Growing more angry by Acid's persistence, Nykk feuded with Acid, but could not seem to get one up on him. Acid cost Nykk the win in the Six Pack Apocalypse match at Midsummer Night Slam, and then nailed him with a steel pipe to beat him in a singles match on the next Go Time. Nykk got his rematch with Acid for Liberty or Death, but used his power as co-owner of MECCA to add one caveat: Lisa Letty would be the special guest referee in that match. Lisa Letty also would pull double duty as she had a chance to regain the MECCA Ladies' Championship by defeating the champion LuFisto. LuFisto had changed her ways since the dissolution of The Dangerous Liaison and willingly offered the shot to her former protege. But Gail Kim also wanted to take back the title from LuFisto, and would get the opportunity if she could win a Triangle Match against Kelly Schweickart and Zoe Alexander at Liberty or Death. Results
Liberty or Death 2007BackgroundIn early 2007, MECCA decided to increase its PPV schedule to one per month. Later that year, Liberty or Death was broadcast live on pay-per-view from the Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte, North Carolina, on July 21, 2007. The event theme song was "Public Enemy #1" by the Genitorturers. In mid-2007, The House of Lords had pretty much taken over as the dominant faction in MECCA. Nykk had full control of the company, and they held almost every title. However, on the July 4 episode of Go Time, Nykk's old rival Austin Lee made an appearance to save The UK Wrecking Crew, his countrymen, from a House of Lords attack. Lee revealed the next week that he had been hired by Katie Piehl, who made her return and announced that the MECCA board of directors had given her the position of MECCA's Executor, which meant she had the power to book shows, and hire and fire talent. The first thing she did was make a match for the MECCA World Heavyweight Championship at Liberty or Death, pitting the House of Lords' Ronin Fox defending against Low Ki, who held the Toughman Championship, the only title the House of Lords did not control. Katie also made a tag team series for Liberty or Death between her loyalists and the House of Lords, with the winning side being given the power to book the next month's pay-per-view event Summertime Showdown. The first match in the series would pit Bryan Danielson and Kevin Stone against the House of Lords' Huh and Joey Sprinklers. In the second match, Eddie Crowe and Alan Mayse would challenge the House of Lords' Pyro Twins for the MECCA Tag Team Championship. And finally, The UK Wrecking Crew would take on the House of Lords' Nykk and Cynric. Results
Liberty or Death 2008BackgroundLiberty or Death was broadcast live on pay-per-view from the Agganis Arena in Boston, Massachussetts, on July 19, 2008. The event theme song was "Shipping Up to Boston" by The Dropkick Murphys. After Nykk's failure to regain the MECCA World Heavyweight Championship from Anubis in June, Nykk's partner Ronin Fox decided he would be the one to bring the title back to The House of Lords. MECCA executor Katie Piehl told him he would have to beat Bryan Danielson to prove he deserved the shot. Fox did so by dubious means and earned a title match against Anubi at Liberty or Death. Meanwhile, Nykk was out for some payback on Anubis and The Wild Wolf for beating him and Fox at Punked Out. Nykk wanted Wolf one on one at Liberty or Death, and the match was made. After spending months trying to regain the MECCA Toughman Championship, Alan Mayse finally did so at New Dawn. However, he lost the title in his first defense on the next Go Time to Delirious. Mayse was unsuccessful in regaining the belt at Punked Out, but wanted another shot at Delirious. Since he considered Delirious pinning him a fluke, he wanted a match where there were none, and challenged him to a Last Man Standing Match for Liberty or Death. Delirious accepted the challenge. Results
Liberty or Death 2009BackgroundLiberty or Death was broadcast live on pay-per-view from the Agganis Arena in Boston, Massachusetts, on July 18, 2009. The event theme song was "Beast" by Nico Vega. In mid-2009, the MECCA vs. ROH feud was heating up. ROH World Champion Austin Aries made his MECCA debut at Punked Out, costing Ronin Fox a match against Team ROH's Takeshi Morishima. Fox's partner Nykk confronted Aries, but got waffled with the ROH title belt, causing a brawl to erupt between the two companies' locker rooms. Nykk decided he would take a page out of ROH's playbook and try to take away their World Title. On the next Go Time, he struck a deal with ROH owner Cary Silkin that if he gave Morishima a shot at his spot on MECCA's Contender Star, Nykk would receive a title shot against Aries on MECCA soil. Silkin agreed, and Nykk vs. Aries was set for Liberty or Death, the first time an ROH title would be defended in MECCA. Takeshi Morishima had been on a tear since coming to MECCA, wiping out everyone in his path. He eventually attracted the attention of MECCA's major players, including the World Champion Anubis. The two big men had a couple of confrontations in June, but Morishima had yet to beat a big MECCA name or get on the Contender Star to earn a title shot. After his victory over Fox, Morishima made his wishes known to challenge for the Contender Star through his handler, the voice of ROH Dave Prazak. Nykk agreed to go one on one with him after striking his own deal with ROH owner Cary Silkin. They met on the next Go Time, and Morishima came out on top. This earned him a title match against Anubis at Liberty or Death. Ronin Fox attempted to do his own part in another interpromotional match at Liberty or Death by challenging Team ROH leader Bryan Danielson. Fox and Danielson had been perennial rivals over the years, with Danielson coming out on top in most of their encounters in MECCA. In May, Danielson won the MECCA Toughman Championship, vowing to take it to Ring of Honor and away from MECCA. Fox wasn't having that, and vowed to take the title back from Danielson at Liberty or Death. Results
Never Say Die 2010BackgroundLiberty or Death was renamed Never Say Die as part of a rebranding of several pay-per-view events in 2010. It was broadcast live on pay-per-view from the Broadbent Arena in Louisville, Kentucky, on July 24, 2010. At Punked Out, Alan Mayse became the MECCA World Champion after defeating Jamie Chan with some outside help from his manager Dave Prazak. Chan would get involved in Mayse's first title defense against Eddie Crowe on the July 7 edition of Go Time, but would accidentally cost Crowe the match. Chan confronted Mayse the very next week, challenging him to a Last Man Standing Match at Never Say Die on July 24. After some goading, Alan accepted the rematch. At Punked Out, Ronin Fox and Ares competed on the same team in the Eight-Man Throwdown. They had some miscommunication during the match, and their team ended up losing. Later in the night, Ares interrupted a promo by Fox, angry at the outcome of the match and blaming Fox. Fox slapped him across the face in response, and the two had to be held apart by officials. On the July 7 episode of Go Time they met in a match, with Fox coming out on top. An angered Ares laid him out after the match, causing Fox to go to Katie Piehl to see what could be done. She booked a dream partner tag match for Never Say Die. Ares chose another rising star, Ryan Andrews as his partner, and Fox responded by choosing Ryan's rival and a man he had come to have great respect for, Eddie Crowe, to be on his side. At Punked Out, Naomi Leach defended her MECCA Ladies' World Championship against Nevaeh. Although Naomi won, the victory came as a result of the referee not seeing Nevaeh's foot on the ropes in time. An angry Nevaeh attacked Naomi after the match, and sought an immediate rematch. Katie Piehl gave her the rematch on the next episode of Go Time, but as punishment for the attack made it non-title. This time Nevaeh put Naomi down, only for the champion to get a foot on the bottom rope. Nevaeh pulled her foot off before the ref could see it, and got the three count. Over the next couple of weeks, Nevaeh claimed to be the uncrowned champion since she beat Naomi, and was unfairly pinned at Punked Out. In response, Naomi proposed a Best 2 out of 3 Falls Match for Never Say Die on July 24, looking to beat Nevaeh with no excuses this time. Results
Never Say Die 2011BackgroundNever Say Die was broadcast live on pay-per-view from the Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte, North Carolina, on July 23, 2011. At Punked Out, Ryan Andrews won the Eight-Man Throwdown tourney, giving him a shot at the MECCA World Championship at Summertime Showdown in August. However, Katie Piehl subsequently made a challenge to World Champion Jamie Chan to field a team and meet The Absence of Light at Summertime Showdown in a Perimeter of Pain Match. Chan accepted the challenge, and Ryan's World Title match was moved up a month to Never Say Die. On the July 13 episode of Go Time, Andrews managed to get the psychological edge on Chan by scoring a victory over him during a tag team encounter. On the July 6 episode of Go Time, Austin Lee won the MECCA Toughman Championship from Marcus Kavian. Kavian quickly sought a rematch and was granted one at Never Say Die. Back at The MECCA Challenge VII, Austin Lee hired Jimmy Rave to ensure his victory over Anubis. After his business with Lee was done, Anubis turned his attention toward Rave. They met a couple of times, but never with a satisfactory outcome for Anubis. They were forced to tag in the Eight-Man Throwdown at Punked Out, but tensions ran high. In the Four Way Dance later on, Rave tricked the ref into disqualifying Anubis and eliminating him from the encounter. Anubis was incensed, and wanted Rave in the ring one more time. He was granted his request for Never Say Die. Results
Never Say Die 2012BackgroundNever Say Die was broadcast live on pay-per-view from the Stampede Corral in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, on July 21, 2012. On the July 4 episode of Go Time, Marcus Kavian decided to take advantage of the hurt ankle of MECCA World Champion Austin Lee. He met with The Near Future and they decided that Aaron Glover would take Kavian's place in the Legacy Title Tournament, and he would gift the guaranteed title shot he won in the 2012 Trios Tag League to Kavian, who wished to cash it in on Lee in the main event. MECCA Authority Cynric stated that there was no rule that disallowed gifting a guaranteed title shot, so he would allow it just this once. Kavian used Lee's injury to his advantage and became the new champion later that night. But Cynric was quick to grant Lee a rematch for the title, which would take place in the main event of Never Say Die. At Punked Out, former Ladies' Champion Sassy Stephie tried to regain the MECCA Ladies' World Championship from Naomi Leach. Things didn't go as planned when a mystery woman interfered, costing Stephie the match. On the following episode of Go Time, Stephie revealed that the woman who attacked her was her old friend Jessicka Havok. She called Havok out to the ring, and Havok explained that when they were starting out, they made a pact that whoever got a contract in a big company first would put in a good word for the other. She felt that Stephie never lived up to that pact, and when she was offered a contract on her own, Stephie became her first target. A brawl ensued, and a match was signed between the two for Never Say Die. On July 4, Cynric announced the inauguration of the MECCA Legacy Championship meant to pay tribute to the roots of MECCA's Midwest heritage. The title would be decided in a sixteen-man single elimination tournament, with the finals to be held at Summertime Showdown in August. The first round took place over the following weeks, and the final two matches were set for Never Say Die. Representing The Circle of Trust, Eddie Crowe would take on The Wild Wolf, while Eddie's brother Jay Crowe would go one on one with Tristan Lee. Results
Never Say Die 2013BackgroundNever Say Die was broadcast live on pay-per-view from the Gersten Pavilion in Los Angeles, California, on July 20, 2013. At Punked Out, The Circle of Trust scored a major blow in their feud against The Near Future when Eddie Crowe beat Marcus Kavian for the MECCA World Championship. The Circle of Trust held a celebration on the following epside of Go Time, but Crowe was confronted by Kavian, Brian Kendrick and Low Ki, all wanting a title shot. MECCA Authority Cynric kept a close eye on the situation, vowing to decide the number one contender soon. Kavian and Ki battled the next week, only for Circle of Trust interference to cause the match to be thrown out. Later in the night, Brian Kendrick won his spot back on the Contender Star. Cynric came out and announced that he was giving a title shot to all three men, and the main event of Never Say Die would be a Four Corners Match for the World Title. In mid-2013, Ronin Fox was a man who seemed to have lost his identity. He had become dependent on a string of tag team partners, but none of them were able to help him reach his goals. When his latest attempt at a team with Drake Younger also ended in failure, Fox attacked him and laid him out in the middle of the ring. Fox became somewhat of a split personality, sometimes becoming a ruthless competitor who showed no mercy and didn't care about the fans, and sometimes appearing as the positive force he had always been. This did nothing to quell Younger's desire for payback, however, and at Punked Out, he cost Fox the Eight-Man Throwdown in retaliation. They met one on one on July 4, with Younger getting the victory. But Fox got the last laugh and once again attacked Younger after the match, laying him out with a chair. Younger put out a challenge to Fox for rematch at Never Say Die, which his darker side accepted, though his positive side seemed to have no clue what had transpired between them. At Punked Out, Ladies' Champion Melissa Flash beat Jennifer Blake after knocking her foot off the ropes before the referee could see it. Blake naturally wanted a rematch for the MECCA Ladies' World Championship, and things broke down between the two women. Blake was able to win her rematch in the ring, but during a subsequent brawl, Flash powerbombed Blake through the timekeeper's table. Blake was shaken up, but okay to wrestle, and she wanted payback. So Cynric made their title match at Never Say Die into a Table Match. Results
Never Say Die 2014BackgroundNever Say Die was broadcast live on pay-per-view from the Michael J. Hagan Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 19, 2014. At Punked Out, the title match between Drake Younger and Marcus Kavian ended in controversy when Younger pulled Kavian's leg off the ropes during the pin before the referee could see it. Kavian was upset that he lost his chance at the MECCA World Championship when the match should have continued. In order to coax Younger back into the ring for a rematch at Never Say Die, Kavian offered to take the ropes out of it and face him in a match where there would be no rope breaks. Younger would eventually agree to the title defense, looking to solidify himself as MECCA's Golden Boy with a win over one of its biggest stars. In June, the team of Alex Shelley and Brian Kendrick fell victim to several attacks by men wearing masks. After a couple of ambushes, Kendrick and Shelley were able to turn the tables and unmask the men, revealing them to be Jake and Dave Crist, returning to MECCA as Ohio is 4 Killers. The two teams met at Punked Out, but the match ended indecisively. The teams would continue to clash over the next few weeks, with Oi4K coming out on top in tag team action. In order to test them on their own, Kendrick and Shelley asked for and received singles matches against the brothers for Never Say Die. In the summer of 2014, Nykk was looking to rebuild The Circle of Trust, and tried to recruit his own cousin Ryan Andrews. However, it did not work out and Andrews ultimately turned Nykk down. Embarrassed and enraged, Nykk sicced Eddie Crowe and Gary Kopp on Andrews, and they were able to put him out of action. The next week, Jimmy Rave, Andrews's former tag team partner who had his own differences with him, confronted Nykk and complimented him, suggesting that he would like to join the Circle of Trust. Nykk said he would think about it, but Rave suddenly turned on Nykk and the Circle of Trust, and sent them running. Rave stated that Ryan had been like a brother to him for years, and it was absolutely disgusting what the Circle of Trust did. Nykk wanted payback on Rave, and sent Gary Kopp to challenge him in the ring at Never Say Die. Results
Never Say Die 2015BackgroundNever Say Die was broadcast live on pay-per-view from the Chiles Center in Portland, Oregon, on July 18, 2015. At the end of the match for the MECCA World Championship at Punked Out, there was controversy as Torea tapped out at the same time that his challenger Alex Shelley's shoulders were pinned for a count of three. The referee's decision was that the three count happened a split second before the tap out, and therefore Torea retained the title. On the next episode of Go Time, upset that he was not the new champion, Shelley wanted Torea in the ring again and he was granted a non-title rematch. This time Shelley would win the match out of a submission hold from Torea, and Torea's shoulders were pinned down a split second before Shelley tapped out. Not wanting there to be any doubt about who the true champion was, Torea made an offer to Shelley for a rubber match at Never Say Die. But this time they would meet in an Ultimate Submission Match, a match that had a thirty minute time limit, and the man who scored the most submissions would be the champion. Shelley eagerly agreed, citing his superior submission skills, making him confident he would become the next champion. Tensions were at a boiling point between Ryan Andrews and his former partner, the Legacy Champion Jimmy Rave. Andrews had failed twice to win the title from Rave, but both times Rave had to cheat in order to gain victory. Andrews wanted one more shot at Rave, so a deal was struck for Never Say Die. They would meet in a Dream Partner Tag Team Match. Each man would choose a mystery partner for a tag team match, and if Andrews's team won, he would be granted one last title shot at Rave. Everyone speculated about who each man would choose to go into battle at his side at Never Say Die. At the beginning of July, MECCA Authority Cynric made the regretful announcement that due to an injury to Matt Jackson, he would have to strip the MECCA World Tag Team Championship from The Young Bucks. He decided to put them up for grabs in an eight-team single elimination tournament, with the finals taking place at Summertime Showdown. Two first round matches were slated to take place at Never Say Die. Former champions Oi4K would take on the new team of Skywatch, while Gary Kopp and The Wild Wolf would change gears in their careers to join forces, and they would be up against the tag team division icons and six-time former champs, The Pyro Twins. Results
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