By TENAJH SWEETING

Tribune Sports Reporter

tsweeting@tribunemedia.net    

BAHAMIAN wrestler Alexis Gray, also known by stage name Kaylia Capri, experienced a warm welcome in her first official pro wrestling match in The Bahamas at the inaugural Baha Bash live wrestling event presented by All Caribbean Wrestling (ACW) on Saturday. 

The Bahamas’ first professional women’s wrestler had the support of a loud and animated home crowd behind her the entire way as she scored a gutsy win against JC Storm via pinfall in a packed Andros Ballroom at the Baha Mar Resort.

The sweet homecoming was made even sweeter as she left with an extra $10,000 in her pocket, presented to her by former world heavyweight champion and world’s strongest man (WSM) Mark Henry after the singles victory. 

Capri was beaming with joy after her match and could not stop smiling and she spoke about the experience from her point-of-view. “I will say that it is just by God’s luck. I didn’t know what was going on in the match. She clocked me with a couple of good ones and it knocked me into a little daze here and there. It was getting very hot and I was getting tired but I just heard the crowd telling me ‘get up you got this keep going’ and it resonated in my head and I said I gotta pull off the W for the 242,” she said.

JC Storm dished out some offensive jeers to a boisterous Bahamian crowd before the ring bell sounded so it was no surprise that the matchup got off to an intense start. 

The hometown favourite withstood some tough bumps in the matchup as Storm shoved her into the ringpost outside of the ring. 

This led to the two wrestlers exchanging blows in front of the fans. The action moved back into the ring and while JC Storm was gloating, the Bahamian wrestler decided to sneak in a quick roll up pin which only resulted in a two-count pinfall.

In a pivotal moment of the match, Capri misfired on a jump kick which took down the official and allowed for outside interference from members of the 12-man Battle Royal that took place earlier in the evening. 

Despite the interference, Capri along with the assistance of local wrestler “The Dealer” managed to clear the ring and she finished off JC Storm with a mean face plant for the three-count pinfall.

Capri, also known as Sierra Breeze on the Women of Wrestling (WOW) Superheroes brand, said the win was necessary against JC Storm.

“I needed that match so I could respect her and she could respect me and know better than to talk about The Bahamas. It was electric, the whole place was rocking and shaking and I heard the 242 roars. Before I came out, I said I have to do this because we are in my country and everybody came out here for me,” she said.

The former track athlete was also grateful for the support she received from the Bahamian fanbase during her preparation for the event and while inside the ropes.

“I feel great about the support, about everything everybody has been doing for me and pouring all the love into me. I appreciate it so much. I am dripped down in Bahamian designer by Kevin Evans and with my Exclusive bundles. Everything you see on me is Bahamian so I definitely had to come hard for the home crowd,” she said.

Capri was not the only Bahamian to get a pop from the crowd in the Andros Ballroom. Local wrestlers including The Dealer, Porkchop, Island Boy and Warren Santangelo were key members of a 12-man Battle Royal. The Dealer outlasted all of his Bahamian counterparts by pulling off a sneaky double elimination in the end with one half of the Russell Twins involved in the action.

Sadly, his celebratory moment was interrupted by JC Storm, who snuck into the ring and tossed him over the top rope.

“I did win but that young lady came out and threw me over. I guess she wanted my spotlight. That Battle Royal was really rough and it was the roughest I have ever had so far but that is the name of the game,” he said. 

He described how it felt to have the rousing support of the Bahamians in attendance.

“It was nerve-wracking but when I came out there I was right at home. It felt so great just being in front of hundreds of people. I look forward to many more in the near future,” he said.

The ACW Caribbean tour continues to Jam Slam in Kingston, Jamaica on July 6. 

RESULTS

FEW Champion Jay Rios retained his title in triple threat action versus Kenny King and Patrick Clarke. King was well on his way to upsetting the champion as he pinned Clarke but Rios thwarted his chances with an elbow from the top rope to sneak away with the win.

ACW champion Mazzerati had a tall task against a tough opponent in Vanessa Kraven. The latter dominated the match the entire way until the reigning champion used her speed to sneak in a match-ending kick to Kraven’s face for a three-count pinfall. 

“Pope ‘’ Elijah Burke, ACW Champion, had a crowd thrilling match against Prince Agballah. The challenger tried to use his brute force to dictate the match but Pope withstood the blows. The champion needed three consecutive flying elbow drops from the ropes to finish off Agballah and retain his hardware.

Former WWE Superstar JTG defeated Lince Dorado.

FEW Flares Women’s Champion knocked off Mia Friday.