By Carpe Diem last October, the tension between the two sides had reached a fever pitch – Gordon’s interference had controversially knocked Frazier out of the tournament in August, and Samuels had responded by taking aim at the obnoxious manager’s face a month later. But with the Kartel both at a show in Germany for the evening, most fans thought Redman would be free of distractions as he wrestled in the tournament quarter finals. They thought wrong – just as the “Physical Specimen” started to take control of the match, his rivals’ music started playing and distracted him long enough for Bubblegum to deliver a cross-body block that resulted in him beating Redman via count-out. Gordon and his protégé were livid, vowing revenge on whoever was responsible.

In the weeks that followed it emerged that the music had been played, apparently by accident, while a famous British wrestler was filming a documentary backstage. FWA management refused to release footage of the incident and the Kartel seemed eager to protect the culprit’s identity, but Gordon and Redman were hell-bent on vengeance and threatened legal action. Eventually, the two sides agreed to a tag match with the only tape of the incident up for grabs. That match happened at Hotwired in November, with Redman and tag team partner Sykes picking up a narrow count-out victory. Gordon won possession of the video tape, and has now learned who was responsible for the musical error: Darren Burridge.

It is now clear why the Kartel were so eager to keep that footage away from their vindictive foes. Burridge, a long-time friend and training partner of Frazier and Samuels, is one of the most high-profile British wrestlers of the past decade but has recently been blighted by a career-threatening knee injury. Although he is well on the way to recovery, the “Pukka One” could be permanently put out of commission if he returns to action too soon. He is also well-known for his reluctance to ever walk away from a challenge, which is presumably why his friends did not want to reach a point where Gordon would goad him into making a premature return. Unfortunately that is exactly what has now happened.

After watching the footage from Carpe Diem, Gordon and Redman demanded that Burridge be in Broxbourne on Saturday 13th February to face the consequences of his actions. The Kartel, knowing what their friend’s answer is likely to be, have pre-empted his response by challenging Redman to a tag team rematch with an added stipulation – if the Londoners win they will get five minutes alone in the ring with Gordon, while if Redman and his partner win then they will get five minutes alone with Burridge.

The stark reality for Darren Burridge is that this match is a terrifying gamble. Joel Redman is as dangerous as he is merciless and would undoubtedly take great pleasure in re-injuring the Essex native’s knee so badly that he could never walk again, let alone wrestle.

Adding insult to injury, Gordan has today told FWAUK.com that he has recruited none other then the relentless human hate machine Dave "Mastiff" Moralez, fresh from suspension for the assult of FWA referee Tommy Stevens, to partner with Redman on February 13th in Broxbourne.

Burridge had better hope that his friends are up to the challenge ahead. If they are not, the potential consequences do not bear thinking about...

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