EXCLUSIVE: Interview with Amy Chen and Xi Xing

By Miho Murai

When I found Amy Chen and Xi Xing After their match this past Sunday, Their faces told a much different story then they had before.  Before, Amy's face was excited yet her body was jittery and nervous. Xing's composure was stoic as usual, but you could see in her eyes the hopefulness she carried for this match.

"I can't believe this," Chen said as their music hit, and they headed toward the gorilla position. "It feels like I've been working for this for years."

In a very real way, that was true. It must have seemed like a lifetime away when in 2006 she made her debut at the then newly incorporated OJ-FWA held their first big event at the Tokyo Dome, appropriately called -FIRST-. There was something else, however.

"It feels so long ago when New York happened. Now I'm here getting my first title shot! It's an unbelievable feeling, you know?"

The New York she was referring to here was SNF of that same year. Undoubtedly,  she must have been referring to perhaps the scariest moment of her entire career, as a botched high risk maneuver to the outside nearly cost her her life.

But now, the match is over. The referee made his call. Despite their earlier excitement, the ChenXing Dragons lost. Their disappointment was palpable, as even Xing could not help but to display her emotions in a crestfallen expression. Chen's emotions were a bit more obvious; She sat on the bench, head in hands, quietly crying.

"This is it. We gave them everything we had, and we still lost," Chen said between silent sobs. "Both of them deserve their tag championships. I'm not complaining about that. I love them both, and they've been great friends to me. But I don't know if we'll ever get a second chance. But we're going to damn sure try. Gambarimasu."

Such is life in the hyper competitive world of professional wrestling. And especially, such is life in the OJ-FWA locker room.