PRIDE AFCW Apotheosis I
Production Details
Tagline	"Where Women Become Legends"
Date	August 5, 2012
Theme Songs	Coldplay - "Paradise" Fireflight - "Unbreakable" Katy Perry - "Fireworks"
Venue	Quicken Loans Arena - Cleveland, OH
Pay-per-view chronology
← Previous War Games 2012 Next → Fans' Night 2012 Apotheosis chronology First Apotheosis (2012) Next → Apotheosis (2013)

Apotheosis (2012) was a professional wrestling event produced by PRIDE All-Female Wrestling Championship. It took place on August 5, 2012 at the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. It was PRIDE's third pay-per-view since the re-opening under the new name, the first in the Apotheosis chronology, and the third of four events in the PRIDE AFCW PPV schedule. Out of character-wise, it was the fifth event to be broadcast through the PRIDE Live Coverage System.

BackgroundEdit

Apotheosis featured professional wrestling matches involving pre-existing scripted feuds, plots, and storylines played out during the regular episodes of Sunday Night PRIDE Wrestling - the flagship bi-weekly television program of PRIDE.

Scheduled MatchesEdit

AftermathEdit

Now besting Susan Rigger twice to retain the PRIDE Championship, Carmen deVega would continue her historic reign as well as staring a feud with Jasmine over the PRIDE Championship. On September 2, 2012, she became the first PRIDE Champion to hold the title for more than seven weeks (after Susan Rigger). Three weeks later at PRIDE 11 on the September 24, 2012 edition of Sunday Night PRIDE Wrestling, Sexified Perfection (Jasmine, Jessica Jackson and Susan Rigger) defeated Carmen's Angels (Bobbi Jackson, Carmen deVega and Giselle Anderson) via pinfall when Rigger covered Jackson for the win in a Six-Woman Tag Team Fans' Night Qualification match. On October 16, 2012, she became the first PRIDE Champion whose reign reign surpassed 100 days. Two shows later at PRIDE 13 on the October 28, 2012 edition of Sunday Night PRIDE Wrestling, DeVega faced Dominique Frost, but the match ended in a no contest after DeVega was assaulted by Frost from behind with the Tag Team Championship during her entrance. This lead to a brawl between the two before Mikaela Demidov suddenly jumped DeVega just as the champion was making a comeback. Demidov attempted her finisher on DeVega, but she shoved her away straight into a superkick from a returning Jasmine, who had been absent from television. She eventually jumps DeVega and Frost before a host of enforcers ran down to the ring to break it up. On the last PRIDE Wrestling show before Fans' Night at PRIDE 14, the November 12 edition of Sunday Night PRIDE Wrestling, the main event tag team match between Dominique Frost and Susan Rigger versus Carmen DeVega and Giselle Anderson ended in a No Contest when Mikaela Demidov interfered in the match, attacking both Rigger and DeVega. The match would soon break into a massive brawl between the Tag Team Champions, three of the four involved in the Pride Championship match and Giselle Anderson, while Jasmine and Vivid Colors looked on from the outside. At Fans' Night on December 2, 2012, Carmen deVega (entering her 4th month as champion and in her 2nd defense) defeated Jasmine by disqualification when Jasmine refused to release her submission hold by the referee's count of five. 

Frost and Rigger would continue their run with the Tag Team Championship. On October 12, 2012, Frost, Rigger and fellow Sexified Perfection member and then Extreme Champion Jessica Jackson became the first people in PRIDE Wrestling history to surpass the 200-day mark of their championship reigns. Meanwhile, their next challengers would come from Vivid Colors (Gabrielle Crimson and Rainbow). At PRIDE 11, Dominique Frost defeated Rainbow via pinfall after the Ice Pick (crucifix powerbomb) in a Fans' Night Qualification match. The following show at PRIDE 12, after defeating Twisted Path (Michelle Taylor, Traci Loveheart, and Victoria Summers) via pinfall in a War Drill match, Crimson and Rainbow would later appear after the main event, which saw Susan Rigger defeat Mercedes Vargas, ending her 7-month unbeaten singles streak in PRIDE Wrestling, and announced that they would challenge Rigger and Frost for the Tag Team Championship at Fans' Night as a reward for winning the War Drill match. At Fans' Night on December 2, 2012, Vivid Colors defeated Sexified Perfection (in their 3rd defense) in a Ladder match when Crimson climbed the ladder to retrieve the belts to become the 2nd PRIDE Tag Team Champions and thus ending Rigger and Frost's 8-month reign, which lasted 252 days.

Alysson Gardner would continue feuding with Destiny Campbell following Apotheosis. At PRIDE 12, Loud and Vivid Colors (Alysson Gardner, Gabrielle Crimson and Rainbow) defeated Twisted Path (Michelle Taylor, Traci Loveheart, and Victoria Summers) via pinfall, after Crimson hit the Taste the Rainbow (roundhouse kick) on Taylor in a War Drill match. Post-match, Gardner threw down a challenge to  Campbell to a re-match at Fans' Night. In one last tune-up match before Fans' Night, Gardner teamed with Gabrielle Crimson (together known as the Rocking Kittens) defeating Twisted Path (Traci Loveheart & Victoria Summers) via pinfall, after Gardner hit the G-Spot (Frankesteiner Facebuster) on Loveheart. At Fans' Night, Bobbi Jackson substituted for Gardner against Campbell for the Devil's Den match, Destiny's signature match, which Campbell ended up winning. Gardner would team with Giselle Anderson to defeat Twisted Path (Traci Loveheart and Victoria Summers) by disqualification in a tag team match prior.

With a second successful title defense against Emma Danielson,and third overall, under her belt, Jessica Jackson now entered her fourth month as Extreme Champion and would continue to feud with Danielson over the title. On October 12, 2012, she became the third person in PRIDE Wrestling history (along with inaugural PRIDE Tag Team Champions and fellow Sexified Perfection members Dominique Frost and Susan Rigger) to have an individual reign surpass the 200-day mark. At PRIDE 11, she was a part of Sexified Perfection's win in the main event, as herself, Jasmine and Susan Rigger defeated Carmen's Angels (Bobbi Jackson, Carmen deVega and Giselle Anderson) via pinfall after Rigger covered Jackson for the win in a six-woman tag team Fans' Night Qualification match. Jackson and Danielson would meet again in the main event two shows later at PRIDE 13, with Danielson, Alysson Gardner and Bobbi Jackson defeating Jessica, Destiny Campbell and Velvet Raven, when Danielson hit Raven with the Brooklyn Hangover in a No Disqualification match. Originally a six-woman tag team match, Campbell used a steel chair on Danielson, resulting in the disqualification and which prompted PRIDE owner Christian Gardner to come out and restart the match. After the match, Danielson let Jackson know she was next, a sure sign that this would setup a third meeting between them for Jackson's Extreme Championship, this time at Fans' Night. At Fans' Night, Jessica Jackson, entering her eight month as Extreme Champion and in her fourth defense, defeated Emma Danielson for the third time and second pay-per-view in a Falls Count Anywhere match, following interference from Kimberly Aries who struck Danielson from behind with a steel chair from the crowd, of what would be the end of their feud.

Mercedes Vargas would continue her unbeaten streak while in possession of the International Championship. She became the longest reigning International Champion in company history when she surpassed Bianca Salvador's 43 days as champion on September 17, 2012. In her first match as International Champion, she defeated Reiha Johansson at PRIDE 11 in a non-title match, and the following day became the first person to hold the International Championship for more than 7 weeks (after Candace Okimura). In the main event of PRIDE 12 on the next edition of Sunday Night Pride Wrestling on October 7, 2012, Susan Rigger defeated Vargas via pinfall with the Riggerplex in a non-title match to end her 238-day undefeated streak in singles competition, which lasted 7 months. Six days later, Vargas surpassed the 100-day mark as champion. During that time, her next contender would arrive in the form of Asylum, who started out on an unbeaten streak of her own, defeating Mikaela Demidov, Destiny Loveheart, and Michelle Taylor at PRIDE 11, 12, and 13, respectively, with the latter match earning herself a title shot to face Mercedes for the International Championship at Fans' Night. After Asylum's win, Mercedes appeared at the entrance ramp, simply applauding her efforts, before defeating Rainbow later on in the evening. On December 2, 2012 at Fans' Night, Mercedes, in an interview segment, dubbed herself the "Best in the World" due to her reign as champion and proposed a Pure Rules match for the title. With the fans choice of Michelle Taylor as the special guest referee, Vargas soon got into an argument with her over a sure nearfall, which led to Taylor slapping her and Vargas laid out Taylor, leaving an opening for Asylum, who went for a roll-up attempt, but no referee was present. Vargas (entering her third month as champion and in her 1st defense) would eventually retain the title after reversing Asylun's attempt with a roll-up of her own and Bianca Salvador counted the deciding pinfall.