FCP/ATTACK! WrestleHouse '18 [Live] Review // 26th January 2018

It was the first time inside Starworks Warehouse this year and we had the sequel to last year's classic WrestleHouse show, that saw two BritWres favourite Fight Club: PRO and ATTACK! Pro Wrestling come together for a WrestleBration of epic proportions. The show featured the first TeamHouse Elimination Situation match as it's main event, as Mark Haskins, FCP Champion Chris Brookes, Jordan Devlin, Chief Deputy Dunne & Dan Moloney took on Trent Seven, Travis Banks, MK McKinnan, Clint Margera & Millie McKenzie, as well as a rematch between WWN star Keith Lee and Infinity Trophy winner Omari and a tag team clash with Aussie Open's Mark Davis & Kyle Fletcher facing Team SPLX members Zack Sabre Jr. and Angelico. WrestleHouse '18 had a lot to live up to, but was it up to the task?  

Photo Credit // The Ringside Perspective // Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // Big Cartel

Fight Club: Pro // Big Cartel // Website // Twitter // Facebook // Vimeo

Attack Pro Wrestling // Big Cartel // Twitter // Facebook // Vimeo

Before we get into the wrestling content, lets talk about the changes made at Starworks for the show. Firstly, it was fucking freezing. I'm not entirely sure why, but there appeared to be a big hole in the far wall. An industrial heater placed in the corner of the room did little to combat this and indeed only seemed to heat the few feet immediately in front of it. It felt like this effected the atmosphere somewhat as the crowd was definitely more subdued than previous events, especially during the opener and stretches of the main event. Other minor issues included moving the food stall parallel the bar, meaning the queue stretched to in front of the merch table. Starworks taking over the running of the bar also seemed to create longer and slower moving queues for drinks. I don't know what happened, but not only did it make it harder to buy beverage (with prices also soaring - £2.50 for a can of Red Bull?), but also to move around the venue in general.  

TeamHouse Elimination Situation Match // Mark Haskins & Chris Brookes & Jordan Devlin & Chief Deputy Dunne & Dan Moloney def. Trent Seven & Travis Banks & MK McKinnan & Clint Margera & Millie McKenzie 

Where to begin with the lengthy main event? There was an awful lot going on in the first ever TeamHouse Elimination Situation match and I'll get into what worked and what didn't work for me in a moment. Firstly, lets talk about the team and some of that Stupid Sexy stuff that's been sweeping through ATTACK! like the sexiest plague you ever did see. Beyond the captains of Travis Banks and FCP Champion Chris Brookes, there was nothing known of who they'd chosen to be on their teams before they headed out. Haskins being on Brookes' team was a surprise, because to my knowledge he'd been a babyface beforehand in FCP, however the little story with the former PROGRESS World Champion initially appearing uncomfortable teaming with the likes of Dan Moloney, before becoming a viciously integral part of Team Brookes was one of the stronger parts of the match for me. Chief Deputy Dunne working double duty was also a strange move. Whether this was the initial plan or not I'm not sure, but if you pushed me I'd lean closer towards the latter. Banks' team read like a Then...Now...Forever of Fight Club: PRO, featuring four former champions. It was great to have MK McKinnnan back with us once again and when given the opportunity he showed glimpses of what had made him a highly touted prospect before his hiatus, highlighted by a nice sequence with Jordan Devlin. 

Lets delve into discussion of the match, by looking at the positives. Obviously, the booking of Millie McKenzie in the match was a major plus point (as has been since McKenzie debuted in FCP last June) but I want to focus a little more on that and the finish a little further down. So instead lets begin at the begin, the wild and crazy brawl around ringside, that erupted as Team Banks had made their Stupid Sexy reappearance. Thankfully (and selfishly), the majority of action was kept to around the ring, as this meant that from my front row vantage point I didn't miss much at all, as has been the case when FCP multi-mans start roaming the entire Warehouse. All ten wrestlers scrapping and chopping and striking each other with good intensity was a great way to start the match and made use of the sheer amount of bodies available. How often do you get ten performers in the same match in the UK? Kid Lykos mirroring Chris Brookes' actions at ringside, like if Damien Mizdow had been a damn dirty Wolf, was highlight of the short face-in-peril situation, before a Travis Banks hot tag sent the match into chaos once more. Multiple corner cannonballs, a spectacular four-way Coast to Coast and multiple dives to the outside were capped off by Clint Margera climbing a ladder inside the ring and leaping off over the barricade and onto the multiple bodies below.

That's enough being nice for now, because as much as I love praising FCP there were a few issues with the main event for me. Firstly, the cold crowd was absolutely knackered by the time this match started, which was equal parts the temperature in the room, a lengthy interval causing the match to go on super late even for Fight Club and the draining nature of Keith Lee vs. Omari. This meant that parts of the match played out in front of what I'd refer to as a subdued audience, not exactly silent, but not exactly what you'd expect from a record FCP crowd during a main event either. For me, this wasn't helped by the general lack of story heading into the match. In December, we'd seen Banks tag with Chris Brookes, but in June we'd seen Brookes cheat Banks out of the FCP title. For me, these big matches work best when there's a grudge between the two teams or a reason that they're fighting and whilst the majority of the characters involved are well-defined, it was difficult to be fully invested without a burning issue. Alongside this, I wasn't a massive fan of how the match was structured either, with a flurry of eliminations coming in a block, meaning that those exits felt unimportant and in fact, inconsequential. Coming soon after a series of one in one out finishers that saw everyone get involved didn't help the elimination stretch, that saw Moloney, McKinnan, Dunne, Margera and Devlin exit the match. 

So, lets get back to Millie McKenzie, shall we? Her story throughout the match was the strongest part of the contest. From her early hot tag and german suplex festival, to a stretch as face-in-peril, her narrative heated up following the aforementioned dive sequence. It was difficult to get a full view of the spot, as it was on the opposite side of the ring from where I was, but Brookes gave McKenzie an neckbreaker off the barricade and onto the hard concrete floor. From my vantage point the spot looked nasty and I certainly wouldn't want to fall onto the solid Starworks floor. McKenzie was helped to the back by staff, with little details like Trent Seven disappearing backstage for a while adding to the angle. The crowd gave McKenzie a rousing applause upon her exit, but following Travis Banks departure at the hands of Brookes, the fans loudly called for Millie to return, because this is wrestling and we like to think we know how it works. Out came McKenzie, selling like a boss, for a gutsy underdog scrap with Brookes, taking everything that the Champion had to offer but continuing to stay in the match. The finish would see PROGRESS' Jinny make her FCP debut, costing Millie the match just when it appeared that McKenzie was going to able to do the impossible. It was a cool way to start introduce a new character and begin a proper feud in FCP and also allowed Brookes to walk out as the last person standing and make up a little for the fact that he didn't defend the championship once again.

Keith Lee def. Omari // Pinfall

Opening sentence mentioning difficult second albums. Follow up sentence listing second albums that improved upon the original. Third sentence discussing a comparison between second albums and Keith Lee and Omari's second match in Fight Club: Pro. You get the picture. The original clash between Lee and Omari at International Tekkers Part 1 last July was an incredible match, with a result that no one saw coming, but in my opinion the second clash topped it. Yes, it didn't have the massive shock surprise finish, with Omari going from strength to strength since July, including winning the Infinity Trophy in December, but here was a richer match, with a deeper story, featuring opportunities for call backs, awe-inspiring highspots and some of the most painful sounding strikes Starworks has ever witnessed. It was fucking glorious stuff, it really was. 

The best match of the night had the crowd in the palm of the performers hands, with the two often taking their time to tell the story right and knowing when to speed up at the right moments. Special shoutout to the "Ooooh, bask in Omari" chant because it was brilliant. The repeated strikes sequence with Omari trying to keep up with Lee and getting the fuck beaten into him, selling his beating and returning for more. If anyone in the crowd hadn't already been won over by Omari's fighting spirit, then this would've done it. The tilt towards the finish was balls out ridiculous. From Lee's super silly one handed chokeslam to the pair of one counts for both men to the call back to the finish of their first match to Omari hitting a German suplex with Lee positioned on the middle rope, the final third of the match was utterly bonkers. Oh yeah, they did a top rope Spanish Fly as well, because why the fuck not? Lee has no business taking Spanish flys, but I'm not going to tell him that. There'd been so much going on and Starworks was rocking, that it almost felt like an anti-climax when Lee managed to vanquish the Infinity winner with Ground Zero. To be honest, I was just glad to be able to get my breath back! 

Following the match, Lee got on the microphone, letting Omari know that he originally believed the result of their first encounter was a fluke, but after the rematch he'd changed his mind. Lee then challenge Omari to a rubber match at some point in the future, before requesting that Omari's Infinity Trophy and therefore FCP title shot would be on the line. Oh yes, please and thank you, sir. The first two matches between this pairing have been electric, mixing storytelling and indie madness with the emotional connection between the up and comer from Birmingham and the Wolverhampton audience. The third clash between the two will have an awful lot to live up to, but even more opportunities to develop narrative and push the envelope even further. If you've missed the first two, treat yourself to 

Kyle Fletcher & Mark Davis def. Zack Sabre Jr. & Angelico // Pinfall 

Aussie Open picked up their first win in FCP, as they picked up a big victory over the first time pairing of Zack Sabre Jr. and Angelico, with Fletcher pinning ZSJ after Davis hit Close Your Eyes and Count to Fuck, following a very good tag team match. The contest was put together splendidly, with Davis and ZSJ and then Fletcher and Angelico working two lovely and very different sequences to kick things off, with a split crowd finding it hard to pick between the Aussie regulars and the international SPLX sponsored tandem. This changed pretty quickly when ZSJ starting pulling out some of that vicious technical bastardry that's he's become quite fond lately. Nasty looking holds, stomping and a little illegal use of the ropes kept Sabre and Angelico in control of Fletcher, with Davis getting crashed off the apron at any point it seemed like the Aussie Arrow was about to make a comeback. Whilst a portion of the crowd stuck with the scientific wankers, there was definitely a ground swell of support for Davis & Fletcher and even a good deal of heat for Team SPLX. I really get a kick out of this side of ZSJ and it's always a pleasure to boo him when he's doing his methodical arsehole routine, whilst Fletcher is a delight when fighting underneath because he sells using his entire body.


Once the hot tag was made the rest of the match featured some very good near falls for both teams, whilst Davis, knackered from constantly being knocked off the apron, looked to nail his Close Your Eyes and Count to Fuck piledriver. This resulted in a wonderful exchange where Sabre Jr. was able to escape the piledriver attempt and lock in an arm bar instead, which was slickly done and set up the finish for later on. The near falls included a lovely sequence where Fletcher fired up after Sabre started slapping the fuck out of his face, only for Angelico to come sweeping in after a Michonoku Driver to pick up a strong near fall off a crucifix bucklebomb, as well as Aussie Open's Fidget Spinner. With Aussie Open finally able to isolate Sabre, they were able to get revenge for his rapscallion-esque behaviour with a superkick from Fletcher and the aforementioned CYEACTF (say it) sealing their first win in the promotion. With the Dream Tag Team Invitational just around the corner, Davis & Fletcher have to be considered amongst the favourites to take the crown, mostly because three Aussie Open matches across a weekend would be best for everyone. 

ATTACK! Tag Team Championships // Lloyd Katt & Split McPins (C) def. Chief Deputy Dunne & Los Super Santos Federales Jr. and Martina & The Love Making Demon and Drew Parker & ELIJAH // Pinfall

On an event that felt nowhere near as ATTACKy as last year's show, we did get to see the ATTACK Tag Team titles defend as Lloyd Katt & Splits McPins of Bowl-A-Rama made their fifth successful defence of the belts in a Four-way clash also involving The Anti-Fun Police's Chief Deputy Dunne & Los Super Santos Federales Jr, the newly formed Session Mouse duo of "Session Moth" Martina & The Love Making Demon and x Nothing to Prove x's Drew Parker & ELIJAH in a fun, yet occasionally rushed opener. The match was mostly comedy antics, based around a couple of character interactions and Santos saying things in his weird Spanish/Welsh hybrid accent. The highlight came from a wonderful bowling sequence, where Katt & Pinns fired bowling balls into the waiting crotches of their opponents seated in the corner, only for Martina to begin begging for the ball to be lobbed betwixt her legs, because she's mad into that bowling life. The finish was also well done with a flurry of action before Bowl-a-Rama picked up the pin on former ATTACK! Champion Dunne with More Bowl for Your Buck. 

However, the match wasn't without it's problems. The biggest of these for me was the crowd didn't seem all that aware of a number of the characters involved. Perhaps it was the cold, but the boisterous atmosphere that one would've expected for such a match in ATTACK!, especially when it comes to the popular Bowl-A-Rama tandem, just didn't seem to be present here, with only pockets of the crowd seeming to know the ATTACK! performers. A lot of the multi-man stuff didn't hit home for me either, with the usually creative promotion falling back on a number of multi man tropes, that beyond the bowling sequence, felt a little tired. The most obvious example being everyone getting involved in a vertical suplex melee that seemed to take an age to set up, as the competitors joined in one by one. The fact that the resulting suplex (or at least the half involved the Anti-Fun Police) ended up looking woeful didn't help the situation. I was also dissapointing to see absolutely nothing made of the brutal attack from x Nothing to Prove x on Dunne at ATTACK!'s Failure's Not Flattering (Where's The Passion?) in Bristol less than a week earlier, as seeing as this was supposed to be a joint show you would've expected the two teams to have at least hinted at what had gone down there. 

El Phantasmo def. Adam Brooks

El Phantasmo made the most of his first singles match in FCP with a victory over the debuting Adam Brooks in a good showcase for the Canadian and Australian. For some reason (I'll blame the freezing temperature once more), I decided to write three whole notes on this one, but that says more about this reviewer than it does about the match. Battling with a crowd that had just came back from one of the longest intervals in professional wrestling history, Phantasmo and Brooks worked hard to draw the audience in, with Phantasmo able to garner a decent amount of crowd support in the end, thanks to a fiery comeback that complimented the strong heel/face dynamic that was present throughout the bout. The series of suicide dives from Phantasmo was the highlight, alongside his always impressive rope-walk hurricanrana. This was the first time I've found myself fully on board with Phantasmo, after only seeing him in multi-man bouts to this point and it was his performance when fighting from underneath that made this match what it was. I've heard good things about Brookes from performances elsewhere in the country and whilst I'm not sure we got him at his best in Wolverhampton, there was just enough here to see his potential and hopefully he's back in FCP later this year.

Shay Purser stunnered Joel Allen and Matt Richards 

Because the main event had ended with popular babyface Millie McKenzie taking a beating from Jinny, the show closed with referee Shay Purser coming out to the ring, once again to Glass Shatters by Disturbed, before stunnering fellow ref Joel Allen and ring announcer Matt Richards. Why not? 

ATPW Scale Rating // 6.69/10

Written by James Marston // @IAmNotAlanDale

5 Star Wrestling Review // 8th February 2018

5 Star Wrestling's show on FreeSports was back for a second week, this time seeing the promotion return to Newcastle at the Metro Radio Arena. This week's episode featured Jake Hager receiving a shot at John Morrison's 5 Star Wrestling Championship, Rey Mysterio facing 5 Star Tap or Snap Champion Mark Haskins in a non-title match and Rob Van Dam seeking to gain some revenge on Zack Gibson as the two faced off one-on-one. Last week's show had been poorly received by most, surely this week couldn't be worse? Lets take a look. 

*No pics yet unfortunately because 5 Star hasn't published any at time of posting.

Jake Hager interrupted Zack Gibson

then...

Rob Van Dam def. Zack Gibson // Disqualification 

then...

5 Star Wrestling Championship // Jake Hager def. John Morrison (C) // Submission 

This week's main story continued to push RevPro's Zack Gibson as the promotions top Brit, as he was all over the show. First, he had a verbal confrontation with Jake Hager [Jack Swagger] about Americans and what have you, before losing to Rob Van Dam via disqualification after pushing the referee and refusing to let go of the Shankly Gates whilst in the ropes and then inserting himself into the main event and inadvertently causing Hager to win the 5 Star title from John Morrison with the Patriot Lock. Gibson's promo was along similar lines as last week, a worked shoot type deal ripping into the company for giving American's preferential treatment. Calling potential opponents "washed-up" is questionable, but it's difficult to question the energy that Gibson brings to the show which is often lacking in other areas. Some of the content about promoter Daniel Hinkels having a weird obsession with Hager, brought out the former WWE star, who said some things about some thing, mostly ripping on Britain for being a shithole. Not quite sure what the aim of this thing was and the lack of back and forth hurt the segment on the whole. 

Gibson's match with Rob Van Dam was not good and it appeared like that had absolutely nothing to do with the efforts of Gibson. I'm not sure it even had anything to do with the efforts of RVD because he seemed willing, but seemingly not able to perform. Almost every move in the match looked awkward at best and laughably bad at worst, with Gibson having to work extra hard to get the former WWE Champion up for moves. There was the overhead arm drag/suplex situation that ended with both men sort of falling over leaving no real idea over who had actually hit the move and a monkey flip on the outside that lacked any power behind it whatsoever. A DQ finish is usually deflating, but here it felt like the match was being put out of its misery. It's sad to see RVD in this way at the moment and the fact that he's booked for future matches for 5 Star does not fill me with hope, especially when you can't even justify that he's a draw, because of the sheer amount of empty seats in the arena, including some front row on camera side. 

Continuing the trend of shitty finishes in top matches, the main event saw Jake Hager win the 5 Star Championship from John Morrison, after Zack Gibson interfered once the referee had been knocked down. Gibson introduced the 5 Star title belt into the fray and after Morrison had sent Gibson to the outside, Hager took advantage, clanging the belt off Morrison's knee, before locking in the Patriot Lock to become the second 5 Star Champion via submission. The finish was moderately exciting in a hot mess, car crash kind of way, but after a handful of screwy finishes on the show having another in the main event was major overkill. The rest of the match was solid, but dull, with a crowd seemingly uninterested by either guy and seemingly a number of extra empty seats where people had decided to go home. The overall story of Swagger having counters for a number of Morrison's signature moves was nice and there was a good sequence into the Hager Bomb (please Greg Lambert or Joe Hendry start calling it this). Hager is a decent technician, but for me lacks that special something that makes him capable of being the figure head of a company. 

Rey Mysterio def. Mark Haskins // Disqualification

For the second week in a row, Rey Mysterio won his match by disqualification. This week's match with PROGESS' Mark Haskins was heating up nicely before Rampage Brown appeared, attacking Mysterio for the DQ and nailing a piledriver in the ring. That's three matches discussed so far and the third screwy finish. I understand the need to build storylines with weekly shows, but if all the matches end in interference or DQ to make another match for the next week, that then has a similar finish, then why is anyone supposed to be expected to invest in this product? That wasn't the only issue as the match had been pushed throughout the show as for Haskins' Tap or Snap Championship, a submission only strap, with Lambert and Hendry pushing the idea that Mysterio wasn't known for his submission prowess. This was switched just as the competitors made their entrances, with no explanation and the commentary team forced to flounder to come up with any reason whatsoever for this happening. Considering the finish, I'm not quite sure why the match couldn't have been for the belt, with only a few changes needed. The action was actually pretty good, apart from a sloppy rana on the floor, with the two connected nicely for a number of Haskins' signature sequences, whilst lifting the pace nicely. Free of the oppressive booking, Haskins and Mysterio could have a memorable match. 

5 Star Tag Team Championship // Charlie Sterling & Adam Maxted def. El Ligero & Jody Fleisch // Pinfall

After two semi-finals last week, 5 Star crowned their first Tag Team Champions this week as OTT's Charlie Sterling & IPW:UK's Adam Maxted, teaming as Max Money, got a victory over Defiant's El Ligero & ICW's Jody Fleisch with their tag finish, the Flex Account (Mid-rope dropkick into a spinebuster). This opened the show and was a sound way to bring the audience in, with lots of action as Ligero & Fleisch stayed on top for almost the whole match. The opening sequence with Fleisch out-manoeuvring Sterling was super slick and there was also a number of sweet double team moves thrown out there, especially in the closing stages. The story that Sterling & Maxted's power wasn't enough to match Ligero & Fleisch's pace was well defined with Max Money eventually resorting to underhanded tactics to gain any form of control. At points it was a little rough around the edges and there's some polishing that needs to be done by both teams, but at least all four guys was trying to entertain the audience and worked hard throughout the contest. We later found out in an interview with So Cal Val, that Max Money with defend the belts against the debuting UK Hooligans, Roy Knight & Zak Knight, next week. There was no reason given to why Knight & Knight were receiving a shot at the titles. 

Primate on the Modcast

then...

Joey Axl def. Morgan Webster // Submission 

This week saw the debut of chat show segment "The Modcast", based around the fact that ATTACK!'s Morgan Webster has his own podcast, with Defiant's Primate making his debut as the guest, before Joey Axl interrupted. Axl brawled with both men, before being challenged to a match by Webster, that concluded with Axl picking up the submission win with the Ayers Rock Lock. The chat show did not go particularly well, especially watching at home, as the set was embarrassing and I learnt nothing about Primate except that he is from Newcastle and happy to be there. The angle where Axl brawled with both was fine, even if these use of the set (which include a rack of clothes and chairs supposedly from someone's breakfast bar) ended up looking a bit shit. Having Webster challenge Axl to a match gave the audience a reason to come back after the break and the match itself was alright. Webster looked good on offence and sells well, but Axl appeared a step or two off pace at times. If we're to see another Modcast on the show hopefully it's got a bit more structure to it and allows the subject more time to get over an actual character or sell an ongoing feud.

Carlito & Chris Masters def. Dave Mastiff & Big Grizzly // Pinfall 

The teams that lost their semi-finals on the Liverpool show went head to head in Newcastle, with The Masters of Cool, Carlito & Chris Masters, going over RevPro's Dave Mastiff & Southside's Big Grizzly after Carlito pinned Grizzly with the Backstabber. The highlights of this came with Mastiff & Grizzly in control of Masters, mostly a sequence of moves in the corner that concluded with a cannonball from Mastiff, with big lads bringing some chaotic energy to their offence. Carlito's hot tag was flat for me and most of the audience it seems with both Masters of Cool being poorly cast in the babyface role, whilst Grizzly appeared to actually murder 17 time WWC Universal Champion when hitting a rolling fireman's carry slam. Seriously, that move looked horrible here. Making the babyface casting even more baffling, the Masters of Cool got the win when Master spat apple in Grizzly's face, leading into the Backstabber. Neither of the ex-WWE lads did all that much for me when they were with the fed and they do even less for me in this role.

Eddie Ryan def. PJ Black // Pinfall

Another impressive performance from PWC's Eddie Ryan this week as he picked up the victory over PJ Black with in one of the stronger matches on the show, with a variation of the Air Raid Crash. The crowd was quiet for most of it, but Black worked well in the heel role and managed to start getting some reaction in the second half of the contest, even if babyface commentator Greg Lambert no sold the underhanded tactics and kept saying both men were playing fairly. The story of Black's experience giving him the upperhand over a naive opponent was simple but worked for getting Ryan over as he managed to over power Black with a series of lovely suplexes. Black also pulled out a cute springboard moonsault, recovering well from the loose ropes to nail a good looking version of the move. This was a big victory, who mostly works in the Southwest and he's beginning to show why he's earned his spot on the show. He's certainly someone I'd like to see more of on the strength and potential of his matches with Black and Hager over the last two weeks. Later in the show, Hager interrupted Ryan as he was being interviewed by So Cal Val and whilst Hager's words had no correlation to what Ryan had actually being saying and the segment itself was trash, it will be interesting to see if Ryan gets a shot at the belt and I'd say that match is pretty much a lock for when the show rolls into Plymouth in two weeks time. Towards the end of the match, Bram was seen clearly front row, but this wasn't mentioned by the comms team and nothing actually happened.

BT Gunn def. Nathan Cruz // Pinfall

BT Gunn picked up his first victory in 5 Star, with a small package win over Nathan Cruz in a solid contest, with a weak finish. Cruz had cut a rambling promo about professionalism before the match, calling out Joe Hendry and talking a lot about his arse being exposed last week. Cruz attacking Gunn before the bell made sense as he sought revenge for Gunn bearing his arse last week. Even if the storyline was pretty lame, at least there was a storyline. The wrestling was all satisfactory, with both getting a stellar near fall as the pair wrestling a couple of nice sequences that saw Gunn come close with a rolling flatliner, before Cruz almost picked up the win with a double knee facebreaker. It was a shame that the small package that got the win looked awful, with it being unclear who's shoulders were supposed to be on the mat, because the call-back with Gunn pulling Cruz' tights down only to reveal Cruz had remembered to wear underwear this week actually made me chuckle and a good finishes would've pushed the match towards the match of the night spot. Still, it was one of the better matches on the show.

Rampage Brown def. Moose // Referee Stoppage

The referee of Rampage Brown vs. Moose had an absolute nightmare at the finish and pretty much ruined what could've been an impactful angle as Lambert and Hendry scrambled to explain what was going on. Basically, Brown attacked Moose before the match and then continued the assault in the ring, the bell rang, Brown hit a piledriver and the match seemed to be done, until the referee wouldn't let Brown cover him. Brown hit another piledriver, the ref refusing to count the pin and then called for a no contest. It was an utter fucking mess. The explanation from commentary made things worse after the break, explaining that the referee didn't award the match to Brown because "he didn't feel like he deserved to win". Just no, stop it. Surely, what happens is that the referee stops the match before the first piledriver, when it was clear Moose was out on his feet and the commentary team were discussing concussions, which is then followed up by Brown hitting a piledriver, to make him look like a real bastard and even more of a bastard when he comes back to hit another one moments later. A few tweaks and there was a really good angle in this, but the attention was on the wrong details and the referee seeming to botch his moment killed it. 

Also This Week

- ICW's Kid Fite and PBW's Lou King Sharp and Krieger kicked off when they found out they weren't booked again from So Cal Val, before heading out to the arena only to be removed by security wearing lime green.

- For the second week running a bloke holding a gas mask was shown standing outside the arena menacingly.

ATPW Scale Rating // 3.3/10

Day of the Dead Review // Aussie Open vs. Moustache Mountain

On 27th October 2017, Fight Club: Pro held Day of the Dead at Starworks Warehouse in Wolverhampton, West Midlands. The show featured a clash between Aussie Open (Mark Davis & Kyle Fletcher) and Moustache Mountain (Tyler Bate & Trent Seven), Mark Haskins taking on David Starr in a first time encounter, as well as appearances from Penta El Zero M, Pete Dunne, Rey Fenix, the Callous Hearts (Jimmy Havoc & Clint Margera) and Kay Lee Ray. But was it any good? Lets take a look! 

All event photos courtesy of Fight Club: Pro and The Ringside Perspective.

Moustache Mountain (Tyler Bate & Trent Seven) def. Aussie Open ("Dunkzilla" Mark Davis & "The Aussie Arrow" Kyle Fletcher) via pinfall // 17:01

Before the next match began, loud duelling chants echoed around Starworks Warehouse creating an incredible atmosphere inside the building that both teams played into.

A terrific tag team match, that started red-hot and somehow managed to take get hotter by the time it reached it's climax. A near twenty minutes of four lads going nuts on each other, hitting big strikes, big moves and getting big pops. Things started simple enough, Mark Davis hit Trent Seven really hard and often then Tyler Bate and Kyle Fletcher did a cute mirror sequence, before Fletcher dropped into the Aussie Arrow in peril role. But things didn't stay in your regular tag team format for long as Davis came blaring in with a rambunctious hot tag, Bate accidentally gave Seven bop n' bang and from that moment on we were off to proverbial races. With Aussie Open rolling and the pace lifting and lifting, almost everything that happened seemed to be a hit. Davis caught Seven in wristlock and then somehow also hit a powerbomb on Bate, Tyler took a pop-up diving cutter situation and the big boy Davis did a freakin' Arabian press onto everyone and it was just silly. Silly, silly wrestling. 

The bout powered towards its finish as the momentum swayed back and forth and the relentless nature of the contest continued. It felt like the crowd didn't stop popping, constantly being surprised by what these four were capable of doing together and just how much they were going to pull out. Building from kneeling forearms featuring all four men, the bout built to it's crescendo well with the rookie team of Aussie Open pushing Moustache Mountain to the limit, as they themselves looked for their first win in Wolverhampton since April 2015. The strongest near fall came off a Fidget Spinner from Aussie Open that came moments after Davis nailed Bate with his magnificent pull-up piledriver, but after some lvoely back and forth it was Bate & Seven who walked out with the W, after Bate countered Fletcher to hit a mid-rope exploder suplex and following a Seven burning hammer to Davis, Bate picked up the pin with Tyler Driver '97. Part of what made this match so well was that all four gave so much and it was full of action, but I ended up wanting more. I wanted to see these teams wrestle again and again and then again, because even with so much crammed into it, knowing these teams and what they've done elsewhere, you know that there's a bucket load of more cool shit and different directions they could take it.

Mark Haskins def. David Starr via submission (16:40) 

I adored this match. Having spoke to others, I know that it didn't do it for everyone, but by Jove it did it for me, so fuck those nobbers. It perhaps didn't have the crowd interaction and atmosphere that was present for some of the other bouts, there was no storyline to get your teeth into and both lads worked babyface, but the wrestling was fucking gorgeous. From the Goldie Lookin' Chain wrestling of the opening sequence, a pair of wicked suicide dive from both men, some tasty well-hit forearms, kicks and strikes off all shapes into a wonderful series of submission exchanges with Starr able to escape a number of leg-based holds from Haskins, the Star Attraction and the Cream in Your Coffee were flowing, smooth and physical as fuck. For me, this was sexy wrestling. 

A couple of sequences and moments stand out in particular from this one. The first saw Haskins nailed a ridiculous suicide dive, before a series of reversals ended up with Starr nailing his Cherry Mint DDT, followed up with a lariat for a near fall. Each step of the way felt logical and the momentum swing of the two big moves that bookended the sequence produced spikes at the right moments. The second sequence was the finish as the two ran through a series of near misses of signature moves, at sick pace, before Haskins was able to hook in a modified sharpshooter, making the most of the work he'd put in previously and picking up the submission win. Haskins has had a good 2017 in FCP with wins (in various formats) over Chuck Taylor, Tyler Bate, Angelico, Jimmy Havoc and now David Starr, I'd love to see him get a shot at Chris Brookes' FCP title, because they'd have a hell of a match together and seeing as they haven't met in FCP since 2013, it's about time. 

"Bruiserweight" Pete Dunne def. Omari via pinfall // 14:56 

Pete Dunne cut a vicious promo on Omari, initially seeming to be complimenting the Big O, before ripping into the prospect, describing him as "pathetic".

It feels like it's been a while since I've seen utter bastard Pete Dunne, like complete and utter bastard who no one would want to cheer for Pete Dunne. But by gawd was that what we got at Day of the Dead as he beat the ever loving shit into our boy Omari. Just over a year after debuting in dark matches, Omari has become a massive part of FCP, gradually improving and winning fans over every time he performs. So, seeing him scrap from underneath against the WWE United Kingdom Champion, eat a beating on the outside, withstand Dunne's underhanded tactics and skullduggery for nearly fifteen minutes and kick out of Dunne's Bitter End finish was a pro wrestling rollercoaster. The bout played on Omari's shock victory over Keith Lee from July, playing on similar themes (with added Dunne chicanery), with some tremendous near falls in the stretch, including a well-timed roll-up sequence and Omari's O-Zone standing out, alongside the Bitter End kick-out. Eventually, Dunne would hit another Bitter End to take the victory, but here's hoping that this won't be the last time these lads get to tangle inside Starworks Warehouse.

"The Kiwi Buzzsaw" Travis Banks def. Rey Fenix via submission // 14:04

This international first-time clash took a little while to find it's feet, but once it settled produced some great action as the pair threw the kitchen sink at each other. Coming directly after Aussie Open vs. Moustache Mountain was the first knock the match took, with a crowd that was more than ready for an interval taking a while to re-energise, whilst a wonderful creative arm-drag sequence using the ropes was let down by the slackness of the apparatus. The second two-thirds to a half of the match saw the two take things up a notch, trading big moves, near falls and hitting nasty chops and kicks along the way.  Fenix almost had the former FCP Champion beaten with a Crucifix Driver, Fire Thunder Driver and superb Spanish Fly, whilst the Slice of Heaven, Kiwi Krusher and Lion Clutch almost did it for Banks. Throw into the mix a pair of diving double stomps from both men and a post-Lion Clutch reverse rana and by the time it was over, the match had developed in an absolute PWG-style belter. Banks have to unload all of his signature arsenal to get the victory was the cherry on top, bringing the match to a fitting conclusion.

FCP Championship Match: Chris Brookes (C) def. Penta El Zero M [Pentagon Jr.] via pinfall // 13:46

After a killer show, I couldn't help being a little underwhelmed by this relatively short main event. However, on many other shows, this would've been the showstealer, as it was still a high-quality wrestling match. A good portion of the bout was a wild brawl around ringside and into the crowd, with Penta taking it to Brookes, with chops, whips into the barricade and even the signature CCK baking tray. Talking of CCK, that pesky Kid Lykos also played a big part in the match, despite having a cast on his arm, like some kind of canine Bob Orton. The outside interference gave the match a different edge to the rest of the show and also created a real moment when Penta's brother Rey Fenix came out to counter the numbers game (after Lykos got involved following a Panama Sunrise from Penta) and then that bothersome wolf took a package piledriver on the apron from the current Lucha Underground Champion. The highlight for me came directly after this with Penta able to escape the Death by Roll-up, a move that had previously proved fruitful during Brookes' reign, nailed a pumphandle half-nelson driver and got a late two count. The reaction for the roll-up kick out was nice and there's potential there to develop more interesting situations and near falls in future matches. A different roll-up would be enough to see Brookes retain, because he's a slug pellet.

After the match, Penta had a man dressed as Jesus Christ come in the ring to bless him and Fenix, in one of the trippier moments of a pretty trippy 2017 in wrestling.

Jack Sexsmith def. Kay Lee Ray, "Flash" Morgan Webster, Eddie Dennis, Stevie Boy, Dan Moloney, El Phantasmo and Shay Purser // 11:36

During the entrances for the opening match, Dan Moloney attacked Shay Purser, seemingly taking him out of the bout...

A varied eight-way opening match with a cast of characters, both regulars and new faces. Stevie Boy impressed on his debut, with a lovely sequence with Morgan Webster as the rest brawled, whilst Dan Moloney was at the centre of most of the action, initially denying a tower of power, only to end up at it's peak later on. There was also Shay Purser... who returned to the match with a sword drawn on his chest and to the sounds of Brock Lesnar "Next Big Thing" entrance theme and took us all on a detour to Shay-plex city. Perhaps, not everyone's bag, but Purser locking Moloney in the Kimura was a brilliant moment and got a good pop. There was the usual multi-man goings on as well with some lovely dives from Jack Sexsmith, Xavier, El Phantasmo and Webster, as well as Dennis' crucifix powerbomb to Purser. The bout was let down slightly by some timing issues in the stretch, with Phantasmo seeming to miss his cue on a save for Purser and the finish seemingly coming out of nowhere as Sexsmith hit a sick diving double stomp on Xavier and got the pin. It looked like there was potentially more to come, but perhaps that was to enhance the surprise of Sexsmith getting the pinfall. 

Callous Hearts (Clint Margera & Jimmy Havoc) & "Session Goth" Martina def. the Anti Fun Police (Chief Deputy Dunne, James Obstruction [Jim Hunter], Leigh Obstruction [Leigh Hunter] & Los Federales Super Santos Jr.) // 6:59

Callous Hearts wanted a fight and after the Anti-Fun Police (including the former Hunter Brothers, James Obstruction & Leigh Obstruction) answered the challenge, Martina would end up joining Clint Margera & Jimmy Havoc, as the "Session Goth"

A comedy match pre-main event, which settled the crowd nicely followed the emotional rollercoaster of Omari vs. Dunne. There were sweets everywheres, Los Federales Super Santos Jr. did a suicide dive and Martina doing various Undertaker inspired moves, including a ridiculous assisted version of Old School. The comedy was done well, the match was kept short and sweet, featuring mostly babyface offence. It won't make any match of the year lists, but in it's slot on the card, it was a fun jaunt, that gave the show a little more variety, which is never a bad thing. Martina picked up the win with the Wombstone on Dunne.

After the match, Martina wanted to celebrate in the proper Goth way, but Callous Hearts decided to leave her to it when she started rocking out to Avril Lavinge's 2002 hit Sk8r Boi.

Another good show from Fight Club: Pro as they continue to have a wonderful 2017. For me, the card could have done with a re-shuffle, as it felt a little disjointed a times. However, this was one of the most varied FCP shows of the year, with a lot of different styles on offer. Whether that be the big boy relentless tag match between Aussie Open and Moustache Mountain, the slick, liquid sexy wrestling of Starr vs. Haskins, the firey Dunne vs. Omari, the comedy sweet fight or the pacey spot-fest (with Shay-Plex city detour) there was nothing on the card that felt similar to something else. With just one show left in 2017, I'm looking forward to seeing the direction that FCP takes now that it appears to be settled in Starworks Warehouse. Personally, I'd like to see more of the heated feuds that were a highlight of the Fixxion shows and it'll make more sense to do something like that now that the larger Starworks crowd is more familiar with the performers.

Review by James Marston 

A Conversation with IPW:UK promoter Billy Wood

On 12th September, we sat down for a chat with Billy Wood, the new owner of International Pro Wrestling: United Kingdom, following their takeover by FIGHT! Nation Wrestling in July. The interview includes talk about the takeover and future plans for IPW:UK and whole lot more.


ATPW: How did you become a fan of professional wrestling? 

Billy Wood: How did I become a fan? Bloody hell! I actually became a fan, it must have been the early nineties, the very early nineties, even before SummerSlam '92. My Mom got cable for the first time. It was a dodgy cable situation, where you paid a certain amount and you got X amount for free as such. I remember seeing on Sky for the first time WWF Wrestling and being like "What the hell is this?" As a kid, all you see is this big, glamorous men grappling and you think to yourself "Wow, I'd love to be like that when I'm older". I then became a fan over the years and I remember all then I remember the pandemonium around SummerSlam '92 in the papers, then you get wrestling figures and you naturally become a fan as a kid. Anything that's put in front of you that's larger than life, as a kid, whether that's the Ninja Turtles, wrestling, whatever, you're drawn to it as a kid.

But I think I really became a fan, a couple of years later. I'd just moved house and I went round my friend's house and he had a VHS tape of SummerSlam '94. I remembered Bret Hart from a couple of years before and being a wrestling figure fan and he put on this cassette and it was Bret vs. Owen [Hart] in a cage and it drew me in. The drama of that match ignited a wrestling fan in me and from that moment on, I've always been a wrestling fan, through my childhood and my teen years and moving on and becoming involved in the wrestling business. I'm still a fan today, that's for sure. 

ATPW: I like that what caught your eye was the characters, but it was the classic match and the stories that eventually kept you a fan. 

BW: Oh, totally! The glitz and the glamour, the Hogans, the Ultimate Warriors, those are the ones..."Wow, what is this thing!" At the time I must have been 6 or seven, I wasn't exactly an older kid, that was the thing that made me go "Wow, what is this?", "These figures are cool!", "These wrestlers can wrestle my Ninja Turtles, great!" But at the same time going and seeing that VHS of Bret and Owen and seeing that technical match. It wasn't just the technical side of it, but also the drama of the family. The whole spectacle made sense to me and when it finally made sense and clicked, that's when I got immersed in the business and wanted to know as much as I could, every little bit from that moment onwards.

ATPW: From there, when did you first discover there was a British wrestling scene? 

BW: I found out about British wrestling through the Fairfield Halls. All Star Wrestling, they were regular though and then suddenly, Earthquake was on a tour over here and my Nan and Grandad took me to the show and I met Earthquake. But on that same card was a bunch of British wrestling, that I had no clue who they were and the gimmicks were very much carbon copies of what was going on in WWF at the time and you could see that it was just a campier version of that, but weirdly I loved it. Then following that I saw the Trans-Atlantic Challenge show on ITV, which was British wrestlers versus American wrestlers, none that I knew of, but weirdly from there I started reading Powerslam and from Powerslam I found an ad for training at Hammerlock, which I ended up starting to attend in the year 2000. 

ATPW: How long did you train for? 

BW: Not actually that long, unfortunately. It was quite funny actually, a couple of us who were wrestling fans and one of my friends was more into it than most, so I badgered him and convinced him to get his Dad to start taking us to train. Now, it was an hour and half or two hours drive there and back and the sessions used to last all day on a Sunday. His poor Dad used to drop us off in the morning, we'd spend all day there and then shoot off in the late afternoon. We did that for a few good months, probably longer, but eventually his Dad decided that "I'm not taking you guys to this, this is wasting my Sundays" and I didn't have any more travel to get there. It didn't matter how hard I tried to get there, in my teens, it was a little hard to get all the way to Kent, so unfortunately I had to stop. But at that time I made enough contacts and got to know people who ended up being vital in my return to British wrestling a little bit later on in the naughties. 

ATPW: So what happened in between you stopping training and launching FIGHT! Nation in 2015? 

BW: After training, I graduated school and went to University. Off the back of university I got into the music business, which I'm still in to this day. Then I reconnected with a few of my wrestling friends and decided that "You know what, I run a lot of music events, I'd love to run a wrestling show". I went to go and run a wrestling show and I won't name any names, but a promoter tried to block it and tried to get a wrestler to contact me to put the frightners up me to stop doing the show, that was Stu Allen. Stu Allen called me up, we had a conversation and realised that in fact we both liked each other, we both got on and we should meet. So, I went to meet Stu in 2008 and we discussed his promotion, EWW, which he ran in Witney up in Oxfordshire, this (meeting) is down in Hastings by the way, which is where Stu resides and resided then. We discussed about bringing EWW back, which we did and changed the name from Extreme World Warfare to Extreme World Wrestling and we started back in 2009 in Herne Bay in Kent. At a time when British wrestling wasn't really drawing, we drew over 400 people in Herne Bay on that first show. On that card was Andy Simmonz, Marty Scurll, Jonny Storm to name a few There was only a few places doing decent numbers and the rest were doing twenty to 40 people, so to wrestle in front of hundreds of people for those guys was a big deal then. 

I did that with Stu for a few years, we toured the UK. We did a show at the Liverpool Olympia, so did shows in Liverpool, Coventry, Herne Bay, Hastings and Warrington. So we literally toured up and down the UK for a couple of years. Then in 2010, unfortunately, the music side of my business got incredibly...well I say unfortunately, but fortunately it became hugely successful for me and sucked all the time out of wrestling. I couldn't justify the time I was putting into EWW and me and Stu decided to part ways with Stu continuing with EWW and me stepping out of the wrestling business. I still kept my links with everyone, had conversations with a few promotions about getting involved during that interim period, but nothing really made sense. 

Then in November 2014, I was going to the WWE live event and Marty Scurll was going down there too and he said "Lets meet for dinner". So I went for dinner with Marty and along came Jimmy Havoc as well. It was actually Marty's fault that FIGHT! Nation exists because I asked all the questions and he poked the bear and gave me the itch to get back involved. So after our dinner that night, I decided that in 2015, I would launch a wrestling promotion.

ATPW: So the first event for FIGHT! Nation was in Islington. Why did you choose that location for the first event? 

BW: Because it's London! My music office is based in London to this day. London's the capital city and in my opinion with the dense amount of people in London and the surrounding areas, the catchment is pretty high, so that's why I went with London first and foremost. Which, to be fair, rubbed a few people up the wrong way and because I'm very private, no-one knew that it was me doing FIGHT! Nation, so promotions like PROGRESS, who may have came around after my first initial push in British wrestling didn't know who I was (or if I) had any pedigree in wrestling, so, of course, "This new guys turned up and is trying to get on our patch". Well, the fact of the matter is that show flopped. I can admit it, we did about fourty to 50 people in the venue, but at the same time, I didn't look at FIGHT! Nation or any wrestling promotion as a one in, one out situation. It was about building a brand, building brand loyalty, showing we did have a business plan and we still do have a business plan and to grow our product and our brand to the point where we are competing. 

ATPW: In that first year, FIGHT! Nation was promoted as part of the NWA. How did that come about? 

BW: I was put in touch with Bruce Tharpe, who was the president of the NWA at the time. They had a promotion here, it was New Breed and now I get on really well with Chris Baxter, he seems to be a decent guy, but the fact was and he'd be the first to admit it, the quality wasn't that high. Bruce was very interested in the names and the production values that we were looking to use in FIGHT! Nation. For example, the likes of Marty, Will Ospreay, Doug Williams, Sha Samuels, we were using the best of British. Me and Bruce Tharpe spoke a lot about, what he wants to do with the NWA, I was sold on the idea and how he saw a UK partner as part of that affiliation and we joined the NWA. 

Whilst it wasn't fruitful for us really and it didn't help our brand in many way, it was helpful to collaborate and get to know a lot of the US promoters who were part of the NWA. Most in the same time when we were a part of it left, because they also felt aggrieved or disillusioned with where Bruce was going with it, but at the same time if it wasn't for us joining, I wouldn't have certain relationships in the States that I have now.

ATPW: Another partnership you've had was with Fite TV. How did that come about? What was the experience like filming for TV, as opposed to a regular show?

BW: The Fite relationship came really organically. Those guys were looking to add more content, they still are looking for great content and have a real platform there. We were growing as a brand, Fight! Nation from it's inception to our recent of IPW, it was gaining real traction. I can honestly say that whilst it might not have got the praise of the so-called bigger companies, the events were definitely competitive that level and deserved the recognition they were getting. Fite came about and saw what we were doing. 

Through the NWA thing I found Championship Wrestling from Hollywood, which is run by a good friend of mine, David Marquez, and I liked the way they shot their shows. It was all about TV and the concept, it was almost like the missing link between what I wanted to try to achieve with Fight! Nation. Me and Dave spoke and we looked at it and we said "We want to try and achieve that to, maybe it's a case of we look at your production values and see what you can do here". So I went over to LA and met with Dave and went and watched his production in full effect and his production crew, seeing everything that they do, from the lighting to the editing to every little aspect of how they create their TV show. Then I bought Dave over here to shoot our pilot. At the same time I was negotiating with Fite TV to do it and it just all fell in place.

The concept was very much "shot for TV", the crowd a certain way, the lighting, the feel, the vibe. It was shot in a fourty-five minute format to be very snappy for TV. I think it's a great format, but I think it was too early. I think Fight! Nation in fact is so much in it's infancy that the stuff that we want to do, we can't do yet with Fight! Nation. In this country, it takes a while to build a brand. It takes a lot of baby steps to get it right. PROGRESS aren't running Wembley Arena after their first year, they're going into their sixth year. So it takes time to really build something and create that buzz. I think that the resources and concepts and ideas that we have, in a weird way are ahead of our own brand and the fact of the matter is without the audience we can't achieve what we need to with the product. Without me going and spending £10,000 on marketing or throwing money at it, because I don't want to do that, I want it to feel organic, it just didn't sit right. 

Whilst the product that we created with Fite was great, it didn't get the eyeballs that we needed on it, so I looked at that as how I could expand our reach and how I could expand our audience and really reach our potential and that's what happened when we ended up negotiating with IPW.

ATPW: I wanted to chat about some of the recent purchase actually. The first one was Triple X in January, so why did you choose Triple X as opposed to any other promotion at the time? 

BW: Once again it was a conversation, that opened that up. For me, content is king and if contents available to purchase and it's at the right price, then I'm in the market for it. I bought the NWA Parade of Champions 2016, so I own the rights to that, we bought the Triple X library and the social media assets. It's a case of finding the right moment to strike with these things. At the time, we didn't have an on demand service, so what I was trying to do was make sure we had enough content to make doing an on demand service viable and attractive. So that's why the Triple X thing came about, it was the simple fact that there was a lot footage there, some great matches. It's a catalogue with a lot of top British guys who have gone on to achieve great things now, from your Pete Dunnes to your Tyler Bates to your Zack Sabre Jrs and it just felt right. There's a fantastic Daniel Bryan match in the archive that we can't wait to get out on the IPW On Demand service. The Triple X deal was simply that, to buy content.

ATPW: Also at the time, there was an announcement about something that was called Project X, which developed into ONE Wrestling. What makes ONE Wrestling different from a regular Fight! Nation or IPW show? 

BW: Well, at the time, when it was announced, the idea of ONE was to run dream matches in an exclusive venue. We chose this venue in Milton Keynes, Unit 9. When you see it on the footage, you'll see how crazy it is. It's a warehouse, but it's decorated in such a cool, funky way that we thought it would just fit what we wanted to do with ONE. Fight! Nation was very much for the families. It's a family show for 6 year old kids and all the way up to 60 year old Grandads, but ONE was planned to give the hardcore fans dream matches in an exclusive venue.

Now, with the purchase of IPW and the conscious decision to go forward with one brand name, which is IPW, whilst the ONE show goes ahead in October and will be delivering what we said it would deliver, those dream matches, it is going to be under the IPW banner. 

ATPW: Onto IPW, how did that come about and why did you choose IPW:UK?

BW: It came about once again through a conversation. There was no intention to buy IPW, however, in business I always have a mindset that if an opportunity arises and it makes financial sense then I will look at it and with IPW it was a case that it need fresh impetus, that it needed a change. Looking at the history of IPW, it's the founding father of the promotions you see today. Without IPW, I could argue there would be no PROGRESS, I could definitely argue there would be no RevPro, so you've got to look at what IPW means to British wrestling and where it should be to where it is. Now, don't get me wrong IPW is still in a strong position, we have the FloSlam deal, we have the incredible catalogue, but I feel like it could be in a better position. I feel like we can give it that fresh impetus that it needs, give it the spark that will kick it back into gear and make it the #1 promotion in this country.

So why did I buy IPW? Because I believe in it's history and I believe that with that history we can turn the future into something very, very profitable. 

ATPW: How have the initial shows with IPW:UK gone since the takeover? 

BW: Well, actually we haven't necessarily run those. Whilst we purchased the company, in fact the previous promoter, Dan Edler, is running his last show on 17th September. The deal was to get to the anniversary show, which is the 13th year anniversary and from there start clean and we wanted to honour that. We've obviously been helping to make sure that things go smoothly at those shows. My staff have been on hand, I've been on hand. I've addressed the whole team and I still want some values held up to, but at the same time there's things that I've seen from those shows that I'm not happy with. There's certain core values, that when it comes down to production don't appease me. What I've found is that since my takeover, whilst there is an amazing foundation to build on, there's still a hell of a lot of work to be done.

ATPW: How do you foresee IPW, Fight! Nation and ONE Wrestling coming together going forward? 

BW: The rest of the year, it's going to be a merger of the brands and the roster, that's for sure. There are similarities anyway, but everything will be going forward under one brand, which is IPW. So Fight! Nation as a promotion doesn't exist anymore. Fight! Nation is the holding name of the company that owns the brands, but IPW is the wrestling promotion that oversees every event going forward. All the events going forward will have the IPW logo on them, they will be IPW branded and by the end of the year you will fully see the effect of where IPW is going forward. December 17th, which is our end of the year show, everything from this moment onwards is like the road to that show. All the storylines will merge and make sense into that. At the end of the year show you will see, a different look in IPW. From a production stand point, it will improve, I already believe from an in-ring standpoint it will be even better than it is today and from an entertainment standpoint. I feel like Fight! Nation was doing some incredible stuff under the rader, I think that if we can take that stuff and with the history and the value of IPW and merge those two things, there's no way that IPW can't win. 

ATPW: How have you found the feedback from fans and talent since the news of the takeover broke?

BW: From talent, it's been fantastic. You always expect talent to want work, that goes without saying, but the way people have branched out from the talent to other people within the business, to promoters to production staff, it's been great. People feel that IPW has a chance again to grow and want to be part of that. I'm not just talking about local talent, a lot of international talent has reached out and has openly been very positive about the purchase. So how's it been taken by the workers? Great, especially the guys on the roster. I told each and every one of them that can come to me with any problems that they've had in the past with IPW, anything that they've seen or felt that not necessarily needed changing, that they felt uncomfortable with. But I've also said that I want IPW to be all about a great atmosphere. I want people to want to work for IPW, because of not just the great in-ring action and the great crowds that we deliver, but also that they enjoy being part of the family. That's really important to me, to make sure that each and every person that's part of our team, wants to be part of our team. 

Going to the fans, once again, fantastic. I don't like to push myself forward, it's not about me. I'm not the brand, IPW is the thing that sells tickets, Billy Wood does not sell tickets, so it's not about me. I don't want to be in storylines, I do not want to be front and centre of the TV shows or the live shows. I've got no aspiration to do that and the little that I have done will exactly stay that, it will be very little and I will disappear very, very, very quickly. The most important thing to the fans is that IPW is the show you don't want to miss and the only way we do that is with the greatest wrestlers, the greatest talent and the most enjoyable production that they could possibly see. 

ATPW: I think the closer we get to the end of the year and the clearer the picture becomes, the more the fans will get behind it. Because there was a little bit of confusion, in regards to where things where going when the announcement was made...

BW: Oh yeah, people go "Are they still going to run the same venues" and it's like "Come on!". The image of IPW has to grow and if that means that we have to move to nicer venues, then it's only going to give the customer a better experience and 2018 is about creating that better fan experience.

Credit - Beyond Gorilla

ATPW: At the end of the day, it's all about the people who come to pay...

BW: Oh yeah, totally! This isn't about me at all, it's really about the larger team delivering something that you would want to buy a ticket for. That's not necessarily me putting a name on a flyer that makes you want to buy a ticket, I want you to buy a ticket because IPW shows are unmissable. I don't want it to be "I'll go to this one because X, Y and Z are on it, but I won't go to the other one because there's the All England Champion vs. whoever". I want people to be really excited to be coming to IPW because there are unmissable.

ATPW: What have been your best and worst moments as a wrestling promoter? 

BW: The worst moment was a wet Tuesday night in Coventry in 2009, with about 35 people in the venue and Raven headlining! My best moment was watching Mark Haskins beat Marty Scurll for the British title in Weymouth in front of nearly 400 people. 

ATPW: You can't really go wrong with those two in the ring!

BW: I think we were the first to do that match in recent times, before the go to match everywhere!

ATPW: Are you yet to work with anyone who you've been starstruck for?

BW: In wrestling? I'm trying to think...who have I booked? I think I'm probably at a disadvantage with that because I work in the music industry and I worked with some major acts, like Run DMC amongst others, so I don't really get starstruck. I've never been starstruck but I did have some meetings with Rey Mysterio and it was pretty cool to sit with a guy who has wrestled across the world and is a prominent star. I wasn't starstruck by him, but I was struck by how humble he was. 

ATPW: On a day of a show, what's your role? 

BW: My role at a show is to make sure my team is doing there jobs. We have a staff, a working crew that set up the events. For me, it's making sure that the show been set up correctly from a production stand point. The logistics, making sure the seating arrangement is right, making sure the rings there, making sure everyone's ready to do their job. That's number one and number two is sitting down with the production team and going over the show with my agents, because we have agents that will agent the matches. Going through it with my camera crew and my producer and director to make sure we're all prepped on what's going on. If there's any surprises we know what's happening and are as prepared as you possibly can be for a wrestling show. Then once the show starts, whilst I do have someone who is a stage manager, I can't help myself, I will do the nitty gritty jobs as much as the high profile jobs. I'm not too precious to get my hands dirty, so if I need to go help on the door, I'll go help on the door, if I need to make sure the merch is right, I'll go work at the merch, if I need to make sure my workers are at the curtain, I'll go and make sure they're by the curtain. Ultimately, I'm just relaying the message of what we want and what we're trying to achieve at the show. Number one is with my talent to give them that creative freedom to express themselves but not at the expense of the show and I've been very fortunate to this day that each any every talent that I've worked with and I can stay this hand on heart, has respected where we're going and what we're doing and has fed into the larger plan.

ATPW: So it sounds like you've quite a large set-up behind the scenes, compared to what I'd expect from similar promotions...

BW: Totally, it's about investment into your brand and what you're trying to achieve. The truth of the matter is I'm not going to be the best person for every job. Too many people take on promotions, because they want to book or they want to be Vince McMahon or they want to be Paul Heyman, they want to be that guy that made someone a star, that's not why I'm in wrestling. I'm in wrestling because I want to make whatever promotion, whatever company I own succesful and believe I can. That's about collaborating with the right people, that's about having knowledge staff in different areas that can enhance your product and setting that ethos from the start was super important for me going into what we're trying to do now with IPW. Yeah, I can sit there and have a concept of who I see as our top talent, but am I the only guy that puts together our show? Absolutely not. There's loads of other unsung heroes in our team that are as important as me. I'll be honest, even in Fight! Nation I've missed three shows, I've not even been at the shows and if I didn't have that team in place, I couldn't do that. Don't get me wrong, one of them I was in Dubai and I was on Facetime throughout the whole show to make sure things went right but that's because I can't help myself. If I didn't have that team, there would be no show. 

ATPW: It sounds like you've got a great set up and now that you're moving over to another brand it could be something that makes the merge a lot easier on yourself...

BW: The truth of the matter is, a lot of the people around me are people that were involved in IPW, but at the same time, they're not involved as much as they should be, if you get what I mean. Me coming in and re-configuring the set up around the promotion and reinvigorating it, its not that hard. Remember IPW has the fan base and the reach that Fight! Nation doesn't  have. There's two things we can't do. We can't erase the history of IPW and we can't disrespect the history of IPW, those two things that we have to embrace to make IPW stronger going forward. If we embrace those two things but add in our work ethic with Fight! Nation, top that with how we structure shows...because ultimately does a fan really want to spend three hours at a wrestling show in this day and age. The concentration span of a human being is getting shorter and shorter and shorted, because we live in a world where we can get anything at anytime, so you've got to look at your live shows and make sure that they are punchy and impactful enough that when people leave they want more. You don't want people leaving early because you've over run by an hour. You want people to leave saying "I can't wait to come back" and that's what we're going to do with IPW.

Johnny Storm won the IPW:UK title after this interview.

ATPW: If you wanted to sell someone on your product, what matches, moments or shows would you show them? 

BW: To give you an idea of some of the elements that we'll be bringing to IPW, I would watch Marty Scurrl vs. Will Ospreay from our tournament to crown our first champion which was on the War on the Shore event which was our second show, that's one I'd definitely watch. Mark Haskins vs. Marty Scurll is one as well to definitely give you an idea of where we are going. To give you a fresher flavour of how we try to unearth these talents before they break, Mark Andrews vs. Chris Ridgeway at Chapter Three would be a good indicator of how we push these guys into prominent positions. That makes sense for people to see going into the new era of IPW. Those are the free matches I'd say to watch to give a flavour of what we've achieved. That's not discrediting the rise of Ryan Smile. Ryan Smile vs. Josh Bodom, each an every match we've done with those guys was incredible feud, that just showed the talent that both of those guys have. Look at Ryan now, he's gone on to perform on some of the biggest stages and we're super proud of him. We took him in as one of our own and gave him a platform to be seen by some of these promotions and he's gone on and taken that and now he's one of the top guys in the UK. 

ATPW: You mentioned Chris Ridgeway and he's someone that I've seen fleetling at places like SWA and Pro Wrestling Kingdom and wondered why he wasn't in more places across the country. Now, he's your Fight! Nation Champion, so what made you decide to push Chris to fore front of the promotion? 

BW: I think with Chris, I saw that this guy had incredible technical ability. I watched some of his matches and saw that he was growing in stature as a performer and I just felt that with the right platform this guy could be the next breakout star of the UK and it might sound selfish but that's why we wanted to bring him into Fight! Nation and mould him, in a sense, to show that he can step up to those main events. To be fair to him, he's delivered. If you watch the matches that he's had for us, from his match with Mark Andrews where he won the title and no one would have expected, to his match with PJ Black that same weekend, to the match he had with Matt Riddle which was fantastic, that's on Fight! on Fite, to all the way to recently when he faced Mark Haskins, he's delivered. It was only recently when he faced Shane Strickland on FloSlam in a title vs. title match for IPW. 

Going back to your question the thing that drew me to him was that I feel like he has a unique star power about him, but no ones seeing it right now or no one saw it right then. If you give someone and opportunity and they can run with it and make it their own, then they're only going to look back at what you've done in a fond way and when Chris goes on to achieve even more in his career, if he looks back at what he did with Fight! Nation and what he's going to do with IPW and he's fond of it and thinks of us as a home then that's only good for our reputation around the world. We need to continue to have wins like that and we need to continue to create stars, we need to continue to push people. Not too early, don't get me wrong, you don't get pushed until you can run with the ball. At the same time, those guys get them into the positions that they can and too believe in them and give them the matches and the exposure that they deserve. 

ATPW: Do you kind of have to give someone the ball to see if they can run with it? 

BW: That's true, but you have to be careful who you give that ball to. If you try it too many times and it doesn't work on a regular basis, what happens is your brand gets discredited and we can't have that. As an overall brand, we can't risk it too often, but taking strategical risks on new talent and growing them can only improve your brand.

ATPW: Over the past few years we've seen quite a few British wrestlers break out internationally, guys who've worked for IPW and Fight! Nation, guys like Marty Scurll, Will Ospreay, Joseph Conners, is there anyone else on your roster who could potentially follow them to that level? 

BW: Yeah, I believe so. Ryan Smile has to break out within the next year, surely. He's without a doubt someone who if he puts his mind to it he can be a world beater, but that's down to him. Rob Sharpe, I believe can go on to do great things, Sid Scala is the most entertaining character on the British scene bar none and the question is whether that will translate to America, is the toughest thing for him. But I've no doubt in his ability and I think he has huge, huge potential to break that mould.

The one guy I'm most excited about and someone I feel very proud that we've looked at and nurtured in a completely different way to others is Adam Maxted. Off the back of Love Island, a lot of promotions booked Adam and put him in this primadona heel role, well I see Adam completely different to that. Adam Maxted to me is, if you meet him, is the nicest guy you'll ever meet. Like the nicest guy. The most willing to learn, hard working kid, who deserves all the opportunities he's getting. Combine that with the raw talent that he has, he can be a huge, huge star and a real beacon of light, not just for British and Irish wrestling, because he's putting the work in and he's using his work rate and his ability to better himself every time. And he listens, the number one component that people fail on more than most is listening and Adam gets ten out of ten for listening. So, if I was going to choose one, who I think will go on to do incredible things in wrestling, it's Adam Maxted. 

ATPW: I really like how passionate you are about some of the guys on your roster. It seems like you want to see them succeed and grow and obviously that's only going to help your company to grow as they become bigger stars...

BW: The fact of the matter is wrestling on the independents doesn't make 99% of people rich. They do this for the passion. So if the promoter who is supposed to be promoting them can't have the passion that they have, then the promoter shouldn't be in the job. Simple as. If I can't feel what they feel then why should I be a promoter? 

ATPW: Do you still watching wrestling as a fan? 

BW: You have to, because if you don't...I don't buy into the idea that anyone in the wrestling business isn't a fan anymore. You have to be a fan. Lets use another analogy, say for example is was a football manager and I have to go and watch football matches to scout my opposition or I'm watching football on the TV because I want to know whats going on in the game. Are they not football fans anymore? Of course they are! So, yeah, I'm definitely a wrestling fan and I'm proud to say that I'm a wrestling fan. 

ATPW: What have you been watching recently? 

BW: I watch a mixture of stuff, to be honest with you. My taste is very diverse when it comes to wrestling. I still keep up to date with what's going on in the WWE and TNA/GFW because ultimately they are the entertainment leaders so you should know what's going on with the number one brand in your industry. I still watch a lot of independents in the US. From the TV aspect I still watch Championship Wrestling from Hollywood to keep my eyes on TV production. I'll also watch EVOLVE, I'll watch House of Glory in New York, I'm a really big fan of what those guys are doing there. Then coming over here, I'm super super happy for PROGRESS and their continual growth and think them going into Wembley next year is only a good thing for British wrestling, so massive respect and support for them and I do stay on top of their product too. I watch New Japan, I wouldn't say I'm an avid watcher of New Japan Pro Wrestling, but at the same time I do keep my eye on whats happening in the market. If people are raving about something I will check it out and try to understand why they rave and rant and what makes a wrestling fan like or dislike something, because ultimately we can disagree about what's good and what's bad, but I have to sell tickets to these wrestling fans. So do I have to tell them that they're wrong or do I have to give them a product that they're gonna enjoy? That's why it's important that I watch all these different products to get a better understanding of what's working in 2017. If I had it my way, I'd probably just watch a bunch of 90s wrestling, but that's getting me nowhere. 

ATPW: So you being a fan feeds into you being a promoter and vice versa. It's all part of the same experience...

BW: Yeah, it's part of the same thing. Knowledge is the most powerful thing and me having a landscape of knowledge of what's going on and what's working and what's not is only going to helpful for my brand.

ATPW: Where can people find you on the internet? 

BW: Twitter and Facebook is IPW:UK. You can go onto IPW's website which is IPWUK.com, that's where you can find the latest news, buy tickets to the shows, see the calendar of what's going on. And Snapchat which is IPW:UK! 

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A big thanks to Billy for spending over an hour chatting wrestling with me! Check out IPW:UK on social media and go check out a show if you can. We wish the company and Billy all the best heading towards that big show in December and with everything going on during this exciting period for the company.