Live Event Review: RevPro Live at the Cockpit 10 - The LDRS vs. British Youngbloods (James Marston)

I've been meaning to make it down to a Revolution Pro Wrestling show for quite sometime now and despite having earmarked a couple of shows to travel to over the last few years, the combined effects of timing and location have usually stood in the way. However the stars aligned on 3rd July 2016 and I made my first trek down south for a RevPro show, Live at the Cockpit 10. With familiar names from previously attended shows, like "The Villain" Marty Scurll, Zack Sabre Jr. and Jonny Storm, as well as guys I've been wanting to see more of like Josh Bodom and Jake McCluskey, could RevPro live up to their stellar reputation?

In an intriguingly chosen main event, RevPro British Heavyweight Champion Zack Sabre Jr. and "The Villain" Marty Scurll, collectively known as The Leaders of the New School, scored a victory over The British Youngbloods, "The Moonsault King" Jake McCluskey and "The Bruce" Kieran Bruce. I say "intriguingly chosen" because British Youngbloods had lost all three of their previous matches in RevPro, none of which have main evented the shows they were placed on. On the other side of the match, you've got a current and a former RevPro British Heavyweight Champion and two guys who have graced RevPro's main event on numerous occasions. Any match ZSJ and Scurll are both in these days is probably going to main event, but McCluskey and Bruce's previous outings for the company meant that pushing them into a main event slot, opposite two world traveled opponents, gave the bout a bit of a lop-sided feel. That isn't to knock either McCluskey or Bruce's abilities, but just that they haven't been booked like a team deserving a main event slot, let alone a slot against the current champion of the promotion. 

Once you'd got past the rather strange atmosphere of the entire room (except for one guy) just wanting to see Scurll and ZSJ batter the shit out of two people, without it really not mattering who those two people were, this was a fun, entertaining main event. There was a complex story that weaved it's way throughout the contest, that may have not been for the more casual of fans, but for someone like me it was captivating stuff, as ZSJ became frustrated with Scurll's villainous ways at many points within the bout, allowing for Bruce and McCluskey to capitalise. The crowd didn't seem to want to have anything to do with The British Youngbloods, which may have something to do with them coming across as fodder for the LDRS's on-going storyline, although both men looked more than competent in the ring. 

The closing stages of the bout saw some brilliant back and forth between the two teams, with all four men getting involved in the action that seemed like it would never stop with both sides gaining strong near falls and a ridiculous amounts of superkicks being hit. The finish was timed perfectly and played right into hot crowd who had been demanding "Arm Bars & Chicken Wings" all match long, so when both holds where locked on at the same time the roof almost came off the Cock Pit. A great way to end the show giving the fans exactly what they wanted. ZSJ would end the show with a short promo, staking a claim to a British Tag Team title shot down the line, as he heads into a big title defense against Katsuyori Shibata on 10th July. I've a feeling there's more than one twist left in the tale of the LDRS over the next few months with the slow build meaning that any potential pay-off will be even sweeter. 

The match of the night would be a superb contest that saw Trent Seven defeat Mark Haskins after hitting a one-armed piledriver. The match was announced as a British Strong-Style Challenge and boy did it live up to that moniker as the pair beat seven shades of shit into each other. As fun as it is to see two guys batter each other, the story of the match was the thing that drew me in and kept satisfied throughout. After hitting his arm against the ring post early on, the limb would become a constant problem for Seven throughout the match, as he winced with every move he hit. It was played perfectly by "The Super Don" at every turn, as he attempted to swap arms when hitting uppercuts and struggled to hit a piledriver because of the arm. The fact that Haskins uses a Bridging Fujiwara Armbar as a finish bought even more drama to the contest. 

A big part of this contest for me was the crowd. There was a clear divide between those rooting for Haskins and those rooting for Seven and this create a superb atmosphere within the Cockpit and seemed to bring the best out of each competitor. Both seemed to hit a little harder and to move a step faster. I think by the end of the match the duo had earned the respect of the others supporters, with Seven especially seemingly having won over a lot of fans during the match for his gutsy, character-driven performance. It may have been almost three years since these two have faced off, here's hoping we don't have to wait that long for the next one!

Tasked with opening the second half, Pete Dunne would pick up a victory over Noam Dar, after nailing the WWE Cruiserweight Classic competitor with his British Cruiserweight Championship belt. This wasn't your typical cruiserweight type bout though with the action remaining very grounded and technical as both men looked to employ signature holds. Dunne would focus on Dar's arm, whilst Dar would mainly go after Dunne's knee, however unlike the previous Haskins v Seven bout it didn't feel like either of these injuries every fully became the entire story or the driving force of the contest, which was mainly the fast paced exchange of holds and submissions. 

The bout really picked up in the closing stages with a number of quality transitions from hold to hold. A brilliant false finish came when Dar slipped out of a Tombstone Piledriver attempt by Dunne and managed to lock in the Champagne Super Knee Bar with Dunne scrambling to make it to the ropes. Obviously the previous work on the knee from Dar made the moment even more dramatic, with the crowd clearly behind Dar, with their support growing the longer Dunne was in the hold. This lead nicely into the finish as the villainous Dunne once again cheated his way to victory, managing to keep Dar out of the title picture for now. It will be interesting to see if the attack goes anywhere over the next few months and if Dar is granted a title shot. A rematch between the two would definitely be welcomed.

The only title match of the night would see Charlie Garrett & Joel Redman manage to retain their belts against The Legion of Lord's Gideon Grey & Rishi Ghosh, after some shenanigans. This was an entertaining tag bout, that pretty much stuck to the regular format, with just enough to hold the attention and warm the crowd up, whilst still being a paint by numbers affair. This being my first trip to RevPro, I'm not sure how much the dusty finish was needed, as we initially saw The L.o.L. get the victory after Grey had used his cane, only for the referee to see the cane, re-start the match before Garrett & Redman picked up a quick victory with a roll-up. The fact that we'd see Pete Dunne use a similar tactic later in the show muddies the water further. The situation wasn't helped by a bit of awkwardness following the re-start. It was weird that Garrett & Redman seemed to leave their most exciting offence for their post-match attack on Grey's ring jacket. 

Josh Bodom would pick up his third RevPro victory in a row, defeating Jody Fleisch in a decent match, following interference from The Revolutionists stable match, James Castle. This was another straight-forward bout, that although enjoyable throughout, never seemed to kick into the next gear. The crowd was interestingly split between the two men, despite Bodom's attempt to heel it up with a couple of vocal insults towards Fleisch and I think this effected a lot of the work that was on display. It's telling that despite writing my notes directly after the match had finished I couldn't think of much to note down. Not a bad match, but nothing memorable.

Linked with the Bodom v Fliesch match was Jonny Storm's victory over James Castle, as he gained a pinfall win following The WonderWhirl. This match was following directly on from the Bodom/Fliesch encounter with both men ending up ejected from ringside after trying to get involved in the early stages. Similar to the match before, at times it felt like both men were going through the motions as they waited for the next part of the angle to happen. However, Castle's act seems much more over as a heel and therefore I think this match was the more satisfying watch. Both Bodom and Fleisch would be back before the matches end, with Fleisch nailing Bodom with a lovely moonsault off the apron that would lead into the finish.

In Pro Wrestling: EVE action, Jinny would pin the debuting Zoe Lucas after nailing a Face Lift (Middle Rope X-Factor) in a solid women's match. This was the first time I'd seen Lucas in action since I worked on a Southcoast Wrestling show last year and I have to say that she's come on leaps and bounds, both in terms of interacting with the crowd and in developing an exciting and different moveset. Her ability to draw sympathy from the audience was aided by the fact that Jinny is a heat magnet literally everywhere she goes and manages to rile up a crowd simply by looking at them. Despite one nasty slip on a Japanese Arm Drag, both women managed to fit a lot into their allotted time, showcasing themselves and their opponents well. The double strike sequence was particular highlight. 

Josh Walls and Kurtis Chapman had a bit of an exhibition match, as they were working as part of the ring crew. Unfortunately this bout was wrapping up just as we finally entered the building, but both guys looked to progressing nicely in their development. 

Finally...

ATPW Scale Rating - 6.30/10

This was a strong show of British wrestling with a lot of different styles on show throughout the card. The top end of the card really shone though, with Mark Haskins and Trent Seven throwing out the Match of the Night with a brilliant example of British Strong-Style that would hold up against pretty much anything anyone else is doing around the world right now. Pete Dunne and Noam Dar put on a great technical bout, whilst the main event tried to do something different with it's storytelling that just about paid off with a good match, despite the choice of opponent being questionable for a main event (again, not a dig at McCluskey or Bruce, just that their previous booking for the company didn't make them look main event calibre)

The undercard suffered a little because of it's screwy booking and having the Bodom v Fleisch followed straight away by Castle v Storm meant that the card ended up dragging just a little at this point in the evening. The stand-out bout from the lower half of the card for me was actually Jinny and Zoe Lucas' bout as the crowd was into the action and characters, whilst one performer continued to develop into a true star of the Brit-Wres scene, whilst another showed promise for the future.

I'm looking forward to catching more RevPro in the future, as I feel like I've only just scratched the surface of what the company has to offer with this Cockpit show. I traveled down to London from the Midlands, so if you're in London and aren't attending these shows then you really are missing out on a great evening of entertainment. Sort yourselves out. You can even check out their shows on demand, RPW on Demand including Kurt Angle vs. Zack Sabre Jr.! 

Live Event Review: Kamikaze Pro 3rd Anniversary Show - Robbie X v Margera (James Marston)

With three years of experience under their belts, Kamikaze Pro returned to Meadway Sports and Social for the first time since March to celebrate that very achievement. With a strong crowd on hand, could the West Midland promotions create the party atmosphere that the achievement deserved? Let's take a look.

As usual, we start off by talking about the main event, which saw Clint Margera do what the likes of Kay Lee Ray, Andrew Everett and Angelico and many others had been unable to do and remove Robbie X from the top of Kamikaze Pro's mountain in his fifteenth defense of the belt. I think that the length of the title run and just how all-encompassing Robbie's faction, The Bigger Picture have been in Kamikaze Pro over the last year or so, gave the match a real sense of momentum changing, managing to rouse a tired crowd and create a brilliant atmosphere inside Meadway Sports and Social. The moment when Margera pulled the gold belt down from the ceiling had most of the building on it's feet, which was a credit to the work that was put in over the last 18 months or so. 

A big part of the match was The Bigger Picture being banned from ringside, of course, being the dastardly bastards that they are Marshall X and Damian Dunne came out to cause problems anyway (I can only imagine that Ryan Smile was too good of a guy to come out and disobey the ban) because their were no disqualifications so what was anyone going to do about it. Of course, it makes Kamikaze Pro's chief (and ring announcer) Lawrie Neal look a bit dim, but it got a bucket load of heat for the Bigger Picture and an even bigger reaction when The Hunter Brothers came back out to even the score and added to that sense of momentum that I spoke about earlier on.

As one would expect, this was a fun-filled, high spot-laden encounter, that made full use of the TLC gimmick and then some. Margera's known for his death match exploits and that was used well here with a series of unique moments that got brilliant reactions from the crowd. A russian leg sweep on the merch table, a big back body drop onto a ladder in the corner, a bump onto a conveniently placed ladder bridge and the cream of the crop, Robbie X holding onto the ceiling as Margera grabbed his leg and sent him swinging and then crashing through a table below. A couple of big chair shots and some brawling thrown into the mix and what we had was a very enjoyable main event. 

A good show-case for the Relentless Division here, as Tyler Bate won his first singles championship in Kamikaze Pro, by outlasting champion Ryan Smile, Chris Brookes and Omari in a Four Way Dance. The action was kept pacy throughout, with lots of dives and the obligatory multi-man Russian leg sweep thrown in for good measure throughout. The set-up of the match with Smile as the lone villain, lead to things feeling a little bit off-kilter throughout the earlier portion of the match, with Brookes even having to side with Smile at a point in the bout, which seemed to lead to a little confusion in the crowd. It did lead to a nice tower of doom type spot though, so swings and roundabouts. 

The order of elimination, however, was spot on for me, as Brookes would be the first to head to the back, after a kick to the nads from Smile. Omari managing to get to the final three raises his profile in the promotion, and spending as much time as possible in the ring with the likes of Smile, Bate and Brookes will only help him as he continues to develop. He'd eventually succumb to a springboard cutter from Smile. This brought us to the last two, with the stage set rather nicely. You had Bate as the last remaining hero, looking to vanquish the despicable Smile, who had shown he would do anything to win. Of course, with the match balanced the way it was, Bate was always going to win here, but the pair ended the bout with a flurry of crisp and frantic action, with "Text Book" earning a brilliant near fall off a stalling brainbuster, before eventually winning the belt with a lariat that turned Smile inside out. A future match between Bate and Smile could steal whatever show it's placed on.

The other title on the line at the 3rd Anniversary Show saw The Hunter Brothers and The Bigger Picture's Damian Dunne and Marshall X end their ladder match in a draw, with each team pulling down a title belt each. Man, I hated this finish. It's been done a few times in various ways and every time it makes me groan just a little bit louder. The worst thing about this for me, is that I could see it coming. As the match drew on, as Marshall X and Hunter #1 battled upon the ladder throwing strikes back and forth, and then suddenly both grabbed for a title above them, it was almost always clear exactly where the match was heading. In my opinion, results like this only stand to diminish the ladder match as a concept, just as every time there's a screwy finish in a cage match damages the appeal of that match-type. The company now has to craft something a bit more satisfying in an upcoming rematch in Coventry.

Despite the finish, the rest of the match had it's moments. Damian Dunne was the matches MVP for me, being involved in pretty much every major spot in the bout, taking a backbody drop onto a ladder, as well as delivering a backstabber onto a Hunter holding a ladder, before flipping the move to hit a lung blower to pull another Hunter who was a few rungs up. Despite a couple of stand out moments, I felt this one never really looked to be taking things to next level, perhaps this was down to Dunne and Marshall X being an unfamiliar tandem (despite their Bigger Picture affiliation) or maybe because there was a need to hold back a little bit of creativity to allow the main event to stand out more. 

There was another four way bout on the show, as Elliott Jordan continued to gather momentum, in a comedy-based match which would also involve Sid Scala, Liam Doyle and a debuting Lewis Howley. If you're a fan of funky gimmicks then you'd have been in your element here. Scala rocked up a yellow scooter, playing homage to everyone's favourite Trotters with a wheeler dealer/hat wearer gimmick. Doyle rocks a "King of the Gypsies" gimmick, which basically boils down to him being a drunk Irishman. Howley hails from The Playboy Mansion and doesn't like his face being touched. It's perhaps ironic that the least defined gimmick here is that of the victor, as I'm yet to work out who "The Wolf of Broad Street" actually is...other than the fact that he's got an "upside down face", which is more the crowd's creativity than his own.

The bout stuck to showcasing the interactions between the four characters, as Scala and Doyle formed a bond over their hats, whilst Howley desperately tried to keep his face from being hit. It didn't reinvent the wheel and certainly wasn't a exciting as the other four way on the show, but it wasn't supposed to do that. As comic relief it worked well enough, with a few chuckle worthy moments, whilst the completely random obsession with hats had the crowd losing their sweet little minds. These are four competitors who are still growing and developing their personas in the business and at times that showed here, with perhaps the full potential of the storytelling never quite reached a peak, especially with the time the match was afforded.

El Ligero has been undefeated in singles competition since May 2015 and he'd continue his Kamikaze Pro streak with a victory over Jody Fleisch in a high-speed outing here. If you had been new to either guy, the pair set out their stall as early as possible here, with a smashing opening, exchanging holds with ease and getting the crowd nicely warmed up for the second half. The rest of the match was performed with just as much ease from both men, as they put on a clinical junior heavyweight style match without seemingly breaking a sweat. The only moment of the bout that saw either put a foot wrong was Fleish cracking the back of his head on a wooden chair after hitting a lovely asai moonsault, which seemed like a bit of back luck rather than a legitimate mistake.

There was nice narrative added in the later exchanges, with Ligero looking to hit his Frog Splash on a number of occasions, either to be cut off by Fliesch or to end up getting his opponents knees driven into his gut. This built nicely towards the finish, with Ligero having to go all out in an attempt to keep "The Phoenix" on the mat, hitting a timely superkick, following it up with a belly-to-back piledriver before ascending to the top rope to finally hit a Frog Splash to gain his fifth win in a row in Kamikaze Pro. Whilst most of the action here was of a high quality, Fleish's tweener character seemed to hold the match back at times and I feel that had we seen him shift to either side of the fence then it would've benefitted the bout in terms of crowd reaction and perhaps even have allowed the in-ring action to be pushed to the next level. 

Lana Austin would have a technically sound, if not uninspiring, match with Alex Windsor, with the debutant eventually tapping to a modified sharpshooter. For some reason, I struggled to engage with this one, maybe it was because it never seemed to find a storytelling groove or that Windsor came across as a bit of a babyface by default because of Austin's over-the-top spoiled child gimmick, or perhaps it's because that whilst nothing stood out as particularly bad in the match, nothing actually really stood out that much at all. Probably not helped by being the seventh match of eight on the show either.

The opening match of the show saw current Money in the Bank briefcase holder Dan Maloney pick up a flash victory over Jonny Storm, in an energetic opener. There were a lot of ideas in this one, with the main piece of storytelling involved Storm's obsession with Maloney's MITB briefcase. For me, I think this was over-played for what it was and became a frustrating distraction from the stellar in-ring action that the pair were putting on and made Storm look a bit of an idiot for constantly going after the case when he was in clear control of the match. It seemed like the crowd grew tired of the idea fairly quickly as well. I was much more interested in Maloney's work on Storm's arm, which after being initially sold well by Storm ended up being dropped quickly.

In what was arguably the biggest match of his career to date, Kamikaze Pro Live! Champion Mika would fall short in a straight-forward encounter with the much more polished Pete Dunne. Mika seems to be learning fast inside the ring and will certainly have learnt from being in the ring with Dunne. My mine gripe with this match was Mika's pre-match promo, as "The Polish Punisher" used the EU Referendum result as fuel, describing how Polish people would still come over to "steal jobs". Politics and wrestling have been uneasy bedfellows numerous times throughout the years, but I was just glad the crowd descend into a series of xenophobic chants as after seeing the UKIP "Vote Leave" flags that decorated the buildings exterior.

Right at the top of the show, The Bigger Picture were out in force, interrupting Lawrie Neal's introduction of the first match. The group got some big heat from the crowd as Ryan Smile cut a promo about the group's dominance and all their multiple championship reigns within the promotion. Not a whole lot happened here, it was the group coming out, saying "We're Awesome" and then leaving, but it did set-up the story for any newbies in the audience, which is always a good thing. Thinking back on this segment, I can't help but wish that it had been book-ended at the end of the show by the group being left without a single title around their waist. 

Finally...

ATPW Scale Rating -  5.25/10

I think the 5.25 rating really sums up what this show was for me, just above average. The main event TLC and the Four Way Dance were both good matches, that offered something different in their slots within the second half. The ladder match had it's moments, but was unspectacular and featured a groan-worthy finish. With the exception of El Ligero vs. Jody Fleish, anything below that level on the card was just kinda okay. Nothing to get excited about, but nothing all that bad either. Technically sound, but with a lack of creativity, perhaps? 

This being said, I thoroughly enjoyed my evening at Kamikaze Pro, because it was wrestling. Above average wrestling. Will I remember much of what happened on the show? Probably not. Especially from the undercard. Did I have a good time? Yeah, fo' sho'. And that's the most important thing, people. 

Live Event Review: Fight Club: Pro Rise Against 2016 (KYS vs. Hunter Brothers)

On 18th March 2016, Fight Club: Pro held Rise Against 2016 at the Planet Nightclub in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. The show featured Fight Club: Pro Champion MK McKinnan teaming with fellow KYS member Damian Dunne to face The Hunter Brothers, AIW star Rickey Shane Page facing Clint Margera in a Death Match and "The Bruiserweight" battled "The Bastard" as Pete Dunne and Dave Mastiff squared off...but was it any good? Let's find out.

rise against 2016 match card

Match 1 - Three Way - "Calamari Catch King" Chris Brookes vs. "Text Book" Tyler Bate vs. "The Kentucky Gentleman" Chuck Taylor

Match 2 - Tag Team - The Facesmashers vs. Mike Bird & Nixon Newell 

Match 3 - Singles - "The Bruiserweight" Pete Dunne vs. "The Bastard" Dave Mastiff

Match 4 - Singles - Travis Banks vs. Trent Seven 

Match 5 - Tag Team - KYS (MK McKinnan & "Number 1" Damian Dunne) vs. The Hunter Brothers

Match 6 - Death - Rickey Shane Page vs. Clint Margera

fast-forward...Our host introduced us to the show, including giving us the rules for the evening, which weren't quite as catchy as PROGRESS' "Don't Be Dick"...

tyler bate defeats chris brookes and chuck taylor in a three way

A nice surprise to start the show as CHIKARA star Chuck Taylor made an unannounced appearance, interrupting Chris Brookes and Tyler Bate's match and joining in. This match was disappointingly short, barely scratching the surface of what Brookes, Bate and Taylor could do in the ring together and despite the action being of a high quality throughout I came out feeling a bit let down by it. Bate felt like the star of the contest though, with his dive over the top rope early doors being particularly impressive. He'd later deny Taylor the pin on Brookes following a series of kicks by hitting a Diving Headbutt on the top rope, before putting Brookes away with a sweet brainbuster. As opening contests go this got the crowd warmed up nicely, it would have been great to see this go at least ten minutes more to fully showcase all three talents. I can't help but wonder what they could have done in a main event slot.

the facesmashers defeat mike bird and nixon newell

Things were taken up a gear as The Facesmashers and the newly formed partnership of Nixon Newell and Mike Bird put on a bostin' tag encounter, that provided plenty to enjoy. Seeing as Nixon and Bird have only teamed once before, I was impressed by them a lot in the early stages as their face shine featured some nice double team moves, like Bird launching Nixon off the top rope into a hurricanrana on Wild Boar. I was perhaps more impressed with the Facesmashers, as Boar and Dan Moloney have steadily worked themselves in being one of my favourites tag teams. They used a lot of cheating to stay in control of the second third of the bout, cutting off the ring and working over Nixon. I've said before that Nixon is one of the most easily likable performers in the UK at the moment, which makes her a perfect choice for the face in peril role in tag bouts, with her vocals being particularly strong. I'd be interested to see what could be done if she was the one waiting for the hot tag though.

The contest built nicely following the hot tag to Bird, although it was disappointing to see the legal man concept forgotten as can often be the way in tag bouts on the indies. Lots of action to follow, culminating in Nixon hitting a beautiful Vulture Culture Destroyer to Moloney, which got a big reaction from the Planet and a great near fall. It was Fight Club: Pro Champion MK McKinnan who would be the deciding factor in the bout however as with the referee distracted he nailed Nixon with his title belt and allowed the Facesmashers to win the bout. After Nixon and Bird had defeated McKinnan and fellow KYS member Damian Dunne on the last show it was nice bit of continuation, and a relationship with the promotions most hated heel can only be a good thing for Moloney and Boar, whose record in FCP now stands at four wins in five matches.

pete dunne defeats dave mastiff

The first ever Monster's stall match, or at least that was the case for Pete Dunne! Stalling can work and sometimes it can completely bomb, luckily this was the earlier option, with Dunne and Dave Mastiff able to hold the crowds attention, with very little wrestling in the earlier part of the match. The Bruiserweight spent a lot of the bout avoiding getting involved with Mastiff, jumping in and out of the ring, whilst getting involved in plenty of banter with the fans around the ringside area. This lead to a great moment when Dunne finally appeared to be ready to wrestle and "The Bastard" jumped out of the ring, getting more than a chuckle out of the Planet. 

When the match did get going there was plenty of cheating from Dunne, using any method that he could to keep himself in control. The crowd continued to be on his back throughout the contest, with a lot of the chants having to do with Dunne's hair style of choice the topknot. Dunne was almost caught with Mastiff's cannonball twice, but again used underhanded tactics to avoid it, including trying to pull referee Joel into the line of fire, leading to The Bruiserweight picking up the victory with a small package. Whilst I enjoyed the build towards it, I felt the small package itself didn't look quite as well as it could have, with Mastiff's size in comparison to Dunne making the finish look a little unbelievable. It does however continued Dunne's undefeated streak since winning the Infinity Trophy back in December, as he's gone over the likes of Tyler Bate, Zack Sabre Jr., Damian Dunne, Nixon Newell and now Dave Mastiff, he's in a rather interesting position with his fellow KYS member MK McKinnan holding the title belt he's got a shot for!

fast-forward...A quick interval and cheeky look at some carrot jam before we're back into the action...

trent seven defeats travis banks 

Opening the second part of the show, Trent Seven and Travis Banks put on a cracking undercard match. A lovely technical start between the two, as they exchange holds with ease, with an appreciative crowd leaning largely towards their regular, Seven. Having seen Banks work opposite the heel Chris Brookes on the last show, it was nice to see him get to bring a bit more of a vicious edge to his character here, as he definitely seemed more comfortable performing in front of the unique FCP crowd. To this end, both men were pulling out big strikes early doors after transitioning from their amateur wrestling at the start of the bout. Seven is one of the hardest hitters in the UK right now, with Banks' chest standing testament to this after just five minutes in.

The duo built in a brilliant narrative, focused around Seven getting more and more frustrated that he couldn't put Banks away, with this driving the second half of the action. A wicked reversal from Seven turning a tornado DDT into a suplex into the turnbuckle was the real turning point for things. The moment where Seven hit a piledriver and Banks kicked out on one got a terrific reaction out of the crowd, perhaps the largest reaction outside the craziness of the Death Match. The strikes got harder, faster and more intense as the contest went on with the two going back and forth and the crowd getting louder. After Banks had picked up a nice near fall with a flying knee attack, Seven made sure he wouldn't kick out of the next piledriver, by delivering a sick dragon suplex before hand and walking out the victor. A great match to start the second portion of the show, I'd love to see more of both these guys.

the hunter brothers defeat kys 

Fight Club: Pro's tag scene has been red hot over the last couple of shows and this was another world class effort from the division. You couldn't really go wrong with two of the most hated guys in Wolverhampton in KYS' MK McKinnan and Damian Dunne facing two of the biggest babyfaces in the promotion, Tipton's own Lee and Jim, The Hunter Brothers. The crowd was on fire throughout the bout, making everything McKinnan, Dunne and the Hunter's did feel even more important. The Fight Club: Pro Champion and his ally working over Jim Hunter provided a lot of entertainment, with McKinnan dragging a ko'd Dunne back to his corner to prevent the babyfaces making the hot tag standing out in particular. The crowd hammering away at the ringside cage as the performers built the action towards the hot tag was fantastic to watch and one of the reason why I love the atmosphere inside the Planet.

With KYS suffering their third loss as a team in a row, after Dunne took a barage of offence from Hunter Brothers' that culminated in a avalanche frankensteiner and frog splash combination, the group seemingly expanded their ranks. The Facesmasher's were out with chairs to take care of The Hunter Brothers and even though Nixon Newell attempted to help out (Mike Bird was conspicuous by his absense) it was the heel faction that stood tall at the end. With Dan Moloney and Wild Boar joining McKinnan, Damian Dunne, Pete Dunne (and the lesser-seen and now injured Jimmy Havoc) a considerable amount of the roster is now in the KYS faction, I'm very interested to see where this goes over the next few shows and how it affects McKinnan's reign as champion. Lastly, with such a strong and competitive tag team division I'd love to see FCP introduce a Tag Team title belt to give teams like Hunter Brothers and Facesmashers a real purpose in the promotion.

fast-forward...There was five minute interval to set up for the main event...

clint margera defeats rickey shane page in a death match

Well, this match was one of the most brutal things that I have ever seen. Honestly, I'm not sure how I feel about this contest and it's probably the match that's caused me the most trouble when coming to review it. See, I know that this match was a hit with most of the Planet and I'm sure if you're a fan of Death match wrestling then you would have absolutely loved what Clint Margera and AIW star Rickey Shane Page put on here. But I'm not sure that I loved it, I'm not even sure if I enjoyed it. I found it extremely hard to watch at points, as the two upped the ante with numerous objects and I'm not sure if that's what I want when I'm watching wrestling, especially not in a match where the competitors have no prior history with each other or any strong reason to be doing sadistic things to each other...had the bout been with the man Margera had challenge to Death match, Pete Dunne, then I think I'd have be having less trouble in forming this review.

Let's go through some of the utter ridiculousness that was involved and then hopefully you'll know whether the match would be for you or not. The brutality began with Page sending Margera head first into some lighttubes on the outside, a horrible looking verticle suplex onto a seated chair by Margera, Page stapling a cup to Margera's head, Page stomping Margera's hand and head into thumbtacks, Margera hitting a DDT onto thumbtacks, a Death Valley Driver through a grid of carpet gripper (Yes...), and a finish that saw Margera discus forearm lighttubes into Page's head for the pin! Mental. I'd love to get into how stupid using a piledriver off the top rope onto a chair as a near fall is, but then I'd be here all day. You know what, all credit to Clint Margera and Rickey Shane Page for being willing to put their bodies through all that shit to entertain a few hundred people in a Wolverhampton nightclub, they both worked their asses off and went through a hell of a lot. Not because of the level of violence, but more because of the lack of any real purpose behind it, the match was perhaps not for me, but I know that a lot of people in the crowd enjoyed themselves and that there's definitely an audience out their for this kind of wrestling who would absolutely love to see this match. If you're a Death Match fan then I'd definitely recommend catching this one on DVD when it's out.

finally...
atpw scale rating - 6.95/10

Another great card of wrestling from Fight Club: Pro with a lot of variety spread throughout the card. The match of the night for me was The Hunter Brothers and KYS's tag match for the sheer investment from the crowd, as well as the build towards The Hunter Brothers comeback. I'm certain that many would give Clint Margera and Rickey Shane Page's brutal Death Match that award and a higher score than I gave it (The score goes towards the ATPW Scale Rating, but doesn't get revealed itself) with the match closing the show with something completely different to anything that had gone before it. The other marquee bout between Pete Dunne and Dave Mastiff was another different style, closing the first portion of the show of well with a character-based contest. 

The highlight of the undercard for me came from Travis Banks and Trent Seven's lesson in strong-style storytelling, whilst a competitive tag outing between The Facesmashers and Nixon Newell & Mike Bird also provided good action. 

Somehow, the show manages to get exactly the same rating as FCP's last show, All the Best 2016 did! That's probably a fair reflection of the two shows, which both offering a strong variety of wrestling. I'm looking forward to more of the same on 15th April when Fight Club: Pro return to the Planet in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England for Planet Terror Vol. 2. Hopefully, we'll be back here in a month's time with another review! xoxo

Live Event Review: Kamikaze Pro Underground - Smile vs. Ospreay

On 4th March 2016, Kamikaze Pro held Underground at The Empire in Coventry, West Midlands, England. The show featured Ryan Smile defending the Kamikaze Pro Relentless Division Championship against a debuting Will Ospreay, Robbie X putting the Kamikaze Pro Championship on the line against AAA star Angelico and The Hunter Brothers defending the Kamikaze Pro Tag Team Championship in three way action against Born 2 Fly and Mika & Elliot Jordan...but was it any good? Let's take a look!

underground match card

Match 1 - Kamikaze Pro Tag Team Championships - Born 2 Fly vs. "The Wolf of Broad Street" Elliot Jordan & "The Polish Punisher" Mika vs. The Hunter Brothers (C)

Match 2 - Singles - Money in the Bank Contract Holder "Superbeast" Dan Moloney vs. "The Big O" Omari

Match 3 - Singles - El Ligero vs. "The International Swerve" Shane Strickland

Match 4 - No Disqualification - Clint Margera vs. "The Bad Man" Marshall X (The Bigger Picture)

Match 5 - Kamikaze Pro Relentless Division Championship - "The All Day Star" Ryan Smile (The Bigger Picture) (C) vs. "The Aerial Assassin" Will Ospreay

Match 6 - Singles - "The Apex of Agility" Andrew Everrett vs. "Dynamite" Pete Dunne

Match 7 - Singles - Blue Pants vs. Nixon Newell 

Match 8 - Kamikaze Pro Championship - "The Ultimate Airdevil" Angelico vs. Robbie X (C) (The Bigger Picture) 

fast-forward...After having a horrific time parking in Coventry we entered The Empire with Lawrie Neal already in the ring, he did a short intro and we were into the show...

the hunter brothers defeat born 2 fly and elliot jordan and mika to retain the kamikaze pro tag team championships

The opening contest was a solid three way tag team match, with The Hunter Brothers picking up their 11th defense of the Kamikaze Pro Tag Team titles. Kamikaze Pro Dojo graduates Elliot Jordan and Mika handled themselves well as the only heels in the bout as they had section in control of members of both of their opponents, whilst also managing to control a lively all-standing Coventry crowd. Whilst both men have grown as performers over the last year, one part of the match that I struggled to buy into was either of them getting a Tag Team title shot and the same can be said for TJ Sky and Kieran Young of Born 2 Fly. Jordan and Mika by this point were yet to win a match as a tag team, including a 4 way shot at Hunter Brothers title back at 2nd Anniversary Show in June 2015 and a two v two bout at Bad Apple in February 2016. Born 2 Fly's only previous appearance for the promotion had been a handicap loss to Dan Moloney at Sky's the Limit 2 in May 2015! 

Whilst I had problems with the titles being on the line, the spot-based action of the 2nd portion of the match got the crowd warmed up nicely with all six men working hard to put on some cool moments. A sweet Tower of Doom spot stands out as one of the strongest of the bout, as does a powerbomb spot over the ringside barricade. Having seen The Hunter Brothers used their Giant Swing into Dropkick combination as a near fall in other promotions I always find it hard to buy into it as a finish at Kamikaze Pro and I felt the same as usual here. Despite the action being fun and pacy, nothing made me feel like the Hunters weren't walking out with the titles, and there was a distinct lack of near falls in the closing stages which could have really pushed this match to the next level. An okay opener, but nothing more.

dan moloney defeats omari

It's been a fantastic experience to watch Omari develop over the last year and this match was his strongest to date, against a Dan Moloney who has also improved ten fold since I first saw him in action. It felt like the two performers connected early on here, with their characters gelling really well. It wasn't a particularly flashy or complicated bout, but what was done was well and the crowd bought into the simple storytelling and remained hooked throughout.

My favourite part of the contest was Omari's comeback as he fired up and showed a side of him that I hadn't seen before. For those unfamiliar with The Big O, he usually portrays a fairly whitemeat babyface, so to see him get angry with Moloney and burst into a series of stiff strikes and really bring the action to Moloney. It added some much needed dimension to Omari's character and I'd love to see this side explored again over the next couple of shows. Maloney continued to build towards his eventual Money in the Bank cash-in, picking up the victory after nailing Omari with his briefcase. Maloney got a lot of heat from the crowd for this and took it well, he's a performer I'm looking forward seeing getting a major chance in Kamikaze later in the year and hopefully running with it and getting even more bookings across the country.

el ligero defeats shane strickland

This was the first match on the card to really stand out, as El Ligero met CZW's Shane Strickland in an Indy spot-fest done right. This was my first chance at seeing Strickland and he impressed me throughout, as the pair kept the action coming thick and fast. Lots of back and forth flips and tricks here, this was almost the complete opposite to the bout that had gone before it, bringing all the sizzle that the pair could find and then some. Considering this was the pairs first one on one match, I thought the action was surprisingly fluid here with the two transitioning from one portion of match pretty flawlessy. It was a shame that the ropes seemed to not want to play ball and the pair ended up slipping a couple of times which unfortunately did effect the contests pace and took me out of the match a few times.

Whilst the match was mostly spot-based, there was at least some narrative going on here, as Ligero was constantly attempting to hit his C4L finish throughout the bout. He must have tried for the move at least three times, with Strickland managing to either dodge or counter the move each time. Whilst this was going down there was also some nice near falls for both men, with Ligero hitting a version of the Canadian Destroyer to reverse a powerbomb, whilst a Standing Spanish Fly also seemed to have the job done. The closing stages were electric, as Ligero hit a beautiful reverse rana to set up for him to finally connect with the C4L and pick up the victory over "The International Swerve". This was Ligero's first victory in Kamikaze Pro since June last year and should surely put him back in the hunt for a shot at either of the singles' titles in the promotion sooner rather than later.                  

clint margera defeats marshall x in a no disqualification match

A rematch from Frost Fight 3 in Bournville last November, Clint Margera and Marshall X put on a belting No Disqualification Match to close the first half of action, as the two melded their style to produce a satisfyingly physical match-up. Of course, Margera is known for his Death Match style, having spent time in the USA, Japan and Germany with CZW & BJW, whilst ripping it up on these shores for Wolverhampton's Fight Club: Pro and No DQ matches with the likes of T-Bone, Chris Brookes, Abyss, Robbie X and Dan Moloney in Kamikaze and he bought some that here. Starting off with some crowd brawling which is always a lot of fun, before escalating into some vicious singapore cane shots, a clock smashed across the head, the arrival of a carrier bag full of thumb tacks and even the surprise return of Abyss' weapon of choice Janice (previously seen in the promotion at Monster in Bournville in July 2015). The contests brutality suited the all-standing mainly adult environment, it would have been interesting to see just how far these lads would have been willing to go had the show been an over 18's event!

Whilst Margera is known for his violence, Marshall X is known for his shenanigans. Since Marshall joined The Bigger Picture it was only going to get more shenanigany going forward and this match didn't disapoint. Kamikaze Pro Champion Robbie X and Kamikaze Pro Relentless Division Champion Ryan Smile (with other member Damian Dunne teaming with "Flash" Morgan Webster in a losing effort to The Filthy Rotten Scoundrels over the PW4U Tag Team Championships in Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire on the same night) got all involved to stop a Margera pinfall, only to be chased away by the Hunter Brothers. The craziness of the final moments was suplement by a big ol' violent spot as Margera hit a Death Valley Driver onto the pile of thumb tacks to pick up the victory. A well-structured bout that lived up to my expectations heading in, providing plenty of violence and plenty of shenanigans, good stuff.

fast-forward...Interval time

ryan smile defeats will ospreay to retain the kamikaze pro relentless division championship

"The All Day Star" and "The Aerial Assassin" have ripped it up together for SWA in Telford, Southside in Camberly and FPW in Sutton and they bought that action to Kamikaze's debut in Coventry, with Will Ospreay making his first appearance for the promotion, challenging for Kamikaze regular Ryan Smile's Relentless Division Championship. If there was one match that encapsulated everything that Kamikaze's "Relentless Division" should be, it was this utterly ridiculous match, between two of the UK's best Junior Heavyweights. The opening section was some of the best action you'll catch anywhere in the UK, as the two looked to out do each other in a blindingly quick series of back and forth action, with way, way too much stuff going on here to actual make any coherent notes on! Trust me, it was bloody marvelous.

Despite this being Ospreay's first appearance for Kamikaze and one of his only appearances in the West Midlands, he was very over with knowledgeable Coventry audience, with loud chants of "Ospreay, Ospreay, Ospreay, Ospreay" (replacing the Ole chants) throughout the match. Whilst a good proportion of the audience seemed to have caught Ospreay in action for the likes of IPW:UK, Southside or Rev Pro, part of his success as the bouts babyface, has to be accredited to Ryan Smile turning up his heel persona to 11 and coming across as a right old bag of shite. Whilst I'm not sure Smile needed to use just as much fruity language as he did, considering this wasn't an Over 18's show and there was a fair few children dotted around the venue, a lot of his character work was strong and helped add an exta layer of narrative to the contest. For example, The All Day Star refusing to hit any dives to the outside in the mid-section of the match and attempting to go for the countout victory, not only denied fans some of Smile's flashier offence, but allowed for Ospreay to flex his babyface selling muscles, creating compelling action with having to do a whole lot.

With the pace of the contest being to rise again, the final third of the bout produced the most satisfying performances of the entire contest. A fired up Ospreay got some great near falls, with the crowd getting hotter and hotter for each one, whilst the on-going story of Smile's frustration at being unable to put the future NJPW star away paying off in the final three or four minutes of the bout. After Ospreay reversed Smile's brainbuster attempt for another near fall, Smile was able to hit a deadlift varation of the move for a near fall of his own, this was the turning point of the match where Smile's frustrations boiled over and took it to a new level. After Ospreay had missed a Tope Conhilo into the crowd (or conveniently placed Dojo trainees, who gave themselves away cheering for fellow Dojo students Mika and Elliot Jordan earlier in the night when the rest of the crowd was booing the heels), Smile took things to a new level diving head first of the balcony of the building with a beautiful swan dive that sent the crowd mental. I liked the idea that Smile only wanted to hit something flashy when he absolutely had to and if he was going to do it, then it would be something that no one would ever forget. Still it would take two Smile High Frog Splashes for Smile to retain his title, with the first one making for a brilliant false finish that got an electric reaction from the crowd! A great match, that may have been the best I've ever seen in a Kamikaze Pro ring, this was the clear winner of Match of the Night for me.

andrew everrett defeats pete dunne

Whilst it struggled to compete with the bout that went before it Pete Dunne and former PWG World Tag Team Champion Andrew Everrett put on a solid, indy bout. There was a cool clash of styles in this one, as Everrett went for a lot of high-flying, flashy offence, whilst Dunne stuck more to technical British style. The two went back and forth throughout the match, using their preferred style, it was a shame that the bout didn't get a great deal of time and that it was positioned directly after Smile vs. Ospreay as it was always going to struggle to stand out after it. I feel like Dunne and Everrett could have done a lot more if they had another ten minutes and a main event or sub-main event slot. The finish however was cool piece of action with Dunne managing to reverse Everrett's Tombstone Piledriver attempt to hit one of his own, only for Everrett to reverse Dunne's DT3 finisher into a small package to pick up his first victory in Kamikaze Pro, giving Dunne his first defeat in 1 v 1 action since August for Kamikaze. A rematch with a brighter spotlight would be very well recieved I feel.

nixon newell defeats blue pants

Still struggling to overcome the Smile vs. Ospreay bout and with the time getting pretty late, Blue Pants and Nixon Newell seemed to struggle to hold the fans attention for the whole match. NXT star Blue and Kamikaze regular Nixon did manage to put on some decent action, with Nixon taking on the default heel role against the American talent. Nixon spent a fair amount of the match focusing her attention on Blue's knee, landing multiple kicks and showing a vicious side that she has rarely shown in Kamikaze to this point. With the crowd mostly talking among themselves, Blue didn't seem particularly bothered about getting them involved, with a cheesy Blue Pants gimmick not quite going over with this particular crowd, the lack of in-ring chemistry with Nixon didn't really help things either. The finish was disappointingly sloppy as Blue went for her version of the Acid Drop and botched, leading to an awkward pin from Nixon with her feet on the ropes. Nixon completed her heel turn in Kamikaze by flipping the crowd the bird on her way out, it'll be interesting to see where Kamikaze take her role over the next sixth months.

fast-forward...An interval was called for before the main event and then quickly cancelled in a bizarre turn of events, even for Brit-Wres...

robbie x defeats angelico to retain the kamikaze pro championship

In the final marquee bout of the evening, AAA's Angelico challenged Kamikaze Pro Champion Robbie X in a character-driven encounter. Robbie X was incredibly over with the Coventry crowd and seemed to revel in the crowd reaction that he was getting. Lots of loud boos, pepped with the occasional chant about his height or top-knot (potentially a pony tail, but no one cared). Robbie X controlled the pace of the early goings, denying the crowd of the flashy offence that Angelico is known for, delivering a number of chops, whilst interacting with the crowd throughout. I feel like Kamikaze is really missing an opportunity to place Robbie X in a longer running feud for the title, as he's got a lot of heat with the crowd and works them nicely, if placed against a regular Kamikaze babyface over a number of months they could create something truly special and take the company to the next level.

For his part in the match, Angelico looked the part, although he wasn't as over with the crowd as you'd think he would have been. That could just as easily be due to the crowd being blown out or the fact that it's hard to find a chant that fits his name! His main part in the bout was numerous teases for his Fall of the Angels finisher, with Robbie able to escape twice before eventually hitting it for a good near fall. Both Angelico and Robbie X are talented in-ring performers and whilst they put together some good action sequences in the ring, I didn't feel that the two fully connected with each other in the ring and because of this they didn't reach the full potential of what they could have done together. However, if this is the quality of match the two are capable of when they don't quite gel, I'd love to see a rematch when the two are more aclimatised to each other. Of course, Robbie was up to his old way when he picked up the victory, hitting a low blow followed by a Lethal Injection to pick up the win and retain the Kamikaze Pro Championship! 

fast-forward...The show closed with Andrew Everrett and Pete Dunne coming to make the save for Angelico after The Bigger Picture attacked, with a tag team match between Everrett & Dunne and Bigger Picture's Robbie X & Ryan Smile being scheduled for Over the Top 3 in Birmingham on the 27th March

finally...

atpw scale rating - 6.57/10

As Kamikaze Pro's first trip to a new city this was very good card of action. Will Ospreay and Ryan Smile earn the match of the night award, with a brilliant display of high-flying, fast-paced action that you will struggle to find done better anywhere else. Robbie X's performance in the Kamikaze Pro Championship bout livened up a tired crowd, even if he and Angelico didn't quite connect in the ring, whilst the opening Tag Team three way bout offered some nice action, but didn't quite manage to create the break out contest that the tag team division needed.

A varied undercard was highlighed by El Ligero and Shane Strickland's PWG style sprint and Clint Margera and Marshall X's brutal No Disqualification tussle. Pete Dunne and Andrew Everrett also put in some quality work, but were let down by time constraints and having to follow the outstanding Smile vs. Ospreay bout. Rounding off the card, Omari continued to show signs of promise in a simple bout with Dan Moloney, but Nixon Newell and Blue Pants failed to capture the crowd imagination in a fairly lacklustre clash. 

It was a shame that Kamikaze didn't announce a return date to Coventry, as they pulled a decent crowd and I enjoyed the set up of the venue, as it offered something a little different to your regular Kamikaze venue. They will however be back at the Meadway Sports & Social Centre in Birmingham, West Midlands, United Kingdom on 27th January 2016. Robbie X will defend his Kamikaze Pro Championship against a returning Jody Fliesch, Jonny Storm will return to square off with Marshall X, Toni Storm and Liberty both come back to face each other, Clint Margera, Pete Dunne, Ryan Smile, Dan Moloney, Travis Banks and Tyler Bate will battle it out to get the #30 spot in the Rumble bout with loser having to enter number one. Pete Dunne, Ryan Smile, Tyler Bate, Omari, Travis Banks, Dan Moloney, Toni Storm, Jim Hunter, Lee Hunter, Marshall X, Mika, Sancho Cortez, Elliott Jordan, Clint Margera, Liberty, Dan Tucker, Jonny Storm, TK Cooper, Sam Wilder, Darius Lockhart, Caz Crash, Liam Doyle and more will battle it out to become #1 Contender in a Royal Rumbe bout and The Hunter Brothers will defend their Kamikaze Pro Tag Team Championships against The Proven. Tickets are available here

(All photo credit goes to Kamikaze Pro and Mark Lungley)