by Josh McCrohon @JoshMcrohon57Chapter 1 was a success I think. I’m looking forward to the next episode, so here we go!
Match #1 - Lion Kidd vs. Stixx Lion Kidd hits a great combo to start off but Stixx immediately slows him down. Kidd hits a springboard head scissors. They take their fight on the outside and Stixx powerbombs Kidd to the steel post on the outside. Lion Kidd takes Stixx off the apron with a dropkick and then dives onto him after doing a massive jump from the top rope. However, it’s Stixx who makes it back into the ring first. Stixx attempts a Crucifix Powerbomb off of the top rope but Kidd headscissors him off the top rope. Lion Kidd rolls up Stixx for the win! Match Rating: 7/10 My Thoughts: After that match, I hope to see Kidd Lion vs. El Ligero at some point! Match #2 - Mark Andrews Vs. Mike Hitchman [BWC Scarlo Scholarship Championship] The match begins with a massive takedown from Hitchman who slams him down. Andrews receives “Draco Malloy” chants which is of course a notorious blonde haired enemy of Harry Potter in the Harry Potter book series. Hitchman slows the pace of this match whereas Andrews is looking to quicken the match. I don’t know when Mark Andrews won the belt, but this is at least a month after the first Progress Chapter. Hitchman wears Andrews down, which is sapping him of his energy. Andrews hits an impressive moonsault off of the apron which takes Hitchman right down to the floor. Hitchman hits a big knee to Andrews in the corner of the ring but only gets a 2 count. Haskins hits a huge slap, and follows that up with a Dragon Suplex which looks LETHAL. The match ends with a Mark Andrews small package. Both matches have ended in roll-ups, let’s look at the third. Match Rating: 7.5/10 My Thoughts: Great match and hopefully, we can see Andrews keep the belt just a little bit longer. After the match, the former champion, Xander Cooper comes out and attacks Andrews, which backfires stupendously! Match #3 - Noam Dar vs. Darrel Allen Dar is showing off his technical skills early but Allen takes him down. Dar is working on the left arm of Darrel Allen, but Allen rallies. Dar hits a brilliant dropkick which sends Allen into the corner which is followed by a Allen hitting a headscissor takedown. Allen throws Noam back into the ring but Dar insists that he takes a timeout. Dar hits a head butt to the back of Allen’s head and follows it with a whopping kick. Noam Dar threatens to throw his chewing gum into the crowd but it’s only a teaser…for now. Allen hits a knee right to the centre of Dar’s face for a 2 count. Dar hits the aeroplane spin and hits a bridging suplex; Allen is dazed. Noam Dar puts his gum in the mouth of Allen, then back into his own and of course receives “You sick fuck!” chants from the PROGRESS crowd, who clearly aren’t massive fans of Noam. Darrell Allen hits a big enzeguri for a 2 count. Dar hits a kick to the knee then a kick to the chest and finally hits a spinning forearm to finish the combo. Allen hits a superkick to the back of Dar’s head and rolls him up but Dar kicks out. Imagine if all 3 matches ended in roll-ups… Dar hits a double stomp onto the knee of Allen and hits a roundhouse kick. Noam Dar locks in the Champagne Nova Knee Bar but Allen throws a vicious punch to try and escape it. Dar refuses to let go, which leaves Allen no choice but to tap out. Match Rating: 8/10 My Thoughts: Quality match! Match #4 - Jimmy Havoc vs. Danny Barnell The referee confiscates a spoon from Havoc’s knee pad before the match starts. They spoon in the ring after the crowd chant; “Jim loves spooning”. They then chant “Spoon the ref!” but he rolls out. I don’t really know what’s going on at this point, to be honest. Havoc hits a nice dropkick. Barnell hits a bodyslam and keeps a knee in Havoc’s back. Havoc locks in a crossface but Barnell puts his leg on the rope. Barnell hits a back body drop which visibly hurts Havoc. Havoc hits a HUGE knee to Barnell’s head while in the corner. Danny hits a middle rope DDT which does a lot of damage to Jimmy Havoc. Barnell hits a German suplex followed by a half Nelson and a Headlock Driver! Jimmy Havoc hits a Lung Blowsr from the middle rope and then he locks in another crossface. Barnell once again finds the rope, Havoc rolls out and finds a chair. The referee stops him but Barnell rolls him up for the 2 count. Havoc hits a headscissors into a crossface but Barnell rolls him up. HOLY CRAP THAT’S THE THIRD ROLL UP VICTORY TONIGHT! Match Rating: 8/10 My Thoughts: This is the first Jimmy Havoc match I’ve seen; superb wrestler. I’m looking forward to his mental character. After the match, Jim Smallman offers to give Havoc another chance but only if the crowd chant “One More Chance”. The crowd does so and we’ll see Havoc in the next chapter. The pair spoon Smallman; wrestling! Match #5 - The London Riots vs. The Velocity Vipers I don’t know any of the individual names which may get this confusing. I do know Will Osperay who is apart of The Velocity Vipers, although I don’t know what he is doing now... The London Riots attack The Velocity Vipers before the bell rings. Osperay makes the tag to Esmail who changes the tide of this match. He hits a slap combo which doesn’t effect the chest of Davis. Add another brutal suplex to PROGRESS’ repertoire as Lynch just lobs Esmail across the ring. Lynch tags out to Davis who hits a massive exploder suplex onto Esmail. Osperay takes care of both of the London Riots, following that by hitting a great Canadian Destroyer onto Davis. Apparently, Alex Esmail is injured after the exploder suplex. Will Osperay goes for a rotation moonsault but Lynch rolls out of the way. The London Riots eventually win this match with a BRUTAL clothesline. Match Rating: 7.5/10 My Thoughts: The first tag match in Progress was great! Match #6 - El Ligero vs. RJ Singh vs. Greg Burridge [#1 Contendership Match] Ligero & Burridge start by taking out Singh taking turns to kick him in the back while he is seated. Ligero & Burridge tap each other with kicks while Singh recovers on the outside, HOW ARE THESE TWO STILL STANDING WHILE RECEIVING THESE KICKS?! Ligero and Burridge finally throw away their little alliance and fight each other. Burride has dice hanging from his crotch now? Ligero hits a flip headscissors and takes out Singh. Singh hits Ligero with the Reverse STO. The match ends with Ligero rolling up Burridge and he grabs the tights; Interesting. Match Rating: 5.5/10 My Thoughts: I’m fascinated with Ligero’s character progression so far. After the match, Burridge cuts a promo with all the words you’d get fired for saying in WWE. Match #7 - Party” Marty Scurll vs. Nathan Cruz (c) [2out of 3 Falls Match for the Progress Championship] They brawl to start this bout for the staff. After a bit of grappling, the two stare off. Scurll hits a nice arm throw and kicks Cruz right in the face. Scurll targets the arms of Cruz and attempts to break his fingers. Marty Scurll hits a massive slap to Cruz’s chest, replying with a chop of his own. They both continue with the chops; I think Scurll came out victorious. Marty Scurll hits a Suicide Dive but Cruz jumps out of the way and I think Scurll may’ve jumped right into the crowd. Nathan Cruz hits a fantastic jumping knee which connects to the head of Scurll. Cruz hits a picture perfect suplex but Scurll kicks out. Scurll holds up Cruz above his head in the jackhammer position, which lasts at least a minute. He follows this up with a suplex from that position. Scurll hits a banger of an enzeguri on Cruz who was in the corner and then lands a Tornado DDT. Scurll is heading towards the top rope but Cruz gives Scurll a big enzeguri, they battle on the top rope with Scurll delivering big knees to Cruz who was in the Tree of Woe position. Scurll eventually hits The Hangover for the first fall. The score is now 1-0 in favour of Marty Scurll. Cruz rolls Scurll up with his legs on the ropes for a 2 count; cheeky Nathan. Cruz keeps knocking Scurll down with punches. Before long, the pair are brawling on the outside and Scurll drops a bionic elbow off the bar - not Sheamus & Cesaro. Cruz is back in the ring and Scurll is banged up on the outside. Marty Scurll returns to the ring at the count of 8. Cruz throws him into chairs on the outside but this time the fans throw him back into the ring, what is happening?! Cruz drags Scurll to the outside and throws him into the sound desk. Marty Scurll is now miles away from the ring but gets back in at the count of 9! Does Scurll know that he CAN afford to lose one fall and still have a chance of winning the title? Marty finally retaliates and hits a combo while Cruz is stunned on the ropes. He second rope suplexes Cruz back into the ring and gets a 2 count for his trouble. Cruz hits a tombstone from out of nowhere for his first fall- it is now winner takes all. I think Marty Scurll is unconscious at this point but Cruz gives Marty a few kicks. The bell rings for the final part but he collapses and Cruz pins Marty and he kicks out - perhaps out of instinct? Marty Scurll hits a rolling elbow from out of nowhere! Both men are down on the canvas and the referee is at the count of 5. Marty gets back up at the count of 8, technically 9. They exchange forearms and the “Yeah, Boo” stuff officially begins. They do several varieties of Roll-up pins. Cruz hits a bridging German suplex but Marty powers out. Marty Scurll locks in a brutal Figure 4 Leg Lock, Cruz might have no choice but to tap but he just reaches the ropes in time. The referee gets knocked down after getting pulled in the way by Cruz to escape a knee from Scurll. Nathan Cruz grabs a chair and is about to hit Scurll but the number one contender, El Ligero, comes out and grabs the chair. Nathan Cruz spits at Ligero and Ligero goes to superkick Cruz but he ducks and hits Scurll. El Ligero shrugs and walks off. Nathan Cruz takes advantage and pins Marty Scurll for the win and retains the championship! My Thoughts: Are we on the verge of an El Ligero heel turn? If so, Chapter 3 should be great! Match Rating: 8.5/10 Overall Opinion: Great chapter; much better than the first! Chapter 1 wasn’t too interesting but unlike 1, Chapter 2 made me excited for the next instalment. I’ve been Josh and I think I’ve made some PROGRESS. by Josh McCrohon @JoshMcCrohon57I’m a new guy when it comes to Progress wrestling. I know some of the wrestlers, but wouldn’t be able to name the whole roster. This is my first Progress event as I recently started paying for the monthly service they provide. Match #1 - Noam Dar vs. El Ligero [Progress Wrestling Championship Tournament Semi-Final Match] The first match of the show was Scottish Supernova, Noam Dar fighting El Ligero. The crowd cheered “Scotland Sucks!” which as a Scottish person myself, I’m afraid I disagree with. The match is high paced and is the semi-finals for the Progress Wrestling Championship. I’m guessing they just put 4 people in a small tournament, which is a cool concept. Ligero dives onto Dar. Ligero is the fan favourite in this match. Dar hits a great drop kick while Ligero is on the top rope and which unbalances the Mexican Sensation. Noam Dar is now working on the legs of El Ligero, trying to wear him down. Ligero attempts a Swanton Bomb, but Dar quickly escapes it, Dar hits an Aeroplane Spin and follows it up with a suplex for the 2 count. The match concludes as Ligero hits the C4L for the win. My Thoughts: Great first match to kick off Progress and I’m happy that Ligero gets a title shot for the Progress Championship! Match #2 - Colossus Kennedy vs. Nathan Cruz [Progress Wrestling Championship Tournament Semi-Final] Up next is Colossus Kennedy vs. Nathan Cruz. The two lock up and it is a slow start to the match. Cruz calls himself the ‘Show Stealer’, so it’s going to be interesting if he lives up to his name. Kennedy has him by the hair and just yanks him back into the ring. Kennedy hits a nice suplex which keeps Cruz down. Cruz runs into a big boot from Colossus. Kennedy hits several big kicks to the gut to Cruz who is lying on the top rope. Cruz receives a chant of ; “Shit Zack Ryder, woo woo woo” which after listening to there is a few resemblances. Personally I see Cruz more like a Dolph Ziggler figure! The match ends with Cruz getting the win and will therefore fight El Ligero in the finals. My Thoughts: Decent match Match #3 - Mike Mason vs. Colt Cabana [Progress Wrestling Championship Tournament Semi-Final] The next match is Mike Mason vs. Colt Cabana. Cabana pulls out a tennis ball which confuses Mason, Cabanna throws it up and then slaps Mason. The match is more comedy style than anything else. Mike Mason comes out victorious. Match #4 - Marty Scurll vs. Zack Sabre Jr. [Progress Wrestling Championship Tournament Semi-Final] This is going to be good; Zack Sabre Jr is going to be fighting Marty Scurll - Scurll of course having the Party Marty gimmick, bloody great stuff going on back in 2012! The match has a quick pace and they wrestle on the mat to kick off the match. The two have great chemistry. Marty Scurll wins after a quality match which My Thoughts: Brilliant match, looking forward to see Scurll in the mainevent tonight. Match #5 - Zack “Diamond” Gibson vs. “Dazzling” Darrell Allen vs. Xander Cooper (c) [BWC Scarlo Championship Match] BWC Scarlo championship is on the line. Zack “Diamond” Gibson is looking to get the belt alongside “Dazzling” Darrell Allen. The champion, Xander Cooper, is looking to retain his title. The match is quite good, but I don’t recognise any of the names competing in this match. Allen is impressive in this match which is good for him as he impresses me throughout. Cooper steals the win to retain the belt. My Thoughts: I wasn’t too interested in this match and I could’ve done without it. Match #6 - Nathan Cruz vs. Mike Mason vs. Marty Scurll vs. El Ligero [Progress Wrestling Championship Tournament Final] [Fatal 4-Way Elimination Match] Main event time now! This is a fatal 4 way elimination match for the Progress Championship. This is between El Ligero, Nathan Cruz, Mike Mason & Marty Scurll. I don’t really know who will win and that’s what makes it exciting. The match is brilliant and very interactive with the Progress fans. El Ligero is looking like a real life superhero in this match, he’s just that good! Scurll & Ligero are exchanging chair shots on the outside. Ligero attempted a piledriver on the stage to Nathan Cruz but he escapes narrowly. El Ligero is eliminated by the showstealer, Nathan Cruz. It isn’t long until Marty Scurll rolls up Mike Mason for the 3 count. We’re now down to Nathan Cruz & Marty Scurll - the only 2 men in this match to eliminate somebody. Scurll accidentally knocks down the referee and hits a Spinning Forearm to Cruz for the 3 count BUT the referee is still down, what are the chances! Cruz hits a kick to Marty’s head for the 3 count. Nathan Cruz is the Progress Wrestling Champion. My Thoughts: An anti-climactic ending to a fantastic championship bout! Overall: Great first show. I wasn’t initially going to watch the first chapter as apparently the main story starts at a roundabout Chapter 4. Also, Chapter 9 is widely touted to be the first PROPER Progress show; I must admit I’m looking forward to Chapter 4.
That’s me done for the first chapter of Progress however, . I’ve been Josh and I think I’ve made some progress…see you for Chapter 2! by Rob Goodwin @REALRobGoodwinI really could talk all day about the shortcomings of Impact Wrestling as a promotion; the fact that the mismanagement of key assets has lead to the company having to advertise and pay spectators, the GFW/Jeff Jarrett debacle and the fact that Alberto el Patron persists on causing more trouble for them than he can possibly be worth. Yet here we sit, in the middle of January of 2018 and we are looking at our first Impact match...ever! Not because of any desire to watch the product on a consistent basis mind you, but to watch and review the hoopla surrounding the Barbed Wire Massacre III Match between OvE and Sami Callahan and LAX - a match that has been been widely publicised as ‘Too Violent for TV!’ Could Impact use this as a stepping stone to bigger and better things? We will soon see! OvE and Callahan are out first, adorned in their customary masks, showing literally no concern for the barbed wire now replacing the ring ropes. Callahan in fact looks positively buoyant, though this could all be to fit in with their recent (ish) heel turn. The Impact Tag Team Champions LAX come out next to a fairly substantial pop from the crowd, firmly establishing in this newbies mind that they are most definitely the faces. One thing that does put me off is the obscenely unnecessary camera cuts during the intro to LAX’s theme; shooting round the roof and walls of the venue - why? They are accompanied by Konan and eye the ring with the same disinterest that OvE did just moments before. The opening exchanges lead to an all out brawl between the two teams - no tags here, it’s tornado rules - and early on we see OvE whipped toward the barbed wire, only to slither underneath. They then tease the completley dead audience until Santana performs an over the top dive onto the trio on the outside. Ortiz and Santana then grapple with the Crist Brothers on the outside, hitting them with dustbin lid shots to the head, while Callahan and Homocide duel with forks in the ring. Yes. Forks. Nothing comes of the fork duel and instead Homocide is thrown into the barbed wire, which instantly comes loose from the ring posts, leaving the LAX member tangled and struggling. Callahan and Ortiz quickly follow suit, but their bumps into the wire are considerably more tame, merely grazing it, yet still selling it as though it is hell on earth! Dave Crist and Santana are next, with the latter driving the former toward a barbed wire covered board, but missing so that Crist’s neck and back scrapes the barbed wire instead. Santana is then whipped toward the same board, pulling it onto himself for some reason whilst the commentary team sell the fact that the wire is sticking to his clothes. The first real spot of any note is as, after a plethora of chair shots to the head, Homocide is suplexed onto the barbed wire board by Jake Crist and Callahan. With no way of bracing for the impact, I guarantee that smarts a lot! Dave Crist meanwhile, blood pouring from his shoulder after the botched attempt at the barbed wire board earlier, has alcohol poured into the open wound by Homocide, who is then DDT’d onto a trash can lid by Callahan for the first pinfall attempt of the night with the LAX man kicking out at 2. The action really begins to pick up as Jake Crist is suplexed onto a barbed wire board suspended between 2 chairs, which snaps on impact, before Homocide is front suplexed onto the barbed wire ring ropes, which give way instantly! A great spot follows as Jake Crist is flung through the barbed wire ropes. Whilst tangled, Ortiz cuts one end of the ropes free and wraps Crist up until he gets the other ring post. Santana then cuts that section free, Ortiz gets a barbed wire wrapped Crist up on his shoulders and drives him into a barbed wire board! Ortiz is then speared through a table on the outside by a still-wrapped-up Jake Crist, whilst Santana is Tombstone Piledriven onto a barbed wire wrapped steel chair by Callahan. Callahan sets up two tables whilst Dave Crist gets a ladder. Santana is placed on top of the tables and Crist ascends. However, Konan interferes (it baffles me that it has taken this long for him to interfere mind you), hitting Callahan with a barbed wire bat, clearing he way for Santana to ascend the ladder too, driving a handful of wooden skewers into The he’d of Dave Crist. Santana superplexes Dave Crist through the tables and pins him to bring to an end this match. The match certainly started slowly, with the wrestlers understandably conscious of going near the wire, but the contest really heated up later on, with the Crist Brothers especially seemingly dead set on destroying their bodies for the fans.
Don’t get me wrong, there are still things that irked me about this match; where did the chopsticks come from and why did Crist let them by drilled into his scalp? Homocide disappeared after half the match and the crowd were awful, shouting ‘We want tables!’ despite the fact that someone had just been speared through one whilst wrapped in barbed wire - some people are never happy! All in all though, a fun little match which I enjoyed. Biggest question though; was it too violent for TV? I’ll be honest, I don’t think so - with the possible exception of the chopstick spot - but that shouldn’t take away from a good match and the effort these two teams put in here! |
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