SEScoops correspondent Michael Hogan was in attendance for WCPW’s True Destiny show from this past weekend. Here’s his report:
As I said previously, WhatCulture’s cards have always intrigued me. And while they have brought over big ex-WWE names and put them in prominent spots, like they did here, their World Title picture has always been built around UK guys. They’ve also given old and new British names such as Johnny Moss, Liam Slater and Gabriel Kidd a promotion to call home, and for that they do deserve credit.
On paper, this card had something for everyone, and all the ingredients to deliver a good show. The show opened with a match that has been travelling the globe now, and seeing these two on a poster or a card is almost a guaranteed sell out at this point – Will Ospreay vs Ricochet. A special mention has to go to Ospreay, who having landed back from Japan at 9pm the prior evening after a war against Shibata for NJPW, went and competed twice on this show. The man himself has said he is nursing some wear and tear, but he’ll be damned if he’s not going to try and steal every show he is on.
If you haven’t heard by now, pretty early on into this match the top rope broke. You could feel the trepidation from some sections of the audience, wondering if this match could live up to the ones preceding it without the catalyst for some of their flashy spots. Personally, I think this created something new and unlike what we’d seen from these 2, and was a testament to their professionalism. They carried on for about another 10 minutes, and if they were thrown, you couldn’t tell. Big audibles must have been called in the ring, but the action and speed did not stop. After some inventive 2nd rope spots, Ricochet picked up the win and WCPW was getting me on board.
Second was Primate vs Rampage in an I Quit match. This was the 5th in a Best of 7 series, and one I imagine will conclude when WCPW make their American debut over WrestleMania weekend. Rampage I was very familiar with from his work in PROGRESS as their first Atlas Champion, and having possibly the best entrance on the indies right now. Before WCPW began their shows, I didn’t know at all who Primate was but he has an intimidating look and a smashmouth style that gels well with Rampage.
This match didn’t quite live up to what I thought it would be. While WCPW isn’t an adult promotion by any means, I thought being on iPPV may have let them take the reigns off of these 2 a bit. They did, however, beat seven shades out of one another, and with a likely 2 further matches in this series, it makes sense to not show their hand entirely as of yet. Both of these guys seem like the type that would be signed by classic Vince McMahon in a heartbeat, but as is common in wrestling today; they are no slouches either. Rampage picked up the win by duct taping Primate in the corner and attacking him with a chain.
One thing I will say is that I was glad it was not a Last Man Standing match. Tye Dillinger may have secured himself a job for life with his Perfect 10 gimmick, and when he is on screen it is perfectly understandable to hear that ring around an arena. But the 10 chant was here all night and it was not going away. I don’t like to seem like the grouchy old man telling people what to chant, but this seemed a little excessive and pointless and the crowd did live up to some of my preconceptions.
Unfortunately, due to a family emergency, Penta el Zero M was unable to make it to True Destiny. The former Pentagon Jr is booked a lot in the UK over the coming months, including the aforementioned Pro Wrestling World Cup; so there will be another chance to see him, but people were disappointed after that. Instead, Alberto el Patron’s brother, the aptly named El Hijo de Dos Caras was his replacement to add a lucha flair to the evening.
I aim to be an optimistic wrestling fan. I’ve watched enough to know it’s never going to be amazing all the time, but as long as you’re entertained, that is the main thing. Unfortunately, this was not really anything to write home about. I don’t know if it was because they had a short amount of time to prepare, but after Ospreay & Ricochet’s improvisation earlier in the night that almost doesn’t seem like a fair reason. The crowd were expecting more, and it just wasn’t a great match to see. Drago got the expected win.
Zack Sabre Jr is a man who has been leading the way for British wrestling overseas. His tours with NOAH, followed by a return to the independents and sterling showings in EVOLVE and PWG, where he has held their World Championship for almost a year, have seen him become almost an icon of modern British wrestling. And in between that, he has held the Revolution Pro British Heavyweight Championship and had fantastic bouts for them and PROGRESS over the last 18 months.
Travis Banks arrived in the UK from New Zealand at the end of 2015 and has seen his reputation grow exponentially in the year he has been here. An undefeated tag team run in PROGRESS as part of the South Pacific Power Trip with TK Cooper along with Dahlia Black, and a star-making turn in Fight Club: Pro, culminating in winning their Infinity tournament over WWE UK tournament favourite Trent Seven has caused his demand to skyrocket, recently debuting for Rev Pro himself, along with Germany’s wXw.
I had been at their first contest back in Fight Club: Pro that Zack had won, and saw their first WCPW match at Lights Out in which Banks tied the score to set the stage for this rematch. Differing from the fast paced, more spot heavy first contests; this was a technical exhibition full of gruesome submissions and hard strikes. Zack’s time in Japan along with Banks’ strong style combined to make a refreshing change of pace to anything on the show before it, and the crowd seemed invested heavily.
While the crowd did seem to favour the eventual winner Sabre Jr to begin the match, Banks had the crowd at an even split at the end, and received a great ovation at the end of a fantastic wrestling match after Zack had left. Both men are prime examples of WCPW not only using a more established name on the world scene like Zack to help another guy, but also showcasing talent that is working week in, week out in the UK scene like Banks, to bring more people to those shows, and their own.
As stated above, Will Ospreay is determined to steal every show he is on. Not satisfied with his match with Ricochet earlier on, he and Swords of Essex partner Scotty Wainwright captured the WCPW Tag Team Titles in a 4 team ladder invitational also featuring former champs Johnny Moss & Liam Slater but the team of Prospect (Archer & Gracie) and El Ligero & Gabriel Kidd. While Angle & el Patron may have arguably brought the crowd in, this was another example of UK guys getting a spotlight.
It was a 4 team ladder match, and so you can expect how it went down. Johnny Moss, who looks like a strongman ate another strongman, was pulling out dives and planchas you would not believe. Relative youngsters like Kidd, Slater and Prospect did not look out of place here and all got spots to shine. Even Kidd’s ally Prince Ameen got a memorable comedy spot, if not slightly odd with the use of a magic carpet and a certain Disney theme tune.
Some of the action was difficult to keep up with, and with the event picking up pace, the 8 men did great to not let the crowd simmer down. The finish came with Ospreay hitting an Oscutter from the top of a huge ladder onto Kidd, further cementing the fact that the man will die for a crowd. However, Ospreay was a replacement for the third Sword of Essex, Paul Robinson, who was not at the show, so it will be interesting to see how WCPW handle this with Ospreay’s burdgeoning schedule.
There was another change to the announced card, as Tessa Blanchard was unable to make the show. Her replacement, Nixon Newell though was great to see. Unfortunately, Paige just happened to take her seat at this point which large portions of the crowd made a lot of noise for, but thankfully that quietened down. If you’ve not seen Newell before, she is one of the best babyfaces in the UK at the moment, regardless of gender. It’s rumoured heavily Nixon is getting ready to head to NXT, and with the women’s roster they are building, you can easily see where she would fit in there.
Bea Priestley has improved a great deal since arriving in the UK, another New Zealander who has came over a la Travis Banks. Unfortunately, she still seems to get a some hate from small sections of fans, seemingly over her public relationship with Will Ospreay but with how she has grown into a genuine heel in various promotions, WCPW included, people should be seeing her for more than that. Nixon went over and reclaimed her WCPW Women’s Title that Bea had stolen from her, and the crowd were energetic before the 2 main events.
Drew Galloway successfully defended his WCPW World Championship over Joe Hendry in a decent semi main event. It felt a little short, and while all matches on the card got a decent amount of time, it’s the World Championship, and I felt this one could have gone another 5 minutes. I can see how this will be something to fuel the fires of controversy also, as however you put it, the 2 British guys in the big title match were second to the imports. At least at this point in the show. I don’t want to gloss over this match, because neither man deserve that. Drew Galloway is continuing to hone his craft, and it’s surely a matter of when, not if, he goes back to WWE. Joe Hendry looked good too, but his big moment would come later in the last match of the show.
I saw Kurt Angle face Zack Sabre Jr for Rev Pro last Summer and left with a bit of a sour taste in my mouth. Hearing “Medal” again was fantastic, and the crowd in York Hall was electric, but it wasn’t the match I thought it would be. Thus, I came into this match, billed as his last match in the UK with tempered expectations. I’m not sure if that is the reason why, but Kurt and Alberto put on a hell of a main event for my money.
The crowd, for all of their detractions and ten chants, were electric for this, buying into every near fall and creating a genuine big match atmosphere. It being his last independent match, of course Angle went over; but this was so much better than I thought it could be, I was swept up in the spectacle and it rightfully got the biggest ovation of the night. Some may have said Angle should have put over a young talent in his final match, but instead he saved it for afterwards.
Joe Hendry came back to the ring, a man who squared off against Angle in his first WCPW appearance. Hendry cut a promo giving Kurt rightful props, and just when the crowd were about to break into a “Thank you Angle” chant, Hendry stuck him with the low blow. In wrestling tradition, Angle went out on his back, and WCPW look like they have a top, homegrown heel to move forward with. Quite when that forward movement will happen is up in the air, as the company have recently announced their weekly show is going on hiatus. This is a shame, as this was a good angle to finish the show, and a heel Joe Hendry is not something any other UK promotion is doing right now, and gives the talented Scotsman a chance to flourish in other ways.
So, overall, what did I make of it? Honestly, the day was a hugely pleasant surprise. I came in trepidatious and left with a changed perception of the organisation as a whole. The level of professionalism from top the bottom really took me back. I think the part that exemplified this the most was in between the press conference and show. After the fan convention had died down, the main YouTube personalities, who moments ago had been signing autographs, were setting up chairs and preparing the arena. I didn’t expect that amount of hands on work by people I thought were there mainly to promote the show.
I don’t think I’ll end up a regular at WCPW, however. I like the gritty, underground, slightly less polished organisations like PROGRESS personally, but what is fascinating is now how there is so much choice for the British fan. For a collective of peninsulas that could fit into Texas god knows how many times over, there really is something to appease every palette of wrestling fan. The resurgence of British wrestling has not been an overnight process, but because of how the scene is set up at the moment, it allows companies like WCPW to hit the ground running and provide something for fans who may only watch WWE, and allow them to safely dip a toe into the water of the independent scene.
The ambition for the Pro Wrestling World Cup, along with constantly bringing in new guys (for instance The Young Bucks debut in March) makes me think WCPW won’t be going away, at least not any time soon. The haters I’m sure will be waiting with baited breath but do I think it deserves all the hate? Absolutely not. If it’s not your cup of tea, go and support the company you feel is more suited to you, and enjoy the fact the British scene is back on top once more.
