Posts Tagged ‘Mark Andrews’

Mark Andrews vs Zack Sabre Jr Announced for PROGRESS Chapter 69

PROGRESS has announced a huge bout for their upcoming Chapter 69 show which will be taking place Sunday 20th May from the Victoria Warehouse in Manchester, England. This will be the biggest UK based show that the company has ever produced outside of their spiritual home in London.

205 Live Superstar and former PROGRESS World Champion Mark Andrews will be facing New Japan Pro Wrestling’s Zack Sabre Jr. Both men are stalwarts of the UK independent wrestling scene and have branched out in a massive way internationally but in uniquely different ways. Andrews has been a featured performer on the aforementioned WWE Network show 205 Live and has also been involved in one of the more intriguing feuds on the UK scene against his former friend and tag team partner; Eddie Dennis.

Zack Sabre Jr himself has seen a huge leap in exposure ever since his move to New Japan Pro Wrestling, his inclusion in the successful Suzuki-Gun stable alongside Japanese legend Minoru Suzuki has seen him win the New Japan Cup and go on to face Kazuchika Okada in the main event of NJPW’s Sakura Genesis PPV show.

This should be a clash of styles between two of the finest export talents that the UK scene has produced over the past decade and you can catch the action shortly after the fact on Demand PROGRESS.

WWE 205 Live Superstar Announced for RIPTIDE Wrestling’s ‘Spring Break’

UK based promotion RIPTIDE Wrestling has confirmed that 205 Live Superstar and former PROGRESS World Champion Mark Andrews will be making his way to their Spring Break event on Friday May 4th from The Brighthelm Centre and Auditorium in Brighton, England.

Andrews will be taking on one of the most beloved stars in both RIPTIDE and the UK scene; Jack Sexsmith. The ‘Pansexual Phenomenon’ has been building his profile over the past few years and is now in line for a huge PROGRESS Wrestling World Title bout (at their 69th Chapter event) as well as high profile matches for up and coming independent companies such as RIPTIDE.

The currently confirmed card for Spring Break is now as follows:

  • WALTER vs Wild Boar

  • Jimmy Havoc vs Jinny

  • Mark Andrews vs Jack Sexsmith

  • Maverick Mayhew vs Spike Trivet

  • Sierra Loxton vs Chakara vs Sammi Jayne

  • TK Cooper vs Drew Parker vs Elijah vs Danny Jones

  • Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake) vs Kip Sabian & ??? vs Team White Wolf vs Anti-Fun Police

Tickets for the event are now available to purchase via RIPTIDE’s official website.

https://twitter.com/RIPTIDEwres/status/987760163460386816

205 Live Superstar Interviewed by PROGRESS Co-owner (Video)

PROGRESS Wrestling co-owner Glen Joseph recently sat down with Welsh star Mark Andrews to discuss a variety of topics, including his recent ongoing feud with fellow PROGRESS star Eddie Dennis.

Andrews is already a member of the WWE United Kingdom roster and he recently made his way onto 205 Live, joining the Cruiserweight Championship Tournament and defeating Akira Tozawa in somewhat of an upset. Whether this means that ‘Mandrews’ will be a full time member of the WWE roster going forward remains to be seen. Andrews’ bitter PROGRESS rivalry with Eddie Dennis looked to be gaining momentum however an injury to Dennis has left his unable to compete over the past few months. There is a very good chance that we will see Andrews vs Dennis at some point down the line, even potentially as part of the upcoming PROGRESS event in Wembley Arena this September.

Wrestler Added To 205 Live Roster, Stephanie McMahon’s Latest Workout Clip, Becky Lynch

– After pinning Akira Tozawa on 205 Live on Tuesday night, Mark Andrews will be a regular in the cruiserweight division going forward.

On Thursday, WWE added Andrews to the 205 Live roster listed on WWE.com. This also means he’s an official WWE Superstar since he’s listed on the current roster as well. You can view his profile here.

Andrews pinned Tozawa to advance to the second round of the 16-man Cruiserweight Championship Tournament. There is no word yet on who he will be facing.

– Stephanie McMahon is getting ready for WrestleMania. On Thursday night, the WWE executive and performer posted her latest “Midnight Workout” video, which shows her doing mini hurdle hops with a box jump and double banded TKE goblet squats.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BfPpAc7B8Eo/

– Becky Lynch is trying to bring more attention to her real name, Rebecca Quin. The WWE star recently changed the name listed on her Twitter account (@BeckyLynchWWE) to her real name, Rebecca Quin. She also goes under her real name on Instagram, although she’s had it listed for a few years.

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Confirmed for Rev Pro ‘High Stakes’

Revolution Pro’s ‘High Stakes 2018’ event is once again shaping up to be one of the biggest events on the UK calendar. The company has now revealed that IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Will Ospreay will be making his return to the company to face ‘White Lightning’ Mark Andrews on January 20th at London’s York Hall.

Both men are considered veterans of the UK scene, both are former PROGRESS World Champions and both have seen success on a much broader, worldwide scale; Andrews won TNA’s Boot Camp show and appeared sporadically for the company before joining the WWE UK Division and of course Ospreay has been tearing it up on New Japan’s Juniors circuit.

This could easily be one of the best matches on UK shores in 2018, keep an eye out for Rev Pro’s On Demand like days after the January 20th event.

First Matches Announced for PROGRESS Chapter 59

PROGRESS has announced the first three matches for their upcoming Chapter 59 event from the O2 Academy in Sheffield, ever since the introduction of the WWE UK Division it has been clear that PROGRESS will need to start introducing and building some new talent among their ranks, this card appears to be the start of their new revival:

  • Chris Brookes vs Matt Cross vs Mark Andrews – This will be Brooke’s first match since the injury sustained to his tag team partner and former PROGRESS Tag Champion id Lykos. This should be a high flying affair with both Andrews and Cross looking to re-establish themselves among PROGRESS’ elite.

  • Chris Ridgeway vs ‘Flash’ Morgan Webster – This will be Ridgeway’s second Chapter show after he impressed last Sunday in TWO matches. ‘Flash’ will be looking to get his name in the win column after a game attempt against Keith Lee at Chapter 57.

  • 8 Man Scramble Match – This bout features some new faces among the PROGRESS scene and the winner will get a shot at a PROGRESS title of their choice! Heavy favourites here have to be Jack Sexsmith and ‘Pastor’ William Eaver who will likely go for a Tag Team title shot.

 

UK Superstars Invading 205 Live, Sin Cara Injury Update, The Bar Celebrates

– The Superstars from WWE’s United Kingdom division will be appearing on this week’s 205 Live episode from Manchester, England. Stars advertised to appear are WWE UK Champion Pete Dunne, Mark Andrews, Jordan Devlin, Tucker, Tyler Bate, Joseph Conners and James Drake. As noted, this week’s RAW in Manchester saw Dunne make his RAW debut with a non-title win over WWE Cruiserweight Champion Enzo Amore.

– Sin Cara took to Twitter and confirmed that he suffered a knee injury at Sunday’s WWE live event in Spain. He was pulled from Monday’s live event in Portugal due to the injury. WWE has not commented on the injury but they did re-tweet his comments. Sin Cara tweeted (translated),

“Due to an knee injury I could not participate today in #WWELisbon. Apologies to those who attended. I hope to see you again soon.”

“For those who say it’s only entertainment.We love this sport and we put ourselves at risk for it every day.”

Stay tuned for updates on Cara’s condition going into this week’s SmackDown.

– This week’s WWE RAW in Manchester, England saw Sheamus and Cesaro defeat Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose to become three-time RAW Tag Team Champions. Below is video of The Bar talking to Mike Rome after the big win, which came after The New Day appeared in the crowd to distract everyone.

The Bar brags on beating The Hardys, The New Day and now The Shield. They now look ahead to their match against SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos. Cesaro says The Uso Penitentiary can’t hold them because they just don’t break bars, they are The Bar.

PROGRESS Chapter 57 Main Event Confirmed

PROGRESS has announced the main event for their upcoming Chapter 57 event ‘Enter Smiling’ which takes place from Manchester’s O2 Ritz.

PROGRESS World Champion Travis Banks will be defending his title against former Champion Mark Andrews. ‘White Lightning’ Mark Andrews earned this title shot at Chapter 55 and he will be looking to finally reclaim the belt after a short lived first reign.

Travis Banks defeated Keith Lee at this past Sunday’s Chapter 56 event and he will look to continue his winning streak against Andrews. It is highly likely that Banks walks out of Manchester with the belt, Andrews is currently only a bit part player on the PROGRESS roster and his involvement with WWE’s UK Division and the WWE’s plans in general are not yet clear…still, this should be an incredible bout and one well worth checking out on PROGRESS’ On Demand service.

Mark Andrews Injured During NXT Event At Download Festival (Updated w/ Video & Statement From WWE)

NXT Superstar Mark Andrews was injured and stretchered out of the arena during the UK Download Festival. Andrews was a part of the eight-man tag team main-event and was reportedly injured following a Clothesline with one of the members of The Authors of Pain.

https://twitter.com/callumleslie92/status/873994786302283777

We will post updates when they become available.

Update: British independent wrestler Eddie Dennis stated on Twitter that he has heard from Mark Andrews and that he will be alright.

Update: Footage from the Download Festival of the Mark Andrews injury has been posted. As seen in the video, Andrews was injured after hitting the mat from a Clothesline. From the video, it appears that Andrews may have just been unlucky and landed wrong on his neck.

https://twitter.com/briantheguppie/status/874035396589625344

Update: WWE has released the following statement on their site about the injury:

Mark Andrews suffered a neck injury on Sunday during WWE NXT’s time at Download Festival 2017 in Donington Park in Derby, England.

Andrews was quickly evaluated by WWE medical personnel. A statement passed along to WWE.com read, “A CT scan of Andrews came back negative, with just bruising evident. Mark would like to thank all his fans for their concern.”

H/T to RmeeU in the comments.

VIDEO: Mark Andrews Attacked by Pete Dunne During his Band’s Download Festival Set

WWE UK Pete Dunne and Mark Andrews are set to collide for the WWE UK Championship tonight at NXT’s Download Festival show.

Andrew’s band JUNIOR performed at the annual Metal, Hardcore and Punk festival this afternoon and during their set Pete Dunne appeared and attacked Andrews. Andrews fought back and hit a dive off the stage on to the WWE UK Champion, he then took to the microphone and proclaimed that he will win the title tonight in the NXT tent.

Check out the clip below to see the stage dive:

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Further Information on the WWE UK Championship Series

Ryan Satin of the Pro Wrestling Sheet has released further details on the WWE UK division and the brand’s upcoming bi-weekly events.

The current plan calls for tapings every six weeks and for live events to run every other week in the UK featuring the UK contracted talent. The time frame for the tapings has not yet been finalised and it may well be several more months until tapings for the series begin.

The top stars in the division, namely Pete Dunne, Trent Seven, Tyler Bate, Wolfgang and Mark Andrews have reportedly signed US contracts that will allow them to drop in on the Florida based Performance Center when needed. These top stars will likely remain in the United Kingdom to focus on building the UK brand rather than continue to work cameo appearances on NXT.

PROGRESS Chapter 48 Main Event Revealed feat. WWE UK Division Competitors

PROGRESS has announced the main event for their next Chapter event taking place at the O2 Ritz in Manchester: ‘Bang The Drum.’

A number 1 contenders match took place at Chapter 47 between Mark Andrews and Mark Haskins, the bout ended in a draw and thus a triple threat match has been announced for ‘Bang The Drum.’

Andrews and Haskins are both former PROGRESS Champions and have the opportunity to become only the second 2-time PROGRESS Champion in company history behind ‘The Villain’ Marty Scurll.

Current Champion Pete Dunne has been THE story of 2017 on the UK scene and the WWE UK competitor will be looking to solidify himself as the best in PROGRESS.

PROGRESS Orlando: WWE UK Championship Title Match Announced

PROGRESS has announced a major change to their upcoming PROGRESS: Orlando show that takes place this Friday as part of the WWN Live events over Wrestlemania weekend.

PROGRESS co-owner Glen Joseph announced via the company’s Facebook account that WWE UK Champion Tyler Bate would be defending his title against ‘White Lightning’ Mark Andrews.

Andrews faced PROGRESS Champion Pete Dunne at this past Sunday’s Chapter event and lost the bout, due in part to Dunne’s stablemates Tyler Bate & Trent Seven interfering and as such NXT General Manager William Regal decreed that the WWE UK Title be put on the line.

While this may not be the first time that a WWE Title has been defended outside of the company it may well be the very first time that a WWE Title has been defended on a non-WWE iPPV stream. Can you think of any others? Let us know in the comments below.

PROGRESS Chapter 46 ‘I Like To Chill Out Here and Shoot Some Dinosaurs’ Main Event and Undercard Matches Announced

Hot off the heels of their Chapter 45 show in Manchester; PROGRESS have announced the Main Event and undercard for their Chapter 46 Show ‘I Like to Chill Out Here and Shoot Some Dinosaurs’ (a phrase coined by Mark Haskin’s son in a recent PROGRESS documentary). The scheduled matches are as follows:

  • PROGRESS Championship Match: Pete Dunne (c) vs Mark Andrews – After his hellacious death match with Jimmy Havoc at Chapter 45 the PROGRESS Champion Pete Dunne is set to defend his title against one of the best high flyers in the game, Mark Andrews. Mandrews earned this shot by winning the Thunderb*stard match this year but with Dunne proving himself as an extremely creedal champion during his first run with the title it is unlikely that he loses it.

  • The Origin (Zack Gibson & Nathan Cruz) vs The Origin ‘Banter Edition’ (El Ligero & Dave Mastiff) – El Ligero has spent the last two chapter events taking on his former tag team partners in the Origin: Zack Gibson and Nathan Cruz. The ‘Banter Edition’ of the Origin – Mastiff & Ligero have been winning over the PROGRESS fans recently and Cruz/Gibson have not taken kindly to this, so it all finally comes to a head this Sunday at Chapter 46.

Other matches announced include:

  • ATLAS Championship Match: Matt Riddle (c) vs WALTER
  • Mark Haskins vs Axel Dieter JR
  • Travis Banks vs Jack Sexsmith
  • Natural Progression Series Semi-Final: Toni Storm vs Dahlia Black
  • PROGRESS Tag Team Title Match: British Strong Style (c) vs The Hunter Brothers

PROGRESS Chapter 45 ‘Galvanize’ Results

Here are the results from PROGRESS Wrestling’s latest Chapter event – Galvanize. The show took place at the O2 Ritz in Manchester in front of a sold out crowd:

PROGRESS Tag Team Championship MatchBritish Strong Style (Tyler Bate & Trent Seven) b. Travis Banks & TK Cooper – The WWE UK Division competitors Seven & Bate successfully retained their Tag Team Title Shields against the South Pacific Power Trip.

Zack Gibson b. El Ligero – Gibson took the win against his former Origin stablemate using his ‘Helter Skelter’ signature move. Nathan Cruz appeared during the match to distract Ligero leading to the finish.

James Drake b. Jack Sexsmith – Sexsmith continues to prove himself as a viable competitor in PROGRESS even with this loss against Drake. This is Drake’s second win in as many Chapter appearances and he looks set to make a big impact in PROGRESS this year.

Mark Andrews b. Will Ospreay – The Number 1 Contender to the PROGRESS Championship Mark Andrews continues his hot streak with a win over NJPW star Ospreay. After the match Jimmy Havoc appeared to beat down the Aerial Assassin Will Ospreay in an attempt to stop him interfering in the main event.

Ringkampf (Walter & Axel Dieter Jr) b. The Hunter Brothers – wXw heroes Ringkampf continue to prove their worth to the PROGRESS faithful with a win over the Hunter Brothers

Flash Morgan Webster b. Nathan Cruz – Morgan Webster picks up the win in his first singles appearance for the company since his long layoff with injury. Cruz has now lost two in a row at Chapter events and he took his anger out on ‘Flash’ after the bout.

Jinny b. Nixon Newell – Jinny defeated NXT bound Nixon Newell to advance to the final of the Natural Progression series, she looks set to win the tournament and become the first ever PROGRESS Women’s Champion. 

PROGRESS Championship Match – Pete Dunne b. Jimmy Havoc – Dunne retained his championship in an incredible deathmatch that involved thumbtacks, tables, barbed wire and an interfering Will Ospreay. After the bout Ospreay laid out Havoc and screamed ‘THIS HAS TO END.’

PROGRESS: Final Matches Announced for Chapter 45 ‘Galvanize’

PROGRESS have announced the final matches for their Chapter 45 event: ‘Galvanize.’ The show takes place this Sunday at the O2 Ritz in Manchester and will be available on demand within the week.

  • Zack Gibson vs El Ligero

The ‘Origin’ stable continues to implode as ‘Liverpool’s Number 1’ Zack Gibson challenges El Ligero. After his impressive win against Nathan Cruz the ‘Lucha Otter’ El Ligero looks to re-establish himself in the PROGRESS singles scene and a win against one of the company’s most impressive talents (in Gibson) would certainly go a long way towards gaining an eventual PROGRESS title shot.

  • Will Ospreay vs Mark Andrews

Two of the world’s premier high-flyers collide when NJPW star Will Ospreay takes on WWE UK Division competitor Mark Andrews. Ospreay has not stepped foot in a PROGRESS ring since his beatdown of Jimmy Havoc and reformation of the Swords of Essex with Paul Robinson so expect his reception in Manchester to be extremely hostile. Andrews has a PROGRESS championship match in his future after winning the Thunderb*stard match so this one could go either way.

PROGRESS – Full Roster for Wrestlemania Weekend Show Revealed

PROGRESS will be making their way to the Orlando Live Events Center on March 31st as part of the WWNLive Experience 2017. As well as the planned PROGRESS vs EVOLVE super card the promotion will be hosting their own branded show at 12pm EST which will be available on iPPV:  wwnlive.com/product/progress-wrestling-presents-progress-orlando-ippv-live-viewing-video-demand/

The full roster for PROGRESS’ first ever show in America has now been revealed:

  • PROGRESS Champion – Pete Dunne
  • Trent Seven
  • Zack Sabre Jr
  • PROGRESS Atlas Champion – Matt Riddle
  • Tyler Bate
  • Mark Andrews
  • Shane Strickland
  • Mark Haskins
  • South Pacific Power Trip (TK Cooper, Travis Banks and Dahlia Black
  • Toni Storm
  • Jinny
  • James Drake
  • Sami Callihan
  • Rockstar Spud
  • Jimmy Havoc

Tickets for the event are still available to purchase via morethanmania.com and if you’re in Orlando for Wrestlemania weekend then definitely try and make it to this event, you will not be disappointed.

 

Attack! Pro Wrestling (UK) Raise over £5000 for Cancer Charity in Honour of Kris Travis

Welsh independent promotion Attack! Pro Wrestling held an event this past weekend in honour of Kris Travis who passed away after losing his battle with stomach cancer last year.

The ‘Kris Travis Tag Team Invitational’ tournament featured some of the best tag competitors in the UK such as #CCK (Chris Brookes & Mondai Lykos), F.S.U (Mark Andrews & Eddie Dennis) & eventual winners Project Lucha (El Ligero & Martin Kirby).

Before the 2 day event Attack! announced that proceeds would be donated to the Cavendish Cancer Care charity. It was announced after the sold out shows that over £5000 was raised.

Attack! Pro Wrestling has one of the most rabid fan bases in the UK scene and it is certainly worth checking out their Vimeo On Demand service if you want to see some of the best technical (and fun!) wrestling that the UK has to offer: vimeo.com/attackprowrestling

https://twitter.com/Ligero1/status/838499660385955841

PROGRESS: More Chapter 45 Matches Announced

PROGRESS have announced two more bouts for their upcoming Chapter 45 event: ‘Galvanise.’

‘Flash’ Morgan Webster made his in-ring return at Chapter 44 when he teamed with Mark Haskins and Jimmy Havoc against British Strong Style. Although his team took the win it was Havoc that secured the winning pinfall, therefore Webster missed out on a PROGRESS title shot. His opponent for Chapter 44 will be Nathan Cruz, who himself lost at Chapter 44 against his former Origin stable mate El Ligero.

There is a lot at stake in this bout, the uncertain future of WWE contracted talents such as PROGRESS Champion Pete Dunne, Mark Andrews, Trent Seven and WWE UK Champion Tyler Bate opens the door for the next batch of possible main eventers to shine and there is certainly an opportunity for both of these performers to move up to that next level if necessary.

The next announced match is a Semi-Final bout in the Natural Progression Series tournament. This is the first Women’s tournament in company history and the winner will be crowned the first ever PROGRESS Women’s Champion.

Crowd favourite Nixon Newell will be taking on ‘heat magnet’ Jinny. This is Jinny’s first Chapter match in quite some time and she is likely to be win the entire tournament, a win for Nixon would be considered a huge upset but as PROGRESS are looking to establish their official Women’s division surprises could be in store.

PROGRESS Chapter 44 ‘Old Man Yells At Cloud’ Results

Here are the results from PROGRESS’ Chapter 44 event ‘Old Man Yells At Cloud.’ The show took place at a sold out Electric Ballroom in Camden, UK.

James Drake b. Damon Moser – This was a relatively shot match that saw WWE UK Tournament competitor James Drake won with the Mr Mayhem DDT. There are reports that Moser was injured during the bout thus the quick conclusion.

Dahlia Black (w/TK Cooper) b. Martina the Session Moth – This was a 1st round match in the Natural Progression Series to crown the first ever PROGRESS Women’s Champion as well as being Martina’s debut match for the company. Black took the win when TK Cooper interfered and cost Martina the bout

Travis Banks b. Jordan Devlin – Another PROGRESS debut here as WWE Tournament Competitor Jordan Devlin looked to beat tag team specialist Banks. Travis took the win after hitting a Buzzsaw Kick.

Pastor William Eaver b. Sebastian – Eaver took the win here after hitting the ‘Clothesline From Heaven’ in what was an extremely violent bout, definitely one worth watching on PROGRESS’ On Demand service.

Mark Andrews b. Shane Strickland – An absolutely fantastic match that saw Andrews win with the Shooting Star Press, after the match PROGRESS Co-Owner Jim Smallman asked Strickland to appear at the Orlando shows over Wrestlemania Weekend.

El Ligero b. Nathan Cruz – A hotly contested bout between two former Origin members saw Ligero take the win after reversing a Figure Four into an Inside Cradle. After the match Cruz removed Ligero’s mask.

Zack Gibson b. Jack Sexsmith – This match was all about Sexsmith proving himself as a viable championship  contender for the company and it certainly felt like his ‘coming out party.’ Gibson hit the Helter Skelter for the pinfall win.

Jimmy Havoc, Mark Haskins & Morgan Webster b. British Strong Style (Pete Dunne, Trent Seven & Tyler Bate) – The stakes for this match were extremely high. If Havoc, Haskins or Webster got a pinfall or submission victory then they would receive a title shot, however if one of them took a pinfall, countout or submission loss then they would ineligible to ANY title shot for 6 months. Havoc ended up taking the victory and title shot following an Acid Rainmaker on PROGRESS Champion Pete Dunne.

https://twitter.com/JimmyHavoc/status/835973069021802499

PROGRESS Top 10 Matches of 2016 (Video), More Matches Announced for Chapter 44

PROGRESS have released a highlights video for the Top 10 matches of 2016 as voted for by the company’s fan base, you can see the video below:

PROGRESS have also announced more bouts for their Chapter 44 show: ‘Old Man Yells at Cloud.’ OTT star and WWE UK Championship tournament competitor Jordan Devlin will be making his company debut against UK Indie standout Travis Banks.

The other featured bouts currently announced are:

  • Mark Haskins, ‘Flash’ Morgan Webster & Jimmy Havoc vs British Strong Style
  • Nathan Cruz vs El Ligero
  • Mark Andrews vs Shane Strickland
  • Jack Sexsmith vs Zack Gibson

Matt Riddle: Independent Wrestling’s New Chris Hero? (Editorial)

When it was announced that Chris Hero had re-signed with WWE and would be returning to NXT it created a chasm across the Independent wrestling scene, both in the United States and Europe.

After his original departure from WWE back in 2013, Hero toured the world performing for numerous promotions big and small and establishing himself as quite possibly the best independent wrestler on the planet. What is truly astonishing is the quality and variety of matches that Chris Hero had in 2016; from his bouts in UK based Revolution Pro against Tomohiro Ishii and Katsuyori Shibata, his show stealing PROGRESS bouts against Mark Andrews and Marty Scurll, his PWG tag bout alongside Tommy End against Fenix & Pentagon Jr through to his EVOLVE matches with Dick Togo, Timothy Thatcher, Zack Sabre Jr……and Matt Riddle.

One of Hero’s biggest draws was that he seemed just as happy performing in front of thousands of fans as he did in front of a smaller crowd, eager to help as many promotions as possible gain traction and build their fan base.

Before I started writing this I saw a tweet from a very small UK based promotion stating that Matt Riddle would be performing for them in April against Josh Bodom, himself an up and coming star on the UK scene. Counter this with Riddle’s other matches so far in 2017 in the UK for the likes of Rev Pro and PROGRESS and you can see why I drew the comparison to Hero, he appears to be working for independents big and small.

Now, Riddle has only been wrestling for around 3 years and while he is not quite at the caliber of a Chris Hero just yet, he certainly has all of the tools to get there. Ever since his departure from UFC Riddle has taken to Pro Wrestling at an astonishing rate, earning him comparisons to the likes of Kurt Angle and Brock Lesnar. His natural charisma and ability to read is what established him as a star in EVOLVE.

Riddle’s temperament seems to be the same as Hero’s, he wants to work for as many companies as possible, get as much experience as he can and build his brand globally. As I mentioned before the hole that Chris Hero left in the Independent scene was substantial. Indie companies desperately need a performer that can come in and elevate both your company and the stars on your roster  Matt Riddle looks set to be the man to fill those boots with his willingness to work in diverse matches against a litany of different opponents.

Who’s your Hero? It’s Matt Riddle….bro

 

 

 

Will Ospreay Announced for Fight Club: Pro Easter Weekender

The Easter Weekend Fight Club: Pro events were already looking like some of the most must see shows in the UK this year, and now they have announced that Will Ospreay will be appearing on Friday 14th April at the Fixxion in Wolverhampton and Sunday 16th April at the Bush Hall in London.

Other stars announced for these shows are:

  • Pentagon Jr
  • Sami Callihan
  • Moustache Mountain
  • Travis Banks
  • Zack Sabre Jr
  • Rey Fenix
  • Pete Dunne
  • Chris Brookes
  • Shane Strickland
  • Marty Scurll
  • FSU – Mark Andrews and Eddie Dennis
  • Kenny Omega
  • The Young Bucks
  • Mark Haskins
  • Dan Moloney

PROGRESS Super Strong Style 16 Weekender Sells Out in 2 Hours

Anyone looking to attend PROGRESS’ annual Super Strong Style 16 event may well now be out of luck. PROGRESS tend to always sell out on their Electric Ballroom tickets but in is likely a company record the 3 day event sold out in less than an hour.

Super Strong Style 16 is a tournament usually set over 2 days (this years is over 3) that features some of the best Independent talents from the UK and beyond. The 2016 iteration featured arguably the best match in company history when Mark Andrews took on Chris Hero in a thrilling bout.

The PROGRESS Pivotshare on demand service has a wealth of content and is certainly worth a look: demandprogress.pivotshare.com

https://twitter.com/jimsmallman/status/828885478027956226

UK Promotion Lucha Forever Joins FloSlam Network

FloSlam.Tv have announced that new UK promotion Lucha Forever will be joining their on demand roster. The debut event for the promotion takes place April 17th in Birmingham at a yet to be named venue.

For the past couple of weeks Lucha Forever have been slowly revealing more information regarding their live events and roster, some of the talents that you will be able to see live at their Birmingham and Cardiff events are:

  • Pete Dunne
  • Will Ospreay
  • Mark Andrews
  • Zack Sabre Jr
  • Marty Scurll
  • El Ligero
  • Travis Banks
  • Ryan Smile

Check out luchaforever.com for more info.

https://twitter.com/FloSlam/status/821417455142764544