From The Shelf- PROGRESS Chapter 13: Unbelievable Jeff!

PROGRESS Chapter 13: Unbelievable Jeff!
5-18-14
Camden, London, UK

Your host is Jimmy Barnett.

Apparently the company had production issues so rather than putting this on DVD they put this on their YouTube page for free, which is sweet. I’ve heard good things about the British indie scene so this is a good first look for me.

Rampage Brown vs. Darrell Allen
Brown misses some elbow drops and Allen dropkicks Brown to the floor. He looks to dive but Brown blocks with a forearm. Brown charges but Allen low bridges him to the floor. Suicide dive by Allen and back in, Allen gets a crucifix for 2. Sunset flip by Allen gets 2 and he throws some kicks at Brown. High kick by Brown gets 2. Short arm clothesline by Brown gets 2. Brown rakes the face of Allen and he chokes Allen with his boot in the corner. Backbreaker by Brown gets 2. Leg lariat by Allen and he goes for a suplex but Brown counters into the Falcon Arrow for 2. Snap mare and Brown goes to the chin lock. Allen fights out so Brown rams him into the corner. Gord buster onto the ropes by Brown gets 2. Brown charges but Allen sidesteps him sending Brown into the post shoulder first. Slingshot dropkick by Allen and he hits a hurricanrana off the apron to the floor. Back in, Allen hits a springboard clothesline for 2. Spinning enzuigiri by Allen and he gets the O’Connor roll for 2. Hurricanrana by Allen gets 2. Super kick by Allen and Brown comes back with a pile driver for 3.
Winner- Rampage Brown **1/2 ( Solid way to start the show. Brown is set to face Samoa Joe at the next show so this was a good way to showcase his power and strength while giving Allen just enough to make it competitive. )

Natural Progression Series Match-Pete Dunne vs. Robbie X
These two are in a young wrestler style tournament. Dunne controls X on the mat in the early going and gets a crucifix for 2. Head stand headscissors by X and Dunne comes back with a roll-up for 2. Dropkick by X and Dunne comes back with an enzuigiri. Pump handle into the flatliner by Dunne gets 2. Suplex by Dunne gets 2. Dunne drives X’s knees into the mat and goes to the Indian Deathlock. X escapes and begins to clean house. Second rope dropkick by X and he covers for 2. Chops by X and he hits a sit-out powerbomb for 2. Brainbuster by Dunne gets 2. Enzuigiri on the apron by X and he backdrops Dunne to the floor. Springboard Asai moonsault to the floor by X!!! Back in, X covers for 2. Handspring Ace Crusher is blocked and Dunne hits a Tombstone forcing X to bail to the floor. Back in, X hits a spinning enzuigiri. Handspring Ace Crusher by X and he hits the standing SSP for 2. X goes to springboard but Dunne catches him with a forearm. Sit-out powerbomb gets 2 and Dunne goes to the Texas Cloverleaf. X rolls through for 2 and he hits a super kick. X goes up for the moonsault but eats knees. Gibson Driver by Dunne and he goes back to the Cloverleaf. X gives.
Winner- Pete Dunne **3/4 (Again, solid stuff. There wasn’t much in the way of a story but both men have good move sets and Robbie X in particular has good athleticism that he just needs to fine tune. The fans chanting about his red face got annoying though. )

Michael Gilbert vs. Eddie Dennis
Eddie Dennis tries to convince Gilbert he is serious and he pulls out a tie-dye T-Shirt. Eddie complains about Gilbert’s not so nice words about his alter ego so tonight Gilbert gets to face the pride of Tijawana Mexico, Eddie Mysterio Jr.!!!! He puts on a Rey Mysterio mask. Arm drags by Mysterio Jr. and he hits a dropkick for 1. Northern lights suplex by Gilbert and Mysterio drop toe holds him into the ropes. He goes for the 619 but Gilbert bails to avoid it. Back in, Gilbert demands serious wrestling but Mysterio Jr. wants to perform some lucha libre. Gilbert takes Mysterio Jr. down into the bow and arrow and he begins to work the arm of Mysterio Jr. Gilbert rips the mask off of Dennis and Dennis overpowers Gilbert but it seems Gilbert caught him low on the way down. Snap mare and Gilbert goes to the chin lock. Dennis fights out and Gilbert overpowers him this time. Single leg suplex by Gilbert and he goes to the STF. Dennis makes the ropes to break. Gilbert works the leg of Dennis and he hits a springboard knee drop. Forearms by Gilbert but it fires up Dennis. They trade forearms and Gilbert takes him down to end that. He slams Dennis’ leg off the post and Dennis makes it back in before the ten count. Reverse atomic drop by Dennis and he hits a clothesline. Running uppercut in the corner by Dennis and he hits the roaring elbow. Exploder suplex by Dennis gets 2. Backslide by Gilbert gets 2 and he hits a Northern Lariat. Lariat by Gilbert gets 2. Gilbert puts the mask back on Dennis and he toys with him. Tilt-a-whirl head scissors into the ropes by now Mysterio Jr. and he hits the 61Knee. Dennis takes the mask off and covers for 2. Next Stop Driver is escaped by Gilbert and Dennis gets an O’Connor roll for 2 as Gilbert rolls through with a bridge for 3!!!
Winner-Michael Gilbert ** ( The antics of Eddie Dennis were pretty fun but the match was dull when Gilbert was in control and doing the serious wrestler gimmick will not get him far unless he adds more interesting heel tendencies. )

#1 Contenders Elimination Match- Screw Indy Wrestling (Mark Haskins and Nathan Cruz) vs. Swords of Essex (Paul Robinson and Will Ospreay) vs. Project Ego (Kris Travis and Martin Kirby) vs. London Riots (Rob Lynch and James Davis)
So Screw Indy Wrestling wins best team name by a mile. Kirby and Davis start. Tilt-a-whirl head scissors by Kirby and Davis regroups in his corner. Tag to Travis and Lynch. Lynch overpowers Travis and Travis comes back with a spinning heel kick. High kick by Travis and he hits a slingshot head scissors. Hurricanrana by Travis and Robinson tags in along with Cruz. Hurricanrana by Robinson and Cruz comes back with a knee to the gut. He goes for a suplex but Ospreay saves and tosses Robinson into a hurricanrana on Cruz. Double knee strikes in the corner by Robinson and Ospreay goes up. Missile dropkick by Ospreay and he throws some kicks to the chest. Cruz bites the head to come back and Haskins tags in. Ospreay sweeps the legs into a standing moonsault for 2. Travis comes in and eats a knee to the back from Cruz. Dropkick by Haskins and Cruz tags in. He chokes Travis with his knee in the corner and Haskins tags in. Basement dropkick in the corner by Haskins and he slingshots Travis into a spinebuster from Cruz for 2. Cruz chokes Travis with his scarf and covers for 2. Tag to Haskins and Travis hits some rights. Haskins locks him in the Boston Crab but Kirby breaks. Tag to Cruz and he works the back of Travis. Blind tag by Davis and he hammers Travis in his corner. Snap mare and Davis goes to the Cobra Clutch. Travis fights out so Davis hits a suplex for 2. Cruz gets tagged in but then STRIKES Davis to bring him back in. Now Cruz tags in normally and he works over Travis. Tag to Haskins and he stomps away on Travis. Chin lock by Haskins but Travis breaks with a jaw breaker. Clothesline by Travis and Kirby tags in. Flying forearm to Haskins and Kirby hits the STOP enzuigiri for 2 as Cruz saves. Everyone comes in to brawl and they take the battles to the floor. Robinson looks to dive but Project Ego stops him. DOUBLE HIP TOSS ONTO EVERYONE ON THE FLOOR BY PROJECT EGO!!!! Stereo dives to the floor by Project Ego!!! Ospreay goes up and hits a corkscrew press onto everyone on the floor!!!! Back in, Kirby and Davis trade forearms. Davis goes up but Kirby stops him and follows up. Superplex by Kirby and Robinson hits the SSP onto Kirby. Super kick by Travis. Lariat by Haskins. Spear by Lynch. Exploder suplex by Cruz. Spinning enzuigiri by Ospreay and everyone is down!!!! Ospreay leaps but Haskins catches him and hits a half nelson suplex. Panic Attack by Haskins and Kirby hits an enzuigiri. Releas German suplex by Travis and Cruz fights off Project Ego. Project Ego and Screw Indy Wrestling clear the ring of each other and they brawl on the floor. The ref counts out both teams!!!

Kicks to the chest by Ospreay and Davis catches him with a lariat for 2. Tag to Lynch and he hits a short arm clothesline for 2. Lynch knocks him down with a chop and Davis tags in. London Riots go up but Ospreay fights them off. Double missile dropkick by Ospreay and Davis hits an elbow to the back to block the tag. Tag to Lynch and he snap mares Ospreay into the chinlock. Ospreay’s arm goes down twice and he begins to fight out. Overhead belly to belly suplex by Lynch gets 2. Tag to Davis and Ospreay hits a handspring Pele to London Riots!!! Ospreay looks to make the tag but Robinson walks off!!!! District Line by London Riots gets 2!!!! Davis hammers the head of Ospreay Ospreay comes back with a springboard double Ace Crusher for 2!!! Ospreay goes up for the 450 splash but misses and Davis presses him into a Spear from Lynch for 3!!!
Winners- London Riots ***1/2 ( This was a really good match once they let everyone loose and go wild for the final stretch. Every team looked good and the finish of Ospreay being left hanging by his partner and still fight back seems to set up Ospreay as a future star for the promotion.)

After the match, Jimmy Havoc comes out and he has the London Riots tie Ospreay to a chair. He says if he doesn’t get some repsect, bad things will happen to people the fans like. He apologizes to Ospreay for what the promoter has done and says he is going to torture him and REALLY enjoy it. HE HAS A KNIFE!!!!!! THEY’RE PLAYING STUCK IN THE MIDDLE WITH YOU. THEY ARE GOING TO RESOVOUR DOGS HIM!!!!! The locker room come out and saves Ospreay before anything can happen. Havoc almost gets into a fight with the crowd before he and the Riots finally leave. Ospreay is freaked out by what almost happened to him. That angle was so awesome; I literally have no words for it.

Tommy End vs. El Ligero
They feel each other out early and Ligero grabs the Cravat. End breaks and Ligero rolls him up for 2. Hurricanrana by Ligero and he hits a slingshot cross body. End comes back by pressing Ligero into a knee lift for 2. Slam by End gets 2. End throws some kicks to the chest in the corner and he hits a corner back elbow. Suplex by End gets 2. Body scissors by End but Ligero fights out. Knee to the midsection by End and Ligero bails to the floor. Back in, End hits a back elbow for 2. End charges in the corner but misses and hits the post shoulder first. Dropkick from the apron by Ligero and he goes up. Crossbody off the top by Ligero gets 2. Back elbow by End and he hits a kick to the chest. Wheelbarrow Driver by Ligero gets 2. End hits a second rope Meteora and Ligero comes back with an enzuigiri. High kick by End and Ligero gets a springboard wheelbarrow roll-up for 2. Ligero springboards but End catches him with a spin kick!!! Brainbuster by End gets 2. Dead Lift German suplex by End gets 2. End goes up and misses the double stomp. High knee by End and he goes for the springboard moonsault press but Ligero counters into an Ace Crusher!!! Ligero goes up and hits a flying splash for 2 as Michael Gilbert pulls him off the cover. The ref calls for the DQ. Ligero argues with the promoter to continue the match and the match is restarted. Small package by End gets 2 and Ligero rolls End up for 2. End catches Ligero in a Dragon Sleeper and Ligero gives. After the match, Michael Gilbert locks Ligero in a Guillotine Choke and he passes out.
Winner- Tommy End ***1/4 (The match overall was solid but the finish was the worst. The initial DQ was super lame as the match was just picked up steam and I hate match restarts with a passion and in this case Ligero looks like the biggest moron in the world not taking the initial win.)

Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Prince Devitt
Devitt is dressed as the Joker tonight. Running dropkick by Devitt and he goes up. Double stomp off the top by Devitt gets 2. Sabre Jr. goes up but Devitt catches him with an enzuigiri knocking him to the floor. Sabre Jr. comes back in with a flying kick to the chest and he hits some uppercuts. Dropkick by Devitt and Sabre Jr. comes back with a kick to the arm. Devitt goes to the floor and back in, Sabre Jr. works over the arm. Devitt fights back with chops and Sabre Jr. hits a kick to the chest knocking both men to the floor. Running kick to the chest from the apron by Sabre Jr. and Devitt comes back with a running chop. He nails Sabre Jr. in the midsection with a chair and he puts Sabre Jr. on the chair. Running dropkick on the floor by Devitt!!! Sabre Jr. makes it back in before the 10 count. Devitt goes up and hits a double stomp to the back of Sabre. Jr. Bloody Sunday by Devitt gets 2!!! Pele kick by Devitt and both men are down. They exchange forearms and uppercuts and Sabre Jr. hits a release half nelson suplex. Penalty Kick by Sabre Jr. gets 2 and he goes right into the cross arm breaker. Devitt goes into the ropes to break!!! Brainbuster by Devitt but Sabre Jr. catches the arm. Devitt blocks the cross arm breaker attempt for 2 and he rolls into the ropes again to force Sabre Jr. to break. Sabre Jr. stomps on the arm and Devitt comes back with a clothesline. Devitt goes up and hits the double stomp for 2!!! Kne to the midsection by Sabre Jr. but Devitt comes back with a spinning enzuigiri. Bloody Sunday by Devitt gets 3!!!
Winner- Prince Devitt ***1/2 ( This lived up to the level of expectation you would have for a match between these two. This was a bit shorter than I thought it would be and it was a little more one sided for Devitt than I thought it was going to be. Still, it was a fun match and it showed why these are two of the best in European wrestling. )

Ladder Match for the PROGRESS Championship- Jimmy Havoc © vs. Mark Andrews
Havoc attacks Andrews with the PROGRESS staff and Andrews comes back with a tilt-a-whirl head scissors. Hurricanrana forces Havoc to bail and Andrews quickly follows out with a suicide dive. He peppers Havoc with forearms and he works Havoc over on the floor. Andrews sets up the ladder but Havoc dumps him and climbs. Andrews stops him and hammers Havoc with forearms in the corner. Havoc powerbombs Andrews onto the ladder in the corner!!! Havoc drops the ladder onto Andrews on the floor and he sets up a table on the floor. Havoc goes for a suplex but Andrews blocks and hits the Side Effect through the table!!! Andrews climbs but Havoc nails him with a chair to bring him down. Havoc dumps Andrews to the floor and he tosses a chair at Andrews. He nails Andrews with the chair multiple times and sets another table up on the floor. Andrews comes back with an apron DDT and Havoc falls onto the table. Andrews goes up and Havoc gets off the table before he could dive. Suplex on the floor by Havoc and Havoc power bombs Andrews off the apron through the table!!! Havoc climbs but Andrews re-enters the ring so Havoc decides to punish him some more. Havoc slams Andrews onto a chair and he tosses the chair at Andrews. Havoc sets a chair up in the corner but Andrews catches him with a hip toss onto the chair!!! Andrews drives a chair into the midsection and back of Havoc. Havoc goes low and tosses the chair at Andrews. They head back to the floor and Havoc sets up a table in the entrance way. They fight on the stage and Andrews knocks Havoc off the stage with a bicycle kick. SUMMERSAULT PLANCHA OFF THE APRON BY ANDREWS DRIVING HAVOC THROUGH THE TABLE!!!! Back in, Andrews climbs but Havoc goes low to stop him. Havoc sets up some chairs and he puts Andrews onto the chairs. Havoc goes up but Andrews catches him with an enzuigiri. He follows up and hits a Frankensteiner driving Havoc onto the chairs!!!! Andrews climbs but the London Riots come out and prevent him from reaching the top. Pete Dunne and Eddie Dennis come out and clear the ring of the London Riots. Stereo dives to the floor by Dunne and Dennis!!! Rainmaker by Havoc and he goes after Eddie Dennis on the floor. Everyone brawls on the floor which allows Andrews to climb. Andrews DIVES OFF THE LADDER ONTO EVERYONE ON THE FLOOR!!!!! Everyone continues to brawl on the floor and Andrews sets up another table. Andrews and Havoc climb and they slug it out on top of the ladder. Head butt by Andrews knocks both men off of the ladder. Havoc goes for a superplex to the floor but Andrews blocks and hits an enzuigiri knocking Havoc off and sending him crashing through the table!!! Andrews climbs but Paul Robinson comes out and attacks Andrews with a chair. He gives him multiple chair shots and he hugs Jimmy Havoc. Havoc climbs and grabs the contract and wins the match!!! The paper on the contract says “I.O.U One Title” which is pretty funny.
Winner and Still PROGRESS Champion- Jimmy Havoc ***1/2 (A pretty good brawl which focused on them trying to incapacitate each other before attempting to climb the ladder. Since the ladder wasn’t a typical one that is used in wrestling, they were limited in what they could do with it so they had a more potential hardcore style match rather a typical ladder match. My main issue with the match is with all the huge spots they pulled off, they quickly no sold it and moved to the next spot which is incredibly annoying. Still, a good main event to end the night. )

The 411: While not a blow away show or anything, I liked what I saw out of PROGRESS Wrestling. They have a great venue with a packed house and the crowd is into everything on the card, which will make for a great atmosphere on future shows. Using workers like Zach Sabre Jr. will add something to every show and I am impressed with some of the young talent like Jimmy Havoc and Will Ospreay. They have a good foundation to build on and I hope to see some great shows from them in the future. I recommend you check out their show on Youtube and see just a small sample of what's going on in the British indy scene.

Final Score:  6.5   [ Average ]