Hamilton’s Rev Pro Live at (not) the Cockpit 53 09.05.2021 Review

Quick Results
Brendan White & Doug Williams pinned Kenneth Halfpenny & Shaun Jackson in 10:59 (**¾)
Lucian Phillips pinned Big Guns Joe in 9:18 (**½)
Chris Ridgeway & Mark Haskins pinned Robbie X & Lee Hunter in 14:15 (***¼)
Ricky Knight Jr. pinned Kyle Fletcher in 17:45 (***¾)
Dan Moloney pinned Yota Tsuji in 14:03 (***¼)
Gisele Shaw & Hyan submitted Nightshade & Skye Smitson in 13:52 (**½)
Michael Oku & Connor Mills submitted Luke Jacobs & Ethan Allen in 20:16 to retain the Rev Pro Undisputed British Tag Team Championship (****)

— If you’re on Twitter, give me a follow over on @IanWrestling – and check out the GoFundMe that’s still open for Larry’s family.

Much like with the two Sheffield shows on September 4, positive covid tests forced a few rejigs in this card – which included a quick rematch from last month’s not-at-the-Cockpit show, with Destination Everywhere taking on the Young Guns, this time for the tag titles…

Andy Quildan’s still at the commentary desk, joined by Gideon Grey for more of that “will you stop?!” goodness.

Two Extremely Athletic Men (Kenneth Halfpenny & Shaun Jackson) vs. Brendan White & Doug Williams
Brendan looks to be shifting his focus from one half of TEAM to the other, if that Sheffield show was anything to go by…

We’ve a jump start as White and Williams took the initiative, with a double-team German suplex ragdolling Halfpenny early on. There’s a back body drop from White to Halfpenny, who’s then suplexed for a two-count, dizzying up Halfpenny so much he ended up trying to tag out to the wrong man.

White and Williams circle Halfpenny as they apply a load of holds – while making the most of the ref’s lax counting – before a roll-up gets White a two-count. Shaun Jackson attacks White from the kick-out, then slid in to hit a clothesline/side Russian legsweep combo as Halfpenny raked White’s eyes for good measure.

A sidewalk slam/elbow drop combo gets a two-count as apparently TEAM name moves after theme parks. A scissored short armbar by Halfpenny ends in the ropes before Jackson came in to hit a slam for a two-count. Halfpenny’s back for an armbar on White, while Jackson tagged in to try for a double-team suplex, but instead Jackson ends up landing a Northern lights for a two-count.

Following a dig on commentary at the camera crew, White counters a double-team suplex into a double suplex, then tagged in Williams to hit a bunch of uppercuts. A Tiger Driver nearly puts Halfpenny away, before White returned to throw Doug for a lifting back senton before White’s moonsault drew a near-fall.

Williams gets thrown outside as TEAM hit a pop-up slam onto White, before Halfpenny’s wrist-clutch over-the-knee brainbuster and a sliding lariat kept the pressure on. Someone really needs to buy an O for Brendan’s trunks to stop Gideon from saying “WRKHRSE”, but we don’t have to wait for too much longer for that to end as a Black Hole Slam gets White another win over his former foe Halfpenny. **¾

Lucian Phillips vs. Big Guns Joe
Gideon slides into the ring to surprise the ring announcer – as he wanted to introduce Phillips today…

Joe’s still looking for his first win in Rev Pro, and he started by getting shoved into the corner by Phillips. A hair-pull takes Joe into the corner, but Joe fires back… and has no luck with shoulder blocks off the rope. There’s some luck with a kick, before Joe tries leaping shoulder tackles as a suplex ended with Phillips hitting a knee instead.

Body blows from both men lead to a big boot from Phillips for just a one-count, who then proceeds to choke on Joe in the corner. Chops continue to wear down Joe, who’s then charged into the corner again… but the crowd distract Phillips, who runs into Joe’s boot before countering a suplex into a sidewalk slam.

Another fightback from Joe sees him take Phillips into the ropes with a European uppercut, before a series of charges in the corner led to an uppercut off the top. Joe finally has Phillips off his feet with a suplex that nearly ends it, before Joe pulls down the straps and looked for a Boston crab… only to get rolled over. Punches and a lariat down Joe, before a powerbomb gets the three-count as this was pretty much a walk-over. **½

The Legion (Chris Ridgeway & Mark Haskins) vs. Lee Hunter & Robbie X
Once again, Gideon doesn’t touch Chris Ridgeway’s entrance with a barge pole…

Last month, Lee Hunter filled in for Robbie X… now he’s tagging with him, and we start with Hunter and Ridgeway on the mat. The early exchanges lead to tags out, as the crowd began to get on Mark Haskins’ back for him not wearing knee pads. When we got going again, Haskins chops Robbie X around the ring, but Robbie X is able to land a hiptoss and a low dropkick for a two-count.

A leg sweep on the apron from Robbie X took down Haskins ahead of a slingshot senton, before Chris Ridgeway grabbed Robbie X’s arm, allowing Haskins to dropkick the leg – then stomp away on Robbie’s knee. Something about knee pads? Ridgeway kicks away at Robbie X’s knee as Andy Q’s tested on his recent cards, then goaded into booking the Oku/Robbie X/Ridgeway three-way we lost out on in Manchester.

Haskins stretches Robbie X’s knee in a deathlock, forcing Robbie X into the ropes as Ridgeway came in with kicks and stomps for good measure. One misses, as Robbie X comes back with a backflip kick before making the tag out to Hunter, who went right for Haskins, taking him outside for a plancha to boot.

Hunter tees up for a superkick, but Haskins backslides it as the pair trade near-falls, leading to a Blue Thunder Bomb from Hunter for a near-fall. A small package from Haskins leads to the roll-through death valley driver, before a sit-out Last Ride nearly drew the win. An enziguiri from Hunter buys him time as Robbie X was tended to… a tope keeps Hunter in trouble, as did a stomp off the top from Haskins, but it’s not enough to get the three-count.

Robbie X hobbles back towards the ring, then got the tag in to powerbomb Ridgeway for a two-count. A diving gamengiri catches Ridgeway in the corner, as a Spiral Tap nearly nicks Robbie X the win… but Ridgeway kicks Robbie’s leg out of his leg. An attempted X-Clamation comeback’s thwarted as Ridgeway lands a pair of PKs, then a brainbuster for the win as Robbie X’s bad day at the office culminated in defeat. ***¼

Kyle Fletcher vs. Ricky Knight Jr.
Fletcher was scheduled to face Connor Mills, but the covid-enforced card changes instead gave him a non-title match with Ricky Knight Jr.

We’ve a tetchy start as RKJ grabbed a hammerlock, but Fletcher escapes with a side headlock before things were taken into the corner. RKJ gets free and hits the ropes, confounding Fletcher ahead of a dropkick before we got to the choos. Knight goes for the Fire Thunder Driver, while Fletcher’s Grimstone attempt came to nought ahead of a diving uppercut to the back of a sitting Fletcher.

Kyle avoids having the rope twanged into his balls, but gets pulled onto the apron for a slingshot elbow as the pair headed outside… a tope from Knight’s caught, as Fletcher broke a couple of chairs as he brainbuster’d RKJ onto them. Bye bye deposit? Back inside, Kyle puts the boots to RKJ, before a back elbow landed for a two-count.

Elbows from RKJ led to a snap bodyslam, but Fletcher’s caught with a death valley driver into the corner as a trip leads to a basement dropkick in the corner, then a draping DDT that nearly put Fletcher away. Misdirection leads to low dropkicks from RKJ, then a Quebrada for a near-fall, before he nonchalantly poked Fletcher in the eye.

Fletcher escapes an Angle slam, but couldn’t avoid a clothesline as RKJ landed that Angle slam for a near-fall. RKJ goes for the Fire Thunder Driver, but Fletcher wriggles out before drilling RKJ with a Michinoku driver for a near-fall. We’re back to the strikes, with Fletcher following in with a superkick and a pop-up powerbomb, before a back elbow from RKJ stopped Kyle in his tracks.

Knight hauls up Fletcher in the corner, then ran in with a dropkick… only for Fletcher to counter a superplex with an avalanche Michinoku driver that somehow didn’t end things. Stomps and slaps from Fletcher seem to wake up RKJ, who strikes back with some kicks and a running knee in the ropes… weakening Fletcher enough ahead of a Tiger suplex, before a Fisherman buster spiked Kyle for a near-fall.

From there, a spin kick leads to the Fire Thunder Driver… and that’s finally it as Ricky Knight Jr. edged out Fletcher in a cracker of a match to end the first half. ***¾

Yota Tsuji vs. Dan Moloney
Tsuji eventually kicks off the second half of the show, with Dan Moloney’s bad knee giving him a clear target to aim for…

The Tsuji chant starts us off, as the match finally gets going with Moloney snapmaring Tsuji early. A wristlock-assisted takedown has Moloney ahead as he looked to work over Tsuji’s arm, before Tsuji got free… only to miss a dropkick. Moloney’s right back with a side headlock, then a shoulder tackle as Tsuji popped right back up… then charged down Dan off the ropes.

Another shoulder tackle bounces Moloney down, before a dropkick took him outside. Tsuji followed him for some chops, leading to Moloney accidentally chopping the post in retaliation, before things headed back inside. Moloney’s up first to kick the ropes into Yota’s Tsujis, before a slam landed for a two-count.

Chops follow from Moloney, then a spear into the corner, as Tsuji asked for more. And got more. A poke to the eye stopped Tsuji ahead of a back senton, with a dropkick following next for a near-fall. Tsuji manages to find a way back in with a side suplex, then some forearms before Moloney’s boot just earned him some more elbows.

A big boot from Moloney fires up Tsuji some more as the pair trade strikes, leading to a ‘rana from Tsuji, before a suplex landed for a near-fall. Moloney spins free of a Boston crab, then pulled Tsuji into a ripcord Angle slam for a near-fall, before his spear almost put Tsuji away. Moloney looks for a Drilla, but gets rolled up by Tsuji, who followed up with a big lariat.

Tsuji busts out a Giant Swing after that, before Moloney charged into the corner to unsight the ref. A mule kick caught out Tsuji, who’s then spiked with a Drilla as Moloney escapes with the win – Tsuji’s still looking for a maiden win, but his first weekend in Rev Pro’s been good in terms of performances. ***¼

Post-match, Gideon again tries to recruit Tsuji – this time with the help of one of Tsuji’s fans. The object, not the group. Tsuji gets the mic, and breaks out his favourite English swear word again. This time though, Tsuji looks to swing at Gideon, who then offered to “bury the hatchet” – which was the cue for Mark Haskins to come out and attack him as that looks to be Yota’s first feud.

Nightshade & Skye Smitson vs. Gisele Shaw & Hyan
Gideon rejoins commentary then disappears so he can introduce Skye Smitson and her tag partner today – Nightshade – in a rearranged match.

Gideon takes the pee out of Andy Q to start (what’s new) as the match opens with Hyan and Smitson looking for takedown. An armdrag from Hyan counters a back body drop, before a leg drop from Hyan led to a two-count for Shaw, who followed up with a Vader Bomb elbow before Nightshade tripped Hyan in the ropes.

Nightshade tags in to hit a suplex, before Smitson returned with a neck crank on Hyan. Clearing the apron of Shaw allowed Smitson to drag Hyan into the corner as the ref gets distracted by an angry Shaw. A missed splash from Nightshade allowed Hyan back in, but a sunset flip’s broken up with a stomp as Nightshade almost picked up the win there.

Hyan’s caught in a grounded abdominal stretch next, before she’s punched out. A cannonball from Nightshade lands for a near-fall as Hyan was in dire need of a tag out. Nightshade takes a crossbody but throws Hyan into the corner before Hyan leapt over Nightshade to finally make that tag out.

Shaw unloads with knees on Nightshade, before a slide through and a Curt Henniq-esque neck flip landed for a near-fall. A draping DDT is next, but Nightshade kicks out at two, before she returned with a release German suplex on Shaw. Shaw returns the favour with a half-and-half suplex, before tags got us back to Hyan and Smitson. There’s a running knee for Skye in the corner for a near-fall, while Smitson’s superkick turned it around.

A back senton from Nightshade nearly ends it as we had a brief Parade of Moves, ending with a chokebomb from Nightshade. Hyan’s back in to come close with a cutter on Nightshade, before a Glam Slam dropped Smitson… while a spear from Shaw and a levering armbar eventually led to the win for the pair that’s called themselves 24 Carat. **½

RevPro Undisputed British Tag Team Championship: Young Guns (Ethan Allen & Luke Jacobs) vs. Destination Everywhere (Connor Mills & Michael Oku) (c)
A month earlier, the Young Guns had an absolute banger in the Great British Tag League at the same venue against the same opponents – and were looking to go a step better here and leave with the titles.

We’ve a jump start from the Young Guns, who took things outside before the bell as Connor Mills got flung into the wall, then had a door slammed on it. Oku’s given an easy trip to the bar as he’s flung into the crowd, as the medics took Mills to the back. That means Oku’s basically in a handicap match, getting wrecked with chops before Allen joined in and flung Oku into the top turnbuckle.

The aggressive start continues as Oku was getting bounced around the ring by the Young Guns, with a body attack from Allen smashing Oku back into the ropes. The Young Guns played their “Northerners with a chip on their shoulder” stuff extremely well here, with Oku being a perfect opponent for the beating as Allen looked to pop off Oku’s head with a bulldog choke.

A backbreaker from Allen bounced Oku down, before the double champion was twisted on in a Tree of Woe as Oku had to cling on to defend a back superplex. He eventually does so, then kicked away Luke Jacobs before nailing a moonsault. That’s the cue for Connor Mills to return, injury and all, as Oku finally broke free of Allen… but couldn’t make the tag as Jacobs pulls Mills off the apron.

A kick-assisted Northern Lights Bomb nearly gives us new champions, before Allen took too long mocking Oku, who kicked away a half crab attempt as he finally made the tag out. Mills runs wild here, kicking Allen and Jacobs in the corner before hitting a Quebrada on Allen. Jacobs is in to punch out Mills, but ends up taking a rebound lariat and a Millshot for a two-count.

Oku’s tagged back in as Mills misses a frog splash… but lands a Yakuza kick as Oku ends up being pushed into his own man. A body blow from Jacobs leads to a powerbomb attempt, but Oku’s sunset flip is only good for a near-fall as a superkick followed. The springboard moonsault is next from a resurgent Oku, who lands in Jacobs’ boot before a big lariat and a powerbomb nearly led to new champions.

Allen’s back to leather Oku with kicks, but Oku again fires back with a misdirection knee… Mills tags back in to hit the double-team flapjack for a near-fall, before his uppercuts were caught and turned into a backslide. Allen only gets a two-count from that before he countered another springboard uppercut into a crossface as Luke Jacobs restrained Oku on the outside.

Mills eventually gets a foot to the rope to save himself, as Jacobs then took his shots at Mills’ legs. A blind tag brings in Allen, after a superkick cut off Mills’ Quebrada as the Guns looked to get the win with a Doomsday Device… but somehow Mills kicks out at two! Vicious knees from Allen wear out Mills some more, while a Gotch piledriver from Jacobs drew in Oku for the save.

A superkick from Oku sets up for a pair of frog splashes… and that’s still not enough to end things, as Oku rolled Jacobs into a half crab. Mills restrains Allen with one of his own, and that’s enough to push the match over the line as the Young Guns are forced to tap out. Perhaps a step behind the classic these two had last month, but that’s not to say this was a bad match. Far from it. The Young Guns and Destination Everywhere seem to click really well in London, with the Young Guns repeatedly showing why everyone’s painting them as future stars of the scene. ****

7.5

The final score: review Good

The 411

With Rev Pro adding another show the following Sunday - so they could get to do the stuff they had to scrap here - this “not the Cockpit” outing could have felt like an afterthought, but much like the Sheffield show on the prior day, Kyle Fletcher brought out a must-see match, while the Young Guns and Destination Everywhere provided an epic main event as the road to York Hall continued in earnest.