wrestling / TV Reports
Hamilton’s Rev Pro Live in Birmingham 02.26.2023 Review
Image Source: Revolution Pro Wrestling
Loading...Quick Results
Danny Jones & Brendan White pinned Jack Knudsen & Benjamin Harland in 10:57 (***)
Yota Tsuji pinned Zak Knight in 9:15 (***)
Dani Luna pinned Maria de la Rosa in 9:36 to retain the Southside Women’s Championship (**¾)
Francesco Akira pinned Kid Lykos II in 15:52 (***¼)
Nico Inverardi & Mirko Mori pinned Gideon Grey & Will Kaven in 18:15 (***)
Michael Oku and Gabriel Kidd went to a double count-out in 14:10 (***½)
Will Ospreay pinned Luke Jacobs in 19:02 (****)
— If you’re on Twitter, give me a follow over on @IanWrestling. I’m also over on Mastodon, for those of you preparing for a post-Twitter world… catch me here… and check out the GoFundMe that’s still open for Larry’s family.
— To watch this show, head over to RevProOnDemand.com – they’re currently running a two-week free trial…
It’s a debut for Rev Pro as they hit The Mill in Digbeth, Birmingham for the first time… commentary comes from Andy Quildan and Gio Nolastnamegiven…
Greedy Souls (Brendan White & Danny Jones) vs. Act Two (Benjamin Harland & Jack Knudsen)
Now we’ve got the full stream, I can only describe the audio as “making the Greedy Souls’ theme sound like farting” at times. Windy.
The match gets going with Brendan White nicking Jack Knudsen’s tambourine, before he shoved down Benjamin Harland. A side headlock restrains Harland, but he’s able to snake out with a wristlock… only for a European uppercut from White to take him down. Harland manages to break free with an armdrag and an enziguiri, before Danny Jones tagged in and ran into a neckbreaker.
Jones’ side headlock led to Jack Knudsen tagging in as Act Two hit some double-teams for a two-count. More double-teaming isolates Jones, but could barely get a one-count as Harland returned to go for a Fireman’s carry… but Brendan White comes in to distract the ref as Danny Jones rakes the eyes to get himself free. White tags in to hit a powerslam as the Greedy Souls turned things around.
Harland’s kept isolated as Jones tagged in to stomp a mudhole into him, following up with a snap suplex for a two-count, before Jones went to rile up Knudsen on the apron. A pair of back sentons from the Greedy Souls keep them ahead, while White stomped on the elbow of Harland ahead of an elevated uppercut by Jones.
Jones prevents Harland from making a tag out as the Souls kept going, at least until Knudsen scored a clothesline to take down Jones… who instantly smothers him to prevent any idea of a tag getting made. Harland persists though, and finally tagged in Knudsen, who lands forearms, a tijeras and a gamengiri on Brendan White… but his follow-up crossbody’s caught. A Spanish Fly off the middle rope from Knudsen surprises Brendan for a near-fall, as Andy Q was mostly pointing out the size of Act Two…
Knudsen manages to hit a pair of Code Reds, but it’s only good for a near-fall as Danny Jones kicked out. Double-teaming from Act Two eventually backfires as Benjamin Harland’s slingshotted into a Black Hole Slam… then pulled-up and thrown into a side suplex. Knudsen’s still legal though, and a Soul Destroyer’s what puts him away. ***
Yota Tsuji vs. Zak Knight
Another match beset by streaming issues live, which meant the live streamers didn’t get to see Gideon Grey handling introductions.
Knight charges at Tsuji before the bell as this one started out as a slugfest, at least until Tsuji went for the eyes. Knight’s back with some misdirection as he proceeded to chuck Tsuji outside for a plancha, before he threw in some shots as he followed Tsuji around the ringside area.
Back inside, Knight heads up top… but gets shoved onto the ropes by Gideon Grey, which allowed Tsuji back in with some stomps and chops. Another poke to the eyes greeted Knight as he begged for more chops, before a discus lariat from Knight ended that period of offence for a two-count.
Tsuji wriggles out of a buckle bomb and gets a roll-up for a two-count… but Knight leaps back on him with a Rings of Saturn-esque crossface that forces Tsuji into the ropes. A right hand from Zak keeps Tsuji down, before the pair jockeyed over a suplex, going back-and-forth until Knight landed the move.
Knight crashes and burns on a top rope elbow drop, as Tsuji then took Gideon’s cane… which wasn’t a cover for anything as Knight punched out Tsuji after getting back to his feet. Rather than go for a pin, Knight pulls up Tsuji… who rakes the eyes to avoid a buckle bomb before the pair traded strikes ahead of a Knight spear for a near-fall, before a crucifix buckle bomb saw Tsuji go down hard. The referee checks on Tsuji, allowing Gideon Grey to hit the ring and drill Knight with his cane.
Tsuji’s back up with a curb stomp and his take on the Vertebreaker, and that’s all folks! ***
Post-match, Tsuji went after Knight’s neck some more with the cane before the Legion pair headed to the back…
Southside Women’s Championship: Maria de la Rosa vs. Dani Luna (c)
This one was made a title match after Luna successfully defended against Skye Smitson in Cardiff…
Things go to ground early on, with de la Rosa kicking away Luna, following with a headlock takedown before the pair continued to trade holds. A shoulder tackle gets Luna a one-count, but a discus forearm takes her into the corner… before Luna got sent into the corner with some headscissors.
De la Rosa gets a two-count out of a clothesline, but Luna slides outside, tripping Maria in the process ahead of a spin into a knee strike. Back inside, forearms from Luna get her a two-count, ahead of some rolling suplexes before Luna hit a low dropkick to Maria’s knee.
Luna decks Maria with a forearm back inside, then with an Irish whip that saw de la Rosa collapse to the mat. Wash, rinse, but not repeat as Maria rolls away from a charge, then land a German suplex as she looked to force an opening. A second German suplex rocks Luna, as did an Exploder, but Luna kicks out at two, then fought back in, clubbing away on de la Rosa ahead of a satellite DDT from the Spaniard.
Luna fights out of a Fisherman’s suplex, but a short clothesline cut off Maria for another near-fall… before Darkness Falls finally put de la Rosa away. **¾
Kid Lykos II vs. Francesco Akira
This was Lykos II’s first singles match in Rev Pro since last April…
Akira takes Lykos II to the ropes to start, before a headlock takedown and an escape… led to Lykos getting backed up into the ropes. Again, Akira breaks roughly, prompting Lykos II to poke him in the eyes ahead of a tijeras and a dropkick off the ropes. Lykos II calls for a brainbuster, which of course is blocked, as Akira came back with almost a Big Ending, then a low dropkick to take things outside.
Lykos is followed outside by Akira, who lit him up with chops, before heading up onto the stage as the director finally switched angles… just in time for Akira to block another brainbuster by hitting a DDT onto the short walkway. Narrowly beating the count, Lykos II gets taken to the corner for some chops by Akira, before an Irish whip took the young wolf into the corner hard.
Wash, rinse, repeat, before Lykos II’s attempt at a comeback saw him met with a Tarantula in the ropes. Lykos II retaliates with a dropkick out of the corner moments later, then with a second one as Akira looked to shut him down… before a gamengiri and a flying DDT out of the corner almost got the unlikely win.
A superkick from Akira led to a walloping clothesline that nearly put Lykos II away… a bit of buffering led to a superkick as Akira’s taken outside for a tope… and more buffering as the feed struggled. An Octopus hold from Lykos II appears amid the loading wheels, but Akira gets out and scores with a wheelbarrow stomp.
Lykos II hits back with a satellite DDT, before his attempt at a Lo Mein Pain’s blocked by Akira, who took him down for a missile dropkick. An elevated German suplex nearly wins it for Akira, then a snap Dragon suplex… before Lykos II got sent onto the apron as the pair fought around the top rope. It leads to Akira repeatedly bouncing Lykos II’s head onto the turnbuckle, before he pulled him shoulder-first into the buckles.
Somehow, Lykos II’s able to hit the Lo Mein Pain seconds later, but gets cradled out of a brainbuster… then hit a Dragonrana for a near-fall. Sensing doom, Akira smashes back in with a Meteora to the back of the head, and that’s enough to get the win over a plucky Lykos II – who had his chances, but ended up getting the door slammed on him here. ***½
Gideon Grey & Will Kaven vs. BBB (Mirko Mori & Nico Inverardi)
The Brixia Bone Breakers are back after their debut on Friday… but Gideon Grey’s got a different partner, because “Lucian Phillips hates Birmingham.”
Gideon Grey starts against a twerking Mirko Mori, opting to start by mocking the usual “get the crowd clapping” stuff. Mori snaps Gideon’s fingers to get out of a waistlock… only to have Gideon manipulate his fingers to try and flip him off. A roll-up has Gideon scurrying for cover, but he’s caught with a nerve hold before Mirko decided to polish up that head.
Gideon tries to pull the hair to escape a side headlock… Mirko’s bald, so he goes for the beard instead, before Mirko tried for Gideon’s beard, but it’s not long enough. A kick instead takes Grey into the corner, before Will Kaven tagged in… only to leapfrog into a sunset flip before Mori took him down.
Inverardi tags in as the BBB continued to keep control, leading to a Northern Lights suplex that Nico bridged for a near-fall. Chops in the corner led to Mori tagging back in, where he’s propelled in for a dropkick that almost put Kaven away. More chops from Mori have Kaven in a heap, but he ducks another as Gideon held Mori’s ankle, allowing Kaven to swarm him.
An Irish whip sends Mori into the corner for a two-count, before a stuff-powerslam from Gideon led to a two-count after he tagged in. The makeshift pairing has some luck as Kaven pulls Inverardi off the apron, allowing Grey to isolate Mori with an eye rake in the opposite corner, as Kaven returned with a cravat on Mori.
Mori elbows free, but gets tripped back down as Kaven swarms him once more, leading to Gideon coming in… and tweaking Mori’s nipples. A sneak roll-up from Mori nearly does the job, but Gideon’s back up to charge him down… before Mori managed to catch Gideon by surprise, leading to both men tagging out.
Kaven misses a clothesline as Inverardi came in with a dropkick… taking Kaven outside for a tope into the crowd. A missile dropkick back inside keeps Kaven rocked, ahead of a bridging German suplex for a near-fall, before Mori returned… and got choked by Grey on the apron as they went for a double-team move.
Kaven wipes out Mori with a diving knee, having taken care of Inverardi with a snap Dragon suplex… then tagged in Gideon as a Magic Killer Falcon arrow almost got the win. My feed drops, recovering with Mori and Inverardi surrounding Gideon… leading to him trying to fight off BBB single-handedly… with quite a bit coming from the Mad Kurt playbook.
BBB come back with a pop-up kick, then a running knee for a near-fall as Kaven just about broke it up. Kaven’s taken outside as Mori tagged in… Gideon’s dead weight as Mori looked to pull him up, only for Gideon to go back to the eyes. An elbow knocks Inverardi off the apron as Grey went to get his cane, shoving down the referee… only for Zak Knight to come up and try and use it.
Will Kaven stops him, but eats a forearm for his troubles, as Zak distracted Grey for long enough for BBB to trip Gideon ahead of a sandwich of forearms, then a Chasing the Dragon for the win to end a match that felt like it’d run out of steam… then just kept going. ***
Gabriel Kidd vs. Michael Oku
Oku’ll have to contend with a size difference here, and is pulled into a half crab in the opening seconds as Kidd almost won this in the opening minute.
Oku got to the ropes, but gets dominated with slam after slam after slam, as I try not to compare this to a cup final that’s going on as this happened. A brainbuster dumped Oku for a near-fall… and while Oku did score a roll-up for a two-count, Kidd’s hammer blows earned him a superkick as Oku tried to make a comeback.
A running dropkick floors Kidd, but he gets his knees up to block a frog splash, as both men struggled back to their feet. Both men beat the count, but Kidd continues to leather Oku with strikes, as Oku looked to pull ahead… only for Kidd to fold him back into the half crab, turning it into half a Lion Tamer before Oku dove to the rope.
Kidd pulls up Oku, only to chop him back down, then again, this time with both hands, before Oku began to offer a response, landing a forearm before counting a Bull Lariat into a floatover DDT for a near-fall. A Quebrada gets a near-fall, before Oku took too long calling for a half crab as Kidd was able to kick it apart.
Another chop stings Oku, who returns in kind, before he got slung with a Saito suplex. Oku’s back to his feet, but gets folded with a Bull lariat for a near-fall… they tease a stoppage, but Oku fires back with a half crab, only for Kidd to roll free… but Oku reapplies the hold! Kidd this time manages to scramble to the bottom rope for a break, but manages to catch Oku on the top rope with chops.
Oku headbutts Kidd off the top rope, then met him with slaps… which Kidd returned with some interest to knock Oku down. Unanswered strikes look to force a stoppage, with Oku bouncing down to the mat… but he manages to dig deep and suplex himself – and Kidd – from the ring to the floor. Neither man’s able to answer the ten-count, and the match is ruled a draw as contenders check on both men after that awkward spill. This one started stupidly hot, and ended in equally-wild fashion… ***½
Luke Jacobs vs. Will Ospreay
These two have history, back with Jacobs (and Ethan Allen) were Ospreay’s henchmen just before they were turned on in favour of Aussie Open…
Both men came racing out of the traps, exchanging forearms to start, with the pace slowing… but the velocity not as Jacobs looked to pull ahead. Ospreay sparks off an exchange of chops, which rang around the room before Kawada-ish kicks and chops took Jacobs into the corner.
Jacobs sank Ospreay into the corner with some chops, as this one was all strikes, before Ospreay ran out of the corner with a big boot… then exchanged Saito suplexes before both men fell to the mat. The pair get back to their feet, with Ospreay inviting forearms… and giving them back ahead of a big boot, a slam and a back senton as Jacobs switches it up.
A butterfly suplex out of the corner gets Jacobs a one-count, following up with more chops that left Ospreay on his knees. Ospreay eats a back elbow off the ropes, but Jacobs ends up getting taken outside for an Ospreay plancha, then got thrown into the chairs before they returned to the ring.
Ospreay retained control with a knee drop to Jacobs, then with a backbreaker as he began to pick his spots. An attempted fightback’s snuffed out with an abdominal stretch from Ospreay, but Jacobs hiptosses his way free, only to get chopped into the corner… before he landed a back body drop to Ospreay.
Jacobs adds some running forearms into the corner, then a spinebuster off the ropes before a brainbuster left Ospreay in the middle of the ring for a two-count. Ospreay hits a back body drop of his own, then a handspring enziguiri off the ropes as the Birmingham crowd got all formal on Ospreay. A springboard forearm’s good for a two-count, while Jacobs hits the ropes to crotch Ospreay on the top rope.
Another blistering chop up top allowed Jacobs to head up for a superplex, only for a wall-flip enziguiri from Ospreay to shut down Luke moments later. Heading back up top, Ospreay lands another leaping forearm to the back of the head, before a Hidden Blade’s countered with a uranage.
Jacobs mocks the Hidden Blade, but Ospreay ducks his version of it, cradling Jacobs for a two-count before Luke tried to hit back with a Last Ride. Instead, Jacobs folds Ospreay in half with a half-and-half suplex, then with a German suplex, before a Stundog from Ospreay earned a lariat in response. Jacobs is gathering steam… but gets shut off with a standing Spanish Fly as both men were left laying.
A wild lariat from Jacobs stops an OsCutter, but Ospreay spins him around for a Chelsea Kiss… before another lariat countered a Hidden Blade. Luke’s Last Ride nearly wins it, as he then teed up for a running kick into the corner… but Ospreay’s able to return with a leaping sunset bomb off the top rope, leaving Jacobs laying.
Ospreay takes his time, picking up Jacobs for a short tombstone piledriver for a near-fall, before another Jacobs lariat almost put Ospreay away. An OsCutter’s next, then a Storm Breaker, but it’s only good for a near-fall as Jacobs rolled his shoulder up. They play Ospreay’s music, but the match keeps going for a little longer as Ospreay charged in with a Hidden Blade, which was more than enough to get the win. A hell of a match to close out Will Ospreay’s Grand Weekend – with absolute crackers in Wales, France and England – but this performance perhaps pushed Jacobs to that next level. ****
After the three-count, Ospreay called for the medic to check on Jacobs – who’d looked a little groggy after that sunset bomb – before Luke got helped to the back.
