Jimmo's Angle Special: Review of 'Supermen: A Story of British Wrestlers'

Last week, I was lucky enough to get a sneak peak of Supermen: A Story of British Wrestlers, a documentary film by Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou, looking at what wrestlers go through in their careers. It consists of many interviews with British wrestlers and explores their varying opinions on a range of significant topics.

Throughout this film, there are interviews with veterans such as Danny Boy Collins, Robbie Brookside and Dave Finlay as well as young, up-and-comers Joel Redman, Rockstar Spud and Marty Scurll. This was a really impressive thing for me as not only was there a great mix of old and young, but nearly two years after the filming of this documentary, some of these gentlemen have gone onto big things; Joel Redman has since been signed to a developmental deal with the WWE, Spud has made an impact in TNA in the last few months, Scurll has been on TNA's reality show British Boot Camp as well as an appearance on ITV's Take Me Out, and Brookside is now a trainer for WWE's NXT developmental system. Good choices by the makers of this film!

There are many themes and topics looked at in great detail in this film including why they got into the business, injuries, strain on family life and relationships. The subject that really interested me most was the comments made about training. There are very polarising views on this subject as the veterans admit that times have changed with regards to who can train, whilst the younger wrestlers concede that there aren't as many veterans around to learn from anymore.

I, like many other reviewers, don't want to give too much away here. So I'll keep this brief and say that if you are a part of the British wrestling scene or a fan, then this documentary is definitely for you. I'd like to think that it could give a good representation of British wrestling to outsiders, too; maybe it could even change some attitudes of ignorant, 'wrestling's fake isn't it?' people if they gave this film a chance. They could then understand the sacrifices that the wrestlers make in order to entertain us every weekend.

One of the many things this film highlights, that maybe none of us remember sometimes, is that these guys are regular people like me and you: They hurt mentally and physically at various times; they have families; they have dreams and are passionate about something; ultimately, they need to make a living (for those that do it full-time).

This film is available on www.supermenfilm.co.uk from Saturday 5th April (the day before Wrestlemania XXX). I urge you to take a look at it and spread the word of this thought-provoking documentary film.

Other links:

• Supermen Film Facebook page
• Supermen Film Twitter page

Support British Wrestling

@jimmosangle

My Weekend of (British) Wrestling 28: Pro Wrestling Chaos

Saturday 22nd March 2014 - Pro Wrestling Chaos 4: Last Man Standing - Shire Way Social Club, Yate

The aim of going to various different shows in 2014 continued yesterday with a trip down to Pro Wrestling Chaos. Leading up to this I was a little dubious as this was Chaos' forth show and my experiences of 'new' promotions (promotions just starting out) hasn't been great due to them doing too much too soon. I would be pleasantly surprised from start to finish.

I travelled down to the venue with MC Hank McCoy, who is a Chaos mainstay after two shows and this is fully justified. Yes, I'm biased because he is my good mate, but he really adds to shows and Dave (Mercy; promoter of Chaos) sees the importance in having an enthusiastic, well presented MC on his shows. Hank is definitely this. He also seems to have his own fans, too, with a 'Hank!' chant starting up from a few lads in the audience!

On arrival, I met a lot of the guys on the show and straight off there were a few familiar faces which eased any worries that I might have had before. The venue was a good size with plenty of seating; if filled, it had the potential to be a lively and loud evening of wrestling.

After a few messages over Facebook, I was pleased to meet Dave Mercy, the promoter of Pro Wrestling Chaos, in person. Hank had already told me what a genuinely nice guy he was and that came across with his welcome. As he moved around the room checking on the ring set-up and keeping all in good spirits, I could tell that he cared and wanted everything to go as well as possible (maybe an obvious statement?!) as well as having a nervousness about him leading up to showtime.

After looking at the card, it seemed a really good night ahead of us; most notably the triple threat match between Pete Dunne, 'Flash' Morgan Webster and Damian Dunne seemed a mouthwatering prospect. That's not to say the rest of the card wasn't, but I had no knowledge of the feuds that had been established in previous shows.

The opening match saw a rivalry continue, as well as the progression of the 'King of Chaos' tournament (a tournament to determine an inaugural Chaos champion), with 'Wild Boar' Mike Hitchman taking on one-half of Team Hate, Jeckel. This was a nice opener with several back and forths, a brutal, hard-hitting affair which Wild Boar would eventually win after a Running Powerbomb. Solid opener that got the crowd even more invested than they were!

'Wild Boar' Mike Hitchman

The second match saw local lad, Alex Steele taking on 'Mr Reem' Scotty Essex in a face-vs-face match. After the opening match's brawl, this match picked up the pace and presented something different. Both guys would show mutual respect throughout, and both were widely popular with the Yate locals. This was only broken up a little when Scotty started to show signs of frustration when he couldn't put his opponent away. The highlight of this match would be the running Shooting Star Press performed by Scotty Essex. At first, I thought he was setting Steele up for a People's Elbow before showcasing his athleticism!

The main event of the opening half of the show would pit three great young stars of British Wrestling squaring off in a triple threat match. The Dunne brothers, Pete and Damian would compete against each other as well as 'Flash' Morgan Webster. For me, this was the match of the night. It was flowing, exciting and had everything you could want from a triple threat; the various one-on-one parts to this match and the brothers teaming up to beat down Webster before inevitably turning on one another. The highlights of this match were the reverse Hurricanrana from Webster to Pete and Pete's finish to Webster for the win - I've tried to find what this move might be called and can only describe it as a Pumphandle into an F5/face plant... please enlighten me if you know?!

Match of the Night

As I say, this was the match of the night for me and saying that does not surprise me; all three guys put on great shows wherever I have seen them. This is especially the case with Pete Dunne who I have seen at three shows this year and he has been the standout performer each time. I also continue to be impressed by 'Flash' Morgan Webster and his gimmick. the whole Mod thing is great! From his music to his ring gear to his hairstyle to his attitude to the place that he is billed from (A Town Called Malice); everything ties in really well.

The fifth match also impressed me for a few reasons. A 'Seabirds Rules' match saw the less-drunk Roger-The-Cabin-Boy taking on Ian Williams. This soon turned into a tag team match as Gideon would come down to make up a tag team encounter; he and Williams would take on Roger and his fellow shipmate - Captain Dick Morgan. The match would be full of comedy; mainly thanks to Roger (The Cabin Boy) and his over-the-top selling, and would finish after an impressive Muscle Buster (Gideon) and Flying Elbow (Williams) combination.

By the sound of the locals, the Wild Galleons (as Captain Dick and Roger are collectively known) are super over and I think that's credit to both guys giving everything to their p*ssed up, over-the-top pirate gimmick - Roger, in particular impressed me and made me chuckle throughout playing the ultimate face-in-peril. There was also an appearance from The Kraken - the Wild Galleons' 'mascot', who would come down to help them; taking a Muscle Buster and completely no-selling it!

The Kraken... attacking Dick Morgan's ship?

The main event would see an end to a heated rivalry - fan favourite Dave Mercy would take on Mike Bird in a Last Man Standing match. Before this show I didn't really know about their feud, but after Bird's promo at the start of the match - telling Mercy's kids that they wouldn't have a dad after what he would do to him - and Mercy skipping his entrance so he could start this war, I knew that they had brought a very personal element into the match that would need a stipulation of this kind to finally settle things.

I'm not normally a fan of Last Man Standing matches as I find them a little anti-climatic (having to wait for a ten count over a three count), but this had a good story to it and you could tell that the Yate Audience were into it and firmly behind Mercy to get his revenge. I gathered by the end of the match that each guy's finishers were an RKO (Mercy) and a Gotch Piledriver (Bird) as they traded them towards the end to add to the drama of neither man giving into the ten count.

Results

• King of Chaos Tournament Semi-Final: Wild Boar defeated Jeckel
• Alex Steele defeated 'Mr Reem' Scotty Essex
• Triple Threat: 'Dynamite' Pete Dunne defeated Damian Dunne and 'Flash' Morgan Webster MOTN
• 'The Walking Nightmare' Gideon & Ian Williams defeated The Wild Galeons (Captain Dick Morgan & Roger The Cabin Boy)
• Last Man Standing: Dave Mercy defeated Mike Bird

Overall, an excellent show. Although I was a little cautious on the lead-up to the show, I had no reason to be as everyone put in a top performance - it's no wonder that Chaos has sold out all of their shows so far. Huge credit to all involved for that - especially Dave (Mercy), Nick (Gideon) and Rob (Jeckel). I'd also like to say that this was the most welcome that I have felt at a show - it had a really big family feel to it from the Yate locals watching to the guys that were on the show; that was probably the most pleasing aspect and a huge reason as to why these shows work!

If you would like to go to a Pro Wrestling Chaos show in the future then visit their Facebook and Twitter pages and keep up to date with the latest goings on - YOU WILL NOT REGRET IT!

Support British Wrestling

@jimmosangle

Jimmo's Angle Special: Interview: Promoters and their Priorities (Part Two)

Part Two: Booking talent and Ambitions

This is the second part of my interview with three experienced promoters on the UK wrestling scene - Ben Auld (Southside), Dave Sharp (4FW) and Stuart Natt (CSF) - who kindly took the time out to respond to some questions that I felt would interest people with regards to promoting shows in the UK.

In this second part, I asked them what their priorities were with regards to booking talent and I finished off by asking about their ambitions for 2014 and beyond:

Jimmo's Angle: What things do you look for in a wrestler prior to booking them? (UK based or International)

Ben: Well in the UK the talent speaks for itself. Quite simply, I want to book the best and won't book anything less.

International talent; I look for two things and hope a guy/girl ticks both the boxes. Firstly, I want them to help me draw [attract] fans; they need to be able to entertain our fans. More importantly, they need to help elevate our guys. I believe my roster are on a par with the international talent and my thinking is how it will help them look like the superstars that they deserve to be.

Dave: Many things. To be honest, when I book people I compare them to my local lads that I have trained and see what they can potentially add that my lads don’t to the event. And believe me, the bar at 4FW is set very, very high. I look for attitudes in talent; are they here just to collect an easy pay day? Attire; does it look professional? Do they look like a professional wrestler or at least an athlete? Most importantly though, is whether they want to and/or can they help out my younger lads? Many, many things come into play.

Stuart: I look for lots of things. Some pros can be the best in-ring worker you've seen in years, but sometimes if they lack a decent gimmick it's all in vain. Then again, the fact they could wrestle all day long and you wouldn't see them use the same move twice is a brilliant gimmick in itself. Again, 'Something for everyone', so you have to look at the whole show and get the balance just right to keep people's attention for two and a half hours.

Another important thing is making sure anyone you bring in has a decent attitude so backstage is lively, fun, yet still a professional environment; that's very important! Being a team player is of huge importance; no place for anyone out for themselves and, in the process, damaging the card. You have to pull together as a team and help everyone to get over and leave the venue looking strong ready for the next event there.

JA: What benefits do you think there are in booking international talent? Ultimately, is the cost worth it?

Ben: There are lots of 'pros'. Two of the most important are that they help elevate my talent and my company.

The 'cons' are the cost and risk involved; the stress levels are a lot higher and if things go wrong then fans can be very disappointed.

Dave: There are many benefits to booking International talent, especially if it is someone who has travelled all over the world and can pass on knowledge. My main focus is to bring international talent over that can help benefit my crew; bringing over Dick Togo and Ultimo Dragon, for example, helped open more doors than I could've ever imagined. I always ensure a seminar is arranged with the talent as well to ensure all my students get to learn from them.

The 'pros'; depending on the name, that 'star' can generate big ticket sales, DVD sales and other merchandise and most importantly to me, help the young lads that come through the 4FW Academy.

The 'cons'; depends on who the talent is, to be honest. I’ve only really had one talent that put a massive downer on international talent for me. Apart from that, I haven’t had many issues to thinks about the cons of bringing international talent over. The cost is worth it for me; I’m not sure what anyone else does but I have a good thing in place which means it benefits me, 4FW, and the students greatly.

Stuart: Quite a tricky question. We've had the 'super shows' with half a dozen, if not more, imports.

Obviously these were received very well and, by all accounts, were great shows. But maybe that type of event has had it's time and has been and gone. With there being lots (and lots) of amazing talents in the UK we certainly don't need to rely on imports to draw a crowd. Look at the numbers some UK-only name shows draw. The Scottish scene, for example, has grown so quickly and they've created their own stars, something which is very important for not only the gate, but the future of the sport in the coming years.

I use the imports as a 'thank you' to my regular fans. Obviously I need to cover their costs, but rather than rely on them to draw, I take them to regular venues which already draw very well as a nod to the customers who attend all the shows there regardless who is on, as they know they are going to have a great night whoever is appearing. Last year I had Sabu on a card, this year I have Chris Masters in a couple of months. In my early days, the imports certainly helped to draw new fans, then it was my job to keep those customers coming back each time regardless of the card.

JA: What are your ambitions for 2014 and beyond?

Ben: I believe we have cemented ourselves as one of the best promotions in the UK and I fully intend on taking us to even higher levels. We have spent more money on production and I believe our set-up is now one of the best in England. However, I still think we can improve.

Dave: Continue to grow as a person, business man and as a company. To learn more and more about business; not just the ‘wrestling business’, but wrestling AND business in general. Rebranding the entire product (which is currently well under way). Bring more students through my academy that add to the very high standard that exists. Run more events; I’m looking to be in charge of the company that sets the bar in United Kingdom Professional Wrestling.

Stuart: 2014 ambitions are simple: add a few new venues, keep my regular customers happy and to keep presenting good quality entertainment.

Jimmo's Angle: I really hope that wannabe promoters have been given, at least, a small idea about promoting from this interview. Like with the training interview that I conducted, I really hope that it will deter people who have no business running shows, as well as those that think that by watching WWE or whatever promotion, that it's easy to run a show themselves. Please be warned that it takes experience, dedication, (a lot of) money and risk to maintain a well run, successful, profitable wrestling promotion. As much as I may be 'small fry' on the British wrestling scene, I really hope that this (and part one of this article) can help people to make the right decisions and, in however small a way, STOP them from attempting to start something that could cost them a lot in several aspects of their lives.

I'd like to thank the three gentlemen; Ben, Dave and Stuart; for their time. They are three examples of how promoting wrestling shows is done in this country and I am excited to get myself along to their shows at some point in the next few months.

Each of their answers were a joy to read and enlightened me a little more on my journey watching British wrestling shows.

For upcoming events and general news, please visit:

• Southside Wrestling Facebook Page
• 4FW Facebook Page
• www.csfwrestling.co.uk

Support British Wrestling

@jimmosangle

Jimmo's Angle Special: Interview: Promoters and their Priorities (Part One)

Part One: History and Show Priorities

On the back of 'The Importance of Training' interview that I conducted with three respected British wrestlers (Iestyn Rees, Gilligan Gordon and UK Dominator) last month, I wanted to tackle another aspect of British wrestling that deserves attention - Promoting. Similarly to the training that one should undertake to become a wrestler, the same dedication and know-how should be applied if someone wants to attempt to run a successful, profitable wrestling promotion.

I'm going to more and more shows and as time has gone on I'm finding that, as with the training aspect of wrestling being important, so too is making sure that a wrestling show is put on in the correct manner.

Something I've always hated about the big leagues in America (WWE) is that all decisions are made with the interest of making the most money. As much as I hate this fact (because at times it gets in the way of sense and logic), it makes complete sense to do... as much as you want to put on a great show for the fans, paying the bills and covering the costs that add up along the way are more important when planning a wrestling event.

To get an idea of a Promoter's mindset, and what is important to them from show to show, I was fortunate to get feedback from three experienced promoters on the UK scene: Ben Auld (Southside), Dave Sharp (4FW) and Stuart Natt (CSF). These gentlemen took time out of their busy schedules to give me an idea of their priorites.

Part one (of two) will focus on each man's history in wrestling as well as their priorities with regards to preparing for an upcoming show:

Jimmo's Angle: What is your wrestling background? What is your connection to your current promotion?

Ben: As a fan, the first event I ever watched was Wrestlemania 7; loved the Ted Dibiase/Virgil match for the amazing storyline; Boss Man vs. Perfect, and of course Warrior vs. Savage... I was hooked straight away.

The transition from fan to promoter started when I went to a TNA show in Coventry where I met a guy who told me all about 1PW, so in April 2009 I travelled to Doncaster to try it out. Again, I was hooked straight away. Funnily enough I was amazed at Project Ego and El Ligero who have all become good friends of mine. I started to go to more and more British shows and eighteen months after my first Britwres show I ran my very first show.

I have now been running for over three years, have run thirty-five shows in St Neots, Over, Huntingdon, Stevenage, Letchworth, Preston and Nottingham. We have used talent from America, Canada, Mexico, Europe and Japan.

Dave: I have been a fan of professional wrestling since the age of six, so for twenty-six years wrestling has been in my life. I’ve never stopped watching or wanting to be involved in some capacity since the day I saw my first match.

I started training to be a wrestler in 2001, where I attended several of the UK Hammerlock sessions and a few of the weekend camps. A local promotion opened the doors nearby and I started attending the sessions on a weekly basis. I haven’t wrestled for around three years now due to injuries and becoming a father and priorities changing.

4FW came about because of several reasons which I don’t really feel the need to get into as everyone has moved on from the things that have happened from ten years ago and I would hate to bring anything up that might rub someone up the wrong way. For the first year I wasn’t the promoter of 4FW but in year two myself and James Dunn took the promotion over and ran it together until October 2012, when James decided to step away from promoting and I now run 4FW on my own.

Stuart: I always attended every wrestling event in the area, from the age of about seven. I'd make my dad take me to all the events from my home town and up to seventy-odd miles away. I used to attend events on a regular basis in Bath, Bristol, Wiltshire, Somerset and Weymouth (as the family have a house on the harbour next to the Pavilion, so I could go watch the show, sleep and travel back seventy miles to school the next morning).

I didn't miss an episode of World of Sport / ITV Wrestling, either; started watching when I was five or six and still have dozens of Betamax tapes as I recorded it every week. When we upgraded to VHS I happily spent my youth filling hundreds of tapes with WOS and the NWA Worldwide shows that used to air in the early hours.

Over the years I went to hundreds of shows and after a while got invited along to training, I was 16 I think. Not going to mention any names as I don't want to give them any publicity, but looking back it was the sh*ts! After a short while I got put on shows - some good, some bad. I was lucky enough to meet the Noble brothers, Andy and Steve. They ran decent shows and held weekly training sessions; this is where I realised how shit it was where I was and how good things should be. It just made me more passionate. A couple years passed and I just pulled out and opened up CSF in my home town. I did it because I care about the state of wrestling and wanted something better in the area. What was here was a joke so I started out on my own to run those who were already here out.

JA: What are your main priorities (business-wise) when organising a show?

Ben: My main priority is to deliver to the fans and make money. But I will never put money before quality, if I ever have to do that I will quit. I have worked my b*llocks off to garner the rep we have. Luckily, we have built a really good fan base who trust us to always deliver. What a lot of fans don't understand is there are many ways to make money from wrestling so we work hard on DVD sales and merchandise. If our shows are great and only break-even on the door, then we still have other avenues to profit from.

Dave: Book dates with venues with plenty of notice. Promote, present my business well, promote some more and make money. Come show day I know I have put everything into it promoting-wise, so my priorities then turn to ensuring that what I have advertised is what I present in the most professional way possible.

Stuart: CSF is fifteen years old. At first, my priority was to drive the sh*te out of the area. Within my first year I had held three events in my home town and branched out to another venue an hour away. Within a couple of years I had five or so regular venues, all doing well and attracting big crowds. The events were big; I used a cage gimmick and had big production. I had Jake ['The Snake'] Roberts with us for a year; he behaved quite well! Plus Honky Tonk Man, so I guess it was more about the 'wow!' factor back then, bringing these huge events in each venue three times a year and going all out.

My priority now, as it was when I started, is to put on the very best all-round show - 'something for everyone' - it's fine jumping off cages and having the Americano glamour, but you will always need some good ol' rasslin on the card.

As time passed, I became more aware of my budget in each venue and had to cater for very different audiences. I have two children now so I can no longer p*ss the money away, I have to set a budget, work with it and generate a profit, something which can be very difficult in some towns.

JA: What tools and ways do you use to promote your shows?

Ben: I use Facebook, Twitter, fan forums, posters, leaflets, newspapers; it's always hard to judge what is most effective but if I had to choose one thing it would probably be Facebook.

Dave: Presentable and professional looking posters is priority number one. Along with banners and sometimes newspaper adverts, anywhere and everywhere I can advertise my product for free, social media, forums, websites, etc. Flyers are not high on the list as it is very hit-and-miss on whether you actually hit the market you are aiming for.

Stuart: I've always felt the best way to promote the next show is during the [current] show. Nice gee-up for the next event's feature attraction, tease a few of the other up-coming bouts and rotate the stars.

In lots of venues we use a video wall so during the interval we can show videos of future events and plug the dates. I am also a big user of local media; local websites, newspapers and radio. After that, obvious things like posters and door-to-doors. Obviously the last couple of years has seen a huge increase with the use of social media as an advertising tool. This is growing and becoming very important; an easy and affordable way of staying visible.

Jimmo's Angle: I would like to thank all three gentlemen for their time and responses to my questions. in the next part of this interview, Ben, Dave and Stuart will discuss what is important to them with regards to booking talent and their ambitions in wrestling.

In the meantime, please check out the Facebook pages and Twitter accounts of all three promotions and get along to a show...

Support British Wrestling

@jimmosangle

My Weekend of (British) Wrestling 27 - Kamikaze Pro 'Project K'

Saturday 8th March 2014 - Kamikaze Pro presents 'Project K' - Cadbury Club, Bourneville, Birmingham

My aim of going to a range of shows this year continued as I went to my first Kamikaze Pro show of 2014 - Project K. On paper, the card looked really good with UK talents Pete Dunne, Eddie Dennis and T-Bone being joined by a couple of imports from America, ROH (Ring of Honour) TV Champion Tommaso Ciampa and former WWE star Trent Barreta.

Former WWE star Trent Barreta

Now, to a lot of people, these two gentlemen were probably the 'draws' and who people had flocked along to see. For me, the likes of Pete Dunne, Justin [The Hammer] Sysum and The Bhangra Knights were who I'd travelled up to Birmingham for. These are the guys that I'm more familiar with and KNOW what they can do consistently. That being said, I take nothing away from Ciampa and Barreta as they had great matches and made their respective opponents - Dennis and Dunne - look even better than they already are.

Also, going into this show, I was very interested in seeing Battle Squad: Awesome. I'd never seen them before but had heard good things. Earlier this year, along with the support of Harvey Dale, they have managed to get a huge number of votes and secure a PCW (Preston) tag title shot. This got me thinking that there must be something about them worth seeing.

I wasn't wrong, as the second match on the card saw The Bhangra Knights face them in a 'face vs face' match. This was something that really worked as there was a lot of talking amongst them; RJ Singh and Dave Andrews had a comedic exchange, accepting that they weren't going to match the speed and excitement that their tag partners had just displayed moments earlier; being a face vs face match, there was also no need to sneak up on each other to gain an advantage. As a result, you knew that you were going to get a straight-up 'who's the best team' match - this is exactly what we got.

Usually, my uncontrollable smile face is reserved for James Mason shows, but this match had me grinning from ear to ear because of the flow and the tag team work that was on show - I really appreciated the tandem work that both teams put in. I'm just a sucker for proper tag teams who look alike (character and attire) so this match ticked all boxes.

As I started this segment about Battle Squad: Awesome, I'll finish it with them: I don't know much about them but I gather their gimmick is that it's an Avengers tribute with Andrews as Captain America and Chase as Iron Man (due to their tights). I've also checked them out on Twitter and they've also got the alter-ego thing as well. I LOVE that! As my journeys will take me further north in the coming months, I really hope to see these guys more (maybe in Southside or House of Pain?).

After four paragraphs on my favourite match of the night, I should say something about the rest of the show! The first half really worked for me; Justin Sysum and T-Bone were in the opening match and this was something that I knew wouldn't fail as I like to refer to T-Bone as the 'king of the openers'; along with James Mason, Bone can't have a bad match when opening the show. Along with the audience being into this show from the start, Bone and Justin put on a nice little opener that had the audience giving the appropriate reactions throughout. Job done. After speaking with Justin after the show, YES there did seem to be a couple of mistakes, but I've got no doubt at all that he'll work on them and improve as he has done for well over a year now!

The main event of the first half of the show saw a ROH TV Championship match with 'Pride of Wales' Eddie Dennis challenging Tommaso Ciampa for his title. I thought this was a nice touch by Kamikaze/Ciampa for allowing this (or whatever permissions were needed) as it gave the show a little more importance that a title from the USA could be showcased over here. Along with the spitting on the belt (by Dennis) and the derogatory comments made about ROH (again, by Dennis), it all added to a heated brawl between the two and a really nice back-and-forth match that ended with the (somewhat predictable) win for Ciampa, AND the further elevation of Dennis.

ROH TV Champion Tommaso Ciampa

Dennis does the Wales/Sheepsh*gger denial thing and because of it he is comedy and entertaining everytime I've seen him on shows!

Just after the interval, things took a slower pace leading into the main event of the evening. First up was Stixx (heel) taking on Birmingham's own Rick Van Damage.

I really like both guys, but despite this being a, kind of, battle of the heavyweights, it didn't quite flow that well. I was expecting Stixx to carry this match as he's the more experienced of the two and that was definitely the case. I've only seen Van Damage a handful of times in the last year but there seems to be the same issues that I've always had with him; he's kind of stiff looking and robotic at times. He could also do with cracking a smile, too, as if he's the face (and our hero), then we need a friendly face to cheer for. I really hope that this is taken in a constructive way as I hate giving what can sometimes be seen as negative comments.

Also on this night, the Kamikaze Pro Championship was also defended as the popular Robbie X challenged Ryan Smile. This started with a really nice, flowing exchange before the pace would drop just a little. The one thing that I couldn't get past was that towards the end, there were a couple of instances where Smile kind of no-sold a couple of moves and a chop from Robbie X before gaining the win convincingly. I'm not too big on Smile in the couple of times that I've seen him, but a huge positive that I will say is the intensity he showed in the last thirty seconds of this match before getting the pinfall. It was an intensity from a guy that WANTED to defend his title successfully. This impressed me.

The main event of the show pitted Birmingham's own 'Dynamite' Pete Dunne against former WWE star Trent Barreta. As I said earlier, Barreta wasn't the thing that sold the show to me before I came, Pete Dunne, however, WAS one of the things that made the trip up to Birmingham more than worth it; I'd already seen Dunne take on Zack Sabre Jr at a Triple X Wrestling show in January and it was amazing.

'Dynamite' Pete Dunne

Barreta vs Dunne would be a great match for a different reason, though. Yes, the wrestling aspect was faultless, but it was the story of the match that impressed me the most.

The start of the match was a friendly, respect-showing exercise; shaking hands and even hugging-it-out, too - this got a really good reaction. Then for the first half of the match it was a solid 'face vs face' match before frustration set in. Barreta would show more of more signs of annoyance as Dunne matched him move-for-move. The line of the match, and the thing that shifted Barreta from face to heel was when he screamed at Pete, "you think you're in my league?". This set the tone for the rest of the match as Barreta threw everything at Dunne and he kept kicking out and coming back for more. Eventually, Dunne would get the win, a hug and the respect of his American counterpart. Equals and rightly so.

I really love it when guys come to this country and 'do the right thing'; yes, they are the 'stars' but they should be here to make our guys - our EXTREMELY TALENTED guys - look that extra bit special. Credit to Ciampa and Barreta for doing so.

Results

• T-Bone defeated Justin 'The Hammer' Sysum (Justin was then attacked by Marshall X, setting up a future match between the two)
• The Bhangra Knights; RJ Singh & Darrell Allen defeated Battle Squad: Awesome; 'Diamond' Dave Andrews & 'Adrenaline' Danny Chase (MOTN)
• ROH Television Championship: Tommaso Ciampa (c) defeated 'Pride of Wales' Eddie Dennis
• 'The Heavyweight House of Pain' Stixx defeated Rick Van Damage
• Kamikaze Pro Championship: Ryan Smile (c) defeated Robbie X
• 'Dynamite' Pete Dunne defeated Trent Barreta

Overall, a really good show with great showings from both Americans, but more importantly, from our own talented UK guys!

Making strides; Robbie X

Kamikaze Pro's next show will be on Sunday 30th March. Check out their Facebook page and/or Twitter account to see the latest news and to enquire about tickets - a great night out for all the family.

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@jimmosangle