Tag: progress wrestling

Big Damo on PROGRESS Wrestling acquisition: ‘Was not on the bingo card for us’

Posted on by Rosanne Raphael

Former WWE stars Big Damo and Nikki Storm (fka Nikki Cross) open up about their unexpected takeover of PROGRESS Wrestling and how it all came together. 

In an exclusive interview with Tom Campbell of Cultaholic Wrestling, Damo and Storm talked about their plans for PROGRESS Wrestling after acquisition. Damo exclaimed that it was the last thing they expected. 

“Genuinely, this was not on the bingo card for us, either. We have talked about a million different scenarios for a long time. We have been wrestling for 22 years, Nikki has been wrestling for 18 years, so we know there is a time limit. We are going to have to start thinking about what is the future and we thought that was going to be with our little Scottish promotion in Glasgow, but no, it turns out.”

He added that the opportunity fell in their lap shortly after Storm’s WWE release.

“This opportunity came along a few weeks ago. Not long after Nikki had been released, actually. It was only a few days after. I’ll just be honest, I was in Belfast about to jump on a plane going to another show and I had to sit thinking about it on the plane like, ‘This is wild. There’s no way this could happen.’ Then I come off the plane and we start talking about it seriously. At first we were talking with James Amner, he’s been in situ at PROGRESS for a long, long time. He’s one of the hidden gems. He hates credit in every single way but he’s one of the reasons PROGRESS has been ticking over at all for maybe a decade.”

“When I broached Nikki with it, she was like, ‘What?’ So there’s been plenty of conversations and, listen, the boys made it very easy. I dealt directly with Martyn Best…and he was very patient with me and we were able to come to the best agreement for both of us. That was one of the most amazing experiences in terms of how easy he made that for me. This could have been very, very difficult and this could have been out of our reach, realistically, because we are living in the United States. That is still our home. Obviously that will change in the next few years but that is our handicap, effectively, in one regard. But now it’s putting us in a position where we’re starting to think about, ‘Okay, what do we want to do next?’ and PROGRESS Wrestling has answered a lot of those questions very quickly.”

“We can now start thinking about long term, and that’s something Nikki and I were talking about the other day. Our goal is to make this into the number one independent promotion on the planet.”

Storm added that the ambition to make the promotion the best wrestling company in the globe. 

“Number one. Letter A. Don’t get me wrong, we want to give back to the industry, but PROGRESS is going to be the number one wrestling company in the world.”

The announcement of their takeover was announced in May. Storm is set to compete in her first match since the WWE release at PROGRESS Wrestling in July.  

Former PROGRESS co-owner issues statement following Nikki Cross & Big Damo acquisition

Posted on by Shounak Chakrabarti

Former PROGRESS Wrestling co-owner Lee McAteer has issued a statement following Nikki Cross & Big Damo’s acquisition of the British wrestling promotion.

The promotion released an official statement on May 26, 2026, and revealed that co-owners Martyn Best and Lee McAteer were done with the promotion, and former WWE wrestlers Nikki Cross & Big Damo had acquired it.

McAteer later shared a statement on social media reflecting on his tenure at PROGRESS, expressing his pleasure in passing the promotion to Cross and Big Damo.

“Being a custodian of PROGRESS Wrestling has been one of the greatest honours of my life, and with fellow owners Martyn Best and Matt Buczek, we have restored and protected PROGRESS and leave it in a stronger place for it to grow to the next level. I have been so proud of the connection we have nurtured with our loyal fans, and it will be something I will always treasure,” he wrote.

“I am delighted that we are handing the company over to two people I have great admiration for, and who are highly respected throughout the wrestling community. Big Damo and Nikki Cross are British and Irish wrestling royalty, and after hearing their thoughts, I know that the most exciting chapter in PROGRESS’s history is still to come. I am incredibly excited for the future of PROGRESS under Big Damo and Nikki. Let’s all get behind both of them. To all the PROGRESS fans, wrestlers, colleagues and partners, thank you,” he concluded.

What is PROGRESS Wrestling?

Based in London, UK, PROGRESS Wrestling was established in 2011 by Jim Smallman, Jon Briley, and Glen Joseph. Following a successful run filled with a few ups and downs, PROGRESS was acquired by Lee McAteer and Martyn Best in 2022.

In February 2024, PROGRESS Wrestling merged with DEFY Wrestling, an independent promotion based in Seattle, Washington, in the United States. And on May 26, 2026, both PROGRESS and DEFY were acquired by Cross and Big Damo.

Over the years, PROGRESS has produced and worked with several talented wrestlers, including Pete Dunne, JD McDonagh, Trent Seven, Michael Oku, and many more.

Nikki Cross announced for first match since WWE release 

Posted on by Rosanne Raphael

Nikki Cross will step back into the ring for her first match since being released by WWE. It will take place in July with details about her opponent unannounced.

PROGRESS Wrestling officially announced that Cross will compete at Chapter 196: Scorchio on July 26. Her opponent has not yet been announced. 

“Nikki Storm (formerly Nikki Cross) will be competing at Chapter 196: Scorchio on Sunday 26th July! We are delighted to have Nikki wrestling and we will be announcing her opponent soon @EBallroomCamden,” tweeted PROGRESS Wrestling. 

Cross was released along with the other members of the Wyatt Sicks in April. Not too long after she filed to trademark ‘Nikki Storm’ and ‘Best in the Galaxy’. 

Cross signed with WWE in 2016 and was notably a part of Sanity on NXT. In 2024, she joined Wyatt Sicks as Abby The Witch, a character from Bray Wyatt’s Firefly Funhouse. 

Her last WWE match was on the September 9, 2024 edition of Raw in a mixed street fight featuring Dexter Lumis, Erick Rowan and Joe Gacy against The Creed Brothers, Chad Gable and Ivy Nile.

PROGRESS reveals opponent for Meiko Satomura retirement tour match

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Meiko Satomura has an opponent for her return to PROGRESS Wrestling next month.

On her retirement tour, Satomura will return to the United Kingdom to compete for PROGRESS on Sunday, February 23. It was announced today that UK indie star Rhio will be Satomura’s opponent. Both Satomura and Rhio are former PROGRESS Women’s Champions.

The February 23 event is titled My Own Destiny and is taking place from the Electric Ballroom in London.

Rhio — who is from Preston, England — is a former ICW Women’s Champion.

The legendary Satomura is wrapping up her career with her final match set to take place on April 29. She had her first match in 1995 and is now retiring just over 30 years since making her debut. Satomura runs the Sendai Girls promotion in Japan and will be having her retirement match for them.

Satomura appeared as an attraction on the UK indies during the latter stages of her career. Her reign as PROGRESS Women’s Champion lasted for three months in 2019. She later was part of the NXT UK roster as a wrestler and coach.

El Hijo del Vikingo comments on injury, hopes to recover in a few weeks

Posted on by Joseph Currier

El Hijo del Vikingo is staying positive while he faces another injury.

While making his PROGRESS Wrestling debut on Sunday, Vikingo suffered an injury to his left leg while facing Kid Lykos II. The match was stopped after Vikingo’s injury and ended in a no contest. PROGRESS Wrestling noted that Vikingo would be checked out by their medical team, and the promotion was hoping for a speedy recovery.

Vikingo made an Instagram post after the match sharing a clip of the spot where he got hurt. He’s hoping that he will be able to recover in a few weeks.

“God knows why he puts these tests on me, I have faith that it will be a few weeks,” Vikingo wrote. “Thank you very much to all the fans in London for such a wonderful welcome.”

In another post on his Instagram stories, Vikingo shared a photo of himself on the flight home to Mexico with a caption that included the words “always positive.”

Vikingo was originally supposed to make his PROGRESS debut in November, but that was pushed back a month so that he could fully recover from an injury that he suffered in October. Before that injury, Vikingo spent seven months out of action from February-September due to knee surgery.

PROGRESS said that Vikingo’s match against Lykos was a “classic in the making” before he got hurt, and they cannot wait to have the Lucha Libre AAA star return soon.

El Hijo del Vikingo pulled from PROGRESS Wrestling debut

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Though El Hijo del Vikingo has returned from injury, he will not be making his United Kingdom debut this weekend.

Vikingo was supposed to debut for PROGRESS Wrestling in a match against Cara Noir in London on November 24, but the promotion has announced that Vikingo will no longer be appearing. PROGRESS is working to book Vikingo for a new date and hopes to have him debut soon.

“El Hijo Del Vikingo injury update: Despite recovering he will not be ready to compete to the high level he would want for a European debut,” PROGRESS wrote. “We are working on a new date with Vikingo and hope to see him very soon in a PROGRESS ring, hopefully before year end.”

After spending seven months out of action following knee surgery, Vikingo returned in September but suffered another injury at a TNA Wrestling television taping on October 27. He avoided major injury but expected to miss a few weeks. Vikingo then made his return to the ring at an event for Lucha Libre AAA on November 17.

PROGRESS & Defy Wrestling announce merger

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Independent wrestling promotions PROGRESS Wrestling and Defy Wrestling are joining forces.

The two promotions issued a press release on Friday announcing that they are merging together. PROGRESS is based in the United Kingdom, while Defy is based out of Seattle in the United States.

“The merger will create a truly global presence for both organisations with mutual benefits for both parties and aid further expansion plans that will offer something really exciting for wrestling fans around the world,” the press release said.

The announcement was made in advance of Defy’s seventh anniversary show taking place tonight (February 9). PROGRESS has existed since 2012 and was sold to Lee McAteer and Martyn Best at the end of 2021.

With the merger, Defy content will soon be available on PROGRESS’ Demand PROGRESS Plus streaming service.

Friday’s press release included a statement from Best:

Lee and I really welcome Jim [Perry] and Matt Farmer joining us at PROGRESS, and this is a major step in our wider plans for more international collaborations. We previously had a strong content partnership with WWE, and we have a developing relationship with Japanese promotion Pro Wrestling NOAH. With DEFY joining us, I am sure that our many combined fans will be very excited to see what happens next.

We will be continuing our closeness in Philadelphia with us both having shows at The Collective immediately prior to WrestleMania 40, and we are planning our second joint show in London later in the year. DEFY will also soon be seen on DEMAND PROGRESS PLUS, our content and live streaming platform, in the very near future and we have some fascinating ideas to highlight the great wrestling talent we both work with.

Defy’s Jim Perry said:

I’ve been an admirer of PROGRESS from the start, and in some ways, they helped inspire the creation of DEFY. We have known each other for a number of years, and been working on many collaborations, including our successful double-show in London last August. I’m very excited about the opportunities of our more formal coming together, and the fans can expect to see some really neat ideas emerging.

NXT UK’s Ilja Dragunov to face Cara Noir at PROGRESS 10th Anniversary Show

Posted on by Joseph Currier

An NXT UK star is headed to PROGRESS Wrestling for the promotion’s 10th Anniversary Show.

It was announced today that Ilja Dragunov vs. Cara Noir will take place at PROGRESS Wrestling’s 10th Anniversary Show on Friday, March 25. The event, which is PROGRESS Chapter 131, is taking place at The Garage in London, England.

Earlier this month, Dragunov returned to PROGRESS to confront Cara Noir at Chapter 128. The confrontation took place after Cara Noir retained the PROGRESS World Championship against Dean Allmark.

Cara Noir has been PROGRESS World Champion since January 2020. He’s set to defend the title against Shane “Swerve” Strickland at Chapter 129 this Sunday.

PROGRESS has also announced that Warren Banks will be getting a PROGRESS World title shot at the 10th Anniversary Show, which indicates that Cara Noir would be wrestling twice if he’s still champion.

Dragunov has held the NXT United Kingdom Championship since winning the title from WALTER at TakeOver 36 last August.

Dragunov vs. Cara Noir isn’t currently announced as being a title match.

At the end of December, it was revealed that PROGRESS Wrestling had been sold to Lee McAteer and Martyn Best. McAteer and Best are associate directors of English Football League Two soccer team Tranmere Rovers.

PROGRESS shows are uploaded to Peacock/WWE Network and Demand PROGRESS.

AEW’s Anthony Ogogo appears at PROGRESS Wrestling event

Posted on by Ethan Renner

AEW talent Anthony Ogogo made his PROGRESS Wrestling debut at today’s Chapter 127 event at the Electric Ballroom in London, England.

Ogogo’s unadvertised appearance came in the form of a match against Hari Singh, which Ogogo won with the Tower of London finisher. 

Ogogo’s appearance is notable, as it marks the first time that a contracted AEW talent has wrestled in the United Kingdom, according to a PROGRESS press release. 

The political implications of the match are worth noting as well, as the PROGRESS event is currently scheduled to be added to WWE’s video library on Peacock and WWE Network next month.

Today’s match was just the twelfth of Ogogo’s entire career. He returned to AEW in December 2021 following a six-month absence related to an eye surgery. Ogogo has had a total of ten eye surgeries.

Ogogo is a 2012 Olympic bronze medalist in boxing. His most high-profile wrestling match came at AEW Double or Nothing in May 2021, where he lost to Cody Rhodes.

PROGRESS Wrestling sold, returning with live shows in 2022

Posted on by Joseph Currier

PROGRESS Wrestling will return to live shows under new ownership in 2022.

It was announced on Friday that British wrestling promotion PROGRESS Wrestling has been sold to Lee McAteer and Martyn Best. The two are associate directors of English Football League Two soccer team Tranmere Rovers, and McAteer is the founder and former CEO of the company Wrestling Travel.

After running empty arena events since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, PROGRESS will return in front of fans at the Electric Ballroom in London on Sunday, January 23. The show, which is titled PROGRESS Chapter 127:’… and the word was PROGRESS,’ will be headlined by Cara Noir defending his PROGRESS World Championship against Chris Ridgeway in a first-to-three falls match.

PROGRESS was founded in 2011 by Jim Smallman and Jon Briley, with the two later being joined by Glen Robinson (who went by the name Glen Joseph). Smallman departed the company in 2019. Robinson left in 2020 amid the #SpeakingOut movement, with a new management team being introduced as a response to #SpeakingOut.

PROGRESS has also announced that they will hold shows in Manchester on Sunday, February 6 and the Electric Ballroom on Sunday, February 20. Jonathan Gresham will be in action at the Manchester show.

PROGRESS shows air on Peacock/WWE Network.

WhatCulture’s Simon Miller will be the new host of PROGRESS Wrestling. 

The full press release announcing the sale is available below:

(London, England) PROGRESS Wrestling, the world’s leading independent professional wrestling company confirms that they will return to live shows in 2022 under brand new ownership, heralding an exciting new dawn in the history of the UK’s most exciting wrestling promotion.

PROGRESS Chapter 127: ‘ … and the word was PROGRESS’ will take place at the spiritual home of PROGRESS, The Electric Ballroom in Camden, London on Sunday 23rd January 2022.  The show will be main-evented by PROGRESS World Champion, Cara Noir defending his coveted title against Liverpool’s Chris Ridgeway in a first-to-three falls bout.

This return to live shows will come with new owners at the helm of PROGRESS Wrestling. The company has been purchased by Lee McAteer and Martyn Best, directors of English Football League Two stalwarts Tranmere Rovers FC. McAteer and Best will bring their wealth of business and sporting experience to bear to ensure PROGRESS returns strongly to live events and builds upon the success of the past.

McAteer, previously dubbed by various media outlets as ‘Britain’s Best Boss’ by mainstream media, will be well known to wrestling fans already as the founder and former CEO of Wrestling Travel which has quickly become a fond presence among wrestling fan culture, growing enormously since being founded in 2017. He was also founder and CEO of AmeriCamp and Invasion Camp Group.

Best served as the chairman of Everton Tigers, one of the most successful professional clubs in British basketball history and has developed a wide range of other successful business interests.

As well as the 23rd January event, PROGRESS have confirmed an exciting line-up of events further into 2022. The promotion will return to Manchester on Sunday 6th February with a show featuring current Ring of Honor World Champion, Jonathan Gresham. They will then return to the Electric Ballroom on Sunday 20th February, with a line-up that is sure to wow PROGRESS fans new and old. Many further dates around the UK will be confirmed soon.

McAteer said: ‘We are really excited to have acquired PROGRESS Wrestling and wish to place on record our thanks to the previous ownership for having developed such a distinctive wrestling promotion. A feat that must never go unacknowledged. Besty (Martyn) and I are very excited with the opportunity that we now have as the world hopefully returns to normality to re-establish PROGRESS at the position it deserves, as the leading name in British professional wrestling and beyond. 

 ‘Our intention is to reaffirm the word professional into professional wrestling for what is literally a new chapter for not only PROGRESS, but the entire British Wrestling scene.

 Best added, ‘I am hugely looking forward to continuing the story of PROGRESS Wrestling with Lee. We have been directors of Tranmere Rovers for a number of years and our collective experience within UK sport and business generally will bring an added dimension to the promotion that will enable it to scale new heights in the coming years.  

 ‘We would also like to place on record our thanks to the PROGRESS team who have helped keep the show on the road over the past 18 months and to our talent who have continued to provide great wrestling despite difficult circumstances. And… of course to the patience and loyalty of all of our fans.’

 Another new name joining Team PROGRESS is Simon Miller who will act as the host of the promotion’s events. Miller has established himself as one of the most influential voices in British wrestling over the last few years due to his growing body of in-ring presence and his hugely successful work with WhatCulture Wrestling on social media.

Alex McCarthy, TalkSPORT’s lead on wrestling coverage said ‘The return of PROGRESS Wrestling under new ownership and to live events is fantastic news for UK wrestling. PROGRESS has been a pillar of the British indies and maybe even the leading promotion within the UK prior to the start of the pandemic. 

‘Having known Lee for many years, I have no doubt that he and Martyn will bring a new energy and enthusiasm to the promotion and I’m excited to see that reflected in the product. I have to say, I am particularly delighted that Simon Miller is going to be the new ring host, too. With a fresh start and their house in order, it will be an exciting time for PROGRESS – I wish them all the very best of luck.’

In the spirit of new beginnings, tickets for the January 23rd event will go on sale the moment the clock strikes midnight tonight (31st December 2021) to herald the start of the new year and a new chapter for PROGRESS Wrestling. Tickets will be available from www.dice.fm or on the Dice smartphone app.

Further announcements about the event will be made in the coming days as they complete their exciting line-ups.

EVOLVE, PROGRESS, ICW, wXw content coming to WWE Network

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Content from WWE-affiliated independent wrestling promotions is finally coming to the WWE Network.

It was announced via Sports Illustrated today that “WWE officials have confirmed that shows from EVOLVE, wXw, PROGRESS, and Insane Championship Wrestling will begin airing on the WWE Network beginning this Saturday.” Here’s what will be uploaded to the WWE Network on Saturday:

  • Best of Drew McIntyre in EVOLVE
  • Best of Keith Lee in EVOLVE
  • ICW’s Shug’s Hoose Party 5: Night two
  • wXw Femme Fatales 2019
  • wXw AMBITION 11
  • PROGRESS Wrestling Chapter 92

The McIntyre compilation will include matches against Ricochet, Johnny Gargano, Roderick Strong, Tommy End (Aleister Black), and Matt Riddle, while the Lee compilation will include matches against Timothy Thatcher, WALTER, Riddle, and Donovan Dijak (Dominik Dijakovic).

Last month, it was officially confirmed that WWE had purchased EVOLVE.

WWE wrote that more content from these promotions will be made available on the WWE Network in the weeks and months to come: “EVOLVE, PROGRESS Wrestling from England, Germany’s wXw and Scotland’s ICW will debut for subscribers to the award-winning streaming service, giving the WWE Universe the chance to see some of their favorite Superstars like never before. And this is just the beginning! You’ll continue to see footage from their libraries, as well as new and exciting content from all of these promotions on WWE Network in the weeks and months to come.”

PROGRESS Wrestling announces talent departures and suspensions

Posted on by Joseph Currier

PROGRESS Wrestling has issued a statement regarding the #SpeakingOut movement and announced a list of talent departures and suspensions after allegations that were made.

David Starr and referee Marc “Paz” Parry will no longer be working for PROGRESS, while Travis Banks, Jordan Devlin, and Scotty Davis will be suspended indefinitely. The PROGRESS Tag Team titles, which were held by Devlin & Davis, have also been vacated.

“We take these allegations extremely seriously. Those under suspension will have their situation reviewed periodically between now, and events starting again,” PROGRESS wrote. “We continue to monitor and listen to the Speaking Out movement so that we can take appropriate action where necessary.”

PROGRESS’ statement about #SpeakingOut is available below:

The last couple of days feel like a watershed moment for the British wrestling scene. 

Stories being bravely told, about abuse that has been suffered within the wrestling business, are heartbreaking and eye-opening. 

We stand with you, and we hear you. Please keep speaking out. 

We have spent today consulting with trusted colleagues within the wrestling business about how we can improve our work environment and make it safer for all involved – talent, crew and fans. These have been incredibly positive discussions and we are excited to get to work making them reality. 

It will take time, but as a wrestling community we can clean this scene up and make it better, and safer. 

—–

From a personal perspective –

Whether victim, friend, casual acquaintance or colleague – no-one should feel guilty for not seeing the signs of abuse. The nature of the abuser is that they are adept at hiding in plain sight.  

—–

As a company we have consistently removed obscene and abusive fans, with the aid of our production crew. We have a ‘banned’ list which gets circulated to all the venues in which we work, so that even if someone on that ‘banned’ list gets a ticket indirectly, security won’t let them in at the door. 

We’ve been in business for 8 years now. As is to be expected over the course of that time, there have been incidents between fans, and very occasionally between wrestlers and fans. Where possible, action has been taken. Where appropriate and where a criminal offence may have been committed, we have advised people to take the matter to the police. These approaches will be reviewed and extended with additional support pathways

PROGRESS doesn’t have anyone under contract. Everyone who works for the company is freelance; what this means in practice is that when they’re on the clock for us, we are ultimately responsible for what they do; once they’ve left the building, they’re an adult and responsible for their own behaviour. 

—–

Thank you for reading. As of this month we are taking steps to diversify our core team, and wider circle of those with whom we consult, and we will learn from this watershed moment. 

—–

If you have been a victim of abuse, here are some links which may be helpful: 

VICTIM SUPPORT (support and practical help for trauma sufferers) – 0808 168 9111

RAPE CRISIS (for girls or women who have been sexually assaulted) – 0808 802 9999

REFUGE (24 hour crisis line for women suffering from domestic violence) – 0808 200 0247

SAMARITANS (for anyone in a crisis) – 116 123

MEN’S ADVICE LINE (for men suffering from domestic violence) – 0808 801 0327

PROGRESS Chapter 103 results: Cara Noir vs. Mark Andrews

Posted on by Dei Owen

PROGRESS returned to the Electric Ballroom in Camden, London on Sunday for Chapter 103: “Beer Snake City.” The show saw Cara Noir defend the Unified World Championship in the main event.

– Pre-show: Rocky Mac defeated Josef Kafka

The main show started with new ring announcer Matt Richards announcing that Charli Evans and Tag Team Champion Jordan Devlin’s injuries meant that some changes had to be done to the card. Instead of the advertised tag match of Toni Storm & Jinny vs. Evans & Millie McKenzie, Storm would instead take on McKenzie one-on-one. Scotty Davis would still face the WorkHorsemen in a non-title match with a replacement partner.  

– Scotty Davis & Eddie Kingston defeated The WorkHorsemen (JD Drake & Anthony Henry)

Davis pinned Henry for the win. Drake and Kingston had some very hard chop exchanges, while Davis and Henry had a mat-based technical contest with some boxing in between. 

– Gisele Shaw defeated Chakara

Shaw got the win by submission. The fans were cheering for her initially, but she gradually dialed up the aggression and started showing off, turning the crowd in favor of Chakara.

– The Anti Fun Police (Chief Deputy Dunne & Los Federales Santos Jr.) & WALTER defeated More Than Hype (LJ Cleary, Nathan Martin & Darren Kearney)

WALTER remained completely serious and refused to partake in Dunne and Santos’ comedy spots in this match. More Than Hype applied a lot of teamwork offense that the crowd ate up.

– Proteus Championship match: Paul Robinson defeated Kyle Fletcher via TKO to retain

Fletcher made use of his size advantage and took control over the champion. The action quickly went outside where chairs were used. Robinson was awarded the victory via TKO after backing Fletcher into the corner and rapidly hitting a flurry of punches to which Fletcher had no answer for.

After the match, Robinson cut an off-the-cuff promo where he explained the rules to the crowd. 

– Millie McKenzie defeated Toni Storm

McKenzie hit a spear after Storm was distracted by Charli Evans who was stood on the stage. The Medusa Complex beat down Storm after the match before PROGRESS Women’s Champion Jinny came out to even the odds.

After much deliberation, Storm shook Jinny’s hand before they walked to the back.

– Ilja Dragunov defeated Malik

Dragunov got the win with a Torpedo Moscow running uppercut.

After a post-match moment of respect between both men, Eddie Kingston ran out to attack Dragunov. He cut a promo where he claimed he made people like Adam Cole and Matt Riddle, and said that he is tired of putting people over. He finished the promo by telling Dragunov that after he is done with him, he is coming for his “boyfriend,” referring to Cara Noir. 

– PROGRESS Unified World Championship: Cara Noir defeated Mark Andrews to retain

Just as Noir’s entrance was about to climax, Eddie Dennis nudged him with his foot, causing an angry Cara Noir to go straight after Mark Andrews. The crowd was electric throughout this match, firmly in favor of Noir. The finish came as Andrews hit Fall to Pieces, but Noir kicked out and quickly applied a rear naked choke to which Andrews tapped out. 

PROGRESS’ next show takes place on Sunday, March 29 with Chapter 104: “Jeff Goldblum’s Fly Machine.”

PROGRESS Chapter 100 results: Jim Smallman’s farewell

Posted on by Dei Owen

PROGRESS Wrestling presented its fourth annual “Unboxing Live” mystery show at the Electric Ballroom in London on Monday.

The event also happened to be the historic 100th chapter show for the promotion and was co-founder Jim Smallman’s final PROGRESS show before leaving the company. Here are the results:

– Pre-show: Jerry Bakewell & Mercedes Blaze defeated Cassius & Nye-Oh

– Roy Johnson issued a Wasteman Challenge (a comedy rap battle). The challenge was answered by Ligero, Scotty Davis, Chris Ridgeway, The Anti-Fun Police, Gene Munny, and Kid Lykos.

After winning the rap battle, Lykos was allowed to pick the stipulation for a multi-man match. The crowd erupted when Smallman revealed that Lykos had chosen a reverse battle royal. This prompted an appearance from Travis Banks’ alter-ego, “Stupid Sexy Trav.”

– Chief Deputy Dunne won the reverse battle royal

This was a lot of fun. PROGRESS have often joked about doing a reverse battle royal where competitors are eliminated after being thrown into the ring. Dunne eliminated PROGRESS Tag Team Champion Scotty Davis to win the match.

– Ilja Dragunov defeated Kyle Fletcher

Dragunov got the win with a Torpedo Moscow running uppercut. This was exceptional. Dragunov and Fletcher were very evenly matched throughout and there were a lot of kickouts as a result. 

– PROGRESS Unified World Champion Eddie Dennis defeated The OJMO to retain his title

Dennis pushed The OJMO into the referee on multiple occasions. The first time, it favored The OJMO as he got the visual pinfall victory with a frog splash. The second time, Dennis capitalized and pinned The OJMO after hitting the Next Stop Driver.

– PROGRESS Women’s Champion Jinny came down to the ring and said that she was supposed to face Toni Storm, but Storm was unfortunately unable to wrestle due to illness.

Jinny then cut a fiery promo in which she highlighted the importance of the women’s division in PROGRESS’ history and promised to become the focal point of the promotion in 2020.

– Cara Noir defeated Paul Robinson, Connor Mills, and Mark Haskins in a four-way match

This match was not for Robinson’s Proteus Championship. Noir got the pinfall victory after hitting Mills with a package piledriver. The PROGRESS fans gave Haskins a hero’s welcome as he returned to the Electric Ballroom.

– Moustache Mountain (Trent Seven & Tyler Bate) defeated Dan Moloney & Rampage Brown

The crowd went wild for Rampage Brown’s return, especially so as he entered to his original copyrighted theme song. He had a hard-hitting chop battle with Seven and displayed tremendous power at the expense of Bate.

Moustache Mountain hit a knee-assisted Birminghammer on Moloney and Seven picked up the win by pinfall.

– Jimmy Havoc defeated David Starr in a death match

Havoc entered to his copyrighted theme song, which generated an incredible atmosphere at the Electric Ballroom. The match was gruesome — thumbtacks, chopsticks, and barbed wire boards were all used and both Starr and Havoc were busted open early on.

Havoc hit a brutal piledriver off the apron through a table on the outside and eventually got the win with an Acid Rainmaker. 

The show ended with Smallman thanking the crowd one last time and hugging PROGRESS co-owners and NXT UK colleagues Glen Joseph and Jon Briley on the stage. Smallman will be greatly missed by the PROGRESS fans, but an exciting new era of PROGRESS awaits.

PROGRESS returns to the Electric Ballroom on Sunday, January 19. Cara Noir will challenge Eddie Dennis for the Unified World Championship on the show.

PROGRESS Chapter 97 results: Meiko Satomura defends her title

Posted on by Dei Owen

PROGRESS Wrestling returned to its home at the Electric Ballroom in Camden, London on Sunday for the first time since the company’s biggest show of the year, which took place at Alexandra Palace.

Here are the results from Sunday’s show:

– Mark Andrews defeated Connor Mills

Andrews got the win with a low blow. PROGRESS Unified World Champion Eddie Dennis interfered on multiple occasions, giving Andrews the advantage. 

After the match, Dennis and Andrews beat down Mills. The OJMO and David Starr made the save. While stood on the stage after a brawl, Dennis promised Starr a Unified World Title opportunity “at some point in the foreseeable future,” providing Starr could beat an opponent of Dennis’ choosing. Starr’s opponent was chosen to be The OJMO. 

– Pretty Deadly (Sam Stoker & Lewis Howley) defeated Jordon Breaks & Sid Scala

Breaks’ partner was originally meant to be Darrell Allen, but was replaced by Sid Scala due to Allen’s absence. 

– The NIC were set to face Do Not Resuscitate in a match, but a video message from Spike Trivet introducing Pretty Deadly as backup for DnR quickly led to a five-on-two beatdown and the match never got underway. 

– Cara Noir defeated Ilja Dragunov

This was a rematch from Chapter 96. Noir got the win by catching Dragunov’s Torpedo Moscow running uppercut into a rear naked choke. 

– PROGRESS Women’s Champion Meiko Satomura defeated Dani Luna to retain her title

This was Satomura’s first title defense since her crowning at Chapter 95. A Death Valley Driver got her the victory. 

– PROGRESS Proteus Champion Paul Robinson defeated “Present” William Eaver to retain his title

Per the champion’s stipulation, the match could only be won by knockout or submission. Robinson retained the title with multiple curb stomps, causing a TKO. 

– David Starr defeated The OJMO

Starr earned another PROGRESS Unified World Championship opportunity as a result. A draping DDT followed by a Han Stansen lariat got him the win. 

PROGRESS returns to the Electric Ballroom on Sunday, November 24 for Chapter 98, featuring the return of Timothy Thatcher.