Guests met and
discussed in this review (with the franchise(s) I most associate them with
personally) :-
• Saime Sahin (Wrestler)
• Tiger Ali (Wrestler)
• Eddie Ryan (Wrestler)
• Chris Bronson (Wrestler)
• Antonio De Luca (Wrestler)
• Nico Angelo (Wrestler)
• Prince Phoenix (Wrestler)
• Mulligan (Wrestler)
• Tristan Lee (Wrestler)
• JD Knight (Wrestler)
• Josh Knott (Wrestler)
• The Blockbusters: Jordan Sparkes & Toby St. John (Wrestlers)
• James Taylor (Wrestler)
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With that being said, let’s dive in…
The first Brit-King Pro event of the year took place on Saturday the 18th of January at the Deanery Theatre in Swindon - the spiritual home of Brit-King Pro and its predecessor, 4FW. The event was originally supposed to take place in October last year, but the theatre changing ownership forced the date to be postponed. Whilst this was bad for Brit-King, this turn of fate was brilliant for me as I couldn't make the October event due to being at London Comic Con Winter. I was particularly excited to see Nico Angelo defend his Brit-King Pro Junior Heavyweight Championship against bonafide heat-magnet Prince Phoenix...more on the heat-magnet part later.
The stage was set: 5 advertised matches! Nico Angelo defending against Prince Phoenix, the Steel Serpents (JD Knight and Josh Knott) taking on the NWA JCP Southeastern Tag Team Champions the Blockbusters, Eddie Ryan facing the monster that is Mulligan, Saime Sahin returning from a back injury to face long-time foe Tiger Ali, and Chris Bronson defending his Brit-King Pro Heavyweight Championship against Antonio De Luca.
The emergence of WWE on Netflix in the United Kingdom has sparked a renewed interest in the sport. The crowd for this event was the largest I've seen at an indie show for some time and I'm predicting that this trend continues for the rest of the year. If Brit-King can capitalise on the additional eyeballs they should be in for a stellar year. Dave Sharp has the right talent, he has the right reputation. It's now about putting the correct puzzle pieces in the correct place in order to move the company to the next level.
Here's a promo video to show you what you're missing out on if you haven't been to a Brit King Pro event. Do yourself a favour and buy tickets. They regularly put on shows in Swindon, Oxford, Cardiff, Gloucester, Bristol, Pontypridd, Portishead, Thatcham, Tidworth, and Emersons Green. The ticket prices are more than fair and I guarantee you'll have a great time! One of the things that separates Brit-King from most indie companies is that their events - particularly Swindon - are story-driven. They give you cliffhangers that make you desperate to attend again next time. As I said before, watching wrestling is pretty much always fun, but watching characters and stories develop is where the art truly lies in my humble opinion.
Match 1: Brit-King Pro Junior Heavyweight Championship Match - Nico Angelo (Champion) vs. Prince Phoenix W/Mulligan
Before diving into the match itself, here's the road that led us here...
Back in September's Swindon event, Nico successfully defended his Junior Heavyweight Championship against Tiger Ali in an all-around impressive bought. As Nico was celebrating post-match the dastardly duo of Prince Phoenix and Mulligan savagely attacked Nico...
Good stuff!
The challenger was the first to enter. Still "too good to walk", Phoenix came out to the ring on the shoulders of Mulligan. Sunglasses on in an already-darkened theatre, Phoenix looked every bit as douchey and dislikeable as you might imagine. I believe that Phoenix is the best heel in Brit-King Pro at the moment. Tiger Ali and Chris Bronson are great and very close second places, but Phoenix is able to generate heat that makes people legitimately want to punch him...more on that later...
The match itself was fantastic as expected. One of the reasons I was bummed I was going to be missing the original match in October was because I was quietly expecting Phoenix to win the Title. You can only be that good for so long before you're rewarded. Nico was fighting an uphill battle from the start as Mulligan quickly made his prescence known.
An aggressive pace was set. There were near-falls, counters, and false finishes throughout. Phoenix had grazes and marks all over his chest and back by the time the match concluded. It was a great start to the night and Phoenix was victorious! We have a new Junior Heavyweight Champion, people! Just under a year ago on this very blog I made two predictions about Phoenix: 1) He'd be Junior Heavyweight Champion within a year, and 2) He'd be main eventing shows within a year. I was correct on both counts. Not only did he win the Junior Heavyweight Championship 8 months later, but he's also currently main eventing a Brit-King show in Pontypridd as I write this review! My next prediction is that Phoenix will be Heavyweight Champion within 2 years from now. While he's more slight than the likes of Saime Sahin, Chris Bronson, and Eddie Ryan, Phoenix is a believeable threat for a few reasons...Mulligan is with him, he cheats, and he's a legitimately great wrestler. He can talk people into buying tickets, his character work is excellent, and Brit-King Pro has already proven that a babyface chasing the Title is good storytelling. I'd also love for Nico to start challenging for the Heavyweight Championship too one day. Nico is smaller than Phoenix, but he wrestles like a Heavyweight. He's violent, aggressive, and intense. My favourite wrestler on the UK indies today. When Phoenix won the match (with a little help from Mulligan), the crowd booed heavily while I quietly celebrated. Very well earned.
What's really bizarre is that I've been going to Dave Sharp's events for so long that I've seen both Prince Phoenix and his brother, Owen Phoenix, both win the Junior Heavweight Championship! Owen was actually at the show as a spectator, which was great to see. What a talented family! If Dave can work his magic and convince Owen to return to the ring, I'd love to see a brother vs. brother feud for the Junior Heavyweight Championship! I believe the story and matches would be incredible.
Match 2: The Steel Serpents (JD Knight & Josh Knott) vs. The Blockbusters (Jordan Sparkes & Toby St. John)
(JD Knight's facial expressions continue to be absolute gold)
It was my first time watching both the Steel Serpents and the Blockbusters live. I've seen JD Knight wrestle dozens of times over the years, but it was an interesting dynamic to have him teaming up. My instant impression was that Josh Knott is a solid wrestler. Easy to dislike. Knott and Knight are also a great combination. The Blockbusters were fantastic. My Wife absolutely loved them and I can see why. They're natural babyfaces. Very energetic, very easy to root for, and talented. They remind me of a throwback tag team in their mannerisms. The Hollywood Blondes and the Von Erichs are both in there somewhere. The match itself was great fun. The reigning NWA JCP Southeastern Tag Team Champions, the Blockbusters, looked set to be victorious when JD Knight low-blowed Jordan Sparkes, causing the disqualification. After the match, Knight and Knott then attacked the Blockbusters with their own Tag Team Championship Belts! Talk about adding insult to injury!
Promo time with Chris Bronson!
The Heavyweight Champion, Chris Bronson, entered the ring alongside Tiger Ali. Back in September Antonio De Luca challenged Bronson to a Title match at this event. Chris was here to tell us that he didn't feel like defending the Championship against De Luca tonight. Instead he proposed that De Luca could find a partner and face himself and Tiger Ali in the main event. If De Luca was victorious then maybe...just maybe...he'd defend the Title against him in May when Brit-King returns to Swindon. De Luca came to the ring and accepted the challenge. Bronson and Ali then attacked De Luca. I was fairly certain that De Luca's partner would be Saime Sahin for a few reasons....1) the original card was De Luca vs. Bronson and Ali vs. Sahin. It makes sense for Sahin to be De Luca's partner and merge the two matches together. 2) Sahin has just returned from a pretty serious back injury. Changing the main event to a tag team match helps to lighten Sahin's load while he's getting back up to full health.
Match 3: Mulligan W/Prince Phoenix vs. Eddie Ryan
This is where the night started to get a little dramatic. When Mulligan and Phoenix entered the ring and surrounding area, the crowd were mad. Particularly one or two "grown" men, who left their seats and came down to the ring to get in Phoenix's face...and I'm using the word "grown" to indicate their size, not their emotional maturity.
Phoenix held his own and didn't back down. Mulligan quickly came to Phoenix's aid and shoved one of the fans backwards. Brit-King Pro personnel then swiftly and professionally intervened until the situation became more calm. That's real heat, brother! In the day and age of people knowing that wrestling is pre-determined, being able to still make people so mad that they want to fight you is quite the achievement.
The match itself was yet another chaotic brawl to start, followed by a fun match in the ring. Phoenix was evicted from ringside for trying to cheat to help Mulligan, but he still came back later to try and help Mulligan yet again. Ultimately, the English Lion, Eddie Ryan, was the winner.
It was then time for intermission.
Match 4: Tristan Lee vs. James Taylor
After the main event was changed to a tag team match, I was feeling quite hopeful that Tristan Lee would be on the show. As I've said before, Tristan is one of the stars of the future for Brit-King Pro. He's naturally a babyface. He's a great guy in and out of the ring, his moveset is impressive, and he's someone you don't want to take your eyes off when he's wrestling as you know something athletic is about to happen. Every time I watch him wrestle he's just a little better. Just a little more polished. Phoenix and Lee had a great rivalry in 2024 and I truly believe that they will be two of the staples of the show for years to come if they wish to be. It was my first time watching James Taylor and I must admit that he was brilliant. Whenever he was hit or about to be hit he would scream. It was brilliant. He played the role of the whiny, chicken-shit heel perfectly. Some of the chants that greeted him included "Lady Waa-Waa" and "Crybaby, crybaby!", which made him sulk more than usual. After a fairly even back-and-forth contest, Tristan Lee got the victory. All my guys are winning tonight!
Match 5: Chris Bronson & Tiger Ali vs. Antonio De Luca & Saime Sahin
The best was most definitely saved for last at this show. The main event was truly epic. Having Saime back was the cherry on the cake. Saime is basically wrestling royalty in Swindon at this point and he had the biggest cheers of the night. All four of these men are consummate professionals who have perfected their craft. I don't even know where to start....with Tiger Ali, the unsung hero of 4FW and Brit-King? While Saime and Eddie get the praise (deservedly so!) as they're babyfaces, Ali doesn't get the credit he deserves. Ali was part of both the best matches I've ever seen live (one against Saime last year and one against Pete Dunne way back in 2013). He's a phenomenal wrestler and a great heel. Chris Bronson is one of the best wrestlers in the country today. There's a reason he's been the Heavyweight Champion in multiple indie promotions and has carried the flag for Brit-King Pro for almost a full year. De Luca returning to the ring in 2024 was as unexpected as it was heart-warming. I've been watching wrestling since I was 3-years-old in 1992 and I've been attending Dave's shows for almost 15 years. Getting to watch and interact with De Luca, Saime, Tiger Ali, Eddie Ryan, Mega Pegasus, The Saint, and JD Knight all these years later is truly wonderful.
The match itself was awesome. Brawling in the crowd? Check. Hard-hitting moves? Check. Chairshots? Check. A man Sahin's size hitting a beautiful moonsault? Check. I've said it before and I'll say it again: how Sahin and Ali have never been snatched up by WWE is a mystery to me. Sahin scored the pinfall and the crowd went home happy....but not before the meet and greet. The meet and greet was free with first row or second row tickets and cost £6 for general ticket holders. Ladies and gentlemen it is definitely worth the money. Every wrestler that was on the card was there. Autographs, selfies, conversations...it's everything you'd want it to be. The meet and greet queue was also the biggest I've ever seen it, which is a testament to Dave and the team. I'm loving seeing the company go from strength-to-strength over the last year and I cannot wait to see what 2025 holds for everyone there.
(the Blockbusters)
(JD Knight)
(Mulligan)
(some digital art of Nico Angelo I created using an existing picture)
(some digital art of Eddie Ryan I created using an existing picture)
Myself and Susie then drove back to Gloucester. It was pretty dangerous as the fog was intense, but we made it home okay. We'll be at Brit-King's Bristol event on February 15th (where Nico Angelo gets his contracted rematch against Prince Phoenix for the Junior Heavyweight Championship), their Thatcham event on March 22nd, then back to Swindon on May 10th for a battle royal! We cannot wait! Please do check out Brit-King's website and please consider buying tickets to one of their events. It is definitely worth it.
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