Tristan Archer, Senza Volto, Laurance Roman and Zafar Ameen take to the mat as the search for the first Passion Pro champion got underway.
Quick Results:
Icarus & Dover pinned Gulyas Öcsi & Bence Toth BT in 12:24 (***)
Aigle Blanc pinned Maverick in 11:21 (**¾)
Maokai pinned Tamas Szabo & Ender Kara in 12:56 (***)
Senza Volto pinned Zafar Ameen in 18:41 (***)
Peter Tihanyi pinned Connor Mills in 14:20 (***½)
Iva Kolasky pinned Ava Everett in 7:31 (**½)
Tristan Archer pinned Laurance Roman in 15:08 (***½)
The fine folks over at Passion Pro have put this up on YouTube for free… this one’s from the Analog Music Hall in Budapest, and we’ve got Dave Bradshaw live on tape with English commentary.
We open with a reveal… for the new Passion Pro title belt, and we’ve got two number-one contenders matches for the vacant title. It’s a pretty belt, all in silver with the Passion Pro double-P logo front and centre…
Outside, we’ve got Bence Toth BT trying to turn Gulyas Öcsi into a party boy. With that case of Monster, he’s definitely going to be buzzing… although I’m not sure BT’s got what he think he’s got. Gulyas’ guess is closer, as he’s roped into busting a move…
Bence Toth BT & Gulyas Öcsi vs. Arrows Of Hungary (Dover & Icarus)
It’s a big ask for BT and the guy he’s trying to turn into a party boy… and somehow BT’s managed to get Gulyas Vilmos’ singlet, as both guys were mirroring the other. The long lost Gulyas.
Predictably, the Arrows were in no mood for BT’s partying as they tried to dictate the pace, but it’s BT who got the better of the early going. Gulyas comes in with his take on Dusty punches, before a pop-up knee almost put Icarus away. Sitting on Icarus’ back was effective, but it pissed off the AMBOSS lads, who trapped Gulyas’ arm in the turnbuckle for a clubbing.
Dover’s involved as he posts Gulyas, who would have made a tag out later, but BT’s too busy scrapping with Icarus. BT eventually comes in for a springboard clothesline that almost put Icarus away. A Parade of Moves sees the ring fill and clear, before BT saved Gulyas from a Crossfire… BT and Gulyas do the wave into a series of punches on the Arrows, even drawing the referee into laying out Dover, only for the Arrows to get back in charge, landing a Crossfire on Gulyas for the win, as I have a feeling BT and Gulyas could be an entertaining duo for a little while… ***
Maverick vs. Aigle Blanc
Even though this isn’t in the mini-tournament, you’d think every match right now has some sort of say in future title shots, right?
This one was high paced, with Aigle Blanc flipping around as he looked to be a step ahead of Maverick, tripping him into the ropes for a back senton. Maverick stops an Aigle dive as the pair fought on the apron, but back inside Maverick begins to take control… at least until he ate a springboard crossbody.
Maverick tries to fight back, but gets caught with an elbow before he got caught in the ropes with a ‘rana driver. The crowd take their time moving as Aigle added a tope, then a Meteora to the back of the head for a near-fall. A snap Dragon suplex keeps Maverick down, but he’s able to come back with a back cracker before leaping up top for a big splash… which nearly wins it.
Aigle counters a superplex into a neckbreaker, but a follow-up 450 splash lands in Maverick’s knees… Aigle recovers, and manages to hit a torture rack’d version of the Made in Japan to get the win. **¾
Tamas Szabo vs. Ender Kara vs. Maokai
Szabo’s theme is still a lovely edit of Obsession… while this was an Ender Kara who was between tours in Japan.
Ender Kara breaks the tension early with kicks, as he and Szabo put a beating to Maokai in the opening stages. Maokai found some form when he turned up the tempo, landing a tijeras to Kara, only for Szabo to break up a resulting pin since this is a three-way.
Maokai works over Szabo with chops from there, but the veteran Szabo finds a way through. We’re quickly back to Kara and Maokai, with the Swede Kara busting out quite a few expletives as he proceeded to clatter into Szabo with a baseball slide dropkick in the corner. Maokai needs to bite the rope to break an Octopus hold from Kara, before Szabo came in to rake Kara’s eyes… then land a full nelson backbreaker for a near-fall.
We go back to Szabo and Kara ganging up on Maokai, but a double-team suplex is countered into a DDT instead before Maokai’s springboard into the other two just about paid off before we blew into a series of pinning attempts. A double stomp and a PK gets Kara a near-fall, before a flurry from a returning Szabo led to him crotching Maokai.
Szabo adds a superplex to Ender Kara, rolling through into a Made in Japan on the landing, but Maokai just about beat the count and broke the cover with a double stomp, then scored the win on Szabo. ***
We’ve pre-recorded promos from Senza Volto and Zafar Ameen ahead of their number one contender’s match – effectively title tournament semi-finals. Ameen’s replacing Robert Dreissker, as he seemingly congratulated Peter Tihanyi for his actions as his promo is dubbed over with music for some reason. At least we’ve got the English subtitles to give us the gist!
Zafar Ameen vs. Senza Volto
The winner of this goes to Passion Pro 8 on June 3 to fight for the newly-created Passion Pro title…
Ameen tries to cheapshot Senza with a handshake, but it’s stopped as Senza blocked a kick, then went for a spot of rope-jumping ahead of an armdrag. Ameen’s got one of his own, then a clothesline to take Senza outside before Senza returned the favour…
After taking a drink from a fan, Ameen breaks the count, so Senza gives chase… but it’s Ameen who regained control back inside, locking in a camel clutch as he wore down the Frenchman. Senza elbows back as Ameen tried to go for the mask, but Ameen again overpowers Senza… who found a second (third?) wind, only for Ameen to return with the Three Amigos.
A handspring back elbow put Senza back in the mix, as he proceeded to take Ameen off the top rope, then cannonball him in the corner, only for a flurry of strikes to end with Ameen cutting him off. More kicks from Senza led to him landing a DDT as Ameen tried to cut him off again, before Ameen shoved the ref into the ropes to crotch Senza.
Senza’s brought down off the top with almost an Iconoclasm for a near-fall, but Senza’s able to get back in it one more time, taking down Ameen for a half crab that ended in the ropes. Ameen heads outside and drags Senza with him… back inside Senza’s able to land a handspring cutter, then a Code Red… and that’s enough to put Senza in the title match in June. For my money, this could have had a few minutes shaved off it – with the part just before the finish feeling so out of place even commentary picked up on it. ***
Peter Tihanyi vs. Connor Mills
Mills is back after being an unsuccessful finalist in the Passion Cup last year…
Mills shot out of the blocks as he tried to put Tihanyi away in short order, but a dropkick from Tihanyi manages to shut down that opening salvo. A springboard’s cut-off by Mills, who elbowed Tihanyi onto the apron as he proceeded to target the Hungarian’s left arm.
Mills heads outside for a drink, then spat some of the beer on Tihanyi as they fought on the outside. A second beer mist is punched out of Mills, who’s then chopped down to the mat… before a kick instantly took Tihanyi down. Stomps to Tihanyi get a two-count, only for Tihanyi to make a comeback, clattering Mills with an enziguiri before ducking a rebound lariat to hit a swinging DDT instead.
Tihanyi’s Meteora almost wins it, as he returned the stomps from earlier… only for Mills to roll onto the apron as Tihanyi teased a 450 splash. Instead, Tihanyi repositions himself and hits a flip senton off the ring post, then wheelbarrowed Mills back inside before Connor dove in with a gamengiri in the corner. An Orange Crush Bomb almost nicks it for Mills, before he knocked Tihanyi off the top rope and added a lariat for good measure. More kicks from Mills are eventually caught as Tihanyi chops back into the match, only to get waffled with a knee from Mills.
A slingshot cutter from Tihanyi counters a springboard dropkick from Mills… and that’s enough for Tihanyi to get the win in a keenly-fought outing. Mills has absolutely come on in leaps and bounds in the past year – while Peter Tihanyi continues to show his credentials. Big things are clearly in the future for both these guys… ***½
We’re interrupted by Metehan, who’s not cleared to compete this weekend… Metehan’s speaking in English, with the ring announcer translating as Metehan refused to apologise to the crowd. He does apologise to his family for not being able to make money wrestling for a title shot, all because the Passion Pro officials wouldn’t clear him… so instead he issues an open challenge so he can make some money today.
Metehan’s challenge is answered by an enthusiastic trainee in the crowd, who doesn’t get a lower third and I really don’t want to butcher his name… anyway, Metehan calls this a “number one contender’s match” and proceeds to beat down the trainee, who managed to land a couple of enziguiri kicks and a roll-up, before Metehan put him away with a sliding elbow.
Pre-taped promo time from Ava Everett, as she’s looking to expand the Y2Kutie Fan Club’s reach… and also the group itself as she’s going up against a former tag partner in Iva Kolasky. Meanwhile, Iva isn’t quite as upbeat because she doesn’t feel that the Hungarian crowd deserves to see her.
Ava Everett vs. Iva Kolasky
Ava’s got crowns for the audience to wear… and gives one to our referee and ring announcer as well.
Kolasky cheapshots Everett to start, then again after she was taken into the ropes, only for Ava to return with a shoulder tackle. Iva doesn’t want to wear that crown Ava’s got for her, so we end up with a shoving match that ends with Kolasky throwing Everett into the corner for a two-count.
Kolasky uses the splits as she goes to stretch Everett on the mat, but Ava’s able to get free as she returned with a superkick. A sunset flip into the corner gets a two-count, but Kolasky’s able to pull Everett back down… only for a telegraphed punch to open the door for Everett once more.
Chops from Ava lead to forearms in the corner, as Kolasky tried in vain to get free… eventually buying some time as she got hold of Ava’s crowd, offering to wear it. Of course it’s a ruse, as Kolasky fakes out a hug, then got the win with a roll-up. **½
Pre-tape time again as Laurance Roman announces he’s replacing Metehan in the title tournament… and vows to win the title for AMBOSS. Tristan Archer won the Passion Cup last year, and wants that belt for him as well.
Laurance Roman vs. Tristan Archer
The winner faces Senza Volto in June for the Passion Pro title… and Roman’s jump start looked to give him an advantage.
Roman had the upper hand early on, as you’d expect, but a Falcon arrow from Archer gets a near-fall before an unlikely dive from the Frenchman led to him getting hung up in the ropes by the AMBOSS man, who stayed on top of Archer inside and out of the ring. Back inside, a snapmare and a kick to the back gets Roman a two-count, before Archer threw him onto the apron… only for Roman to boot him to the floor.
A leg sweep from Archer sees Roman become more familiar with the side of the ring, before he got chopped into the front row. Archer finally hits his tope to Roman, before a Fisherman neckbreaker back inside drew a two-count. Roman tries to fight back, but got tripped into a half crab… only to escape and return with a STF.
Archer’s saved by the ropes as Roman stayed on top with a knee trembler, then a swinging reverse STO for a near-fall. A uranage gets Archer back in, but his back senton lands in the knees as the pair tried to lariat the other out of the match… before a pull-up Exploder from Archer just threw Roman into the referee.
From there, Archer hits La Terreur, then a lariat, before going for a cover. Ah yes, my favourite trope. That’s the cue for the Arrows of Hungary to run out and attack on behalf of Roman, but Archer avoids a Crossfire and had the Arrows accidentally DDT themselves. A second ref comes down as Roman hits a single-leg Codebreaker for a near-fall, before Archer struck back with a Coup d’Etat… but Dover pulls out the referee to keep the match alive.
The Arrows get ejected from ringside, but like spoiled children they refuse to move… at least until Roman had scored a low blow behind the ref’s back. A follow-up facebuster doesn’t get it done though, as Archer’s able to return with a neckbreaker out of the corner, then a Decapite lariat… before a second Coup d’Etat got the win. ***½
This particular Passion Pro show was hampered by injury – with Robert Dreissker and Metehan having to pull out of the tournament – but in spite of that, the Hungarian promotion continued its streak of solid shows as they prepare to crown their inaugural champion later this summer.