El Phantasmo returned “home” to Rev Pro’s monthly London show, taking on Zozaya in the main event of their first post-Copperbox event.
Quick Results
Luke Jacobs & Ethan Allen submitted Danny Black & Joe Lando in 15:22 (***¼)
Kanji pinned Millie McKenzie in 17:38 (***)
David Francisco & Goldenboy Santos pinned Sha Samuels & Joshua James in 15:28 (**¾)
Leon Slater pinned Jay Joshua in 15:55 (***½)
Ricky Knight Jr. pinned JJ Gale in 11:46 (***½)
Will Kaven pinned Cameron Khai to retain the Rev Pro Undisputed British Cruiserweight Championship in 21:50 (***¾)
Zozaya pinned El Phantasmo in 20:35 (***½)
— To watch this show, head over to RevProOnDemand.com
After skipping the 229 last month, we’re back in central-ish London for Rev Pro’s usual start-of-month card. It’s been eight days since almost 4,000 were packed into the Copper Box, and with Rev Pro having been a part of the GWF’s Double Impact on Friday and Saturday, it’s safe to say they’re not taking the foot off the pedal just yet.
Despite having only seven matches, it’s a pretty hefty-looking line-up, so let’s get into it… commentary comes from Andy “Back from Berlin” Quildan and Leyton “Excitable” Buzzard.
CPF (Danny Black & Joe Lando) vs. Young Guns (Ethan Allen & Luke Jacobs)
Luke Jacobs’ debut in the 229 as champion was in tag team action – in what’d be seen as a clash of styles.
Allen looked to dominate Danny Black early on, firing back when Danny slapped him by the ropes… and things proceeded to go south for Danny there, with Luke Jacobs trying to chop through him. Breaking free, Black’s able to hit a dropkick then bring in Joe Lando for a brief double-team as CPF looked to make some inroads on Jacobs.
A crossbody off the top from Black was caught, but instead he’s able to low bridge Jacobs to the outside ahead of a dive that was caught as the Young Guns turned the match around on a dime. Allen’s back to rip through CPF, but they’re able to avoid the Young Guns’ aggression as Lando took them outside for a Sasuke Special.
Back inside, the aggression returned as uranages from Luke dumped CPF onto each other, before a reverse slam and a head kick from Allen almost won it. Danny Black just about gets off a reverse ‘rana on Luke, then a standing Spanish Fly, ahead of a double-team assisted ‘rana into a cutter… from there, Black’s low-pe stunner surprised Allen on the outside as a Lando shooting star press almost won it, before Jacobs speared Lando in half.
CPF have one more push-on, but Allen sidesteps a diving Danny Black before restraining him as a rear naked choke from Jacobs forced Lando to tap out. A strong opener as Luke Jacobs made a victorious return to the 229. ***¼
In the opener, there was a line referring to why Sunshine Machine weren’t here, nor on the Double Impact cards. Instead, they were in Berlin, challenging for the GWF tag titles… it’s because “contracts had to be signed in advance” and “there was a good probability they’d not be allowed to team together.” Look for that to be fuel in a post-Sunshine Machine world.
Jacobs and Allen were interrupted on their way to the back by Michael Oku, who – after a staredown – hit the ring and revealed that he’d picked up an injury in Germany and so would be off today’s show. Addressing those rumours of a departure without tipping anything off, Oku said that he had a lot of unfinished business in Rev Pro, including looking for a rubber match with Luke Jacobs, noting that the two of them were 2-2 in singles matches. He wants one more match before he goes… but here comes a new challenger?
Ricky Knight Jr. appeared and announced he’d replace Oku against JJ Gale later on – after sending compliments at Oku that became backhanded. RKJ brought up how he felt cheated watching Oku have the run he felt he was supposed to have. Amira stepped up to have a go at “Richard” for his jealousy of Oku – which RKJ confirmed, before questioning if Oku was really hurt, or just “saving himself for a promotion that doesn’t want him.”
That laugh from the crowd, by the way, was because Leyton’s inside voice was so loud the entire crowd heard it… timing and all that.
Millie McKenzie vs. Kanji
This was Millie’s first appearance in Rev Pro since before the pandemic, and it’s good to see someone’s still got the remnants of Defiant Wrestling hanging around.
This was the fourth singles meeting between these two, with Kanji having won all three prior outing. Starting off, Kanji and Millie kept things close between them, albeit with Millie grabbing the hair in her case. A superkick from Kanji created some space for her, before she took Millie to ground after kicking her leg out of her leg.
Kanji worked over McKenzie’s leg, bridging over a hold on it, before a Twist and Shout neckbreaker from Millie turned the tide. Going back to Kanji’s head and neck gave Millie fresh openings as she wrenched away on Kanji, leading to hammer elbows to the back of the neck as Millie looked to force a stoppage.
Returning with a Dragon screw, Kanji goes back to the legs as she tied up Millie with a Deathlock, but Millie’s able to escape as she finally began to find her way through with suplexes. Kanji kicks at Millie’s knee to try and stem the tide, but to no avail… at least until a superkick found its mark.
A series of German suplexes have Kanji rocked, but a missed charge into the corner lets Kanji back in as a clothesline nearly took the win… before Millie rolled out of an ankle lock to hit a spear. Back-and-forth pins ensued, until a spike DDT proved to be enough for Kanji to get the win in a hot finish to an even outing. ***
Post-match, Mercedez Blaze came out to seemingly offer Millie McKenzie a spot in the Cut Throat Collective – Millie took the t-shirt and headed to the back as Blaze then laid out Kanji with a clothesline.
David Francisco & Goldenboy Santos vs. Joshua James & Sha Samuels
Francisco’s still holding onto Sha’s scarf – although given how warm it is this time of year, it’s probably not something Sha was planning on using for a while!
Josh James made light work of Francisco early on, but backing Francisco into the corner just led to Santos tagging in… with David Francisco charging to the back in search of something. A spear from James took Santos off his feet as Sha tagged in to keep up the momentum. Francisco eventually returned to through Sha’s scarf in his face, allowing Santos in with a spear as the so-dubbed “PortuGALs” began to dominate.
Hooking at Sha’s nose and ear kept the veteran grounded, but he’s able to make the tag out to James, who cleared house. A mounted sleeperhold from Santos looked to end things as he took James off his feet, while Francisco posted Sha to prevent any save from being made. James eventually back body drops his way free, but a Midas Touch out of nowhere levelled him for a near-fall.
A kick to the head from Francisco breaks up James’ pin off of a chokeslam – while Santos was able to get a powerbomb off without an assist for a near-fall after all four men scrapped in the ring. Eventually Santos and Josh would brawl to the back after a POUNCE, leaving Sha and Francisco in the ring. Sha’s able to retrieve his scarf, but crashed and burned on a moonsault as Francisco capitalised… until his clothesline out of the corner was countered into a spinebuster.
From there, Sha looked for an East End Destroyer, but Francisco sat down on it… and leaned into the corner to grab the ropes and steal the win. A very tainted win as Francisco escaped with the win and the scarf – as it feels like we’ve been here before? **¾
After the match, Sha ripped into Rev Pro for not having VAR or anything to avoid things like this… then challenged Francisco to a singles matchIn return, Francisco wanted to tweak the offer – it’d be a no DQ match in a “respect match,” just like WCW! Francisco even suggested doing it next month… not in London, but in Francisco’s adopted home away from home away from home in Southampton. I swear to God if this features “I respect you, Butcherman…”
Jay Joshua vs. Leon Slater
Another clash of styles here as Leon Slater had a big test at the hands of Jay Joshua as Leon looks to be mixing it up with the big boys these days.
Joshua sent Slater flying early on with an elbow, then with a powerslam as Slater found that his speed wasn’t initially paying dividends. After taking things outside, Slater finds his mark with a plancha, but Joshua shrugs it off – and a bunch of chops – before taking Slater down with a pull-up spinning back suplex for a two-count.
More strikes from Joshua kept Slater very much on the back foot… while Leon missing a corner dropkick didn’t help matters either. Eventually a leg lariat from Slater took the big man down, and bought him some time as well as Leon pushed back in with a charging dropkick into the corner, before a bridging wheelbarrow German suplex almost got Joshua the win.
Leon’s able to recover with a guillotine legdrop in the ropes, but a follow-up swanton 450’s aborted as Joshua snuck right back in… sending Slater flying to the outside with a surprise rising headbutt. A flash cradle from Slater almost surprised Joshua, as did a twisting suplex, before a sitout powerbomb almost slammed the door shut on Leon’s match.
A forearm swatted Leon’s springboard away, but Slater’s able to get back in it with a Blue Thunder bomb… before a Swanton 450 finally got the win. Another good showing in defeat for Jay Joshua, who I’d hope starts picking up Ws soon. ***½
Ricky Knight Jr. vs. JJ Gale
RKJ was filling in for the injured Michael Oku here – while Gale would be looking to get back on track after coming up short to Tomohiro Ishii last week. This was a rematch from Stevenage back in March, where RKJ came out on top – just like all four of their prior one-on-one outings.
Gale charged at RKJ at the bell with a shotgun dropkick into the corner, while another dropkick took Ricky outside for a tope into the front row. More dives followed, including a misdirection one as RKJ thought he’d wandered out of harm’s way. Back inside though, RKJ’s able to take control, chopping through Gale by the ropes before a leapfrog was caught and turned into a corner death valley driver from the former champion.
Shutting down Gale’s attempted fightbacks became par for the course here, but JJ wasn’t going down without a fight, coming back with a springboard European uppercut out of the corner before a springboard forearm to the back of the head cracked Gale for a near-fall. A ‘rana countered JJ out of a Razor’s Edge, but a diving knee stopped JJ’s celebration post-Destroyer as things remained even.
Offering up his chin for shots from Gale backfired as JJ fought back with a Side Effect and a Falcon Arrow, before a Styles Clash looked to put Ricky back on track. A springboard’s countered into a cutter as Gale tried to snatch a win, only to get caught with an inverted GTS and a Kishi Driver as Ricky remained unbeaten against Gale. They kept this short and sweet, relatively speaking, as RKJ is building up momentum ahead of that match with Michael Oku – wherever and whenever that may be. ***½
Rev Pro Undisputed British Cruiserweight Championship: Cameron Khai vs. Will Kaven (c)
A punt to Cameron’s Khais helped Will Kaven snatch the Cruiserweight title in last week’s scramble – so it’s only fair this was the first defence.
Starting off before the bell with a wild merch-table-clearing brawl, Khai was all over Kaven as the champion tried to use a chair for an early DQ… but to no avail. Shoving Khai off the top rope to the floor stopped more dives though, as Kaven opted for more high impact stuff, including a Dragon suplex onto the edge of the ring, leaving Khai in a heap on the floor.
Eventually firing back, Khai’s shoteis had Kaven backing off, as did an ushigoroshi, before a snap DDT looked to have Kaven back on top. Instead, rolling Northern Lights from Khai kept the champion rocked until he snuck in another snap Dragon suplex. A Northern Lights rolling into a Falcon Arrow got Khai a near-fall.
Khai looked for a slingshot cutter onto the apron, but took a nasty spill onto the floor as Kaven backed off… and a brainbuster back inside can’t have helped Khai’s cause either as Kaven seemed to be on a clear path to retaining the title. At least until a pair of knees threatened to derail Kaven, en route to an over-the-knee brainbuster, before an avalanche Dragon suplex sent Khai flying.
It wasn’t enough to get the win though as Khai had a second (third?) wind, ending with the pair crashing into each other with high knees. Back-and-forth strikes seemed to play into Kaven’s hands again, before Khai tried for an elevated German suplex… but it’s countered into another Dragon suplex. A Busaiku knee from Kaven followed, as he went back to the tombstone, but Khai’s up at two… which drew Kaven towards the corner to reach for his belt.
In turn, that had Leyton Buzzard abandon commentary to stop Kaven, allowing Khai a chance to win with a pop-up powerbomb… before he missed with a moonsault off the top rope. From there, Kaven made a beeline for Buzzard, punting him through the ropes… the referee goes to check on Buzzard, and misses a visual five-count from Khai’s elevated German suplex… along with Kaven’s low blow. It’s not enough for the win, so Kaven spams piledrivers and ends up getting the win – in what I think has to be both men’s longest singles match on the “main roster.” This was pretty damn good live, with the crowd really behind Khai going into the home stretch, but Kaven’s foul means end up saving the title for him. ***¾
Zozaya vs. El Phantasmo
This was ELP’s first singles match in London for Rev Pro since High Stakes 2020, when he dropped the Cruiserweight title to Michael Oku. A LOT can happen in four and a half years…
Starting out as the slight fan favourite, thanks to the connections built up way back in his days at the Cockpit, Phantasmo baited Zozaya into what can only be called a Spainaroonie. I’ll quit with the bad jokes one day.
Commentary brought up Zozaya’s shoulder injury – one that would have led to surgery had things worked out differently – as a spot of rope-walking ended with a ‘rana to the Spaniard. ELP slowly shifted towards being more arrogant and aggressive as the match went on, targeting the neck and shoulders of Zozaya before going for the nipples led to ELP getting caught with a rolling thunder dropkick.
Zozaya slowly found his groove from there, catching ELP’s leap before marching him around the ring for an overhead throw, before a double jump springboard stomp caught Phantasmo for a two-count. Recovering Phantasmo clotheslines Zozaya to the outside before landing a plancha that took him into a front row seat, before a springboard senton and Quebrada connected for a near-fall.
Back-and-forth strikes wore down Zozaya more as ELP removed his elbow pads for some Suzuki-esque elbows, before another dropkick took ELP outside… and into the path of a wild body press off the top to the floor. Zozaya struggled to build momentum from there though, as a DDT through the ropes, then a piledriver onto the edge of the ring put him right back to square one.
Zozaya just about beat the ten-count, as he proceeded to bait ELP into the de Madrid al cielo death valley driver for a near-fall. A springboard moonsault off the top got him closer too, before Zozaya slid into a Sudden Death superkick in return. From there, the UFO whirlibird neckbreaker saw ELP get close to the win, before almost a Burning Hammer looked to set up for the Thunderkiss ‘65 splash, only for Zozaya to get the knees up.
We’re sprinting to a finish, but Zozaya can’t get off a backslide thanks to the earlier work to the neck as ELP looked to retaliate with a CR2… only for the SummerSlam ‘92 finish to strike as Zozaya sat down on a sunset flip for the upset win! On paper this has to be an upset win, but it’s yet another scalp for Zozaya, who continues to steal the spotlight in Rev Pro. He’s not the finished product, but at this rate you have to feel its only a matter of time before there’s a race to sign him to a contract… somewhere. ***½
Post-match, ELP and Zozaya shared a drink before Phantasmo got him to do a lap of honour – slapping hands as he went. We’re interrupted by Connor Mills though, who low blowed Zozaya in the ring before landing a Burning Cutter… until ELP chased him off. The show then closed with a speech from ELP, which included a pointed dig at an old promotion in the Midlands, as he promised to “return home” every year before handing off the mic to Zozaya to send everyone home.
September’s Live in London show avoided any “hangover” from the Copperbox, providing a strong card on paper that delivered – but was scant on details for their next big show, the British J Cup at the end of the month.