The Cut Throat Collective looked to cut the proverbial knees out from under the rest of the division in a Revolution tag main event.
Quick Results
TK Cooper, Chuck Mambo & Sha Samuels pinned Kieron Lacey, Mark Trew & Will Kaven in 13:38 (***)
Ricky Knight Jr. defeated Jordan Saeed via referee stoppage in 1:17
Charlie Sterling pinned Cheeseburger in 8:19 (**½)
Leon Slater and Zozaya went to a 30:00 time limit draw (***½)
Michael Oku submitted Ethan Allen in 17:37 (****)
Connor Mills & Jay Joshua submitted Sha Samuels & Joshua James in 10:02 (**¾)
Luke Jacobs submitted Goldenboy Santos in 13:41 (***¼)
Dani Luna won a Revolution Tag in 26:52 (***¼)
— To watch this show, head over to RevProOnDemand.com
We’re live from the 229 in London for Rev Pro’s usual monthly card here – and we’ve a tweak on commentary as Dave Bradshaw back alongside Gideon Grey. Complete with side eye!
Mark Trew, Kieron Lacey & Will Kaven vs. Sunshine Machine (TK Cooper & Chuck Mambo) & Sha Samuels
This was a qualifier for the Trios Grand Prix in a couple of weeks’ time… with Sunshine Machine having a partner of their choosing, which turned out to be Sha Samuels, out to reclaim the word “mug” from Trew and Lacey. That meant Sha was going to be working double duty here, much to the annoyance of Joshua James…
Sha’s jumped before the bell, but overcomes Trew and Lacey as we eventually got going with Will Kaven getting caught in a Romero special, then a double suplex/crossbody combo from the makeshift trio. Mark Trew’s flying Wiggum stops Sha from his misnamed volley kick, before a missed elbow drop off the middle rope threw Sha into a world of hurt.
TK Cooper’s in to clear house and get a wacky noise out of Will Kaven as he did so, before an eye rake led to TK being on the back foot for a spell, taking a barrage of offence in the corner en route to a near-fall for Kaven. TK’s bitten on for a spell, before a stomp to the back from Trew looked to keep TK in trouble… but a back body drop, then a flapjack/scissors kick combo cleared the way for TK to make the tag to Mambo.
A Gutterball from Mambo drops Lacey onto Kaven, before a Cactus Crossbody took him and Trew to the outside, eventually sparking a big ol’ Parade of Moves… featuring TK eating a bunch of suplexes en route to a stomp-assisted Black Flag. Tags became optional for a spell before Mark Trew was launched off the top rope into a Sha spinebuster, while a Mambo frog splash and a shooting star press from TK got the win. So that’s “Sha-Shine Machine” going to Coventry for the Trios Grand Prix that’d have the winners picking individual matches of their choosing. ***
Jordan Saeed vs. Ricky Knight Jr.
A lamb thrown to the slaughter here, Saeed was given a free shot by RKJ… which he took as he sent RKJ into the ropes… before a clothesline in return took Jordan down, before a flurry of shots knocked Saeed down to the mat for the stoppage. Decisive.
Post-match, Dave Bradshaw took his life into his own hands by entering the ring to interview RKJ, who said he was going home…
Charlie Sterling vs. Cheeseburger
We’ve a Rev Pro debut for Cheeseburger here, while this was Sterling’s first outing at the 229 in nearly two years.
Sterling looked to bully Cheeseburger early on, but a lotta misdirection from Cheeseburger… just led to him getting charged down. Cheeseburger pulls some World of Sport-ing tricks on Sterling before he sent him outside… only for a plancha to get caught. Avoiding further trouble, they head back inside, where a suplex dumped Cheeseburger ahead of some more offence.
Eventually fighting back, Cheeseburger’s just pushed off into the ropes for a boot, while a gutwrench suplex drew a solid two-count. Another attempt sees Cheeseburger take things into the corner ahead of almost a diving headbutt for a two-count on Sterling. A tornado DDT connects for a near-fall, but Sterling clotheslines away a follow-up attempt at a Shotei before slamming the door shut on Cheeseburger with a sitout powerbomb and two splashes off the top, before a pull-up into a death valley driver got the win. Splat. **½
Post-match, Sterling continued the beatdown on Cheeseburger before JJ Gale came out to make the save and stop Cheeseburger from becoming even more of a smash burger. Perhaps not the reaction that this would have gotten, say, two weeks ago…
In foresight, nevermind hindsight, that part of this story really didn’t need to be told. Given the ill feeling towards JJ after his recent match in Austria, you could have told the exact same story without the run-in.
Leon Slater vs. Zozaya
These two are 1-1 in Rev Pro, so this was the unofficial rubber match…
Eventually shaking hands, Zozaya and Slater got off to a tentative start, with neither man looking to give away too much. That being said, the pace of the opening moments perhaps showed too much for those who had a cynical eye on a time limit draw.
Slater ups the ante with an overhand chop after they’d been done gladhanding the crowd, before Zozaya made his first donation to the Rev Pro Swear Jar. Zozaya’s ground game got under Slater’s skin as he repeatedly bailed to the outside looking to defuse things, before he finally found an opening with an enziguiri.
Kicks to Zozaya in the ropes follow, including one to the face as Zozaya had offered a free shot. Heading outside, an accidental apron PK started by Slater took him out before Zozaya leapt off the front row into a stomp, before Slater began to target Zozaya’s right shoulder, throwing the Spaniard shoulder-first into the turnbuckles. Breaking free, a rolling thunder dropkick bought Zozaya time, but Slater’s right back on the shoulder as he threw Zozaya through the corner to the floor – via the ring post.
A side suplex dropped Zozaya arm-first onto the edge of the ring as Slater began to get a little full of himself, leading to him chucking Zozaya onto the merch tables as he looked for the count-out. Of course, it doesn’t materialise, so Slater resumes the attacks on the arm… only to almost get caught with a roll-up as the pair traded pinning attempts.
Unable to go for a springboard dropkick, Zozaya’s dropkicked off the apron and into the front row, before an overhead throw out of the corner put Zozaya back in the chase. We start getting time calls as we cross the 25-minute mark, which led to the pair upping the ante – Slater coming close from a sit-out powerbomb, while a thrust kick from Zozaya had Slater laid out as the minute-by-minute calls persisted.
Slater’s right back with a leg lariat for a near-fall, before the pair swung with kicks, looking to give each other dead legs. A superkick spins down Slater, before they traded head drops with a German suplex, then a Blue Thunder bomb. Zozaya cut off a swanton 450 attempt, and instead pulls down Slater… before the pair traded a barrage of blows to wind down the clock as time eventually ran out on the pair. This one got a standing ovation live, but on the stream this didn’t quite carry over – a solid outing, but one that felt like a set-up… ***½
Post-match, Slater goaded Zozaya into a rematch – a 60-minute match, that eventually was clarified as an Iron Man match for Uprising at York Hall next month.
Ethan Allen vs. Michael Oku
With Michael Oku getting his rematch with Luke Jacobs next month, this was a given… and a match that got intense real quick.
Going to ground early on, Allen headed for the ropes as Oku went for the previously-injured knee, before he grabbed a side headlock and began to wear down the former champion. The wear down became a breakdown moments later though as a tijeras and a dropkick took Allen to the outside… but an attempt at almost a triangle body press was cut-off with a kick before Allen posted Oku, with those few seconds having resulted in Oku having busted his nose.
Back inside, the extent of the damage was clear as a bloodied Oku was ragdolled and bullied around the ring by Allen. That led to a bulldog choke on Oku, then a backbreaker as that broken nose looked to have completely changed the course of things. Almost a desperation DDT gave Oku an opening though, as did a swinging DDT off the ropes, before Oku got cradled as he went for Allen’s knees.
A PK and a springboard moonsault keeps Oku ahead, only for a backbreaker to reset things. Ethan’s front kick stops a misdirection knee, before he caught Oku on the top rope with a superplex. A charging knee to the ribs followed for a near-fall, as Allen looked to keep Oku at close quarters… but that threatened to backfire as Oku kicked away at Allen’s knee. An Allen Slam led to a crossface as Allen looked to force a stoppage, but Oku’s eventually able to make it to the ropes.
Amira spits at Allen from the floor, which caused him to explode on Oku in the corner… Oku retaliates with a kick to the back of the knee, before a snap Dragon screw and some running dropkicks caught Ethan by the ropes… only for Ethan to snap back with a mounted sleeperhold that dragged Oku down to the mat.
Switching it up, Allen goes for the mounted double armbar, but he can’t quite get the Young Boy Killer off as Oku countered with a backpack stunner. In response, Allen pulls off the old Axel Dieter Special, only to get rolled out into a half crab for the eventual submission. This was Oku forcibly reaching into the jaws of defeat to grab a victory in a match that had that X-factor that you don’t see so often these days. If it’s real you’ll feel it? A lot of the 229 did last night… ****
Connor Mills & Jay Joshua vs. Sha Samuels & Joshua James
Despite injuring his arm in the opener, Sha was out for his originally-scheduled match.
The two Joshuas start us off as Gideon Grey deftly avoided the tongue twister… back-and-forth shoulder tackles led to James getting the advantage, but he’s only able to get a one-count off of a splash before tags brought in Mills and Sha… the latter tagging himself in. Mills instantly goes for the arm with a double wristlock, but Sha goes for the ropes to cause a break.
An arm whip dumps Sha as he tried to make a tag out, and with James kicked off the apron, the die was threatened to be cast as Jay came in to stomp away on Sha’s arm. Jay’s kneeling pin a la Mills gets a two-count, before Mills came in to pick at Sha’s arms some more.
Mills’ whip into the corner led to Sha rebounding with a clothesline, then with a spinebuster before he finally made the tag. We’re back to the two Joshuas, with James countering a Mills rebound lariat with a POUNCE before Jay ate a suplex. A meaty double clothesline eventually led to the pair trading German suplexes, ahead of a diving headbutt from Jay as both men collapsed to the mat.
A front kick from Mills, then a Ki Krusher almost takes care of James… who’s able to kick away an ankle lock, only for Jay to get tagged in almost instantly. Sha’s finally back to break up a pin attempt as the tide changed… but he tags himself back in as James was on the verge of a breakthrough. A disagreement between the two almost costs Sha, who then misses a moonsault off the top before Mills returned to force a quick submission with a cross armbar. This told a solid story of Sha perhaps spreading himself too thin – which you feel will come back to bite him in the end, despite things being patched up here. **¾
Goldenboy Santos vs. Luke Jacobs
A non-title outing here, and perhaps Santos’ biggest singles match to date in Rev Pro.
An early exchange of elbows ends with a shoulder tackle from Santos… before Luke charged back with one of his own, then a back senton for a quick two-count. A violence party of chops and forearms awaited in the corner for Santos, who manages to return with a pop-up spinebuster as he made sure Jacobs couldn’t pull too far ahead.
Santos stays on Jacobs with a suplex, before a slap to the back of the head drew an expected fiery response from Jacobs, launching Santos with an Exploder for another two-count ahead of a DDT… only for Santos to hit back with a hefty F5 that looked to aggravate Jacobs’ shoulder on impact.
Santos only gets a one-count from a Midas touch… then kicked out of a Jacobs lariat seconds later before a second Midas touch drew a near-fall after an unsure cover. We’re back to the back-and-forth strikes, ending with a surprise tombstone from Santos for another two-count before a third Midas Touch drew a late kick-out.
A series of headbutts from Luke stopped the barrage of Midas Touches as a sliding lariat turned the tables… leading to a powerbomb and a rear-naked choke for the submission. On the rewatch, this was a strong showing from Santos in what was an unfamiliar role in Rev Pro – the result didn’t go his way, but this went quite the way to showing he’s not just a tag guy here. ***¼
Post-match, David Francisco instantly hit the ring and put the boots to Jacobs, only to be chased away by “Sandman” Ethan Allen with a Kendo stick.
Revolution Tag: Cut Throat Collective (Alex Windsor, Safire Reed, Lizzy Evo & Mercedez Blaze) vs. Dani Luna, Kanji, Chantal Jordan & Anita Vaughan
We’ve got plenty of history intertwined here – Anita Vaughan and Kanji were on the receiving end of a beating from the Cut Throat Collective just before they became a five-woman unit. This was also the first time we’re having a women’s Revolution tag, as “everyone against the Collective” was the theme here.
Starting off, Alex Windsor wanted no part of Dani Luna, so she makes the tag to Mercedez Blaze as the Collective took their opening shots at the number one contender. Luna pulls ahead, then tagged in Chantal Jordan to hit some running knees to Windsor in the corner for a two-count, before Anita Vaughan came in to throw everyone around with bodyslams.
A missed charge in the corner opened up Anita as the Collective swarm, leading to a Sharpshooter from Windsor and a curb stomp from Blaze – at the same time – as Windsor scored the first elimination less than five minutes in.
Lizzy Evo’s knocked off her feet as things were temporarily back to even numbers, but things spill outside for an elbow suicida from Luna, then a tope from Chantal, before Kanji fought off Safire Reed to hit a big splash off the top rope to the pile on the floor. That landing looked to jar Kanji’s knee… and it’s instantly pounced on as Safire Reed exacerbated it with some chairshots – all legal under the rules of this one – as Kanji eventually got carried to the back.
When things resume, Alex Windsor’s headbutt cracked Chantal Jordan for a near-fall, before some boot choking from Mercedez Blaze led to a suplex into the buckles as Dani Luna was facing the possibility of facing a four-on-one deficit. Luna makes a save as the Collective choked on Jordan in the ropes, but to little avail as Blaze almost put Chantal down with a DDT… before taking too long on a spear as Jordan cradles Blaze for the elimination.
Blaze stays on Jordan, landing a Tower of Blaze before Lizzy Evo performed the elementary elimination, throwing Jordan over the top rope. Dani Luna’s left on her own against three, and made a decent go of it as she worked through Windsor and Reed, planting the latter with a snapping powerbomb before (the legal) Lizzy Evo snuck in with a chairshot or two.
Reed’s in to avoid a Luna Landing, but can’t avoid a clothesline before Kanji made her way back out to ringside. Dragon screws to Reed looked to provide an equaliser, before Safire unsuccessfully begged off from some chops in the ropes as the Collective needed to distract to force an opening. Evo’s back in, but is quickly taken into a chair that she’d wedged between the buckles earlier for another elimination just before the 20-minute mark.
Windsor comes in to look for a Sharpshooter, but got pulled into a triangle choke that’s rolled out of, only for Kanji to keep going as a clutch pin almost caused another exit. A slingshot spear from Kanji’s broken up by Reed, who then posted Dani Luna on the floor… leaving Kanji on her own as a Shining Wizard and a wrist-clutch slam put away Kanji.
We’re down to Dani Luna against Windsor and Reed, with the two former champions exchanging strikes ahead of a diving boot from Luna. Reed tries to cut her off, but Dani’s more than level to it until Windsor made the numbers uneven as a Doomsday Ralph Wiggum diving headbutt from Reed almost ended the match. A Sharpshooter from Windsor ends in the ropes – but that shouldn’t have been enforced…
Windsor’s sent over the top rope by Luna, but Safire Reed’s on the floor to prevent an elimination before she joined in by lifting Dani over the top rope to the apron… but to no avail as Luna eventually booted Windsor off the apron for the penultimate elimination, before pulling Reed from inside the ring, up onto her shoulders, before dumping Reed to the floor for the win. ***¼
Live in London 90 on its own was a pretty solid show, albeit one that felt lacking as any kind of a “go home” event for the inaugural trios Grand Prix later in the month, as it seemed like there was more focus being placed on December’s Uprising at York Hall. There’s a bit of me that’s really conflicted over Dani Luna running through what was the promotion’s hottest storyline four months ago like this – and that perhaps speaks to a wider issue where (for one reason of another) Rev Pro in 2024 hasn’t had champions and challengers around for all of their championships at the same time.