Two weeks ahead of Uprising, Rev Pro returned to Southampton as their year on the south coast closed out with a Revolution tag main event.
Quick Results
Will Kaven pinned Nino Bryant in 9:56 (***¼)
Danny Jones & Brendan White pinned Harry Milligan & Sha Samuels in 10:32 (***)
Alex Windsor & Safire Reed submitted Ronnie Knocks & Chantal Jordan in 9:51 (***)
Ethan Allen submitted Leon Cage in 23:29 (***)
Anita Vaughan pinned Nina Samuels in 11:41 (**½)
Connor Mills & Jay Joshua pinned Leland Bryant & Zander Bryant in 14:51 (***½)
James Ellis pinned Shane Hooker in 12:17 (**¾)
David Francisco won a Revolution Tag in 35:43
— To watch this show, head over to RevProOnDemand.com
We’re live via stream from the 1865 in Southampton for the final time this year – and with less than two weeks to go before Uprising, this line-up’s looking decidedly light as far as “stuff that’s directly building up that show.” Still, it’s always the most unassuming stuff that surprises…
Dave Bradshaw and Gideon Grey are on commentary, this time aware of things starting!
Will Kaven vs. Nino Bryant
It’s a non-title outing for Kaven, who’s still none the wiser as to when his defence against Lio Rush is happening…
Kaven slaps away an armbar early on as Bryant looked to cause an upset… on the apron, there’s a swish leap across the corner from Nino, but it’s for nought as he’s spun down with a front kick back inside. Shaking it off, Nino’s able to return with a dropkick, only for another leap around the corner to lead to Kaven dumping Bryant over the turnbuckles with a neckbreaker.
Back inside, Kaven hurls Bryant into the buckles, then hung him up in the ropes for a flying knee… but Nino avoids it and returned with an elbow drop as the tides turned. Problem was, Kaven eventually wised up and took Nino back into the ropes, but again a flying knee drop sees Kaven crash and burn onto the apron!
Kaven’s bad night got worse with a springboard flip senton to the outside from Nino, before he leapt into Bryant’s boots after a missed splash off the top. Nino keeps going with a small package driver, almost snatching the win, before a DDT forced Kaven to get his foot under the rope to save his skin.
A snap Dragon suplex from Kaven finally gives him a new start, but a follow-up diving kneed doesn’t get the job done… before a caught moonsault was turned into a spike tombstone. Yet again, the ropes save the day, this time for Nino, but a new move for Kaven, a Last of the Dragon into an over-the-knee backbreaker – dubbed the TDI – was more than enough to put an end to Nino. A lovely start to the show, with Kaven finding that extra gear here. ***¼
Greedy Souls (Brendan White & Danny Jones) vs. Sha Samuels & Harry Milligan
This built off of last week’s incident at the 229, where the Greedy Souls wiped out Harry following his interference in their loss to CPF. Danny Jones did well to stop the David Francisco chants before Sha introduced Milligan as his partner…
Sha enjoyed the brighter start against Brendan White, wearing down the Welshman ahead of a volley kick to the back for just a one-count. A chop to the chest counts as a tag as Harry came in and got thrown at Brendan… before he ran out and tagged Sha back in. A blind tag has Danny Jones in as the Greedy Souls cleared house, exchanging rapid tags as they began wearing through Sha.
A snap bodyslam from Jones keeps Sha down as Harry was on the floor, but Sha’s able to break free and tag in an unsuspecting Harry, who shook off the deer in the headlights look before landing a dropkick to the Greedy Souls… then tagged Sha back in. Sha had some luck with corner-to-corner charges, before he tagged Harry back in for a Rocket Launcher into the Souls.
It’s good for a near-fall thanks to the referee being horribly out of position… and after my feed dropped out, we’re back with the Greedy Souls on top, forcing Sha in to break up a pin attempt as Milligan was again on the back foot. A Line-Out gets a near-fall… but Sha broke up a Soul Destroyer as Milligan almost stole a win. All four men stay in the ring, which allowed Jones to clear the way… only for a Hospital Pass to get countered into a Destroyer.
Sha gets in on the act with an East End Destroyer on Brendan for a near-fall, before a dive from Sha was swatted away… just as Harry’s attempt at a Sega Mega Driver was blocked. A second one’s countered into a Soul Destroyer, and that’s your lot as Harry ended up biting off more than he could chew for the second week in a row. ***
Post-match, Sha told Harry that there was more to him that being behind a desk… but the Greedy Souls put a stop to that sentimental moment as they ran back out to attack. Milligan’s able to break free with a Codebreaker off the top, before a Sha spinebuster cleared out Jones… and I guess this feud must continue?
Cut Throat Collective (Alex Windsor & Safire Reed) vs. Chantal Jordan & Ronnie Knocks
We had a substitution here as Safire Reed replaced Lizzy Evo – Reed’s second substitute appearance in as many shows.
Jordan and Windsor start us off, trading strikes before a snapmare and kicks to the back from Jordan had the former champion in some discomfort. Tags bring in Ronnie Knocks and Safire Reed, but it’s Knocks who pulled ahead with some headscissors, at least until Alex Windsor got involved, holding Knocks in the ropes for a kick from the apron from Reed.
A double-jump springboard uppercut from Reed leads to Windsor’s seated dropkick as the Collective tandem looked unflappable. Another charging uppercut from Reed led to a double-team suplex, but Knocks’ counter into a double DDT gave her enough time to tag in Jordan, whose kicks carved her a new path forward.
Knocks is back to try and force a submission with a guillotine to Windsor, but Alex powers up… and got caught with a mounted rear naked choke instead. Jordan cuts off a charging Safire Reed, but Safire’s able to push her off and break up the submission attempt anyway as the match descended into a Parade of Moves, ending with a sliding Flatliner from Knocks to Reed. Jordan’s back with a Ki Krusher for a near-fall on Reed, before an elevated German suplex from Reed turned the tables.
Windsor’s attempt at a double-team’s escaped by Knocks, whose Superman Forearm almost got her a massive upset win. Reed sneaks in a Warhead diving headbutt to Knocks, before Windsor finished things off with a Shining Wizard and a Sharpshooter. ***
Ethan Allen vs. Leon Cage
Ethan’s looking to end his losing run that’s seen him not get a singles W since the Copperbox – while Leon Cage is looking to get his first win in Rev Pro.
Allen tried to bully Cage from the off, but to little avail as Cage backed him into the corner, before a dropkick knocked Ethan through the ropes to the outside. Cage resisted doing a dive and waited for Allen to return as the pair went tit-for-tat on the mat. A trip to the corner sees Ethan pounce as he brought Cage down with an ugly Randy Orton-ish backbreaker that almost spiked the Welshman’s head on the way down.
Cage remained on the back foot as he got hurled into the corner with an Irish whip, before Allen stayed on Leon like a dog with a bone. A standing double-underhook suplex just dumps Cage to the mat for a side headlock that was eventually powered out of. Ethan didn’t take too kindly to that, as he faked out a chop and just punched Cage in the ribs… but Cage is able to break free, flipping over Allen before taking out the knees.
A wacky headscissor takedown takes Ethan outside for a tope into the stage, but back inside Cage has to abort a dive off the top before he hit a top rope ‘rana. A second tope followed, this time into the crowd, before a third one was swatted away as the pair then scrapped on the apron… leading to an Asai moonsault from Cage.
Back inside, a leapfrog into a stomp crushes Allen for a near-fall, before he tried to flatten Allen’s chest with kicks. Eventually one of them’s caught, but Allen can’t avoid an enziguiri… he could avoid a cartwheel enziguiri, countering it into a rear naked choke before we had yet another counter into a Destroyer, this time getting Cage a near-fall.
A right hand from Allen cuts off Cage on the top rope, with the ensuing scrap leading to Allen getting dropkicked onto the apron before he was pulled over the ropes for a Stomp into the Future. Allen avoids it, instead returning with a clothesline, then an Allen Slam and a charging knee to the ribs for a near-fall… before the ropes saved Cage from the Rings of Saturn.
Cage fires up… but gets dumped with a snap bodyslam as Allen unloaded on him with kicks. Overland slaps from Cage finally got him some space as he found an opening, following with a cartwheel enziguiri before a trip up top was eventually countered with a butterfly superplex. From there, Cage countered Allen with a brainbuster, which led to a standing ten-count on both men… that was answered as we resumed strikes.
Forearms from Cage earn him kicks to the quad from Allen, before a snap crossface from Allen almost got countered out of… but Allen kicks out of a roll-up as he instead had to suplex away a guillotine from the 17-year old. Allen tries to sneak in with a Yakuza kick, but it’s sidestepped as Cage almost snatched the win with a 450 splash… before an attempt at the Stomp into the Future was blocked as Allen went back to the submissions, pulling Cage down with a Young Boy Killer for the eventual win. Shave a few minutes off this and you’d have real cracker of a match. Leon’s still left looking for his maiden win here, as he’s not quite there yet in terms of “pushing people to the limit… and getting the win.” His time will come. ***
Post-match, Allen faked out a handshake for Leon, instead rolling out of the ring and leaving him hanging.
Nina Samuels vs. Anita Vaughan
Anita Vaughan’s still looking for her first win in Rev Pro – a run that you’d hope isn’t going to last too much longer…
After Nina’s early attempts to patronise Vaughan, things headed to the mat with Anita looking to out-wrestle Samuels. Changing tactics, Anita just knocks Nina with a forearm before a fallaway slam found its mark… only for Nina to just throw Anita into the middle rope as she found a way in.
Some choking in the ropes led to Anita getting dropkicked to the back, before she countered a suplex with one of her own. Hooking the nose gets Nina back into it, as did some crossface punches in the ropes as I tried hard to tune the crowd out. A missed dropkick sees Nina crash and burn as she then got met with a spinning backbreaker… but it’s not enough to get the win.
A Ki Krusher from Vaughan keeps her on top, before Nina rolled outside to avoid AV coming off the top rope. From there, Nina baited AV into an apron PK, avoiding it so she could hit an Electric Chair onto the apron, before a flash roll-up back inside snapped Anita’s losing run. **½
Vaughan can’t celebrate too long though – Nina, Alex Windsor and Safire Reed charge the ring to attack before Ronnie Knocks and Chantal Jordan made the save. Mercedez Blaze with a Kendo stick un-evens things again, as the Collective just left everyone laying before the Collective announced they’d unveil a sixth member next week in Sheffield. Everyone’s expecting Millie McKenzie for that, right?
Connor Mills & Jay Joshua vs. Flying Bryant Brothers (Leland Bryant & Zander Bryant)
Mills and Joshua look to be headed for a tag title shot – but with Sunshine Machine in the States, this’ll have to do…
Zander and Joshua start us off, with Zander’s surprise Code Red almost stealing a win… before a Dragonrana from Zander took Joshua off his feet. Leland’s in next, as was Connor Mills… whose arm lift got turned into a roll-up as Leland again went for pinning attempts.
A corkscrew armdrag surprises Mills, whose clothesline was backflipped away from as Leland tagged himself out. The Bryants double-team Mills with step-up dropkicks in the corner, before things headed outside for duelling Bryant topes… that were caught as they ended up getting introduced to the apron with a powerbomb, then the seats with a Giant Swing from Mills. Bloody hell.
Back inside, Leland’s dumped with a bodyslam before a spin-out back suplex from Joshua kept his team in control. A Romero special from Mills is slipped out of Leland countered with a seated surfboard, forcing Mills to break in the ropes… before a low dropkick took out Leland.
Double-teaming backfires as Leland’s DDT took out Mills and Joshua, before a tag out to Zander saw the Bryants pull forward, landing a pair of Quebradas for a near-fall. Some back-and-forth led to Zander surprisingly powerbombing Joshua for a near-fall, before half a Four Post Massacre was broken up by Mills. A rebound lariat from Mills should have gotten the win, but apparently using Jay Joshua’s cover as a launch pad for a Destroyer counts as breaking up the pin. Not sure how, but I’m just sick of Destroyers on this show at this point.
We snap back into it with a lovely pop-up spin-out German suplex, before Leland’s reverse ‘rana stopped that momentum in a hurry. Another dive from the Bryants wipe out Joshua in the aisle, ahead of a flip dive from Zander, before Leland’s leapt off the top got nothing but knees back inside. Mills gets the tag back in from there as Leland ate a wild lariat from Joshua, before the double Burning Cutter got the win. A fun little tag match that got Mills and Joshua ready for a tag title match… you hope! ***½
James Ellis vs. Shane Hooker
I thought he’d tweaked his name, but we’re going by Shane Hooker here for his singles debut…
Ellis tries to throw Hooker outside, but a quick return sees a bunch of headscissors and armdrags take Ellis into the corner ahead of a roundhouse leaping knee. A standing moonsault follows for Hooker for a two-count, before some biting from Ellis bought him some time, where he ends up throwing Hooker into the buckles ahead of a backbreaker and a snap DDT for good measure.
A senton atomico from Ellis followed, before a backbreaker got countered with more headscissors. Ellis goes back to the back again, adding a clothesline off the ropes for a two-count before a low bridge took Ellis outside for a wild tope. Back inside, a powerbomb put Ellis back in it, before an armbar with some torquing of the wrist almost forced a submission.
Hooker stood firm though, then rolled away from an elbow drop before a springboard Destroyer just about landed for a two-count. A trip up top for Hooker is stopped as Ellis grabbed the referee as a shield… then broke free for a superplex, only for Hooker to shake it off and land an over-the-knee brainbuster for a quick two-count.
Taking too long to follow-up, Hooker’s kicked out of the corner as Ellis’ spinning rack bomb lands for a near-fall, before a Brutaliser was rolled out of. Hooker’s springboard forearm and a running shooting star press continues the ebb and flow of things, before a Spanish Fly from Hooker brought Ellis down off the top… leading to a Soul Breach missile dropkick from Hooker for another near-fall.
Another Spanish fly – this time a standing one – cuts off Ellis’ comeback as a second crack of the Soul Breach was aborted… before a double springboard got nothing but Ellis’ knee as the Touch of Brilliance back suplex into a neckbreaker got the win for Ellis. This was decent, but throwing these two out in the semi-final with their lack of exposure here was always going to be a bit of a struggle, particularly with this crowd. **¾
Revolution Tag: Michael Oku, Zozaya & CPF (Danny Black & Joe Lando) vs. David Francisco, Leon Slater, Cameron Khai & Taylor James
These Revolution tags seem to be becoming a monthly thing – and save for the Zozaya and Slater stuff, this feels like a real grab bag of names. We’ve got a debut here for Taylor James as well, as David Francisco again got the Bizarro World reception in Southampton. The in joke’s going to get worn out and walked dry, I’m afraid.
When we finally get going, it’s Zozaya and Slater who start us off, but David Francisco tags himself in so he could do some roly polies. Francisco’s quickly out as Cameron Khai and Taylor James tried to gang up on Zozaya, only for Khai to have some luck with a deadlift suplex that led to him somehow tagging in both Black and Lando at once.
Tags get us to Slater and Oku, but we end up racing to a West Side Story stand-off… with Francisco coming in to get his two cents in before things exploded. Things spill outside with James accidentally chopping the ring post as the camera crew just had a rough time trying to keep up with things as the match headed to the bar, with Danny Black diving down the stairs.
We pick up with Zozaya having being sent off the stage as Leon Slater held him… only for Taylor James’ dive to wipe out his own man as David Francisco grew tired of his team of individuals not working out. That led to him getting surrounded by all four of his opponents for a four-on-one beating that was drowned out by boos… at least until Francisco ate a Go 2 Sleep, then a froggy crossbody for a two-count.
Francisco rakes Oku’s eyes to avoid a half crab, then hit a back suplex as his partners finally returned to the ring as the story then became Francisco wanting to take centre stage. A nice standing dropkick gets him a two-count as we approached the 15-minute mark, before Leon Slater took over… stopping for just long enough to charge Zozaya off the apron.
James comes in and almost upsets Oku with a pop-up powerbomb… but a DDT from Oku clears the way as CPF came back in to double-team Slater. They must count as one, with all the double-teams so far. Taylor James returns as CPF continued to remain in the ring, but he takes care of Lando with a spinning Angle slam… a second one almost puts Danny Black out, but Lando makes the save before the FIJ put away Taylor James at 20:58. About time. Just a shame the guy with the impressive finisher got put out first.
Khai and Slater come in to try and stop CPF’s double-teaming, and it kinda worked too as we finally got back to one-on-one as Danny’s standing Spanish Fly earned him a wicked over-the-knee brainbuster in return. We’ve got a shot at an over-the-top elimination as Danny Black shoved Khai over the top rope, but Khai leaps onto the stage… then jumped back in for a Pingshot cutter to Black at 24:12 for the elimination. That was a neat use of the environment, that’s for sure.
Lando’s back in, but he’s wiped out by Khai’s knee… before David Francisco snuck in from behind to toss Lando over the top at 25:07 for the next elimination. Khai argued with Francisco, which nearly cost him as Zozaya snuck in and sparked some see-saw pins, leading to an O’Connor roll as Zozaya pinned Khai at 26:11. Francisco’s in to go for Zozaya… but he slipped on the double-jump crossbody before countering Zozaya’s springboard into a Flatliner for the near-fall.
Oku’s in next as the pair trade measured shots at each other, before it broke out into a Parade of moves as Francisco, Oku, Slater and Zozaya found their marks. A half crab from Oku’s pushed out of as Ethan Allen had snuck out to trip him up… and that led to a flash roll-up as David Francisco eliminated Oku at 31:25. Hey, at least they made an effort to weave in the Oku/Jacobs feud with that.
Allen attacks Oku from behind as Oku accused Leon Slater of interfering… but that left Zozaya against Francisco and Slater for the remainder of the match. Slater has his go with Zozaya as they found their second winds, only for a Blue Thunder bomb from Slater to nearly end things.
Zozaya changes things up, but David Francisco mercifully ends things as Slater and Zozaya scrapped… by lifting the pair over the top rope to eliminate them so he could be the sole survivor. In a past life, I’d have torn this to shreds, but all I can think of is CPF’s not-Slipknot jumpsuits and how I want to push my fingers into my eyes.
Post-match, Zozaya got in Francisco’s face… and got laid out by an errant kick from Leon Slater as those two scrapped to the back, before Francisco did laps of honour in Southampton as they celebrated into the night. I always preferred Portsmouth.
Rev Pro’s final trip of the year to Southampton was a pretty “meat and potatoes” affair – nothing bad, but it felt like it was missing something to make things stand out. Unfortunately, and this is no slight against David Francisco, but the crowd waking up for the main event just to do their in joke had me super close to shutting the stream off. A main event that turned this show into very much “not my Rev Pro.”