AS I SEE IT
Bob Magee
Pro Wrestling Between the Sheets
PWBTS.com
There's been a ton of news in the wrestling world this week
in the puroresu and independent wrestling worlds.
First, New Japan Pro Wrestling announced late Wednesday,
after the announcement of TV Asahi and CyberAgent taking
control of NJPW from Bushiroad, that archived episodes of
AEW programming will no longer be available to those in the
country after August 31, 2026, when the current contract
with AEW ends. In addition, new episodes of Dynamite (as of
June 24) and Collision (as of June 27) will also stop being
uploaded; with the notable exception of the AEWxNJPW
Forbidden Door PPV which is still available for purchase and
viewing.”
The announcement directed those currently watching AEW
content on NJPW World toward AEW's new international
streaming service, MyAEW service. The current content
relationship began in April 2022 with episodes of Dynamite
and Rampage available at no extra cost to NJPW viewers in
Japan.
For those of you in the New York City area, Battle for the
Brave: A Wrestling Showcase for Heroes is the first-of-its-
kind charity wrestling event benefiting the Tunnel to Towers
Foundation on June 6 at the Rahway Rec Center in Rahway, NJ.
Organized by NJ native and professional wrestlers Deonna
Purrazzo with husband Steve Maclin, a Marine Corps veteran
and TNA/independent wrestler, Battle for the Brave brings
together veterans, first responders, the local Rahway
community for an unforgettable night of live professional
wrestling to benefit Tunnel to Towers.
The event will feature appearances from some of the biggest
names in professional wrestling, including The Hardys,
Shotzi Blackheart, Amazing Red, Megan Bayne, and more.
Ringside seating is officially sold out, with general
admission tickets still available.
Use code FAMILY at checkout for 4 tickets for $100!
Proceeds from the event will benefit the Tunnel to Towers
Foundation and support veterans and first responders.
For tickets, go to
https://www.tixr.com/groups/t2twrestling/events/battle-for-
the-brave-wrestling-showcase-for-heroes-173546
Big changes have occurred in both the UK and US independent
wrestling scenes. Former WWE wrestlers Big Damo and Nikki
Cross have purchased both the UK's PROGRESS Wrestling and a
partial share of the northwest US-based DEFY Wrestling, per
a press release issued this past Tuesday.
The pair is taking over both of one of UK wrestling’s most
well-known modern indie companies, as well as the equally
well-known Seattle based DEFY promotion
PROGRESS, established in 2011 by Jim Smallman and Jon
Briley, has been one of the most important independent
companies in United Kingdom, up there with RevPro.
PROGRESS has shown dramatic growth, which came to a halt in
2020 with the pandemic. in 2022, Martyn Best and Lee McAteer
revived the promotion, and have since held over 70 shows
across the UK, USA, Germany, Canada and Dubai restoring
PROGRESS's place as the premier UK promotion. Most recently,
it featured Pete Dunne, Toni Storm, Gunther and Will
Ospreay. Fresh from their success at the Collective in Las
Vegas over WrestleMania weekend and the annual Super Strong
Style 16 two day event which featured both men’s and women’s
tournament for the first time, Best & McAteer recognized
they needed the expertise and impact of Big Damo and Nikki
Storm to take the next step. PROGRESS will hold its 200th
event by the end of 2026.
DEFY is a major northwest US independent, running shows in
Seattle, Tacoma and Yakima in Washington state; plus
Portland, Los Angeles and London. The promotion was launched
by Matt Farmer and Jim Perry in 2017. It's become one of the
more intriguing US indie brands with talent including Swerve
Strickland, Nick Wayne, and tag team Sinner and Saint.
Big Damo, who wrestled in PROGRESS before and after his WWE
success, and is a former PROGRESS Men’s World, Tag Team and
Atlas Champion, said, “We are delighted to be the new co-
owners of PROGRESS. We both started in the UK and Ireland
and fully believe this is host to the greatest talent pool
on earth and PROGRESS is well positioned to showcase this
generation and the next generation. We are also very excited
to be the new co-owners of DEFY Wrestling. Home to the most
feverish fan base in the Pacific Northwest. Nikki and I have
an affinity with Seattle, and I always had an incredible
experience wrestling on the DEFY shows in front of the
Defyance. We would like to thank Martyn Best and Lee McAteer
for being wonderful custodians and bringing new levels of
professionalism to our industry. They steered PROGRESS after
a worldwide pandemic, created an incredible wrestling
network in Hooked On Wrestling TV, created a phenomenal
working partnership with Pro Wrestling NOAH in Japan and
DEFY in USA and showed ambition, and an incredible drive to
give multiple talented men and women visas to compete in the
USA, and opportunities in so many other countries.
“Our job now is to guide PROGRESS through the coming years,
identify new talent and integrate them with the current
phenomenal roster. I’m proud to say we have some of the best
wrestlers in the world performing for us right now. Our
men’s World Champion Cara Noir and Charlie Sterling are
performing at the highest level. Our Tag Team Champions Luke
Jacobs and Ethan Allen are two of the best wrestlers in the
world under 30. Our women’s division is host to some of the
best women wrestlers alive. Women’s champion Alexxis Falcon,
Rhio, Kanji, Emersyn Jayne and so many more. We also have
Hollywood actor Paul Walter Hauser regularly walking the
Hollywood red carpets with his PROGRESS Proteus Championship
belt. Then there is Gene Munny, Charles Crowley, former WWE
star Axel Tischer, Hollie Barlow, Simon Miller, Man Like
DeReiss, Spike Trivet, Lykos Gym, and so many more."
Until next time...
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