By Ciaran James@TheCiaranJames
Cadbury Club, Birmingham
Pre-Show
Relentless Champion Sean Kustom announced that he unfortunately suffered an injury and could not compete as scheduled, Gabriel Kidd came to gloat and asked for the match to be rescheduled for the Kamikaze 5th anniversary on 30th June. Kustom agreed, Kidd asked for him to shake his hand, but Kidd then viciously attacked the Champion! As he left Kustom laying in the ring, the GM announced that he would find Kidd an opponent for the main event.
Lana Austin def The Elliot Jordan Experience w/Sean Devine as Special Referee
The opening contest was a fun filled back and forth intergender match between two of Kamikaze’s usual’s, if you’ve yet to see both then you’re missing out. Lana Austin is easily one of the most fun and energetic ladies working the UK indies right now, and Elliot Jordan is a heel in the same vein as The Miz, he has great chemistry with his opponents as well as the audience, who love to hate him. Kamikaze Dojo graduate Sean Divine played the Special Referee, and with a soft spot for Lana you could tell who he favoured. Both Lana and Elliott worked very well together, the match flowed well and their styles really complemented one another. The audience were well invested as Sean provided the comedy relief, as all heels do Jordan resorted to a low blow for victory but this had little effect on Lana who powered out and delivered a low blow of her own followed by a DDT for a huge win. Great way to start.
Fall Count Anywhere Match
Chardonnay def. Kris Wolf
Let me start this off with there was a pin attempt on the lawn outside of Cadbury’s Chocolate HQ! This was a match of many styles and another great effort in Kamikaze’s ‘Fighting Females Division’, Kris Wolf was unpredictable throughout as Chardonnay displayed great professionalism and poise. This match could have gone either way as Kris Wolf seemed to be in control early on, her bizarre behaviour seemed to throw Chardonnay off her game early on. The match spilled outside of the venue as the ladies took the fight outside, they brawled on the road as the match really defined Falls Count Anywhere. As they moved toward the nicely cut grass of Cadbury’s HQ Wolf hurled Chardonnay in their famous sign and then went for a pin attempt. The action returned inside as Chardonnay fought back and seemed to turn the odds in her favour, after a short brawl which saw Kris attempt to hide behind a plastic plant Chardonnay took control and captured a hard-fought victory.
Bodyslam Challenge
Marshall X def. Kenny Killbaine
An old concept but a fun one, the Bodyslam challenge offered many controversial decisions as Kenny Killbaine consistently slammed Marshall X yet it wasn’t a Bodyslam. The smaller Marshall struggled to lift Kenny early on but he worked away at his opponent. Killbaine controlled the early portion of the match as his size and power were too much for Marshall X, this was a really good competitive match and gimmick, the audience approved as they split their love between both opponents. Marshall looked good here and seems to be improving every time I see him, his recent split from Bigger Picture has only made him hungrier for singles success and his victory here only added to that. Killbaine was too confident and was too frustrated and that seemed to be his downfall, Marshal rallied and built the momentum, he finally caught Kenny just right before slamming right down on the mat for the win.
Lumberjack Match
Dave Mastiff def. Joseph Conners
Two current WWE competitors went one on one for the first time at Kamikaze Pro, the gritty brawler Joseph Conners looked to make a huge statement against Black Country born Dave Mastiff. The Kamikaze Pro Dojo students and a handful of main roster stars surrounded the ring and looked intent on giving Mastiff a beating at every opportunity. This match was more competitive than I imagined, Joseph gave a good account of himself against the bigger and stronger Dave Mastiff who was making his Kamikaze debut. Mastiff took control early on and dominated Conners for long periods, however Conners used the advantage of Lumberjacks at ringside to sway momentum his way, he barked at his colleagues to attack Mastiff and do their jobs. This was my first time seeing Conners live and he looked very good, he is very gritty, hard hitting performer and you can see why WWE got him on board. But it was future WWE UK tournament competitor ‘Big’ Dave Mastiff who fought off the Lumberjacks and grabbed victory on his debut, after taking a beating he overpowered Conners and hit him with a huge Cannonball in the corner for the 1,2,3.
2 out of 3 falls
El Ligero (2) def. Chris Ridgeway (1)
The second half kicked off with this pure wrestling contest which was arguably the match of the night, featuring two extremely talented performers this had classic written all over it. Ligero, who was recently announced as the latest competitor in the WWE UK tournament was as good as ever, I think a lot of people see him as a high flyer but when mat wrestles, he really can. Chris Ridgeway continues to improve, and in my personal opinion I think he should have been named as a competitor on the WWE tournament, this man is very, very good, better than some named in the tournament. The first two falls were touchy affairs, each man didn’t go all in and only peppered each other with strikes and mat wrestling. Ridgeway scored the first fall with an Armbar and quick TapOut from Ligero, however the luchador responded with a quick roll up in the second fall, Ridgeway was annoyed with giving away a perceived soft loss. The third and final was when the action really hit a higher gear, both pulled no punches and absolutely battered each other with kicks, strikes and a variation of submission moves. This was wrestling at it’s finest, and further proof of how good Ligero is and how much better Chris Ridgeway can become. The third fall was outstanding, Ridgeway nearly kicked a hole through Ligero with kick after kick, Ligero responded with stinging strikes to the chest. This contest could have gone either way, but it was Ligero who powered through to claim the 3rd and final fall. Outstanding.
Kamikaze Pro Championship/Tag Team Title Match *Title Change*
Kay Jutler © & Clint Margera def. Star Talent (Jack Starz & Chris Tyler)
From outstanding match to another, these four men pulled all the stops to try and defeat one another, on top of that the simmering rivalry between Kay Jutler and Clint Margera boiled away throughout. Star Talent again exhibited how good of a tag team they are as they took the fight to two of Kamikaze’s best performers, Jutler and Margera were stunned early on as the Tag Champs took control. The match spilled to the outside as Chris Tyler Moonsaulted through the air and crashed into Clint & Kay, drinks and chairs went flying. The action split off as they all brawled with each other, Clint pulled out a stapler but his actions were thwarted as the Tag Champs stayed in the fight. Star Talent were exceptional here, Chris Tyler and Jack Starz have improved tremendously in the last year and have become one of the finest tag teams on the UK indy scene. As the match neared its finale Star Talent took Jutler out of the game, they looked to take out Margera, who instead fought back with use of the chair. Clint dispatched Starz then countered a mid-air strike from Tyler with a stinging chair shot which nearly decapitated his opponent, he then scooped up Tyler for the victory with a Death Valley Driver and new Tag Team Champions.
Last Man Standing Match
Dan Moloney def. Gabriel Kidd
After one year away, the returning Dan Moloney was looking to make a huge impact, he took on the rapidly improving Gabriel Kidd in a hard-hitting contest. Kidd was not prepared for the brutality that Moloney returned with, he peppered Kidd with huge chops and blows early on, even letting the audience take a shot. Kidd however fought back, after recently turning heel Kidd has improved tremendously and has settled into the role rather well. Kidd weakened the knee of his opponent and worked him over with a Figure Four Leg Lock, to which Dan tapped but the ref could not end the contest. The match spilled to the outside, Dan came back into the match after sitting a prone Kidd in a chair at ringside, he then sprinted around ringside and launched himself into Kidd who hit the floor hard. The audience were invested in this match as they wanted to see Gabriel punished for earlier attacking Sean Kustom, before the show started, and it was Kustom who got some payback as this contest drew to a close. Both competitors returned to the ring, they worn out and beaten, Dan seemed to try and hit Kidd with an F5 but he didn’t get all of it. The ref started the count, when he got to 9 Kidd rolled out of the ring, as he got to 10 Kidd stood up and fell again, it seemed all was over but Kidd called for a continuation. The GM agreed and the match restarted, it was then that Dan and Relentless Champion Kustom teamed up on Kidd and drop a huge wooden board on top of him as the ref recounted again to ten!
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