By Ciaran James@TheCiaranJames
The Irish Centre, Birmingham, 30/06/2018
Pre-Show
The show opened with the Kamikaze Pro management making a short speech, they talked where they started and where they are now. They thanked the fans and everyone involved for making Kamikaze what it is today.
Millie McKenzie def The Elliot Jordan Experience
The opening contest was a surprise of sorts, the egotistical Elliot Jordan made it quite clear that he deserved to be on the card and Kamikaze guessed as much. Step forward Millie McKenzie, who returned to a thunderous ovation from the audience, the atmosphere was already at fever pitch for this contest. Elliot, being the arrogant, egomaniac that he is saw this as an easy challenge, how silly he was! After a few minutes of playing to the crowd and toying with Millie, his luck ran out, the highly talented Ms McKenzie took over and rocked her opponent with some impressive looking German Suplexes, Jordan was dazed but still in the fight. The match went back and forth as Elliot became more aggressive and frustrated, that was his downfall, the plucky young Millie struck back and took over, the audience were fully behind her as Elliot Jordan tasted defeat. Excellent start to the evening, Mille was as always phenomenal and the ever-improving Elliot Jordan plays his role so well.
Veda Scott def. Xia Brookside
The weakest contest of the evening was from the ‘Fighting Females’ division, although both are competent workers the match seemed to really drag. The audience interaction was nil and the action in ring action wasn’t enthralling enough for my liking. Xia seemed unable to carry her weight in the ring against Veda, who in turn couldn’t get a rhythm going, it led to some clunky moments. It picked up towards the end, Veda with some precise kicks looked the aggressor and took the well-earned victory.
Dave Mastiff def. Nathan Cruz
The next match was a very hard-hitting affair, Cruz and Mastiff battered each other, this seemed to be more about professional pride than anything else. The ego of Nathan Cruz was running wild before the bell even rang, Mastiff was looking to shut him down early doors, however I think ‘Big Dave’ might have underestimated Cruz. ‘The Showstealer’ took the fight to Mastiff and on many occasions seemed within seconds of clinching victory, more often than not he resorted to hurling Mastiff into the audience, the atmosphere in the Irish Club really picked up during this match. As much punishment as Cruz dished out, Mastiff kept coming back, the crowd were really behind him as he kept rallying against the attack. One final time Cruz hurled Mastiff into the audience, chairs flew and fans ran for cover, Cruz leapt back into the ring looking for a cheap victory. Mastiff rose from the ashes and stared a hole through Nathan, Mastiff entered the ring and took over, the sheer power of Big Dave was too much for Cruz. The end for Cruz came via Cannonball in the corner, Mastiff left to wild applause.
Relentless Championship Match
Sean Kustom © def. Gabriel Kidd
The next match had personal written all over it, the former champion Kidd, has vowed for months to recapture the title and finally rid himself of Kustom. This was a war, these two ripped up the Irish Centre, from inside to outside the match was in danger of getting out of control. Both Kustom & Kidd are young stars on the rise, their improvements over the last 18 months have been phenomenal. Gabriel Kidd has transitioned from a likeable fan favourite to a self-absorbed, petulant heel so easily, his ringwork has also come along so well and he moves like a ring general. Kustom who is rising fast while still finding his feet on the UK Indy scene is looking really good, his mixture of junior heavyweight and striking skills is wonderful to see, at this stage he cannot have a bad match. This had it all, brawling, mat work, technical ability, they took the fight to one another. Watching this unfold live was a sight to see, like many matches on this card I cannot truly give this the credit it deserves through my words, it was excellent. Kustom retained after a hard fought and well-earned performance, both should be proud.
Prior to the match, the management announced that Kay Jutler and Clint Margera had vacated the Tag Titles after refusing to work together. Therefore, Kamikaze announced an 8-team tournament to crown new champions.
Kamikaze Pro Tag Team Championship Tournament Quarter Final
Marshall X & Roy Johnson def. Star Talent (Jack Starz & Chris Tyler)
Next was the first of two quarter finals for the now vacant Kamikaze Pro Tag Team Titles, Star Talent who to be fair maybe are already the number contenders after dropping the belts last month looked to get back into contention. They faced fan favourites Marshall X and Roy Johnson, this turned into a very technical fun match, the straight-talking Marshall and Johnson were direct with their approach. Star Talent concentrated predominantly on the mat wrestling, they attempted to grind down their opponents, however the unorthodox style of Marshall and Johnson seemed to break up their tactics. As good as Star Talent are, and trust they are extremely good, on this day they were out matched by two very determined men intent on claiming championship gold. Tyler and Starz took the fight hard to their opponents and this was a great back and forth match, unfortunately for them Marshall and Roy Johnson were too much!
El Ligero def. Robbie X & Mike ‘Speedball’ Bailey
Can I truly give this the review it deservers? How can I explain perfection? Quite simply El Ligero, Robbie X and Mike Bailey were exceptional, the ring was the canvas and these three men created a wonderful masterpiece. This was Junior Heavyweight wrestling at its finest, El Ligero was as flawless as ever, easy to see here why WWE signed him, ‘Speedball’ was fantastic and still is one of the finest wrestlers walking the earth, and Robbie X, arguably the most underrated wrestler working the UK indy’s right now. You had the perfect blend, the action was crisp, flawless and smooth, the wrestling, strikes and high-flying aspects were sublime. People talk about NXT & NJPW five-star classic matches, well for me this was one of the best matches I have witnessed live in 2018, El Ligero clinched victory but all three men stood proud to a standing ovation. This was wrestling art.
Kamikaze Pro Tag Team Championship Tournament Quarter Final
Anti-Fun Police (Chief Deputy Dunne & Santos Jr) def. Monster Mafia (Ethan Page & Josh Alexander)
The second quarter final was unarguably one of the best tag team matches I have seen in a very long time, after impressing me earlier in the day Monster Mafia again shone, they were excellent. This was also the best I had seen The Anti-Fun Police perform outside of Attack Pro Wrestling, both Damian Dunne and Santos Jr were very good. The teamwork between both teams was fantastic, it was a pleasure to watch, Monster Mafia at times dominated the match and nearly claimed victory on several occasions. Dunne and Santos were over matched at times but to their credit they kept coming back, the action in the ring was back and forth as the wrestlers kept upping the ante as the contest wore on. Monster Mafia keep digging deep after each close call, they tried every weapon in their arsenal but the Anti-Fun Police were very resilient. The skill used by both teams made this match what it was, the cutting in half of the ring, the brutality and combination of moves made this one of the contests of the evening. Finally, Chief Dunne and Santos rallied to capture victory in a very close and thrilling match.
Kamikaze Pro Championship Match – No Disqualification
Clint Margera def. Kay Jutler ©
After a humid, sticky afternoon of wrestling, we finally reached the much-anticipated main event. The personal rivalry between Clint and Kay has been building for quite some time, the two highly respected athletes have been the measuring stick at Kamikaze for the last year. These two didn’t wait for the bell to ring as they threw fists early on, ground and pound was the way to go it seemed. Kay who likes to work away at an opponent and beat them in the ring, seemed to let his game plan go out the window. The match was Clint’s from the get go, he never looked flustered or beaten, he like always put his body on the line and took no shortcuts. Kay looked good but he never looked in control, the NQ stipulation favoured death match specialists Margera, who constantly made sure to cause as much pain as possible to his opponent. Jutler rallied and fought back on numerous occasions, the audience were split right down the middle on this one, their styles clashed and so did the fans. The match made its way outside the ring, the punishment was dealt out with the use of chairs, tables and baking tray! They returned to the ring, Kay took control as momentum shifted his way, Clint was looking spent, then at ringside a mystery assailant appeared. As Margera lay prone on the mat, the hooded figure entered the and attacked Jutler, finishing him off with a Superkick, Clint now reanimated with a table propped up in the corner drove Kay via a Death Valley Driver to become the NEW Kamikaze Pro Champion!
You can follow me Ciaran James@TheCiaranJames for South West Wrestling coverage
