REVIEW: PROGRESS, Chapter 155, Feel The Noize

Progress Wrestling: Chapter 155, “Feel The Noize”
The 02 Academy, Birmingham
Saturday, September 9, 2023
Reviewer: David South (@DavidSouth1980)

With All In weekend already feeling like some dim and distant memory. Progress began an away weekend with a show at the second city’s 02 Academy.

I’ve never been to a Progress show in Birmingham before, but these O2 venues do provide a level of standardisation with the Pro’s and Con’s that come with that.

We’re encouraged to take our seats, then Simon Miller thanks us for coming and we get started.

Kid Lykos vs Dan Moloney

Back home, both in terms of in the UK and back in Birmingham, Bullet Club’s Dan Moloney was delighted to be back to face his old friend, and current number one contender for the Progress Heavyweight Title, Kid Lykos.

They shook hands before settling into a familiar pattern of Moloney’s strength against Lykos’ speed. There was nothing friendly though about Moloney’s dropkick to Lykos head, through the ropes, having knocked him to the floor with a shoulder barge.

It’s all Drilla for a spell now, earning two counts with another kick to the head and a snap suplex. The momentum shifts when Lykos reverses a powerbomb into a back body drop.

Moloney rolls to the floor but now it’s Lykos’ turn to dive out onto him. He calls for the Brainbuster, but can’t get him hoisted up, so transitions into three backsuplexes in a row.

After a brief fightback, Lykos cuts him off, calls for, and then actually hits the Brainbuster!!! Moloney though kicks out a two and 3/4s. They fight up from the floor and having reversed the Drilla Killa, Lykos hits a running knee and the climbs to the top, only for Spike Trivet to slide in, stomp on Moloney so that Lykos is disqualified, and then run away.

Both Moloney and Lykos are disappointed that the match ended that way but embrace and Moloney tells him that he better get that belt.

Rhio vs Renee Michelle

A Progress debut for Renee Michelle against the returning Rhio, who still has the key to unlock a title match with her. Whilst Rhio is the stronger of the two, the initial moments go to Michelle, who uses the wrist to work her down to the mat and into an arm bar submission which she heightens the effectivness by flipping forward into a bridge.

Rhio works free and snatches a headlock then a shoulder barge having hit the ropes. She hits a fishermans suplex and then dropkicks Michelle into the corner. As if to emphasise her physical dominance she then ragdolls Michelle in a full Nelson hold.

After trading chops on the floor, Michelle hits a springing kick to the head off the ropes and a rolling through Burning Hammer. The win would go to Rhio though as she cuts off further offense with a kick and then hits the package piledriver for the victory.

Rhio gets the mic and reminds Lana Austin that she has that key, and that she can call her shot any time she wants.

Bullit w/ Spike Trivet vs Kid Lykos II

Before the match, Bullit calls Damo out from the back. He says that he was one of the men who inspired him to become a wrestler, but now he’s past it, cashing the cheques on a retirement tour and tomorrow he’ll prove that he’s the best big man in the business.

Lykos II hasn’t forgotten his treatment at the hands of Dominatus Regnum back at Chapter 154 and whilst Bullit is focused on Damo, he climbs the ropes and starts the match with a dropkick to his back.

He gets Bullit to the floor and then dives out after him. Back in the ring he hits a running dropkick to drive Bullit into the corner, but as he tries to follow up, the One-Man Armory grabs Lykos II and beals him across the ring.

Bullit chokes Lykos II on the bottom rope and then pushes him to the floor, for Trivet to get some kicks in with the referee distracted. Lykos fires up in the ring and then pokes Bullit in the eye and shrugs at the ref.

He bounces off the ropes but is caught in a huge Spinebuster. Spike tells him it’s time to end it, so Bullit hits a chokeslam, but then pulls Lykos up at the two count. He hits a sit out powerbomb and again, pushes Lykos out of the pin at two.

He hoists a beaten Lykos II to the top rope and hits a superplex and now it feels like the ref should consider stopping the match, but Bullit then hits a second chokeslam and completes the victory.

For the second show in a row Lykos II requires medical attention to get to the back.

Big Damo vs ‘The Machine’ Brian Cage

Big locks ups are a feature of the start of this match, with neither man able to dominate the other or knock the other down with shoulder charges. Brian Cage gets the upper hand though with a Hurricanrana, then running kicks into the corner and a German Suplex.

A back elbow from Damo cuts off another attack, then he slips through the ropes, uranages Cage to the mat and then hits a senton dive over the top rope into the ring.

The pair continue to exchange big moves looking for the end, Cage with a Spinning DDT out of the corner, into the 619 attack and Damo with the sitout powerbomb and a standing splash.

Cage would take control though. The Nando’s kick would then see Damo roll to the apron, only for Cage to Suplex him back in off the second rope. Then, perhaps the most memorable moment of the day, if not the whole weekend.

Cage catches Damo’s crossbody, holds on, transitions him up onto his shoulders and hits an F5 for the victory. When he recovers, Damo looks as stunned as we in the crowd were.

Back from the interval, Simon Miller takes a moment to apologise for the fact that a scheduled one-on-one match between he and Tate Mayfairs won’t be happening as Mayfairs is refusing to fight him.

Man Like Dereiss vs Mark Haskins w/ Vicky Haskins

The screen opens with a piece from local rap/poet Casey Bailey about his love of Birmingham before another hometown boy make his entrance and the 0121 are in full voice.

Vicky Haskins takes the mic from Simon Miller to introduce her husband and then gets involved in the match early, stopping Dereiss from diving to the floor having elbowed ‘Skins’ to the outside.

Haskins returns with a new focus on the legs of Dereiss, tying up the hamstrings and then wrapping them in the rope and applying a submission hold which Dereiss struggles to the ropes to escape.

Dereiss hits his matrix cutter, diving under Haskins’ clothesline in the process and though Haskins then catches him with a knee to the head, Dereiss hits a backbreaker that has them both down.

Haskins would try and roll up Dereiss with his legs, but the Lyrical Dragon sets his base wide and transitions into the Blue Thunder Bomb. He climbs the ropes and hits a 450 splash to claim the popular victory.

Vicky chastises her husband when he looks to offer a hand of respect at the end of the match.

Session Moth Martina vs Lizzy Evo

The match stars with Session Moth not quite getting the tone of the pushing back and forth with Evo, but she does work it out and chops her so hard it startles even her.

Evo furiously kicks back and chases her into the ropes. Evo goes between the ropes to the floor and Martina leaps on her from the apron, catching both her opponent and the unfortunate ring crew at the same time.

Evo though retakes control as they re-enter the ring, first with forearms, then a running dropkick and finally squeezing her into a Boston Crab. Evo lowers her knee pad, looking to swing a finishing blow but Moth catches it, stuns her with a headbutt and hits a spear.

Evo tries the knee shot again but misses and Martina hits a side suplex. Evo catches her by the hair and slams her to the matt, then does hit the running knee but Martina kicks out. She fights her way back in, attempting a rollup for two and then hitting a codebreaker for another near fall.

The end would come when Martina charges in, but Evo blocks that and then drives her knee into her face, then hits another running shot, with the exposed knee, to claim the victory.

Evo fetches Session Moth’s beer from the side of the ring and looks to share it with her, but then spits the beer in her face and hits her with the can.

Luke Jacobs vs Spike Trivet

Jacobs is furious about the treatment that Spike and his goons have dished out to Lykos Gym recently and needs to be separated from Trivet during the introductions.

When the bell rings, Jacobs slaps Trivet across the face and then starts to physically dominate with body blocks and chops. Trivet has to try something different, so starts to focus on the legs, first with a dropkick and then by hanging Luke’s leg over the apron and driving it down.

Jacobs tries to retaliate with a chop, but Trivet catches it and bites his fingers. Jacobs comeback would start with a huge righthand, that knocks Trivet flat.

He follows that with a big suplex and two German suplexes, though Trivet manages to wriggle out of the potential third one. They climb the ropes in the corner, and though Trivet again bites him, Jacobs hits a Superplex that has them both down.

Trivet hits a series of big moves, each with a cover attempt after them but can’t finish Jacobs off, even with this neckbreaker, even after a codebreaker and a second neckbreaker!

He leans over a prone Jacobs landing a series of punches and forearms. The ref tries to drag him off, but Trivet hits him with a deliberate elbow. Bullit slides a chair in, but Lykos and Dan Moloney return to the ring and the pair brawl.

A second referee calls the match a ‘no contest’. When things settle Moloney takes the Mic and says that Lykos II is out of tomorrow’s three-man tag, but that he’ll be taking his place.

Yoshiki Inamura vs Ricky Knight Junior - Progress Atlas Championship

Having last seen him in the ring at Wembley. Ricky Knight here defends his Atlas Championship against Pro Wrestling Noah’s Inamura. They start hot, with Knight ducking a charging Inamura who cascades over the top rope to the floor.

Knight dives out after him, then picks him up and drops him on the apron. He pushes him back into the ring and hits a rope assisted senton for the matches first two count.

The second comes soon after following a delayed vertical suplex but things then change quickly as Inamura catches a charging Ricky Knight in a powerslam and then hoists him up for an even more delayed suplex – then a standing splash for his first fall.

Having fought up from the mat together, trading forearms and chops, Knight tries a crossbody off the turnbuckles, but Inamura catches him and hits another powerslam for a two count.

They trade massive moves, Ricky Knight with an Insiders Edge and then a 450 after a cutter, Inamura with a running tackle and Belly to Belly suplex and then the shoulderblock again, this time from the top rope.

Knight would ultimately retain, reversing an attack with a raised knee, Yakuza kicking him in the head and then the over the shoulder Piledriver for the victory. Mutual respect earned, the pair shake hands.

There was some talk online about this being a disappointing attendance for a Progress show, I’ve not been to Birmingham before, so I’m afraid I can’t say whether it was up or down (Sheffield on Sunday was about par from the previous shows).

But it can be an expensive business, being a wrestling fan – particularly if you’ve just spent quite a bit of money to go to All In two weeks earlier.

Either way, the crowd that were there weren’t short changed, with hometown returns for Dereiss and Dan Moloney, and excellent debuts from Inamura and Michelle – who both impressed even in their defeats – and from Brian Cage.

It can’t be stressed enough how impressive it was to see him manhandle Damo up the way he did.

On to my hometown return tomorrow.

REVIEW: PROGRESS, Chapter 155, Feel The Noize

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