US
Prestige Wrestling – Tower of Snakes – Friday – Hermiston, Oregon.
At the end of last year, I compiled a list of 10 Indie wrestlers to watch out for in 2019. A mixture of new talent, old talent, everything in-between. At the top of that list was the sometime MMA, full-time filthy bastard, Tom Lawlor. I’m still baffled as to why he isn’t a bigger name in wrestling, especially when the Indie scene is crying out for someone of his level. He could be well on his way through, having a pretty good start to the year so far. His victory over Low Ki at MLW Superfight, even though it didn’t quite live up to the hype, was a big win for Lawlor, and next Friday he chases more gold, this time in Prestige Wrestling. Challenging current Prestige Wrestling Champion, King Khash, in a submission match at Tower Snakes. Khash has held the title since June last year, defeating Lawlor in the final of the title tournament. The Washington native has become a mainstay in that part of the country over the past couple of years, and I’m expecting a cracking rematch. Other names appearing include Simon Grimm, Darby Allin, Leva Bates and Ethan HD. Go visit their website for more information.
AAW – The Art of War – Saturday – Logan Square Auditorium, Chicago.
AAW is back in Chicago after a short visit to Texas for Lucha City Limits. The shows are coming thick and fast for the promotion, as they continue to rebuild after losing a couple of their main eventers. DJZ has done a great job as Heritage Champion since defeating Trevor Lee at Last Call in December; successfully defending the title so far against both Bandido and Myron Reed. At The Art of War next Saturday, he makes his next defense against a UK legend who has had quite a resurgence of late, Jody Fleisch. A pioneer of the UK scene who can still go in the ring, this is sure to be a beauty of a match. The women’s title will also be getting an outing, as recent AEW signee, Kylie Rae, makes her 3rd defense of the title, against Su Yung. Other AEW roster members, Sammy Guevara and MJF will also be in Chicago, along with David Starr, Penta and LAX. Visit their website, sign up for their on-demand and enjoy.
Women’s Wrestling Revolution – Widowmaker – Saturday – Deer Park, New York.
Women’s Wrestling Revolution is in New York next Saturday for their first show of the year, Widowmaker. As part of a doubleheader with New York Wrestling Connection, the women’s promotion will be bringing former WWE and TNA star, Lisa Marie Varon, along for her debut with WWR. The former Victoria will be facing a woman who really impressed at their last show in December, Kris Statlander. Also appearing at the show will be Allie Kat, Veda Scott and Allysin Kay. If you fancy taking in both shows, Widowmaker will be taking place in the afternoon, before NYWC’s ‘Psycho Circus’ in the evening. Both shows will be available to watch live over on IWTV.
Beyond – 2Uncharted Territory – Sunday – Rhode Island.
Much like their sister promotion the day before, Beyond wrestling will be on the east coast next weekend, for 2Uncaharted Territory in Rhode Island. The show includes their Treasure Hunt tournament, an intergender tournament with the winner getting a future shot at the Independent Wrestling championship. The matches are Jordynne Grace vs Wheeler Yuta, David Starr vs Kris Statlander, Solo Darling vs Josh Briggs and Willow Nightingale vs Chris Dickinson. Lisa Marie Varon will also be sticking around, as she indulges in a little intergender action herself against Anthony Greene. More information is available here.
UK
Attack – Live at the Dome II – Wednesday – The Dome, Tufnell Park.
Attack Wrestling is in the capital on Wednesday for their next Live at the Dome show in Tufnell Park. It’s one of the rare occasions you can get an actual card for an Attack show, so I certainly thank them for making my life a little easier. Some cracking midweek matches include Mark Davis vs Shigehiro Irie, Kyle Fletcher taking on Jody Fleisch in a battle of youth and experience, and Millie McKenzie wrestles Tokyo Joshi Pro star, Yuu. To find out how to watch, visit their website.
IPW:UK – Live show – Wednesday – Canterbury Kent.
It’s the return of The PAC for IPW:UK on Wednesday, as the former Neville makes his first appearance for the promotion since 2011. PAC was a regular for IPW before signing with WWE, so it’ll be great to see him back in Kent being the absolute bastard that he is. He’ll even be getting a shot at the IPW World Championship as a welcome home gift, taking on current champion, Mark Haskins and the man he beat for the title, Kip Sabian, in a three-way. It’s been a long time since PAC and Haskins shared a ring together, so you better believe I’ll be checking that match out when I get the chance. Not much announced beyond that match, but you may be able to find out more on their website.
Courage Wrestling – Low Blows Ruin Wrestling – Saturday – Temple Bar, Dublin.
It feels weird that this is only the 3rd show for Courage Wrestling, especially considering they have built up a decent reputation since their debut in October. The aforementioned PAC made his indie return at that show, and at Low Blows Ruin Wrestling next Saturday, they are bringing a couple of big names in from wXw. Bobby Gunns, Lucky Kid and Avalanche will all be making their debut for Courage, while the homegrown matches will include Alexander Dean taking on Luther Valentine, and the tag team battle of Retrogalactic vs The Nightmare Edition. I’ve been waiting for guys like Gunns and Kid to pick up more bookings outside of Germany, so it’s great to see them branching out a bit. Visit their Twitter page for more.
Asia
Giant Baba Memorial Show – Tuesday – Sumo Hall, Tokyo.
The much-anticipated Giant Baba Memorial show is finally upon us. When the show was first announced last year, anticipation rose as to the dream matches we could be seeing at Sumo Hall. Tanahashi vs Miyohara, Ishii vs Sekimoto, Okada vs Marifuji; the possibilities were endless. While the big singles match that many wanted was never really an option, the main event has given us as close to a dream match as we could have hoped for. Hiroshi Tanahashi, fresh from losing his IWGP Heavyweight title, will be teaming with Yoshi-Tatsu, to face Kento Miyahara and Daisuke Sekimoto. The thought of Tanahashi being in the ring with Miyohara and Sekimoto is a pleasing thought and I can’t wait to see him and Miyohara lock up. Other matches that should be getting the old pants down treatment includes the awesome three-way tag match between Sanada & Bushi vs Jake Lee & Koji Iwamoto vs Ayato Yoshida & Shuto Umino, and Naomichi Marifuji & Jinsei Shinzaki against the Dragon Gate duo of Masaaki Mochizuki & Shun Skywalker. More big names appearing at Sumo Hall will be Mil Mascaras, Dos Caras, Jun Akiyama, Yuji Nagata, Hideki Suzuki and Shuji Ishikawa. The show will air on Samurai TV, which can be purchased here.
Singapore Pro – Boiling Point – Friday – Larong, Singapore.
Next Friday, Singapore Pro reach a Boling Point for their next show in Larong. The main event of the show will see Lokomotiv defend the Southeast Asian Championship in a three-way, against The Statement and Trexxus. Some international talent will also be in Singapore, as Malaysia Pro Wrestling’s Shaukat, faces current SPW Champion, Aiden Rex. If you fancy getting into some Singapore action, go check out their website.
NOAH – Navigation for the Progress – Sunday – Korakuen Hall, Tokyo.
NOAH is going through a bit of a transition right now. With new owners, LIDET Entertainment promising changes, the next few months could be an intriguing time for the often-overlooked promotion. Former NOAH star, and current Impact guy, Eddie Edwards is back in Japan, teaming with Atsushi Kotoge to challenge 50 Funky Powers for the tag titles. Kaito Kiyomiya and Naomichi Marifuji continue to build towards their upcoming title match, as the champ teams with Kaisuke Harada to take on Marifuji and Minoru Tanaka. I’m enjoying Kiyomiyas reign so far. His recent victory over Masa Kitomiya repaired some of the damage from his lackluster first defense against KENOH, and I’m expecting his match with Marifuji to be pretty damn awesome. The full card and all other info can be found on their website.
Rest of the World
Pro Wrestling Australia – The Fight for Black Metal – Friday – Max Watts, Sydney.
Our visit down under this week takes us to Sydney, for PWA’s The Fight for Black Metal. Eight men started in October, and only two remain, as the tag champions collide in the final of The Colosseum Tournament. Four Nations teammates, Jack Bonza and Mick Moretti have gone through some big names to get this far, and next Friday they battle it out for the prize of the Black Metal sword. I’m not sure what this Sword is exactly, but I’m all for more swords in wrestling. Also, not content with being just the PWWA champion, Shazza McKenzie has taken to kicking the men’s asses too. After defeating Tree Hugger Luchi at Diego’s Last Stand in January, she takes on Tyler Payne. The show will be available to watch here.
PWA Canada – Live Shows – Friday & Saturday – Guelph & Kitchener, Ontario.
Whenever I cover Canadian wrestling, two names seem to pop up constantly. Whatever the show, there is probably a very good chance that either Josh Alexander or Kobe Durst will be on there somewhere, more than likely having a match of the night contender. It also helps that they both bloody awesome. The two of them engaged in a tremendous 1-hour Iron Man Match for Alpha-1 last year, and next weekend they meet in Ontario for PWA Canada, with Kobe Durst putting his Pure Violence Championship on the line. That match alone is enough to make me want to sell my kidney and rush over to Canada. More information can be found on their website.
Destiny – The Ritual – Saturday – Battle Arts Academy, Ontario.
Another Canadian promotion, another appearance from Josh Alexander and Kobe Durst. Man, I love it when I’m right. Destiny World Wrestling hold a joint show with Blackcraft next Saturday, at the Battle Arts Academy in Ontario. Alexander is their current champion, after defeating Pete Dunne for the title last month, and he could be making his first defense at The Ritual. Durst chasing some gold himself, as he teams with Aiden Prince to challenge OVE for the Blackcraft tag titles, and Chris Dickinson and Michael Elgin will be hitting lumps out of each other. Another damn good line-up from Destiny wrestling. Go check them out here.
Mexa Wrestling – Live Show – Saturday – Arena San Juan Pantitlan, Estado de Mexico.
Not ventured into Mexico for a while, but Mexa Wrestling will be hosting their next show on Saturday at the Arena San Juan Pantitlan. Matches so far include Dragan Bane vs Flamita, Garza Jr against Mataleon, as well as appearances from Puma King, Mecha Wolf and Arkangel Divino. Any show with Puma King is worth a punt, so visit their Facebook page to find out more.
