Progress Chapter 39 recap & review: British Strong Style stand tall, Bro is immediately beloved of all

The show went live on Demand Progress this morning, so let's dig in, shall we?

F.S.U. (Eddie Dennis & Mark Andrews) vs. South Pacific Power Trip (TK Cooper & Travis Banks) (Progress Tag Team Championship #1 Contender's Match)

Right out the gate with brawling and dives! Or would-be dives, as Dahlia Black got involved and powerbombed to the outside onto her boys for her trouble! FSU dominate the early goings until the Power Trip can overcome Eddie's size and strength advantage and double team him onto the back foot. Andrews comes in an cleans house but he can only fight two men at once for so long and he nearly ends up right where Dennis was only to fight out with a double stunner for the tag.

The Pride of Wales brings his full strength to bear but the damn numbers game stays at the forefront until everything completely breaks down, all four men in at once throwing bombs, including a sweet Regalplex style Blue Thunder Driver from Cooper. Out of the chaos, FSU have it won when Dahlia gets involved again, hits a low blow on Dennis...

South Pacific Power Trip win by pinfall with a double team elevated DDT on Eddie Dennis, becoming #1 contenders to the Progress Tag Team Championship.

Very fun opener, although very nearly a tornado tag in execution.

Joe Coffey vs. Pastor William Eaver

Eaver goes for the "let us pray" gimmick early but Coffey isn't having any of it and so we move onto light grappling. Pastor drops the Iron Man to the outside with the Popish Hammer and follows it up with a dive, which Joe returns in kind, also wiping out Sebastian, because of course he's stuck his nose in here.

Back and forth they go, Eaver going for a series of quick pins and ending up swung into a crab for his trouble. They end up slugging it out, ending in a collision off a double lariat, but they get right back to trading running blows until Eaver knocks himself silly a bit headbutting the back of the Iron Man's head and eats a crossbody.

Bill catches the discus lariat into the Irish Church backbreaker / Fisher of Men suplex combo for a nearfall. Coffey looks for another crossbody but Eaver's right there with the folding crucifix powerbomb for a tight nearfall! Joe's got a pop-up uppercut into the crab, square in the middle of the ring... EAVER TAPS BUT SEBASTIAN HAS REFEREE PAZ DISTRACTED!

Pastor rolls Coffey up, handful of tights...

Pastor William Eaver wins by pinfall with an O'Connor roll.

Good big lads match. Eaver's continuing journey into the darkness at Sebastian's hands is an interesting story thread, to boot.

Post-match Eaver offers a hand in contrition but Coffey shoves him away. Sebastian slides in to congratulate Bill for his huge win and thanks him for ensuring Sebastian his place in tonight's main event. He celebrates up the aisle like the entire bag of dicks he is, knocking the hat off a fan's head. Jim Smallman confirms the switch is happening.

British Strong Style (Pete Dunne & Trent Seven) (c) vs. London Riots (James Davis & Rob Lynch) (Progress Tag Team Championship)

Rob Lynch wrestling in a facemask tonight to protect his injured face. Davis hitting hard out the gates, including a suicide dive into the second row! Things quickly break down into a pier six brawl on the outside from there, everybody taking turns chopping the ringpost when their target duck. A circle of hand-biting forms to take advantage of everyone's injuries!

The brawling continues intensely, all wipeout kicks and suplexes onto the apron, until eventually we end up in the ring, British Strong Style taking it to Lynch with quick tags and double-teams, Dunne wrenching his fingers unholy. Rob gets separation with a double suplex and he gets the tag, leading to Davis running roughshod on Seven until Dunne comes in.

A wrench to the nose from Pete nearly stops Davis cold but gets off a double Samoan drop by the skin of his teeth and slugs it out with both Strong Style men until he falls to a double headbutt. Lynch comes back in but the beatings continue and he's dispatched by Dunne's release suplex. Dunne lands on his feet on a German suplex from Davis but falls to a corner Exploder, Lynch tags back in and goes to clean house with a dive but a corkscrew swanton sees him land broken face-first on the unforgiving ring.

Uppercut assisted Dragon suplex... DAVIS BREAKS THE PIN UP! All four men slug it out chop for slap, forearm for lariat, kicks and backhands, but the Riots win the exchange with a pair huge finishing lariats! Tandem pop-up powerbombs from British Strong Style followed by tandem German suplexes on the rebound off the ropes, but the Riots have tandem powerbombs of their own! District Line connects... NO GOOD!

Seven gets the Riots' cricket bat but Lynch forces him to hit Dunne with it! Trent dodges a spear and Davis argues with referee Chris Roberts about the bat. Seven slips out of a fireman's carry and yanks the mask off of Rob's face! Dunne's biting his injured nose! He gets Lynch up for a piledriver...

British Strong Style win by pinfall with a kick-assisted piledriver, retaining the Progress Tag Team Championship.

Hell of a brawl. Rob Lynch is a madman for letting Pete Dunne nearly bite his nose off his shattered face.

Matt Riddle vs. Will Ospreay

"This is Bro-gress!" chants go up before Riddle even makes his entrance, by God.

Riddle with a jumping knee before the bell even rings! He follows with a release German suplex that dumps Ospreay on his neck! Strikes in the corner into double knees and a huge exploder suplex. The high jump senton connects for two! Fisherman buster, the Bro hangs on into a pin, but Ospreay ain't out of it yet. Slam after slam leaves young Will disoriented but he fights out of one into an arm drag and a pop-up kick.

Karelin lift reversed, the handspring gamengiri turns the tide! Riddle charges in, Ospreay with a baseball slide to take his leg out, and he follows it up with a springboard clothesline for two. Will ends up on the apron for the triangle knee, Riddle looking for his slide out slap combo, Ospreay ducks, moonsault off the mini balcony near the video wall! SPACE FLYING TIGER DROP!

Springboard corkscrew neckbreaker into a running shooting star press and then a corkscrew moonsault off the second, it's a hell of a sequence but it can't put the Bro away! Snapmare into a kick to the back and Riddle fires up. They trade flurries of strikes until Matt hits the Pele kick and they both end up out on the mat. On their knees they go slugging, to their feet they continue forearm on forearm, slap on slap.

Riddle roars and Ospreay clasps his hands behind his back demanding the shootfighter's best and taking it. He's dropped to his seat with a roundhouse but keeps it together enough for Cheeky Nando's and the poison Frankensteiner! Riddle with a German suplex but Will lands on his feet and drops the corkscrew roundhouse. OsCutter attempted, Riddle catches, jumping tombstone... NOT ENOUGH! Mounted punches follow...

Matt Riddle wins by submission with the Bromission.

Holy hell, what a match. Amazing sprint. If you watch one match from this show, this is it.

Jimmy Havoc vs. Marty Scurll

Marty tries to bring it to Jimmy from the beginning but Havoc knocks him down with a pair of spears into the Acid Rainmaker... NO GOOD!

Scurll is dead weight on the outside, or so it seems, faking Jimmy out so as to hit an Emerald Flowsion on him and take him outside to the proverbial woodshed, throwing him into the crowd repeatedly and throwing him into the ringpost. A back suplex on the apron takes us back in the ring, Havoc gasping for air as the Villain goes to work on his arm.

Jimmy gets back into it with a dropkick and a half nelson suplex into a Go 2 Sleep and a Shining Wizard but it's not enough, not yet. Havoc heads outside for a chair and referee Chris Roberts admonishes him, leaving Scurll an opening to fire kicks and a slam into the ropes, trying to take Jimmy's bad knee out. He goes to set the crossface chickenwing up but Havoc is ready for him, leading to strikes being exchanged until Jimmy fires off a Pele kick.

Both men wobbly, they trade forearms and slaps, Scurll ducks an Acid Rainmaker, Havoc flips out of a chickenwing... MARTY WISHBONES THE FINGERS! The Villain goes for his umbrella and hits a low blow when Roberts takes it away, but his cockiness is his own undoing, going for an Acid Rainmaker instead of one of his own finishers. Chickenwing again, Jimmy slips out, Acid Rainmaker but he hits Chris Roberts on his windup.

Scurll brings the umbrella back, Havoc nails him in the balls before tapping himself in the forehead with the umbrella and tossing it to Marty. He lies on the mat for the old Eddie Guerrero special...

Jimmy Havoc wins by disqualification.

Well that was just a lot of fun, from the Goldberg/Lesnar tribute to open all the way through the Eddie Guerrero fakeout ending. Good times!

Katey Harvey vs. Nixon Newell (Natural Progression Series IV First Round Match)

Lockup into some grappling early until Harvey escapes with a back elbow and Nixon fires up for a headscissors takeover into arm drags and a dropkick that sends Katey outside. Dive dodged, Newell sets up a penalty kick off the apron but Harvey is soon able to fire back with kicks and puts the boots to her in the corner.

A Fujiwara armbar leads Nixon to the ropes but she fires back with punches, including a wicked right straight to Katey's jaw. Harvey keeps the press on though, choking Newell over the ropes and keeping it going until Nixon fires off a headbutt stiff enough that both women are laid out. They slug it out on their knees, forearms and chops, continuing on their feet until Nixon fires off a step-up enzuigiri.

Charging strikes, Nixon barely clips her with an enzuigiri but gets all of the followup diving crossbody before looking for the Shiniest Wizard and coming up empty. Harvey with a leg-hook exploder suplex to set up La Campana. Nixon fights out of a fireman's carry, huge roundhouse, looking for the Welsh Destroyer but Katey blocks it. Kick to the knee, the pad is down...

Nixon Newell wins by pinfall with the Shiniest Wizard.

Good match. Nixon's strikes were on point here, especially the punch to the jaw and that wicked headbutt.

Jimmy Havoc vs. Matt Riddle vs. Pete Dunne vs. Sebastian vs. TK Cooper vs. Travis Banks vs. Trent Seven (Progress Championship Elimination Match)

Marty Scurll attacks Jimmy Havoc during his entrance, thrashing him unholy with an umbrella and leaving him unconscious on the stage! Ring crew and referees attend to him and the other six men will be going for it regardless.

Riddle hangs back while Sebastian jaws at the two tag teams, possibly trying to bribe one of them into helping him to win, but they all bail on him. Inevitably, Riddle clobbers him with the running knee! Dunne comes in and immediately gets locked in the Bromission! He gets the ropes but Seven runs into an armbar! The same for Cooper! Banks in and the Bro's roll gets slowed as they jockey for position, grappling intensely until Riddle grounds him with a Gator Roll and stands tall after the break.

All four tag men put the boots to the Bro thereafter before pairing off against each other. Banks lays Dunne out with a sliding knee only to get suplexed repeatedly by Seven. Cooper in with an axe kick but Sebastian plants him with an STO, off the ropes, Riddle catches him with the jumping Tombstone but Cooper stops him from going for a pin. Power Trip double teaming Riddle with a facebreaker / neckbreaker combo before British Strong Style clothesline them out of the ring.

Sebastian dumps the tag champions outside, off the ropes to fake out a dive but the Bro is there with a knockout roundhouse! Baseball slide, slaps for everybody and Seven wipes our Bro out with a suicide dive. Banks dives on the pile as well! Cooper heads up top, corkscrew moonsault to the outside! Dunne and Cooper in the ring now, Pete lands a lariat and gets the surfboard kneelock on when Seven slides in to put a crossface on Cooper. Banks from behind with a Dragon sleeper on Dunne, Riddle with a sleeper on Banks! Sebastian comes in and surveys the carnage, breaking it up with stomps and forearms.

The Power Trip hit the elevated DDT for his trouble, Riddle in with the Bro 2 Sleep...

Matt Riddle eliminates TK Cooper by pinfall with a fisherman buster.

Strikes all around and Dunne rolls in, four-way Mafia kicks lay everybody out! Sebastian comes in to try and take advantage, setting up over Trent Seven for the Best Move Ever. He fires off the lazy stomp and Jack Sexsmith comes down, Mr. Cocko out and proud! He's got Sebastian but eats a low blow for his trouble.

JIMMY HAVOC RETURNS! Wristlock on Sebastian...

Jimmy Havoc eliminates Sebastian by pinfall with an Acid Rainmaker.

Jimmy runs into headbutts from British Strong Style, Banks comes in and low-bridges Dunne and runs train on Seven and Riddle! Trent manages to stop him cold up top, Banks tries to fight out with headbutts, but Seven stays in control... AVALANCHE PILEDRIVER!

Trent Seven eliminates Travis Banks with an avalanche piledriver!

Holy hell. British Strong Style turn their attention to Riddle, punishing him with forearms as the crowd sings for their Bro. Matt comes back to life with kicks and chops but eats a pop-up uppercut...

Pete Dunne eliminates Matt Riddle by pinfall with a kick-assisted piledriver.

Jimmy Havoc's alone with the tag champs now and fighting mad, throwing chops hard. They fight him to the mat with kicks and Pete wrenches his nose. Striking in the corner and Havoc mounts another comeback, elbows and boots up in the corner, double dropkick, charging elbow strikes but Dunne levels him with a lariat!

Going for the uppercut assisted Dragon suplex but Jimmy's able to drop out of the nelson and hit a short DDT on Dunne. Acid Rainmaker... NOT ENOUGH! But Havoc gets right back on the horse...

Jimmy Havoc eliminates Trent Seven by pinfall with an Acid Rainmaker.

Dunne drops the former champion with a superkick to the back of the head and sets up Drop Dead but Jimmy shoots him off and Chris Roberts ends up knocked out in the process. Second Drop Dead attempt gets reversed into an Acid Rainmaker, but no ref to count the pin!

Trent is still here and conscious, though, and uppercuts Jimmy in the balls before setting up the kick piledriver. Referee Paz comes out to count the pin... JIMMY HAVOC KICKS OUT! Havoc iwth a low blow of his own, he knocks Seven off the apron, Acid Rainmaker... Trent yanks Paz out of the ring!

He throws the referee into the crowd and hits a Dragon suplex on Havoc but Jimmy kneels defiant, flipping both men the bird. So of course, it's time for a turkey dinner. Setting up the piledriver again, Tyler Bate runs down! He takes his shirt off and British Strong Style cower in the corner! A twirl of the moustache... he turns around and hauls off punching Jimmy in the mouth! Scoop tombstone! Moustache Mountain roll Chris Roberts back in the ring...

Pete Dunne wins, last eliminating Jimmy Havoc by pinfall with Drop Dead, becoming the NEW Progress Champion!

Awesome eliminator. Matt Riddle is Matt Riddle, and thus already the most beloved man in the world, and in particular I want to single out him and Travis Banks' grappling exchange, which was really great. Rematch at Mercury Rising: Progress vs. Evolve? Please?

Post-match Dunne offers a hand to Bate, and handshakes all around. Moustache Mountain is reunited within British Strong Style!

Overall

Another really good show from Progress. Still in a rebuilding phase as far as storylines go, and with the title vacated they've done the best they could in that regard, but the matches were all on point. Especially Riddle/Ospreay and the eliminator, my god. British Strong Style standing tall and united could go some really cool places, and Pete Dunne is a great choice for their new champion.

So fire up Demand Progress and get to it, folks!