Progress Chapter 55 recap & review: #CCK ascendant, Riddle, WALTER, and Thatcher tear the house down, and Eddie Dennis betrays us all

Chapter 55: Chase the Sun went up on Demand Progress yesterday, so let's get cracking, shall we?

#CCK (Chris Brookes & Kid Lykos) vs. British Strong Style (Trent Seven & Tyler Bate) (c) (Progress Tag Team Championship Ladder Match)

#CCK right into it with tandem low blows and they take Triple H's lads outside for a beating! Bit of a struggle, no real momentum gained and into Brookes and Bate fighting in the ring while Lykos moves ladders around on the outside. Seven in, machine gun chops, a bit of fromunda but he takes too long smelling it and Chris is able to get the boot up.

More chops, a snap DDT wipes our challenger out, Kid in, some tricky evasion in the ropes, roundhouse kick, a Frankensteiner, and cannonball senton to the back on the ropes! Tyler denis the dive and yanks the wolf boy out before wiping him out and BSS grab a short ladder, bringing it to the apron, where Brookes wakes up and baseball slides it in their faces!

Back body drop tope con giro puts Lykos onto both men outside, he sets a ladder up and climbs but Seven throws him outside handily and considers the ascent. He steadies the ladder and slowly climbs, whereupon Chris dumps him and climbs himself. Bate in, he pops Brookes down and throws the ladder at his face!

A superkick for Lykos but Kid is right back in with the Full Moon! Tossing another ladder in the ring, leaning it in the corner, he calls for the brainbuster, Bate tries to evade and gets a knee, whip to the corner, he ducks the ladder, Chris in, Tyler exploder suplexes him into the ladder! Lykos with a shotgun dropkick to put Bate into the ladder, he's setting the ladder up for something when Trent comes in... DRAGON SUPLEX ON THE EDGE OF THE LADDER!

Seven and Brookes trading forearms on their knees and to their feet, Chris shifts to chops, pulls ahead, Seven gets the ripcord, Seven Stars but Brookes has a lariat of his own at the same time! Another double lariat, Chris stumbling, Trent off the ropes but Brookes ducks and wipes him out with one of his own!

Chris hits the tope con giro on Trent as Tyler returns to the ring, they brawl outside and Bate has a huge over the top suicide dive to wipe both men out! Kid, clutching his shoulder, sets a ladder against the ropes as a ramp... DOUBLE JUMP CORKSCREW SENTON ATOMICO!

Back in the ring, Bate with a giant swing on Lykos, Brookes in and he adds him on top as an airplane spin! Tyler slips his head in the ladder and spins, wiping out both #CCK men in turn as well as his own partner! Going again, Brookes stops him and Kid tees off on the end of the ladder with a chair! Chris sets a ladder up in the corner, whipping Seven, reversed, Brookes stops short, sets it up the rest of the way, Lykos leapfrogs it and hits a Codebreaker! CHRIS BROOKES SENTON OFF THE LADDER WITH KID LYKOS STILL HOLDING THE CODEBREAKER KNEES!

Into the "everybody do something cool" portion of the match, #CCK have the rebound lariat scouted and end up planting Bate with a moonsault tornado DDT and a slingshot Ace Crusher only for Tyler to manage to wipe both men out with stereo lariats and all four men are down and out on the mat! Bate the first to his feet, he goes to set up a ladder but Lykos climbs it before he can unfold it!

Trent from behind, both BSS men pressing the ladder and Kid is reaching for the title but has no choice and has to bail... SENTON ATOMICO ON THE RING CREW! Seven goes under the ring and gets a proper ladder and sets it up, leaving Tyler to climb. Brookes from behind, electric chair, he throws Tyler into Trent and it comes out as a Codebreaker!

Throwing a short ladder at Seven as punctuation, Chris begins climbing but before he can touch the titles Bate whacks him in the face with a ladder and bridges the standing ladder to the ropes with it. Climbing after him, to the top of the ladder, underhooks applied but Brookes blocks and throws a few chops for good measure. Bop and Bang in return, Tyler climbs, again the underhooks blocked... BACK BODY DROP OFF THE LADDER! CHRIS BROOKES RETRIEVES THE TITLES!

#CCK retrieve the title belts from above the ring to win the Progress Tag Team Championship!

As expected, #CCK, British Strong Style, and sick tag moves make for a hell of a time. Ironically for being a ladder match full of crazy moves, I feel like it’s the most grounded match these two teams have had against each other in Progress. But that's not a bad thing at all, and it makes for, if not the best, then perhaps the most easily recommended match of their series.

Dahlia Black vs. Toni Storm (c) (Progress Women's Championship)

Mat grappling to start, neither woman able to get much of an advantage and so Black fires off a shotgun dropkick. Reverse roundhouse, snapmare, a kick to the back, a bit of a back and forth off the ropes and Storm hits a boot and an uppercut for a one count. Headbutt, butts of another kind, Toni messing around and Dahlia kicks her posterior for her trouble!

Corner knees, a head of steam building but the cannonball comes up empty! Storm picks a leg, ducks the enzuigiri, keeps ahold, leg-trap German suplex! Hip attack in the corner, bridging fisherman suplex and it's only good for two! Black back in it with the cobra clutch backbreaker into a vertical drop cobra clutch reverse STO!

Dark Side of the Moonsault but the knees are up, Toni goes right into a Reverse Neckbreaker... NOPE! Forearm for forearm, boot for boot, Storm catches a kick... release powerbomb into the turnbuckles! Strong Zero... NOT ENOUGH! Thinking about another, Dahlia reverses to a small package for a nearfall of her own and lands a reverse roundhouse into the cannonball, setting her up in the middle of the ring, up top, Dark Side of the Moonsault... NO GOOD!

Climbing again... TONI STORM GERMAN SUPLEX OUT OF THE CORNER! STRONG ZERO! HOLDING ON...

Toni Storm wins by pinfall with Strong Zero, retaining the Progress Women's Championship.

Another strong match for the Progress women's division, two women bringing their best to bear and one inevitably has to fall short. And keep on reading, because things remain, ah, intense and we have some good stuff to look forward to here.

Post-match, Jinny attacks, stomping away at Dahlia's bad ankle! She rolls outside, retrieving a chair from under the ring. More stomps follow before she slides Black's leg through the chair... PILLMANIZED! She throws the chair at Dahlia's ankle on her way out, making the universal "I'm coming for the title" hand gesture.

Zack Sabre, Jr's open challenge is up next. Rain falls on the trong, umbrellas appear... it's Marty Scurll!

Marty Scurll vs. Zack Sabre, Jr.

Marty with a right hand before the bell, pressing the attack and putting boots to Sabre in the corner as referee Joel Allen gives in and calls for the bell! Whip reversed, Zack gets a guillotine choke but Scurll flips him away and tosses him outside. Slingshot to the apron, Sabre back in and the Villain begins attacking the arm to set up the chickenwing, shoulder armbreakers on the apron.

ZSJ reverses one into a sleeper hold momentarily but Marty does a bigger one. Back in the ring, following it up with an elevated knuckleknock into a spinebuster, chops and stomps to keep Zack off guard but the Technical Wizard starts throwing leg kicks from the mat like he's Antonio Inoki. Stomp to the elbow in return, test of strength turns into a Japanese stranglehold, Sabre seemingly unable to escape all the way and Scurll sending him outside with a lungblower to cap it off.

Gun fingers, slingshot to the apron but ZSJ catches the superkick and wrenches the Villain's ankle something unholy! Dragon screw in the ropes, Sabre fired up, charging uppercut, northern lights suplex chained into a cross armbar but Marty has his hands locked and Zack settles on an ankle lock instead! Scurll reverses to a victory roll pin for a nearfall and soon after catches an uppercut into a backslide attempt but Sabre denies him and Pele kicks the arm!

Sweep of the leg, chest kicks in the corner, Marty catches one and fires a wicked slap off, which Zack gives back in kind! Short uppercuts, the Villain to the apron but Sabre is ready for him and catches an octopus hold in the ropes! Breaking it well in time, Scurll catches him up in the ring skirt and lands the superkick from the apron this time!

Sunset flip inside, running the ropes, ZSJ with a catch ankle lock! Shift to the half-crab, then a deathlock into a deathlock reverse chinlock sleeper, trapping one arm and barring the other when that doesn't work but the Villain claws his face to force the break! Sabre throwing probing leg kicks but Scurll wipes him out with one chop and they trade various strikes for a moment.

Trading quick pins for two, Zack charges into a chop, Marty wants more and gets another one off, and a third to the throat wipes the Technical Wizard out! A lariat fires him up, kick rush, looking for the Dragon suplex but the Villain is fighting him every step of the way and blocks it by catching a finger, but Sabre is a step ahead and grabs the octopus hold as a counter to the counter!

The full Hurrah! is on but Scurll manages to roll away, Romero Special applied, rolling back for full elevation and he adds the crossface chickenwing to the equation! But Sabre is able to pop away and get to the ropes and force a full break! Marty up top, thinking about a moonsault... SABRE CATCHES HIM INTO THE TRIANGLE CHOKE AND BRIDGES BACK! THE VILLAIN IS ABLE TO HIT THE DEADLIFT BUCKLE BOMB COUNTER! OFF THE ROPES, SICK KICK... NOT ENOUGH!

Wishboning the fingers, calling for the chickenwing, but ZSJ is quick to capitalize...

Zack Sabre, Jr. wins by pinfall with the European Clutch.

Man, that was great. Sabre has been on a tear all year and Scurll is a guy I run hot and cold on but if we got this focused, intense version of him every time out I'd be hot way more often.

Marty cuts a promo after, talking about how he's given wrestling his heart and soul, and he's spent a long time in Progress, but he's not going to be around much longer, and this is the last time you'll see him in a Progress ring for quite a while, but it was important for him to be at Progress' biggest show like this.

Jimmy Havoc vs. Mark Haskins (Deathmatch)

HAVOC TRIES TO DECAPITATE HASKINS WITH THE AXE FROM THE BELL! Mark ducks the axe, lands a bicycle kick and a suicide dive to take the action outside! Jimmy turns it around with a crutch from a fan and goes under the ring for plunder but Mark stops him short and throws a frying pan in the ring. Trading shots at ringside, Havoc retrieves a bag of tacks and throws Haskins into the post.

Throwing a chair for good measure, waffling him with a cookie sheet, Mark gets away and sets up a chair but Jimmy has a staplegun and plants one in his skull! Haskins returns the favor and staples one of Havoc's 8x10s to his forehead before getting a guitar out and whacking him with it! A cut opened up on Jimmy's forehead, Mark punches at it before setting him up in a chair and laying him out with a Mafia kick!

Haskins gets the frying pan but Havoc cuts him off with a forearm, back inside for a dive... CUT OFF WITH THE PAN! Mark has a box of plunder and pulls a Nerf gun and a toy dinosaur out of it... HE SHOOTS JIMMY IN THE GENTLEMAN'S AREA! DINOSAUR TO THE FACE! NO GOOD! Haskins looking for plunder but having trouble finding it, peppering Havoc with occasional shots before dual-wielding stapleguns... BOTH SIDES OF THE HEAD AT THE SAME TIME!

Jimmy fends him off, fakes out a dive... FRYING PAN SHOT OFF THE APRON! Fighting into the crowd and up to the entry stairs and the stage, Havoc throws a forearm, jockeying for position... MARK HASKINS DEATH VALLEY DRIVER OFF THE STAGE THROUGH A TABLE! Back in the ring for the cover... JIMMY HAVOC LIVES!

Haskins sets up a contraption, cinder blocks across two chairs, Havoc blocks the suplex, forearms on forearms, Mark returning them, going for a kick... JIMMY POWERBOMBS HIM INTO THE CINDER BLOCKS! Taping his wrists together, Havoc gets the 8x10... PAPERCUTS BETWEEN THE WEBS OF HIS FINGERS! AND THE LIPS AND THE TONGUE... HE'S GOT A SALT SHAKER!

DDT on the cinder blocks, Acid Rainmaker... MARK HASKINS WILL NOT DIE! Jimmy gets a table and leans it in the corner of the ring before retriving his axe... HASKINS DUCKS THE SHOT! A DOUBLE AXEHANDLE KNOCKS HAVOC INTO THE TABLE! Vicky Haskins cuts Mark's wrists free but tells him to put the chair down when he goes to use it... not out of any altruism, but because she wants to go get her own plunder, a barbed wire baseball bat!

She slaps referee Chris Roberts and gives the bat to Mark, who clobbers Jimmy with it in turn! Havoc returning forearms, off the ropes but he catches the wire in his stomache... BAT-ASSISTED BRIDGING FUJIWARA ARMBAR! BOTH MEN CLAWING AT EACH OTHER'S FACES! A barbed wire board in play and Haskins drop toeholds Havoc into it!

Kicking the board into him for good measure, Mark rolls through... DEATH VALLEY DRIVER INTO THE BOARD! ROLLING FIREMAN'S CARRY MICHINOKU DRIVER INTO THE BOARD FOLLOWS... NOT ENOUGH! Haskins gets the tacks out and pours them square in the middle of the ring and Jimmy puts himself into them with a dropkick! He's got his wits about him, tacks are nothing new to the King of the Goths, but the Acid Rainmaker blocked with kicks!

Havoc with a Death Valley Driver into the tacks, a second, a third into the barbed wire board... STILL NOT ENOUGH! Acid Rainmaker ducked, up and over, blocking the roll-through Sharpshooter, wheelbarrow drama as Mark tries to block but puts his hands into the tacks repeatedly, Acid Rainmaker into the tacks... YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE TO KILL MARK HASKINS, JIMMY! Bat in hand...

Jimmy Havoc wins by pinfall with a barbed wire bat assisted Acid Rainmaker.

Holy crap. Glen Joseph is speechless on commentary and so am I, frankly. Jimmy Havoc deathmatches deliver every time, and with a game Mark Haskins refusing to die for longer than you'd think humanly possible, more the better. This match ebbs and flows and just as you start to think "oh, well, maybe that should have ended it", you get another twist, another turn, excellent stuff.

Back from intermission, Jim Smallman makes the announcement that Progress is coming to the SSE Arena at Wembley on September 30, 2018!

Matt Riddle (c) vs. Timothy Thatcher vs. WALTER (Progress Atlas Division Championship)

Riddle fighting the Ringkampf lads two-on-one in a pre-emptive strike but Thatcher catches him with a butterfly suplex into the corner before facing off against WALTER! Handshake accepted and they start throwing uppercuts at each other! Tim ahead, so WALTER switches to chops and his chest is red within seconds! Matt in with a kick to the head on the Austrian, overhead exploder suplex on Thatcher, a senton follows but WALTER has the Gojira Clutch!

Ringkampf rope break into a German suplex, butterfly suplex, Tim in, he gets the suplex combo as well and the Ring General stands tall! More chops for Thatcher, he hits a belly-to-belly suplex in return, one for Riddle as well, determination on his face, Bro up for the Karelin lift but he reverses to his own, a second, go-behind on WALTER, rolling Karelin lifts for the Austrian as well!

Tim and WALTER to their knees, Riddle with the chest kicks, the Ring General to his feet, he takes a roundhouse, Thatcher catches a kick into an ankle lock but his Ringkampf compatriot lays him out with a Mafia kick! Deep Waters with the Pele kick, Tim lands the enzuigiri, and WALTER dropkicks both of them! Matt and WALTER trading chops like gods of war and violence, Bro thinks maybe he's gonna shift to kicks and the Austrian kicks his leg out of his leg!

Gojira Clutch, Riddle rolls him off and Thatcher catches WALTER into a sleeper hold of his own! The Ring General escapes and Bro pastes Tim with a knee strike! WALTER with a boot and a German suplex but Matt rises to his feet, another German suplex and he lands on his feet, waistlock applied, Thatcher from behind, WALTER with a standing switch... HE GERMAN SUPLEXES BOTH MEN!

The Ringkampf men to their feet first, forearm for chop, Thatcher screaming agony, shift to palm strikes, TIMOTHY THATCHER BACK SUPLEX... NO GOOD! INTO THE FUJIWARA, WALTER ROLLS AWAY, BUTTERFLY, TIGER DRIVER... NOT ENOUGH! The Gojira Clutch is on, WALTER falls to the mat... RIDDLE BREAKS IT UP WITH A DIVING SENTON!

Jumping knee connects but WALTER roars, ducks a roundhouse, the Gojira Clutch is on, Bro breaks it, the Ring General shifts to a powerbomb, Matt slips out, Pele kick is caught, the Austrian charges in, BRO 2 SLEEP! BRIDGING GERMAN! THATCHER BREAKS IT UP! Butterfly Jackhammer on Deep Waters... NOPE! Riddle slips the Bromission on Thatcher, elbows to try and soften him up, WALTER with the save!

Trading kicks, Deep Waters in with knees, he's got Tim up for the Tombstone, Gotch cradle...WALTER BREAKS IT UP BY GRABBING A WAISTLOCK AND GERMAN SUPLEXING HIM! Kick in the corner, release powerbomb... RIDDLE KIPS UP! HE'S FIRED UP! BUT THE AUSTRIAN TAKES HIS HEAD OFF WITH A LARIAT! MATT RIDDLE LIVES!

Drawing himself up, WALTER bringing the pain with more chops, Riddle giving 'em back, ripcord into three knee strikes, one for Thatcher as he tries to come back in! Setting the Ring General up top, taking him down for the Tombstone, WALTER reverses...

WALTER wins by pinfall with Fire Thunder on Matt Riddle, winning the Progress Atlas Division Championship.

This legitimately might be the best triple threat I've ever seen. It's certainly my favorite! Constant action, very little of the "two guys in, one out" that too often makes three-ways so awkward, very tightly paced but with enough room for everything to breath and have impact.

Wolfgang makes his Progress debut, coming to the ring to issue a wordless challenge to WALTER for the title!

Chief Deputy Dunne vs. Eddie Dennis vs. Jack Sexsmith vs. James Drake vs. Mark Andrews vs. "Flash" Morgan Webster vs. Strangler Davis vs. Zack Gibson (Progress World Championship #1 Contender's Scramble Match)

James Drake does Zack Gibson's usual schtick for him, but fortunately the crowd hates him just as much. Zack takes over and walks through the crowd berating them as usual and pumping their team up as the next #1 contenders.

The match begins, all-out chaos to start until it comes down to Grizzled Young Vets vs. FSU in the ring! FSU's teamwork proves superior, but looking to throw dives and Dunne cuts Dennis off, Andrews slingshots back in only to get hit by the "Freeze!" enzuigiri. Sexsmith in, Manhattan Drop to an atomic drop, cutthroat inverted DDT wipes him out but when Jack turns around the Strangler has him!

Webster in, running lucha on Davis, imploding senton atomico, empty on a dive and Drake and Gibson sandwich him with forearms! Eddie and Mark square off in the ring as everyone else brawls on the floor, but they decide on stereo tope con giros into the mass of humanity! Next Stop Driver denied, Gibson wipes him out with Ticket to Ride, Zack, James, and Strangler each with a babyface in respective corners, Eddie Dennis joins them with Dunne in his clutches and one-by-one the superplexes fall!

Chief Deputy going for a Codebreaker, Eddie stops him but Gibson lands a lungblower to wipe the Pride of Wales out! White Lightning takes both guys out with a crossbody but Davis catches him into a Gory Special! Flash in but Strangler picks his legs and locks the Boston crab on before dropping Andrews on Morgan with the Gory Bomb!

Sexsmith in, BDSM connects, Mr. Cocko comes to play but Drake cuts him off. Standing switches, Jack throws James into Gibson and a second Mr. Cocko comes out! Both Grizzled Young Vets have a mouthful of Cocko and Sexsmith adds a headscissors on Dunne, humping away! Grizzled Young Vets with an assisted spinebuster on Jack after, into the crab / Shankly Gates combo!

Mark and Webster with the save, nearly backfiring but they reverse Tombstone piledriver clutches into Frankensteiners only to get strangled two-for-one! Eddie makes the save with a superkick, into the "everybody does something cool" part of the match but Dennis gets caught out by teamwork from Drake and Gibson.

Webster going ham with headbutts, and the ring is filled with bodies! Flash climbs up top and has a tough choice as to where to dive... PINBALL WIZARD TO THE FLOOR! Pride of Wales and the Chief Deputy now, Dennis planting Dunne with a huge Rock Bottom... CRUCIFIX POWERBOMB OVER THE RINGPOST TO THE FLOOR! ASSISTED NEXT STOP DRIVER, ANDREWS OFFERS THE PIN TO EDDIE BUT MORGAN BREAKS IT UP!

Forearm smash, up for Next Stop Driver but Flash reverses to the Strangler! Eton Rifles connects but Andrews comes off the top...

Mark Andrews wins by pinfall with a shooting star press on "Flash" Morgan Webster, becoming #1 contender to the Progress World Championship.

Well that was a hoot and a half! Real pain to recap though, hah. Thank god for the rewind button, right? Seriously, this is everything a scramble can be, wild action, advancing a few plots at once, and well, again, just keep reading for the post-match.

Andrews offers a handshake to Webster after but Flash swats his hand away and goes to leave. He comes back in and softens, offering a hug of congratulations before taking his leave... EDDIE DENNIS HITS THE NEXT STOP DRIVER ON MARK!

HE OFFERED YOU THE PIN, EDDIE! IT'S NOT HIS FAULT FLASH BROKE IT UP!

Pete Dunne (c) vs. Travis Banks (Progress World Championship)

Banks in hot with a lariat, stomping away at Dunne! Forearm for forearm, Travis cracks one off that rings across Alexandra Palace but Pete keeps it together and puts boots to him after! Kiwi Buzzsaw back in it with a sliding knee, following it with the cannonball, chops in the corner, whip, backflip up and over and the Bruiserweight is caught in the Lion Clutch but his British Strong Style buddies yank him out of the ring and save him!

BSS surrounding the ring, Banks knocks the former tag champions off the apron, suicide dives for both of them and a third for Dunne as well! Peter decides he's had enough and starts to leave, deciding that discretion is the better part of valor as referee Chris Roberts counts. They return, sledgehammers in hand, but Roberts takes the Bruiserweight's away and ejects Bate and Seven!

Pete shoves Roberts but he's not backing down, gesticulating wildly and ordering the former tag team champions to the back! Dunne jaws with him for a second before clobbering Banks and taking the fight outside. Putting the Kiwi Buzzsaw into chairs, assaulting ring crew with knockout elbows before leading Travis deep into the crowd, fishhooking his mouth and leaving him for dead!

Happy to take the countout but the Kiwi Buzzsaw refuses to give him the pleasure, crawling on his hands and knees to the ring and making it in time! Pete right on him with boots, choking him in the corner, Ode to Jim Breaks applied and taking the mouth guard out ot bite his ear before wrenching the hand back and slapping it repeatedly, wrenching on fingers, bending it unholy!

Penalty Kick to the thigh, mixing it up, wristlock boots to the shoulder and neck area, toying with Banks but he's got a pump kick for the Bruiserweight that sends him outside to regroup! Fighting up the entry, again Peter looking for the countout but Travis gets right back in. X Plex denied, roll-through into a basement superkick leaves the champion clutching his jaw.

Chest kicks hitting hard, a German suplex follows and the Kiwi Buzzsaw is fired up! Charging uppercuts, shotgun dropkick, slingshot double stomp, climbing up top... AIR NEW ZEALAND! A second connects and leaves Dunne gasping on the apron but he takes a bite out of Travis' hand... PEDIGREE ON THE APRON!

Both men slow to their feet and they roll in simultaneously! Dunne back to the apron, Banks follows... KIWI KRUSHER ON THE APRON! Back in, cannonball... PETE CATCHES HIM AND DEADLIFT POWERBOMBS HIM! TRAVIS BANKS RISES INEXORABLY TO HIS FEET! SLICE OF HEAVEN... NO GOOD! Charging in, boot up and a kick, Dunne gets up top, Travis cuts him off but in the struggle... AVALANCHE X PLEX! NOT ENOUGH!

Disdainful kicks from the champion, drawing his challenger to his knees for a knockout kick but continuing to toy with him, off the ropes he runs right into a boot, enzuigiri in return, Bitter End... REVERSED TO A DDT! THE LION'S CLUTCH IS ON BUT PETE GETS A FOOT ON THE ROPES! He bails, Banks with a suicide dive... THE BRUISERWEIGHT NAILS HIM WITH A WILD FOREARM! TOMBSTONE PILEDRIVER ON THE FLOOR!

Just dragging Travis back inside now, hoisting him up by the waistband, Bitter End connects... TRAVIS BANKS WILL NOT DIE! The expression of bemused disbelief on Peter's face is something else, folks. Underhooks, another Pedigree... OUT AT ONE! Anger playing across his face... THE ENZUIGIRI WIPES CHRIS ROBERTS OUT! Recognition hits Pete and he lets Banks take him down into the Lion Clutch again, tapping immediately because he knows it's meaningless!

A kick to the gentleman's area, Bitter End, calling a replacement ref down, referee Joel Allen in to count the fall... YOU CANNOT PUT TRAVIS BANKS AWAY! THE MIDDLE ROPE IS BROKEN! Dunne up top, Travis cuts him off, stepping on the sagging middle rope, it's not steady enough so he gets all the way up top...AVALANCHE GERMAN SUPLEX!

Trent Seven and Tyler Bate come back and knock Joel out! Seven hits a piledriver on the Kiwi Buzzsaw, Tyler Driver '97 follows, another Pedigree, making the cover as Roberts starts to wake... TRAVIS BANKS CANNOT BE STOPPED! PEDIGREE ON CHRIS ROBERTS! He's got the sledgehammer, Tyler and Trent draw Banks up... #CCK MAKE THE SAVE! BICYCLE KICKS AND TANDEM KNEES INTEO STEREO DIVES!

Travis lands a German suplex but Dunne lands on his feet and clobbers him with the sledgehammer, Triple H style! Referee Paz slides in for the count... TRAVIS BANKS CANNOT BE BEAT! Teeing up, he's going to use the sledgehammer as it's intended but Paz goes to take it from him! Banks gets ahold of it, smashes his face, Kiwi Krusher... STILL NO GOOD! THE LION CLUTCH IS ON! DUNNE HAS NOWHERE TO GO! IT'S OVER!

Travis Banks wins by submission with the Lion Clutch.

Excellent match in the epic Progress main event style. I've hit on this in these recaps a few times before, but Progress really have a way of taking these matches and pushing the envelope in a way that comes very close to crossing the line into overwrought nonsense but always stays just on the side of greatness. Indeed, if you were to strip these matches of their context and watch them blind they may well end up over that line, but within Progress, within the stories they tell and the atmosphere they create, it absolutely works and it's captivating every time.

I'd like to especially shout Pete's facials in the last stretch of the match out-- you can see it in the way I recap the match, I think, but he did an absolutely superlative job conveying real thoughts and feelings through simple expressions.

Pete throws the title into the hands of Travis Banks, acknowledging his loss in perhaps the most sportsmanlike way he's capable of. #CCK and his parents come to the ring to celebrate his victory and close the show out.

Overall

It's pretty self-evident, but you want your biggest show of the year to deliver big, and Chapter 55 certainly did. As far as overall quality both in the ring and in storylines, you have to consider Chase the Sun as easily, if not the best show of Progress' year to date, very close to it. As far as matches go, I can't praise the Atlas title three-way enough, the main event was an epic in the classical Progress style, Havoc and Haskins had an excellent deathmatch, Sabre/Scurll was great, and nothing on the card fell below very good at worst.

Storyline-wise, obviously, the biggest deal here is the fall of British Strong Style, who are now beltless. But also Jinny making it very clear that she's not done with Dahlia Black just yet and also that she's gunning for the title, Wolfgang's debut right into the upper echelon of the Atlas Division, and "Full Time" Eddie Dennis breaking our hearts by turning on Mark Andrews after White Lightning claimed the contendership. All together, any concern that maybe the end of the British Strong Style story would lead to another doldrum in the same way the end of the Regression story did has to be shelved at least for the time being, because the future looks pretty bright from where I'm standing.

Check it out on Demand Progress, folks.