Retro Review: Progress Chapter 88: Super Strong Style 16 2019 Day One

In what was supposed to be Super Strong Style 16 weekend for Progress Wrestling, the promotion out of the United Kingdom had to scrap their big three day tournament due to the Covid-19 outbreak. Covid-19 may have ruined the plans for this year’s 16 man tournament, but you can live stream last year’s tournament for FREE on YouTube. The Super Strong Style 16 2019 took place at Alexandra Palace in London, England and includes stars such as Jordan Devlin, Darby Allin, David Starr, Kyle O’Reilly, and many more.

Both men start off trading strikes until Ilja Dragunov gains the early advantage. Chris Brookes comes back with a senton off the middle rope to the back of Dragunov. The match goes to the outside and Brookes hits a piledriver on the cement floor to his opponent. Somehow Dragunov is able to come back and he hits Brookes with a dive. Both men end up trading shots in the middle of the ring. Brookes locks Dragunov in an Octopus stretch submission but he happens to escape by giving him a DVD into the turnbuckles. Dragunov goes for his signature rebound lariat variation but Brookes is able to scout it and rolls him up for a pin but this only gets a nearfall. Dragunov immediately hits a Torpedo Moskau, his version of the flying headbutt. He’s able to keep Brookes’ shoulders pinned to the mat and he advances to the next round of the tournament. Good way to start off the show.

This match starts off fast with both men trading a series of ranas. Kyle Fletcher ends up getting sent to the outside. Daga dives over the ropes but he hits the floor hard and might’ve hurt himself in the process. Fletcher finds an opening but it doesn’t last long as Daga hits a DVD onto the ring apron. Later on Fletcher comes off the ropes but is caught and it’s turned into a brainbuster from his opponent. Momentum finally ends up on Fletcher’s side as he hits a somersault plancha. The action is back inside the ring as Fletcher hits a Michinoku Driver for only a two count. The match continues to be a back and forth contest until Fletcher hits his version of the Fidget Spinner to pick up the victory. Another good match with Fletcher playing the underdog throughout the match.

Both men go back and forth until Travis Banks ends up on the outside. He tries to avoid a dive from DJZ but DJZ still ends up hitting his opponent. Back inside the ring DJZ attempts a lionsault but Banks is able to get his knees up. Banks hits a German suplex and DJZ follows up with a ZDT out of nowhere and both men are down. Banks ends up hitting a Slice of Heaven but only gets a nearfall out of it. He immediately hits a Kiwi Crusher which puts his opponent away for a 3 count. This one was a short match and wasn’t as good as the previous two matches on the show but it played it’s role perfect.

The match starts off fast and Jordan Devlin is sent to the outside early. Lucky Kid fakes a dive. Devlin tries to get back into the ring but is stopped by Kid. Kid then hits a tope to the outside. Kid controls the match for a bit but the momentum eventually turns in Devlin’s favor. Both men have a back and forth contest. Kid locks in the crossface multiple times but is unable to force Devlin to tap. Kid is now on the middle rope and Devlin hits a nasty cutter from the ring apron to inside the ring. This only gets a nearfall but Devlin follows up with a side suplex to put his opponent away. Wow, what a great match. I wouldn’t expect anything else from Devlin, who has to be one of the top wrestlers in the world today. Lucky Kid is also a great talent.

Trevor Lee is on the microphone doing his usual trash talking. Aero Star attacks Lee and the match starts while Lee is still in his NXT zip up. Lee starts to dominate the match until Aero Star finds an opening. Aero Star hits a springboard codebreaker and a rolling cutter. This sends Lee to the outside where Aero Star hits an insane suicide dive that finds both men in the 6th row. Back inside the ring, Lee causes a distraction to the ref which allows him to lowblow Aero Star. Lee makes the pin and picks up the easy victory.

This was pretty much a nothing match. It was very short and designed to get Trevor Lee some heat going into Day Two.

David Starr takes control of the match. Artemis Spencer tries a baseball slide onto the outside but Starr ducks and powerslams him onto the ring apron. Later on in the match both men are on the ropes. Spencer hangs Starr on the top rope and hits a back senton on him. Crazy spot from Spencer. Spencer continues to onslaught with a powerbomb onto his knees and a spiral tap off the top rope. Starr rolls to the outside, avoiding the pinfall. Spencer tries to go after Starr but is hit with a Cherry Mint DDT onto the apron. This is followed up by a Han Stansen and a powerbomb onto the knee of Starr. He makes the pin and is able to get the 3 count.

This was a little longer than the Trevor Lee/Aero Star match before it but holy smokes did they fit a ton into 8 minutes. Great showing from Artemis Spencer who was making his wrestling debut outside of the US and Canada.

Paul Robinson is exchanging some words with the Progress fans outside the ring. Darby Allin comes out of nowhere with a dive and takes out Robinson. Darby continues the beat down by hitting his opponent with a crutch, throwing him into chairs, and suplexing him on the entrance ramp. Both men get inside the ring and the bell finally rings. Robinson takes control of the match until Darby hits a code red. Darby tries to take out Robinson on the outside of the ring with a coffin drop. Instead, Robinson moves out of the way and Darby takes out the Progress security. Darby throws Robinson back inside the ring but is immediately met with a curbstomp. Darby stays down for the 3 count and the Progress faithful are not pleased.

This was a fun little match with a nice brawl outside of the ring before the match began. Paul Robinson has to be the most hated man in wrestling.

Both Kyle O’Reilly and Chris Ridgeway start the match feeling eachother out. This includes some back and forth chain wrestling along with some strikes. A lot of counter wrestling in the match with neither man gaining the advantage for too long. Eventually Kyle catches Ridgeway with a dragon screw and a knee bar to force Ridgeway to tap.

The workrate was there from both men but honestly, this match wasn’t for me. I felt like it was completely boring and didn’t hold up to the standards that you want for the main event of a show. The match never fully went into another gear but if you like to watch two men battle on the mat for 20 minutes, then this one might be for you.

Overall:

A good start to the Super Strong Style 16 weekend. Day One was highly entertaining with nothing being amazing but everything delivering. Only match that didn’t connect with me was the main event between Kylie O’Reilly and Chris Ridgeway. Match of the night goes to Lucky Kid and Jordan Devlin. That’s definitely one you want to check out. I should have reviews for Day Two and Three in the following days.

You can watch this show anytime on Demand Progress. If you aren’t subscribed, you can currently take advantage of a 2 week free trial from them. You can also watch Days 2 and 3 when they make their live premieres on YouTube on 5/24/20 and 5/25/20, both at 2:30 PM EST. Or you can always watch time anytime on Demand Progress.

Day 2: https://youtu.be/8vmiXl6EPZk Day 3: https://youtu.be/sO-DwtdiQIg

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