From Friday, June 5th, through Sunday, June 7th, independent wrestling took over the world, with shows taking place all over, from the UK to the East Coast, and so much more in between. We saw new champions crowned, two bright young up-and-coming talents had a huge match in the UK, a deathmatch tournament match stole the show, more eccentric wrestling from one of the scene’s top stars today, and new tag team champions were crowned after one of the best tag team matches of the year. From the likes of Pro Wrestling EVE, PROGRESS Wrestling, GCW, and Beyond Wrestling, these are five must-see matches that every fan should go back and check out.

5. Miyu Yamashita vs. Kris Statlander from Pro Wrestling EVE’s “History Makers Rule Breakers”

Kicking off the list, we head across the pond to Pro Wrestling EVE’s stellar main event match that saw All Elite Wrestling’s Kris Statlander put her EVE International Championship on the line against Miyu Yamashita. Statlander entered this match at 336 days, having first won the title from Anita Vaughan last July. Over the course of those 336 days, Statlander has defended the title just three times, against Nina Samuels in a singles match, Alex Windsor, Anita Vaughan, and Yuu in a four-way match, and most recently against Charlie (fka WWE’s Dakota Kai) at Wrestle Queendom VIII in March. While she had a lengthy run, her time in AEW didn’t make it any easier for her to fly across the pond to defend her gold. Nonetheless, in every defense of hers, she made it count and looked great doing it. However, her opponent in this one, Miyu Yamashita, may be one of the best strikers on the independent scene today. While Statlander is far from a slouch, Yamashita was ready for her and used her lethal punches and kicks to quickly take the fight to her. We know that all it was going to take was one big kick; it was just a matter of not if, but when she’d find a spot to connect with it. This match went just over 17 minutes and was a war from the very start. Statlander was very on her game, as was the challenger in this one. However, Yamashita hit that one lucky kick on Statlander to put her away and reclaim gold in Pro Wrestling EVE. Things got very interesting after the match when Kay Lee Ray and Rhio each made their intentions known that they want Yamashita for that EVE International Championship. Whoever Yamashita faces, I’m sure we’ll be in for a stellar match. Yamashita held the EVE Championship for over 370 days back in 2022-2023. If history is any indication, we could be in for yet another long and dominant run. Go back and check this one out on the Pro Wrestling EVE YouTube channel. It’s well worth it.

4. Cian Noonan vs. Daz Black from PROGRESS Wrestling’s “Chapter 195: Wonderbrawl II”

Coming in at number four on this list, we saw two of the brightest young talents on the UK independent scene today, Cian Noonan and Daz Black, do battle on Sunday, June 7th, at PROGRESS Wrestling’s big event, “Chapter 195: Wonderbrawl II.” This event was special for a myriad of reasons, perhaps the biggest being that it was the very first event under the ownership of Nikki Storm (formerly WWE’s Nikki Cross) and Big Damo. This was a brand new chapter starting for PROGRESS Wrestling, with brand new names getting ready to make their presence felt. I’m not familiar at all with Cian Noonan and Daz Black. However, after this match, I now consider myself a big fan of each of these two men. Noonan and Black had a fantastic match, which went just about 11 minutes. These two men had chemistry together like very few others that I’ve seen compete against one another in singles competition. This was a match that was made shortly after Damo and Nikki took over the reins of PROGRESS Wrestling. They were very serious when they said that they wanted to bring some of the best young guns around today to the promotion and give them a place to showcase their talents. With this match, they did just that. They found a young star in Ireland and one from the UK, put them against each other, and let them have at it. What we got as a result was truly magic. These two men have also been put on blast by Damo as two of the brightest young stars from their respective countries today. For anyone who’s not too familiar with professional wrestling from across the pond, I urge you to check out PROGRESS Wrestling, and check out this match for sure. This match is what the independent scene from across the pond looks like, all summed up into a great match together. I cannot recommend this promotion, this show, or this match enough. Go back and check this one out on TrillerTV+. You will not be disappointed.

3. Nino Extremo vs. Sicko The Clown from GCW’s “Tournament Of Survival 11”

While this past weekend saw a ton of great standard wrestling from all over the globe, it also saw perhaps one of the biggest and one of the best deathmatch tournaments take place as Game Changer Wrestling returned to the Showboat Hotel in Atlantic City, NJ, on Saturday, June 6th, for its big event, “Tournament of Survival 11.” This tournament was a hellacious battle for all eight competitors involved. We saw some instant classics like Jonathan Gresham vs. Masashi Takeda, a very fun match between Vipress and Anakin Murphy, and two of the deathmatch scene’s best, Dr. Redacted and Mr. Danger, going at it. However, the match that stole the entire weekend came in the Opening Round of the Tournament of Survival 11, as Nino Extremo battled Sicko the Clown. Am I the biggest deathmatch fan in the world? Not even close. With that said, Nino Extremo has been shocking me with the stuff he’s been pulling off lately. He burst onto the scene at GCW and has quickly become a fan favorite. He’s already drawing comparisons to Bear Bronson’s unfathomable burst onto the GCW scene since becoming a free agent last year. Nino Extremo and Sicko the Clown complemented each other very well. While some wrestlers in this tournament were more hard-hitting or more ground and pound, Nino and Sicko went all in and put on a match that saw a ton of high-octane energy and huge high-risk moments. Neither of these men is scared of heights, and that was very apparent. The whole match started with Nino going up on top of a giant scaffolding part next to the ring and jumping off onto Sicko. This was the very first spot of the match, so when we saw this, we knew we were going to be in for a good one, and that’s exactly what we got. An argument certainly can be made that Nino Extremo could have won the whole thing. With that said, his showing was otherworldly throughout this whole tournament, and I cannot wait to see him return to GCW sooner rather than later. Go back and check this one out on TrillerTV+.

2. Lio Rush vs. Marcus Mathers from Beyond Wrestling’s “Break The Walls Down”

Coming in at number two on this list, on Friday, June 5th, Beyond Wrestling returned to Cranston, RI, for its big event, “Break The Walls Down.” This may have been one of the absolute best Beyond Wrestling shows of the year. Not only did we see All Elite Wrestling’s Andrade El Idolo battle Bobby Orlando, but we also saw another AEW star, Wheeler Yuta, go one-on-one with DJ Powers, and an absolutely stellar main event between AEW’s Megan Bayne and fan-favorite, Gabby Forza. All of these matches were downright tremendous. They all stole the show, and truthfully, this whole show is a must-watch. Any of these matches are main events on any other show, but I wanted to be fair to other promotions that ran this week and decided to find the very best of the best on this show, which was the match that saw AEW’s “Blackheart” Lio Rush go one-on-one with WWE ID prospect, Marcus Mathers. The two men went to a nearly 20-minute war to steal the show right before the main event, giving Forza and Bayne a tough match to follow. However, Bayne and Forza held their own and had an equally impressive match. However, what set these two matches apart was the story. In this match, that story was about the “Blackheart” Lio Rush getting into the mind of Marcus Mathers. The ring psychology in this match was peak. Then you add the fact that these two also put on an absolute banger of a match, too. This match was 100 miles per hour from the onset. Both Mathers and Rush are two of the best high-flyers around today. They even wailed on each other with some LOUDDD chops during the match, which I definitely didn’t expect. Don’t let the size fool you; these two hit just as hard as anyone else. At one point, Mathers landed a Styles Clash, which seemingly saw him have the match won. However, by the skin of his teeth, Rush kicked out. This was a match you truly have to watch to appreciate. My words cannot do it justice like watching it can. Go back and check out this entire show, and specifically this match on the Beyond Wrestling VOD channel on IWTV.

1. The 0121 vs. Young Guns from PROGRESS Wrestling’s “Chapter 195: Wonderbrawl II”

Coming in at number one on this list, we head back to the main event, across the pond of PROGRESS Wrestling’s big event, “Chapter 195: Wonderbrawl II.” The main event of the show saw the Young Guns, Ethan Allen & Luke Jacobs, put their PROGRESS Wrestling Tag Team Championships on the line against The 0121, Man Like DeReiss & Drilla Moloney. The Young Guns first won the titles from Diamond Eyes in late March to start their reign. This match officially marked their first title defense in their 70-day reign, so far. However, they had an incredibly tall task as they went up against the former PROGRESS Men’s World Champion, Man Like DeReiss, and a returning Drilla Moloney. The 0121 are former PROGRESS Tag Team Champions, having held those titles for over 70 days back in 2022. They have also been ATTACK! Tag Team Champions for a total of 549 days. This is a very established team across the pond. DeReiss and Jacobs have a lot of history together, as DeReiss ended Jacobs record-setting run with the PROGRESS Men’s World Championship. Now, DeReiss had the opportunity to end yet another run for Jacobs, this time before it really even got underway. This may have truly been one of the best tag team matches of the year. It started hot with Allen doing a big flip off the stage onto everybody in the match. After that, the brawl started on the outside of the ring, and blood began to fly everywhere. By the end of the match, Jacobs and Moloney were bloody messes, but this just added to the atmosphere. Big Damo and Nikki Storm did an excellent job at making the PROGRESS Tag Team Championships feel so special in this match, and that was truly a very fun sight to see. Jacobs will forever be one of the absolute greatest wrestlers in the world, and I’m excited to see where he goes from here. Ethan Allen is severely underrated and has a ton of talent in his own right. The 0121 is a team that can have a lot of fun at PROGRESS Wrestling. Both DeReiss and Moloney are the definition of OVER. Not only are they fan favorites, but they are also two of the best wrestlers in the ring who have come out of the UK independent scene. This whole show ruled, this match ruled, and I urge everyone to go check it out on TrillerTV+ or on Hooked On Wrestling.