Well then, July 2019. What a 31 days it was. All Elite Wrestling revealed the launch date for their weekly television show on TNT in the States (October 2nd for those who missed it), Love Island 2019 finally came to a close after the most pointless eight weeks of the year, and Theresa May’s successor as Prime Minister was revealed as the one, the only, Boris Johnson. So essentially, we’re doomed. All that aside though, Scottish wrestling this past month was as great as ever. With some huge shows taking place throughout the month, this was an exceptionally hard list to narrow down, as I’m sure you’ll soon realise.
Honourable mentions go out to Aspen Faith, Brandon Adams, BT Gunn, Delsin Dayre, Dickie Divers, Grant McIvor, Jack Jester, Jack Morris, Jason Reed, Joe Hendry, Kieran Kelly, Krobar, Lewis Girvan, Mark Coffey, Sha Samuels, Steven Myles, Stevie James, and Viper.
10. Kez Evans
The first of many list debutants this month is Kez Evans of The Dallas Mavericks. The Dastardly One had quite the month, kicking things off on a sour note as he lost to Liam Thomson at the most recent ICW Fight Club tapings in a Fatal Four Way Match also including Kieran Kelly and former partner Leyton Buzzard. Following this, he teamed with The Purge and The Sam Barbour Experience to form The Super Purge at Wrestling Experience Scotland’s event in Dennistoun, a show that saw them victorious over The Govan Team, Charlie Vyce, and Luke Kyro to gain ownership of a cardboard cutout of one Rod Stewart. Kez would then team with Liam Thomson as Kid Fite’s replacement as they unsuccessfully challenged Krobar and Stevie James for the PWE Tag Team Championships, with a loss in a Last Man Standing Match to former mentor BT Gunn on night two of ICW Shug’s Hoose Party 6 ending Kez Evans’ month on a low. One hell of a match with The Oddity though.
9. Umar Mohammed
Coming into July, Umar Mohammed is someone I didn’t even realise existed. Coming out of the month however, he’s someone I’ll be keeping my eye on as the months go by, some real star potential there. He lost to Caleb Valhalla at WrestleZone’s Proving Grounds show, but his performance there made me wanting more from The Asian Sensation. Umar would then unsuccessfully challenge Ken Kaiden for the SWE Future Division Championship this past Sunday at their Hardcore Heatwave event, putting in yet another cracking showing from the tidbits I’ve seen online. Just last night at a W3L show in Golspie, Umar competed on three occasions, losing a Battle Royal to Leo King and being pinned by Euan G. Mackie, but he did manage to pick up the win over Ewan O’Raw so it wasn’t all doom and gloom.
8. Krieger
Big old “Scudmaster Sexy” Krieger dances his way on to the list, and for good reason. July saw him really step up his game in ICW as he was presented with some massive opportunities, firstly picking up a victory over deathmatch wrestling icon Rickey Shane Page at the Fight Club tapings in a bout that featured the seemingly unbreakable table (clearly imported from Japan). A debut for Target Wrestling down in Carlisle saw him teaming with TJ Rage in a loss to Martin Kirby and Sienna, before he made a second appearance for ICW, losing to the sadistic Paul Robinson at Shug’s Hoose Party 6 night one. Alongside some appearances on the camps, July was a pretty important month in the career of big Krieger.
7. Angel Hayze
Angel Hayze continues to rack up some points on the Wrestlers of the Month league table, kicking off her July with a loss to Katie Mills at the 13th Academy Attack event from Premier British Wrestling. A victory over mentor Sammii Jayne at Discovery Wrestling’s event in the Edinburgh Corn Exchange is sure to boost her young career right into the stratosphere, and with a debut recently being announced for Insane Championship Wrestling at the end of August, we could be seeing Angel Hayze in upper echelon of the point standings when we reach December 31st.
6. Andy Wild
Without a doubt, Andy Wild is one of the possible contenders to become Wrestler of the Year once 2019 is all said and done. If you’ve been following his career as of late, you’ll know fine well why. The Dad Bod God kicked things off with a pinfall victory over Kid Fite at the ICW Fight Club tapings, before making a return to Source Wrestling as he was victorious over Daihlan Hendry. A week later, he would start his first reign with the UEWA European Heavyweight Championship, defeating both BT Gunn and former champ Alexander Dean at the last Pro Wrestling Elite show to lift the vacant championship. Although his last match of the month was a loss to Mark Coffey, nothing can derail The Stovie Superman right now. He’s on the roll of his life.
5. Stevie Boy
It’s rare that the main reason I include someone on the list is because of a pop they received from the crowd, but I simply had no other option when it came to Stevie Boy. The leader of The Filthy Generation made a surprise return this past Sunday as Wolfgang’s mystery challenger for the vacant ICW World Heavyweight Championship and judging by the reaction from the audience in attendance that night, he’s been seriously missed. There wasn’t a single person who wasn’t chanting “Stevie, Stevie, Stevie F’N Boy” when he made his entrance. Not only that, but he also won the aforementioned championship to begin his second reign on top of Insane Championship Wrestling. A big month for The Pharoah of Filth.
4. Liam Thomson
The Bad Boy of professional wrestling Liam Thomson takes this month’s number four position, kickings things off with a victory over Kez Evans, Kieran Kelly, and Leyton Buzzard in a Fatal Four Way Match at ICW’s Fight Club tapings bak at the start of the month. Two weeks later, Liam failed in his pursuit of two separate championships, firstly failing to take the SWA Scottish X Championship away from Leyton Buzzard at a Wrestling Experience Scotland before then teaming with Kez Evans in a loss to The Purge with the PWE Tag Team Championships up for grabs. It wouldn’t be all bad news though, as The King of Sink Style would strike gold, capturing the ICW Zero-G Championship from Joe Coffey in a Save Pro Wrestling Rules Match this past weekend. His beloved sink would be battered during the match courtesy of The Iron King and a sledgehammer, so I’m sure Liam would love any and all he can receive right now as his sink recovers in the hospital. What have I just written there?
3. The Sam Barbour Experience
Making his well-deserved debut on the list here is The Sam Barbour Experience. When it came to deciding the top ten for July, the leader of The Handsome Man’s Club was a no-brainer. He began things with a bang as he debuted for Discovery Wrestling, unsuccessfully challenging Jason Reed for his WrestleZone Tri-Counties Championship in a match also including fellow debutants Alexander Dean and Fraser Thomas. A victory alongside Kez Evans and The Purge in Dennistoun the following Friday saw them gain sole ownership of a Rod Stewart cardboard cutout, besting The Govan Team, Charlie Vyce, and Luke Kyro. His last two matches of the month saw him failing to take the SWA Scottish X Championship from Leyton Buzzard at PWE’s 8th anniversary show, while also failing to defeat Ravie Davie the following week at ICW Shug’s Hoose Party 6. Despite these being losses, The Most Handsome Man in Scottish Entertainment wholeheartedly deserves his spot on the list simply because of how determined he showed himself to be during those bouts. Things are looking up for SBX going forward.
2. Jackie Polo
Well, Jackie Polo. He competed in three matches throughout July, and all three were huge for one reason or another. Firstly, he reunited with his old Polo Promotions pal Mark Coffey in a losing effort to The Kinky Party on a night where ICW paid tribute to their fallen hero Adrian ‘Lionheart’ McCallum. He then went on to lose the PWE Heavyweight Championship to Grado at the event promoted under the Pro Wrestling Elite banner, before being defeated by NXT star KUSHIDA in the main event of the first night of ICW Shug’s Hoose Party 6. That match would see Polo retire the Just Justice persona. What a match to go out on, eh?
1. Leyton Buzzard
If you followed Leyton Buzzard in July, then you’ll agree that the Wrestler of the Month position shouldn’t go to anyone else but him. The Prodigy’s month began with a Fatal Four Way Match loss at ICW to Liam Thomson (Kez Evans and Kieran Kelly filled up the numbers here), before making two successful defences of his SWA Scottish X Championship. Leyton would retain the title against Liam Thomson and The Sam Barbour Experience at Wrestling Experience Scotland and Pro Wrestling Elite shows respectively, adding another level of prestige to the championship. His final weekend of the month at ICW Shug’s Hoose Party 6 was a sensational one, as he first defeated Joe Hendry to send The Prestigious One packing from the company, before then filling in for Grado the following night as he pinned former Impact Wrestling star James Storm in one of Leyton’s biggest victories to date. If that was a taste of what we can expect from Leyton Buzzard going forward, then he very well may become the Wrestler of the Year. What a talent.
So, there goes another month passed as we get closer and closer to another new year. Genuinely though, how is it already August? Things are heating up quite a bit on the old league table, as you’ll see down below. Jackie Polo now heads into joint first place alongside Lionheart, while Leyton Buzzard jumps into the top 10 with 17 points, tying with Aspen Faith. Further down, the likes of Krieger, The Sam Barbour Experience, and Liam Thomson add their names to the list. With August looking to be yet another incredible month for Scottish wrestling judging by some of the matches already announced, expect to see some more big chances when we do this all again on September 1st.
Point Standings as of August 1st 2019
1. Jackie Polo and Lionheart (28 points)
2. RUDO Lightning (27 points)
3. Andy Wild (24 points)
4. Kieran Kelly (22 points)
5. BT Gunn and Joe Coffey (19 points)
6. Lewis Girvan (18 points)
7. Aspen Faith and Leyton Buzzard (17 points)
8. Damien and Sammii Jayne (14 points)
9. Ashley Vega (13 points)
10. Angel Hayze, Joe Hendry, and Zach Dynamite (9 points)
11. Aivil, Lou King Sharp, and The Sam Barbour Experience (8 points)
12. Liam Thomson, Sammie Jo, and Viper (7 points)
13. Emily Hayden, Johnny Lions, and Stevie Boy (6 points)
14. Dickie Divers and Jack Morris (5 points)
15. Chris Renfrew and Kay Lee Ray (4 points)
16. Jack Jester, Krieger, and Michael Chase (3 points)
17. Jason Reed, Ken Kaiden, Lucha DS, Paxxo, Ryan Riley, and Umar Mohammed (2 points)
18. Alexander Darwin MacAllan, Jonathan Richards, Kez Evans, Krobar, and Stevie James (1 point)
Thanks to Wrestle Ropes and cagematch.net for match info.
Credit for promo pics used goes to David J Wilson, Elaine Wilson, Fallon Young, Insane Championship Wrestling, Lindsay Forsyth, Tony Knox, and Warrior Fight Photography.
SCOTTISH WRESTLING NETWORK | SWN 