Jump to content

The 2013 UKFF UK50


Big Benny HG

Recommended Posts

  • Replies 134
  • Created
  • Last Reply
  • Paid Members

No. 23: Cyanide

Score: 73 points

Total 1st place rankings in 2013 votes: 0

Previous UK50 Rankings: 2012=43rd, 2011=43rd, 2010=NL, 2009=NL, 2008=NL, 2007=NL, 2006=NL, 2005=NL

Twitter: @AlexCyanide

 

n9xp.jpg

 

Manchester super-heavyweight Cyanide is back for his third consecutive UKFF UK50 appearance, beating his previous entries by 20 places to achieve his highest ever ranking. In the form of his life, the 2012-1013 period has seen the 'Toxic Terror's' greatest in-ring successes to date, reigning as the singles champion in in home promotions and at one time holding the FutureShock, GPW and BWP championships simultaneously.

 

In the Stockport-based FutureShock Wrestling, Cyanide was part of Chris Egan's evil 'Ring of Horror' stable, taking part in various tags, 8-mans and battle royals, but started making strides as a singles force when he beat Simon Valour, Johnny Phere and Josh Bodom across '#62' and '#63' to win the 2012 FutureShock Trophy, traditionally a launching pad for future champions and top singles stars in the promotion, and guaranteeing Cyanide a shot at the FutureShock title. When recognised champion Davey Richards refused to return to the UK to defend the belt, FutureShock went about crowning a new champion by way of their second-ever 'Lotto Thunder' tournament in March 2013. All tournament matches were picked by randomly-selected audience members, with Cyanide being matched up with Josh Bodom in the opening round. Things did not seemingly go according to plan, however, as Cyanide beat down Bodom but refused to pin him, eventually shoving over the referee, being disqualified and eliminating himself from the tourney. That would not be the end of the story, though, as Cyanide returned moments after Zack Gibson had beaten Noam Dar to become FutureShock Champion in the final. Egan announced that Cyanide was taking up his guaranteed championship match there and then and quickly defeated Gibson (who was wrestling his fourth match of the night) to shockingly win the belt.

 

Similarly, over in nearby GPW, the dastardly Cyanide spent much of 2012 recognised as the number one contender to Martin Kirby's Heavyweight Championship. The title bout was eventually scheduled to take place at 'Friday Night Thriller VI' in October, but that night his manager Alan Alan Alan Tasker revealed that Cyanide was not in the building. Kirby's friend Joey Hayes ended up signing the championship match contract left open by Cyanide's absence, and the regular partners fought to a double-pin draw. Kirby and Hayes were rematched at 'Fireworks!' the following month, but Cyanide interrupted their closely-fought contest, demonstrating his dominance by destroying both men for a no-contest ruling. So, with Cyanide officially recognised as the top contender and Hayes fighting to 2 consecutive non-decisions with champion Kirby, all 3 men were matched up in the main event of the big year-end 'Heroes & Villains II' event. There, Cyanide missed a top-rope moonsault, but Kirby and Hayes' inability to coexist told the story that ended with Cyanide pinning Kirby with a chokebomb to win the GPW Heavyweight Title. Heel Cyanide had been gradually hearing more and more cheers over the course of 2012 as GPW fans saw that he possessed unrivalled power and unstoppable force, and had been putting in one great performance after another. The cheer that met his title win was therefore hugely supportive. After the match, Cyanide's manager Tasker snatched the belt from his hands and attempted to claim it for himself. Needless to say, this did not sit well with the big man, who flattened Tasker with a chokebomb, cementing his babyface turn.

 

Since then, Cyanide has retained his GPW title in mini-programmes with T-Bone, Jason Logan and CJ Banks, and held onto his FutureShock strap in a rematch with Gibson, in two well-received bouts against Dave Mastiff (the second of which, in particular, being one of the best British matches of 2013 so far), Doug Williams and Joe Vega. In the North Wales-based Britannia Wrestling, Cyanide

to lift the World Catchweight Title, then subsequently defended in bouts against
and
before becoming unstuck against
in March. He is also a regular for Infinite Promotions in Liverpool, Great Bear Promotions in Cheshire and HXC Wrestling in Manchester, and has recently made his debut for Preston City Wrestling as a replacement for Johnny Moss.

 

What did the UKFF think?

"absolutely his best year yet, winning the big ones in Futureshock and GPW"

 

"Been really impressed with Cyanide this year, great in Futureshock, as the Councils heavy in Infinite, great in HXC Agile big guy but can do much much more"

 

"did a moonsault!"

 

"Cyanide is the second best big man in the country. Only reason his ranked below Mastiff is due to his habit of throwing dropkicks or teasing for his moonsault at times when it's not necessary, or when he's heel. Apart from that though, he's having consistently great matches against a variety of opponents. The voting period saw two classics with Dave Mastiff, a fun three way brawl with Stixx and T-Bone, a fantastic tournament final match with Josh Bodom, an excellent three way with Joey Hayes and Martin Kirby, an outstanding battle with Zack Gibson and other good matches across the North West"

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...
  • Paid Members

No. 22: Zack Gibson

Score: 73 points

Total 1st place rankings in 2013 votes: 1

Previous UK50 Rankings: 2012=30th, 2011=45th, 2010=NL, 2009=NL, 2008=NL, 2007=NL, 2006=NL, 2005=NL

Twitter: @ZackGibson01

Entrance theme:

- Audioslave / 'You'll Never Walk Alone' - The Adicts

 

ogh4.jpg

Photo credit - Tony Knox

 

'Liverpool's Own' Zack Gibson returns for his third UKFF UK50 appearance, achieving his higest ever ranking. Originally trained by the Runcorn Wrestling Academy, 'Diamond' Gibson has been a fixture for north-west organisations such as FutureShock Wrestling and grand Pro Wrestling for a number of years, and is now also the co-promoter of Infinite Promotions in his hometown. Gibson finishes on equal points to fellow north-west regular Cyanide, but gets the bump to the higher place by way of more individual 1st place rankings (1) than Cyanide (0).

 

In FutureShock, heroic Zack's long-running feud with Dave Rayne was to reach a conclusion in a Steel Cage match at the promotion's biggest event to date. So, at the Royal Northern College of Music in central Manchester last August, Zack finally beat Rayne decisively and was thus recognised as the official Number One Contender to the FutureShock Title that ended up in the hand of American Davey Richards later that same night. When attempts to put together a title bout between Gibson and Richards proved fruitless, Zack instead battled Jack Gallagher, Stixx and 'The Man For All Seasons' Xander Cooper on FutureShock events between October 2012 and January 2013. With FutureShock still unable to tie down Davey Richards to return and defend his belt, March saw them bring back their one-night 'Lotto Thunder' tournament in order to crown a new champion. The gimmick of this night was that every bout in the tourney was picked by randomly selected audience members, all the way through the 8-man field. Gibson was picked to fight Cooper again in the first round, beating him in a decent match. The semi-finals saw him selected against CJ Banks with Gibson advancing again, this time in a great match. The best was yet to come, however, as Zack beat Noam Dar in a superb back-and-forth tournament final to take home the Championship... or so everyone thought. 2012 FutureShock Trophy tournament winner Cyanide (who had himself been eliminated from the 'Lotto Thunder' in round one by disqualification) emerged to claim his guaranteed title shot there and then. The battle-weary Zack fought bravely, but was quickly put down in a matter of seconds as his relinquished the belt he had just won...

 

Gibson received his title-rematch with Cyanide in the main event of FutureShock's first ever 'Underground' event in Prestwich, but failed to unseat the new champ. Since then, Gibson has found himself in a battle against Xander Cooper's new stable of baddies (whose name annoyingly escapes me...), teaming with newcomer Joe Vega to face Cooper & Don Meacho at 'FS#66' and Cooper & Ryan Bodom at 'Underground 2'.

 

Over in GPW, Zack won a 15-man Battle Royal at 'Friday Night Thriller VI' last October to earn a crack at Danny Hope's British Title. Those contests ended in frustration, however, as Hope was disqualified in December then counted-out in January to escape with his belt. All of this led to the pair meeting once-and-for-all in a Lumberjack match at 'Romance Is Dead'. By this time, Gibson had attracted the interest of The Cause, Dave Rayne's ever-increasing faction of FutureShock wrestlers disgruntled with their treatment in GPW. As the Lumberjacks brawled amongst themselves, The Cause intervened to help a blissfully-unaware Gibson beat Hope for the British Title. At the next show, Rayne officially made his play to recruit Zack into his fold, presenting him with a brand new version of the British Title belt. 'Dangerous' Damon Leigh spoke up for GPW, trying to persuade Zack not to jump sides, but ate a belt shot for his troubles as Zack went over to the dark side. This treachery caused Leigh to pre-announce his intent to cash-in his GPW version of the Money In The Bank briefcase for Zack's title, setting up a British Championship match between the pair in June. The Cause's influence would be felt once more, as Leigh won the bout by DQ but failed to wrest the belt from Gibson.

 

Elsewhere, Gibson has starred for

in Wales,
in Dudley, Pro Wrestling 4U in Staffordshire, Target Wrestling on the Scottish border, HXC Wrestling in Manchester and Great Bear in Cheshiree. As a villain, he teams with Sam Bailey in the Hull-based NGW to form Team GB, with the pair defeating Los Amigos (El Ligero & Dara Diablo) for the Tag Team Titles last October, then feuding with the former champs in various tag, 4-corners, Ladder and Tables matches since then. Back home in Liverpool for Infinite Promotions, however, Gibson and Bailey have been rivals, with Zack defending the honour of his hometown against the Manc. They battled at 'A Hard Day's Fight' last September and then in a Renshaw Street Fight, between which Zack failed to beat CJ Banks for the Infinite Championship.

 

After the end of the 2013 UKFF UK50 eligibility period, Gibson did finally fight Davey Richards, as the pair contested a fantastic bout on Infinite's impressive 'Hard Day's Fight 2' a few weeks back.

 

What did the UKFF think?

"this year has definitely been his highest, constantly improving both as babyface and heel"

 

"Great year only interupted by injury following the Renshaw Street Fight, certainly could go up a notch as things progress and gets around more"

 

"great as a badie"

 

"Zack Gibson is just a really good wrestler. Great in front of family or adult audiences, consistent good performances across the North place Gibson as one of the very best. Faced Dave Rayne in a good cage match at Futureshock's International Supershow, had a brilliant three way match with Jack Gallagher and Stixx a month later, had a high drama contest with Xander Cooper, before following it a month later with three brilliant matches at Futureshock's Lotto Thunder Tournament (the randomly drawn nature of the tournament meaning that at least one of these matches was completely ad-libbed) and a great match with Cyanide at Futureshock Underground. Over at GPW, he had a fun match with Danny Hope before turning heel and joining The Cause. Opener at HxC's first show with Sam Bailey was match of the night based on great crowd interaction between the pair."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Massive for Jack considering he has been out of the country for so long.

 

Bubblegum is ace and I'm sure his location is possible why he does not work that much outside of the North west.

 

You need to get Bubblegum, Zack Gibson, Dean Allmark and Jack Gallagher in a car together from the North West to share transport costs so they can all start getting on Southside regularly! ;)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Paid Members
Massive for Jack considering he has been out of the country for so long.

 

Bubblegum is ace and I'm sure his location is possible why he does not work that much outside of the North west.

 

You need to get Bubblegum, Zack Gibson, Dean Allmark and Jack Gallagher in a car together from the North West to share transport costs so they can all start getting on Southside regularly! ;)

 

I watched one of our '5 Questions' with Drew Gulak yesterday and he said he would love to wrestle Jack Gallagher

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Paid Members

No. 21: Marty Scurll

Score: 75 points

Total 1st place rankings in 2013 votes: 1

Previous UK50 Rankings: 2012=14th, 2011=5th, 2010=15th, 2009=18th, 2008=30th, 2007=NL, 2006=NL, 2005=NL

Twitter: @MartyScurll

Entrance theme: '

' - Bloody Beetroots Ft. Steve Aoki

 

anwf.jpg

Photo credit - Brett Hadley & Southside Wrestling Entertainment

 

2013 is met with a further drop in the rankings for

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Paid Members

So, your Top 20 looks like this:

 

(alphabetical order)

 

CJ Banks

Dave Mastiff

Dave Rayne

Dean Allmark

El Ligero

Joey Hayes

Kris Travis

Mad Man Manson

Mark Haskins

Martin Kirby

Mikey Whiplash

MK McKinnan

Nathan Cruz

Noam Dar

Rampage Brown

Robbie X

Rockstar Spud

Stixx

T-Bone

Zack Sabre Jr

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...
  • Paid Members

No. 20: Nathan Cruz

Score: 83 points

Total 1st place rankings in 2013 votes: 0

Previous UK50 Rankings: 2012=18th, 2011=20th, 2010=38th, 2009=NL, 2008=NL, 2007=NL, 2006=NL, 2005=NL

Twitter: @Nathan_Cruz90

Entrance theme:

- ??? /
- Scissor Sisters

 

2mrj.jpg

Photo credit - Tony Knox & All-Star Wrestling

 

"Nathan Cruz will steal the show in 5 seconds... 4 seconds... 3 seconds..." etc etc. Yes, Hull's 'Showstealer' Nathan Cruz is back for his 4th consecutive UKFF UK50 appearance, holding steady in a similar ranking to that he has occupied since 2011. Cruz is a regular for the long-established All-Star Wrestling touring group, but has also continued to feature as a star player for New Generation Wrestling in his hometown, as well as THIS IS PROGRESS in London and Premier British Wrestling in Scotland.

 

The ASW schedule has seen Cruz battle

, El Ligero, Tony Spitfire, Jamie Sleight, Steven Walters,
,
and more in town halls, theatres and holiday camps up and down the country. On these events, he usually claims to hail from Beverley Hills, California (just 'Beverley' would be closer to the mark!) and representing the evil 'World Riot Squad'.

 

Cruz began our UKFF UK50 eligibility period as the holder of the big stick that represents PROGRESS' Championship, having won and defended it against Marty Scurll. At 'Chapter Three' in September 2012, Cruz teamed in the main event with a darker, more mysterious than usual El Ligero, whose motives were unclear. The unlikely pair faced Dave Mastiff & Greg Burridge, but didn't get along and fell to defeat. Cruz and Ligero therefore battled for the title in the top bout of 'Chapter Four' a couple of months later. After a long match that spilled all over PROGRESS' temporary home of The Dome in Islington, Ligero beat Cruz for the championship. Subsequent THIS IS PROGRESS shows saw the 'Showstealer' beat

and Jimmy Havoc and link up with Mark Haskins to form the 'SCREW INDY WRESTLING' force. This was a direct spoof/opposition to the DEFEND INDY WRESTLING movement championed by the likes of Mark Andrews, Eddie Dennis, Pete Dunne etc., and placed particular emphasis on the fact that they saw themselves as professionals, with dedication to their craft, proper training and proper gear. Somehow, in the topsy-turvy world of pro wrestling, this makes them the bad guys...

 

Cruz, Haskins and a mystery third member of SCREW INDY WRESTLING were due to face Scurll, Paul Robinson and Rampage at 'Chapter Seven', but the start of match saw Rampage revealed as their new team-mate and swap sides. Dave Mastiff came out to even the sides up for the babyfaces, but SIW got the main event win in a solid bout. Since then, Cruz has gone on to fight Stixx in an unremarkable bout at 'Chapter Nine'.

 

Elsewhere, Cruz split from long-time associate Colossus Kennedy in NGW and feuded for much of the period, as well as facing Dean Allmark, Robbie X, Robbie Dynamite, Stixx and

. He faced Jay Lethal for AWW in the West Midlands and battled the likes of Haskins and Doug Williams for Southside Wrestling Entertainment in the Cambridgeshire/Hertfordshire region.

 

What did the UKFF think?

"from the little I see of him year to year, he just keeps improving"

 

"Nathan Cruz started the eligibility period as the Progress Champion, a role quite frankly he seemed out of his depth with. Cruz quickly dropped the championship to Ligero which in truth freed up Cruz from the high pressure of the main events and allowed him to excel elsewhere. His match against Rampage Brown back in January would without question rank in the top five matches I saw on the UK scene during the voting period. Beyond that the new Screw Indy Wrestling Stable he has established along side Rampage Brown and Mark Haskins has kept the man relevant and enabled him to continue drawing the heel heat which he is so good at"

 

"A really underrated performer with a genuinely unlikable character. His ring work improves all the time as well, and he is one of the country's best"

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Is it just me who doesn't rate Nathan Cruz at all? His match against Stixx was unremarkable because I think he in turn is unremarkable. I can't say he's terrible or bad in any way. I've never seen him in a bad match. But I've never seen him in anything above average/alright. I've never watched a single match of his and thought it was great or above BECAUSE of him. He's solid in the ring but that's all he is. There's just nothing that stands out about him. As soon as his match ends, it's already been forgotten in my head. And his character work is nonexistent. All he does is pose and shout "Showstealer" but I have not once seen him close close to anything remotely close to even standing out on a show, let alone steal it.

 

Marty at #21 is a shame. Wrestling and character work he is above the likes of Cruz, Banks, Rayne, Allmark and Bone.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Paid Members

No. 19: Robbie X

Score: 85 points

Total 1st place rankings in 2013 votes: 1

Previous UK50 Rankings: 2012=38th, 2011=47th, 2010=46th, 2009=47th, 2008=NL, 2007=NL, 2006=NL, 2005=NL

Twitter: ???

Entrance theme:

- Flo Rida

 

jbb3.jpg

Photo credit - Brett Hadley & Southside Wrestling Entertainment

 

A massive 19-place rise in the rankings for Lincoln's Robbie X, the young star who broke into the UKFF UK50 in 2009 amongst much mocking and ridicule. Now a genuine star for Southside Wrestling Entertainment and New Generation Wrestling, Robbie achieves his highest ever ranking after a year of high-profile matches and opponents. One UKFF member even voted Robbie the best wrestler in the entire UK.

 

After some impressive showings but inevitably always coming out on the losing end, the trend in Southside looked to continue with 2012 losses to Jonathan Gresham and Noam Dar. All that was about to change, though, at the '2nd Anniversary Show' in St. Neots, Cambs. There, Robbie outlasted Gresham and Martin Kirby as part of a 4-way elimination bout for Marty Scurll's Speed King title, leaving him and 'Party' Marty to fight once again for the belt. In what you would call an upset, Robbie pinned Scurll to become the new Speed King champion. Mr X would go on to defend against Alex Gracie, Rockstar Spud, Xander Cooper (on an LCW show), Scurll, Darrell Allen and Noam Dar between November 2012 and April 2013. Robbie relinquished the belt later that same month, however, as he was beaten by Dean Allmark the in opening round of the 'Speed King 2' tournament. This denied him the chance to go on to the 6-man elimination final and retain his title, with ROH's Jay Lethal instead emerging from that night as new champion.

 

Over in NGW, Robbie regularly teamed with Avian, where they were frequently defeated by Tag Champions Team GB (Zack Gibson & Sam Bailey) and The Predators (Paul Malen & Joseph Conners). Robbie lost to Caz Crash at 'Full Force' in October 2012, then teamed with Deano Allmark in a 4-way ladder match at the 'Eternal Glory' year-ender in another unsuccessful crack at Team GB's titles. Robbie's last NGW appearance to date then occurred during the 30-man rumble which headlined the 'Destiny' show in March.

 

Elsewhere, the Robbie X vs. Marty Scurll match made its way to Sittingbourne for Revolution Pro Wrestling's 'Road to Thunder' event and, since the end of the 2013 UKFF UK50 eligibilty period, Robbie has featured on the new run of House of Pain events in Nottingham city centre, become a regular for the new Kamikaze Pro in Birmingham (including winning their Money in the Bank - yes, yet another UK promotion with a MITB) and debuted for Grand Pro Wrestling in Wigan in a good match against Dylan Roberts.

 

What did the UKFF think?

"Robbie has slowly been improving for a long time but his progression has become impossible to ignore over the past year as he has grown into one of Southside

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'd contest your charge that his match with Stixx at PROGRESS was 'unremarkable' - the psychology was fantastic, and offered something really different on a loaded card.

 

I thought his promo before the match was fantastic. It made sense and was the best I've seen or heard from him. However, I found the actually match to be pretty dull.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...