PAC RIP

[Chris B]

Only ever heard good things about Pac from fans and wrestlers. One of my favourites of the last decade. What absolutely shit news.

[jm29195]

This is so sad, I can't quite believe this news. I was privileged to have seen PAC wrestle at various times throughout his career, at Broxbourne against El Generico in 2006 (and what amazing careers they would both go on to have!), with Dragongate UK several times, where he was the star of the show, and then most recently at the big AEW shows in the UK.

I was just watching All Out last night with a mate and we were saying how far he'd come and what an awesome wrestler he was.

My deepest sympathies to his family, friends, co-workers and all who knew him.

 

[2Xtreme_lives]

Woke up absolutely stunned. I was watching him at All Out thinking he really should have a main event match one day

As above when I first saw him live at Southside a few years after he'd left the UK scene he felt such a big name to be coming back to the UK scene and someone who truly broke out 

He was phenomenal in AEW most of the time too and with the added flair knowing he was one of our own

Gutting news, what a shit year for losses 

 

[tiger_rick]

I don't understand this one. It's just devastating. I've no words, really. The man was incredible and so young.

I am so sorry his family and friends have lost their loved one. 

[Olly1984]

Absolutely devastating news to wake up to, brain still struggling to process it to be honest. First saw PAC in 2006 at a 1PW show, the stuff he was doing then blew my mind and instantly knew he was going to be a massive star, a true innovator and inspiration for high flyers. To pass so soon after Andy and how emotional he was on the tribute video he did just makes it hurt that little bit more, hopefully they are both together now and at peace. Sending love to his family and friends, RIP X

[Lion_of_the_Midlands]

Awful news. He may have been the man that gravity forgot but he will be remembered by wrestling fans around the world. Actually gutting. Just think, 5 more years and he would have been the right age to main event in the WWE. 

Like the Numbers brothers David and Jm I saw him wrestle here in the UK and then around the world. A man who stood out as a high flyer even when surrounded by other great ones. Just devastating to wake up to, thoughts go out to his loved ones. 

 

 

[HarmonicGenerator]

I’m devastated. Truly. I didn’t think I’d get upset like this about a wrestler death again. But then, I never, ever, expected to wake up to this news. Didn’t expect to cry three times already; didn’t expect to be walking to the train station in a daze. PAC is my favourite wrestler. And I’m not just saying that. He’s a guy I’ve followed for almost his entire career, he’s the wrestler I’ve seen live more than any other, and I should not have to be saying this knowing I’ll never see him wrestle again.

October 2nd, 2005. I’m at Eldon Leisure Centre in central Newcastle for MEW. The opening match was a six way cruiserweight thing, the draw of which was Spud from FWA. But then out comes this guy PAC, who nobody in the audience has heard of, and who blows everybody away. His athleticism, his speed, his ability to fly. This show had former WWE guys, former ECW guys, ROH stars, big BritWres names, but it was PAC people were leaving talking about.

2006, 2007. I get to see him wrestle for MEW two more times, against Jody Fleisch and again Spud. The second of these shows has Christian Cage on it but I’m more excited when I see PAC at the bar of the Tyne Theatre and say hello. ‘Hello, I’m Ben’ he says, in a very quiet voice.

I have friends now, in 2026, who knew him as Ben not PAC, and I hope they are doing okay, they’ll be so much more upset than I am right now.

At one of these shows, PAC hits the most beautiful Shooting Star Press I’ve ever seen in my life. At the other, he debuts this new move, which we know now as the Black Arrow and my mind is blown again. I could not figure out how he did that. He jumps, he shooting stars, but he twists, in the flip? It’s been nearly twenty years - for fuck’s sake, he hit on on Ace Austin last week - and I’ve still never understood how he can fly like that. ‘The Man that Gravity Forgot’ was the truest nickname.

I’ve got some terrible digital camera photos of those shows, I’ll see if I can dig them out because I bet I got the Arrow on camera.

From there, it was clear PAC was set for big things, and I was thrilled to see him get booked for FWA, then IPW:UK, then America! It was in PWG he had matches with El Generico that really got him noticed, who was this British guy who could flip and fly and wrestle like nothing anyone had seen before? From there it was on to Dragon Gate and I felt really proud for some bizarre parasocial reason. Here’s this lad from Gateshead, from tiny North East Indies to making it in Japan!

Then he got signed to WWE. It’s 2015, and I’ve gone to the NXT tour at the Newcastle Arena. It’s not full, but there’s a couple of thousand people in, and PAC comes out to wrestle Baron Corbin. At the Arena! He gets a great reception even though he’s got a stupid name, and happily he wins. That’s the peak, right? Eldon Leisure to the Arena?

On TV, they never quite know where to put him, until he becomes the focal point of 205 Live and turns it into my favourite WWE show. The show revolves around him and he grows his character to match. This incredible athlete, this gymnast, should be a natural babyface, but 205 Live is where The Bastard starts. He adds the Brutaliser as a finisher, and uses ground moves and submissions much more often. He can fucking do it all.

It’s 2019. Along comes AEW. This new super Indy with Kenny Omega and the Young Bucks and Cody Rhodes, okay fine. It’s when they announce PAC has signed that I start to take proper notice and plan to watch their TV show. On ITV! I’m watching PAC on ITV! And he knocks it out of the park in the ring against the likes of Omega and Orange Cassidy. The commentators constantly acknowledge him as one of the best all-round wrestlers in the world. They did that this weekend, fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. How could this happen.

It’s Covid, and PAC can’t get across to America. So instead he starts filming promos and it’s this insane thrill seeing him strolling like a mardy bastard past the Monument and across Sycamore Gap, on American wrestling TV, doing proper, full promos in his proper accent, and it’s brilliant. There’s certain promo words that just sounded better coming from PAC - ‘Bastard’ being one of them - and then he’d throw in a ‘Bonny lad’ or a ‘Billy big bollocks’ and how could you not love him.

It’s 2024, and I’m at Wembley Stadium for the second All In. Yes, Bryan Danielson winning the title was an all-time great moment. Yes, the surprises in the Casino Gauntlet were an absolute thrill. But one of my favourite moments of that night was seeing PAC in the Trios Ladder Match. This guy who I’d seen blow them all away in a Newcastle leisure centre twenty years earlier is wrestling at Wembley Stadium. And he won! He fucking won at Wembley!

It’s 2025, and I’m at the Manchester Co-Op for Dynamite and Collision. It’s Continental Classic season and we’re expecting good matches. The best one by some distance is PAC against Kyle Fletcher. I’ve got photos and videos of some of the stuff they do in that match, which was an absolute thriller. I still can’t figure out how he does the Black Arrow.

It’s 2026, and I’m in bed on Sunday morning watching PAC against Andrade and it’s 24 hours later and I can’t believe that is the last time he’s ever going to wrestle and I can’t believe it was his last full day on Earth.

This one has hit me hard and I am only some geeky fan on the internet. I can’t imagine how much harder it must be for his friends, his colleagues, his family. It’s awful. It’s awful. It’s awful and I hate it and I hope they’re all okay and I wish, I wish this hadn’t happened.

Rest in peace, you Bastard. My favourite wrestler.

Edited yesterday at 06:49 AM by HarmonicGenerator

[Carbomb]

This is truly shocking and utterly shit news to wake up to. There's very little to add to what's been said about PAC as a wrestler - an absolutely stellar talent - or as a bloke. I saw PAC a bit around the BritWres scene, first as a fan, then as a translator. I had the honour of having to translate from Japanese to Geordie and back for when he had his match with Morishima in IPW:UK, and he was a really lovely guy, friendly, polite, easygoing. Never heard anyone say a single bad thing about him. 

For sheer talent, and for personality, he more than deserved his success. One thing that doesn't tend to get mentioned is his ability to sell, especially high spots. I'll never forget seeing him take a Sheer Drop Brainbuster from Stevie Lynn in FWA, which looked like he'd landed directly vertical on his neck, yet he was right as rain (he told me afterwards it was a trick of landing on the elbows, but it was still impressive as fuck).

Man, this is just awful. We've lost a really good one. RIP PAC.

[Thefatduck]

Awful. Really surprised and shocked by this. 
I remember seeing him on shows in 2000s such  as dragon gate  and feeling really proud when he went to WWE as he was one of ‘our boys’ making it big. 
 

[TheBurningRed]

2 minutes ago, Carbomb said:

One thing that doesn't tend to get mentioned is his ability to sell,

One of the best at selling a DDT. 

[DazzM]

@HarmonicGenerator - Spectacular post. 

Sometimes in this mad world of wrestling, you forget the profound effect that some talent can have on someone. We've all got our favourites, but we've all got those that mean that little bit more to us.

Thanks for sharing it.

 

[RIDDUM_N_STYLE]

Absolute shocker to wake up to, I’d read bits and bobs about some British guy called PAC in wrestling magazines over the years but it wasn’t until he got signed for NXT that I first got to see what he was about, absolutely blew me away and he became an instant favourite 

I loved his short lived team with Corey Graves and then his run as NXT Champion but he was fairly wasted on the main roster right up until he turned heel and had that great run as King of the Cruiserweights

His AEW run had been utterly fantastic, both solo and as part of both the Death Triangle with Penta and Fenix then as part of the Death Riders. He went out on a high with that great match against Andrade on Saturday 

RIP PAC, thank you for so many memories

[The King of Old School]

As if anyone ever needed reminding, but it's just another huge nudge that tomorrow isn't guaranteed for anyone.

Live your life to the max, check in on your mates, and tell your loved ones that you love them.

RIP Pac.

Edited yesterday at 07:53 AM by The King of Old School

[RedTwoster]

I mentioned this in my original post, but since then I rewatched PAC vs. Orange Cassidy from Revolution 2020, and it's just as good as I remembered. I can't think of a better tribute to him than showing him at his best. I'm sure there will be plenty of journalists and people unfamiliar with PAC today trying to find out what he was all about. It's tragic that his death would be what introduces them to him, but he was one of the most influential British wrestlers of the past decade - and was capable of magic in ring like this: 

I'm finding myself wanting to talk about PAC this morning, and I wanted to celebrate just how brilliant he was a little bit more than I did in my previous post. If you've googled PAC and found this thread, I'd only have to direct you to the All Out thread on this board to get an idea as to how genuine the thoughts expressed in this thread are - he was one of the most believable and effective heel characters in recent memory, a tremendous wrestler and, by all accounts, a tremendous human being. And I'm not sure he ever had a bad wrestling match - the one I've just shared is my personal favourite, but it's hard to pick a standout from such an incredible body of work. 

[gmoney]

I've got no words. Horrendous.

You were guaranteed a good to great match anytime you saw him. Managed to do what only a few in wrestling have ever done and combine genuinely breathtaking high-flying and a hard hitting, brutal, nastiness.