WXW 16 Carat Gold, The Turbinenhalle in Oberhausen, Germany - review
It turned out to be a bad night for the West Midlands as the pro-wrestling world once again descended on Oberhausen, Germany.
Back in October, Tipton’s Chris Brookes reached the finals of Westside Extreme Wrestling’s World Tag League tournament alongside his mentor and tag-team partner Jonathan Gresham.
Meanwhile, Australians Kyle Fletcher and Mark Davis, both of whom now live in the West Midlands having moved to train in Wolverhampton, were unlucky to not meet them in the final.
However their fortunes changed when the action turned to the singles competition.
And this weekend WXW will crown a new number one contender for its world title at the prestigious 16 Carat Gold Tournament.
On the opening night the stakes were higher than ever, with more fans at The Turbinenhalle than at previous tournaments.
However, despite their success in the World Tag League, all three men lost on Friday.
A former champion for the promotion, Brookes faced Shigehiro Irie.
Hailing from Japan, Irie has spent the past few months touring Britain and Europe looking to introduce himself to new fans whilst honing his skills.
Recent appearances have included impressing when making his debut for Wolverhampton’s Fight Club: PRO back on the 1st February 2019.
He meshed well against Brookes, with both men able to perform at a fast pace.
Where Irie stood apart from the Brit was his greater size and strength, which allowed him to perform several impressive power moves.
A particularly painful looking move was a full-force sitdown splash, which prompted Brookes to use his own social media to semi-humorously ask his opponent to not sit on him in future matches! Irie secured the upset victory with a lariat.
Brookes was the second West Midlands resident to fall to Irie, with Kyle Fletcher having lost the finals of a qualifying tournament held in London back In January.
And Fletcher also failed to become the tournament’s designated alternative in the pre-show match.
His tag-team partner Mark Davis impressed against Mexico’s Pentagon Jr, a pro-wrestler with immense global popularity who frequently appears on British Television for Impact Wrestling.
This was a war, with two of the hardest strikers in pro-wrestling today laying it on thick with thunderous chops that echoed all over the building.
Whilst he wasn't successful, Davis more than held his own against one of the most celebrated pro-wrestlers in the world. Incidentally, next month will see Pentagon appearing in Wolverhampton as part of Fight Club: PRO’s Dream Tag Team Invitational Tournament.
These results meant the the end of the West Midlands' participation in the 16 Carat Gold Tournament. However all three men will continue to participate in other matches over the weekend of what has become Europe’s biggest festival of pro-wrestling.
By Will Cooling.
WXW 16 Carat Gold continues this weekend in Oberhausen, Germany. All shows are available to watch on Video on Demand within 72 hours, complete with English-language commentary, on WXW NOW. For more information go to https://www.wxwnow.com/en