If you call yourself a wrestling fan then chances are you've spent a few minutes here or there googling wrestling videos online. Whether you were looking for 'The Rock's Greatest Promos' or key news from WWE's Raw, it's inevitable you will have found yourself watching the fun, must-view content provided by the folks at Whatculture.com. Be it the '10 Funniest Wrestling YouTube Vidoes' or the '20 Greatest TNA matches', the team at What Culture Wrestling have been building their online credentials with aplomb.
Perhaps it was little surprise with the following that they have (What Culture Wrestling currently boasts over 750,000 subscribers), that the platform has launched What Culture Pro Wrestling. WCPW as it is known has introduced a new series of sports entertainment events with a base in Newcastle. The promotion states that in doing so it is both creating job opportunities for local wrestlers and introducing mainstream WWE fans to the independent wrestling scene in the North East. With wrestling promotions like ICW, PCW, RevPro/Progress, IPW and Southside delivering an enormous boost to the UK independent scene in other areas of the country, Newcastle and the North East was fertile territory for such an endeavor.
Above: WCPW's list videos, such as this one about their previous shows, attract thousands of viewers.
By any standards, the WCPW debut shows in June were a success. With a card that included Ring of Honor's Jay Lethal and current WWE Cruiserweight Classic star Noam Dar, it is little surprise that the crowd was a sell-out. The shows were broadcast on the What Culture Wrestling YouTube Channel with more than 24,000 viewers tuning in to watch the action.
The good news is that WCPW is coming back! And they are doing it in style with arguably the hottest property on the independent wrestling scene. WCPW has signed former WWE Superstar Damien Sandow for a Q&A in London July 26th, and for two Newcastle shows at the o2 Academy on July 27th & 28th. Not only that but Noam Dar will be back together with the recent winner of the NJPW Best of the Super Juniors tournament in Japan, Will Ospreay. Some of the top ICW (and if rumour has it, soon to be WWE) stars will also be performing, notably Grado, Joe Hendry, Joe Coffey and Big Damo amongst others. Tickets for all the events are available online here.
WCPW General Manager Adam Pacitti spoke to us just last month explaining that the promotion will be "all about emotional investment, great story lines, incredible wrestling and most importantly fun".
The talent seem to be confident too. The aforementioned Noam Dar, speaking to us before the show said: "Obviously I'm excited to be working with What Culture in any capacity, they have a large captive audience and the exposure to British wrestling will only reap rewards for both the scene and What Culture Pro Wrestling itself. I hope WCPW becomes a mainstay on the British scene and I'm personally looking forward to being involved from day one onwards".
The What Culture Wrestling channel, the second-biggest wrestling related channel on YouTube, behind WWE, has become popular for its 'list videos'. So in the best traditions of What Culture Wrestling, here's our top 3 reasons to go along to WCPW's next set of events:
1) Brexit Busting Support For Indie Wrestling:
First and foremost, if you want wrestling near you and a strong independent scene, you need to support the viable promotions and the talent they are paying to perform. Now we're leaving the EU, we need to build strong national industries, so get behind the wrestling business. There's more chance for UK talent to shine and the promotions will need more money to bring over the imports. Put simply, going to the show is an act of patriotism!
2) Britain's Got Talent
Continuing the patriotic theme, the talent performing are of a remarkably high calibre. Joe's Coffey and Hendry have both been linked to promotions in the US, notably evolve and RoH. The aforementioned Dar and Ospreay have WWE, TNA, GFW and NJPW appearances on their CVs, Rampage Brown is an ex-NXT trainee and a doyen of the indies. Big things are reportedly ahead for Big Damo and for anyone that wants to see the best of British, there is nothing more beautiful than a Martin Kirby or El Ligero match.
3) You're Welcome!
Whilst we're sure they'd be happy to see you, of course it will be wonderful to have Damien Sandow doing his thing in the UK. For the WWE fans that want to see the man in person and are attending their first independent show to the hardened 'marks' that respect the man's talent, this will be a joy for all. Sandow 'got over' repeatedly and organically - the intellectual, the unpredictable, Mizdow or the Meta Power he got over again and again. A super talented star appearing for what looks set to be a super-talented promotion.
Make sure to get your tickets and head down to WCPW in London (26 July Sandow Q&A) or Newcastle (27th & 28th).