Defiant: Lights Out '19 Review

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For the 3rd time british-wrestling promotion Defiant Wrestling is showcasing their stars on the 'Lights Out' stage.
The stacked card from Leeds, United Kingdom did not only impress with star power but with great in-ring action.

Here is my review to Defiant's Light Out '19.

Martin Kirby(c) def. Sean Kustom in a match for the Internet Championship

Kustom, who made his debut that night, was a last-minute replacement for the unfortunatley injured Lucky Kid. Kirby, who has been holding the title hostage since beating WALTER for it, saw himself umprepared in a title defense but came out the victor in a short but sweet match.
I wanna see more of Kustom.

Joe Henry def. 'Bad Bones' John Klinger via submission

The German Psycho 'Bad Bones' John Klinger saw himself in the grudge match of his feud with Joe Henry. Henry, who gave Klinger one of his entertaining a music videos by the tune of 'My heart will go on'. The Local Hero then came out with a painting of poop, showing what he thinks of Klinger. He was also wearing an Art Attack t-shirt, good old times. This match featuring a scottish and german wrestling legend served for some great near falls and even an impactful top-rope spot. Could have used another 5 more minutes, but other than that a great match.

Gabriel Kidd def. David Starr via pinfall

Another hot start. Kidd, who probably is Defiant's most hated heel and David Starr took it to the outside of the ring. Then the announcers reminded everyone the match has not started yet.
This start however helped to put over the intense rivalry these two have. What follow was a vicious match between the two. This story-driven collision was worked so well by the two, every shot seemed even more brutal than the one before. In the end Kidd defeated Starr by using ref-distraction and a low-blow, followed by a Tombstone Piledriver. Once again a loss for Starr. What a brilliant storytelling here, packaged into a great match.

Jody Fleisch & Johnny Storm def. The Dynamic Duo via pinfalls (roll-up)

The next match was much more of a great learning expierence for the Bellington Brothers who took on british wrestling legends Jody Fleisch and Johnny Storm as the commentators were putting over the Bellington Brothers, also known as the Dynamic Duo, as the future of UK (Tag Team) wrestling. The Bellington's, who are relatives of the late great Dynamite Kid, have been showing great in-ring skill during the match as they would be doing this for years, but in fact, they are just getting started.
Fleisch, at 39-year-old, did some amazing high-fyling. Especially the moonsault was amazing.
The victoryof Fleisch and Storm showed, the Bellington Bros are not there yet, but there is massive potential.

Lizzy Styles def. Lana Austin for the the vacant Defiant Women's Championship

The brits and their hate for Liverpool is very enjoyable to me from the outside looking in so when Lizzy Styles making her entrances and the crowd boo'd her hometown more than herself, i chuckled a lot.
Champion Kanji then came out with an arm bandange, explaining that she suffered a broken hand. Styles was not even able to cut a promo afterwards. The crowd essentially hijacked the segment and i loved it.
Of course General Ameen had to solve this, vacating the title and putting Lizzy Styles in a match with Lana Austin. After a match filled with kicks, Lizzy Styles won the Defiant Women's Title.

PAC def. El Phantsamo via pinfall

Next up was one of the feature matches of the evening. ELP and PAC were looking for some great high-flying action.In the war of the greatest british high-flyers and also a battle of AEW vs. New Japan, both gave it their all. Crazy fast paced action and an amazing Torture-Rack, Senton Splash and Moonsault sequenze by Phantsamo rocked the crowd. This easily could have main evented the show, the fact that it didn't just shows how much talent there is in Defiant. The Red Arrow brought the victory for PAC, but the real winners are all the fans who saw this.

Mark Haskins def. Robbie X via submission

The match quality was great all-night long, this match being no different. A great showing for both gentlemen. After an injury-spot with X, Hawkins was able to lock-in the sharpshooter and make X submit.The crowd seemed tired after the previous match, though. By the end Haskins and Robbie X had the crowd back in the game, though.That shows the true talent of these athletes.

Rampage Brown def. Rory Coyle(c) to win the Defiant World Championship

And last but certainly not least is was time to see the Defiant World Title to be defended. Rampage was driven to put Coyle's lights out in a No DQ Match, all across the arena.
After Rampage was unable to defeated Coyle in a traditional wrestling match, he was able to gain one more opportunity against Coyle in a true brutal fight. Much like the Starr vs. Kidd match, the ring-bell got rang rather late when the wrestlers finally decided to go into the ring. Previous they have already been brawling for quite some time, hitting each other with brutal blows. Coyle, who calls himself the last true sick boy, was showing everyone why he has been calling himself that all the time.But Rampage also showed a more violent side of himself, serving for something that could also be a Hardcore Title match. After a Piledriver to a VCR, yes i know, Rampage actually won the title back, becoming a 2-time Champion, all in his hometown of Leeds.
What a wonderful ending to a very good show.


Defiant has really managed to rebuild themselves and their shows become better each time. 
Also when you look at the talent pool, to leave off people like Visage, No Fun Dunne or their Tag Team Champions Dunn & Sixx and they still put on a very good show....That is amazing progression.


Enjoy Lights Out and all of the Defiant shows at https://access.wearedefiant.com/
30-Day Free Trial, $ 8.99 per month after if you like.