Progress Wrestling

History

Progress was conceived by Jim Smallman and Jon Briley in 2011, who were both wrestling fans. Smallman is a fan of "strong style" wrestling, Japanese in particular, and Briley was Smallman's agent.

In 2015, Progress appeared for five nights at Download Festival. In December of that year, they began running regular shows at The Ritz in Manchester. On 30 September 2018, Progress Wrestling held "Hello Wembley" at Wembley Arena. Billed by the promotion as the largest independent wrestling show in England for 30 years, the event drew 4,750 people; making it the most attended event in Progress Wrestling history.

In 2016, the company began working relationships with other promotions. At Chapter 29 on 24 April in London, Progress hosted two qualifying matches for the WWE Cruiserweight Classic. In 2017, Progress wrestlers such as Pete Dunne, Tyler Bate, Trent Seven, and Mark Andrews participated in the WWE United Kingdom Championship Tournament, culminating in Bate being crowned the first ever WWE UK Champion.

Smallman left Progress at the end of 2019 after Chapter 100. In June 2020, Progress reacted to reports of sexual harassment in the British independent circuit. After several accusations had been circulating of behaviour at other wrestling promotions, Progress decided to no longer work with David Starr, Travis Banks, and El Ligero, as well as suspending indefinitely then- Tag team Champions Jordan Devlin and Scotty Davis, who vacated the titles. Ring announcer and creative team member Matt Richards also left the promotion. On 21 June 2020, it was announced that Glen Joseph was stepping down with Michael Oku, Vicky Haskins and James Amner all taking prominent roles in the company. By the time the company returned to running shows, only James Amner would remain involved, and Amner played a key part in the future ownership of the company.

In 2021, Progress announced its return amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, travelling to South London to set up a temporary home at Theatre Peckham for Chapter 104: Natural Progression on 20 February, eventually producing 23 shows behind closed doors which featured on the WWE Network. On 31 December that year, ahead of their return to live shows in January 2022, it was announced that Progress had been acquired by Lee McAteer and Martyn Best - taking over ownership from Briley.

On 9 February 2024, it was announced that PROGRESS Wrestling would merge with DEFY Wrestling, an independent promotion based in Seattle, Washington in the United States. It was created to bring a "global presence" to both brands and aid further expansion plans.

Demand Progress Plus

Demand Progress Plus is Progress' video-on-demand service that launched in 2023, replacing the previous service on Pivotshare.

January 2017 had seen the first episode of Freedom's Road, a new series from Progress which would feature matches taped specifically for the show and have a heavy focus on characters and plots.

Championships

As of , .

Men's division

;Singles

Tag team

Women's division

Reception

Patrick Lennon, wrestling journalist for the Daily Star, has attended and reviewed Progress shows.

Carrie Dunn, founder and main contributor of wrestling blog "The Only Way is Suplex", published the book Spandex, Screw Jobs & Cheap Pops: Inside the Business of British Pro Wrestling. Progress Wrestling features frequently in the book including opening a chapter regarding London based wrestling promotions.

References

References

1. Rehal, Sumit. (26 May 2014). "Progress Wrestling – 'If we didn't have such talented guys in Britain, then the promotion wouldn't be doing as well as it is,' says co-founder Jim Smallman". The Independent.
2. "Progress Wrestling set to wreak 'havoc' at Download 2015 | Download Festival 2015".
3. "MASSIVE Announcement Regarding Chapter 24 in December… on Sale Tonight! ‹ This. Is. Progress.".
4. "Progress wrestling attendance record".
5. (27 March 2016). "Another Indie Promotion To Host WWE Global Cruiserweight Series Qualifying Matches".
6. "411Mania".
7. "411Mania".
8. "When it comes to PROGRESS, huge change is needed and huge change has begun: Glen Robinson and Matt Richards are stepping away. @VickyHaskins is involved, @lucefromsocials is involved, @jamesamner is involved & I am involved. More on this tomorrow - Michael Oku".
9. Currier, Joseph. (9 February 2024). "PROGRESS & Defy Wrestling announce merger". [[Wrestling Observer Newsletter]].
10. (22 March 2015). "Progress Wrestling Launch Their On Demand Service".
11. "Progress Wrestling: Freedom's Road Debut Episode TV Report".
12. Vetter, Chris. (August 26, 2025). "Progress Wrestling “Chapter 183 – 100 Volts” results (8/25): Vetter’s review of Luke Jacobs vs. Man Like DeReiss in a ladder match for the Progress Title, Lykos Gym vs. Sunshine Machine for the Progress Tag Titles". [[Pro Wrestling Dot Net]].
13. Thompson, Andrew. (January 1, 2026). "Pro Wrestling NOAH ‘NOAH The New Year 2026’ Results (1/1/26): Yoshiki Inamura Retains GHC Heavyweight Title". fightful.com.
14. Vetter, Chris. (18 April 2025). "Progress Wrestling "Chapter 179 – Progress Las Vegas" results: Vetter's review of Luke Jacobs vs. Michael Oku for the Progress Title, Minoru Suzuki vs. Cara Noir, Nina Samuels vs. Rhio vs. Vert Vixen for the Progress Women's Title". [[Pro Wrestling Dot Net]].
15. Lambert, Jeremy. (October 26, 2025). "PROGRESS Wrestling Chapter 185 Results (10/26): Man Like DeReiss vs. Lio Rush". fightful.com.
16. Vetter, Chris. (January 26, 2026). "Progress Wrestling “Chapter 189: In Darkest Night” results: Vetter’s review of Rayne Leverkusen vs. Alexxis Falcon for the Progress Women’s Title, Man Like DeReiss vs. Cara Noir for the Progress Title". [[Pro Wrestling Dot Net]].
17. "Every Saint Has A Past, Every Sinner Has A Future show is a winner". Daily Star.
18. "The Only Way Is Suplex". Carrie Dunn.
19. ""Spandex, Screw Jobs & Cheap Pops: Inside the Business of British Pro Wrestling" Amazon listing".
20. Dunn, Carrie. (2013). "Spandex, Screw Jobs & Cheap Pops: Inside the Business of British Pro Wrestling". Pitch.