PROGRESS Wrestling & DEFY Wrestling Announce Merger

Indie wrestling promotions PROGRESS Wrestling and DEFY Wrestling announced earlier today that they will be merging into a new joint promotion.

It was also announced that DEFY will be joining Demand PROGRESS PLUS streaming service and DEFY’s upcoming DEFY To Survive: Lucky Number 7 event tonight in Seattle, Washington will be the first official show under this new merger banner.

Official press release:

DEFY Wrestling & PROGRESS Wrestling Join Forces

DEFY WRESTLING of Seattle, USA and PROGRESS Wrestling of the UK have today joined forces in a major merger in the world of professional wrestling.

Following hot on the heels of the $21bn merger between WWE and UFC, this is the latest transaction in the wrestling world, highlighting the growing popularity in the sector.

The merger will create a truly global presence for both organisations with mutual benefits for both parties and aid further expansion plans that will offer something really exciting for wrestling fans around the world.

PROGRESS was established in 2012 and acquired by British entrepreneurs Martyn Best and Lee McAteer in 2021. Since then, they have delivered over 50 shows across the UK, Canada and Dubai, and have restored the company’s fortunes following a 2-year pandemic hiatus.

DEFY Wrestling is celebrating its 7th anniversary show this weekend in Seattle and is highly regarded as one of the most cutting-edge promotions in the country and has been home to nurturing and showcasing outstanding globally known wrestlers such as Jon Moxley, Swerve Strickland and Nick Wayne.

Past stars of the PROGRESS roster have included champions Pete Dunne, Gunther, Toni Storm and Will Ospreay.

Jim Perry, the DEFY founder expressed his delight, “I’ve been an admirer of PROGRESS from the start, and in some ways, they helped inspire the creation of DEFY. We have known each other for a number of years, and been working on many collaborations, including our successful double-show in London last August. I’m very excited about the opportunities of our more formal coming together, and the fans can expect to see some really neat ideas emerging.”

Martyn Best of PROGRESS Wrestling added “Lee and I really welcome Jim and Matt Farmer joining us at PROGRESS, and this is a major step in our wider plans for more international collaborations. We previously had a strong content partnership with WWE, and we have a developing relationship with Japanese promotion Pro Wrestling NOAH. With DEFY joining us, I am sure that our many combined fans will be very excited to see what happens next.

“We will be continuing our closeness in Philadelphia with us both having shows at The Collective immediately prior to WrestleMania 40, and we are planning our second joint show in London later in the year. DEFY will also soon be seen on DEMAND PROGRESS PLUS, our content and live streaming platform, in the very near future and we have some fascinating ideas to highlight the great wrestling talent we both work with.”

DEFY’S 7th anniversary show, DEFY TO SURVIVE: LUCKY NUMBER 7 is live at the Washington Hall on 9th February.

PROGRESS Wrestling’s next show is Chapter 163: TWISTED METAL in London on 25th February.

Both shows will be aired on DEMAND PROGRESS PLUS.