Sometimes, as a wrestling fan, you find yourself inextricably linked to a certain wrestler. You feel it from the moment their music hits, and you’re ready to follow them into battle, cheering them or booing them.
I grew up a wrestling fan, and watched a local indie in the early 2000s with the likes of Robbie Brookside and the late great Drew McDonald doing battle, and between them that face/heel pairing got my 10year old blood flowing.
After a few years away - I kept up with WWE even if I wasn’t watching religiously, but really did slip away from the indie side unfortunately - I found my way to another local indie, this time in Nottingham, where I had moved for university.
The year was 2015, and the show, run by Southside Wrestling, was super fun, featuring the likes of (an INCREDIBLY YOUNG) Tyler Bate, Martin Kirby, Jimmy Havoc, and others, and I was hooked.
I went back a few more times when they would come back through town and I started to notice a guy on the shows. I honestly don’t remember if he was there that first one, but he certainly was moving forward, and thats Chris Brookes.
Taller than the average indie guy (especially at the time, but even now), he instantly stood out. Teaming at the time with Travis Banks, the pair caught my eye, and, even though I probably saw them lose more than win, the fluid style of Brookes’ wrestling in particular would stick with me.
As I began to get more and more into the scene, and with the rise of social media, even shows I wasn’t at I could see how my favourites were getting on. Over the course of 2016 and into the start of 2017, it was clear there was a new partner on the horizon for Brookes - “Mondai” Kid Lykos - the Problem Child.
Bringing back the CCK team name which Chris had shared with former partner Jonathan Gresham, this new iteration of CCK tore it up wherever they went, and in April of 2017, at FightClub Pro’s annual Dream Tag Team Invitational, the team would see off Moustache Mountain, the Hunter Brothers, and then finally the Lucha Bros, to solidify themselves as one of THE go to tag teams on the planet.
They would go on to win the CZW Tag championships, as well as a myriad of other belts besides around the UK.
This guy who I started out quite liking was proving himself to be a megastar in the making, and I was hooked.
Like many in the BritWres bubble, we knew it was only a matter of time until PROGRESS, at the time seen as the top indie promotion in the country, came knocking. With Travis Banks, closely aligned with Brookes in the minds of the BritWrest faithful, having won Super Strong Style 16, and heading on to face British Strong Style leader Pete Dunne, surely the Best Boys wouldn’t be far away to even the score.
To an explosive pop, the team would finally debut in Manchester, immediately setting sights on BSS and their tag team championships for the upcoming Chase the Sun event at Alexandra Palace.
It was after this debut that I got to see even more of what would come to define Chris Brookes as my favourite BritWres wrestler of this generation.
His in-ring work had already wowed me, but it was in his promo work that I would find out his personality. The now infamous “Shut Up Lykos” line, still quoted today nearly 3 years later. He was funny in almost effortless way.
I knew from that moment on: I was a Chris Brookes guy.
I would cheer him wholeheartedly on that fateful night at Chase the Sun, as he and Lykos would pick up yet another title for the trophy cabinet, and would continue to cheer them through the trials and tribulations which would follow.
A series of heartbreaking injuries to Lykos would leave Brookes without a partner again, but rather than flounder or give up, he thrived.
He took part in 2018’s Super Strong Style 16 tournament, and though he was defeated in the first round by Kassius Ohno, even Ohno himself would sing his praises, and the adoring crowd kept the memory of the Calamari Catch Kings alive.
Challenging for titles around the country, building a passionate and dedicated fanbase, Brookes cultivated a community, and despite the hardships, he would come out the other side.
He would join forces with Aussie Open and form Schadenfreude, a stable of arguably two of the most dominant teams in BritWres, and would once again prove to be a reinvention by Brookes which would pay dividends. The team began as a reign of terror in Fight Club Pro, but it was quickly apparent that these guys had bigger plans.
They would launch Schadengraps, a promotion in Manchester taking over from IPW’s Tuesday Night Graps at the Frog and Bucket Comedy Club. Through a mix of fan interactions, great banter, and great matches, Brookes and the rest of Schadenfreude created the hottest product in the country, regularly selling out in moments.
I recently had the chance to attend my first Schaden show (the 5th overall), and it genuinely warmed my heart. In the opening contest, Lykos, now retired, would bring out Brookes and introduce Joe Nelson, a cruiserweight wrestler, as Kid Lykos 2. He would hand off the mask and the gimmick, so it could live on.
It was by this point no secret that Chris was on his way to Japan. After a tour in DDT, the promotion saw the value in him that myself and so may here do, and have invited him to live and work there for the rest of the year.
At the time I thought this Schadengraps show would be the last time I saw Brookes, and while the passoff of CCK to Lykos 2 would have been a fitting end, I needed closure.
There is one more Schadengraps show he’s due to work, but because of another engagement I can’t go, so that seemed to be that.
Which brings us, finally, to tonight. January 31st 2020 (or indeed as I write this now, its 2AM on the 1st of Feburary, but the point stands).
After some incredibly last minute (the actual day before) working out of my work schedule, I realised I would be able to attend Fight Club Pro’s Wrestlehouse ’20, on which Chris was booked for one of his last UK dates for the foreseeable future, and I knew this was my chance to say goodbye properly.
In the main event, Brookes, Lykos 2, and Kyle Fletcher, would face off against FCP Tag Champions Moustache Mountain and FCP Champion Dan Maloney.
The crowd was firmly behind Schadenfreude - the supposed heels of the piece of course, but on this night no-one was going to boo them.
When Brookes himself got the pin, the place came unglued. Trent Seven would give him a fitting sendoff, and then gave Chris an open mic to say goodbye.
His usual self deprecating self, this was a promo thanking the fans for everything he had achieved, and the fans - and the entire locker room which emptied to the stage, gave him a standing ovation.
This was one of the true greats of this generation of BritWres, and (but for a few more dates, though not for FCP), this was the last we would see of him for at least a year.
The work Chris Brookes has done to help this scene is immeasurable. From his work with Attack, to Lucha Forever, to Rev Pro, to Defiant, to FightClub, to PROGRESS, and of course to Schadengraps,
Chris Brookes leaves BritWres in a much better state than he found it. He’s worked tirelessly to get guys into positions to get themselves over, and has elevated everyone he has worked with.
It has been an honour to watch as this lovely person (has evolved and grown over the past 5 years I’ve been aware of him, and I am so incredibly proud to see him heading off to live his dream in Japan, something I know has always been a goal of his.
Thank You Chris. From the very bottom of my heart.
Without you, and the community you have fostered around you, I probably wouldn’t still be watching wrestling today.
The spark was there from my childhood, but you fanned the flames and lit an eternal burn in my heart that BritWres can keep burning.
There will be a huge hole in our scene with you gone, but because of you, I know there are people waiting in the wings - the likes of Mad Kurt, the likes of Cara Noir, and countless others, who have your example to build on.
We’ll keep the revolution going for you while you’re gone. But don’t stay gone forever.
We need to fly that CCK/Schadenfreude banner over the BritWres landscape again soon. So we won’t say goodbye. I’ll say: Until the next time my friend. Enjoy yourself, but hurry back.
#ThankYouChrisBrookes
