Dojo Pro is a new wrestling tournament that was released on Amazon Prime. The series is 12 episodes long, and is a win or go home situation. If you win your match, you move on in the tournament. The winner of this tournament will receive a shot at the ROH TV Championship. If you lose your match anywhere along the way, you go home empty handed.
Matt Lott welcomes us to the show. He says that each wrestler has been assigned a ranking, the better you are, the less you’ll have to compete. Tonight we will crown the first white belt winner. The white belt will be defended on each show, in a win or go home situation. The winner of the entire tournament receives the black belt, and will go on to challenge for the ROH TV Championship.
The Ladder:
11. Gunner Miller
10. Wheeler Yuta
9. Corey Hollis
8. Joey Janela
7. Brandon Cutler
6. James Storm
5. Ricky Starks
4. Aaron Solow
3. MJF
2. Shane Strickland
1. Jeff Cobb
Tonight’s match-up is Kevin Ku vs. Kerry Awful. Each wrestler gets a very well done video package, as these are two wrestlers that I’m sure many aren’t aware of (myself included). Kerry Awful is a little reminiscent of Mankind, and is a lot more charismatic than Kevin Ku. Time to see how these two do in the ring.
The arena has a small, underground feel to it. It’s pretty dark, there are tall pictures of the two in the background, and the White Belt sits on a podium near the ring. There are about three rows of fans, all seem to be standing. They are on the left and right of the ring (from the hard cam). Also, we have a female referee and one man announcing.
Dojo Pro White Belt: Kevin Ku vs. Kerry Awful
This match was worked with a very simple formula, but was well executed. Kerry Awful dominated the first portion, really allowing for the crowd to get behind Ku, and hate Awful even more than they should have from the start. Once things picked up, the action was good (both men still need some work), but there was also an invested crowd to add to things. The ending portion was great, where Ku was screaming “hit me” at Awful, but it ended up fueling Ku even more, which allowed for him to lock in the Splash Mountain (a half Boston Crab) to pick up the win. Kevin Ku is the first white belt holder, and will take on Gunner Miller next week. It was a good choice to have a babyface win the first match, because now Ku could run the gauntlet for awhile, and have a feel-good story going along with it.
Winner: Kevin Ku
Match Rating: ***
After the match, Kevin Ku poses with the White Belt and begins to walk out of the arena, but he runs into Jeff Cobb. Cobb gives Ku a little shove with his shoulder, and enters the ring to speak. Cobb says these men can be champions in the future, but there’s a reason he’s ranked #1. He didn’t come here for a wrestling school, he’s here for the Black Belt. The promo ended awkwardly, but Cobb has now established himself as the big heel here in Dojo Pro. On his way out, Cobb punches a fan! He throws the fan into the ring, who begs for Cobb to let him go. Cobb shakes his hand, but then doesn’t let him go, and nails a Tour of the Islands to close the show.
Final Thoughts:
Dojo Pro is a very interesting concept, with a super unique look to it. It almost reminds me of when Lucha Underground first debuted. No one really knew what to think of it, but everyone was hooked because it was so different from your usual pro wrestling show. This was a great introductory week, as they ran down the rankings, got us familiar with Kerry Awful and Kevin Ku, and solidified Ku as a big babyface, along with Jeff Cobb as the top heel. The match between Awful and Ku was very good, and the closing angle with Cobb was perfect. This was a great first episode, and the rest should only get better from here.
Show Rating: 7.0/10
If you would like to watch Dojo Pro, you can purchase Season 1 for $19.99 here or watch it for FREE with your Amazon Prime membership.