Chuck Mambo Reflects on His PROGRESS Wrestling Journey in ‘Stories of PROGRESS’
PROGRESS Wrestling continues to deliver compelling insights into its stars with the latest episode of Stories of PROGRESS, featuring the one and only Chuck Mambo. In this in-depth interview, available now on DEMAND PROGRESS PLUS and the A2THEK Wrestling Show,
Chuck Mambo Reflects on His PROGRESS Wrestling Journey in ‘Stories of PROGRESS’
Chuck Mambo discusses his STORIES OF PROGRESS. From debuting in the Natural Progression Series at The Bedford to making tag team history and winning at Wembley Arena. Chuck Mambo’s tale is as wide and varied as any roster member in our history! Join us on his chronicle through his PROGRESS career!
On Moving to the Tag Division
“I always loved tag wrestling. Facing the Sumerian Death Squad, people were like… good luck. When their music hit, the mood palpably changed, and they did kick our asses!”
On Wrestling at Brixton Academy
“We billed it as the biggest British independent show for such a long time, and facing Robbo was perfect. My confidence was high, and then my legs and arms went numb. It was pretty scary. Then I went out the wrong curtain and came out of the side of the stage. But the atmosphere was awesome, and PROGRESS paid for branded beach balls!”
On Wrestling in the 2018 Super Strong Style 16 Tournament
“The levels of talent were crazy. It was always a goal. Zack Sabre Jr. was a dream opponent. He beats to his own drum. The merch sales at that show got me out of my overdraft with a week to spare!”
On Winning the 2018 World Cup
“Love and respect to Bad Bones, who I wish was still here… but he did dropkick me in the dick that day!”
On Winning the Battle Royal at Wembley Arena
“It was such a cool feeling looking out to 4,000 friends. I lost the feeling in my arms for like 20 seconds at one point, where I looked around and said, ‘Wow, this is pretty fucking awesome!’”
On Becoming a Member of Do Not Resuscitate
“There was a lot of momentum, but it was really hard to be heard because the talent pool was so packed. Saying it nicely wouldn’t have cut it. Scheming in the shadows with others who felt full of potential was how it went down, but over time it became drastically less fun.”
On Peckham and the Formation of Sunshine Machine
“It felt like wrestling was so gone. We couldn’t even train with people. Then Peckham came along, and it was awesome. Without the crowd, it was hard, so props to the commentary team for acting like the crowd! I was living in TK’s room, and thank god he talked me out of my slump! We reset and refocused and wanted to become the best tag team in the world… and we took some big first steps!”
On Getting Fans Back with a Tag Division That Was on Fire
“We weren’t aware of how on fire it would be because we had no fans in the room, but that first match with the Aces was like, ‘OH WOW. This is so cool!’”
On Winning the PROGRESS Tag Team Championships
“Super Strong Style 16 weekend is my favourite weekend in wrestling, and to win it there was special. It was a blast. I love ladder matches!”
On Losing His Hair Against Kid Lykos
“It’s a sore spot! I was glad to raise money for charities. It felt awkward and weird in the ring, but afterwards, people stood up, and I cried a little bit. People came up to me after and said what it meant to them, and it became one of the coolest things in my career because it meant so much and raised so much.”
On What Happened to the Smokin’ Aces
“In some ways, they never got the love and respect they deserved from the fans… we were very familiar. 0121 were cool and new, and Aces were maybe victims of the crowd looking for someone to boo. Maybe they got jaded… they wouldn’t be the first to fall under the silver tongue of Spike Trivet.”
On Wrestling for the AAA Latin American Championship Against QT Marshall
“Can you imagine if I had won? That would have been crazy. QT is the man. There’s a slight worry that they would be big league, but he was a gentleman. He sat with me and TK, giving us advice and telling us funny stories.”
On Wrestling in the USA Last Year
“People complain about six-hour drives here, but America is SO big! It was such a blast going with PROGRESS. We are very grateful for them getting us the VISAs.”
On Putting Up the Stipulation of NEVER Challenging Again if They Don’t Win at Chapter 178
“They have beaten us five times, so they don’t owe us a match; we had to put up something. If they retired to some other team and we ended up champs after, I don’t think we could ever call ourselves the best. If we can’t win, we have to watch someone else take over our legacy. We beat them in a triple threat ladder match. We know we can do it. We just put SAnitY to bed. They are our final hurdle after the rebirth of PROGRESS. It would be bittersweet, as I think Smokin’ Aces are one of the best, and it will mean they are retired. Maybe that’s why TK put up what he did, as I have a sympathy and guilt problem!”
Chuck Mambo’s full interview is available exclusively on DEMAND PROGRESS PLUS.
