Asia Pro Wrestling Summit Night 2 - Review

Asia Pro Wrestling Summit 2025 - Night 2

6th July 2025 – Da Nang Beach, Vietnam
Promoted by: Heat Up Wrestling (Japan)

This was the second night of the Asia Pro Wrestling Summit 2025, held at Da Nang Beach and promoted by Heat Up Wrestling from Japan. Night 1 isn’t available — likely due to the horrific downpour that hit Da Nang. I almost attended Night 1 exclusively and would’ve been completely soaked through.

The crowd for Night 2 started small, which is not surprising for a free show with minimal promotion, but things gradually picked up as the event went on. It does raise the question of whether a small ticket price might have helped the turnout. Proceedings began with the traditional Japanese wrestler procession, which was nice to see. After that, the local flavour was added with VPW’s X Pat stepping out to welcome the audience, complete with a modified catchphrase.

Shivam & Sayaka vs Best Bros (Mei Suruga & Baliyan Akki)

Mei and Akki were out first and actually got some reaction from the audience during their typically dramatic entrance, although it was harder to tell with the dubbed-over music. Shivam came out to the RGT theme. The match was full of Best Bros’ acrobatics, especially between Mei and Akki against Sayaka. Balliyan and Shivam leaned more into brawling exchanges when it was just them. Shivam landed a brutal spinebuster on Akki, while Mei pulled off a wonderfully ridiculous seated-on-shoulders chokeslam on Shivam. The patented Dolphin Splash secured the win for the Best Bros. As expected, they delivered a fun and lively match that drew more of the crowd in as it went on.

Jeff & Kevin Man vs The Statement Andruew Tang & JD Lee

Jeff and Kevin Man looked like throwbacks to mid-90s Hardys and 3 Count. Surprisingly, they started off as the aggressors and had The Statement on the defensive in a very babyface manner. Vietnam doesn’t seem particularly aware of his behaviour as part of RGT elsewhere. The Man’s worked solidly to keep Tang away from tagging out, showing some classic heel control tactics. Mei Suruga remained at ringside, cheering on the action. JD Lee eventually got in and fired up the crowd with a more energetic burst. The Man’s hit an impressive double superkick. Shivam also appeared to back his RGT teammate. The finish saw The Man’s hold Tang in Samoan Drop position while Jeff superkicked him; although the follow-up slam looked difficult to execute in this ring, it was enough for the three-count. A perfectly serviceable match, if a little flat compared to the opener.

Rocky Huynh, Khoa Truong & Tamara Gene vs Ren, Raimu & Ryutaro OoNo

Ren bears a resemblance to Isaiah Valencia from certain angles. The story here was the unity of the Japanese team overcoming the more loosely assembled VPW side. Rocky and Khoa aren’t particularly close in stories, and Tamara felt like a thrown-together partner. After an opening stretch dominated by Heat Up’s trio, Rocky and Khoa got in some solid offence. Tamara showcased good martial arts-style offence throughout. VPW’s team found some cohesion during a triple head-kick sequence during a brawl, but Tamara accidentally struck Khoa, leading to the Japanese team isolating her. Khoa and Rocky attempted a save but ended up striking Tamara themselves, which set her up to be body slammed and finished with a senton bomb by Ren for the win. This turned into a decent match with a clear and logical story. It would be good to see Tamara follow this up in VPW against either Rocky or Khoa, though Khoa seems the more natural fit with Rocky having other matters to deal with at home. A funny highlight saw Heat Up’s team perform a double piggyback splash on Tamara on the floor. Khoa came across well here — more animated and in noticeably better shape — and could benefit from bringing this chaotic, punk-like energy to his regular VPW appearances.

Tomoki Hatano vs Sid Nguyen

It was great to see a local wrestling figure like Sid Nguyen in the main event here for a Japanese promotion. X Pat adding more commentary would have been helpful. Vietnam’s wrestling scene is still so Saigon-focused that most of the cheering came from the Japanese wrestlers themselves. The match involved brawling out into the festival area and had a more even, back-and-forth feel. Hatano provided a funny moment hiding behind a banner stand. Sid and Hatano spent a good while brawling outside, signalling that this was something a little more meaningful for both. Sid was stretched painfully in front of the big screen during one sequence before things returned to the ring for a more traditional finish. Sid caught Hatano with a sudden one-handed cutter to score the knockout and pinfall victory. This was a big win for VPW and established Sid as “Asia’s Strongest.” He spoke afterwards, thanking the fans in Vietnamese.

This was a fine night of wrestling. I would have liked to see Night 1 too, but I assume the footage is ropey. As a free festival show, it was naturally kept short, and of course, Vietnam’s weather always adds unpredictability. It was pleasing to see people from different countries watching. There’s even a rumour that representatives from Progress Wrestling in the UK were in attendance.

You can watch night two here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9I8uWxyuqv4