Big Damo and Nikki Cross have bought PROGRESS Wrestling, and the former WWE couple have also taken control of American promotion DEFY Wrestling in the same deal.

The acquisition was first reported as an exclusive by the Daily Star’s Ashley Pemberton and confirmed by PROGRESS in an official company statement. Damian Mackle, who wrestled as Killian Dain in WWE, and his wife Nicola Glencross now own the UK’s leading independent promotion as well as DEFY, one of the biggest indie companies in the United States.

Cross becomes the first female co-owner in the history of either company.



“It is not lost on me that there are few female owners in professional wrestling, so I want to bring my experience and insights to the table and elevate PROGRESS and DEFY to new levels,” Cross said in the statement.

The pair take over from Martyn Best and Lee McAteer, who revived PROGRESS in 2022 after the promotion went dark during the pandemic. Best and McAteer ran more than 70 shows across the UK, United States, Germany, Canada and Dubai, and Best will stay on to help through a short transition.

“Big Damo and Nikki Cross bring that extra massive oomph of global credibility and legitimate experience that PROGRESS now needs,” Best said.

Both wrestlers built their early reputations on the British and Irish independent scene before WWE signed them, and they were paired together in the SAnitY faction. Cross went on to win the Raw Women’s Championship by cashing in her Money in the Bank contract on Charlotte Flair, and she is a three-time WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion with Alexa Bliss and Rhea Ripley.

Cross left WWE in April as part of the post-WrestleMania 42 roster cuts after a decade with the company. Days later, she filed trademarks for the Nikki Storm name through a company called Best in the Galaxy Wrestling, LLC.

Belfast-born Damo wrestled in PROGRESS before and after his WWE run, holding the company’s World, Tag Team and Atlas Championships, and he is still an active member of the roster.

PROGRESS runs Chapter 195: Wonderbrawl II on June 7 at the O2 Ritz in Manchester. Chapter 196: Scorchio follows at the Electric Ballroom in London on July 26, where Cross will make her first appearance since leaving WWE. The promotion then returns to London for Save the Date on August 31.