Attack Pro Wrestling (stylized as ATTACK! Pro Wrestling) is a Welsh professional wrestling promotion owned and operated by wrestler Mark Andrews.
Although ATTACK was originally established in 2011 by wrestler Pete Dunne and ring announcer Jim Lee, from February 2012 the promotion became solely owned by Dunne (when Jim stepped-down as co-owner/promoter), with the events managed by a regularly-changing collective of British wrestlers in the subsequent years (including Dunne, Andrews and Chris Brookes). Mark Andrews then assumed ownership and sole control of the promotion in January 2023.
It was nominated for the award of "UK/Ireland Promotion of the Year" at the Fighting Spirit Magazine Readers Awards 2016.
Style
The promotion is known for combining high-quality independent wrestling with "some of the most creative shows the British Wrestling scene has ever seen"; including innovative themed shows (such as the video game themed show 'Press Start'), unique characters (such as an amorous French mouse named 'Love Making Demon'), and bizarre twists (such as referees and soft toys winning Championship belts).
History
Formation & 2011
Attack! Pro Wrestling was founded in 2011 by Pete Dunne and Jim Lee. Having originally met at a wrestling training school in Coventry in 2006, the duo founded Attack! as a means to create more exposure for their group of friends on the British independent wrestling scene, at a time when Pete and his contemporaries (such as Mark Andrews and Eddie Dennis) were first starting to gain work around the United Kingdom. Using primarily upcoming British junior heavyweight wrestlers, their concept was to showcase internationally influenced "fast-paced, hard-hitting" independent wrestling, with a unique creative approach.
The first events were held in August 2011, in community centre venues in Pete's hometown of Birmingham. The debut weekend was originally planned to consist of three shows, but was reduced to two shows at short notice, after one of the venues was damaged in the 2011 England Riots. The events featured a roster of wrestlers entirely from Pete and Jim's immediate circle of friends, and was headlined by the first "Elder Stein Invitational Tournament", which was won by Mark Andrews (overcoming Pete in the final). Attack returned for three further events in Birmingham in November 2011, which included Zack Sabre Jr's first appearances for the promotion.
2012–2014
In February 2012, Attack held an event for the first time in Cardiff, with Mark Andrews joining Pete and Jim in organising events. The show was held at Cathays Community Centre; a venue of nostalgic relevance to the group (as many years previously Pete, Jim and Mark used to set up a re-purposed boxing ring to practice in the hall during the school holidays). The show was titled "We Do It For The Money, Obviously", as a dig at existing promoters from the region who had tried to stop the event going ahead, and was held in aid of local charity Recovery Cymru. The sold-out event was headlined by Pete Dunne vs Mark Andrews; an encounter which would be repeated many times over at Attack in the following years. Jim Lee stepped down from his position as Attack co-promoter after the event as a result of other commitments, handing control to Pete and Mark alone.
In December 2012, Attack also began to run shows in Bristol, with local wrestler Sebastian Radclaw temporarily joining the promoting team to help arrange events in the city. Bristol has since been Attack's second most-frequent show location, after Cardiff.
Attack continued to hold regular events in Cardiff, where they became known for hosting innovative 'themed' wrestling shows. Beginning with a Halloween-themed event named 'GooseBUMPS' in October 2012 (in which Pete Dunne defeated Eddie Dennis to win the second annual Elder Stein Invitational Tournament), the themed events then came to prominence in February 2013 with the video-game-themed event, Press Start. The Press Start event involved members of the Attack roster in video game fancy dress; including the Hunter Brothers as the Mario Bros., Mark Andrews as Pikachu, and Ryan Smile & Eddie Dennis as Sonic & Knuckles. The DVD trailer went viral, originally amassing over 32,000 views; exposing Attack! Pro Wrestling to a much wider audience than before.