2016 has been a tumultuous time for Don't Flop. All year they have dealt with complaints that their battles haven't been up to the high standards that fans have come to expect from the league. With the "8th Birthday Weekend" event going down November 18-20, the U.K. league is looking to silence those critics and re-establish its place as one of the world's premier battle platforms.
Headlining the card will be Pat Stay's U.K. debut against of former DF champion Tony D, a dope U.K. vs. U.K. battle in Soul vs. Quill and some of the best talent from England, Canada, and America.
The full trailer is below:
After the release of the trailer, Dialect vs. Lu Cipher and Math Hoffa vs. Shox The Rebel were canceled, joining several other battles that had been axed earlier. Math Hoffa vs. Dialect was booked as a replacement battle, this is reflected in the full lineup below.
Day 1: Training Days
- Rob Wilson vs. Big T
- Pedro vs. Luminous
- Jaybe vs. T Mhillz
- Danny Jaqq vs. Rawwz
- Craft-D vs. XQZ
Also the semi-finals of their Headhunters tournament will take place on Day 1
Day 2
- Pat Stay vs. Tony D
- Dialect vs. Math Hoffa
- Raptor vs. Gjonaj
- Gemin1 vs. Swave Sevah
- Soul vs. Quill
- Charron vs. Chilla Jones
- Marlo vs. Ogmios
- Oshea vs. Juan
- Ark vs. Danja Zone
Day 3
- Soul & Pedro vs. Danja Zone & Chilla Jones
- Mr. Re vs. Big T
- Shonda Rhymez vs. Zain Azrai
- Bobby Rex vs. Dank Schrader
- JShort vs. Charron (Freestyle)
- Innuendo vs. Dunn D
Probably the most interesting battle on the card is the main event of Day 2, Pat Stay vs. Tony D. This battle pits the likely best, and certainly most popular battler out of Canada, Pat Stay, against someone who holds a similar title in the U.K., Tony D.
This will be Pat's long awaited Don't Flop debut (minus his recent appearance for the league against John John Da Don at the league's AC3 festival showcase), and he certainly didn't get an easy opponent for his first official match. It's not hyperbole to say that if everything goes right, this has the potential to be the best battle in Don't Flop history.
In a one-round, non-title battle, Don't Flop champion Soul will be facing off with the returning Quill. Quill had been one of the top rising stars in Don't Flop before some behind-the-scenes issues with Eurgh led to him taking a short hiatus from the league. In his return he's jumping straight back into the deep end. At his best, Soul is one of the best in the world. His writing is unquestionable, and when he's able to bring the aggression to match, he is almost unbeatable. Like Pat/Tony, this battle has a ton of potential to be a standout.
Dialect vs. Math Hoffa is a short-notice battle, made after Math's battle with Shox The Rebel, and Dialect's battle with Lu Cipher had to be canceled. Kudos to Don't Flop for being able to pull through with a very solid replacement to make the best of this situation, though there are concerns that the battle could be hurt by its last-minute nature. Further reason for worry is that there is some potential that this battle doesn't even go down. When someone asked Dialect if three days was enough notice in Don't Flop's Facebook group he responded:
"No not really lol and I've said if I don't feel comfy on the day I may not do it cuz man can't expect the performance I had for Lu"
While this is potentially concerning, there have been innumerable examples of short-notice battles that turned out just fine.
Something to watch is the amount of battlers pulling double duty at this event. Charron, Chilla Jones, Danja Zone, Pedro, Soul and Big T will all be battling twice. This could prove to be an issue if they're splitting their focus between battles.
The Training Days card has some interesting battles, notably Big T battling on it in his first battle of the weekend. Zain Azrai as well makes his return to Don't Flop, taking on battle rap neophyte Shonda Rhymez. Zain is a polarizing figure with some in the community loving his unique style, and it turning off others. Shonda is a fair bit more conventional in her approach, and in her short time in battling has shown herself to have a lot of potential. This could be the type of breakout performance for her that cements her as a permanent fixture on Don't Flop cards.
Thoughts? Let us know in the comments below.
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