– FdT wasting Extreme Tiger’s money away on food, drink, women and limo rides. And paying off cameraman not to pan up and show us their mystery man, of course. I didn’t even consider AAA ever bringing the money up again, that’s so not like them.
– Zorro confusing Super Fly and Pegasso for Pimpinela and May Flowers. Konnan mistaking not being able to tell them apart from other high flyers hits too close to home, but Zorro is a hilarious buffoon. Zorro is so great as a personality.
– Mesais attempting to run in, only to be taken out with a single cane shot. This might have made history, the first time Cibernetico or Mesias wanted to get at each other and Zorro didn’t get run over in the process.
– Hart Foundation II’s debut, for all five minutes it lasted.
– First couple matches were decently fun.
bits which can not possibly be explained:
– Black Abyss using Smells Like Teen Spirit.
bits which were not good
– the main event tag match. But what did we expect? Just that.
It doesn’t pay to be a Mexican midcarder with tenure in AAA right now. The Gladiatores reports Intocable is the next to leave the promotion and will be an independent in August. Probably should’ve seen this coming with they hyped a big deal to find new backup dancers for him, and then it was cut to one short clip and never mentioned again. Or maybe Intocable being left off TripleMania and Alan Stone seemingly taking over his role.
Intocable’s a different animal than Calo or Scorpio or some of the others – he’s certainly not the worker, but he does have some drawing ability. (If NWA Mexico was not a fictional promotion, they would be rushing to the phone to get Intocable signed – the hair match programs you could do with him would be a big help for a startup, and it’s not another guy who seems past his prime.)
We can be pretty sure Intocable wouldn’t be leaving AAA if Antonio Pena was still alive. Other people are in charge now, and they seem more interested in letting the roster wither away to a smaller size for TV purposes. You don’t need a lot of people if you’re just running six matches a week with generally the same people.
That’s the other thing, though – AAA’s not really a TV promotion. They run spot shows all over the country in between TV tapings, and even against tapings – Elegido, Alebrije, and Gronda versus the Psycho Circus was main eventing another show the same night as TripleMania. AAA’s not a public company, so everything’s just a guess, but I’m figuring those booking fees are a nice revenue stream for the company. There comes a point where you’ve dropped enough talent that you can’t staff as many shows anymore. (The foreign guys are going to be in and out and not fill all those dates. Intocable was especially valuable, because he could be sold as a main eventer while guys like CIbernetico and Parka had reduced value.)
Either other guys are going be working a lot more or AAA’s shifting how it does business. They haven’t lost/dropped enough guys where everything has to change, but it seems part of the slight change of direction in the last year.
CMLL (SUN) 06/15 Arena Mexico [cmll]
1) Sombra de Plata & Starman b Ramstein & Zayco
2) Mascarita Dorada, Pequeno Ninja, Shockercito b Nino de Acero, Pequeño Violencia, Pierrothito
3) Arkangel & Hooligan b Leono & Tony Rivera [Coliseo TAG, torneo, eightfinal]
4) Angel Azteca Jr. & Mascara Purpura b Caligula & Messala [Coliseo TAG, torneo, eightfinal]
5) Metalico & Metalik b Artillero & Super Comando [Coliseo TAG, torneo, eightfinal]
6) Rayo Tapatio I & Rayo Tapatio II b Euforia & Nosferatu [Coliseo TAG, torneo, eightfinal]
7) Angel Azteca Jr. & Mascara Purpura b Arkangel & Hooligan [Coliseo TAG, torneo, quarterfinal]
8) Euforia & Nosferatu b Metalico & Metalik [Coliseo TAG, torneo, quarterfinal]
9) Euforia & Nosferatu b Angel Azteca Jr. & Mascara Purpura [Coliseo TAG, torneo, semifinal]
10) Heavy Metal, Marco Corelone, Volador Jr. b Misterioso II, Olimpico, Rey Bucanero
11) Dr. Wagner Jr., Héctor Garza, Místico b Atlantis, Mr. Niebla, Último Guerrero
CMLL doesn’t actually spell out the first round matches, but you can sort them out based on the photos. It looks like Metalik got hurt in his second match – they’re got a still from the big screen replay, showing him going head first towards the floor. Note all 3 of the super novato teams lost in the first round.
Metal has a new tattoo on his bald head.
Mistico got UG clean to win the main event, but had a war of words with Dr. Wagner after the match. Hector had to play peacemaker. Mistico seemed to have a black protective wrist cover here.
Judging for the pictures, they sold zero tickets in the upper deck. There are sections in the middle that look vacant. Floor looks pretty full.
CMLL (SUN) 06/15 Arena Coliseo Guadalajara
1) Carlo Roggi & Novato b Milenio & Valentin Mayo
2) Depredador (Guadalajara) & Fraile de la Muerte b Idolo & Metal Blanco
3) Magnum, Metatron, Nube Roja DQ Exterminador, Güero Loco, Super Maquina
4) Cien Caras Jr. b Casanova
5) Gallo, La Máscara, La Sombra DQ Black Warrior, Mephisto, Sangre Azteca
6) Blue Panther & Dos Caras Jr. b Villano IV & Villano V
Panther beat V5 clean. Warrior stole Gallo’s mask in the semimain. Loco fouled Nube Roja earlier.
CMLL
CMLL (TUE) 06/17 Arena Mexico [cmll, notimex]
1) Calígula & Méssala b Rayo Tapatío I & Rayo Tapatío II
2) Euforia, Nosferatu, Skandalo b Ángel Azteca Jr., Flash, Metálico
3) Hijo del Fantasma, Máscara Púrpura, Stuka Jr. b Bronco III, Vangelis, Virus
4) Damián 666, Mr. Águila, Texano Jr. b Negro Casas, Valiente, Volador Jr.
5) Atlantis, Rey Bucanero, Último Guerrero b Dos Caras Jr., Héctor Garza, Shocker
Dos blocked a foul from Atlantis in the third fall, so Atlantis yanked his mask instead and rolled him up for the pin.
Looks like one of the Rayo’s hurt a shoulder in the opener.
CMLL (TUE) 06/17 Arena Coliseo Guadalajara [cmll]
1) Virgo b Azazel
2) Ebola b Depredador
3) Magnum b Infierno
4) Máscara Mágica b Leon Blanco
5) Rayman & Sagrado b Cien Caras Jr. & Universo 2000 [OCCIDENTE TAG]
6) Blue Panther & Marco Corelone DQ Villano IV & Villano V
7) Alex Koslov b Toscano
Toscano fouled Alex, and Alex still won. Sucks to be Toscano. V5 fouled Panther here. Rayman pinned Universo clean to retain the titles.
Ovaciones online paper isn’t working, but they actually posted their own articles on their website for the first time since the site redesign. Today, they’ve got a brief interview with Dr. Wagner about Niebla and LA Park.
