So. In the past, I’ve been down on Lady Apache because she’s seems to be pushed more on the prestige of her past successes than where you’d rank her abilities right now among the current roster. (It’s probably better for business that way, but you’ll forgive me if I sometimes care about what’s more interesting over what makes more money.) In the midst of begrudging her, I didn’t give her enough respect for what she still does in the ring, and she did pretty good here. The Amapola/Marcela matches were better, but this is nothing to be sad about.
This title match was in the process of being build up anyway, but it still feels like a booking correction – as if the hair match at Sin Piedad was out of the normal female booker’s control, and they quickly wanted to re-establish Amapola as the top wrestler. Which she did, totally clean here.
BTW: Lady Apache Was Right – if the minis and the women are the only ones going to do mat wrestling, then they ought to be on the anniversary show. And it seems like only the women and the minis who have blow off matches with clean finishes too.
For his experience in CMLL and his level, I think Dragon Rojo is doing perfectly fine. I don’t know if I trust him on his own in a big singles match, but then the list is small for guys around these parts I would trust.
The article is not written by the normal lucha libre reporter, but by Edgar Vallero Berrospe, who seems to normally cover national futbol. He seems pretty sure allowing WWE to air in Mexico will ruin lucha libre, will push out Mexican wrestling and the jobs it creates, and generally deceives the public. The last point is illustrated by the giant picture of Rey unmasked, going into detail about when and how he lost his mask and pointing out he was born in the US not Mexico, all the while calling him a fraud.
Berrospe goes on to accuse Televisa and TV Azteca of comitting treason for airing the WWE matches (which he states are fixed (!!)), because they’re paying for WWE TV while they don’t pay for CMLL or AAA. It doesn’t make a lot sense, because he notes at the same time that CMLL and AAA just make their money selling ad time during their show (which would be a lot of extra work for WWE.)
The article concludes something must be done to stop the WWE, or lucha libre will go the way of Mexican boxing and baseball.
The article has some issues
– they either say Ric Flair is nearing 70, or has wrestled for nearly 70 years (neither which has anything to do with anything else)
– Vince McMahon Sr. is prasied as the man who promoted “real immortal figures of wrestling” like Tiger Mask, Hulk Hogan, and Ring Fujinami.
This feels like a promotion (or two) inspired hit piece to build sentiment against WWE. I mean, it’s defintely a hit piece, but it seems odd this isn’t coming from a normal lucha writer unless it was prompted that way.
No one was writing these articles when they were on 52MX, which says as much for the compartive reach of the networks as anything.
MEDINA (SAT) 10/11 La Plaza de Toros Vicente Segura [LuchandoLibre]
1) Black Thunder, Mohicano I, Mohicano II vs Black Spirit, Metal Boy, Turbo
2) Esther Moreno & Xochitl Hamada vs Flor Metalica & Rossy Moreno
3) Enfermero Jr. & Gran Markus Jr. vs Hijo de Huracan Ramirez & Huracan Ramirez Jr.
4) Antifaz del Norte, Intocable, Rayman vs Head Hunter I, Mascara Ano 2000 Jr., Pentagon Black
5) Mil Mascaras vs LA Park, Rayo de Jalisco Jr., El Hijo del Solitario, Espanto Jr., Pierroth II, Mr. Texas, Angel Blanco Jr. [cage]
Pierroth II hasn’t been wrestling under that name since May and probably doesn’t have authorization to be using it at this point, so he’s the most likely candidate. Mr. Texas doesn’t seem impossible either, but you’d figure he’d lose it in Monterrey.
IWRG SCORPIO (FRI) 10/17 Arena Naucalpan [IWRG]
1) Halcon 2000 vs Avisman
2) Eragon & Miss Gavitoa vs Carta Bravo & King Drako
3) Freelance, Pegasso Xtreme, Rey Cometa vs Oficial 911, Oficial AK47, Oficial Fierro
4) Latino, Multifacético, Super Astro vs Black Terry, Dr. Cerebro, Shu el Guerrero
5) Fuerza Guerrera, LA Park, Máscara Año 2000 vs El Hijo Del Santo, Rayo de Jalisco Jr., Zumbido
This is a Scorpio tribute show, and there will be on more on 10/25 in Xochimilco. They’re moving the show from Thursday to Friday for this show. This will air on TVC Deportes.
Someone finally got the most important viewpoint of the Grey Shadow jump: Sangre Azteca explains Grey Shadow was just scared of losing his mask to Sangre. Sangre explains this is not the first time that’s happened to him; Rayman apparently left the company the night he was supposed to fight him for the Occidente Light Heavyweight title (Sangre assures us he had a great match with Terrible instead), and it gives him joy any time one of his rivals is so scared of him that he runs. Sangre says he’ll turn his attention back to La Mascara’s mask.
Lots of photos of Goddess as Aurora in Monterrey, now that they can be officially connected.
CMLL (TUE) 10/07 Arena Mexico [ESTO, SoloLuchas, Willy @ el Martiente]
1) Angel de Oro, Astro Boy, Sombra de Plata b Apocalipsis, Ramstein, Super Comando
2) Bronco III, Euforia, Nosferatu b Hijo del Faraon, Metálico, Tigre Blanco
3) Felino, Misterioso II, Nitro b Hijo del Fantasma, La Máscara, La Sombra
4) Princesa Sujei b Goddess [mask]
5) Blue Panther, Dr. Wagner Jr., Héctor Garza DQ Heavy Metal, Mr. Niebla, Negro Casas
Tecnicos took the first fall of the main event, and Niebla fouled Wagner in the second.
Mask match was typical quick quick long. If ESTO is to be believed, Goddess actually knocked herself out on a missed plancha, and that’s how the match ended. What a way to go. Everyone else says it was a Sujei Driver. Goddess gave her name as Aurora Reina, from Vancouver, 4 years a professional wrestler. “Aurora Reina” sounds like a worked name, or at least a better ring name than Goddess. I may be biased towards the first name, I guess. Goddess says she’s not done, and hopes to take Sujei’s mask one day.
Goddess was previously Aurora in LLF.
Nitro replaced Vangelis. Bronco did end up getting Halcon Negro’s spot.
The Chessman/Jack spot at the end of this match was superb. Nothing else was really that great on this show, including this match (which was otherwise disappointing.) Well, opener was good, and I actually can cram both of those on here:
CMLL (TUE) 10/07 Arena Mexico
1) Apocalipsis, Ramstein, Super Comando vs Angel de Oro, Astro Boy, Sombra de Plata
2) Hijo del Faraon, Metálico, Tigre Blanco vs Euforia, Halcon Negro, Nosferatu
3) Felino, Misterioso II, Vangelis vs Hijo del Fantasma, La Máscara, La Sombra
4) Goddess vs Princesa Sujei [mask]
5) Heavy Metal, Mr. Niebla, Negro Casas vs Blue Panther, Dr. Wagner Jr., Héctor Garza
Ovaciones, Reforma, SoloLuchas, ESTO, Deporte1 and Notimex all preview today’s Arena Mexico card with a focus on the hair match. Yay for getting press! It’s a Fan Appreciate 30 pesos to sit anywhere show.
This was asked in the comments over the weekend and I never got to it, so I might as well get to it here – I still think Goddess is losing her mask. CMLL seems to have a core group of women (Amapola, Marcela, Lady Apache, Dark Angel, Princesa Sujei, I’m probably forgetting someone) who can lose to each other but aren’t losing big matches to anyone outside the group. If this was just about establishing Goddess closer to that level, they could’ve had her feud with Rosa Negra or Seductora or another person outside the protected group, same as when India Sioux got her big win over Medussa. Goddess beating Princesa Sujei doesn’t seem plausible as her first big step unless Goddess had been on a metoric rise and impressing everyone, which doesn’t seem the case.
This feud seems to be following the pattern of Amapola & Diana la Cazadora, where Diana didn’t seem to be working out they way they hoped and CMLL just decided to cut their losses by having her lose big on her way out. The victories have been back and forth, but the build in the press has been all lopsided for Sujei, with everyone making it clear that Goddess is not on her level and may be finishing up here. (In ESTO, it reads that Goddess is leaving even if she wins!)
There’s a lot of little reasons. If Sujei’s going to lose, shouldn’t she lose her mask to Dark Angel in a revenge match? The way they keep bringing that up in this feud, I’ve got to figure they’re going back to that at some point. Goddess isn’t going to be hurt as much long term; she’s supposedly nice looking under the mask and she’s probably wrestling unmasked after leaving Mexico anyway.
Of course, this is not too dissimilar to Villano V/Panther (though the press there was a failed attempt at convincing people they were on the same level) or Loco/Tony (except no one cared), and I was the one who thought Sujei was losing her mask a couple months ago. There’s nothing stopping CMLL from doing the wrong finish again. Still, Sujei seems to be as strong a favorite as you’re going to get.
Ultimo Guerrero says he wants Panther’s hair, both Villanos masks and Dr. Wagner’s mask. It’s good to want things. Speaking of high hopes, Villano V wants a mask match with Mistico in late October or early November; no waiting until next year for him.
There’s not a lot else going on here. Niebla/Wagner continues to exist, slightly. We should start a Halcon Negro replacement guessing game. I’m taking Arkangel!
It won’t be Amapola – she underwent knee surgery, and will be out a few weeks.
