the matches
Son of Havoc b Angelico (6:39, shooting star press, good)
Alberto el Patron (c) b Texano Jr. to retain the AAA World Mega Heavyweight Championship (8:22, armscissors over the ropes, great)
Prince Puma (c) b Son of Havoc to retain the Lucha Underground Championship (12:13, 630 senton, great)
the developments
Ivelisse, in an angrier mood than usual, spent the match yelling at Havoc (and occasionally the referee.) Announcers pushed that Havoc was showing marked improvement and wondered if Ivelisse’s behavior was causing it. Son of Havoc didn’t think so, pausing to dump Ivelisse before hitting the shooting star press for the win. Ivelisse couldn’t believe it, and took out her anger with a kick to Angelico when he tried to flirt again after the match.
The rules for the bullrope, as explained by Striker, were victory by pinfall, submission or touch all four corners. Neither man attempted to touch the corners, but they did take advantage of the lack of disqualification. Texano brought a chair and table into play, and both men used the cowbell in the center of the rope on each other. Alberto won by using his cross armbreaker while hanging backwards over the ropes, a move which would not be legal in a normal match.
In his office, Dario signed Hernandez to a deal and noted he would not be limited to a tag team in Lucha Underground. Dario also told Hernandez that Konnan convinced Dario on the merits of Hernandez. Hernandez seemed satisfied but not completely on the same page as Dario. Later, Hernandez happened on Puma and Konnan while they were warming up for the title match. Konnan greeted him warmly, bringing up their time to get as part of LAX, but Puma seemed a little wary. Hernandez watched the main event from the front row. (Striker and Vampiro were surprised to see him and not sure why he was there; it’s clear they haven’t been seeing the vignettes.) Dario presented a new Lucha Underground championship belt before the match.
Cage and Puma brawled and used weapons in the street fight main event. Puma impressed, but missed the 630 senton. Much like their last match, Cage powerbombed Puma into oblivion and rained punches from the mount. Konnan did not throw in the towel, but could not as Cage had knocked Konnan down prior. Cage could’ve gone for the pin, but instead beat up Puma more, and seemed to pick a fight with Hernandez. (Hernandez had not gotten involved in anyway, Cage just saw him and challenged him too.) Herandnez got on the apron, allowing Konnan to sneak in and hit Cage with the new cane as he turned around. Puma recovered, landed the 630 senton, and remained champion.
Stray Thoughts
No tribute to Perro.
I actually read the Art of War last summer. Figured I’d heard enough wrestling promos about it, might as well just read it myself. It’s not that long; it’s the background pieces and scholarly discussion about what the words actually were supposed to mean at the time that take forever to get thru. It’s all about convincing your army they have no choice but to win, and put it in the best position to win. Putting Prince Puma and Cage in a street fight didn’t figure to be the best situation for Cage to win a street fight, but maybe Konnan figured all along that he’d eventually have a shot to use that cane at a key moment. It seemed like Cage beat himself in the end; Hernandez wasn’t going to get involved until Cage prompted him.
The dynamics of the Angelico/Son of Havoc/Ivelisse triangle seemed very changed even to start. Son of Havoc was an underdog cult favorite tecnico from the start of the match, and only solidified by dumping Ivelisse and winning. Ivelisse was much more antagonistic than in past matches. Angelico was neutral, but kind had the rudo role in the match.
Alberto and Texano was good and different than the other matches they’ve done in Mexico. One constant in Lucha Underground is the stipulation matches always emphasis the aspects making it different from other matches. The bull rope match had a ton of rope spots (Bruce Dickinson would be happy with the amount of cowbell) and a finish that wouldn’t happen in a normal match. Kind of the same thing in the street fight too.
Announcers pushed the finality of the matches – the two title matches were going to settle the issue. They gave the impression that Havoc and Ivelisse were done with each other too. And sure enough, next week is something slightly different…
