Gran Alternativa, The Crash, CMLL Heavyweight tournament, AAA TV in the UK

The CMLL Gran Alternativa returns tonight. CMLL’s sometime annual tag team tournament featuring a rookie and a veteran teaming isn’t as it was in the early days, when it was the only way to get a glimpse of the younger members of the roster. Still, it’s kind of an indication of who’s CMLL might be high in the moment.

You can see the entire history of the tournament on the luchawiki (and I’ll get the wiki logo back soon once I can find it.) Esfinge won last year with Volador, Esfinge is back in the tournament this year, so it hasn’t quite worked out for Esfinge yet. It did work out better for Barbaro Cavernario when they ran it prior in 2014. Recent winners prior to that include Bobby Zavala (who kind of stalled out until being fired), Euforia (moved him up a little) and Rey Escorpion (which ended up meaning a lot.) Winning this tournament doesn’t mean you’ll become Mistico, but it can pull someone up from the pool of guys in the third match to the pool of guys in the fourth match, and the fourth match guys actually get things to do.

This is block A of a two block tournament. It’s not the most loaded block. We can rule out Pegasso & Blue Panther, Stigma & Titan, and Espanto Jr. & Kraneo without a second thought. Forastero has yet to be as pushed as hard as his cousins when he’s on his own, so nah to him too. CMLL’s cooled down on Esfinge and it would look silly to have him in the final two years in a row; CMLL is willing to look silly, but I don’t think they’ll do it here (though a run to the block final is possible.) Star Jr. hasn’t gotten any special attention, but he’s with Mistico so he has a shot. It’s really more a matter of which of the Cien Caras sons CMLL prefers more in the moment, if they’re that much higher on Sanson to put him in two straight rookie tournament finals, or if they’ll make us endure four Mascara 2000 matches to give Cuatrero the spot this time.

It’s an overloaded CMLL card, 12 matches if you include the battle royal. The battle royal is dumb because it’s a match no one should bother to win, but it’s especially dumb on this kind of show. Even people jumping out of the ring like they’re abandoning ship will still kill about seven minutes of time, and this is a show that needs to save as much time as it can. CMLL added Rey Cometa versus Dragon Rojo to show, a match which I’d normally want to see, but is only going to compress things more. There’s a time limit to these shows, and they’re going to have a hard time meeting it as is.

The other matches are Hechicero, Pierroth, Rush versus Negro Casas, Rey Bucanero, Vangellys, and Drone, Fuego, and Guerrero Maya Jr. versus Disturbio, Misterioso, Virus, and Shockercito & Stukita versus Mercurio & Pequeno Violencia. Some of those matches look good, but they’re not going to be what they could be because there’s just not enough room. It’s a rare CMLL card where the results are going to be more interesting than the matches.

This show should air on ClaroSports at 8:30pm.  However, last week they started airing the show on Facebook Live on the Marca Claro’s account. They seem to moving away from the old streaming software (the last remaining page of the their old site) and I think eventually it’ll be a Facebook only deal. We’ll figure it out tonight, but prepare for some change.

CMLL has a preview of the show. Shocker talked about his return to ClaroSports.

Meanwhile, the more exciting show tonight is in Tijuana for the The Crash. It’s a benefit show for Nicho/Psicosis I to help pay for an operation. He’s still working, teaming with Mr. Aguila & Damian against Daga, Garza and old rival Rey Mysterio. The semimain is Penta & Fenix against Black Terry & Skayde; that’s the logical place for La Mascara & Maximo to make an appearance. I hope they don’t, because I really just wanted to see that match.

The undercard includes a great looking Flamita versus Rey Hourz title match, Arkangel versus Latigo in another title match, a five way that continues the feuds going in the undercard, and Jack Evans & Zorro versus Bestia 666 & Hijo del Pirata Morgan. That last one follows up Jack Evans selling Bestia’s valagueza so back that people thought he had real medical condition, but I don’t think anyone’s really thought about it much since.

There’s no telling when/if we’ll see this show. Their shows have ended up on YouTube in the past, but I have no idea what will happen here. It’s a shame if we’ll miss it, but it’s been a shame for half a year now and the closest they’ve gotten is “they’ll get it done next month.” I don’t know much, but I know it’s not that hard to put something on YouTube if you want to put it on YouTube.

AAA TV starts in the UK on Front Runner TV on June 14th at 7pm, and will air Wednesdays. I’d assume this is the same show that’s airing on The Fight Network, and airing a bit inconsistently there. Front Runner is a new station; I think it’s been around about a year, but it doesn’t even seem to have a wikipedia page. They list a big reach and it is over the air, but I’m guessing it’s along the lines of LATV in the US, where people can get it but don’t know or aren’t normally seeking it out so it may not be a big deal.

+LuchaTV has a new interview with Pierroth, Rush, Septiembre Negro II and Mistico.

LuchaWorld has a new edition of Lucha Classica talking about the start of AAA.

Ram el Carnero took Gemelo Diablo‘s hair in Pachuca on Sunday in a match that wasn’t scheduled. Diablo showed up halfway during the main event, a match he wasn’t in, challenged Ram el Carnero to a hair match, and lost.

Lineups

CMLL (TUE) 06/06/2017 Arena Coliseo Guadalajara
1) Cosmos, Shockercito, Stukita vs Mercurio, Micro, Relámpago Azul
Micro replaced Pierrothito on 06/01.
2) Magnus, Star Jr., Starman vs Puma, Sangre Azteca, Tiger
3) Mr. Niebla vs Rush, Marco Corleone, Gran Guerrero, Pierroth, Terrible, Dragón Rojo Jr., Rey Bucanero, Kráneo, Euforia [CMLL HEAVY, cibernetico]
Cibernetico for vacant championship (Maximo), probably final two advance to next week.

Tuesday’s card from Guadalajara is all changed around to accommodate the heavyweight tournament. It’s strange of CMLL to do that – they could’ve just as easily had it take place the following week. The wording says this is a cibernetico to determine a new champion, but they usually end up having the final two advance to next week.

Rush, Marco and Terrible seem like the three guys with a best shot. CMLL almost never puts title on the foreigners, so probably more so Rush & Terrible.

AAA TV (FRI) 06/30/2017 Gimnasio Miguel Hidalgo, Puebla, Puebla
1) Aerostar, Drago, Raptor vs Carta Brava Jr., Mocho Cota Jr., Soul Rocker
2) Argenis, La Parka, Lanzeloth vs Averno, Chessman, Súper Fly
3) Bengala, Hijo del Fantasma, Máscara de Bronce vs ?, Australian Suicide, Kevin Kross
4) Johnny Mundo © vs Texano Jr. [AAA HEAVY]
first defense
5) Dr. Wagner Jr. vs El Mesías
list as a rematch of TripleMania XXIV, actually XVII
6) Psycho Clown vs Pagano
rematch of TripleMania XXIV

These lineups appear to be meaningless, so I’m not bothering with writing much about them. (That’s why you’re not reading a Verano de Escandalo preview on VOW today, too.) It is notable that Johnny Mundo is booked for this show, since he’s always on the shows when they scheduled him for a match. He’ll be back before this show but, the last time we saw him in AAA, Vampiro had ordered him to defend his title against Hijo del Fantasma. Guess they forgot.

Hijo del Fantasma promoted this show locally by noting it was the same venue he debuted in AAA four years ago. I’m uncertain if he’s any better off from the day he started in AAA. Lanzeloth looks like he’s been places in Ricky Mravin’s spot and I still have no idea.