Day: March 5, 2018

Rey Mysterio

Rey Mysterio suffered an arm injury Saturday night on a show in Connecticut. No one seem sure when it happens, only that Mysterio felt it happen during the match and still was able to finish it.

PW Insider says Rey will undergo surgery to see extent of the injury today. If he needs surgery to repair a bicep, normal recovery is 4-6 months. If it can heal on it’s own, it’s more like 4-6 weeks and it’s possible he’ll wrestle thru it. The Crash and other promotions are probably waiting to find out how bad it is before they announce a replacement. They’re going to be in a tough spot, as Rey defending their heavyweight championship versus Bestia 666 was intended to be the main event of the 03/17 show. There’s no simple way to replace him.

Pura Raza

Pura Raza (SAT) 03/03/2018 Arena Lopez Mateos [+LuchaTV, Black Terry Jr. (Flickr), MedioTiempo, R de Rudo]
1) Cometa & Súper Terry b Ángel De La Tormenta & Chico del Barrio
AULL trainees
2) Hijo del Villano III & Onix b Fireman & Troyano
CMLL trainees
3) Jean Montañez & Pierre Montañez b Hijo del Solar & Trauma I
Solar Jr. replaced Trauma II, who could not participate for medical reasons. Montanez brothers are said to be MMA practitioners.
4) Princesa Sugehit b Zeuxis
Sugehit pulled Zeuxis’ mask and cradled her for the win.
5) Audaz & Titán b Sádico & Yoruba
money thrown in.
6) Blue Panther b Hechicero
Panther & Hechicero went to a double pin draw, but the commission said they could have another fall. Panther beat Hechicero in that extra fall.
7) Cuatrero, Forastero, Sansón DQ Dragón Lee, Mistico, Rush  
DQ for a Rush foul on Forastero.

Pura Raza posted results live and asked for feedback on their show, so they’re already in my good graces. Attendance seemed ok – not a sell out, not a bad turnout. Matches sound like they generally went well. The show was being taped with the idea of releasing it later – Miguel Reducino was there and might have been announcing it – but there’s no guarantee of any lucha footage being released. There are handhelds of matches already up on YouTube.

There was a fight between some fans before the MMA vs Trauma/Solar match.

2018 is lucha libre reviews the Audaz & Titan vs Yoruba & Sadico.

IWRG (SUN) 03/04/2018 Arena Naucalpan [+LuchaTV, Black Terry Jr. (Flickr), The Gladaitores]
1) Celestial Boy & Seiya b Full Contact & Power Bull
straight falls
2) Lilith Dark & Luna Mágica b Cristal & Dulce Luna
straight falls
3) Demonio Infernal & Eterno b Relámpago & Súper Brazo Jr.
4) Rokambole Jr. & Villano V Jr. b Black Warrior & Warrior Jr.
non-title preview of next week’s title match.
5) Ricky Marvin b Dr. Cerebro
Dr. Cerbero had his hand on the ropes on the pinfall but the referee missed it. Very good match.
6) Capo Del Norte, Capo Del Sur, Máscara Año 2000 Jr. b Liderk, Spartan, Spector [super libre]
Mascara 2000 gave Spartan a Martinete.
7) Aramis, Hijo del Pantera, Internacional Pantera b Ovett, Trauma I, Trauma II [seconds hair]
Hair bet was referees Baby Richard (Panteras) and Capu (Traumas), who were both referees in this match and ended up fouling each other. Trauma I went to get a new referee and found Chabelo. Trauma II had Pantera pinned in the mean time, but Pantera reversed the pin when Chabelo arrived and Trauma II was pinned. Capu lost his hair.

And now the referees will just revert back to normal, I guess.

03/18 in Arena Azteca Budokan has Dr. Wagner Jr. vs Hijo del Wagner vs Rey Escorpion. The Wagners using AAA TV to get their own feud over for indie shows (where AAA is likely not getting a cut) is pretty strong work on their end.

 

LuchaWorld has the latest news update.

Lineups

IWRG (SUN) 03/11/2018 Arena Naucalpan
1) Haziel vs Soma
2) Dragón Yuki vs Súper Brazo Jr.
3) Hijo del Pantera & Internacional Pantera vs Eterno & Gallo Frances and Aramis & Máscara Magica Jr.
4) Ricky Marvin vs Dr. Cerebro [super libre]
5) Hijo De Dos Caras, Hijo del Alebrije, Veneno vs El Hijo del Medico Asesino, Máscara Año 2000 Jr., Ovett
6) Black Warrior & Black Warrior Jr. © vs Rokambole Jr. & Villano V Jr. [IWRG IC TAG]
3rd defense

Neither team is here much beyond this title program so it doesn’t seem to matter who is champion. I guess it matter to them some.

CMLL (SAT) 03/03/2018 Arena Coliseo
1) Angelito & Fantasy b Pequeño Universo 2000 & Pequeño Violencia
tecnicos took 2/3.
2) Amapola, Dalys, Tiffany b Kaho Kobayashi, La Vaquerita, Marcela
Rudos took 2/3.
3) Hijo del Signo & Sagrado b Flyer, Magnus, Disturbio, Astral, Espanto Jr., Príncipe Diamante [Arena Coliseo TAG, battle royal] 
4) Magnus & Sensei b Príncipe Diamante & Robin [Arena Coliseo TAG, 8f] 
5) Disturbio & Virus b Arkángel de la Muerte & Espanto Jr. [Arena Coliseo TAG, 8f] 
6) Astral & Stigma b Flyer & The Panther [Arena Coliseo TAG, 8f] 
7) Misterioso Jr. & Sagrado b Arkángel de la Muerte & Hijo del Signo [Arena Coliseo TAG, 8f] 
8) Disturbio & Virus b Magnus & Sensei [Arena Coliseo TAG, quarterfinal] 
9) Flyer & The Panther b Misterioso Jr. & Sagrado [Arena Coliseo TAG, quarterfinal] 
10) Disturbio & Virus b Flyer & The Panther [Arena Coliseo TAG, semifinal] 
Disturbio & Virus face Triton & Esfinge next week for the vacant championship
11) Rush b Euforia
Rush used the ropes.

Disturbio & Virus are a bit of a surprise. Maybe this is a reward for Disturbio doing well in Japan, maybe this leads to Virus winning the tag titles to set up matches with Audaz, maybe it’s just them being good opponents for Esfinge & Triton.

CMLL (SUN) 03/04/2018 Arena México [CMLL, Ovaciones]
1) Magia Blanca & Robin b Grako & Inquisidor
Tecnicos took 2/3
2) Cancerbero, Raziel, Sangre Azteca b Astral, Oro Jr., Star Jr.
Rudos took 2/3.
3) Audaz, Guerrero Maya Jr., Titán b Kawato San, Okumura, Universo 2000 Jr.
tecnicos took 1/3.
4) Cuatrero, Forastero, Sansón DQ Ángel de Oro, Niebla Roja, Stuka Jr.
Rudos took 1/3. Cuatrero destroyed Angel de Oro’s mask, causing him to leave the match in the second fall. Angel de Oro returned with a new mask, but Cuatrero tossed his own mask to Angel de Oro to draw the DQ.
5) Dragón Lee b Cavernario
Dragon Lee toko 2/3. Said to be a great match.
6) La Bestia Del Ring, Rush, Terrible DQ Diamante Azul, Último Guerrero, Volador Jr. [Relevos Increíbles]
straight falls DQ; Los Ingobernables DQed in the first for excessive violence, and the second for a Rush foul on Volador. UG asked for a rematch next week. CMLL results list Pierroth as La Bestia del Ring (so he finally got his name change.)

It took Pierroth one full year to get his name change to La Bestia del Ring. Even the Munoz can’t get things done quick in CMLL.

CMLL briefly listed a live stream for this show. My guess is this show was being recorded and someone thought CMLL would stream it. They did not, because reasons. Meanwhile, Lucha Azteca returned to showing Friday matches in the US.

CMLL’s post show interviews includes words from NGD, Dragon Lee and Los Ingobernables.

CMLL (SUN) 03/04/2018 Arena Coliseo Guadalajara [CMLL]
1) Amperaje b Paymon
2) Capitán Cobra & Principe Daniel b El Gitano & Mr. Apolo
tecnicos took 1/3. Gitano’s first match here in 9 months (which was also a one match stint.)
3) Johnny Dinamo & Tigre Blanco b Linterna & Mr. Brisa
tencicos took 2/3
4) El Alteño, Explosivo, Neutrón b Exterminador, Joker, Mr. Trueno
tecnicos took 2/2, setting up an Explosivo/Mr. Trueno mask match next week.
5) Frezzer, Furia Roja, Guerrero de la Muerte b Mágico, Magnum, Rielero
Rudos took 1/3. Rielero replaced Metatron. Maya got in a foul on Rielero to win.

notable because the results are very clear on the mask match happening next Sunday.

CMLL on ROH’s Manhattan Mayhem:

• Punishment Martinez beat Soberano Jr.
• Volador Jr. & Dalton Castle beat Ultimo Guerrero & Jay Lethal

The tag match was slow at first, but got pretty good by the end and turned out to be one of the better matches on the show.

Martinez/Soberano was a borderline disaster. Both guys seemed at fault and the circumstances were bad. It was scheduled to be the opener, and turned out to be later in the show because the CMLL guys didn’t arrive until late due to travel issues. (The Friday Arena Mexico, Saturday New York, Sunday back to Mexico schedule did no one any favors.) The concept seemed to be Punishment Martinez impressively shrugging off some of Soberano’s big shots, but some of those big shots just totally missed. It was unclear if Soberano was just missing or if Punishment Martinez wasn’t in the right place. Soberano did get to do impressive dives late but the crowd had already turned on the match.

Caristico must’ve healed quick, because he was back wrestling Sunday night after being too hurt to wrestle Friday. It seems like there’s another story here. The timing of the ELITE deal falling apart may be a connection. Caristico is currently not listed on an upcoming CMLL show, but we only have lineups for a few days.

On a show in Chetumal, Mephisto & Okumura lost to local wrestlers Hades & Guerrero Galactico. Hades pinned Mephisto, and Mephisto agreed to come back in April (sometime around Kid’s Day) and put up his title in a title match for a rare indie title defense.

Running 03/16 Homenaje a Dos Leyendas lineup

• Angel de Oro vs Cuatrero, mask vs mask
• Valiente & Volador vs the winners of this week’s tag title block for the CMLL Tag Team Championship
• Matt Taven, Dalys, Zeuxis, Templario and Audaz to appear.

That last four were added today. I’d figure Audaz & Templario in the opener, the women in the second, and Matt Taven in the top trios match.

Spots are filling up quick. WWE has a ludicrous storyline about John Cena being in danger of not having a spot on WrestleMania. WWE will always add a match to find a spot for John Cena. AAA seemed like they added a match to find a spot for Faby & Shani last night. CMLL does not add matches; the people who lose in the tag team block on Friday might find themselves on the outside on of CMLL’s second biggest show of the year.

Tonight’s CMLL in Puebla show has the second in three days of Cavernario. He took the loss to Dragon Lee on Sunday, and now has to find a way to upset Volador. These two had an excellent match last year. I’m reluctant to expect too much from them tonight; this will be Volador’s sixth match in four days with a long trip back and forth from New York in between, and Cavernario knows he’s got a tough task with Atlantis tomorrow. Half effort might still be pretty good, but it might be all we get.

The rest of top half of the Puebla card has some releovos incredibles matches. Mistico, Pierroth (at least on the poster) and Rush of the Munoz family take on Diamante Azul, Euforia, and Mr. Niebla in one. Hechicero, Kraneo, and Stuka face Johnny Idol, Sam Adonis and Titan in another, following up the Kraneo versus Johnny Idol feud. Idol & Adonis should accuse Kraneo being an illegal alien. Audaz is back in action, teaming with Stigma and Triton against Puma, Tiger and Malayo. The second match is Rey Samuray & Tgire Rojo Jr. vs Akuma & Espanto Jr., which is one Espanto Jr. from being interesting. The opener 2v2 match is about four people from being interesting.

The show will air at 9pm. This is the last Puebla show to start at 9pm CT in the US for a month. Daylight Savings Time arrives this weekend and everyone is going to be confused.

Lineups

CMLL (SAT) 03/10/2018 Arena Coliseo
1) Bengala & Sensei vs Cholo & Grako
2) Acero, Fantasy, Shockercito vs Pequeño Olímpico, Pequeño Universo 2000, Pequeño Violencia
3) Flyer, Pegasso, Star Jr. vs Misterioso Jr., Sagrado, Universo 2000 Jr.
4) Blue Panther Jr., Rey Cometa, The Panther vs Okumura, Olímpico, Pólvora
5) Esfinge & Tritón vs Disturbio & Virus [Arena Coliseo TAG, final]
6) Atlantis, Dragón Lee, Niebla Roja vs Cavernario, Felino, Negro Casas

I think Esfinge & Triton are slight favorites because they have matching outfits. This is what matters.

Useless facts: when CMLL brought these titles back in 2000, the Stone Brothers (Alan & Chris) won them in a tournament final. The team they defeated was Fugaz & Virus. Virus has since challenged with Polvora, Arkangel, and Hechicero and has never won.

AAA TV (SUN) 03/04/2018 Acropolis Puebla, Puebla, Puebla [2018 is lucha libre, AAA, MedioTiempo (main), MedioTiempo (TLC), MedioTiempo (tournament), Record (main), Record (rest), Record (tournament), SuperLuchas, thecubsfan] ament), SuperLuchas, thecubsfan]
Rey de Reyes, 2018
1) Faby Apache b Lady Shani 
5:44. Faby Apache German suplex.
2) Rey Escorpión b Angelikal, Dave The Clown, Pimpinela Escarlata [Rey de Reyes, semifinal] 
7:12. Rey Escorpion package piledriver Angelikal.
3) Bengala b Dark Scoria, Máscara de Bronce, Argenis [Rey de Reyes, semifinal] 
6:50. Bengala Fire Driver on Mascara de Bronce.
4) Hijo Del Vikingo b Ángel Mortal Jr., Dark Cuervo, Pagano [Rey de Reyes, semifinal] 
8:42. Vikingo reverse 450 splash Angel Mortal Jr.
5) La Parka b Dinastía, Venum, El Mesías [Rey de Reyes, semifinal] 
7:24. La Parka fouled Mesias and armbared Mesias, who didn’t sell it. Parka and Mesias “brawled” after the match.
6) Carta Brava Jr., Mocho Cota Jr., Tito Santana b Averno, Chessman, Súper Fly [TLC] 
13:53. Mocho Cota beat Spanish Fly on Averno.
7) Rey Escorpión b La Parka, Hijo Del Vikingo, Bengala [Rey de Reyes, final] 
7:38. Escorpion beat Parka with a backcracker after Dave tripped him up.
8) Hernandez, Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr., Monsther Clown, Murder Clown b Dr. Wagner Jr., La Máscara, Máximo, Psycho Clown 
10:12. Hijo del Wagner beat Dr. Wagner Jr. with a german suplex.
9) Hijo del Fantasma b Texano Jr. [mask, hair] 
12:57. Hijo del Fantasma beat Texano with the Thrill of the Hunt after Tirantes was taken away due to blood loss.

This won’t start to air until March 31 on Space and April 7 on Televisa. It’s going to be an increasingly long time for these shows to turn up on YouTube. The good news is you really don’t have to see anything on here right away. I went back and forth on OK/GOOD grades for the Fantasma/Texano match. Either way, it’s nothing along the lines of what you would hope to see out of those two and strangely didn’t end up the longest match of the night.

It appeared the show had to end at 9:30 by the way they rushed off the air quickly after the hair match, to the point where we barely saw Texano get any hair cut before they went off the air. I’m told he did get the hair all the way cut. (And here’s the video.) That wouldn’t seem to be a Twitch issue since they don’t have those time restrictions. Perhaps it was some window with the (satellite?) company they were using to stream the show, or some additional support they were getting. They had that time limit going in, whatever the reason. AAA added a 9th match, the first match didn’t hit the ring until 22 minutes in, and they spent a fair amount of time between the match so Vampiro could appear on Twitch many times. Time management was pretty poor, and it probably contributed to Fantasma & Texano disappointing again.

Vampiro wrote a Facebook post about talent being very upset about “some production issues”. It’s tough to narrow down which one he’s talking about. There are too many options. It could be the time issue. It could be whatever happened with Mesias, where he was clearly very unhappy about the result of his match and did his best to shrug it off. (It’s hard to understand why AAA would have him lose in his return match, especially when Venom and Dinastia were already being buried in the match.) It could be whatever happened with La Parka, who looked completely unhappy to be out there for the main event. The Alvarados didn’t seem too pleased with how their match went. It could be something completely different. It does not seem like the show was all that smooth. I poked fun at Vampiro’s list of jobs, because it’s hard to believe he’s doing most of the stuff he says he’s doing, but even the stuff he’s really doing is enough for one person and adding weird stuff like showing up in a box during the show is taking away from whatever stuff he’s supposed to be doing a show. If AAA wants Vampiro to be the star of the show, and it certainly seems that way when he gets time to talk after every match, maybe he shouldn’t be in charge of running the show too.

Angelikal, Mascara de Bronce, Hijo del Vikingo, Fantasma Sr. and probably a couple more all got stretchered out. My belief is all were planned spots. (Vikingo too.) It was absurd to do it that many time when they’re all going to be never mentioned again. People, Vampiro included, have talked about wrestlers not selling impacts enough during matches, but the selling of these impacts after the match is far worse.

Hijo del Dr. Wagner wants says he wants to face his father in a title or retirement match at TripleMania. That title match is happening, and AAA might wait five months.

AAA also had post match press conference interviews with Fantasma, Poder del Norte, and Rey Escorpion.

The next show is scheduled on 03/17 in Cuernavaca, which would be a 8pm start locally and a 9pm CT start if you’re in the US. (Daylight Savings Time gap month is coming.) There’s still no lineup for that show, one should be out in the next couple days.