Month: January 2020

IWRG (SUN) 01/26/2020 Arena Naucalpan [+LuchaTV, The Gladiatores]
1) Dinámico & Voltrex b Águila Oriental Jr. & Spider Fly 
2) Black Dragón, Chicanito, Legendario DQ Canival King, Carnicero, Death Metal 
Metal tried to foul Black Dragon, Dragon faked it, fouled him and faked his own file.
3) Diva Salvaje, Jessy Ventura, Pasion Kristal b Oficial 911, Oficial AK47, Oficial Fierro 
4) Demonio Infernal & Fresero Jr. b El Hijo del Medico Asesino & Hijo de Pirata Morgan 
5) Black Terry, Emperador Azteca, Lindaman b Fuerza Guerrera NG, Relámpago, Súpernova 
Emperador snuck in a foul on Fuerza
6) CIMA & T-Hawk b Puma King & Séptimo Dragón and Dragón Bane & Hijo de Canis Lupus 
Relampago interfered (twice), but CIMA still snuck in a foul. Relampago/Bane/Lupus vs Stronghearts match teased.

The Golepador brothers (Bane/Lupus) left T-Hawk with a mark to remember them by. That match could’ve gone better. The Stronghearts are off next week (MLW) and then back the week after. (That lines up with the AAA show in Queretaro.) The next Naucalpan show is a trainee show on Wednesday. Sunday’s show is Lucha Libre Boom show with Hijo del Santo.

The built to match on tonight’s Arena Puebla show is Stigma versus Kawato San. There’s a couple of Mondays of feuding to set up, just as there was a month ago to set up Stigma versus Rey Cometa. Cometa’s definitely been better than Kawato in CMLL and may be ranked higher, so the match doesn’t look all that interesting.

Caristico, Soberano and Titan team up against the NGD in the main event. That’s not a match seen on FantasticaMania though it could’ve been done. Templario teams with Shocker and Vangellys against Audaz, Dulce Gardenia, and Flyer in the semi-main. It’s a small card, with just a women’s match and a 2v2 tag match to open the show. Not sure if that’ll mean one match goes long to get close to the normal two-hour show, or if it’s just a shorter show. It starts at 9 pm CT either way.

Lineups

CMLL (TUE) 01/28/2020 Arena Coliseo Guadalajara
1) Mágico & Tigre Blanco vs Paymon & Relámpago
2) Magia Blanca, Mr. Samurai, Retro vs Hijo del Signo, Inquisidor, Jabalí
3) Dulce Gardenia, Fugaz, Guerrero Maya Jr. vs Dark Magic, Kawato San, Universo 2000 Jr.
4) Kráneo, Stuka Jr., Valiente vs Ephesto, Mephisto, Vangellys
5) Ángel de Oro, Diamante Azul, Niebla Roja vs Euforia, Gran Guerrero, Último Guerrero

Nothing notable from last week. Maybe a trios title match coming out of the main event.

CMLL (SAT) 02/01/2020 Arena Coliseo
1) Bengala & Sonic vs Cholo & Yago
2) Alexandra, Lluvia, Skadi vs Amapola, Dalys, Jaelynn Miner
3) Átomo, El Gallito, Microman vs Chamuel, Mije, Perico Zakarías
4) Flyer vs Pólvora [lightning]
5) Guerrero Maya Jr., Kráneo, Volcano vs Luciferno, Shocker, Terrible
6) Cavernario, Negro Casas, Último Guerrero vs Ángel de Oro, Diamante Azul, Niebla Roja

Alexandra is probably Alex Gracia. Jaelynn Miller is fellow Texas wrestler Melia Jae. They’re among the group training for a couple of weeks after winning a tryout with Nitro in Texas. This whole process seems strange for CMLL but new blood is a good idea.

AAA TV (SAT) 01/25/2020 Pepsi Center WTC, Benito Juárez, Distrito Federal [AAA, Lucha Central, Publimetro, R de Rudo, thecubsfan]
1) Lady Maravilla & Villano III Jr. © b Big Mami & Niño Hamburguesa and Dinastía & Vanilla and Arez & Keyra [AAA MIXED TAG]  
11:26. Maravilla pinned Dinastia to keep the titles. 7th defense, 2nd on TV. Mami declared she wanted to keep teaming with Hamburguesa. Before that could advance more (maybe to a kiss), OWE’s Stronghearts debuted by attacking both Mami & Hamburguesa.
2) Máscarita Sagrada, Mr. Iguana, Taya b Abismo Negro Jr., Demus, La Hiedra  
13:46. Sagrada pinned Demus after an attempted headscissors cradle. Keyra appeared to challenge Taya to a match. Mascara Dorada announced the results of a poll that had him returning to the Mascarita Sagrada name (and mask), but was attack by Faccion Ingobernables before he could put it on. LA Park, Rush and Bestia said they were going to take out everyone in AAA (and hinted Park and Rush would fight once that was finished.)
3) Carta Brava Jr., Mocho Cota Jr., Tito Santana b Dragón Bane, Myzteziz Jr., Octagón Jr.  
10:59. Dragon Bane replaced Aramis (in US). Mocho Cota pinned Dragon Bane with a frogsplash. Argenis attacked and unmasked Myzteziz again after the match.
4) Rey Escorpión, Taurus, Texano Jr. b Hijo Del Vikingo, Murder Clown, Puma King  
12:24. Taurus beat Vikingo with a Super Rosa Driver, then Escorpion demanded a trios title match
5) Aerostar, Drago, Pagano DQ Blue Demon Jr., Chessman, Monsther Clown  
11:38. Blue Demon spit mist at Drago (!?!) and then used the hammer on him. Referee caught him using the hammer for the DQ. Demon continued to use the hammer and wanted Monster Clown to do the same. Monster Clown (now wearing half facepaint) refused and the rudos attacked him. Psycho & Murder Clown made the save, reforming Psycho Circus. LA Park, Bestia and Rush attacked the Circus, leading into the main event.
6) Fénix, Pentagón Jr., Psycho Clown DQ La Bestia Del Ring, LA Park, Rush Toro Blanco  
24:59. Ingobernables unmasked the tecnicos for the DQ, then took over the commentary booth.

This was a hot show, one slightly more focused on running a lot of angles to set up stuff for the next few months rather than paying it off tonight. AAA might have been served with a little less to focus better on fewer things, but it is tough to pick what to put off. This is a lot like Guerra de Titanes where most people would probably fall a pop quiz on all the stuff set up yet it worked in the moment.

AAA did a nice job of honoring La Parka at the start of the show. Karis La Momia Jr. appeared as part of that segment – and similarly on Friday night on Azteca – but there was no suggestion he’d be taking over the Parka character.

There is a booking problem with Facion Ingobernable, where it doesn’t appear Rush & LA Park are going to be taking any more than one clean pin a year. If Bestia also isn’t taking pins, then there’s going to be a lot more DQs like the one here. AAA avoided disqualification calls even in obvious spots in 2019 but that may be something to get used to in 2020.

Those AAA links appear to be 4-minute highlights of matches going up later in the week, with the full shows still waiting until after they air on TV. I liked the mixed tag the most, though the main event seemed to get the strongest positive reaction on Twitter.

The Pepsi Center appeared to be a full house and a hot crowd. They had people up on the stage with the strange configuration of the building, which is better than looking at the screen all night. Most of the crowd was behind the hard camera (and there were people walking in front of it all night.) Puma & Iguana were more popular than you’d expect given their roles on this show. The crowd reacted strongly for mentions of Vikingo too.

Next taping is 02/08 (Saturday) in Queretaro.

CMLL (SAT) 01/25/2020 Arena Coliseo [CMLL]
1) Fantasy & Último Dragóncito b Pequeño Olímpico & Pequeño Violencia
tecnicos took 2/3
2) Amapola, La Infernal, Tiffany b Lluvia, Mystique, Skadi
rudas took 2/3.
3) Grako, Misterioso, Tiger b Eléctrico, Magia Blanca, Retro
Grako replaced Sagrado. Rudos took 2/3.
4) Disturbio b Súper Astro Jr. [lightning]
Disturbio replaced Hijo del Signo
5) Hechicero, Kawato San, Vangellys b Audaz, Dulce Gardenia, Stuka Jr.
Tecnicos took 1/3.
6) Cavernario, Euforia, Último Guerrero b Carístico, Diamante Azul, Flyer
Rudos took 1/3.

Disturbio talked about his win.

CMLL (SUN) 01/26/2020 Arena México [CMLL]
1) Mercurio & Pierrothito b Kaligua & Shockercito
rudos took 1/3
2) Arkalis, Leono, Magnus b Apocalipsis, El Coyote, Inquisidor
tecnicos took 2/3
3) Diamond, Dulce Gardenia, Fuego DQ Cancerbero, Espíritu Negro, Raziel
straight falls, Espiritu unmasking Diamond again
4) Felino b Stuka Jr. [lightning]
Felino got the slight upset win
5) Euforia, Luciferno, Mephisto b Ángel de Oro, Flyer, Niebla Roja
rudos took 2/3
6) Carístico, Titán, Valiente b Cuatrero, Forastero, Sansón
Tecnicos took 2/3

Promos: NGD, Raziel, Cancerbero, Espiritu Negro, and Felino.

Nothing much of note on either of these, unless Felino is serious about wanting Stuka’s title and CMLL is serious about booking it.

Flash & Gallo won the Occidente Tag Team Championship in Guadalajara. That might force me to figure out which of three different people who’ve wrestled as Flash is the one who won a title.

Texano’s WWC title match aired this weekend.

Blue Demon Jr. mentioned the Disney show pilot is something that was in the works for 11 years.

El Sol de San Luis has a long interview with Humberto Garza about his career. He says his title win over Karloff Lagarde in 1968 was a one-hour twenty-minute match. He’s working as a chiropractor.

Texas wrestlers Gragam Bell and Alex Gracia say they’re heading to CMLL. They’re not currently listed on a CMLL card but they both turn up on a Rey Bucanero show, so they’re likely getting training. This might be related to those tryouts Nitro & Big Daddy (Yum Yum) held a short while ago. We’ve seen the France trainees with Nitro get added to CMLL Tuesday cards at the last second, so maybe keep those names in mind in case it happens again.

San Luis Potosi luchador Killer Machine passed away. He was an 80s luchador at Arena Coliseo San Luis Potosi.

02/22 The Crash

• Bestia 666 & Mecha Wolf (c) vs Los Traumas for The Crash Tag Team championship in a cage match
• Mesias & Orcaulo vs Jack Evans & Angelico
• Terror Azteca (c) vs Baby Xtreme vs Dinamico for The Crash Cruiserweight Junior Championship – new

CMLL (FRI) 01/24/2020 Arena México [+LuchaTV, CMLL, Marca (Niebla), Marca (results), Ovaciones, R de Rudo, The Gladiatores, TUDN]
1) Akuma & Espanto Jr. b Halcón Suriano Jr. & Magia Blanca 
11:39. Rudos took 1/3.
2) Drone, Fuego, Guerrero Maya Jr. b Olímpico, Tiger, Virus 
11:56. Tecnicos took 2/3.
3) Soberano Jr., Star Jr., Titán b Rey Bucanero, Shocker, Terrible 
11:47. Tecnicos took 1/3.
4) Cuatrero, Forastero, Sansón b Ángel de Oro, Stuka Jr. Diamante Azul, Niebla Roja 
5) Místico DQ Gran Guerrero 
Gran Guerrero unmasked Mistico for the DQ.
6) Felino, Último Guerrero, Diamante Azul Volador Jr. DQ Carístico, Cavernario, Valiente [Relevos Increíbles] 
Cavernario fouled Felino after the two feuded heavily.

Ovaciones had the Cavernario/Felino feud. They’re still insistent they’ve been feuding for weeks, despite Cavernario being in Japan for weeks. Maybe it’s all happening on Instagram. Regardless, it seems like CMLL is running with Mr. Niebla’s passing leading to the end of the Pesta Negra (Cavernario says it’s done without Niebla, Felino isn’t as sure.) Cavernario appears to be getting Angel de Oro’s spot in an apuesta feud with (and almost certain victory over) Felino. A Felino/Cavernario match will probably be received better than Felino/Oro but it still feels very strange. Pencil Felino/Cavernario in as the Homenaje a Dos Leyendas main event for the moment.

I wouldn’t say to pencil in Gran Guerrero & Mistico for that show, if only because that feels more like something CMLL would save for Aniversario. Gran Guerero and Mistico hype a mask match in their interviews. It’d be an intriguing feud that’s not as certain an outcome as it would’ve been in past years. Mistico would be a favorite, but a scenario where Mistico loses the mask on his way out of CMLL to join his family is possible. Maybe not likely, but there’s a doubt that wouldn’t have been there before.

Arena Mexico had a huge turnout. The CMLL Friday shows built around honoring a single luchador continue to draw well over the last three years. There are tragic circumstances behind this one, but it’s a concept that seems like it should be expanded. Maybe CMLL is missing the boat by doing the legends show and should be building a show around just one of them every so often.

Other promos from the show

• Halcon Suriano & Magia Blanca want to team regularly as La Nueva Fusion Lagunera
• Olimpico, Rey Bucanero & Shocker, and Mr. Niebla’s family talk about Mr. Niebla. The Zacarias vignette is heartfelt in weird CMLL fashion.

Press room interviews: Niebla’s family, Felino, Mistico (who says he turns into a Super Saiyan with crowd support), Rey Bucanero, Olimpico, Shocker, Barbaro Cavernario.

AAA returns tonight, after a 42-day layoff. The promotion kicks off their year in Mexico City’s Pepsi Center WTC. They’re expecting a full house. (There are a few different setups to the building, so it’s the ticket map suggests it’s on the big side.) The show starts at 8 pm CT and will continue to stream on Twitch.

Tonight’s show looks good if packed. That might be the trend in 2020, with more AAA people under contract and needing spots. The main event has Psycho Clown & the Lucha Brothers against Faccion Ingobernable (Rush, LA Park, Bestia del Ring.) There was a tease of a Penta/Fenix vs Rush/Bestia tag title match last night.

Blue Demon teams with Chessman & Monsther Clown against Pagano, Aerostar and Drago. The focus will be on Monster Clown avenging his mask loss to Aerostar, but there were also Chessman/Pagano and Drago/Demon issues at the end 2019. Hijo del Vikingo teams with Puma King and Murder Clown against Los Mercenarios trio of Rey Escorpion, Texano, and Taurus in what looks to be a strong match. The same goes for Poder del Norte against Octagon, Myzteziz and probably someone who isn’t Aramis. (More on that in a few paragraphs.) That match should be the prelude to a trios title match down the line.

Reina de Reinas champion Taya returns to team with Mr. Iguana & Mascarita Sagrada (Dorada) against Demus, La Hiedra and Abismo Negro Junior. The Big Mami/Lady Maravilla feud continues in the opener, where Maravilla & Villano III Jr. defend against Maravilla & Nino Hamburguesa, Arez & Keyra, and Lady Shani & Dinastia. There were a lot of crazy AAA openers last year and that looks to start of 2020 just as crazily.

The show streams at 8 pm. It’ll probably start showing up on YouTube in about 2 weeks but I’m not certain of it. Twitch VOD is still a $5/month or free with Amazon Prime thing.

Azteca TV put AAA on their networks a lot Friday night, as part of a sort of new year kick-off. After the regular AAA show, they had a red carpet event in Azteca’s Mexico City studios. About 50 AAA luchadors were there. Pentagon Jr., Fenix, La Bestia del Ring, and Rush were front and center, with Dorian Roldan saying they were part of the AAA roster this year. Penta & Fenix are exclusive to AAA in Mexico for this year. It came off as if Rush & Bestia were as well. Azteca’s write up of the event mentions Dragon Lee will be appearing in AAA events as well.

AAA did not announce a date/location for TripleMania yet. There’s not always certain TripleMania main event by now, but AAA’s announced the date well in advance for the last few years. There’s no indication of any issue, just it is unusual. Maybe that announcement comes tonight.

Laredo Kid’s time on Exatlon ended yesterday. He was eliminated from the show after barely escaping last week. Laredo Kid again could’ve used an elimination medal from a teammate but wanted to earn his way into staying himself and it didn’t happen this time. There’s video of Laredo leaving the show and his post-show exit interview. These shows are taped about a week ahead of time, so he’s probably been home for a few days. He’s probably about 2-3 weeks away from returning to the ring. I guess a non-wrestling appearance today is not out of the question since he’s probably going to be in Mexico City he’s going to be doing press, but he’ll probably not be wrestling on Twitch until the Guadalajara show at the earliest.

I was at the AAW show last night. The one AAA relevant bit is Killer Kross had an unstated farewell appearance. Kross still has a few known indie bookings – he’s in MLW on 02/01 – so it remains possible he could sneak in an AAA appearance before he moves onto his next step. (That’s still believed to be WWE.) Kross didn’t seem to be mentioned on the Azteca presentation by name, which suggests they’re moving on Aramis worked the AAW show and is on GALLI Sunday night. I suspect he’s still in the Chicago area and will not be wrestling tonight for AAA.

Mr. Iguana told his hometown paper he signed with AAA for three years.

02/22 The Crash

• Bestia 666 & Mecha Wolf (c) vs Los Traumas for The Crash Tag Team championship in a cage match
• Mesias & Orcaulo vs Jack Evans & Angelico

03/07 MexaWrestling in Monterrey’s Arena Femenil

• Golden Boy & Simbolo vs el Divo & Corazon de Barrio

RIOT announced Alex Zayne for their 03/28 show.

LuchaWorld has a new LuchaWorld Podcast.

Lineups

IWRG (WED) 01/29/2020 Arena Naucalpan
1) Lemuria, Príncipe Jr., Spider Fly vs Baby Star, Blue Monsther, Zika
2) Chicanito, Príncipe Aéreo, Salchichita vs Carnicero, Dinámico, Tromba
3) Ángel Estrella Jr., Chef Benito, Noicy Boy vs Canival King, Especie Maligna, Voltrex
4) Águila Oriental Jr., Biosfrea, Puma de Oro vs Atomic Star, Death Metal, Rey Halcón
5) Ángel Drago, Galactus, Güero Tijuana, Marduk, Omega Jr., Rey Gato, Taurino, Ultra Mega vs Internacional Mara, Magneto, Pantera Jr., Príncipe Rebelde, Rayado, Rey Quetzal, Rugido, Versal
Gum Zeus (Taurino) vs Gym Tepito (Rugido) 0winning team advances to a Copa High Power match on 02/16

A not-High Power match to build to a High Power match is soon.

CMLL (FRI) 01/31/2020 Arena México
1) Arkalis & Robin vs Akuma & Espanto Jr.
2) Diamond, Drone, Fuego vs Kawato San, Okumura, Virus
3) Atlantis Jr., Star Jr., Stuka Jr. vs Ephesto, Mephisto, Negro Casas
4) Soberano Jr. vs Templario [lightning]
5) Ángel de Oro, Niebla Roja, Titán vs Euforia, Gilbert el Boricua, Gran Guerrero
6) Carístico, Cavernario, Valiente vs Diamante Azul, Felino, Último Guerrero [Relevos Increíbles]

The main event is a rematch with all the focus on Felino & Cavernario. Negro Casas is back and working third from the top for some reason. Gilbert is back, but Mistico is off this week.

Soberano/Templario is always very good.