Wednesday, one of the many questions I had was “why do you run a paid private show on Wednesday morning (instead of a more usual time)?” Well, you run a paid private show on Wednesday morning because you’ve already booked Saturday for a different, paid, private show. This one is for Servicio Panamericano union.
…but our dear amigo Mistico! He’s alive! He’s in one piece! All good news. He’s wearing even more protection on his shoulder, as if they’ve found the magic shoulder formula. I hope so! I don’t think so! But if he’s working here, he’ll be on the Fantasticamania shows, and so at least that part of the story is no longer a story. The part of the story about CMLL putting a guy who’s clearly still damaged and appears to be a danger to himself goes on.
Luchadors are crazy people. CMLL is run by luchadors.
Maximo worked Guadalajara Tuesday night, so poor guy. I’m still just looking thru all the stuff I have to catch up on, so I’m not sure if this was mentioned elsewhere previously, but it was the first I heard of it too.
Apparently, Mistico worked the show, his second match back and his second match in about 18 hours. And…
…it’s also his latest injury. There’s no mention of what he hurt or how he hurt it, or really even how bad it is. Being taken to emergency is a never a good sign, so I’m assuming this is severe enough to keep him out a while. Again, this is a private show, so we may not actually see what actually happen and will only find out more if CMLL shares it.
This injury is an unbelievably cruel turn of events. I’m not a big fan of this Mistico, and I’m definitely not a big fan of how CMLL’s using him, but this is just tragic right now and all I want to do is be sympathetic. I’m also afraid the reality of the situation was Mistico wasn’t completely healthy, but he was back because CMLL needed him to be back – possibly as much for this mystery Wednesday 10 AM show as for NJPW – and it’s Mistico who pays the price. Third major injury in six months. Lucha libre is not a pain free sport, but it’s not meant to be this either. You’re doing it wrong.
I hope Mistico gets whatever rest he needs this time. And I hope there are some angry people who force some changes here. This should not be continuing.
No idea where this leaves the NJPW shows; not sure if there’d be visa issues with sending a replacement or if that could be worked out in time. Easiest option might just be moving Mascara Dorada or Titan up to Mistico’s spot – but then, that’s been the easiest option all along.
IWRG FILL (TUE) 11/13/2012Arena Naucalpan [Black Terry Jr. (flickr), Estrellas del Ring] 1) Caballero Cid, Driger, Obscurio b Mercenario de la Muerte, Principe Infernal, Skullmetal 2) Infierno Kid, Radical, Súper Black b Alas de Acero, Atomic Star, Xtreme Boy 3) Fly Star, Seiya, Serpiente de Oro b Blue Monsther, Power Bull, Ranchero 4) Araña de Plata Jr., Dragón Celestial, Galaxy b Blasfemia, Fulgore, Matrix Jr. Blasfemia replaced Guerrero Mistico. 5) Boykot, Flemyzeer, Halcón Diabólico, Jhon Crazy, Kimby, Mr. Leo, Rey Espacial, Rey Tabú b Alan Extreme, Centvrión, Dinamic Black, Eita, Eterno, Imposible, Saruman, Violencia Jr. [Copa Higher Power] FILL trainees vs Gimnasio Fuerza Konkreto (Fuerza Guerrera). Kimby impressed of the Fuerza guys. Match came down to Mr. Leo vs Centviron, with Fuerza intefering to give his guy the win. Black Terry was very unhappy, and their were rematches and other challenges made.
CMLL (MON) 11/12/2012Arena Puebla [Porra Fresa]
1) Akron & Siki Ozama Jr. b Black Tiger & Blue Center Rudos took 1/3.
2) Dalis la Caribeña, Lady Afrodita, Marcela b La Vaquerita, Mima Shimoda, Zeuxis Tecnicos took 2/3, Marcela defeating Zeuxis for the win. Vaquerita, working against Afrodita, looked lost at times.
3) Skándalo b Metatrón [lightning] Reyna Isis accompanied Skandalo. Skandalo won with the Skandalo Driver. Metatron had one of his better performances.
4) Hijo del Fantasma, Sagrado, Triton b Misterioso Jr., Namajague, Shigeo Okumura Tecnicos took 1/3, Fantasma surprising Misterioso with a roll up.
5) La Sombra, Máximo, Rush DQ Tama Tonga, Terrible, Tiger Tecnicos took 1/3, Terrible fouling Sombra in the third fall. Sombra challenged Terrible to a singles match, but Terrible just left.
6) Mephisto b Mistico Mephisto won the first with a powerbomb, Mistico came back in the second with a torito. Mistico landed his rope crossing dive late in the ring, then landed a shooting star press once without being able to get the pin. Moments later, he went for another, but his feet hit the the ropes on the way down and Mistico crashed shoulder first into the mat. Mistico attempted to cover Mephisto anyway, but Mephisto put him in an armbar and Mistico immediately gave up. The doctor and Tirantes attended to Mistico after the match.
CMLL hasn’t said anything about Mistico’s status, but the local promoter in Durango says Mistico has suffered a shoulder injury and will not be wrestling at their show on Sunday, though he will be appearing to sign autographs. Hope he didn’t hurt his signing shoulder. Delta replaces him on that card. Mistico is supposed to be on Friday night’s Arena Mexico show, and no replacement has been announced yet.
photo by Yahoo Mexico
CMLL (TUE) 11/13/2012Arena Mexico [CMLL, Estrellas del Ring, Yahoo Deportes (Photos)]
1) Espanto Jr. & Herodes Jr. b Metatrón & Oro Jr.
2) Demus 3:16, Pequeño Olímpico, Pequeño Warrior b Astral, Bam Bam, Pequeño Halcón Rudos took 1/3. Bam Bam’s latest return, though it ended with Demus dropping him with his piledriver so he could be gone again. Olimpico also submitted Ultimo Dragon.
3) Fuego, Stuka Jr., Triton DQ Hijo del Signo, Shigeo Okumura, Vangelis Stuka & Okumura are feuding (or maybe this is the Coliseo tag team feud again.) Stuka beat fall 1, then the rudos were DQed for excessive violence in the second.
4) Blue Panther, Máscara Dorada, Valiente b Niebla Roja, Pólvora, Rey Escorpión Straight falls for the tecnicos when the rudos fell apart. Polvora sided with Rey Escorpion and Niebla Roja wasa left without his mask.
5) Negro Casas b Ángel de Oro [lightning] Negro continued his dominance over Angel de Oro with a win in 8:49.
6) Tama Tonga & Terrible b Atlantis & Diamante Azul [CMLL TAG] Atlantis & Diamante Azul came in as champions, but Tonga & Terrible pulled the shocking upset, taking falls 1/3 to win the titles.
MedioTiempo has an interview with Mesias. He talks a bit about his match with Texano, but also calls LA Park his toughest rival since coming to Mexico, and trashes Carlito as someone’s been handing everything and used his influence to keep Mesias from going to WWE.
I will be losing AYM Sports from my cable system on 12/12. AYM has broadcasts Sobre el Ring (the Javier Llanes/Jaque Mate interview show) and various independent groups (Revolution Free Style! FULL!), but is most notable for broadcasting IWRG’s Sunday shows the last couple months. I’m going to miss those, there’s been some really great and fun matches during this short run. The show drives me crazy because I’m up until way too late to put it together for the Tuesday post, but I’ve been thrilled to share the matches with everyone else. We’ve got four more Mondays to go.
I think it may be a case where everyone in the United States is losing AYM; this is not a surprise, one of you mentioned a month back they tried to sign up to get the channel only to be told AYM was going away by their cable system. The channel that replaces it is “Latin American Sports“, and is owned by the same parent company, so they may have simply decided to change which channel they wanted to transmit to the US. AYM Sports itself will still keep broadcasting in Mexico and continue the lucha libre shows, I just won’t be able to share them. The channel description for Latin American Sports says it too broadcasts wrestling (possibly from Puerto Rico?), but does not say what. It’s supposedly already on DISH Network, but I can’t find a guide with a programming listing and there is no website.
Murder Clown is upset the Infierno Rockers would attack them from behind. That’s not very gentlemanly! There’s also talk about the Psycho Circus wanting the trios titles back. It’s seemed like AAA may be doing a Psycho Circus vs Consejo trios title rematch (with Silver defending the title instead of Texano), and that’s suggested in this article agian, but maybe it’ll turn out to be three way with the Rockers?
Joe Lider & Kaientai will face off in a hair vs mask match on NGX’s 10th anniversary show.
R de Rudo has a podcast talking about Eddie Guerrero, 7 years after his passing. Perros del Mal will also discuss Eddie Guerrero on their podcast.
AAA’s website has an article about how AAAwesome AAA is. If they really want talk about how they have zero taboos, maybe they can mention Extreme Tiger leaving.
AAA also has part one and part two of their interview with Psycho Circus.
CMLL (TUE) 11/20/2012Arena Coliseo Guadalajara
1) Halcón de Plata & Metatrón vs Exterminador & Magnum
2) Gallo, Sensei, Starman vs Bárbaro Cavernario, Cancerbero, Raziel
3) Dalis la Caribeña, Estrellita, Silueta vs La Comandante, Princesa Blanca, Zeuxis
4) Atlantis, Hijo del Fantasma, Máscara Dorada vs Morphosis, Psicosis, Tama Tonga
5) La Máscara vs Volador Jr.
This is the seventh La Mascara/Volador Jr. match this year, and third in Guadalajara. They’ve split the other two.
A increasingly rare Morphosis appearance! His first match in CMLL in two months, his first appearance in Guadalajara since February. Mophosis seems to spend most of his time in Texas/northern Mexico, where he’s still working as Histeria.
More loaded card than usual means Metatron is down to the opener here.
IWRG (SUN) 11/18/2012Arena Naucalpan
1) Astro Rey Jr. & Serpiente de Oro vs Dragón Celestial & Epidemia
2) Cerebro Negro, Dr. Cerebro, Trauma II vs Carta Brava Jr., Eita, Oficial Fierro
3) Dinamic Black, Golden Magic, Saruman vs Alan Extreme, Imposible, Jack
4) Hijo de Pirata Morgan vs Veneno, Trauma I, Oficial AK47, Cien Caras Jr., Relámpago, Canis Lupus, Hijo de Máscara Año 2000 [#1 Contenders, Rey de Ring]
5) el Ángel vs Oficial 911 [IWRG IC WELTER]
It’s been a long six days since the last IWRG tournament. Relampago is going to keep going into these until he finally wins a match. Last #1 contenders match meant an immediate title match, not sure if that’s the same here.
911 vs Angel looks really good, as do the 2nd and 3rd match. It looked like Cerebro Negro was headed towards the rudo side in last weekend’s tournament, something to watch here. Interesting to see Trauma II scheduled for a segunda.
CMLL released new on two international (related) events in the last 24 hour.
Coming up first is Noche Briticana, a special Arena Mexico show on 12/07. The announcers mentioned it in passing on last night’s Terra broadcast, and Ticketmaster already has some details.
BRITISH NIGHT una lucha con causa… es un evento que están organizando la Embajada Británica y el Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre para recaudar fondos para la Fundación John Langdon Down. Los luchadores Ultimo Guerrero y La Sombra se disputarán “Las Joyas de la Corona” en un ambiente muy británico en la cual, la arena México tendrá música y motivos ingleses. El público podrá ver y tocar el “London Bus” (el camión de doble piso inglés) y verá guardias reales dentro de la arena México. Este evento será el 7 de diciembre a las 8:30 p.m. en la majestuosa Arena México.
As you can read, it’s a copromtoion with the British Embassy, and will include British music, a double decker bus, and Buckingham Palace soldiers. It sounds like an Ultimo Guerrero vs La Sombra singles main event, but I guess they could also be just leading teams.
The John Langdown Down Foundation helps children with Down’s Syndrome. That weekend is the same as the annual Televisa supported “Teleton” to help special needs children, so there’s probably some connection there, though it appears CMLL may be donating a different charity.
That date would seem to mean any major CMLL year end show wouldn’t happen until later in December. However, there’s yet to be any hint of CMLL actually running a major show in December. (I haven’t seen any CMLL TV this weekend yet, so maybe you know something I don’t.) It is possible CMLL says Ultimo Guerrero vs Sombra with British people is enough and calls it a year. We won’t know that for certain for a few weeks, but it’s possible.
In a dream world, Sombra wins the main event when new rudo faction of Rey Escorpion, Dragon Rojo, and Hooligan (british! going for revenge on his old partner!) cost Ultimo Guerrero the match. I dream too much, but Hooligan’s got to be on the card. He’s the only British guy they’ve got! Volador dressing up as one of the Sargent Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band alone is not going to be good enough.
CMLL & NJPW also announced the CMLL participation for the three day FantasticaMania event. Tecnicos are Mistico, Titan, La Sombra, Rush, La Mascara, Mascara Dorada, Maximo, and Diamante. Rudos are Volador Jr., Mephisto, Dragon Rojo Jr., Rey Bucanero, Euforia, Misterioso and Okumura. It’s not stated, but I expect Namajague will be back in NJPW in January and would also be on these shows, in addition to the regular NJPW wrestlers. CMLL is also sending ring announcer Ivan and edecan Bruni.
Mistico and Titan are the tecnicos making the NJPW debut. Euforia is the only rudo making his debut here. NJPW also introduces Rey Bucanero, who’s been in NJPW as part of the team with Ultimo Guerrero prior but not in many years (and not under the current regime.) It’s a total of 14 CMLL wrestlers this time, up from 9 on previous shows.
The tour is being promoted around the first appearance of the new Mistico. NJPW mentions the previous one was IWGP Junior Heavyweight championship, setting the bar for this one (though I’d imagine that’s not something happening this year.)
Titan earned this spot by winning En Busca de Un Idolo, but the 2nd (Euforia), 3rd (Mistico) and 4th (Diamante) place finishers all got in as well. That makes the winning a bit cheap (though true to most reality shows), but I’m not certain Titan would’ve made it if he didn’t make the final 2 of the tournament given where he was before the tournament. This is still a win for #porraTitan.
There is plenty of pressure on the younger guys, but La Mascara might have the most to prove. Mascara was embarrassingly poor on the first FantasticaMania shows, looking in no condition to perform on both shows. It was said Mascara was ill and tried to work thru it (and the wrestlers on the show defended him against criticism), but everything he tried looked abysmally bad. Just having OK matches would be a vast improvement, but the Brazos have a great reputation in Japan and I’m certain La Mascara will be motivated to raise his families name back up.
FantasitcaMania had four title matches in 2011 involving CMLL wrestlers (and one that was between NJPW & DDT), and two in 2012. FantasticaMania expands to three days this year, and so the title match number is likely to increase. Titan (National Welterweight), Rush (CMLL Light Heavyweight), La Mascsara (National Light Heavyweight), Dragon Rojo Jr. (NWA & CMLL Middleweight), Rey Bucanero (NWA Light Heavyweight) all have major CMLL titles. Dragon Rojo’s already stated he’ll defend against either Jushin Lyger or Prince Devitt on these shows. Lyger makes more sense. Rush being a spotlight match (rematch vs Yujiro? Goto?) seems to fit with CMLL goals, as well as Mascara Dorada getting a big match (Bucanero is not doing much with his belt). Titan vs Euforia would also be a fun showcase for both guys, and it’d be weird if Volador and Sombra weren’t involved in something big. There’s a lot of possibilities. Unless there’s a title change between now and January, there won’t be a CMLL pairs or trios title on the line (though Okumura and Namajague are still facing Stuka & Fuego a lot.)
NJPW and CMLL will announce actual matches at a later time, probably early January, and we’ll likely know if any of these will be an iPPV around the same time. There will also likely be CMLL participation on the 01/04 NJPW Toyko Dome show. That usually includes 1 or 2 guys who don’t end up working these shows.
CMLL (MON) 11/05/2012Arena Puebla [El Sol de Puebla, Porra Fresa]
1) Black Tiger & Lestat b Fuerza Chicana & Saurón Tecnicos took 2/3.
2) Bengala, Leono, Soberano Jr. b Apocalipsis, Inquisidor, Súper Comando Super Comando replaced Zayco. Tecnicos take 1/3.
3) Hijo del Signo b Pegasso [lightning] Signo won in 7 minutes.
4) Cancerbero, Raziel, Virus b Arkángel de la Muerte, Hooligan, Skándalo Isis was with the Tuareg. Cancerberos took 2/3, with Virus and Isis fighting after the match.
5) Euforia, Misterioso Jr., Vangelis b Diamante, Máximo, Rey Cometa Euforia replaced Mephisto. Rudos took 1/3, Euforia beat Maximo.
6) Dragón Rojo Jr., Mephisto, Tama Tonga b La Sombra, Máscara Dorada, Mistico Mephisto replaced Ephesto. Rudos took 1/3, Mephisto yanking Mistico’s mask to beat him. Mistico challenged Mephisto to a singles match next week. A fan gave Mistico a mask after the match, but the rudos ripped that one up too.
The El Sol de Puebla calls Tuareg vs Cancerberos “one of the more stale rivalaries”, while the Porra Fresa recap notes the Puebla fans do not get into rudo vs rudo feuds.
photo by CMLL
CMLL (TUE) 11/06/2012Arena Mexico [CMLL]
1) Camorra & Ramstein b Freesbe & Robin
2) Hombre Bala Jr., Super Halcon Jr., Triton b Artillero, Disturbio, Súper Comando Triton replaced Angel Azteca Jr. Tecnicos took 2/3.
3) Dark Angel, Marcela, Silueta vs La Comandante, La Seductora, Tiffany Silueta replaced Dallys on Monday. Tecnicas took 2/3, Silueta & Dark Angel beating Seductora & Tiffany.
4) Delta b Virus [lightning] Delta won in 6:57 with a reinera.
5) Ángel de Oro, Diamante, Hijo del Fantasma b Euforia, Olímpico, Vangelis Tecnicos took 2/3.
6) Mephisto, Tama Tonga, Terrible b Atlantis, Blue Panther, Diamante Azul Mascara Dorada was originally announced, then replaced by Blue Panther. Tama & Terrible beat Atlantis & Diamante Azul, then challenged for a tag title match next week.
They’re doing the tag title match! Not sure why it got switched from Sunday or Tuesday (or maybe I was wrong all along, possible.) This changes the Azul vs Tonga match on Sunday a bit.
CMLL (TUE) 11/06/2012Arena Coliseo Guadalajara [SuperLuchas]
3) La Máscara, La Sombra, Mistico b Felino, Psicosis, Rey Escorpión Tecnicos took 2/3.
4) Pequeño Warrior L Shockercito, Último Dragoncito, Pequeño Halcón, Aereo, Astral, Fantasy, Pierrothito, Demus 3:16, Mercurio, Pequeño Olímpico, Pequeño Violencia [cage, hair] Cage was a death trap. Halcon escaped, after the three minute fighting period, then the problems started. Olimpico escaped when a part of the cage gave way and trapped his arm in the cage. Oficials had to pull him free. Mercurio, Aereo and Fantasy followed him out. Astral attempted to do a moonsault off the top of the cage onto those who escaped, but got caught in the cage and fell very badly. Medics quickly rushed him away. Mercurio was also hurt here, and needed a strecher. Pierrothito bleeding (which may have not been an accident) before he left. Demus was given all sorts of moves and thrown off the cage while trying to escape multiple times. He did escape, but could not stand up and was strechered out. Pequeno Violencia’s back was bloody as he climbed out. That left Shockercito and Pequeno Warrior for the single fall final, and Shockercito won with a reinera after a bit of time. Pequeno Warrior lost his hair.
Post match, Shockercito said he may not be a big star, but he a big person in Pequeno Warrior.
There’s a minis match on Friday – Astral, Fantasy, Ultimo Dragoncito vs Demus 3:16, Pequeno Olimpico, Pierrothito – and we might have a better idea of who made it out of this cage match in one piece by who’s actually in that match. It’d be nice if CMLL just explained their situations, but it’d be even nicer if anyone explained the deal with Angel Azteca Jr.
La Magnifica, the QPPLC women’s winner who never turned up on AAA’s TV and is never mentioned when they talk about last year’s winners, is part of AAA’s Guadalajara stop for this year’s QPPLC talent search contest in a women’s trios match. Magnifica is a Guadalajara native. Maybe the reason she never turned up in AAA is she simply had second thoughts about relocating?
LUCHA FIESTA 2012: Ultimo Dragon 25th Anniversary Show
5) Brazo de Plata, Brazo de Bono (Akebono) b Nosawa & Masada
6) Ultimo Dragon, Rayo de Jalisco Jr., Great Sasuke b Ultimo Guerrero, Ohara, Black Tiger Ohara pinned Dragon in the 1st, Ohara unmasked Dragon in the 2nd for a DQ, Dragon beat Ohara in the third
Eita returns to Mexico on Sunday, replacing Canis Lupus in the WWS Welterweight Championship match. That’s an incredibly loaded tournament, where Relampago is the only questionable guy in the mix and the other guys are great. Lupus moves up to the semimain, taking the place of Hijo del Solitario (who seems done here before he even showed up.)
CMLL (TUE) 11/13/2012Arena Coliseo Guadalajara
1) El Divino & Virgo vs Acertijo & Sádico
2) Black Metal & Metatrón vs Exterminador & Ráfaga
3) Estrellita, Luna Mágica, Silueta vs Princesa Blanca, Princesa Sugheit, Tiffany
4) Delta, Guerrero Maya Jr., Titán vs Kráneo, Mr. Águila, Olímpico
5) La Máscara, Shocker, Super Porky vs Dragón Rojo Jr., Mephisto, Volador Jr.
A show!
CMLL RF (SAT) 12/01/2012 Plaza de Toros Caletilla, Acapulco
1) Astral, Shockercito, Último Dragoncito vs Demus 3:16, Pequeño Olímpico, Pierrothito
2) Dalis la Caribeña, Luna Mágica, Marcela vs Princesa Blanca, Princesa Sugheit, Tiffany
3) Fuego, Sagrado, Stuka Jr. vs Arkángel de la Muerte, Misterioso Jr., Skándalo
4) La Máscara, Marco Corleone, Máximo vs Felino, Negro Casas, Volador Jr.
5) Atlantis, Mistico, Shocker vs Averno, Mephisto, Último Guerrero
This is an Acapulco equivalent of the Herdez show in Arena Mexico, a free show being paid for by the local sponsor. Both shows are more packed than a usual Friday night card, the sponsor paying for ‘all the stars’, but neither include Rush. They both take place during the time NJPW is running it’s heavyweight tag team tournament tour, so I suspect Rush is heading over to participate. Not sure about his partner. It should be announced this weekend on NJPW’s PPV.
At a press conference today at Arena Mexcio, CMLL announced young Guadalajara tecnico Dragon Lee would now be known as Mistico, the second to use that name. Fray Tormenta, the luchador priest who had been said to raise and teach the original Mistico in his original back story, anointed Dragon Lee with the new name. Tormenta had appeared in Lee’s corner last Friday, and explained he was impressed with Lee’s performance (despite losing) to offer him the new name. Dragon Lee immediately accepted and donned the mask.
The Mistico name had previously been used by WWE’s Sin Cara, and his popularity was the driving force behind the last great boom in CMLL business. Sin Cara made a sudden acrimonious departure from CMLL in early 2011, and CMLL indicated at the time that they would one day give the character to a new luchador.
Angel de Oro, also present at this press conference, was the name most often rumored to take over the role. Sin Cara’s cousin, Magnus, was also rumored to be in the running, and his ‘candidacy’ for the (only hinted at) position was a storyline on last year’s El Luchador reality show. Dragon Lee, who has also rumored been mentioned as possibility, appeared on that show as Magnus’ best friend and superior as luchador. Season 2 of El Luchador is currently being filmed, and this development would continue the storyline of the Magnus/Dragon Lee relationship.
It’s uncertain how the casual fanbase will react to a new Mistico. Both AAA and CMLL have a Psicosis luchador at the moment, and both have had La Parkas at times. In both case, it’s proven surprisingly easy to fool the general public, who see the mask and not the luchador underneath. It may not be as easy to do it with ‘the real Mistico’ on WWE TV. The core audience has reacted strongly against all suggestions of a new Mistico. Those same fans do not particular seem to like Dragon Lee, though not quite as strongly as they dislike his brother Rush. CMLL is desperate to draw from beyond their base group of fans, but there is going to be a strong and vocal push back on this move.
Dragon Lee’s change to Mistico was the tail end of the discussion of the En Busca de un Idolo tournament. CMLL presented the four finalists. Dragon Lee finished third, behind fellow Guadalajara tecnico Titan and rudo Euforia, who meet in the final on Friday. CMLL also the winner would receive an all expense paid trip to Cancun, a one year gym membership, a shot at the CMLL title for their weight class, and elevation to the top matches in CMLL. Dragon Lee, as the new Mistico, will be elevated to the top matches and likely will soon win a title match, and those announced awards make it seem as though the plan for this tournament was for Dragon Lee to win this tournament en route to becoming Mistico. As far back as month ago, when all four finalists and their mentors met in a special trios match, Dragon Lee (and Euforia, to a much lesser extent) was showcased as the star of the quartet. In addition, the shadiest portion of the tournament was when Dragon Lee received a surge of fan votes right before the semifinal round ended, saving him from elimination at the last moment.
CMLL’s plans were fouled up by fans of Titan voting for him many times in the public balloting. It was enough to advance Titan from the semifinals to the final four despite a losing record, and it was enough to get Titan to the final match despite another losing record and his only win coming on a reversed decision. CMLL appears to have realized Titan was going to be in the final and decided a natural final against rudo Euforia would be better than one where Dragon Lee might be exposed. The final round was booked accordingly, though there are a lot of peculiar booking decisions in retrospect (Diamante beating both Dragon Lee just before he was to become Mistico and beating Titan right before he went to the final.) In the end, and despite his evident popularity, Titan appears to be least likely to get anything out of this tournament of the four finalists. Third place Dragon Lee is now Mistico. Fourth place Diamante has a new Santo/Zorro Plateado look. Second place Euforia is the expected favorite to beat Titan and get that beach trip and title shot, though a Titan win still is possible.
Dragon Lee’s next scheduled match is Sunday, in Arena Coliseo, on a match that is scheduled to be streamed live on Terra.com. Dragon Lee could be in the new identity then, though they may hold it off until his next Arena Mexico appearance.
Changing Dragon Lee to Mistico is a desperate move. It is highly unlikely to fix anything, and misunderstands why Mistico was so popular in the first place. It was never as much about the specific name and mask as CMLL seems to believe. A new Mistico pushed and booked like the original might work, but would require a lucahdor as sensactional and steady as the original. Dragon Lee got this far based on his ability and willingness to do spectacular moves, but has proven to be anything but steady. There were, and are, many people better qualified for the position. It will take outstanding effort by Dragon Lee’s opponents to make this work.
(the rest of the news from the press conference to follow)
