In this post:
- Belial vs Centvrión
Gimansio Hercules, Ciudad de México, Distrito Federal, 02/20/2016 - Máscara Dorada © vs Negro Casas for the CMLL World Welterweight Championship
Arena Coliseo Guadalajara, 03/01/2016 - Cibernético vs Rush, Konnan Big
Arena Coliseo Monterrey, 02/28/2016 - Negro Casas vs Rey Hechicero
Arena Coliseo Monterrey, 04/24/2016 - Fénix vs Jack Evans
Lucha Underground Temple, Boyle Heights, Los Angeles, California, 01/09/2016 - Diablo Jr., El Hijo del Diablo, Imposible © vs Black Terry, Cerebro Negro, Dr. Cerebro for the Mexico State Tag Team Championship
Arena Naucalpan, 04/10/2016
Belial vs Centvrión
Gimansio Hercules, Ciudad de México, Distrito Federal, 02/20/2016
Video: Estrellas del Ring
Winner: Centvrion (arms locked german suplex)
Match Time: 9:43
Notes: This was a match on the (only?) Amor Apache show.
Review: [great] Two of my favorite indie dudes in a ten minute big move match. It’s more suplexes and near falls, with both guys showing impressive stuff and it getting a little crazy eight minutes in. They’re a little limited in what they can do in the space – at one point, Centvrion starts to head to the top, looks up, and decides a middle rope moonsault is a better option – but they do a really good job of building the drama to the end. It’s not totally clean, whatever move they’re trying to do out of a hiptoss seems to go wrong twice in, but there’s some harsh looking spots that do go well. Belial plays off the crowd and the referee well, even if I didn’t totally understand his meltdown about the chair being thrown out. It’s a borderline match grade wise, but it feels worth checking out.
Máscara Dorada © vs Negro Casas for the CMLL World Welterweight Championship
Arena Coliseo Guadalajara, 03/01/2016
Video: decadas80s90s2000
- Negro Casas casita (3:38)
- Mascara Dorada leg trap side chinlock (3:31)
- Mascara Dorada casita (7:18)
Winner: Mascara Dorada (2-1)
Match Time: 14:27
Notes: Seconds are Angel de Oro and Zacarias are the seconds.
Review: [great] these have been a strong series of matches whenever they come up, and this one is no different. Dorada gets to do some of his highspots, but Casas also pounds him and makes him work for it. Dorada comes off as more well rounded against Casas, pulling out submission and cradles instead of just the stunt show. It’s still just as entertaining. The matches feel super competive and as if they can end at any moment. The drama was slightly hurt by some weirdness with a powerbomb and a count near the end, but they might it exciting before and after that point. I enjoyed the first fall, where NJPW Dorada is all ready to slug it out with Casas and forgets that Casas can still just beat him in an instant with a cradle, and they played it off with Dorada doing the same at the end. This was a well laid out match.
Cibernético vs Rush, Konnan Big
Arena Coliseo Monterrey, 02/28/2016
Video: +LuchaTV, thecubsfan
Winner: Konnan Big (DQ)
Match Time: 11:05
Notes: Cibernético and Rush work together for most of the match. They double stomp Konnan Big in the corner after Rush’s dropkick, and Rush shoves the referee down for interceding. That draws the DQ. Rush throws the referee out of the ring. Konnan yells at Rush & Cibernético from outside the ring, but is very careful not to go back in there while Rush and Cibernético are there. Konnan Big finds a microphone off camera and yells at both guys from a safe distance. Konnan finally comes back to the ring, and Rush teases a singles match with him and Konnan Big before walking out.
Review: [ok, but not really rateable on any normal match scale] I make poor life decisions. This is just an ambush for Konnan Big, who gets worked over for both guys for most of the match. (Rush dropkicks Cibernético at one point, but Cibernetico just gets up and keeps helping beat up Konnan Big.) They eventually have to fight just to give Konnan Big some time to breath, but they’re not taking it that part seriously, and definitely not taking Konnan Big seriously. Konnan Big is not great at selling, or endurance, or athleticism, or any other thing. Rush seems to get annoyed with Konnan Big when he’s unable to get up for suplex, which may have fueled the dropkick to come. Cibernético completely no-sells a foul, because he’s just not going to sell for this chump. And Konnan Big does come off like a chump, when Rush mocking him and the fans from inside the ring after, in a way that should’ve killed Konnan Big off for good. (He’s totally humiliated in the match, there’s no question.) Still, the fans seemed into him after the match, which is amazing amount of good will built up.
Negro Casas vs Rey Hechicero
Arena Coliseo Monterrey, 04/24/2016
Video: thecubsfan
- Rey Hechicero conjuro (4:57)
- Negro Casas scorpion (3:05)
- Rey Hechicero rolling half crab (7:17)
Winner: Rey Hechicero (1/3)
Match Time: 15:19
Review: [excellent] superb match, the expected technica battle turning into a fight for three falls. I have always had nitpicks – more time! More nearfalls! – but the fight was special. Negro Casas is so wise, seeing setups and openings no one else is expecting. The path to his silla in the third fall came in an unexpected manner but felt more natural than some of the usual dive setups. He does a better job of making holds look painful than most, really sinking in the half crab later on in that fall. Hechicero did the same with his rolling version of the same move (after his previous rolling move seemed a little too pretty and fast, this one seemed like Hechicero was ripping up Casas’ knee.) This was a three fall match that felt worthy of being a three fall match, and Casas still is unbelievable for his or any other age.
Fénix vs Jack Evans
Lucha Underground Temple, Boyle Heights, Los Angeles, California, 01/09/2016
Video: El Rey Network
Winner: Jack Evans (Spanish Fly)
Match Time: 9:01
Notes: Jack has a lot to say before actually fighting.
Review: [good] so many kicks. So so many kicks. This felt completely out of continuity but still a lot of fun, and the match suffered from a little lack of drama compared to normal Lucha Underground matches, but they still worked very hard. Loud Jack is a good Jack, and he managed to get many words in between getting hit in the face. Fenix’s first maneuver into a surprise cutter looked smoother than his second.
Diablo Jr., El Hijo del Diablo, Imposible © vs Black Terry, Cerebro Negro, Dr. Cerebro for the Mexico State Tag Team Championship
Arena Naucalpan, 04/10/2016
Video: thecubsfan, mluchatv
- Mariachis Locos
- Hijo del Cerbero powerbomb Dr. Cerbero (7:02)
- Diablo Jr. I modified scorpion Black Terry (7:11)
- Terrible Cerebros
- Black Terry Dragon sleeper Impossible (2:34)
- Dr. Cerbero rosa DDT Diablo Jr. I (2:34)
- draw
- Imposible huracanrana Cerebro Negro (5:50)
- Black Terry deep cradle on Hijo dle Diablo (5:50)
- Diablo Jr. I huracanrana Dr. Cerbero (5:50)
- Mariachis Locos
- Impossible powerbomb Dr. Cerbero (0:26)
- Diablo Jr. I powerbomb Cerbero Negro (0:26)
- Hijo del Diablo powerbomb Black Terry (0:26)
Winner: Mariachis Locos (1/4)
Match Time: 16:01
Notes: The third fall has three simultaneous pins. Black Terry pins captain Hijo del Diablo as Imposible & Diablo Jr. pin the two non captains. That seems like a draw to me, but the referees have no idea what to do, and huddle with the commissioner. Announcers discuss all sorts of possibilities. Hijo del Diablo talks and then hands up the microphone to the commissioner, but the announcers talk over him. Eventually they decided on one more fall.
The Mariachis try the super slow dive trick, but the Cerberos manage to evade the comedy spot. The Cerebros try the same, nearly as comedy bad, with Black Terry actually getting caught in the ropes. The técnicos go back in the ring to celebrate, and all are pulled of the middle rope into powerbombs for the pin. That’s the fall.
Review: [good] everyone involved in this is very weird. I’ve seen the restarted lucha match go one minute before, but never as a comedy of this degree. (There are situations where this would’ve been great, but a title match isn’t ideal.) The match before was lacking a little pace or standout performance, but was a solid title match between two good teams. IWRG is just a strange place.
