CMLL on ClaroSports.com: 2018-02-23 

near calamity (and a new overhead camera)

Recapped: 02/23/2018

Matches:

Mercurio & Pierrothito beat Stukita & Último Dragóncito  
(11:13 [4:06, 3:23, 3:44], 1/3, ok, via VideosOficialesCMLL)

Kawato San, Puma, Tiger beat Fuego, Stigma, Tritón  
(13:53 [3:47, 2:53, 7:13], 2/3, ok, via VideosOficialesCMLL )

Niebla Roja went to a time limit draw with Soberano Jr. in a lightning match
(10:00, great, via  VideosOficialesCMLL )

Diamante Azul, Marco Corleone, Stuka Jr. beat Euforia, Gran Guerrero, Kráneo
(11:17 [5:09, 2:07, 4:01], 2/3, ok, via VideosOficialesCMLL )

Ángel de Oro, Atlantis, Dragón Lee beat Cuatrero, Forastero, Sansón
(7:46 [3:35, 4:11], ½ DQ, ok, via VideosOficialesCMLL )

Rush & Terrible beat Último Guerrero & Volador Jr. in a Parejas Increible final
(19:41 [2:28, 2:51, 14:22], 1/3, excellent, )

What happened:

he survived

The third fall saw Volador eliminate Rush, then Terrible beat Último Guerrero. Volador may have had Terrible beat with a top rope armdrag, but Rush pulled Tirantes out of the ring, then dropped Volador with a Rush Driver. Terrible added a top rope splash and Rush threw Tirantes back in to count three. Rush offered Terrible a spot in Los Ingobernables, and Terrible accepted. Both refused their trophies and even threw money back at the crowd.

Cuatrero fouled Angel de Oro to end the semimain after two falls. They continued to go after each other’s masks after the match, then screamed each other on the microphones.

Both Niebla Roja & Soberano missed dives in the last 30 seconds, and probably would’ve been counted out if time hadn’t run out first. Soberano dove second, and might have won if he had simply decided to stay in the ring. Medics checked on both men, with Niebla Roja needing a neck brace and a stretcher, and Soberano helping to carry the stretcher to the back.

Thoughts:

Mije is a lethal weapon

The main event was one of the most exciting CMLL experiences of the year. There will be bigger spot matches – the lightning match had craziest moves overall – but the finals of the tournament was an exciting ride to the finish. The last few minutes of this match were as dramatic as anything, and everyone worked so hard for it. The story of this match was Terrible, and this will be one of his most famous matches, but everyone else stepped up their game too. Volador looked surprisingly normal for a man wearing face protection after his nose broke a few days ago. Último Guerrero got in his usual spots but also took as much as he gave, and his dropkick on Terrible was brutal. Rush worked as hard as he has here in any match in the last year, and his personality came strong. The finish was perfect; Rush cheating to help Terrible win was the exact right ending for this match. Seeing this live helped, because the finish felt in doubt the entire way, but I think this is one that’s going to hold up even knowing the result.

The semimain wasn’t a great bout, but it did a great job of heating up the Angel de Oro & Cuatrero feud. They came at each other strong and the final brawl seemed violent and personal. This is still going to be a tough sell as a big match, but at least fans will understand it’s a feud. Dragon Lee looked awesome in the time he was in. Everyone else was secondary but that’s what their role should’ve been.

brutal

The fourth match seemed a bit extraneous to the show and played out that way too. It was the usual crowd pleasing match, only the crowd seemed to be more of a rudo group who weren’t into Marco or Stuka that much. They were being more receptive in the third fall and the técnicos were doing more than they’d do on a B-show. Kraneo doing the flip to the apron was amazing for his size.

The lightning match turned very much in to a “do all the moves battle”; it was an all sugar match but really good at that. Neither man really played the role rudo, though Niebla Roja is still pretty good at being in the right position for the Soberanos’ trickier spots. They got to a good pace at the end. The missed dives at the end were both brutal.

an especially chaotic triple dive

The second match was close to good. I was expecting a little bit better pace early and there were some iffy moments. Kawato seemed like he wasn’t quite close enough a couple times and his second fall finishing kick didn’t look strong. CMLL must be thinking highly of him to give him the big spots in the third fall. Kawato did seem a little lost, but Puma is really good at soaking in a moment to allow the crowd to get into it, like he did on the delayed suplex and the double stomp finish. Fuego had a horse!

The opener was a quick bout by those standards. It was also a lot like many Stukita openers, where his antics are the most and only interesting about them. His matches by his willingness to take big bumps are good highlights, but they need to find something for him to do. Dragoncito about the minimum one could do without getting in trouble for doing nothing.

Tiger Bomb

One thought to “CMLL on ClaroSports.com: 2018-02-23 ”

Comments are closed.