CMLL Puebla: 2019-11-18

Jarochita

Recapped: 11/19/2019

Matches:

Black Tiger & Policeman vs Ares & Guerrero Espacial
(14:53 [10:10, 1:17, 3:26], 1/3, n/r, VideosOficialesCMLL)

Rey Apocalipsis & Toro Bill Jr. beat Halcón Suriano Jr. & Robin
(14:53 [5:17, 4:12, 5:24], 1/3, ok, VideosOficialesCMLL)

La Magnifica, La Maligna, Princesa Sugehit beat Dalys, La Metálica, Reyna Isis
(16:35 [9:32, 3:52, 3:11], 1/3, ok, VideosOficialesCMLL)

Ángel de Oro, Dulce Gardenia, Stigma beat Hijo del Villano III, Okumura, Templario
(16:46 [4:57, 3:29, 8:20], 1/3, n/r, VideosOficialesCMLL)

Niebla Roja © beat Mephisto for the CMLL World Light Heavyweight Championship
(19:57, 2/3, good, VideosOficialesCMLL)

  1. Mephisto torito (2:54)
  2. Niebla Roja modified triangular de solar (2:39)
  3. Niebla Roja inside cradle (14:24)

Carístico, Valiente, Volador Jr. beat Euforia, Gran Guerrero, Último Guerrero
(7:12 [3:06, 4:06], 1/2, ok, VideosOficialesCMLL)

What happened:

Valiente beat Ultimo Guerrero in both falls to set up a title match.

Niebla Roja retained his title. Templario & Angel de Oro were the seconds.

Thoughts:

The main event was a sprint, to get to the title match. It was not super quick, but that was definitely the idea. An easy night for most everyone.

The title match reversed the usual Mephisto title match pattern. It was Niebla Roja who controlled most of the match, just being unable to finish off Mephisto time after time. That seemed to work. Niebla Roja has more offense to work thru, Mephisto’s finish was able to be saved for a long time and a big moment. Roja also strung together pinfall moves instead of the usual back and forth, which prevented the long third fall from dragging. It really wasn’t super notable until those last minutes, but the way they did the match built up the drama. This was better than expected. The Go To Sleep spots could use a rethink in CMLL in general though; they seem afraid of connecting that they don’t come anywhere close. The ones here were comically bad.

Dulce Gardenia did well with this crowd. So did Angel de Oro, Arena Puebla is just nicer than Mexico City that way. Templario & Villano III did well to set up Gardenia in a decent showcase match.

A positive thing I can say about the CMLL women’s matches is they seem generally well organized. There wasn’t a lot wandering around to figure out who to grab and what to do with them next, they just went from one spot to another. It can be a bit too familiar or slow, but they’ve put more work in planning than most of the men’s matches. Magnifica moved well, though it was funny when Miguel Linares talked about her perfect Spanish Fly while it looked a lot more like an armdrag. The Jarochita Code Red on Metalica was sharp.

Halcon Suriano hasn’t gotten the CMLL memo to refine the same five spots for infinity, instead tries new and interesting stuff. It didn’t work right to close the second fall but it is more fun. The segunda was full of other guys who are willing to do something when motivated and it made for a more entertaining match than usual in that spot. It didn’t really build well to the end but the effort was noticeable.