CMLL (SUN) 08/10/2014 Arena México
1) Amapola, Dalys, Tiffany b Dark Angel, Princesa Sugehit, Skadi
Rudas took 2/3.
2) Misterioso Jr., Pierroth, Sagrado b Ángel de Oro, Delta, Guerrero Maya Jr. 
Rudos took 1/3. Sagrado and Angel continued to feud, and Sagrado beat Angel. Misterioso mistakenly hit Sagrado during the match.
3) Blue Panther, Rey Cometa, Super Porky b Ephesto, Hombre sin Nombre, Mephisto
The mystery debutante was first given the name Lucifer, but it was changed to Hombre sin Nombre days later. He was wearing an outfit a lot like Ephesto’s old Hombre Sin Nombre old outfit. Tecnicos took 1/3, the last when HSN fouled Panther.
4) Oro Jr. b Metálico [mask]
Seconds were Misterioso & Plata. Metalico won a quick fall one, Oro won a quick fall two. Crowd turned on the match a bit during the third fall, which Oro won on his second try at the armscissors submission. Crowd got louder after the match. Metalico was revealed to be Salvador Munguia, 44 years old, from DF, 22 a luchador.
5) Máscara Dorada, Stuka Jr., Valiente b Felino, Mr. Niebla, Negro Casas
Tecnicos took the first by DQ (excessive violence) and the second clean in a nothing match. This set up a rematch to trios title match.
6) Euforia, Rey Escorpión, Último Guerrero b Diamante Azul, Rush, Volador Jr.
Diamante Azul replaced Maximo (head injury). Rudos took 1/3. Rush did not get along with his partners. Rush was having trouble with his left leg near the end of the match, which seemed to cause the lackluster finish: Rush missed a limping dropkick, Ultimo Guerrero covered him, and got the ropes for the win. Rush seemed to be walking better after the match.
Really disappointing show. Oro did not show much in his big opportunity and may have locked himself into a lifetime of working the first half of the card (a lot like Metalico.) Super Halcon Jr. and Hombre Bala Jr. had a better big apuesta match and they’re no farther; there are dozens of more promising guys than Oro looked today. Rest of the card just fell apart from there, with the semimain being almost a joke (and hurt the interest in the trios title match next week instead of helping it just by the booking), while the main event had some laughably short falls and a short circuited finish.
Hombre sin Nombre didn’t look like Hechicero. He didn’t look like anyone in particular, except a guy wearing Ephesto’s old gear. He didn’t look like the mask CMLL posted on Facebook, which suggests that was the Lucifier gimmick and they just dug out something from closet when plans changed there.
The Arena Coliseo Guadalajara Twitter was quiet today.
On the latest MLW Radio podcast, Konnan mentions the plan was to tape AAA El Rey show at the end of August over 3 days. That plan may change to early September, because they want to use guys who are working PWG’s Battle of Los Angeles and they would be unavailable. That tournament starts 08/29. The El Rey tapings will take place in Los Angeles at a building El Rey owns, but Konnan was not allowed to say where. That suggests it’s a closed set (a building they’re filling with extra and not fans, as with previous LA based wrestling projects.)
Pushing the tapings back to the following weekend would mean a conflict with the AAA tapings in Mexico, but that may actually be an issue. (It may be pushed back later than that, as everything has been so far.) I don’t have the rest of this information confirmed, it’s very second and third handy, but it’s also clearly word that’s gotten out to various people the last few weeks based on bits and pieces which have turned up elsewhere: my impression is that the El Rey show will heavily use wrestlers from the US and not be built around those from AAA Mexico. There was a plan all along to bring in some US indy guys to augment the roster and to work as the evil lucha hating opposition. It’s going to be more than now. My impression is people in charge somewhere along the line decided those watching the show wouldn’t be able to tell the ethnicity of the people under the mask and gear, and then also decided it would just be easier to use Americans. And so it’s a show now waiting to tape based on the availability of the Southern California indy guys and not so much the Mexicans. This would not be an AAA call – they don’t have the reigns here – but more likely a Mark Burnett decision since he’s producing.
(I’m completely unclear if this means there will be a whole bunch of new characters for AAA US or if they’ll be “US” versions of the existing AAA characters. I don’t even want to think about it much, honestly.)
If this is right – and again, this is unconfirmed but based on what I’ve heard the last few weeks – that would also greatly harm if not killed the greater idea of a touring promotion. The US Indy guys can get work on their own, aren’t tied to AAA in the same way the Mexicans are, and really just playing a role on a TV show than working on a wrestling gimmick. I’ve also heard vague notions about the show being way out there in a way where it might not translate well to a traveling promotion. PWInsider alluded to that. It was asked elsewhere if this show would be like the “Power Rangers”, and I’m not sure I can rule that out. The little I know suggests the show is more an active adventure stage show than a sports event; people do travel around doing those shows (occasionally On Ice), but that’s a lot different product than AAA is presenting in Mexico. At any rate, the TV show is being produce like a TV show, and not something supposed to lead to AAA touring the Southwest or any of the big ideas they had when this project started
This El Rey show, whatever it’s called, may actually turn out to be good. The guys in PWG put on a really great shows and the knowledge about the concept is so thin that I don’t want to knock it before I’ve seen. It also may yet turn out successful in itself; El Rey doesn’t really have much reach on it’s own, but there’s been consistent talk about the show eventually reairing on Univision and that’d be a difference maker.
At the same time, this would be a complete disappointment in terms of what AAA planned and promoted for this project. They might get their name out to the US, but even that’s not a sure thing – they might call it something else. What AAA has for sure is credit and some money for coming up with the idea, but they may be legally bound to a product that doesn’t have much else to do with them and prevents them from making a better deal elsewhere. (AGAIN.) AAA loudly declared they were coming to the US. Something which credits AAA at the end of the show may be coming to the US, but the promotion itself does not appear to be expanding out of Mexico.
Rarely have I wanted people to start yelling at me about getting a story wrong than this one. It’s depressing. I have a lot more thoughts about this, but the story’s more interesting than anything I think.
Rob has video of AAA 05/17/14 and late November 2001 CMLL.
Dorada has video of 06/24/14 CMLL.
Super Libre had Edgar Alejandre in studio and many taped interviews.
Ultimo Guerrero and Atlantis will have a singles match two weeks before their mask in match in Monterrey.
Masada, Kaientai, Aero Boy, and Makabre in a four way super libre match has been added to the 09/20 ChilangaMask show.
Rocky Lobo & Jinzo’s final Junior Tag League match.
Taya explains how to order the TripleMania iPPV.
Miguel Fonseca argues TripleMania is the bigest lucha libre show because it draws in so many fans who don’t watch lucha libre often.
Lineup
CMLL (SUN) 08/17/2014 Arena México
1) Flyer & Metatrón vs Cholo & Inquisidor
2) Delta, Guerrero Maya Jr., Oro Jr. vs Kamaitachi, Metálico, Okumura
3) Blue Panther, Diamante Azul, Máximo vs Misterioso Jr., Pierroth, Sagrado
4) Dragón Rojo Jr. vs Pólvora [lightning]
5) Felino, Mr. Niebla, Negro Casas © vs Máscara Dorada, Stuka Jr., Valiente [MEX TRIOS]
Peste Negra are champions. Second defense.
6) La Máscara, La Sombra, Rush vs Gran Guerrero, Rey Escorpión, Último Guerrero
Ingobernables versus Gran Guerrero is your lure to not go to TripleMania. Good luck with that. Thinking there’s a really good shot of Rush/UG happening here as well before the Anniversary show; the finish might have been botched but it probably was where they were going in the end.
Mr. Niebla won’t be in the Universal tournament (with Volador, who’s name I couldn’t remember Saturday) until after his title match here. They’ve done title matches during the Universal tournament prior and usually the champion just wins. Assuming the same here, but Niebla probably keeps his spot regardless.
Sagrado not fighting Angel de Oro is good, Sagrado being stuck with those two lunkheads is bad.
I thought this was the plan all along? Konnan always said it would be a separate promotion using US wrestlers. It’s always been called AAA USA.
To be realistic, there’s was no way to use the Mexican talents because they don’t speak English.
Possibly airing on univision is huge.
It’s always meant to be separate promotion, but everyone who worked AAA Mexico would eventually work AAA USA. That’s the more important thing than what the show turns out to be.
It’s a show on the El Rey network appealing to Latinos – they probably should be able to make shows that work with people who don’t natively speak English.
The thing to remember when CMLL sells random footage to some random network for another show is that, by doing that, CMLL 100% controls their product, and despite their laziness in using TV as a promotional tool, the CMLL you see on TV is the CMLL you see live at an arena.
Essentially, AAA leased the AAA name to EL Rey. The name “AAA” being on the El Rey Network is really all that AAA is getting out of this. AAA keeps chasing the brass ring of getting a great TV deal in the US, and they keep getting played. It is no different than when TNA leased the NWA name to throw on their shows. If the El Rey show is successful, after a couple seasons it will just be “El Rey presenta Lucha Libre!” or something, instead of “El Rey presenta AAA”.
I’ve checked out El Rey’s From Dusk til Down and Matador, and they’re not (by a long shot) PG shows, theres some gross out comedy, gore, violence and AAA Mx would really fit rightly so into their “Grindhouse” kinda channel they claim to be.
Maybe Rodriguez and Burrnet are not in the same page? Like in that old Married with children show were Kelly host a tv show, is picked up by a network and then they change everything so it is cancelled less than a week in, maybe Rodriguez will see the pilot and can it!! Or with TNA being dropped from TV and WWE not cashing big their tv deal renewal EL Rey directives are having second thoughts on having a wrestling show?
Well, I heard they show would be called “Lucha Underground”, guess El Rey will announce that and the taping next Monday, or maybe announce the show pushed back…
“there’s was no way to use the Mexican talents because they don’t speak English.”
I don’t think speaking English would be that important, it is more that wrestlers are always in the middle of lots of crap and while a US Citizen would only get a slap in his wrist and sent away, a Mexican might get deported and banned entering the country for 10 years or something, so touring with 25-30 foreigners is like a time bomb, you just can’t make long term plans, besides getting that many work permits might be costly… so the workaround would be using Mexican-American talent, which is the target demo for the network anyways, that’s why Rey Jr is the key player here…
@chui: Let’s get to the important thing here – I have El Matador on my DVR and haven’t watched it. Worth watching?
I think they’d rather people speak English, but agree it’s more likely it’s a hassle thing – they’d rather not deal with the hassle of important people in. I’d guess Los Luchas are the real winners here.
Well, Matador is not Breaking Bad, of course, so if you only follow 3 or 4 shows per season i’d say you may skip it. It is kinda similar to “Alias”, although I gave on that one at ep 4 and might watch Matador first season, it does a better job thatn From Dusk… in catering 2nd and 3rd Gen Hispanics, From Dusk… first season is a remake of the movie which didn’t really feature Mexicans besides being mindless vampires, the show adds a Texas Ranger character which is kinda the hero…
But Matador does have more of a “latino” feel… Since they do seem to be aware about their target audience, I don’t really think the wrestling show is gonna be PWG on TV… they said it is part of their “unscripted” block, which means Reality TV?? Might be a show where they look to produce new Mexican-American lucha stars? With the indy guys serving as trainers/challenges to overcome??