CMLL Arena Puebla - 01/25/09 (#20)
Match 1: Aguila Guerrera, Toro Bill Jr., Ares vs
King Jaguar, SWAT, Super Star
Arena Puebla, 01/19/09
Winner: tecnicos (2-1)
Match Time: 16:59
Approx Rating: nothing special
Other Match Notes: Refs: Rafeal el Maya and Bestia Negra
1: Pairs are Super Star/Toro Jr., Jaguar/Aguila (Aguila takes one armdrag and not only falls out of the ring, but continues to fall backwards up three aisles), SWAT/Ares, then back to Jaguar/Aguila (lots of spinning backbreakers) and then Super Star/Ares. Super Star gets in a (slow) double jump headscissors that sends Ares out and starts for the dive, but SWAT surprises the rudo (and maybe the tecnico too) with an apron tope con giro. Aguila comes in for the rudos and Super Star gets a slow 'rana on Aguila for one pin. Toro gets caught on the top rope trying to come in, and
Jaguar gives him a super armdrag while slipping off the ropes for the other pin.
2: SWAT runs thru Aguila and Toro, but Ares cuts him off with a kick and beat shim in, out, and then back into the ring. SWAT manages to give him a spinning backbreaker, and then Aguila runs into take one too. King Jaguar comes in to get his turn, and it quickly turns into a beatdown. Not too much notable before the pins.
3: Beatdown continues. Toro Bill goes after King Jaguar's mask, and then jaguar gets dropkicked on the back to the outside. Super Star takes the tossed sit. SWAT a double backdrop. Every time he takes a back bump, he starts crawling on his back randomly. It's either odd selling or not subtle maneuvering to the next spot (which never occurs.) King Jaguar is held by two men for a dropkick, and of course that's not going to work. Revenge brawling from there. Toro Bill Jr. is held on the apron for a dropkick to knock him to the floor, and is out of the match for a bit after that but lives to finish the match. I think he bounced his head off the floor. Ares dropkicks the much bigger SWAT out and follows with a slingshot tope con giro. The other four all end up in, and the rudos get armdrags out. Super Star topes one man, Jaguar appears to tope con giro the other. Captains back in, SWAT bodyscissors cradle, one two three.
Match 2: Policeman, Karissma, Toro Bill Sr. vs Lestat,
Tigre Rojo, Blue Center
Arena Puebla, 01/19/09
Winner: rudos (2-1)
Match Time: 12:15
Approx Rating: okay
Other Match Notes: Policeman points a gun at the screen in his picture! I'm very scared. He also poses with a child before the match, surely as part of the community outreach program. Refs are Bestia Negra and Rodolfo Ruiz
1: Better opening fall than the earlier match. Pairs are Tigre Rojo/Karisma, Blue Center/Toro Bill (short) and Lestat/Policeman.
Policeman gets armdragged out. Lestat follows with a slingshot tope con giro. The other rudos beat him up on the outside, then turn and get leveled by topes from the other tecnicos. All three tecnicos pull themselves back in and the rudos get counted out.
2: Tiger Rojo showcase to start. Karissma cuts Lestat off with a jumping headbutt to Lestat's head, but Lestat comes back with a headscissors to send him out. Blue Center backflips into the ring, and policeman immediately shoulderblocks him to the floor. That's pretty funny to Policeman. Of course, it all falls apart when Blue Center can actually fight back. Monkey flip, spinning backbreaker, Policeman is out of there. Toro Bill distracts Tigre Rojo next, and the beatdown starts there. Lestat gets slingshot held into a Toro Bill chest slap, and accidentally falls forwards, much to the rudos annoyance. They push and yell him backwards into a Karissma springboard legdrop, who slips trying it. Lestat looks a bit hurt after being pinned for the fall. Rudos keep going for no reason, perhaps not believing Lestat is the captain (me too.) Blue Center eats triple dropkick and is flapjacked onto
Policeman's shins, because he never really gets his knees up. Replay shows how bad that legdrop was - Lestat tried to bail on it and made it worse, but the le was too high too close to the face to start with.
3: Lestat is still down on the floor as the fall starts, but brought in after the other guys are run thru. Rudos toss Espiritu up for a big corner splash, and Lestat lifts his feet to kick him on the way down. Lestat is still hurting as the other
tecnicos give the other rudos a backbreaker, but pops enough to life to run across the ring and dropkick Espiritu as he's already down. Lestat also throws a lot of punches and kicks, and the punches don't look so good. Tecnicos try for triple bulldogs and get
shoved off - does anyone ever hit that bulldog spot ever? Non-Lestat tecnicos are dropkicked out, and Toro (!) and Policeman crush them with topes. Lestat tries a 'rana on Espiritu, and eat a powerbomb for the loss. Rudos discuss winning.
Match 3: Sangre Azteca, Black Warrior, Dragon Rojo Jr.
vs Valiente, Mistico, La Mascara
Arena Puebla, 01/19/09
Winner: tecnicos (2-1)
Match Time: 14:59
Approx Rating: good
Other Match Notes: Sangre Azteca has the giant headdress, so Dragon Rojo has his giant poncho. Enough accessories for everyone. I like Valiente's fake suit of armor. La Mascara has his new belt. Mistico has everyone trying to touch him on the way to the ring. Everyone who can get close to the ring is close the ring before the math to get a photo. If Mistico goes to close to an edge, he may be pulled never to return. Crowd's here to see him. Mistico annoys Sangre Azteca before the match and Valiente has to back him off.
1: A couple minutes of posing, reaction comparing, shirt taking off, shirts used to clean boots and fake stripping to start off between Mistico and Dragon Rojo. Dragon Rojo takes one armdrag (which isn't half shown) and runs for the hills. It'd be funny if that was it, but it's just a moment break for Mistico to annoy the rudo fans. I'm kinda surprised they'd have Dragon Rojo work with Mistico. Making lesser duos look better is not one of Mistico's talents, and there's a moment where both men are under the impression they're doing an armdrag at the same time, which is hilarious to see. Mistico quickly counters into a headscissors and they work from there. Rojo gets armdragged out for good, and Mistico stays into deal with Black Warrior - but it's a fake to set up a beatdown. Mistico get pressed into a gutbuster, and the rudos start dancing along to the rudo fans drums. Warrior times his kicks with the beat, which is also great. Warrior is busy fooling around, forcing Sangre and Dragon Rojo to hold Mascara forever Warrior takes an imaginary smoke before kicking La Mascara low - though the refs rule it legal. Valiente takes the low blow dropkick. Warrior headbutts Mistico low. Refs allowing a lot. (Also: No video input!) Warrior gives Mistico the guillotine legdrop, and this goes a bit better than the last match. Nice superkicks for the tecnicos trying to come in to break it up. Warrior goes after Mistico's mask and posts him in between falls.
2: The sunset flip reversal to set up a high speed dropkick spot still looks nice. Dragon Rojo gets his inside out dropkick on Mistico. The flapjack on to upraised legs spot looks better here too (Warrior getting up the feet), though it's not the finish. La Mascara once again shows his ability to evade corner whips (stepping out of the way!) to start a comeback. It starts well, with Mascara evading Sangre, ducking Dragon's clothesline and booting Warrior in the face, but then there's a moment of Dragon and Mascara looking at each other before Dragon remembers he's supposed to have done something and freaks out with a forearm. Valiente gets him with a top rope armdrags, Sangre kicks him down and Mistico headscissors him out. Mistico and Mascara get Dragon and Sangre with 'ranas - Dragon catches Mistico while standing, makes sure Mistico is still standing, and then falls down! (Meanwhile, Sangre is trying to launch himself into the third row) Valiente gets Warrior with a springboard reverse tope, and a
casita for a pin. Everyone forgets Sangre is the captain.
3: Rudos start dancing to the rudo fans drumbeat, and Mascara mocks Sangre's dancing. How dare he! Rudos are ecstatic to get a cheap shot on Mascara from the outside. So much so, Mascara has plenty of time to plan to execute a comeback, with much help from rudo bumbling. Warrior comes in last and takes the rolling dropkick. Warrior ducks down to avoid a dive, so Mascara comes out, ducks a clothesline, and kicks him in the general vicinity of the head. Strangely, Mistico is next. He and Warrior take turns doing Warrior's dance, until Warrior just kicks him in the shin, which is enough to knock him down. Mistico kinda lamely fights back from a corner charge, but gets Warrior and Rojo with a headscissors/armdrags combo, then Rojo with a headscissors and Warrior with a fireman's escape armdrags. Sangre comes in to face him, but gets his leg caught on the middle rope. Meanwhile, Warrior has someone ended up in the third row from that armdrag. I think he just started climbing over seats for no reason. Well, plenty of reasons to him, no reasons for sane people. Back in the ring, Sangre gets himself free in turn to get take a headscissors, and a tornillo style armdrag from Mistico. Mistico tease a dive, but stops to give a arm gesture to the rudo fans and bow to the tecnicos. Valiente last, evading Dragon Rojo for a bit until Rojo boots him in the face. Valiente counters a springboard bulldog with a faceslam and
dropkicks him out. Sangre in, and they have to a look around before fighting. Valiente jumps to the apron just so he can jump back in with an armdrags. Monkey flip, as required in all Sangre Azteca matches. Actually, it's two, despite Black Warrior gamely try to save his partner. Warrior does manage to knock down Valiente, much to the announce of the crowd. Chest slap. Warrior taunts the tecnico fans, then goes back to work. Whip, reversed, Warrior slides out and Valiente follows him with a tope. The person sitting on the aisle on the front row is amazed dives can happen on that side of the ring. Other four all in the ring, tecnicos turning around things quick. Mistico gives both a plancha, and Mascara adds a splash. Campana on Dragon Rojo, Mistico double underhook piledriver on Sangre Azteca. That's Abismo Negro's move and theoretically vastly illegal (though perhaps not when Sangre's head doesn't come anywhere near hitting the mat as it does here and it has with Mistico's other uses of this move), but plenty enough for the win.
Match 4: Mephisto vs Sombra
for the NWA World Welterweight Championship
Arena Puebla, 01/19/09
Winner: Sombra, retains title
Match Time: 21:58
Approx Rating: Disappointing. Ephesto/Sombra was leagues better.
Other Match Notes: Mephisto has Kahoz as his second. La Mascara is with Sombra,
who has the Mission Impossible music for a theme. Lot of people around the ring,
though slightly less than Mistico. No weights announced in the ring, though the
announcers say Sombra is 80 kg and Mephisto is 84 kg. Weight limit 78, oh well.
Rafa El Maya is the referee, with the big NWA patch on his shirt.
1: Mephisto waistlock, Sombra hammerlock, Mephisto headlock, Sombra front facelock, Mephisto armbar, Sombra rolls to his back, pauses, then get in a trip. Battle for control on the mat goes nowhere quick. Sombra stops to point to the crowd. Armbar battle, Sombra getting control and forcing Mephisto onto the mat. Mephisto rolls on the mat and gets a waistlock for them. Sombra lays on top for a pin, but Mephisto gets his should up and two, bridges up, and quickly into the sunset flip. Circle. Announcers showing the ref and not the match, so we miss whatever set up comes to Sombra flipping around. I guess Sombra doesn't really need a reason most of the time. Sombra bounces off the top rope for a headscissors, ending Mephisto to the corner. Mephisto has a chance to recover his breath. Sombra's charge is blocked, lifted up to a fireman's drop, but Sombra reverses and gets one of his own. Wasting no time. Rope flip moonsault, one two three. Sombra's holding his midsection for a bit. Crowd not too fired up except for the rowdy tecnico section
2: No one in a hurry to lockup here, stoking the crowd instead. Sombra over Mephisto, under, and then kicked in the head. Mephisto nods to the tecnico section - I think that's the tecnico section, anyway. Easy to get turned around here. Whip, reversed, Sombra gives Mephisto a slipping backbreaker. Sombra goes for the mask, but Mephisto kicks him away. Clothesline misses, and Sombra headscissors Mephisto the ropes. Mephisto slides out, Sombra slides in, Mephisto slides in, and Sombra dares him to come out and fight him like a man. Sombra takes a moment to check a shoulder and grab his breath. Back up to the apron, Mephisto batted away, and Sombra slings into the ring heels over head into a headscissors. Now it's Mephisto checking his shoulder. Sombra waits for him to get up, charges, up and over sunset flip, shot off, Mephisto charges, Sombra takes him down, grabs the legs, and Mephisto grabs him in a grounded headscissors cradle one two three. That's one right out of Ephesto's playbook.
3: It's Sombra's right shoulder that he seems concerned about, and he's checking it as the fall starts. Sombra waves to the tecnico fans, starts to charge, and gets run over Mephisto. Mephisto kick bad shoulder. Whip, flapjack. Crossface? Sombra pounds the mat to indicate he's not giving up, then maneuvers over to the ropes. Abdominal stretch by Sombra, hooking up the waistlock. Rolling it into a pin, Maya low to count, then arguing Sombra's underneath the ropes. What do you know, he actually is. Chop by Mephisto. Still have no idea why Sombra's grabbing his shoulder here, but they're going with it. Whip, Sombra flips to the apron, then springboards back in with a headscissors to send Mephisto out. Sombra waste no time - TOPE. Replay as both men recover. Kahoz focuses more on strategy while Mascara goes with towel waving. Work with your strengths. Mephisto throws Sombra in so he can can springboard at him - sunset flip one two no. By CMLL third fall of a singles match standards, that was a snappy count. You know, the first week you hear the fans doing the Ole Ole Ole chant, it's really cool. The third week comes, and you wish they head a second chant to go to. Tecnico fans are loud here, but just the rowdy ones - the rank and file is watching but not near as excited. Sombra off the ropes, 'rana, Mephisto rolls thru, one two NO. Sombra off the ropes, springboard, bodyscissors cradle blocked by Mephisto, sits down for a pin, one two no. Okay, it's 4:30 minutes into the fall, if everything else is going to be move, 2 count, rest, I'm going to hate this so much.
Sombra off the ropes, springboard, moonsault is caught, and Mephisto gets him good with a sorta Wagner Driver. One two no. Mephisto throws Sombra into the ropes, but Sombra sticks in them. and Mephisto is slow to realize. Mep charges, Sombra drops down, and Mep throws himself out. Ah, mixing up the rest periods with a dive - double jump tornillo. Sombra lands on his feet, celebrates, then drops to his knees. Both slowly crawl back in the ring. Check off the cavernaria from the cliché list. Announcers are far more excited about it then anyone else in the building. Mephisto lifts Sombra up - Gory Stretch. This isn't going to work either, of course. Sombra slips out into the sunset flip one two no. This is every FSE blow off match ever. Tecnico fans are into it. Sombra get an ugly strange bodyscissors cradle, and Rafa el del Maya won't even count it because Mephisto isn't close to having two shoulders down. That couldn't have meant to be there. Both up, Mephisto tries a casita - this is where I start yelling at my TV for too many tired near falls - Sombra escapes and gets one of his own, one two no. It's a nice one, no chance of winning. Crowd is getting more into it as an actual finish. I wish I didn't have a clock in the corner, but then I still know we're not ending this until someone tries a finisher or a foul, and they still went to this part of the match way too soon. Awkward reversals led to Sombra dropkicking Mephisto off the apron to the floor, for one more dive - tornillo moonsault is crazy and partially on target. Actually, it looks better on replay, it just caught Mephisto odd.
Both slow enough up to allow for multiple replays. I guess Rafa el Maya doesn't want it to end with a double CO. Sombra crawls in, but Mephisto yanks him back out and comes in himself. Mephisto probably should have a better plan than standing there and get hit. Sombra springboard plancha, Mephisto rolls thru one two no. Both slow up, of course. Mephisto's dropkicked is waved away, Sombra tires a 'rana, Mephisto powerbombs him, feet on the bottom rope, one two no. I need to make a giant CMLL final fall cliché list. Everything they do to kill time until dong the finish that doesn't involve an actual finish. Mephisto, perhaps as bored with this as I am, grabs a double underhook. Devil's Wings? No, Sombra backdrops out of while still underhook, and bridges on top of Mephisto for the pin - one two NO. That was actually good. Both up, looking. Whip, reversed, Sombra corner sunset flip, Mephisto counters and grabs the ropes one two no. I think Rafa el Maya caught the ropes at the end - he yells at Kahoz and Mephisto about it, so there we go. Replay of that as Sombra drops Mephisto and calls for his finish. Crowd is suppose dot be worried about this, but we don't get it. Sombra backs off anyway.
Sombra drops Mephisto again - farther away - and heads up again - regular moonsault, no one home. Mephisto crawls on top to cover one two NO. Mephisto picks up Sombra, and ropes him in front of the corner. Mephisto going up? Crowd encouraging him to jump to his doom. Mephisto all the way up thinking about it, tope con giro ends up empty. Sombra crawls upon top, one two NO. Sombra drops Mephisto in front of the corner again. Sombra goes all the way up, but Mephisto trips him up there. Mephisto climbs up and loads Sombra onto his back. They only do this spot to set up the counter anymore, it's kind of sad. Sure enough, Sombra escapes out into a big 'rana. On top one two NO. Sombra is not sure what it'll take at this point. You'd think they'd tone down on the replays after missing action, but no, replays causes us to jump to Sombra trying for a rope flip moonsault and connecting, one two Mephisto outs his hand on the ropes. That's the danger of having a move that close to the ropes. Mephisto fixes his wrist tape - taking it off, actually. It'd be cool if he was setting up for something by doing that, but I think it was just beginning him. Sombra's backed up to the opposite corner, and charges - flipped to the apron, Mephisto backs up into position, Sombra front flip into a 'rana, one two three.
Sombra celebrates, as the crowd BOLTS out of there. They're not staying for the celebration, the match is over and they've got places to be.
People talk. They spell Kahoz as "Caoz". That's all I got.