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First of all thank you for clicking on this column. My name is Zach Barber and I’m normally on the AEW beat, writing the weekly feud tracker column. I previously attempted to cover CMLL events in weekly live TV report style. That unfortunately proved That unfortunately proved a little too ambitious so instead I’ve decided to this, a monthly look at what worked and what didn’t in the premier lucha promotion in the world.
HITS
Yutani vs. Capitan Suicida (2/6)
An excellent match between two young guns of CMLL. Yutani is a unique talent given his blend of strong style and lucha. Capitan Suicida hit a scary half Styles Clash and even scarier avalanche Code Red that dropped Yutani on the back of his head. In the end Yutani won which I think was the smart decision. He’s the more dynamic of the two. He reminds me of younger Takeshita if Takeshita had a little more lucha in him.
Olympia & Dark Silueta & Persephone vs. India Sioux & Akari & Jarochita (2/6)
Easily the best women’s match I’ve seen in the six months or so I’ve been watching CMLL. These six worked well together. Olympia got to show out with power spots and Persephone picked up the deciding fall for her team with a very good spear.
Títan vs. Mascara Dorada (2/13)
Lucha wrestling at its finest here. Tìtan is great and Dorada is one of the very best in the world. Tìtan sold a knee injury for a lot of the match. Despite that he hit a Asai moonsault to the floor with very little room to spare. He and Dorada went for simultaneous springboard crossbodies and crashed into each other in the middle of the ring. The two near falls Dorada got near the end of the match were well done. I certainly believed he had the match won. Tìtan tapping him out was a surprise. I have to wonder what CMLL’s plans for Tìtan are.
Místico vs. Templario (2/13)
The best match of February hands down. Templario worked rudo (heel) and Místico sold his ass off for nearly 30 minutes. The way the Arena Mexico crowd treats Místico is unlike almost anything else in wrestling. The one drawback of the match was the finish. Mìstico won Mìstico won which was the right decision. I’m just not a fan of La Mistica. It looks cool in the setup but the actual armbar is week.
Averno vs. Soberano Jr. vs. Atlantis Jr. (2/13)
A soft hit for being better than the other trios match on that show. These three worked hard but the unspectacular finish of Atlantis Jr rolling up Averno with one arm while holding his mask on with the other was reflective of how much this match was just there.
Los Hermanos Chavez
Los Hermanos Chavez had quite the month of February. Together they carried MxM Collection to a good match built mostly around playing off Mason Madden’s size. Angel de Oro then entered into a singles feud with Johnny Consejo (Johnny TV’s name in CMLL) that culminated in a hair vs hair mask last Friday night. Angel de Oro dropped Johnny across the top rope and then did a rope walk Mexican Destroyer which was insane to see. Thankfully that, followed by a frog splash, was the finish (not always a given these days in wrestling) and Johnny was the recipient of an unwanted haircut. I was so relieved that Angel de Oro didn’t lose his hair to a 46 year old non-pushed lower card AEW guy. Now let’s hope that momentum is capitalized on.
Edgar Norriega
I have give Edgar Norriega some love. Referees can attract too much attention sometimes but they play an important role in a match. Norriega is built like the Big Boss Man but flies all over the ring, sometimes literally jumping over wrestlers. He reffed the Místico/Templario and he was sweating more than the actual competitors.
Torneo de Escuelas
The annual showcase of emerging talent from the various CMLL-affiliated lucha schools in Mexico. CMLL used this tournament to fill out the card while most of their big stars were in Japan for Fantasticamania. Having the quarterfinals be fought under relampago or lightning rules (10min time limit) made it easy to get nine matches on a card and prevent the young talent from being exposed. Estudiante Jr, who’s built like Scott Norton in a lucha mask and Feroz. Estudiante’s size and power made him stand out amongst the high-flyers. The eventual winners Rey Pegasus and Tornado have perhaps the most devastating looking tag team finish I’ve seen in a long time. The assisted springboard crucifix bomb is the definition of a one-hitter quitter. It looked like it might have broken Jay Ortega’s neck the first time they did it. I hope to see more of them as well as Estudiante Jr as the year goes on.
Olympia & Persephone & Dark Silueta vs. Akari & Kira & La Catalina (2/20)
Another well-worked trios match. Once again Persephone picked up the pin this time with BT Bomb (her version of the Razor’s Edge) on Kira. This and the previous trios did a good job showcasing Olympia and Persephone ahead of their number one contender showdown last Friday.
Persephone vs. Olympia (2/27)
Speaking of, this was a good match to decide the challenger for Mercedes Moné’s CMLL World Women’s Title. Given Persephone’s dual contract status her victory seemed pretty certain but both women still brought it. Olympia played up her power advantage while Persephone accentuated her slyness. Her getting Olympia up for the BT Bomb was made all the more impressive by her walking around the ring with her over her head.
Claudio Castagnoli vs. Akuma vs. Euforia
Another soft hit. The match was good and a nice change of pace from the typical CMLL match. Claudio continues to be very effective in CMLL and his eventual loss should generate a huge pop. That said thecubsfan, author of Luchablog, pointed out in his most recent column that Claudio’s running out of opponents. CMLL operates on weight classes and there simply aren’t that many heavyweights in the company. His opponent for the Homenaje de Dos Leyendas event at the end of the month is billed as a surprise.
ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW…
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MISSES
Elimination of Captain’s Rules
In the middle of the month, out of nowhere, it was announced that CMLL was doing away with captain’s rules in trios match. For those who don’t know captain’s rules meant that in order to win a fall in trios match one team has to pin the other team’s captain or both of the other competitors. It was something unique to CMLL that differentiated them from other promotions. The given explanation was that the rules were confusing especially for the foreign wrestlers. Based on thecubsfan’s reporting no foreigner has actually complained about captain’s rules. This feels like a case of CMLL overthinking and trying to make themselves more appealing to an American audience when they’re really sacrificing a part of their identity.
Frequency of Unmaskings
I understand the deep meaning of masks in lucha culture. I respect the fact that going after a luchador’s mask is an instant source of heat and that actually unmasking someone is treated as such an egregious act that it’s an immediate disqualification. My issue is that multiple heels go after masks on a given show. It loses its specialness when so many people are doing it. Can we find other ways to get heat?
MxM TV
I have little to no use for MxM TV when they’re on AEW TV and that’s mercifully rare. Both of these are reasons why they shouldn’t be in CMLL. A group compromised of two not very good workers performing a bad comedy act and a 46 year old veteran with not a lot going for him that are relegated to ROH isn’t much of a benefit for CMLL. That said at least CMLL was able to get something beneficial out of Johnny Consejo. I’m good with not seeing any of them again though.
Atlantis vs. Último Guerrero vs Hechicero (2/13)
A match featuring only one wrestler who’s under the age of 40 has almost no chance of being good. While 53-year-old Último Guerrero is still pretty spry and energetic for his age, Atlantis is barely mobile. Guerrero and Hechicero had to provide all the movement even for Atlantis’ offense. The most Atlantis was able to pull off was a crossbody off the ramp. The only real positive I can say about this match is that at least Hechicero won.
Esfinge vs. Josh Alexander (2/20)
The match itself was perfectly fine if a bit unremarkable, but I still don’t understand the thought process behind the outcome. Josh Alexander was defending the Maple Leaf Pro Wrestling heavyweight title. MLP barely qualifies as promotion. They run six or eight events a year. Somehow CMLL thought it was a good idea to have Esfinge lose to Alexander. It was just a bad decision. Esfinge should’ve went over on his turf and then dropped the title back to Alexander at the MLP show in Canada this month.
Lack of Veda Scott (2/27)
Veda Scott has been the lead play-by-play every time CMLL has been simulcast in English on Triller. While she may not have the encyclopedic knowledge of moves that Excalibur does her commentary experience is invaluable. Never was that more apparent than last week when she was unable to be at the CMLL show due to a previous NJPW commitment. Without her the commentary was just three dudes talking, haphazardly calling moves, and being generally directionless without someone clearly steering the ship. Veda, please don’t leave us again.
MATCH RECOMMENDATIONS
I know time is precious and you can’t watch everything so I will leave my Top 5 matches to see out each month.
- Místico vs. Templario
- Yutani vs. Capitan Suicida
- Tìtan vs. Mascara Dorada
- Angel de Oro vs. Johnny Consejo (hair vs. hair)
- Persephone & Olympia & Dark Silueta vs. Akar & Jarochita & India Sioux
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