Tag: cueto cup

Lucha Underground results: ‘Left for Dead’

Posted on by Chris Aiken

Season 3 — Episode 25: “Left for Dead”

The first round of the Cueto Cup tournament wrapped up on the latest episode of Lucha Underground. Storylines advanced and feuds continued at The Temple in Boyle Heights.

The title of the episode referred to the video package that opened the show highlighting the back story of Dante Fox. His story involves his foe, Killshot, and their background in the military. Fox was taken hostage while serving in Afghanistan.

Presumably, Killshot escaped the clutches of terrorists, but in doing so he left Fox behind. Soldiers eventually rescued Fox, leading to him making his way to Boyle Heights where he seeks revenge against Killshot.

PJ Black defeated Sexy Star to advance in the Cueto Cup

Black was the first member of the Worldwide Underground stable to appear on this episode. The stable had a prominent role on the show. In this match, another member of the stable caused a distraction that led to the finish.

In the match, Black provided a good base for Sexy Star’s flying lucha arsenal. She got plenty of offense on the way to losing the match. Black toyed with her early on, but Star quickly fired up ahead of a series of lucha spots.

Star got a near fall after a super Frankensteiner. She also flew to the outside with a crossbody. Back in the ring, she used a second flying crossbody for another near fall. At that point, Taya came out to ringside to cause a distraction. Taya also tossed Black a pair of brass knux, only for Star to get ahold of them.

Star hit Black with the brass knux, and was thusly disqualified. So, she also laid out the referee using the knux. Taya fled with a smirk on her face, as she accomplished her goal of costing Star the match and getting a win for her stablemate. This seemingly builds to a grudge match between Taya and Sexy Star.

In the weekly countdown hype video building towards Johnny Mundo against Rey Mysterio, this week’s edition showed a montage of training footage. Each combatant also talked about their chances of winning. The story remains that Mysterio is a man of people and Mundo is the cocky champion. These videos have all been tremendous pieces of business, and this edition was more of the same.

Son of Havoc defeated Son of Madness to advance in the Cueto Cup

The story is both are part of a motorcycle club, and Son of Madness arrived in The Temple to make Son of Havoc pay a penance for some slight towards the club. Both had almost identical gear, including similar vests that Matt Striker referred to as their “colors” that represented the club.

This being a grudge match of sorts, there was no collar-and-elbow lockup to start the match. Nor did they have a traditional match. Rather, they had a fight as they brawled in and out of the ring in a match that was all action.

Madness got heat on Havoc, then Havoc made a comeback. Though Madness blocked an attempted Muta-style handspring back elbow, Havoc hit the move moments later. He followed that with a springboard crossbody for a near fall. Madness countered with a double foot stomp and a brainbuster for a near fall. Havoc rallied into doing a tope suicida.

For the finish, Havoc went for a shooting star press that Madness avoided. Havoc impressively landed on his feet only to get schoolboyed. Havoc kicked out and used his own schoolboy to score the pin.

After the match, Madness laid out Havoc and took his vest. Therefore, this feud must continue. Jean Pierre Lafitte once stole Bret Hart’s ring jacket during a lackluster feud in 1995. Let us hope this feud between bikers is more memorable than that. Judging by the action in this match, it probably will be.

Prince Puma defeated Ricky Mandel to advance in the Cueto Cup

Puma wrestled in street clothes that included a hoodie and pants. It was a similar look to what Ricochet wore during his run-in this past weekend at the G1 Special where he seemingly directed a veiled insult at Lucha Underground. Instead of a cap and glasses like in Long Beach, Puma had a mask on in this match at The Temple. There were also no insults, just brooding by Puma.  

Mandel is an interning member of Worldwide Underground who cosplayed as Johnny Mundo in this match. Beforehand, he told Puma that he was taking him to “slam town.” Instead, Puma gave him a superkick and proceeded to pummel him in a glorified squash. That does not bode well for Mandel’s internship.

Puma followed the superkick with a northern lights suplex and a brainbuster for a near fall. Mandel tried to fight back, but to no avail. Puma finished off Mandel with a spinning Michinoku Driver for a pinfall in a quick match where Puma showcased his dark side.

An advertisement for Modelo beer highlighted the accomplishments of Sexy Star. The ad portrayed her winning the Lucha Underground Championship as her breaking through a glass ceiling. The ad also insisted it “cemented her place as one of the most iconic female performers in lucha libre history.” Yeah, and Mae Young is a “pioneer” of women’s wrestling.

In a locker room scene, Mysterio was giving a pep talk to Dragon Azteca, who vowed to win the tournament and go on to face Mysterio when he wins the championship. Prince Puma entered the scene to interrupt them. He vowed to win the tournament, and he also wanted to face Mysterio for the title. Puma promised he would not lose in their rematch.

Dante Fox defeated Dragon Azteca Jr. (w/ Rey Mysterio) to advance in the Cueto Cup

They took it to the air early on in the match. Fox began to dominate with his aerial arsenal as the crowd chanted his name. Azteca made a comeback and did a hurricanrana on the floor. That led into a flurry of offense from Azteca. Fox cut him off and they exchanged strikes. Fox executed a running Spanish Fly for a near fall. A “this is awesome” chant broke out.

Taya made her second run-in of the show, flanked by others in the Worldwide Underground. Mysterio fought them off at first as the match continued. Then, Mysterio was catapulted into the arms of Johnny Mundo, who powerbombed him into a wall. The heel stable ganged up on Mysterio for a beatdown.

Azteca made the save with a dive through the ropes. He went to springboard back into the ring, only for him to eat a superkick from Fox. He then delivered the Fox Catcher to score the pinfall. With that, the first round of the tournament is over.

On the next episode, the second round of the Cueto Cup features Mil Muertes against Paul London. Also, Taya meets Jeremiah Crane in a tournament match and Marty the Moth faces Fenix in another tourney match.

Lucha Underground results: Killshot and Crane do battle

Posted on by Chris Aiken

Season 3 — Episode 24: “Macho Madness”

The Cueto Cup continued on the latest installment of Lucha Underground. Killshot and Jeremiah Crane tried to tear the house down with a wild match. In another match, Mil Muertes destroyed an opponent only to get destroyed later on.

Elsewhere, Paul London used a carrot as a weapon and Taya tangled with Joey Ryan. A new character also debuted in the final scene.

The episode opened with a scene featuring Catrina summoning Mil Muertes. In reference to the Cueto Cup, she instructed him to “destroy them all.” Muertes said he would destroy them for her, his love. Catrina kissed him and said, “Bring me the Cueto Cup.”

Mil Muertes (w/ Catrina) defeated Veneno to advance in the Cueto Cup

Muertes won in a complete squash as he ragdolled his opponent. He pummeled Veneno with ground and pound before executing a flatliner. Muertes then pinned him. After the match, Catrina administered the Lick of Death.

Paul London defeated Vibora (w/ Kobra Moon) via countout to advance in the Cueto Cup

London attacked Vibora before the bell, then flew through the ropes with a dropkick. Vibora began to no-sell London’s assault, so London grabbed Kobra Moon. He briefly held her hostage with a carrot (yes, a carrot). Vibora struck down London and the crowd chanted “save the carrot.”

Vibora began to dominate on offense when London briefly fired up. That led to London being tossed off the top rope, and he crashed down on the mat. That would not be his last crash in the match.

Members of the Rabbit Tribe ran in to cause a distraction. That allowed London to send Vibora over the ropes with a headscissors takeover. London went for a trust fall and landed badly.

With the crowd chanting for him, London rolled back in the ring. Rabbit Tribe members hiding under the ring grabbed Vibora’s legs and he was unable to get back into the ring before being counted out.

Taya defeated Joey Ryan to advance in the Cueto Cup

At the start, Ryan offered Taya his lollipop after rubbing it on his oily chest. She smacked it away and attacked him. When Ryan took a powder, Taya grabbed him by his chest hair to throw him back into the ring. Ryan cut her off and began administering some clubbing blows.

Ryan climbed the turnbuckles, but took too much time in doing so. Taya made a comeback that began with hard chops and slaps. After some counters and exchanges, Taya executed a northern lights suplex. She then leapt into a double foot stomp and pinned Ryan.

In a scene from the locker room, Mil Muertes was about to head somewhere dressed in a suit. Suddenly, Jeremiah Crane attacked Muertes with a chair. Crane delivered several chair shots and left him laying. Crane knelt over a prone Muertes to say, “She’s mine.” That was a reference to Catrina, whom Crane came on to in the past. Crane put a chair over him and hit it with another chair as the scene ended.

In the weekly countdown video hyping Johnny Mundo against Rey Mysterio in a title match, the focus was interviews with several Lucha Underground stars including Chavo Guerrero Jr., Cage, Prince Puma, and Matt Striker. They all put over Mundo and Mysterio, and gave their picks on who will win the upcoming Lucha Underground Championship match.

Jeremiah Crane defeated Killshot to advance in the Cueto Cup

This was a wild match that took place outside the ring more so than in it during the first half of the bout. Mere seconds into the match, Killshot did a suicide dive through the ropes. Crane countered with a Fosbury Flop. In return, Killshot did a flop of his own. They then began brawling around ringside.

Killshot did a dive off a stage. Moments later, Crane gave Killshot an exploder suplex on the floor. Crane then ran around the ring as he built up speed before launching into a cannonball that took out the front rows of ringside.

When they finally got back in the ring, Killshot countered Crane with a sunset bomb for a near fall. Crane cut him off, and he charged into a corner with a kick (similar to a Broski Boot).

They began trading near falls. Killshot fired up and hit a cutter for a near fall. Crane delivered a brutal brainbuster for a near fall. They went back and forth in the closing moments, leading to a double down.

Out on the apron, Killshot dropped Crane onto the edge of the ring with a Death Valley Driver. Killshot followed that by climbing to the top rope, and he jumped off into a double foot stomp for yet another near fall.

Crane spat on Killshot, which only fired him up. Killshot exploded into a flurry of strikes. A “fight forever” chant broke out in The Temple. Killshot did a swinging DDT for another near fall. Crane got a rope break after Killshot applied a short arm scissors.

Dante Fox appeared in the rafters like he was Sting, without all the Crow gimmickry. The appearance of Fox distracted Killshot. Crane capitalized on the distraction. He delivered a double underhook powerbomb for the deciding pinfall.  

After the match, Catrina stood at the top of the staircase. She had a staredown with Crane as the credits began to roll.

The closing scene featured Dario Cueto in his office explaining the Cueto Cup to someone else. That someone was a masked man named Son of Madness. He wanted a match with Son of Havoc.

It just so happened that Son of Havoc was the only person not booked for a tournament match. Cueto obliged by booking a tournament match between the two for next week. Son of Madness has arrived. Oh yeah, dig it.

Lucha Underground results: Cueto Cup begins on a show that ends in murder

Posted on by Chris Aiken

Season 3 — Episode 22: “The Cup Begins”

The latest episode of Lucha Underground included the start of the Cueto Cup tournament. The 32-man single elimination tournament leads to a title match at Ultima Lucha Tres.

Besides opening round matches in the tournament, the episode included one of the most dramatic cliffhangers in the history of the show. An apparent homicide occurred as a city councilman was murdered by someone from The Temple. 

In the opening scene, Dario Cueto was in his office booking the Cueto Cup tournament. Someone off camera walked into the office. With his back turned to the uninvited guest, Cueto told the intruder to go back outside and knock on the door first.

Cueto’s tone changed when he heard the visitor speak. Cueto knew that voice as Pentagon Dark, who in storyline is returning to The Temple after healing from a broken arm suffered at the hands of The Triad. He asked Cueto about their whereabouts.

Cueto said they left for Hong Kong. He added that Pentagon broke one of their arms first before he suffered the same fate. A riled Pentagon threatened to break Cueto’s arm. Cueto tried to reason with him as Pentagon violently grabbed his hand. Cueto pleaded with him to think about the Lucha Underground Championship, reminding Pentagon that is what he really wants.

Cueto immediately booked Pentagon in the tournament, telling him he can earn a title shot at Ultima Lucha Tres. Pentagon vowed that if he fails to win the title at Ultima Lucha, then Cueto is “leaving with broken bones.”

The Mack defeated Mala Suerte to advance in the Cueto Cup

They began with flashy lucha spots and built to a double down that led into the closing moments. In a funny heel spot, Suerte played rudo as he taunted the crowd by teasing a wild plancha across the whole ring. Instead, he jumped down from the ropes to overthrow himself into a simple back senton. Then, when he actually went for the senton off the top he missed.

Mack used a Falcon Arrow for a near fall. Suerte got a near fall with a crucifix pin. Suerte missed a senton bomb and Mack went to finish him off. Mack hit him with The Pounce before giving him a stunner, and Mack pinned Suerte to advance to the next round of the tournament.

In the locker room, Cage was pumping iron as he admired his newly-gimmicked hand. Cueto entered the scene and told Cage he has someone he should meet so they could talk about his new powers from his gimmick hand.

Cage seemed disinterested, but Cueto gave him a business card anyway. Cage now has the contact information for a Councilman Delgado, whose office is located at City Hall. This sets up the final scene of this episode.

Pentagon Dark defeated Argenis to advance in the Cueto Cup

While Argenis is a talented flyer that got to shine some, this was more a showcase for the returning Pentagon. The crowd was hot for Pentagon, including chants of “Cero Miedo” (Zero Fear). Pentagon toyed with his prey early on in the match as he threw kicks at his legs.

Argenis did get a comeback and a near fall, but to no avail. Pentagon delivered a Cero Miedo Driver for another near fall. Eventually, Pentagon finished him off with a package piledriver, then Pentagon covered Argenis for the pinfall.

After the match, Pentagon reprised his gimmick of breaking arms. He supposedly broke the arm of Argenis before leaving the ring.

Texano defeated Famous B (w/ Beautiful Brenda) to advance in the Cueto Cup

This was a complete squash, yet it still had a story. Playing off Texano’s gimmick, Famous B was wearing a cowboy hat and dressed in a knock-off Nudie suit. He addressed ring announcer Melissa Santos. She was not impressed. Famous B then told Texano that he wanted to become his manager.

To show good faith, Famous B laid down for Texano to cover him for a pin. Texano teased doing so, only to pull Famous B up and deliver a sit-out powerbomb. Texano then pinned Famous B.

Afterwards, the storyline between them continued as Brenda slapped Texano on the ass. Texano and Brenda had a moment in passing, in a tease for something down the line.

A great video package hyped the upcoming Lucha Underground Championship match with champion Johnny Mundo defending against Rey Mysterio. A narrator with a British accent talked about the importance and magnitude of the title match while a montage of training footage showed the combatants preparing for battle. It was a tremendous piece of business.

Drago (w/ Kobra Moon) defeated Aerostar to advance in the Cueto Cup

In a battle of former friends turned foes, they had an outstanding lucha-style match. Kobra Moon led Drago to the ring with a chain leash locked around the neck of Drago. Drago’s gear is also now red since he turned heel.

Kobra Moon was an ever-present fixture in the match as he shouted commands at Drago during the bout. She even interfered at one point, tripping up Aerostar.

Drago slightly hesitated when ordered to finish off Aerostar, which Matt Striker noted on commentary. At one point, Drago countered with a crazy running blockbuster DDT to stop a comeback. During another attempt at a comeback in the closing moments, Aerostar tried the Dragon’s Lair for a near fall. Drago countered the move into a version of his own, pinning Aerostar for the three count.

Kobra Moon ordered Drago to “kill him” after the match. Drago attacked Aerostar for a beatdown, though he stopped short of actually killing him. The talk of murder foreshadowed the final scene in the show where a supposed homicide occurred.

Cage visited City Hall in the closing scene where he met with Councilman Delgado. The city councilman told Cage he cannot take off the gimmicked glove. Cage appeared to have no qualms about that since the glove is becoming part of him as it shapes and changes his persona. Delgado told Cage the glove will bring him power that he cannot even imagine.

Delgado began to talk about their “work” when Cage objected, saying he does not work for him. Delgado made another snide remark about Cage’s life now having purpose after being meaningless before. That remark angered Cage, who used his gimmicked hand to grab Delgado by the throat. Cage slammed Delgado against a wall while choking him.

Cage briefly came to his senses and released the choke. He apologized to Delgado, who accepted by saying that Cage is still thinking like a man. Cage looked at his glove for a moment, then a maniacal look came over his face. Cage snapped as he punched Delgado with the gloved hand. Blood and gore tripped off the glove, as Cage seemed to have literally punched Delgado’s head off.

Cage turned to leave the office as Delgado’s headless body lay prone on the floor covered in gore. Cage said he’s no longer a man, he is a machine! As Cage walked away from the murder scene he stepped on an eyeball, crushing it in the closing moment of the show.