The following are spoilers from Friday’s MLW Azteca Underground TV taping in Dallas, Texas — the second of two straight days of TV tapings for the company.
Everything taped will be seen on future episodes of MLW Fusion.
MLW Tag Team Champions Power & Hustle (Calvin Tankman & EJ Nduka) defeated two enhancement talents
The MLW Champion Alexander Hammerstone vs. Cesar Duran no DQ match didn’t happen as it was a swerve for Richard Holliday and Alicia Atout to jump Hammerstone, later joined by Mads Krugger and King Muertes. The Von Erichs ran out for the save which led into their trios match later.
MLW Caribbean Champion Octagon Jr. defeated Matt Cross to retain
MLW National Openweight Champion Alex Kane defeated Puma King, ACH, MLW Middleweight Champion Myron Reed and Juicy Finau in a six-way to retain
Davey Richards defeated Danny “Rivera” Limelight
Richard Holliday, King Muertes and Mads Krugger defeated Hammerstone and The Von Erichs
Bandido defeated Flamita
Holidead defeated Chik Tormenta
Aerostar, Microman and El Dragon defeated Strange Sangre (Arez, Mini Abismo Negro and TJP (w/ Gangrel)
KC Navarro defeated nZo
Gino Medina defeated Aramis in a Mexican lumberjack match
Jacob Fatu defeated Bestia 666 in an Azteca Apocalypto match
Notes:
Los Parks pulled off the show due to injury. LA Park was supposed to face Fatu in the main event.
Jacob Fatu and LA Park will collide in an Azteca Apocalypto match over WrestleMania weekend.
MLW announced the match Wednesday for its Azteca Underground show on Friday, April 1 from Dallas, Texas. It is a rematch from MLW Saturday Night SuperFight in November 2019 when Fatu successfully retained the MLW World title.
Fatu vs. Park is the first bout confirmed for the event.
The show will take place at a special 2 PM local start time from Gilley’s in Dallas. MLW is also advertising that the event will be an immersive experience that includes separate meet and greets with Duran and Micro Man. Ticket holders will also have the opportunity to tour Duran’s office.
A pre-show Azteca treasure hunt has also been announced.
After more than a year of rumors, MLW finally launched their Azteca brand earlier this year with several weekly TV episodes that were filmed in Mexico. MLW Azteca featured several of their own stars (Alexander Hammerstone, Richard Holliday, EJ Nduka) in addition to El Hijo del Vikingo, Rey Horus, Pagano and more.
MLW Azteca Underground will be part of WrestleMania 38 weekend festivities in Dallas, Texas, with a matinee TV taping and interactive experience set for Friday, April 1st at Gilley’s.
Tickets go on sale next Thursday and include a tour of Cesar Duran’s office where the MLW matchmaker “makes matches, schemes and holds court.” Fans can take photos sitting at his desk.
Additionally, first and second row ticket holders get access to a pre-show VIP “lucha lunch” with a taco bar. MLW is also offering add-ons like pre-show meet and greets with Duran himself and Microman, the ability to create an action figure with themselves and an MLW wrestler, and more.
The company is running ther MLW Intimidation Games TV taping the night before at Gilley’s in Dallas.
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A new title match has been added to the company’s SuperFight show on Saturday, February 26th in Charlotte, North Carolina, as National Openweight titleholder Alex Kane will defend against rival Calvin Tankman, Matt Cross and ACH in a four-way clash.
Tankman has been feuding with Kane and King Mo for several months after the two injured Tankman and took him out of the Opera Cup tournament. They also got Tankman arrested in storyline.
The TV taping will be headlined by MLW Champion Alexander Hammerstone against Opera Cup winner Davey Richards in a title match.
MLW Azteca’s first run concluded from Tijuana, Mexico, with a lucha libre trios match and EJ Nduka in action.
We started with Richard Holliday and MLW Champion Alex Hammerstone tanning on a beach…but it was night time and Holliday was freezing cold. They had been there all day, but Hammerstone wanted to stay to catch the “post rays” while Holliday wanted to hit the gym to get ready for Valentine’s Day. Hammerstone teased him about Alicia Atout, but Holliday insisted his plans were with someone else.
EJ Nduka defeated Adrian Quest
Nduka put Quest away in a relatively short match, but Quest showed some good fighting spirit and had the larger Nduka stumbling toward the end.
They played the big man vs. little man story with Quest springboarding, flipping and flying around the much larger and stronger Nduka who used power moves to keep his opponent under control.
Quest went for a moonsault off the top rope, but Nduka caught him and hit his running powerslam for the win.
— Davey Richards had a sit-down interview with highlights of his recent matches in MLW playing in the background. He has his sights set on the MLW title and spoke nicely of Hammerstone. He said they were both cut from the same cloth, but would hold back when he faces him at the upcoming SuperFight event in Charlotte, North Carolina.
— We then cut to Holliday who was in Beverly Hills shopping for “someone special” when he was confronted by a fan wanting a photo. The fan asked if Hammerstone was with him and Holliday sent him up the street to look for him. Something then caught his eye as his demeanor changed before he walked off.
— There was another hype video for the debuting or returning superstar as the sand timer from last week was now emptying on an old television set before it was shot at and destroyed.
— It was formally announced that the Von Erichs have not been cleared to face Tag Team Champions 5150 due to COVID-19. Speaking of 5150, they recently won the IWA Puerto Rico tag titles which led to a promo from the champions. They seem to be changing their mind about Cesar Duran after their recent title wins and put the MLW tag division on notice.
— As Mecha Wolf was making his entrance, a Mads Krugger video message for Jacob Fatu cut in. He said CONTRA gave him a purpose and made him a monster. He called Fatu “Judas” and that since Fatu took his purpose, his purpose is Fatu.
Mecha Wolf defeated Extreme Tiger
This was a good showcase for both. It ended with Wolf getting the win with a unique finisher that involved him simply kicking Extreme Tiger as he landed on the mat after a throw. The crowd gave them a good ovation and threw money into the ring after the match finished.
Wolf hit a tornado DDT and a low suicide dive where he landed headfirst through a guardrail at ringside, breaking it in the process. He somehow got back up and climbed to the top rope, but missed a double foot stomp. Tiger hit a one-footed dropkick but Wolf came back with a spinebuster, a running knee to the face, and a back suplex throw where he soccer kicked Tiger as he hit the mat for the win.
— Ricky Steamboat was announced for the upcoming SuperFight show followed by Los Parks challenging 5150 to a rematch for the MLW tag titles.
— The second half of the All Access look into Jacob Fatu featured him talking about his first days training and realizing the sacrifices his family made throughout the years.
AAA Mega Champion El Hijo del Vikingo, Laredo Kid and Octagon Jr. defeated National Openweight Champion Alex Kane, Villano III Jr., and Rey Horus (w/ Mr. Thomas) under lucha tag team rules
Vikingo showed off his amazing arsenal of aerial maneuvers as he hit a crossbody after leaping to the top and springing around on the top rope a few times. He then put on the brakes by springing off the ropes, sending himself halfway across the ring like Spider-Man.
He and Horus had a nice exchange before Vikingo got knocked out of the ring and Laredo Kid replaced him. Both were quick and fluid in their exchanges, but when Kane came in, the story of the match changed.
Horus and Villano tried to get Kane to cooperate with their triple team moves, but Kane took it upon himself to ignore them and power bomb their opponent. When Vikingo came in, Kane shoved his partners away so he could lay the boots into him alone. And when they were lining up a double superkick, Kane instead just threw Vikingo to the floor instead of to his partners.
After some partner miscommunication, the action broke down on the outside with Vikingo’s team coming back into the match. They ran a series of high impact moves as everyone took a turn to hit one and then be on the receiving end of one as lucha tag rules were in full effect.
Vikingo wiped out Kane with a suicide dive before Kid and Octagon took out Mr. Thomas with a dive too. Kane and Thomas recovered just enough to take the National Openweight title and leave both the match and his tag partners behind.
Horus tried his best to make up for the numbers game with a big dive over the top rope, but he was followed by Octagon and Vikingo who dove from the top rope with a one-footed corkscrew moonsault.
Villano III nearly had Vikingo put away with a lungblower but moments later, Vikingo hit a poison rana from the top rope for a two count. Vikingo hit an outside-in twisting and turning springboard splash from the middle rope followed which was then followed by the running knees and his 630 senton on Villano III for the win.
— We cut to Emilio Sparks who caught up with Alicia Atout and asked her where her boyfriend Holliday was. Before she could answer, a car sped into the parking lot and dumped a battered Holliday out to the ground. Sparks read a note Holliday was holding: “Hammerstone vs. Pagano, Holliday vs Muertes” as MLW Azteca went off the air.
The MLW Azteca series continued from Tijuana, Mexico, this week with both MLW and AAA’s top titles on the line as the injured Alex Hammerstone defended the MLW gold against Octagon Jr. while AAA Mega Champion El Hijo Del Vikingo defended against Aramis.
A video package kicked things off, showing the last few weeks of Cesar Duran continuing to stack the deck against Hammerstone and Richard Holliday. This week will be no different as we are still in Duran’s theatre of violence.
Arez defeated Extreme Tiger
Arez still had his “life changing” briefcase of cash that he was given from Duran after defeating Aramis a few weeks ago. The commentary team played up his strange style gimmick as he slowly becomes a more regular MLW face.
Tiger hit a big plancha to the outside after dropping Arez off his shoulders and onto the top turnbuckle. Moments later, Tiger got a close near fall after a hard looking single leg dropkick.
Arez fought back with a step-up top rope moonsault but found himself on the other end of a piledriver as Tiger stayed in control. A slow referee count had the commentary team questioning if Duran had paid him off. This prompted an Arez comeback where he hit a double foot stomp from the top rope and his Northern Lights suplex finisher to pick up the win.
— Tag Team Champions 5150 were joined by Duran who instructed them that they were facing The Von Erichs at MLW Blood and Thunder.
— We had a hype video for a mystery debut: a fast car was speeding through some city streets while an hourglass emptied in the background.
AAA Mega Champion El Hijo Del Vikingo defeated Aramis to retain the title
Vikingo is one of the most exciting wrestlers around and he gelled really well with Aramis as both styles meshed almost perfectly.
This started at 100 mph and had flips, rolls, and reversals, culminating with Vikingo landing on his feet from a top rope hurricanrana — all in the opening few minutes.
Vikingo then climbed the top rope and leapt to one of the four support beams that were helping hold up the outdoor arena’s overhead ring cover before diving and landing on Aramis.
Aramis thwarted Vikingo’s next barrage of flips with a hurricanrana from the top rope to the floor and then a power bomb back first into another of the support beams. Back inside, his airplane spin sit-out power bomb was reversed for a flash near fall by Vikingo.
Aramis kept the tempo high and matched Vikingo with speed and urgency, finally dropping him on the back of his head with a reverse DDT. Aramis removed his top to challenge Vikingo to a chop battle that was so loud, they echoed around the outdoor arena.
They both countered each other until they exchanged crucifix drivers which led to both men being down and the beginning of the end.
While both were down, Aramis’ MLW enemy Arez slid in his briefcase which distracted the referee long enough for him to hit a tilt-a-whirl lungblower. That gave Vikingo an opening to hit running knees in the corner and his reverse 630 splash from the top rope for the win.
— We heard more from EJ Nduka. He spoke about his family life, his time at the WWE Performance Center, and what his plans are for 2022.
— Mads Krugger had a propaganda video where he challenged Jacob Fatu.
— Duran and National Openweight Champion Alex Kane were backstage. Kane said with Calvin Tankman being in jail, he needed some new challengers so Duran booked him in a trios tag team match next week.
MLW Champion Alex Hammerstone defeated Octagon Jr. to retain the title
Duran was ringside as we heard that the deck was once again stacked because one of his crooked referees was assigned to this match. That actually didn’t play into the match but it continued the ongoing storyline between Hammerstone and Duran.
The commentators even played up the possibility of hometown hero Octagon Jr. using his connection with Duran to steal the title away from both Hammerstone and MLW. This didn’t happen, but it makes Duran seem very powerful with a strong influence over the roster.
Octagon immediately went after Hammerstone’s injured arm that was heavily braced after he was kidnapped by Duran’s henchmen weeks ago. Richard Holliday helped Hammerstone escape from his cell, but took a beating last week from Pagano for helping his Dynastic friend. They used the injury to get heat on the larger Hammerstone, but it didn’t take long for the champion to fight back and launch Octagon in the air with a big back body drop.
After an ad break, Hammerstone continued to hammer Octagon around ringside, dropping him face first on the apron. A squad of around 20 of Duran’s masked henchmen appeared and watched the match from the stage.
The henchmen distracted Hammerstone which led to running knees in the corner from Octagon, an Arabian press, and an Asai moonsault to the floor. But back inside, the champ caught Octagon off the top rope and planted him with a swinging uranage.
A big belly-to-belly overhead suplex followed as Hammerstone continued his comeback. Hammerstone then put away Octagon with a spinning facebuster and not his Nightmare Pendulum like we are used to.
The result made Duran irate so he instructed his army of henchmen to ambush Hammerstone. During the melee, Holliday came out to help his friend but they succumbed to the numbers game as MLW Azteca went off the air.
Next week:
Jacob Fatu promo
Alex Kane, Extreme Tiger and Rey Horus vs. Vikingo, Laredo Kid and Octagon Jr in a lucha libre tag team match
This week’s MLW Azteca opened with a scene outside the arena. Cesar Duran was confronted by MLW World Champion Alexander Hammerstone and Richard Holliday. Hammerstone recently escaped from having been kidnapped by some of Duran’s masked henchmen and so is not too pleased with the MLW matchmaker at the moment.
Hammerstone got in Duran’s face, but Holliday pulled him away, saying that it was a trap. Duran said if Hammerstone hits him, he’ll automatically be stripped of the title. He also told Holliday that he’ll face Pagano in a falls count anywhere match tonight.
Duran also said Hammerstone will defend his title next week, though he never named a challenger (later revealed to be Octagon Jr.).
MLW Tag Team Champions 5150 (Rivera & Slice Boogie) defeated Aerostar & Drago to retain the titles
Before the match, Rivera cut a promo in Spanish that the live crowd did not take kindly to. Boogie then got on the mic and said that when he was a kid, he thought Mexico was beautiful but now that he’s in Tijuana for the first time, he thinks it’s a piece of sh*t.
It was also played up how 5150 cost Aerostar his title match last week against National Openweight Champion Alex Kane.
After both teams exchanged moves early, Aerostar & Drago got the first bit of sustained offense after Aerostar delivered a springboard cannonball to the outside. Not long after, Boogie made a blind tag and delivered a suplex to Aerostar for a two count. That led to 5150 working on Aerostar with quick tags and double team moves for a bit.
The commentary team kept bringing up how it was odd that Konnan wasn’t ringside with 5150.
Drago tagged in, but 5150 were able to take turns working on him after quick tags as well. Aerostar and Drago fought back again and Aerostar got a near fall on Boogie with a cutter. He then got another near fall on Rivera shortly after with a tornado DDT.
5150 turned things around shortly after, ending things with a double foot stomp assisted death valley driver on Aerostar for the win.
— Alex Kane and Mr. Thomas were interviewed in the back. Kane said things were going great with the Bomaye Fight Club and they even have a new sponsor. They unveiled new shirts with a drawing of a baby crying on them and their new sponsor was “Crybaby Calvin.” They said a portion of the shirt sales would go to help Calvin Tankman with his legal bills as Kane previously pressed charges on Tankman for attacking him in a parking lot.
— A video aired showing Hammerstone being attacked and kidnapped by the Azteca Underground henchmen was shown. It was speculated that Hammerstone was injured following the attack.
— We cut backstage where Richard Holliday was very nervous about his match with Pagano. Hammerstone and Alicia Atout attempted to calm him down. Holliday asked if they had any weapons he could use. Hammerstone presented him with a bottle of pills from a Tijuana pharmacy, but Holliday said it would take a month for those to kick in before leaving for his match. References to Mexican pharmacies have become sort of a thing for The Dynasty when MLW goes to Mexico.
Proximo defeated Toto
On commentary, it was brought up that the winner of this match could be seen on MLW Azteca more frequently if they impress Duran.
Toto got the early advantage with a tope. He followed that up with a German suplex and springboard armdrag. Proximo then came back and hit a headscissors and his own springboard armdrag. Toto then went back on offense after he hit a canadian destroyer on the outside.
Proximo fought back and hit a headscissors, dropkick, and tope on his opponent. When they got back in the ring, Proximo then hit a Spanish Fly off the top, stuck his foot on the bottom rope for leverage, and got the three count.
It was announced in a video that when MLW heads to Charlotte on February 26th, Hammerstone will defend his MLW World title against Opera Cup winner Davey Richards. Richards was recently attacked backstage and had his Opera Cup trophy stolen, but we don’t know by who.
Von Erichs promo
It was announced on Twitter that the Von Erichs have tested positive for COVID-19 and won’t be on Saturday’s Blood and Thunder show from Dallas, but they still ran a video from Kauai, Hawaii, featuring the brothers talking about their now-postponed title shot against 5150 on that show.
Marshall and Ross talked about how it will be hard for 5150 to talk as much as they do when they have the claw on them. They told Dallas to plan the parade because they are coming home. This was sad because they aren’t coming home and won’t be on that show. The whole angle had been the Von Erichs trying to win a title in Dallas, something their family hasn’t done in 40 years. Them not being on that show is a blow as they haven’t performed in MLW since last July.
Jacob Fatu promo
Fatu talked about being the son of the Tonga Kid, living in Sacramento, and how much he loves his family. Fatu continued to talk about watching The Usos while in jail and training with his uncle, Rikishi. He didn’t talk at all about losing his title to Hammerstone or his fallout with the members of Contra Unit.
Later in the show, the commentary team noted that Fatu sounded like he had a different mindset and attitude during this video.
Pagano defeated Richard Holliday in a Barrio Brawl match
Duran welcomed everyone to the Barrio Brawl. They looked to be in an old gymnasium or rec center.
Pagano attacked Holliday with a chair and the two brawled around the area, hitting each other with chairs and punches. Eventually, the melee spilled outside and kept going through the commercial break.
Holliday appeared to be getting the better of the fight and went to finish Pagano off with a chair shot. As he was about to, he got distracted by Duran. After Holliday turned his attention to him, the referee (an Azteca Underground masked henchman) wrapped something around Holliday’s neck and began to choke him.
Duran trash talked Holliday while the referee continued to choke him. Pagano then punched Holliday and pinned him.
Mads Krugger defeated Bestia 666 in a Tijuana street fight
Things started off with a real David vs. Goliath story. Bestia 666 is from Tijuana and was a clear crowd favorite. He tried to land strikes and use his quickness to gain the early advantage, but Krugger quickly took control.
Bestia fought back a little bit after landing a headscissors to Krugger on the outside. He tried hitting Krugger with chairs but even those seemed to have little impact. Krugger quickly fought back and hit Bestia with a chair in return.
Krugger continued on offense until Bestia began fighting back by hitting Krugger with all kinds of plunder. He settled on a cheese grater as his weapon of choice and hit his opponent with it several times. Krugger then hit a backbreaker to go back on offense before we went to commercial.
Bestia began to fight back again after the break. He hit Krugger with a chair several times before he returned to using the cheese grater.
Bestia remained on offense until Krugger caught him coming off the ropes, giving him a full nelson facebuster on a chair for the win.
It was then announced that El Hijo Del Vikingo will defend his AAA Mega Championship against Aramis, and Alexander Hammerstone will defend his MLW title against Octagon Jr. next week.
Krugger stood tall on the stage to close the show.
Final Thoughts:
This was a fun show. It still feels like we have a big mystery revolving around Duran developing, although nothing major was revealed this week.
Last week, we saw that there were rooms with the labels “Salina” and “Killshot” on them in the building where Hammerstone was being held by the Azteca Underground henchmen. I’m wondering if that is perhaps alluding to the return of Salina de la Renta, who had also previously been kidnapped in MLW storyline. “Killshot” was Swerve Scott’s alter ego in Lucha Underground, so it makes me wonder if he’s returning too. Interesting stuff.
It is similar to how Lucha Underground had this aura of mystery around Dario Cueto. It’ll be interesting to see how far they go with the Cesar Duran character.
The MLW Azteca era continues from Tijuana, Mexico, with the fallout from World Champion Alex Hammerstone being kidnapped from the arena last week at the orders from Cesar Duran.
Savio Vega stepped up for the locker room as he faces Pagano in a hardcore match following Pagano turning on Hammerstone last week. Also, two MLW titles are on the line with Alex Kane defending the National Openweight title against Aerostar and 5150 defending the Tag Team titles against Destiny and Skalibur.
A video package recapping Duran stacking the deck against Hammerstone and Richard Holliday aired. Holliday was removed from the building before Pagano turned his back on Hammerstone and helped Taurus and King Muertes beat down the champion. The video ended with Karlee Perez telling Duran, “Do you understand that this is a force that we can’t easily control once it’s released, right?”, teasing something big is on the horizon.
Duran then addressed the viewing audience from his office. He called the fans “filthy renegades” and said they have turned our backs on him after sticking up for Hammerstone. He is in complete control of MLW and everyone should use Hammerstone as an example as everyone needs to bend the knee and respect his power.
MLW Tag Team Champions 5150 (Slice Boogie and Rivera) defeated Skalibur and Destiny to retain the titles
We saw our first glimpse of the special outdoor arena in Tijuana. It was daylight as 5150 made their entrance after they had cut a promo against the MLW tag division, hyping up their next match against The Von Erichs in Dallas at the end of the month.
Konnan was out with 5150.
After an early break, Destiny and Skalibur hit dives onto the champions on the floor. 5150 played the heels well as they cheated behind the referee’s back as Konnan bad-mouthed the three rows of fans facing the camera that made up the crowd.
Rivera had a close two count after Boogie launched him across the ring to knock Skalibur off the apron before Boogie hit a big Vader bomb elbow onto Destiny, but the crowd favorite kicked out at two.
Skalibur flew through the air as he got the hot tag and helped Destiny power bomb Rivera onto Boogie as the action broke down. Moments later, Rivera spike DDT’d Destiny as Boogie held him and slammed him with a powerful German.
Skalibur got caught with a big boot and the 456 Headcrack: a double foot stomp from Rivera while Skalibur was on Boogie’s shoulders, followed by a death valley driver for the win and successful title defense.
Konnan got on the mic and called out Aerostar and Drago who answered the challenge and brawled with the champions.
— Alicia Atout met up with Savio Vega who said Duran promised to give him the IWA back if he can beat Pagano in tonight’s hardcore match. Duran had purchased the Puerto Rican-based company in storyline last season.
— Emilio Sparks caught up with nZo who explained why he attacked KC Navarro recently. He said it was about respect and that he taught Navarro a lesson: he should never turn his back on anyone. Later in the night, we heard that nZo has been suspended because of the attack and because he didn’t issue an apology.
— It was announced that Davey Richards has signed a multi-year contract with MLW. Later in the night, he was attacked and his Opera Cup trophy was stolen was allegedly stolen.
— The speculation on Hammerstone’s whereabouts continued when Holliday tried to get into a room guarded by three masked henchmen of Duran. Atout then dragged him off, saying it wasn’t worth it and he was just playing into his games.
— 5150 were backstage when a masked Duran associate gave them a piece of paper saying they will defend the titles against Aerostar and Drago next week.
MLW National Openweight Champion Alex Kane (w/ Mr. Thomas) defeated Aerostar to retain the title
Kane used his power advantage early on, but Aerostar hit a corkscrew plancha and a headscissors takeover to begin the power vs. high flyer story that played throughout the match.
The commentators talked about the ongoing storyline between Kane and Calvin Tankman, talking about how Tankman was arrested and Kane made it legally impossible for Tankman to be here tonight. Rich Bocchini questioned if Kane was dodging Tankman.
Aerostar slipped out of a suplex and Aerostar hit a step up tope dive to the floor on top of both Kane and Mr Thomas. Aerostar then went up top, but as Thomas distracted the referee, 5150 ran out, pushed Aerostar off the top, and clocked him with a big clothesline.
Kane then quickly locked in a Kata ha jime and the referee called for the bell as Aerostar passed out.
— Sparks then caught up with Duran backstage and asked him where Hammerstone was. An odd-looking masked henchman took some orders from Duran before taking a dressing down from him too. Then, before Duran could get anything of value out to Sparks, EJ Nduka appeared and asked Duran the same question about Hammerstone. Nduka was invited into Duran’s office to talk privately and he begrudgingly went in as Sparks chased down the henchman.
— We saw a darkened room where Mads Krugger was tied up in chains and held by more of Duran’s masked henchmen. Karlee Perez was there and after Krugger said he wanted Jacob Fatu, Perez said he will first face Bestia 666 next week.
— Sparks was then outside as he had been following the odd-looking henchman from earlier. We saw him go down some stairs as Sparks was in close pursuit.
Pagano defeated Savio Vega in a hardcore match
Pagano hit a slingshot elbow for an early two count. Some chops, big right hands and clotheslines followed before the hardcore action started as they brawled around ringside.
The outdoor setting gave them a few different environmental objects to use. An example: there was a steel gate that Vega went headfirst into, busting him open.
Pagano hit a springboard dropkick from the top rope before he set Vega on the top rope and brought out a bag of thumbtacks. Pagano went up but Vega fought him off and front suplexed him face and chest first into the thumbtacks. When getting to his feet, Pagano picked up a handful of tacks and threw them in Vega’s face as he came off the top rope.
Pagano then put a chair on top of Vega as he tried to get his eyesight back and hit a moonsault from the top rope onto the chair to pick up the win. Duran keeps the IWA after all.
— We then caught back up with Sparks who followed the odd masked henchman down a darkened corridor. We passed two locked rooms that had “Salina” and “Killstop” handwritten on them. We heard female screams to indicate this is where Salina de la Renta has been all this time since Duran made his first appearance.
The masked henchman was at the door at the end of the corridor that had “Hammerstone” written on it. The champion had his arm through a small window and the henchman by the throat. The henchman took the mask off and it was Holliday who unlocked the door and helped Hammerstone escape as MLW Azteca went off the air.
Next week:
– MLW Tag Team Champions 5150 (Slice Boogie and Rivera) vs. Aerostar and Drago in a title match
– Mads Krugger vs. Bestia 666 in a Tijuana street fight
This week saw the debut of the new MLW Azteca miniseries from from Tijuana, Mexico, as Cesar Duran attempted to stack the deck against MLW Heavyweight Champion Alex Hammerstone, teaming him with Pagano to take on King Muertes and Taurus in the main event.
Duran cut a passionate promo in front of the live crowd, welcoming them to his “Theatre of Violence” before the new opening video package.
Aramis, Destiny and Myzteziz Jr. defeated Arez, Black Danger and Dinamico
The Aramis vs Arez feud continued here as they faced off on opposite sides of an exciting trios match that was a great way to start the show. The non-stop action sprawled inside and out of the ring as no tags were required.
Rich Bocchini and Joe Dombrowski explained the rudos and technicos heel/face disposition before mentioning most US-based rules are not in play which explained the dives, pinfall breaks and constant flow of action once one member left the ring without tagging.
After an opening sequence of multiple dives, Destiny hit Danger with a cutter from the top rope and Myzteziz Jr hit a torneo and a top rope head scissors on Arez. Aramis landed on his feet after flipping from the top rope, followed by a running Spanish fly in quick succession.
The rudos team had all three of their opponents pinned after Dinamico hit a top rope 630, Arez hit a top rope double foot stomp and Danger hit a springboard crucifix bomb but the technicos all kicked out.
After a break, the action continued with the technicos getting their chance to shine by hitting three big moves at the same time: Myzteziz and Aramis came off the top ropes with 450 splashes while Destiny flew through the ropes like a torpedo with a headfirst dive to the floor.
Arez and Aramis were left in the ring where Aramis hit his aeroplane spinning powerbomb for the win.
This was a good match that didn’t overstay its welcome. Danger is one to watch as he had some impressive and fluid dives and springboards here.
— MLW National Openweight Champion Alex Kane was highlighted with a video package showing him winning the title and his recent storyline with Calvin Tankman before he was interviewed by Alicia Atout.
Kane said that he pressed charges against Tankman because he assaulted him and his bodyguard and tried to steal their car. Kane will defend his title against Aerostar next week and if he retains, he will defend against Tankman at the MLW Blood & Thunder in Dallas, Texas, on January 21.
— Duran and Karlee Perez summoned King Muertes to their office to explain the main event for tonight. Muertes promised to make Hammerstone and Pagano no more as Duran said he would partner them with a mythical beast: Taurus.
— We saw a recap of the tension and ongoing storyline between Hammerstone and Duran. Duran wanted to befriend Hammerstone and get him on his side, but after rejecting a gift from Duran, Hammerstone was attacked by Duran’s storyline brother Matanza Duran (Jeff Cobb). Matanza didn’t get the job done, so this led to tonight’s main event with Duran bringing in more monsters to take out Hammerstone.
Psycho Clown defeated Richard Holliday (w/ Alicia Atout)
Atout joined the commentary team and explained that Holliday basically begged for her to join him to ringside. “The Wild Brawling Clown” was a heavy favorite with the children in the crowd and fans at ringside.
This was mainly used to get Atout on commentary to further develop the storyline of Duran’s dodgy dealings within MLW and his feud with Hammerstone.
Atout explained that Duran has caused friction, infighting and paranoia within the locker room since joining MLW. She also mentioned it was her journalistic duty to investigate Duran’s role in him joining MLW and the goings-on around the unnamed Salina de la Renta leaving.
Compared to the opening match, this seemed slow which wasn’t a surprise. Holliday interrupted a second suicide dive with a right hand to take control but after the break, there was a chop battle which ended with a Psycho Clown power slam. Holliday came back with a torture rack neckbreaker for a two-count.
As Holliday was climbing to the top rope, one of Duran’s masked assailants came to ringside and dragged Atout to the back. This distracted Holliday which allowed Clown to meet him on the top rope and a top rope Spanish Fly for the win.
— MLW Tag Team champions 5150 cut another of music video-style promo as they hyped up their title defense against the Von Erichs brothers in Dallas on January 21.
Kevin and Marshall Von Erich responded from their training camp in Kauai, Hawaii. Kevin was there hyping them up and getting them ready for their return to their hometown.
— Backstage, Duran was confronted by Holliday as he demanded to know where Atout was. Duran said she was safely locked in her locker room and he moved her there “to keep her safe from Psycho Clown.”
He then introduced a suspect looking local policeman from Tijuana who had a few questions for Holliday about an apparent incident in a nightclub the night before, something he knew nothing about. Holliday was dragged off after telling Duran he will be hearing from him (and not his lawyer-slash-father as he calls him).
MLW Champion Alex Hammerstone and Pagano defeated IWA Caribbean Champion King Muertes and Taurus in an Apocalypto match
Muertes looked strong here which should set him up for some high-profile matches this year in MLW.
An Apolocalypto match is a Texas Tornado match with weapons. A steel chair was used early on by Hammerstone while Taurus hit Pagano with a garbage can lid. On the outside, Taurus speared Pagano over the guardrail and into the front row. Hammerstone and Muertes joined them, knocking the full guardrail down in the process and continuing to barrage straight into fans and bystanders.
Taurus whipped Hammerstone with a camera cable while Muertes suplexed Pagano on the entrance stage. Hammerstone hit a pump kick to Taurus in front of the commentary table as the ringside brawling chaos continued.
After the break, weapons were strayed around the ring as Taurus and Muertes seemed in firm control. Cookie sheets, trash cans and a chair were all used before Muertes and Pagano were left nose-to-nose in the ring.
The heavyweight Muertes hit a spinning headscissors takedown before hitting a spear for a near fall. Hammerstone came in and hit a torture rack TKO onto a garbage can for a two count.
Hammerstone’s team looked in control as he backdropped Taurus through a massive wooden floorboard in the corner of the ring, Pagano hit Muertes with a blockbuster before hitting Taurus with a one-armed running powerslam on a chair. They both hit poor Taurus with a power bomb/top rope clothesline combination.
It was Muertes’ turn to take some offense as Hammerstone hit a German suplex and a power bomb as Pagano took to the air and took out Taurus on the outside with a rolling dive before putting him through another wooden board.
Inside the ring, Muertes was hit with a Nightmare Pendulum from Hammerstone which was the end as the MLW champion picked up the win for his team.
Duran appeared on the ramp to get Hammerstone’s attention, motionining with the cutthroat gesture. Hammerstone turned around, only to be smacked in the face by his tag partner Pagano. A three-on-one beatdown then ensued as the luchas stomped the champion.
Since Holliday was taken away by Tijuana “police” earlier in the night, that left Hammerstone alone to be beaten down. Duran’s masked assailants then carried Hammerstone out of the ringside area as MLW Azteca went off the air.
Next week:
– MLW National Openweight Champion Alex Kane vs. Aerostar title match
The long-discussed Azteca Underground storyline in MLW will formally take shape with MLW Azteca, a standalone miniseries that will debut on Thursday, January 6th.
The series will air on Thursdays at 8 PM Eastern on both YouTube and FITE.tv and then Saturdays on beIN Sports. It’s unknown how many episodes will make up the mini-series, but MLW head Court Bauer told the publication that the series “is a precursor to an emerging world built around the Azteca lucha brand,” indicating that a regular series could be in the works.
It will follow the series finale of Fusion: Alpha on Wednesday, December 15th which the company is also calling a miniseries so both shows will not run concurrently. MLW’s next TV taping is set for January in Dallas, Texas.
Earlier this year, Wrestling Inc. reported a deal was done for an MLW Azteca series to debut in the fall with PWINsider reporting it was with a streaming service. Bauer has been discussing the idea since the spring of 2020.
Matches were taped this past Friday in Tijuana, Mexico, as part of MLW’s co-promoted event with The Crash that saw wrestlers from both sides compete against each other. MLW Champion Alexander Hammerstone, Richard Holliday, National Openweight Champion Alex Kane and Davey Richards were among the MLW talent used while Psycho Clown, Aerostar, Pagano and AAA Mega Champion El Hijo de Vikingo were some of those representing The Crash.
As expected, Cesar Duran (the former Dario Cueto in Lucha Underground) will be a major part of MLW Azteca as he has been a fixture on this season of Fusion: Alpha. Konnan will also play an on-screen role in addition to working with Bauer behind the scenes.
MLW will have one more show before the end of 2021 as they announced a co-promoted event with The Crash Lucha Libre on Friday, December 3rd in Tijuana, Mexico.
From the MLW side, they are branding their group as MLW Azteca. This is expected to be the next progression of the Azteca Underground storyline that has been discussed since they brought in Cesar Duran, the former Dario Cueto in Lucha Underground.
No matches or talent were announced for the show, but it’s expected that new signees Arez, Aramis and King Muertes will be part of it. Tickets are on sale and it will be held at Auditorio Fausto Gutierrez. It will also act as a TV taping for episodes of MLW Fusion: Alpha.
The two sides worked together in October 2019 when they held a co-promoted show in the same city and venue. MLW and AAA then held a co-promoted Super Series event in March 2020 right as the pandemic was starting to result in travel shutdowns. On both events, it was MLW talent against the other promotion’s talent.
MLW held their War Chamber TV taping Saturday in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with their next non co-promoted show set for March in Dallas, Texas.
