IWRG from Arena Naucalpan taped Feb 21!!!!!!!!
*** Saito vs Cobra.- Saito is the same worker from the previous week's opener, Cobra looks kind of a cross of Bestia/Charles jr. Saito is, so far, the only Japanese working as a tecnico at Naucalpan.
3rd (only fall shown).- Saito is too innocent to see Cobra's sneak attack coming, so the rudo starts dominating the fall, they trade some pin attempts and 'camel clutch' holds as well, Cobra seems to be on command, as he does a half powerbomb on Saito, then a powerbomb+pin to get a 2 count. He puts the Japanese wrestler once again on a camel clutch, but Saito escapes and does 'Romero Special' to force Cobra to quit!! 21'14"
Pretty long match for being an opener with a singles match, they only showed the last part of the match, so they're exhausted by then, so, it was no good moment to showcase those workers, Saito no didn't do any missile kicks, which seemed to be his style in the previous show...
---Bombero ---interview, he said he is the best and he tells 'los Oficiales' and 'Nuevos Brazos' to watch out 'cause he's got a partner now, Fireman, who was dressed with a Fireman suit (Bombero=Fireman), Fireman spitted some fire... btw, Picudo also does that to honor Gene Simmons before their Vatos Locos matches start.
*** Sagrado and Volador jr vs Mercurio and Rokambole jr.- Both rudos were on the card from last week, the tecnicos weren't. Volador jr... will he become SuperParka jr? No idea who he is... well, El Sagrado has a loooong story, he comes off from a soap opera character. I guess El Titere will show up soon, Sagrado uses an outfit similar to el Santo...
1.- Volador/Mercurio, then, Sagrado and Rokambole do some (edited) matwork, next, Mercurio returns and Volador jr honors his name as he barely stays at the mat more than a couple of seconds, doing all kinds of backflips, the best comes as Mercurio throws him over his head, Volador lands on the top turnbuckle, does a moonsault landing on his feet and connecting an armdrag!!! Sagrado works some classic tecnico stuff on Rokambole, Mercurio briefly gains control of the fall with some corner splashes, punches and kicks, but the tecnicos have this fall on their hands as Sagrado assist throwing Volador over his head onto a Huracanrana on Rokambole, who is pinned, meanwhile, Sagrado puts Mercurio into the Romero's Special. 7' 06"
2.- Interview with Ultimo Vampiro, he said that the difference between himself and other lucha Vamps was that he was better. Wonder if this is an angle to introduce Vampiro Canadiense... I've seen at Ultimo Dragon Dojo site (see links section) that Vampiro may be working for the IWRG, Ultimo Vampiro is far away from getting to the main events and feud someone as big as Vampiro, but UV is a good worker, and maybe he could get there in some months. They didn't air the second fall, but told us that it lasted 5' 21"
3.- Rokambole and Mercurio use their size advantage to manhandle Volador jr, Sagrado can do little to help his partner as he is beaten and thrown off the ring when he wanted to interfere, the rudo brawling last most of the fall, until, the rudos whip Volador to the corner, but Sagrado is there to help Volador jump over to the apron, Rokambole charges, but meets Sagrado's feet, then Volador jr gets a side plancha on him... but Rokambole catches him!! He places Voladorcito on the top turnbuckle, but the tecnico reacts and pins him with the Huracanrana, Sagrado takes Mercurio out with a frankensteiner followed by 'la de a caballo'. 17'34"
OK match, Volador jr looks like a promising rookie, Mercurio was not as good as the other time I've seen him, but worked OK here, Rokambole keeps being unimpressive, but I think he is sort of a Electro Shock guy, he takes some bumps and draws heat, but is not a wonderful worker.
Video clip showing how the 'legion Japonesa' lives in their house next to the Naucalpan Arena.
*** Ultimo Vampiro, Slayer, and Fantasy defeated Interceptor, Doctor Cerebro, and Star Boy.- The card before this one had Interceptor and Ultimo Vampiro as teammates, but at the end of the match, Ultimo Vamp hit missile kicks on Interceptor, and then went to beat two rudos by himself, earning the match to the tecnicos... and a foe on Interceptor, who joined the rudos!! So this is Ultimo Vampiro's chance to take revenge from the previous beating at hands of Interceptor which followed that match.
1.- Ultimo Vampiro is out for Interceptor, who, of course, won't face him one on one, so Dr Cerebro and Fantasy start off by trading some holds, then, Vampiro seeks Interceptor again, he finds him, but Dr Cerebro and Starboy as well, as the rudos start triple teaming Ultimo Vampiro and keeping the other tecnicos at bay, Vampiro tries to react and pin Interceptor with a sunset flip, but he doesn't get it and Interceptor takes the fall after a bridge with pin. 10' 30"
2.- Showed and interview with Maniac Cop instead of showing the 4' 11" of the second fall, he said that he'll beat Cyber Cop.
3.- I assume tecnicos took the second fall when the rudos were DQ for beating them too roughly, as this fall starts with the rudos in full brawling mode, they keep outnumbering the tecnicos, doing some team work and brawling, eventually, they get into 'el trenecito', which consist of a tecnico doing a headlock on a rudo, then a rudo headlocks the tecnico, another tecnico the rudo, etc., until the six men are headlocking or headlocked (except the men at the sides), they break the 'trenecito' when the rudos split taking headlocking tecnicos to different sides of the ring, but they crash into each other and tecnicos put them into the starfish hold, later, Dr Cerebro drop-kicks Ultimo Vampiro off the ring and nails him with an over the top somersault body block, while the other rudos get close pins after sunset flips, but somehow, the tecnicos win after Interceptor submits to a 'cavernario' from Fantasy, and Slayer (yes, he was there) pins Starboy. 21' 00"
Lots of brawling here, the tecnicos had little offense here, so they couldn't show their stuff, Ultimo Vamp worked well the other time I saw him, so did the rudo team, but this time they concentrated on advancing the Interceptor-Vampiro feud. I'll have to wait for another match to see if Fantasy and Slayer are any good.
*** Maniac Cop, Punch Power and Bombero Infernal vs Cyber Cop, Kato Kung Lee jr and Micke Segura.- Micke Segura AKA ex Oro jr, one of the most promising newcomers in lucha a year or so ago, is one of this promo's best Mexican workers. This is a logic match for IWRG, Bombero has lost his hair to Segura, the Cops are feuding, so are Punch and Kato jr.
1.- Segura and Bombero trade some holds, better said, Segura does some holds on Bombero, but Maniac Cop and Punch Power keep breaking the moves, so, after a quick exchange of armdrags, Micke goes to the rudo's corner and slaps them out of the apron, the rudos re-group and take a while in doing so, Punch Power enters the ring but leaves when seeing Kato jr, more of that with Ciber Cop and Maniac Cop, so Cyber has to face Bombero, but soon, he goes and slaps Maniac Cop, who uses his night stick to beat Cyber Cop, and the brawling is on! Bombero attacks Segura, Punch Power punishes Kato jr, and the bad Cop beats the good Cop, they brawl for a while (why the referees didn't DQd Maniac for using the nightstick?), Bombero hits an elbow drop from the top turnbuckle on Micke, but then hits Maniac Cop with missile kicks, and that was what the tecnicos needed, as they react, Cyber Cop tear's down Maniac's mask and slams him to the cornerpost, while Kato beats Punch, Segura hits a frankensteiner on Bombero Infernal, it seems that Punch loses his mask and ends bleeding at hands of Kato, Maniac also bleed. Segura pins Bombero with a rana, while Cyber hits a side plancha from the top turnbuckle on Maniac Cop who was going for the save. Cyber pins him after a Gory Special like move. Kato jr chases Punch Power around the ring. 10'33"
2.- They keep fighting, going back and forth, but with the tecnicos getting the better of it, Maniac Cop is a bloody mess, and only Bombero Infernal manages to take brief lapses of control over Segura. After a while, Bombero makes Segura crash to the turnbuckles, he charges there, but is sent out of the ring, as Infernal takes a 'salida de bandera' bump, Segura goes to the top turn buckle, steps over the cornerpost and decks Bombero with a far, far somersault body block!!! In the ring, Maniac Cop and Cyber Cop trade pin attempts, then, Maniac tags out to Punch Power, who pins Kato with a Huracanrana, and in the process, takes Kato jr's mask off!! No one saw that... Cyber and Maniac return, but the end comes as the rudos are DQd after a tombstone (sort off) from Maniac Cop on the good Cop. The commissioner and a doctor get there (too fast, by the way) and they do the stretcher job... 6'20".
Well, IWRG had their own Tombstone angle 3 weeks after CMLL did theirs, right now, Kato jr-Power, and Interceptor-Ultimo Vampiro might get bigger push, but the cops look as if they're headed for the masks match (IWRG likes to do them, they've had about 8 mask vs mask matches in the last 18 months, besides several heads shaved).
*** 'Legion Japonesa' - Shiima Nobunaga, Taru, Sumo Fuji, Judo Suwa and Sasuke The Great, vs 'Alianza Mexicana' - Mascara Sagrada (original), Kato Kung Lee sr, Super Parka , Mega, and Halcon Dorado jr, - For the 11th 'Copa High Power', which is done similar to the CMLL ciberneticos matches, or WWF survivor series. Mascara Sagrada (with Octagon) was one of Peņa's first gimmicks which went huge in the early 90's, but I've never been a big fan of him (better say, I've never been a fan of him). Taru and Sasuke the Great are here (in my recaps) for the first time, Sasuke looks as you would think someone with that name would look... He was with a masked lady, but he didn't interfered in the match.
-- The match starts with everyone getting to trade moves and do some matwork for a couple of times for a long time, close to the 20 minutes mark, they get from the 'script' and the 5 Japanese wrestlers put Mega and Halcon Dorado jr on double 'carretas' (two men grapevine-force opponent to duck, so a partner jumps on top of him), which, as usual, doesn't work and the 3 tecnicos make the save, the Mexicans clear the ring, and Mega delivers a top rope springboard elbow smash on Judo, to then put him in the Scorpion Deathlock, to put him out (Judo was the previous cup winner). Super Parka tries to defeat Sumo Fuji, but Fuji kicks out of a couple of pin attempts and applied a chocking slam for a 2 count, but Parka manages to use a cradle to get the 3 count on Sumo. Later, Sasuke the great nails and pins Halcon with a third turnbuckle moonsault, Taru kicks Kato Kung Lee for a while and then forces him to submit with an armbar, so they are 2-2 even. Shiima seems to have Mega under control, but then misses an inside the ring quebrada, so Mega bodyslams him setting Shiima for another top rope springboard elbow drop, as Mega pins Shiima with a cradle. Now Mega goes after Sasuke the great, but they're close to the half hour mark, so Mega is too tired, and Shiima gets to the apron and kicks Mega's head, so Sasuke can deck him with the MDII and Mega is defeated. Super Parka is manhandled by Taru, but reacts with missile kicks, but Taru low blows him and pins him, one referee counts to 3, and the other DQd Taru, so it seems that both of them are out. So it only leaves Not-Not Mascara Sagrada vs Sasuke the great. Of course, Sasuke the great is the one who has to work from now on, so he keeps ahead of Mascara Sagrada, who manages to roll away from a splash, but ends on the floor, so Sasuke connects a second rope springboard moonsault on him... both of them make it to the ring... Mascara with missile kicks and senton gets 2, then goes for a German suplex, but he couldn't even hold Sasuke there, so Sasuke kicks out and then sends Mascara Sagrada out of the ring, to nail him with a somersault body block, they return to the ring, trade some pin attempts, and at the end, Mascara Sagrada hits a powerbomb and pins Sasuke the great at 37'06". Mascara was to weak.
Not a bad match, but with some major flaws, first, it took them too long for the eliminations to start, about 20 minutes, by that time, it looks as if most of them were too tired to do any highspots (save Sasuke the Great), then, they booked Mascara Sagrada as the winner, which had troubles as he's too weak at the end, he couldn't even do his pin attempts right. Maybe the major problem is how they set this match, with the Japanese interfering in the previous show, and beating the Mexicans, since this type of 'cibernetico tag' matches have enforced rules, it is better for younger and faster workers, Mascara, Kato, Sumo and Taru might have been better for a 'superlibre' match. So, overall, Kato Sr didn't run on the ropes, Super Parka had no comedy spots, and Mega and Halcon Dorado forgot about their highspots; the Japanese, who in the Feb/14 card had established themselves as a rudo/heel stable, they couldn't keep working on that, so this match ended only as a way to push Mascara Sagrada.
Last week's show was better in terms of matwork, there were some highspots, some good power moves, and the matches were interesting, now, they advanced the story lines more than focusing on the in ring performances. In a way, I could define IWRG as a micro cosmos of both AAA and CMLL, they have a group of good youngsters like CMLL's 'Grupo Cibernetico' (Ultimo Dragon's students), they have several gangs (Oficiales, Brazos and the Japanese-- might be proxy-vipers here). Some big names, Kato sr, Mascara Sagrada, Super Parka, etc. They can have a show with very strong work, and then another with lots of heat and brawling.
Next week's card includes Super Crazzy, so it should rock!!! Here is it, according to the lucha mags:
-- Super Crazzy, Shiima Nobunaga and Taru vs Super Parka, Kato Kung Lee Sr and Mascara Sagrada.
-- For the UWA lightweight title: Kato Jr vs Punch Power.
-- Cyber Cop, Mr Niebla and Halcon Dorado jr vs Fireman, Bombero Infernal and Maniac Cop-- So they won't play with the tombstone angle?
-- Ultimo Vampiro, Slayer and Sagrado vs Mercurio, Star Boy and Rey Pantera.
-- Mochizuky and Rokambole vs Volador jr and Zonick.
