CMLL 82nd anniversary show live report from Arena Mexico 9-18 Atlantis vs. La Sombra
Welcome to our live coverage of the CMLL 82nd anniversary show from Arena Mexico.
We’re looking for your thoughts on this show, tonight’s ROH show, as well as Bellator and WWE Night of Champions this weekend, so you can leave a thumbs up thumbs down or thumbs in the middle along with a best and worst match to dave@wrestlingobserver.com
ESFINGE & FUEGO & THE PANTHER VS. DISTURBIO & PUMA KING & VIRUS
Good match, not too crazy or anything. Fuego pinned Disturbio in the first fall. Disturbio made Esfinge submit to a cruceta in the second fall. Virus pinned Fuego in a battle of captains after a Gori especal bomb. Basic solidly worked match, two dives, maybe one bad looking spot. They teased as face win when Esfinge used the Fuller leglock into a cradle on Disturbio in the third fall.
Late arriving crowd as there were a ton of empty seats at 8:30 local time when the show sarted. It’s a log more full at this point.
GUERRERO MAYA JR. & MAXIMO & STUKA JR. VS. DRAGON ROJO & POLVORA & REY ESCORPION
Maximo, the world heavyweight champion is in the second match here. Good action here. Third fall ended with Escorpion pinning Maximo clean with a package piledriver which may set him up for a title shot. Stuka did this cool backwards twisting head-butt off the top rope to the floor on Rojo. Polvora pinned Maya in the first fall with a dominator off the top rope. Maximo pinned Escorpion in the second fall with a kiss and a cradle.
The building still isn’t totally full but it is a big crowd. Crowd was really into Maximo in the last match. It has the feel of a big show at this point.
DARK ANGEL VS. PRINCESA SUGEI
Even though this was Dark Angel’s farewell match as she’s headed to WWE as a trainer, the crowd was a lot less into this than the first two matches. There was some good wrestling but it went too long and they went past their peak. Panico gave her flowers and a plaque after the match. She did a long interview about spending ten years, thanked Paco Alonso. They played sone sad usc The two women hugged after. Ther crowd was respectful but it didn’t feel like it was that big of a deal to the crowd. They were wanting to work the classic big singles match and did the style but they never really got near that level.
DRAGON LEE & MISTICO & VALIENTE VS. NEGRO CASAS & FELINO & MR. NIEBLA
Easilly the best match so far, and also the shortest. Third fall saw Mistico use La Mistica on Nielbla to win after Lee used a double foot stomp while Casas was in the tree of woe to elminate him. Lee, Mistico and Valiente did a lot of good dives here and the crowd was more into the guys. They hated Mistico, total Cena PPV reaction but didn’t boo Lee and Valiente. Niebla made Mistico submit to the nudo in the first fall. Second fall saw Valiente have Felino in a tombstone and dropped him into a codebreaker.
SHOCKER & VOLADOR JR. & ULTIMO GUERRERO VS. MARCO CORLEONE & RUSH & THUNDER
The match had a lot of heat and it ranged from pretty fun to pretty bad depending on who was in. Finish was crap, though. Rush just threw down ref Tirantes in the third fall for the DQ. Rush has total superstar presence and working ability. Volador is really good. Guerrero can go. Shocker is old and slow but tries. Thunder is just awful. First fall was a double pin as Thunder pinned Guerrero with a splash off the top and Corleone pinned Shocker with Air Italia. Second fall saw Guerrero pin Thunder after a delayed vertical suplex while Shocker did an elbow drop off the middle rope on Corleone.
Volador and Rush went back and forth with challenges for a hair match. Tons of heat for that.
Aside from the dancing girls and big crowd, this doesn’t feel much different than a usual Friday as far as match quality goes. It really is a one match show.
ATLANTIS VS. LA SOMBRA MASK VS. MASK
Atlantis won with the torture rack in the third fall in a match that was exactly what it should have been. Super heat. They are sowing Sombra’s mother crying in he front row. Now thehy are showing his father, his brother was crying. It had that big match feel at a level of something in the 70s, even more than the G-1 mathes. The match was great due to Sombra but Atlantis did a great job considering his age with multiple dives.
Manuel Alfonso Andrade Oropeza, 25 years old, from Gomez Palacio, Durango.
Dad is stoic, mom still crying. Sombra now giving a speech. Mom now hysterically crying. Little brother crying. Sombra put over Atlantis at the end. He called his family to the ring. His mom didn’t come to the ring. He asked his father to take his mask off. Rush hugged him before taking it off. He hugged his dad before taking it off. He unmaksed. Confetti is flying and Sombra’s family put Atlantis on their shoulders. Rush now wants a match with Atlantis. They shook hands as Atlantis posed with Sombra’s mask. Now Sombra’s family has him on his shoulders. Lots of women crying now.
Atlantis won the first fall via DQ for Rush’s interference. Somba won the second with a one arm back suplex. Thrid fall was a million near falls and submissions.
Excellent last match overall, but overall atmosphere was not at the level of last year’s anniversary main event, but that’s a once in a decade like feel with the end of a decade plus story, where as this was less than two months.