MLW Fusion results: Former NBA referee Tim Donaghy debuts

The Big Takeaways:

Richard Holliday retained the Caribbean title against Savio Vega in a Caribbean strap match aided by a former crooked NBA referee, Laredo Kid retained the AAA Cruiserweight title against Zenshi and TJP and Bu Ku Dao earned an MLW Tag Team Title match with Los Parks next week. 

Show Recap:

AAA Cruiserweight Champion Laredo Kid defeated Zenshi (10:01)

With some hype, this match could have felt like so much more. But with no build and a challenger coming from nowhere, it lacked a story that could have helped it be something special. Don’t get me wrong: the action was great as you would expect. Unfortunately, Zenshi’s challenge couldn’t be taken too seriously since he had lost in recent weeks to both Calvin Tankman and Daivari.

However, Zenshi did his best to convince viewers he could win by hitting a nice delayed tiger feint kick while Kid was on the outside, quickly followed up by a running, standing shooting star press from the apron. Zenshi hit his usual mix of excellent athletic slingshots and handstands and showed why he is one of the most underrated wrestlers around at the moment.

They hyped up a future match between Kid and new MLW Middleweight champion Lio Rush and when it was Kid’s time to shine, he showed why he is held in such high regard in Mexico. After a missed moonsault and landing on his feet, he hit a Michinoku driver on the floor followed up with a 450 splash off the apron.

After weathering a storm of Kid offense, Zenshi hit his own 450 inside the ring, landing perfectly on Kid’s shoulders to knock him down. Kid eventually regained the momentum and hit a destroyer out of nowhere, but Zenshi got his foot on the bottom rope. Kid eventually got the win after a Spanish fly off the top rope, calling himself the best cruiserweight in the world afterward and challenging Rush to a match.

— The Pro Wrestling Illustrated Top 10 contenders for Jacob Fatu’s MLW World title for the week: ACH dropped another place to 10; Daivari debuted at 9; Myron Reed was unchanged at 8; Mil Muertes debuted at 7; 6 was still Richard Holliday; climbing the rankings at 5 was Mads Krugger; Middleweight champion Lio Rush was still 4. Low Ki was 3, Tom Lawlor was 2, and National Openweight Champion Alex Hammerstone was 1 as the top three remained unchanged. 

— The Von Erichs told us that “Filthy” Tom Lawlor was in Hawaii and causing trouble with the locals, but later in the night, we were told that Lawlor’s Filthy Island is having some financial troubles after the allegations that Lawlor attacked ACH last week. Lawlor dismissed the claims and said he had nothing to do with ACH being attacked.

— Los Parks revealed the new owners of Promociones Dorado was a “he” as they thanked him for getting them their Tag Team Title shot two weeks ago where they defeated the Von Erichs to win the belts. 

TJP and Bu Ku Dao defeated Violence is Forever (Dominic Garrini and Kevin Ku) to earn a Tag Team Title shot (10:03)

They hyped up that Lawlor’s Filthy Island could be a big celebration if VIF won tonight and then won the titles next week. VIF eventually singled out Dao but after a crucifix, TJP got the hot tag and ran wild with a big tilt-a-whirl DDT on Ku and a tilt-a-whirl arm drag head scissors takedown on both.

TJP slipped out of VIF’s finisher before splashing Ku from the top rope which allowed Dao pick up the win. 

— King Mo, or Muhammad Lawal as he referred to himself, starred in a mock touching video where he pleaded with MLW to stop booking Low Ki because of the head injury he caused him the last time they wrestled. This feud has been going on since before lockdown so it seems they will meet once more sometime soon.

Richard Holliday defeated Savio Vega in a Caribbean Strap match to retain possession of the IWA Puerto Rican Caribbean title (8:57)

Gino Medina promised to watch this match in preparation for an eventual match with Holliday, but tonight was all about Holliday and disgraced former NBA referee Tim Donaghy who was jailed for betting on games he officiated.

Holliday told Vega they were meeting on his terms, but he had studied Vega’s strap match with “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and guaranteed that Vega would not outsmart him. However, Holliday definitely outsmarted Vega by conspiring to have Donaghy referee his first MLW match tonight.

This was held under traditional strap match rules where the winner had to touch four corners in succession. Holliday immediately ran trying to quickly get the match won, but Vega stopped him and choked him out. Both tried to touch all four corners multiple times, choked each other with the strap, and whipped each other across the back.

The finish looked as though it would follow a lot of past strap matches where one wrestler would start hitting each turnbuckle while their opponent sneaks behind them and touches them too, unbeknownst to the one in the lead. But as they both made their way to the fourth and final corner, Donaghy stood in Vega’s way and stopped him from hitting the buckle. Holliday then used the strap to pull Vega out the way. Donaghy pulled Vega to the side to let Holliday jump in, touch the final corner, and win the match. 

Afterward, Alicia Atout questioned Donaghy about what had just happened but he said he called it right down the middle just like in 2007 when the Lakers played the Kings. Vega then ran in and chased them both off as Fusion went off the air. 

Next week:

• National Openweight Champion Alex Hammerstone vs. Mads Krugger in a Baklei Brawl (bare knuckle anything goes)
• MLW Tag Team Champions Los Parks vs. TJP and Bu Ku Dao