This Saturday on YouTube, MLW’s next free special airs! I think this came as a surprise to most folks, as The Burning Crush was only announced on Tuesday (4 days before the event).
Fusion is on hold for the time being. I imagine that MLW is in a restructuring and transition stage. I don’t think there has been any clarification given. So, for the time being, expect one MLW PPV per month and then one free special. Intimidation Games will follow on PPV on Triller TV+ on February 29th.
Seven interesting and diverse matches are on offer, including what could be Jacob Fatu’s final MLW match. Fans learned on the 2nd of February that Fatu had officially become a free agent (you can read more about it here).
There are also big announcements coming from Matt Riddle and Cesar Duran. Yes, you did just read right. Duran is back. El Jefe returned at SuperFight. If you missed here’s your recap.
SuperFight Recap
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- MLW World Middleweight Champion Rocky Romero retained against Ichiban two falls to one. Post-match, Cesar Duran made his return and introduced Mistico as his client. Salina de la Renta, who thought she had permanently dealt with Duran, was angry.
- Davey Boy Smith Jr returned and defeated 1 Called Manders. Smith bloodied Manders and made it clear in a post-match promo that he was coming for gold.
- Jacob Fatu defeated Yuji Nagata. Post-match Contra Unit’s music and entrance video hit. Sentai Death Squad members swarmed the ring. Mads Krule Krügger returned as the new leader of Contra. The Black Hand, executioner style, thumped Fatu across the back of the neck with a Baklei staff.
- Sami Callihan defeated AKIRA in a Death Machine Rules match. Post-match, Raven returned! The Calling’s master looked ready to deliver more punishment to AKIRA. However, Raven used the kendo stick to take out The Calling and sided with AKIRA.
- Mistico defeated Averno.
- The MLW World Heavyweight Championship changed hands! Satoshi Kojima defeated Alex Kane to become the first two-time MLW World Champion. You can read my full analysis of the title change here. Or check out my recent profile piece on the former champion here.
It’s a STACKED lineup for this Saturday’s Burning Crush! pic.twitter.com/nYFi5BgFF9
— MLW (@MLW) February 16, 2024
Six-Man Tag Action
Wasted Youth and Nolo Kitano vs. Tony Deppen, TJ Crawford, and Griffin McCoy.
Dylan McKay and Marcus Mathers are on a roll since debuting for MLW. They are undefeated and are the MLW World Tag Team Championship number one contenders. They also hold two victories over Crawford and McCoy. One of those wins in a six-man competition at Kings of Coliseum. The only thing that has changed for the young guns is their partner.
Nolo Kitano has yet to pick up his first W in MLW. Nolo may be the weak link between Crawford, McCoy, and especially Deppen. Deppen has proven before, with his feud with Kevin Blackwood, that he will go low to get what he wants. Deepen will want to right his trio’s loss from last month. This will likely be a fast-paced, spot-filled opener.
Four-way Featherweight Action
Delmi Exo vs. Zayda vs. Tiara James vs. Notorious Mimi
All four women have been the core of MLW’s women’s division for the past few months. They have wrestled each other in singles and three-way matches. The odds are against former featherweight champion Delmi Exo, who wants another shot at Janai Kai and regaining the championship.
Zayda has made her feelings clear to both Mister Saint Laurent and Salina de la Renta. Zayda wants a shot at the featherweight gold, and she’s been on a mini-winning streak. Both Tiara James and Notorious Mimi are young with a good upside. There could be an upset for the first Federette or the God Queen if they do not keep their heads on the proverbial swivel.
Lumber Jack and Jill Match
Love, Doug vs. Brett Ryan Gosselin
After their Love is Blind(fold) match at Kings of Coliseum, the feud escalates between these two love rivals. Ken-doll inspired Brett Ryan Gosselin to beat Love and Doug with a crowbar for pursuing Brett’s girlfriend, B3CCA. The human embodiment of VD was left blinded. Doug won the first match. Now, the ringside area will be populated with other wrestlers who will need to keep both men in the ring. Who exactly the lumber folks will be?
Expect a comical match and a creative match. Having watched some of Love, Doug’s romance-themed matches on Beyond Wrestling’s Youtube channel, expect to both laugh and be impressed with creativity.
WTF Continue Their Issues with Second Gear Crew
“Filthy” Tom Lawlor W/ Saint Laurent vs. Matthew Justice
The World Title Federation continues to focus its eyes on the MLW World Tag Team championship. This is a feud that has resulted in broken tables, backstage brawls, and trails of blood. At Kings of Coliseum, Lawlor and Josh Bishop’s team could not keep the country boys down.
Yet at SuperFight, Smith left 1 Called Manders bloodied. “Filthy” Tom Lawlor is going to look to do the same thing to Matthew Justice. Despite it looking like MMA vs. brawling, it’s going to be a physical contest. Lawlor’s nickname says it all. This will likely get dirty quickly. Weapons may be involved, especially given how, in a single action against Bishop, Justice was thrown through a table at Holiday Rush.
Will Good Brother #3 (definitely not Mance Warner) be there to support his brother?
Cesar Duran to Speak
Cesar Duran is scheduled to speak on his latest AZTECA Lucha acquisitions. Duran’s return seemed foreshadowed when MLW advertised its return to Chicago in May with Azteca Lucha. His announcement may have implications for these tapings and shed some light on additions to the MLW roster for the near future.
In my analysis of Kojima’s title win, I discussed the lack of roster depth. MLW has lost headliners in Alex Hammerstone (who I profile here) and Jacob Fatu. MLW is relying on outside talent in the short term. Mistico is returning for Intimidation Games. This might reveal who else may come into the promotion for the partnership with CMLL. We may also find out what Salina de la Renta’s next power play might be in response.
Openweight Championship Match
MLW Openweight Championship Rickey Shane Page vs. Jake Crist
The openweight championship as a midcard championship has become a hardcore/deathmatch championship on the shoulders of Rickey Shane Page. This is a good thing. It has helped make the tournament feel more distinct. Given that RSP is taking on Jake Crist, who is no stranger to deathmatches and brawling himself, this could turn nasty in a heartbeat.
Crist’s connection with Sami Callihan is well-known both in the Indies and from Ohio vs. Everyone; it will be interesting to see if, in the short or long term, Christ becomes involved with The Calling. Expect some follow-up after Raven turned on The Calling with something being set up for Intimidation Games.
Matt Riddle Calls out New Japan
Matt Riddle is 2-0 since his return to MLW, but he has also had his flip-flops in New Japan Pro Wrestling. Appearing in a vignette at New Year Dash!!, Riddle challenged the NJPW World Television Champion and New Japan President, Hiroshi Tanahashi, to a match. An answer has yet to be given.
Is Riddle planning to call out The Ace again? Or, after beating TMDK members Zack Sabre Jr. and Bad Dude Tito at Battle in the Valley, might he call out ZSJ? The likelihood is this might have some implications for a New Japan/MLW crossover.
Unless… Is Riddle going to aim at Kojima?
Old Timers vs. Titans Tag Team Match
COZYMAX (Satoshi Kojima and Okumura vs. World Titan Federation Superstars Davey Boy Smith Jr. and Richard Holliday W/ Saint Laurent.
It is an interesting exhibition match that will see the newly crowned, two-time MLW World Champion, Kojima, team up with Okumara. Okumara has made Mexico and CMLL his home for the 2005. The champion and his friend have a combined age of 105. Both have made it known they want to challenge for the MLW World Tag Team Championship. Kojima, who is MLW’s Terry Funk figure, gets another huge win and possibly becomes a double champion.
Their opponents are opposites in ethos, youth, and physical prowess. Davey Boy Smith Jr returned to MLW after a tour of Japan and won in his back pocket over former MLW World Champion Alex Kane. Richard Holliday, who returned to the promotion at One-Shot (and I profiled and spoke with in December), also has gold in mind.
Holliday failed to win the World Championship at Kings of Coliseum. A victory over the champion would put him back in title contention. Laurent needs to keep both men focused on victory rather than their own goals to secure the win.
Jacob Fatu’s Final MLW Match?
Baklei Brawl: Jacob Fatu vs. Mads Krule Krügger
Fatu completed one trilogy with his greatest rival, Alex Hammerstone, at Holliday Rush. Now, the Samoan Werewolf seems to have finished his MLW career, facing his former Contra Unit brethren in another.
It began after Jacob Fatu split from the Contra Unit after the 2001 War Chamber match. The two heavyweights battled in a number of stipulation matches, including a stairway to hell match and a weapons of mass destruction match. In the latter, Fatu thought he had ended the South African by throwing him into biohazardous material and ripping off his mask.
This will be the second Baklei Brawl. The first took place between Hammerstone and Krügger during the Pandemic. As a cinematic match, it was clever and worked to allow Krügger to play the overbearing monster to his fullest. The Black Hand of Contra is a modern heavyweight tour de force.
If this is Fatu’s last match and Contra Unit is returning, expect a dramatic send-off for the Ultimate Uce. He deserves it for being one of the Atlas’ holding up MLW for so long.
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