Lucha Underground 28/1/15

Dario Cueto is backstage talking to Cage, and he informs him that he'll get a title match against Prince Puma tonight.

Mil Muertes (w/ Katrina) vs. Fenix

Fenix starts out with chops and kneees that don't really affect Muertes, who returns fire with a giant right hand to the face and a belly to belly suplex. Muertes follows with a DDT, but only gets two. Muertes continues to toss Fenix around the ring with suplexes before spearing him. Fenix somehow kicks out as a "Let's go Fenix/Fenix sucks" chant starts.

Muertes hits a big superplex from the top, but Fenix takes advantage of the bout with an inside cradle and gets the win!

Winner: Fenix via pinfall (inside cradle)

- A vignette for Cage airs.

Super Fly, Argenis, & Aerostar vs. The Crew

Super Fly takes advantage quickly with an early dive, causing Cisco to tag out. Cortez doesn't do much better and is hit with a slingshot armdrag. Bael gets a tag, but is met by Argenis, who kicks him square in the pants.

Aerostar is tagged in and hits an insane springboard tilt-a-whirl headscissors. Argenis and Aerostar hit an even more insane second rope assisted body press, but it only gets two.

The Crew fights back and hits a great series of boots, really stiff ones. They work the faces over for a while before Aerostar hits a big back elbow and tags Argenis.

Argenis and Cortez go at it until Argenis hits a head scissors to him, a super kick to Bael and a sunset bomb to Castro for two. The Crew come back with a catapult/kick/kneedrop combo for two.

Dive after dive leads to a frankensteiner to the outside that leaves all the competitors on the ground. Back inside Aerostar eats the flapjack/codebreaker for the pin. Very good match.

Winners: The Crew (Flapjack/Codebreaker)

- Vampiro interviews Prince Puma and Konnan, but mainly just Konnan. Vampiro asks Puma to speak for himself. Instead, Puma has to get in between Vampiro and Konnan.

Lucha Underground World Championship
Prince Puma (c) (w/ Konnan) vs. Cage

Puma attacks Cage up the ramp, but Cage reverses things with hard Irish whips into the buckles. A huge back body drop from Cage gets a two count, but he applies a half nelson and hits a big neckbreaker.

Puma tries to battle back, but Cage counters with a sitout Alabama Slam that gets a two count. Cage sets up for a powerslam that Puma turns into a DDT. He hits double knees off of a springboard, but can't get the three count.

In an impressive spot, Cage catches a flying Puma off the top in a vertical suplex position and Jackhammers him for two before hitting a second rope moonsault to a similar result.

A Cage spinebuster and powerbomb get countered by a big dropkick to the face by Puma. Cage hits an F5, and Puma kicks out. The crowd is going crazy.

Puma battles back with three straight big kicks and a northern lights suplex, but only gets two. He goes up top, but Cage pushes the ref into the ropes and knocks him down. Cage then lands a low blow for the DQ.

Winner: Puma via DQ to retain the Lucha Underground World Championship

Cage attacks Puma and the ref after the match, but Konnan breaks a cane over his back. Cage blasts Konnan with the championship, before ripping it in half.

- The Asian woman who has been in the crowd comes into Dario Cueto's office and harasses him, asking if he knows someone. He denies it, and she leaves.

There is so much good about LU and NXT that I really couldn't care how troubled WWE and TNA are at the moment.

Basically we've had a 2 week build up of Cage as a credible title threat.  And they really used the ring work, interviews and skits so well to do that.  He's not Brock, but he's been booked so well that he's pretty damn close right now.

I'd been really getting into Fenix.  So, I wasn't so happy that he was booked to look so weak against Mil Muertes.  If they want to go with Fenix as a face who just keeps going in the face of anything and picks up the win against the odds, okay.  But I think he's better than that.  Its the first time I can really think of a wrestler being booked to look weak in LU, so maybe that's why it jarred.  Great rub for Muertes though.

On the other hand, great booking for the 6-man.  I'd say that none of the competitors are that over, so I started tepid, but they gave it 12 mins and it started to include such spots that I really got into it.  I think they basically built a 4* match from nothing.  

As I said above, Cage is not Brock.  But watch how Puma starts off against Cage and (assuming he's fit) this is why DB / Brock is a huge loss to a WM program.  And there is some great commentary here on selling how a big fighter can blow up and that gives the opportunity for the smaller guy. But hey, that's why I'm not so bothered as to what is happening in WWE cos I think LU and NXT are top programs right now.

I still think the weak link in the show is Vampiro.  Talks over Striker.  Can't answer any of Striker's soft ball questions.  Misses too many spots.  And "you could cut the knife with the intensity".  Idiot.