SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
Lucha Underground Report
Season 4 Episode #7 – “Break the Machine”
July 25, 2018
Taped in Los Angeles, Calif.
Aired on Rey Network
Report by Joel Dehnel, PWTorch contributor
-Show opened with a recaps of Matanza being released and sacrificing his opponents, Jake Strong taking out Famous B and the final hype for the Gift of the Gods
-Title Card
Announcers: Vampiro welcomed the audience to show. Striker hyped the Gift of the Gods match coming later tonight. Striker announced that doctors have been able to save Famous B’s leg and they ask that you send him warm wishes for his recovery to 1-423-GET-FAME.
[JD’s Reax: If you call that number, you’ll hear a very funny recording of Famous B. Do it and you will not regret it.]
In ring: Santos introduced Sammy Guevara who was already standing in the ring. His opponent tonight is Jake Strong.
(1) SAMMY GUEVARA vs. JAKE STRONG
Strong caught Guevara and hit two German Suplex’s early. Strong hit his signature corner splash. Guevara countered a lariat and landed a crossbody on Strong resulting in them both falling to the outside. Strong threw Guevara around then cinched and ankle lock. Guevara broke free from Strong and began to climb toward the top of the temple. Guevara hit a moonsault from the top of the temple onto Strong. Guevara followed it up with a series of kicks then he brought the action back into the ring. Strong went for Guevara’s ankle and forced Guevara to tap from the Ankle Lock.
WINNER: Jake Strong at 3:58. This was a perfect example of a very unnecessary dangerous high spot. Guevara made this incredible leap off of the temple which of course lead to “Holy sh**” chants, but there was no lasting impact. Shortly after the leap, Strong won with an ankle lock and the moonsault was quickly forgotten. A moonsault from that high up should have been saved for a meaningful moment in a big time match.
[Break]
In ring: Santos introduced Vinnie Massaro who was already in the ring.
Antonio came out to the temple. Antonio told Vinnie he evaluated every contract when he took over. On Vinnie’s contract it said to fire this poor excuse of a man. After seeing him in Aztec Warfare, Antonio has no choice but to order him a pizza. A Pizza delivery man came to the ring and gave a pizza to Vinnie. Vinnie opened the pizza box and complained that it had pineapple. Antonio revealed to Vinnie that he would be the next sacrifice to Matanza.
(2) “THE MONSTER” MATANZA CUETO vs. VINNIE MASSARO
Vinnie slapped Matanza and landed a few strikes. Vinnie bounced off the ropes as Matanza stood in the middle of the ring. Vinnie lost his energy bouncing off the ropes. Matanza knocked off Vinnie then hit the Wrath of the Gods onto a pizza for the win.
WINNER: Matanza at 1:07. LU just can’t help themselves but put a revamped Matanza into a comedy segment. Of course Matanza looked strong, but the comedy undercuts Matanza’s viciousness.
Post match: The pizza delivery man went to check on Vinnie. He grabbed the wallet out of Vinnie’s pocket then backed into Matanza. Matanza chokeslammed him then rolled him onto Vinnie. The lights in the temple turned red as Matanza stood over them and looked upwards. Matanza raised his arms and suddenly both Vinnie and the pizza man disappeared.
[Break]
In ring: Santos introduced the competitors for the Gift of the Gods Championship match.
-Antonio came out to the temple and said that there will no longer be a 6 way match tonight. Instead we will have a 3 way for the Gift of the Gods. The winning team of a trios tag match will compete against each other for the championship. Since Ivelisse and Son of Havoc have a history of success together, they can pick their tag partner. Without hesitation they selected The Mack.
[Break]
(3) THE MACK & IVELISSE & SON OF HAVOC vs. KING CUERNO & DEZMOND X & EL DRAGON AZTECA, JR.- The winning team will face each other for the Gift of the Gods Championship
Cuerno started the match with MAck. Cuerno tried to roll up Mack then tagged in Dragon. Dezmond tried to help Dragon, But Mack got the better of both of them. Cuerno entered the action allowing MAck to take him out as well. Havoc tagged in maintained control of Cuerno. Ivelisse tagged in. Dezmond X gained control after Ivelisse took damage from Cuerno and Dragon. Ivelisse was able to break free and tag in The MAck. Killshot was shown watching the match from the top of the temple. Cuerno, Dezmond and Dragon were all knocked to the outside allowing Havoc to leap onto them. Havoc brought Cuerno into the ring. Havoc missed a top rope splash allowing Cuerno to hit the Thrill of the Hunt for the win.
WINNER: King Cuerno, El Dragon Azteca and Dezmond X at 6:15.
Post match: Mil Muertes came down to the ring and attacked Havoc and Mack. Killshot ran down to interfere with the attack. From the way Killshot ran down, you weren’t sure if he was going to help Havoc or continue the attack. It looked as though Killshot accidentally knocked over Havoc. Killshot turned around and was slapped down by Mil Muertes.
(4) KING CUERNO vs. DEZMOND X vs. EL DRAGON AZTECA, JR. – Gift of the Gods Championship match
Cuerno took down Dragon and Dezmond. Cuerno hit a frankensteiner on Dezmond who flipped onto Dragon and attempted a pin. Dezmond landed several strikes on both men. Cuerno rolled to the outside allowing for Dezmond and Dragon to brawl in the ring. Cuerno came back into the ring and hit a big boot of Dezmond. Dezmond rolled to the outside leading to Dragon leaping onto him. Cuerno then dove onto Dragon. Dezmond and Dragon went back and forth in the ring. Dezmond showcased his athleticism with attacks on Dragon. Cuerno came back into the fold and tied up Dragon’s leg. Cuerno caught Dezmond into a submission while bending Dragon’s leg. They continued to brawl on outside of the ring. Cuerno tossed Dragon into the announce table then dragged Dezmond across the ringside floor. Cuerno dropped Dezmond onto the steel barricade then tossed Dragon into a section of seating. Cuerno grabbed Dragon again, he was interrupted when Dezmond leapt onto them from another high point of the temple. Dezmond dragged Dragon back into the ring and missed a corkscrew from the top rope. Dezmond went back to the top, but was stopped by Dragon. Dragon flipped Dezmond off the top rope for the pin.
WINNER: Dragon at 11:23 to win the Gift of the Gods Championship.
– Marty Martinez was shown being dragged on a carpet into a living room. The person dragging him poured a bottle of liquor on his face to wake him up. It was revealed to be Mariposa who brought him here. She asked Marty if he knew why she did what she did at Ultima Lucha Tres. She told him that he needs focus. He needs to stop focusing on his weird dreams which included taking Pentagon’s teeth. Instead he needs to put his focus on winning the title. Even though she wears the mask of the Mariposa, Marty is the one who is destined for greatness. He needs to stop laying around focus on what really matters. Marty laughed maniacally as the show closed.
FINAL THOUGHTS…
Who would have thought that Marty Martinez finally has a clear goal which is to win a wrestling championship. He’ll have a nice feud with Pentagon because Marty is such an unlikeable heel. I’m glad they gave him a real goal for his return.
The main event provided some good action without feeling short changed from last week’s main event between Cage and Pentagon. I know with the budget cuts they haven’t been able to film nearly as many backstage segments as they had in previous seasons. This has lead to the 4 match show format with a lot of the focus being in the ring. While I am an advocate for more time spent in the ring, I can’t help but feel that there has been a serious lack of following up on some storylines. It feels like the Dario conspiracy story has been dragged out for quite some time and we still don’t know much about it since his death. In about 4 weeks, we will be at the halfway point in the season and there are still many story lines that have not hit that next chapter. We are stilling waiting on resolution for a lot of storylines, but at the same time several new stories have begun.
NOW CHECK OUT LAST WEEK’S REPORT: 7/18 Lucha Underground TV Report (season 5, ep. 5): Pentagon Dark vs. Cage for Lucha Title, London vs. Dezmond X, Johnny Mundo vs. Vibroa
Great show. Far better, in my opinion, than anything WWE put on this week.