MLW Intimidation Games Recap: Lawlor vs. Low Ki Steel Cage Match, Lucha Bros vs Team AAA

Last week on MLW Fusion: Lance Anoa’i was impressive in his loss to Rich Swann. The Samoan Dynasty is alive and well on the indies. Knee-pad up, knee-pad down…. dramatic pause…. MANCER IS HERE and picked up the dub over Jimmy Yuta. Rey Horus and Aerostar went balls to the walls crazy in their match.

Cold Open-

Jim Cornette replaced Matt Striker who replaced Tony Schiavone. I am apprehensive. I like Jim’s work in wrestling, but his opinions sometimes leave a lot to be desired on my end. He is totally entitled to those opinions but sometimes they seem archaic. Which is weird for MLW because they feature many performers and match types that Jim rips on.

Team AAA (Taurus and Loredo Kid) vs. Lucha Bros (Pentagon Jr. and Rey Fenix)

• Corny already compares Taurus to a Minotaur which is a wink wink nudge nudge to MANTAUR
• Cornette is already heads and shoulders better than Striker so thumbs up in my book.
• The crowd is hot for this match. The show is a legit sell out and it looks like everyone is familiar with these lucha wrestlers. Very exciting.
• THE AIR HORN IS BACK! Love thins that sets this company apart.
• Taurus has the greatest lucha mask I have ever seen. It looks like a legit bull with a nose piercing. I thought it was just entrance garb, but it looks like an actual mask.
• The match is so fast and furious the commentator’s can only say “wow”.
• I really like the tandem of Jim and Rich. Rich has been known to call matches for FEST Wrestling, and that company is all sorts of ridiculous chaos. Jim is very much the yin to Bohccini’s yang .
• These wrestlers are playing fast and loose with the tag rules. Very little tagging but very much action.
• Right when I can get a grip on what is happening, the action is so quick that five or six moves have happened before I can finish a thought. The crowd is loving it and so am I.
• Pentagon and Fenix have Taurus and Loredo Kid in a double double submission. It’s some sort of Human Centipede type shit. I’ve never seen anything like it.
• The match is starting to get a little sloppy. Which makes sense because all four men have been sprinting through this match. Cornette does a good job on not commenting on the slip-ups. I am really digging this whole thing.
• Loredo Kid is really good at the in between stuff. The selling in between moves, the reactions, the distance kept between opponents. Very talented.
• Taurus and Loredo stacked the Lucha Bros on top of each other and Loredo hit a 450 splash.
• The Lucha Bros hit their double stomp/ package piledriver finish. Fenix dives outside of the ring OVER Taurus into and onto the crowd. Absolute chaos as the match ends.

And I’m Like… That was tremendous. The production, the car crash wrestling, the commentary, the crowd. It was brilliant. The energy was high and the action was fast. The crowd agrees as well because they are throwing money into the ring! I can’t get over how good that was. I also think some American indie wrestlers need to start wearing lucha masks so they can have fans throw money into the ring. Fenix cut a promo thanking the crowd and saying that wrestling is his life.

Jimmy Havoc vignette. I am very excited for his return. Havoc vs. Mancer is going to be fun as hell. Light beers and Emo depression!

The Hart Foundation said that the Freebird rule applies to them.

MJF and Richard Holliday are now calling themselves The Dynasty and challenging The Hart Foundation to a World Tag Title match.

This is a “Live” taping. Meaning it was live but I’m watching on YouTube. You can tell they are stalling for time. We’ve been told that this match is almost underway multiple times.

MLW World Heavyweight Championship

Tom Lawlor (c) vs. Low Ki

• The cage reminds me of Big Blue but a little smaller.
• The entrances and introductions sure do take a while.
• Low Ki getting introduced. The camera zooms in on him and his white trunks. Low Ki squatting waiting to be introduced, looking like an overgrown baby tryna poop.
• Tom Lawlor does a Connor McGregor/Vince McMahon walk around the ring.
• Low Ki jumps Lawlor at the beginning of the match and we are off to the races.
• A few minutes in and Lawlor hits his head on the cage, Low Ki gets a high heel shoe from Salina De La Renta and attacks Tom with it. Jim tells us that Lawlor lost a UFC bout by having his head ran into the cage. That was a nice tidbit to point out.
• Am very surprised Tom isn’t bleeding.
• Low Ki is laying in kicks on Tom and Lawlor is asking for more. Corny makes sense of it by saying Lawlor is trying to show Ki that his strikes don’t effect Tom, demoralizing Low Ki.
• Low Ki has begun targeting Tom Lawlor’s head and mid section. The first blood we see is Tom’s stomach getting cut from Salina’s shoe.
• Low Ki went towards the cage door but Tom was already attacking Low Ki before the door could be unlocked.
• Corny said we aren’t going to commercial break in the middle of the match like some wrestling shows. Even though MLW did that during the first match.
• Tom hits Low Ki in the face with a roll of pennies. Now Tom is trying to leave though the door but Salina is keeping it shut. Tom has decided to climb but Low Ki is there to stop the climb.
• Low Ki is on top of the cage now. This cage is super sturdy. Lawlor fell and got tangled in the top rope into the tree of woe position. Low Ki was on top of the cage and instead of going for the win, he was thinking of hitting the Warrior’s Way double stomp. Lawlor shook the cage to make Low Ki lose his balance and crotch himself on the cage.
• Now both men are doing a yay/boo on the top of the cage. Lawlor is almost to the floor of the cage but Low Ki is chasing Lawlor. Rich and Jim are discussing the psychology of beating up your opponent who is near the floor. Lawlor gets his foot stuck and it’s anyone’s match.
• It doesn’t make sense that both men are just hanging on to the cage. Just jump and you win. This is supposed to build drama but it makes both men look very dumb.
• God help these commentators trying to make sense of this.
• Both men fall but Lawlor fell first.

And I’m Like… Lawlor and Low Ki have some shit matches. It feels like there is supposed to be a “big fight feel” and “aura” to these matches but nah. That fight outside of the cage was dumb. Like Low Ki was in control and instead of jumping to the floor he kicks Tom? Not a smart move. Lawlor won because Low Ki hit him too hard, LOL!

After the match Jacob Fatu, Simon Gotch and some other man that hasn’t been named attack Tom Lawlor. The time keeper is ringing the bell like crazy. Jacob Fatu is a star and has gotten over in front of every crowd he has performed in front of. Great ending to the show and great palate cleanser after that finish. Fatu hits a splash off the top of the cage!!! Jacob already outdid one of Rikishi Fatu’s biggest moments of his career. Lawlor is covered in a flag that says CONTRA. So we know what Contra is now! That was some good shit.

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