wrestling / TV Reports
Cook’s AAA TripleMania XXX Mexico City Review
Image Credit: AAA Lucha Libre
Loading...Hey kids! We missed the second installment of AAA’s TripleMania XXX spectacular, but we’re back for the third. Some big matches tonight, as we’ve got hair & masks on the line. We’ve got championships on the line too, including a meeting for the MegaChampionship that some are already hyping as a Match of the Year contender before it even happens. There’s not a lot as far as big foreign stars go, but some Mexican stars that have gotten big elsewhere are home for the evening. Let’s get dangerous!
Cook’s AAA TripleMania XXX Mexico City Review
We open with a triple screen of the rotating TripleMania logo, Joe Dombrowski & Larry Dallas. No sound, then the main screen goes to an orchestra in army fatigues. OK, I can get sound if I turn my laptop’s sound up to 100. They’re playing the Pink Panther theme for Villano IV, then “Bad Medicine” for Dr. Wagner Jr.. He’s not booked, but nobody would be surprised if he randomly shows up tonight. Then they play “Thriller” for the late La Parka Jr., to the delight of the crowd. Psycho Circus’s song is next. Then we get the official AAA theme song with imagery of the Pena/Roldan family in the background. I have switched to the Spanish feed as the English feed is unlistenable at the moment. We get some good ol’ Mexican patriotism. At the very least, this overly long intro is gving AAA a chance to work on their audio difficulties.
Rey Mysterio has sent in a message for TripleMania, I assume he’s wishing people well and thanking AAA for getting his career started and things like that. Then we get a video recapping the history of AAA & showing some of the company’s biggest stars from yesterday & today. We see some tributes to AAA’s fallen heroes. Eddie Guerrero, Perro Aguayo Sr. & Jr., and La Parka Jr. got the biggest pops from the crowd.
A pyro display & the AAA theme music seems to indicate the show beginning. Banners honoring former company heads Antonio Pena & Joquain Roldan are brought to the ring. Marisela Pena has both urns with her and everybody poses. We see a “If Penta Wins We Riot” sign in the front row. And somebody wearing a Penta mask & doing the Zero Miedo taunt. Time for some action!
Los Hermanos Lee (Dragon Lee & Dralistico) vs. Arez & Willie Mack vs. Myzteziz Jr. & Komander vs. Los Vipers (Toxin & Latigo): The winners of this will get a shot at FTR’s AAA Tag Team Championship. One can only guess when & where this will happen, I doubt AAA has much of an idea at the moment. Dragon Lee & Dralistico would be the heavy betting favorites here, as they’re getting wins over everybody and seem to be the next in line. Tirantes serves as the referee here, he was a nice guy the last time we saw him but one can never be sure. Since it’s a Willie Mack match, we start with a dance number. It’s just how things go down here, best not to question it. Willie shakes his groove thing to the delight of the crowd. He gets kicked down and the match is under way at 300 miles per hour. Dives by Myzteziz Jr. & Komander. Then they do moonsaults. Powerbomb by Myzteziz, they choose to isolate Willie. We’ve lost one of our announcer screens and one of our announcers as Myzteziz & Komander keep up the offense. 450 & a shooting star press on Mack. Shooting star gets two as one of our announcers returns. God I love this production. I also love the teamwork of Dragon Lee & Dralistico. Arez & Willie Mack face off with the Hermanos and strikes are exchanged. Lee eats a Samoan Drop from Mack. Dralistico gets slammed down. Double kip up and a Macarena from Arez & Mack. The Vipers double team Arez, then Komander. Komander eats a twisting splash on the ramp. Arez sets the Vipers up on the outside, then Dragon Lee dives onto them. Komander exchanges shots with Mack in the ring. Mack with the leg lariat. Mack’s going for the dive, hits the Fosbury flop onto the masses on the floor. Dralistico & Arez go at it, meet on the top rope. Komander joins them, poison ranas Dralistico onto the folks at ringside. Komander runs the top rope, backflips into the ring, jumps back to the top rope and hits a shooting star to the floor. Destroyer by Dralistico. he then hits a Moneymaker on a Viper for the three count!
Winners: Los Hermanos Lee (9 minutes via pinfall)
Match Rating: **3/4
This was nothing but spots, so if you’re looking for a story there’s not much I can tell you. If you like flipping and flying, this was definitely the match for you! Willie Mack gets a doll, then several dolls drop onto Willie from the ceiling. Here comes a man in a mascot suit dancing and advertising cars, or drugs, or whatever. Product placement! Hugo, Carlos & Jose are talking to the camera now.
We actually hear the speech from Rey now. Would be nice if one of the English commentators understood Spanish. The feed goes all wonky again, so we switch to the Spanish feed for the next match. Should be fine, as I actually know of these people.
AAA Reina de Reinas Championship Match: Taya (c) vs. Kamille: This was originally going to be Taya vs. Thunder Rosa, but as AEW fans have been told, Rosa suffered an injury leaving her unable to compete. So we get Kamille from the NWA instead. I haven’t seen her work much lately, but she certainly has a physical presence about her. Marty Elias is the referee for this one. Kamille attack right away, bealing Taya across the ring and stomping a mudhole in her. Taya gets a chair placed on her head so Kamille can stomp it. Kamille hits Taya with the chair and shimmies like she’s Eddie Guerrero or something. There is now a trash can in the ring, and a chair in the corner. Taya gets whipped into the chair and hit with a cookie sheet. Taya’s busted open, looking like her partners in the Death Dollz in Impact Wrestling. On the ramp, Kamille keeps using the cookie sheet as the live feed goes away. Back in the ring and Taya & Kamille are exchanging strikes. Kamille with what I assume is some of Taya’s blood on her cheek. Kamille hits a modified Van Terminator on Taya for the two count. Kamille has Flammer at ringside as a second, while Taya has Arez. Kamille misses Taya and runs into the chair in the corner. Taya clotheslines Kamille down for two. Kamille placed in the corner, Taya hits her trademark German suplex without much crispness. Kamille takes a garbage can and cookie sheet to the dome. Back into the ring for a two count. Kamille gets Taya into a torture rack, twists into a sitout powerbomb for a two count. Taya reverses out of a faceplant, then heads up top. Kamille follows Taya and hits a superplex! Only gets two. Kamille hits a Destroyer for another two count. Kamille misses in the corner and ends up on the floor. Taya follows her out, then knocks Kamille down on the apron. Kamille gets placed in the electric chair and dropped on the apron. Taya hits the double knees in the corner. Both women land on the table, with the table not selling that stuff. Flammer breaks up the count by throwing something in the ring. Clothesline by Kamille gets two. Kamille wears Taya out with the trash can lid, so Arez enters the ring. Arez dives onto Flammer on the outside, taking the seconds out at least temporarily. Taya rolls through a crossbody and locks in a camel clutch. Kamille eventually ends up tapping out.
Winner: Taya (15:18 via submission)
Match Rating: ***
I might go higher on this one if not for the technical diffculties, as these women put on a show and left it all in the ring. By far the best showing I’ve seen from Kamille, with the caveat I haven’t seen a ton of recent NWA.
“Eye of the Tiger” plays, which in AAA means that Konnan’s making his way to the ring. He gives a speech apparently establishing himself as AAA’s new Head of Talent, which leads to Cibernetico & Los Vipers coming out to address Konnan. Cibernetico makes his own speech, and he & Los Vipers attack Konnan! Konnan is left laying and is helped up by some ringside attendants. Hugo, Spanish & Jose address the matter.
AAA World Trios Championship Match: Nueva Generacion Diamita (El Cuatrero, Sanson & Forastero) (c) vs. Psycho Clown, Laredo Kid & Bandido (w/Micro Man) vs. Brian Cage, Sam Adonis & Johnny Caballero (w/Estrellita): Johnny gets his own musical entrance because of course he does. It’s weird not seeing Psycho in the main event of a TripleMania show, which probably means he’s going over here. He, Laredo & Bandido have some nice masks putting each other over. The champions have to be pinned or submitted to lose the championship, which is different from normal multi-man/team title matches. Psycho & Adonis start, and they’ve had bad blood going for awhile. Psycho gets isolated by Adonis’s team on the ourside, leading to NGD taking control in the ring. Bandido & Laredo fight back with stereo ranas, they go for stereo dives but get clotheslined down. NGD isolate Caballero in the ring, hitting an elevated double stomp for two. Bandido gets doubleteamed with a springboard elbow, then Laredo gets dropped on Bandido. Frog splash gets two. Adonis & Cage go after the NGD members. Cage with some kicks in the corner then a German suplex. Psycho has a cookie sheet, but Adonis fights back and hits a blockbuster. Cage with an F-5, followed by a 450 from Adonis for two. Psycho broke it with the cookie sheet. After some flips and dives, Esterellita comes in to attack Psycho and get her comeuppance. Code Red by Psycho gets two, as does a Falcon Arrow from Adonis. Spanish Fly from Psycho gets two, Esterellita going after Psycho until she gets kicked down by NGD. Psycho gets triple dropkicked in the corner. Laredo Kid isolated now, but evades a double chop. Bandido comes in to join the fun, he & Laredo face off with Cage & Caballero. Bandido gorilla presses Cage! Laredo with a Destroyer, then Caballero with one. Cage monkey flips Bandido onto a crowd on the floor. Time for some dives! Falcon Arrow by Laredo on Johnny, then Laredo misses a tornillo. Johnny gets his stick horse he used for his entrance, rides it into a superkick. Marty takes the horse from Laredo, which leads to a low blow and a three count for Caballero.
Winners: Brian Cage, Sam Adonis & Johnny Caballero (12:44 via pinfall)
Match Rating: ***
NGD remain trios champions and unpinned in AAA. Psycho attacks Adonis on the floor afterward, their issue continues. Wouldn’t mind seeing more of Bandido vs. Cage, Tony Khan should book that for the next ROH PPV event.
Next, we see a video announcing Arturo “Rudo” Rivera’s induction into AAA’s Hall of Fame. As covered in our TripleMania Monterrey review, Rivera was a longtime AAA announcer who sided with the heels that passed away earlier this year. Hugo brings some members of Rivera’s family out for the celebration. Blue Demon Jr. comes out to celebrate 100 years of the original Blue Demon & induct him into the Hall of Fame. There are varying reports on which Blue Demon was inducted (looked like the first one to me, but sometimes “Jr.”s get randomly left out by wrestling feds), we can say for sure that the Blue Demon legacy was honored by AAA here.
We then get a video recapping the issues leading to our next match, where Pagano & Cibernetico will put their hair on the line.
Cabellera Contra Cabellera: Pagano vs. Cibernetico (w/Los Vipers): Joe Dombrowski compares Pagano to Mick Foley & Jon Moxley, which probably has a few heads exploding as I type this. Attempted shoulderblocks don’t lead to too much, but Ciber hits a clothesline. Pagano knocks Ciber out of the ring, then he dives onto Los Vipers. Unfortunately for Pagano, he hasn’t ingratiated himself to other AAA luchadors, so he’s all alone as he gets beat up by four men. Pagano gets press slammed onto the ramp. Pagano gets placed on a table and put through it by a Cibernetico elbowdrop for two. It’s going to take a hell of a table to no-sell Cibernetico. Pagano gets slammed off the top rope for two. Pagano has been busted open, which is the least shocking development of any evening. Pagano fights back with a dropkick off the top and he’s fighting back. Ciber gets busted open too, and Pagano takes a brink of blood. The Vipers trip Pagano as he attempts to go off the ropes. Pagano goes for a submission, but Vipers aren’t having any of that. CHARLY MANSON hits the ring, and he attacks Cibernetico & Los Vipers! Hijo del Tirantes takes a light tube to the head! Pagano grazes Cibernetico on a dive! Things have completely broken down. Pagano has a chair in the ring, he scoops Ciber and powerslams him onto the chair! No referee to count though. HERE COMES VAMPIRO AND HE’S BACK IN BLACK! Well, there’s some red in his hair, but he’s wearing black. Vampiro makes a two count and apparently he’s a licensed official. Well, why not? Pagano with a half crab on Cibernetico while Vampiro talks to Los Vipers. Cookie sheer shot from Pagano, but Ciber responds with a chair and they go up top. Cibernetico with a top rope rana! It gets a two count. Cibernetico with some kendo stick shots on Pagano. Pagano fights back and slams Cibernetico on some thumbtacks for two. Vampiro with an interesting count on these nearfalls. Cibernetico chokeslams Pagano on a barbed wire chair! He pours more thumbtacks on the mat and chokeslams Pagano on those. Onto the apron, Pagano fights back before being driven into that already destroyed table. Pagano kicks out again even with the Vipers kicking away on him again. More Viper abuse on Pagano as they take him up the ramp to the stage. Pagano is placed on another stable on the stage, and we hear Konnan’s music! Konnan & Manson attack the Vipers! Konnan has a barbed wire baseball bat as he & Vampiro stare at each other. Vampiro & Manson hold the ladder while Ciber & Pagano fight…Pagano suplexes Cibernetico through the stage! There’s a three count! We’re not sure who was covering who from our vantage point, but Pagano’s the one that gets his arm raised!
Winner: Pagano (21:43 via pinfall)
Match Rating: ***1/4
Not quite the crazy fast-paced action we saw earlier, and there was a lot of plunder, but these guys did a good job of telling the story they wanted to tell. There was a lot of help and it went a bit long, but what can ya do. Cibernetico gets carried off on a stretcher and gets his hair cut backstage in front of the camera. He shakes Pagano’s hand as a sign of respect, good for him. Vampiro assists with the hair cutting.
We see a video recapping the issues between the men facing off for the MegaChampionship. I’m not even going to try calling all the moves on this one. OK, I’ll try, but fail miserably.
AAA MegaChampionship Match: Hijo del Vikingo (c) vs. Fenix: Vikingo is accompanied by his fellow vikings. Fantasma (Father of Santo Escobar, head of the Mexico City Boxing & Wrestling Commission) hits the ring to shake hands with both combatants and hold the belt for the picture. Tieup into the corner goes nowhere, then they go for rollups. La Majistral almost ends it early for Vikingo. Vikingo with a kick on the apron, some jumping on the ropes leads to a rana. Headscissors sends Fenix outside. Vikingo having some problems with the ropes early, Fenix is not, hitting a rana off the top for two. Fenix evades a kick, but not a superkick. Vikingo goes for the spear through the ropes, Fenix answers with a DDT on the apron and takes control of the match. Vikingo catches Fenix, but Fenix reverses into a small package and then a clothesline. Fenix gets Vikingo in the electric chair, then hits a poison rana on the floor. Fenix gets shooting star pressed on the floor. Fenix’s mask was torn at some point, and now he’s bleeding. Springboard 450 back in the ring gets two for Vikingo. On the ramp, some reversals lead to Vikingo taking a cutter. Vikingo goes for a move on the ramp but ends up the worse for wear. Back in the ring, Fenix fights Vikingo off, rolls into a spinning Rock Bottom for two. Fenix hits double knees to the gut of Vikingo. Reverse Spanish Fly gets a two count! Fenix with a backwards frog splash off the top rope for two! Vikingo reverses a powerbomb into a rana for two. Vikingo hits approximately a sprinboard 630 for two. Vikingo goes up top, hits a 630 for two! Both men go back outside, Vikingo runs into a fist. Fenix goes over the barricade and gets superkicked. Vikingo walks on the guardrail. but Vikingo cuts him off with a kick. Vikingo slammed on the guardrail, Fenix with the legdrop from off the top rope! Fenix hits a Rikishi Driver that gets just two! There’s another one for the 2.99984 count! Fenix goes up top, Vikingo follows. Vikingo goes for the Poison Rana off the top, hits it, but Fenix lands on top of him! Vikingo still gets the cover for two. Running superkick from Vikingo, then the double knees in the corner. Vikingo up top, reverse 450 gets the three count!
Winner: Hijo del Vikingo (19:27 via pinfall)
Match Rating: ****1/4
I don’t think I’m going to go MOTYC on this bad boy, simply because there’s a ton of competition for that this year. It was still a heck of a lot of fun & these guys showed why they are the kings of this style of wrestling. They make it look way too easy. Fantasma comes out to present Vikingo with the belt. Vikingo hugs Marisela Pena at ringside.
Jose warms up the crowd and we see a video recapping the events leading us to tonight’s mask match.
Mascara Contra Mascara: Pentagon Jr. vs. Villano IV: The Pink Panther himself, Villano IV comes down with various members of the Villano family, including Villano V & Villano III Jr.. Penta has plenty of folks on stage with him, including Arez & the singer of his theme music. Villano attacks during Penta’s entrance, not wasting any time. DDT on the ramp. Villano mocks Penta’s pose and tosses him into the ring. Penta runs into an elbow block and gets his mask torn at. Penta gets his face rammed into the turnbuckle a few times. Villano hits Penta with the dreaded cookie sheet, then places the trash can over his head. The trash can gets smacked with the cookie sheet, then IV uses a chair on Penta’s head. Outside the ring, Pentagon is busted open and taking more shots from plunder. Back in the ring, Villano tears at Pentagon’s chest but can’t quite get that top ripped. Penta graciously helps him before taking some shots in the stomach. Villano gets some more plunder, including a wooden plank to prop against the guardrail. Penta eventually gets backdropped through it. Penta’s top is gone as they return to the ring. Villano misses in the corner and eats some kicks. IV gets superkicked to the floor. V checks on him, and Pentagon dives onto both of them! Brutal! Back in the ring Penta rips at the mask of Villano IV. Villano’s head gets bounced off the ringpost a few times. V has a towel in his hands, I hope he doesn’t plan on throwing that sucker in the ring. Penta has some words with V before hitting IV with the cookie sheet. V & Arez getting into it while IV & Penta fight on the floor. Villano wins the punch battle. Penta wins the rematch, then kicks away at Villano. Double stomp gets two for Pentagon. We’ve got a table propped in a corner, Penta lifts Villano IV up and DVDs him through the table for two. Penta kicks Villano down, goes up top and hits a double stomp for two. Penta gets a 2.78 with a crucifix, then another nearfall. Villano goes for the octopus hold! Then the abdominal stretch into a cradle for two. They shake hands before they punch away at each other again. Marty Elias gets two with a double count. I think they both lose their mask if there’s a double pin situation. Penta takes the advantage, goes to the middle rope and hits a legdrop for two. More punches & slaps between the two. Penta gets Villano up in the torture rack, Penta thinks IV tapped out and Larry Dallas agrees, but the referee doesn’t see it that way. Villano shoves Penta through a wooden plank, then hits a senton for two! Penta sets up the armbreaker, and hits it! Only two though, so Penta does it again! Another two count! Villano with an Achilles lock, and Penta struggles to reach the ropes. Reverse leglock, and the announcers think Penta tapped, but the referee doesn’t see it that way again! Well, he’s missed calls on both sides now, so we’re even. Villano & Penta reverse each other, and Penta locks in the abdominal stretch into the pin for two. Penta with the punt kick, and another armbreaker ends it!
Winner: Pentagon Jr. (25:30 via pinfall)
Match Rating: ****
We all knew this was going to be the result going in. Villano IV was the old gunslinger going out with one last big payday, while Pentagon has many years & battles still in front of him. Also, Tony Khan would probably have had heart failure if Penta didn’t pack his mask for his next Dynamite taping. They worked the darn thing though, and they got a lot of the crowd buying into those near-falls. I would argue that there’s nothing more emotional in wrestling than a properly built mask match & aftermath, and this provided that in spades. Villano IV did a great job throughout the tournament in making the people care more about him than they had in years, all the respect to him.
V & the other Mendoza family members take turns loosening IV’s mask for him & pulling the laces out of the back. Konnnan is out as well for the proceedings, along with Fenix, Taya & others. IV makes a brief speech, then removes his mask.
Villano IV is Tomas Diaz Mendoza, 57 years old pic.twitter.com/1m7kZiVVOa
— luchablog (@luchablog) October 16, 2022
Pentagon & Mendoza embrace as Penta is presented with the Villano IV mask. This ends our TripleMania experience for 2022.
