Winfree’s MLW: Fusion Review 4.21.21

Alright everyone it’s MLW Fusion time. Tonight the “grudge match” between TJP and Bu Ku Dao goes down, quotes used because if no one cares is it really a grudge? Alexander Hammerstone will have a press conference, Court Bauer will talk, and we’ll get a few other wrestling matches along the way. Let’s see what’s up this week.

They try to get the TJP and Bu Ku Dao thing over with a video package to get us going. From there we head to the ring rather quickly for our first match.

Match #1: Gino Medina vs. Rocky Romero

They tie up, trade arm wringers and escapes then stand off. Medina gets a side headlock then a shoulder block to drop Romero. Romero with a leg scissor takedown and starts working for an armbar. Medina gets his arm free and stands but Romero starts attacking the arm. Some nice arm work from Romero, then they start trading rights. Medina with a go behind tornado kick for a near fall and takes over on offense. Romero starts fighting back and they trade strikes, Medina still getting the better of things. Romero starts laying in kicks before Medina starts working the arm of Romero. Medina misses a right, then gets baited into a missed dive and Romero hits him with a baseball slide. Back into the ring, Romero unloads as Medina is draped on the second rope then hits a second rope drop kick but all that only gets a 2 count. Uppercut from Romero after he slipped off the shoulders, then hits a series of running clotheslines to Medina in the corner before running into a kick for a near fall. Convoluted clothesline from Medina gets another near fall. Romero misses an enziguri but springs back and hits a mule kick. Medina counters a shiranui with a snake eyes, but runs into a high knee. Tornado DDT from Romero, then a falcon arrow into an armbar and Medina has to tap.

OFFICIAL RESULT: Rocky Romero won at 8:58

Rating: 2.5 stars

Medina is still very obviously trying to find himself as a performer, something highlighted here by being in there with a guy who knows himself very well in Rocky Romero. Medina’s offense also feels weak, but these are all things that can be ironed out with experience. Nice win for Romero who’s a fairly well known commodity at this point.

To the back where Richard Holliday is talking with Alicia Atout. Holliday says he’s a babyface in the Caribbean, the little kids love him. He shows off a poster for Alexander Hammerstone, there’s a very obviously bad placement for a hammer over his crotch, and when Alicia asks him if he’s sure about the layout he gets offended and heads off.

We get a video from Los Parks. LA Park says he doesn’t agree with Salina de la Renta’s decision to go against the wishes of El Jefe last week, and says they’ve carried Salina along when she doubted them. Park was won titles while Salina profited off of his family, and her bad decisions are mounting up. Like when Hammerstone clobbered him a few weeks ago, and the first thing he sees when coming out of the daze is Salina mocking him. Junior talks now, El Jefe is constructing a new temple and will be happy with all the violence Los Parks will be bringing to it. Hijo now, he tells Salina to prepare for consequences, because the realest family in professional wrestling is coming and wont stop. Park closes, warning Salina that if she fails El Jefe again she’ll regret it.

Here’s our mostly weekly Top 10 contenders to the MLW World Title
10. ACH
9. Calvin Tankman
8. Myron Reed
7. Mil Muertes
6. Low Ki
5. Richard Holliday
4. Mads Krugger
3. Lio Rush – MLW Middleweight Champion
2. “Filthy” Tom Lawlor
1. Alexander Hammerstone – MLW National Openweight Champion
MLW World Champion – Jacob Fatu

In the back Rush addresses Reed wanting his rematch for the belt. Rush says of course Reed wants that, everyone wants to get back after being embarrassed. But Reed isn’t going to get his redemption, because this belt is staying with him.

Back to the ring for action.

Match #2: King Mo w/ Dan Lambert vs. Robert Martyr

Mo plays around with Martyr early, Martyr tries a triangle choke but gets powerbombed for his effort. Mo tosses Martyr around a bit, then gets a d’arce choke and puts Martyr to sleep.

OFFICIAL RESULT: King Mo won at 1:17

Rating: Spaghetti. . . SQUASH

Delicious squash. Post match Dan Lambert gets a mic and says it’s beneath him to talk about how poor the referees decision was at Filthy Island, especially when it comes to submission moves and the closest that little pimple faced loser ever got to a real fight was playing video games on his mom’s X-Box in the basement. King Mo has never tapped, in MMA that’s true, and isn’t about to start by doing so to Low Ki in MLW. Mo gets the mic, he says there’s no tapping and he’ll break Low Ki in half next time he sees him.

Video from earlier today where a camerman walked up on Salina, she got kind of chewed out on the phone presumably by El Jefe, with some vague allusions to something happening next week.

There’s a brief announcement that MLW will be coming to VICE TV along with MLW highlights.

Tom Lawlor talks, he says the Von Erich’s can’t keep their mouths shut about him. He’s been called a lot of things, but calling him a liar or a cowards is as far from the truth as calling the Von Erich’s good guys. He’s the one who brought them into MLW and he knows the truth, he calls out Marshall for a one on one match. Or will Marshall hide behind his injury to get out of a fight?

MLW founder and CEO Court Bauer does a remote interview with Alicia. He says the new deal with VICE will go into effect in May and that there’s still more to come in the future. He says the current season will end May 5th with the Lio Rush and Myron Reed title fight. Asked about the season closing he says he wants to give everyone time off to recover, because they’ll be back July 10th in Philadelphia PA with fans live in attendance. Contra Unit hack. Josef Samael says Bauer is full of hope and delusion, it’s been almost a year since Bauer bled and begged before him in his own office. He left a few backdoors open, and can take this place back over whenever he wants. Chaos is a ladder, one that Bauer is losing his grip on. Just like Hammerstone, a former dominant force now crippled by terror while Fatu celebrates 2 years on the throne. So celebrate your business deals, because Samael is, and millions of souls on national TV will bear witness to Contra’s crusade. July 10th there will be a massacre courtesy of Contra Unit, and the black flag will fly high over the arena. Needs to be said again, Josef Samael is really good in this role.

Marshall on a crutch, he’s been after Tom Lawlor for a one on one match for almost 2 years now. He hasn’t forgotten anything that Lawlor has done to him. He doesn’t need a good knee to smash Lawlor’s face in, and promises to Claw him until he blacks out and defecates. He’ll see Lawlor next week.

Reed, with a new bleach blond look, thanks Calvin Tankman for opening up his gym to him so he can get the work put in. Reed knows what he needs to do to beat Rush, and 2 weeks from now he’s going to shut Rush up and reclaim his belt.

Match #3: TJP vs. Bu Ku Dao

TJP catches a kick and tosses Dao down. They tie up, TJP trips Dao down and starts working the leg with a modified toe hold. Dao with a leg lace takedown then moves to a side headlock and they start trading holds. Some headlock, headscissors, and requisite escapes end up with TJP using a bow and arrow. They fight up, Dao with an armdrag, misses his cue on a dive but when he recovers TJP drops him onto the apron. Back into the ring, TJP working the back now. Tope con hilo from TJP gets a 2 count. Dao counters a powerbomb but runs into a clothesline. TJP keeps things on the mat and is still keeping pressure on the back. Modified arm breaker a la Pentagon from TJP. Back breaker from TJP, he sets for the Gory Guerrero Special and gets it locked up. That transitions to a few pin attempts but Dao isn’t going away yet. Sort of a kick to the head from TJP, a lot of daylight on that one, then TJP lands a European uppercut. Dao avoids a corner rush, kicks TJP in the back from the apron then climbs up top for a cross body that gets a near fall. TJP counters a back body drop attempt with a powerbomb for a 2 count. Mexican surfboard from TJP, he tries to transition to a pin but Dao kicks out again. Dao with a kick, he keeps seeming to lose his place in the match. TJP floors Dao with a chop. Dap fights back with an enziguri, then hits a suicide dive. That also looked rather ugly. Back in the ring, Dao with a flurry of offense culminating with a bulldog. Some punches from Dao, then a back splash in the corner but he flies off the second rope into a drop kick. TJP with a tiger style face buster for a near fall. Dao catches TJP up top and tosses him off, but TJP follows him and hits a superplex, floats into the octopus stretch but Dao fights to the ropes and forces a break. TJP lays in strikes, Dao fires back at him, TJP grabs Dao in a fireman’s carry and the ref gets clobbered as Dao rolls TJP up with a crucifix for a visual 3 count but no ref means no joy for Dao. Dao goes to revive the ref, TJP slams him into the second rope then sets him up top. Dao shoves TJP off, hits the flying flatliner and wins.

OFFICIAL RESULT: Bu Ku Dao won at 13:38

Rating: 1.5 stars

Boy this was rough. Dao needs a ton of work, he seemed to get lost at several points, couldn’t execute in others, and overall did not leave a good impression coming out of this.

Time for Hammerstone’s press conference. He says it’s getting old having 2 singles titles in MLW, especially when they can settle things. He says the ball is now in Jacob Fatu’s court.

5.5

The final score: review Not So Good

The 411

Not the strongest outing this week, the in ring action wasn't great and the big announcements were nice but are hardly enough to really bolster a show like this. Doesn't help that main event was so rough, or that Hammerstone's press conference was so short. Ultimately this was pure filler with a few hints at things that might develop down the road.