By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
Major League Wrestling Fusion (Episode 63)
Taped June 1, 2019 in Waukesha, Wisconsin at Waukesha Expo Center
Aired June 22, 2019 on beIN Sports
A shot aired of a Sami Callihan tombstone. Jimmy Havoc and Salina de la Renta stood by the tombstone and Havoc referred to Callihan as a boil on the ass of MLW. “Rest in peace, you warthog,” Salina said before the duo started laughing… The Fusion opening video aired… The broadcast team was Rich Bocchini and Jim Cornette, and Tim Barr was the ring announcer…
MJF and Aria Blake made their entrance. MJF joined the broadcast team for the opening match while Blake stood behind him. Teddy Hart made entrance to a loud reaction. Hart approached MFJ, who stood behind Blake. Hart threw his ring jacket at MJF. Richard Holliday came out and attacked Hart from behind. Dynasty members Holliday and MJF put the boots to Hart. Holliday grabbed the MLW Middleweight Championship belt and then he and MJF ran off with it… [C]
Powell’s POV: A simple angle that put heat on the Dynasty in their feud with the Hart Foundation.
Bocchini recapped the previous angle and said Hart was being tended to in the locker room. Bocchini said the match was clearly off and questioned what they were doing… Bocchini recapped footage of Mance Warner beating Sami Callihan in last week’s loser leaves MLW match…
A Mance Warner promo aired from “earlier today.” Warner was outdoors and stood next to water. He said Salina used him like a fool to run off Sami Callihan. Warner said he’s a simple man and refereed to Salina’s stable as a bunch of jackasses. Warner said he’s going to pick off the Promociones Dorado members one by one…
1. Jordan Oliver vs. Isaiah Velasquez. An Oliver pre-tape aired and he said someone has been telling him to watch out for crooked referees. Bocchini assumed he was referring to Rich Swann and Myron Reed. Velasquez got off to a fast start and dominated the early offense. Oliver caught Velasquez on the ropes performed a modified springboard cutter for a two count. Cornette noted that Myron Reed was in the back of the arena with a “#justice” sign. Velasquez came back with an awkward move from the ropes that drove Oliver’s face into the mat, which led to a two count. Oliver came back with another cutter, then followed up with a cutter from the middle rope for a two count…
Jordan Oliver defeated Isiah Velasquez.
Powell’s POV: The idea was to showcase Oliver and apparently to start establishing an alliance between him, Reed, and Rich Swann (if Swann is still in MLW). Unfortunately, I never would have noticed Reed with the sign had Cornette not mentioned it, as the ring lighting is a little dim and it’s even tougher to make out what’s happening behind the fans on the main floor.
Bocchini touted the debut of the Von Erichs, then a brief video spotlighted upcoming events… [C] Bocchini recapped Flamita’s MLW debut win over Rey Horus from last week. Bocchini said there are rumors that Salina wants to add to her stable and has her eye on both men…
Bocchini recapped footage of the opening angle. Bocchini said MLW COO Court Bauer is considering discipline, but the Hart Foundation want to handle things on their own. New “fan” footage showed a sports car leaving the building’s parking lot and Bocchini assumed it was Alex Hammerstone’s car…
Footage aired of Low Ki defeating Ricky Martinez on last week’s show…
2. Low Ki vs. Tom Coffey. Cornette noted that Coffey had a size advantage and said he was told that Low Ki asked for the biggest guy MLW had for him. The bell rang and Low Ki ran across the ring and hit Coffey with running elbow. Referee Doug Markham immediately stepped between Low Ki and Coffey to call off the match…
Low Ki defeated Tom Coffey via ref stoppage.
Low Ki went to the back and then delivered a promo. Low Ki spoke about Contra Unit. He said he knows Jacob Fatu’s family well and “probably better than you.” Low Ki said Contra Unit opened Pandora’s Box by attacking him and they are now in the sights of “The Professional”…
Powell’s POV: The elbow looked better in slow motion than it did live for some reason. Low Ki used the same elbow strike last week to beat Ricky Martinez via TKO. It’s a little awkward because it looks like a clothesline in regular speed. That said, they can probably get this over if they stick with it. I like that Low Ki is flying solo as a babyface. It’s working for him following his run as the top heel. Bocchini labeling him “The Lone Wolf of Brooklyn” was a good description of his persona. It will be interesting to see if they are building to Low Ki teaming up with his rival Tom Lawlor to feud with Contra Unit at some point.
A Contra Unit video aired. Jacob Fatu, Josef Samael, and Simon Gotch spoke separately about the main event and taking out the Lucha Brothers…
A video package touted that Dr. Wagner Jr. is coming soon to MLW while Bon Jovi’s “Bad Medicine” played in the background… [C]
Bocchini hosted the control center segment for the MLW Kings of Colosseum in Chicago and the Tom Lawlor vs. Jacob Fatu match for the MLW Championship. Bocchini also hyped the beIN Sports live broadcast of a portion of the event for July 6…
Bocchini hyped the main event… [C] A video aired to push the main event…
Contra Unit made their entrance and cussed at fans. Gotch left the ring and got in the face of a fan in the front row. Lawlor entered the ring and fought with Contra Unit, then the Von Erichs followed right behind and a big brawl ensued…
3. Tom Lawlor, Ross Von Erich, and Marshall Von Erich vs. “Contra Unit” Jacob Fatu, Josef Samael, and Simon Gotch in a tornado tag match. Ross put an Iron Claw on Samael. Fatu blasted Ross with a punch to break it up and then threw him out of the ring. Marshall and Fatu exchanged punches, and then Marshall performed a discus clothesline that took Fatu off his feet. A short time later, Samael and Gotch held up Marshall and Fatu superkicked him. Lawlor put a rear naked choke on Fatu, who went to ringside. Gotch broke it up with a punch.
Fatu brought a chair into the ring. Both Von Erichs took turns dropkicking the chair into his face, then performed a double dropkick on him to a good ovation. Fatu pulled Lawlor to ringside. Lawlor threw two drinks at Fatu. Meanwhile, Samael worked over Ross at ringside. Fatu slammed Lawlor onto the ring apron twice. Gotch and Samael taped Lawlor’s right arm to the ring post. A referee quickly used a knife to cut Lawlor loose. Lawlor headed backstage.
In the ring, Fatu performed a springboard moonsault that was meant for Ross, but Marshall crawled on top of his brother to take some of the blow. Lawlor returned with a board that he used as a weapon. Marshall applied an Iron Clawl on Gotch, then Ross joined his brother for an Iron Claw and suplex combo on Gotch. Marshall pinned Gotch.
Tom Lawlor, Ross Von Erich, and Marshall Von Erich beat “Contra Unit” Jacob Fatu, Josef Samael, and Simon Gotch in a tornado tag match.
Ted Nugent’s “Stranglehold” played and the brawl continued while the broadcast team noted that it was the first time Contra Unit had been defeated. Several referees and security entered the ring with the goal of breaking up the brawl. The teams continued to fight. Samael broke a piece of wood over the back of Ross. Fatu roughed up what Cornette described as an MLW producer at ringside and then Contra Unit left. Lawlor and the Von Erichs celebrated inside the ring.
Contra Unit returned and beat up the producer and other officials. Lawlor and the Von Erichs went to ringside and brawled with Contra Unit. Fatu set up a table at ringside. Fatu grabbed a referee and performed a Death Valley Driver through the table. Samael hit the fallen referee with a chair, then Gotch placed the Contra Unit flag over the referee. Lawlor and the Von Erichs stood tall in the ring. Commotion could be heard over the broadcast team’s headset as they told Contra Unit that they’d proven their point. Cornette asked Bocchini if he was okay, and Bocchini said he was. Lawlor raised the arms of the Von Erichs and hugged them. Ross and Marshall celebrated together as the show went off the air…
Powell’s POV: A really fun brawl. I was worried that Contra Unit might lose something when I saw the spoilers for this match, but the big brawl and post match scene made them look as crazed as ever. MLW is doing a great job of creating chaos whenever the heel trio is in the ring. It was fun to see the Von Erichs and they seemed over in a big way with the live crowd. It hard to get a feel for how much they have progressed in the ring since I last saw them due to the brawling nature of the tornado match. It’s worth noting that MLW has them booked for an “unsanctioned” tag match with Gotch and Samael in Chicago. It’s hard to say whether the goal is to hide their in-ring deficiencies by featuring them in brawls, if it’s being done to create Contra Unit chaos, or some combination of the two.
One storyline hole is that Contra Unit are billed as not being under MLW contract. I assume this was done to add to the danger of the group and to help explain why their actions were going unpunished. Either way, why would MLW reward Fatu with a title match in a storyline sense? They could have tied this together by having Salina de la Renta book the match while she was in charge last week as a form of payment for the trio attacking Low Ki. Of course, they still haven’t really explained why Salina has been given control of the show twice now. I hope MLW has a plan to explain all of this, but the broadcast team isn’t bringing it up, so it’s probably not going to happen beyond something like Lawlor demanding the match with Fatu.
Overall, the main event was the highlight of the show. It looked fun on paper and exceeded my expectations for being a wild, out of control brawl. I look forward to seeing how the Von Erichs will fit in in MLW. If they play the All American boys just as their father and uncles did, it could be a fun contrast to the way MLW portrays so many of its wrestlers as renegades and outlaws. John Moore will be by later today with his weekly members’ exclusive audio review of this episode.
Check below for the latest Pro Wrestling Boom Podcast with Jason Powell and Brian Fritz of the Between The Ropes podcast discussing WWE’s creative and ratings struggles, Bray Wyatt following the Firefly Funhouse, WWE Stomping Grounds, NJPW G1 Opening Night, and ROH’s issues, what would happen if AEW opted to run head-to-head with WWE Raw, and much more.
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