By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
Major League Wrestling “MLW x Don Gato Live Wrestling Special”
Charleston, South Carolina, at Charleston Music Hall
Streamed live on November 20, 2025, on MLW YouTube
This venue is a theatre/music hall, so all the seating was on just one side of the ring, with the ring on the stage. I see fans in the upper deck, so there might be 1,000 or more here. Because it is on a stage, the background scenery changed from match to match, and I liked it. The stage is exceptionally well-lit. Joe Dombrowski and Tom Lawlor provided commentary.
* Don Gato, Jesus Rodriguez, Selina De La Renta, and Cesar Duran came to the ring and addressed the crowd. Duran listed off the matches on the show. Ikuro Kwon came to the ring, and he was angry! He punched Jesus Rodriguez. Don Gato stood up, and he had a sword, so Ikuro backed out of the ring. Kwon is joining the cruiserweight title match later, making it a three-way!
1. Isla Dawn vs. Scarlett Bordeaux. Isla came out first, and she attacked from behind, and we were underway. A quick check of cagematch.net indicates these two haven’t fought before. Isla pushed her foot into Scarlett’s throat and kept her grounded. Scarlett hit a German Suplex at 3:00. Scarlett rubbed her butt in Dawn’s face in the corner. Dawn hit a suplex for a nearfall. Scarlett hit a Kazarian-style piledriver move along her back for the pin out of nowhere. Decent.
Scarlett Bordeaux defeated Isla Dawn at 4:24.
* Dawn sat up and forcibly kissed Scarlett; Joe quipped that he’s never seen anyone react to a loss that way.
2. “The Skyscrapers” Donovan Dijak and Bishop Dyer vs. “The Good Brothers” Karl Anderson and Doc Gallows for the MLW Tag Team Titles. Dijak and Anderson opened and immediately traded forearm strikes, and Donovan dropped him with a clothesline. Gallows and Dyer traded shoulder blocks; Gallows dropped him with a crossbody block at 2:00. Dyer hit a Death Valley Driver! He hit a backbreaker over his knee on Anderson, and the champs worked over Karl. They pushed Anderson to the floor and now worked over Gallows in their corner.
Dijak and Karl hit stereo clotheslines, and all four were down at 5:00. Anderson hit a leaping neckbreaker off the ropes. Dyer hit his back suplex. Dijak nailed his spinning Mafia Kick. Anderson and Dyer traded punches, while Gallow and Dijak traded blows as the ref had lost control. Dijak shoved the ref, who called for the bell. The crowd loudly booed this outcome. Everyone continued to brawl. Anderson hit a top-rope crossbody block onto all three on the stage
Karl Anderson and Doc Gallows defeated Donovan Dijak and Bishop Dyer via DQ at 6:24; Dyer and Dijak retained the MLW Tag Team Titles.
* Another goofy commercial for Don Gato Vodka aired.
3. “Divebomb” Diego Hill (w/Blue Panther) vs. Okumura vs. Stigma in a lightning match. Lightning matches are absurd because almost no MLW matches go 10 minutes. Cool to see Blue Panther join Diego as they’ve really stressed that the veteran has become a mentor to Hill. All three fought at the bell. We have a countdown clock in the corner, going backwards from 10:00. Diego hit a doublestomp to Stigma’s back. Okumura hit a Tower of London stunner from the corner on Diego, and he chopped Stigma in the corner. I’ll note that Diego is from North Carolina so this is almost a ‘home game’ for him.
Stigma hit a double huracanrana at 2:30. Okumura hit a top-rope superplex on Diego, and Stigma hit a frog splash on Diego for a nearfall. Stigma hit a Canadian Destroyer on Diego, but Okumura pulled the ref to the floor at 4:00. Okumura got in the ring and hit a low blow on Stigma. Diego hit an Os Cutter on Stigma, then a top-rope corkscrew splash to pin Stigma. Dombrowski didn’t say it, but it’s clear Diego didn’t see the low blow from Okumura.
Diego Hill defeated Stigma and Okumura at 4:52.
* Next up is the Don Gato’s gauntlet. This was a four-team gauntlet with lucha teams. However, everyone came to the ring. So is this just a regular four-way tag?
4. Atlantis and Atlantis Jr. vs. “El Galeon Fantasma” Difunto and Barboza vs. “Los Felinos” Felino and Felino Jr. vs. “Los Panthers” Blue Panther and Hijo Del Blue Panther in Gato’s Gauntlet. Dombrowski said that a gauntlet simply means no tags. Thus, all eight brawled at the bell. Joe said they will move “at breakneck speed.” At the same time, it looked like Blue Panther was moving in slow motion. Unintentionally funny. El Galeon and Los Felinos worked together to beat up the Atlantis duo. Blue Panther Jr. hit a flip dive to the floor at 2:30.
Difunto headed up the aisle to avoid being splashed on. Blue Panther worked over Felino. He hit a double faceplant move. He hit a top-rope crossbody block onto two guys for a nearfall at 5:30. Atlantis Jr. hit a top-rope frogsplash. Difunto hit a doublestomp and pinned Blue Panther Jr. An awkward finish, as Blue Panther Jr. may have been injured on that finish; the ref stopped counting but started again.
“El Galeon Fantasma” Difunto and Barboza defeated Atlantis and Atlantis Jr., and “Los Felinos” Felino and Felino Jr., and “Los Panthers” Blue Panther and Hijo Del Blue Panther in Gato’s Gauntlet at 7:16.
5. Shotzi Blackheart vs. Priscilla Kelly. These two have fought a lot in recent weeks. They each got a rollup on the other in the opening seconds. Shotzi hit a 619 and a top-rope crossbody block for a nearfall at 1:00. We lost the video for about 30 seconds; when it returned, Priscilla had her in a headlock on the mat. Shotzi applied a Cattle Mutilation! Shotzi hit a crossbody block to the back as Kelly was in the ropes. Kelly fired back with her sliding German Suplex out of the ropes for a nearfall at 3:30. Kelly hit a clothesline for a nearfall. YouTube lost the signal again, and we missed the finish. What a mess; when the picture returned, Shotzi was celebrating her win.
Shotzi Blackheart defeated Priscilla Kelly.
6. Templario vs. Guerrero Maya Jr. vs. Ikuro Kwon in a three-way for the MLW Cruiserweight Title. A nice shot of the crowd here showing how the lower deck at this hall is definitely full. All three fought in the ring. Maya Jr. wore an orange mask and orange-and-blue pants. Kwon slammed Maya for a nearfall. Templario hit a wheelbarrow German Suplex on Kwon at 2:00. Templario hit an enzuigiri on Kwon. Maya hit a shoulder-breaker over his knee on Templario. Kwon threw Maya into the ring post, and Maya fell to the floor. Kwon pulled out the stolen brass knuckles; Don Gato jumped in the ring and hit Kwon and took them back. Templario hit a Cedric Alexander-style Lumbar Check and scored the pin on Kwon. Fast but fun.
Templario Jr. defeated Guerrero Maya Jr. and Ikuro Kwon in a three-way to retain the MLW Cruiserweight Title at 4:43.
* Footage aired of a confrontation between Killer Kross and Matt Riddle, which led to their match tonight.
7. Mads “Krule” Krugger vs. Brock Anderson (w/Arn Anderson) in a Bunkhouse Match for the MLW World Title. They stood toe-to-toe and Brock shouted at him. Brock wore blue jeans and a T-shirt, as this is a fight. The crowd loudly cheered for Brock. The bell rang, but Arn grabbed the mic. He was hard to hear, but he mentioned Charleston, which got a pop. CW Anderson came to ringside, holding some kendo sticks. I’ll reiterate that the bell had rang, but no blows had been thrown yet. Arn, CW, and Brock all got in the ring, and they beat Krule with kendo sticks to the back. CW and Arn went to the floor at 3:00, leaving just Brock in the ring to hit some shoulder thrusts to the ribs in the corner.
Brock got a shovel and hit Krule with it, then he put the handle across Krule’s throat and choked him with it. Krule fired up and hit a chokeslam at 5:30. CW jumped in the ring and hit Krule in the back with a big pail. Brock hit a spinebuster. Krule rolled to the floor, but CW pushed him back in. CW used a fire extinguisher on Krule, and Brock hit a DDT on Krule and got a nearfall at 7:00. Krule went over to Arn and grabbed him by the neck, but Brock struck Krule with a chair. Krule hit his faceplant slam out of nowhere to pin Brock. The crowd enjoyed this.
Mads “Krule” Krugger defeated Brock Anderson in a Bunkhouse Match to retain the MLW World Title at 7:32.
8. Mistico vs. Volador Jr. in the Opera Cup finals. Mistico hit some quick lucha reversals, and they had a standoff. They fought on the ropes, and Volador Jr. began untying the mask at 2:30, and the crowd was livid! He tied Mistico in the Tree of Woe and stomped on Mistico’s gut. Mistico fired back with a 619 and a huracanrana, then a dive through the ropes at 4:00, and they were both down on the floor. In the ring, Mistico hit a handspring-back-elbow. He hit a springboard crossbody block. Mistico hit a twisting plancha to the floor.
Mistico hit a huracanrana in the ring for a nearfall. Volador got a rollup with his feet on the ropes for a nearfall at 7:00. Volador Jr. rolled to the floor, and he walked away to avoid a dive. Volador got back into the ring and took control. Mistico hit a jump-up enzuigiri in the corner, then a top-rope jumping Frankensteiner for a believable nearfall at 10:00. Volador Jr. fired back with a Lungblower to the back for a nearfall. Mistico hit a springboard crossbody block, and he tossed Volador Jr. to the mat and locked in the Fujiwara Armbar, and Volador Jr. tapped out.
Mistico defeated Volador Jr. to win the 2025 Opera Cup tournament at 10:53.
* Don Gato and Cesar Duran hopped in the ring and handed Mistico the Opera Cup.
9. Matt Riddle vs. Killer Kross (w/Scarlett Bordeaux). The bell rang, but they played to the crowd. They shook hands and finally locked up 70 seconds in. Riddle’s hair is all purple now. They tied up each other’s legs on the mat. Kross tied up the left arm on the mat and switched to a choke hold, and they separated at 3:00. Kross hit a series of punches in the corner as the crowd counted along. Riddle hit a spin kick to the ear, and they were both down. Matt hit a senton at 4:30, and the crowd chanted profanities at Riddle.
Riddle hit a gutwrench suplex. He hit some flying forearms into the corner and a suplex, then another senton for a nearfall at 6:00. He missed a moonsault; he popped to his feet, but Kross hit a hard clothesline for a nearfall. Riddle applied a sleeper on the mat! Kross got his feet on the ropes. Riddle hit a series of Yes Kicks and was booed. Riddle applied a Triangle Choke in the ropes, and he let go before being disqualified. He blew a kiss at Scarlett and got back into the ring. He came off the top rope, but Kross hit a forearm strike that dropped Matt.
Kross hit a German Suplex and a Death Valley Driver, then a stunner. He made the sign of the Diamond Cutter! He went for a German Suplex, but Matt rotated and landed on his feet. Matt hit some jumping knees to the collarbone, then a top-rope corkscrew senton for a nearfall at 9:30. Riddle tied him up on the mat and hit some Moxley-style elbow strikes to the side of the head. Kross hit a Saito Suplex, and he applied his own sleeper on the mat. Riddle tried to get a foot on the ropes, but Kross cut him off, and Matt tapped out!
Killer Kross defeated Matt Riddle at 10:41.
Final Thoughts: A satisfying main event. With that pinkish-purple hair, Matt is just so easy to boo, and he seems to relish being the bad guy. I’ll give Mistico-Volador Jr. second, but I truly feel like I’ve seen them have that exact same match, nearly move for move, in the past. It was fine, but it wasn’t must-see. Nothing else reached 10 minutes, and none of it really stood out. Skyscrapers-Good Brothers was a good brawl with another cop-out finish.
Even though I generally like all of them, MLW still uses far too many ex-WWE talents. They need more Diego Hill-type guys — someone they can say they scouted and found and haven’t been with a major promotion before. Maybe I’m in the minority on this, but I don’t want to see any luchadors in the ring who are north of age 50. Watching them wrestle… it’s like saying I like watching the NBA and pretending that the 35+ league at my YMCA is just as good of viewing. Notable that we didn’t have a single commercial that indicated what would be on the next MLW show. Are they taping a second episode? That’s unclear.
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