By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
Major League Wrestling Fusion (Episode 101)
Taped February 1, 2020 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania at 2300 Arena
Aired March 14, 2020 on beIN Sports and MLW’s YouTube Page
Highlights aired from last week’s Fusion main event that saw Jacob Fatu defeat Cima to retain the MLW Heavyweight Championship… The Fusion opening aired…
The broadcast team of Rich Bocchini and AJ Kirsch checked in and questioned what Contra Unit did with Cima after carrying him to the back in a bodybag last week. Kirsch noted that Killer Kross signed with WWE and questioned what he was doing in MLW. Kirsch said Kross wants to prove he’s the ultimate pit fighter. He also hyped the Mance Warner vs. Gino Medina match…
1. Myron Reed (w/Jordan Oliver, Kotto Brazil) vs. Laredo Kid (w/Konnan) for the MLW Middleweight Championship. The Injustice trio came out with tape over their mouths during their entrance. Footage aired from earlier of Konnan telling Reed that he relied on “Dumb & Dumber” and his loaded chest protector. He wondered if Reed was cool with that being his legacy.
Brazil created an early distraction that allowed Reed to take offensive control. Reed performed a nice leap over the top rope into a leg drop that led to him getting a two count. Kid came back with a running forearm in the corner that he followed with a Michinoku Driver and then performed a pair of second rope moonsaults that led to a near fall. Reed came back with a nice cutter and followed up with a springboard version.
Kid magically recovered quickly and cut off Reed on the ropes. Kid got behind Reed on the top rope and hooked him in Full Nelson position before flipping him over his head while both men crashed to the mat. Kid got a two count while the broadcast team admitted they had no idea what to call the wild move.
Kid set up Reed in a leg lock. Brazil ran in, but Kid fought him off right in front of the referee. Oliver climbed onto the apron, but he was quickly knocked to the floor by Kid, who followed up with suicide dives on Brazil and Oliver. Reed leapt over the top rope and performed a cutter on the apron. Reed followed up with a springboard flip splash and scored the pin…
Myron Reed defeated Laredo Kid to retain the MLW Middleweight Championship.
Powell’s POV: A good match with another Injustice finish. This looked like it had the potential to be great on paper. They didn’t reach that level, but it was entertaining. It has reached a point where the Injustice interference has become predictable and tiresome. It was good for heat while the faction was being established, but now seems like the right time to shake things up by booking Reed in title matches with Oliver and Brazil banned from ringside. They just can’t continue to have so many cheap finishes because it will start to hurt the faction and the title.
The broadcast team hyped Brian Pillman Jr. receiving the PWI Rookie of the Year award for 2019, and the main event heading into a break…
A Lifestyles of the Rich and Dynastic video aired from what appeared to be a restaurant table. Richard Holliday told Alex Hammerstone and Gino Medina that his father/lawyer was working to get Mance Warner out of their hair for good. Hammerstone grumbled out Warner and Logan Reed. Holliday said marketing is just as important. Holliday announced “The Untouchable” as Medina’s nickname. Medina spoke about facing Warner. They all put their fists together…
An MLW merch ad aired… A Pagano teaser video aired… Kirsch noted that Pillman was somehow going to become a back-to-back rookie of the year winner…
2. Mance Warner vs. Gino Medina (w/Richard Holliday). Holliday carried the Caribbean Title belt that he stole from Savio Vega. Holliday teased sitting in on commentary, but the broadcast team said no. Warner took the fight to ringside and whipped Medina into the guardrail. Warner told fans to move, then chopped Medina’s chest and threw him back inside the ring. Medina caught Warner with a nice kick as Warner was getting back inside the ring that resulted in a near fall.
Warner came back with a DDT that led to a two count. Medina rallied with Snake Eyes, a running knee, and a superkick for a two count. Warner caught Medina coming off the top rope with a headbutt. Warner followed up with a running knee for a two count. Medina tried to roll up and pin Warner with a handful of his jeans, but Warner kicked out. Warner rolled up Medina and held his tights while getting the three count.
Mance Warner defeated Gino Medina.
After the match, Warner went to ringside and took Kirsch’s headset and spoke about winning and going straight to the pay window. In the ring, Medina grumbled about losing the match. Bocchini questioned if Medina was crying because he lost the match. Medina slapped the referee…
Powell’s POV: The match was solid. The finish was fine given that neither man should be losing clean, and the broadcast team did a good job of establishing that turnabout is fair play to explain the babyface cheating to win.
Kirsch narrated a video noting that Colonel Robert Parker once again has a manager’s license in MLW. Kirsch noted that Parker joins Dan Lambert and Konnan as managers in MLW…
Powell’s POV: So Lambert is officially an MLW manager? Does being excluded from the list mean that Salina de la Renta is not?
Footage aired from Hawaii of Kevin Von Erich telling sons Ross and Marshall that Team Filthy tried to beat them in a match and couldn’t and now they are desperate. Marshall recalled his father telling them that things would chance once they became tag champions. Marshall said it’s true because he’s seen friends become enemies. Marshall said they want to take care of Team Filthy in Texas for what they did to them in Texas. Ross said it’s a war between decency and filth. Kevin asked where he’s heard that before…
Coming out of a break, the PWI top ten rankings for the MLW heavyweight division headed by champion Jacob Fatu were listed.
10. King Mo
9. Low Ki
8. Mance Warner
7. MJF
6. Richard Holliday
5. Brian Pillman Jr.
4. Tom Lawlor
3. Davey Boy Smith Jr.
2. Myron Reed (MLW Middleweight Champion)
1. Alexander Hammerstone (MLW National Openweight Champion)
Alicia Atout stood on the stage with someone from Pro Wrestling Illustrated. Brian Pillman Jr. came out to accept the award. A small “you deserve it” chant broke out briefly. Pillman said it was a prestigious award and thanked guys such as Randy Orton, Kurt Angle, and Steve Austin as rookies of the year who came before him. Pillman said he never thought he would step outside his father’s shadow and do something that his father never achieved. Pillman said he’s hungry for a shot at the MLW Middleweight Title. He jokingly thanked everyone for the “69 percent unanimous victory” in the PWI voting…
An Injustice video aired. Kotto Brazil complained about Pillman being named rookie of the year twice. Brazil said he should have won it last year and Oliver should have won it this year. Brazil said Pillman only won because of his father’s name. Reed said Pillman is a rookie and isn’t ready for him. Oliver said Laredo Kid would lose his mask and that’s an injustice…
Atout interviewed Tom Lawlor, Erick Stevens, and Dominic Garrini. Stevens complained about losing his match to Davey Boy Smith Jr. Lawlor spoke about facing Killer Kross and took issue with him referring to himself as a pit fighter. Lawlor said it’s a great video game, but it’s not a real thing. Lawlor said he would show everyone the difference between someone who pretends to be an MMA fighter and a real MMA fighter…
Coming out of a break, Holliday and Hammerstone tried to calm down Medina, who was upset up about losing. Holliday said his lawyer/father would be on it because Warner cheated and grabbed his tights. Holliday told him that he’d be fine…
Kirsch narrated footage from last week of Cima being carried off in a bodybag by Contra Unit. Kirsch noted that Josef Samael had promised a new video.
The new Contra video played. The Sentai Death Squad was shown placing the bodybag inside a vehicle. Josef Samael told the driver to take Cima to a house where Ikuro Kwon would know what to do…
Kirsch announced that Richard Holliday will face a mystery opponent selected by Mance Warner on next week’s Fusion… A tale of the tape for the main event was shown…
3. Killer Kross vs. Tom Lawlor (w/Dominic Garrini, Kit Osbourne). Kross received strong reaction from the live crowd as he made his entrance and bumped fists with fans on his way to the ring. Kross stopped to point out a sign that listed the match and added, “Casualties are expected.”
Lawlor got Kross on his knees and threw a couple of kicks to his chest. Lawlor ran the ropes and tried to throw another kick, but Kross caught his leg. Lawlor ended up catching Kross with an elbow, then delivered another kick. Lawlor went to work on Kross’s left arm and applied a hold. Kross bodyslammed Lawlor, who hung onto Kross’s arm until Kross put his foot on the ropes to break the hold. Lawlor went for a guillotine choke. Kross teased going out and the ref raised his arm and let it drop twice, then Kross held it up the third time. Kross-a-Mania!
Kross powered up to his feet while Lawlor held onto the hold. Kross performed a Northern Lights suplex to break it. Kross threw clotheslines and a big boot at Lawlor in the corner and then suplexed him. Kross signaled for his Doomsday finisher, but Lawlor blocked it and then threw a series of strikes at Kross, including a couple of uppercuts. Kross fired back and went for a clothesline, but Lawlor suplexed him. Kross no-sold it and smiled at Lawlor, who ended up putting him down with a running knee that led to a two count.
Lawlor threw several knees to the head of Kross and then hit him with a forearm. Kross smiled, then fired a few forearms of his own. Lawlor thumbed Kross in the eye. Kross applied a submission hold. The wrestlers tumbled through the ropes to break the hold. Erick Stevens came out and hit Kross, then Garrini and Osbourne joined in for the DQ.
Killer Kross defeated Tom Lawlor by DQ.
The Team Filthy crew roughed up Kross until Davey Boy Smith Jr. and the Von Erichs made the save. Smith took the mic and issued a challenge for an eight-man tag match. The broadcast team said Team Filthy accepted the challenge. Kirsch asked what would happen when the teams collide and said we’d find out next week on Fusion…
Powell’s POV: The main event finish was disappointing in the moment, yet understandable. Lawlor has been one of the top heels in MLW and there was no reason to have him lose to someone who was only working for the company for one night. And there was no reason for Kross to actually lose either. So the DQ was logical and the blow was definitely softened by the announcement of the eight-man tag match, meaning we get another week of Kross on Fusion.
Overall, this was a stacked show with a middleweight title match opener, a hot main event matchup, and a solid match in between. Kross didn’t work many matches in between getting his release from Impact Wrestling and signing with WWE, so it was cool to see him on MLW Fusion even if it was just a one-off appearance for these tapings. John Moore will have more to say about this show in his MLW Fusion audio review that is available weekly for Dot Net Members.
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