Tonight’s Lucha Libre AAA show, live from the Gimnasio OlÃmpico in Mexico City, Mexico, featured a historic intercontinental title defense between champion Penta and El Hijo del Vikingo. The IC title has been defended outside of its home promotion of WWE/WWF before, notably Mr. Perfect’s IC defense against Texas Tornado in 1991 for Super World of Sports (SWS).
Penta announced weeks ago, following his IC title win over former champion Dom Mysterio, that he would start defending the title under the AAA banner. So, tonight in the capital city of Mexico, the lucha superstar raised the bar on a mid-card championship affectionately known to fans as ‘the workhorse title.’
The IC title is scheduled to be defended on night one of WrestleMania 42 in a 6-pack ladder match, so Penta put more than just the title on the line in tonight’s main event.
Penta(c) vs. El Hijo del Vikingo—Intercontinental Title
The moment this match was booked, fans knew they were in for a physical banger with athleticism as the crux of the match. There were counters, reversals, and all-or-nothing offensive risks, while masterfully allowing for moments when the pace was deliberately slowed so fans could keep up with the action.
In one of the toughest moments to watch, Vikingo reversed Penta’s setup and landed a ‘poison-rana’ on the apron of the ring. They spent considerable time outside the ring, but the ref gave them the room to work. Vikingo’s entire schtick for the last year has been interference spots, so it was certainly expected.
But what was not expected was seeing dueling El Grande Americanos spilling back out into the arena as a momentary distraction—though Vikingo’s manager also involved himself. In the end, Vikingo’s own brother, Mini Vikingo, helped Penta to secure his title in a successful defense and thus secured his spot at WrestleMania as defending champion.
‘OG’ El Grande Americano vs. Octagon Jr
The ‘OG’ worked heel in the match, consistent with his role in AAA despite getting over as a face in front of WWE crowds, as Octagon Jr. provided fans with a hometown favorite to root for against the ‘invader.’
The match was terrific, as ‘OG’ Grande has found the ability to mesh his style with that of the traditional luchador, never missing a beat as he kept up with the fast-paced Octagon. The black mask featuring the El Grande Americano logo in U.S. colors of red, white, and blue provided a visual for his character’s edge as a bad guy in the ring and for the culture.
In the match’s climax, OG Grande hurt Octagon with a suplex into the turnbuckle, and that gave him the confidence to go for a high-risk maneuver. When OG went for the moonsault, Octagon got his boots up, but Grande countered and turned it into an ankle lock. Grande secured the win by stripping Octagon Jr. of his mask—something that is illegal in lucha wrestling, but the ref let it slide.
In the post-match, OG Grande beat on Ojitos de Huevo, a comedian from Mexico, pulling the blind performer from his ringside seat to lock on an ankle lock. The face version of the character, El Grande Americano (Ludwig version), came down to stop his rival, and the two battled it out ringside as AAA staff desperately tried to break them up.
Mask vs. Mask
In the show’s finale, following the main event, El Grande Americano challenged OG Americano to a ‘Mask V Mask’ contest, though the specifics for when and where are still unclear.
Flammer Crowned
The longest reigning Reina de Reinas champion, Flammer, was given a coronation fit for… well, the queen of queens. Balloons, streamers, and other party paraphernalia crowded the ring as the champion delivered her thank-you speech amongst her ‘La Toxica’ faction. She sarcastically thanked her past opponents, like Bayley, before claiming she had beaten everyone there is to beat, and that is when the lights cut.
Then a video package hit the big screen, showing a pink Pontiac Catalina with the driver yet to be revealed, aside from her bright red hair. It was revealed to be La Catalina, one of the only superstars that Flammer has yet to defeat on the big stage.
She marched down to the ring as the fans cheered her on, and, with a mic in hand, she cut a promo that would lead to Flammer getting ‘caked.’ After telling the champ that she had never beaten La Catlina, the party-crasher decided to crash Flammer’s head into her celebratory cake. La Catalina held the title as the champ stumbled embarrassingly to the backstage area.
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