MLW Fusion 11/25 featured the start of the 2020 Opera Cup tournament. Two opening round matches took place as well as the promotional debut of Calvin Tankman.
MLW Fusion 11/25 Quick Results:
- Opera Cup 2020 (Opening Round)
Richard Holliday defeated TJP - Calvin Tankman defeated Robert Martyr
- Opera Cup 2020 (Opening Round)
“Filthy” Tom Lawlor defeated Rocky Romero
Here are 6 key takeaways from MLW Fusion 11/25
Tension Between Richard Holliday and Gino Medina
Before he made his way into the arena, cameras caught up with Richard Holliday. The Dynasty member gave a quick update on Hammerstone, who was attacked last week by a mysterious new member of Contra Unit. Holliday said Hammerstone will be fine and that who attacked him isn’t what’s important right now. He then walked past former Dynasty member, Gino Medina, who was talking on his phone. Holliday stopped as he heard Medina insult him in Spanish. The two then got into a debate over whether Medina was fired from the Dynasty by Holliday or if he quit. It seems some tension is building between the two former stablemates.
Richard Holliday Advances In The Opera Cup By Defeating TJP
Holliday insisted the referee hold up the Caribbean Championship before the bell despite the fact it was not a title match and Holliday isn’t even the rightful holder of the belt. During the match, TJP demonstrating some impressive looking submission moves but it would ultimately be Holliday who would pick up the win and advance. The finish of the match came when TJP missed a Swanton and Holliday capitalized with a spinebuster and the 2008 Market Crash for the win.
Salina de la Renta Is Out For Revenge
Salina de la Renta was recently revealed to have been in cahoots with Contra Unit regarding the stable’s takeover of MLW offices. The league may end up terminating her contract for this but she is still scheduled to produce the January 6th show. If MLW hasn’t taken action by then, Salina will likely be out for revenge that night. She called out Konnan (who exposed her association with Contra) and threatened to sue the league.
Calvin Tankman Impresses In League Debut
Calvin Tankman didn’t need much time at all to put away Robert Martyr. He first demonstrated that he is an agile 355lbs big man by doing leapfrogs and other impressive looking feats. He quickly put away his opponent with the Tankman Driver for the win.
After the match, Tankman cut a promo in the back and said he’s coming for the MLW World Heavyweight Championship.
Injury Update On Hammerstone
Following the attack last week by Contra Unit, we got an injury update on Alexander Hammerstone. The National Openweight Champion revealed he suffered bruised ribs, whiplash, and tranverse mylelitis (spinal inflammation). Hammerstone was promising to get revenge on Contra Unit when the line was taken over by Josef Samael. The Contra Unit member told Hammerstone he put a target on his back when he referred to himself as “Contra Hunter.” This led Samael to hire the Black Hand of Contra to attack Hammerstone.
“Filthy” Tom Lawlor Defeats Rocky Romero, Advances In Opera Cup
We had a veteran of New Japan Pro Wrestling against a veteran of the UFC and former MLW World Champion, Tom Lawlor in the main event this week. It was a highly competitive match and in the end neither wrestler would really prove dominance but one would come away with the victory. The finish of the match came when Lawlor was in the process of locking in a rear-naked choke but just when Rocky had fought out of the move, Lawlor responded by wrapping Romero up in a pinning combination for a 3-count.
After the match, Lawlor cut a promo expressing his frustration with not being booked in the tournament last year. He said that soon the names on the trophy like Stu Hart and George Hackenschmidt will be joined by his.
Other Notes:
- American Top Team’s Dan Gable and King Mo are irate with MLW officials for not including Mo in the Opera Cup. They believe that Low Ki should not be medically cleared for the tournament. As of this report, Low Ki is scheduled to face Davey Boy Smith Jr. in the first round.
- Lio Rush vs Myron Reed has been booked for December 23rd’s “Kings of the Colosseum” event.
- Next week’s show will have the final 2 opening round matches of the Opera Cup: ACH vs Laredo Kid, and Davey Boy Smith Jr. vs Low-Ki.