Chris' Lucha Roundup: February 2025

It’s a long time coming, but as punishment I tried to watch almost anything that made footage from the month. How much footage could February have anyway? Enough to feature several long Daga singles matches that unsurprisingly do not appear in this column.

Black Terry vs. Mascara Ano 2000 vs. Negro Navarro vs. Solar I (WR, 2/22)

This is one of the last matches Black Terry worked before his death in April, and it shamefully has less than a thousand views on Youtube. Only fitting one of his last matches to make tape is with three other legends in Mascara Ano 2000, Negro Navarro and Solar. It’s a clipped match. Unfortunately I assume a bunch of the llaves stuff these guys worked is cut out, but what you get is still a very fun maestros match with four lucha greats chopping the hell out of each other and going hold for hold. All four men have slowed down with age, but it’s still bizarre to think Black Terry was gone less than two months after he was going at this match like it was any other Saturday. A celebration of lucha libre that becomes bittersweet given the context. Very much worth a watch.

Aguila Roja & Puma de Oro vs. Noisy Boy & Spider Fly (IWRG, 2/6)
Belcegor & Puma de Oro vs. Flamita & Noisy Boy (IWRG, 2/16)

The Aguila Roja/Puma de Oro vs. Mexa Boys feud remained one of the best feuds in lucha in February. Maybe IWRG’s four best workers just going at each other with tons of high-intensity offense and athleticism. Both matches here are crucial to their feud, but I really like the change-up from the El Protector show with adding Belcegor (Fulgor I) and Flamita to the mix, building onto the existing feud with two more incredible athletes.

Karma I & Karma II vs. Rey Espartano & Xelhua (Lucha Memes, 2/9) – IWTV

Karma I and II follow-up their spectacular match with Argus and Gaius from January with another fantastic match in Coliseo Coacalco. Rey Espartano is one of my favorites in that Coacalco crew and Xelhua is appointment viewing any time he’s in the ring. With a stronger matwork base, this is a bit less “indie-riffic” than that Argus/Gaius match, showcasing the Karmas’ all-around abilities against two very strong matworkers. In a world without my beloved Mexa Boys, they’d be a strong candidate for tag team of the year.

Caballero de Plata vs. Cerebro Negro (IWRG, 2/16)

With two matches represented on this roundup, the El Protector show from IWRG was easily my favorite event the company has produced in a long while. I loved that tag from above, but the highlight of the night was the chain match between Caballero de Plata and Cerebro Negro. While I don’t love chain/strap matches where you hit the four ring posts instead of pinning/submitting your opponent (which usually work much better with the match aesthetics), the build of the match is wonderful. Cerebro Negro spends like ten minutes tossing the ref trying to attach the chain on him out of the way so he can brutalize Caballero de Plata with cheap shots. Awesome stuff.

El Hijo de Fishman vs. Mascara Sagrada NG (Jimenez, 2/2)

Maybe you’re tiring of the endless Fishman/Sagrada feud. I’m not. These two can keep punching the hell out of each other for as long as they want until somebody gives them a payday for the mask match. Which this match is not, despite the poster for the show really wanting you to think it is. This match seemed under-discussed in the grand scheme of the feud. Part of it is the match requiring a bit more digging in the mines to find, but it does feel like a lesser chapter in the feud. Fortunately, a lesser chapter in the Mascara Sagrada/Hijo de Fishman feud is still top-tier lucha brawling. The only pairing in wrestling right now I would give a “fight forever” chant to. Check out their tag brawl from 2/28 in the honorable mentions as well. Brazo Celestial and Villano V Jr. are also there, but the camera almost never follows them.

Aeroboy vs. Osiris (DWW, 2/21)

The DWW anniversary show is another strong show from this month. Steer clear of an abysmal and overly long Gravity vs. Willy Banderas, and you’ll find a bunch of really breezy matches from a ton of exciting indie luchadores. The main event of Aeroboy vs. Osiris delivered especially, as two wrestlers with death wishes combined wild dives with plenty of plunder. This might not be the deathmatch epic these two would have in a promotion like Zona 23, but it’s a fantastic brawl with plenty of great highspots thrown in. I’ve never been quite as high on Osiris as the fans seem to be, but he can have a hell of a match with the right opponent.

Honorable Mentions