Chris's Lucha Roundup: January 2024

Howdy. At least once per month, I want to help highlight some of my favorite lucha matches that may have gone under the radar in online wrestling circles. Everything I cover will be available on Youtube or with an IndependentWrestlingTV subscription. My main focus is going to be on wrestling outside of CMLL and AAA’s taped shows, but matches that happen on smaller shows co-promoted by them with other companies are fair game.

El Macuarro vs. Sobredosis (Zona 23, 1/21) – Available on IWTV

Zona 23 has a pretty firm reputation as a premier attraction for indie lucha deathmatches by now. Their first card of the year is stacked with premier matches like a gnarly main event brawl between Trauma I and Judas el Traidor where Judas is absolutely gushing by the end. There’s a phenomenal brawl with Demus and Lunatik Extreme. Known deathmatch luchadores like Sadika, Drako, Osiris, Lunatik Fly and Ludark Shaitan fill out the card. But the match from the January 21 event that spoke to me the most was the opener, where the ever-underrated Sobredosis takes on the likes of El Macuarro. As far as I can tell, this is El Macuarro’s first time in the junkyard. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen him anywhere before this. I feel like I would remember him because his presence sticks out. He’s a middle-aged-looking man with a Clint Howard haircut. I posted a picture of him in the Violent People Discord, and several people agreed he looks like an elementary school janitor. And this elementary school janitor just takes an absolute punishment from Sobredosis, getting a crimson mask filling out the bald spot between his massive tufts of hair, taking bumps on car windshields and getting pesos stapled everywhere on his body. It’s a brawl to remember that showcases Zona 23’s status as not just the place to watch the best of the best premier deathmatch wrestlers work, but also for these unique little freakshow brawls between guys you’ve hardly, if ever, heard from before.

Trauma I vs. Wotan (Producciones TC, 1/13)

Trauma and Wotan have been building to a mask vs. mask match since the last few months of 2023, building a hatred for each other in several great multi-men tags and a 5-way match in AVE. However, it’s good to get a taste from the two of them in a true singles showdown before they risk their masks in the big apuestas match. This is for Wotan’s Extreme Championship, and the two of them have palpable hatred for each other as they brawl around Arena Lopez Mateos. There are sickening chair shots, skewer spots and plenty of light tubes. You do get the sense they’re holding back that next gear of carnage for the apuestas match, but there’s plenty of good stuff to be found in this lead-up match. One of the first truly great lucha matches of the year.

Hechicero & Solar I vs. Negro Navarro & Virus (Wrestling Brothers/CMLL, 1/27)

There are a few fancams of this match going around the lucha Youtube circuit, and I’m not sure any of them have the full match. They’re either clipped (though not much) but start in the middle of things. But anything from this match is easy to fill in the blanks. These are four of the premier llaves-style wrestlers, legends (or in Hechicero’s case, a future legend) working the mat and trading holds for twenty minutes of excellence. I thought about showcasing the Copa Retro from The King Phantom show that features Negro Navarro alongside the likes of Atlantis, Fuerza Guerrera, Black Terry, Satanico, and more, but that works more as a novelty than as a complete match. This is the certified good stuff, a reminder that age is just a number to guys like Virus, Navarro and Solar. It’s a must-watch for fans of technical wrestling.

Latigo & Toxin vs. Noisy Boy & Spider Fly (IWRG, 1/7)

My favorite lucha spotfest of the year so far. There aren’t many tags out there on the level of either this Los Vipers team or the Mexa Boys, and they showcase a lot of pure talent in this dazzling Arena Naucalpan highlight. The pacing might be a little self-indulgent for some, but even if it is a few minutes too long, it’s a ton of fun. Noisy Boy and Spider Fly have been crushing it in IWRG for a while, so it’s nice to see a rock solid effort with them against two of my long-time favorites in Latigo and Toxin.

Argenis vs. Calibus (Lucha Memes, 1/1) – Available on IWTV

I’ll be honest, I didn’t have a ton of expectations for this match. Calibus is a solid worker, but nobody I go out of my way of seeing. I like Argenis fine, but he’s never been close to my favorite AAA mainstay, and I haven’t even really thought about him since he lost his mask to Myzteziz Jr. early last year. Yet this match ended up being the highlight of the New Year’s Day Lucha Memes show, filled with fun spots and plenty of outside brawling. The show overall isn’t Lucha Memes’ best effort, but this is a match worth taking the time to see.

Honorable Mentions