Lucha Underground Review - July 25, 2018

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Jake Strong def. Sammy Guevara

It was clear from the get-go that Lucha Underground had bgi plans to make Strong a real player based off how he was booked and his streak of dominance continued here as he picked up a victory against the other guy he teamed with in his debut, Sammy Guevara. However, this wasn't your standard squash match because it was actually fairly competitive and Guevara was able to impress the audience with his high-flying moves before eating defeat.

Matanza Cueto def. Vinnie Massaro

Massaro hasn't competed in many matches in Lucha Underground (was his involvement in Aztec Warfare on the Season 4 premiere episode technically his in-ring debut for the promotion?), so if there was anyone on the roster who should have been killed off by Matanza, it was him. Hey, at least he went out in style (kind of). This segment dragged on a little longer than it needed to, but it held the attention of the crowd and succeeded in what it set out to do in further establishing Matanza as an unstoppable force.

Dezmond X, King Cuerno and Dragon Azteca Jr. def. Trios Champion Son of Havoc, Trios Champion The Mack and Ivelisse to Qualify for the Gift of the Gods Championship Match

Personally, I would have left the originally scheduled six-way Gift of the Gods Championship matchup alone, but Lucha Underground never ceases to be unpredictable and throw fans for a loop (in a good way). Plus, more tension was teased here between the Trios Champions (including Killshot afterward) and Mil Muertes laid waste to the losers out of anger for what happened last week. As a match, this was well-wrestled and had some fun moments, but the finish could have been better executed to not come across as so anticlimactic.

Dragon Azteca Jr. def. Dezmond X and King Cuerno in a Three-Way Match to Win the Gift of the Gods Championship

I guess we'll never know if the six-way would have been better, but even still, this was an excellent main event that had the perfect pace and strong showings from all three competitors. I also appreciated how they kept things interesting by taking the action all over the arena and ensuring the audience was engaged from beginning to end. I honestly did not expect Azteca to take the title, if only because he hasn't been a standout so far this season, but I'm curious to see where this storyline will lead, especially considering how he has history with Pentagon Jr. from a while back.

Overall Show

Once again, the focus of this week's episode was largely on the Gift of the Gods Championship, making it feel extremely coveted and important in the process. The two matches that had Gift of the Gods title implications were very entertaining, and although the other two bouts were basically enhancement outings, they served a purpose as well and the hour flew by per usual.