MLW Holiday Rush Review - December 23, 2023

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

AKIRA def. Alec Price, Nolo Kitano, Brett Ryan Gosselin, J Boujii and Love, Doug in a Scramble-6 Match

They should have put a title shot at stake to make this match worthwhile, but it was fun for what it was and well paced. Doug and Gosselin got to further their feud and AKIRA winning allowed him to bounce back from his recent loss to Rickey Shane Page. Post-match, AKIRA addressed The Calling and brawled with Page, so hopefully this is building to him dethroning Page as MLW National Openweight Champion.

Zayda def. Tiara James and The Notorious Mimi in a Three-Way Match

I don't know when last week's three-way was taped, but airing this one week after that one was poor timing because this really wasn't much different. It was actually weaker because it had less star power with nothing on the line. I like James and Mimi (who was previously a part of WWE NXT and could also be seen on that Monster Factory show from earlier this year), but Zaya just joined The WTF, so it made sense for her to win. Otherwise, this was a throwaway match.

Josh Bishop def. MLW World Tag Team Champion Matthew Justice

I guess the Freebird rule is in effect with Second Gear Crew if Justice came out with one of the tag title belts here? At any rate, Bishop winning that Battle Royal last week established that he's going to be built up as a big deal, and sure enough, he essentially squashed Justice here. This didn't last long nor did it need to. It was announced later on that Bishop and Tom Lawlor will challenge for the MLW World Tag Team Championship at Kings of the Colosseum.

Tony Deppen def. Kevin Blackwood

This was part of Blackwood's ongoing rivalry with Deppen and TJ Crawford. He managed to beat Crawford last week, so I surprised to see him lose to Deppen here. However, I'm not complaining as it keeps the program alive for a little longer. This was fine for what it was but would have been better with more time. They didn't have a chance to do much as a result, so hopefully they can show what they're capable of in the eventual rematch.

Wasted Youth def. The Mane Event and TJ Crawford & Griffin McCoy in a Three-Way Tag Team Match

We've seen Wasted Youth in MLW at least once before and they left a lasting impression in their debut. They had another impressive performance here and it was cool that they went over, indicating they'll be brought back and won't disappear for good. The other two teams are talented as well and thus this was a really nice sprint. It felt like a simple showcase for the tag team division since it wasn't a number one contender's match.

Ichiban def. Salina de la Renta by Disqualification

It's weird how this was built up so heavily over the last week only to end up being short-lived. I wasn't expecting an instant classic from them by any means, but you'd think they would've have more fun with it with Ichiban having to overcome the odds with everyone that Renta had at ringside. Instead, she quickly got herself disqualified and ran away. That was lame. Can Ichiban get his shot at the MLW World Middleweight Championship already?

MLW World Tag Team Champions Second Gear Crew (1 Called Manders and Good Brother #3) vs. The Bomaye Fight Club (MLW World Heavyweight Champion Alex Kane and Mr. Thomas) Ended in a No Contest

Needless to say, Good Number #3 is the alias for the masked/"fired" Mance Warner. If Warner was forced to leave MLW in storyline, how is this random masked dude (who we all know is Warner) allowed to take his spot as champion in Second Gear Crew? I know they use the Freebird Rule, but Good Brother #3 wasn't technically in the group when they captured the titles. That stuff aside, this was okay, but I didn't think Bomaye Fight Club would win and the non-finish was lame (albeit logical). Richard Holliday and Kane brawling was a preview of their upcoming championship clash.

Jacob Fatu def. Alexander Hammerstone

This was their third one-on-one meeting since 2021 and Hammerstone won the previous two. Unlike those encounters, this didn't have anything on the line, but it was an excellent main event nonetheless and Fatu finally beating Hammerstone was obviously the correct outcome. This was the perfect swan song for Hammerstone, who confirmed afterward that this was likely it for him in MLW with his contract expiring at the end of the year. Speaking of which, his post-match promo was terrific and I'm glad he got that moment after everything he's done for MLW over the years.

Overall Show

I'm not a big fan of wrestling companies airing first-run content on Christmas and Christmas Eve, so I appreciate that they put this up a day early after it was originally slated to air on Christmas Eve. This was basically a free mini pay-per-view and it was very enjoyable on the whole. Most of the matches had storyline significance, there was a ton of hype for Kings of Colosseum on January 6th, and we got to hear from the returning Matt Riddle briefly at the end via a pre-taped video. If you have time this holiday season, check this one out. Merry Christmas and happy holidays!

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