El Deporte de las Mil Emociones: Title Changes, a Sheik and a Master

Week 23: Title Changes, a Sheik and a Master

EB: A lot has happened so far in CSP in the month of March. TNT started a feud with Abdullah the Butcher over the Universal title, leading to TNT’s title reign being cut short. A tournament for the vacant Caribbean tag titles was held, with the new Invaders emerging as the new champions. Los Mercenarios held off the challenge of two of the top tecnico teams in los Super Medicos and the Invaders, remaining the World tag team champions. Carlos Colon saw an opportunity to once again challenge for the Universal title now that Abdullah was the champion. Eddie Watts continued to face the challenge of both Huracan Castillo Jr. and Joe Savoldi for the World Junior title. Miguelito Perez had ongoing issues with both Carl Styles and Rick Valentine. And we saw the arrival of a new monster in the form of Atkie Malumba. We’ll see how some of these rivalries continue to evolve as April approaches. 

As we head towards the final big card of March (scheduled for March 31) which features Abullah the Butcher defending the Universal title against Carlos Colon, let’s look at some other matches that took place throughout the month. Then we'll focus specifically on some matches that occurred on the March 28 tv taping, which would have aired the morning of March 31. 

Leo Burke had not been successful in moving back into the top contender spot for the Universal title, but it looks like he and Chicky Starr have decided to take part in more tag matches. Let’s see them in action vs the Caribbean Express.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkZfsw9Acmw 

This looks to have aired on the April 7 weekend English language Caribbean Championship Wrestling that aired on Channel 13 somewhere in the U.S. Leo and Chicky seem to be focusing more in potential tag action after Burke’s unsuccessful attempt to gain the number one contendership for the Universal title. These two teams have faced each other before. As both teams spend several moments jawing at each other at the start (it looks like Burke and Chicky are taking their time deciding who will start the match for their side), Hugo runs down the credentials for all four men and reminds us that Burke is the reigning TV champion. It looks like Chicky will start for his team but immediately begins to stall again, demanding that Castillo stay on his side of the ring before they move to lock up. Chicky prances around a bit and the crowd starts getting on his case for it. Chicky repeats the prancing a couple of times, a tactic that Hugo mentions is likely gamesmanship to throw the Caribbean Express off. Chicky decides to tag Burke in (without having ever locked up with Castillo). Burke and Castillo lock up, with Castillo countering into a hammerlock. Burke forces a break in the ropes and tags Chicky back in. Chicky and Castillo exchange side headlocks on each other and this leads to a rope running reversal sequence (including a nice flip by Castillo over Chicky) that ends with Castillo taking Chicky down with an armdrag takedown. Castillo makes a quick tag to Perez, who continues working the armbar on Chicky. 

Burke sneaks into the ring, taking advantage that the ref has his back turned while talking to Castillo, and kicks Perez in the back of the head to break the hold. Chicky takes advantage and forces Perez into the Burke and Starr corner with a front facelock, with Burke being tagged in. Burke hits several blows on Perez before putting Miguelito in a side headlock. Perez eventually counters with a throw on the ropes, with a hiptoss being successful. Burke quickly regains control by cutting off Miguelito with a knee to the gut. Burke tags Chicky back in, who continues on the attack with some cheap blows that he hides from the referee. Chicky even moves in front of Castillo on the apron to hit one of his cheap blows, causing the ref to get tied up with an arguing Castillo and giving Chicky more chances to work over Miguelito. Perez hits a back suplex but misses a splash, as Hugo on commentary mentions that we’ll find out later in the program what happened last Saturday between Abdullah and Carlos in a Universal title match. 

Burke tags in and works a headlock on the mat as Miguelito avoids having his shoulders down for a three count.  Perez eventually counters by shooting Burke into the ropes, ending with a scoop slam. Perez follows up by whipping Burke into the corner but Leo sidesteps a charge by Perez. Chicky gets tagged in and continues on offense, but the moment Perez gets a comeback Chicky tags Burke back in. They try to double team Miguelito but it ends with Perez hitting a double clothesline on the rudos. The tag is finally made to Castillo, who cleans house on Burke with several blows.  Castillo gets a sleeperhold on Leo, but Chicky runs in and breaks it up. Castillo tags Perez back in and eventually all four men end up fighting in the ring. The rudos are whipped into each other and Castillo dropkicks Chicky to the ring apron. Castillo continues punching Chicky on the apron as Perez monkey flips Leo off the turnbuckle. The ref comes over to escort Castillo back to his corner as Perez throws Burke into the rudo corner for another monkey flip attempt. Chicky sees the attempt coming and grabs onto Leo from behind, causing Perez to crash backwards on the mat instead. Burke covers and gets the win for his team. If Burke and Chicky continue to pile up wins they may have a title shot in their future. And they do in fact get a Caribbean tag title shot at the March 28 tv taping.

MD: Chicky has a goatee here so in my head this match is what earned them the title shot against the Invaders (Chicky also has a goatee in that match). After a bit of chicanery where Chicky didn’t want to start off and a nice exchange with Castillo, this went to heat on Perez quickly. He was able to get three or four hope spots (cut off) before hitting a double clothesline to set up the hot tag. Things broke down after that but Chicky jammed a Perez monkey flip by holding Burke’s boot in the corner to score a flash win. It’s interesting how quickly the territory shifted to a much larger focus on tag teams.

EB: Another team that has been on the hunt for championship gold is the Super Medicos. Since debuting as a team, they have had a rivalry with the World tag team champions Los Mercenarios. So far they have not yet been able to win the titles, but a tag match held in mid March allows them to get some measure of payback against the Mercenarios manager El Profe.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uPdo8Ut_qBQ 

We join the match in progress, as El Profe is hiding in the corner from one of the Medicos (it appears to be Medico #3). Profe has El Gran Mendoza as his tag partner for this match. Medico #3 goes after Profe in the corner but it was a ruse to allow Mendoza to rush in from behind and allow the rudo team the chance to double team Medico #3. Mendoza remains in the ring and works over Medico #3 with an abdominal stretch. Profe comes in to try a double team but Medico #1 rushes in to fight Profe off and sends him scurrying back to the rudo corner. Mendoza and Profe tie up Medico #3 in the ropes and try to take off his mask, but Medico #1 rushes in again to make the save. Profe and Mendoza are working fairly well and it seems that their strategy is to focus on unmasking Medico #3. Hugo mentions on commentary that going after the mask may result in a  disqualification for the rudo team but it is apparent that they don’t care about that. El Profe continues trying to get Medico #3’s mask off, with Medico #1 charging in to make several saves. The match continues with the rudos working over Medico #3, including a double hotshot on the top rope and several double stomps from El Profe. All the while, El Profe keeps taunting Medico #1 on the apron. At one point Medico #3 is able to make it to his team's corner but is not able to make the tag because Medico #1 had gone after El Profe after the constant taunting. Medico #3 finally makes the tag after knocking heads with Mendoza and Medico #1 comes in hot with several punches on both rudos. All four men end up in the ring and this leads to a finish where Medico #1 counters a Mendoza pin attempt into a cradle for a pin (as Medico #3 and Profe are just teeing off on each other with punches). It’s a victory for the Super Medicos and they will get one more shot at the World tag team titles on March 31st. 

MD: We come in here with Profe and Mendoza working over Medico 3. It was actually pretty compelling stuff as they kept him in the corner and worked at the mask, which is something we haven’t seen much of since we started the progress. Medico 1 gets angrier and angrier on the outside and Medico 3 is able to create distance once or twice but never make it to the corner before getting cut off. There’s a pretty elaborate sequence leading to heads crashing and the hot tag. Medico comes in destroying everyone but gets a quick reversal pin on Mendoza for the win.

EB: As the weekend of March 31 arrived, viewers were treated to some new developments that happened at the most recent TV tapings. Let’s go to a Caribbean tag title match where the Invaders are defending against the team of Leo Burke and Chicky Starr. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ommAruj8Z00

Chicky and Burke are in the ring waiting for the Invaders to enter, Chicky has his crown with him and Burke has the TV title belt. The Invaders make their entrance with their jumpsuits and coordinated jumps into the ring. There is no love lost between long time enemies Chicky and Invader #1 so this should be an interesting match. Eliud Gonzalez makes the ring introductions and we get a pre match hug from Chicky and Burke. Invader #4 and Chicky start off and this is a bit of a lengthy match. Invader #4 shows off his ability early on, taking down Chicky with several acrobatic armdrag takedowns. Invader #1 tags in and the Invaders do their arm wringer quick tag maneuver on Chicky. The Invaders continue controlling the first part of the match with quick tags and switches, keeping Chicky grounded and in the ring. Chicky makes a brief comeback but is sent to the outside as we go to a commercial break. When we come back, Burke comes in for his team and Invader #1 is also tagged in. Burke and Invader #1 are evenly matched for a moment but that ends when Invader #4 is tagged in and hits a mockery flip on Burke. The rudos try to do the same but instead Chicky ends up monkey flipping Burke by mistake. The Invaders hit running topes on Burke and Chicky and continue attacking them outside on the floor.

Chicky tries to move towards the entrance of the rudo locker room as Invader #1 gives chase, and when they get close, it appears that someone tries to help Chicky. It’s the Iron Sheik! Invader #1 punches Sheik away and the Invaders drag the rudos back to the ring. As all four men are in the ring, the Iron Sheik makes his way to ringside with his flag. It appears he is here to lend moral support to Leo and Chicky. But the odds quickly even when TNT comes out and stands in the Invaders corner. Burke tries to send Invader #1 into the corner but Invader #4 saves his brother. Chicky attempts to make a similar save for Burke but is left hanging dry. Burke and Chicky are able to gain control on Invader #4, attempting several pin attempts that are broken up by Invader #1 (and I do mean several pin attempts). After several minutes, Invader #4 is able to make the tag and Invader #1 fires off on both Burke and Chicky. Eventually all four men end up in the ring, with Invader #1 and Burke paired off on one side of the ring. While the ref is distracted in dealing with Invader #4 and Chicky on the other side of the ring, Invader #1 manages to get a cradle pin attempt on Burke. But they're too close to the ropes and the Iron Sheik hits Invader #1 with the flagpole. Burke makes the cover and we get new Carribean tag champions (thanks to an assist from the Iron Sheik).Chicky and Burke are presented with the tag belts and celebrate as the video ends.

MD: This one had all the bells and whistles. Very long shine for the Invaders. This is maybe the first match where the New Invaders really clicked for me. Invader 1 is the technical striker. Invader 4 is the finesse flyer, wrestling like his career depended on this working. He had some really slick stuff, flipping around armdrags and a bit where Invader 1 held both rudos (one at a time) on the floor for a tope. There was some fun brawling on the outside, a nice comedy bit where Chicky tried to use his body to save Burke in the corner and paid for it, and illegal switches too. The rudos took over on Invader 4 and while you’d inherently want it to be Invader 1 doing the selling, 4 being smaller and more spry made this work nonetheless. Chicky looked like a beast here with a killer German Suplex and a pile driver. Eventually they crashed heads though and Invader 1 got to punch a lot of people, as they built towards the crazy finish. In this case, the bells and whistles were TNT and Iron Sheik and Sheik was able to sneak in a flag shot to help Chicky and Burke win the titles. Very good title match.

EB: As we saw in the previous match, the Iron Sheik has made his return to Puerto Rico. The Sheik’s most notable run was an early 1988 feud he had with Carlos Colon over the Universal title. He has made other sporadic appearances since then and it seems that El Jeque has brought the Iron Sheik back to CSP as his latest recruit. Let’s watch the Sheik in action against Miguelito Perez.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nc4_3iThcA

El Jeque asks for the crowd to be quiet so Sheik can sing the national anthem ‘of Iraq’ (that’s a screwup). Sheik sings the anthem and heads to the ring. Eliud Gonzalez on commentary makes note that it's the Iran national anthem. The crowd does not like the Sheik and is behind Miguelito. The match starts off fairly even between both men. But Perez is eventually able to hit a sunset flip for a two count. Iron Sheik bails to the outside and argues with the crowd. Sheik gets back in and goes on offense, although he gets cocky by lifting Perez up on a couple of pin attempts. Perez makes a comeback with several punches, but when the referee gets Miguelito to back off, Sheik takes the opportunity to load up his boot. Sheik takes advantage of an opening to kick Miguelito right in the face with the loaded boot, busting Perez open. Sheik continues attacking Perez with a foreign object and continues to target the cut. Sheik continues to lift Perez up and refusing to pin him, so the referee calls for the bell. Invader #1 runs in to fight and chase the Iron Sheik away and, between this and Sheik's interference in the earlier tag title match, a match between Invader #1 and the Iron Sheik is set to take place on the March 31st card. 

MD: This was astounding. 1990 Sheik was made for Puerto Rico. He was a stalling, stooging machine early on, staggering back, taking his one real bump of the match, hitting the floor and hitting his one big suplex, a deep belly to back. He tried to load the boot once or twice before finally luring Perez in with a kick to take over. Then he pulled out a hidden object and went to work. Perez bled and Sheik gnawed on the wound and kept pulling him up until the ref eventually called it off and Invader ran in to get revenge. I am ready for this Sheik run.  

EB: We’ve been following the arrival of Atkie Malumba, El Profe’s newest acquisition. Let’s watch him in action against Herbert Gonzalez

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TIU2Xd08UnQ 

This match is short and Herbert really doesn’t have much of a chance against the impressive force known as Atkie Malumba. A flying splash mercifully ends Herbert’s night and Malumba gets another dominant win. This one is going to be trouble for the members of El Ejercito de la Justicia.

MD: Malumba had a pretty good idea how to work a two minute squash, taking him right to the outside and never giving him a chance. Best part of this was the glaring light in the background that made it seem like Malumba was flying right out of the sun itself as he crashed down with the top rope splash.

EB: Our last highlight from the March 31st tv is a video showcasing some of the history between Carlos Colon and Abdullah the Butcher, mainly highlights from when they started feuding again in 1985 and the subsequent ammonia attack that blinded Carlos in 1986. They will be facing off for the Universal title tonight and it’s a reminder that eventually, both men will end up colliding time and time again.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ErqKGRWdFN4 

MD: It’s always surreal to see that Flair/Dory vs Carlos/Abdullah match. Of all of the Memphis-y stuff in PR, it might be the most so. Colon accidentally hits Abby and it all falls apart. They really did a great job getting the idea across that Colon will always have to face Abdullah until the day that they die and just how terrible and horrific that fate is.

EB: So for the March 31st card, we actually have video for a couple of matches. The card lineup is as follows: Abdulalh the Butcher defends the Universal title against Carlos Colon, Invader #1 takes on the Iron Sheik, Los Mercenarios defend the World tag team titles against the Super Medicos, Leo Burke takes on Pierre Martel, Eddie Watts faces Invader #4, Rick Valentine takes on Miguelito Perez, and Huracaa Castillo is set to take on El Gran Mendoza. These last two matches are the ones we have video off.

Let’s go first to the match between Huracan Castillo and El Gran Mendoza, two men who have been longtime rivals in the junior heavyweight division.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRIklSDgM5A

I’ve mentioned before that Castillo and Mendoza had a rivalry over the World Junior title back in 1987 and here in March of 1990 they’re facing off again. The match is joined in progress with Mendoza trying for an unsuccessful cover of Castillo. Mendoza continues on the attack with a fireman’s carry that leads to Castillo being dropped on the top turnbuckle, followed by a slam and double stomp by Mendoza. After Mendoza briefly argues with the crowd, he puts a sleeper on Castillo. This is countered with a back suplex and both men are down on the mat. Mendoza is up first but misses an elbow and Castillo counters with a running elbow drop of his own. Castillo is a bit slow in following up and is caught with a kick to the head by Mendoza, which leads to a pin attempt. Mendoza hits a neckbreaker and again only gets a two count. Mendoza maintains control for the next few minutes despite Castillo’s attempts at making a comeback (such as a sleeper attempt that is quickly broken up by Mendoza). Huracan turns the tide by just slugging Mendoza across the face and following up with several blows including a high knee. Castillo goes into a punching stance and tees off on a staggered Mendoza, who tries to beg off. Castillo continues on the attack with a kneedrop and backdrop, but a splash is blocked by Mendoza’s knees.  Mendoza attempts a flying body press from the top but Castillo catches him and rolls over for a two count. Castillo leapfrogs over Mendoza and rolls him up in an inside cradle for the pin. Another win for Huracan Castillo Jr and he stays in the hunt for the World Junior title. 

MD: This got some time and we even came in JIP. This might be the best I’ve seen Mendoza look. He had some really good stuff with a fireman’s carry heft onto the top turnbuckle, a double stomp, a nice neckbreaker, some good strikes. Castillo kept firing back but then missed a big move including a nasty bump in the corner. Eventually he did get control and fired off a lot of shots, punches and slaps, playing on a striking lineage. Even then, he had to win this with a small package which seemed a bit much against Mendoza.

EB: We also have video of Miguelito Perez taking on Rick Valentine. We’ve previously seen Carl Styles and Rick Valentine form an alliance due to the Caribbean tag title tournament, but unfortunately Carl Styles was injured during a match in late March and will be out of action for the foreseeable future. So it looks like Valentine will be focusing more on singles action now.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QOMGcoXnEGg 

As Hugo mentions on commentary, Perez and Valentine have already wrestled each other before and Miguelito is looking to even up the score. Miguelito immediately goes right after Valentine, not giving him a chance to get his ring jacket off. Perez fires off several punches, corner rams and a dropkick to waylay Valentine at the start. The referee manages to hold back Miguelito long enough so that Valentine can finally get his ring jacket off. Hugo notes that Valentine is the master of the bionic elbow as Perez picks the attack back up. Rick eventually rolls out of the ring to stop the assault and regroup with Chicky at ringside.  Valentine demands that the ref keep Perez at bay but once again Perez charges and begins to attack Valentine. A corner charge by Perez is dodged by Valentine, finally giving Rick the first opening of the match. Valentine takes too long climbing the turnbuckle though, and Perez throws him off and starts back on offense with a clothesline and armdrag takedown. Perez remains in control for the next few minutes, mainly working the arm. The match continued with Perez mainly in control and, although Valentine would get brief moments where it looked like he would turn the tide (such as throwing Perez through the ropes to the outside), Miguelito would usually cut Valentine off quickly and go back on the attack. One gambit that works for Valentine is faking a knee injury after a leapfrog. This gives him enough time to leave Perez open to hit him with an elbow and then toss him outside, where Chicky would throw Perez into the ringpost. The ref starts making the count on Perez but he is able to get to the apron. Valentine grabs Perez and hits a few blows, then hits a back suplex in the ring for a two count. Valentine continues to attack Miguelito’s head and neck area, getting another two count off a swinging neckbreaker. Valentine tosses Perez back outside and we hear Hugo mention that Valentine is having a feud with TNT at the moment this match aired. Perez manages to block Valentine on the apron and regains control with several punches. Perez tries a pin off a clothesline and from there both men go back and forth making different pin attempts. The match ends when Perez tries to take down Valentine with a rollover, but Valentine holds onto the ropes and Perez instead falls backwards, smacking his head on the mat. Valentine follows up with his bionic elbow drop and gets the win.

MD: Kerry Brown was a perfectly good wrestler, a Stampede mainstay, a credible third foreigner in a late 80s NJPW trios match (you know, because you need someone to take the fall). I’m not sure I’m feeling him as a viable TNT opponent. Still, as a stooging jerk who looked more like a fake Buddy Rose than a fake Valentine family member (great elbow drop or no), he fit in well here in Puerto Rico. That meant bumping and flailing about as Perez kept the advantage early, having a few moments where he schemed to get over only to have it swept away from him due to Perez’s skill, and then finally taking over and keeping the advantage with Chicky’s help. Chicky definitely made people more than what they might have been otherwise. This turned out to be a good match and despite the chicanery mid-match, Valentine basically won clean, but he sure gave Perez a lot along the way. Maybe if he had Jason the Terrible as a heater I’d buy him more as a threat to the champion. 

EB: As for the other matches from March 31st, the big news is that there were two title changes that night. The Super Medicos finally won the World tag team titles and Carlos Colon regained the Universal title once more. We’ll discuss what awaits the new champions next time. One team that was looking to also regain some title gold was the Invaders, who were not happy with how Chicky and Burke won the Caribbean tag titles. Burke and Chicky granted the Invaders a rematch, but…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YR7ppEL00uA 

Burke and Chicky have granted the Invaders a rematch, but it is a non-title match, something that Hugo and Carlos are not happy about on commentary (but not surprised considering it is Chicky Starr). The crowd is loud and also not happy that it's a non-title match. Chicky is wary to lock up with Invader #4, as Invader #1 keeps jumping into the ring to psych Chicky out. Carlos and Hugo continue talking about how it’s expected for champions to defend their titles and not take the coward’s way out. Burke and Chicky continue stalling but eventually Invader #4 and Chicky locked up. The exchange goes in favor of Invader #4, who hits a series of twisting armdrags on Chicky and finishes with a head scissors on the outside. Carlos mentions how Maelo has been impressive with his maneuvers so far as part of the new Invaders tag team. Burke and Invader #1 are tagged in and again it goes the Invaders way, with attempted double teams by the rudos backfiring. Burke falls victim to a series of arm wringers and quick tags from the Invaders. Chciky tries to interfere and the Invaders take the opportunity to switch out twice. We go to commercial and come back to Chicky being armdragged and then going to the outside of the ring. This leads to the Invaders hitting a series of topes on both rudos when Burke tries to help Chicky. The Invaders celebrate in the ring as Burke and Chicky are beat up on the outside. Chicky is bleeding from the forehead. The crowd starts getting on Chicky’s case as Burke gets back in the ring. Burke gets a sleeper on Invader #1 but they are too close to the tecnico corner and Invader #4 is tagged in. Burke is still with the sleeper and doesn't see Invader #4 come in, and is surprised when invader #1 gets out of the way and Invader #4 hits a monkey flip on Leo. Burke manages to grab Invader #4 and calls Chicky in to help double team but Invader #4 gets loose and instead Chicky monkey flips Burke instead. Nothing has gone right for the rudos so far.

The rudos escape to the outside but are taken out by a flying cross body press. Finally the rudos get a segment of control when Burke gets back in the ring and is able to take down Invader #4.  Burke and Chicky are able to maintain control on Invader #4 but are not able to put him away.   At one point Chicky puts on an abdominal stretch on Invader #4 and Burke helps by adding leverage from the outside, but Invader #1 does not take the bait and stays in his corner. Eventually, Invader #1 chooses his spot and comes in to break up the hold. Burke hits a neckbreaker and puts on the figure four, a move that we know will end this sooner than later if Invader #4 does not get out of it. Invader #1 wastes no time in breaking the hold and also breaks up a follow-up spinning toe hold by Chicky. Invader #4 eventually is able to make the tag to his brother and Invader #1 comes in cleaning house on both rudos. Invader #1 hits atomic drops on both rudos and Invader #4 joins the others in the ring. Eventually, it is Burke and Invader #1 who are left duking it out in the ring. As Chicky tries to interfere, Invader #4 sees him coming and comes off the top with a body press, which the ref counts for the win. I’m not sure who was the legal man for each team but it’s a win for the Invaders. Perhaps now they’ll get their title rematch. Or will Chicky and Leo still try to find a way to weasel out of it? We ‘ll continue following this rivalry as we move into April.

MD: Chicky and Leo were obviously too cowardly to put the titles up here. It started with the usual hesitation from Chicky. He matched up very well with Invader 4 though. For all the credit we give Chicky, I think personally, I didn’t realize how great a base he was. He was there for everything Invader 4 did, the tricked out arm drags and the headscissors takeover using the apron. The topes from the Invaders with the other Invader holding each rudo looked wild here. They had the fans buzzing. They did a really fun tit-for-tat spot where an Invader held a rudo in the corner for a monkey flip and when the rudos tried it, they ended up monkey flipping one another. Then, as the icing on the cake, the Invaders hit another huge dive from the top to the floor Just high octane stuff here. The shine was two thirds of the match but the roles were now reversed, with Chicky and Burke the vulnerable heel champs. Plus a little went a long way as Chicky and Burke were very effective in dismantling Invader 4 in just a few minutes. Invader 1 came in hot after the tag and things had that usual chaotic flavor until Invader 4 was able to fly in with a body press for the non-title win. Another really good tag in a string of them.

EB: To finish off this installment, let’s go to a match featuring TNT taking on one of the more surprising wrestlers to make an appearance in CSP so far. We had no idea before coming across the footage that this wrestler actually made an appearance in the first half of April.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oEipWA6pDHU 

It's TNT taking on Mister Saito! Or as Eliud Gonzalez calls him on commentary, Master Saito. Yes, it seems Saito made a brief stop in CSP at some point in the first half of April. It’s a short match, but a surprise to see this take place in 1990 Puerto Rico. Eliud on commentary mentions that the crowd is excited to see a wrestler of Saito’s caliber appear in a CSP ring against TNT. The match itself saw Saito control most of the match, with TNT making a comeback and both men getting counted out as they kept fighting at ringside. It does make me curious about what matches Saito had during his brief stop. 

MD: This felt like a WCW Worldwide special with just a bit more heat and gravitas. They accomplish a ton in 4 minutes. Saito was an old pro of the territories and he fit in immediately here. He knew when to feed, how to work from underneath as a heel having his arm wrenched, when to get a cheapshot in, how much to take on a control. TNT came back and things spilled out to the floor, getting pretty violent as the two of them got counted out. It was a nice visit at least. Shame it wasn’t longer.

EB: Next time on El Deporte de las Mil Emociones, we delve further into April 1990 as we find out what’s next for Carlos Colon after regaining the Universal title, the Invaders continue to chase Burke and Chicky, some more potential title changes may be on the horizon, and yet another candidate for most surprising wrestler to pop in for a shot in Puerto Rico 1990.