Major League Wrestling will be kicking off a new era with its Battle Riot III event on July 10th. This event will be headlined by the Battle Riot match – a no holds barred battle royal consisting of 40 competitors, with the winner earning a shot at the MLW Heavyweight Champion Jacob Fatu. Throughout the last two months, MLW has announced numerous new signings. The company has also announced other matches for the card, including a Bunkhouse Brawl bewteen Team Filthy and the Von Erichs, TJP vs. Davey Richards and more. Going into this show, here are 5 moments that I hope happen at the third annual Battle Riot:
#1: Alex Hammerstone becoming the official #1 contender to Jacob Fatu
For almost a year, Alex Hammerstone has made his intentions of wanting to challenge Jacob Fatu crystal clear. Since his initial declaration, Hammerstone has dealt with CONTRA’s Mads Kruger and Azteca Underground’s Mil Muertues. Additionally, Josef Samael revealed that he gets to choose who Jacob Fatu defends his championship against. Alicia Atout later noted that the only way for Hammerstone to get around Samael’s control and earn a title shot against Jacob Fatu is to win the Battle Riot match.
MLW has done a great job of building up the story between Alex Hammerstone and Jacob Fatu. Every time it seems Alex is getting closer to earning a title shot, another roadblock has gotten in his way. If Hammerstone were to win the Battle Riot, it would be a great payoff to over 8 months of storytelling. Additionally, it would set up a colossal title match between Alex and Jacob Fatu down the line, which would be awesome to see.
#2: Dario Cueto’s first MLW in-ring appearance
During the closing moments of MLW’s recent season finale, Dario Cueto was revealed as the mysterious El Jefe of Azteca Underground. A staple of Lucha Underground, Dario made it clear that Salina de la Renta was no longer a part of Azteca Underground. Cueto also had a phone call with an unnamed individual, stating that he would see them on July 10th for the Battle Riot event.
I have never watched Lucha Underground, so I am not familiar with Dario’s previous work. However, I have genuinely enjoyed how the Azteca Underground storyline has played out in MLW. More so, I know that Cueto has received a lot of praise from wrestling fans for his previous work. More so, that his MLW debut caused a lot of online fanfare. Although I have no clue what will happen next, I’m excited to see how the Azteca Underground saga will continue when Dario Cueto shows up at Battle Riot.
#3: The introduction of more female characters (or an actual women’s division)
With the departure of Salina de la Renta and Aria Blake currently expecting a child, Alicia Atout is the only established female character MLW has. Back in late 2019, MLW had announced plans to launch a women’s division, while also announcing Zeda Zhang as their first signee. However, since late 2019, MLW has not announced any new female talent for the promotion, nor have they discussed when the women’s division would officially begin.
As of now, MLW is the only major promotion with no women’s division. MLW made up for the lack of an established division by having strong characters such as Salina and Aria. However, with the absence of both of those women, MLW has a major flaw in their program compared to their competitors. Even if no new women debut at Battle Riot, I hope that there will be more positive news regarding female talent for the promotion.
#4: Davey Richard’s MLW debut
Throughout the summer, MLW acquired several new talents. The first superstar announced to join the MLW roster was Davey Richards. Following the announcement of his signing, MLW let fans know that Davey Richards’ first match in MLW would be at Battle Riot against TJP. The company also recently stated that Richards would be one of the 40 participanta in the Battle Riot match.
I was ecstatic to hear that Davey Richards had signed with MLW. Davey is so wickedly talented, and I’m glad that he’s coming back to professional wrestling after taking a few years off. I can only imagine the type of clinic he and TJP will put on. And I’m excited to see where his career goes from here.
#5: A conclusion to the feud between Team Filthy and the Von Erichs
The feud between Tom Lawlor and the Von Erichs began on Thanksgiving night in 2019, when Lawlor cost Ross Von Erich a shot at the MLW World Heavyweight Championship. Since that time, Lawlor and his Team Filthy teammates have been at odds with Ross and Marshall Von Erich. The two sides have constantly battled each other during the pandemic, with both sides gaining victories. Ahead of Battle Riot III, MLW announced that the next chapter in this feud would be Tom Lawlor and Kevin Ku battling the Von Erichs in a Bunkhouse Brawl.
Usually, I really enjoy long-term storytelling and feuds. In this particular instance, I believe that the feud between Team Filthy and the Von Erichs has reached a standstill. There’s been a lot of back and forth brawls and matches, but no real storyline progression. I don’t believe this feud is doing much for anyone involved anymore. I’m hoping the Bunkhouse Brawl will serve as a way to end the feud between these two factions so that everyone can move on to different programs going forward.
Are you going to be watching Battle Riot III? What do you think will happen at the event?