Dr. Cerebro vs. El Hijo del Diablo
January 31, 2010
IWRG
IWRG Intercontinental Lightweight
*** 3/4
One of those matches where there is not any one thing all that extraordinary about it but where there are a lot of things that are done very well. It is a tremendously full match that manages to cover a lot of ground and equally as important, covers that ground in effective and interesting ways.
The match is for Cerebro’s IWRG Intercontinental Lightweight title but there is quite a bit of heat and animosity, two things you don’t always get in title matches. The Arena Naucalpan crowd is hot for the entire match. There are some mixed reactions, but by and large the fans are behind Cerebro. Diablo is a solid heel and is able to keep the crowd against him for the most part even as he does stuff in the ring that they like. Black Terry seconds Cerebro and is awesome in that role. Initially the extent of his involvement is cheering on Cerebro and getting the fans to do the same, but he gets physically involved in the third fall when things start to get personal. Having a second that throws haymakers and tries to tackle the rudo can be overkill and distracting but they ramp up the intensity in the match to the point where it makes sense and for his part, Terry pulls it off like only he can.
The match is “full” in the sense that this isn’t just mat work or just brawling or just near falls. They move around and do a little bit of everything. The first fall is heavy on mat wrestling. Both the champion and challenger bleed. They brawl and as mentioned, the seconds brawl. There are high impact moves in the third fall and some really great dives on both ends. They earn at least one big time near fall reaction. Sometimes matches that want to be everything to everyone become messy and bloated. This match avoided that because of the way they segmented the different parts and built to them. The mat work becomes heated and it leads to the blood. The blood fuels tempers even more and it leads to brawling. Terry gets involved. The brawling gives way to the dives, high impact moves, and eventually the near falls. It is a very structured match even with so much crammed into it.
It cannot be oversold how much the general atmosphere helps this match, particularly if we are comparing it to the present day IWRG presentation. The arena is full(er), the crowd is loud, and the wrestlers are able to convey the idea that this match means something. Black Terry Jr.’s excellent ringside filming is also a plus. For whatever reasons, it does not look like this match aired on TV. IWRG and/or Teleformula opted to air two undercard matches instead on the weekly TV for whatever reason.
Ohtani’s Jacket talked this match up at the time and I think it definitely holds up, maybe even more so when directly compare a spirited match like this one with the soullessness of contemporary IWRG. As usual with most matches he is a part of, Dr. Cerebro was the standout but Hijo del Diablo (and Black Terry) were also on their games. If you are looking to purchase some “older” matches from Black Terry Jr., this is one that is definitely worth getting.
