Dr. Wagner Jr. vs. Mistico (CMLL - 7/27/2007)

Due to stricter adherence to weight classes in Mexico and luchadores being on the smaller side in general, a high-profile singles match like this with a significant size disparity between the competitors in a Mexican promotion really stands out. Wagner here looks like the coolest and most badass wrestler on Earth. He gives a cameraman a too sweet on the way to the ring, beats Mistico from pillar to post, and terrorizes a group of female Mistico fans in the front row. Much of his offensive repertoire is standard New Japan junior offense, but it looks devastating in a lucha libre context, even more so due to Mistico’s strong selling and bumping. There’s a pose-off at the beginning of the third fall that nearly killed the match for me, but they got back to business shortly afterward. One important detail is that for most of the match’s pin attempts, the wrestler being pinned makes a continuous effort to kick out the entire time. That makes the pins where the wrestler lies motionless before kicking out at the last second even more impactful. That sort of progression in nearfalls is sorely missed in modern wrestling. Wagner powerbombing Mistico on the floor in front of his female fans at the end was both amusing and shockingly brutal. It wasn’t a Hansen-style release powerbomb, either. It was a full-on Vader/Cactus Jack powerbomb, the kind that usually results in a stretcher job. It was actually believable that the referee and ringside doctor would be so concerned with checking on Mistico that they wouldn’t notice the Ultimo Guerrero run-in.