MLW Roundup: Tom Lawlor to speak on his treacherous actions, Salina de la Renta returns, Swamp fight!

Let’s catch up on this week’s news in MLW and preview Saturday night’s episode of Fusion.

If you missed the biggest items, read up on MLW releasing Teddy Hart and signing ACH as well as Henry T. Casey’s Opera Cup preview with Q&A from Myron Reed, Richard Holliday, and Savio Vega.

Swamp fight!

The last episode of MLW Fusion feels so long ago when it aired on Thanksgiving. For a quick recap, Tom Lawlor turned on Ross Von Erich and Alexander Hammerstone revealed his gift to the Dynasty to be an enormous man named Grogan that dwarfed both Hammer and Richard Holliday.

The Fusion preview teases that Tom Lawlor will speak about his treacherous actions toward the Von Erich family. Another talking segment is headline news as Salina de la Renta returns for an interview with Alicia Atout. She has been incommunicado since being speared through a table by LA Park at SuperFight.

The wrestling action will be anchored by Davey Boy Smith Jr. and Brian Pillman Jr. wrestling the Contra Unit as revenge for fireballing Teddy Hart in the face. The Hart Foundation fellows will also be looking for positive momentum heading into the Opera Cup. Contra will be looking for more carnage. I have no clue who will be favored to win this bout. I guess it depends on which members of Contra are chosen to participate.

The Dynasty’s new boi toy will compete in an invitational battle royal. Grogan will be joined by, “Timothy Thatcher, entrants from American Top Team, super heavyweight Barrington Hughes, Savio Vega, Injustice and countless others.” If it wasn’t for the debut of the gargantuan Grogan, I’d pick Thatcher to win.

So far, it sounds like a slamming episode. How about a swamp fight to round it out? That’s right. SWAMP FIGHT! Savio Vega and Leo Brien will clash in what I assume to be a swamp. Any other atmosphere would be false advertising. Give us what we want. SWAMP FIGHT!

MLW Fusion airs on beIN SPORTS and PlayStation Vue Saturday nights at 9 pm ET / 6 pm PT. New episodes are posted on YouTube Saturdays at 10 pm ET. Fusion is also broadcast in the UK, Ireland, Israel, and Africa.

Opera Cup

The Opera Cup event was taped Thursday, Dec. 4. I’d expect it to start airing on Fusion beginning next Saturday. There will be no spoilers in this section. Let’s look at the card as advertised.

The focal point was an eight-man tournament to win the Opera Cup prize.

The first round matches will be:

• Davey Boy Smith Jr. vs Low Ki (replacing Shinjiro Otani)
• Alexander Hammerstone vs MJF
• Timothy Thatcher vs Richard Holliday
• Brian Pillman Jr. vs TJP

Other attractions include:

• Contra Unit vs CIMA, El Lindaman, & Shigehiro Irie
• Prince of Darkness Match: Mance Warner vs Jimmy Havoc
• Tom Lawlor vs a member of the Von Erichs
• Savio Vega vs Gino Medina
• King Mo signed an open contract to compete
• The return of Konnan

The Prince of Darkness match sounds like a variation of a blindfold match, where both are “cloaked in thick black hoods.”

The Lawlor vs Von Erich bout sounds even stranger. It was set up when Lawlor turned his back on Ross Von Erich in a Heavyweight Championship bout against Jacob Fatu on the Thanksgiving episode.

You would think Lawlor’s opponent would be either Ross or Marshall. Not so fast, my friend. The press release states, “Both Ross and Marshall are baffled by the announcement claiming they haven’t been approached about such a bout.” Sounds like chicanery will be afoot.

Quick hits

Could LA Park be on the outs with MLW? He had an odd interview in Spanish claiming confusion over his current status with the company. Park said two December appearances with MLW were canceled. For what it’s worth, MLW CEO Court Bauer squashed the notion that MLW is done with Park. There should be news about this soon, most likely Park being booked for Zero Hour in Dallas on January 11.

One person who appears to be done with MLW is Chris DeJoseph. That was quick. DeJoseph was there for one month. Rumors have him going back to WWE after a nine year absence when he left in 2010. It was apparently an amicable split with MLW.

MLW hired Mark Adam Haggerty as ring announcer for the Opera Cup. He previously worked with Chikara.

Josef Samael was a guest on the, “Shooting the Ish,” podcast this week. The hour-long conversation took us behind the Contra character to the real man. Samael touched on many topics, including re-signing with MLW, Kevin Sullivan and Jake Roberts as mentors, and plenty of good stories from his lengthy career. Samael comes across as very humble. It is hard not to like him after listening to this podcast (here). If you have an hour to burn, then I recommend spending it on this interview.

Since Teddy Hart’s cats probably won’t be around the MLW Roundup anytime soon, that makes Alexander Hammerstone’s pooch top mascot for MLW. We’ll close with some pleasant photos of Hunter Boi.

Hammer also has some sweet t-shirts on Pro Wrestling Tees.

Which part of Fusion are you looking forward to most? Who’s your pick to win the Opera Cup? And please remember, no Opera Cup spoilers in the comments.