Welcome back to MLW and to another manic episode from Cesar Duran’s little world. it was finally payback time for the Von Erichs as Ross and Marshall were finally getting 5150 in a match. Even better, it was a bunkhouse brawl, so the gloves could come off and the pair could administer some Texas Justice to the men who threw their family’s title in a river. Alongside that, the Tag Titles were on the line as Hustle and Power defended against Alex Kane’s Bomaye Fight Club, and in a match, no one was expecting, nZo was in action against ACH. Plus, we have all the usual comings and goings to look forward to, especially after Hammerstone clocked El Jefe last week. Vengeance was on the menu so let’s order up and get into the action.

nZo Open Challenge: nZo defeated ACH via Rope-Hanging Done-zo

Things opened with a nZo Open Challenge. The Real1 was offering out opportunities to anyone man enough to take them. Budd Heavy initially came out but nZo had him out in seconds by smashing his head into the ring-post and demanded a real challenge. Seriously… what has everyone got against Budd? ACH took up the mantle and we got into an actual match. nZo wanted a challenge, he was looking at one of the final bosses of the company right now. This looked like it was going to be an easy day at the office for ACH. After an initial power struggle, ACH was all over nZo with dropkicks and dives, owning the Real1 inside and outside the ring. As expected, nZo resorted to the move that had made him infamous and hit the Razor’s Edge to the ring post after letting ACH think on it with a guardrail nutcracker. ACH beat the count-out and continued to fight, even dropkicking nZo out of the air at one point but couldn’t quite find the three-count. He signalled for the end and climbed to the top but nZo punted the ref his way and he was crotched for the second time in the match. nZo wasted no time and hit Done-zo on his hung-up foe to take the win. Somehow, despite the names he’s faced, nZo remains undefeated in the company and was far from being quiet about it. ACH had had his number for most of this one but some weasel tactics got him the win. KC Navarro tried to come out and take a piece but security wouldn’t unleash him. That was a shame, most of the crowd would have loved to see Navarro take nZo’s head off.

MLW Tag Team Titles: Hustle & Power (Calvin Tankman & EJ Nduka) defeated Bomaye Fight Club (Alex Kane & Mr Thomas) via Powerslam and Hustle Splash on Thomas

It was title time as the Bomaye Fight Club looked to add more gold to their waists. Alex Kane already holds the National Openweight Title and now he and Mr Thomas looked to steal away the MLW Tag Titles from Hustle and Power. Kane has lived to ruin Calvin Tankman’s life since he turned down an invitation to the Bomaye and now looked to do the same to Nduka after spurning him the same way. Nduka was in front of his crowd, no way he was going to let Bomaye beat him. Hustle & Power started strong by crushing Kane then we got to see just what Mr Thomas was capable of as he squared up to the Judge. Nduka was brought down by a spray to his eyes and the Bomaye Fight Club picked him apart. They weren’t shy about their advantage either, mocking their blinded foe. Tankman also got the two-on-one treatment as we saw the full might of Thomas. Tankman tried to hold the fort as Nduka fixed his vision but Kane and Thomas were all over him. Despite all this, Tankman powered through and hammered the Fight Club down to bring Nduka back in. The giants battled it out, with Nduka hitting the Verdict on Thomas before the pair ended him with their Powerslam and Splash combo. The champs had retained and seemed stronger than ever, despite the goading of the Bomaye Fight Club. It had made for a nice stretch of traditional tag action full of monster power and striking. Tankman and Nduka remain the peak of the tag division mountain right now.

Between the matches:

• 5150 had another video package to unleash before their main event brawl. They talked about the cars they love and how scared the Von Erichs were of them. They were ready to beat that Von Erich ass in front of their home crowd.
• The first Battle Riot IV Control Centre played out as the match rules were recapped and we got some of the names announced for the match. Lince Dorado, Marshall Von Erich, Alex Kane, Calvin Tankman, and Killer Kross were the first entrants announced for the Riot.

Who will riot in NYC? It's time to find out which competitors will enter this years Battle Riot with the Battle Riot control center.https://t.co/BTyTHwZppn pic.twitter.com/f6Jvpdd4w5

— Major League Wrestling (@MLW) May 20, 2022

• Cesar Duran was nursing the wound he’d gotten from Hammerstone clocking him in the face. He wasn’t going to fire the champ. Instead, he was going to handle business himself. If Hammerstone wanted to lay hands on El Jefe, he could do it in the ring, in a fight. Somehow, I think there’s more to this. Duran is too smart to think he could take Hammerstone in a fight.

Bunkhouse Brawl: The Von Erichs (Ross & Marshall Von Erich) defeated 5150 (Danny “Rivera” Limelight & Hernandez w/Dr. Julius Smokes) via Iron Eagle on Hernandez

Here we go. It was main event time and we were ready for a bunkhouse brawl. The stage was set and there was a whole load of weapons ready to be used on both feuding teams. It would be Rivera and Hernandez representing 5150 with Smokes in their corner. Rivera had run down the crowd pre-match ensuring the group had no friends in this one. Unsurprisingly, the second the Von Erichs hit the ring, hands were thrown and they unloaded on Rivera and Hernandez with some of their greatest hits. It didn’t last and before long Marshall was being choked out by Julius Smokes with a Bull Rope and Ross was being crushed under the numbers. There was action spilling out everywhere as Hernandez had fun at Ross’s expense and Marshall tried to murder Rivera before getting put through a ring board. It wasn’t getting any nicer in the ring, as Ross ate a rake to the balls and continued to get worked over by this well-oiled street sweeper of a machine. Rivera and Hernandez were just murdering him and there seemed to be very little he could do about it. Marshall looked like he was spurring on a comeback by throwing Rivera onto hay bales but the Radioactive Papi was right back up and booting him in the face. 5150 looked to end things for Ross by setting up some kind of Doomsday Device but Marshall rose from the dead to crack Rivera in the head with some of that ring board.

That lit a fire under the Von Erichs who started throwing out bombs and bringing the pain to 5150. Even Smokes got smashed as the pair hunted for more plunder. They got too carried away though as Ross tried to put Hernandez through a table and crashed into the wood himself. Hernandez set up another murder device in the corner, spray painting the group’s namesake onto it, oblivious to the fact that Marshall was stirring and beating up Rivera. Marshall bulldozed into the match, saving Ross from a face tear and throwing Rivera through a board with a DVD. Ross returned the favour and saved Marshall from the Border Toss by breaking a shovel over the monster and the pair ended the match with the Iron Eagle Claw-Plex. It had been a hard-fought scrap with multiple boards, tables and bodies left broken but the Von Erichs had gotten their vengeance. 5150 had fallen to Texas might but they’d certainly left their mark on the Von Erichs. It was a big moment for the Von Erichs and an excellent way to end the show. Nothing beats a cathartic plunder fest.

All images courtesy of MLW, video courtesy of MLW YouTube