Black Tiger, Centella de Oro, Tigre Rojo vs. Karisma, Mr. Rafaga, Siki Ozama Jr., 1/5/09

What I like about the Puebla locals is how they come in all shapes and sizes. Add to that the weird assortment of gimmicks and you have the sort of charm that's been missing from CMLL since they decided to push guys with abs. I also like how they stick to the game plan, regardless of how good they are. The first caida is matwork, the second is either a rudo beatdown or a technico comeback and the third is the crowd pleaser. It's a faster paced style than classic lucha, but everyone works the mat, the finishes are intricate and they aren't chained to the dives. Centella de Oro is just about the best technico worker you'll see on a CMLL card. Not all of the locals are good and they sometimes get bogged down, but Centella de Oro always comes up trumps and worked the smoothest of exchanges with Siki Ozama Jr.

Akira & King Jaguar vs. Mr. Rafaga & Toro Bill Jr., 1/19/09

TORO BILL JR. is awesome. Remember that name, you'll be hearing a lot more about him in the future. Not only is he ridiculously good at just about every aspect of lucha libre, it's all wrapped in a Dick Togo package. And damnit if he isn't a rudo. He actually had the gumption to tear King Jaguar's mask completely, and they were about an inch away from what would've been a bladejob in days gone by. He bit Jaguar's forehead and even gnawed on Akira's fingers when he had him in a wristlock, and his headbutts to the stomach were reminiscent of how rudos used to work. His partner in this was an older rudo by the name of Mr. Rafaga, who was only semi-good, but together they put a lot of guys to shame. They did the dirty work and let the technicos get the better of them, whether it was on the mat or off the ropes. Toro Bill Jr. took a nasty bump over the turnbuckle, ate a spectacular plancha from King Jaguar, had his mask torn off, ate all of Jaguar's best shit and jobbed hard. All in a day's work.

Asturiano, Centella de Oro, Lestat vs. Policeman, Toro Bill Jr., Toro Bill Sr., 2/2/09

This was a wild match that threatened to go off the rails, but managed to stay on track because of how good the rudos were. Toro Bill Sr. was having a whale of a time. He's a fat, older rudo, who knows he's a fat, older rudo and has fun with it. I loved how he bit on the tope fake by falling ass backwards into the crowd. There was a great shot of the big man sitting on a couple of guy's laps, wiping his forehead after such a close shave. And he was pretty spry for an older guy. He bumped well, ran the ropes at a reasonable clip and used his girth like a battering ram. Policeman is a journeyman type, who I wasn't sold on until he started having the most awesome punch exchange with Centella de Oro that demanded a singles match somewhere. And Toro Bill Jr. was incredible again, especially his tope. Heads clashed, just like they're supposed to. I wasn't too high on the other technicos, but sometimes three rudos and a good technico is all you need and watching Centella de Oro fight back was fun. The finish was something only a couple of luchadores are capable of.