La Fiera

[Grimmas]

Discuss here.

[Jetlag]

Fiera is not to be underestimated. The singles matches with Babe Face and Estrada are gritty masterpieces and really showcase that nasty gut wrenching feeling you only get in these old lucha brawls. The rest of his work sees him living up to his reputation as one of the best workers around - just a blindingly spectacular wrestler who'd bump like a madman. Throw him in there with a young Misawa, with a dozen other guys in that Cibernetico, or pretty much any other random matchup, and he'd steal the show.

[ohtani's jacket]

He was washed up pretty fast. He seemed to age quicker than any worker I can remember. There's some decent old man Fiera stuff where he's not really that old, he just looks it. Wouldn't consider him myself. Emilio Charles Jr is my cut off for luchadores I've decided, and Emilio > Fiera.

[Gregor]

The Fiera/Tiger Mask match is pretty well known here, and he also has a pretty good match against Ultimo Dragon in WAR on 7/15/92. He really brought out the big offense in the second half of that one.

 

I'm a big fan of his rudo greaser run in the early '90s. He has a title match against Atlantis and a hair match against Dandy in 1992, but my favorite thing from that period might be a trios match from the buildup with Dandy: Fiera, Satanico, and Emilio Charles vs. Dandy, Pierroth, and Atlantis. For some reason Fiera brought out a side of Dandy that guys like Satanico, Charles, and Negro Casas never did.

[Big Rob]

I've just watched the hairs match with him and Dandy that's on Youtube, and he's great in it. Dandy's obviously a fantastic worker as well and brings it to the match, but I've not seen much of Fiera before and really dug what he did. The cut-offs and hope spots they worked in were great, and the finish was really clever. I'll definitely check out more of his work as he's instantly piqued my interest with that one match.

[ohtani's jacket]

Man, the Fiera/Dandy feud is sky rocketing in my estimation and I haven't even rewatched the hair match yet -- http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/blog/8/entry-435-the-fiera-vs-dandy-feud-1/

[ohtani's jacket]

The great under appreciated feud continues -- http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/blog/8/entry-436-the-fiera-vs-dandy-feud-2/

[ohtani's jacket]

The patchy hair match -- http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/blog/8/entry-437-the-fiera-vs-dandy-feud-3-the-finale/

[Jetlag]

Fiera vs. Negro Casas

 

Lucha meets WAR. This was about as stiff as any mexican match I can remember. Both guys were trading kicks square in the face and it was great. Casas' selling was pretty spectacular but I especially loved Fiera finding different ways to crack Casas' skull with nasty spin kicks. Watching his performance here reminded me a lot of an elbow-less Misawa. Both guys faceplant horrifically on missed dives. Nothing like a super simple, gritty lucha brawl.

[ohtani's jacket]

That match was incredible on write-up. I think it might be a top 10 lucha match of the 90s. Definitely one of Casas' best. How did that slip through the cracks all these years? I haven't checked whether it's on Lynch's list since that dataintcash guy has slightly mysterious sources, but honestly that's an all-time great match.

[soup23]

What's the date on that match?

[ohtani's jacket]

10/1/93

[alexoblivion]

Would like to take a closer look at La Fiera, as from what I’ve watched these last few days, he seems consistent. Was ordering random CMLL shows from the 90’s to get a better look at Cota, but should probably switch to Fiera, as even in pedestrian trios, his effort stands out. Was really impressed with his performance in the Chicana hair match from 93, and even more so in his hair match with Kahoz from 96. Works from underneath in both, and his selling in those matches is phenomenal.

[alexoblivion]

La Fiera vs. Kahoz (7/9/96) I enjoyed this for Fiera’s selling, which was excessive, but I thought he pulled it off. His blade job was a tad gruesome, but because I’m a terrible person I appreciated it. Kahoz doesn’t have the same willingness as Fiera to destroy his body at this point in his career for posterity, so he doesn’t offer too much other than being smart enough to keep to the structure, which was pretty simple. Simple enough that I could understand criticizing it for lack of creativity, but I found it to be satisfying.

[goodhelmet]

Anyone willing to make a strong case for La Fiera?

[Matt D]

Does the Fiera vs Silver King hair match exist? Has anyone seen it.

[alexoblivion]

I've seen their Mano a Mano, but can't seem to find their hair match.The trios tournament from the same date is out there so maybe the hair match is out there somewhere.

[BillThompson]

I've seen their Mano a Mano, but can't seem to find their hair match.The trios tournament from the same date is out there so maybe the hair match is out there somewhere.

 

Hey Alex, could you check your PM's, thanks.

[cad]

Does anyone know where he was in 1989-90?

[pantherwagner]

I think that he was nursing injuries for a couple of years in the late 80s (knee, I believe). The official version is that he was on a "sabbatical".

 

The joke when Fiera, Mocho Cota or Sangre Chicana were absent is that they most likely were in jail... and most of the time you would have been right.

[KB8]

I've watched too much awesome Fiera stuff lately not to rank him. I was on the fence with him, wondering if maybe there wasn't enough footage to justify his inclusion, but I don't think there's any less Fiera footage floating around than there is Sangre Chicana footage, and there's not a chance in hell I won't vote for Chicana.

 

I still haven't seen a couple of his matches that made the 80s lucha set (because I'm a shithead and never finished it), but he was great in everything I did watch. Often right on the level of guys like Chicana and Satanico in those brawls, punching folk with his spiked glove and drinking their blood, recklessly flinging himself into the second row or almost killing himself with ridiculous dives nobody else would try, etc.

 

Then there's his run in 1992 that's pretty fucking awesome. It's been a few years since I watched the Atlantis title match, but he went from teaming with Bestia Saljave as part of the Bestia/Huracan Sevilla feud early in the year, to his own feud with Dandy towards the end of the year. Sevilla seemed to bring a bunch of scrubs with him to those trios matches so any I've watched have basically been rudo gang maulings, and Fiera has always been the best or second best guy in that setting. Hijo del Solitario must've hated his life around then because Fiera abused him any time they were within forty feet of each other. During one of the January trios Fiera picks him up and basically slams him forehead-first across the ring apron board. Then there's the Dandy feud. He's a total wrecking ball in that feud. I haven't seen the hair match yet, but the trios leading up to it have been full of awesome rudo thuggery. It actually feels like the tecnicos are being bullied a bit TOO much at points, but when Fiera is wreaking havoc left, right and centre it's kind of hard to complain (and it's hard for the tecnicos to make their big comeback when Fiera is getting matches thrown out for kicking people in the balls out of sheer belligerence). There's one match that's a little disappointing relative to the other trios, from November 6th, but it starts out with Fiera instigating a near-riot and trying to hang Dandy over the ropes with his chain. He teams with Casas and El Supremo in October, but it's him that manages to project this aura of unquestioned leader of his team, which is saying something considering Casas will sometimes end up being the centre of attention just by virtue of his ridiculous charisma. I'm lowering my expectations a bit for the hair match, but the build up has been great and Fiera has been inspired every time out.

 

And all of that says nothing about random other smatterings like the Tiger Mask II match in All Japan, his matches in WAR, the Jerry Estrada massacre in Monterrey, other random trios where he's second or third string but still acts like a vicious scumbag, etc.

 

I'll watch the '94 Casas match and any lead-in trios that might (hopefully) be out there as well, but right now it's definitely a question of how high he lands rather than if he lands at all.

[ohtani's jacket]

Have you seen the Christmas trios where he pisses off Porky? That's some fun interaction.

[KB8]

I haven't, no. Is that one from '92 as well? I'm watching just about anything involving him that sounds interesting to me right now, and that definitely sounds interesting.

[ohtani's jacket]

Yeah, I think it's on dataintcash's channel.

[KB8]

That channel is a goddamn goldmine. I'll definitely check that out.