This previous June 24, the World Wrestling Council from Puerto Rico celebrated its fiftieth anniversary. You may comprehend it as Carlos Colon and Victor Jovica’s promotion in Puerto Rico. As a wrestling fan, you in all probability have skilled movies of very violent matches between Carlos Colón, Abdullah the Butcher, Chiky Starr, and Invader #1. It was a vital territory prior to now. Consider any wrestler from the NWA and the territory period who in all probability had a run in Puerto Rico. It’s been 50 years now, and occasions have certainly modified.

The times of very violent matches and packed arenas have been over for some time. Native wrestling in Puerto Rico has not been important in years. After the Bruiser Brody incident, the territory died. There was a small growth within the early 2000s due to the IWA PR and WWC conflict, but it surely died once more. Professional wrestling in Puerto Rico has been limping alongside, with small promotions coming and going shortly, so it’s much more spectacular that WWC has been alive this lengthy. WWC has been alive so lengthy that it has one of many longest-running packages in Puerto Rican tv historical past, “Las Superestrellas de la Lucha Libre,” which runs each Saturday and Sunday.

Whereas I respect the corporate’s existence, and the fiftieth anniversary is certainly an achievement, their celebration was one of many worst exhibits I’ve seen in years, and I used to be there dwell. I can’t even think about my response watching it on TV, the place it was broadcast via FITE TV. I don’t know who would watch this on TV and go, “I would really like extra Puerto Rican wrestling in my life.” It was a present filled with the identical match construction, cameos that no person beneath 30 would know, unhealthy matches, a star predominant occasion that left lots to be desired, and Carlito having a efficiency that I questioned why he even bothered to indicate up. That is the template on how to not run a giant present.

The present began with an unaired pre-show that pumped individuals up. The preshow began round 5:15 pm and ended at round 6:30 pm. Then the followers, who have been prepared for the motion, needed to wait till 8 pm for the official present to start out. This was mind-blowing to me, particularly because it was a pre-show that I noticed introduced the identical day of the present, except it was introduced on TV the day earlier than. I don’t watch the weekly present, however social media was not present with the beginning time. Nonetheless, even when I simply didn’t see it, why would you activate the group after which make it look ahead to an hour and a half? Why not transfer the preshow to no less than finish 20 minutes earlier than the official present?

The status of Puerto Rican followers is that they love their violence and motion. So, after all, this present began its broadcast with a 20-minute promo as a substitute of a match. It was a gap phase that, except you have been over 35 years outdated, you in all probability wouldn’t know what was occurring.

It began with the particular visitor, a comedy character named Vitin, performed by legendary Puerto Rican comic Sunshine Logroño. Vitin was one of the vital well-known characters that he performed within the 90s and 2000s. The idea of the character is that he’s a really closeted homosexual man that runs a fitness center, and he at all times had well-known males and athletes go to it, and hilariousness and double entendres ensued. They really ran professional wrestling angles on this comedic phase.

Right here is an instance of it.:

That is the half the place I let you know that the character and phase has not been on TV simply since 2009. So to start out the anniversary, we received a lame duck phase as a substitute of a match to advertise Ray Gonzalez vs. Eddie Colón (Primo in WWE) later within the night time.

After the endless phase was lastly over, the bell rang.

I received’t even hassle going match by match since, other than the primary two matches, all the matches adopted the identical format: shine from the infant, heel cheats, distraction, ref bump, weapon, and end. Once I go to a neighborhood Puerto Rican present, I’m not anticipating NJPW. I do know what I’m getting. However I don’t know who’s agenting these matches as a result of they have been precisely the identical. Essentially the most harmful job in professional wrestling is being a referee within the WWC since each referee was knocked out. Even the visitor referees. All I ask is for there to be selection in my professional wrestling. I don’t assume that’s an excessive amount of to ask. You possibly can have a face vs. face match, possibly one match has a distraction and one other has weapons, but it surely was the identical precise construction the entire rattling time. Additionally, not one of the matches lasted greater than 10 minutes. They have been so samey that they even shared the quick match time.

The highest matches have been simply unhealthy.

Eddie Colón (Primo in WWE) wrestled “Mr. Rayting” Ray Gonzalez to find out the Director of Operations of WWC, in the event you care about that shit. This was a match the place Eddie needed to decelerate since Gonzalez just isn’t at his prime anymore, and so they wrestled a sub-10-minute match the place they bought like they have been Kenny Omega and Will Ospreay on the 30-minute mark of their Forbidden Door match. This match had El Profe as a particular visitor referee and Hugo Savinovich because the enforcer exterior. Since El Profe was doing sluggish counts for Gonzalez and quick counts for Eddie, Hugo intervened and beat up El Profe for the largest pop of the night time. Gonzalez pinned Eddie, Hugo counted, after which El Profe challenged Hugo Savinovich to a match subsequent month in Puerto Rico. Hugo accepted. It received’t be broadcasted dwell, and after this overview, I don’t assume I’ll be invited to a WWC present, so I suppose you received’t know who received that match till it airs on a Saturday or Sunday; in the event you care about it.

Carlito wrestled WWC Common Champion Intelecto Cinco Estrellas in an terrible quick match. Carlito wrestled like a person that clearly is going to the greener pastures of WWE, so he barely did something. He was wrestling like he didn’t need any kind of accident stopping his return. The one purpose he’s in all probability going again to WWE is due to the response of Puerto Rican followers at Backlash, so I couldn’t fathom that as a substitute of getting an excellent match, he simply determined to be as lazy as attainable for his final native match shortly. I feel he barely sweated. The champion pinned him, and the followers chanted “Claje de mierda” (Piece of shit) on the match after the bell rang. Carlito saluted the followers, and so they applauded. Good luck in WWE, Carlito, if the rumors are true.

Then we had the primary occasion: Chiky Starr vs. Gallo the Producer. It will want some rationalization.

Chiky Starr is a legend in Puerto Rico. He was good within the ring, and he has the reward of gab. He’s one of the best talker in Puerto Rican professional wrestling historical past, his promos are very well-known and entertaining as hell. Chiky Starr was HATED by everybody, a lot that within the 80s, he wanted a police escort to depart the buildings. He’s so well-known that he turned a part of the Puerto Rican slang. There’s a phrase that goes “No bregues Chiky Starr” (Don’t be such a Chiky Starr), which implies “Don’t be an asshole.” He was such a well-known asshole that his title turned the verb for asshole. Clearly, time heals all wounds, and everybody loves the asshole now.

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Gallo the Producer is an influencer. Supposedly he produces music, Google says he does, however I can’t level to a single music of his or an artist produced by him. All he’s actually recognized for is for getting individuals mad on-line by speaking shit about different influencers and boxers. Gallo turned a web based sensation by being annoying as fuck, being on podcasts that wished the clout of the loopy man, and finally turned a star boxer. WWC employed this man with the persona of a moist towel to wrestle one of the vital beloved legends and transfer some tickets and PPV numbers. The issue? Gallo the Producer was like a deer in headlights within the ring and Chiky is 65 years outdated.

What adopted was an abomination of a match. Usually if you do a star match, you place the superstar with a younger and secure skilled and put up numerous smoke and mirrors. Effectively, they determined that the one smoke and mirrors wanted was a ref bump, a distraction, and a weapon (like all of the matches). There weren’t any enjoyable run-ins, or enjoyable spots, only a slow-ass match with a 65-year-old man attempting to energy via along with his charisma with the superstar confused as shit within the ring. Chiky Starr hit him along with his bat to mercifully finish this in, once more, lower than 10 minutes. No less than the quick match time was warranted.

I’ll discuss constructive stuff.

The tag crew known as Thunder and Lighting, two masked males who’ve been going for years, had their final match at this present and unmasked to say goodbye to the followers in an emotional second. The Dominican wrestler El Bronco is so enjoyable and charismatic that you would be able to’t assist however love him.

However nonetheless, between the terrible prime matches, the remainder being the identical construction aside from the primary match, a protracted Uncooked-like phase to start out the present with an outdated comedy character, lazy Carlito, a foul weapons battle royale that individuals barely paid consideration to, and a phase the place two males dressed as Carlos Colón and Abdullah the Butcher imitated considered one of their well-known matches (actually, this occurred), this present was simply unhealthy. The oldest firm wager its 50 anniversary on a star and outdated faces, and nostalgia was not sufficient to make this present entertaining.

I applaud WWC for surviving. They’ve been not solely via financial downturns and low attendance, but additionally they’re primarily based on an island that has been in a large recession since in all probability 2006, had the worst hurricane in its recorded historical past in 2017, earthquakes in January 2020, and a pandemic, all occasions that might have killed off financially any wrestling firm, and right here they’re, nonetheless alive. Nonetheless doing wrestling exhibits, nonetheless on TV, the one one which has lasted. I don’t care if I’m corny right here, however this firm is as resilient because the individuals dwelling on this island.

Mates from different nations, realizing what occurs right here, alongside the weekly energy outages, ask me: “How will you preserve doing it? Dwelling there sounds onerous.” Effectively, it fucking is, belief me. I don’t understand how I do it. But I’m nonetheless right here; the persons are right here preventing day-after-day, and WWC is one way or the other nonetheless right here. An terrible present can’t take that away from them.