MWF Republika featured the return of the Manila Wrestling Federation (MWF) to Makati Cinema Square Arena last June 10, 2017. The last time we saw MWF was last April for their debut show. MWF Republika was a big step for MWF in many ways.
MWF Ring Announcer Sonny Go welcomed us to the show and cut a very inspiring (and slightly long) promo. He said that the microphone he held was NOT a pipe bomb (alluding to the CM Punk pipe bomb promo of 2011), but it is a wand that can send us to Narnia, Valhalla, and any other magical place that can be a mix of magic and madness. Sonny did bring up the fact that with all the bad things happening in this world, inspiration is needed more than ever. He said that is why MWF is here, to keep the dream of pro wrestling alive.
Sonny Go introduced MWF Commissioner Mike Shannon to ringside. Commissioner Shannon thanked the crowd who helped give them a better sound system compared to the last show. He introduced us next to MWF’s resident action star, Gigz Stryker! Stryker got on the mic and introduced himself as the action hero of MWF. Gigz asked who would accept his challenge: Mr. Lucha or Robin Sane? Robin Sane was first to enter ringside and introduced himself to the audience as well.
They waited for Mr. Lucha, but instead they got Gus Queens and his protégé Rex Lawin. Gus asked why Gigz is scared of Rex Lawin and why did Gigz not give Lawin a rematch. Gigz explained to Gus and Rex that his fight with them is finished and he defeated Rex already. The duo insisted too much that Gigz had to say “Pugad Baboy Damo, tapos na!” Lawin pleaded his case to Mr. Shannon, who denied him the rematch due to what he did to Stryker last show. Gus told the commissioner that Rex Lawin had the most potential in the MWF roster and can surpass anyone.
Mr. Lucha made his long awaited appearance at ringside, but was bound and gagged. He hopped towards a nearby audience member who helped him escape his bondages and rushed to the ring to face Lawin and Queens. He said that the duo were ‘bastos’ (rude) for doing what they did to him backstage. He told the duo that they can’t accept the fact that it was Robin Sane and Mr. Lucha being challenged by Gigz Stryker instead of Rex Lawin. Mr. Lucha said that he wanted to answer Stryker’s challenge, but after what he was put through by Gus and Lawin, he would like to fight Lawin instead.
Mike Shannon finalized the big bouts for the night, booking Mr. Lucha vs Rex Lawin and Gigz Stryker vs Robin Sane.
Moises Liwanag vs Frankie Thurteen
The prophet of light, Moises Liwanag, entered ringside with Brother Jomar. Liwanag asked three men from the audience who wanted to be ‘blessed’. It’s interesting to note that 2 members look like certain wrestlers from another company. After his blessings, Frankie Thurteen showed up and said that he’ll give Moises an angel stomp so hard that the crowd will chant “alien”!
Moises Liwanag took control of the contest, using his size and strength to throw Frankie around the ring. At one point, the fight went outside of the ring and Moises caught Frankie by the legs and rammed him back first on the ring post. Both men re-entered the ring and Frankie tried to chop down the bigger man, but to no avail. Liwanag with a sign of the cross + inverted DDT took down Frankie for the 2 count. Frankie Thurteen fought back with a DDT of his own and then connected with a rolling stomp for 2. The fight went to the outside and both men fought in the crowd. Frankie connected with an enzugiri as they made their return to the ring. Frankie went upstairs to go for the Angel Bullet stomp, but he was stopped midway. Moises tried to deliver a powerbomb but Frankie locked in a submission move to stop his opponent. Frankie tried to take Moises down with some hard strikes, but every attack seemed to take no effect on the big preacher.
Moises Liwanag, taking cue from the DC Comics villain known as Bane, took Frankie Thurten high before he drove him down with a powerful backbreaker. Moises grabbed the good book and read aloud a Bible verse over the fallen Thurteen before he pinned him 1–2–3.
Aldrin Richards vs Fabio Makisig
The most agile man in the MWF today, Fabio Makisig, took on the newcomer known as Aldrin Richards. #AlDub references aside, this match showcased just how fast and fluid Fabio was in the ring as he just flipped circles on his unsuspecting opponent. Fabio played around with Richards, with some stomps and kicks mostly targeting his facial area. Richards made a brief comeback by hitting a clothesline and a shoulderblock on Fabio. Makisig dodged a corner splash from Richards and caught him with a hard kick behind the back. Fabio Makisig got the win after he leveled Richards with the Primera Klasika Sipa.
After the match, Makisig got on the mic and tried to draw the ire of the audience. Just as he was about to get more vocal, his unnamed manager cut him off and said to the MWF faithful to just remember the match and forget what Fabio said since Fabio lacked sleep for the day.
Morgan Vaughn vs Hanzello Shilva
Two of MWF’s youngest stars, Hanzello Shilva and Morgan Vaughn, put on a show for the crowd. Both men started the match with some sound chain wrestling in the middle of the ring. Morgan Vaughn caught Shilva and started to work on the latter’s arm. Morgan connected with a couple of legdrops on Shilva’s arm to add more damage. Morgan Vaughn connected with some nice “Glitch” kicks on Hanzello Shilva. Morgan Vaughn put on a Figure 8 leglock on Shilva for a good while. Shilva fought back with a leg lock of his own. Shilva grabbed Morgan Vaughn and drove him to the mat with a Sister Abigail like maneuver for a near fall. Hanzello Shilva tried to go for a Bel-Earth but Vaughn countered it with a codebreaker. Shilva grabbed the ropes to break the count. Shilva got his second win in the MWF after he finally connected with the Bel-Earth.
After the match, Shilva had a very moving promo saying that he dedicated the match to his Mother.
Mr. Lucha vs Rex Lawin
Mr. Lucha used his size advantage to take control of the early stages of the match. Rex Lawin retreated to the outside of the ring after having enough of Lucha’s offense. Lawin grabbed control of the match soon and would hit some hard kicks to his masked opponent. Rex Lawin, showcasing his Filipino Strong-Style offense, connected with some hard slaps across the chest of Mr. Lucha. Rex Lawin kept control of the match and grounded Mr. Lucha. In between, he would go outside and mouth off certain crowd members that he was annoyed with. Mr. Lucha rallied back with some offense against Rex Lawin.
Both men went down with a double clothesline and the fans continued to rally for Mr. Lucha with their “Lucha!” chants. Rex Lawin attacked Mr. Lucha on the corner and took him down with a bodyslam for 2. Rex Lawin delivered a superkick that a near fall. Mr. Lucha exploded back into the match with his discus clotheslines. Lucha followed up with a sidewalk slam on Rex Lawin. Mr. Lucha claimed the victory after a beautiful diving elbow drop from the top rope.
Ninja Ryujin vs Ashura
Ninja Ryujin took on one of the newcomers from MWF by the name of Ashura. Ashura, a mysterious red-haired female wrestler with a very interesting look, took the fight to the green ninja. Ashura got to deliver a monkey flip on the corner against the bigger opponent. Ryujin tried to keep control of the match with a sidewalk slam for a 2 count. Ashura surprised Ryujin with an impressive spinning headscisors. The end saw Ryujin connect with the Asai DDT finisher for the pinfall victory.
Robin Sane vs Gigz Stryker
The main event saw MWF’s resident Action Hero Gigz Stryker taking on the daredevil known as Robin Sane. It was an evenly contested match at the start. Robin Sane rolled Gigz for a quick pin attempt. Sane delivered a couple of slaps against Gigz before the action hero grabbed Sane and gave him a ‘spanking’. Robin Sane connected with a dropkick for a 2 count on Gigz. Robin Sane delivered a suplex/backsuplex combo on Gigz Stryker . Robin Sane sent Gigz to the corner and delivered some hard chops across the chest of his opponent. Gigz Stryker fought back and rammed Sane face-first onto the turnbuckle a few times before Sane flopped on the mat ala Ric Flair. Robin Sane delivered a vertical suplex on Stryker for 2. Stryker got back into the action after he downed Sane with a Thez Press and delivered a flurry of punches to the face.
Sane and Stryker extended their battle outside of the ring where Sane used two monoblock chairs to jump off from before attacking Gigz Stryker. Sane connected with a flying neckbreaker for 2. Gigz Stryker claimed a burst of energy and delivered an FPJ punch combo on Sane at the corner of the ring. Gigz took Sane down with an enzugiri kick and set him up for the Asintado (sharpshooter). Sane kicked out of the attempt and caught Gigz with a hurracanrana. Sane, with the bounce off the ropes, took down Gigz Stryker with a slingblade. Robin Sane grabbed Stryker’s legs and locked in a Texas Cloverleaf. Gigz Stryker used his willpower to escape the move and reverse it into his Asintado submission move. Robin Sane made his way to the ropes to break the hold. Robin Sane grabbed Stryker and planted him with a sitdown powerbomb.
Coach Gus Queens popped up ringside to “cheer” for Robin Sane. The crowd doused Queens with an “Epal” chant to show how they feel about his interference. Sane stared down Gus from the ring, but he was spun around and got hit by Stryker’s Kalibre 3:16 stunner! Gigz pinned Sane, but he broke the pin after he noticed the presence of Gus Queens. He shouted at Gus Queens and told him he won’t win this way. Robin Sane got up to a vertical base and both he and Gus had an exchange of hard strikes in the ring. Gigz Stryker once again connected with the stunner, but Gus Queens would interfere yet again. Gigz argued with Gus momentarily before he turned his sights back to Sane. Robin Sane grabbed Gigz and dropped him on the mat. Robin Sane got the victory after he hit the 450 Splash from the top rope.
After the match, Sane and Gigz shook hands in the ring as a show of sportsmanship. Gus Queens and Gigz Stryker had yet another heated confrontation at ringside where Queens dared Gigz to fight him. Stryker was the bigger man as he let the dare go and tried to go to the backstage area. Rex Lawin assaulted Gigz Stryker and sent him back to the ring. Lawin pummeled Gigz before he locked in a leg lock. Commissioner Mike Shannon got in the ring to tell Lawin that he can have his rematch with Gigz on the next MWF show in September before the Shannon told him to break it up. The MWF locker room cleared out to try and break up the fight and separate both Gigz Stryker and Rex Lawin to end the second show of MWF.
Overall, MWF Republika showed the progress of the young promotion since its first show at MCS. The matches were good, the moves were crisper, and even the sound system was better. It doesn’t entail, however, that this show was perfect. There’s still a lot of room for improvement for everyone involved be it in terms of work-rate, mic work, and character development. I’m glad to have seen them giving mic time to people, especially for Mr. Lucha, Sane, Stryker, Shilva, and even Rex Lawin. We get to see two new characters in the MWF ring in the form of Aldrin Richards and Ashura. I can’t wait to see more new wrestlers pop up for their September event.
I would like to give a shout out to the boys and girls of Manila Wrestling Federation (MWF) for putting up a good show last Saturday night. I can’t wait to go back in September for their next show.
Photos by: Martin Vicencio
MWF Republika Quick Results
+Moises Liwanag d. Frankie Thurteen via pinfall
+ Fabio Makisig d. Aldrin Richards via pinfall
+ Hanzello Shilva d. Morgan Vaughn via pinfall
+ Mr. Lucha d. Rex Lawin via pinfall
+ Ninja Ryujin d. Ashura via pinfall
+ Robin Sane d. Gigz Stryker via pinfall
