CMLL Juicio Final 2011 - Averno vs. La Mascara Review

After a long week of college courses I was certainly jovial when I arrived home and saw that the CMLL Juicio Final DVD had arrived in my mailbox. For those who are unaware, the 2011 CMLL Juicio Final took place on 6/17/11 and hosted a huge main event that featured a mask vs. mask match between La Mascara and the greatest rudo in lucha libre today, Averno.

-Averno vs. La Mascara – Mask vs. Mask – CMLL Juicio Final 2011 (6/17/11)

The 15,000 or so fans packed into Arena Mexico go crazy as Mascara and Averno make their big entrances. Mascara meets Averno at the bottom ramp and they start going at it. Mascara gives him a hurracarana into the ring, a flying armdrag to the outside, and then goes for a big dive, but Averno pulls two cooking sheets out of thin air and slams them into his head. Averno, being the awesome rudo that he is, punctuates this by posing around ringside for a few seconds making sure to take his time. Back in the ring, and Averno crotches him backwards on the top and starts tearing off his mask, punches him a few times and then hits the Devil’s Wings for the first fall. Averno shows a ton of personality in this match, but after seeing him without a mask for a couple months I think it can be safely said that he is a much better rudo without his mask, especially with the awesome hairstyle he’s sporting these days.

Second fall begins and Mascara’s mask is showing a lot of damage already and his slightly exposed. Averno pulls him to the apron and drives his head into the ring post, taking his time afterwards to pose for the crowd and ham it up. Mascara’s father, his second, gets in the referee’s face over Averno’s rudisimo actions and Mephisto, Averno’s second, comes over and gets in his face, while the camera shows a close up of the blood leaking through Mascara’s mask from getting his head rammed directly into the ring post. Mascara stumbles around selling the blood, climbs to the apron, and is grabbed by Averno. Averno goes to ram his head into the post again but Mascara blocks it, kicks him in the face with the move Mistico always does, hits a leaping tornado DDT off the top and follows it up with an awesome tope on Averno, who is standing with his back turned and hilariously covering his head like someone at a baseball game who knows a foul ball is coming towards them but doesn’t know where it is. They get back in the ring and Averno gets rolled up by Mascara to end the second fall as the fans loudly chant Mascara’s name.

Shocker is shown in the crowd in a full suit, pumping his fist and cheering on the tecnico. On the other side of the ring, Mephisto comforts Averno and lets him know that everything will be just fine. Third fall starts and Averno smacks the crap out of Mascara’s chest and they whip each other around until Mascara hits a big armdrag and tears half of Averno’s mask off as Averno looks shocked and angry. Kick to the head by Mascara followed by a diving hurracarana from the top and a tope con giro to the outside on Averno, and the crowd, that is very heated right by this point, loudly chants Mascara’s name again. This may mark the first time that I’ve seen Mascara in a match and really felt that he came across as a big star. I may have been taking his work for granted before this point, but you can really tell in this match that the crowd loves him and he knows exactly how to put them in the palm of his hand. A series of roll-ups by Mascara but he repeatedly only gets 2 out of the 3 before Averno dramatically kicks out each time. Averno starts to manage to get some of his fans to cheer for him now and hits a tilt a whirl facebuster on Mascara for the two. They fight out onto the apron and Mascara superkicks Averno off to the ground. Mascara goes for a running hurracarana off the apron but Averno holds on and powerbombs him hard into the ring post and Mascara crumples into a heap. Trying to top Mascara’s dive, Averno climbs into the ring and hits a beautiful tope con giro of his own and both men are down. They come to their feet in the ring and Mascara goes for another diving hurracarana but gets powerbombed again and folded up for only a two count. Averno pumphandle slams Mascara for another two count and the crowd is loudly chanting Mascara’s name again, begging him to recuperate. Averno, feeling cocky, signifies the end with a throat slash, and goes for the second Devil’s Wings of the match. Mascara, having already fallen to this move once, struggles his way out, drops Averno and sets up for La Campana but Averno struggles his way to the ropes before Mascara can lock it in, teasing a finish and making the crowd even hotter. Mascara sets up for a dive, Averno moves, Mascara baseball slides out and then comes off the apron with a hurracarana onto Averno who takes a big bump on the outside. In the ring again, and Mascara rolls up Averno for a very close 2.9 count and each guy works on the crowd for support as they stir to their feet. Averno rolls Mascara into a schoolboy and gets a 2.9 of his own as the crowd continues to scream Mascara’s name. They work their way to the top rope and Averno hits a huge Devil’s Wings off the top rope but only gets a two count to the crowd’s approval. Averno hits his first headscissors of the match on Mascara, sending him spilling to the outside, and hits a perfect quebrada to the outside, as the rudo fans begin to get loud for him. Averno goes to suplex Mascara from the apron into the ring but Mascara reverses it and hits a Devil’s Wings (or would it be Angel’s Wings in that case?) on Averno and covers him for a two count. Averno runs at Mascara in the corner, misses, and Mascara kicks him in the head to send him over the top to the floor. Mascara takes advantage, climbs up top, and hits an enormous plancha dive on Averno with perfect form. Averno is up first and locks Mascara in a cavernaria inside the ring and rips at his mask and Mascara flails in pain. Averno finally lets go, and at this point the crowd is starting to really boil over as both men fight to their feet. Mascara goes for a hurricarana but gets powerbombed straight down and Averno pins him with his legs on the ropes for leverage but only gets a two count again. Averno slowly goes up top and goes for a swanton but Mascara rolls out of the way and Averno goes splat. Mascara grabs Averno, bodyslams him down, and goes up top for a swanton of his own that misses again. Averno twists Mascara’s leg and puts him in a casita for a two count. Averno tries to roll Mascara up but Mascara rolls through and starts to set up La Campana which Averno quickly runs away from. Averno goes for another rollup and gets another two count and both men are exhausted in the ring. Slowly up again, and Mascara goes for the diving rollup this time but Averno blocks it for a Campana of his own, but Mascara finds the ropes at the last second when it looks like it’s all but over. They trade a series of rollups and Mascara barely gets his foot on the ropes for the two. Averno misses a clothesline and Mascara turns it into a Devil’s Wings in the center of the ring, followed up by another even bigger Devil’s Wings, and then locks him in La Campana, and Averno submits to lose his mask as the crowd goes insane for their hero La Mascara.

Post match, Super Porky, Maximo, and others come down to the ring to congratulate Mascara as pyro goes off. Mephisto embraces the downed Averno in the ring, and possibly informs him not to worry because he will be a better rudo without his mask anyways. Mascara poses with a kid who I might guess is his son. Averno tells Mascara on the microphone that he lost his mask because on this night Mascara was better than him, and raises Mascara's hand. Averno embraces Mephisto and Ephesto one more time before the two of them remove his mask for him and Averno hands his mask to Mascara as confetti falls in the ring.

This was a really great match, I’m going to have to watch Guerrero Maya vs. Virus from June again and compare it to this but I think I like this better given how much the crowd was into it and how well these two pulled everything off. Mascara shined as bright as a star could here and Averno, who was equal here in his star power, played the perfect rudo to complement him. I would suggest anyone go out of their way to see this match if you are a fan of lucha libre.