AAA Triplemanía XXXIII Results, Winners, Live Grades, Reaction and Highlights
Welcome to Bleacher Report's live coverage of AAA TripleMania 33 on August 16.
This is the first time the event has taken place following WWE's acquisition of AAA, so there was a heavy WWE presence on the show.
Here is a look at the card from Saturday's event:
- Flammer vs. Faby Apache vs. Natalya (Reina de Reinas Championship)
- El Mesias vs. El Hijo De Dr. Wagner Jr. (Latin American Championship)
- Los Garzas vs. Pagano and Psycho Clown (Tag Team Championships)
- Judgment Day vs. Mr. Iguana, Nino Hamburguesa and Lola Vice
- Vikingo vs. Dominik Mysterio vs. El Grande Americano vs. Dragon Lee (Mega Championship)
- Bardahl Cup
Let's take a look at what happened at this year's TripleMania.
Bardahl Cup
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The show opened with a special video package narrated by Rey Mysterio talking about the importance of TripleMania to AAA. Some officials from AAA and WWE were in the ring to welcome us to the show.
The show opened with the Bardahl Cup match. The current La Parka was the first entrant and he had a handful of dancers with him while wearing a flashy outfit. This was described by Corey Graves as being similar to the Royal Rumble, but there are more ways to be eliminated.
Laredo Kid was the second entrant and he almost eliminated La Parka early with a 450 splash. The match had 14 total competitors coming out at regular intervals.
This was a fun showcase of several AAA talents who haven't had much exposure to the WWE Universe. We saw several great spots and some entertaining sequences.
This match included some AAA legends, an exotico, and we even saw Microman. It had some weird moments, but overall, it was an enjoyable Battle Royal that had the crowd chanting and cheering the whole time.
The last two men in the ring were La Parka and Omos. The man in the skeleton outfit came close, but Omos eliminated him to win the Copa Bardahl.
Result: Omos won
Grade: B-
Notable Moments and Observations
- The opening video was clearly done by WWE's production staff. It had the same tempo as a WWE video package.
- The ring, commentary tables and barricades were all
- Joaquin Wilde is one of the few WWE stars to have appeared at TripleMania before.
- Some of the combinations we saw were a bit too contrived. It something takes too long to set up, it reduces the payoff.
- Konnan, JBL and Graves was a weird trio to put on commentary.
- They used the version of Otis's theme song with Chad Gable saying "Shush."
- Omos kicking Microman got the most heat.
Hijo Del Dr. Wagner Jr. vs. El Mesias
2 of 7The AAA Latin-American Championship was on the line when Wagner challenged Mesias for the belt in the second match of the night.
Dr. Wagner Sr. was at ringside to watch the action. His son took control right out of the gate and sent Mesias out of the ring.
After the champion gained the upper hand, he threatened to rip the mask off Wagner right in front of his father. Wagner Sr. looked upset but didn't get involved.
This match had some good moments, but it lacked the kind of excitement that a match on the biggest AAA event of the year should have. It had a story, but it didn't have the kind of flow you want in a title bout.
Wagner Jr. scored the win with the Wagner Driver after his dad took care of the manager of Mesias at ringside. The father and son celebrated the title win together.
Result: Wagner defeated Mesias
Grade: C
Notable Moments and Observations
Judgment Day vs. Lola Vice, Mr. Iguana and Hamburguesa
3 of 7Vice teamed up with AAA's Hamburguesa and Mr. Iguana to take on Finn Balor, JD McDonagh and Raquel Rodriguez in a trios bout.
This felt like a pretty random match to throw on a card that is supposed to be the most important event of the year. It seemed more like an excuse to get some WWE stars on the show than anything else.
Rodriguez and Vice started the match for their teams, but it didn't take long for tags to start happening. McDonagh and Balor had a lot of trouble dealing with Hamburguesa.
This was a bout booked to produce some comedy spots and feature a few popular stars. There was no real feud or story here, but the crowd seemed to be having fun.
Balor brought out a Demon puppet to battle La Yesca. It had plenty of funny moments, but as a match, it was largely forgettable. Rodriguez got the win for her team by pinning Vice.
Result: Judgment Day defeated Vice, Iguana and Hamburguesa
Grade: C+
Notable Moments and Observations
- Vice coordinated her gear with Mr. Iguana.
- It's always a little weird when WWE mentions The Bullet Club.
- The way Vice countered Rodriguez into an armbar was cool.
Los Garzas vs. Pagano and Psycho Clown
4 of 7A Street Fight for the AAA tag titles took place when Pagano and Psycho Clown challenged Angel and Berto for the belts.
It didn't take long for all four men to utilize weapons. Trash cans and kendo sticks were brought into the ring before we had even reached two minutes, and that included a kendo stick covered in barbed wire.
Angel and Berto won the exchange and unloaded on their opponents before going back under the ring to grab some tables. Thankfully, these did not have the Slim Jim logo all over them.
This was not a match full of technical prowess or smooth wrestling. This was all about mayhem, and all four men made sure to bring everything they had. Nobody left this match without at least one bruise following a big bump.
This was a top-notch performance from everyone involved and it elevated the PPV in a big way. Up until this point, the show had been a bit lackluster. This bout upped the level of excitement.
Psycho Clown was able to pin Berto with a Spanish Fly to claim victory and the tag titles for himself and Pagano. They were joined by the other clowns in AAA to celebrate.
Result: Psycho Clown and Pagano defeated Los Garzas
Grade: B+
Notable Moments and Observations
- The entrances outfits Los Garzas had on were awesome.
- Pagano and Psycho Clown could be a solid tag team in WWE if the company wants them. They have unique looks and can wrestle well.
- Pagano's moonsault with the chair almost ended in disaster because he let go of the chair halfway through it. Had it landed differently, he could have landed on it in a very bad way.
Flammer vs. Faby Apache vs. Natalya
5 of 7The Reina de Reinas Championship was up for grabs when Flammer defended the belt against Faby Apache and Natalya in a triple threat match.
Nattie was knocked out of the ring early to Flammer and Faby could have an exchange, but she wasn't out for long.
All three of these women have some power, so this was a pretty physical match from start to finish. They were slamming and throwing each other all around the ring.
The first half of this match, it felt like Natalya was barely involved. She was thrown out of the ring a couple of times, so Flammer and Apache were doing most of the work.
The Queen of Harts got more involved as the match progressed. The crowd was very loud during this match but it was hard to tell what they were chanting for sometimes.
This was a solid performance that helped give Flammer and Faby more exposure. In the end, Flammer retained her title.
Result: Flammer defeated Apache and Natalya
Grade: B-
Notable Moments and Observations
- Rey Mysterio came out and gave a promo before the match started. He inducted Konnan into the AAA Hall of Fame.
- A video was played that showed highlights from Konnan's career. It seems like WWE wants him to be the face of AAA.
- Konnan told a fan who was heckling him to go have sexual relations with his own mother, but he said it in a more insulting way.
- Natalya was wearing different gear and looked more like how she has been presented in GCW and NWA than how she has been in WWE. She was going for more of an amateur wrestling/MMA look than her usual bright pink getup.
- The crowd gave the ref some heat when he was slow to make a count.
Vikingo vs. Dom Mysterio vs. Dragon Lee vs. El Grande Americano
6 of 7The main event of TripleMania saw Vikingo defend his AAA Mega Championship against Dirty Dom, Dragon Lee and El Grande Americano.
Americano got in everyone's face, but it was Dom who took the first shot when he dropkicked Vikingo. He and Americano formed a brief alliance to take on the babyfaces, but it backfired and led to Lee and Vikingo taking control.
With Ludwig Kaiser under the Americano mask, he added some muscle to the match, but this was all about the high-flying antics of the luchadores. All four men worked hard to make sure this deserved to be the main event.
Balor and McDonagh showed up and started helping Dirty Dom cheat since there was no rule against interference in a 4-way match, but other members of the LWO showed up to fight them off. Two more Grande Americanos also made an appearance.
Dom ended up putting on a mask and putting the piece of metal under it that Americano tried to use, but his plan was interrupted by AJ Styles, who showed up in a mask to attack the IC champion with a Styles Clash.
Vikingo took advantage and hit a 630 on Dom for the pin and the win. The crowd did not seem happy with the finish, but the match as a whole was great. The shenanigans got a little out of hand, but it mostly worked.
Result: Vikingo defeated Dom, Lee and Americano
Grade: B
Notable Moments and Observations
The Final Word
7 of 7TripleMania was the first major AAA event produced under the WWE banner, and you could see WWE's fingerprints all over it.
The production was more like a WWE show than a AAA event, and there were several WWE Superstars featured throughout the night.
Konnan had some weird moments on the mic, Rey Mysterio addressed Alberto Del Rio, and there were a couple of minor production hiccups, but most of the show went as planned.
The tag title bout was the most entertaining match, but the main event definitely held its own and provided some fun moments.
This was billed as the biggest AAA event of the year, but it fell short of feeling as important as it should. It was a decent show, but it could have been much better considering the level of talent both companies have at their disposal.
Grade: B-
