The Gate Of Revolution: They Have This Reputation For A Reason

The Gate Of Revolution
Date: April 18, 2025
Location: MEET Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
Commentators: Joe Dombrowski, Rich Bocchini

This is a co-promoted show between Dragon Gate USA and Pro Wrestling Revolution, giving us the incredibly clever title. Dragon Gate USA is freshly back so there is only so much built up for the card. In other words, this is going to be all about the action we get to see and that should make for a fun night. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Diablo Azteca vs. Kid Lynx vs. Rhys Maddox

A double dropkick puts Maddox down to start, leaving the other two to trade armdrags. Maddox is back in to send Azteca outside and a basement dropkick gets two on Lynx. Back up and Lynx strikes away, setting up a rolling Stunner. Lynx bodyscissors Azteca but gets triangle choked by Maddox. That’s broken up and Maddox is back with a springboard cutter for two on Azteca. Maddox crucifix bombs both of them at once and they forearm it out from their knees. Lynx is sent outside, leaving Azteca to tie Maddox up for a driver and the pin at 5:42.

Rating: C+. Let three guys have a few minutes to warm up the crowd with a fast paced match. That’s all this needed to be and they didn’t do anything out of the ordinary. It’s an idea that will always work and it was a perfectly fine way to go for a pre-show match. That’s a tricky thing to do and they did it well here.

And now, the main show.

Border Patrol vs. Rey Horus/Vary Morales

Stevens shoves Morales down to start but a dropkick gives Morales a breather. Horus comes in to dropkick Dutra down and it’s time to work on the arm. A hot show drops Morales though and a running kick to the face puts him in even more trouble. Stevens’ middle rope elbow gets two and Morales gets pounded down in the corner.

That’s broken up and Morales manages a double knockdown. Horus comes back in to pick up the pace, including the big running flip dive to the floor onto everyone else. A Fameasser into a top rope elbow gets two on Morales but Horus is up for the save. Horus’ dive to the floor misses though and the Border Wall (powerbomb/Zig Zag combination) pins Morales at 8:56.

Rating: C+. Nice enough match with the Border Patrol coming off as villains who don’t like luchadors around here. Horus and Morales fought against them but lost in the end, which might not be the best way to start a show. The match itself wasn’t bad at all, with the Patrol giving off a bit of a Basham Brothers vibe (and yes, the Bashams were good when they weren’t stuck with a ridiculous gimmick).

El Cucuy/Oni El Bendito vs. La Estrella/Viento vs. Mike Sydal/Willie Mack

Mack and Cucuy (basically the boogeyman of Mexico) start things off but instead we hit the music so Mack can dance. He even throws in a Worm and a backwards Worm for good measure, earning a cheap shot from Cucuy to take over. Back up and Mack hurricanranas him out to the floor, allowing Sydal and Estrella to come in, with a Yoga Driver giving Sydal two. Estrella walks on his hands for a headscissors and it’s off to Viento vs. Bendito.

They waste no time in running the ropes for some flips so Cucuy comes back in to help double team Viento down. Sydal comes in and fights back a bit, allowing the tag off to Mack, who isn’t scared of Bendito. Estrella is back in for a dropkick and everything breaks down, meaning it’s time for the string of dives. Back in and Cucuy plants Viento, setting up the running flip dive for the knockdown. Estrella dropkicks Bendito, who is right back with a superkick into a slingshot Jackhammer for the pin at 11:49.

Rating: B-. This was your standard lucha three way tag and it worked well enough. You had a nice mixture of power and high flying, which made for a fun formula. Cucuy is a good monster and Mack could match his power, leaving the other four to do the high flying. Entertaining match here, as it felt different enough from the previous match to stand out a bit.

Stars vs. Hyan/Karisma

Stars are Hanan/Saya Iida and their Goddess of Stardom Tag Team Titles aren’t on the line. Karisma and Hanan start, with the former pulling her down to work on the arm. Hanan reverses into a headlock takeover and Iida comes in for a double bulldog to put Karisma in trouble. Iida unloads with chops in the corner and gets two off a posing cover. Karisma fights up and hits some running shots in the corner, allowing Hyan to come in for two off a belly to back suplex.

An assisted splash hits Iida, who is back with a pretty hard running clothesline. Hyan and Iida chop it out and a double clothesline puts both of them down. Hanan and Karisma come in for the slugout and everything breaks down. Karisma takes WAY too long setting up a moonsault and only hits mat for the crash. Stars double team Karisma down and a tabletop suplex gives Hanan the pin at 10:45.

Rating: B-. Another fast paced, back and forth match with two teams getting to showcase themselves. Stars definitely seem like the more polished team but Karisma and Hyan held their own. This was another nice change of pace and that’s a good thing to see continuing over an hour into the card.

Dragon Kid/Ultimo Dragon vs. Ho Ho Lun/Susumu Yokosuka

Kid and Yokosuka start things off with a stomp to Kid’s feet putting him in trouble. Lun comes in as we hear about Kid’s history in wrestling, which started as a referee. Some double teaming has Kid down and we hit the chinlock. The eyes are raked over the top rope and Lun slaps on the armbar. A knee to the ribs gives Yokosuka two as we hear about Kid and Yokosuka being in the same stable but Kid wanted to team with Ultimo. Eh I’ve heard worse ideas.

Kid comes back with a middle rope hurricanrana and it’s off to Ultimo for the big reception and a string of kicks to Yokosuka. A dragon screw legwhip pulls Yokosuka down and Ultimo gets in a reverse Figure Four. Kid Octopuses Lun at the same time but both holds are broken up in a hurry. Ultimo cuts Lun off, leaving Kid to grab a West Coast Pop to pin Yokosuka at 10:45.

Rating: C+. Oh like this was ever in doubt. That’s not a bad thing either, as having Ultimo on the show and giving him a win is a perfectly good way to go. Kid did most of the work for the team despite being a seasoned veteran himself, but the whole thing worked out well, especially with the fans giving Ultimo that kind of a reception.

Post match the Dragons hug (despite a bit of animosity) and here is Matt Sydal…for a promo I can’t understand as the audio is fairly horrible. It seems to be praising Ultimo and the promotion, which gets a nice reaction.

Pro Wrestling Revolution Tag Team Titles: Arkangel Divino/Ultimo Maldito vs. Los Hermanos de la Jungla

Divino and Maldito are defending and both teams are brothers. Aero Panther dropkicks Divino to start but Maldito comes in for some alternating shots to Fight Panther Jr.’s face. A spinning kick in the face hits Fight and an assisted spear gets two. Aero gets beaten down but Fight is up with a frog splash for two on Divino. Maldito is back in with a Regal Roll into a moonsault, only for Fight to elbow him in the face for two of his own.

Back up and Maldito slugs it out with Fight until Divino comes back in for a heck of a superkick. Divino poisonranas Aero and everyone is down. Aero sends Maldito to the floor for a big springboard flip dive, followed by a slam to Divino. Maldito breaks up the dive though and Divino super hurricanranas Maldito off the top onto the champions. Back in and a Doomsday Canadian Destroyer finishes Aero to retain the titles.

Rating: B. Take four guys who can fly around rather fast and go all over the place for about ten minutes and pop the crowd as a result. That’s all this needed to be and the four people involved did well in their roles. The four of them were around on some other shows this weekend so it wouldn’t surprise me to see them doing something on the bigger stage sooner than later.

Yamato vs. Rich Swann

This is the result of a challenge at the Dragon Gate USA show earlier this week. They take their time to start with Swann teasing the test of strength and going into a dance. Yamato swings away but gets dropkicked to the floor just as fast. Back in and Swann hammers away but gets backdropped, allowing Yamato to start stomping away. The Figure Four goes on to start in on Swann’s but he’s out in a hurry. Swann takes him to the floor and hammers away, setting up a frog splash for two.

A 450 misses though and Yamato grabs a fisherman’s buster for two. Back up and Swann kicks him down, setting up the middle rope 450 for two more. They slap it out from their knees and they slug it out from their feet, with Swann going up top. A superplex brings him down but Swann rolls through with a suplex of his own. Yamato is right back with an over the shoulder piledriver, followed by a second edition for the pin at 12:14.

Rating: B. This felt like a big showdown between two talented stars and that’s a good thing to add to the card. It felt like something that was actually built up and they lived up to enough of their hype. Swann is a bigger deal around here and he was mostly serious here, albeit with enough dancing to keep things fun.

Respect is shown post match and they’re still friends.

Z-Brats vs. Ben-K/Hyo/Kzy

Shun Skywalker starts with Ben-K, who wins a slugout and runs Skywalker over with a shoulder. Kzy and Minoura slug it out and then slug it out even faster before it’s off to Hyo (with the fans swooning). Ishin comes in and mocks Hyo with a YES chant, earning himself a leg lariat. Minoura pulls Hyo down from the floor though and the fight heads out into the crowd.

Everyone winds out on the floor for an electric chair and an elaborate low blow before it’s time to go back inside. Hyo is in trouble but he manages to knock Ishin down but it’s too early for the tag. Minoura helps Ishin drop him for two but a kick to the face allows the hot tag off to Ben-K.

Everything breaks down and Skywalker can’t hit a lifting Pedigree on Kzy. Skywalker kicks him in the face and snaps off a German suplex but it’s back to Hyo. A basement dropkick hits Minoura, who gets sent into the corner for the running shots. Hyo’s double biceps senton gets two but Ben-K goes shoulder first into the post.

Back in and Kzy gets superplexed into a brainbuster, leaving Hyo to roll Ishin up for two. Kzy hits a running Canadian Destroyer on Minoura and everyone is down. Back up and Hyo and Kzy hit dives to take out Skywalker and Minoura, leaving Ben-K to spear Ishin for the pin at 21:05.

Rating: B+. Yeah this was awesome, with the last half being pretty much non-stop action. That’s what makes Dragon Gate work so well and it did so here again. It’s a bunch of people flying all over the place and popping the crowd with one big move after another and that was a blast. Great main event and something that works very well whether you’re a fan of the promotion or not.

Overall Rating: B+. Good stuff here with nothing bad or really close to it and a heck of a main event to wrap it up. Dragon Gate USA had a very strong reputation when it was around and this was a good example of the fun that it would have. There are some talented people around here and throwing in some guest stars made it even better. Rather fun show here and I had a very good time with the whole thing.

Results
Diablo Azteca b. Kid Lynx and Rhys Maddox – Arm trap driver to Maddox
Border Patrol b. Rey Horus/Vary Morales – Border Wall to Morales
El Cucuy/Oni El Bendito b. Viento/La Estrella and Mike Sydal/Willie Mack – Slingshot Jackhammer to Estrella
Stars b. Hyan/Karisma – Tabletop suplex to Karisma
Ultimo Dragon/Dragon Kid b. Susumu Yokosuka/Ho Ho Lun – West Coast Pop to Yokosuka
Arkangel Divino/Ultimo Maldito b. Los Hermanos de la Jungla – Doomsday Canadian Destroyer to Aero
Yamato b. Rich Swann – Over the shoulder piledriver
Ben-K/Hyo/Kzy b. Z-Brats – Spear to Ishin

 

 

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