Blood & Thunder (2024) is an upcoming professional wrestling event produced by Major League Wrestling (MLW), which will take place on July 12, 2024, at The Coliseum in St. Petersburg, Florida. It will be the fourth event under the Blood and Thunder chronology, and the first to be aired live. The event will stream live on MLW's YouTube channel, while additional matches will be taped for a later broadcast.[1]
| Blood & Thunder (2024) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Promotion | Major League Wrestling | ||
| Date | July 12, 2024 | ||
| City | St. Petersburg, Florida | ||
| Venue | The Coliseum | ||
| Event chronology | |||
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| Blood and Thunder chronology | |||
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Production
editBackground
editBlood and Thunder is a reoccurring event produced by Major League Wrestling (MLW) that was first held in 2019 as a television taping for MLW Fusion.
On September 3, 2023, at Fury Road, it was announced that Blood & Thunder would take place on January 6, 2024.[2][3] On December 11, however, it was announced instead that Kings of Colosseum would be taking its place.[4] On March 28, 2024, it was announced that Blood & Thunder would now take place on July 12, 2024, at The Colosseum in St. Petersburg, Florida.[5][6]
Storylines
editThe card will consist of matches that result from scripted storylines, where wrestlers portray villains, heroes, or less distinguishable characters in scripted events that built tension and culminate in a wrestling match or series of matches, with results predetermined by MLW's writers. Storylines are played out at MLW events, and across the league's social media platforms.[7]
At War Chamber, Team MLW (Satoshi Kojima, Shigeo Okumura, Matthew Justice, and 1 Called Manders) defeated Team WTF in the titular match. They would be ambushed by Contra Unit shortly afterwards, and be attacked by Mads Krule Krügger, the returning Ikuro Kwon, and the Sentai Death Squad members.[8] Since then, Krügger would be involved in a feud with the Second Gear Crew (SGC) (Justice and Manders) over the last three months, which included defeating Justice in a falls count anywhere match at Fury Road, taking out manager Bill Alfonso backstage, and targeting the SGC during Battle Riot VI.[9][10] On June 12, MLW announced on their website that Krügger and Justice would face off at Blood & Thunder in a Three Stages of Destruction match; with the first stage being a Street Fight, the second stage a First Blood match, and the final stage being a "Medically Evacuated" match, where the two fight until one is unable to continue and must be taken to a medical facility.[11]
Akira would be targeted by Contra Unit during Battle Riot VI. After eliminating, and being eliminated by, Ikuro Kwon, Akira was thrown off the stage by Mads Krule Krügger.[10] On June 13, Akira was announced to be facing Minoru Suzuki, who was revealed the newest member of Contra Unit during the Battle Riot, at Blood & Thunder.[12]
For the past few months, Matt Riddle and Sami Callihan had been embroiled in a feud to be next in line for an MLW World Heavyweight Championship match. It began at Azteca Lucha after Riddle's match, where he announced his intentions to become champion in a post-match interview. Callihan would abruptly attack Riddle, calling him stupid and declaring he would be the world champion rather than Riddle.[13] This resulted in a match between the two at the "Fury Road" television special, which ended in a no contest.[9] At Battle Riot VI in the titular match, Riddle last eliminated Callihan to win, earning a "golden ticket" for a world title opportunity at the time and place of his choosing.[10] Their feud would continue, however, as Callihan ambushed Riddle again in an interview at the "MLW Anniversary '24" special. They would brawl throughout the night, ultimately being separated before Callihan issued a challenge to Riddle to any type of match at Blood & Thunder.[14] On June 25, MLW announced a No Ropes Deathmatch between Riddle and Callihan for Riddle's golden ticket at Blood & Thunder.[15]
Opera Cup
editIn addition to stand-alone matches, several first-round matches in the 2024 Opera Cup would be announced for Blood & Thunder and the TV tapings. The first match was announced on June 17, where MLW World Middleweight Champion Místico would face Magnus.[16] Two days later, MLW World Tag Team Champion Shigeo Okumura was announced to face Atlantis Jr. as part of the first round.[17] The next day, it was announced that 2020 Opera Cup winner Tom Lawlor would face Jake Crist.[18] At the MLW Anniversary '24 special, MLW announced Kenta would make his debut for the promotion when he faces Bobby Fish in the first round.[19]
Matches
edit| No. | Matches* | Stipulations | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mads Krule Krügger vs. Matthew Justice (with Bill Alfonso) | Three Stages of Destruction match[11]
| ||
| 2 | Minoru Suzuki vs. Akira | Singles match[12] | ||
| 3 | Atlantis Jr. vs. Shigeo Okumura | 2024 Opera Cup Tournament first round match[17] | ||
| 4 | Tom Lawlor (with Mister Saint Laurent) vs. Jake Crist | 2024 Opera Cup Tournament first round match[18] | ||
| 5 | Kenta vs. Bobby Fish | 2024 Opera Cup Tournament first round match[19] | ||
| 6 | Matt Riddle vs. Sami Callihan | No Ropes Deathmatch for the "Golden Ticket" to the MLW World Heavyweight Championship[15] | ||
| ||||
| No. | Matches* | Stipulations | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Místico vs. Magnus | 2024 Opera Cup Tournament first round match[16] | ||
| 2 | Davey Boy Smith Jr. (with Mister Saint Laurent) vs. A. J. Franci$ | Singles match[20] | ||
| ||||
References
edit- ^ "MLW Moving PPVs To YouTube For Paid Members". Fightful. June 1, 2024. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
- ^ Defelice, Robert (September 3, 2023). "MLW Blood & Thunder 2024 Set For January 6, 2024". Fightful.
- ^ Thomas, Jeremy (September 3, 2023). "MLW Blood & Thunder 2024 Official For January". 411Mania.
- ^ "Dates Announced For First Three MLW Events Of 2024". Wrestling News Net. December 11, 2023.
- ^ Defelice, Robert (March 28, 2024). "MLW Blood & Thunder 2024 To Emanate From St. Petersburg, Florida On 7/12".
- ^ Harris, Jeffrey (April 2, 2024). "MLW Announces Tickets Now Available for Blood and Thunder". 411Mania.com.
- ^ Grabianowski, Ed (13 January 2006). "How Pro Wrestling Works". HowStuffWorks. Discovery Communications. Archived from the original on November 29, 2013. Retrieved March 5, 2012.
- ^ Vetter, Chris (March 29, 2024). "MLW "War Chamber" results (3/29): Vetter's review of Satoshi Kojima, Matthew Justice, 1 Called Manders, and Okumura vs. Tom Lawlor, Davey Boy Smith Jr., Richard Holliday, and Josh Bishop in a War Chamber match". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved June 13, 2024.
- ^ a b "Fury Road Recap: Battle Of The Lariats Between Kojima & 1 Called Manders". Major League Wrestling. May 19, 2024. Retrieved June 13, 2024.
- ^ a b c Siino, John (June 2, 2024). "MLW Battle Riot VI: 40-Person Battle Riot, Kojima vs. Lawlor, Mark Henry". POST Wrestling. Retrieved June 13, 2024.
- ^ a b "3 Stages of Destruction in Tampa July 12". Major League Wrestling. June 12, 2024. Retrieved June 13, 2024.
- ^ a b "Minoru Suzuki vs. AKIRA in Tampa, July 12". Major League Wrestling. June 13, 2024. Retrieved June 13, 2024.
- ^ "AZTECA Lucha Recap: Mistico Defends World Middleweight Title In Sold-Out Chicago". Major League Wrestling. May 12, 2024. Retrieved June 25, 2024.
- ^ "MLW Anniversary '24 Show Recap: 2024 Opera Cup Begins, Manders vs. Krugger In Bull Rope Match". Major League Wrestling. June 23, 2024. Retrieved June 25, 2024.
- ^ a b "Riddle vs. Callihan No Ropes Death Match, July 12 in St Pete". Major League Wrestling. June 27, 2024. Retrieved June 25, 2024.
- ^ a b "Místico vs. Magnus: Opera Cup Showdown in St. Petersburg". Major League Wrestling. June 17, 2024. Retrieved June 18, 2024.
- ^ a b "Atlantis Jr. vs. Okumura, St. Petersburg July 12". Major League Wrestling. June 19, 2024. Retrieved June 19, 2024.
- ^ a b "Tom Lawlor vs. Jake Crist at Blood & Thunder, July 12". Major League Wrestling. June 20, 2024. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
- ^ a b "KENTA vs. Bobby Fish set for St Petersburg, FL on July 12". Major League Wrestling. June 24, 2024. Retrieved June 24, 2024.
- ^ "Hoss Fight! DBS vs. AJ Francis Set for St. Petersburg". Major League Wrestling. June 26, 2024. Retrieved June 26, 2024.