MOTW 161: Rey Fenix vs Chad Gable
"M.O.T.W. #161: Rey Fenix vs. Chad Gable" - ink & digital illustration
Today brings us to the 161st of our Chris Things Art 'Match of the Week' illustration series. And this week we get another somewhat current one in the form of an absolutely FANTASTIC Intercontinental Championship bout from earlier this month in Cajun country!
This immensely enjoyable title match took place on the October 12th edition of the up-north territory's 'Raw' tv show in Bossier City Louisiana.
Say what you will about the current state of American mainstream TV wrestling but my gosh this was so gosh-darned enjoyable! Fénix has been a favourite of mine ever since I first saw him in Lucha Underground & AAA & I can't tell you how happy I am to see him spotlighted in such a fabulous match on a platform such as this. And Chad Gable was just the perfect opponent to show how great he still is.
For far too long, guys like Gable & Fénix were relegated to enhancement roles on these types of shows & as you can see here, they are both far better than that. Seeing Gable put out some of the best wrestling of his career has been such a joy to see this year - between the incredible El Grande Americano program & these fantastic spotlight matches on Raw, dude, this guy rocks!
This match itself & in-ring storytelling here really blew me away. Just the perfect 'good-guy' vs good-guy match! It was so smartly worked. I loved the targeting & selling of the ankle lock all the way through. A tale of amazing heart/'animo' from Fénix that just wasn't quite enough to overcome the odds on this night.
I also really loved the feeling of fight, struggle & actual physicality here! As you can see from the moment in question with these early up-kicks in trying to fight off Gable's ankle lock early in the match. On freeze-frame, his nose actually turns sideways!!
Just a heck of a match! Highly recommended!
ENJOY!!
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