| Battle Riot VI | |
| Promotion: | Major League Wrestling |
| Date: | June 1, 2024 |
| Venue: | Center Stage |
| City: | Atlanta, Georgia |
| Liveevent: | Y |
| Lastevent: | Azteca Lucha |
| Nextevent: | Blood & Thunder |
| Event: | Battle Riot |
| Lastevent2: | V |
Battle Riot VI was a professional wrestling event produced by Major League Wrestling (MLW), which took place on June 1, 2024, at the Center Stage in Atlanta, Georgia. It was the sixth event under the Battle Riot chronology, the first to air live since Battle Riot II in 2019, and featured the opening rounds of the 2024 Opera Cup.
The event was streamed on MLW's YouTube channel, while additional matches were taped for the "MLW Anniversary '24" special, which was also streamed on YouTube on June 22. The event featured the in-ring debuts of actor Paul Walter Hauser and YouTuber Chris Danger,[1] [2] as well as appearances by former WWE talents Mark Henry and Teddy Long.
Battle Riot is an annual event produced by Major League Wrestling that was first held in 2018 as a television taping for MLW Fusion. The event is named after the Battle Riot match, a multi-competitor match type in which wrestlers are eliminated until one is left and declared winner. The match begins with a number of participants in the ring, who are then eliminated by either pin, submission, or going over the top rope and having both feet touch the venue floor. The declared winner of the Battle Riot match receives a "golden ticket", which they can redeem for a future MLW World Heavyweight Championship title shot anytime and anywhere.
On February 19, 2024, it was announced that Battle Riot VI would take place on June 1, 2024, at Center Stage in Atlanta, Georgia.[3] [4]
In addition to MLW's regular roster, and several surprise appearances, guest personalities from outside of pro wrestling were announced as participants. On May 15, it was announced in a press release that actor Paul Walter Hauser would be in the Battle Riot match.[1] On May 24, YouTuber Chris Danger announced in a social media post that he would enter the Battle Riot.[2]
The card consists of matches that result from scripted storylines, where wrestlers portray villains, heroes, or less distinguishable characters in events that built tension and culminate in a wrestling match or series of matches, with results predetermined by MLW's writers.[5]
Alex Kane had been embroiled in a feud with World Titan Federation (WTF) member A. J. Franci$ since February's The Buuning Crush special. At Intimidation Games, Franci$, making his in-person debut, confronted Kane after his match to claim that not every member of Kane's Bomaye Fight Club (BFC) was loyal to him.[6] Franci$ would go on to defeat Kane in the former's in-ring debut at War Chamber due to interference from WTF promoter Mister Saint Laurent, a low blow, and a fast count from the referee. Several members of the BFC would come out after the match and raise their fists in salute to Franci$.[7] During the Fury Road special, which aired on May 18, Kane defeated one of Franci$'s henchmen. After the match, Franci$, via vignette, challenged Kane to a "Ritual Combat match" at Battle Riot VI for control of the BFC, which Kane accepted.[8]
Since losing the MLW World Women's Featherweight Championship to Janai Kai – then representing Salina de la Renta's Promociones Dorado – at Slaughterhouse the previous October, Delmi Exo has unsuccessfully attempted to recapture the title on multiple occasions. During the Once Upon A Time In New York special, which aired on March 16, Exo aligned herself with Azteca Lucha's Cesar Duran and defeated Zayda to become the #1 contender. In the aftermath of Salina's abduction by Duran at the end of the Azteca Lucha event, Kai was revealed as a double agent for Contra Unit during the Fury Road TV special, which aired the following week; helping facilitate the group's return to prominence. Kai would then retain her title against Exo, Zayda, and Miyu Yamashita in a four-way match that same night.[9] On May 23, MLW announced that Exo would finally get a one-on-one rematch against Kai for the Featherweight title at Battle Riot VI.[10]
The live broadcast received mixed reviews. While praise was given to the World Heavyweight title match, criticism was directed at the Ritual Combat match, the Featherweight title match, and the Duran-Salina segments.[11]
| Draw | Entrant | Order | Eliminated by | Method of elimination | Elimination(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Místico | 4 | Star Jr. | Over the top rope | 1 | |
| 2 | Jimmy Yang | 2 | Star Jr. | Pinfall | 0 | |
| 3 | Star Jr. | 6 | Tom Lawlor and Josh Bishop | Over the top rope | 2 | |
| 4 | Rugido | 3 | Tom Lawlor | Over the top rope | 0 | |
| 5 | Jesús Rodriguez | 1 | Místico | Submission | 0 | |
| 6 | Shigeo Okumura | 5 | Tom Lawlor | Over the top rope | 0 | |
| 7 | Ikuro Kwon | 8 | Akira * | Over the top rope | 1 | |
| 8 | Akira | 9 | Ikuro Kwon * | Over the top rope | 1 | |
| 9 | Tom Lawlor ** | 7 | Paul Walter Hauser | Over the top rope | 3 | |
| 10 | Josh Bishop | 11 | Minoru Suzuki | Technical submission | 1 | |
| 11 | Bobby Fish | 13 | Bad Dude Tito | Over the top rope | 0 | |
| 12 | Bad Dude Tito | 26 | Matt Riddle | Over the top rope | 2 | |
| 13 | Adam Priest | 10 | Minoru Suzuki | Over the top rope | 0 | |
| 14 | Paul Walter Hauser | 18 | Sami Callihan | Over the top rope | 3 | |
| 15 | Slim J | 12 | Paul Walter Hauser | Pinfall | 0 | |
| 16 | Mads Krule Krügger | 20 | 1 Called Manders *** | Over the top rope | 1 | |
| 17 | Mr. Thomas | 16 | Bad Dude Tito | Over the top rope | 0 | |
| 18 | Minoru Suzuki | 35 | Matt Riddle | Over the top rope | 4 | |
| 19 | Brett Ryan Gosselin | 23 | Matthew Justice | Pinfall | 1 | |
| 20 | C. W. Anderson | 24 | Alex Kane | Technical submission | 0 | |
| 21 | Scotty Riggs | 14 | Paul Walter Hauser | Pinfall | 0 | |
| 22 | Jake Crist | 17 | Brett Ryan Gosselin | Over the top rope | 0 | |
| 23 | Violent J | 15 | Chris Danger | Pinfall | 0 | |
| 24 | Chris Danger | 31 | Timothy Thatcher | Over the top rope | 2 | |
| 25 | Ernest "The Cat" Miller | 22 | Matt Riddle | Pinfall | 0 | |
| 26 | 1 Called Manders | 19 | Mads Krule Krügger *** | Over the top rope | 1 | |
| 27 | Sami Callihan | 38 | Matt Riddle | Over the top rope | 2 | |
| 28 | The Masked Assassin ** | 21 | Alex Kane | Over the top rope | 0 | |
| 29 | Alex Kane | 34 | Timothy Thatcher, Davey Boy Smith Jr., and Minoru Suzuki | Over the top rope | 2 | |
| 30 | Matthew Justice | 33 | Sami Callihan | Over the top rope | 3 | |
| 31 | Matt Riddle | - | - | Winner | 4 | |
| 32 | Andrew Everett | 28 | Shane Mercer | Over the top rope | 0 | |
| 33 | Kimchee | 25 | Chris Danger | Pinfall | 0 | |
| 34 | Timothy Thatcher | 37 | Davey Boy Smith **** | Over the top rope | 2 | |
| 35 | Dr. Cornwallis | 27 | Minoru Suzuki | Submission | 0 | |
| 36 | Suge D | 29 | Shane Mercer | Over the top rope | 0 | |
| 37 | Rickey Shane Page | 30 | Sami Callihan | Pinfall | 0 | |
| 38 | Shane Mercer | 32 | Matthew Justice | Over the top rope | 2 | |
| 39 | Arachnaman ** | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | |
| 40 | Davey Boy Smith Jr. | 36 | Timothy Thatcher **** | Over the top rope | 2 |
(*) Kwon and Akira eliminated each other.
(**) Tom Lawlor entered the match 3 times under different personas: his original self, The Masked Assassin, and Arachnaman; before Arachnaman could enter the ring, Paul Walter Hauser showed up and unmasked him, revealing it to be Lawlor. Lawlor didn't enter the ring and thus wasn't officially eliminated or entered into the match.
(***) Krügger and Manders eliminated each other.
(****) Thatcher and Smith eliminated each other.