MLW Battle Riot VII took place last night at Thunder Studios Arena in Long Beach, California, featuring several major surprises and title changes:
Main Event
• Matt Riddle successfully retained his MLW World Heavyweight Championship in the 40-person Battle Riot match, entering at #25 and outlasting the entire field
• The match concluded with Riddle shoving Rob Van Dam off the top rope as RVD attempted a Five-Star Frog Splash
Battle Riot Surprise Entrants
• Alex Hammerstone made his return to MLW after leaving over a year ago for TNA, entering at #1
• Raj Dhesi (formerly Jinder Mahal) entered at #2
• Chris Adonis (formerly Chris Masters) appeared at #22
• Independent star Titus Alexander was a surprise entrant at #38
• Rob Van Dam made his first-ever MLW appearance as the final entrant at #40
Title Changes
• Shoko Nakajima defeated Delmi Exo to become the new MLW Women’s World Featherweight Champion
• Mistico vacated the MLW World Middleweight Championship, announcing his move to the heavyweight division
Other Developments
• Austin Aries returned to MLW as part of the commentary team alongside Joe Dombrowski
• Bishop Dyer (formerly Baron Corbin in WWE) made his MLW debut in the Battle Riot match, though his appearance had been announced beforehand
• A mysterious teaser aired featuring imagery of a bullet, beer, and tape recorder with the message “They’re Coming” and the number 626, which looks like The Good Brothers are headed to MLW
