'La Maquina' Recap And Ending Explained: Is Andy Dead Or Alive?

La Maquina, loosely translated to The Machine, is a Mexican Hulu original about a fictional boxer and his manager, who get trapped in the world of corruption and match-fixing in boxing matches. The show covers their journey as they try to fight their way out of this mess by facing their enemy.

Spoilers Ahead

Who was Esteban “Maquina” Osuna?

The six-episode miniseries began with Esteban “La Maquina” Osuna, the famous Mexican boxer, just about to have a match against the Filipino boxer Protasia. The only concern was that Esteban was not young anymore. He might be famous, but age was slowly catching up to him, and as a result, he lost the match. Esteban was knocked out in the first round, and ever since, he became a tale of mockery in the professional boxing circuit. However, a check-up with the doctor made him realize his health was deteriorating, and the doctor asked if he was hallucinating. Esteban was concerned, but he never shared his health issues with anyone, including his ex-wife and his best friend/manager Andy.

Why was another match arranged with Protasia?

Andy was Esteban’s oldest friend, and his manager for many years. Andy had body image issues as he was obsessed with wearing excessive makeup and self-administered lip and nose fillers, along with wearing wigs. He was raised by a mother who had severe body image issues as well, and she had been verbally and emotionally abusive to him all his life. Andy was really loyal to his wife, Carlotta and the couple were trying to have kids. An agitated Andy desperately wanted an image makeover for Esteban. He met with Protasia’s manager at the airport and offered the idea of a rematch. Protasia’s manager was not keen, but eventually agreed to the rematch as Andy blackmailed him with a video of the boxer, which he threatened to release. The video was either of the boxer in an intimate position with someone or it could be related to match-fixing. 

The match was decided, but Esteban couldn’t slim down to fit the weight category even after rigorous training. Andy and his assistant/brother-in-law Saul decided to bribe the man who would judge the body weight of the boxers. Saul revealed the concerned person from the federation did not take the bribe. However, he declared Esteban fit for the match which confused Saul and Andy. After weeks of hype and talk in the media, Esteban won the match against Protasia, which was completely unexpected. Esteban surprised everyone, as the media narrative and the opinion of the general public were against him. 

Who was blackmailing Andy?

On the night of Esteban’s party, Andy announced the federation had decided to have a new match in Mexico between Esteban and the English heavyweight champion Harry Felix. While everyone was excited about the next match, Andy began to get messages and phone calls suggesting he was being blackmailed by someone. The person on the other side of the phone let Andy know that Esteban had to lose the next match.

Andy was overwhelmed and scared as he realized that the people he had worked with, who ran a ring of institutionalized corruption, were now coming after him and making his client lose the match for their benefit. A desperate Andy met with the leader of the match-fixing gang, who was known to be a very powerful person, in a car wash. The face of the leader was not shown, but he made it clear Esteban had to lose, and Andy could not convince the man otherwise. Andy tried to open up to his wife about the matter, but he could not. This was the first time he had had a hard time being honest with her and revealing he messed up big time and could end up ruining his and Esteban’s careers. 

Did Andy let Esteban know the truth?

Andy had no choice but to reveal the truth to Esteban and let him know about the large ring of match fixers in the country running the show, and how it was their call that would make or break the careers of boxers around the country. Andy revealed Esteban had been winning all this while as his matches were fixed. This shocked Esteban, as he felt he’d been a talented boxer, but it turns out he was a stooge in the big ring of corruption. 

Esteban was also stunned to find out how powerful the match-fixing syndicate was. Andy let him know they were everywhere. It was implied that the members of the federation and the police officers were on the payroll of these faceless yet powerful match-fixers. Esteban learned that he was drunk and high when he won several matches in the past. This made him self-reflect, as he slowly began to believe everything around his professional life was being controlled, and the match-fixers now wanted him to lose to Harry Felix. 

Was Esteban hallucinating? 

Esteban was true to his game, and he was in no mood to lose the match. Just like before, and out of habit, Esteban got drunk and high. The next day, he met with police officer Juan Carlos, who talked him into believing he could get him out of the mess he was in regarding the match-fixers. Esteban, in his bid to save himself and Andy some trouble, took money from the bank that was meant for his children’s education. He and his ex-wife Iresima had two boys, and he was not allowed to touch his own savings because he had lost lots of money because of his vices earlier in his career. 

Andy had put Saul in charge of following Esteban around to make sure he did not make any mistakes as they were only a few weeks away from the match with Harry Felix. Thanks to Saul, Andy was now aware of the money Esteban took out from the bank in cash and followed up on it. As he confronted Esteban, the latter learned that Juan Carlos did not exist, and that he was a figment of his imagination. This proved that his mental health was indeed deteriorating, which could be the result of his years of drug abuse and brain injuries during the matches, coupled with childhood trauma. Esteban realized he needed to put his life back on track for his sons and the legacy he would leave behind for them. He was slowly accepting the fact that he was not physically and mentally sound at the moment. 

Who killed Saul?

Saul, Andy’s assistant and brother-in-law, was in love with a young woman working at a spa. The woman he claimed to be in love with him killed him in the spa. This pointed to the fact that she was planted by the match fixers to do the job. Saul’s death was a message to Esteban and Andy, to prove to them they were powerful people who would not hesitate to kill anyone close to them.

Saul’s death came as a shock to Andy and Esteban, as they realized they could not possibly mess with the match fixers, who were essentially a mafia. His death had a chain reaction on several people. Carlotta was deeply distressed by the death of her brother and decided to leave Andy, as she knew her husband was involved in this mess. Andy began to talk about many delusional subjects, which forced the boxer to distance himself from his best friend. He was sure Andy was in denial about many things, and he was falling apart, trying to cope. 

Why did Esteban take his children to La Fonda?

Esteban was not in a good place after Saul’s death. He was haunted by several images from his childhood. His coach, Sixto, began to ask questions as a part of his method to make Esteban answer quickly. The boxer had a mental block whenever he was asked about his father, whom he claimed was the reason he became a boxer. Esteban had a eureka moment during this session with his coach. He immediately picked up his boys from Irasema’s home without her knowledge and drove them off to La Fonda, a Mexican circus that took place in his hometown. The whole idea was to get his boys to become familiar with his past and hopefully let them know his father was an abusive control maniac who abandoned him. 

Esteban was flooded with the memories of his childhood, and it was revealed his father was an awful man who forced his young boy into boxing matches. His father locked him up in a cellar in the circus arena, and the boy was left there for many days. The things he witnessed in the cellar turned into his hallucinations, including Juan Carlos, who was on the circus poster. 

Did Esteban meet his father?

A young Andy had rescued Esteban from the cellar. They were friends from that point on, and Andy never left Esteban’s side. Andy assured Irasema that Esteban would never harm his kids, and his visit to La Fonda was about his father. Andy was right, and he had a conversation with Esteban about the same and revealed his father had tried to visit many years later, after Esteban won a match. Andy did not let his father meet Esteban, as he felt the meeting would not bear any fruitful results. 

Andy revealed he knew where his father was living. Andy and Esteban reached a dilapidated home only to find the man living there in a destitute manner. Both were in for a shock when Esteban’s father began to talk about the people who were making decisions, the very powerful match-fixers. Esteban was not sure how prominent the match fixing mafia was when he was growing up which made him wonder if his father was involved in them all these years. However, the reunion was short-lived, as someone shot Esteban’s father in the head in their presence, and it was not that hard to guess whose orders they were acting on. 

Was Andy in denial?

Esteban was in shock, and his estranged father’s death was a wake-up call for him and Andy. On the way to the city, a delusional Andy began to talk about training Esteban’s older son to be the next boxer in line and maybe calling him “La Maquinita.” This enraged Esteban, as he felt Andy was in denial about the real issues, and he could not believe his best friend would want his children to be a part of this circus as well. 

Did Esteban prepare for the match?

Harry Felix, the British heavyweight champion who was slated to play against Esteban, had landed in Mexico. The press followed his workout and training routine, which was being broadcast everywhere. A dejected and depressed Esteban was in no mood to carry out training as he had lost any hope of turning this bout into a win. The mafia had also threatened to kill his boys if he tried to win the game, which put Esteban in a dilemma as he felt he could not leave any legacy for his children. Esteban, Andy, and Sixto tried to come up with plans that could help him get out of the situation. Andy was aware the mafia would be ten steps ahead of them in their plans. 

What was Andy’s plan?

The match was only a few hours away, and Andy picked up all of his burner phones and began to make calls. It was assumed he was making those calls to the bookies and the match-fixers to find a deal that would favor Esteban even if he lost. Andy wanted Esteban to leave on a high even though it was certain he would lose the match. Andy had been a good friend to Esteban all these years, and that was the reason saving Esteban was crucial, as he was the one who got his best friend into this mess. Andy knew Esteban was close to his sons, and he would not bear losing them. He wanted to rectify his mistakes and set things straight if the mafia decided to kill him. 

Did Esteban win the boxing match against Harry Felix?

Andy and the coach Sixto’s only plan was to make sure Esteban fought the best match he could and not worry about the results. The match began; Harry Felix had a clear advantage because of his physique and age, and it seemed it would go his way, while Esteban would have to do nothing to lose the game. The tides turned when Sixto and Andy encouraged Esteban to go for the win. Esteban, being older and more experienced, began to play extraordinarily, which put Harry on the backfoot till the end of the game. Andy received a call from the mafia, and he let them know this was going to be Esteban’s best match ever and later walked away from the arena. Andy was aware this would be the end of him, as the mafia would finally catch up to him and most likely kill him for going against their orders. Andy was not afraid of death anymore, as he was anticipating it. 

Andy made one final call to Irasema and let her know he’d used all their savings and bribed the judges in the game. This was Andy’s redemption, as he felt guilty for almost ruining Esteban’s career and putting his family in danger. Andy had lost everything—his mother and his wife—because of his wrongdoing. He never wanted to lose Esteban, but he had no choice but to put his life at stake so that the mafia would not harm his best friend and their children. He asked her to burn all the documents that could put Irasema, Esteban, and the children’s lives in danger.

Harry Felix was declared the winner of the match even though it was obvious that Esteban was the best boxer that night. This proved Andy’s bribe worked, and the judges did not disappoint them. There was no clarity on how Andy had paid the bribe to the judges, or if the mafia got involved in this and why they were unhappy with Andy if he still technically delivered what was asked of him. It could be deduced that the mafia was not happy with the way Esteban’s match went down. He was supposed to lose in a humiliating manner, but Harry’s win made it obvious that there was match-fixing that went behind making Esteban lose the match. 

Esteban won the hearts of the people, and he would retire on a high. The mafia was also not keen on his moral victory, which might expose their power over the matches. The show ended with Andy being killed by the unknown men who were sent by the match-fixers. They proved their power by killing Esteban’s father and Saul. Andy went out of his way to get the attention of the corrupt men towards him. Andy may have underestimated them in the beginning, but since his death was inevitable, he surrendered himself to them.

La Maquina ended with Esteban training his boys to be boxers in the same place he used to train with Sixto. Esteban speaks about Andy, and we see him near the training ring. It was not that hard to conclude that Andy was just a figment of Esteban’s imagination. Esteban was hallucinating, indicating his mental health was not stable, but he was happy to be seeing Andy next to him. It would not be right for him to have Andy’s hallucination following him around. He will either keep it around as a figment of his imagination for moral support or let him go as it was crucial to move on. Andy took the bullet for his best friend, and Esteban felt the weight of that sacrifice. It is true that Esteban would never be able to repay the debt paid to his best friend which was why he didn’t want to let Andy leave too soon.

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