CMLL World Light Heavyweight Championship

CMLL World Light Heavyweight Championships

A picture of the masked wrestler posing on the ring ropes before a match

La Máscara, the current and fifteenth CMLL World Light Heavyweight Champion
Details
Promotion Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre
Date established September 26, 1991[1]
Current champion(s) La Máscara
Date won April 8, 2016[2]

The CMLL World Light Heavyweight Championship (Campeonato Mundial de Peso Semicompleto del CMLL in Spanish) is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship promoted by Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) since 1991. As it is a professional wrestling championship, it is not won via legitimate competition; it is instead won via a scripted ending to a match or on occasion awarded to a wrestler because of a storyline.[3][4] The official definition of the light heavyweight division in Mexico is between 92 kg (203 lb) and 97 kg (214 lb), but the weight limits are not always strictly adhered to. Because CMLL puts more emphasis on the lower weight classes, this division is considered more important than the heavyweight division, which is considered the most important championship by most promotions outside of Mexico.

The current CMLL World Light Heavyweight Champion in his first reign is La Máscara, who won it by defeating Ángel de Oro on April 8, 2016. La Máscara is the 15th overall champion and the 13th wrestler to officially hold the championship. The title has been vacated only once since its creation in 1991, and has had one unofficial reign.

History

The Mexican professional wrestling promotion Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre (EMLL) was founded in 1933 and initially recognized a series of "Mexican National" wrestling championships, endorsed by the Comisión de Box y Lucha Libre Mexico D.F. (Mexico City Boxing and Wrestling Commission).[5] The Mexican National Light Heavyweight Championship was created in 1942 as EMLL began promoting matches for that championship with the approval and oversight of the wrestling commission.[5][6] In the 1950s EMLL became a member of the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) and began promoting the NWA World Light Heavyweight Championship in the late 1950s. Previously that championship had been promoted in the US, but the NWA gave EMLL full control of the championship in 1958, positioning the NWA title as the highest-ranking title in the light heavyweight division with the Mexican National title positioned as the secondary championship.[5][7]

EMLL left the NWA In the late 1980s to avoid the politics of the NWA, and later rebranded themselves as "Consejo Mundal de Lucha Libre" (CMLL).[8] In 1991 CMLL decided to create a series of CMLL-branded world championships, with the CMLL World Light Heavyweight Championship (Campeonato Mundial Semicompleto de CMLL in Spanish) created as the second CMLL-branded championship, after the CMLL World Heavyweight Championship.[9] Jerry Estrada was chosen as the first champion, with CMLL booking the tournament for the championship to end with Estrada defeating Pierroth Jr.[1] In 1996 the then-champion Dr. Wagner Jr. lost the championship to Aquarius on a show in Japan, but the title change was not approved by CMLL and thus was never officially recognized. Dr. Wagner Jr. won the title back eight days later before returning to Mexico.[1][10] Since the title change was not officially recognized, CMLL considers Dr. Wagner Jr. a two-time champion, not a three-time champion.[1]

On January 15, 2013, then-reigning champion Rush voluntarily gave up the CMLL World Light Heavyweight Championship as part of his ongoing storyline feud with then-CMLL World Heavyweight Champion El Terrible. As part of the storyline, El Terrible stated that he would not defend against someone who represented a lower weight class, so Rush moved into the Heavyweight division for a title match.[11] CMLL held a 16-man torneo cibernetico elimination match to determine which two wrestlers should compete in the finals for the vacant title. On January 29, 2013, Rey Escorpión defeated Volador Jr. in the tournament finals to become the 13th overall champion.[12]

Reigns

The masked Dr. Wagner Jr. walking to the ring, holding a professional wrestling championship belt in his hands
Dr. Wagner Jr., who lost the championship in Japan without it being sanctioned by CMLL

La Máscara is the current CMLL World Light Heavyweight Champion in his first reign, since defeating Ángel de Oro on April 8, 2016.[2] Overall, there have been 15 reigns shared between 13 wrestlers, which does not include one unofficial reign by Aquarius. Only two men have held the title more than once; both Dr. Wagner Jr. and Atlantis have officially held the title twice. Dr. Wagner Jr. has the longest combined reigns with 1,574 days, and Último Guerrero holds the record for the longest individual reign with 3 years, 213 days. Because Aquarius' eight-day reign in 1996 is not officially recognized by CMLL, Jerry Estrada's 175-day reign is the shortest in the history of the championship.[1] Not only was Último Guerrero's reign the longest of any individual reign, he is also credited with a record 28 successful championship defenses.[13]

On one occasion CMLL declared the championship vacant, which meant that there was no champion for a period of time. Sometimes, a championship is vacated due to an injury to the reigning champion,[14] or when a champion stops working for the promotion,[15] but in the case of the CMLL World Light Heavyweight Championship, there was a storyline reason behind it being declared vacant. In late 2013 the light heavyweight champion Rush was working a long-running storyline rivalry with El Terrible. When El Terrible won the CMLL World Heavyweight Championship, CMLL decided to enhance the rivalry by having Rush voluntarily give up the light heavyweight championship in order to receive a CMLL World Heavyweight Championship match against El Terrible.[11] This allowed CMLL to advance the storyline as well as move the championship off Rush without having Rush lose a match, allowing Rey Escorpión to become the next champion.[12]

Rules

The official definition by the Mexican lucha libre commission for the light heavyweight division in Mexico is between 92 kg (203 lb) and 97 kg (214 lb).[16] In the 20th century, CMLL were generally consistent and strict about enforcing the actual weight limits.[9] In the 21st century the official definitions have at times been overlooked for certain champions. One example of this was when Mephisto, officially listed as 90 kg (200 lb), won the CMLL World Welterweight Championship, a weight class with a 78 kg (172 lb) upper limit.[16][17] Although the heavyweight championship is traditionally considered the most prestigious weight division in professional wrestling, CMLL places more emphasis on the lower weight divisions, often promoting those ahead of the CMLL World Heavyweight Championship.[8]

With twelve CMLL-promoted championships labelled as "World" titles, the promotional focus shifts from championship to championship over time with no single championship consistently promoted as the "main" championship; instead CMLL's various major shows feature different weight divisions and are most often headlined by a Lucha de Apuestas ("Bet match") instead of a championship match.[8] From 2013 until June 2016 only two major CMLL shows have featured championship matches: Sin Salida in 2013, and the 2014 Juicio Final show featuring the NWA World Historic Welterweight Championship.[18][19] The last time a CMLL World Light Heavyweight Championship match was featured on a major CMLL show was on September 18, 2004, when Último Guerrero successfully defended the title at the CMLL 71st Anniversary Show.[20] Championship matches usually take place under best two-out-of-three falls rules.[8] On occasion single fall title matches have taken place, especially when promoting CMLL title matches in Japan, conforming to the traditions of the local promotion.[Note 1][21] Outside of CMLL, the light heavyweight championship has been defended on joint CMLL/Universal Wrestling Association (UWA) shows in 1993, on W*ING, Big Japan Wrestling, Dragondoor and New Japan Pro Wrestling shows in Japan.[1][22][23][24]

Tournaments

1991

CMLL held a 16-man tournament from September 15 to October 26, 1991 to crown the first light heavyweight champion. Documentation on Pierroth Jr.'s path to the finals has not been found.[1]

Tournament brackets[1][25]
First round   Semifinals   Final   Final
                           
 Jerry Estrada W  
 MS-1        Jerry Estrada W  
 Masakre      Mascara Año 2000    
 Mascara Año 2000 W        Jerry Estrada W  
 El Satánico W        Black Magic    
 El Hijo del Solitario        Satanico  
 Black Magic W    Black Magic W  
 Universo 2000          Jerry Estrada W
 Pierroth Jr. W        Pierroth Jr.  
 Unknown        Pierroth Jr. W  
 Unknown      Unknown    
 Unknown          Pierroth Jr. W
 Unknown          Unknown    
 Unknown        Unknown  
 Unknown      Unknown    
 Unknown    

2013

A picture of Delta sitting on the top rope of a wrestling ring, with Psicosis standing behind him tearing at Delta's mask
Psicosis (behind, in red) and Delta (in front, in white) both competed in the 2013 torneo cibernetico qualifying match.

CMLL held a tournament to determine the next CMLL World Light Heavyweight Champion starting on January 22, 2013, and the finals were held the following week. The first round of the tournament was a 16-man torneo cibernetico elimination match, with the last two men in the match qualifying for the finals the following week on January 29. The torneo featured two teams of eight wrestling against each other; Team A consisted of Delta, El Felino, La Máscara, Mephisto, Mr. Águila, Rey Escorpión, Stuka Jr. and Volador Jr. and Team B consisted of Atlantis, Blue Panther, Diamante, Euforia, Maximo, Morphosis, Psicosis and Sagrado. The match came down to Team A's Rey Escorpión and Volado Jr. versus Team B's Euforia. Escorpión pulled off Volador Jr.'s mask and threw it to rival Euforia, causing Euforia to be disqualified, which meant that Escorpión and Volador Jr. qualified for the finals the following week.[26] On January 29, Escorpión defeated Volador Jr. in the finals to become the 13th overall CMLL World Light Heavyweight champion.[12]

Cibernetico order of elimination[26]
# Eliminated Eliminated by
1 Sagrado Delta
2 El Felino Morphosis
3 Atlantis Rey Escorpión
4 Delta Euforia
5 Mephisto Blue Panther
6 Morphosis Mr. Águila
7 Diamante Stuka Jr.
8 Blue Panther Volador Jr.
9 Mr. Águila Máximo
10 Stuka, Jr. Máximo (double pin)
10 Máximo Stuka (double pin)
12 Psicosis La Máscara
13 La Máscara Volador Jr.
14 Euforia Disqualification
15 Finalist Volador Jr.
15 Finalist Rey Escorpión

Footnotes

  1. ↑ An example of this was Bushi winning the CMLL World Welterweight Championship in a one-fall match on a New Japan Pro Wrestling show.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Duncan, Royal; Will, Gary (2000). "Mexico: CMLL EMLL Light Heavyweight Title". Wrestling Title Histories. Archeus Communications. p. 395. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
  2. 1 2 Salazar, Alexis (April 8, 2016). "Resultados Arena México – Viernes Espectaculares: Viernes 8 de Abril '16". Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (in Spanish). Archived from the original on April 4, 2016. Retrieved April 9, 2016.
  3. ↑ Grabianowski, Ed. "How Pro Wrestling Works". How Stuff Works. Archived from the original on January 1, 1970. Retrieved April 5, 2009.
  4. ↑ Mazer, Sharon (February 1, 1998). Professional Wrestling: Sport and Spectacle. University Press of Mississippi. pp. 18–19. ISBN 1-57806-021-4. Retrieved June 19, 2016. page 18 / page 19
  5. 1 2 3 "Los Reyes de Mexico: La Historia de Los Campeonatos Nacionales". Lucha 2000 (in Spanish). December 20, 2004. Especial 21.
  6. ↑ Duncan, Royal; Will, Gary (2000). "Mexico: National Heavyweight Title". Wrestling Title Histories. Archeus Communications. pp. 390–391. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
  7. ↑ Hornbaker, Tim (2006). "International Expansion". National Wrestling Alliance: The Untold Story of the Monopoly That Strangled Pro Wrestling. ECW Press. p. 305. ISBN 1-55022-741-6.
  8. 1 2 3 4 Madigan, Dan (2007). "Okay ... what is Lucha Libre?". Mondo Lucha A Go-Go: the bizarre & honorable world of wild Mexican wrestling. HarperCollins Publisher. pp. 29–40 and 114–118. ISBN 978-0-06-085583-3.
  9. 1 2 Duncan, Royal; Will, Gary (2000). "Mexico: EMLL CMLL". Wrestling Title Histories. Archeus Communications. pp. 395–410. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
  10. ↑ "1996 Especial!". Box y Lucha Magazine (in Spanish). January 10, 1997. pp. 2–28. issue 2280.
  11. 1 2 "Rush renunció al Campeonato Semicompleto del CMLL". Medio Tiempo (in Spanish). January 16, 2013. Retrieved January 16, 2013.
  12. 1 2 3 Mexicool, Rey (January 29, 2013). "Rey Escorpión ... ¡nuevo monarca mundial semicompleto del CMLL!" (in Spanish). SuperLuchas Magazine. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
  13. ↑ "Lo Mejor de la Lucha Libre Mexicana durante el 2006". SuperLuchas (in Spanish). December 23, 2006. Issue 192. Retrieved July 11, 2009.
  14. ↑ Angelita (November 19, 2014). "CMLL: Conferencia de prensa de Infierno en el Ring" (in Spanish). SuperLuchas Magazine. Retrieved November 19, 2014.
  15. ↑ "SLAM! Wrestling International -- 2000: The Year-In-Review Mexico". Slam Wrestling!. Canoe.ca. Retrieved July 31, 2015.
  16. 1 2 "Reglamento de Box y Lucha Libre Professional del Estado de México" (PDF) (in Spanish). Comisión de Box y Lucha Libre Mexico D.F. August 30, 2001. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 30, 2006. Retrieved April 3, 2009. Articulo 242: "Super medio 92 kilos / Semi Completo 97 kilos"
  17. ↑ "Número Especial – Lo mejor de la lucha ilbre mexicana durante el 2004". SuperLuchas (in Spanish). January 24, 2005. 91.
  18. ↑ Valdés, Apolo (August 2, 2014). "Cayó la cabellera de Princesa Blanca y la máscara de Seductora". MedioTiempo (in Spanish). Retrieved August 2, 2014.
  19. ↑ "Mascara Dorada nuevo campeón mundial histórico NWA peso welter". SuperLuchas.net (in Spanish). SuperLuchas Magazine. June 2, 2013. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  20. ↑ Ocampo, Jorge (September 26, 2004). "Anniversario 71 de CMLL". SuperLuchas (in Spanish). issue 72.
  21. ↑ "Road to Tokyo Dome". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved December 19, 2015.
  22. ↑ Dark Angelita (January 17, 2014). "NJPW/CMLL: Resultados "Fantasticamania 2014" – Día 3 – 17/01/2014". SuperLuchas (in Spanish). Retrieved January 18, 2014.
  23. ↑ Zellner, Kris (January 19, 2014). "Legendary lucha venue closing and more: The Lucha Report". Pro Wrestling Insider. Retrieved January 19, 2014.
  24. ↑ "NJPW Presents CMLL Fantastica Mania 2014". New Japan Pro Wrestling. Retrieved July 16, 2016.
  25. ↑ "1991 Especial!". Box y Lucha Magazine (in Spanish). January 9, 1992. pp. 2–28. issue 2020.
  26. 1 2 "Volador Jr. vs. Rey Escorpión por el Campeonato Mundial Semicompleto del CMLL" (in Spanish). SuperLuchas Magazine. January 22, 2013. Retrieved January 23, 2013.

External links

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