Our cover story features our cover man Rey Misterio Jr who has returned to wrestle in Mexico City after an extended absence due to WCW commitments (+ WCW money). Very favorable coverage to him as a conquering hero.
I never really paid attention to whatever these were. They were available from Day 1 in every SuperLuchas magazine. They're coupons for live shows. Varying from free entry to two kids enter free to a discount in the gradas, etc etc etc This is pretty good incentive to buy the magazine, no? For $2/$3 you not only get the actual magazine but (assuming all these coupons were legit) get discounts or freebies to attend many different shows. Neat idea.
Rey Jr made his return @ Arena Naucalpan on July 4. It also winds up being his final match ever in Arena Naucalpan. I'm going out on a limb & saying he will not swing through IWRG on a retirement tour this year or next. They end up doing a worked injury where he gets carried out, I think to set up his title match with Psicosis which we'll get to in a bit. Konnan/Vampiro is the main event storyline here as they keep having problems. You'll be shocked to know this ends up going absolutely nowhere, like most things in Promo Azteca at this time (or any). It's noted underneath that Damian 666 (who interfered in matches all night long) replaced Skandalo in the segunda. Yes, that is the same Skandalo who to this day works for CMLL. I'm so confused why he was hanging out in PROMELL/Promo Azteca considering he had powerful CMLL connections. So much so that one little known thing is he was actually shipped to New Japan in 1994/1995 to train in their dojo. Could it be that family was trying to make him earn his stripes? Not a chance. There has to be more to the story.
All names get reycled, case in point. No idea who this was. SuperLuchas was one of those magazines where you could pay to get a bio done in the hopes being in the magazine would make you seem like a big deal & promoters would reach out to SL asking how can we book this guy on our show. Depending on the price, not the worst idea.
When I got my first four issues of SuperLuchas from Mr. Highspots himself, I was in love immediately. All these photos of colorful people I didn't know. I ended up having my mom photocopy some images from those magazines so I could put the pictures up on my wall without having to cut them out of the magazine itself. I never had this issue but these definitely would have been two images I had up in my room at the time. Imagine knowing very little about lucha libre & seeing that photo of Histeria. How could you NOT want to learn more??? Years later that Histeria mask would turn into a big seller to any and all independent wrestlers through Highspots.
A turbutlent week in lucha libre! Every time I read something like this my brain goes to how would Cubs have covered this era of lucha where things were changing daily, sometimes multiple times daily. You'd have to do a morning & night update to keep track of things. Am I that old where nobody will get that bit? (He used to do multiple daily updates) Yes, yes I am. Anyways this is all about the jumps going. We have Blue Panther who one day was helping produce (book) the Promo Azteca show, to the next morning announcing he has signed with AAA. The person writing this article (takes 5 guesses, you only need one) is kind to him saying they understand why he made the decision. There's an implication lots of money was promised. What is actually happening here is a new group called Top Win has formed. Our first official attempt at re-starting the dead UWA. They even run shows out of El Toreo. They had a money backer because they get some names on board & even pay for Gran Markus Jr to lose his mask in a couple weeks. They are also working closely with AAA so anyone who wants that Top Win money also has to work shots for AAA. So around this time is when Blue Panther shows up on TV (unmasked!!!) & begins his feud with Mascara Sagrada Jr that was not very good. He's gone by September. So much for "signing". I think a lot of people who don't understand how lucha libre works would be shocked to find out how little "signing" is actually going on when people claim they are "signed" somewhere. Anyways, that Top Win money dries up faster than you can say Canek is a pendejo & all these people who never wanted to be in AAA in the first place (Dos Caras, Blue Panther, Gran Markus Jr., Tinieblas, Canek, etc) all bolt immediately. It wasn't Canek's fault. Don't report on LUCHABLOG DOT COM it was Canek's fault. Meanwhile there are rumors circulating that Fuerza Guerrera is Promo Azteca bound. The fact this even hit the magazine tells me they thought it was a done deal & were trying to have the exclusive. He ends up backing out or Pena ends up giving him more money to stay because no jump actually happens. He's with AAA for close to another year. Finally we have Black Warrior who had TWO rumored jumps, one in 1996 & one in 1997. Plus a fake jump AAA tried to pull off in 1996! Anyways, this time he confirms he has made the decision to leave CMLL for real. Third time is a charm, it's noted. He will be starting next week & it's basically stated he made this decision in the hopes of winding up working for an American company (WCW). SuperLuchas did this a lot. There's an issue I read recently where they basically make a public pitch for Felino to leave CMLL because there's a job waiting in WCW. Felino actually asks Paco Alonso if he can work both companies since they have a very light working agreement (on non-TV shows). Alonso says no. Then he asks if he can leave, Alonso says no. Sucks to be Felino. Black Warrior ends up getting one WCW tryout match. A trios dark match which would be awesome to show up on WWE Vault one day but I have no idea what would inspire them to dig that one up. It was the same match where Pantera worked even though he was unknowingly under contract to WWF at the time. Oh, Victor. Warrior does not get hired by WCW and seeing as that was the only reason he made the jump, he immediately returns to ask forgiveness from Paco Alonso & resumes his role in CMLL as if he never left. I fuckin love lucha libre politics at this time. You could go from "HE'S DEAD TO ME!" to "He's a great addition to our roster, I've always liked his work" in the span of days. It was mostly a dick measuring contest to see who could lure who + a test to see which wrestlers would fall for false promises people like Konnan, Pena & whoever ran Top Win were making.
The *SECOND* Sagrado in CMLL. The first was around in 1994, it was ex-UWA wrestler Lasser. This is a very young Axxel aka nephew of El Santo. He was still on good terms with Hijo Del Santo at this time so he would get to second him in matches & he ends up working a CMLL TV in 1998. They realized very quickly he's not very good & sent him packing. That's where his falling out with Hijo Del Santo begins because he jumps to AAA... unmasked. Pena cast him as a pretty boy type & as a shot at Santo made him introduce himself as "Axxel, El Nieto Del Santo". If Axxel had just been a good boy I'm sure his career would have gone much differently. Hijo Del Santo would have surely taken him all over the world.
AAA had their show scheduled for 7/6 @ El Toreo postponed due to electrical work being done. This is not some bullshit. El Toreo is back running the following Sunday with a Top Win show which ends up being the last AAA/Top Win joint show. It bombs. Weeks later Top Win is working with CMLL for two shows that also bomb & that's the end of that. Back to Arena Neza for you Canek. A sad way for El Toreo to go out. Thankfully AAA returns there in later years & brought som respectibility back to the building Canek destroyed. There's also a note that 'Verano De Escandalo' is coming soon in Zapopan. Not quite. It happens in September but in Tonala. Same state, so I'll give you credit anyways Maria.
On the AAA 7/4 taping in Zacatecas a new Payaso showed up - Coco Blanco. Strangely I remember him as Coco Negro but alright. They also had a new manager with them who gets an official name here - Globito. Funny bit "if three of them were intolerable, imagine now with four!" Well you don't have to worry about that. This new clown disappears although by 1998 they are back to having four.
Venum has returned from Japan where he got rave reviews, as is Heavy Metal. Abismo Negro, Ludxor & Discovery are scheduled to go later this year. Not so fast. Venum/Heavy Metal were on tour doing shows for a W*ING restart run by Jason The Terrible. Those shows bombed so bad that no video of them even exists. I only confirmed they actually happened a few months back when I was sent photos. Up until then I thought this was a fantasy tour. So unfortauntely for those other guys, there is no Japan tour in their future at this point in time. It's also noted that Hugo Medina has taken Raul 'Copetes' Salazar place as coordinator of AAA shows. Salazar has been promoted to the programacion (booking) side of things. A spot he would keep for quite a while & allowed him some wonderful perks I hear!
Sergio Galvez & Joe Panther are your UWA Tag Team Champions! Who? Not even SuperLuchas knows! But apparently they won the belts in May. I believe these guys are from Guatemala & the Rayos Tapatios went down there to lose the belts in exchange for money. It's part of the complicated history of these title belts. Then we have a cryptic line about some UWA "stars" ready to have an opportunity in AAA. I think everyone knew Top Win was in trouble already (it has only been two fucking shows!). A note about Kennich being retired, living in the US, working as quality control in a fabric factory. Good for him! Disgraced ex luchador union boss Manny Guzman is now working as the matchmaker in Arena Neza on the Sunday shows. He's also begun training young wrestlers.
The last ever Rey Misterio Jr vs Psicosis match in the Mexico City area. Held at the Plaza De Toros El Cortijo on Wednesday, July 9/1997. The write-up lists the match as for the "IWAS Welterweight Title. LuchaDB has it for the Mexican National Welterweight Title (can't be). These guys often traded the WWA Welterweight Title but it's definitely not that. So we're going with the IWAS one. It's hard to tell from the photo but it looks like one of those IWAS belts Ron Skoler had made up when he was working with AAA & Pena/Konnan ended up stealing. I think they had two physical belts that were used as tag titles & any time they needed a singles version. This may be the last time this title is ever seen. Hopefully they shipped it back to Ron. Juvy costs Rey the title here, which was set up with him being taken out in Naucalpan. I assume they didn't clear of any of this with WCW. Fine by me. Would have loved to have seen this match but this was just a spot shot - no TV Azteca cameras present. It had to be done here - most of these guys were never available when Promo Azteca filmed TV because they had WCW commitments. I've always heard great things about the old Cortijo venue being a great place for live lucha libre. Also on this show Hector Garza falls off the ropes & has to leave the main event due to it. He's said to be fine afterwards. His knee injury taking him off WCW TV doesn't come too long later. Hopefully Uncle Eric isn't reading this.
Two AAA TV tapings coming up this week. Remember when AAA taped more than one show per month??? You can see the full name of participants in the yearly Torneo Novato Del Ano which we never had before. Cuervo would become a big part of AAA. Winners II as well, he took over the Abismo Negro role when the original Abismo had to go to rehab. Flying disappeared into a thin air. Nobody has ever been able to explain what happened to him. In the limited footage we have he was just unbelievable. Should have been star. So much so that his introduction article in SuperLuchas says he's the next Rey Misterio Jr... have you heard such a thing??? No idea on Capitan Acero or Renegado. R-15 winds up in AAA the next year as part of the Armas Mortales group with Cuerno De Chivo & M-357. Aracnofobia also joins AAA later this year as part of their nuevo valores. Kick Boxer has been with AAA since Day 1 so he's the ringer in this block. In Queretaro we have Quarterback who is roughly two months away from becoming the new Histeria. No idea on Vudu, might be the same one who pops up in 1999. Dick Angelo Jr gets one TV match with Flying in September & is never heard from again. Kato Kung Lee Jr stinks. Hong Kong Lee is just as bad. Hit Guzman is Kid Guzman who leaves for the CMLL school soon after this, has success in Japan, eventually gets re-gimmicked into CMLL's new Tigre Blanco. Ends up as a National Welterweight champions, wins a mask or two (Super Cacao aka Nozawa) & eventually loses his own mask in 2012 or 2013 at Arena Mexico. So I'd say he did well! Guerrero 2000 ends up as part of the 1997 Nuevo Valores here. I liked his work but he also disappears into this air. Babe Star may or may not be the future Star Boy in IWRG aka Star Jr's father. The luchador sorpresa in Pachuca ends up being Sexy Piscis as Pena is doing an early version of Los Vatos Locos here with the matching facepaint looks. Negro Navarro does not show up in Queretaro. Another guy who was here just for the Top Win money, he must have realized something was up before anyone else & bailed before having to lower himself to work for AAA. El Sanguinario takes his place. Sergio Romo Jr is on that show as well so Pena was flying guys in from Monterrey as regular roster members. Interesting. The minis matches are to build to Octagoncito vs Espectrito II in a mask match on the big Madero show to end the month which Octagoncito wins.
Here's a look at what Arena Mexico & Arena Naucalpan were up to this week in time. Quiet over at Arena Mexico. Nobody knew at the time but that is Mr. Aguila's farewell Friday match. He works Coliseo on Sunday & has already decided he's out the door off to Promo Azteca looking for WCW work. What ends up happening is things are moving very fast at this point when it comes to WWF/WCW fighting over Mexican talent so Victor gets Aguila into WWF instead. I'm shocked CMLL was so open to bringing Aguila back a year later. I know it was mainly to take his mask off but this was their big teenage project. Plucked him out of Guadalajara before he was ready, gave him the big young star push at Arena Mexico over the summer, were building to him definitely winning some veteran rudo's hair whether it be Mogur or Guerrero De La Muerte, then he just bolts out of nowhere with no warning. He's lucky it happened in a time frame when that was very common. He probably flew under the radar. It also helped that Victor is back working with CMLL a year later by the time Aguila is asking to return. Over in Naucalpan the 3 week long tournament to crown the first IWRG Intercontinental Middleweight Champions has hit the semi-finals. A few future Toryumon wrestlers participated in this one. Pantera/Tony Rivera end up advancing. You can see Magnum Tokyo slumming it in a segunda here with Tiburon (Ciclon Ramirez).
Back cover has more praise for the best Mexico export to the US since Mil Mascaras.
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