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Carlos Ignacio Carrillo Contreras (November 5, 1940 – March 4, 1994) was a Mexican ''
Luchador Lucha libre (, meaning "freestyle wrestling" or literally translated as "free fight") is the term used in Latin America for professional wrestling. Since its introduction to Mexico in the early 20th century, it has developed into a unique form ...
'', or
professional wrestler Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...
, known under the
ring name A ring name is a type of stage name used by an athlete such as a professional wrestler, mixed martial artist, or boxer whose real name is considered unattractive, dull, difficult to pronounce or spell, amusing for the wrong reasons, or projecting ...
Aníbal. Carrillo made his debut in November 1963, and adopted the '' enmascarado'' character (masked) Aníbal, named after the Carthaginian general Hanibal, in 1965. Carrilo's career peaked in the late 1960s and the 1970s as he worked for
Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre Co., Ltd. (CMLL; , "World Wrestling Council") is a ''lucha libre'' professional wrestling promotion based in Mexico City. The promotion was previously known as ''Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre'' (''EMLL'') (''Mexi ...
and the
Universal Wrestling Association The Universal Wrestling Association (UWA) was a Mexican ''Lucha Libre'' or professional wrestling promotion based in Naucalpan, Mexico State that operated from 1975 until 1995. The name of the actual promotion was Lucha Libre Internacional (LLI) ...
, winning a number of championships. Carrillo was unmasked after losing a '' Lucha de Apuesta'' (bet fight) to
Máscara Año 2000 Jesús Reyes González (born 10 March 1958) is a Mexican ''Luchador'', or professional wrestler, best known under the ring name Máscara Año 2000 or Máscara Año Dos Mil. His ring name is Spanish for "Mask of the year 2000", originally referri ...
on December 13, 1991. Carrillo retired from wrestling in 1993 and died from a
brain tumor A brain tumor occurs when abnormal cells form within the brain. There are two main types of tumors: malignant tumors and benign (non-cancerous) tumors. These can be further classified as primary tumors, which start within the brain, and seconda ...
in 1994. El Hijo de Aníbal (
Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...
for "the Son of Aníbal") is billed as Aníbal's son, but it has never been confirmed if he is indeed the son of Carrillo or if he paid for the rights to use the name, a practice not uncommon in Lucha Libre.


Professional wrestling career

Carrillo began training for a professional wrestling career at the age of 20, training in Gimnasio Baños Gloria and at the Gimnasio San Francisco de Portales under the tutelage of Chico Fernández and Salvador Flores. He made his professional wrestling debut in November 1963 and earned 40 pesos for the match. After wrestling for two years Carrillo was convinced by friends in the business that he needed to become an '' enmascarado'', or masked wrestler, since young wrestlers who were popular wore masks. Carrillo came up with the name "Aníbal", after the Cartagenia general Hanibal who had crossed the alps and almost defeated the
Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediterr ...
. Carrillo was given a blue mask, trunks and boots and became the highflying ''tecnico'' ("good guy" or
Face The face is the front of an animal's head that features the eyes, nose and mouth, and through which animals express many of their emotions. The face is crucial for human identity, and damage such as scarring or developmental deformities may aff ...
), quickly earning the nicknames ''El Guerrero Cartaginés'' ("The Carthagenian Warrior") and ''La Saeta Azul'' ("The Blue Arrow"); later he was also referred to as ''La Furia Azul ("The Blue Fury") During his early days as Aníbal
Mil Mascaras Mil, mil, or MIL may refer to: Places * Mil, Syria, a village in Syria * Mil, Azerbaijan, a municipality in Beylagan Rayon * Mil, Markazi, a village in Markazi Province, Iran * Metropolitan area of Milan ( IATA code: MIL), Italy * Mill Hill Broa ...
and Black Shadow acted as his ''padrinos'' or mentors. In 1966 Aníbal won the Distrito Federal Light Heavyweight Championship, then lost it to
Pepe Casas Pepe is a pet form of the Spanish name José (Josep). It is also a surname. * People Mononyms *Pepe (footballer, born 1935), real name José Macia, Brazilian footballer *Pepe (footballer, born 1983), real name Képler Laveran Lima Ferreira, ...
as he signed a contract with
Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre Co., Ltd. (CMLL; , "World Wrestling Council") is a ''lucha libre'' professional wrestling promotion based in Mexico City. The promotion was previously known as ''Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre'' (''EMLL'') (''Mexi ...
(EMLL). He spent the next couple of years working his way up the ranks in EMLL, honing his high flying skills into a top level competitor. 1970 was Aníbal's breakthrough year. He defeated Mashio Koma to win the
NWA World Middleweight Championship The NWA World Middleweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) between 1939 and 2010. For most of its existence, it was defended in the Mexican '' lucha libre'' promotion Consejo Mundial ...
on December 6, 1970, and was named ''El Halcón'' Magazine's "1970 Wrestler of the year". Aníbal's run with the NWA Middleweight title lasted over a year and saw him successfully defend the title in several high-profile main events. During his title reign Aníbal developed a heated rivalry with
René Guajardo Manuel Guajardo Mejorado (January 4, 1933 – May 11, 1992), better known as René Guajardo, was a Mexican professional wrestler. Professional wrestling career René Guajardo was born in Villa Mainero, Tamaulipas, Mexico. At the age of 16, Gua ...
, a rivalry that saw the two face off in several main events all around Mexico. On March 30, 1973, Guajardo ended Aníbal's NWA Middleweight title reign. On June 28, 1974, Aníbal defeated
Adorable Rubí Ruben Carbajal Lopez (December 31, 1931 – June 23, 2012) was a Mexican ''Luchador'', or professional wrestler who is best known under the ring names Adorable Rubí and Rubi Rubalcava / Rubi Rubalcaba. As Adorable Rubí he was one of the pioneer ...
to win the
Mexican National Middleweight Championship The Mexican National Middleweight Championship ''()'' is a championship (professional wrestling), professional wrestling championship controlled by the ' (Mexico City Boxing and Wrestling Commission). The official weight definition of the Professi ...
in the main event of a show in Mexico City, Mexico. On September 20, Aníbal became a double champion, defeating
El Cobarde Miguel Ángel Delgado Reyes (August 28, 1947 – February 7, 1983) was a Mexican ''Luchador'', or professional wrestler that wrestled under the ring name ''El Cobarde'' (Spanish for "The Coward"). Delgado was born and died in Ciudad Juarez. Pers ...
in a match for the vacant NWA World Middleweight Champiohship. Aníbals run as a double champion ended when he lost the Mexican National Middleweight Title on November 29, 1974, to
Ringo Mendoza Genaro Jacobo Contreras is a retired Mexican professional wrestler, or ''Luchador'' in Spanish, and is a professional wrestling trainer for Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL). Contreras is best known under the ring name Ringo Mendoza, which he ...
. His success in the ring saw him named "Wrestler of the year" in 1974. In May 1975, Francisco Flores and
Ray Mendoza José Díaz Velázquez (July 6, 1929 – April 16, 2003) was a Mexican ''Luchador'', or professional wrestler, better known under his ring name Ray Mendoza. Diaz had great success in the National Wrestling Alliance, where he was a five time Wor ...
left EMLL to form a rival wrestling promotion called the
Universal Wrestling Association The Universal Wrestling Association (UWA) was a Mexican ''Lucha Libre'' or professional wrestling promotion based in Naucalpan, Mexico State that operated from 1975 until 1995. The name of the actual promotion was Lucha Libre Internacional (LLI) ...
(UWA). Aníbal was among the group of young wrestlers that left EMLL to join the UWA, vacating the NWA World Middleweight Championship in the process. In the UWA Aníbal continued his rivalry with René Guajardo, losing to Guajardo in the finals of the tournament to crown the first UWA World Middleweight Champion. It was not until 1977 that Aníbal was able to win the UWA Middleweight title as he defeated Guajardo on October 2, 1977. He retained the championship until February 11, 1979, when Jungla Negra pinned him to win the title. By the early 1980s Aníbal's popularly was still high, especially as he teamed with
Villano III Arturo Díaz Mendoza (March 23, 1952 – August 21, 2018) was a Mexican professional wrestler who performed under the ring name Villano III (in Spanish Villano Tercero). Díaz was a second-generation wrestler, son of ''luchador'' Ray Mendoza an ...
and
El Solitario Roberto González Cruz (May 22, 1946 – April 6, 1986) was a Mexican professional wrestler who wrestled under the name El Solitario. During his career he held both the NWA World Light Heavyweight Championship and the NWA World Middleweight Cham ...
to form a trio called ''Los Tres Caballeros'' ("The three gentlemen"). The trio feuded extensively with ''La Ola Blanca''
Dr. Wagner Manuel González Rivera (April 13, 1936 – September 12, 2004) was a Mexican professional wrestler, or ''Luchador'' best known under the ring name Dr. Wagner. González made his professional wrestling debut in 1961 and worked the majority of ...
and
Ángel Blanco José Ángel Vargas Sánchez (August 2, 1938 – April 26, 1986) was a Mexican ''Luchador'' or professional wrestler best known under the ring name ''Angel Blanco''. Vargas is the father-in-law of the first Ángel Blanco Jr. and the father of th ...
until Aníbal turned against his partners and El Solitario ended up teaming up with Dr. Wagner. This was the first time in his career that Aníbal had worked as a ''rudo'' ("bad guy" or
Heel The heel is the prominence at the posterior end of the foot. It is based on the projection of one bone, the calcaneus or heel bone, behind the articulation of the bones of the lower Human leg, leg. Structure To distribute the compressive for ...
character) in his career. Aníbal had a series of very intense, very bloody matches against El Solitario in a storyline that drew full houses whenever it was on the card and that was headed for a very high-profile '' Lucha de Apuesta'' (Bet match) between the two with their masks on the line. Before the two could face off in the ''Apuesta'' match Solitario died suddenly. Following the abrupt ending to the storyline with El Solitario Aníbal defeated
El Texano Juan Conrado Aguilar Jáuregui (November 26, 1958 – January 15, 2006), better known by his ring name El Texano, was a Mexican ''Lucha libre, Luchador'', or Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. From the early 1970s to the early 2000s, ...
to win the vacant
UWA World Junior Light Heavyweight Championship The UWA World Junior Light Heavyweight Championship (''Campeonato Mundia de Peso Semicompleto Junior UWA'' in Spanish) is a professional wrestling championship that was originally promoted by the Mexican lucha libre professional wrestling) promot ...
. Aníbal travelled to
Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...
to take part in WWC's 11th Anniversary celebrations. On September 15, 1984, he lost the UWA WOrld Junior Light Heavyweight Championship to
Invader III ''InVader'' is the fourth album by Finnish glam metal band Reckless Love, released on 4 March 2016 through Spinefarm Records. Track listing All songs written by Olli Herman, Pepe Reckless, and Ikka Wirtanen, unless otherwise noted. Reception Wr ...
, but would regain it not long afterward. During his time in Puerto Rico Aníbal also won the
WWC World Junior Heavyweight Championship The WWC Junior Heavyweight Championship is a Championship (professional wrestling), championship contested for in the Puerto Rico, Puerto Rican professional wrestling Professional wrestling promotion, promotion, the World Wrestling Council. While ...
. On January 1, 1985, Aníbal lost the UWA World Junior Light Heavyweight title to
Negro Navarro Negro Navarro (born June 12, 1957) is the ring name of Miguel Calderón Navarro, a Mexican ''luchador'', or professional wrestler. Navarro works as a Freelancer on the Mexican independent circuit as well as making regular appearances for Inter ...
and then disappeared from the wrestling scene. The years of working full-time had taken its toll on Carrillo's body, forcing him out of the ring due to a multitude of injuries.


Mask loss and retirement

Carrillo returned in late 1990 and began working for
Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre Co., Ltd. (CMLL; , "World Wrestling Council") is a ''lucha libre'' professional wrestling promotion based in Mexico City. The promotion was previously known as ''Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre'' (''EMLL'') (''Mexi ...
(CMLL; the renamed EMLL). The years away from the ring and cumulative injuries had taken its toll as he was not nearly as mobile as before but still commanded respect due to his history. Carrillo returned to wrestling to get a big payday for losing his mask in an ''Apuesta'' match as he needed the money. The original plan was for Aníbal to lose his mask to
Universo 2000 Andrés Reyes González (April 18, 1963 – May 1, 2018) was a Mexican professional wrestler, or luchador, who was best known under the ring name Universo 2000. Reyes made his professional wrestling debut in 1985 and worked for Consejo Mundial de ...
, a wrestler CMLL was building up to be a main eventer, in the featured match of the 1991 '' Juicio Final'' ("Final Justice"). Those plans were changed when promoter Benjamin Mora, who was bitter at CMLL for not working with him, revealed several of CMLL's plans including who was going to unmask Aníbal. CMLL decided to change their plans and in the end it was
Máscara Año 2000 Jesús Reyes González (born 10 March 1958) is a Mexican ''Luchador'', or professional wrestler, best known under the ring name Máscara Año 2000 or Máscara Año Dos Mil. His ring name is Spanish for "Mask of the year 2000", originally referri ...
, Universo 2000's brother that unmasked Aníbal on December 13, 1991. Not long after the mask loss Carillo retired, but returned in 1993 to wrestle a series of matches because he needed the money. By the end of 1993 Carrillo was in such poor physical shape he was forced to retire from wrestling for good. Om October 24, 1993, Carrillo was on hand as El Hijo del Aníbal ("The son of Aníbal") made his professional wrestling debut. It has never been confirmed if El Hijo del Aníbal is indeed the son of Carrillo or if he paid for the rights to use the name, a practice not uncommon in Lucha Libre.


Death

Carlos Carrillo died on March 4, 1994, from a
brain tumor A brain tumor occurs when abnormal cells form within the brain. There are two main types of tumors: malignant tumors and benign (non-cancerous) tumors. These can be further classified as primary tumors, which start within the brain, and seconda ...
. El Hijo de Aníbal died at 50 on January 23, 2021, from complications of COVID-19.


Championships and accomplishments

*Comisión de Box y Lucha Libre Mexico D.F. **Distrito Federal Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time) *
Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre Co., Ltd. (CMLL; , "World Wrestling Council") is a ''lucha libre'' professional wrestling promotion based in Mexico City. The promotion was previously known as ''Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre'' (''EMLL'') (''Mexi ...
**
Mexican National Middleweight Championship The Mexican National Middleweight Championship ''()'' is a championship (professional wrestling), professional wrestling championship controlled by the ' (Mexico City Boxing and Wrestling Commission). The official weight definition of the Professi ...
( 1 time) **
NWA World Middleweight Championship The NWA World Middleweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) between 1939 and 2010. For most of its existence, it was defended in the Mexican '' lucha libre'' promotion Consejo Mundial ...
(
2 times "2 Times" is a song co-written and recorded by British Italian-based singer Ann Lee. It was released in 1999 as the lead single from her debut album, ''Dreams'' (1999). The single entered and peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart. Outside ...
) *El Halcón Magazine **Wrestler of the year: 1970, 1974 *
Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Cos ...
**European Middleweight Championship (1 time) *
Universal Wrestling Association The Universal Wrestling Association (UWA) was a Mexican ''Lucha Libre'' or professional wrestling promotion based in Naucalpan, Mexico State that operated from 1975 until 1995. The name of the actual promotion was Lucha Libre Internacional (LLI) ...
**
UWA World Junior Light Heavyweight Championship The UWA World Junior Light Heavyweight Championship (''Campeonato Mundia de Peso Semicompleto Junior UWA'' in Spanish) is a professional wrestling championship that was originally promoted by the Mexican lucha libre professional wrestling) promot ...
(
2 times "2 Times" is a song co-written and recorded by British Italian-based singer Ann Lee. It was released in 1999 as the lead single from her debut album, ''Dreams'' (1999). The single entered and peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart. Outside ...
) **
UWA World Middleweight Championship The UWA World Middleweight Championship (''Campeonato Mundial de Peso Medio UWA'' in Spanish) is a professional wrestling championship originally created and sanctioned by the Mexican lucha libre promotion Universal Wrestling Association (UWA) fro ...
( 1 time) *
World Wrestling Council The World Wrestling Council (WWC) (Spanish: "Consejo Mundial de Lucha"), is a Puerto-Rican professional wrestling promotion based in Puerto Rico. It was originally established as Capitol Sports Promotions in 1973 by Carlos Colón Sr., Victor J ...
**
WWC World Junior Heavyweight Championship The WWC Junior Heavyweight Championship is a Championship (professional wrestling), championship contested for in the Puerto Rico, Puerto Rican professional wrestling Professional wrestling promotion, promotion, the World Wrestling Council. While ...
( 1 time)


''Luchas de Apuestas'' record


Footnotes


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Anibal 1940 births 1994 deaths 20th-century professional wrestlers Deaths from brain cancer in Mexico Masked wrestlers Mexican male professional wrestlers Professional wrestlers from Michoacán Mexican National Middleweight Champions NWA World Middleweight Champions UWA World Junior Light Heavyweight Champions UWA World Middleweight Champions