José Luis Alvarado Nieves (March 19, 1963 – July 26, 2021) was a Mexican luchador best 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 projectin ...

Brazo de Plata, a name he had used since his debut in 1977. He is also well known for his appearances in WWE as Super Porky. Alvarado was a member of the

Alvarado wrestling family The Alvarado wrestling family, also referred to as ''La Dinastia Alvarado'' ("The Alvarado Dynasty") in Spanish, is a Mexico City based family of professional wrestlers. The family works primarily in Mexico but have made appearances in the United S ...

which includes his father Shadito Cruz, five brothers who used the "Brazo" name at some point and several third-generation wrestlers who have appeared over the last couple of years.

Professional wrestling career

Early career (1977–1988)

Alvarado made his debut as "Brazo De Plata" (

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, Ca ...

for "Silver arm"), an Enmascarado (masked wrestler) who worked mainly in

tag team match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

es with his brother who worked as Brazo de Oro ("Gold arm") and in trios action with another brother known simply as El Brazo ("the arm"). Los Brazos, as they were billed, wrestled all over Mexico and made appearances for the

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

based NWA Hollywood Wrestling. While working for NWA Hollywood Wrestling, Plata and Oro won the

NWA Americas Tag Team Championship The NWA Americas Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling tag team title in the National Wrestling Alliance's NWA Hollywood Wrestling based out of Los Angeles, California. The championship began as the WWA World Tag Team Championship ...

from Chino Chou and the Kiss on November 7, 1981. The brothers were also last holders of the Los Angeles version of the

NWA World Tag Team Championship The NWA World Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship created by the National Wrestling Alliance. From 1948 to 1982, the NWA allowed member promotions to create their own territorial version of the "NWA Worl ...

in 1982.

Losing the masks (1988–1990)

Over the years Brazo de Plata and his brothers competed in a large number of

Luchas de Apuestas 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 ...

("Bet fights") where they put their masks or hair on the line against their opponents. Los Brazos' most famous Luchas de Apuestas occurred on October 21, 1988, when Brazo de Plata, Brazo de Oro, and El Brazo all placed their masks on the line in a match against another well known Lucha libre family, Los Villanos, in this case Villano I, Villano IV and Villano V. The match was the culmination of a long feud (storyline) between the two families and saw all six wrestlers bleed profusely during the bout. In the end Los Villanos won the match, forcing all three Brazos to unmask and reveal their real names as is tradition in these types of matches. Despite losing their masks Los Brazos remained successful in the ring, winning various tag team and trios titles, such as the UWA World Tag Team Championship, UWA World Trios Championship, WWA World Tag Team Championship and the WWA World Trios Championship.

Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (1985–2005)

Alvarado debuted 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) in 1985. By the 1990s Los Brazos worked primarily for CMLL, where Plato, Oro and El Brazo won the

CMLL World Trios Championship The CMLL World Trios Championship (Spanish: "''Campeonato Mundial de Trios''") is a professional wrestling championship promoted by Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) in Mexico. The title has existed since 1991 and is contested for by teams ...

from ''

Los Infernales ''Los Infernales'' ( Spanish for "the Infernals") is a Mexican professional wrestling group, called a stable. The stable was created in 1984 and consisted of El Satánico, MS-1 and Espectro Jr. A later version where Pirata Morgan replaced Esp ...

'' ( Pirata Morgan, Satánico and MS-1) on April 6, 1993. Los Brazos lost the titles to Dr. Wagner Jr.,

Gran Markus Jr. Cándido Robles Cruz (born August 14, 1953) is a retired Mexican '' Luchador'', or professional wrestler. Cruz is best known under the ring name Gran Markus Jr. and for his work in the Mexican professional wrestling promotion Consejo Mundial de Lu ...

and

El Hijo del Gladiador Arturo Beristain (born September 5, 1949) is a retired Mexican professional wrestler, or ''Luchador'' in Spanish, who works as a wrestling trainer at the Mexican professional wrestling promotion Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre's (CMLL) gym in Mexic ...

. 1993 also saw Brazo de Plata get the biggest singles win of his career as he defeated

Black Magic Black magic, also known as dark magic, has traditionally referred to the use of supernatural powers or magic for evil and selfish purposes, specifically the seven magical arts prohibited by canon law, as expounded by Johannes Hartlieb in 1 ...

for the

CMLL World Heavyweight Championship The CMLL World Heavyweight Championship ( es, Campeonato Mundial de Peso Completo del CMLL) is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship established in 1991 and promoted by Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL). CMLL introduced the ...

, a title he would hold over a year. As the years wore on and Brazo de Plata's waistline expanded he found himself working a more comedic style, often seen as a specialty act. During this time period he was nicknamed "Super Porky" in reference to his weight gain, a nickname Brazo de Plata seemed to embrace.

World Wrestling Entertainment

Juniors division (2005–2006)

Plata was hired by

World Wrestling Entertainment World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and va ...

(WWE) in 2005 as part of the SmackDown!

brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create a ...

's short-lived Juniors Division. Plata was billed as "Super Porky" and paired up with the minis of the Juniors division. Brazo de Plata's appearances played for comedy and no real in-ring appearances came of it before the entire Juniors division concept was ended in March 2006 and all the workers in the division were released.

Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (2006–2009)

After having worked for many years for CMLL Brazo de Plata jumped to its rival promotion

Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide Antonio Peña Promotions, S.A. de C.V. doing business as, d/b/a Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide is a Mexican Lucha Libre (professional wrestling) professional wrestling promotion, promotion based in Mexico City, Mexico. Commonly referred to as simply ...

(AAA) making one of his first appearances at AAA's annual Verano de Escandalo show. Almost from the start Brazo de Plata began working a storyline with "Los Guapos VIP" a stable of wrestlers obsessed with their good looks, the polar opposite of the fun loving, overweight Brazo de Plata. At Verano de Escándalo, Brazo de Plata, Intocable, El Oriental and El Zorro lost to the team of Alan Stone, Hator, Scorpio Jr., and Zumbido. At the following featured show, Guerrera de Titanes 2006, Brazo de Plata had his hair shaved off as he lost a Dog collar chain match to Alan Stone and Scorpio Jr. The storyline with Los Guapos VIP continued throughout 2007 and into 2008 where it saw a surprising turn. Brazo de Plata's brother El Brazo jumped to AAA and attacked his own brother, taking the (storyline) control of the Los Guapos VIP group. The storyline fight of the two brothers came to a crescendo at Guerrera de Titanes 2008, where they faced off in a steel cage match where the loser would have his hair shaved off. El Brazo lost and had his hair shaved to put at least a temporary end to the storyline. He left AAA in March 2009, with his last appearance being March 15 at the

Plaza Nuevo Progreso The Plaza de toros Nuevo Progreso is a bullring in the Mexican city of Guadalajara, Jalisco. It is currently used for bull fighting and also for hosting musical events, and professional wrestling events. The bullring holds 16,561 people and wa ...

Guadalajara, Jalisco Guadalajara ( , ) is a metropolis in western Mexico and the capital of the state of Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population of 1,385,629 people, making it the 7th largest city by population in Mexico, while the Guadala ...

, losing to La Parka in a semi-final of the Reyes de Reyes Tournament, also featuring

Escoria José Ibarra is a Mexican Luchador ( wrestler) who is best known as Escoria / Dark Escoria ( Spanish for "Dreg"), a face character that works for Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA). Ibarra has been part of The Black Family since it was formed, but ...

and Kenzo Suzuki.

Later Career (2009–2016)

After leaving AAA, Plata began working independent dates throughout the country as well as wrestling regularly for the

International Wrestling Revolution Group International Wrestling Revolution Group (Grupo Internacional Revolución in Spanish; the Spanish name is used for the promotion while the English initials are used for the title governing body) is a Lucha Libre promotion based in Naucalpan, Stat ...

(IWRG), ''

Perros del Mal Producciones Perros del Mal Producciones ( Spanish for "Evil Dogs Productions"), often referred to as just 'Perros del Mal', was a Mexican professional wrestling promotion founded in October 2007 by Perro Aguayo, Jr. when he left Consejo Mundial de Lucha Lib ...

'' (PdM), and his former home promotion CMLL. He wrestled his last match in 2016.

Death

On July 26, 2021, Nieves died at the age of 58; his cause of death was a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which m ...

. According to his son, wrestler

Psycho Clown Psycho Clown (born December 16, 1985) is the ring name of a Mexican '' Luchador'' '' enmascarado'', or masked professional wrestler currently signed to Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA). Psycho Clown's ring character is that of a nightmarish clown a ...

, his father's girlfriend called him to tell him he was not breathing. Psycho Clown arrived at his father's house and performed CPR, to no success.

Alvarado family

The Alvarado wrestling family spans three generations starting with Shadito Cruz followed by his 6 sons and a third-generation who have begun wrestling in recent years. José Alvarado has 5 children who have all followed in his footsteps, his sons José (working as Máximo),

and Magia Jr. and his two daughters Danah and Gloria Alvarado Nava, who wrestles as Goya Kong. † = deceased

Championships and accomplishments

( 1 time) **

( 1 time) – with Brazo de Oro and El Brazo **

Mexican National Tag Team Championship The Mexican National Tag Team Championship ''()'' is a national Mexican professional wrestling championship controlled by the (Mexico City Boxing and Wrestling Commission) and competed for by two-man tag teams. The championship was created in ...

( 1 time) – with Brazo de Oro **

Mexican National Trios Championship The Mexican National Trios Championship (''Campeonato National Trios'' in Spanish) is a three-man tag team professional wrestling championship, sanctioned by the "Comisión de Box y Lucha Libre Mexico D.F." (''Mexico City Boxing and Wrestling ...

( 3 times) – with Brazo de Oro and El Brazo (2) and El Brazo and Super Elektra (1) *Federación Internacional de Lucha Libre **FILL Trios Championship (1 time) – with Brazo de Oro and El Brazo * NWA Hollywood Wrestling **

( 1 time) – with Brazo de Oro ** NWA World Tag Team Championship ''(Los Angeles version)'' ( 1 time) – with Brazo de Oro *

Pro Wrestling Illustrated ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American internationally sold professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publi ...

**PWI ranked him #229 of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the

PWI 500 ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American internationally sold professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publis ...

in 2006 * Universal Wrestling Association ** UWA World Tag Team Championship ( 1 time) – with Brazo de Oro ** UWA World Trios Championship ( 3 times) – with Brazo de Oro and El Brazo * World Wrestling Association ** WWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Brazo de Oro ** WWA World Trios Championship (1 time) *''

Wrestling Observer Newsletter The ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' (''WON'') is a newsletter that covers professional wrestling and mixed martial arts. Founded in print in 1982 by Dave Meltzer, the ''Wrestling Observer'' website merged with Bryan Alvarez's ''Figure Four W ...

'' ** Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame (Class of 2021) as part of '' Los Brazos'' *Other titles **Distrito Federal Trios Championship (1 time) – with Brazo de Oro and El Brazo **Distrito Federal Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with El Brazo **Puebla Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Brazo de Oro

''Luchas de Apuestas'' record

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 0–1 , Takumi Yano , Submission ( heel hook) , Deep - 9th Impact , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:24 ,

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...

, Japan ,

Notes

References

;General * ;Specific {{DEFAULTSORT:Brazo de Plata 1963 births 2021 deaths 20th-century professional wrestlers 21st-century professional wrestlers Alvarado wrestling family Mexican male professional wrestlers Professional wrestlers from Mexico City Mexican National Trios Champions CMLL World Heavyweight Champions CMLL World Trios Champions UWA World Trios Champions UWA World Tag Team Champions NWA Americas Tag Team Champions