El Protector (2017) was an annual

professional wrestling 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 ...

major event produced by Mexican professional wrestling promotion

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, S ...

(IWRG), which took place on February 19, 2017 in Arena Naucalpan,

Naucalpan, State of Mexico Naucalpan, officially Naucalpan de Juárez, is one of 125 municipalities located just northwest of Mexico City in the adjoining State of Mexico. The municipal seat is the city of Naucalpan de Juárez, which extends into the neighboring municipal ...

, Mexico. The 2017 El Protector was the eight annual event produced under that name and the fourth to be held in January. The focal point of the show was the El Protector

tag team Tag team wrestling is a type of professional wrestling in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. Tag teams may be made up of wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of establish ...

tournament where eight teams composed of a "rookie" and a "vet" team up to compete for a trophy. Rookie Diablo Jr. teamed up with veteran

Black Terry Esteban Mares Castañeda (born September 3, 1952) is a Mexican '' luchador'', or professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Black Terry. Wrestling since 1973, he was once part of a group called ''Los Temerarios'' alongside Jose Luis Fel ...

to win the 2017 El Protector tournament defeating Demonio Infernal and

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 ...

in the finals. The tournament also saw the teams of Black Dragón and Internacional Pantera, El Hijo de Dos Caras and El Hijo del Alebrije,

Herodes Jr. Herodes Jr. (born September 18, 1990) is a Mexican ''Lucha libre, luchador'', or professional wrestling, professional wrestler best known for working for the Mexican professional wrestling promotion Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) portrayi ...

and Imposible, Hip Hop Man and Mr. Electro, Dragón Fly and

Villano IV Tomás Díaz Mendoza (born April 9, 1965) is a Mexican professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Villano IV (''Villano Cuarto''). Within the stable Los Villanos, he has wrestled for Universal Wrestling Association (UWA), AAA, and W ...

, Alfa and

Máscara Año 2000 Jr. Ángel Omar Reyes Franco (born 16 January 1977) is a Mexican ''Lucha libre, luchador'' or professional wrestling, professional wrestler, better known as Máscara Año 2000 Jr. He is working for Lucha Libre AAA World Wide (AAA), and International ...

participated in the tournament. The show also featured four non-tournament matches.

Production

Background

''Lucha Libre'' has a tradition for a tournament where a rookie, or ''novato'', would be teamed up with an experienced veteran wrestler for a

tournament in the hopes of giving the ''Novato'' a chance to show case their talent and move up the ranks. Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre has held a Torneo Gran Alternativa ("Great Alternative Tournament") almost every year since 1994, but the concept predates the creation of the Gran Alternativa. The Mexican professional wrestling company

(IWRG; at times referred to as ''Grupo Internacional Revolución'' in Mexico) started their own annual rookie/veteran tournament in 2010. The first two tournaments were called Torneo Relampago de Proyeccion a Nuevas Promesas de la Lucha Libre (

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, Can ...

for "Projecting a new promise lightning tournament") but would be renamed the El Protector tournament in 2012. The El Protector shows, as well as the majority of the IWRG shows in general, are held in "Arena Naucalpan", owned by the promoters of IWRG and their main arena. The 2017 El Protector show was the eight time that IWRG promoted a show around the rookie/veteran tournament.

Storylines

The El Protector event featured 11

professional wrestling matches 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 ...

with different wrestlers involved in pre-existing

scripted ''Scripted'' is the debut studio album by American rock band Icon for Hire. It was released on Tooth & Nail Records on August 23, 2011, and went on to break the label's new artist record for albums sold during the first week of release. Back ...

feuds, plots and storylines. Wrestlers were portrayed as either

heels 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 leg. Structure To distribute the compressive forces exert ...

(referred to as ''rudos'' in Mexico, those that portray the "bad guys") or

faces 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 affe ...

(''técnicos'' in Mexico, the "good guy" characters) as they followed a series of tension-building events, which culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches.

Tournament participants

*Alfa and

*Black Dragón and Internacional Pantera * Demonio Infernal and

* Diablo Jr. and

* Dragón Fly and

* El Hijo del Alebrije and El Hijo de Dos Caras *Hip Hop Man and Mr. Electro * Imposible and

Event

During the fourth match of the night, Relámpago dove out of the ring at Apolo Estrada Jr., who moved out of the way at the last moment which caused Relámpago to crash into the steel barricade. As a result of the impact, Relámpago was unable to return to the ring and was counted out. It's unclear if this was the planned end or if Relámpago hit the guardrail harder than expected, rendering him unable to get back up.

Aftermath

As a result of winning the 2017 El Protector Diablo Jr. and Black Terry earned a match for the

IWRG Intercontinental Tag Team Championship The IWRG Intercontinental Tag Team Championship (''Campeonato Intercontinental de Parejas IWRG'' in Spanish) is a professional wrestling tag team championship promoted by the Mexican professional wrestling promotion International Wrestling Revolut ...

. A week after the tournament Diablo Jr. and Black Terry defeated Chicano and Veneno to win the championship. Their reign as champions lasted for 190 days and included two successful championship defenses until they were defeated by Black Warrior and Warrior Jr. on September 3, 2017.

Results

References

External links

IWRG official website
{{IWRGShows 2017 in professional wrestling 2017 in Mexico IWRG El Protector February 2017 events in Mexico