The Mexican
professional wrestling promotion
A professional wrestling promotion is a company or business that regularly performs shows involving professional wrestling that has little relationship to the rules of the amateur olympic form. "Promotion" also describes a role which entails man ...
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, Sta ...
(IWRG; Sometimes referred to as ''Grupo Internacional Revolución'' in Mexico) produced and scripted a Ruleta de la Muerte (Spanish for "Roulette of Death") tournament on November 29, 2015. The show took place in
Arena Naucalpan
Arena Naucalpan is an indoor sports arena located in Naucalpan de Juárez, Mexico located on Calle Jardín 19, Naucalpan Centro. The arena is primarily used for professional wrestling, or ''lucha libre'', mainly shows promoted by International Wre ...
, in Naucalpan, State of Mexico, Mexico, IWRG's main venue and the site of the majority of all their
major shows and tournaments.
The ''
lucha libre
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 ...
'' concept of a ''Ruleta de la Muerte'' tournament sees
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 ...
s battle it out, with the losing team in the match advancing in the tournament. The team to lose the last tag team match will then be forced to wrestle each other under ''
Lucha 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 ...
'', or "bet match" rules, in this case putting their hair on the list. The team of
Danny Casas
Danny Casas (born July 13, 1986) is a third-generation professional wrestler from Mexico. His real name is Carlos Daniel Rodríguez Casas and his nickname is "El Hampon." His grandfather, Pepe Casas, started the Casas professional wrestling tradi ...
and
X-Fly
Juan Francisco Domínguez (born September 8, 1977) is a Mexican ''luchador'' or professional wrestler, currently performing under the ring name X-Fly. He is also known as the original Mosco de la Merced ("Mosquito of the Mercy"), a name which has ...
lost to Diva Salvaje and
Toscano and had to wrestle each other. Casas won the match, leaving X-Fly bald as a result.
Production
Background
In ''
Lucha libre
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 ...
'', the Mexican version of
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 o ...
the ''Ruleta de la Muerte'' ("Roulette of Death") is a type of
Professional wrestling tournament
On various occasions in professional wrestling, a single-elimination tournament of varying match types are held, often to determine a championship or number-one contendership therein. It has been known for promotions to use title tournament that a ...
where the loser or losers of a match would advance in the tournament instead of the winners. The finals of a ''Ruleta de la Muerte'' tournament featured the losing team wrestle each other under ''
Lucha 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 ...
'', or "bet match" rules, where the loser would be forced to either unmask or have all their hair shaved off as a result. Various Mexican promotions have held ''Ruleta de la Muerte'' tournaments, some like
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, Sta ...
(IWRG; Sometimes referred to as ''Grupo Internacional Revolución'' in Mexico) has held these tournaments on a regular basis. The earliest such tournament was in 1998 part of the
Arena Naucalpan 21st Anniversary Show and saw
Mega
Mega or MEGA may refer to:
Science
* mega-, a metric prefix denoting 106
* Mega (number), a certain very large integer in Steinhaus–Moser notation
* "mega-" a prefix meaning "large" that is used in taxonomy
* Gravity assist, for ''Moon-Eart ...
defeat
Judo Suwa, forcing the Japanese wrestler to have his hair shaved off.
Most of the ''Ruleta de la Muerte'' tournaments have followed the traditional ''lucha libre'' format, except for the
April 2015 ''Ruleta de la Muerte'' show, where it instead was a four-man
steel cage 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 ...
instead.
Storylines
The event featured nine
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.
Backgr ...
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.
Event
During the undercard match between the ''técnico'' team of
Pantera
Pantera () is an American heavy metal music, heavy metal band from Arlington, Texas formed in 1981, and currently comprised of vocalist Phil Anselmo, bassist Rex Brown, and touring musicians Zakk Wylde and Charlie Benante. The group's best-kn ...
, Relámpago and
Súper Nova
Súper Nova (born June 29, 1986) is the ring name of a Mexican ''luchador enmascarado'', or masked professional wrestler for his time working for Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA) as Bengala. Super Nova is the son of ''Luchador'' El Texano and t ...
had problems getting along as they fought
Diablo Jr. I,
El Hijo del Diablo
Juan Carlos Gonzales (born November 4, 1962 in Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico), better known under the ring name ''El Hijo del Diablo'' (Spanish for "The Son of the Devil"), is a Mexican ''luchador'', or professional wrestler currently working on th ...
and Violencia Jr. In the end, Relámpago turned on his partner Súper Nova, turning to the ''rudo'' side as he attacked Súper Nova.
[
The eight wrestlers in the ''Ruleta de la Muerte'' tournament started out by competing in a ]battle royal
Battle royal (; also royale) traditionally refers to a fight involving many combatants that is fought until only one fighter remains standing, usually conducted under either boxing or wrestling rules. In recent times, the term has been used in a ...
to determine the first round match up. The first two teams eliminated would face off first and the remaining two teams would then wrestle in the second match. The match ended as Diva Salvaje 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 ...
, Toscano and Veneno were eliminated, leaving Trauma I
Trauma I (born March 27, 1985) is a Mexican ''luchador enmascarado'', or masked professional wrestler, working on the Mexican independent circuit and as a freelance wrestler for promotions such as International Wrestling Revolution Group (IWRG), ...
, Trauma II
Trauma II (born December 12, 1982, in Mexico City, Mexico) is a Mexican ''luchador enmascarado'', or masked professional wrestler working on the Mexican independent circuit and as a freelance wrestler for promotions such as International Wrestli ...
, Danny Casas
Danny Casas (born July 13, 1986) is a third-generation professional wrestler from Mexico. His real name is Carlos Daniel Rodríguez Casas and his nickname is "El Hampon." His grandfather, Pepe Casas, started the Casas professional wrestling tradi ...
and X-Fly
Juan Francisco Domínguez (born September 8, 1977) is a Mexican ''luchador'' or professional wrestler, currently performing under the ring name X-Fly. He is also known as the original Mosco de la Merced ("Mosquito of the Mercy"), a name which has ...
as the winners.[ In the first ]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 ...
match of the tournament Toscano and Diva Salvaje lost to the team of Veneno and Máscara Año 2000 Jr. In the second team ''Los Traumas
''Los Traumas'' or ''Los Hermanos Trauma'' (Spanish for "The Trauma Brothers") is the name of a Mexican professional wrestling tag team consisting of the '' enmascarado'' (masked) brothers Trauma I and Trauma II. Los Traumas' real names are not a ...
'' (Trauma I and II) used their experience as a tag team to defeat Casas and Toscano, forcing both losing teams to advance to the second round.[ During the match against ''Los Traumas'' X-Fly began to bleed profusely from his forehead, with the storyline being that he was so injured that Danny Casas was basically forced to face Toscano and Diva Salvaje on his own. The two-on-one advantage meant that Toscano and Diva Salvaje won the match and escaped the tournament. While being unable to compete in the tag team match X-Fly attacked Casas from behind, trying to gain the advantage but in the end Danny Casas pinned X-Fly to win the match.][ As he was getting shaved bald X-Fly stated that he was considering retirement after having lost the ''Luchas de Apuestas'' match.][
]
Aftermath
While Danny Casas and Toscano were on opposite sides during the ''Ruleta de la Muerte'' the two teamed up on subsequent shows without issues. The two were teamed for a match on the Arena Naucalpan 38th Anniversary Show where they Tortuga Rafy and Veneno lost to the team of Máscara Año 2000 Jr., 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 ...
, Pirata Morgan
Pedro Ortiz Villanueva (born July 29, 1962) is a Mexican professional wrestler, or luchador, and wrestling trainer who is best known under the ring name Pirata Morgan. Ortiz made his professional wrestling debut in 1979 and has in the last 20 ye ...
and Trauma II. After the loss Toscano blamed Danny Casas for the loss, pushing him out of the way as he left the ring. A week after the Anniversary show Toscano challenged Danny Casas to a singles match, which the veteran wrestler Toscano won by bending the rules. Following hs victory Toscano challenged Danny Casas to a ''Lucha 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 ...
'', or "bet match", with both wrestlers putting their hair on the line. The ''Lucha de Apuestas'' match between the two was the main event of the IWRG 20th Anniversary Show. During the match, Toscano played the ''rudo'' part throughout the match, although all three falls ended cleanly. In the end, Danny Casas pinned Toscano to win the third and deciding fall. As a result, Toscano had all his hair shaved off while in the middle of the ring. Afterward, he shook Danny Casas' hand and walked off. The storyline between Casas and Toscano ended at the anniversary show, the two faced off during the preliminary round of the 2016 '' El Protector'' tournament but showed no signs of animosity.
Even though X-Fly talked about retirement after his hair loss, he remained an active competitor, working IWRG's 2016 ''El Protector'' tournament among many of his subsequent in-ring appearances.[
]
Results
References
External links
IWRG official website
{{IWRGShows, Ruleta de la Muerte
2015 in professional wrestling
2015 in Mexico
2015.11
November 2015 events in Mexico