''La Copa Junior'' (1996) (Spanish for "The Junior Cup") was a

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 ...

tournament produced and scripted by the Mexican wrestling promotion

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 ...

(CMLLl; Spanish "World Wrestling Council"). The tournament ran from February 23, 1996 to March 1, 1996 in

Arena México Arena México is an indoor arena in Mexico City, Mexico, located in the Colonia Doctores neighborhood in the Cuauhtémoc borough. The arena is primarily used for professional wrestling, or ''lucha libre'', shows promoted by Consejo Mundial de Luc ...

Mexico City, Mexico Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley of Mex ...

. CMLL's recurring ''

La Copa Junior The Mexican professional wrestling promotion Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) has held the La Copa Junior ("The Junior Cup") tournament on an infrequent schedule since 1996. The tournament pays respect to the fact that wrestling is a family t ...

'' tournament featured second, third or fourth generation wrestlers completing against each other. The 1996 version of the ''La Copa Junior'' was the first held by CMLL. The first show featured the opening round of the tournament, while the second show featured the Quarter finals, semifinals and the finals of the tournament.

Héctor Garza Héctor Solano Segura (June 12, 1969 – May 26, 2013) was a Mexican professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Héctor Garza. During his career he worked for various major Mexican professional wrestling promotions such as Consejo ...

defeated

Emilio Charles Jr. Sergio Emilio Charles Garduño (October 12, 1956 – December 28, 2012) was a Mexican ''luchador'' (or professional wrestler), who is best known under the ring name Emilio Charles Jr. Over the years, Charles worked for all of the major Mexican p ...

in the final to win the ''La Copa Junior''.

Production

Background

Starting in 1996 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 ...

("World Wrestling Council"; CMLL) held their first ever ''

'' tournament. CMLL held the tournament to celebrate the fact that ''

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 ...

'' in Mexico is often a family tradition, with a large number of second, third, or even fourth generation wrestlers following the footsteps of their relatives. The premise of the tournament is that all participants are second-generation or more, although at times the family relationship is a storylines family relationship and not an actual one. One example of this is Dragón Rojo Jr. being billed as the grandson of Dragón Rojo, when in reality that is simply a storyline created by CMLL. The original ''La Copa Junior'' was won by

. CMLL would not hold another ''La Copa Junior'' until the 2005 tournament (won by Shocker), followed by a 2006 tournament won by

Dos Caras Jr. José Alberto Rodríguez Chucuan (born 25 May 1977) is a Mexican-American professional wrestler, professional wrestling promoter, sports commentator, and mixed martial artist, currently signed to the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) as a c ...

The tournament did not return until 2010 where Dragón Rojo Jr. won the 2010 version. In 2012 third-generation ''luchador''

La Sombra La Sombra de Chicago or La Sombra de Tony Guerrero or even the Windy City Boys is a Tejano band founded by Tony Guerrero. Originally from the Chicago suburb of Aurora, Illinois, the group gained national acclaim and success after moving to Corp ...

won the

Junior cup Junior or Juniors may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * ''Junior'' (Junior Mance album), 1959 * ''Junior'' (Röyksopp album), 2009 * ''Junior'' (Kaki King album), 2010 * ''Junior'' (LaFontaines album), 2019 Films * ''Junior'' (1994 ...

In 2014, CMLL held two ''La Copa Junior'' tournaments, first a

tournament A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses: # One or more competitions held at a single venue and concentr ...

on January 1, won by

Super Halcón Jr. Super Halcón Jr. (born April 30, 1987 in Mexico City, Mexico) is a Mexican ''luchador enmascarado'', or masked professional wrestler currently working for the Mexican professional wrestling promotion Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) portray ...

, followed by a VIP tournament, featuring higher card wrestlers than the usual tournaments, which was won by Máximo The semi-regular tournament returned in

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

, won by

Esfinge Esfinge (born June 14, 1993 in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico) is the ring name of a Mexican ''Luchador enmascarado'', or masked professional wrestler, currently working for the Mexican Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) wrestling promotion. Esf ...

In 2017,

Soberano Jr. El Soberano or Soberano Jr. (born August 12, 1993 in Torreón, Coahuila, Mexico) is a Mexican ''luchador enmascarado'', or masked professional wrestler currently working for the Mexican professional wrestling promotion Consejo Mundial de Luch ...

won the '' La Copa Junior Nuevos Valores''

Storylines

The tournament featured a number of

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.

Family relationship

Tournament

Brackets

Results

February 23

March 1

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Copa Junior, La 1996 1996 in professional wrestling 1996 in Mexico CMLL La Copa Junior February 1996 events in Mexico