| Carlos Cotto | |
|---|---|
Cotto (left) as WWC World Tag Team Champion |
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| Ring name(s) | El Chicano El Ilegal El Pelotero |
| Born | February 13, 1980 Caguas, Puerto Rico |
| Debut | 2000 |
Carlos Omar Cotto Cruz (born February 13, 1980) is an Puerto Rican professional wrestler, also known by his ring names, El Chicano and El Ilegal.
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Cotto is related to several combat sport athletes and instructors, including boxers such as World Boxing Association Super Light Middleweight Champion, Miguel Cotto and Pan American medalists Abner and José Miguel Cotto. Other relatives within the sport include Miguel Cotto, Sr. and trainer Evangelista Cotto. He is married to Poison Ivy, who performed alongside him in professional wrestling. Cotto has three children, Doris, Victor Javier and Darielys Paola.[1] Outside of wrestling, Cotto has worked as a supervisor in a private security company. He also acted as a songwritter and musician, releasing an album named Zona Illegal.
After one appearance in an independent company in Puerto Rico where he worked as "El Pelotero", Cotto debuted in the International Wrestling Association in 2000. His ring name of "El Chicano" originated when German Figueroa compared his traits to that of a Chicano. Early in his career, he was part of a stable named “Lucha Libre 101”, which was led by Eric Perez.
On June 11, 2005, Cotto defeated Shane Sewell and Ricky Banderas in a three-way, in the process winning the IWA World Heavyweight Championship for the first time. With this victory, he became the first wrestler to win a championship in every division within the company, being referred to as “the Grand Slam champion”.
During this timeframe, Cotto conversed with Moody Jack and decided to appear in the World Wrestling Council. This decision was based on economic necessity. Cotto informed Jumping Jeff Jeffrey of his intention of abandoning the IWA, who supported the choice and accompanied him to the promotion. They arrived as "La Rabia", after one week in WWC, Cotto decided to return to the IWA, citing that he felt uncomfortable with the promotion's work ethics and feel.
On January 6, 2009, Cotto was booked to defend the championship against Total Nonstop Action’s Legends Champion, Booker T, in a “champion vs. champion” contest.[2] The contest was part of an annual event titled “Histeria Boricua”. The conclusion came when Cotto inverted a “Book End” attempt, scoring a pinfall victory.[2] On February 14, 2009, the promotion held a special event named “Noche de Campeónes”. In this card, Cotto defended the Undiputed Championship against Samoa Joe.[3] During the final stages of the fight, Noel Rodríguez intervened, injuring the referee.[3] Both wrestlers continued performing, with Cotto scoring a pinfall victory after reverting a finisher and receiving the count from a substitute referee.[3]
Late 2009, Chicano and his partners "Los Fugitivos de la Calle" (El Niche, Lynx, El Cuervo) appeared on a television segment of WWC program "Las Superestrellas de la Lucha Libre" making an alliance with his old friend and former member of "Lucha Libre 101" Bryan Madness. Chicano and Bryan won the WWC Tag Team Champion in Euphoria 2010 by pinfall over Thunder & Lightning with the intervention of El Cuervo. Afterwards, the Fugitivos turned on Chicano who teamed with BJ and won the WWC World Tag Team Championship twice. He left the promotion in November 2010, to work with AAA in Mexico.
On March 5, 2011, Cotto returned to IWA in a live event alongside Abbad and the WWC Women's Champion La Morena.[4] The tag team was dissolved in the middle of a feud, due to an injury to his partner. Cotto continued to feud for the tag team championships, but once the opportunity took place, he was removed, in order to introduce Savio Vega's student, Diego de Jesús. He was subsequently fired as part of an storyline, returning masked under his El Illegal character. He continued wrestling unmasked in the independent circuit, even challeging for the Extreme Wrestling Organization's heavyweight title under his common character, in a contest that ended in a double disqualification. Cotto went on to pursue a feud with the Intercontinental and Undisputed Heavyweight Champion, Chris Angel. He was intially awarded the Intercontinental belt and Angel's undefeated record, but the result was revoked due to external interference from a second masked "Illegal" and an unclean pin. In a rematch, he won the Championship in a two on one contest, pinning Phillip Davian following an attack from a third masked wrestler. Zona 101 reunited on December 10, 2011, in Caribbean Wrestling Federation, an independent promotion based in the south region of Puerto Rico, where he teamed with one half of the CWF Tag Team Champions. The following week, the team was booked over Dennis Rivera and Noel Rodríguez. On December 17, 2011, Cotto won the EWO World Heavyweight Championship, only to be interrupted by IWA president Miguel Pérez.[5] This was in response to a previous confrontation between both, that ocurred following a benefic card where Cotto wrestled and defeated Mesias.
On November 7, 2010, Cotto debuted in Asistencia Asesoría y Administración as a masked character known as "El Ilegal", being booked to win a six man tag team match, alongside Damián 666 and Halloween by applying a new finishing move.[6] His entrance to the company was explained in a storyline, where he was brought in by Dorian Roldán Peña to join La Sociedad, a major faction trying to take over the promotion.[7] In his second match, he was teamed with Hernandez against Joe Líder and Nicho el Millonario, gaining the pinfall.[8] At Guerra de Titanes, both teams unsuccessfully challenged Los Maníacos for the AAA World Tag Team Championship in a ladder match.[9]