El Hijo del Santo

El Hijo del Santo

Silver Mask and suit.
Ring name(s) El Hijo del Santo
El Korak
Billed height 1.68 m (5 ft 6 in)[1]
Billed weight 82 kg (180 lb)[1]
Born August 2, 1963 (1963-08-02) (age 48)
Ciudad de México, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Billed from Tulancingo, Mexico[1]
Trained by Rafael Salamanca
El Enfermero
Debut February 6, 1982

Jorge Guzmán Rodríguez (born August 2, 1963), better known as El Hijo del Santo ("The Son of the Saint"), is a Mexican professional wrestler, political activist and one of the most successful stars in Lucha Libre. He is the youngest son of the legendary professional wrestler, film actor and Mexican folk hero El Santo.

Contents

Professional wrestling career

"Santito", as he is often called, was the only one of his father's 10 children to become a professional wrestler. He began wrestling without his father's consent in February 1982 as "El Korak" but he made his official debut as "El Hijo del Santo" in October of that year after he earned his college degree in Communication Science per his father's request. He shared his father's look, the silver mask, tights and cape, and moves but he was shorter and, although he would never become the same cultural icon, he would become a better in-ring performer than his father.[2][3]

Early in his career, he was wrestled mainly for World Wrestling Association (WWA) (The Tijuana circuit) and Universal Wrestling Association (UWA) (a promotion that worked in the Mexico City area) but he did make his debut for Empressa Mexicana de Lucha Libre (EMLL) the promotion that later became Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) in Arena Mexico in the summer of 1983. He also was voted "Rookie of the Year" in Mexico.[2]

He won his first title, the UWA World Lightweight Championship, on October 1985 and traded the title with Aristóteles.[4] He next feuded with Espanto, Jr. (whose father feuded with the original El Santo) and el Hijo del Santo took his mask. Espanto Jr. took el Hijo del Santo's title but el Hijo del Santo regained it in 1988 and took Espanto, Jr.'s hair as well after winning a Luchas de Apuestas (Spanish for "Bet match").[4] During this time, he also feuded with Negro Casas, who would become his most important opponent, and took his hair in a 1987 match in the Los Angeles Olympic Auditorium.

In 1990, he debuted in Japan for Gran Hamada's Universal Lucha Libre promotion and moved up a weight class by winning the UWA World Welterweight Championship as well as the WWA Welterweight Championship.[5][6] In late 1991, he left WWA and vacated the Welterweight title but continued to wrestle for UWA until the formation of Asistencia Asesoría y Administración (AAA).[6] El Hijo del Santo regained the WWA Welterweight title and brought it with him to AAA. One of the first feuds he was put in was again Negro Casas' youngest brother, Heavy Metal. Heavy Metal took el Hijo del Santo's WWA Welterweight title and won the Mexican National Welterweight Championship but el Hijo del Santo would come out on top of the feud and took both titles from Heavy Metal before he lost them again to another young star, Psicosis.[5][7]

His most memorable feud during his time with AAA was against the obnoxious American team, Los Gringos Locos. Eddy Guerrero's stiffer Japanese style offense, combined with "Love Machine" Art Barr's cocky mannerisms made Los Gringos Locos a very exciting yet hated tag team. During the feud, the played up the old Pareja Atómica tag team which consisted of the original El Santo and Eddie's father, Gory Guerrero. Eddie turned on Santo, leading to a hair vs. mask challenge for the AAA When Worlds Collide pay-per-view. The match was changed at the last minute when Barr pleaded with AAA officials to be included on the show which would be broadcast in the United States. The new match was a double hair versus double mask match with Santo teaming with Octagón against Los Gringos Locos. El Hijo del Santo and Octagón were victorious in the critically acclaimed match that would revieve a 5-star rating from Dave Meltzer but it was the last stand for Los Gringos Locos. Barr died shortly afterwards and the rest of the group broke up abruptly. AAA owner Antonio Peña tried to run an angle with an evil version of El Santo called "El Santo Negro" who supposedly came from South America. When the other members of Santo's family objected, the feud was scrapped and El Hijo del Santo jumped to CMLL in 1995.

The object of the jump was to revitalize his feud with Negro Casas. El Hijo del Santo lost a match to Casas at the CMLL 63rd Anniversary show on September 20, 1996 and took a brief hiatus.[8] While gone, Negro Casas turned técnico (face) and his former allies, Scorpio, Jr. and Bestia Salvaje said they had a surprise for Casas. In a shocking angle, the long time babyface El Hijo del Santo turned rudo (heel). The set-up was a trios match with Negro Casas, El Dandy and Héctor Garza on the face side against Felino, Scorpio, Jr. and Bestia Salvaje on the heel side. Felino was Casas' brother and when he came to the ring, he halted before entering and watched as his brother was attacked by Scorpio and Salvaje. The fans were expecting Felino to help his brother but Felino took off his cape and mask, revealing himself to be El Hijo del Santo in disguise.

The fans were irate and fist fights broke out in the crowd as El Hijo del Santo attacked Casas. The feud helped ease sagging business caused by the split with AAA and the downturn of the Mexican economy. The following week, the two trios had a rematch and both El Dandy and Negro Casas challenged Santo to a hair vs. mask match. The match was made a triangle match on December 6, 1996. Santo took El Dandy's hair in a bloody match in front of sold out crowd in Arena Mexico. The feud would continue until the 64th anniversary show on September 19, 1997 where Negro Casas and El Hijo del Santo faced off in a dramatic hair vs. mask match.[9] El Hijo del Santo won the match and began a slow face turn.

Although the angle was very successful and drew a lot of money for CMLL, El Hijo del Santo continued to wrestle as a babyface throughout the country, even teaming with Rey Mysterio in Tijuana. El Hijo del Santo began to be at odds with his heel allies, namely Scorpio, Jr. and Bestia Salvaje. Finally, in September 1998, the face turn was made official when El Hijo del Santo's partners, Villano III and Fuerza Guerrera turned on Santo. Scorpio, Jr. and Salvaje joined in on the beat down, leading Santo's next big feud.

Negro Casas and El Hijo del Santo began teaming together and chased Scorpio and Salvaje's recently won CMLL World Tag Team Championship.[10] El Hijo del Santo and Casas defeated Scorpio and Salvaje for the titles on February 5, 1999 by disqualification but El Hijo del Santo and Casas refused to accept the titles. The big match in the feud was a mask/hair versus mask/hair tag match between the two teams. Santo and Casas were victorious and took the tag titles as well.[10] El Hijo del Santo had a brief falling out with CMLL management and the tag titles were vacated.[10] He returned and won the tag titles again with Casas from Los Guerreros del Infierno (Último Guerrero and Rey Bucanero) but later lost them back to Los Guerreros in 2002.[10] El Hijo del Santo took another sabbatical from CMLL with Perro Aguayo, Jr. filling in his spot on the roster. He returned to CMLL in the summer of 2004, initially to work with Místico to help him become a main eventer and to feud with Perro Aguayo, Jr. and his La Furia del Norte group. After the feud ended, he had a program with young Guerreros recruit Averno and they had a WWA Welterweight title match on October 22 where el Hijo del Santo retained and ended his tour with the company.[11]

El Hijo del Santo has continued wrestling as an independent worker doing shows all over Mexico. El Hijo del Santo even started his own promotion called Todo x el Todo. the Promotions man show so far was a "25 Year Anniversary Show" shown by Televisa, a testament to el Hijo del Santo's appeal as Televisa rarely show independent promotions. the show featured a Relevos Suicidas tournament where the losing teams advance until the finals where the final team would fight each other over who would unmask. El Hijo del Santo ended up unmasking Pentagón Black in the finals, which meant that he booked himself to lose three times during the tournament.[12] Around the time of el Hijo del Santo's 25th Anniversay the World Boxing Council (WBC) named el Hijo del Santo their "WBC Wrestling Champion" compete with title belt due to his "Significant accomplishments in wrestling".[13] While the title is technically an honorary championship el Hijo del Santo defended it several times in 2008. In 2008, El Hijo del Santo began running shows in London, England featuring independent talent from Mexico.

Outside wrestling

Like his father, el Hijo del Santo has also crossed over into other medias. He is the subject of a comic book published and appeared on the Mexican reality show Día de Perros. He was also the star of a 5 episode animated series on the Mexican version of Cartoon Network titled Santo Contra Los Clones (Santo Vs The Clones).

In the summer of 2007, he gained notoriety for his campaign to save sea turtles as the spokesperson for Wildcoast, an environmental non-profit organization, on the Gulf of Mexico from extinction. He has also been involved on gray whale campaigns as well as Tijuana clean ups on behalf of Wildcoast.[14]

In films

Hijo del Santo has appeared in several films, first with his father and then on his own or with other famous luchadores. In 2000 he starred in the film Infraterrestre, which received positive reviews from critics such as the respected Mexican film critic, David Wilt.[15] In 2007 he appeared in the film Mil Mascaras vs. the Aztec Mummy (also known as Mil Mascaras: Resurrection),[16] which also received positive reviews.[17]

In wrestling

Championships and accomplishments

  • WBC Wrestling Championship (1 time, current)[13]
  • PWI ranked him # 63 of the 500 best singles wrestlers during the PWI Years in 2003.
  • PWI ranked him # 26 of the 100 best tag teams during the "PWI Years" with Octagon in 2003.
  • PWI ranked him # 14 of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the PWI 500 in 2003 and 2004[11]

Luchas de Apuestas record

Wager Winner Loser Location Date Notes
Mask El Hijo del Santo El Pierroth Veracruz, Veracruz 01982-10-31 October 31, 1982 [2][3]
Mask El Hijo del Santo El Buitre Pachuca, Hidalgo 01983-07-28 July 28, 1983 [2][3]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Lobo Rubio Veracruz, Veracruz 01983-10-28 October 28, 1983 [2][3]
Mask El Hijo del Santo El Galáctico Pachuca, Hidalgo 01984-02-26 February 26, 1984 [2][3]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Chamaco Castro Panama City, Panama 01984-09-04 September 4, 1984 [2][3]
Hair El Hijo del Santo El Guerrero Acapulco, Guerrero 01985-01-27 January 27, 1985 [3]
Hair El Hijo del Santo El Porro Tijuana, Baja California 01985-02-26 February 26, 1985 [3]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Ray Richard Naucalpan, Mexico State 01985-03-17 March 17, 1985 [3]
Mask El Hijo del Santo El Diluvio Texcoco, Mexico State 01985-03-23 March 23, 1985 [3]
Mask El Hijo del Santo Cosmonauta Apatlaco, Mexico State 01985-03-30 March 30, 1985 [3]
Mask El Hijo del Santo Aristóteles I Naucalpan, Mexico State 01985-07-28 July 28, 1985 [25]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Tornado Negro Tijuana, Baja California 01985-08-09 August 9, 1985 [3]
Mask El Hijo del Santo Aristóteles II Acapulco, Guerrero 01985-11-27 November 27, 1985 [25]
Mask El Hijo del Santo El Ninja Tijuana, Baja California 01985-12-13 December 13, 1985 [3]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Ray Tony Veracruz, Veracruz 01985-12-18 December 18, 1985 [3]
Mask El Hijo del Santo Skeletor Monterrey, Nuevo León 01985-12-22 December 22, 1985 [3]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Aristóteles I Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua 01986-03-09 March 9, 1986 [3]
Mask El Hijo del Santo Espanto, Jr. Monterrey, Nuevo León 01986-08-31 August 31, 1986 [3]
Mask El Hijo del Santo Kato Kung Lee Tijuana, Baja California 01986-08-31 August 31, 1986 [26]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Flama Azul Nezahualcoyotl, Mexico State 01987-01-30 January 30, 1987 [3]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Black Terry Irapuato, Guanajuato 01987-03-09 March 9, 1987 [3]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Ray Richard Morelia, Michoacán 01987-04 April 1987 [3]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Lobo Rubio Naucalpan, Mexico State 01987-06-07 June 7, 1987 [3]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Negro Casas Los Angeles, California, USA 01987-07-18 July 18, 1987 [3]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Espanto, Jr. Torreón, Coahuila 01987-08-02 August 2, 1987 [3]
Mask El Hijo del Santo Silver King Tijuana, Baja California 01987-11-13 November 13, 1987 [3]
Mask El Hijo del Santo Principe Island Apatlaco, Mexico State 01987-11-21 November 21, 1987 [3]
Hair El Hijo del Santo El Estudiante Mexicali, Baja California 01988-03-28 March 28, 1988 [3]
Hair El Hijo del Santo El Tarahumara Saltillo, Coahuila 01988-04-09 April 9, 1988 [3]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Espanto, Jr. Monterrey, Nuevo León 01988-05-08 May 8, 1988 [3]
Mask El Hijo del Santo León Chino Tijuana, Baja California 01988-08-19 August 19, 1988 [27]
Mask El Hijo del Santo El Brujo San Lorenzo, Mexico State 01988-10-22 October 22, 1988 [3]
Mask El Hijo del Santo Cuchillo Naucalpan, Mexico State 01988-10-30 October 30, 1988 [28]
Hair El Hijo del Santo El Brujo San Lorenzo, Mexico State 01988-11-26 November 26, 1988 [3]
Mask El Hijo del Santo Starman Cancún, Quintana Roo 01988-12-02 December 2, 1988 [3]
Mask El Hijo del Santo La Momia Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca 01989-03-26 March 26, 1989 [3]
Mask El Hijo del Santo Masdek Tijuana, Baja California 01989-05-19 May 19, 1989 [Note 1][3]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Espanto, Jr. Naucalpan, Mexico State 01989-09-17 September 17, 1989 [3]
Mask El Hijo del Santo All Star Mexico City, Mexico 01989-12-08 December 8, 1989 [Note 2][29]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Tornado Negro Tijuana, Baja California 01990-02-09 February 9, 1990 [3]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Brazo de Oro Naucalpan, Mexico State 01991-01-13 January 13, 1991 [25]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Black Shadow, Jr. Monterrey, Nuevo León 01991-12-15 December 15, 1991 [Note 3][30]
Hairs El Hijo del Santo and Octagón La Pareja del Terror
(Art Barr and Eddy Guerrero)
Los Angeles, California, USA 01994-11-06 November 6, 1994 At AAA When Worlds Collide.[3]
Hair El Hijo del Santo El Dandy Mexico City, Mexico 01996-12-06 December 6, 1996 [Note 4][25]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Negro Casas Mexico City, Mexico 01997-09-19 September 19, 1997 At the CMLL 64th Anniversary Show[3][9]
Mask El Hijo del Santo Guerrero del Futuro Mexico City, Mexico 01998-07-17 July 17, 1998 [3]
Mask El Hijo del Santo Gacela del Ring Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua 01998-09-28 September 28, 1998 [3]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Gacela del Ring Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua 01998-12-06 December 6, 1998 [3]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Asterisco Reynosa, Tamaulipas 01998-12-20 December 20, 1998 [Note 5][3]
Mask and Hair El Hijo del Santo and Negro Casas Scorpio, Jr. and Bestia Salvaje Mexico City, Mexico 01999-03-19 March 19, 1999 [25]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Misterioso Anaheim, California, USA 01999-09-05 September 5, 1999 [3]
Mask El Hijo del Santo El Nuevo Huracán Ramírez, Jr. Celaya, Guanajuato 02000-02-02 February 2, 2000 [Note 6][3]
Mask El Hijo del Santo Dr. Cerebro Naucalpan, Mexico State 02001-03-01 March 1, 2001 [25]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Nicho "el Millonario" Tijuana, Baja California 02001-04-06 April 6, 2001 [3]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Scorpio, Jr. Naucalpan, Mexico State 02002-12-19 December 19, 2002 [3]
Mask El Hijo del Santo Super Parka Tijuana, Baja California 02003-10-09 October 9, 2003 [25]
Mask El Hijo del Santo El Hijo del Cobarde Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua 02004-02-29 February 29, 2004 [3]
Hair El Hijo del Santo El Dandy Tijuana, Baja California 02004-10-29 October 29, 2004 [3]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Scorpio, Jr. Los Angeles, California, USA 02005-07-16 July 16, 2005 [3]
Mask El Hijo del Santo Cyber Vikingo Monterrey, Nuevo León 02005-08-21 August 21, 2005 [Note 7][3]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Mano Negra Tijuana, Baja California 02006-11-26 November 26, 2006 [25]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Cassandro Los Angeles, California, USA 02007-07-14 July 14, 2007 [Note 8]
Hair El Hijo del Santo Mano Negra Tijuana, Baja California 02006-11-26 November 26, 2006 [Note 9][12]

Footnotes

  1. ^ Three way match that also included León Chino.
  2. ^ Three way match that also included Fuerza Guerrera.
  3. ^ Relevos Suicidas match with Black Shadow, Jr. and El Hijo del Santo vs. Octagón and Fuerza Guerrera.
  4. ^ Three way match that also included Negro Casas.
  5. ^ Three Way match that also included El Felino.
  6. ^ Relevos Suicidas match with El Hijo del Santo and Huracán Ramírez Jr. vs. Blue Panther and Fuerza Guerrera.
  7. ^ Six way cage match also featuring Centurion Negro, Diluvio Negro I, Gato Volador and Silver Star.
  8. ^ Steel cage match with Rey Misterio, Sr., El Hijo de Rey Misterio, L.A. Park, Nicho, Pentagon Black and Gran Hamada.
  9. ^ 8 team losers advance tournament finals.

References

General
  • L.L. Staff (2008). "Lucha Libre: Conoce la historia de las leyendas de cuadrilátero" (in Spanish). El Hijo del Santo (1963) (Mexico): p. 31. Grandes Figuras de la Lucha Libre. 
  • Luchas 2000 staff. "Luchas 2000" (in Spanish). El Hijo del Santo y sus Victimas (Juárez, Mexico: Publicaciones citem, S.A. de C.V.): pp. 8–11. Especial 30. 
Specific
  1. ^ a b c "Statistics for Professional wrestlers". PWI Presents: 2008 Wrestling Almanak and book of facts (Kappa Publications): pp. 66–79. 2008 Edition. 
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Various (2005). Lucha Libre: Masked Superstars of Mexican Wrestling. Distributed Art Publishers Inc, New York. pp. 296–297. ISBN 1-933045-05-1. 
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al am an ao ap aq ar as at au av aw Madigan, Dan (2007). Mondo LUcha a Go-Go: the bizzare and honorable world of wild Mexican wrestling. HarperCollins Publishers, Inc.. pp. 71–78 and 125–130. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4. 
  4. ^ a b c Royal Duncan and Gary Will (2000). Wrestling Title Histories. Archeus Communications. p. 397. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4. 
  5. ^ a b c Royal Duncan and Gary Will (2000). Wrestling Title Histories. Archeus Communications. p. 398. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4. 
  6. ^ a b c Royal Duncan and Gary Will (2000). Wrestling Title Histories. Archeus Communications. p. 400. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4. 
  7. ^ a b Royal Duncan and Gary Will (2000). Wrestling Title Histories. Archeus Communications. pp. 392–393. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4. 
  8. ^ "CMLL Anniversary 51-75". ProWrestlingHistory.com. http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/supercards/mexico/emll/anniversary75.html#63. Retrieved 2009-02-21. 
  9. ^ a b "CMLL Anniversary 51-75". ProWrestlingHistory.com. http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/supercards/mexico/emll/anniversary75.html#64. Retrieved 2009-02-21. 
  10. ^ a b c d e Royal Duncan and Gary Will (2000). Wrestling Title Histories. Archeus Communications. p. 396. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4. 
  11. ^ a b PWI Staff (October 2004). "Pro Wrestling llustrated 500 - 2004 :14 El Hijo del Santo". Pro Wrestling Illustrated (Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, USA: Sports and Entertainment publications LLC): p. 22. December 2004. 
  12. ^ a b "Todo X el Todo". ProWrestlingHistory.com. http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/supercards/mexico/misc/todo.html. Retrieved 2009-02-21. 
  13. ^ a b "El Hijo del Santo recibe el cinturón del CMB" (in Spanish). superluchas.net. http://superluchas.net/?p=1242. Retrieved 2009-02-21. 
  14. ^ "BBC News Player - Mexican Wrestler's turtle bid". BBC News. 2007-07-21. http://news.bbc.co.uk/player/nol/newsid_6900000/newsid_6909700/6909720.stm?bw=nb&mp=wm&news=1&ms3=6#. Retrieved 2009-02-21. 
  15. ^ "Santo, el Enmascarado de Plata: Infraterrestre". Dave Wilt. http://terpconnect.umd.edu/~dwilt/infra.htm. Retrieved 2009-02-21. 
  16. ^ "Mill Mascaras versus the Aztec Mummy's official website". Osmium Entertainment. http://www.mmvsam.com. Retrieved 2009-02-21. 
  17. ^ "Mill Mascaras: Resurrection - MJSimpson.co.uk". www.mjsimpson.co.uk. http://www.mjsimpson.co.uk/reviews/milmascarasresurrection.html. Retrieved 2009-02-21. 
  18. ^ PWI StaffPWI Staff (August 2008). "Pro Wrestling Illustrated 500 - 2008: 85 Hijo del Santo". Pro Wrestling Illustrated (Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, U.S.: Sports and Entertainment publications LLC): p. 72. October 2008. 
  19. ^ Royal Duncan and Gary Will (2000). Wrestling Title Histories. Archeus Communications. p. 401. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4. 
  20. ^ Royal Duncan and Gary Will (2000). Wrestling Title Histories. Archeus Communications. p. 392. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4. 
  21. ^ Royal Duncan and Gary Will (2000). Wrestling Title Histories. Archeus Communications. p. 394. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4. 
  22. ^ Flores, Manuel (July 18, 2008). "Histórico de ganadores del torneo: La Gran Alternativa" (in Spanish). SuperLuchas Magazine. http://superluchas.net/2008/07/18/historico-de-ganadores-del-torneo-la-gran-alternativa. Retrieved September 5, 2009. 
  23. ^ "Gran Prix Tournament 1995". ProWrestlingHistory.com. July 7, 1995. http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/supercards/mexico/emll/g-prix.html#1995. Retrieved August 30, 2009. 
  24. ^ Royal Duncan and Gary Will (2000). Wrestling Title Histories. Archeus Communications. p. 401. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4. 
  25. ^ a b c d e f g h Enciclopedia staff (October 2007). "Enciclopedia de las Mascaras" (in Spanish). Santo, Hijo (Mexico): pp. 31–32. Tomo IV. 
  26. ^ Enciclopedia staff (October 2007). "Enciclopedia de las Mascaras" (in Spanish). Kato Kung Lee (Mexico): p. 4. Tomo III. 
  27. ^ Enciclopedia staff (October 2007). "Enciclopedia de las Mascaras" (in Spanish). León Chino (Mexico): p. 15. Tomo III. 
  28. ^ Enciclopedia staff (July 2007). "Enciclopedia de las Mascaras" (in Spanish). Cuchillo (Mexico): p. 61. Tomo I. 
  29. ^ Enciclopedia staff (July 2007). "Enciclopedia de las Mascaras" (in Spanish). All Star (Mexico): p. 9. Tomo I. 
  30. ^ Enciclopedia staff (July 2007). "Enciclopedia de las Mascaras" (in Spanish). Black Shadow Jr. (Mexico): pp. 33–34. Tomo I. 

External links