Los Espantos

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Los Espantos
Los Espantos wearing the distinctive black and white mask all Espantos have worn at some point in their career
Stable
MembersEspanto I
Espanto II
Espanto III
Successors
Name(s)Los Espantos
Los Hermanos Espanto
DebutJanuary 24, 1962
Disbanded1979

Los Espantos (

Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre (EMLL) and on the Mexican independent circuit. As a team Espanto I and II held the Mexican National Tag Team Championship
and Espanto II and III held the Northern Mexico Tag Team Championship. The team of Espanto I and Espanto II are considered among the best rudo teams in the history of lucha libre.

In the mid-1980s a new generation of Espantos appeared when Espanto IV and Espanto V began teaming up, both sons of Espanto III, and with the emergence of Espanto Jr., who was not related to any of the previous Espanto members but was given permission to use the name. Since then a third "wave" of Espantos have begun wrestling including Los Hijos del Espanto, who were trained by Espanto II but not related, and a new Espanto Jr. who is the son of the original Espanto Jr.

History

Mexican

NWA World Heavyweight Champion, with Thesz teaming up with Blue Demon on one occasion and Huracán Ramírez on another.[2]

In November 1962 Espanto I and II were joined by

Lucha de Apuestas, or "bet match" to Rubén Juárez and as a result was forced to unmask.[1][2][4] In Lucha libre losing an Apuesta match is seen as the ultimate humiliation and an Apuesta win is considered more prestigious than winning a championship.[5] Three weeks later, on September 27, 1963 at the second EMLL 30th Anniversary show, Espanto I defeated Rubén Juárez in a Lucha de Apuesta and forced Juárez to have his hair shaved off.[4] In the winter of 1963 Espanto II was forced to shave his hair off as El Santo defeated him in a Lucha de Apuestas match.[1][3] A few weeks later they followed up the storyline with El Santo unmasking Espanto I.[1][3]

The Los Espantos trio got their biggest win ever when they defeated the "dream team" of Mexican tecnicos El Santo, Blue Demon and Mil Máscaras[2] On June 12, 1964 Espanto III was unmasked after losing a Lucha de Apuestas match to Huracán Ramírez. As each Espanto lost their mask and had to state their birth names per lucha libre traditions, they claimed that their last name was "Vázquez Cisneros", combining their last names to hide the fact that they were not all related like they had claimed.[1] In 1966 Espanto I and II won the Mexican National Tag Team Championship from El Santo and Mil Máscaras, but would later lose the belts to El Santo and Mil Máscaras in a rematch.[1][6]

On May 30, 1968 José Vázquez, as well as fellow wrestler Popeye Franco, was killed by the owner of a cantina during a bar fight. At the time of his death, Los Espantos were set to do a world tour with dates planned for Germany, France, Spain and Japan. The promoters offered Espanto II the opportunity to go alone, but he declined due to the loss of his close friend. By the early 1970s both Espanto II and III were semi-retired, wrestling a limited schedule in Northern Mexico. The duo held the Northern Tag Team Championship at one point before Espanto II retired in 1979.[2] Espanto III died on December 8, 1996,[2] while Espanto II died on August 29, 2010[7]

After the storyline with El Santo Los Espantos became one of the most reviled rudo trios in Lucha libre at the time.

Super Luchas Magazine in 2010 when they wrote an obituary after Espanto II died.[10]

Successors

Espanto IV and V

Main article: Espanto IV and V

In 1992 the sons of Miguel Vázquez were introduced to the wrestling world as

Michinoku Pro. In Japan they unsuccessfully challenged the Great Sasuke and Gran Hamada for the UWA/UWF Intercontinental Tag Team Championship.[12]

Los Hijos del Espanto

Main article: Los Hijos del Espanto

In 1993, a character known as "El Hijo del Espanto" ("The Son of Espanto") was introduced. Despite his name, he was not actually the son of any of the Espantos. He was trained by Fernando Cisneros and legally given the rights to use the "Espanto" name by Cisneros.[13] In 2000 his older brother, who had been wrestling since 1988, took the name "El Hijo del Espanto II" as the brothers began competing as Los Hijos del Espanto.[14]

The first Espanto Jr.

Main article: Espanto Jr.

In 1984 Jesús Andrade Salas was allowed to use the name "Espanto Jr." by Miguel Vázquez, adopting the distinctive black and white mask that all Espantos wore at some point in their career.[15] As Espanto Jr. he began working for the Universal Wrestling Association (UWA). After working under the moniker for a few years he became embroiled in a feud with El Hijo del Santo, the feud between the two mirrored the feud between El Santo and Espanto, Jr.'s storyline father Espanto I, using the previous storyline to build interest in the matches between Espanto Jr. and El Hijo del Santo. The storyline feud between the two reached its high point as the two faced off in a Lucha de Apuestas match, where both wrestlers put their mask on the line. El Hijo del Santo won, and just like Espanto I, Espanto, Jr. was forced to unmask and never wear the Espanto mask again.[16] In 1995 he became the first wrestler to portray the Pentagón character.[17] He would later be forced to retire after being injured during a match and being clinically dead in the ring for moments before being brought back to life.[17]

The second Espanto Jr.

Main article: Espanto Jr. (CMLL)

In 2012 Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) introduced a new Espanto Jr. as part of their Generacion 2012 group of wrestlers.[18] In the weeks and months following the introduction of Generacion 2012, Hijo del Espanto (unclear if it was I or II) publicly stated that he and his brother were the rightful holders of the rights to the Espanto name, given to them by the only remaining, living member of the original Los Espantos, Espanto II. Hijo del Espanto demanded that Espanto Jr. changed his name, but neither the wrestler nor CMLL ever responded to the request.[13]

El Espantito

Main article:
El Espantito

In 1998 another wrestler was granted the rights to wear the black and white mask of Los Espantos. In this instance they gave the rights to

AAA in their Mini division.[19] In 2009 Espantito and Octagoncito wrestled for the vacant NWA World Midget's Championship, which Octagoncito won.[20]

Unauthorized Espantos

In 2001 a new version of "Los Hijos del Espanto" appeared in AAA, but the characters were dropped after only a few appearances due to complaints from the original Hijos del Espanto who held the rights to the name according to the Mexico City Boxing and Wrestling commission. The two "impostor" Hijos del Espanto were revealed to be Sergio and César Andrade Salas, brothers of the first Espanto Jr.[21]

Championships and accomplishments

  • Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre
  • Northern Tag Team Championship (1 time) – Espanto II and Espanto III[2]

Luchas de Apuestas record

Winner (wager) Loser (wager) Location Event Date Notes
Espanto I (mask) Mr. Atlas (mask) Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua Independent Show 1962 [1]
Espanto III (mask) Javier Escobedo (hair) Guadalajara, Jalisco Independent Show 1962 [1]
Espanto I (mask) Cavernario Galindo (hair) Mexico City EMLL Show February 9, 1962 [23][24]
Espanto I (mask) Pantera Blanca (mask) Guadalajara, Jalisco Independent Show March 23, 1962 [1]
Espanto II (mask) Tomás Riande (hair) Nogales, Sonora Independent Show June 12, 1962 [1]
Espanto II (mask) Álvaro Velazco (hair) Mexico City Independent Show August 10, 1962 [1]
Rubén Juárez (hair) Espanto II (mask) Mexico City EMLL 30th Anniversary Show (1) September 6, 1963 [1][4]
Espanto I (mask) Rubén Juárez (hair) Mexico City EMLL 30th Anniversary Show (2) September 27, 1963 [1][4]
El Santo (mask) Espanto II (hair) Mexico City EMLL Show 1963 [3]
El Santo (mask) Espanto I mask Mexico City EMLL Show October 25, 1963 [3]
Espanto III (mask) Alex Montaña (hair) Tampico, Tamaulipas Independent Show 1964 [1]
Espanto I (hair) Dory Dixon (hair) Mexico City EMLL Show March 20, 1964 [23][24]
Blue Demon (mask) Espanto II (hair) Monterrey EMLL Show June 1964 [1]
Espanto III (mask) Humberto Garza (hair) Mexico City EMLL Show May 1, 1964 [1]
Huracán Ramírez (mask) Espanto III (mask) Mexico City EMLL Show June 12, 1964 [1]
Espanto I (hair) Roger Kirby (hair) Mexico City EMLL Show October 30, 1964 [1]
Black Shadow (hair) Espanto II (hair) Monterrey, Nuevo León Independent Show November 14, 1965 [1]
La Sombra (hair) Espanto III (hair) Torreón, Coahuila Independent Show 1970s [1]
Black Charly (hair) Espanto III (hair) Torreón, Coahuila Independent Show 1984 [1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u Encyclopedia staff (July 2007). "Enciclopedia de las Mascaras". Los Espantos (in Spanish). Mexico. pp. 27–28. Tomo II.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Grandes Figuras de la Lucha Libre". Espanto I (in Spanish). Portales, Mexico. November 2008. p. 23. 17.
  3. ^ a b c d e Encyclopedia staff (October 2007). "Enciclopedia de las Mascaras". Santo (in Spanish). Mexico. pp. 29–30. Tomo IV.
  4. ^
    Super Luchas
    . Retrieved October 20, 2012.
  5. ^
    ISBN 978-0-06-085583-3
    .
  6. ^
    ISBN 0-9698161-5-4
    .
  7. ^ Beltran, Williamm (August 30, 2010). "Fallecte Espanto II (1932–2010)" (in Spanish). SuperLuchas Magazine. Retrieved March 22, 2016.
  8. ISBN 978-0-06-085583-3
    .
  9. ^ "Espant II, leyenda vivente". El Siglo delTorreón (in Spanish). Torreón, Coahuila. November 30, 1999. p. 22. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  10. ^ Beltran, William (September 4, 2010). "Desanse en Paz: Fallece Espanto II (1932-2010)". SuperLuchas (in Spanish). 381.
  11. ^ "Tecnicos – Stuka, Jr". Fuego En El Ring (in Spanish). Retrieved October 20, 2009.
  12. ^ Encyclopedia staff (July 2007). "Enciclopedia de las Mascaras". Espanto IV y V (in Spanish). Mexico. p. 29. Tomo II.
  13. ^ a b Ruiz Glez, Alex (September 30, 2012). "Video: Hijo del Espanto demandara a Espanto Jr. de la generación 2012 del CMLL" (in Spanish). SuperLuchas Magazine. Retrieved March 27, 2013.
  14. ^ Encyclopedia staff (July 2007). "Enciclopedia de las Mascaras". Los Hijos del Espanto (in Spanish). Mexico. p. 44. Tomo II.
  15. ^ Encyclopedia staff (July 2007). "Enciclopedia de las Mascaras". Espanto Jr. (in Spanish). Mexico. p. 30. Tomo II.
  16. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4
    .
  17. ^ a b Reyes Ruiz, Eduardo (April 2010). "Entrevista a Jesús Andrade Salas, Espanto Jr y Pentagón". Estrellas del Ring (in Spanish). Retrieved March 26, 2012.
  18. Super Luchas
    . August 27, 2012. Retrieved November 7, 2012.
  19. ^ Encyclopedia staff (July 2007). "Enciclopedia de las Mascaras". Espantito (in Spanish). Mexico. p. 31. Tomo II.
  20. ^ "NWA World Midgets' Title". Wrestling Titles. Retrieved March 21, 2016.
  21. ^ "2001 Especial!". Box y Lucha Magazine (in Spanish). January 13, 2002. pp. 2–28. Issue 2540.
  22. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4
    .
  23. ^
    ISBN 968-6842-48-9
    .
  24. ^ a b "Arena Coliseo, cementerio de máscaras y cabelleras". MedioTiempo (in Spanish). MSN. April 3, 2013. Retrieved April 5, 2013.

See also

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