| Metálico | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Salvador Munguia[1] |
| Born | November 30[2] Mexico City, Mexico[2][3] |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Tigre Metálico Metálico |
| Billed height | 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)[2] |
| Billed weight | 90 kg (200 lb)[2] |
| Trained by | Toño Aguirre[2] Tigre de Oro[2] Franco Colombo[2] Shocker[2] |
| Debut | 1994[2][3] |
| Retired | May 31, 2019 |
Salvador Munguia[1] (born November 30 inMexico City, Mexico) is a Mexicanluchador, orprofessional wrestler retired, currently working for the Mexicanprofessional wrestling promotionConsejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) portraying atecnico ("Good guy") wrestling characterMetálico. Metálico originally worked under amask and his real name was not a matter of public record, as is often the case with masked wrestlers in Mexico where their private lives are kept a secret from the wrestling fans,[4] but he was forced to unmask after losing a match in August 2014.
Munguia trained under Toño Aguirre and Tigre de Oro before making his debut in 1994 under the ring name "Tigre Metálico" ("Metallic Tiger"), as an homage to his teacher Tigre de Oro.[2][5] Over the years Tigre Metalico worked on the Mexicanindependent circuit and did a stint as a regular forInternational Wrestling Revolution Group (IWRG).[5]
In 2004Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) created theGuapos University ("Hansome University"), orGuapos U, a storyline mimicking realities shows such as theWWE Tough Enough show, searching for a new member to joinShocker,Máscara Mágica andEl Terrible as part ofLos Guapos. The contestants included, among others, Tigre Metálico who became a regular worker for CMLL at this point. The group participated in a series of matches as they tried to determine a winner, including a tournament of Guapos U only contestants vying for a match for theMexican National Trios Championship. The tournament was won byMisterioso Jr.,Brazo de Oro Jr. andEl Texano Jr. although they were unable to win the title. During one of CMLL's shows El Terrible turned on the group and was joined byÚltimo Guerrero in the attack onLos Guapos.Sangre Azteca andEl Koreano prevented the rest of theGuapos U class in making the save, leading to the two them being kicked out of the group. Guerrero immediately took both Sangre Azteca and Koreano under his win, formingPandilla Guerrera ("Gang of Warriors"), a mid-card group associated with Último Guerrero'sLos Guerreros del Infierno group. The tournament ended withAlan Stone winning the tournament.[5] Tigre Metalico participated in the first everReyes del Aire ("Kings of the Air") tournament but did not win as he was the third man eliminated over-all.[6] He began teaming withTigre Blanco on a regular basis and at times even joined up with Rey Tigre to form the TrioLos Tigres del Ring ("The Tigers of the Ring").[5]
Tigre Metálico had his ring character changed in June, 2007 becoming simply "Metálico", removing any reference to the Tiger character, including a redesign of hiswrestling mask. The repackaged Metálico participated in the 2007Reyes del Aire tournament, but this time was the first person eliminated from the tournament. In June 2008 Metálico teamed up withMetalik to enter a tournament to determine the newCMLL Arena Coliseo Tag Team Champions. The Metallic themedtag team defeatedLos Hombres del Camoflaje (Artillero and Súper Comando) but lost toLos Infernales (Euforia andNosferatu) in the quarter-final round.[7] Metálico was one of the select few CMLL wrestlers to go on a tour ofSpain in 2008.[8] Metálico suffered a leg injury during a match, where he ended landing on one of the ringside seats during a miscalculated move. The injury required surgery and several months away from the ring to recuperate.[9] In late 2010 Metálico teamed up withStarman to compete in a tournament where the winners would get a match for the CMLL Arena Coliseo Tag Team Championship, but the team was defeated byLos Cancerberos del Infierno (Cancerbero andRaziel) in the opening round. Metálico suffered a second, serious leg injury in July 2012, working oppositeBobby Zavala when he landed wrong during the execution of a move and broke his leg during the match. He had to be taken to the hospital where his leg was reset.[10]
He would not return to in-ring action until September, 2012. In the spring of 2013 Metálico became involved in a storyline feud against youngrudoEl Hijo del Signo, that saw Hijo del Signo cheat more than once to defeat the veteran Metálico.[11] The two found themselves on opposites sides of a match at theArena Coliseo 70th Anniversary Show on April 7, 2013 with Metálico teaming up withHombre Bala Jr. andSuper Halcón Jr. while El Hijo del Signo teamed up withNosferatu andTaurus. The storyline between Hijo del Signo and Metálico took center stage during the match as most of the action centered around the two. In the second fall Hijo del Signo pulled Metálico's mask off,[12] hoping to use the distraction to gain a pinfall, but instead he was disqualified when the referee saw the blatant rulebreaking by El Hijo del Signo.[13][14] The storyline between the two was featured on a number of other shows throughout March and April, including a one-on-one match on CMLL'sSuper Viernes show, their main weekly show and an indicator that CMLL is escalating the storyline between the two.[15][16] At theArena Mexico 57th Anniversary Show Hijo del Signo teamed up withLos Guerreros Tuareg (Arkangel de la Muerte andSkándalo) to defeat Metálico,Sensei andSoberano Jr. with El Hijo del Signo scoring the deciding pinfall on Metálico.[17][18]
The storyline with Hijo del Signo was dropped over the summer of 2013 with no explanation of why it was ended. On March 24, 2014, Metálico was one of 16 men competing for a spot in the 2014En Busca de un Ídolo ("In Search of an Idol") tournament. During thetorneo cibernetico elimination matchOro Jr. dove onto Metálico and landed poorly, hurting Metálico in the process.[19] When Metálico returned from his injury a month later he teamed up with Oro Jr., during which he began to argue with Oro Jr. after a move went wrong once again. The following week Metálico turnedRudo for the first time in his career as he attacked Oro Jr. at the end of a match againstCanelo Casas,Disturbio andEl Rebelde.[20] After the match Metálico stated that he blamed Oro Jr. for the shoulder injury that kept him out of the ring. In subsequent weeks the two faced off on multiple occasions, often with Metálico stealing Oro Jr.'s mask. On August 4, following another trios match with Oro and Metálico CMLL announced that the two would face off in aLucha de Apuestas ("Bet match") on August 10, where both wrestlers will bet their wrestling masks on the outcome of the match.[21] On August 10, Metálico was defeated by Oro Jr. in theLucha de Apuestas match, forcing him to unmask and reveal his real name, Salvador Munguia and how long he had been a wrestler, 22 years.[1][3]
Following his mask loss Metálico adopted a new ring persona, taking the nicknameEl Pedro Infante de Lucha Libre (ThePedro Infante of wrestling), inspired by the Mexican movie legend of the 1940s and 50s. Metálico grew a thin mustache, styled his hair like Infante and began singing and dancing in the ring prior to his matches, in the style of Pedro Infante.[22] Over the summer of 2015 Metálico started a quick feud with thetecnicoLeono that led to aLucha de Apuestas between the two being announced, only to be quietly dropped a few days later.[23] Instead Metálico shifted his attention toOmar Brunetti, feuding with him as part of CMLL's weekly shows onGuadalajara, Jalisco. The storyline led to the two facing off in aLucha de Apuestas match on September 15 which Metálico won, forcing his opponent to have his hair shaved off as a result. Metálico lost a career vs career match toVirus on May 31, 2019, as part of CMLL'sJuicio Final show, it was hinted afterward that he may become a referee.[24]
| Winner (wager) | Loser (wager) | Location | Event | Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Metálico (mask) | Sùper Scare (mask) | N/A | Live event | N/A | [2] |
| Metálico (mask) | Mr. Estrunod (mask) | Mexico City | Live event | September 17, 2005 | |
| Oro Jr. (mask) | Metálico (mask) | Mexico City | CMLL show | August 10, 2014 | [1][3] |
| Metálico (hair) | Omar Brunetti (hair) | Guadalajara, Jalisco | CMLL show | September 15, 2015 | |
| Metálico (hair) | Disturbio (hair) | Mexico City | CMLL Show | May 5, 2019 | [25] |
| Virus (career) | Metálico (career) | Mexico City | Juicio Final | May 31, 2019 | [24] |
Máscara vs Máscara: Metálico -Salvador Munguía 22 años de luchador y del D.F.- entrega su máscara a Oro Jr
