%2c_Noviembre_2018.jpg) Atlantis in November 2018 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1962-09-28)September 28, 1962 (age 63)[2] Los Altos, Jalisco, Mexico |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name | Atlantis |
| Billed height | 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)[1] |
| Billed weight | 82 kg (181 lb)[1] |
| Billed from | Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico[1] |
| Trained by | Diablo Velazco[2][3] |
| Debut | June 12, 1983[2] |
Atlantis (born September 28, 1962) is a Mexicanluchador enmascarado (maskedprofessional wrestler), working forConsejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) where he performs as atécnico (face or "good guy" character) and is one of the longest-tenuredluchadores in CMLL history. Atlantis was trained byDiablo Velasco, made his in-ring debut in 1983 and has always wrestled under thering name Atlantis, named after the sunken city ofAtlantis. Atlantis has held a large number of professional wrestling championships over the years, both in Mexico and inJapan, both individually and as a tag team. He has also won the mask of several prominent wrestlers through his career includingKung Fu,Villano III,Último Guerrero andLa Sombra.
Atlantis earned the nicknameEl idolo de los Niños (the children's idol) as he was always a favorite with the younger fans. He even retained the nickname when he worked as arudo (heel or "bad guy" character) for several years. Atlantis's real name is 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] In the 1990s Atlantis starred in a couple oflucha films, including one in which he costarred with the celebrated wrestlerOctagón:Octagón y Atlantis, la revancha ("Octagón and Atlantis, the rematch").
Atlantis made his professional wrestling debut on June 12, 1983, after training under world-renowned Mexican wrestling trainerDiablo Velazco for just under a year.[2] He adopted the maskedring persona of "Atlantis", a supposed warrior from the lost city ofAtlantis, complete with a mask that had the image of two fish on it.[2] After working for various Mexican promotions for the first year of his career Atlantis became a regular forEmpresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre (EMLL), Mexico's oldestprofessional wrestling promotion. On November 30, 1984, Atlantis defeatedJerry Estrada to win theMexican National Middleweight Championship, the first wrestling title of his career.[5] Atlantis held the Middleweight title for 457 days, with several high-profile title defenses that helped establish the young wrestler's reputation for good matches.[6] On March 2, 1986 Atlantis lost the Middleweight title toTalismán.[5] By 1988 Atlantis had formed a regulartag team withÁngel Azteca and on March 6, 1988, the duo defeatedLos Infernales (Masakre andMS-1 to win theMexican National Tag Team Championship.[7] Three months later Atlantis became a double champion when he defeatedKung Fu to win theNWA World Middleweight Championship, the highest championship in themiddleweight division.[8] Atlantis only held the title for 37 days before losing it toEmilio Charles Jr. in his first defense.[8] He quickly regained the title, defeating Charles Jr. on July 20, 1988, and held it for two weeks before losing the title back to Emilio Charles Jr.[8] On May 25, 1990, after an 811-day reign, Atlantis and Ángel Azteca lost the Mexican Nation Tag Team Championship toPierroth Jr. andBestia Salvaje.[7] The loss of the title was used as astoryline motivation for Ángel Azteca turningRudo (villain orheel) by attacking Atlantis. The feud between the two continued off and on over the years until Ángel Azteca's death in 2007. The two fought in several intense and bloody battles, but remained close friends backstage.[9]
The feud with Ángel Azteca, coupled with a third run with the NWA World Middleweight title made Atlantis one of the rising stars in EMLL, and he was one of the key figures in the "rebranding" of the company to Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) in 1990. In 1991 Atlantis starred in a movie calledLa Fuerza Bruta ("The Brute Power") and soon after began filming another movie where he teamed up withOctagón calledOctagón y Atlantis, la revancha ("Octagón and Atlantis, the revenge") that opened in 1992. On April 4, 1991, Atlantis, Octagón, andMáscara Sagrada, a team nicknamed "Los Movie Stars" defeatedLos Thundercats (Leono, Panthro, and Tigro, a team of masked wrestlers patterned on theThundercats cartoon) to win theMexican National Trios Championship. The trio held the title for 94 days before losing it toLos Hermanos Dinamita (Cien Caras,Máscara Año 2000 andUniverso 2000) on August 11, 1991.[10] Not long after the title loss Octagón and Máscara Sagrada left CMLL for the recently formedAsistencia Asesoría y Administración (AAA) promotion, jumping ship before the "Atlantis y Octagón" movie opened in the theaters. Atlantis was also offered a contract by AAA but decided to stay with the company he ended up working for almost his entire career.[2] On March 3, 1993, Atlantis lost the NWA World Middleweight title toMano Negra, as part of a long-running storyline between the two. While Mano Negra won the championship, Atlantis gained the ultimate measure of revenge as he unmasked Mano Negro by defeating him in aLucha de Apuesta (bet match) as the main event ofCMLL's 60th Anniversary Show.[11] On March 2, 1994, Atlantis defeatedDr. Wagner Jr. to win theCMLL World Light Heavyweight Championship, officially moving from the Middleweight to theLight Heavyweight division, a title he would hold for 655 days.[12] In 1995 Atlantis brother made his wrestling debut asAtlantico and the two teamed up on a regular basis, including second annualGran Alternativa tournament, losing to Dr. Wagner Jr. andAstro Rey Jr. in the second round.[13] On November 3, 1995, Atlantis teamed withRayo de Jalisco Jr. to win theCMLL World Tag Team Championship fromThe Headhunters.[14] The team lost the tag team title in August 1996 but Atlantis and new partnerLizmark won the titles back fromLa Ola Blanca (Spanish for "the White Wave";Gran Markus Jr. andEl Hijo del Gladiador).[14] Atlantis and Lizmark only held the title for 12 days before the titles were vacated following an inconclusive match with the Headhunters.[14] Atlantis and Lizmark continued to team and were joined byMr. Niebla in 1997 to formLa Ola Azur ("The Blue Wave"), a reference to the fact that all three wrestlers mainly wore blue.La Ola Azul won theCMLL World Trios Championship fromRey Bucanero, Emilio Charles Jr. andEl Satánico.[15]La Ola Azur defended the title for over 500 days until October 1998 where an injury to Mr. Niebla forced the team to give up the title.[15] On May 10, 1999, Atlantis defeated Dr. Wagner Jr. to become only the second man to ever hold the CMLL World Light Heavyweight Championship two times.[12] Over the next 196 days Atlantis' CMLL World Light Heavyweight title defenses headlined several shows in Mexico City before he lost the title toVillano III on November 22, 1999. The title change was just one of the highlights of a long-running feud between Atlantis and Villano III, a feud that also included III's younger brothersVillano IV andVillano V. On March 17, 2000, at CMLL'sJuicio Final event, Atlantis won his biggestApuesta victory to date as he defeated and then unmasked Villano III in a match that was voted theWrestling Observer 2000Match of the Year.[16] On June 16, 2002, Atlantis, Mr. Niebla, andBlack Warrior defeatedBlue Panther,Fuerza Guerrera and Dr. Wagner Jr. to win the CMLL World Trios title, a title the team held for 278 days.[17] In 2003 Atlantis travelled to Japan, working forMichinoku Pro where he won theTohoku Junior Heavyweight Championship fromDick Togo on August 26, 2003.[18] Atlantis' tour of Michinoku Pro was so well received that he was allowed to retain the title when travelling back to Mexico and has been invited on annual tours with the promotion every year since then. On March 28, 2004, Atlantis lost the Michinoku Pro title toThe Great Sasuke, returning the belt to Japan.[18] On June 25 Atlantis teamed up with Blue Panther to defeatLos Guerreros del Infierno ("The Warriors of Hell";Último Guerrero and Rey Bucanero) to win the CMLL World Tag Team Title. Their title reign lasted 280 days until Atlantis turned on his partner during a match and cost them the titles. The fact that the careertecnico (face or "good guy" character) turnedrudo for the first time helped revitalize a career that was stagnating.[2]
TheRudo Atlantis joined up withLos Guerreros del Infierno, renaming the groupLos Guerreros de la Atlantida (The Warriors of the Atlantis) out of respect for their new co-leader.[2] Shortly after his turn Atlantis won the 2005International Gran Prix by eliminating Rey Bucanero andPerro Aguayo Jr. to be the only survivor in the match.[19] Soon after he defeated Dr. Wagner Jr. to win theNWA World Light Heavyweight Championship.[20] 2005 turned out to be Atlantis' strongest and most successful year as he also won that year'sLeyenda de Plata tournament, as well as teaming up withLa Máscara to win the 2005Gran Alternativa.[21][22] On September 29, 2009,Los Guerrero de la Atlantida won the vacant CMLL World Trios Championship by defeating Perro Aguayo Jr.,Héctor Garza andShocker in a tournament final.[20] On November 2, 2009, Atlantis won his fourth CMLL World Tag Team title, this time teaming with Último Guerrero to defeatMístico andNegro Casas for the championship.[23] The team lost the Tag Team championship toAverno andMephisto on February 1, 2008.[23] Atlantis, Último Guerrero and Negro Casas (collectively nicknamedLos Guerreros Negros, the Black Warriors) won the CMLL world Trios Title and held it for 166 days, before losing it on January 1, 2009, toEl Hijo del Fantasma Héctor Garza and La Máscara.[24] On April 5, 2009, Atlantis lost the NWA World Light Heavyweight Championship toEl Texano Jr. in the main event of a show inGuadalajara,Jalisco, Mexico ending Atlantis' reign after 988 days.[25] In late 2009 it was rumored thatLos Guerreros de la Atlantida had split up, but when Atlantis and Último Guerrero teamed up on CMLL'sSin Salida show the rumors turned out to not be true.[26]
On January 22, 2010, Atlantis teamed up withMáscara Dorada to participate in CMLL'sTorneo Nacional de Parejas Increibles("National Amazing Pairs tournament"), a tournament where CMLL teams up aTecnico (Dorada) and aRudo (Atlantis) for a tournament. The two defeatedDragón Rojo Jr. andLa Sombra in the opening round, Mr. Niebla andMáximo in the second round and Místico and Averno in the semi-final to earn a spot in the final of the tournament. During the tournament Atlantis wore his oldTecnico white mask, acting and wrestling a tecnico style.[27] On February 5, 2010 Atlantis and Dorada defeated Negro Casas and La Máscara in the finals to win the tournament.[28] On July 12, 2010, at thePromociones Gutiérrez 1st Anniversary Show Atlantis participated in a match where 10 men put their mask on the line in a match that featured fiveparejas increibles teams, with the losing team being forced to wrestle each other with their mask on the line. His partner in the match wasOlímpico, facing off against the teams of Místico andEl Oriental, La Sombra andHisteria,El Alebrije andVolador Jr., and Último Guerrero and Averno.[29] Olímpico and Atlantis was the last team that escaped the match, leaving El Oriental and Místico to wrestle for their masks, which ended with Místico defeating El Oriental.[30] After teaming up and working well together during theRuleta de la Muerte tournament Olímpico, Atlantis and Último Guerrero teamed up more frequently. During a trios tournament on theAugust 13 Super Viernes Olímpico caused his team to be disqualified and then attacked his former teammates, ending their tentative relationship.[31] As a result of his actions after the match Olímpico, Último Guerrero and Atlantis were all added to the main event of theCMLL 77th Anniversary Show, a 14-mansteel cageLucha de Apuestass, mask vs. mask match.[32] In May 2010 Rayo de Jalisco Jr. returned to CMLL after not having worked for the promotion for five years. During one of his first interviews back with CMLL he commented that it was strange to see his former friend and tag team partner Atlantis as arudo. The seemingly unrelated comment slowly build into a storyline between the two former partners, initially facing off on opposite sides of trios matches. During the build of the match Atlantis has expressed an interest in challenging Rayo de Jalisco Jr. for hisWWA World Heavyweight Championship, but also stated that it was too early to talk about aLucha de Apuestas, mask vs. mask match, between the two as they had not even faced off in a one on one match yet. Atlantis was the ninth man to leave the steel cage match at the 77th Anniversary, keeping his mask safe. The match came down to La Sombra pinning Olímpico to unmask him.[33] On November 2, Atlantis was scheduled to challenge for the CMLL World Tag Team Championship alongside Último Guerrero, but could not take part in the match due to an injury and was replaced by Dragón Rojo Jr. In the end Guerrero and Rojo Jr. went on to win the titles, after which Rojo Jr. was made an official member ofLos Guerreros de la Atlantida.[34][35] On February 25, 2011, Atlantis and Máscara Dorada defeated Blue Panther and Dragón Rojo Jr. in the finals to win theTorneo Nacional de Parejas Increíbles for the second year in a row.[36] In June, Atlantis replaced an injured Shocker and teamed withDelta andGuerrero Maya Jr. in theForjando un Ídolo tournament, which they eventually went on to win.[37] On July 31, 2011, Atlantis and Rey Bucanero made an unadvertised appearance for American promotionChikara, losing to F.I.S.T. (Chuck Taylor andJohnny Gargano) via disqualification, when Gargano faked taking a low blow from Atlantis.[38] After weeks of tension between Atlantis and Último Guerrero, CMLL held a press conference on August 11, where Atlantis officially turnedtechnico and leftLos Guerreros de la Atlantida.[39]
Atlantis and Último Guerrero faced each other in a big grudge match on September 23, which saw Atlantis pick up the win.[40] On November 16, Atlantis announced that he was officially forming a stable namedLos Reyes de la Atlantida ("The Kings of the Atlantis") with Delta and Guerrero Maya Jr.[41][42][43] On December 16, the trio defeatedLos Invasores (Olímpico,Psicosis and Volador Jr.) for the Mexican National Trios Championship at CMLLL'sSin Piead show.[44] On March 2, 2012, atHomenaje a Dos Leyendas, Atlantis won his third National Parejas Increibles tournament in a row, this time teaming with Mr. Niebla.[45] On June 22,Los Reyes de la Atlantida lost the Mexican National Trios Championship toLos Depredadores del Aire (Black Warrior,Mr. Águila and Volador Jr.).[46] On theAugust 3 Super Viernes show, Atlantis andDiamante Azul defeated Dragón Rojo Jr. and Último Guerrero to win the CMLL World Tag Team Championship.[47] On October 30,Los Reyes de la Atlantida regained the Mexican National Trios Championship fromLos Depredadores del Aire.[48] On November 13, 2012 Atlantis and Demonio Azul lost their tag team championship toEl Terrible andTama Tonga.[49] On December 16,Los Reyes de la Atlantida lost the Mexican National Trios Championship to theLos Invasores team ofKraneo, Mr. Águila and Psicosis II.[50]
In January 2013, Atlantis returned to Japan, when he, as a late replacement for an injuredMístico II,[51] took part in the three-dayFantastica Mania 2013 event, co-promoted by CMLL andNew Japan Pro-Wrestling inTokyo. During the first night on January 18, he teamed withJushin Thunder Liger andTiger Mask in a six-man tag team match, where they were defeated byGedo,Jado and Mephisto.[52] The following night, Atlantis defeatedEuforia in a singles match.[53] During the third and final night, Atlantis teamed withIWGP Heavyweight ChampionHiroshi Tanahashi andIWGP Junior Heavyweight ChampionPrince Devitt to defeat Euforia,Kazuchika Okada and Mephisto in a six-man tag team main event.[54] In early 2013 the long-running feud between Atlantis and Último Guerrero came to the forefront of CMLL booking once more. The two were booked for the 2013Torneo Nacional de Parejas Increibles tournament, forcing the two rivals to team up. Before their qualifying round both Atlantis and Gurrero stated that they would put their differences aside for the sake of the tournament. Atlantis and Guerrero displayed the teamwork they had developed by being partners inLos Guerreros de la Atlantida for several years as they defeated the teams ofValiente andPólvora, Diamante Azul and Euforia and finally Dragón Rojo Jr. andNiebla Roja to qualify for the finals of the tournament.[55][56] The finals took place as part of the 2013Homenaje a Dos Leyendas show and saw La Sombra and Volador Jr. win the match and the tournament. Following the loss a frustrated Atlantis attacked Último Guerrero and tore his mask apart.[57] Atlantis subsequently made aLuchas de Apuestas challenge to Último Guerrero that was not immediately accepted.[58] The two rivals officially signed the contract for the mask vs. mask match on March 21, but did not announce an actual date for the match.[59] At the same press conference it was announced that CMLL would commemorate Atlantis' 30 year anniversary as a wrestler with a specialSuper Viernes show on May 3.[60] Atlantis was teamed up withHombre Bala Jr. for the 2013Gran Alternativa, the son ofHombre Bala that Atlantis unmasked in 1986. The team competed in Block A of the tournament on April 12, 2013. The duo defeatedAkuma and Mephisto in the first round,Taurus and Averno in the second round andGuerrero Negro Jr. and Último Guerrero in the semi-finals to earn a spot in the finals.[61][62] The finals took place on April 26, 2013 during theArena Mexico 57th Anniversary Show and sawBoby Zavala andRey Escorpión defeat Hombre Bala Jr. and Atlantis, two falls to one to win the 2013Gran Alternativa tournament.[63][64]
During the celebration of Atlantis' 30th anniversary as a wrestler Guerrero appeared after a match to berate Atlantis, which turned out to be a distraction for the real Último Guerrero to attack Atlantis from behind. The two identically dressed Guerreros proceeded to beat up Atlantis and tear his mask apart. Following the match Último Guerrero introduced his brother "Gran Guerrero".[65] The much anticipated and hyped Mask vs. Mask match between Atlantis and Último Guerrero at the 80th Anniversary Show on September 13 never came to fruition as the two were defeated in aRelevos Suicidas match by La Sombra and Volador Jr., who instead advanced to theLucha de Apuestas against each other.[66] On March 21, 2014, Atlantis won theTorneo Nacional de Parejas Increibles for the fourth time, this time teaming with Euforia.[67] On June 20, Atlantis won the2014 Leyenda de Azul, scoring the last elimination over Último Guerrero.[68] Atlantis defeated arch rival Último Guerrero in aLuchas de Apuestas match, in the main event of theCMLL 81st Anniversary Show. After the match Guerrero was forced to unmask as per the stipulation.[69][70] In January 2015, Atlantis returned to Japan to take part in theFantastica Mania 2015 tour, during which he and Máscara Dorada won the Fantastica Mania 2015 Tag Tournament.[71] On April 26, 2015,Los Reyes de la Atlantida won the Mexican National Trios Championship for a record-breaking third time by defeatingLa Peste Negra (El Felino, Mr. Niebla and Negro Casas).[72] On August 9, 2015Los Reyes de la Atlantida lost the Mexican National Trios Championship toLos Hijos del Infierno ("The Sons of the Inferno";Ephesto, Mephisto andLucifierno), ending their third reign as champions.[73] 15 days later, on August 24, Atlantis defeated Mephisto to win theMexican National Light Heavyweight Championship.[74]
Over the summer of 2015Los Ingobernables started to wrestle againsttecnico teams instead of generally facingrudo teams as they had been up to that point. In August 2015Los Ingobernables found themselves facing off against Atlantis on multiple occasions, often with La Sombra going out of his way to attack Atlantis, tearing Atlantis' mask apart during matches to show his disdain for the veterantecnico. On August 19, 2015 CMLL held a press conference where they announced that the winner of the main event of the 80th Anniversary, La Sombra, would put his mask on the line against the winner of the main event of the 81st Anniversary Show, Atlantis, in the main event of CMLL's 82nd Anniversary Show on September 18, 2015.[75] The match saw Atlantis defeat La Sombra, two falls to one, forcing La Sombra to unmask.[76] Since he was the reigning Mexican National Light Heavyweight Championship Atlantis participated in the2015 Universal Championship tournament, which he won, defeating Último Guerrero in the finals on October 16.[77]
On January 1, 2016 CMLL held a major show calledSin Piedad ("No Mercy") where Atlantis teamed up withMarco Corleone, and Valiente, losing toLos Revolucionarios del Terror (Dragón Rojo Jr., Pólvora, andThunder).[78][79] He also participated in theFantastica Mania 2016 tour of Japan, where most nights he was part of the losing side againstLos Ingobernables de Japón (Tetsuya Naito,Bushi andEvil).[80][81]
| Winner (wager) | Loser (wager) | Location | Event | Date | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atlantis (mask) | Talismán (mask) | Mexico City | EMLL 51st Anniversary Show | September 21, 1984 | [97] | |
| Atlantis (mask) | Hombre Bala (mask) | Mexico City | Juicio Final | December 5, 1986 | ||
| Atlantis (mask) andEl Satánico (hair) | Tierra Viento y Fuego (mask) andMS-1 (hair) | Mexico City | EMLL 56th Anniversary Show | September 22, 1989 | [97][98] | |
| Atlantis (mask) | Kung Fu (mask) | Mexico City | Live event | October 26, 1990 | [99] | |
| Lizmark and Atlantis (mask) | The Animals (masks) (Animal I and II) | Mexico City | Live event | November 25, 1990 | ||
| Atlantis (mask) | Mano Negra (mask) | Mexico City | CMLL 60th Anniversary Show | October 1, 1993 | [11][97][100] | |
| Atlantis (mask) | Rey Pirata (mask) | León, Guanajuato | Live event | March 22, 1999 | ||
| Atlantis (mask) | Gran Markus Jr. (hair) | Guadalajara, Jalisco | Live event | July 19, 1999 | ||
| Atlantis (mask) | Villano III (mask) | Mexico City | Juicio Final | March 17, 2000 | [101] | |
| Atlantis (mask) | Silver Fox (mask) | Guadalajara, Jalisco | Live event | June 18, 2000 | ||
| Atlantis (mask) | El Boricua (mask) | Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas | Live event | June 19, 2000 | [d] | |
| Atlantis (mask) | El Boricua (mask) | Celaya, Guanajuato | Live event | August 15, 2001 | [d] | |
| Atlantis (mask) | El Boricua | Cuernavaca, Morelos | Live event | August 16, 2001 | [d] | |
| Atlantis (mask) | El Hijo de Gran Markus (mask) | N/A | Live event | 2003 | ||
| Atlantis (mask) | Fidel Sierra (hair) | Woodburn, Oregon | Live event | October 23, 2004 | ||
| Atlantis (mask) | El Padrino (mask) | Guatemala City | Live event | June 10, 2012 | [e] | |
| Atlantis (mask) | Último Guerrero (mask) | Mexico City | CMLL 81st Anniversary Show | September 19, 2014 | [69][70] | |
| Atlantis (mask) | La Sombra (mask) | Mexico City | CMLL 82nd Anniversary Show | September 18, 2015 |
"El Halcon".Atlantis (in Spanish).Mexico: Mac Division Deportes. March 1991. pp. 1–36. Año 18, Número 106.
,Internet Wrestling Database
