 El Mesías in 2012 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | Gilbert Cosme Ramírez (1976-05-25)May 25, 1976 (age 49) New York City,New York, U.S. |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Asesor Cibernetica El Mesías El Mega Triple Campeón de AAA Gilbert el Boricua[1] Judas Mesias[2] Mil Muertes[3] King Muertes Muerte Cibernética Ricky Banderas |
| Billed height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)[2][4] |
| Billed weight | 245 lb (111 kg)[2][4] |
| Billed from | Bayamón, Puerto Rico[4] The Depths of Hell Parts Unknown[2] Beyond the Grave(as Mil Muertes) |
| Trained by | El Mecanico |
| Debut | 1997 |
Gilbert Cosme Ramírez (born May 25, 1976), better known by hisring nameEl Mesías, is aPuerto Ricanprofessional wrestler. He is signed toWWE andLucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA).
Cosme began his career in theInternational Wrestling Association (IWA) based inPuerto Rico, under the ring nameRicky Banderas. While performing in the company, he won theIWA World Heavyweight Championship five times and held minor championships on fifteen separate occasions, before leaving the company in 2006. On March 12, 2006, he debuted inLucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA), a promotion based inMexico, as a character named Muerte Cibernética and was involved in anangle where this character was "killed". In November 2006, Cosme was featured in the tapings of theWrestling Society X television series, where he was the second and last wrestler to win theWSX Championship.
Following a month of performing in the International Wrestling Association, Cosme returned to AAA in a special event, this time under the ring name of El Mesías. In September 2007, the company organized a unification tournament where all the champions and first contenders participated. Over the course of the tournament, he won the GPCW Super-X Monster Championship and IWC World Heavyweight Championship, and on the tournament's finale, he became the first wrestler to win theAAA Mega Championship. While working in Mexico, Cosme signed a contract withTotal Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) where he debuted asJudas Mesias in September 2007. In March 2008, his association with TNA came to an end and he focused most of his time on AAA. In 2010, Cosme debuted for Puerto RicanWorld Wrestling Council, where he won theUniversal Heavyweight Championship. He also wrestled inLucha Underground under the ring nameMil Muertes. He reprised the role inMajor League Wrestling (MLW), asKing Muertes.
Outside of his work within these promotions, Cosme has represented Puerto Rico as a member of Team Rest of the World in the2015 Lucha Libre World Cup and as thecaptain of Team International in the 2013World Cup of Wrestling.
Cosme began training in 1996, when he was instructed by a former wrestler. During this time, he enrolled in theInteramerican University of Puerto Rico located in Bayamón. His major was in computer technology, but after completing two years of study, he decided to begin wrestling full time after meetingVíctor Quiñones. In 1997, after working in the independent circuit, he moved to Mexico and became involved in a project to develop Hispanic talent organized by theWorld Wrestling Federation (WWF).[5]
Cosme subsequently debuted in theInternational Wrestling Association (IWA) in 1999. He was given thegimmick of "El Patriota" Ricky Banderas, a name that, according to Cosme, was created by fusing the artistic names of Latin musicianRicky Martín and actorAntonio Banderas.[6] He debuted inExtreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) on that year, working a televised match. Following a period of teaming withLos Boricuas, his character was teamed withGermán Figueroa, who wrestled as Gran Apolo and formed a tag team dubbedLa Nueva Generacion, which won theIWA Tag Team Championship three times. On August 21, 2000, in a show inLevittown, Puerto Rico, Cosme's characterturned on Gran Apolo. Following this, he joined the company's dominantheelstable, Los Intocables, along withMiguel Pérez andJesús Castillo.[5] After the stable's dissolution, he was involved in another stable namedStarr Corporation, where after Cosme's insistence his character became darker and was renamed "El Mesías" Ricky Banderas.[5] Following this, he teamed up withShane Sewell in a stable known asLos Hermanos en Dolor.[5] In 2001, Cosme had a tryout match for the WWF and performed inFrontier Martial-Arts Wrestling's12th Anniversary Showpay-per-view event. He won theIWA heavyweight title for a third time on June 15, 2002, and remained champion untilRay González debuted with the company as "Rey Fénix", in a match that he describes as the best match he had wrestled thus far.[7][8]
Cosme's gimmick underwent another change when he joined then-dominant heel stableLa Compañía, led bySavio Vega. This was followed by his fourth title run after he defeated Gran Apolo on January 6, 2003.[5] He wasbooked as a heel until October 9, 2003, when Vega's group turned on him. Following this, hefeuded withChristopher Kindred under his "Slash Venom" gimmick, which peaked whenVampiro was brought by the company to form a stable which feuded with Gran Apolo and Venom. In 2004, he feuded withHangman Hughes,Kasey James, El Diamante andBison. In 2005, he turned heel again, this time leading a stable known asLa Cruz del Diablo which feuded with other groups led by Vega and González. Following anangle where he feuded over a number one contender spot, Cosme departed from the company and signed a contract to wrestle in Mexico.[5] He continued making sporadic appearances for the company, including a brief stint in 2007. On July 19, 2009, Cosme was booked to defeat Dennis Rivera in the promotion's tenth anniversary event.
Following the culmination of his contract with the International Wrestling Association, Cosme signed a contract withLucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA). He debuted on March 12, 2006, as "Muerte Cibernética", arudo (heel) enforcer supposedly brought to the company byCibernético to feud with "La Parka". This gimmick consisted of Cosme wearing a traditional Mexican wrestling mask, often a modified version of the one used by La Parka.[5] This character feuded with La Parka for several months. This angle came to a conclusion atTriplemania XIV, where Cosme's character was booked to lose aMask vs. Mask match.[9]
Following alegitimate injury suffered by Cibernético, Cosme's gimmick was slightly changed, launching into an angle where he pursued the leadership of Cibernético's stable, which then went by the name ofLa Secta Cibernetica. The character was booked to be the leader of the stable after supposedly convincing several members of the group to join him and changing the name of the group toLa Secta Diabólica. The events of the angle were used to hype an eventual feud between López and Cosme's characters that took place in December 2006.[5] In the angle, Cosme won the first match between the two with help from his stable. The angle culminated in a Casket match. Cibernético was booked to win the match and subsequently "kill" his opponent by throwing him into an active volcano.[10] This was used to explain Cosme's absence when he departed from the company to wrestle in the International Wrestling Association. During this time, he also wrestled for Panama Wrestling Crew inPanama and inEcuador.[5]
Following a month of performing in Puerto Rico, Cosme returned to AAA in an annual event entitledRey de Reyes under a new gimmick, changing his name to El Mesías.[11] From then on, he started to get a bigger push as a main event heel, feuding with Cibernético and his stableLos Hell Brothers. During the feud, Cosme was both leader ofLa Secta del Mesías and member ofLa Legión Extranjera. Later, Cosme took both the IWC heavyweight championship from Cibernético and the GPCW SUPER-X Monster Title from La Parka in the preliminary rounds of theAAA Mega Championship tournament.[12] As Mesías, he became the first wrestler to win the AAA Mega Championship in AAA's pay-per-view eventVerano de Escandalo, after defeatingChessman by disqualification.[13] On November 29, 2007, he successfully defended the company's championship in a triple threat match at theGuerra de Titanes pay-per-view.[14] In March 2008, he returned to AAA after several months of inactivity.[15] On March 16, 2008, Cosme dropped the championship to Cibernético.[16] He was subsequently involved in an angle with Vampiro, leading to a match atTriplemania XVI, which concluded as a time-limit draw.[17] On October 24, 2008, Cosme won theCopa Antonio Peña, defeating six other wrestlers in the process.[18] Joaquín Roldán presented the relevant trophy.[18] On December 6, 2008, atGuerra de Titanes, Cosme won the AAA Heavyweight Championship for a second time, defeatingEl Zorro. He also made a fulltécnico (face) turn, asking the fans for forgiveness for what he'd done while in AAA.[19] On March 15, 2009, atRey de Reyes, after successfully defending the AAA Mega Championship against Chessman,Dr. Wagner Jr. challenged him directly after the match.[20] On June 13, 2009, he was booked to lose the title to Wagner atTriplemania XVII.[21]
The feud continued for several months, until he regained the title on December 11, 2009, at the main event ofGuerra de Titanes. Cosme's third reign as AAA Mega Champion ended on March 12, 2010, atRey de Reyes. He was not booked to lose, butElectroshock submittedMr. Anderson, the third wrestler in the match, to win the championship.[22] Afterwards, El Mesías began feuding with invaders fromLos Perros del Mal, the group's leaderEl Hijo del Perro Aguayo in particular. On August 14 atVerano de Escandalo, Aguayo,Damián 666 andL. A. Park defeated El Mesías, Cibernético and La Parka in a six-man tag team match, when Aguayo pinned Mesías after hitting him with a chair.[23] On October 1 atHéroes Inmortales IV, El Mesías gained a measure of revenge on Aguayo by defeating him in a singles match.[24] On November 1, El Mesías entered the 2010 Lucha Libre Premier tournament. The first two rounds of the tournament were wrestled in aparejas increibles format, with El Mesías teaming with Electroshock. The two would defeat the teams ofExtreme Tiger and L. A. Park and Cibérnetico andHernandez to make it to the semifinal four-way match, where El Mesías and El Zorro, defeated Electroshock and Dr. Wagner Jr. to advance to the finals.[25] On November 28, El Mesías defeated El Zorro in the finals of the tournament to win the 2010 Lucha Libre Premier.[26] Afterwards, Mesías entered a feud withLa Sociedad member L. A. Park, who defeated him on December 5 atGuerra de Titanes, after using a chair on him.[27] On March 18, 2011, atRey de Reyes, El Mesías and Park were both eliminated from the finals of the tournament after brawling to a double countout.[28] On May 18, El Mesías challenged, and Park accepted, for the two to end their feud atTriplemanía XIX in a Mask vs. Hair match.[29] On June 18 atTripleManía XIX, Park defeated El Mesías, forcing him to have his head shaved.[30] El Mesías returned to AAA a month later atVerano de Escándalo, saving Dr. Wagner Jr. fromLa Sociedad.[31] On October 9 atHéroes Inmortales, El Mesías wrestledTNA wrestlerSting to ano contest in what was billed as a "dream match" by AAA, following interference fromLa Sociedad. The match had been put together by AAA Mega ChampionJeff Jarrett in an attempt to stop El Mesías from chasing his title.[32] On December 16 atGuerra de Titanes, El Mesías defeated TNA wrestlersA.J. Styles andRob Terry in back-to-back matches to become the number one contender to Jarrett's title.[33] On March 18, 2012, atRey de Reyes, El Mesías defeated Jarrett to win the AAA Mega Championship for the fourth time.[34] On April 23, El Mesías underwent surgery on his arm; as a result, he was sidelined from in-ring action for three months. In storyline, El Hijo del Perro Aguayo was credited with causing the injury.[35] El Mesías returned on July 13, attacking Aguayo and hisPerros del Mal stable.[36] On August 5 atTriplemanía XX, El Mesías successfully defended the AAA Mega Championship against Aguayo.[37] He then went on to lose the title toEl Texano Jr. on December 2 atGuerra de Titanes.[38] On March 17, 2013, El Mesías defeatedCanek and L. A. Park in the finals to win the2013 Rey de Reyes tournament.[39] In October, El Mesías came together with two former rivals, Cibernético and El Hijo del Perro Aguayo, to battle theSecta stable, after its members had turned on Cibernético.[40] The partnership ended on December 8 atGuerra de Titanes, when Aguayo turnedrudo, leading to the reformation ofLa Sociedad.[41] On August 17, 2014, atTriplemanía XXII, El Mesías won fellowtécnico Electroshock's hair in a six-way steel cageLucha de Apuestas.[42]
On March 6, 2015, El Mesías turned onBlue Demon Jr. and La Parka, completing his return to therudo side.[43] Shortly afterwards, he joinedLa Sociedad.[44] On May 26, 2017, Mesías andPagano won theAAA World Tag Team Championship, after defeating Dark Family (Cuervo and Scoria). Nine days later, atVerano de Escándalo, Dark Family won the titles back. At TripleManía XXV, Pagano and Mesías fought in a Street match that ended in a no-contest. In November 2017, Banderas suffered an injury in both knees. He made his return to the ring atRey de Reyes, where he was defeated by La Parka. On March 21, 2018, Mesias officially announced his departure from the AAA company on his Facebook account, ending his 12-year run with the company. The following day, Banderas explained his departure, claiming he was very unhappy with the promotion. He claimed AAA "forced" him to work with a knee injury, his defeat against La Parka in his return match was "disrespectful" and apparently, he signed a contract with AAA where he was given the rights to the ring name "El Mesías" Ricky Banderas.[45]
Cosme participated as Banderas in theWrestling Society X television series (taped inLos Angeles,California), with thegimmick of a disgruntled andkayfabe disfigured man pursuing a feud with Vampiro.[46] The feud commenced after Banderas threw a fireball at Vampiro's face, which resulted in MTV pulling the episode from its original airdate, with concerns that viewers would try it at home.[47]
In the following episode, Banderas explained that Vampiro rigged a casket with explosives during a match, with the explosion resulting in the damage to his face. On the eighth episode (which was taped on November 15, 2006) of the series, Banderas won the WSX Championship in his debut match for the promotion.[5] Beforehand, he was involved in a series of brawls with Youth Suicide, as well as an allusion to a partnership with6-Pac.[46]
As noted on the "TNA Mobile" service, Cosme signed a contract withTotal Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA). Cosme was billed asJames Mitchell'skayfabe son and thusAbyss' brother. Beginning on July 1, 2007, vignettes began airing for this "monster-like" character. His name was eventually billed as Judas Mesias.[48] AtNo Surrender, he pulled Abyss under the ring by cutting a hole through the mat with a knife.[49] On the September 13, 2007 episode ofImpact!, during a submission match between Abyss andKurt Angle in theSix Sides of Steel, Mesias made his official debut, climbing up from underneath the ring and attacking Abyss.[49] On the September 20 episode ofImpact!, Mesias defeatedEric Young in his debut match in TNA.[50]
On September 21, 2007, it was reported that Cosme was suffering fromsciatica and that treatment required several weeks of rest, followed by physical therapy. This injury was the result of a fall from a ladder during a championship match at AAA'sVerano de Escandalo pay-per-view, which also knocked him out.[51]
Mesias returned on the December 13, 2007, episode ofImpact! where he strangled Abyss with a piece ofbarbed wire, which he also used to cut his forehead open. He then repeatedly hit Abyss in the head with a chair. He finished his assault by delivering his finisher,Straight to Hell, to Abyss on the same chair.[52] In his TNA pay-per-view debut, Mesias defeated Abyss atFinal Resolution after hitting Abyss with his finisher onto a barbed wire-wrapped steel chair.[53] The feud continued atAgainst All Odds on February 10, 2008. They competed in a stipulation match called "Barbed Wire Massacre", where the ring was surrounded by barbed wire, which Abyss won with his finisher, theBlack Hole Slam.[54] In March, Cosme was released from his contract.
On March 18, 2013, Cosme made a one-night return to TNA to take part in the tapings of the TNA World Cup of WrestlingOne Night Only pay-per-view. Working as Mesias, he represented Team International in a singles match, where he was defeated by Team United States'James Storm.[55] At the tapings of the following day's Hardcore Justice 2 pay-per-view, Mesias, once again managed by James Mitchell, was defeated byJoseph Park in aMonster's Ball match.[56]
An agreement between Cosme and theWorld Wrestling Council (WWC) was first rumored on November 26, 2009.[57] The promotion made the official announcement two days later, including highlights of his career in a compilation video displayed during a special event titled Crossfire. His debut was scheduled for January 16, 2010, being booked as Ricky Banderas in a contest againstCarly Colón.[58]Ray González was subsequently included, winning a three-way-contest where the WWC's first winner of the "Wrestler of the Decade Cup" was to be decided. The following week, both were booked in a rematch, with Banderas winning the cup. On July 11, 2010, Banderas was booked to act as special referee at Aniversario 2010, but was subsequently included in a stipulation match against Colón. His character made a heel turn in this event, attacking both Colón andHugo Savinovich.[59] On January 8, 2011, Banderas defeated Colón, with help from an interfering Shane Sewell, to win theWWC Universal Heavyweight Championship for the first time.[60] Cosme was stripped of the title upon returning to the IWA, headlining an angle that revisited the promotion's first decade. His sole match took place on April 2, 2011, where he defeated González, who had since returned to his masked "Rey Fénix" persona, in the main event.[61] Following this match, Cosme's involvement in the IWA concluded, remaining inactive in Puerto Rico until January 7, 2012, when he reappeared in WWC programming asking for an opportunity to challengeCarly Colón for the Universal Heavyweight Championship. The challenge was accepted and took place at Euphoria 2012, but was inconclusive afterSavio Vega distracted Colón, which drained what was left of the pre-established time.
In September 2014, Cosme began working forLucha Underground under a mask and the ring nameMil Muertes.[3] In storyline, Muertes' real name was Pasqual Mendoza, whose entire family died in an earthquake in Mexico City when he was seven years old.[62][63] He debuted on an episode aired on November 6, 2014, accompanied byCatrina as his valet.[64] He was then involved in a major rivalry withFénix (punctuated by Catrina's turning on him and aligning herself with Fénix), which concluded when Fénix defeated him in a "Grave Consequences"casket match that aired on March 18, 2015.[65] After being "resurrected" by Catrina,[66] Muertes returned, and on April 19, 2015, atUltima Lucha, Lucha Underground's season one finale, defeatedPrince Puma to win theLucha Underground Championship.[67]
During the season two premiere on January 27, 2016, Muertes retained the Lucha Underground Championship againstIvelisse, despite spearing Catrina.[68] On the April 20 episode ofLucha Underground, Muertes foughtMatanza Cueto for the Lucha Underground Championship to a no contest. On the May 5 episode of Lucha Underground, Muertes was defeated by Cueto for the Lucha Underground Championship in a Graver Consequences Casket Match. On July 13 atUltima Lucha Dos part 2, Muertes defeatedKing Cuerno in a Death Match. On the August 5 episode ofLucha Underground, Muertes was defeated byFénix for the Lucha Underground Championship. On the November 16 episode ofLucha Underground, Muertes was lastly eliminated bySexy Star in Aztec Warfare for the Lucha Underground Championship. On the December 7 episode ofLucha Underground, Muertes was involved in a Battle of the Bulls Tournament Fatal Four Way Match, which was won byThe Mack.
On the June 7, 2017 episode ofLucha Underground, Muertes was defeated by Prince Puma in a Street Fight. Muertes then was involved in the Cueto Cup, defeatingVeneno,Paul London, andJeremiah Crane, but was defeated in the semi-final byPentagón Dark. Catrina's mother Captain Velasquez then tasked her daughter with claiming the Gauntlet of the Gods fromCage. At her behest, Muertes defeated Cage and Crane atUltima Lucha Tres part 4, in a Triple Threat Elimination Match to win the Gauntlet. After the match, he was attacked by King Cuerno, who stole the Gauntlet.
On August 22, 2018,Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) announced that Mesías would be participate in the2018 International Gran Prix. In CMLL, he was known by the ring name Gilbert El Boricua.[69]
In January 2021, Muertes made his debut forMajor League Wrestling (MLW), accompanied bySalina de la Renta as his valet. This marked the beginning of a storyline that saw the arrival of severalLucha Underground characters as part of an organization called Azteca Underground, led by a shady businessman known as "El Jefe". Muertes would win his first match by defeatingBrian Pillman Jr. At Filthy Island, Muertes defeatedSavio Vega in an Aztec Jungle Match, after the latter refused to sell IWA-PR to Azteca Underground. This streak continued with wins overParrow andGringo Loco, receiving his first loss after challengingAlexander Hammerstone for the MLW National Openweight Championship.
When "El Jefe" was revealed to beLuis Fernandez-Gil (now known as César Durán, with "Dario Cueto" being explained as one of his many pseudonyms) and De la Renta concluded her run within the promotion, Muertes continued working for Azteca Underground in its quest to "build a new temple". His character's first name was changed from "Mil" to "King" as part of a general repackaging of the Lucha Underground intellectual property. On July 10, 2021, Muertes defeatedRichard Holliday in a "Caribbean Rules" match to win theIWA Caribbean Heavyweight Championship (which had been mostly defended in MLW since 2019), as part ofBattle Riot III. His first title defense took place at Fightland, where he defeated formerMLW World Heavyweight ChampionTom Lawlor in a casket match. This event also featured the debut of Catrina in the promotion, resuming her function as valet.
On March 17, 2024, El Mesías returned to AAA after a six-year absence to participate in theOrígenes tour.[70] On April 27 atTriplemanía XXXII: Monterrey, Mesías teamed withPagano and his old rivalVampiro, defeatingLa Secta (Cibernético,Dark Ozz, andDark Cuervo).[71] On November 10, 2024, atGuerra de Titanes, Mesías defeatedOctagon Jr., winning theAAA Latin American Championship for the first time in his career and also becoming theSecondAAA Triple Crown Champion.[72]
On January 17,2025 at Alianzas, Mesías retained his title against Octagon Jr. in a rematch.
On March 22, at Rey de Reyes 2025, Mesías won the semi-final round match involving Panic Clown, Mr. Iguana and Pimpinela Escarlata. He was defeated in the final by eventual winner Niño Hamburguesa. This match also involvedDMT Azul and El Hijo De Dr. Wagner Jr.
| Winner (wager) | Loser (wager) | Location | Event | Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| La Parka Jr. (mask) | Muerte Cibernetica (mask) | Naucalpan, Mexico State | Triplemanía XIV | June 18, 2006 | [9] |
| L. A. Park (mask) | El Mesías (hair) | Mexico City | Triplemanía XIX | June 18, 2011 | [30] |
| El Mesías (hair) | Electroshock (hair) | Mexico City | Triplemanía XXII | August 17, 2014 | [Note 1][42] |
