Fuerza Guerrera

[elliott]

I'm going to take a closer look at Fuerza Guerrera for the purposes of GWE. I've always gotten into trouble trying to do lucha reviews because I'll try and list out spots or moves or sequences or specific matchups and they just end up being impossible because so much is happening with so many people and often times the best parts of lucha matches are these beautiful intricate sequences and I dunno how you review that sort of thing. In order to keep myself out of the weeds my interest here is Fuerza and Fuerza's performances specifically. What's he doing and how does it affect the matches positively or negatively. Obviously I'll be watching what the other people are doing as well and will take note of it, but the focus of this is Fuerza. 

Alright lets fucking do it. 200+ Fuerza matches. 

Fuerza Guerrera & Lobo Rubio vs El Hijo del Santo & Atlantis (EMLL - 11/25/83)
They are all so skinny and young. The first look at Fuerza for this project is him matched up with Atlantis in the first fall and they are doing just beautiful lucha grappling exchanges. They do the wacky competing leg locks while standing on their head and slapping the shit out of each other spot. Had you told me Rey Jr & Juventud created that spot in 1994, I'd have believed it before seeing this match. Fucking hell of a way to start. Fuerza is already doing a really good job of riling the crowd up with either stalling or missing a move. For example, Fuerza comes off the ropes, eats a monkey flip but gets up and nails Atlantis with a side kick. Atlantis stumbles back towards the ropes and Fuerza thinks he's got him so he charges for a dropkick. But Atlantis moves out of the way at the last second, and Fuerza goes through the ropes and lands on his butt on the apron. Fuerza stands up off the apron turns around and looks at Atlantis like "how the fuck did I get here?" and puts his hands on his hips and turns around and starts jawing with the front row fans and the arena goes nuts. Awesome spot. This first fall is a harbinger of whats to come in this project I suspect. Shortly after he works an exchange with Santo where Santo will do a lil dive at him but Fuerza will duck out of the way only for Santo's back arm to snatch him for an armdrag. After a few times Fuerza just slaps the mat on his knees in frustration. Its a simple spot that makes Santo look awesome but is really Fuerza doing the majority of the heavy lifting to make the move work. Terrific stuff. We all know Santo as one of the great performers ever but this is eaaarly in his run and he's still really green and that's apparent here. Fuerza is able to make him look like a million bucks. Later Fuerza offers Santo a handshake and Santo refuses so Fuerza slaps him. Not the last time we'll see that I"m sure. There are countless great spots and moments here. Too many to list. But in the first match of this project in there with Atlantis & specifically designed to make future GOATC Hijo del Santo look great, it is Fuerza who looks like the best performer in the match. This is a great introduction because you get a nice taste of the Fuerza experience. He's a great athlete who can do all the mat work, but he's also a heat seeking goof willing to make himself look bad for the sake of the tecnico.

Fuerza Guerrera & El Brazo & Talisman vs Blackman & Kendo & Avispon Negro (Early 80s)
Oh man. This is not for the "Lucha is too cooperative & choreographed" crowd but I was fucking cracking up on some of the spots here. It's gonna be interesting to see how Fuerza's comedy spots hold up doing a crazy deep dive, but at this point I'm loving it. He seriously has so many tricks in his pocket already you just have to watch him. There's too many to describe and it would take too long to even try. This has the first appearance of the Crane Kick pose so it has to at least be 1984 right? Were people doing crane kicks before Karate Kid? I also don't want to let another match go by without saying Fuerza throws really great punches & kicks. His whole deal is making his opponent look amazing while making himself look silly so he's not busting out a lot of great offense other than punches & kicks. But they look fucking great and he can do so much else that in these trios matches that's all he really needs to do while still making an impact. If this shit keeps up I'm going to start comparing Fuerza to Buster Keaton or Charlie Chaplin instead of El Dandy or Blue Panther. 

[elliott]

Fuerza Guerrera & Talisman & Jerry Estrada vs El Hijo del Santo & Ringo Mendoza & Chamaco Valaguez (EMLL - 3/9/84)
Fuerza comes in the ring against Chamaco but Fuerza confidently calls out Santo. So Santo comes in and Fuerza calmly steps out of the ring. Beautiful. Fuerza actually dominates Santo early with hard punches & kicks. Great looking strikes. Fuerza & Chamaco end up in the ring together and Fuerza brings him in for a tender handshake & hug but then Fuerza just knees the shit out of Chamaco's knee. Punch sends Chamaco outside and Santo comes in but Fuerza holds up the hand telling him to STOPPPP. But Santo doesn't and he & Fuerza have a great looking super athletic back & forth sequences that ends with Fuerza jawing at the crowd allowing Santo to hit him with a dropkick from behind and Fuerza takes a big bump to the outside. Finishing run of the fall has Santo try to dive on Fuerza from the top rope to the floor but Fuerza SPRINTS away as fast as he can as his teammates are submitted in the ring. Fuerza heads back towards the ring and eats a dive from Santo anyway. So in this first fall Fuerza does multiple different comedy spots that are all great. He takes a big bump. He dominates a for a moment with great looking punches and kicks. He does back & forth hot sequences with Santo. Its wild. 2nd fall is the rudo beat down of the tecnicos and it is focused mostly on Fuerza beating the ever loving fuck out of Santo with a low blow and great looking punches & kicks. Seriously Fuerza throws a hell of a punch. There's a fantastic mask ripping section where Santo & Fuerza fucking go after each other and this whole thing breaks down to a violent brawl showing another element of Fuerza's work and he's awesome here. This is a fantastic match. Definitely one to check out. Fuerza is an absolutely world class performer already. He's amazing in all of these matches and can do whatever is called upon. He's hilarious but holy fuck when a match needs to break down into a wild brawl he is ready for that shit too. And he's an incredible athlete. I knew early Fuerza was awesome, but he's even better than I remembered.

Fuerza Guerrera & El Dandy & Talisman vs Americo Rocca & Hombre Bala & Chamaco Valaguez (EMLL - 3/22/85)
Starts with rudos dominating in a hard hitting brawlng type match. Great energy everyone looks good. 2nd fall starts smiliarly but eventually settles down and we start getting some beautiful rope running sequences. Fuerza looks awesome doing all of this as usual. Wanted to throw young El Dandy a shout because he looks terrific here too. Super smooth already. 3rd fall is back to a brawl. Fuerza's ability to switch gears is really impressive. He can go from beautiful workrate sequence to violent brawl to ridiculous physical comedy all within the blink of an eye. Fuerza is more of a background player here as the match is built around Rocca vs Talisman, but Fuerza's great here in the role. He's dialed his schtick back a bit so it doesn't dominate the match and allows the focus to remain on Rocca & Talisman. Its good smart stuff. Fuerza still does some big bumps and looks really sharp when hes in there. But hes also not overshadowing the storyline of the match. 

Fuerza Guerrera & Al Rojo Vivo & Talisman vs Hombre Bala & Javier Cruz & Aguilar Solitaria (Pista Arena Revolution - 1986)
Fuerza starts off against Javier Cruz here and its really good stuff. Its traditional lucha grappling. They're not doing 100mph workrate bumping sequences and Fuerza's not doing his over the top comedy routines. Its just good solid back and forth grappling than ends with a handshake. Nice example of Fuerza showing he can work a more traditional style when called for. 2nd fall starts with one of those 100mph work rate sequences with Fuerza & Aguilar that ends with Fuerza bumping out to the outside. 2nd fall also sees Fuerza planting Cruz with a back suplex worthy of AJPW. 3rd fall starts as a  more chaotic heel control brawl until the hot babyface comeback. Fuerza looks good here with rudo punches & kicks and then turns up the heat when its time for the tecnico comeback. Fuerza eats a couple of beautiful tilt a whirl backbreakers. And there'sa  hilarious spot where Talisman keeps trying to roll out of the ring for safety but Fuerza keeps pushin him back in. We haven't seen that one before and it rules. Talisman pays back the favor later. This is a good little match. Fuerza continues to look really great all around. Able to do whatever thematch calls for. I left this one wanting to see Fuerza vs Javier Cruz in a title match and Fuerza vs Talisman in a brawl. 

Fuerza Guerrera vs Negro Casas (WWA - 1986)
Do I really need to say anything? Its Fuerza Guerrera & Negro Casas. Its real and its spectacular. Classic title match with a clean first two falls of back & forth grappling followed up a 3rd fall where the heat is turned up and they're doing dives and all the roll ups they can think of to try and get the win. Just an awesome match. 

[cad]

On 8/13/2021 at 4:16 PM, elliott said:

Fuerza Guerrera & El Brazo & Talisman vs Blackman & Kendo & Avispon Negro (Early 80s)
This has the first appearance of the Crane Kick pose so it has to at least be 1984 right? Were people doing crane kicks before Karate Kid?

I would never have thought about it that way, but you're right. Talisman is maskless, so it can't be before September 1984.
(The Fantasticos are all masked, so it can't be from after February 1986.)

[elliott]

The thought of Fuerza Guerrera taking a young Juventud to see Karate Kid and it inspiring his wrestling career is just wonderful

[elliott]

Fuerza Guerrera vs Aguilar Solitaria (EMLL - 12/18/88 or 6/2/89)
This is a title match. FIrst two falls are good but really missing that extra gear. I think Fuerza overall looks sharp but I wasn't very impressed with Aguilar. He's a little slow and pretty dull. We get our first Fuerza pointing at his groin complaining of a foul spot after he splats face first on the mat after a slingshot. Taht was fun. 3rd fall is also kinda missing the mark. The drama just isn't there so after a nearfall that sees the crowd barely react, Fuerza starts interacting with them more. First he chants Aguilar's name & gives a big thumbs down. Then he slams Aguilar on one side of the ring and climbs the opposite turnbuckle and makes a big deal about how Aguilar is too far away. So the crowd starts laughing. Fuerza jumps down, slams Aguilar again & climbs the closer turnbuckle, and leaps off only Aguilar moves. Crowd laughs again and now theyre more into it reacting a little more to the nearfall roll up attempts. Smart way to reengage the crowd during a disappointing match. After this the match really picks up and has a hot finishing stretch with an awesome finish.

Fuerza Guerrera & Egipcio & Hijo del Gladiador vs El Dandy & Apolo Dantes & Mogur (EMLL - 5/19/89)
Good not great match overall but pretty damn awesome when Fuerza & Dandy are in there together. You get a little bit of the full Fuerza experience. Theres some brawling, some comedy & some fast workrate sequences. This is more brawl heavy than anything so thats what we see the most of and Fuerza is good at it. So far the only people I've seen on Fuerza's level are 1986 Negro Casas & 1989 El Dandy. Good company. 

Fuerza Guerrera & Blue Panther & Emilio Charles Jr vs Atlantis & Super Astro & El Faraon (EMLL - 8/18/89)
Fantastic trios match. Fuerza looks awesome and there's a spot where hes standing on the apron and Atlantis runs over & slaps him. Fuerza's sell & bump to the ground is utterly spectacular and one of the (many) highlights of this match. Seriously these are some of the best wrestlers ever and they all look awesome. If you're a fan of lucha but haven't seen this one, you gotta check it out!

Fuerza Guerrera & Hijo del Gladiador & Blue Panther vs Huracan Jr & Blue Demon Jr & Black Shadow Jr (EMLL - 10/13/89)
I enjoyed this one a lot. First fall in particular is spectacular, but I think this is one to highlight more for a Blue Panther project than a Fuerza one. Fuerza looks great as usual but he's more of a background player while BLue Panther takes the wheel in the ring. Terrific stuff.

Fuerza GUerrera & All Star & Rocky Star vs El Hijo del Santo & Super Astro & Blue Demon Jr (Ruleta Rusa - EMLL - 11/24/89)
This is a 6 person battle royal & is real fun. Short and sweet. Fuerza steals the show with one of the best near eliminations you'll see and then a totally spectacular elimination. This one is all the evidence we need that Fuerza would've been a great Royal Rumble performer.  

[elliott]

Fuerza Guerrera vs El Hijo del Santo vs Rocky Star vs All Star (EMLL - 12/1/89)
The 4 way part of this is pretty goddamn awesome brawling match. There's a lot going on so this isn't a match for someone new to Lucha, but if you're familiar with the style and tropes its really good. The Fuerza vs Santo matchup is particularly great and you really just want to see a matchup between these two. But its not to be. This leads to a singles match between Fuerza vs Rocky Star. It starts with Fuerza taking a huge bump into the seats so you forget all about Santo vs Fuerza. FUerza vs Rocky Star is good. Bloody hard hitting, lots of drama. I feel like its missing that extra gear to put it really over the top, but its very good. Fuerza's not doing any of his comedy really because he's in a war.

Fuerza Guerrera vs El Hijo del Santo vs All Star (Mask vs Mask vs Mask - EMLL - 12/8/89)
Starts off as Fuerza vs Santo for 8 minutes and it is absolutely fantastic. Fuerza's ability to switch gears and go from stoogey stumbly wumbly to 100mph tumbling routines is fucking incredible. He has the widest range per minute of anyone I can think of. He can in one section go from violent to hilarious to uber athlete in the blink of an eye and be completely comfortable at all of it. We get our first Crane Kick on the top rope and face plant and it is fucking tremendous. One of the greatest spots in the history of wrestling. Great matchup. Fuerza gets the win that leads to Fuerza vs All Star. Fuerza gets the jump on him & beats the shit out of All Star right away to try and get the quick win and keep his mask safe. All Star's first quebradora that cuts him off has Fuerza sell in a hilarous way. He sort of throws a lil tantrum before selling the pain like he's frustrated he didn't get the quick win. Kinda subtle if you can believe it but its there. All Star starts really up the violence & rips at Fuerza's mask & bloodies him. Fuerza cuts him off with an absolutely enormous punch. Like make you stand up off your couch sort of punch. Incredible. Its super dramatic and Fuerza is just desperate at this point. He eats a slingshot and tries to sell a low blow but the ref isn't going for it. Match continues to pick up in drama and intensity. Fuerza is a bloody mess. Great selling. Fuerza hits an absolutely killer back elbow off the top rope. He somehow gets outta there with the win. Fuerza is fucking awesome in this match. Santo vs All Star is really good considering probably no one thought Star stood a chance. Well worth your time.

[elliott]

Fuerza Guerrera & Blue Panther & Negro Casas vs El Hijo del Santo & Gran Hamada & Yoshinari Asai (Hamada's UWF 1990)
Is there a more talented rudo team in history? No way. This is a short and awesome match. Everyone looks fantastic but especially Santo & Casas. Their chemistry is so magical. Fuerza vs Hamada looks like a terrific matchup and Fuerza looks like his typical awesome self. But he's more of a background player and as Santo & Casas take center stage & kick fucking ass as usual together.

Fuerza Guerrera & Blue Panther & Negro Casas vs Super Astro & Kendo & Kato Kung Lee (Hamada's UWF - 1990)
Short and forgettable.

Fuerza Guerrera & Canelo Casas & Jacques Mate vs Ciclon Ramrirez & Octagon & Rafaga Azul (EMLL - 1/26/90)
I think this is a really interesting one to watch for the purposes of this project. In most of the previous matches Fuerza is in there looking amazing but there's usually someone or two or more people in the match that we know are just awesome workers. El Dandy, Blue Panther, Santo, Emilio, Casas etc. Here's a match where Fuerza is in there with a bunch of guys who aren't all that interesting at this point. If you'd neve seen a Fuerza match before and I showed you this one and said "He's the great wrestler confident in his abilities" you'd be able to pick him out easily. He's just so comfortable as a performer and is doing something constantly....sometimes its a huge thing or sometimes its a little tiny thing in the background. Seriously even when hes in the background he's doing these little subtle things that you might not even notice unless you're watching him. But it shows he's in the performance every time. This is a pretty average match all around and Fuerza's performance is notable if only for the fact that its not really a notable performance and he still looks this good and puts thought into every moment he's out there.

Fuerza Guerrera & El Hijo del Gladiador & Comando Ruso vs Mogur & Chamaco Valaguez & Remo Banda (2/4/90)
I liked this a lot. The match is building to a Ruso vs Banda match so Fuerza isn't the focal point but he still manages to look like a world class performer. Beautiful back and forth sequences, comedy spots, crazy bumps, this is another example of Fuerza shining as a background player. 

Fuerza Guerrera & Herodes & Emilio Charles Jr vs Ringo Mendoza & Cachorro Mendoza & Kung Fu (2/23/90)
What a rudo team that is! Wow! THis is a really good all action match. Fuerza is great in these trios matches. Very consistent. He gives you some good comedy and some crazy fast rope running and back and forth grappling sequences in these more technical matches and then when he needs to brawl he can bring the violence too. 

[elliott]

Fell behind on this but trying to jump back on the saddle. 

Fuerza Guerrera & Jerry Estrada & Pierroth Jr vs El Dandy & Angel Azteca & El Texano(3/2/90)
Fun trios match becomes scary when the top rope snaps off and Pierroth takes one of the nastier spills you're gonna see. There's good stuff around this though. The first fall is mostly really fun until the rope break and our man Fuerza looks great as usual. Please lord send me a long match against El Dandy.

Fuerza Guerrera & Bestia Salvaje & Espectro Jr vs Octagon & Kung Fu & Pantera II (4/20/90)
Solid match that is meant to heat up an upcoming Fuerza vs Pantera singles match. Rudo team is really good here and make this enjoyable. Pretty standard stuff. 

Fuerza Guerrera & Espectro Jr & Jacque Mate vs Ringo Mendoza & Pantera II & Javer Cruz (4/29/90)
I loved this one. Another match meant to heat up Fuerza vs Pantera in a singles. More of a brawlng match than the last one. Fuerza looks absolutely vicious in the first two falls and is really directing traffic and this is all about him beating the fuck out of Pantera II. 3rd fall has some fantastic Fuerza comedy spots. Just a dynamite performance. Match like this is the reason I wanted to take a closer look at Fuerza. This wasn't on the 1990 Yearbook and doesn't even have a thread on PWO but it is a fantastic Fuerza performance that fans of his should check out. 

[elliott]

Fuerza Guerrera vs Pantera II (5/4/1990)
Absolutely fantastic match. If you want to see Fuerza in a classic title match built around fantastic matwork and wacky submissions, this is exhibit #1. Must see match.

Fuerza Guerrera & Huracan Ramirez Jr vs Javier Cruz & Emilio Charles Jr (Relevos Increibles 5/18/90)
I'm still reeling from that last match but this was fun for what it is. Short and sweet. Like 6 minutes all action.

Fuerza Guerrera & Jacque Mate & El Hijo del Gladiador vs Misterioso & Mascara Sagrada & Justiciero (6/22/90)
Starts with Fuerza beating up Mascarita Sagrada and thats fun. Leads to a great Mascarita payback spot later in the match. Shorter than usual trios but hot and Fuerza looks strong as usual.

Fuerza Guerrera & Jacque Mate & Hombre Bala vs Octagon & Kung Fu & Super Muneco (7/27/90)
I liked this one a lot. They're starting to heat up Fuerza vs Octagon and they're great together. Fuerza actually lands a cranekick. And he really taps into is vicious side against Octagon. This one is also noteworthy for the fantastic workrate comedy sequences between Fuerza & Super Muneco. Every bit as spectacular as you'd hope.

Fuerza Guerrera & Jacque Mate & Pierroth Jr vs Octagon & Misterioso & Justiciero (8/31/90)
This is another just sort of standard trios match. Fuerza & Octagon take more of a back seat early in the match but as it goes on they take more of a starring role and the match gets more interesting and more violent as they go. Fun but sort of forgettable.

Fuerza Guerrera & Jacque Mate & El Hjo del Gladiador vs Octagon & Msterioso & Justiciero (9/7/90)
Just clips of the finishes of the falls. Can't tell anything from this unfortunately.

Fuerza Guerrera & Ponzona & El Hijo del Gladiador vs Octagon & Super Astro & Volador (9/14/90)
Terrific match. You see the names and kinda think "Oh, I hope FUerza & Super Astro pair up" but just assume its going to be more Fuerza vs Octagon. NOPE! Fuerza vs Super Astro baby and it is sufficiently mind blowing. Tremendous 1st fall and a spectacular finish to the match. RUdo beatdown in the middle is good but you just wanna see these 6 turn up the volume and go balls to the wall. What we get of that fucking rules. PLLLLEASE let there be a Fuerza vs SUper Astro match.

[elliott]

Fuerza Guerrera & Jacque Mate & Pierroth Jr vs Octagon & Volador & Cacharro Mendoza (9/28/90)
Disappointing match overall. The Fuerza vs Octagon matchup in the first fall didn't really hit the mark this time. Fuerza was paired up with VOlador in the 2nd fall and it was much better. Rare one to skip

Fuerza Guerera & El Hijo del Gladiador & Ponzona vs Mando Guerrero & Mogur & Huracan Ramirez Jr (11/2/90)
Match starts better than our last one right away with Fuerza really riling up the crowd. HUGE Fuerza chant. And he runs into break up a submission. Hes inserting himself into the action more early in this one and the match is more compelling for it. After a hot opening, Fuerza kinda took a backseat and honestly the match started to fall flat for me. Then the 2nd and 3rd falls everyone really stepped it up and this turned into a really fun match. Pretty hard hitting with great heat and some good comedy from the heels. They really heat up Fuerza vs Ramirez Jr and thats yet another match I'd like to see. Good stuff. Fuerza looks great. Vicious, crazy athletic and great comedic timing.

Fuerza Guerrera & Ponzona & Espectro Jr vs Octagon & Mascara Sagrada & Huracan Ramirez Jr (11/9/90)
This one is a truly spectacular top tier Fuerza performance. He is both the best version of Jim Cornette and Dennis Condrey all at once. Absolutely outstanding. Terrific match all around but Fuerza is something else here.

Fuerza Guerrera & Ponzona & Jerry Estrada vs Octagon & Mascara Sagrada & Huracan Ramirez Jr (11/16/90)
Fun brawling match on the shorter side. Fuerza looks great again working his one man Midnight Express style. I was recently complaining about how all of these matches are so long which slows down my project. Then I see a 13 minute match and I end up annoyed because the last few matches were so good. Good stuff.

Fuerza Guerrera & El Verdugo & Hombre Bala vs Octagon & Javier Cruz & Huracan Ramirez Jr (11/23/90)
OK match that was more about teasing Fuerza vs Huracan but giving you the other 4 which isn't really what you want. Although Verdugo & Hombre Bala look solid.

Fuerza Guerera & Pierroth Jr & Jacque Mate vs Huracan Ramirez Jr & Octagon & Kato Kung Lee (11/30/90)
This one is the full Fuerza experience. He spends much of the first fall hiding and playing chickenshit. Then finally he blindsides Octagon and beats the ever loving hell out of him. Then he works an awesome back and forth with Huracan Ramirez. And some great comedy spots where he eats shit in spectacular ways. Crowd is insanely hot for everything he does. Just an awesome performance.

Fuerza Guerrera & Emilio Charles Jr & Jerry Estrada vs Octagon & Huracan Ramirez Jr & Volador (12/7/90)
Cool start as Octagon & Huracan work together to take the pain to Fuerza who has spent all of his time recently antagonizing both guys. Later in the first fall Fuerza & Octagon has an awesome segment together. Basically working their greatest hits but it rules and still feels fresh. 2nd fall he works with Huracan who just goes straight to mask ripping. Another hot segment with Octagon ends with Ramirez dropkicking a flexing Fuerza from behind and sending him comically bumping to the outside. Screwy 3rd fall with Octagon accidentally fouling Ramirez thinking it was Fuerza leading to Fuerza putting them both away. Terrific stuff to advance the story & rivalry.

Fuerza Guerrera vs Octagon vs Huracan Ramirez Jr (Mask vs Mask vs Mask 12/14/90)
This is pretty hilarious booking. Rudo Fuerza beats tecnicos back to back to save his mask and force them to battle it out. Fuerza looks good (the way he gets into the submission to beat Ramirez is bonkers) but you'd rather he and Ramirez just had a singles match.

Fuerza Guerrera & Pirata Morgan & Mascara Ano 2000 vs Sangre Chicana & Octagon & Ruben Juarez (1991)
I got excited when I saw Sangre Chicana's name, but this was a pretty blah match. Fuerza vs Octagon is the absolute highlight here and as usual look really good together and crowd is hyped for them. Everything else here I found forgettable. 

Fuerza Guerrera vs Octagon (Super Libre - 2/1/91)
Octagon is on the ground selling his knee before this even starts allowing Fuerza an opening to start the match. FUerza beats the fuck out of Octagon and there's some heel ref shenanigans leading to a great spot where a woman walks up to the ring and yells at Gran Davis for interfering. Octagon just won't sell but Fuerza is incredible bumping around for all of Octagon's opponent dependent stuff. Fantastic low blow spot where Octagon gets distracted by the ref and Fuerza just kicks a field goal. Fuerza ties Octagon's little head tassle to the top rope and beats the hell out of him. Running him from turnbuckle to turnbuckle while his head is still tied to the rope. Fucking gnarly. Fuerza goes to the well once too often and Octagon pushes him over the top rope and Fuerza goes to the outside but lands on his feet, turns around and flips off the audience. SWOON. What a spot. OMFG I loved that. The ref helps Octagon get free and he's just a dead person at this point. Fuerza crotches Octagon on the post and I've never seen less of a reaction to a crotch shot before. So Fuerza decided fuck it I'm just gonna bash his goddamn head in. While Octagon is rolling around on the ground, Fuerza gets into an argument with an elderly woman in the front row. God this is awesome. Octagon's transition back to offense is disappointing. He walks up the aisle a bit to catch his breath, casually gets back in the ring and just starts doing armdrags. Good lord. This is a real tale of two performances. Fuerza quickly ties him up for the 2nd fall. 3rd fall starts and Octagon is selling like he's been in a war. They go to the finish like right away so the 3rd fall reallly lacks the drama youre looking for in a match like this. Well this was weird. Fuerza is fucking amazing carrying this thing doing literally everything interesting in the match. Octagon really lives down to his reputation though. Put Fuerza on this night in with a more capable opponent and we could've had an awesome match. 

Fuerza Guerrera & Espectro Jr & Espectro de Ultratumba vs Anibal & Mano Negra & Gallo Tapado (2/8/91)
Fun match. Sort of your standard affair. Tecnico's work a more beautiful clean style. Rudo's are rougher with a mix of comedy spots. Fuerza is exactly the sort of person you want in a run of the mill match like this because he has so many tricks in his back pocket. Fun match but ultimately a forgettable one. 

[Rah]

On 8/25/2021 at 1:11 AM, elliott said:

Please lord send me a long match against El Dandy.

The only thing we ever got was a 5 minute torneo in 2012.

On 8/25/2021 at 10:40 PM, elliott said:

PLLLLEASE let there be a Fuerza vs SUper Astro match.

Never happened. Sorry

[elliott]

Damn!

[elliott]

Fuerza Guerrera & Espectro Jr & Espectro de Ultratumba vs Mano Negra & Gallo Tapado & Misterioso (2/22/91)
Fuerza appears to bite Tapado's fingers. So that rules. Rudo brawling to start. They look good. I like the Espectros. 2nd fall has Fuerza doing more mind games. Begging off to get the stupid tecnico's to turn their backs on the Espectros who just jump them from behind. Fuerza is the best ever at switching gears from cowardly begging to just blasting someone in the face. Some tremendous comedy spots lead to the tecnico's comeback. They do the spot where Espectro Jr thinks he doing a repeated arm breaker to Mano Negra but his back is turned and hes doing it to Ultratumba. The crowd goes nuts. Fuerza's reaction when he sees is incredible. Good stuff. 3rd fall starts hot and Fuerza takes a bump through the ropes towards the post that looks nasty. Fuerza gets isolated & destroyed by the tecnicos. Triple teamed, mask ripped. Beaten and humiliated. When Fuerza gets his comeuppance, its soooo satisfying. Really enjoyable one.

Fuerza Guerrera vs Gallo Tapado (3/1/91)
Absolutely fantastic title match. Lots of great mat work, trading submissions. Fuerza is so charismatic in these singles matches. He just looks like one of the best workers on the planet. There's an amazing spot in the 3rd fall where Fuerza is on the outside of the ring & Tapado goes for a dive but Fuerza runs out of the way but ends up posting himself. I'm sure he's done it before and will do it again, but I haven't seen it yet in this project so for now its a fresh incredible, hilarious spot. Awesome stuff.

Fuerza Guerrera vs Gallo Tapada (Mask vs Mask 3/8/91)
This starts with Fuerza repeatedly hitting Tapada with a live chicken. So it starts as the best match of all time. Fuerza follows up the chicken attack by just posting Tapada into oblivion. Quick comeback from Tapada and a mask rip and the match hasn't even officially started yet. I don't want to spoil the match by repeating any of the great spots or sequences, but this is a classic match. Fuerza looks amazing. Its a mask match so hes' more serious business Fuerza and keeps the comedy on the back burner until the very end and then we get some fun spots. Great shit.

Fuerza Guerrera & MS-1 & Vampiro vs El Dandy & Pirata Morgan & Octagon (3/22/91)
We couldn't trade Vampiro for like Blue Panther and have the greatest rudo team of all time? Kind of excited because this is 4 of the best ever and then 2 terrible wrestlers....now that I've watched it all I can think is the old Dennis Green meme. They are who we thought they were. Everyone in this looks awesome, even Octagon because he's matched up with Fuerza. Then there's Vampiro who looks like absolute garbage. Fuerza is amazing in this and gets some time with each one of the tecnicos. MS-1 is awesome and he deserves a closer look at some point. Fuerza continues to look like one of the best wrestlers alive. 

Fuerza Guerrera & El Satanico & Kung Fu vs Octagon & Ringo Mendoza & Pirata Morgan (3/29/91)
Fun match. On the shorter side and there's a lot of Kung Fu in the first half. Satanico basically sleep walks through the first half of this and then comes in for a couple of great sequences. Fuerza is busting ass the whole time. WHen he's not in there, he's cheating to help make Kung Fu more intresting. We get some nice athletic sequences and a crane pose. Fuerza continues to be the standout performer in most of his matches. 

[cad]

Since you're approaching its air date, you might enjoy this. Not something that moves his standing one way or the other in the annals of great workers, but a nice look at how the company presented Fuerza at that time.

[elliott]

On 8/31/2021 at 1:28 AM, cad said:

Since you're approaching its air date, you might enjoy this. Not something that moves his standing one way or the other in the annals of great workers, but a nice look at how the company presented Fuerza at that time.

Oh this is cool! Thank you! 

[elliott]

Fuerza Guerrera & Gran Markus Jr & Pierroth Jr vs Atlantis & Mano Negra & Mascara Sagrada (7/12/91)
Fantastic super face paced sequence with Fuerza & Gran Markus vs Mano Negra. Then there's an even better moment where Fuerza is just slugging away on Negra just stiffing the fuck out of him and then winds up for the big once and Negra just crushes him with a quebradora. Incredible spot. One I really hope Fuerza starts doing more. Another solid match but ultimately pretty forgettable other than one awesome spot from Fuerza. Actually two. Theres' one in the third fall where Pierroth is getting double teamed and Fuerza crawls across the ring on all fours to go help but gets hit by Atlantis and takes this big exaggerated tree falling bump. Fuerza is always doing something and practically always the highlight of the match.

Fuerza Guerrera & Jerry Estrada & Pierroth Jr vs El Dandy & Black Magic & Ringo Mendoza (8/9/91)
Highlights of a match we'll see in full later. Fuerza looks awesome here.

Fuerza Guerrera & Kung Fu & Emilio Charles Jr vs Super Astro & Kato Kung Lee & Angel Azteca (8/16/91)
Even shorter than the last match. There's one great Fuerza vs Astro section & they are the highlights of the match. Fine but too short to be memorable.

Fuerza Guerrera & Nitron & Fabuloso Blondy vs Mano Negra & El Hijo del Solitario & Cachorro Mendoza (8/27/91)
Hey I found one you can skip! This wasn't enough about Fuerza for him to make this interesting. He's deep background and everyone suffers for it.

Fuerza GUerrera & Pierroth Jr & Jerry Estrada vs El Dandy & Black Magic & Ringo Mendoza (9/27/91)
The full version of the 8/9/91 match! This is a really good match with an outstanding Fuerza performance. A bunch of great comedy spots. He works really well and differently with all of the tecnicos. We get two great and different wind up spots. But the highlight is Black Magic picking Fuerza up in the gorilla press position and Fuerza starts doing his exaggerated waving of the arms like "NOOOOO" while horizontal being held in the gorilla press. FUcking amaaaaaaazing. I loved it. This ruled.

Fuerza Guerrera & Jacque Mate & El Supremo vs Eddy Guerrero & Apolo Dantes & Cesar Dantes (10/11/91)
Oh shit! Eddy Guerrero! This was really good. Fuerza and Eddy worked with each other most of the way and have terrific chemistry. Fuerza is exactly the sort of person Eddy needed to be working with. Great stuff check this one out!

Fuerza Guerrera & Angel Blanco & El Egipcio vs El Dandy & Mano Negra & Mogur (10/18/91)
Good match but really just like a typical good lucha trios match. There is an incredible addition to Fuerza's comedy spots repertoire. Right as Mano Negra starts to hit the ropes for the Tiger Mask 619 fake, Fuerza steps up on the ropes. So when Negra completes the fake out, Fuerza slips and tumbles off the ropes. Fucking amazing. Good match overall. Nice taste of what makes Fuerza so fun in a trios match. Even when he's not the centerpiece he finds a way to have a great moment.

Fuerza Guerrera vs Octagon (10/27/91)
On the short list for single greatest performance ever. If I could only have one Fuerza match to show someone to convince them that he was an all time great this is the one.

Fuerza Guerrera & Blue Panther & Pierroth Jr vs Super Astro & Atlantis & Angel Azteca (11/8/91)
Truly spectacular match. I want to highlight off the top that while Fuerza is his typically awesome self in this match, this is rare occasion where someone else is the clear star. Blue Panther is mindblowingly great here. He and Astro work a truly spectacular opening section and this match doesn't let up from there. Fuerza is awesome exchanging holds with Azteca and another plus performance from him in general. But this is a rush out of your way to see it for the Blue Panther vs Super Astro matchup.

Fuerza Guerrera & Emilio Chalres Jr & La Fiera vs El Hijo del Santo & Misterioso & Mascara Sagrada (11/29/91)
Fuzera does another awesome spot where he's standing on the ropes in the corner and Emilio runs over and kicks it in frustration leading to Fuerza taking a bump into the ring. I fucking love that spot. Overall I thought this was an awesome match. Great contrast to the last technical one. This is a total brawling match that ends up with Fuerza bloodied. This is to heat up a Fuerza vs Misterioso singles match and hot damn it does its job because they are awesome together in this, it is violent and has crazy heat. Great shit. Check this one out.

Fuerza Guerrera vs Misterioso (12/6/91)
I thought this was pretty spectacular. Clean title match so its another great example of Fuerza trading submissions and working a mostly clean match. He still does his top rope crane kick air ball, but he generally does less schtick. He also makes up for the crane kick air ball when he hits a fucking incredible flipping senton from the middle turnbuckle to the outside. I love the reversal of the camel clutch by FUerza taking one of Misterioso's fingers in his mouth and just biting the shit out of him. Misterioso is great selling it. Awesome spot. Funny but brutal at the same time also subtle at the start and then something that reaches the entire arena. SMall thing but kind of a genius little piece of pro wrestling.

Fuerza Guerrera & Blue Panther & Emilio Charles Jr vs Volador & Misterioso & Blue Demon Jr (1/10/92)
That is a rudo dream team right there. Goddamn. Good match. Fuerza is his typical self. Maybe a little toned down on the comedy but he's got an amazing Hashimoto/Ogawa like moment with Misterioso towards the end where they're just going at each other. Good stuff. Fuerza's ability to switch gears is so impressive.

Fuerza Guerrera & El Satanico & Blue Panther vs Vampiro & Ultimo Dragon & Octagon (1/24/92)
WHat the fuck is this shit. Put our best 3 against our worst 3 or what JFC. Octagon breaks his neck in the first fall and they check to make sure he's ok by moving his head around a whole bunch. Good lord. Wow this turned out quite a bit better than I was expecting. Its a short brawling match with the Rudos working in overdrive. Octagon seems extra motivated after his brush with death in the first fall because he does a good job bringing it in the 2nd and 3rd. That rudo team is really idiot proof because this is better than you'd expect.


Fuerza Guerrera vs Octagon (1/31/92)
Classic performance from Fuerza. Long title match with Fuerza reaching deep into his big bag of tricks to keep this great. I enjoyed the Konnan vs Cien Caras stuff at the end for what it was to be honest. Definitely one to watch to highlight Fuerza's strenghts.

Fuerza Guerrera vs America (3/8/92)
Just brief clips. Would like to see the full match at some point. Anyone know if it exists?

Fuerza Guerrera & Emilio Charles Jr & Jerry Estrada vs Mano Negra & Atlantis & Mascara Sagrada (4/10/92)
This is one to watch. Fuerza is in full God mode. The match is mostly about Fuerza vs Mano Negra, but our man gets into it with everyone and looks fantastic. Emilio is fucking killer in support and this is a really terrific match. Just classic schtick. Tons of great spots. Wicked pace. Fuerza has the crowd just in the palm of his hand the whole time. Awesome stuff.

Fuerza Guerrera & Jerry Estrada & Jerrito Estrada vs El Hijo del Santo & Octagon & Octagoncito (8/14/92)
Holy shit this was awesome. I was kind of just expecting a fun little workrate match maybe with some good comedy because of the minis and that's my American wrestling bias come into play. The first fall is worked pretty clean and ends with Santo high fiving little kids in between falls 1 & 2. Then this turns into a crazy brawl. Estrada is stomping & choking Santo in front of those same little kids who are trying to kick Estrada away from their hero. Later Fuerza & Jerrito double team Octagoncito. In the 3rd fall Santo hits a beautiful Santo dive on Estrada as close to those kids as possible without actually hitting them. Fuerza vs Octagon is fucking magic as usual. This was a total blast and definitely exceeded expectations.

Fuerza Guerrera & Cien Caras & Mascara Ano 2000 vs Perro Aguayo & Konnan & Octagon (10/18/92)
Really fun brawling match. There are some awkward moments, but its Konnan so thats gonna happen. But everyone is working hard and this is worked at a good pace. Fun stuff.

Fuerza Guerrera & Blue Panther & Espanto Jr vs El Hijo del Santo & Octagon & Love Machine (4/25/93)
Really good match overall but drags at times in the 3rd fall. Santo is probably the star of the match but our man Fuerza looks awesome as usual. A ton of great schtick at the start of the match that culminates in a hilarious sequence between Fuerza & Blue Panther where it looks like they're going to start brawling with each other and then go for a big hug. Fun stuff. 

Fuerza Guerrera & Blue Panther & La Parka vs Lizmark & Eddy Guerrero & Love Machine (6/25/93)
Really hot match. Starts off brawling and then transitions to more hot moves and sequences. Fuerza looks king sized working with the young athletes especially. Awesome watching Fuerza keep up with the next generation and look incredibly sharp. Everyone looks great and this is one to go out of your way to see. 

Fuerza Guerrera & Blue Panther & Fishman vs El Hijo del Santo & Eddy Guerrero & Love Machine (7/23/93)
Wow this was even better than I remembered. This is the famous match where Love Machine puts on the Santo mask (that he takes from a little kid) and beats up Eddy Guerrero causing Eddy to turn on Santo. Fuerza is a completely background player here. The 5th most important guy in the match. But when he's in he looks like a totally elite performer. But the real positive just isolating Fuerza's performance is that he doesn't go so over the top that he takes the attention away from he main storyline they're trying to tell. So that's another point in his favor. But this is really about Love Machine, Eddy, Santo & Panther and they all look great. The switch flipped so fast for LoveMachine. He was pretty blah in the April match and here he looks as great as all these other all timers.

Fuerza Guerrera & Love Machine & Heavy Metal vs El Hijo del Santo & Blue Panther & Perro Aguayo (7/30/93)
Short brawling match. Good and heated but not much to learn from it. 

Fuerza Guerrera & Love Machine & Heavy Metal vs El Hijo del Santo & Blue Panther & Octagon (8/6/93)
Spectacular first fall. Everyone looks great. Fuerza & Octagon match up as usual and its awesome as usual. Great fast pace back & forth usual stuff from them but they look sharp. Fuerza hugs Octagon and then just blasts him with a headbutt. Great spot where Love Machine takes a dropkick that sends him to the outside but he rolls right into Fuerza and they both tumble to the floor. Great little injection of comedy. 2nd fall is your typical short rudo comeback. Fuerza manages to hit Octagon in the nuts twice. So it was good shit hahaha. Third fall has rudos continue the beatdown. Santo takes a double nut shot fom Fuerza & Love Machine that was pretty great. This was a total blast.