List of CMLL World Light Heavyweight Champions
The CMLL World Light Heavyweight Championship (Campeonato Mundial Semi Completo de CMLL in Spanish) is a singles professional wrestling championship promoted by Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) since 1991. Being a professional wrestling championship, it is not won legitimately: it is instead won via a scripted ending to a match or awarded to a wrestler because of a storyline. The official definition of the Light Heavyweight weight class in Mexico is between 92 kg (203 lb) and 97 kg (214 lb), but is not always strictly enforced.[Note 1][1] Because Lucha Libre emphasizes the lower weight classes, this division is considered more important than the normally more prestigious heavyweight division of a promotion.[2]
The first champion to be recognized by CMLL was Jerry Estrada, who defeated Pierroth, Jr. in the finals of a 16-man tournament that took place between September 15 and September 26, 1991. The current champion is Ephesto, the 11th overall champion and the 9th person to hold the title.[3] As of June 26, 2009, Dr. Wagner, Jr. and Atlantis are the only two wrestlers to have held the title twice; Dr. Wagner, Jr. is listed as an unofficial three-time champion, but he is not recognized as such by CMLL.[Note 2] Ephesto's reign is the shortest reign, at 5,534 days, while Ultimo Guerrero has held it the for the longest period, at 1,309 days. Aquarius's unofficial title reign is the shortest on record, 8 days, but is not acknowledged by CMLL.
Title history
- Key
| # | The overall championship reign |
| Reign | The reign number for the specific wrestler listed |
| Event | The event promoted by the respective promotion in which the title changed hands |
| + | Indicates that the number of days held by this individual changes everyday |
Statistics correct as of July 20, 2024.
| # | Wrestler | Reign | Date | Days held |
Location | Event | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jerry Estrada | 1 | September 26, 1991 | 175 | Cuernavaca, Mexico | Live event | Defeated Pierroth, Jr. in a tournament final |
| 2 | Pierroth, Jr. | 1 | March 19, 1992 | 379 | Cuernavaca, Mexico | Live event | |
| 3 | Dr. Wagner, Jr. | 1 | April 2, 1993 | 334 | Mexico City, Districto Federal | Live event | |
| 4 | Atlantis | 1 | March 2, 1994 | 655 | Acapulco, Mexico | Live event | |
| 5 | Dr. Wagner, Jr. | 2 | December 17, 1995 | 1,240 | Mexico City, Districto Federal | Live event | |
| # | Aquarius | 1 | July 19, 1996 | 8 | Tokyo, Japan | Live event | Title change is not officially recognized by CMLL |
| 5 | Dr. Wagner, Jr. | 2 | July 27, 1996 | 1,240 | Sapporo, Japan | Live event | CMLL does not recognize Dr. Wagner, Jr. as a three-time champion as they do not recognize Aquarius' title win. |
| 6 | Atlantis | 2 | May 10, 1999 | 196 | Puebla, Mexico | Live event | |
| 7 | Villano III | 1 | November 22, 1999 | 685 | Tampico, Mexico | Live event | |
| 8 | Shocker | 1 | October 7, 2001 | 432 | Guadalajara, Mexico | Live event | [4] |
| 9 | Último Guerrero | 1 | December 13, 2002 | 1,309 | Mexico City, Districto Federal | Live event | [5] |
| 10 | Rey Bucanero | 1 | July 14, 2006 | Error: Second date should be year, month, day | Mexico City, Districto Federal | Live event | [6] |
| 11 | Ephesto | 1 | May 26, 2009 | 5,534+ | Mexico City, Districto Federal | Live event | [3] |
Championship reigns by length
- Key
| © | Indicates the current champion |
| + | Indicates that the number of days held by this individual changes everyday. |
| Rank | Wrestler | # of reigns | Combined days |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dr. Wagner, Jr. | 2 | 1,574 |
| 2 | Último Guerrero | 1 | 1,309 |
| 3 | Rey Bucanero | 1 | 898 |
| 4 | Atlantis | 2 | 851 |
| 5 | Villaño III | 1 | 685 |
| 6 | Shocker | 1 | 432 |
| 7 | Pierroth, Jr. | 1 | 379 |
| 8 | Jerry Estrada | 1 | 175 |
| 9 | Ephesto © | 1 | 5,534+ |
| 10 | Aquarius | 1 | 8 |
Footnotes
- ^ The most recent case of this is Mephisto's holding the NWA World Welterweight Championship, a belt with a 78 kg (172 lb) upper limit despite weighing 90 kg (200 lb).
- ^ Before the Internet made information readily available on a global scale, it was not uncommon for championships to be lost and won back during a tour of a foreign country without being recognized by the promotion.
References
- General reference for championship history before 2000
- Royal Duncan & Gary Will (2000). "MEXICO: CMLL EMLL Light Heavyweight Title". Wrestling Title Histories. Archeus Communications. p. 395. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
- Specific
- ^ Arturo Montiel Rojas (2001-08-30). "Reglamento de Box y Lucha Libre Professional del Estado de Mexico" (PDF). Comisión de Box y Lucha Libre Mexico D.F. Retrieved 2009-04-03.
Articulo 242: "Super medio 92 kilos / Semi Completo 97 kilos"
- ^ Madigan, Dan (2007). ""Okay... what is Lucha Libre?"". Mondo Lucha Libre: the bizare& honorable world of wild Mexican wrestling. HarperColins Publisher. pp. 29–40. ISBN 978-0-06-085583-3.
- ^ a b Autorito Rosas Plata (May 27, 2009). "Ephesto aplasta a Bucanero". Ovaciones (in Spanish). Mexico, D.F.: Editorial Ovaciones, S. A. de C.V. p. 24. Número 21599 Año LXII. Retrieved May 28, 2009.
- ^ Luchas 2000 staff. "Luchas 2000". Villano III: El Ultimo Rey (in Spanish). Ciudad Juárez, Mexico: Publicaciones citem, S.A. de C.V. pp. 1–35. Especial 37.
{{cite news}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ Enciclopedia staff (December, 2007). "Enciclopedia de las Mascaras". Último Guerrero (in Spanish). Mexico. pp. 55–56. Tomo V.
{{cite news}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help); Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ Arturo Rosas Plata (May 26, 2009). "Lleva 15 defensas". Ovaciones (in Spanish). Mexico, D.F.: Editorial Ovaciones, S. A. de C.V. p. 22. Número 21598 Año LXII. Retrieved June 22, 2009.