Lucha Libre World Cup (2023)
The Lucha Libre World Cup was a professional wrestling event and tournament organized by Mexican professional wrestling promotion Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA). The tournament took place on March 19, 2023 at Estadio de Béisbol Charros de Jalisco in Zapopan, near Guadalajara, Mexico. The 2023 edition of the tournament featured three-person teams, referred to as trios in Lucha Libre; this differed from the previous edition of the event which featured traditional two-person tag teams.
| Lucha Libre World Cup (2023) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Promotion poster featuring the participants of the tournament | |||
| Promotion | Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide | ||
| Date | March 19, 2023 | ||
| City | Zapopan, Jalisco, Mexico | ||
| Venue | Estadio de Béisbol Charros de Jalisco | ||
| Event chronology | |||
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| Lucha Libre World Cup chronology | |||
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The tournament showcased teams with wrestlers from numerous international promotions including Mexico's Nación Lucha Libre (NLL), America's All Elite Wrestling (AEW), Impact Wrestling (Impact), and the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), Japan's Dragon Gate and Oz Academy (Oz), and Qatar Pro Wrestling (QPW). The men's tournament was won by Team Mexico (Taurus, Pentagón Jr., and Laredo Kid) and the women's tournament was won by Team United States (Deonna Purrazzo, Kamille, and Jordynne Grace).
Background
The Mexican lucha libre promotion AAA, with the financial support of the Mexican brewing company Grupo Modelo organized the first ever Lucha Libre World Cup in the summer of 2015. The tournament itself was a one-night eight-team tournament for trios, or tag teams of three wrestlers. AAA reached out to several promotions both in Mexico and around the world and arranged for six of the eight teams to come from outside AAA. Japanese wrestling promotions All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) and Pro Wrestling Noah both sent teams.[1] Both Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) and Ring of Honor (ROH), based in the United States, also sent representatives to the tournament, in each case bolstered by representatives of Lucha Underground, an AAA joint-venture project based on Los Angeles.[2] The tournament took place on May 25, 2015, and had the AAA labelled "Dream Team" of Rey Mysterio Jr., El Patrón Alberto and Myzteziz win the tournament, defeating Team TNA/Lucha Underground (Matt Hardy, Mr. Anderson and Johnny Mundo) in the finals.[3] A second World Cup was held in the summer of 2016. The second edition featured two tournaments, one for male wrestlers and another for female wrestlers. The men's tournament was won by Brian Cage, Chavo Guerrero Jr., and Johnny Mundo of Team Lucha Underground while the women's tournament was won by Faby Apache, Lady Apache, and Mari Apache of Team Mexico. The 2017 tournament was won by Team Mexico AAA (Pagano and Psycho Clown).[4]
The 2023 edition, the first since 2017, was officially announced on January 17 during a press conference.[5]
Teams
Men's
| Team | Team member |
|---|---|
| Dream Team | Alberto El Patrón (NLL, Mexico)[6] |
| Hijo del Vikingo (AAA, Mexico)[6] | |
| Psycho Clown (AAA, Mexico)[6] | |
| Team Mexico | Taurus (AAA)[6] |
| Pentagón Jr. (AAA)[6] | |
| Laredo Kid (AAA)[6] | |
| Team United States | Johnny Caballero (Independent)[6] |
| Sam Adonis (AAA)[6] | |
| Christopher Daniels (AEW)[6] | |
| Team Canada | Vampiro (AAA)[6] |
| Josh Alexander (Impact)[6] | |
| PCO (Impact)[6] | |
| Team Latin America | Carlito (NLL, Puerto Rico)[6] |
| Zumbi (Independent, Brazil)[6] | |
| Hip Hop Man (Independent, Argentina)[6] | |
| Team Japan | Takuma Nishikawa (Dragon Gate)[6] |
| La Estrella (Dragon Gate)[6] | |
| Kuukai (Independent)[6] | |
| Team Europe | Thom Latimer (NWA, England)[6] |
| Heddi Karaoui (Independent, France)[6] | |
| Joe Hendry (Impact, Scotland)[6] | |
| Team Rest of the World | Rage (QPW, Qatar)[6] |
| Classy Ali (QPW, Qatar)[6] | |
| Bhupinder Gujjar (Impact, India)[6] |
Women's
| Team | Team member |
|---|---|
| Team Mexico | Sexy Star II (AAA)[6] |
| Flammer (AAA)[6] | |
| La Hiedra (AAA)[6] | |
| Team United States | Kamille (NWA)[6] |
| Deonna Purrazzo (Impact)[6] | |
| Jordynne Grace (Impact)[6] | |
| Team Japan | Emi Sakura (AEW)[6] |
| Mayumi Ozaki (Oz)[6] | |
| Akino (Oz)[6] | |
| Team Rest of the World | Taya Valkyrie (Impact, Canada)[6] |
| Dalys (AAA, Panama)[6] | |
| Natalia Markova (NWA, Russia)[6] |
Christi Jaynes, representing the NWA and Brazil, was previously announced for Team Rest of the World, but was pulled from the tournament due to a visa issue; Dalys replaced her.[7]
Results
| No. | Results | Stipulations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dream Team (Psycho Clown, Alberto El Patrón, and Hijo del Vikingo) vs. Team Latin America (Carlito, Hip Hop Man, and Zumbi) ended in a draw | Trios match[8] 2023 Lucha Libre World Cup men's tournament first round |
| 2 | Alberto El Patrón defeated Carlito | Singles match[9] 2023 Lucha Libre World Cup men's tournament first round sudden death match |
| 3 | Team United States (Sam Adonis, Johnny Caballero, and Christopher Daniels) defeated Team Japan (La Estrella, Takuma Nishikawa, and Kuukai) | Trios match[10] 2023 Lucha Libre World Cup men's tournament first round |
| 4 | Team Mexico (Taurus, Pentagón Jr., and Laredo Kid) defeated Team Rest of the World (Classy Ali, Rage, and Bhupinder Gujjar) | Trios match[11] 2023 Lucha Libre World Cup men's tournament first round |
| 5 | Team Europe (Joe Hendry, Heddi Karaoui, and Thom Latimer) defeated Team Canada (Josh Alexander, Vampiro, and PCO) | Trios match[12] 2023 Lucha Libre World Cup men's tournament first round |
| 6 | Team United States (Deonna Purrazzo, Kamille, and Jordynne Grace) defeated Team Rest of the World (Dalys, Taya Valkyrie, and Natalia Markova) | Trios match[13] 2023 Lucha Libre World Cup women's tournament first round |
| 7 | Team Mexico (Sexy Star II, Flammer, La Hiedra) vs. Team Japan (Emi Sakura, Mayumi Ozaki, and Akino) ended in a draw | Trios match[14] 2023 Lucha Libre World Cup women's tournament first round |
| 8 | La Hiedra defeated Akino | Singles match[9] 2023 Lucha Libre World Cup women's tournament first round sudden death match |
| 9 | Team United States (Sam Adonis, Johnny Caballero, and Christopher Daniels) vs. Dream Team (Psycho Clown, Alberto El Patrón, and Hijo del Vikingo) ended in a draw | Trios match[9] 2023 Lucha Libre World Cup men's tournament semi-final |
| 10 | Sam Adonis defeated Psycho Clown | Singles match[9] 2023 Lucha Libre World Cup men's tournament semi-final sudden death match |
| 11 | Team Mexico (Taurus, Pentagón Jr., and Laredo Kid) defeated Team Europe (Joe Hendry, Heddi Karaoui, and Thom Latimer) | Trios match[9] 2023 Lucha Libre World Cup men's tournament semi-final |
| 12 | Team United States (Deonna Purrazzo, Kamille, and Jordynne Grace) defeated Team Mexico (Sexy Star II, Flammer, La Hiedra) | Trios match[9] 2023 Lucha Libre World Cup women's tournament final |
| 13 | Team Mexico (Taurus, Pentagón Jr., and Laredo Kid) vs. Team United States (Sam Adonis, Johnny Caballero, and Christopher Daniels) ended in a draw | Trios match[9] 2023 Lucha Libre World Cup men's tournament final |
| 14 | Pentagón Jr. vs. Johnny Caballero ended in a draw | Singles match[9] 2023 Lucha Libre World Cup men's tournament final sudden death match |
| 15 | Pentagón Jr. vs. Johnny Caballero ended in a draw | Singles match[9] 2023 Lucha Libre World Cup men's tournament final sudden death match |
| 16 | Pentagón Jr. defeated Johnny Caballero | Singles match[9] 2023 Lucha Libre World Cup men's tournament final sudden death match |
Tournament brackets
- Men's
| First round | Semi-finals | Finals | ||||||||||||
| Dream Team (Psycho Clown, Alberto El Patrón, and Hijo del Vikingo) | ||||||||||||||
| Team Latin America (Carlito, Hip Hop Man, and Zumbi) | ||||||||||||||
| Team United States (Sam Adonis, Johnny Caballero, and Christopher Daniels) | ||||||||||||||
| Dream Team (Psycho Clown, Alberto El Patrón, and Hijo del Vikingo) | ||||||||||||||
| Team United States (Sam Adonis, Johnny Caballero, and Christopher Daniels) | ||||||||||||||
| Team Japan (La Estrella, Takuma Nishikawa, and Kuukai) | ||||||||||||||
| Team United States (Sam Adonis, Johnny Caballero, and Christopher Daniels) | ||||||||||||||
| Team Mexico (Taurus, Pentagón Jr., and Laredo Kid) | ||||||||||||||
| Team Mexico (Taurus, Pentagón Jr., and Laredo Kid) | ||||||||||||||
| Team Rest of the World (Classy Ali, Rage, and Bhupinder Gujjar) | ||||||||||||||
| Team Mexico (Taurus, Pentagón Jr., and Laredo Kid) | ||||||||||||||
| Team Europe (Joe Hendry, Heddi Karaoui, and Thom Latimer) | ||||||||||||||
| Team Europe (Joe Hendry, Heddi Karaoui, and Thom Latimer) | ||||||||||||||
| Team Canada (Josh Alexander, Vampiro, and PCO) | ||||||||||||||
- Women's
| First round | Finals | ||||||||
| Team Mexico (Sexy Star II, Flammer, La Hiedra) | |||||||||
| Team Japan (Emi Sakura, Mayumi Ozaki, and Akino) | |||||||||
| Team Mexico (Sexy Star II, Flammer, La Hiedra) | |||||||||
| Team United States (Deonna Purrazzo, Kamille, and Jordynne Grace) | |||||||||
| Team United States (Deonna Purrazzo, Kamille, and Jordynne Grace) | |||||||||
| Team Rest of the World (Dalys, Taya Valkyrie, and Natalia Markova) | |||||||||
References
- "AAA: Se anuncian los integrantes de los Grupos AJPW y Noah para la Lucha Libre World Cup". Súper Luchas (in Spanish). April 23, 2015. Retrieved April 24, 2015.
- "Equipo listo de TNA-LU para el Mundial de Lucha Libre". MedioTiempo (in Spanish). MSN. May 4, 2015. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
- Boutwell, Josh (May 24, 2015). "AAA Lucha Libre World Cup Results - 5/24/15 (Live results)". Wrestleview. Retrieved May 24, 2015.
- "Lucha Libre World Cup 2017 en Japón". Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (in Spanish). Retrieved September 29, 2017.
- "PRESENTACIÓN 2023 de LUCHA LIBRE AAA WORLDWIDE: ¡EN VIVO!". AAA Lucha Libre Worldwide. January 17, 2023. Retrieved January 17, 2023.
- "LUCHA LIBRE WORLD CUP: EQUIPOS, PAÍSES Y EMPRESAS". Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide on YouTube. January 25, 2023. Retrieved January 25, 2023.
- Mutter, Eric (March 9, 2023). "Christi Jaynes Ruled Out For Lucha Libre World Cup". WrestlingInc. Retrieved March 22, 2023.
- Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide [@luchalibreaaa] (February 15, 2023). "Y para cerrar con Broche de Oro estas grandes contiendas de #LuchaWorldCup💥 El enfrentamiento será con: 🇲🇽 México 1 🆚 LATAM 🌎 📅 19 de Marzo" (Tweet) (in Spanish). Retrieved February 15, 2023 – via Twitter.
- Tessier, Colin (March 19, 2023). "AAA Lucha Libre World Cup Results (3/19): Josh Alexander, Vikingo, More". Yahoo!. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
- Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide [@luchalibreaaa] (February 15, 2023). "Otros equipos varoniles que se enfrentarán en @LuchaWorldCup💥Será entre: 🇺🇸 USA 🆚 Japón 🇯🇵 📅 19 de Marzo" (Tweet) (in Spanish). Retrieved February 15, 2023 – via Twitter.
- Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide [@luchalibreaaa] (February 15, 2023). "México estará bien representado en la @LuchaWorldCup💥🇲🇽 México 2 🆚 Resto del Mundo 🌎 📅 19 de Marzo" (Tweet) (in Spanish). Retrieved February 15, 2023 – via Twitter.
- Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide [@luchalibreaaa] (February 15, 2023). "Los equipos varoniles de @LuchaWorldCup Se enfrentarán entre: 🇨🇦 Canada 🆚 Europa 🇬🇧 📅 19 de Marzo" (Tweet) (in Spanish). Retrieved February 15, 2023 – via Twitter.
- Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide [@luchalibreaaa] (February 15, 2023). "Otra batalla femenil de @LuchaWorldCup💥Será entre: Resto del Mundo 🆚 USA 🇺🇸 📅 19 de Marzo" (Tweet) (in Spanish). Retrieved February 15, 2023 – via Twitter.
- Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide [@luchalibreaaa] (February 15, 2023). "Llegó el momento de conocer los enfrentamientos de @LuchaWorldCup💥El Poder Femenil se enfrentará: 🇲🇽 México 🆚 Japón 🇯🇵 📅 19 de Marzo" (Tweet) (in Spanish). Retrieved February 15, 2023 – via Twitter.