Lucha libre

Lucha libre (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈlutʃa ˈliβɾe], meaning "freestyle wrestling" or more literally translated as "free fight") is the term for the style of professional wrestling originating in Mexico. Since its introduction to Mexico in the early 20th century, it has developed into a unique form of the genre, characterized by colorful masks, rapid sequences of holds and maneuvers, and high-flying aerial techniques, some of which have been adopted by wrestlers in the United States, Japan, and elsewhere. The wearing of masks has developed special significance, and matches are sometimes contested in which the loser must permanently remove his mask, which is a wager with a high degree of weight attached. Tag team wrestling is especially prevalent in lucha libre, particularly matches with three-member teams, called trios.

Although in English the term specifically refers to the Mexican style of theatrical professional wrestling, in Mexico (and certain other Spanish-speaking territories) it can refer to other kinds of wrestling, including competitive amateur wrestling (es:lucha libre olímpica) and professional wrestling in general (es:lucha libre profesional) in addition to Mexican professional wrestling in particular (es:lucha libre mexicana). However, in Spain (as well as with certain other Spanish-speaking territories and non-Anglophone European countries) professional wrestling is known as "catch".

Male lucha libre wrestlers are known as luchadores (singular luchador) while female lucha libre wrestlers are known as luchadoras (singular luchadora). Mexican wrestlers often come from extended wrestling families, who often form their own stables. One such familial line integrated to the United States professional wrestling scene is the Guerreros.

In 2018, Mexican lucha libre was declared an intangible cultural heritage of Mexico City by the head of the Government of Mexico City.

Mexican luchadores are traditionally more agile and perform more aerial maneuvers than American professional wrestlers, who more often rely on power and hard strikes to subdue their opponents. The difference in styles is due to the independent evolution of professional wrestling in Mexico beginning in the 1930s and the fact that luchadores in cruiserweight divisions (Peso Crucero) and other lower weight divisions are often more popular in Mexican lucha libre than heavyweights. Luchadores execute characteristic high-flying attacks by using the wrestling ring's ropes to catapult themselves towards their opponents, using intricate combinations in rapid-fire succession, and applying complex submission holds known as llaves. Rings used in lucha libre (which are typically squared shaped, though some lucha libre promotions use hexagonal rings) generally lack the spring supports added to U.S. and Japanese rings; as a result, lucha libre does not emphasize "flat back bumps" like in other professional wrestling styles. For this same reason, aerial maneuvers are almost always performed on opponents outside the ring, allowing the luchador to break his fall with an acrobatic tumble.

Lucha libre has several different weight classes, many catered to smaller agile wrestlers, who often make their debuts in their mid-teens. This enabled dynamic high-flying luchadores such as Rey Misterio Jr., Juventud Guerrera, Super Crazy, and Místico among others, to develop years of experience by their mid-twenties. A number of prominent Japanese wrestlers also started their careers training in Mexico and competing in lucha libre's lighter weight classes before becoming stars in Japan. These wrestlers included Gran Hamada, Satoru Sayama, Jushin Thunder Liger, Último Dragón, and Kazuchika Okada among others.

Lucha libre is also known for its tag team wrestling matches. The teams are often made up of three or four members, instead of two as is common in the United States. Three-man teams participate in what are called trios matches while four-man teams participate in Atómicos matches. Of the team members, one member is often designated the captain. A successful fall in a multi-person tag team match can be achieved by either pinning the captain of the opposing team or by pinning both of the other members. A referee can also stop the match because of "excessive punishment" and he can then award the match to the victim of the "excessive punishment". Falls often occur simultaneously, which adds to the extremely stylized nature of the action. In addition, a wrestler can opt to roll out of the ring in lieu of tagging a partner or simply be knocked out of the ring, at which point one of his partners may enter. As a result, the tag team formula and pacing which has developed in U.S. tag matches is different from lucha libre because the race to tag is not a priority. There are also traditional two-man tag matches (known as parejas matches) and other types of team matches.

Masks (máscaras) have been used dating back to the beginnings of lucha libre in the early part of the 20th century, and have a historical significance to Mexico in general, dating to the days of the Aztecs. Early masks were very simple with basic colors to distinguish the wrestler. In modern lucha libre, masks are colorfully designed to evoke the images of animals, gods, ancient heroes and other archetypes, whose identity the luchador takes on during a performance. Virtually all wrestlers in Mexico will start their careers wearing masks, but over the span of their careers, a large number of them will be unmasked. Sometimes, a wrestler slated for retirement will be unmasked in his final bout or at the beginning of a final tour, signifying a loss of identity as that character. Sometimes, losing the mask signifies the end of a gimmick with the wrestler moving on to a new gimmick and mask. The mask is considered sacred to a degree, so much so that fully removing an opponent's mask during a match is grounds for disqualification.