Date September 22, 1989 Venue Arena México | Attendance 17,000 City Mexico City, Mexico | |
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Promotion Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre EMLL 56th Anniversary Show EMLL 57th Anniversary Show | ||
The EMLL 56th Anniversary Show was a professional wrestling major show event produced by Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre (EMLL) that took place on September 22, 1989 in Arena Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico. The event commemorated the 56th anniversary of CMLL, which would become the oldest professional wrestling promotion in the world. The Anniversary show is EMLL's biggest show of the year, their Super Bowl event. The main event was a tag team Lucha de Apuestas ("Bet match) between the teams of Atlantis and El Satánico and Tierra Viento y Fuego and MS-1 where one team member put their mask on the line and one team member put their hair on the line.
Contents
Background
The 1989 Anniversary show commemorated the 56th anniversary of the Mexican professional wrestling company Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre (Spanish for "Mexican Wrestling Promotion"; EMLL) holding their first show on September 22, 1933 by promoter and founder Salvador Lutteroth. EMLL was rebranded early in 1992 to become Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre ("World Wrestling Council"; CMLL) signal their departure from the National Wrestling Alliance. With the sales of the Jim Crockett Promotions to Ted Turner in 1988 EMLL became the oldest, still-operating wrestling promotion in the world. Over the years EMLL/CMLL has on occasion held multiple shows to celebrate their anniversary but since 1977 the company has only held one annual show, which is considered the biggest show of the year, CMLL's equivalent of WWE's WrestleMania or their Super Bowl event. CMLL has held their Anniversary show at Arena México in Mexico City, Mexico since 1956, the year the building was completed, over time Arena México earned the nickname "The Cathedral of Lucha Libre" due to it hosting most of EMLL/CMLL's major events since the building was completed. Traditionally EMLL/CMLL holds their major events on Friday Nights, replacing their regularly scheduled Super Viernes show.
Storylines
The event featured five professional wrestling matches with different wrestlers involved in pre-existing scripted feuds, plots and storylines. Wrestlers were portrayed as either heels (referred to as rudos in Mexico, those that portray the "bad guys") or faces (técnicos in Mexico, the "good guy" characters) as they followed a series of tension-building events, which culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches.
The main event match was a continuation of a storyline feud between El Satánico and MS-1 that started with the break-up of Los Infernales ("The Infernals"), a group both of them belonged to. The feud also involved the third Infernales member Pirata Morgan and saw all three fight against each through most of 1989 with various EMLL wrestlers backing them up. At one point MS-1 was aided by the enmascarado ("Masked wrestler) Tierra Viento y Fuego ("Earth, Wind and Fire") in his attacks on El Satánico and actually joined Los Infernales to replace Satánico. During one 2-on-1 sneak attack Satánico was saved by former opponent Atlantis. In the end all four agreed to a match at the 56th Anniversary where Satánico and MS-1 would put their hair on the line and Atlantis and Tierra Viento y Fuego put their masks on the line, in the ultimate "feud settler" match in Lucha Libre, the Lucha de Apuesta ("Bet match").
Aftermath
El Satánico feud with the former Los Infernales continued on, including Pirata Morgan defeating Satánico to win the NWA World Light Heavyweight Championship a month after the anniversary show. Los Infernales would reunite in 1990 for one last run as a trio. Tierra Viento y Fuego would later adopt a new ring persona and be known as "Damián el Guerrero"