[Agradecimientos especiales a Pepe Baéz, Charlie, Talina, Brenda, Don Pappi Chulo, Bere, Fernado y todos los fanáticos de la lucha libre que hicieron este evento posible.]

Masks have their origins in our pre-hispanic culture. They come from ancient traditions long before lucha libre. And it involves an element of mystery and showmanship that captivates children and audiences alike. Like our mythical gods or comic book super heroes, the masks, capes and costumes, are all part of the grand stage that is the lucha libre.



About eight years ago it was instated that every February 5th, as historic a date in Mexican culture as well as in popular sport, there be a special event held in honor of a very special man. This date, which commemorates the drafting of Mexico’s constitution, is also shared by the anniversary of the death of one of its greatest popular icons, stars of the silver screen and cult hero, El Santo. This year the event organizer and local broadcaster Pepe Baéz felt compelled to call upon the present holder of that hallowed mantle, El Hijo del Santo (The Son of El Santo) and institute for the first time in 60 years of Mexican wrestling (known as lucha libre) a cup in the name of Rodolfo Guzmán Huerta, the original Santo.

According to Baéz, there was only one Santo, whose actual name was Rodolfo Guzmán Huerta. Although many have attempted to supplant his identity and take credit of his fame. El Santo is a person incredibly important to popular Mexican culture, and one could make the obvious comparison to Superman. He was a Mexican superhero who fought against mummies, vampires and extraterrestrials in his comics and films. The difference between El Santo and Superman is that Superman was a work of comic book science fiction and El Santo was a man created of flesh and blood. El Santo existed, and his name was Rodolfo Guzmán Huerta.

This same man was active as a wrestler for 42 years and acted in over 50 movies. Although he debuted in 1942 under the name “El Santo”, before that time he wrestled under other names, such as “Rudy Guzmán”, “El Hombre Rojo”, and “El Murciélago 2”. Later, Don Jesús Lomelí, a promoter at the Arena México, the most famous wrestling venue in Mexico, suggested he change his name and choose between either El Santo or El Ángel. He liked El Santo, but began his career as a “rudo” (or “bad boy” wrestler) who didn’t follow the norms or rules of the sport. But having a bad wrestler who was named “The Saint” was a bit of a contradiction. So for his younger fans El Santo decided to turn into a “técnico”, or by-the-book, goody-two-shoes wrestling purist. This change in his image helped turn him into a popular phenomenon, not only in lucha libre, but also in film.

His first appearance as El Santo was in 1942. And he made this appearance with a personally handmade mask made of pigskin. He was a very humble person that did not come from a lot of money and made his own simple costume, which consisted of the silver mask, blue tights, silver boots and cape. In September of 1982, he fought his last match, in the Toreo de Cuatro Caminos. He was an active wrestler for over 40 years and after 1982, he dedicated himself to escapism. He died on February 5th, 1984.

El Hijo del Santo has proudly carried his father’s tradition in a very dignified manner. And like Pedro Infante and Cantinflas, his persona is one of the cornerstones of popular Mexican culture. El Hijo del Santo has only given that name greater weight and brilliance. There is a popular Mexican saying that goes, “Santo that is not seen is Santo not adored.” Thanks to the 22-year career of El Hijo del Santo, this character remains in the forefront of the collective Mexican consciousness. Besides the many films his father made, his career has helped uphold the memory of El Santo. He is a very clean man, free of vice, drugs and alcohol. He is also a very professional man who takes care of himself and doesn’t like to be viewed without his mask, preserving the mystery that the character represents.

El Hijo del Santo is the youngest of 10 siblings. There were four brothers who had the opportunity to take their father’s mantle. But perhaps not all of them had the physical requirements or simply the desire. He is the youngest of them all and has 22 years as an active wrestler with an impeccable career. He debuted as a wrestler on October 18, 1982, in Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas.

Pepe Baéz has a personal connection to El Santo. He can proudly claim that the original Santo was his grandfather, the father of his mother. El Hijo del Santo is his uncle—the youngest of his uncles—and he has had a long relationship with him. “I can tell you that he’s my best friend, besides being my uncle. Everyone sees this masked man as this great spectacle, of cinema and wrestling, but very few people have the opportunity to know him as a human being. And I can tell you, as a wrestler he’s the best, as a human being he’s one thousand times better. He’s a very noble man, a very good man, who has overcome many difficult hurdles in his life. The world may think that he was born in a golden crib and that he had an easy life, but that’s not true. When he started wrestling he was the butt of many critics. Now you see him with many stars (victories) but he began like any novice. Many people think that you can only benefit from carrying a name of prestige, but this isn’t true. [Many second generation artists] must overcome the shadow cast by a famous parent or predecessor. I think he has succeeded at this based on his discipline and the great heart he has as an extraordinary human being.

The rivalry between the original Santo and Blue Demon goes back many years. Mr. Baéz cannot speak for the dead, who can no longer defend themselves, but he says there were many differences between the original El Santo and Blue Demon. He can’t say whether it was a question of popularity, but he believes there was always an element of jealousy on behalf of Blue Demon towards El Santo. “If you notice, in all the posters, Santo is always the headliner who is accompanied by Blue Demon. Therefore there existed a professional jealousy. Logically there was a legend that today the son carries in very dignified manner. But from my perspective, El Santo is El Santo, and there is no one else like him.”

Blue Demon Jr. is taller and stronger than El Santo. The last time they confronted each other was 3 years ago in Arena México in front of 18,000 people. El Hijo del Santo lost by disqualification. He removed Blue Demon’s mask, returning the favor after Blue Demon had attempted to remove his own mask only two or three weeks previously. But Blue Demon was unsuccessful and the mystery of Santo’s identity was preserved. “Blue Demon as a wrestler deserves all my respect,” added Baéz . “There was a time in his career where he didn’t know how to approach the wonderful legend his father had left him, but fortunately now he is running a very clean campaign. There was a time when he was wrestling in second- and third-class matches, but now that he’s liberated himself of those former leagues and has rekindled a rivalry with El Hijo del Santo, he’s occupying the first class marquees of the stars.”

El Hijo del Santo has about 2 or 3 years more experience than Blue Demon Jr. Both are excellent wrestlers on the mat, something that has been missing very much in modern wrestling. Many say the essence of the lucha libre has been lost. These two are masters of the mat, but El Santo has at his advantage some spectacular moves. The leaps he makes out of the ring, his head-butts, all of those specialties, give him a slight edge.

As a result of the recent boom in popularity of lucha libre, aided by mass media coverage, the sport presently has many different leagues, cups and championships. While this is overall positive for the diffusion of the sport, it is negative with the immergence of leagues such as the Triple "A", which started out well but have regressed the lucha libre into somewhat of a circus. The sport has become largely Americanized in the style of the WWF and has lost any credibility it may have once had. A major goal of the Copa Rodolfo Guzmán Huerta is to bring back some lost dignity to the sport. It is a cup that will be disputed every February 5th, in this case between El Hijo del Santo and Blue Demon Jr. Depending on the audience response from San Miguel de Allende, it could be in Monterrey, Guadalajara or in Mexico City next year.

Unfortunately, Lucha Libre, like many other sports that become commercialized, has lost some of its credibility. This has also happened with bull fighting. It’s sad that the biggest bull fighting venue in the world, Plaza Mexico, only has an attendance of 3,000 people. Fans pay lots of money to see the country’s biggest sport, soccer, and are very often left with much to be desired. Fortunately there are serious companies like the “Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre” and wrestlers that belong to no particular organizations or leagues, like El Hijo del Santo, Blue Demon Jr., the son of Perro Aguayo, the original Máscara Sagrada, who take the sport seriously and have tried to dignify it. But finally, lucha libre is a business, much like boxing, which has lost some of its credibility due to the marketing and commercialization of the sport.

It was a difficult match to pact between these two hallowed wrestlers. For the rivalry between the original Santo and Blue Demon is more than 60 years in the making. The fight was held in el Salón El Álamo. Television networks such as Televisa and Televisión Azteca covered the fight as well as national magazines such as “Tv y Novelas”, “Tv Notas”, the weeklies dedicated to the lucha libre, and of course La Jerga.

“The primary objective is to pay homage to not only to a great wrestler, but to a great man, Rodolfo Guzmán Huerta,” commented Baéz before the fight. “The second is to see a match that satisfies the fans of San Miguel de Allende. There will be 3 other matches with big time wrestlers like El Máscara Sagrada Original, El Dandi, Pentagón, El Hijo del Diablo, Supermuñeco, Batman, Dr. Cerebro, El Bombero Infernal, among others. Also there was the son of Bobby Lee. Bobby Lee was a wrestler who had much to do with the final stage of the original Santo’s career. El Santo removed Bobby Lee’s mask, and it was the last mask that he won. All the ingredients are here to make it a great show. Hopefully the public of San Miguel de Allende will respond so that we can keep bringing quality lucha libre, maybe one match a month. And hopefully next year San Miguel can be the location for the Second Edition of la Copa Rodolfo Guzmán Huerta.”

In the first two matches we had the young Bobby Lee accompanied by other first-class wrestlers from León, Gto. In the “fantasy” bout we had Supermuñeco, who is adored by children, and Batman vs. Dr. Cerebro, who removed El Hijo del Santo’s mask about two years ago, and El Bombero Infernal. In the semi-final we witnessed Máscara Sagrada and El Dandi against Pentagón Black and El Hijo del Diablo. And in the final title bout, El Hijo del Santo fought Blue Demon Jr., mano-a-mano.

The title bout between El Hijo del Santo and Blue Demon Jr. was very close and drawn out to a fever pitch of excitement. Blue Demon had some incredible holds, pins and grabs on El Santo early on. At one point Blue Demon raised Santo high above him, as if sacrificing him to the gods that are their fathers. El Santo quickly retaliated with one of his patented flying Santo dives out of the ring. But in the end, Blue Demon gave into Santo, who had him pinned in an excruciating backward lock. And the first cup of Rodolfo Guzmán Huerta remains safely within the family.

To learn more about the legend of El Santo, visit the official website: www.elhijodelsanto.com.mx where you’ll find photos, comics, history, filmographies and everything you ever wanted to know about El Santo.