View source for IWRG Ruleta de la Muerte

{{short description|International Wrestling Revolution Group tournament}}
In ''[[Lucha libre]]'', the Mexican version of [[professional wrestling]], the '''Ruleta de la Muerte''' ("Roulette of Death") is a type of [[professional wrestling tournament]] where the loser or losers of a match would advance in the tournament instead of the winners. The finals of a ''Ruleta de la Muerte'' tournament featured the losing teams wrestle each other under ''[[Lucha de Apuestas]]'', or "bet match" rules, where the loser would be forced to either unmask or have all their hair shaved off as a result. Various Mexican promotions have held ''Ruleta de la Muerte'' tournaments; some like [[International Wrestling Revolution Group]] (IWRG - sometimes referred to as ''Grupo Internacional Revolución'' in Mexico) have held these tournaments on a regular basis.
The first documented IWRG-promoted ''Ruleta de la Muerte'' tournament was held in 1998 with [[Oficial Factor|Mega]] defeating [[Takahiro Suwa|Judo Suwa]], forcing Suwa to be shaved bald as a result. Since the first tournament, IWRG has held at least six additional ''Ruleta de la Muerte'' tournaments with a total of eight wrestlers being shaved bald as a result: Suwa, [[Dr. Cerebro]], Chico Che, [[Bombero Infernal|Temerario Infernal]], [[Oficial AK-47]], Bugambiglia, [[Eterno (wrestler)|Eterno]] and [[X-Fly]]. While [[wrestling mask|masked wrestlers]] have participated in the tournaments, none have lost their mask as a result. In 2009 IWRG began using the ''Ruleta de la Muerte'' as the name of the entire event as well and not just the tournament. Since 2009 IWRG has been held a total of six times, with the most recent being the [[IWRG La Ruleta de la Muerte Máscaras (2019)|2019 ''Ruleta de la Muerte'' show]].
==Event history==
Mexican ''[[lucha libre]]'', or [[professional wrestling]], has a long-standing tradition around the [[wrestling mask]] and its role in both ''lucha libre'' and the culture of Mexico itself. In 1940 the ''[[Lucha de Apuestas]]'', or "Bet match", was invented where a wrestler would either bet their mask or their hair (or on rare occasions their career) on the outcome of the match.<ref name="LuchaBook">{{cite book |author1=Lourdes Grobet |author2=Alfonso Morales |author3=Gustavo Fuentes |author4=Jose Manuel Aurrecoechea | title=Lucha Libre: Masked Superstars of Mexican Wrestling | page= 115 | publisher= Trilce | year= 2005 | isbn=978-1-933045-05-4}}</ref>  If a masked wrestler lost the match he would be forced to remove his mask, state his given name and then never be allowed to wrestle with that mask on again.<ref name=Apuesta>{{cite book | author= Heather Levi | url=http://www.americanethnography.com/article.php?id=88 | title=The World of Lucha Libre: Secrets, Revelations, and Mexican National Identity | page= 30 | publisher= Duke University Press | year= 2008 | isbn=978-0-8223-4232-8}}</ref> If an unmasked wrestler lost a ''Lucha de Apuestas'' he or she would be forced to have all his/her hair shaved off while standing in the middle of the ring, suffering the humiliation in front of everyone in attendance.<ref name=Apuesta/>  Over time the ''Lucha de Apuestas'' matches became more prestigious than championship matches in Mexico and would often headline major shows. It's unclear exactly when the ''Rouleta de la Muerte'' (Spanish for "Roulette of Death"), some times also referred to as ''Ruleta Rusa'' ([[Russian Roulette]]), tournament concept was created.<ref name=Mondo>{{cite book | author= Madigan, Dan | title= Mondo Lucha a Go Go: the bizarre and honorable world of wild Mexican wrestling | publisher= HarperCollins Publishers | year= 2007 | chapter = Okay... what is Lucha Libre? | pages = 29–40 | isbn=978-0-06-085583-3}}</ref> The concept of the tournament is similar to another ''lucha libre'' staple, the ''[[Professional wrestling tag team match types#Parejas Suicidas|Parejas Suicidas]]'' ("Suicide Teams") or ''Relevos suicida'' ("Suicide Relays") match. In a Parejas Suicida, teams of two, often composed of rivals, have to wrestle against each other; the losing team is then forced to fight each other as "punishment" for losing the match. In a ''Ruleta de la Muerte'' the number of teams is expanded, often to four or eight teams. These teams face off and the losing team in each match moves on to the next round, until the team that loses the finals of the tag team portion are forced to face off for either their mask or their hair.<ref name=Mondo/>
The earliest recorded ''Ruleta de la Muerte'' was held on October 11, 1975 at the ''Plaza de Toros Mexico'' in [[Mexico City]]. In the tournament As Charro and Gallo Tapado defeated Chicano Power and Sangre Fria, forcing them to unmask, as well as winning 40.000 [[Mexican peso|Pesos]].<ref>Cage match ref.</ref> [[Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre]] (CMLL), the world's oldest wrestling promotion, held a pair of high-profile ''Ruleta de la Muerte'' shows in 1998 and 1999. The [[Ruleta de la Muerte (1998)|1998 show]] saw the team of [[Mr. Niebla]] and [[Black Warrior (wrestler)|Black Warrior]] defeat the team of [[El Hijo del Santo]] and Guerrero del Futuro, forcing them to face off. In the end Guerrero del Futuro was forced to unmask.<ref name=CMLLMuerte1998>{{cite web | url= http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/supercards/mexico/emll/ppv.html#0798| title= July 1998 PPV "Ruleta de la Muerte" | date= July 18, 1998 | access-date= February 23, 2010 | publisher= ProWrestlingHistory}}</ref><ref name=Ruleta1998/> The [[Ruleta de la Muerte (1999)|1999 tournament]] saw the team of [[Olímpico]] and [[Blue Panther]] defeat [[Shocker (wrestler)|Shocker]] and [[Rey Bucanero]], which led to Shocker defeating and unmasking Rey Bucanero.<ref name=Ruleta1999>{{cite web | url= http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/supercards/mexico/emll/ppv.html#0799| title= July 1999 PPV "Ruleta de la Muerte" | date= July 18, 1999 | access-date= February 23, 2010 | publisher= ProWrestlingHistory}}</ref><ref name=YIR1999>{{cite news|title=1999 Especial!|work=Box y Lucha Magazine|pages=2–28|id=issue 2436|date=January 10, 2000|language=es}}</ref>
IWRG held their first ''Ruleta de la Muerte'' tournament in 1998 as well, part of their [[Arena Naucalpan 21st Anniversary Show]] held on December 20, 1998, and saw the masked [[Oficial Factor|Mega]] defeat [[Judo Suwa]], forcing the Japanese wrestler to be shaved bald as a result.<ref name=Ruleta1998/> In 2006 they held another ''Ruleta de la Muerte'' tournament, this time as part of their [[Arena Naucalpan 29th Anniversary Show|2006]]. For this event the tournament format was slightly modified, using two first round matches where six wrestlers fought to stay out of the final ''Lucha de Apuestas'' match. In the end the masked Coco Verde pinned [[Dr. Cerebro]], forcing Dr. Cerebro to have all his hair shaved off.<ref name=Ruleta2006/> In 2009 IWRG held the [[IWRG Ruleta de la Muerte (2009)|2009 ''Ruleta de la Muerte'' show]], with the [[eponym]]ous tournament as the focal point. In the end Gringo Loco defeated Chico Che after the team had lost two matches to get in the finals.<ref name=Ruleta2009/> The [[IWRG Ruleta de la Muerte (2012)|2012 ''Ruleta de la Muerte'' show]] ended with an unusual result as [[Bombero Infernal|Temerario Infernal]] and [[Oficial AK-47]] wrestled to a draw; as a result both men were shaved bald.<ref name=Ruleta2012/> After not holding a ''Ruleta de la Muerte'' show in 2014, IWRG held two shows under that name in 2015. The first [[IWRG Ruleta de la Muerte (April 2015)|''Ruleta de la Muerte'' of 2015]] saw a different type of ''Ruleta de la Muerte'': instead of a tournament IWRG had a four-man [[steel cage match]] where all four of the competitors were chained together. To escape the cage a wrestler had to unlock the chain, then climb over the top of the cage to get out. The last man in the cage, in this case [[Eterno (wrestler)|Eterno]], had all his hair shaved off.<ref name=RuletaApril2015/> The [[IWRG Ruleta de la Muerte (November 2015)|November version of ''La Ruleta de la Muerte'']] was a traditional tournament, with [[Danny Casas]] defeating [[X-Fly]] in the finals.<ref name=RuletaNovember2015/>
==Ruleta de la Muerte tournament winners and losers==
{| text-align: left;" class="wikitable sortable"
!Year
!Winner
!Loser
!Wager
!class="unsortable"|{{Tooltip|Ref(s)|Reference(s)}}
|-
|[[Arena Naucalpan 21st Anniversary Show|1998]] || [[Oficial Factor|Mega]] || [[Takahiro Suwa|Judo Suwa]] || Hair || <ref name=Ruleta1998>{{cite news|title=1998 Especial!|work=Box y Lucha Magazine|pages=2–28|id=issue 2348|date=January 9, 1999|language=es}}</ref>
|-
|[[Arena Naucalpan 29th Anniversary Show|2006]] || Coco Verde || [[Dr. Cerebro]] || Hair || <ref name=Ruleta2006>{{cite news|title=Lo Mejor de la Lucha Libre Mexicana duranted el 2006|work=[[Súper Luchas]]|id=Issue 192|date=December 23, 2006|url=http://Superluchas.com/super-luchas-193/|access-date=July 11, 2009|language=es}}</ref>
|-
|[[IWRG Ruleta de la Muerte (2009)|2009]] || Gringo Loco || Chico Che || Hair || <ref name=Ruleta2009>{{cite web | url=http://estrellasdelring.blogspot.com/2009/11/chico-che-perdedor-de-la-ruleta-de-la.html | title=Chico Che, Perdedor de la Ruleta de la Muerte | work=Estrellas del Ring | language=es | date=November 5, 2009 | access-date=May 13, 2016 | first=Eduardo | last=Ruiz Reyes}}</ref>
|-
|[[IWRG Ruleta de la Muerte (2012)|2012]] || N/A || [[Bombero Infernal|Temerario Infernal]] and [[Oficial AK-47]] (draw) || Hair || <ref name=Ruleta2012>{{cite web | url=http://www.mediotiempo.com/mas-deportes/lucha-libre/noticias/2012/09/07/bombero-infernal-y-ak-47-sin-cabellera | title=Bombero Infernal y AK-47 sin cabellera | date= September 7, 2012 | author=Redaccion | work=MedioTiempo | access-date=January 27, 2013 | language=es}}</ref>
|-
|[[IWRG Ruleta de la Muerte (2013)|2013]] || La Sádica || Bugambilia || Hair || <ref name=Ruleta2013>{{cite web | url=http://www.thegladiatores.com/sadica-rapo-a-bugambilia-en-la-ruleta-de-la-muerte/ | title=Sádica rapó a Bugambilia en la Ruleta de la Muerte | date=October 28, 2013 | work=The Gladiatores | language=es | first=Diego | last=Mejía Eguiluz}}</ref>
|-
|[[IWRG Ruleta de la Muerte (April 2015)|2015 (April)]] || [[Mosco X-Fly]] || [[Eterno (wrestler)|Eterno]] || Hair || <ref name=RuletaApril2015>{{cite web|url=http://www.thegladiatores.com/la-cabellera-de-eterno-cae-ante-x-fly/|title=La cabellera de Eterno cae ante X-Fly.|last=Lizárraga|first=Alfonso|date=April 20, 2015|access-date=April 21, 2015|work=The Gladiatores|language=es}}</ref>
|-
|[[IWRG Ruleta de la Muerte (November 2015)|2015 (November)]] || [[Danny Casas]] || [[X-Fly]] || Hair || <ref name=RuletaNovember2015>{{cite web|url=http://www.thegladiatores.com/14247-2/|title=Noche sangrienta. X-Fly sin cabellera, Relámpago, rudo|last=Mejía Eguiluz|first=Diego|date=November 30, 2015|access-date=November 30, 2015|work=The Gladiatores|language=es}}</ref>
|-
|[[IWRG La Ruleta de la Muerte Máscaras (2019)|2019]] || Ketzal || Gato Negro || Mask || <ref name=Ruleta2019>{{cite web | url=http://www.thegladiatores.com/con-mascaras-y-cabelleras-en-juego-iwrg-cerro-su-temporada-2019/ | title=Con máscaras y cabelleras en juego IWRG cerró su temporada 2019. | trans-title=With masks and hair on the line, IWRG brings 2019 to an end | date=December 23, 2019 | access-date=December 25, 2019 | language=es | work=The Gladatores | first=Alfonso | last=Lizarranga}}</ref>
|}
==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{IWRGShows|Ruleta de la Muerte}}
[[Category:IWRG Ruleta de la Muerte| ]]