CHAVO GUERRERO Sr.
MAGAZINE ARTICLES 16
Chavo Guerrero Admits :
WRESTLING IS GETTING TOUGHER ...
BUT I CAN HANDLE IT !
( from July 1980 issue of "Wrestling Today" magazine )
The oldest of the Guerrero Brothers at 27, Chavo is gaining more experience
and winning more matches. He's added more weight and is now ready to
take on the bigger, rougher stars. ( by Allan Bolte )
"It seems to be getting tougher and tougher. I love the wrestling business more as the months go by, but
at the same time I realize it's not getting any easier. I'm getting more experienced, and winning more matches,
but it still seems to be harder each time I set foot in the ring."
Chavo Guerrero, of the famous wrestling Guerrero Brothers, stared at the cold cement floor of his dressing
room as he spoke. Tonight, he had signed a contract to wrestle Bomber Ray Evans in a single match,
as a result of the bout between Guerrero and Al Madril against Ray and Jack Evans earlier. Guerrero wanted
Ray in the ring alone in a single match. But before he could get Ray in such a bout he had other things to
worry about. In less than an hour Guerrero would be in the ring with 242-pound muscle builder Steve Strong.
"I won' take anything away from Strong," Guerrero said as he pulled off his T-shirt. "He's a big, tough guy and
he likes hurting opponents. And, he knows how to use his muscles. But the advantage I think I have over him
is my speed. He outweighs me by 25 pounds, and he stands about six inches taller than me. But, still, I think
I'm faster and probably a bit more cunning. I'm looking forward to this match because it'll be a challenge to me.
For me to step in the ring with an opponent that I know I could easily defeat, doesn't interested me. I want a
challenge, a tough opponent." Guerrero began exercising, doing push-ups, pull-ups and sit-ups, preparing for
the match. Moments later a doorman opened the door and told Guerrero it was time for his match.
He was the first to enter the ring and the fans showed their approval by applauding and standing. He waved
to the fans as he entered the ring. As he signed autographs, Strong strutted down the aisle, disregarded the
boos and cat-calls, and climbed over the top rope. He flexed his 21" arms and smiled. He's proud of his body.
Before the announcer had completed the introductions, Strong attacked Guerrero from behind as he signed
autographs. He kicked him in the back and tore off his shiny jacket. The referee pulled him back. After
Guerrero rose to his feet and the bell rang. Strong continued dishing out punishment by knocking Guerrero's
head against the corner turnbuckle. He kneed the popular Mexican in the midsection and began choking him.
"Quit breaking the rules, Strong, or I'm gonna disqualify ya," the referee shouted. Strong stood back and the
smaller, shorted Guerrero fell to the mat. Strong pinned his shoulders to the mat but couldn't hold him down
for the three count. Guerrero pushed off his foe then slid out of the ring. As Strong came out after him,
Guerrero reached back and hit him in the midsection, momentarily knocking the wind out of him.
The fans yelled for more as Guerrero climbed back into the ring and began punching away. He knocked the
big man off his feet and the tables began turning. Guerrero hit and kicked Strong and the fans loved it.
Guerrero attempted a dropkick but he misjudged Strong's position. Guerrero missed, and landed hard on the
mat. Strong then acted like an animal as he sank his teeth into Guerrero's face, biting his skin and drawing
blood. Strong then held Guerrero in a side headlock, clamping his powerful arms around Guerrero's neck.
As he held his foe, Strong punched him in the face and Guerrero spilled more blood.
The referee checked his facial cut but ruled that he was okay to continue wrestling. Action resumed and
Strong tossed Guerrero through the ropes onto the press table.
"Here's your boy, you can have the punk," Strong shouted to a group of ringsiders who were rooting for
Chavo. Strong came out after him and knocked his head onto the table.
Finally, Guerrero seeing his own blood, went wild. He threw Strong against the table, grabbed a chair and
slammed it over his head. He pulled him back into the ring and resumed fighting. He climed to the top rope
and leaped off, delivering a beautiful flying dropkick that knocked Strong over the top rope into the first row
of seats. The referee counted to 10 and Strong didn't re-enter the ring in time. The fans screamed in
happiness when Guerrero's hand was raised in victory. It was another win for the great Chavo Guerrero.
"It could have been a lot worse," Guerrero said after the match as he wiped the blood from his forehead.
"I've been cut much worse before. Man, that guy's crazy, bitin' me like that. I'll get back at him."
Chavo was born 27 years ago. He was a successful amateur wrestler throughout high school, and he wrestled
with his brothers and friends after school and on weekwnds. His two younger brothers also turned out to be
successful pro wrestlers - Mando, 25, and Hector, 22. Their father, Gory, is a former Junior Heavyweight
Champion of the World, and a former Champion of Mexico.
What made the Guerreros decide to take up wrestling ?
"I guess it was in our blood," Chavo said. "Pop was an athlete for years and he did well. He won matches
all around the world. I remember him teaching me about wrestling when I was seven years old. Evidentally
I wasn't too young. He used to slap and knock me around in a playful way but after a while I'd get angry and
I'd hit him until I was tired. At the time I didn't realize why he was doing it, but as I look back on it, I'm glad
he did. All the time he was teaching me to be tough and protect myself. I learned a lot from my dad."
Guerrero recalled the time when, at 13, older high school students accosted him at a park after school one
day. They pushed him around and took his money. When he told his dad about the incident, Gory became
enraged that young Chavo failed to fight back. For a week Gory taught his son the best way to fight during
such a situation. Chavo then approched one of the students who took his money. The next day, Chavo was
suspended from school for a week because he broke the student's arm, chipped his tooth and gave him two
black eyes.
When all three Guerrero boys were in their teens, father Gory was extremely successful as a pro wrestler.
He spent hours at the local YMCA teaching his sons the most succesful ways to wrestle.
"I had a feeling at 18 that I'd be a pro wrestler, " Chavo recalled. "None of us boys were as big as most
wrestlers were, but that didn't bother us. Pop always told us not to worry about our height or weight but
instead to be concerned with self-protection. We worked out and put on a few pounds, but still to this day,
weight-wise, we're smaller than most wrestlers. But, knock on wood, it hasn't held us back. We're not
afraid to take on any wrestler."
The Guerrero Brothers are successful in six-man tag matches, and they have won several throughout rings
in California. "We have several advantages in regular four-man, and six-man tags," Guerrero explained.
"Since we all speak Spanish fluently, we can yell at each other in Spanish, telling each other what to do.
Unless our opponents speak Spanish, they don't know what we're saying. Also, we practice toghther fre-
quently and this increases our chances of winning. Because we're brothers, we've spent time toghther;
we know each other. And, because our dad still coaches us, we have good training."
Chavo attributes much of his success to Gory. The fans - particularly the women - admire the Guerreros
for their strength, speed, ability and charming looks. And, there's never a dull moment when they're in the
ring. Promoters are always happy to have Chavo on their cards because usually a full house is guaranteed.
Fans always come out to see them wrestle because of the action and ability they normally see.
Wrestling isn't Chavo's only love. He enjoys sunbathing and acting. His acting talents have led him to
Hollywood where he appeared in two full-length motion pictures. Guerrero played the role of the Indian
wrestler with Henry Winkler in the hit movie, "The One and Only." He also played the wrestler in "Paradise
Alley," starring Sylvester Stallone. "Acting is lots of fun," he said with a smile. "It gives me a chance to
broaden my horizons and to expand my talents. I made some good money acting and I want to do more of it.
Acting is another reason why I prefer living in the Southern California area. It's close to Hollywood, the
capitol of the movie industry."
Chavo has been successful in the San Francisco and Los Angeles areas, as well as throughout Texas and
Mexico. Above all, he prefers wrestling in California or Mexico. According to Guerrero, his toughest oppo-
nents have been Apache Bull Ramos, Steve Strong, Bomber Ray Evans and Victor Rivera.
"Rivera is a real sneaky guy," he said as he combed his thick black hair. "You gotta keep your eyes on him
at all times. He's wrestled all over the country and he picked up quite a few tricks. He has strength,
experience and perseverance on his side. We've had quite a few tough battles that ended in wild blood brawls.
I'd like to get him in the ring again in a match with no rules - anything goes."
Guerrero's favorite tag partners are his brothers and Al Madril. "All three are dependable. They're good as
single wrestlers, which means chances are, they'd be good in tag bouts. I enjoy teaming with any of them
because I feel that when they're on my side, I've got a strong, dependable man backing me throughout the
entire match."
Naturally, Guerrero is concerned with his winning streak; he wants it to continue. But, equally important to him
is the fan's attitude towards him. "A lot of the wrestlers don't care what the fans think about them, " he said.
"As long as they're winning most of their matches and making good money, that's all that matters to them.
But, I'm not like that. It's very important for me to know that the fans are behind me all the way, that they
care about me. They mean a great deal to me and that's why I always try to take time to sign autographs,
pose for pictures, and chat with them about wrestling. As far as I can remember, I've always been quite
popular with the fans, I hope it stays that way because they're a big inspiration to me."
For three years Chavo was considered a junior heavyweight because he weighed under 215 pounds.
He could not wrestle any heavyweights for the title, and promoters often paired him against other smaller
wrestlers. Then, he started hitting the weights, exercising and putting on weight. He gained 10 pounds to
his current weight of 219 pounds. While he was considered a junior heavyweight, he won the Junior Heavy-
weight Championship of Mexico, which he successfully defended for eight months. He prefers falling into the
heavyweight category because "that's where the tough competition is. Junior heavyweight often consist of
newcomers to the game and many of them are smaller and lighter, and definitely inexperienced," Guerrero
said. "To be honest, I'd rather not bother with them. I want to take on the bigger, rougher, more experienced
grapplers so I know a tough match is assured."
His goals ? He plans on winning the United States Heavyweight Championship, or the Tag Team Championship
with brother Mando. "Above all, I want to hold a title in my own name," Chavo said. "Then, I'd lke to share
a tag title with one of my brothers, preferably with Mando. Hector is a damned good wrestler, but he is
younger and still has a few things to learn. Don't get me wrong ; he's a tough guy and he won't be pushed
around. He gets mad in the ring and wants to break a few arms or legs. I'd hate to get in a street fight with
him. But Mando is a bit more scientific, and a bit faster. His experience has done a lot for him and we team
well together. He agreed that he'd like to pursue a tag title, so after he fulfills a few already made committ-
ments, we'll be teaming up again full-time, and work our way to the number one challenging position for a crack
at the tag belts. We're looking forward to it."
And, father Gory is proud of his wrestling sons. " I wanted all of my boys to be pro wrestlers and they're
doing well," he said. " I never forced any of them into wrestling, they just kind of fell into it. When they were
born, I told myself that I would let them make up their own minds as to what they want to do careerwise.
I'm glad they made the decision they did." Gory hasn't been wrestling much lately. He would like to be
involved in the business end of wrestling, promoting matches and discovering new talent.
Chavo Guerrero loves every minute of wrestling, but he won't be happy until the title belt is strapped
around his waist.
