Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide has gained a lot of attention this year, especially with the El Grande Americano feud which saw Chad Gable unmasked as ‘The Original El Grande Americano’ at AAA Noche de los Grandes 2026.
However, the oldest lucha libre company in the country, CMLL, has also been making waves lately, securing Tessa Blanchard in a major deal as well as tightening its relationship with AEW, Canada-based Maple Leaf Pro Wrestling, and NJPW. During an episode of the “Something To Wrestle” podcast, John ‘Bradshaw’ Layfield acknowledged the growth of AAA’s competitor.
“This is absolutely incredible to me,” he admitted, adding how CMLL actually owns all the arenas they have shows out of, making them, as he sees it, the last pro wrestling territories in the industry. “The fact that you own all the buildings, and you’re selling out every single week? It’s absolutely incredible. Business is on fire in Mexico.”
JBL then noted how historically, the pro wrestling industry tends to elevate competing promotions, as this seems to be the case with AAA and CMLL.
Meanwhile, WWE has extended its counter-programming strategy towards CMLL, announcing a Mexico tour ahead of CMLL’s 93rd Aniversario Show. Dave Meltzer of “Wrestling Observer Radio” has since commented on WWE’s strategy, opining that this was always going to happen due to the nature of the industry, as JBL pointed out. While he believes that CMLL will dominate in ticket sales, Meltzer expressed that the WWE Mexico Tour will make a dent and that AEW will likely utilize talent from the promotion in order to push back at the competition.
If you use any quotes from this article, please credit “Something To Wrestle,” and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
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