When WCW was challenging WWE for the top wrestling promotion in the world, they started the nWo, built up Goldberg to be a star, and added celebrities when they needed to bring eyes to their product. However, one other thing WCW did that was better than WWE at the time was pushing some of the best athletes on the planet in their cruiserweight division, and it was anchored by some of the top Luchadore wrestlers from Mexico.
Some of the names ended up becoming major stars in the world of professional wrestling, including one becoming a future WWE world champion. Others were men that ended up returning to Mexico, where they continued to remain some of the biggest stars in their home country. Here is a look at the 10 best Luchadore wrestlers from WCW history.
10 Chavo Guerrero Jr.
When one thinks of Luchadore wrestlers, the name Chavo Guerrero Jr. is not one that usually rises to the forefront of fan's minds. That is because of the Luchadores on this list; it was Chavo that did the most American wrestling style character work.
While people think of masked wrestlers hitting ariel moves and putting on exciting matches, Chavo was more of a grounded wrestler. However, Chavo is a member of the legendary Guerrero wrestling family and has Luchadore wrestling in his blood. Despite his strong heelwork and comedy leanings, Chavo could also fly when needed and was successful in WCW, with two Cruiserweight and one world tag team title reign.
9 Konnan
Konnan is one of the top names from Mexico both in front of the camera and behind the cameras. He is who was responsible for bringing a lot of stars to America and even represented Rey Mysterio as his agent for a few years. He made his WCW debut in 1990 by teaming with his mentor, Rey Mysterio Sr.
After leaving for a short stint in WWE as Max Moon, Konnan returned to WCW for a successful career there. In his time in WCW, Konnan won the TV title, United States Championship and two world tag team titles, one each with Rey Mysterio Jr. and one with Billy Kidman.
8 Hector Garza
Hector Garza made his professional wrestling debut in 1992, taking the name from his father who wrestled as Humberto Garza. After making a few appearances for WWE in 1997, Garza signed with WCW later that year after the AAA collaboration with WWE ended.
Garza immediately became a fan favorite thanks to his signature move, the Corkscrew Plancha to the floor, something used by several wrestlers today but still unique and original in the '90s American wrestling scene. Garza even picked up a win over Scott Hall early in his WCW career. While he never won a title in WCW, he won numerous championships in Mexico over the years.
7 Ciclope
The wrestler known as Halloween worked in WCW as the Luchadore named Ciclope. He debuted in 1990 and only used Ciclope, where he wore a face mask with one eye like the mythical Cyclops, in WCW. He was part of the early advance of Luchadore wrestlers into the company, arriving in 1996, one year before many of the AAA stars joined him there.
Ciclope earned his biggest success early on -- and it wasn't even because he did anything. Dean Malenko dressed up as Ciclope in his feud against Chris Jericho to win a battle royal to compete for the WCW Cruiserweight title. He was a multi-time champion in Mexico.
6 Silver King
Sadly, the wrestler known as Silver King passed away tragically in 2019 in a match against Juventud Guerrera in Mexico. At the age of 51, he suffered a heart attack in the match, and by the time he reached the hospital, it was too late to save him. The Luchadore was a legend in Mexico, though, and one of their most beloved stars.
Silver King worked in WCW from 1997 until 2000 and was mostly seen in trios matches. He also made appearances in five WCW PPV events over his career there. In WCW, he received a Cruiserweight title shot against Juventud Guerrera and was also part of the Latino World Order, a group started by Eddie Guerrero.
5 Psicosis
A few of the Luchadore wrestlers who arrived in 1996 got a lot of television time. One of these was Psicosis, who became one of the faces of the Cruiserweights during his time in WCW. Despite being only 25, Psicosis already had seven years of professional wrestling experience when he arrived from Mexico.
He made his debut at Clash of the Champions XXXII against Konnan and went on to become a fixture of the Luchadore wrestling on Monday Nitro. By 1999, Psicosis finally won the WCW Cruiserweight title when he won a four-way match. He also held the IWGP Junior Heavyweight title while working for WCW and was given a second Cruiserweight title reign before leaving the company in 2000.
4 La Parka
Next to Rey Mysterio and Eddie Guerrero, La Parka was easily the most popular Luchadore in WCW history. This was due to his skeleton inspired outfit, comedic style, and the fact that he utilized a steel chair in his gimmick, even earning the nickname of the Chairman of WCW.
In Mexico, he is a three-time world champion, holding the IWC World, IWC World Hardcore, and IWL World titles all at the same time. La Parka still wrestles today but under the name L.A. Park since AAA claimed copyright to the actual name.
3 Juventud Guerrera
Juventud Guerrera was one of the most successful Luchadore wrestlers to compete in WCW although he had a lot of behind-the-scenes problems that stalled his career throughout his stay in America. Guerrera started his wrestling career at the age of 18 and made his American debut in ECW at the age of 22.
He left ECW with a slew of Luchadore talent in 1996 and arrived in WCW. For his first two years, he worked mostly in Nitro matches against fellow Luchadores and then in 1998 won his first Cruiserweight Championship. While injured, he took on a new character of Juvi Juice and proved he was just as entertaining on the mic as he was in the ring.
2 Eddie Guerrero
Possibly the greatest Luchadore wrestler to ever step foot into an American ring, Eddie Guerrero was a member of the legendary Guerrero wrestling family and the most successful -- in America -- of them all. Eddie actually made his debut in WCW in 1989 but then became a star by 1995 alongside friends Dean Malenko and Chris Benoit.
In WCW, Guerrero proved to be a star when he feuded with Nature Boy Ric Flair in 1996. By the time he left WCW, he had held the United States title once and the Cruiserweight title twice. He moved on to WWE where he won the WWE Championship.
1 Rey Mysterio Jr.
Easily the best Luchadore in American history, whether in WCW or WWE, is Rey Mysterio. In WCW, he was Rey Mysterio Jr., following in the footsteps of his uncle Rey Mysterio Sr., and eclipsed the success level of his predecessor. Mysterio made his debut in WCW in 1996 when he left ECW, and he became a massive star.
Mysterio made his debut at Great American Bash 1996 when he challenged Dean Malenko for the Cruiserweight title. While he was unsuccessful, less than a month later, he won his first Cruiserweight title. He ended up as a five-time Cruiserweight title, three-time world tag team champion and one-time WCW Cruiserweight champion. In WWE, he was a three-time world champion.