ake risks but he can usually access second and third winds when endurance becomes an issue. The technical wrestler has a keen sense of his surrounding environment, and because he is always alert he usually finds himself controlling the situation.Lucha Libre in Spanish means, “free fight.” And in the wrestling world it is just that, a “free fight.” The idea of high-flying was first realized in Mexico and Japan and became a very hot commodity in the mid-90’s. Beating your opponent using the most high-risk maneuvers gave the lighter wrestlers a chance to contend with the biggest stars. A high-flyer is best defined as a wrestler who spends at least 80% of the match in the air, on the turnbuckles, and in the ring using very rapid movements. Acceleration in the attack becomes simply vital to his defense. A flyer can usually be put out of the match with one vicious blow or grapple move. He will put his own body on the line to produce more punishing moves. The Lucha Libre art form has no doubt taken America by surprise and has become the most exciting style used in the ring. Men like the Killer Bees, the Rockers, and the late great Owen Hart developed a style that has transcended and is being emulated by today’s Rey Mysterio Jr., Billy Kidman, the Hardy Boyz, and possibly the greatest wrestler of all time, Shawn Michaels.The next style is the Grapple or Ground/Mat Wrestling. Best demonstrated and most often used by wrestlers, whom possess huge amounts of strength, the Grapple form can be very appropriate. This is the style that truly caught the crowds attention from the early 1930’s, when wrestling was still a baby, to about the mid-to-late 1970’s. Guys like The aforementioned Sammartino and Andre the Giant began their illustrious world title reigns using straight on power moves. They would devastate their opposition with a fury of hard blows to the head. Then when the time was righ...
