Hechicero Reflects On CMLL Title Win, How This Reign Is Different From His First

Hechicero is the CMLL World Heavyweight Champion, and he recently spoke about beating Claudio Castagnoli for the title. The AEW and CMLL star defeated Castagnoli at CMLL Homenaje a Dos Leyendas on March 20th to win the title. The reign is his second, having previously held the title from September 2021 to November of 2022.

Hechicero spoke with Fightful’s Luis Pulido about winning the title and how the title reign differs from his previous one. You can see the highlights below:

On His Match With Castagnoli:

“It was very tiring. Claudio Castagnoli is obviously a wrestler who’s clearly 15 or 20 centimeters taller than me, very strong, and above all—as I explained at the end of the match—very intelligent. He knows how to adapt his skills very well to the venue he’s performing in and to the wrestler he’s competing against. It might seem that way, but the Claudio Castagnoli who competes in AEW isn’t exactly the same as the one who competes in CMLL. That’s what has made him a unique wrestler, and that’s why he also benefits from this dual contract—not just in Mexico, but also in the United States—and he’s a very studious wrestler.

On Studying Castagnoli Before the Match:

“I started watching his previous matches, the title defenses he had in this championship reign, and they were pretty tough, but it was made easier in a sense because you could tell he studied his opponents a lot, so I had to do the same. I had to study him and come up with a different strategy than the one I used in that singles match against him at Arena México, where we were the winners of the 91st Anniversary and the Grand Prix in 2024, and now it was a different strategy. I didn’t rely as much on llaves; I tried to wear him down physically more, and the only hold I managed to apply was the submission hold. It was the decisive hold; it came at the right moment and the right time.”

On the Difference Between His First Title Reign and the Current Run:

“Rather, I believe the big difference was the growing need I felt to win it back and to focus primarily on this championship. During my previous reign, of course, I made a name for myself at Arena México by defeating a wrestler of Último Guerrero’s caliber—a standard-bearer within CMLL and a genius of being a rudo—, and he always upheld the Heavyweight Championship to the highest standards. This championship, when Último Guerrero held it, always headlined the cards or major events, or served as a main draw in a match where something was at stake in the biggest events. After my reign, I wasn’t able to maintain that level of activity, mainly. I think four defenses in a year, or in eight or nine months, are very few for me. I would have loved to defend it every month, but the championship gradually lost its luster, and so did I. Then I lost it (the championship) to Gran Guerrero, and this championship was no longer at the forefront of my vision.

“Obviously, when Claudio Castagnoli won it, and we started seeing what he’s capable of both in Mexico and the United States, in CMLL and in AEW, he began defending it constantly; I think he had six defenses in four months. It’s spectacular to do this, and the quality of the matches—and of course, the championship itself, alongside Claudio, automatically took on a new dimension, reached a different level; the championship is revitalized and regains the prestige that defined it. So, of course, I said, “I want this championship.” It was previously mine, and those were the standards I wanted to compete at. So that was my goal. To say which win between Claudio and Último Guerrero: there’s definitely no comparison. The best moment in your life, in any area, including the one you live in; it’s your present. My best match is the one I’m going to have tomorrow; that’s what I compete for, and at the time, I classified both fights as the most important challenge of my career. That’s how every fight comes, that’s how I face it, that’s how I prepare, and I think the result was overwhelmingly positive—and I’m not just talking about having performed well or having achieved it, but about the positive outlook for what’s to come, for what I envision for this reign, for this season, and for the time I want to hold this championship.”