Tijuana´s one and only Mexican wrestling museum

Manuel Ayala

Tijuana, Mexico, Sept 21 (EFE).- In Tijuana, in the heart of the border between the United States and Mexico, just one kilometer from the San Ysidro crossing, stands one of the most symbolic places in the city: the Museum of Mexican Wrestling (Mullme).

Located in Tijuana, a city where many of the sport’s idols were born and trained, the Mullme is the first and only museum in all of Mexico dedicated to this sport that is deeply rooted in Mexican culture.

It opened its doors on April 29, 2017, bringing together a collection of more than 6,900 pieces belonging to its director, Mauricio Pino, who is also from Tijuana.

Among the items that can be seen are wrestler masks, capes, original hair, posters, magazines, traditional plastic monkeys, armchairs, key chains, photos, statuettes, original trophies and many other unimaginable objects.

A DREAM COME TRUE

Zaurel León, manager of the museum, told EFE that all the pieces are handmade and unique; “things that he has collected over many years and that today are being exhibited in this dream that has been going on for almost seven years.”

“The wrestling union itself, when they found out that we were working on this project, was very kind and donated some of the pieces such as trophies, masks and capes,” León said

“It fills us with pride that it is the only museum and that it is in Tijuana,” he added.

What is also interesting is that the first floor of the building houses the Tijuana Collector’s Museum, which has 12,900 pieces of superheroes and historic brand products among other things.

On the second floor, there is a wrestling “ring” and the space is filled with the magic of the ring, between giant murals with the faces of historical wrestlers.

León emphasizes that “the fact that it is the only museum in Mexico dedicated to wrestling makes it even more special,” as he points out that other exhibitions are temporary while they work on expanding their permanent collection.

“Here we have a little bit of everything, from professional wrestling equipment to masks from all eras,” said León, who emphasized that among the museum’s most valuable collections “are the hairpieces, because they make the biggest impression.”

“We also have the seats from the first generation of the Mexico Arena and the Tijuana Auditorium, in addition to the championships and trophies that are unique and some masks with fighter’s signatures,” he added.

NOTHING BEATS WRESTLING

According to the manager, they have received more than 34 thousand visitors, among them more than 520 professional wrestlers, “from great national legends to those who are slowly making their way up.”

One of them is Rey Misterio Sr., a true wrestling legend in the country, who handed over his legacy to Rey Mysterio Jr., his nephew, who is now becoming an international idol and is also part of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), the entertainment and media company.

The museum has a room dedicated to Rey Mysterio, a source of pride for Tijuana, where there are magazines, photos, masks and especially an original outfit donated by the fighter.

On Thursday, September 21, the National Day of Wrestling and the Mexican Professional Wrestler is commemorated. This date was declared by the Senate of Mexico in 2016.

It was also on September 21, 1933 that Mexican wrestling began. Salvador Lutteroth inaugurated the Modelo Arena (now Arena Mexico).