In all of CMLL’s 92 years, 2025 has to date turned out to be the largest of all of them. The oldest wrestling promotion on the earth, and lucha libre standard bearer, has been on quite the roll, selling out over dozens of shows in Arena Mexico, Arena Puebla, and Arena Guadalajara over the past few months, while also strengthening its partnership with AEW through “AEW Grand Slam: Mexico City,” and talent exchanges which have seen Bandido, MJF, The Beast Mortos, Konosuke Takeshita, and others head all the way down to Arena Mexico.
Now, CMLL is constructing one other alliance; an unlikely one with a well-known video game. On Thursday morning, the US Pokemon website announced a brand new alliance between Pokemon and CMLL, brought upon by the discharge of a brand new Pokemon, Mega Hawlucha. The bird-like creature, an evolved type of Hawlucha, needs to be very talked-about in Mexico, because it sports a lucha libre mask, with green and red wing colours harking back to the Mexican flag.
Along with Mega Hawlucha, CMLL and Pokémon will likely be holding a crossover show, titled Pokémon Legends: Z-A×CMLL, happening in Arena Mexico on September 25. The event, which can broadcast on YouTube, will see a luchador playing the Mega Hawlucha character and wrestling a match, taking up long-time fighting Pokémon Machamp. It’s unclear which CMLL luchadors will likely be portraying the characters.
Happening on Thursday, Pokémon Legends: Z-A×CMLL will break the norm for CMLL, because the promotion generally runs shows in Arena Mexico on Sunday’s, Tuesday’s, and Friday’s only. It is going to notably be the second time Arena Mexico has been run for a mid-week show in 2025, following “AEW Grand Slam: Mexico City,” which took place on a Wednesday.