CMLL World Welterweight Championship

The CMLL World Welterweight Championship (Campionato Mundial Peso Welter de CMLL in [Spanish) is a professional wrestling world championship in the Mexican wrestling promotion Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL). The official definition of a Welterweight in Mexico is a person between 150 lbs and 170 lbs but is not strictly adhered to these days. Because the championship is a professional wrestling championship, it is not won or lost competitively but instead by the decision of the bookers of a wrestling promotion. The title is awarded after the chosen champion "wins" a match to maintain the illusion that professional wrestling is a competitive sport.

Championship history
In the late 1980s CMLL left the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) to avoid the politics of the NWA. In 1991 CMLL decided to create a series of World Championships, one of which was the for the Welterweight division. CMLL held a four man tournament on February 15, 1992 to crown the first champion. the participants were Fuerza Guerrera, El Felino, America and El Khalifa, the finals saw Fuerza Guerrera defeat El Khalifa to become the first Welterweight champion. In 1996 the Championship vacated after then champion El Pantera lost the title to Super Delfin while on tour in Japan, after which he was planning to leave CMLL for AAA. CMLL, knowing Pantera was leaving, nullified and did not recognize the title change. Subsequently CMLL put together a 16 man tournament crown a new champion, the tournament saw Mascara Magica defeat El Felino in the tournament final to become the Seventh official CMLL World Welterweight Champion. Mascara Magica would later defeat Super Delfin to put an end to any speculation about the lineage of the championship. Since then the title has only changed hands in Mexico City, until January 2011, when Ryusuke Taguchi won the title in Tokyo, Japan.

Reigns
The current champion is Máscara Dorada having defeated Ryusuke Taguchi on June 18, 2011, during Dominion 6.18, a New Japan Pro Wrestling event in Osaka, Japan. It's Dorada's second reign with the title and he is the 26th overall Champion. La Pantera and El Felino have both held the championship three times. Felino also has the longest combined reigns overall with 1,186 days. Mephisto has the longest individual reign at 1,141 days. The first champion, Fuerza Guerrera is also the person who's held the title the shortest time, 22 days but the possibility exists that Mascara Magica's second reign was shorter as no specific date for the start of the reign can be confirmed.

1992 World Welteryweight tournament
On February 15, 1992 CMLL held a one night, four man tournament to crown the first ever CMLL World Welterweight Champion

1996 World Welteryweight tournament
After CMLL stripped La Pantera of the title in 1996 they held a 16 man tournament from May 7 to May 21, 1996 in order to crown a new champion.