Mini-Estrella

The term Mini-Estrella (Spanish for "Mini-Star") is used in lucha libre to describe a division of short professional wrestlers or luchadors, some of whom have dwarfism. The Mexican Mini-Estrellas is comparable to Midget professional wrestling practiced around the world, but with the notable exception that some of the Mini-Estrellas do not have dwarfism but are simply short. Some Mini-Estrellas have later on moved on to work as regular sized competitors. The Mini-Estrellas have been featured in several promotions outside Mexico, most notably World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA).

Originally the limit for the Mini division was 1.53 m (5 ft 0 in) but in recent years wrestlers such as Pequeño Olímpico have worked the Minis division despite being 1.69 m (5 ft 6 ¹⁄₂ in) tall. In the formative years of the Mini-Estrellas history they were also referred to as "Micro Luchadors", or "Micro Wrestlers".

History

The origins of the Mini-Estrella division lies in Midget professional wrestling, which in Mexico was popularized in the 1970s when promoters used the American concept and had a number of Mexican little people perform as a "special attraction" on lucha libre shows. In the early days saw the popularity of wrestlers such as Gran Nikolai, Pequeno Goliath and Arturito (inspired by R2-D2), especially with the children. By the 1980s midget wrestling was less popular in Mexico, especially since few new wrestlers had joined the division.