• Chavo Guerrero Sr. addresses Roddy Piper and Java Ruuk prior to their matchup back in Sept. 8, 1978 at the Los Angeles Olympic Auditorium.

Chavo Guerrero Sr. addresses Roddy Piper and Java Ruuk prior to their matchup back in Sept. 8, 1978 at the Los Angeles Olympic Auditorium. (Photo : YouTube/Rockrims69)

The Guerrero family is one of the most influential clans in the entirety of professional wrestling, so it came as quite a shock when Chavo Guerrero Jr. announced that his father, former WWE cruiserweight champion Chavo Guerrero Sr., had passed a way after a short, yet brave battle against liver cancer. The late Guerrero succumbed to his illness last Feb. 11.

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Guerrero Sr. is a second-generation wrestler. His father, Cory Guerrero, was popular during the early days of Lucha Libre wrestling when most of the performers in the sport were imported from Mexico.

Guerrero Sr. began his career in El Paso, Texas, performing in shows his father had organized and promoted, according to the Daily Mail. He then started performing in Japan back in the 1970s before he and his family moved to California, so he could compete as a wrestler in NWA Hollywood Wrestling.

There, Guerrero Sr. found success as a solo competitor whilst feuding with Roddy Piper over the NWA Americas Heavyweight championship, which he held a total of 15 times between 1975 and 1980. He also competed in a tag team with his brother Hector and Mando and even went after the AWA World Tag Team championship with the latter.

In 2004, and well into his 50s, Guerrero Sr. signed on to the WWE to perform under the name "Chavo Classic." During his time with the promotion, he competed against and alongside his son, Guerrero Jr., as well as his late brother, Eddie. He became the WWE's oldest ever Cruiserweight champion during his tenure with the company.

Guerrero Sr. closed the book on his time with the WWE last Nov. 15, 2010 during a special "Old School" episode of WWE Raw. During the event, he drove fellow Mexican professional wrestler Alberto Del Rio to the arena.  He made his final appearance in professional wrestling just last year, when he turned on Rey Mysterio in order to help his son keep his place in Lucha Underground at the former's expense, according to the Bleacher Report.

Tributes for Guerrero Sr. have poured in left and right from the wrestling community. His son was the first to break the news on social media.


Watch Guerrero Sr.'s cruiserweight championship triumph in the video below: