Fantastica Mania 2016

Promotional poster featuring Hiroshi Tanahashi, Máscara Dorada and Místico

***Fantastica Mania* 2016** was a series of six events in Japan, co-produced by the Japanese promotion New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) and the Mexican promotion Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL), which took place between January 17 and 24, 2016. The 2016 shows were the sixth time that NJPW and CMLL had co-promoted shows in Japan under the *Fantastica Mania* name. Much like the previous year, the 2016 tour featured six shows in total. The first five events featured seven matches each with the final event featuring eight matches. Six of the matches were contested for championships owned by CMLL. The 2016 tour was the first time the joint show was held in Kōchi, while it had previously been held in the other three cities; Kyoto, Osaka and Tokyo.

## Background

The 2016 *Fantastica Mania* series was the sixth year in a row where Japanese wrestling promotion New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) had promoted a series of shows in Japan along with their Mexican partner promotion Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL). The 2016 series of shows were show 19 through 24, a total of six shows. The final three shows aired live on New Japan Pro Wrestling World. The opening show in Kōchi, on January 17 would be the first time *Fantastica Mania* had taken place in the city. The tour was announced October 24, 2015, with the CMLL participants announced on November 16. The tour marks the NJPW debuts of Bobby Z, Dragon Lee, Guerrero Maya Jr., Hechicero, The Panther and Virus. Returning CMLL participants include Atlantis, Bárbaro Cavernario, Fuego, Mephisto, Místico, Okumura, Stuka Jr., Titán, Último Guerrero and Volador Jr. CMLL ring announcer Evan was also announced for the tour. Máscara Dorada, who signed with NJPW during the *Fantastica Mania 2015* tour, would also take part in the 2016 tour. The most notable CMLL wrestlers missing the tour were Marco Corleone, La Máscara, Rush and La Sombra of *Los Ingobernables*. Three days after the CMLL participants were revealed, the reason for La Sombra missing the tour was announced; he had signed with WWE.

For the first time in *Fantastica Mania* history, the entire tour not only sold out, but did so a month in advance. The cards for all six events were released on January 6, 2016. It was announced that the events would mark NJPW rookies Sho Tanaka and Yohei Komatsu's final appearances for the promotion, before leaving on an indefinite learning excursion to CMLL. Meanwhile, the January 24 event would include Máscara Dorada's final match under a NJPW contract. The card for the final event was changed on January 23 with the addition of a title match featuring Kamaitachi, NJPW's previous rookie sent on a learning excursion. His surprise return on the January 23 event marked his first NJPW appearance since May 2013.

## References

1. ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 Road to Power Struggle  (in Japanese). *New Japan Pro Wrestling* (2015-10-24). Retrieved on 2015-11-17.
2. ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 Y los participantes de Fantastica Mania 2016 son...  (in Spanish). *Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre* (2015-11-16). Retrieved on 2015-11-17.
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 NJPW Presents CMLL Fantastica Mania 2016  (in Japanese). *New Japan Pro Wrestling*. Retrieved on 2016-01-17.
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 NJPW Presents CMLL Fantastica Mania 2016  (in Japanese). *New Japan Pro Wrestling*. Retrieved on 2016-01-19.
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 NJPW Presents CMLL Fantastica Mania 2016  (in Japanese). *New Japan Pro Wrestling*. Retrieved on 2016-01-20.
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 NJPW Presents CMLL Fantastica Mania 2016  (in Japanese). *New Japan Pro Wrestling*. Retrieved on 2016-01-22.
7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 NJPW Presents CMLL Fantastica Mania 2016  (in Japanese). *New Japan Pro Wrestling*. Retrieved on 2016-01-23.
8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 NJPW Presents CMLL Fantastica Mania 2016  (in Japanese). *New Japan Pro Wrestling*. Retrieved on 2016-01-24.
9. ↑ Macklin, Matthew 2016-01-06. New Japan Pro Wrestling news & notes . *Pro Wrestling Insider*. Retrieved on 2016-01-06.
10. ↑ Rose, Bryan 2015-10-24. NJPW Road to Power Struggle results: Ricochet/Matt Sydal vs. TimeSplitters . *Wrestling Observer Newsletter*. Retrieved on 2015-11-17.
11. ↑ *ja:ミスティコ、アトランティス、ドラゴン・リーも上陸！『Fantastica Mania 2016』参加メンバー決定！ 6選手がイッキに初参戦！* (in Japanese). *New Japan Pro Wrestling* (2015-11-17). Retrieved on 2015-11-17.
12. ↑ Lista del CMLL para Fantasticamanía 2016  (in Spanish). *MedioTiempo* (2015-11-16). Retrieved on 2015-11-17.
13. ↑ Meltzer, Dave 2015-11-19. WWE announces signing of CMLL star La Sombra . *Wrestling Observer Newsletter*. Retrieved on 2015-11-19.
14. ↑ Meltzer, Dave (December 28, 2015). "December 28, 2015 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: WWE Slammy Awards, MMA Weight cutting". *Wrestling Observer Newsletter*. Campbell, California: 45. ISSN 1083-9593.
15. ↑ *ja:『Fantastica Mania』1.17高知でミスティコ＆棚橋＆ライガー組！ 1.19京都でメフィスト＆オカダ＆中邑組！ 1.20大阪府立第2でドラゴンリー＆棚橋組！* (in Japanese). *New Japan Pro Wrestling* (2016-01-06). Retrieved on 2016-01-06.
16. ↑ Cartelera oficial Fantastica Mania 2016  (in Spanish). *Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre* (2016-01-06). Retrieved on 2016-01-06.
17. ↑ *ja:小松洋平、田中翔の“無期限海外遠征”が決定！ 『Fantastica Mania』全6大会で“壮行試合”が実現！* (in Japanese). *New Japan Pro Wrestling* (2016-01-06). Retrieved on 2016-01-06.
18. ↑ *ja:『Fantastica Mania』後楽園3連戦！1.22（金）はBushivsドラダ！1.23（土）はミスティコ＆ボラドール＆棚橋！1.24（日）はボラドールvsメフィスト！* (in Japanese). *New Japan Pro Wrestling* (2016-01-06). Retrieved on 2016-01-06.
19. ↑ *ja:1月24日（日）後楽園ホール大会にて、ドラゴン・リーvsカマイタチのCMLL世界ライト級王座戦が電撃決定！ 【カード追加＆一部変更】* (in Japanese). *New Japan Pro Wrestling* (2016-01-23). Retrieved on 2016-01-23.
20. ↑ Arrancó Fantasticamanía 2016  (in Spanish). *MedioTiempo* (2016-01-17). Retrieved on 2016-01-17.
21. ↑ Zellner, Kris 2016-01-19. The Lucha Report . *Pro Wrestling Insider*. Retrieved on 2016-01-29.
22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 Zellner, Kris 2016-01-20. The Lucha Report . *Pro Wrestling Insider*. Retrieved on 2016-01-29.
23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 23.2 Zellner, Kris 2016-01-25. Mario Meija Jimenez aka the original Espectrito & WWF's Mini Vader passes away: The Lucha Report . *Pro Wrestling Insider*. Retrieved on 2016-01-29.