Manslaughter probe in Mexican luchador's match death

MEXICO CITY -- State prosecutors have opened an investigation into possible manslaughter after the son of a Mexican wrestling legend died Saturday from a blow suffered in the ring, the Baja California state prosecutor's office said.

The funeral was held Sunday for Mexican wrestler Pedro Aguayo Ramirez, known as Hijo del Perro Aguayo, who died from injuries sustained during a match in Tijuana.

Aguayo, 35, was the son of the legendary Pedro "Perro" Aguayo, now retired and a member of the Aztec lucha hall of fame.

The father didn't speak to reporters at the funeral in Guadalajara in central Mexico, but Aguayo's mother released a statement which came amid a debate over how the wrestler died and whether he received adequate medical attention following his injury.

"We, as relatives of Pedro, want to thank all of you for the affection and respect you have shown for Pedro, and you will understand that we are in no condition to comment with respect to the death of Pedro," Luz Ramirez said.

Aguayo fell unconscious on the ropes, apparently after receiving a flying kick from fellow wrestler Oscar Gutierrez, known as Rey Mysterio Jr., according to video of the match. The kick was captured on a chilling YouTube video of the match in a municipal auditorium in Tijuana.

The match continued for almost two minutes before other participants and the referee realized Aguayo was seriously injured and tended to him. He was taken to a hospital and died about 1:30 a.m. Saturday, according to Raul Gutierrez, a spokesman for the attorney general of the state of Baja California.

The state prosecutor's office said the cause of death, based on the autopsy, was trauma to the neck and a cervical fracture.

The Tijuana Boxing and Wrestling Commission called the death an unfortunate accident. Commission President Juan Carlos Pelayo said the doctor in charge was not at ringside because he was treating another injured wrestler, but paramedics and a doctor who was a spectator attended to Aguayo.

"The reaction for medical attention was quick, in my opinion," Pelayo said Saturday.

On Sunday, Gutierrez said that no arrest order had been issued for the other wrestler, though he did not discount that he would be called in for questioning.

After news of Ramirez's death spread, Gutierrez took to social media to express his shock and sorrow at the event, and to express condolences to the deceased wrestler's family. In a tweet showing a picture of the two, Gutierrez said he was honored to have been in the ring for Ramirez's debut, calling him a "brother" and a "great legend."