The promotion was the first in Japan to be based around the Mexican style of professional wrestling, known as Lucha Libre. Although since 1956 some Mexican wrestlers had appeared in Japanese promotions, their style was mixed with the American-originated standard, and not many of them could rise above mid-card level because of their size, which on average was less than Japanese wrestlers. The first Mexican luchador to become a star in Japan was Mil Máscaras, who competed for the Japanese Wrestling Association and one of its successor groups, All Japan Pro Wrestling. The first Japanese to win a Mexican-based title was Mashio Koma, who also competed in JWA; he won the NWA World Middleweight Championship while on a tour of EMLL in 1970, and later co-founded AJPW with Giant Baba. However, the first Japanese to fully and truly adopt the gymnastics-oriented Lucha Libre style actually came from rival New Japan Pro Wrestling: Gran Hamada, who had gone on excursion several times to Mexico due to his lack of size and won many titles there. In 1990, after passing through New Japan, the original Japanese UWF, and All-Japan, Hamada decided to form his own promotion, with the aid of his student Yoshihiro Asai, his former New Japan boss Hisashi Shinma, and some Mexican wrestlers and Japanese rookies he had recruited. In 1991, the promotion had a brief working relationship with the World Wrestling Federation, this led to the creation of the WWF Intercontinental Tag Team Championship. In 1993, with Universal Lucha Libre on the decline, competitors Great Sasuke, Taka Michinoku and Jinsei Shinzaki decided to form their own promotion, Michinoku Pro. Jado and Gedo moved to hardcore independent promotions such as Wrestling International New Generations and Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling, while Ultimo Dragon joined Genichiro Tenryu's WAR group. Hamada continued promoting shows until he himself joined Michinoku Pro in 1995, which brought Universal Lucha Libre to an end.
Alumni
Over the years, the roster of Universal's trainees would go on to become major stars in both the Japanese major promotions and the independents. Among Universal Lucha Libre alumni, they include:
