Renato RuÃÂz Cortes (born May 9, 1977), better known by his ring name Averno (Hell), is a Mexican professional wrestler, signed to Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL). RuÃÂz initially worked for (CMLL) as Rencor Latino in 1995, but did not achieve any significant success until he adopted the ring name Averno in June 2001. Under his new ring name, RuÃÂz went on to become a oneâÂÂtime CMLL World Middleweight, CMLL World Trios Champion, NWA World Middleweight Champion and NWA World Historic Middleweight Champion and a threeâÂÂtime CMLL World Tag Team Champion, and CMLL World Light Heavyweight Champion. His ring name is most commonly translated as "Hell" in English.
For many years Averno's real name was not a matter of public record, as is often the case with masked wrestlers in Mexico where their private lives are kept a secret from the wrestling fans. However, in May 2011, Averno was booked in a Lucha de Apuesta, where he lost his mask and was forced to reveal his true identity. RuÃÂz left CMLL in April 2014 and joined rival promotion Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA) the following month.
Renato RuÃÂz Cortes was born on May 9, 1977, in Mexico City, Mexico, son of then-professional wrestler Rodolfo RuÃÂz. He began training for a professional wrestling career himself at a young age, training under his father, who by then had retired from in-ring competition and instead was working as a referee and trainer. He made his in-ring debut in 1995, around his eighteenth birthday.
RuÃÂz began wrestling in 1995 under the ring name Rencor Latino (Latin Hostility). Working as Rencor Latino he soon started working in the lower ranks of Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL; "World Wrestling Council"). He won his first Lucha de Apuestas, or "bet match", 1998 unmasking Apolo Chino by defeating him after a midcard feud. On August 4, 2002, Rencor Latino was one of twelve wrestlers putting their mask on the line during CMLL's Entre Torre Infernal ("In the Infernal Tower") pay-per-view. The match came down to Rencor Latino and veteran wrestler El Hijo del Gladiador, and ended with Rencor Latino winning the match, taking El Hijo del Gladiador's mask in the process. He continued wrestling in the midcard until he was recruited by El Satánico in the summer of 2001 to be part of a new Los Infernales ("The Infernal Ones") group.
During a televised segment Satánico used his supposed "satanic powers" to turn técnico (good guy) Rencor Latino into one of his "minions", a rudo (bad guy) character known as "Averno" ("Hell"). Traditionally when a masked wrestler transitions from one identity to a new identity it is not publicly acknowledged, but in RuÃÂz' case it was actually part of the storyline. As a result of the transition Averno would on occasion wrestle wearing a special mask that was half Averno, half Rencor Latino. Satánico and Averno were joined by Mephisto who had previously wrestled as Astro Rey Jr. The trio feuded with ÃÂltimo Guerrero, Rey Bucanero, and Tarzan Boy throughout the year with Averno and El Satánico unsuccessfully challenging Guerrero and Bucanero for the CMLL World Tag Team Championship in August 2001. The team lost when Satánico was disqualified for using a low blow. When Tarzan Boy was injured and unable to wrestle Bucanero and Guerrero recruited Máscara Mágica to even the numbers. The storyline between the two factions reaches its high point at the CMLL 68th Anniversary Show where all seven wrestlers faced off in a steel cage match. The stipulation of the match was that the winning side would gain the rights to use the name Los Infernales while the loser on the opposite side would be forced to unmask or have their hair shaved off. In the end El Satánico pinned Máscara Mágica, forcing him to unmask. After losing the match Guerrero, Bucanero and Tarzan Boy became known collectively as Los Guerreros del Infierno (The Infernal Soldiers), while El Satánico, Averno and Mephisto continuing to work as Los Infernales.
In 2002, Los Infernales won the Mexican National Trios Championship in Guadalajara, Jalisco and began feuding with La Familia de Tijuana (Nicho el Millonario, Halloween, and Damián 666). The trio lost the championship to La Familia in September 2002 but continued feuding with the group into 2003. Over the summer of 2003 Los Infernales won a tournament to become the number one contenders for the CMLL World Trios Championship but lost champions Black Tiger III, Dr. Wagner Jr., and Universo 2000 on August 1. At the end of the year, Averno and Mephisto turned on El Satánico, but there was no major storyline feud between the three afterwards. In September 2004, Averno defeated Zumbido to win the vacant NWA World Middleweight Championship. Shortly after the championship win Averno was positioned as a rival or foil to the up-and-coming tecnico MÃÂstico. Averno and Mephisto also became de facto members of Los Guerreros del Infierno, joining forces with their former rivals. In February 2005, Averno lost the NWA World Middleweight Championship to MÃÂstico as part of their long running storyline. Two months later Averno and Mephisto defeated Atlantis and Blue Panther to win the CMLL World Tag Team Championship. When Shinsuke Nakamura and Hiroshi Tanahashi from New Japan Pro-Wrestling came to CMLL, Averno initially teamed up with them, the two turned on him. This led to a trios match with Averno, ÃÂltimo Guerrero and Rey Bucanero defeating Nakamura, Tanahashi, and Shigeo Okumura in one of the featured bouts on the CMLL 72nd Anniversary Show. In early 2006 Averno and Mephisto were the catalyst for one of CMLL's big storylines as they defended their titles against MÃÂstico and Black Warrior twice. In the first match, they won by disqualification when Black Warrior interfered in the match after already being eliminated and in the second match Black Warrior turned on MÃÂstico, attacking his partner to end the match. In April 2006, they lost the tag team championship to MÃÂstico and Negro Casas, ending their 377-day-long reign.
In 2008 Averno formed the group Los Hijos del Averno ("The Sons of Hell") alongside Mephisto and Ephesto, followed by Averno and Mephisto defeating Atlantis and ÃÂltimo Guerrero to win the CMLL World Tag Team Championship for a second time. On September 17, 2008, Averno defeated Negro Casas to win the CMLL World Middleweight Championship, becoming a double middleweight champion as he still held the NWA World Middleweight Championship. Their reign lasted only 38 days before MÃÂstico and Héctor Garza won the championship from them. The duo became three-time tag team champions by the end of the year as Averno and Mephisto defeated MÃÂstico and Garza on December 7, 2008. The duo's third run with the CMLL World Tag Teams Championship ended on January 16, 2009, when they lost to La Sombra and Volador Jr. On July 22, Averno lost one of his middleweight championships, the CMLL World Middleweight Championship, to Hijo del Fantasma. On July 12, 2010, at the Promociones Gutiérrez 1st Anniversary Show Averno participated in a match where 10 men put their mask on the line in a match that featured five pareja incredibles teams, with the losing team being forced to wrestle each other with their mask on the line. His partner in the match was ÃÂltimo Guerrero, facing off against the teams of Atlantis and OlÃÂmpico, MÃÂstico and El Oriental, Histeria and La Sombra, Volado Jr. and El Alebrije. Averno and ÃÂltimo Guerrero was the third team to escape the match. In mid 2010 CMLL abandoned the NWA World Middleweight Championship after repeated complaints from the National Wrestling Alliance, instead they created the NWA World Historic Middleweight Championship and made Averno the first champion. Averno was one of 14 men putting their masks on the line in a Lucha de Apuestas steel cage match, the main event of the CMLL 77th Anniversary Show. Averno was the first man to leave the steel cage with all three members of Los Hijos del Averno quickly leaving the cage, keeping their masks safe.
In April 2011, Averno began feuding with La Máscara, building a storyline that led to a Mask vs. Mask Lucha de Apuesta on June 17. The match announcement came on the heels of a report that Averno had signed a contract with WWE, supposedly following long time in-ring rival MÃÂstico who had already signed with WWE. On June 17 at CMLL's Juicio Final ("Final Judgement") show, Averno was defeated by La Máscara two falls to one and thus was forced to unmask. Upon unmasking, Averno revealed that his real name was Renato RuÃÂz Cortes, that he was 34 years old originally from Mexico City and had been wrestling for 16 years. Afterward, RuÃÂz and La Máscara continued their rivalry, building up to another singles match on July 4, where RuÃÂz successfully defended the NWA World Historic Middleweight Championship. Despite rumors Averno never began working for WWE, opting at the time to stay with CMLL. On July 15, Los Hijos del Averno defeated La Generación Dorada (La Máscara, Máscara Dorada and La Sombra) to win the CMLL World Trios Championship. On September 9, 2011, Averno entered CMLL's annual tournament of champions, the Universal Championship tournament. After defeating CMLL World Super Lightweight Champion Virus and old rival, Mexican National Light Heavyweight Champion La Máscara, in his first two matches, Averno defeated CMLL World Tag Team Champion ÃÂltimo Guerrero in the semi-finals. On September 16, Averno was defeated in the Universal Championship finals by La Sombra. On November 22, Averno lost the NWA World Historic Middleweight Championship to La Máscara.
On February 19, 2012, Los Hijos del Averno lost the CMLL World Trios Championship to El Bufete del Amor ("The Law of Love"; Marco Corleone, Máximo, and Rush). Averno was forced to team up with constant rival La Mascara, for the 2013 Torneo Nacional de Parejas Increibles, just like he was for the 2012 tournament. The team worked together without too many problems in the first round as they defeated the team of El Hijo de Fantasma and El Felino, but stumbled in the second round as they lost to eventual tournament winners La Sombra and Volador Jr. On April 26, 2013, at the Arena Mexico 57th Anniversary Show Averno defeated MÃÂstico La Nueva Era to win the vacant Mexican National Welterweight Championship. On September 13 at CMLL's 80th Anniversary Show, Averno defeated Blue Panther in a submission only Lucha de Apuestas match, which forced Blue Panther to have all his hair shaved off as a result. On December 1, Averno lost the Mexican National Welterweight Championship to Titán. On April 28, 2014, CMLL announced that Averno had parted ways with the company.
In 2008 Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) invited Averno, along with Volador Jr.,ÃÂltimo Guerrero and Rey Bucanero to compete in the 2008 TNA World X Cup Tournament, making them that year's "Team Mexico" entrants, with Guerrero serving as the team captain. Averno only wrestled one match in the tournament, participating in a twelve-man three tag team elimination match, at the Victory Road pay-per-view. Averno was the fourth man eliminated from the match at the hands of Team Japan's Masato Yoshino. Later during the same show Volador Jr. won an Ultimate X match, earning enough points for Team Mexico to win the entire tournament, becoming the 2008 World X Cup holders. Volador Jr. would work more matches for TNA, but Averno, ÃÂltimo Guerrero and Rey Bucanero did not.
On May 17, 2014, Averno made his debut for Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA), joining the rudo stable La Sociedad. In a main event six-man tag team match, Averno teamed with Chessman and Pentagón Jr. to defeat Cibernético, Fénix and Psycho Clown, pinning Fénix for the win. After the match, Averno was attacked by an unnamed "mysterious wrestler", portrayed by his old rival MÃÂstico. On September 26, Averno and Chessman came together with Cibernético to reform the Los Hell Brothers stable, with Averno replacing former member Charly Manson for this incarnation of Los Hell Brothers. In February 2015, Los Hell Brothers officially joined La Sociedad. On June 14, 2015, at Verano de Escándalo, Averno won his first title in AAA, when Los Hell Brothers captured the AAA World Trios Championship. At TriplemanÃÂa XXIII Los Hell Brothers successfully defended the AAA World Trios Championship in a Steel Cage match, defeating the trios of Fénix and Los Güeros del Cielo (Angélico and Jack Evans) and Los Perros del Mal (El Hijo del Fantasma, Pentagón Jr., El Texano Jr.) In late 2015 Cibernético left AAA, which forced AAA to strip Los Hell Brothers the trios championship on January 6, 2016. On January 22 at Guerra de Titanes, Averno and Chessman won the vacant AAA World Tag Team Championship. However, immediately afterwards, La Sociedad turned on the two and expelled them from the group. Los Hell Brothers subsequently made several successful title defenses and began bragging about how there were no challengers left for them to deal with, that "no man" could defeat them.
In the spring of 2016 sisters-turned-rivals Mari Apache and Faby Apache reunited as Mari returned to the tecnico side and started to team up with her sister on a regular basis. At that point in time the Apaches challenged Los Hell Brothers, demanding that they put the tag team championship on the line, a challenge that Averno and Chessman turned down, acting very dismissing and sexist in the process. During the July 8 AAA Television taping Averno and Chessman dressed up as a pair of frumpy women as they mocked Los Apaches. At the subsequent taping Los Apaches distracted Averno and Chessman during a title defense against Jack Evans and Angélico, which lead to Averno and Chessman losing the tag team championship. Afterwards it was announced that Averno and Chessman had finally agreed to face Los Apaches at TriplemanÃÂa XXIV. The match at TriplemanÃÂa XXIV ended in a no-contest after Chessman and Averno hit the Apaches with fluorescent light tubes, causing Gran Apache to come to their aid. Averno and Chessman then paired up with Ricky Marvin to form a new trio named Los OGT, winning the AAA World Trios Championship on November 4. They lost the title to El Apache, Faby Apache and Mary Apache on March 5, 2017, when Marvin was defeated by Faby in a singles match. Los OGT subsequently entered a feud with Nuevo Poder del Norte (Tito Santana, Carta Brava Jr. and Mocho Cota Jr.), who they defeated on November 3 to regain the title. However, they lost it back to them at Guerra de Titanes on January 26, 2018. At Rey de Reyes on March 4, they failed to regain the title in a Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match. The feud between the trios culminated in a Lucha de Apuestas match at Verano de Escándalo on June 3, which Los OGT won, forcing Nuevo Poder del Norte to have all of their hair shaved off. Averno left AAA in early 2021.
Averno made his return to CMLL after a seven-year absence on October 6, 2021, reuniting and teaming with Mephisto to face old rival MÃÂstico and Volador Jr. in a losing effort. He unsuccessfully challenged MÃÂstico for the NWA World Historic Middleweight Championship on December 25. On February 25, 2022, Averno and MÃÂstico were paired for the Torneo Nacional de Parejas IncreÃÂbles and made it to the finals, where they lost to Atlantis Jr. and Stuka Jr. However, they won the following year's edition of the tournament by defeating Soberano Jr. and Templario in the finals on February 17, 2023. At Homenaje A Dos Leyendas on March 29, 2024, Averno defeated Bárbaro Cavernario to win the CMLL World Light Heavyweight Championship. Months later, at Noche de Campeones on September 27, Los Infernales defeated Mascara Dorada, Neón and Star Jr. to win the CMLL World Trios Championship, making Averno a double champion. They held the titles until May 16, 2025, when they lost it to El Sky Team (Dorada, MÃÂstico and Neón). On May 27, Averno successfully defended the CMLL World Light Heavyweight Championship against MÃÂstico. However, on August 1, he lost the title to MJF.
In February 2026, Averno took part in the CMLL and New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) co-produced Fantastica Mania 2026 tour. During the sixth night of the tour, he defeated Atlantis Jr. to win the NWA World Historic Light Heavyweight Championship.
This return was also defined by renewed hostilities with Ultimo Guerrero, over the latter's betrayal of El Satanico in 2000 (which had in-turn birthed in Averno character). Starting in April 2022, The on-off feud saw them vie for a Lucha de Apuestas for one another's hair by unsuccessfully competing in multiple Relevos Suicida matches, including at the 89th and 92nd Anniversary Shows. At Homenaje a Dos Leyendas (2026), an event which specifically honored Satanico, both were involved in a 6-man cibernetico match between various past-members of Los Infernales for the "Copa Infernal", which Averno won by last-eliminating Ultimo Guerrero with a low blow.
Averno made his debut for Major League Wrestling (MLW) on the April 18, 2020 episode of Fusion, defeating Douglas James. He next appeared at SuperFight on February 3, 2024, losing to MÃÂstico. On November 9, at Lucha Apocalypto, he unsuccessfully challenged MÃÂstico for the MLW World Middleweight Championship in a three-way match also involving Titán. Averno's last appearance for MLW was at Kings of Colosseum on January 11, 2025, defeating Esfinge and Mascara Dorada in a three-way match.