In a country where masked heroes are sacred, where honor is placed above oxygen, and where technicas are beloved like telenovela protagonists, Hiroka Yaginuma did the most unthinkable thing a woman could do in Mexican wrestling: she showed up, won gold, shaved Lady Apache’s head clean, and then peaced out to sell Yorkies in Mexico City.
Some people climb mountains. Hiroka dropkicked them, set up shop at basecamp, and started charging for parking.
From Dojos to Diablos
Hiroka wasn’t born in Mexico City, but she sure as hell found her spiritual home in its underground wrestling pits. Born in Tokyo on September 23, 1981, Yaginuma trained under the stoic fury of Mima Shimoda and Shinobu Kandori—women who taught her that pain is love, and eye gouges are a valid romantic gesture.
She debuted in 2002 and found that Japan’s polite brutality didn’t quite satisfy her appetite for mayhem. So in 2005, she migrated to Mexico like a storm cloud with boots. There, under the often-chaotic guidance of José Luis Feliciano and El Hijo del Gladiador, Hiroka shed her last polite instincts. She adopted the nickname “Raven Hiroka,” and eventually just “Hiroka,” because why waste time with syllables when you can rip someone’s extensions out?
The Belt, the Blade, and the Blood Feud
On June 9, 2006, Hiroka did the unthinkable: she defeated Marcela, the sainted workhorse of the CMLL women’s division, to win the CMLL World Women’s Championship. Mexican fans greeted the event with stunned silence, followed by loud weeping, and possibly the sound of 500 Virgin of Guadalupe candles being blown out in grief.
But Hiroka wasn’t done.
She defended the title like a warlord at a village gate—holding off India Sioux, Dark Angel, and Marcela again. Then she turned her cold, calculating eyes on Lady Apache, the walking soap opera of the division. The match was a Luchas de Apuestas, the lucha equivalent of a gun duel at noon. Hair vs. hair.
October 13, 2006. The day Lady Apache’s dignity hit the mat. Hiroka not only beat her—she shaved her bald. It was the kind of public humiliation that would end marriages, rewrite wills, and cause a grandmother to spit on the floor of Arena Mexico. Hiroka stood tall, eyes like polished obsidian, trophy clippers in hand.
Two months later, Lady Apache got the title back.
But the damage? Permanent.
The Birth of Las Zorras: Guerrilla Rudas
Fast forward to 2009, when Hiroka allied herself with Princesa Sujei and Princesa Blanca—the heelish sorority that would become Las Zorras, or “The Foxes.” The name was fitting. Cunning, predatory, and excellent at stealing spotlight and sanity. Together, they were the Mean Girls of Polanco, and you did not want to meet them in a tag match or a Sephora aisle.
They weren’t in it for belts. They were in it for chaos—for watching fan-favorite technicas weep into their glitter makeup as Hiroka’s boot pressed gently but decisively into their throat.
Exit Stage Left: The Silent Guillotine Retires
By 2010, with a resume dripping in championship gold and scalp oil, Hiroka announced her retirement. No drama. No farewell tour. Just a press release and a surprise: she and her husband, Pequeño Damián 666—a Mini-Estrella best known for wrestling like a demonic garden gnome—opened an exclusive pet shop in Mexico City.
From top-rope stomps to Pomeranian grooming. That’s a heel turn worthy of Shakespeare.
She cited a desire to start a family. Frankly, Mexico should be grateful she didn’t raise a brood of heel toddlers with steel chairs in their strollers.
Legacy: The Quiet Storm of CMLL
Hiroka didn’t yell. She didn’t showboat. She stalked, she choked, and she shaved your head in front of your fans.
Her 2006 run remains one of the most dominant—and soul-erasing—title reigns in CMLL history. She walked into a country with deeply entrenched lucha traditions and burned every single rulebook. While other women were forming alliances for survival, Hiroka brought a buzzcut and a death stare.
There are no documentaries. No overproduced tributes. Just a string of broken egos and a few bald legends who still don’t like to talk about 2006.
Hiroka by the Numbers
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CMLL Women’s World Champion (1x)
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Shaved Lady Apache bald (once, and once is enough)
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Founded Las Zorras with two of the division’s fiercest rudas
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Retired at 28 to become a mother and dog salon proprietor
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Body count: Emotionally? At least five technicas a year
Final Bell: Beware the Quiet Ones
While many rudas screamed for attention, Hiroka just collected it. She let her work do the talking: low kicks, hair pulls, and the gentle snip-snip of the barber’s clippers after a win.
In the grand pantheon of Lucha Libre, Hiroka remains an anomaly—a Japanese assassin who came, conquered, and left the scene like a shadow at dusk.
And if you ever find yourself in Mexico City looking for an artisanal chew toy, maybe stop by her pet shop.
Just don’t ask about Lady Apache.