In the Apertura 2005, Walter Gaitán finished the season as the top scorer of the tournament and Tigres went to play-offs in 8th place. In the quarter-finals, under the command of the iconic Osvaldo Batocletti, Tigres played the historical "Aztecazo", a way to describe a difficult victory over América or the Mexico national team in their venue, the Estadio Azteca. In the first game, Tigres lost in the Estadio Universitario by a 1–3 score. Against all odds, however, they defeated América in the second game 4–1 for an aggregate scoreline of 5–4, leaving América out of the postseason. In the semi-finals, Tigres drew Monterrey after 1–0 and 1–2 (2–2) scorelines, although Monterrey progressed to the next round because of the points in the tournament.