Nearly 30 talents were released by WWE on Black Wednesday, from the likes of Rusev to Drake Maverick to Sarah Logan. One of the talents let go by WWE during the cutbacks due to the COVID-19 impact on industry was No Way Jose. While No Way Jose failed to reach even the heights he achieved in NXT during his time appearing on Raw or SmackDown, he appeared frequently in backstage angles and his conga lines were always a who’s who of regional indies when WWE came to town. But hopefully, now the former Carolinas indie wrestler will be heading back to the independents following a five-year run inside the WWE machine.
Love you all 💜💜 #ThankYou @WWE @WWENXT pic.twitter.com/1elDFcDygO
— Levis (@LevyValenz) April 15, 2020
Levis Valenzuela Jr., from Durham, North Carolina, started out in professional wrestling in 2013, training at the Carolina Wrestling Federation (CWF) Mid Atlantic Dojo. Trained by Roy Wilkins and Trevor Lee (now NXT’s Cameron Grimes), he debuted in CWF Mid Atlantic in May of 2013. Debuting under the name “El Jefe” Manny Garcia, the Dominican Boss, he impressed CWF Mid Atlantic officials and became a regular by June.
As Manny Garcia, he pushed heavily his love for his Dominican Republic roots, and for much of 2013 he feuded with Rob McBride in North Carolina. In the fall of 2013, he would debut for another Carolina indie, Greensboro’s Fire Star Pro Wrestling (FSPW). He would win his first gold in FSPW in early 2014, winning the FSPW South Eastern Championship.
He kicked off 2014 in contention for the CWF Mid Atlantic Heavyweight title, and as the progressed his momentum increased. He became a 2x CWF Mid Atlantic Television Champion that year, feuding with the likes of Chris Lea, Donnie Dollars, and even pre-WWE Cedric Alexander. In September of 2014, he took part in a WWE Tryout.
In February of 2015, he debuted for Cameron, North Carolina’s Organization Of Modern Extreme Grappling Arts (OMEGA), the indie promotion run by Matt Hardy, and continued to compete in CWF Mid Atlantic through the spring of 2015, losing his CWF Television title on his final appearance.
Impressed by his tryout the previous year, Garcia signed with WWE in April of 2015 and debuted in that year’s spring class at the WWE Performance Center – a class that also included The Iiconics (Billie Kay & Peyton Royce), Alexander Wolfe of NXT UK and current AAA Lucha Libre wrestler Magno. In his very first match for NXT, he appeared on NXT television that July, teaming with Elias in a losing effort to American Alpha (Chad Gable & Jason Jordan). Initially working NXT Live Events under his real name, he would become No Way Jose for his return to NXT television in March of 2016, ironically defeating fellow Classmate Alexander Wolfe in his re-debut.
As No Way Jose, he would win his first five matches in NXT that summer, before a defeat to Robert Roode in August, and he would pair with Rich Swann for the 2016 Dusty Rhodes Classic Tag Team Tournament. The unit defeated Drew Gulak & Tony Nese in the first round, before being knocked out in the second by eventual winners, Authors of Pain. Soon after, he would find himself in a feud with SaNitY (again featuring Wolfe) and he would find success in NXT as a rising star and fan favorite.
On April 9, 2018, three years after joining NXT, No Way Jose was called up to Raw on the Raw After Mania. Through all the Superstar Shake-Ups that followed, No Way Jose remained a part of Raw but never seemed to find himself in any storylines – he was used more as enhancement than anything. He frequently competed on WWE Main Event, where he would feud with the likes of Curt Hawkins, Mike Kanellis, Tyler Breeze, Mojo Rawley, and EC3. With the way WWE was using him less and less, the writing seemed on the wall for Jose when news broke Wednesday morning that potential cuts were coming.
While he spent three years in the hot Carolina indie scene before joining WWE, he’s competed in the WWE Universe for more years than he hasn’t, creating a character that had its share of fans – even if they weren’t in the higher-ups of WWE. Here’s hoping that he decides to return to the indies as Manny Garcia and continue his career, and finally get a chance to discover all the other indies in the US outside his regional area. With his WWE fame, it’s likely he’ll find plenty of suitors.
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