They don’t make Hispanic Wrestlers like they used to! WWE isn’t known to make a huge variety of WWE Superstars into World Champions. Only a handful of selected superstars had that honor. Nowadays, WWE has a huge selection of Hispanic Wrestlers but they don’t have the same aura as the ones back then.
There are a few with massive potential but WWE needs to learn how to use these superstars to the best of their abilities. Let’s take a look at how WWE can utilize their Hispanic Superstars more effectively.
But first, let’s take a look at some of the best Hispanic Superstars of the past.
Past Hispanic Stars
WWE has yet to emulate some of the greatest Hispanic Wrestlers of the past few decades. Since there is quite of handful of Hispanic wrestlers in WWE history I will only select two to go over and a few honorable mentions. First let’s talk about one of the most influential Mexican wrestlers of all time, Eddie Guerrero.
Eddie Guerrero
‘Latino Heat’ Eddie Guerrero has to be the greatest Hispanic Wrestler to ever grace WWE. Often imitated never duplicated, this hall of fame has been honored by past superstars throughout their careers.
How many times have wrestlers done the Eddie Frog Splash and Frog Splash dance to show respect to Latino Heat? How many have done the three amigos? Many WWE superstars and other companies have modeled their move sets after Eddie. So many wrestlers have stated that they grew up an Eddie Guerrero fan and idolized him.
Eddie Guerrero not only had the look and charisma of a champion but he was also accomplished in WWE. He is a former two-time Intercontinental champion, a United States champion, a four-time WWE Tag Team champion, and a two-time European champion. And who can forget his reign as a one-time WWE Champion?
Eddie Guerrero is the 11th triple crown winner and the 6th grand slam champion. His technical and high-flying abilities were superior to most wrestlers.
Latino Heat’s mic skills are superior to any other Hispanic Wrestler. Eddie Guerrero also started the original Latino World Order (LWO). Eddie Guerrero is the goat of Hispanic Wrestlers. He just had this aura to him and there will be no one that can replicate that. The closest would be Rey Mysterio, one of his closest friends.
Rey Mysterio
How could we have a WWE Hispanic Wrestlers list without the biggest underdog in WWE History, Rey Mysterio? This hall of famer overall is a three-time World Champion, 5-time tag team champion, 2-time intercontinental champion, 3-time U.S. champion, 3-time cruiserweight champion, and a Royal Rumble Winner.
He is the second superstar to win the Rumble at the number 2 spot. He also used to have the record for the longest time in the rumble at one hour, two minutes, and twelve seconds. Rey Mysterio is the 21st Triple Crown and grand slam champion.
Mysterio for his size at 5’6 was one of the most impressive superstars in WWE History. He was quick, one of the best if not the best high flyers of all time, and stood toe to tie with giants. Rey Mysterio is also one of the most influential Hispanic superstars of all time next to Eddie Guerrero.
His ring gear was one of the best, and his masks are recognizable and iconic. The master of the 619 also had a great theme song and started this era’s LWO. He is considered one of the best Hispanic wrestlers for a reason, now let’s take a look at some honorable mentions.
Honorable Mentions
Alberto Del Rio – Love him or hate him we can’t deny his WWE accolades. In 2011, Del Rio made his debut as a rich arrogant Mexican star and WWE pushed him right away. Del Rio is a 4 time World Champion, 2 time U.S. champion, and the winner of the biggest Royal Rumble.
Pedro Morales – He had to be on this list. The first ever Hispanic WWE champion. This Hall of famer won every single title in WWE during his era. Arguably the best Puerto Rican star of all time.
The Bella Twins – Brie and Nikki Bella’s legacy has not gone unnoticed. They are popular with the fans and they made an impact as the stars of Total Divas and even got a spinoff.
Ironically they never won the Women’s Tag Team titles. However, Nikki is a two-time Divas champion and Brie is a one-time Divas champion. Nikki held the title for an impressive 301 days, the longest in that title’s history.
Melina – This talented superstar is a 2 times Divas champion and a 3 time Women’s champion in WWE. Melina would have flourished in this current roster of female superstars. She had an incredible move set and was one of the most athletic superstars during that time.
There are a lot more superstars I may have missed, but others that should be honorable mentioned are Tito Santana, Carlos Colon, AJ Lee, Eve Torres, and Chavo Guerrero. With this much talent of the past what is WWE doing wrong now and what do they need to achieve to do better by the current Hispanic roster?
What Are They Doing Wrong
It’s not like WWE does not have current Hispanic Stars who have the talent. Yes, these stars won’t have the star qualities of Eddie Guerrero or Rey Mysterio, it is that they don’t give these Hispanic Stars much to work with.
For the last decade or so whenever WWE gets superstar quality wrestlers, they do the same thing every time. Which is when they pair the stars with another Hispanic star or rival that said Hispanic star. This has been going on for quite a while.
For example, Santos Escobar has a stable called Legado Del Fantasma with other Hispanic stars. They are currently feuding against LWO another Hispanic group. It seems after Del Rio this is what they usually do for Hispanic stars.
Every time we think that a certain Hispanic star will do something different like feuding with other top stars of another descent they have their Hispanic stars feuding with one another. It is great however that WWE lets them use their Hispanic heritage to add to their WWE characters.
They need to continue that and let the Hispanic superstar embrace their culture but there is one problem they need to take action on/improve on and that will be in this next section.
What Can They Do To Improve
It seems like WWE Creative has no idea what to do with these Hispanic superstars except to have them against one another.
This needs to stop because there are other storylines than just joining a Hispanic Group or feuding with one. Bad Bunny vs. Damien Priest also happened because they are both Hispanic or now it seems we are getting Dominik Mysterio against Rey Mysterio at WrestleMania again even though they haven’t been feuding at all.
It is quite simple for WWE to improve on Hispanic Wrestlers to book them better. Put them in meaningful storylines and give them a chance to show the WWE Universe their strengths. If they get future Hispanic Wrestlers don’t just pile them on against other Hispanic stars, let them slowly go up the ranks.
Hispanic Wrestlers now may or may not have the overall qualities of Eddie Guerrero or Rey Mysterio but it does not hurt to try. Give these wrestlers chances to show their mic and wrestling abilities by giving them strong showing against everyone not just Hispanic stars.
They have a variety of potential Hispanic Wrestlers who have a future if booked right, let’s take a look at some of them starting with Dominik Mysterio, the son of Rey Mysterio.
Dominik Mysterio
This second-generation star seemed to be a victim of the same WWE Hispanic storyline. He was paired up with his father right away from the get-go. He had an outstanding showing against Seth Rollins in his debut at Summerslam. But then WWE paired him as a babyface with his father to win the Tag Team titles.
He was growing stale until they separated him from his father to turn him heel and join Judgement Day. Since then Dominik has become arguably the best heel of the current WWE roster. The fans won’t even let him speak not even in his home turf of San Diego.
He gets booed everywhere he goes and he has this charisma to him. There are even comparisons to the look and star quality of a young Eddie Guerrero.
Dominik Mysterio has the potential to be a future Intercontinental and even a future WWE champion in WWE if booked correctly. He is still only 26 years old so the sky is the limit. Not to mention he keeps getting better in the ring.
I agree that Dominik had earned to have a match at this year’s WrestleMania but a one-on-one against Rey again? They could not think of anything else for Dom.
Nonetheless, Dominik Mysterio seems like WWE is willing and able to turn this Hispanic wrestler into a bonafide superstar of the future. The same could be said for his Judgement Day Partner, Damien Priest.
Damien Priest
This Hispanic superstar was poised for greatness since leaving NXT and going to the main roster. He is 6’5 and one hell of a talent. However, at 45 years old time is not on his side.
With that being said he is the current Money in the Bank winner and one of the founding members of the Judgement Day. He is also one-half of the current WWE World Tag Team Champions alongside Judgement Day partner, Finn Balor.
Priest has shown worth in his wrestling abilities and promo skills, especially in the feud with Bad Bunny at Backlash. As the money in the bank winner, one would think it won’t be long until he becomes a World Champion. Hopefully, that happens so it won’t tarnish his legacy and the money in the bank briefcase legacy.
He has earned a world title shortly and hopefully, he can be the re-start of using Hispanic wrestlers correctly. The next Hispanic star Bayley is on her way to possibly winning the WWE Women’s Championship from her former teammate Iyo Sky.
Bayley
The 2024 Royal Rumble winner Bayley is one of the few exceptions of being booked correctly. However, as a Mexican-American wrestler, she is one of the few to not really acknowledge her heritage or in this case, WWE does not acknowledge it so much.
Nonetheless, Bayles is of Mexican descent and Hispanic and she is one of the most popular and best women’s wrestlers currently. She has won every title there is to win at least once as a Women’s wrestler.
She is a four-time Women’s champion and her 5th win could be soon. She is also a former Money in the Bank winner and the founder of Damage CTRL. Bayley’s legacy continues to grow and hopefully, she will win once again at WrestleMania.
Andrade and Santos Escobar
The Final two superstars that have potential as Hispanic Stars are both Santos Escobar and Andrade. These two are arguably two of the most talented overall Hispanic Wrestlers on this current Roster. They both have the qualities to become big-time players in WWE if booked correctly.
They need to remove Santos from the LWO feud quickly and let his stable flourish. They have the potential to be a big faction in WWE.
Andrade just returned from AEW and the first thing they have done is put him in segments with Dominik Mysterio and the Judgement Day. Which is fine he would be an interesting member or an interesting adversary of the faction.
If booked correctly these two have the skillset to become future World Champions. Andrade is more so as he just has this aura and personality to him. He showed glimpses in AEW and in NXT and the same goes for Santos in NXT. These two could even be potentially star mid-carders as Intercontinental and U.S. champions.
Honorable Mentions
I know I missed quite a few so I’ll quickly introduce them here. Raquel Rodriguez is a powerhouse and has the potential to be a future Women’s World Champion.
Zelina Vega is beloved by fans and can be this year’s Money in the Bank Winner if they let her. She has this Rey Mysterio underdog quality to her. Angel Garza and Humberto Carillo could be an interesting Tag Team duo as tag team champs.
Lola Vice and Roxanne Perez seem like future superstars in the main roster once they leave NXT. And Dragon Lee has the traditional Lucha style we all know and love. Carlito is a veteran who should have won the championship when he was younger but he is still a great addition to this current roster.
Summary
WWE has had quite a legacy with Hispanic Stars. Eddie Guerrero and Rey Mysterio are the front runners of WWE. However, there were a lot of talented superstars who made quite an impact as Hispanic stars.
There are even current stars who have the potential to be great like Dominik Mysterio, Andrade, and Roxanne Perez. But to do that WWE needs to stop putting Hispanic wrestlers against one another for the majority of their careers.
They need to let them succeed against other wrestlers as well in interesting feuds and storylines. The talent and potential are there for these Hispanic wrestlers. The question is will WWE change or keep using the same boring storylines for them?
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