Former AEW superstar Rey Fénix will debut for WWE on this week’s episode of SmackDown, following several weeks of suggestive vignettes. The Mexican wrestler has followed in the footsteps of his brother Penta, who debuted on Raw at the beginning of the year.
Fénix and Penta have worked together extensively throughout their careers, winning tag titles in AEW, TNA, and Ring of Honor, among others. Together, they have been a part of a number of highly acclaimed matches. However, Fénix has also carved out an impressive path as a singles competitor, winning several titles in promotions all around the world.
Ahead of his much-anticipated WWE debut, here are four Rey Fénix matches that have helped to build the Luchador’s sterling reputation:
Fénix vs Mil Muertes – Casket Match, Lucha Underground (2015)
A bitter rivalry with the well-traveled Mil Muertes culminated in a brutal casket match at Grave Consequences at the start of 2015. Still relatively early into his career, the match provided a great opportunity for Fénix to display his repertoire of fearless, high-flying moves against a respected and experienced opponent.
Fénix took his fair share of bumps and completed a number of impressive spots, including a swanton from a balcony among the excited audience. Bleeding, his mask torn to shreds, Fénix sealed victory with a signature double foot stomp before rolling Muertes into the casket.
Fénix, Penta & PAC (Death Triangle) vs Kenny Omega & The Young Bucks (The Elite) – 6-Man Tag, AEW (2022)
With the personnel involved, the match was a guaranteed recipe for success. The Elite returned, seeking to regain the AEW Trios titles that they’d never lost. Putting six acclaimed superstars in the ring, all at the peak of their powers, provided AEW fans with an absolute highlight reel of a match.
Arguably, the match of the night in an already stacked card, Fénix shockingly reversed Omega’s One Winged Angel into a successful rollup with the aid of a hammer handed to him by PAC. This would be the first match in a ‘Best of 7 Series’ between the two teams.
Fénix vs El Hijo del Vikingo – Singles, AAA (2022)
Taking place at the October edition of AAA’s flagship show, Vikingo was seeking to avenge a loss to Fénix in a five-way match at the June edition four months earlier. The victory earned Fénix both the AAA Cruiserweight and Latin American titles. But this time, it was the premier belt up for grabs – the AAA Mega Championship.
For Fénix it represented a historic opportunity, as he aimed to hold all three of AAA’s major singles belts simultaneously. Pitching two of Lucha Libre’s most innovative talents against each other resulted in an instant classic. Methodically building toward a chaotic finale, Fénix eventually fell to an exceptional inverted 450 splash from Vikingo.
Fénix & Penta vs The Young Bucks – Steel Cage Tag, AEW (2021)
Considered by many fans to be the finest hour of the four superstars involved, The Lucha Bros and The Young Bucks had gone toe-to-to many times before and many times after this bout. However, this one stands out as their greatest hit.
During this AEW tag title reign, The Young Bucks had put the likes of MJF & Chris Jericho, FTR, Jurassic Express, and all three members of Death Triangle to the sword. But a steel cage tag match presents all kinds of problems when faced with the acrobatics of Rey Fénix and Penta. Despite their high-flying reputation, The Young Bucks more than matched Fénix and Penta, presenting an incredibly well-choreographed tag battle that fully took advantage of the cage stipulation.
Moving seamlessly from set piece to set piece, both teams showed why they consistently rank among the world’s finest year after year. The highlight of the match – Fénix’s crossbody from the top of the cage – helped to set up an assisted piledriver on Nick Jackson, bringing The Young Bucks’ almost year-long reign to an end.
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