{"id":64417,"date":"2020-03-09T22:20:42","date_gmt":"2020-03-10T02:20:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonprowrestling.com\/?p=64417"},"modified":"2020-03-09T22:20:42","modified_gmt":"2020-03-10T02:20:42","slug":"25-years-after-ecw-debut-rey-mysterio-ushers-in-new-era-videos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2020\/03\/09\/25-years-after-ecw-debut-rey-mysterio-ushers-in-new-era-videos\/","title":{"rendered":"25 Years After ECW Debut, Rey Mysterio Ushers In New Era (VIDEOS)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>For the first time in what feels like years, WWE has built a strong core of Mexican wrestlers, and it&#8217;s no thanks to the return of <strong>Rey Mysterio<\/strong> to WWE. His interaction with several of the Latino wrestlers in the past year &#8211; and more importantly in the past few months &#8211; has created three hot stars who are moving quickly up the mid-card to become some of the most fan-engaging wrestlers on the roster. As arguably Lucha Libre&#8217;s greatest international star, it&#8217;s rewarding to see Rey Mysterio shepherd in the new era of Lucha Libre in WWE, especially when its the 25th anniversary of an ECW invasion &#8211; that included a 20-year old Rey Misterio Jr. &#8211; that would help shape the 1990s in North America.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Rey Misterio Jr. vs. Psicosis - 10\/17\/1995\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/i15XPMvv3hM?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Prior to ECW head <strong>Paul Heyman<\/strong> bringing in luchadores from Mexico &#8211; in particular, from AAA &#8211; you were more likely to get a <strong>Tito Santana<\/strong> than a Mil Mascaras at most wrestling events in the United States. Tape traders would spend months tracking down AAA or CMLL copies, but the modern Lucha Libre was difficult to attain. But ECW bringing in <strong>Eddie Guerrero<\/strong> in spring of 1995 (although he came with the Japan unit that also featured <strong>Chris Benoit, Dean Malenko<\/strong>, and <strong>Chris Jericho<\/strong>) began an influx of Mexican stars, aided by Mexico&#8217;s superstar, <strong>Konnan<\/strong>. ECW had just lost Guerrero, Benoit, and Malenko to WCW, so Konnan brought in some of Mexico&#8217;s most exciting young stars, starting with Rey Mysterio and <strong>Psicosis<\/strong>, and soon joined by <strong>Juventud Guerrera<\/strong> a year later. The two-year exposure to modern Lucha Libre excited and ignited a fan base looking for more than the traditional (re: WWF) presentation &#8211; it became the blueprint for WCW&#8217;s new Cruiserweight Division, started by Eric Bischoff. It wouldn&#8217;t be long before Konnan, Rey, Psicosis, and Juventud would all be plucked away by WCW to bolster that Cruiserweight division.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Eddy Guerrero vs. Dean Malenko - 8\/3\/1995\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/sAndeYqHya0?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Now, in 2020, it would appear that Raw&#8217;s creative director, the same Paul Heyman, is boring from his old tricks, as WWE finally has a core of Latin Superstars that are capturing the imagination of the WWE Universe for the first time in decades. But while a bright-eyed 20-year old Rey Mysterio isn&#8217;t leading the charge, now, 25 years later, a 45-year old veteran is helping guide them into a great class of performers.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>25 Years After ECW Debut, Rey Mysterio Ushers In New Era<\/strong><\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_64427\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-64427\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-64427\" src=\"https:\/\/lastwordonprowrestling.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2020\/03\/maxresdefault-e1583806331596.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-64427\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photo: WWE<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Rey Mysterio made his WWE return in 2018 at that year&#8217;s <em><strong>Royal Rumble<\/strong><\/em> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=IBVo8dfqTBc\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">in the Royal Rumble match itself<\/a> &#8211; ironically, the &#8220;main roster&#8221; debut for <strong>Andrade<\/strong>, the then-NXT Champion. Although Andrade would not make his SmackDown\/television debut until July, defeating <strong>Sin Cara<\/strong>. By the year&#8217;s end, he was feuding with Mysterio, in an on-again-off-again rivalry that is still on-going &#8211; including two near 20-minute televised matches on\u00a0<em><strong>RAW<\/strong><\/em><em>\u00a0<\/em>this year alone &#8211; and over the WWE United States Championship. Fans of CMLL and\/or NJPW were aware of Andrade&#8217;s pre-NXT career as <strong>La Sombra<\/strong> of <strong>Los Ingobernables<\/strong> and were aware of his capabilities, it seemed WWE was going to falter on Andrade&#8217;s WWE career. But in the past few months, with the addition of two more luchadores, Andrade has become the future star that early fans knew he could be.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Rey Mysterio vs. Andrade &quot;Cien&quot; Almas: SmackDown LIVE, Nov. 6, 2018\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Tvu4U8ccnuA?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><strong>Humberto Carrillo<\/strong> joined the WWE in 2018 at the age of 21, arriving from a six-year run in his native Mexico as a freelancer, working for the likes of <strong>The Crash Lucha, Lucha Libre Elite<\/strong>, and <strong>RIOT Wrestling Alliance<\/strong>, where he competed as <strong>Ultimo Ninja<\/strong>. During his tenure with Crash Lucha, he won the Crash Tag Team Championships alongside his real life cousin, Garza Jr. Garza was supposed to join his cousin in 2018, but medical issues held him back. In that time, Carrillo unmasked and became a breakout star with NXT and\u00a0<em><strong>205 Live<\/strong><\/em><em>,\u00a0<\/em>before joining\u00a0<em>RAW<\/em> last fall.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Humberto Carrillo vs. Angel Garza: Raw, Feb. 24, 2020\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/yjuxA8FxpCg?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Garza Jr. <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonprowrestling.com\/2019\/03\/21\/garza-jr-to-finally-join-wwe-nxt-in-april\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">finally signed with WWE in early 2019<\/a> and made his debut last June in the NXT Breakout Tournament as <strong>Angel Garza<\/strong>. By August, he was also appearing on <em>205 Live<\/em>, and this past February he made his debut on\u00a0<em>RAW<\/em>, where he immediately faced Rey Mysterio in a match that got nearly 14 minutes. With Andrade out on suspension, Garza filled in as a partner under the guidance of <strong>Zelina Vega<\/strong>, exceeding all expectations for presentation &#8211; he was pushed as a star out the gate.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Rey Mysterio &amp; Humberto Carrillo vs. Andrade &amp; Angel Garza: Raw, March 2, 2020\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/xdn5fAr09ZM?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>The sudden appearance of three new Latino stars in Andrade, Garza, and Humberto &#8211; safely mentored in the ring (and behind the scenes) by Rey Mysterio &#8211; feels an awful lot like some of Paul Heyman&#8217;s earlier angles. Letting the luchadores showcase themselves to the WWE Universe against opponents who are fluent in Lucha Libre (so as to avoid the original Sin Cara debacle), creating stars out of the three of them alike &#8211; and getting a Rey Mysterio rub in the process.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_64428\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-64428\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-64428\" src=\"https:\/\/lastwordonprowrestling.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2020\/03\/maxresdefault-1-e1583806478288.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-64428\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photo: WWE<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Now if only Lucha House Party&#8217;s extremely talented tandem of <strong>Kalisto, Gran Metalik<\/strong>, and <strong>Lince Dorado<\/strong> could gravitate away from the dangerously close <strong>MexiCool<\/strong> region, WWE would easily have one of the strongest Lucha Libre rosters of the majors. After all, <strong>Kalisto<\/strong> (as Samuray del Sol) and <strong>Lince Dorado<\/strong> were US indie darlings, while <strong>Gran Metalik<\/strong> (as Mascara Dorada) was a 4x CMLL World Welterweight Champion and competed in two NJPW <em><strong>Best of the Super Juniors<\/strong><\/em> (2014, 2015). Sadly, they&#8217;re on\u00a0<em>SmackDown<\/em> (we&#8217;re looking at YOU, Bruce Prichard), but this past Sunday at\u00a0<em><strong>WWE Elimination Chamber<\/strong><\/em><em>,\u00a0<\/em>the duo of Dorado and Metalik looked the best they&#8217;ve looked in ages. So fingers crossed?<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Lucha House Party hit the skies inside the Chamber: Elimination Chamber 2020 (WWE Network Exclusive)\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/TV6gA8xTn1I?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Stay tuned to the\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/lastwordonprowrestling.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Last Word on Pro Wrestling<\/a>\u00a0for more on this and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world. WWE fan? Check out the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/watch.wwe.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">WWE Network<\/a>\u00a0to fulfill all of your WWE needs!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>For the first time in what feels like years, WWE has built a strong core of Mexican wrestlers, and it&#8217;s no thanks to the return of Rey Mysterio to WWE. His interaction with several of the Latino wrestlers in the past year &#8211; and more importantly in the past few months &#8211; has created three [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":649,"featured_media":64418,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2,25,3],"tags":[4658,5398,251,774,6218,957,256,886],"class_list":["post-64417","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-raw","category-wwe-universe","tag-andrade","tag-angel-garza","tag-ecw","tag-eddie-guerrero","tag-huberto-carrillo","tag-juventud-guerrera","tag-paul-heyman","tag-rey-mysterio"],"modified_by":"Jamie Greer","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64417","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/649"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=64417"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64417\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/64418"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=64417"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=64417"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=64417"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}