So as some of you may have heard, the WWE signed a new wrestler from Mexico earlier this week. His name, Sin Cara aka Mistico. So with this new wrestler signed to the organization, the one question that remains is: who is this guy? Well the answer to that is, I have no clue.
Unless you follow lucha libre, unlike me, then you will not know who this masked warrior is. So if you are expecting me to tell you Mistico is, don't. Instead, I would advise you to take a look at his wikipedia page to learn more about him.
But the point of this blog is to talk about the influence that lucha libre has on the WWE. Yesterday there was an article posted on AOL Fanhouse. In the Q&A article with Rey Mysterio, he was asked various questions about his career and the new video game that he is in: WWE All-Stars.
But one of the things he was asked involved lucha libre and its influence in the WWE. Here are a couple of excerpts from the article with Fanhouse.
What are your thoughts right now about WWE and the growth of the audience in the Hispanic market? It looks like there is more focus on it now than ever before.
I think it's awesome. I think every time WWE expands their market it's a step further and forward and not backwards. At one point, their main market was Europe and Europe is still huge. We're exploring South America now and it has given us a great response with attendance at live events and with ratings on television. So, why not take it to the next level and possibly travel more into South America which we are doing already, perhaps even bringing them a little extra touch with maybe a couple years down the road even a WrestleMania or a pay-per-view.
What are your thoughts about WWE signing Mistico (who will be known as Sin Cara)? He's been a huge star in Mexico for years and now he's making his way to WWE.
I think the opportunity now shown is that the doors are open for anybody that has the quality to be part of WWE. You have the talent, you have the desire to be a superstar, come and the doors will be open and if you can make it, you'll be one of the top dogs. Alberto's a big proof. When I came into the United States, I pretty much followed the Guerreros and Jerichos, a path as they just left Mexico and went on to ECW, WCW and WWE. So it was kind of a little train that we were taking around. It kind of feels good in a way that those doors have been opened for other Mexican wrestlers. Like you said, now with Mistico coming in, I want to say that I think those doors were eventually opened by the talent that myself, Eddie and a lot of wrestlers that started their careers in Mexico have opened up for other guys.
With what Rey Mysterio mentioned above and I have said in the past couple of posts is that lucha libre is expanding the spectrum of wrestling. You are now seeing more high-flying and speed influence in the ring. Before it used to be muscle versus muscle. But now, you have to be able to do so much more in the ring than just body slam your opponent. And with this influence being seen in the WWE, you are now getting a new audience to the brand. More people are starting to tune into Monday Night Raw and Friday Night Smackdown to see Rey Mysterio, Alberto Del Rio and in the near future, Mistico.
And for the business aspect, this is putting more money into the business. And that makes WWE Chairman, Vince McMahon very happy. Because after all, at least for him, it's all about the money.
-Christopher J. Valverde
Follow me on Twitter: @xfactor7806
*Photo from wikipedia and excerpts from AOL Fanhouse
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