Andrade 'Cien' Almas Reportedly Set for Big SmackDown Push

After a slow start, Andrade 'Cien' Alamas has enjoyed a back-to-back fruitful episode of [...]

By Jeremy Snodgrass

After a slow start, Andrade "Cien" Alamas has enjoyed a back-to-back fruitful episode of SmackDown. and apparently, Almas' hot streak has only just begun.

Alamas' momentum rocketed after going one-on-one with WWE Champion AJ Styles last week. Per PWInsider, that match left WWE officials very impressed with Almas' work and opened discussion on feeding him more opportunities. His win over Rusev on Tuesday night's installment of the Blue Brand indicates that WWE has a vested interest in building Almas.

So the question begs, how far can this go?

Well, Almas certainly has a few classic elements working in his favor. On top of being an exceptional in-ring talent, Almas has the managerial support of Zelina Vega. While WWE has neglected the role of the manager in 2018, those wrestlers who are accompanied (Brock Lesnar, Carmella, Jinder Mahal) typically benefit from the added personality. But unlike Paul Heyman, Vega can hit opponents with hurricanranas.

While Almas may be a little undersized, his market could be massive. Despite being on the main roster for only a few weeks Almas may already be WWE's most established Latin American Superstar. With Rey Mysterio's WWE return looking imminent, it's not hard to imagine he and Almas entering an impactful feud sometime this fall. And after that, Almas could be a made man.

Almas has another thing going for him: limited expectations. While that may sound counterintuitive, Almas hasn't arrived in WWE with much name recognition and that's a great thing. NXT icons like Finn Balor and Asuka have had a hard time translating to WWE. Some of their sputtering have to be due to bringing a well-established character to the main roster, however, NXT and WWE are very different shows with very different audiences. While Almas was an NXT Champion, his reign didn't last long enough for him to become a face of the Yellow Brand.

In the same way that Elias has stormed into the company, Almas hopes to catch the WWE Universe on its heels. He's well equipped for this pending push, however, there's a decent chance he's left without much to do at SummerSlam. But that's not worth getting upset over — because the rise of El Idolo isn't set to begin until after the Brooklyn super show.

There is a chance he makes his way into the Us Championship picture by SummerSlam, though. We have nearly a month before the show and at this rate, Almas would fit in any match that doesn't involve the WWE championship. We'll see what happens, but it's officially time to buy stock in El Idolo.

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