Rey Mysterio has proudly worn his iconic luchador mask for the majority of his pro wrestling career. And as is the case with most luchadores, that has led to him putting his mask on the line in numerous matches throughout his career. He was initially forced to unmask back in 1999 after losing a tag match against Kevin Nash and Scott Hall at SuperBrawl IX, but revived it when he arrived in the WWE and has since successfully defended the mask twice.
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In an interview with Chris Van Vliet this week, Kalisto revealed that he had convinced Mysterio to put his mask on the line for a third time back when the former Cruiserweight Champion was still with the company (he was released back in April). The rivalry and match never materialized as Kalisto never brought the idea to Vince McMahon.
“My biggest regret is not pitching my idea to Vince,” Kalisto said (h/t Sportskeeda). “Pretty much the whole world knew except for Vince. [I wanted to do] a Mask versus Mask match against Rey Mysterio. I had Rey’s blessing, Dominik’s blessing, everyone. They all loved it. I showed it to Paul Heyman too. Paul said ‘This is genius, do it.’ I was like let’s do this! It’s just such a good story, it’s my biggest regret not talking to Vince about it. Right before I was going to, I got released.”
“I was prepared for anything,” he added, confirming he was willing to lose his mask in the storyline. “I had such a great story that nobody would have expected. So for Paul Heyman to say that’s genius, I got something. The writers, everyone loved it. I even showed it to Daniel Bryan and Edge, they loved it. But it’s my own fault. I should have gone [to Vince].”
The 90-day No Compete clause in Kalisto’s contract officially expired this week, making him a free agent. He also confirmed in the interview that he would be going back to his old wrestling name, Samuray del Sol.
Mysterio, meanwhile, now finds himself as one half of the SmackDown Tag Team Champions alongside his son, Dominik. The pair will team up with Edge on this week’s SmackDown to face Roman Reigns and The Usos in a six-man tag match. The episode, emanating from Houston, will officially signal WWE’s return to touring in front of live fans.
