Alberto Del Rio recently spoke with The Wrassingh Show for an in-depth interview covering all things pro wrestling. Here are the highlighs:
His advice to Andrade El Idolo amid backstage tensions in AEW:
“To be honest, I don’t really know what’s going on. Sometimes I think that ask the stuff surrounding the drama and the scandal around AEW, it’s not real.
These day, even us as performers, we don’t know what’s real and what’s not. Sometimes companies and performers, they’re using scandals just to stay relevant, in this case, AEW is relevant already, it’s like the second major, second most important company out there, I don’t think they need that so if what’s going on around Andrade’s career, Andrade’s life is real so all I can say is, ‘Amigo, just do what you used to do when you were having fun in the wrestling business. Looks like you’re not having anymore in the place where you work for, if that’s the case, then leave but do it in the right way. Don’t burn any bridges! I made that mistake in the past, I burnt some bridges and sometimes you are never able to rebuild those relationships with those companies. If you are not happy there, just try to go somewhere else but just with the right way.’ That’s all I can say.
He is a fantastic performer, AEW is a great company, WWE is a great company. They deserve to have someone like Andrade and Andrade deserves to be in one of those companies but Amigo, just do it the right way.”
If he watched Bray Wyatt’s WWE return:
“I did not. Everybody knows this, I don’t watch wrestling. I am too busy doing other stuff, working and making money for my children and when I’m not working, I am with my children.
I am a fantastic father, many people know this. Now I am just on my own with my kids. Unfortunately, that woman, the love of my life, the mother of my children passed away back in April and these days, its just me and my three beautiful Angels so when I am not working, I am with them, being a daddy, taking them to school, their sports activities, cooking for them and doing all that a man that has a commitment with their children has to do. Not many men out there, I know a lot of men out there, not doing what they are supposed to do with their Ex’s or their kids and I do.
So unfortunately I did not watch his return but I know he is one of the best ones out there. I love him, we were friends since we were together in FCW and I know he is gonna continue killing it out there and he’s gonna be that biggest performer for WWE in 2023.”
Regarding his WWE departure:
“I would love to go and work for everybody [wrestling promotions], I have been doing that for many years, since I left the WWE because I left the WWE, I did not get fired as the Internet loves to say. Of course, unfortunately I left, of course I regret it later.
Anyways, I am taking bookings, thank God, I have my agenda packed, doing indie shows in Mexico and the United States.
I don’t do too many indie shows because I don’t want to, because again I have three beautiful Children and they need daddy right now and thank God, I am really busy broadcasting for those amazing companies – thank you UFC, thank you Bare Knuckle fighting, thank you ESPN Fernando Barbosa, Hermanos Bermudez – thank you so much for the opportunity! Working a lot to make our company, Nación Lucha Libre something spectacular and now with this new project that I am gonna be able to talk about in four or five more weeks!”
If Triple H reached out to him and reveals he should have one last run in WWE:
“Not at the moment. There was at the beginning of this year, there were some approaches but they didn’t come from Hunter. Since this new administration is in charge of the WWE, I haven’t talked to any of them, I don’t know if I will, I hope I do.
But I think and many, many people, millions of people agree that I should be doing one last thing with this company but that is not in my hands. That’s not up to me. But we’ll see, time will tell. These days we have people talking or hating just because they can, that’s how social media is, everybody can go there and say stuff even though sometimes or most of the time, those things are not even real but you know, that’s the way it is these days.
So I’m not, if I go back or not go back, that doesn’t matter. Im gonna continue producing, doing something different with my company, I’m gonna working for a few other companies that I am working for as a commentator, as an announcer. I’m gonna continue doing business in many other companies.”
On working on a TV Series with a major network:
“Right now, today I am starting something amazing with one of the most important and biggest TV networks around the world. I just, I cannot talk about it because we are taping this show.
Once the show airs, which it will be in the middle of November, you know, everybody is gonna know about it. It’s something huge, after this Alberto is going back on top but once we announce this, it is gonna be huge! It is huge already, its in my contract that I cannot say anything until we finalise this production, this TV show.
Give me four weeks, Ill give you the premiere of what we are doing at the moment.”
Reveals that the lady who accused him of kidnapping and assault is now facing legal troubles, likely for defamation:
“Years back, this is before that horrible lie incident happened into my life. That BS that the person created against my persona, my family, my career, my everything, which we have already talked about it zillions and zillions of times. It was the one person lying the whole time and thank God and thank you, I have to say it again but thank you Law system in the United States, thank you Law system in the great state of Texas because they, we proved everybody wrong and we showed everybody that this person was just lying the whole time and now they are after her, its just a matter of time before they get her and I hope they do because she deserves to pay for what she did to me and my family.”
Before he was accused by the lady, he was supposed to be in the John Wick Movie:
“Back then I was about to do something in Hollywood, I was going to have eight scenes in a movie, in a major movie – John Wick the third, I was going to be a part of it, I was going to do seven or eight scenes in the movie. Of course, after this person created that horrible episode in my life, everything was killed. But now that everything is moving forward and everyone knows what really happened, I am getting all the opportunities, all the doors are opening again, I am already doing business in the Latino Audience of course but I am doing business with the UFC, Bare Knuckle Fighting, ESPN, I have my own company. Another major network, I am doing something with them and today is the day when we’re starting the show, the whole production and again, I’m gonna be able to be talking about this in four to five more weeks.”
On how it feels to be the promoter of Nación Lucha Libre:
“We started with this in 2019. We did a fantastic job, we killed the competition with only three episodes, we were having better ratings than CMLL and AAA.
Yes, we know, we had an amazing roster when we started but then we had to change and adapt, because its not easy my friends to pay the American wrestlers in Mexico, one dollar is twenty pesos so its a lot of money in Mexico so we needed to make changes and try to improve the product with what we had and we did a fantastic job.
Unfortunately, as a lot of other business, we had to close the company for certain period of time because of COVID. That was not just us, it was every single other business. The wrestling business is not different than the others. Its just like doctors, architects and businessmen, we all got affected by this and it was not just in Mexico, it was around the planet. But now after two years, we are ready to do business. I just had a meeting with a possible sponsor and were ready, we did the first set of tapings weeks ago, it was a complete success, we had full building, packed building and the wrestling matches were fantastic.”
Shoots on promotions having many titles:
“I loved the way it was in WWE when we only had the tag team champions, the female title, the world heavyweight tile and the WWE title and that was it. No more titles and that tells people what it means to be champion and for the champion, it means something.
Like when you have that title around your waist, it means something if you are the only one having it but if there are like another 25-40 titles in the company, there is no difference between one and the other. It doesn’t matter if you change the name, you see in the same TV show, 25 people wearing something around their waist. It doesn’t matter if one is a heavyweight, one a cruiserweight, the other one 24/7, the other one TBS champion, the other one TNT, it doesn’t matter. For the audience, especially for the kids, which are the biggest consumers of our product. When they see that gold around someone’s waist, they know that’s the man!
That’s why I wanted to have it like that [in Nación Lucha Libre] because that’s the way it was when I started with the WWE and for me, coming from Mexico, coming from companies where they had 2000 champions, it was amazing, that was like, ‘Oh my God! Yes, that guy over there, sitting in the corner, that’s the man! That’s the champion!’ So it did something fantastic for me, for my perception of how the business should be run and I decided the same for my company.”
On all talent working in his promotion getting health insurance coverage:
“We’re doing that and that’s the only reason why we are only using the performers that we need, I know there’s a lot of people and thank you for trying to reach out and for contacting my business partner but we’re using the people that we need, of course were gonna be growing and that’s the whole idea to bring more performers, have more shows but right now, this is what we have and this is what we want.
Not only that, we are doing WWE style where the performers working for us, they have catering, we have doctors taking care of them. In the last show unfortunately, one of the performers got hurt and we took care of them, right then and there, at the show and then he wanted to go to a hospital to be checked and we took him to the hospital. Even though, the doctor at the venue told him that everything was fine, that he was just bruised and a little bit banged up because of the stuff we do but he still wanted to go and we took him to the nearest hospital, and the doctors told him the same so.. he just ended up going ‘Oh!’ and hes just resting and hes ready to do the second set of tapings.”
Broadcasting plan for Nación Lucha Libre outside of Mexico:
“We are actually doing business with FITE TV at the moment so they’re gonna be able to watch it though FITE TV on their platforms. We are also about to close business with Qatar with our good friend, Ali, he is actually part of the board of directions in Nación Lucha Libre, he is helping us to take the product there and many other places in Europe.
We are going step by step. I am also really close to finalise a deal in America with one of the companies that I am doing business with at the moment, I just don’t want to say too much or that could affect the negotiations but were really close to take Nación Lucha Libre to a different level and have the product out there for all the wrestling fans to watch.”
His thoughts on Legado Del Fantasma – Santos Escobar and Zelina Vega:
“They’re fantastic performs, all of them! And not just them, all the Latinos and Mexicans working for AEW and WWE are great wrestlers and that’s why they are where they are!
Yes, I know many fans or people out there or promotions, they get mad because I talk about WWE too much or all the time but talk about the biggest clubs or the biggest companies in the business. Same for any other business out there, they lead with the example and they have been doing this for many years and I was able to be a part of that company and learn from them so Why Not.
I talk about them, the product that is being watched and sold around the world and that’s where I want to go, I want to take my product to that level and Im hoping that in 2,3,4,5 years whatever, I have wrestlers calling me, wanting to be part of me and wanting to leave other promotions and wanting to be part of mine, and of course the loyalty of our audience and of course, produce money, make money with the sport that I love, which is pro wrestling.”
For those who missed it, you can click here for Del Rio’s comments on Saraya signing with AEW and if he would still work with AEW now that she’s there.
You can check out the complete interview below:
