This week, news has broken that Alberto Del Rio has decided to opt out of his WWE contract, a clause that had been included in his latest deal.
As of writing, Del Rio’s last televised performance for WWE was a Smackdown bout on August 17th against John Cena, and in all likeliness the last time we’ll see him for quite some time inside a WWE ring.
So what went wrong?
Alberto Del Rio is a very talented individual, incredibly athletic, had a great gimmick and considering English isn’t his first language is highly talented on the microphone.
So why was he given such a meaningless role throughout his last WWE run?
Del Rio made his dramatic return to WWE last October at the Hell In A Cell pay per view, defeating (ironically) John Cena for the United States Title.
What a comeback, he’d knocked off not only the top dog of the WWE, but he’d won a title that Cena had made so prestigious by defending it week in and week out.
The next night on Raw it was apparent that Del Rio and Zeb Colter were working together and had formed a ‘MexAmerica’ union, going forward linking both personalities previous gimmicks together. This run together lasted just over a month before the next chapter of Del Rio’s career would begin, and probably the most wasted, The League of Nations.
On paper, The League of Nations should have been main eventers. You had 4 excellent superstars, both in ring and by charisma in Rusev, King Barrett, Sheamus and of course Del Rio himself.
You had not only the current United States Champion, but there were former World Heavyweight Champions, Intercontinental Champions, King of The Ring and Money In The Bank winners as part of the stable, yet WWE never booked them as a dominate force.
Del Rio would drop the United States Title to Kalisto, then the two would play hot potato with the title before eventually Del Rio lost a 2 out of 3 falls match at event Fast Lane, ending his pursuit of the title.
Throughout the early months of 2016, The League of Nations didn’t really achieve anything of note, just a few 6 man tag team matches here and there, never progressing to the heights they should have. It was a shame, because they had the ability to be at the top, dominating as THE force to be reckoned with.
At Wrestlemania 32 The League Of Nations picked up their biggest victory to date, by defeating The New Day in another 6 man tag. This was a great showcase of their talents and a huge way to boost their momentum going forward, however, that would prove not be the case.
Shawn Michaels, Mick Foley & ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin made a surprise appearance at Wrestlemania 32 to beat down The League of Nations, making them look incredible weak.
See, the problem was that the 3 aging veterans had all been out of the ring for years, and there were only 3 of them, yet they were able to dismantle the much younger and athletic stable with ease.
The final nail in the League of Nations coffin would come on Raw during the April 4th show, when King Barrett was ‘kicked out’ of the group (Barrett’s contract with WWE was due to expire), and the trio lasted just 3 weeks after before disbanding completely.
Ultimately, Del Rio had been a part of a stable for the best part of 5 months and had absolutely nothing to show for it. His character had worsened, his credibility had been heavily damaged and all momentum had gone.
After another failed attempt at reclaiming the United States title, he was fortunate enough to be a part of the Money In The Bank ladder match, despite losing.
During the July WWE draft, Del Rio was drafted to the Smackdown show as their #12 pick, which was another clear indication that the company didn’t consider him as a ‘top superstar’.
On August 18th it was announced that Alberto Del Rio (along with other talents) had been suspended for 30 days for his first violation of the WWE wellness policy.
Once news of the suspension broke, it was obvious that Del Rio probably would be taking the ‘opt out’ clause in his contract in September. Alberto himself confirmed this stating when he was signed back to the company he was told he’d be guaranteed a main event caliber push which obviously amounted to nothing, among other empty promises (very similar to the reason Batista had left).
What could have been the greatest comeback in recent WWE history, was turned into the most underwhelming run of Del Rio’s career. It was a shame, and as a fan I really can’t understand why he wasn’t pushed to the heights he deserved to be reaching in WWE.
As stated previously, he has great in ring ability, charisma, gimmick, presence and mic skills, so I can’t fathom why the writers couldn’t come up with anything good for Del Rio to sink his teeth into, which just made the fans lose interest in him quickly.
This is no fault of wrestler or fan, just why would people want to get behind someone who has nothing to get behind?
A run that lasted 11 months, which started with a United States Title victory over John Cena, had ended with a defeat to the very same man. Del Rio’s matches were entertaining, his character always delivered, yet he wasn’t ever given the chance to prove his worth at the top.
What’s next for Del Rio? I wouldn’t be surprised to see him either in TNA, ROH or a return to Lucha Underground. I’m a huge admirer of Del Rio, however, unfortunately I think he’s very much learned his lesson in regards to WWE.
What did YOU make of Alberto Del Rio’s latest WWE run?
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