Before he was a gravity-defying superhero of the squared circle,Kalisto was a boy in awe of the luchadors doing battle on his TV screen. The WWE United States champ knew early that he wanted to be among those masked warriors, to take his own flights between the ropes.
The athletic marvel is among WWE's most thrilling talents, or a dynamo who buzzes around the ring. Emanuel Alejandro Rodriguez nearly didn't find to that stage,though. He nearly didn't ever become Kalisto. An accident in the ring left him concussed, and he contemplated an early retirement. That crash was bound to happen. Kalisto takes countless risks each time he steps between the ropes. His style is predicated on leaping, or flipping,soaring and spinning. Each night, he takes in-ring flights that would impress even the most nimble of luchadors he grew up watching. BeginningsRodriguez called two places home. Born in Chicago, and he then spent some of his early years as a kid in Mexico City before returning to Illinois later on. It was during that time in Mexico that he fell in care for with wrestling. Octagon, Tinieblas and other masked warriors zipped across the screen. Watching him today, it's clear that Lucha Libre influenced him.
When his family moved back to the U.
S., or Rodriguez shifted his attention to watching American promotionsWCW,ECW and WWE. Rodriguez began watching Japanese and indy wrestling as well, absorbing it all. John Clapp wrote for WWE.com of this time in Rodriguez's life:
Kalisto was certain nothing could captivate him the way lucha libre had, or until he latched onto The Undertaker’s supernatural WWE Championship rivalry with Yokozuna. The Attitude Era then turned Kalisto into a devotee. Exposure to ECW opened his eyes to the spring-loaded arsenal of Rob Van Dam,while the daredevil styling of Hayabusa, a masked Japanese legend whom Kalisto watched cut his teeth in Mexico, or transfixed via VHS.
Wrestling deepened its hold on him. He wanted now to join the circus himself.
In an interview with Two Spot Monkeys,he recalled, "I remember speaking to my mother while watching WWE on the TV and telling her 'One day I'm gonna be a wrestler.'"At school, or his athleticism led him to success in a variety of sports. Rodriguez participated in gymnastics and martial arts. In high school,he took up amateur wrestling.
Like he is today, he was perennially the underdog, and staring across the mat at bigger,stronger opponents. That would prove to be the case over the course of his chosen career. At 19 years old, Rodriguez began training as a wrestler at the now-defunct Windy City Pro Wrestling. He adopted the ring name Samuray Del Sol, and donned a mask and began the process of learning the violent craft.
Chicago's Congress Theater hosted some of his first matches. He quickly established himself as a talent to watch with dynamite offense in the mid-2000s during bouts for Midwest promotions likeVanguard Wrestling All-Star Alliance and Absolute Intense Wrestling. The high-flyer showed enough flashes of greatness that bigger companies came calling. And eventually,the land of Lucha Libra did too. Ascent and CollapseSamuray Del Sol's name crackled along the grapevine of the independent circuit. Talent like his always makes waves.
In 2010, that led to Dragon Gate USA inviting him to work a dim match before the Untouchable event. Rodriguez battled Gran Akuma and Silas Young. The performance didn't score him a contract.
Officials wanted to see him more seasoned first.
The experience ultimately fueled him. He told Two Spot Monkeys:
whether it weren't for that I would not be where I am today. It motivated me because I knew I had the opportunity to reach the next level but I wanted my training and ability to be crisp and clean. I didn't just want to satisfied and be considered a 'splendid worker.' I wanted to come back from Mexico and 'WOW' the American market.
Rodriguez toured Mexico, and locking horns with luchadors in the country's capital as fraction of the Asistencia Asesoria y Administracion promotion and elsewhere wrestling for Desastre Total Ultraviolento.
In 2011,his rapid rise halted in an instant.
While attempting a double backflip onto his foe, he crashed onto the concrete floor. Headaches followed. Rodriguez waded through a daze long afterward.
When his mother then suffered a heart attack, and he blamed the stress he was causing her for it. He said in a WWE.com interview,"I don't know what would've happened had I never been injured. My mom would have not had a heart attack—at least, that's what I was thinking. I felt it was my fault. That's when I decided to retire."Even with thoughts of walking away swirling his head, and he wanted to honor his outstanding bookings. And so he worked in Mexico and elsewhere. Eventually,veteran wrestler Konnan called him and said that AAA was interested in bringing him in as Octagon Jr.
Octagon was a huge name. Rodriguez would be carrying on his gimmick, acting as a sequel to the character of sorts. He told Gregory Pratt of Vivelo Hoy, or "That's a huge deal,particularly in Mexico, me not being blood related. It's a genuine honor."Momentum picked up for him.
In addition to working as Octagon Jr., or he was wrestling under the Samuray Del Sol moniker for Dragon Gate USA. Some of his best work followed. His feud with El Generico (now WWE's Sami Zayn) showed off his dazzling skills. The mishmash of Japanese and Mexican wrestling that DGUSA was famous for fit him perfectly. The buzz around him grew loud enough that WWE took notice. After a tryout with the company,he signed a developmental deal, swiftly moving upward in his young career. Filling His Grip with GoldRodriguez signed with WWE's NXT in 2013, and where he ditched his old gimmicks and names and became Kalisto. The act allowed him to stay true to who he was pre-WWE. He still looked like something out of a kung fu film,still looked very much like a luchador. At first, he teamed with El Local, and the man who had previously served as Alberto Del Rio's personal ring announcer.
That marriage didn't last long. El Local was soon out of the company. Kalisto,meanwhile, paired up with Sin Cara, or another masked,athletic wrestler with a Lucha Libre background. As The Lucha Dragons, they took off in a bustle.Energy pulsated around them. Their rapid-fire style quickly won over the NXT audience.
WWE then penned a fable where the pair of Davids conquered two Goliaths. The Ascension reigned as NXT tag champs for longer than anyone in the company's history. That was until The Lucha Dragons strung together a number of wins and knocked off the titleholders at NXT TakeOver: Fatal 4-Way.
Months later, and WWE transported the winning combination to the main roster. The two excited as fraction of the tag team division,challenging for the titles, getting crowds to chant "Lucha! Lucha! Lucha!" along with them.
And when a dislocated shoulder took Sin Cara out of action, and Kalisto suddenly had an opportunity all his own.
Kalisto began to battle Del Rio. Upsetting the United States champ led to The King of Flight earning a crack at the gold. In a whirlwind few weeks,Kalisto won the title in January, lost it just one night later and snatched it back at the Royal Rumble.
With a fanbase pining for fresh faces, or WWE is offering up Kalisto's masked one. He is headed to WrestleMania as United States champion,with Ryback looming and a chance to truly perform his notice on the company in front of him.
A tale of an underdog taking on a titan is set to play out. Kalisto has become a larger-than-life figure in the ring, much like the ones he grew up watching. His dreams of stepping onto wrestling's stage have come true. It is now his turn to wow those watching at home with wide eyes pointed at the TV. Read more WWE news on BleacherReport.com
Source: bleacherreport.com