Whenever there is a conversation about former WWE Champion Alberto Del Rio, one name no doubt comes up at some point during the exchange, and that is Del Rio’s on-screen manager and personal announcer, Ricardo Rodriguez. Rodriguez is well known for his contributions to the success of the former WWE Champion’s career, and the way he introduced Del Rio during his entrance added a lot of value to the latter’s character.
Casual fans would know Ricardo Rodriguez only as a managerial figure, but only those who have been following his career for a while would know that he is also a fine performer in the ring. With that being said, let’s reveal more interesting details about the former WWE personality and take a look at some things fans should know about Ricardo Rodriguez.
9/9 He made his debut in 2006
Ricardo Rodríguez came into the spotlight as Alberto Del Rio’s personal announcer in 2010, however, his professional wrestling career began four years earlier, in 2006, and he worked on various independent shows before coming to WWE.
Rodriguez competed in various backyard wrestling events before making his official in-ring debut in August 2006 at an Underground Wrestling Empire event. He competed as a masked wrestler named Chimera, and used the same gimmick throughout his time wrestling on the independent circuit before taking on the name Ricardo Rodriguez when he signed with WWE.
8/9 WWE tried several experiments on him before his release.
After his alliance with Alberto Del Rio, WWE did several experiments with Ricardo Rodríguez to find him a place on the roster. WWE attempted to repackage Rodriguez as a masked wrestler called El Local and had him compete in dark matches, live events, and on NXT as well.
Rodríguez also formed a short-term partnership with Tyson Kidd as the masked tag team Los Locales. Kidd called himself El Local 1, while Rodriguez called himself El Local 2. The company also tried a partnership between himself and Kalisto, but nothing seemed to work for Del Rio’s former ring announcer, and he found a way out of it. the WWE. in July 2014.
During his last days in the company, WWE assigned Ricardo Rodríguez commentary duties along with the Spanish announcer Carlos Cabrera. Rodríguez entered the Spanish-language commentary table at various PPV events, including WrestleMania 30. He shared a story of how he reacted when he witnessed The Undertaker’s undefeated streak end.
Rodriguez revealed that he thought The Undertaker was going to kick him when Brock Lesnar delivered that third F5, but went into utter shock when the referee called the pinfall. The entire stadium fell silent at that moment, and when Ricardo Rodríguez was trying to speak at that moment, Carlos Cabrera grabbed his hand and prevented him from saying anything.
6/9 he was also a coach
In addition to competing on the independent circuit, Ricardo Rodríguez also worked as a trainer during his pre-WWE days. He worked as a trainer for the California-based promotion Fit Pit Pro Wrestling and has trained a handful of wrestlers.
After his departure from WWE, Rodríguez returned to the independent circuit and also looked for other job opportunities. He then had the opportunity to work as a trainer for The Great Khali’s wrestling school, Continental Wrestling Entertainment, in Punjab, India. He has trained quite a few wrestlers over the years, and the roster includes former Impact Wrestling Knockout Raquel.
5/9 He has fought only 278 matches throughout his career
Ricardo Rodriguez has been in the business for over 16 years, but has only competed in 278 matches as of this writing. Since he spent most of his time in WWE in a non-wrestling role as Alberto Del Rio’s personal ring announcer, he only entered the ring on a few occasions throughout his time with the company. .
His current statistics show that he has competed in 278 matches in various promotions and has 103 wins, 167 losses and eight draws. The numbers may increase in the coming days, but considering the age factor, we cannot expect a significant jump in the numbers.
4/9 He was part of the ascension
The Ascension was one of the most successful tag teams in NXT history as Konnor and Viktor made history during their time on the black and gold brand by holding the longest reigning NXT Tag Team Championship.
Without getting into their disastrous appearance on the main roster, The Ascension’s roots go back to WWE’s former developmental territory, Florida Championship Wrestling. Ricardo Rodríguez was the one who announced the formation of the group in August 2011 and presented it as a faction made up of himself, Konnor, Kenneth Cameron, Epico and Shaul Guerrero. However, Rodríguez was dropped from the group after only a month and the faction disbanded entirely in November 2011 before being revived as a tag team with Konnor and Viktor in NXT.
3/9 Won Wrestling Observer Newsletter Best Non-Wrestler Award in 2011
Dave Meltzer’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter has been awarding awards in various categories to deserving professional wrestlers for many years and Ricardo Rodriguez caught his attention with his excellent performance as Alberto Del Rio’s ring announcer.
He was first nominated for the award in 2010, but finished third when Vickie Guerrero won the award, however, WON announced Ricardo Rodriguez in the top spot in 2011. The Wrestling Observer Newsletter has been awarding this award since 1999, with Vince McMahon. as the first winner. Since then, the likes of Paul Heyman and Stone Cold Steve Austin have won the award.
2/9 He has won several championships
Despite spending most of his time in WWE in an on-screen managerial position, Ricardo Rodriguez has earned a handful of accolades wrestling on the independent circuit.
He has won four championships thus far, with his first reign being the New Wave Pro Wrestling Tag Team Championship alongside Jason Watts. The duo also have a reign with the Insane Wrestling League Tag Team Titles, which they held for 273 days. As far as his individual exploits go, Rodriguez has captured the Tri-Force Championship from Vendetta Pro Wrestling and also the Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre Puerto Rico Heavyweight Championship.
1/9 He is still active in professional wrestling
Despite being away from the WWE spotlight for over eight years, Ricardo Rodriguez is still active in the professional wrestling business and also made a one-off appearance for All Elite Wrestling as a commentator in October 2021.
He is also an active in-ring competitor and is performing extensively on the independent circuit. He continues to perform under this WWE name despite the company owning the rights, but revealed that he won’t get in trouble unless he uses the name on a televised event.