Why was Rey booked so poorly as champ in 2006?

[wildojinx]

Why was Rey Mysterio booked like such a goober after he won the title at WM22? He lost a whole bunch of non-title matches to huge guys like Khali, and even his victories werent all that memorable.

[DragonMasterP]

Personally, I always thought it was so WWE could keep pushing the idea that he was always an underdog, even when it was clear there was no way in hell that they were gonna let guys like JBL take the tile off Rey.

I dare say Eddiesploitation had a lot to do with it, too.

[ThankGodForSidJustice]

I hate to say it but Eddie passing was probably the only reason he got the belt. Batista getting injured also played in it as if he's still healthy I don't think Rey gets it whether Eddie dies or not. Especially since Batista was friends with Eddie on TV when he died as they hadn't done the inevitable turn on Batista yet.

Once Rey got the belt they probably didn't give a crap about how he was presented as they weren't gung ho on him being champion to begin with. So they just used him to put over guys like Khali, had him go over JBL who was transitioning to being a commentator, and then had him drop it to Booker who could then feud with and drop it to Batista who was who they actually wanted to be champion and the top face on Smackdown.

[Natural Born Farmer]

I don't think Vince ever really wanted him as champion. He just saw the opportunity when Eddie died and decided to put his own preferences aside for a moment.

Can't have him looking strong at the expense of the people you really want at the top of the card.

[Mozenrath]

WWE has a really difficult time booking faces, especially underdog faces, which is weird given it's a REALLY goddamn simple concept.

[malloc]

Didn't Finlay beat him in a non title match? If that's the case really what are you doing with that one?

[fw91]

The challenger pool was also pretty thin.

[ChitownKnight]

Apr 22, 2023 14:37:18 GMT -5 ThankGodForSidJustice said:

I hate to say it but Eddie passing was probably the only reason he got the belt. Batista getting injured also played in it as if he's still healthy I don't think Rey gets it whether Eddie dies or not. Especially since Batista was friends with Eddie on TV when he died as they hadn't done the inevitable turn on Batista yet.

Once Rey got the belt they probably didn't give a crap about how he was presented as they weren't gung ho on him being champion to begin with. So they just used him to put over guys like Khali, had him go over JBL who was transitioning to being a commentator, and then had him drop it to Booker who could then feud with and drop it to Batista who was who they actually wanted to be champion and the top face on Smackdown.

I think Rey would have gotten the belt at some point anyways whether Eddie lived or died. I mean the guy (who was a former world champ) got pinned clean by him like 3-4 times the year prior. They had something lined up for Rey

[chazraps]

I don't think Vince/WWE ever really understood Rey to his fullest extent in terms of ability, marketability and how highly the fans view him.

Yes, he's in the Hall of Fame now and has been booked as a much bigger deal after his excursion and return (where he was amazing in New Japan and I hear outstanding in Lucha Underground) but even today he's more than just the greatest of his generation, he's one of the absolute greatest of all time.

Not the "greatest underdog." Not "the greatest mask." The reverence we should be having for Rey right now is the same as how WWE presented Undertaker, if not more. Generations from now, being able to say "I saw Rey have a match live" will be one of those statements like "I saw El Santo" or "I saw Inoki" or "I saw Hulk Hogan." Innovative, iconic, instantly recognizable to the point where anytime someone on the street has to name a masked wrestler, they'll say Rey. And that's all before we talk about how stellar his body of work is. His 90s work holds up AMAZINGLY. His WWE work against Angle, Jericho, etc., just supurb.

And even to this year, making the whole match/feud with his son actually work. Very, very VERY few could have made that work on the level Rey did.

Appreciate the man each and every time you see him on television and/or in a ring. Thank God for stem cell research. Thank God for Rey Mysterio.

[Psicofreak667]

I think it was mostly just Vince doesn't like cruiserweights beating heavyweights and pulled a reverse Reigns and ordered the bookers to make sure Rey didn't look too strong.

[Rave]

Vince. It all comes back around to Vince. I remember hearing he had to be talked into it, so it sounds like spite booking.

[tirtefaa]

Apr 22, 2023 15:40:36 GMT -5 Mozenrath said:

WWE has a really difficult time booking faces, especially underdog faces, which is weird given it's a REALLY simple concept.

Rey was the kind of guy who should have been champion, but not for very long at all. He's a perfect example of a guy who should have had several short title reigns, as opposed having a reign that was well over 100 days.

And the fact he kept bring up Eddie was just so beyond pathetic. Let the guy rest in peace.

[Sephiroth]

Apr 22, 2023 14:37:18 GMT -5 ThankGodForSidJustice said:

I hate to say it but Eddie passing was probably the only reason he got the belt. Batista getting injured also played in it as if he's still healthy I don't think Rey gets it whether Eddie dies or not. Especially since Batista was friends with Eddie on TV when he died as they hadn't done the inevitable turn on Batista yet.

Once Rey got the belt they probably didn't give a crap about how he was presented as they weren't gung ho on him being champion to begin with. So they just used him to put over guys like Khali, had him go over JBL who was transitioning to being a commentator, and then had him drop it to Booker who could then feud with and drop it to Batista who was who they actually wanted to be champion and the top face on Smackdown.

Rey was brought in to sell masks and boost the cruiserweight title. WWE never had any other intent with him and only put the belt on him because of the connection to Eddie. And now they are just using him as a way to boost Dominik.

[Mid-Carder]

I actually think Rey is one case where it wasn't spite booking at all but Vince probably thought he was booking an underdog champion really well. So it's incompetence rather than spite, which is an improvement I suppose.

[Rave]

Apr 24, 2023 4:38:35 GMT -5 tirtefaa said:

Apr 22, 2023 15:40:36 GMT -5 Mozenrath said:

WWE has a really difficult time booking faces, especially underdog faces, which is weird given it's a REALLY simple concept.

Rey was the kind of guy who should have been champion, but not for very long at all. He's a perfect example of a guy who should have had several short title reigns, as opposed having a reign that was well over 100 days.

And the fact he kept bring up Eddie was just so beyond pathetic. Let the guy rest in peace.

IIRC, Rey wasn't even the first choice for the Eddiesploitation push, Chavo was. Considering how much he veered into "second-rate Eddie clone" territory prior to Lucha Underground, there's a sense of irony in Chavo turning them down.

[tirtefaa]

^ Funny thing is they could have easily pushed Chavo in the US title scene and it would have been perfectly acceptable. It's not like guys like JBL, Benoit or Booker T were exactly lighting the world on fire as champion.

Instead, Chavo doesn't do anything, then proceeds to get his biggest pushes at the absolute worst points in his career.

[Celexa Bliss 54]

Apr 23, 2023 18:24:17 GMT -5 malloc said:

Didn't Finlay beat him in a non title match? If that's the case really what are you doing with that one?

His ONLY wins as Champion in non-title matches were against Gregory Helms, William Regal and King Booker, and the latter was during that weird phase of "the face wins on TV days before the PPV, where the same guy beats him" that they had going on in 2006/2007. And I'm not sure the Regal and Booker wins were clean. And Helms lost to everyone who wasn't competing in the cruiserweight division lol

[nickcave]

Because Vince had to be dragged kicking and screaming to do it and always thought Rey was too small to be credible