Rey Mysterio didn’t believe WWE had any interest in him after buying out WCW in 2001.
WWE Superstar Rey Mysterio recently spoke with Randy Zellea of Back Sports Page. When asked about the cruiserweight division in WCW, which was often overlooked during the Monday Night War, Mysterio said he believes the division still sticks out to fans because it was one of the most exciting parts of WCW programming.
“I think the cruiserweight division was the exciting part of WCW that fans really enjoyed watching,” Rey Mysterio said. “Maybe at that time because they were tired of seeing too much of the same thing over and over. So the exciting matches were the Cruiserweight matches and having talent that was incredible at that time.
“The Eddies, like the Malenkos, and the Jerichos not given an opportunity to really shine and always the same guys on top. I just remember, personally, getting booked and going out there every night and giving everything I had to put on a good match for the fans; I really wasn’t too involved with the storylines. I wasn’t too involved in the political side of the sport; I just wanted to go out there and perform and have a good time.”
Rey Mysterio believes the evolution of professional wrestling has been amazing
When asked how he believes WrestleMania has evolved since his first one back in 2003, Mysterio thinks the evolution of the sport, in general, has been amazing. Mysterio also spoke about how he felt back in 2001 that WWE had zero interest in signing him.
“It’s crazy. The evolution of the sport in general has been amazing,” Rey Mysterio said. “Just to see how much we have grown over the years. And now, with the merge of UFC and WWE, TKO and how everything has evolved for the better is incredible. I’m truly thankful and happy to have an opportunity to still keep performing at the level that I have been.
“To be an inspiration to this generation of wrestlers like the Ricochets, like the Dragon Lees who are coming in here and killing it. That aspect of the growth of the company has been amazing. The fact that I was one of those pioneers that opened up the doors for talent like Ricochet, and again, Dragon Lee to actually get an opportunity to wrestle.
WWE told Rey Mysterio to sit back on his WCW contract
“Because when WCW was closed down, I didn’t think I was gonna get hired by WWE. They told me to sit back on my contract. And I thought that was a way for them to say we’re interested, but we’re really not. But sure enough, when my WCW contract ended, they called me right away. And we sat down, and we locked in a deal. So to see that growth over the past 20-plus years has been really amazing.”
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