Ultimo Dragon Says WWE Asked Him To Unmask Because Of Rey Mysterio

Rey Mysterio became famous for his lucha libre mask. It made him stand out. In 2020 during the global pandemic, a different kind of mask became mandatory. According to one former WWE superstar, a totally different mask mandate cost him his career with the company.

Dragon recently spoke (through interpreter Sonny Onoo) to Perched on the Top Rope and gave some insight into why he couldn’t recapture that magic in WWE.

“Rey Mysterio was there, of course. I say, ‘The way they [WWE] looks at it, we were similar characters. Both masked guys, smaller, cruiserweights, but I didn’t understand at the time. That’s true, but I didn’t realize until afterwards. So they asked me if I would take my mask off. That’s one of the reasons why I left.”

Ultimo Dragon spent one year in WWE, working mostly on minor shows such as Velocity. Mysterio went on to become a world champion in the company.

Dragon made waves when he turned up on American soil in WCW carrying the J-Crown, consisting of eight title belts. Along with Rey Mysterio, they brought an international flavor and exciting action to WCW’s cruiserweight division.

Ultimo Dragon is still an active wrestler and promoter in Japan. AEW attempted to bring him in as a special attraction in 2019, but the deal didn’t work out due to prior commitments.

Do you think Ultimo Dragon could’ve made it to the top in WWE? Let us know in the comments!