Original subtitles

La Mascara.

The mask.

A sacred symbol that represents the culture of my ancestors.

It embodies words like honor,

tradition, respect, and pride.

The mask is my identity as a luchador,

my transformation from human to warrior.

My mask is my story, the story of my life.

>> Speaker 2: Hello, everybody, and welcome to a very special presentation.

Rey Mysterio.

The Life of a Masked Man.

I'm Matt Striker, sitting across from my friend and a true legend.

The man responsible for bringing an appreciation of

the lucha libre style not only to the United States, but all across the world.

Rey, welcome.

Thank you for being here.

>> Speaker 1: Thank you very much, man.

I'm very happy to be here and to bring back some old memories.

>> Speaker 2: All right, well, let's start.

Take us back.

You're eight years old.

Your uncle has a ring and a school.

What was the initial attraction to Rey Mysterio?

>> Speaker 1: Wow.

I think prior to me turning, or remembering when I was eight years old,

you always have a babysitter at home.

Whether it's your older brothers or your aunt.

In this case, it was my uncle.

My uncle was my top babysitter.

He's the one that always vouched for me and

wanted to take care of me along with my aunt, at the time.

They didn't have any kids, so to them, I was like their newborn child.

Being able to go with him to the gym and watch him train, and then after the class

was over, being able to jump in the ring and like any kid would want to do.

Roll around and bounce off the ropes, that's when the passion and

the whole excitement behind wrestling kind of woke me up and

said, this is what it's like.

>> Speaker 2: Okay, so you take the name Rey Mysterio Jr. Give us the significance

of the name and the weight of carrying a junior around in Mexico.

>> Prior to becoming Rey Mysterio Jr., being around my uncle for so

long and thinking already beforehand that I am gonna start off right

off the bat with the name of Rey Mysterio Jr., or the son of Rey Mysterio.

First match comes, weeks prior to me wrestling.

And next thing you know, my uncle comes up to me and he says,

what do you think about this name or this name?

And I'm thinking to myself, wait,

you're saying I'm not going to be Rey Mysterio Jr. He goes, no, no, no.

You got to earn that, that takes some work.

You got to make sure that we groom you first and that you know what you're doing.

And then when I feel the time is right, then we can talk about that.

So, of course, I tried out for like the first two weeks,

the green lizard, and the outfit was horrible.

Then after that, we stuck by Colibri, which is the Hummingbird.

And that suited me a little bit more, and that took my career to a beginning,

as I wrestled with that name for about a year.

Because in Mexico, you start from the bottom and

by the time you get to the main event, then you've made it, you're a superstar.

So two years, the second match.

Second match, it was a six man tag.

I walk out to the ring and

right before the match is getting ready to start, my uncle walks out.

And I'm thinking to myself, whoa, what's going on here?

He grabs the mic and he makes an announcement.

That by now everyone knows that Colibri is my child.

And he did mention my child, although he is my uncle.

And he goes, and tonight there will be history in the making.

He will no longer be Colibri and he will now be known as Rey Mysterio Jr.

And of course, you know, I just, I get chills even thinking about it, man.

It's awesome.

But he had a mask made already to my size.

We took off the Colibri mask and at the same time put the Rey Mysterio Jr mask,

which was this design with the birds, with the falcons.

And it was like a new beginning for me.

It's like I started all over again.

>> Speaker 2: That's an amazing story.

Now, we're going to talk, of course at length about the masks and the identity.

But there seems to be a theme established so far about family and connection.

And I'd like to talk about Konnan,

who many call the godfather of Lucha here in the States.

Talk a little bit about your relationship with Konnan and

what Konnan means to the Mexican Lucha culture.

>> Speaker 1: Well, Konnan, besides the fact,

that was the one person that really believed in me,

that had faith from the beginning, was trained by my uncle,

started his career in Tijuana and then took off,

ran to Mexico and became the Hulk Hogan of Mexico.

He pretty much was the one that put us on the map in Mexico.

And not only in Mexico, but like you said,

the godfather of bringing Lucha to the United States.

He was the one that opened up the doors for us in ECW and WCW.

So there's a lot of true admiration and respect from me to him.

And I would imagine from all the luchadores that he brought across,

not to mention he is the godfather of my son.

So he's very well loved in my house and I always say, and my wife always says

that first it's God and then it's Konnan, because he really put me on the map.

>> Speaker 2: Now, Rey, you're part of many groundbreaking things in this great

industry, but one that stands out is When Worlds Collide, WCW versus AAA.

It is at this pay per view where you meet Paul Heyman and

the doors to ECW open for you.

You've often mentioned that the ECW crowd, the atmosphere is unlike anything else.

Can you walk us through the experience?

>> Speaker 1: Wow, it was incredible for us because this

was like a new beginning, a new era for us.

Introduction.

The fans were just insane.

To get the opportunity to meet Paul E and

to get the invitation to go over to ECW.

Then not only just being part of a cult,

because that's what it felt like, but

prior to our match, Psicosis and myself asking Paul E,

Paul E, is it okay if we use a table?

And Paul E was like, guys, go out there and have fun.

Use whatever you want.

So it was like, wow.

All right.

So it's like letting two kids out loose on On the playground, and

there's a bunch of toys and go ahead and have fun, just be safe [LAUGH].

So we had a blast.

>> Speaker 2: Now the little kid in Rey Mysterio still has a lot of pride.

What did it mean for you to showcase the Lucha Libre style to eyes that may never

have seen it before, and that now associate it with you?

What did that do for you and your pride?

>> Speaker 1: Well, I had known that prior to us arriving to ECW,

Eddie had already left his mark there, and

it was more of an honor and respect to follow

the steps of Eddie and Dean, and Jericho.

So they were on their way out and we were on our way in.

So it's like they had opened the path for us.

So we can go in and take care of, handle business, but

with great pride and honor to be able to entertain the ECW fans.

And I wouldn't say anything else, but I felt like every night that

we were in the ECW arena, the fans really enjoyed watching Lucha Libre.

>> Speaker 1: Absolutely, and we did, I can tell you from personal experience.

Now, you've mentioned Eddie Guerrero, Chris Jericho, Dean Malenko, obviously,

these are all lifelong friends of yours and there's a chemistry there.

There's also someone else that you had a great chemistry with and the luxury

of having your introductory matches with an ECW, and of course, that's Hooventut.

Speak a little bit about that chemistry and the confidence and

what type of competitor Hooventut is.

>> Speaker 1: Wow, Hooventut to me, one of the all top

feuds that I had throughout my career.

We ventured in kinda creating a particular style and

feeding off tapes from Satoru Sayama,

Tiger Mask, the original Dynamite Kid.

Feeding off of watching our own Eddie Guerrero wrestle in front of us,

when he was part of Triple A along with Art Barr.

So we kind of ventured off and

knew that we had a lot of similarities and a lot of things in common.

And not to mention that the most important thing that we had in common is that we

both wanted to succeed in this business.

>> Speaker 3: You and I have often talked about the beauty of this industry is

the true bonds and friendships that we establish.

I'd like to talk about when you first met Eddie Guerrero in a Triple A promotion.

And I've heard you say that being in the ring with Eddie was a learning experience

every time.

Talk a little bit about meeting Eddie Guerrero and

what was it like to be in the ring with Eddie?

>> Seeing Eddie again and Triple A, cuz the first time I had a chance to meet him

was actually in Juarez when I was 14 years old, I got a chance to meet Eddie there.

Then of course, he would come down and wrestle in Tijuana every Friday

night occasionally and had a chance to say hi to him there a couple times.

But on another level, completely different level,

being able to be in the same promotion as he was and

competing against him because that was my first time

competing against him in Mexico was just incredible, man.

I think that everything they spoke about Eddie,

plus a million times more was true because true

professional guided me, showed me the way,

and made me look like more than a million bucks.

>> Speaker 3: Okay, now, many people, when they talk about Eddie Guerrero and

Rey Mysterio, they always go back to Halloween havoc in WCW.

Very few people are aware that, I think of maybe a couple of weeks earlier,

you guys had an amazing match on Nitro.

The question is, how does preparation go into differently for

a pay-per-view contest versus a television match?

Is there any difference at all?

Do you visualize it differently?

>> Speaker 1: I think for me in particular,

pressure is on once the cameras are on.

But a good, good type of pressure, it's not a scary pressure,

a frightening pressure.

It's more of, okay, it's time to show the world what I'm about and

it's time to make them enjoy cuz this is what you dreamed of,

this is what you wanna do, now it's time to step it up.

All that hype, all that music you listen to,

all the comments, the positive notes that you hear from fans.

To me, there's really no difference between a television audience or

prior to a television event than a pay-per-view event,

it's all the same thing, at's just TV and you gotta go out there and show your best.

>> Speaker 2: Okay, so now we're really getting into the meat and

potatoes of Rey Mysterio's career.

Another superstar that has impacted your career, a good friend of yours,

Chris Jericho.

You first meet Chris in Mexico and then you guys meet again in Japan.

If this is correct,

Chris tells a funny story about the first time ever meeting you.

Did you care?

>> Speaker 1: Well, yeah, we were at a hotel in Mexico.

I used to hang out a lot with Art Bar, Love Machine, very, very close friends.

They all used to stay at this hotel called Plaza Madrid.

Eddie stayed there along with his brothers and Jericho, and Art Bar.

I was hanging out with Art Bar one day and

Chris happened to come down to the room and he kinda just freaked out and

thought that Art was hanging out with little kids, man.

[LAUGH] Art was having a beer and

kicking back, just day off.

And he's like, man, what are you doing, man?

You got a kid in your room?

No, man, he's cool, he wrestles, he's Rey Mysterio, he wrestles for Triple A.

Are you kidding me?

He looks like he's 13 years old.

Who would have known that a couple years down the road we were gonna meet up again

in Japan and then eventually wrestle against each other in WCW?

But great story.

>> Speaker 2: I'm sure you get asked all the time, but

let's touch briefly on the masks.

In the beginning, what was it like designing your masks?

How has that changed for Rey Mysterio now with regard to the masks?

>> Speaker 1: I'll tell you what, Matt, from the beginning,

I didn't touch the mask at all.

This was my uncle's design.

And my uncle was pretty much, I wanna say that he was responsible,

following the image of Mil Mascaras in a way,

because he used to sit down, and I remember him drawing mask after mask.

And he probably still to the day he has a bunch of masks that he still hasn't made.

Cuz I asked him one day, I said, why do you change your design so much?

And he said, because of the name.

It's Rey being king and the mystery,

the mystery of not knowing what kind of mask or outfit he's gonna wear next.

And he used to change it up every week.

Now I do the same thing now, but the only thing I do is change the colors.

I keep the design that my uncle one day created.

I did change a couple things on this mask.

I have a cross in the front, my uncle had a crown for Rey, for the king.

And I put an Aztec calendar on the back.

And my uncle had just the regular old school shoelace,

that's how they would tie the masks back in the day, like a shoelace.

So I just kind of put the Velcro up in the front Front,

put an Aztec calendar on the back, put a cross on the front, left,

the birds, the eyes, and the eyebrows, pretty much the same.

And like I said, now the only thing I do is just swap the colors, every now and

then I'll get creative for WrestleMania.

>> Speaker 2: I like how you swapped the crown for the true king.

And you mentioned Mil Máscaras, of course one of the coolest masks.

Let's be little kids and

talk about who are some of the cool masks that you remember growing up.

>> Speaker 1: Man, I'll take you back.

And then I don't know if you might have heard of them, you might not, but

I used to collect the stamps that we used to put in back of the magazines.

So every time you get a magazine, you probably get four or five stamps and

you collect and you start pasting them on the back and

try to get the autographs of the wrestlers.

But Kung Fu was one of them, and he used to have an orange and black mask,

very unique.

There's another karate style wrestler that wrestled under

the name of Kato Kun Lee, which was a white, red, and black mask.

Dr. Wagner's was a classic, very simple and

basic designs, but the colors were just like.

Santo, Blue Demon Jr. was just blue and silver.

Very basic, Tinieblas, which was just like a gold and

black with a mesh, a big mesh heart in the front.

And, man, I can keep on going all day.

Espantos, Sangre Chicana.

And just a lot of wrestlers that I grew up with,

which I wish I can take the time to talk about each and

every wrestler that I'm speaking about, but there's no time [LAUGH].

>> Speaker 2: Well, one of my favorites was Super Kahlo, and

I believe it was Bobby Heenan, his hat never fell off.

>> Speaker 1: Never. >> Speaker 2: Cuz it was always sewn on.

Okay, so the year is now 2001, the WWE has rocked the world by purchasing WCW.

You are under contract with WCW but allowed to go and

compete in Mexico for CMLL.

Also at this time, your beautiful daughter Aaliyah is born.

What's it like to be away?

To be away from your baby girl and your wife and your son at this time?

>> Speaker 1: Well, like you said, Aaliyah's born.

Still don't really know if I'm gonna be signed by WWE or not.

My contract is waiting for it to end in order for WWE and

I to sit down and negotiate something.

So what happens is I'm away from wrestling, but

I witnessed the birth of my daughter, and it was beautiful, it was Incredible.

And at the same time, it's like, I want to wrestle.

So I decided to make a couple phone calls and I take off to CMLL.

And that was just one last dream that I wanted to accomplish,

that I felt that I needed to accomplish is to be able to

say that I wrestled in Arena Mexico.

It's like the garden here.

So it happens, it happens for a couple months.

And I think I fulfilled my dream at that point.

>> Speaker 2: Another place that many young superstars strive to gain experience

from is Puerto Rico.

At this time, you go to Puerto Rico, you work for the Colons, you work with Conan,

speak a little bit about what Puerto Rico is like as well as the Colons.

>> Speaker 1: Puerto Rico is another territory that anytime

wrestling came about and a lot of the young wrestlers,

young talent, even old school talent,

made their way through Puerto Rico prior to signing deals with bigger companies.

So I go check out Puerto Rico.

I like it.

I'm wrestling there with Carly and Eddie and meet some great new friends.

And I'm just, I'm loving the atmosphere.

I'm loving the island is incredible.

So there's really not much to hate over there.

And it was again, a whole different experience for me and

something that I could add to my career.

>> Speaker 2: It's funny that you end with the word career because now the WWE calls.

You sign your contract and there are these vignettes,

these short little promotions that are featured of you on WWE television.

Here's the question Ray, and I gotta ask you.

Did you have any idea that you were going to be as huge of a superstar that

you've become?

Did you have any inkling at all?

>> Speaker 1: No, no, I had no idea.

Sitting back at home and just kinda reminiscing and telling my wife and,

it's coming on, it's coming on, we gotta check it out.

I think the only thing that was in the back of my mind was I gotta

make sure that I make an impact and

that this comes through because this is where I wanted to end up.

There was nothing else in my mindset but

to end up here and to fulfill my dream.

Just wanted to be a part of WWE.

Why? Because it was a challenge.

Because they always said that little men couldn't succeed there.

And I just felt like I really,

I just wanted that opportunity to bust through and say,

let me try, and if I fail, at least I say I did trying.

>> Speaker 2: Every great superstar is defined by their entrance.

When you hear the bong, you think of the Undertaker and you hear the music,

you think of Triple H.

How did you come up with your unique entrance of popping up through

the platform on your way to the ring?

>> Speaker 1: I gotta give credit to Kevin Dunn for that and the production team and

Dean Malenko, because I believe it was Dean's and

the production team working together to create an elaborate entrance for myself.

And still to the day, I love that entrance.

It was just one of those entrances that, like you said,

it had the [NOISE] and then boom.

>> Here he comes. >> And

its like shoot straight up in the sky, seven, eight feet up in the air.

It's incredible, never had something like it.

So WWE definitely backed up the hype.

>> Speaker 2: You have said that Rey Mysterio and

Billy Kidman versus Charlie Haas and

Shelton Benjamin was the greatest Tag Team match you've ever competed in.

Is that still the case?

And if so, why or why not?

>> Speaker 1: Kidman and I go back from WCW, we actually,

we closed down WCW being cruiserweight Tag Team Champions,

which I still have that title hanging up nice and high on my wall.

And even though Kidman was competing here for

a short term then moved on to something else,

we brought that originality from WCW, we brought it in.

And then you're working against two of the greatest competitors like Haas and

Benjamin.

It just made things even better,

that chemistry was on every time we were in the ring.

>> Speaker 2: So now we go from arguably some of your greatest tag team

work to singles competition and Kurt Angle.

What was it like for you to be in the ring with an Olympic gold medalist?

>> Speaker 2: It was a great experience, I'll tell you that.

Knowing Kurt backstage, behind the scenes,

and then being able to perform out there with him,

at backstage, he was just so cool and laid back,

and such a wonderful guy, but almost like Eddie Man.

When the bell rang, it was time to go and there was no way you were gonna slow down.

You were gonna go, at his pace, his level, and you were gonna shine.

I give mad props to Kurt man as well,

because he always brought out the best of me.

>> Speaker 1: So competing against Kurt Angle on a stage such as SummerSlam,

many felt that you were forced almost to show this side of you,

this mat based side that very few know exists inside of Rey Mysterio.

Tell us a little bit about that and maybe how does CMLL play a part in

trying to be a mat based grappler and not so much a high flyer.

>> Speaker 2: I was trained by my uncle Matt wrestling, but I was,

it was never my strong point my strong point was always innovating and

creating new moves, and more of a jump in the ropes and high flyer style.

But for some reason when I stepped in the ring with Kurt,

he made sure that that background that was hidden inside me would come out.

>> Speaker 1: You often use the words innovative and creative.

How hard is it to keep coming up with new stuff and

what is the thought process like underneath that mask?

How do you come up with some of this stuff, Rey?

>> Speaker 2: I've always loved to kick back and

I believe I mentioned this in the book, empty arena, just a ring.

Sometimes from the bleacher standpoint, sometimes on top of a turnbuckle,

sitting and kind of just looking at all four sides,

four corners, ropes, apron, surroundings.

And just a lot of crazy thoughts come to my head, and

that's how most of my inspiration has come from-

>> Speaker 2: A little fun.

Two of your best moves, the west coast pop, and the 619.

How did you come up with those names?

>> Speaker 2: 619, famous rapper from San Diego,

Mad One Tomas, Good Friend of mine,

he would throw out that the numbers all the time.

619 at the time, Ludacris had just come out with the song area codes, and for

some reason I felt kind of disappointed that there was no 619 mentioned in there.

So getting ready for my debut with WWE and

trying to put names together for my moves,

why not the 619 representing my city San Diego.

>> Speaker 1: What about the West Coast, Pop?

>> Speaker 2: Same thing.

>> Speaker 1: Yeah.

>> Speaker 2: West Coast, Pop.

I think once the 619 came about, it was just very basic and

simple to say, okay, 619, SD, West Coast,

Snoop, Dre, Tupac, type of music I listen to,

always throwing up the W, West Coast.

Let's give a representation to the West Coast as well.

>> Speaker 1: Ray, we've been discussing so

many people that have influenced your great career.

We touched on this gentleman earlier, but I believe he deserves far more time.

Tell us about your relationship in and out of the ring with Eddie Guerrero.

>> Speaker 2: Wow, Eddie was so

many things to me in my career and

my life as a human being.

You know, I just never imagined the first

time I met him that he was gonna mean so much,

or be as important as he was in my life,

in the wrestling world, in my personal life,

as a friend, as a father, as a husband.

There was no advice that I needed,

that Eddie wouldn't be there for

me, he was always there for me,

and he taught me a lot, a lot in general.

Which I will always be thankful for, always.

You can't even imagine, the gratitude I feel for him,

and how much I miss him, because I just feel like some

people just deserve to still be here, and he's one of them.

Still deserves to be here because there's so much I still needed to learn from him,

and just to have him around because of who he was.

>> Speaker 1: You and Eddie are best friends.

WrestleMania 21, the opportunity to show the world what you and

Eddie Guerrero can do, and there are some issues with this match.

Talk to us a little bit about what's going on inside the ring here, WrestleMania 21.

>> Speaker 2: I walk out there at WrestleMania opening match of the night,

and the outfit looked cool, the mask was a little tight,

and I had a button right here instead of the Velcro, okay?

I had a button that snapped on.

>> Speaker 1: Yeah.

>> Speaker 2: Soon as we locked up, went into a headlock, and

that button came undone, and my mask started moving around,

and I was like, this is not good.

Try to work as much as I could without paying too much attention to it,

but there's no denying that it was bothering me throughout

the match still, especially knowing Eddie, how he was.

Always said that it could have been better, and he's probably right, you know,

it could have been better if it wasn't for my mask, it was just one of those nights.

But I don't regret anything,

it was supposed to happen and that's why it happened, and

later on we were gonna run into something better, and we did.

>> Speaker 1: So many superstars have been asked this question, there have been so

many answers given, but

we have to ask you especially what does WrestleMania mean to Rey Mysterio?

>> Speaker 2: You're pretty much setting a whole year up plan to

get to that main event, that main event is WrestleMania.

Once January kicks off, the buzz gets stronger and stronger and

all of a sudden you start trying to make plans with the family, and

the kids, and the match you're gonna be competing in.

And next thing you know it's the biggest event of the year, and

it just snuck up behind you, and you're overwhelmed by the amount of people

that are there, just this past year, 71,000, incredible.

You know, when I talk about WrestleMania,

it's like I have never performed under such a large audience.

Than WrestleManias, because I've been a part of almost six of them now,

and all of them have been incredible, breathtaking.

Whether I've been in the ring for 30 seconds or

25, 30 minutes, they've all been incredible.

And it's something that I will keep with me for the rest of my life.

>> Speaker 2: WrestleMania is special, but

Rey Mysterio has a ability to make WrestleMania unique.

And I'm referring to all the different masks and all the pageantry and

the costumes, a little bit of insight.

What's the thought process going into WrestleMania and Rey Mysterio's gear?

>> Speaker 1: Always try to venture out and see what's coming.

I'm a big movie fanatic, superhero fanatic, comic book fanatic,

so I always try to see what's coming in store what's fresh,

what's new, and what kinda blends in with Rey Mysterio and his character.

And I've been doing this since the ECW days,

Batman, Spider-Man, Superman.

So this isn't something that I just started doing recently,

it's something that I brought back since 95,

and I've gotten a little bit more creative with the outfits.

But it's a part of me that sometimes I like to express to the fans and

so they can kinda get to know me a little bit better and

at the same time enjoy it as well because I surely do enjoy it.

And I love hearing the reaction of the fans, whether they like

the outfit the past year or not, or if they like the one that's coming up, or

if they have any suggestions, please send them down cuz I'd love to hear them.

>> Speaker 2: We've talked at length about a lot of special friendships and

relationships that you fostered in this great industry.

Another name that comes to mind is Dave Bautista.

I can tell you guys have a very close relationship.

How did that relationship start?

What do you guys have in common?

And do you still talk to Dave today?

>> Speaker 1: I think that relationship started when he came over to SmackDown and

we were introduced for the first time.

I think we both have similar taste in clothing,

cars, and spending money.

[LAUGH] Besides that, I think once we were able to be in the ring together,

they definitely saw some chemistry there.

And again, even at my younger age, I've always been the smaller

of the bunch, even at wrestling school, back at home.

I remember hangout time after homework,

I'd be the younger kid hanging out with the older crowd.

So, in this case, it felt that that same environment,

a big brother, little brother, but there was definitely

something there besides the same qualities that

we shared and our friendship outside the ring.

There was a lot of chemistry in the ring together as one.

Becoming Tag Team Champions was probably one of the best

moments in my career, along with Dave Bautista.

>> Speaker 2: Nice.

>> Speaker 1: And yes, we do keep in contact.

Spoke to him recently, and he's out doing his thing,

which I'm very happy for him and moving along with his life.

>> Again, we talk about these friendships and how important they are to you.

2006, the Royal Rumble, you win, why was that special?

>> Speaker 1: That match was dedicated to Eddie.

And with Eddie's passing in November and everything just coming so

hard and strong on all of us because November, Eddie passes,

and then you have the holidays right behind it,

Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's.

And it's like, how can you move on when deep

down inside your heart is telling you that it's broken?

You can't, but somehow God's given you the strength to move on

because you got to, that's part of life and we all gotta do it.

Well, I think the one thing besides my family that helps me move on,

that keeps me pushing forward, is this world that I live in.

And what better than to focus one of the most important matches in the year,

in the history and dedicate it to my brother,

my good friend, my mentor, my all, Eddie?

And not only was that a great night for me for winning,

but on top of that, a record for being in there the longest time.

So, it's like you knock two birds with one stone and

just, it was an awesome night.

>> Speaker 2: Winning the Royal Rumble earns you the Main Event at WrestleMania.

You go on to the Main Event at WrestleMania and

you capture the World's Championship, what's the feeling WrestleMania,

World's Championship, Eddie, beating in your heart?

What's going through your mind?

>> Speaker 1: My thoughts were so stuck on Eddie throughout the end of the year and

the beginning of the new year.

And once I knew I was gonna headline WrestleMania, and it was for

that one opportunity that we all strive for, that we all want and

are waiting for it to happen at one point in our careers.

Now I think about it, back then I didn't, but

I wish it would have been on a different circumstance.

But it happened, and it's all happening for a reason, and

it happened that night for a reason.

So, on top of all the sadness that was built up,

becoming world champion at WrestleMania,

there was just a bunch of good thoughts and energy and a good vibe

poured on top of all that sadness that just overlapped the sadness and

the sadness kind of just brushed off and covered away.

And there's just nothing better than to feel like you're on top of the world,

where you're just holding that title on, it's finally there.

And I don't even know if right then and there when you're holding it and

you're feeling it is the time when it all hits you because

you still gotta get that adrenaline out of your system,

calm down and chill, whether it's at your hotel room or

at home and go, wow, this is finally it.

It's like, how much higher can you get?

And there's really not much more sensation.

And now that I've matured a little bit more, it's like I think the only

higher you can get is- Being at the stage that

Shawn Michaels is at becoming part of the Hall of Fame.

>> Well, I just wanna let you know that the moment that we're speaking of winning

the championship, whether you realize it or not,

you helped to ease an entire world's pain in losing Eddie.

So I don't know if take a little comfort in that,

but for us to see that, it helped us too.

So we thank you for sharing that with us.

>> Speaker 1: Wow, that's awesome, I never saw it that way.

But wow, thank you.

Thank you, man.

>> Speaker 2: A promotion near and dear to your heart is the AAA promotion in Mexico

in 2007, they honor you with the Hall of Fame.

How'd that feel?

>> Speaker 1: That was awesome, man.

You know what?

That's the first time that I've been inducted into a Hall of Fame.

I mean, I've been putting 22 years now into this business,

but [COUGH] it was special for one thing.

The fact that I pretty much started my career in AAA, and

they were the first ones to give me the opportunity to be on national television.

The owner and promoter of AAA, Antonio Peña, had just passed away,

and they wanted to induct him to the Hall of Fame.

So he was first, and then I came right behind him.

When I first started in AAA, like I talked to you before,

I was from the first match and I worked my way up.

It took me about three years to make it to the main events.

But because of how my career transcended and became so big,

being able to cross borders, it's like I come back and

I get inducted into the Hall of Fame knowing that there were

other superstars before me that made that company huge.

But here I am being the number two inductee into the Hall of Fame of AAA,

which was really awesome.

>> Speaker 2: You've always spoke about how important heritage and respect is,

especially in the Mexican Lucha culture.

When WWE goes back to Mexico, how nice is it for

you to mingle with the fans and reconnect with your heritage?

>> Speaker 1: It's awesome.

There's one thing I'm grateful for,

is the fact that the fans do not forget Rey Mysterio.

It's definitely a different experience for

me, but it's sometimes overwhelming,

too, because the respect and

the love that they show me is just incredible.

It's very hard to explain, but it never stops and

it only gets bigger every time I go back.

So I'm very, very thankful that to all my fan base out there,

because they've never forgotten about me.

And that's something that I will keep with me for the rest of my life.

>> Speaker 2: You're world renowned, you're beloved across the entire globe.

But around every corner lurks Chavo Guerrero,

a man who will always remind you where you came from.

Talk about some of your in ring experiences with not only Chavo,

but what the Guerrero name means when you step through those ropes?

>> Speaker 1: Well, Chavo was the one that broke me in my very first match.

And I wanna say we were in Los Angeles, it was a house show, wrestled against Chavo.

And it was my first time missing a 619 because I was so nervous.

>> Wow.

>> So being that we had already wrestled in WCW,

then of course my debut with WWE was against Chavo.

And then we had a feud that took it all the way to, was it falls count anywhere.

And because of Chavo- >> [LAUGH]

>> I was out having surgery on my left

knee and enjoying some time off in Hawaii [LAUGH]-

>> Okay.

>> For rehab.

>> Speaker 2: We'll edit that part [LAUGH].

>> [LAUGH] But anytime the Guerrero

pops up there's a part of

me that is always ready to go.

Why? Because they bring it at every level.

It's time to go when you're inside with the Guerrero.

Chavo, Eddie, and I have wrestled Chavo Senior Mondo,

I believe the only one I'm missing is Hector.

>> Yeah.

>> But out of all the Guerreros, I think I've been in the ring with all of them,

which I'm very proud to say that.

And of course with Chavo, I've had some great, but very great battles.

>> Speaker 2: Throughout your career, you've had many intense rivalries.

But in 2008, your rivalry with Kane reaches a very heightened

place to the point where Rey Mysterio offers to put his mask on the line.

How important is the mask to Rey Mysterio and

what prompted you to offer such a sacrifice?

>> Speaker 1: The importance of the mask is very big and

it's very big in my culture and my heritage.

The way I was raised, the way my uncle taught me to respect and

honor the mask was always very symbolic to me.

He always mentioned that if you're gonna put the mask on the line,

you always have to make sure that you are gonna be the one coming up on top.

That night with Kane, all the gods were with me that night.

I had everything to win and there was just no way that I was gonna be taken down.

>> Speaker 2: It leads me to the next question.

Would Rey Mysterio be Rey Mysterio without the mask?

>> Speaker 1: I think that's something that the fans would have to answer,

I don't think that's something for me to decide.

I think if my mask were to come off, would the fans still

accept me as Rey Mysterio, the unmasked man?

It's definitely a tricky question, but

I hope that I continue the success that I've been granted with the mask on.

Because I do feel like this has

been part of my success, and

I wanna carry it as far as I can.

>> Speaker 2: For me, and I'm sure for many others in the universe,

part of Rey Mysterio's appeal is that even with a mask, we still get to know the man

inside, we still get to know who you are, and there is a lot of respect.

I read in your book about meeting Mil Máscaras for the first time, which must

have been a thrill, but then you actually got to see Mil Máscaras unmasked.

Can you walk us through that story?

>> Speaker 1: Yeah, that was a very interesting story.

Very excited to speak about it because growing up,

seeing Mil Máscaras is wow.

And we were on tour with WWE at the time about three years ago.

And they wanted to do an article with Mil Máscaras and myself,

which I thought was awesome, I was up for it.

They wanted to do it at my hotel, said sure.

Met 11 AM okay, perfect 10:30,

I was getting ready to jump in the shower, I hear my door open.

It's a photographer, and the person doing the interview.

And Mil Mascaras wearing a tracksuit and a hat,

didn't want to feel starstruck, but I was, and I said,

please come on in, I was just about to get ready.

I'd figured you guys said at 11 and just about to jump in the shower, like, no, no,

take your time.

We're actually here a little bit early.

Please come on in, have a seat, wait for me.

No, we'll wait out here, please, in the lobby.

Within five, ten minutes, reopened the door.

Mil Mascaras and I were having a conversation just like you and me,

both of us without the mask, just kicking back, talking.

When it came picture time, we both took out our masks, we put it on,

we posed for the picture, did the pictures, and kind of said a farewell.

And we talked like we'd known each other for quite some time now.

Keep in mind, I've known Mil Mascaras for years in the past,

but never had a chance to really kick it with him on a one-to-one level.

And that was quite an experience for me as Rey Mysterio and as a human being,

as a person that I am behind the mask, it's like, wow, that was something cool.

When he left, I was, felt really cool about it, man.

Felt really cool.

>> Speaker 2: So on the heels of that, you know how important the icons and

the legends of Lucha feel about their face and their identity.

Explain that and then explain again, for

what must it have meant for Mil to trust you so much, to walk in as just himself?

>> Speaker 1: I think there had to been a tremendous amount of trust for

him to step into that door as Mil Mascaras without the mask.

As shocking as it was for me, I kind of just accepted it and

took it and just welcomed him in.

But at the same time, you don't know how many years I got a chance to see him and

say hi to him, but never knew who was behind the mask.

There was years and years, I'm talking maybe 12,

15 years of building up that confidence and eventually getting

to the point where he pretty much let me into his life at that point.

And it was something that I would cherish with me and

take with me, because for

him being old school the way he is, it's not that easy.

So, and now for the newcomers,

it's like I can mention a lot of names of wrestlers that have carried the mask,

and I'll go with one name right off the top of my head.

El Hijo del Santo Jr. Who again, does not show his face, but

me and him are close that we've actually shared conversations without our masks.

So, there's a whole different story to just conversating without the mask,

as when we're out in the open eye with the public.

[APPLAUSE] When we converse with the mask, and

people can take pictures and go beyond that.

Ever since we opened up Latin America,

and we've been able to travel to Mexico City and

perform in live events, the crowd has been phenomenal.

Every time I step into the ring, and

I don't think there's been one occasion that it's been different.

If anything, it's been different, but a higher different.

The reaction when they announce Rey Mysterio just gets bigger and

bigger and bigger, and it's overwhelming.

Sometimes, it's hard for me to believe when I'm

standing on the turnbuckle and I'm just raising my hands and

I'm feeling all that energy and that vibe, and it's like, wow.

And I had a match with Batista and

Guadalajara about two years ago.

I remember coming back, and

there's a lot of guys backstage that were very happy with that match.

And I wanna say it was Batista's last Mexican tour match,

so definitely it stays in the record books for me.

>> Speaker 2: Talk a little bit about your relationship with

some people on the music scene.

>> Speaker 1: Well, I had the opportunity to have POD play for

my entrance at WrestleMania along with Mad One, Tomas.

And, growing up in San Diego, went to Montgomery High School and

went there to school with Sonny and Wolf from POD,

and they were into the music industry.

Of course, I was doing my thing in the wrestling world,

and who would have known that 10,

15 years down the line we were gonna run into each other again and

combine forces with music, which is so fundamental inside our business.

We get pumped up with music.

It's part of our world as well.

Seeing playing on top, the stage and me coming down with

the Aztec warrior outfit and just a cool moment, man.

Very cool moment.

A lot of people that would listen to POD, and

that knew what the wardrobe was all about and kind of just put

everything together in perspective and said, wow, this is a cool night.

It's a cool night.

Cool vibe, definitely.

>> Speaker 2: Did you have any input in the song?

When POD played?

>> The song itself, I did have input because I was actually on

two verses of the song, so I was able to throw it down.

And a little recording booth with my boy Mad One in San Diego, and

we did the song together.

He wrote out the song, and he just kind of gave me my lines and

kind of guided me through because I'm new to the music world, so

we were able to make this happen.

And POD and Mad One got along very well and they put it together.

So I got to give them credit for that.

>> Speaker 2: Okay, so now the year is 2009.

You've been entertaining the world for over 20 years.

It's not just the mask, it's not just the outfits.

A lot of people are intrigued by your artwork, your tattoos on your body.

Are there any that stand out and

is there any unique stories behind what inspired some of the art?

>> Speaker 1: I don't think Matt,

that I would have put on a tattoo that didn't signify something to me.

I wear my kids names,

my wife's name, crosses.

Am very religious, my beliefs, I think one of the main and

the most important one is the rosary.

For a while, once I started wearing my rosaries,

it's like I couldn't leave home without my rosary.

And one day I was getting ready go on a tour and I left my house.

I was am late to everywhere I have to be.

So I didn't have my rosary on and I felt naked and it was like, wow.

I didn't feel my protection was completely there.

And I came back from that tour and I just Decided to put that rosary on my chest.

And that way, if I ever forgot my rosary again,

I knew that it was at least gonna be on my body permanently.

So rosary stays with me.

The falcon's on my chest, which is one of my most recent ones.

And that just kinda signifies, along with my style of wrestling,

because they always ask me, what are the falcons mean on your mask?

Or what do the symbols on your mask mean?

And I always tell them that the falcons signify my style of wrestling.

Very aerial high flying cross,

my belief, Aztec calendar,

my ancestries, my background.

And then of course, you got the 619, man.

It's just I've gotten so many now throughout the years

that it's just hard to count eg for Eddie Guerrero and

cross with the infinity, which my wife and I have.

Like I said, there's a lot of stories on the tattoos that I have.

>> Speaker 2: You've mentioned your faith.

You've mentioned the rosaries for

people watching that either are afraid to embrace or don't know how.

What brings Rey Mysterio's faith out?

And you wear it with such humility, yet such honor.

How much does faith play a part in Rey Mysterio overall?

>> Speaker 1: Faith plays the most important role in my life,

in my life as a husband, as a parent,

as an entertainer, as a human being.

Without my faith,

I wouldn't be able to do none of these things that I just mentioned to you.

So, without any doubt in my mind,

everything that I have now, that I've had

throughout the years that I've been able to

accomplish have been because of my faith and

because of one person, because of the help and

the overlooking, the guidance of God.

>> Speaker 2: So now that the mask has become synonymous with the name

Rey Mysterio, when does the mask stay on and when does the mask come off?

>> Speaker 1: Usually the mask comes on prior to showtime.

Sometimes I'll be hanging out backstage throughout

the day with no mask, just either a hat or a beanie, and

in complete comfort, sweats, kicks and showtime.

Mask comes on in the ring, come back from a match,

sometimes the mask will stay on all the way through to the locker room.

And moment of privacy, mask comes off.

But you will catch me going through the airports without a mask.

Sometimes checking into hotels without a mask and

of course, restaurants without the mask, yeah.

>> Speaker 2: Are there any superstitions or

traditions that Rey Mysterio uses upon putting on or taking off his mask?

>> Speaker 1: I think my only tradition, I don't think it's a superstition.

My only tradition is my prayers.

Every time before I step out to the ring and I gotta say them because if I don't,

I feel like I've forgotten something.

And I always make sure that as soon as that mask comes on,

the first thing I do is I kneel down, I find a quiet little

corner spot and my prayers go out and then out I go.

>> Speaker 2: With the Internet, it's inevitable with cell phones and

everything, people are going to snap pictures.

I'd assume you don't wear the mask when you're dropping the kids off at school.

I'm sure Dominic would not have that, he's just too cool.

But are you aware of the cell phones and the whispers or

do you embrace in comfort like you said?

>> Speaker 1: I think I'm definitely aware that pictures can be taken at any time.

But the fans to a certain extent are very

respectful when it comes down to

recognizing me and beyond recognition,

wanting not a graph or a picture.

I would have to say 50% of the fans will ask me prior to taking a picture.

Rey, I know you're not with your mask, may I take a picture of you?

Sure, I accept.

Or when it comes out of them and they say, Rey,

I know you don't have your mask on, but can I please get an autograph?

So I don't even bother with the picture and

I sign for them and I make sure that they're happy.

And that other 50% that don't ask me, they'll just go ahead and ask me, Rey,

can I get a picture of you?

And not in a malice way or because they wanna expose my face.

They're just admiring the fact that they got a chance to meet me and

there's no harm to it.

And yes, sometimes I will accept.

>> Speaker 2: Rey, you've been entertaining and sacrificing for

over 20 years.

I'm sure you've had many injuries.

Talk about some of the injuries and

how your style can be affected from a near career ending injury.

>> Speaker 1: I think one of my most continuous

injury is my ACL on my left knee.

As soon as that snapped the very first time, it just for

some reason it kept on bothering me.

And one year out during rehab, one year performing, then another year out.

And it happened like that off and on four times in the past 15 years.

My cartilage and my ligaments are pretty much all gone and it's just bone to bone.

But I still have my good knee, my right one which is still going,

it's been compensating for the left one.

And one of the most recent injuries

was my right bicep, which tore off.

We were doing a tour in South America in Chile, Santiago de Chile.

And about two days to finish up the tour.

I remember it was February 13th and it snapped on me.

You would think that, and I know you hear this all the time

with all the high flying and the moves that go on in the ring.

It just happened on the simplest, simplest thing.

You know me, I forget, I believe I was in there with Kane.

All I did was grab him by the wrist, grab him by the back.

And when I shot him into the turnbuckle, as I did the motion,

I pushed against his body and I just heard a snap and almost like a cramp.

And I held onto my arm and as I tried to straighten it out, I couldn't.

And it just locked on me when I saw it.

My bicep was up here, and of course, that was the end of it.

Then I had to repair that.

But besides my knee, I had never felt anything, and

no broken bone, knock on wood.

No other tears prior to this one, so it was fairly different from my ACL.

>> Speaker 2: The bicep causes you to miss WrestleMania.

Not only are you injured, but you're missing WrestleMania,

what's going through your mind at that particular point?

>> Speaker 1: Very depressed, as you can imagine.

And it was fairly close to WrestleMania, two months apart.

I was trying to figure out how I can still sneak in and be able to perform at

WrestleMania, then get the surgery done afterwards, like we all do.

Unfortunately, Dr. Andrews said that after a month,

if that bicep wasn't taken care of,

the possibilities of it reattaching or

doing the surgery successfully would be very slim.

So what happened was I just needed to make a decision, pretty much.

And I decided to get the surgery, have it done, get it fixed,

miss out on WrestleMania, which was really disappointing.

But you live to fight another day.

>> Speaker 2: You referenced Dr. Andrews, Dr. James Andrews, world renowned

athletes, entertainers across the world come to visit this doctor.

What is it that makes Dr. Andrews so special?

And how well does Dr. Andrews know Rey Mysterio's body?

>> Speaker 1: I think Dr. James Andrews knows me very well,

along with myself, many other athletes,

not only in the wrestling world, but NBA, NFL, you name it.

Hockey, surfing.

He's very well known for his craft.

He's taken care, I believe, of three of my ACL surgeries and now my bicep.

When it comes down to serious injury, where you know it might

be some surgery involved, then you go see the best of the best,

and that's when Dr. James Andrews comes in place.

>> Speaker 2: In your tenure in the industry,

you've been in countless specialty matches, steel cage matches,

ladder matches, anything stand out in particular?

>> Speaker 1: Yeah, my first ladder match being part of the WWE for

the custody of Dominik against Eddie Guerrero.

And that really stood out because, again, one,

being that it was my first ladder match here in the company.

And two, I had known that previous to that match, Eddie and

Edge had had a ladder match in San Diego, and they rocked the house.

So I wanted to make sure that I was on that level,

a little bit of inside competition.

And I felt really good about that match, got to do some unique stuff.

Anytime you have an object that you can play around with,

you try to get as creative as possible.

And being that I was in there with Eddie, we were gonna get creative.

Another match that really comes into play is this last 2011

Elimination Chamber, where we ended up as the last two,

Edge and myself being the first two to start and ending up as the last two, so.

And you don't even wanna know how I feel or how I felt after the elimination,

which it normally takes about two days for all the bruises and

bumps to come out on your body and feel the soreness.

But definitely to the top that really stand out.

>> Speaker 2: Let's delve behind the mask.

When you're not being Rey Mysterio, when you're at home,

what do you do with your off time?

What are some of your hobbies?

>> Speaker 1: You'd be surprised, man [LAUGH].

>> [LAUGH] >> Speaker 1: I'm a very laid-back

person, man.

I love to rest.

But as much as I love to rest, I need to have fun with my family.

And I can't blame my tiredness for not having fun.

As much as we travel and as much as we're on the road and

sometimes how beat up we feel when we get home, I love to have fun.

I love to take my kids and my wife, and I love to go to Disneyland.

I love to take trips when I have off time, complete time off time, and

take them out at least once a year and go to an island,

either Hawaii, or Mexico, or the Caribbean.

Personal hobbies like alone time for

me because sometimes I do need that reserved time for myself.

I love to jump on my bike, man, and just cruise.

I have two motorcycles, and I've just now been getting into riding.

And I have my bike that was custom built by Chuck Palumbo, and I have

a Harley that I bought that he just pretty much tricked out and did it to my liking.

And I cruise on it, man.

I take off and I won't be back in two, three hours.

And when I come back home, I'm a fresh, new man,

getting ready to go out and have dinner or go to the movies with the kids.

And not to mention that at least once a month my wife and

I like to take off and just kinda wander off into a casino.

>> [LAUGH] >> And just sit down and play for

a good hour or two just to kinda forget about her daily chores and

kinda just get in the zone of having fun.

And sometimes you need that in life, especially if you work and

you're a mom and dad at the same time and

you're taking care of bills and kids and this and that.

You need to get away from the daily life and have time for yourself and enjoy life.

>> Speaker 2: Rey, your fan base worldwide has grown now to include many of

the younger members of the WWE Universe.

Did you ever believe that the mask and the name Rey Mysterio would mean so

much to so many young people?

>> Speaker 1: No, no, I think at one point in my career,

I felt the responsibility to fulfill the image of a role model.

And I think that happened when my kids were born, Dominik and Aalyah.

And then, of course, I started to see the fan base around me and

just seeing how many kids would purchase the mask and

would line up along the rail and waiting to just touch and

go head-to-head and just feel out some words.

So then I really felt a strong obligation to become a role model,

not only to my kids, but now to an entire fan base,

to an entire universe of kids that follow Rey Mysterio.

And trust me, it's a wonderful thing

because it just makes me learn more about

how important it is to have someone look up to you,

and it gives you a sense of direction,

a sense of gratitude, and, And humbleness.

>> Speaker 2: When you explode into the arena and

you make your way to the ring, you always stop and you go far,

head to forehead with a child that's wearing your mask.

Can you tell us what you say to these children and is there anything

that a child has said to you that has stayed with you all this time?

>> Speaker 1: Words of inspiration always come out from me towards the fan.

It's really, really exciting for me to see the kids line up and just can't wait.

And trust me, I try to reach out to each and every one of them as much as I can.

And sometimes when I don't catch them on the way out, I catch them on the way back,

and I make sure that I get a chance to spend three or

five seconds at least with them, whether it's signing, or a picture, or something.

But words of motivation, inspiration, and it's very basic, very simple,

619 time, we're gonna go out there and do it, and I can't do it solo,

I can't do it by myself, we're gonna win together, all right?

Alright.

They get pumped up, they get me pumped up, it's time to go rock.

>> Speaker 2: That's awesome, wow.

>> Speaker 1: It's time to go rock.

>> Speaker 2: Now, I gotta tell you, underneath the mask,

I see your eyes light up when you talk about children, but

especially when you talk about your children.

>> Yeah. >> Dominic and Aaliyah,

how do they feel about having a superhero as a father?

>> Speaker 1: They gotta love it, I think my kid, who's now a teenager,

14 years old, and we've seen him since he was 7 on camera and

off camera, is more on the shy side right now,

still trying to figure out whether he's a boy or

a teenager or trying to be an adult.

>> Speaker 2: Aren't we all?

>> [LAUGH] >> But my daughter, my daughter,

she cannot wait for the moment that I have attention around me so

she can sneak right on in and hold on to me,

and get some of that attention because she loves it.

She's taking acting classes and she just loves speaking and

carrying on with conversations and being able to sign, or

watching me sign, or, here daddy, I'll take the picture for

you guys offering, so they have to love it, I know they do.

>> Speaker 2: How do you think watching their father be such a good role model,

such a great entertainer may inspire your children as they grow up?

>> Speaker 1: I hope there's a big inspiration there,

whether they become athletes, entertainers,

doctors, pilots, whatever it is they want to become in life.

I hope that whatever they see in me,

they carry on with them and

pass that on to their generations.

Because if there's something that I picked up from my

parents is the humbleness, and the way to treat people,

and that's something very important in life that I was always taught.

You treat people the way you wanna be treated, and

I've always wanted respect, so I treat people with respect.

>> Speaker 2: Chris Jericho has been quoted as saying that when he saw

Shawn Michaels win the championship, it shattered the stereotype of the land of

the giants, that you had to be 6 foot 6 and 300 pounds.

How much pride do you take in the fact that Rey Mysterio just kicked

open the door and told anyone that a dream was possible and

you brought something different with the mask and your size?

Talk about that.

>> Speaker 1: Without a doubt, Jericho is 100% correct

about Shawn Michaels breaking that door, and

right behind Sean came Jericho and then came Eddie.

And then, of course, the door opens up and the spot is pretty

much waiting for me to go over and take it and run with it.

You really don't stop and

think about that until situations like this come about,

and then you really go, wow, well, okay.

The doors have opened up for

a lot of wrestlers that are maybe my size,

my weight, buck 75, buck 80, and

can go, because that's what it's about.

It's about once that bell rings, you go out there and show them what you're about.

>> Speaker 2: The same way Conan opened the door for you,

the same way you have now opened the door for others.

In struts, Alberto Del Rio, who in a short period of time,

as of this, has made quite an impact.

Is there anyone in the lucha realm that you're looking at

today that you feel maybe the viewer should take notice of?

>> Speaker 1: If I was to mention any other wrestlers,

I've kind of not lost track of what's going on in Mexico,

but have been very occupied here with WWE that I haven't seen a lot of the up and

coming stars in Mexico City, but I'm sure because like anywhere else,

they're always coming through and pushing hard.

So once you see the signing of Alberto and the signing of Sinkara,

I would imagine that more luchadores are on point and

are staying on track of that to eventually one day

decide to take the step into crossing borders.

>> Speaker 2: I'm sure that they're all watching footage of Rey Mysterio and

looking to steal all your moves.

>> Speaker 1: I sure hope so.

>> Speaker 2: So what's next for Rey Mysterio.

>> Speaker 1: Wow, right when you thought you've done it all,

there's always a new challenge, or a new obstacle,

or something that's presented to you for you to try out.

Man, I've always said that I've always

loved to try getting into cinematography or

try out either a cartoon, or an animated film.

>> Speaker 2: You mean you're not a cartoon in real life?

>> Speaker 1: Well, you know, people like to say that I'm a real live superhero, but

I think we can take this real live character that I play and

that I carry with me, pretty much everywhere I go and

turn it into a cartoon, or an animation, or a film.

And I think a lot of the kids would be intrigued by watching it,

by trying to understand beyond a conversation between me and

you, or whoever it is talking about my heritage, or

my background, showing it in an actual film, or a cartoon,

based reality, that's actually pretty cool.

>> Speaker 2: That's a good answer.

>> Yeah.

>> Now, here's something.

Having fun.

Give me a superstar from the past, a superstar from the present,

and a superstar in the future that you've never locked up with before

that you would like to have competitions with?

>> Speaker 2: Wow. >> Speaker 1: Start with the past.

>> Speaker 2: Can I pick two from the past, [LAUGH]?

>> Speaker 2: You can do whatever you want.

>> Speaker 2: I would have to say two from the past, without a doubt.

Tiger Mask, Satoru Sayama and right toe to toe with Dynamite Kid.

I think we would have had some classic matches.

>> Speaker 1: Is there anyone that you haven't locked up with that is

presently in our industry at the top of their game?

>> Speaker 2: I'm gonna mention two right now, one of them is Triple H,

and I think I would love to go toe to toe with Triple H.

>> Yeah.

>> Speaker 2: The difference is in styles and I think it would

just be something completely different to our universe.

And another person or another superstar that is off and

on, wishing that he would come back and

do something is Stone Cold.

I think Stone Cold and myself would actually do something off the wall as

well, two styles that are completely different.

And as far as future, I think I would wait for

my son to come up to me one day and say, dad,

I'm gonna get into the rest of the world, and I want you to train me.

And if that ever does happen,

I wouldn't mind seeing my son and I go toe to toe.

>> Speaker 1: [LAUGH], Rey, I've got to tell you, man, I've known you before this,

and I'm telling you, looking you're right in the eye.

Two things, one, I'm getting a new appreciation for who you are.

>> Thanks Sam.

>> Speaker 1: And the second thing is this, Rey.

You blazed the trail so that guys like me could be in this great industry.

So I wanna say thank you, thank you so much for opening up.

I really enjoyed this, and I hope you did, too.

>> Speaker 2: Thank you all, wonderful, I had a wonderful time.

Thank you very much.

>> [FOREIGN] my friend.

>> [FOREIGN]