Eric Bischoff felt Rey Mysterio was far more marketable with his trademark mask. WCW's big idea was that the Mexican star could never be an important part of the roster whilst he was under the hood, because fans couldn't tell what he was thinking. Obviously, this is ludicrous, because the man went on to become a huge star in WWE, bigger than he'd ever been in WCW. Mysterio achieved this by wearing his mask, which helped him stand out on the show. Better yet, both Rey and WWE earned a fortune from replica mask sales at the merchandise stands. This is something World Championship Wrestling missed out on, unfortunately not seeing the potential to market Mysterio that was staring them right in the face. In 2001, putting the mask back on Rey would have been a very simple, yet effective idea. The high-flyer could have been the face of a revitalised Cruiserweight division, or he could have been pushed into more featured positions. WWE later proved Mysterio had more to offer than simply existing on the mid card, but his mask was vital to his success.