10 Greatest WWE Underdogs Of The 21st Century
2. Rey Mysterio
WWE has historically sold itself on the promise of larger-than-life characters and battles between musclebound giants, but that sales pitch never seemed to mean a great deal to one Rey Mysterio Jr. To kids watching during the 2000s, Rey was the real superhero, a masked acrobat who never backed down from an opponent, regardless of their size.
As a WCW Cruiserweight mainstay and legendary SmackDown tag team competitor, it seemed like the mid-card was always the highest peak Mysterio was capable of reaching. And that wouldn’t have been something to sniff at, considering how unsuccessful masked luchador gimmicks usually are in WWE. But the 5'6", 175lb Mysterio scratched and clawed his way to winning three world championships with the company, eventually becoming a Triple Crown winner.
While his 2006 Royal Rumble win may be his greatest showing of grit and tenacity within an individual match (he entered at number two), Rey’s accomplishments outside of the ring arguably outweigh them. He, along with the Guerreros, proved not only that smaller wrestlers could accomplish big things, but that Mexican stars could carry the WWE brand atop their shoulders.