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RF Video Shoot Interview with Rey Mysterio (2015)

This was filmed in March of 2015

The interview was conducted by Rob Feinstein

It runs at two hours and twelve minutes long




They start off by talking about the first shoot interview they did sixteen years prior at Rey's home in San Diego as Rey talks about his son being one year old at the time.



Rob then leaves off where the first interview did in 1999 by asking him about WCW at that time, specifically the dying days. Rey said that he wasn't paying much attention to the politics and had to plan for himself. He talks about Eric Bischoff wanting to remove his mask but beyond that he didn't have any problems in WCW.



On the sale of WCW to Bischoff not going through, Rey said that he was just focusing on having fun in the ring and mentions how he still has the WCW Cruiserweight Tag Team Title belt today.



When Shane McMahon showed up on the final WCW Nitro, Rey said that he only said hi to him and a lot of guys were nervous. He said that his contract was really expensive at that point and WWE waited until it expired to approach him.



After WCW, Rey did a few Independents and worked for CMLL in Mexico. He talks about working against CM Punk in IWA Mid-South and mentions how they clicked from day one and thinks he is awesome.



He first learned that the WWE was interested in him at the beginning of 2002, right around the time his WCW contract was expiring. Rey was in Puerto Rico at the time and said that he was willing to start over again to prove himself if necessary as he wanted to have some job security. Rey said he wasn't walking in as a negotiator and just looking for an opportunity.



On WWE wanting him to go back to using the mask, Rey said he liked that but at the time was working on a new character and had a gladiator look, complete with shoulder pads, but when he got to OVW they told him they wanted the mask.



Rey said that there were no initial promises but they just went along as he grew successful. He said he felt the acceptance of the locker room and the fans.



About the WWE locker room, Rey said he was part of a great era in that regard and got along with everyone. He said that he is easy going and built strong relationships with certain performers. When asked, he does feel that Eddie Guerrero and Dean Malenko helped him get into the company.



He talks about doing everything he could in the ring because he never felt like he could do a great promo like Kurt Angle or Ric Flair. Rey said that never bothered the office because they let him showcase his abilities in the ring.



When asked why he was sent to Smackdown instead of RAW, Rey said he thinks they were trying to build up Smackdown as HHH, Rock and Kurt were on that brand at the time. He said that Dean also protected him as he would stand up for him in creative meetings to make sure he was not given terrible material.



On teaming with Edge, Rey said that they had a lot of chemistry and mentions that he clicked with every partner he had in the WWE now that he thinks about it.



Rey is asked about the WWE Cruiserweight Division. He said that they had a ton of talent and it could have been a huge deal if it was kept by itself, comparing it to the beginning of his WCW run. He said they all wanted to work together to put on good matches. When asked, Rey said that he didn't feel like he was kept in the Cruiserweight Division for too long and wanted to stay there so it couild grow, hoping that International talents would end up joining.



He is asked about the ECW One Night Stand and the WWE bringing back the brand. Rey thought it was going to work when in started but once they took it to the arenas, it didn't feel the same and lacked the same passion of the ECW arena. He said he was happy with his match against Psychosis but was under constraints, unlike the original match in 1995.



On his feud with Eddie, Rey said that he loved the chance to work with Eddie again. When asked if it was better than their feud in WCW, Rey said they could never reach that same greatness in the ring. He said that Eddie had a lot of input into the feud and was for Rey's son to get involved. When asked, Rey said he was not against it and thought the idea of his son being on the road with his dad, and getting paid, was a good thing. Rey talks about his son shooting vignettes then go back to playing with action figures when finished. Rey also said that Eddie would never let up when hurt and would go all out no matter what. When asked why he didn't ask the office to take time off Rey said there feud was doing great and their mentality was to always perform at their best. He said they would talk about it amongst themselves but that was all. Rey was sad when their feud ended but loved their ladder match. He tells a story of Eddie getting pissed as the finish was not going as planned so he started to swear in English and Spanish.



Still on Eddie, Rey said that he hid his injuries well in the ring but backstage he would be on the floor in pain.



He is now asked about the day Eddie was found dead. Rey said he changed his flight to spend a few hours with his family and because of that, missed the flight he would have taken with Eddie and Chavo. He arrived to the hotel in Minnesota and one of the truck drivers asked if he heard what happen and that was how he found out. Rey said it hit him hard. He said that he wanted to see him so he went over to the hotel and was with Chavo, Dean, Chris Benoit, and the doctor, who let them all see Eddie before they took him away.



On the RAW tribute, Rey said that Shawn Michaels came up to him and said Eddie always wanted to see them work and asked if he would be able to have a match and that was how it happened.



When asked who came up with his angle against Randy Orton where Orton said that Eddie was in hell, Rey said that he was talking about it with Randy and they both felt that line was too strong but thought of Eddie and said he was always about the business so they went through with it as Rey cannot recall who came up with that line.



Rob asks him about Vickie Guerrero getting a job with the WWE and how he felt about that. Rey said that she did great. He is also asked about Eddie's daughter not making it despite a few stints in Developmental, Rey said that she seemed to be training well at the end but hinted she was not passionate about the business.



Rey said the Wellness Policy is a good idea and as talent, you have to look at it as the future of wrestling because besides drug testing it included cardiovascular and electro testing. Whether or not the WWE should fine talents for smoking weed, Rey said that is a question for someone else to answer.



He said he first found out he was winning the 2006 Royal Rumble the night of the show. Rey said he remembers the match being long and how he spent a lot of time on the mat. Rob then asks him about the rumor of Vince not wanting him to be the champion despite others in the company wanting to make him the champ. Rey said he is not a politician and does not get involved in that so he just took things as they came.



On winning the title at WrestleMania 22, Rey said he got to work with two of his favorite American workers in Orton and Angle. He is then asked about the rumor of Vince believing Rey was lucky to win the strap so he would put him against monsters on purpose as Rey doesn't really give an answer. Rob then asks him if he felt he was booked to fail as Rey says at the end of the day he was the champion no matter what so he didn't get mad at losing non-title matches. He does say that he could have done bigger things with the belt, especially among the Latino fanbase.



Rey denies the rumor of him following Palmer Canon to the airport after he quit the company during the European tour trying to talk him out of leaving. He does say that was just "boys being boys" and notes how wrestling today is missing the camaraderie they had back then, noting how you also have to be careful what you do in part of social media. Rey also says JBL is not a bully.



He is asked about several talents. Rey said that he never would have thought he would work against Booker T in the WWE when they were in WCW but said they were friends and had great chemistry so they had good matches. He became good friends with Edge after they were a tag team and said they always thought up new things to do and how he loved his match against Edge at Elimination Chamber. Rey calls Chris Jericho the "American" version of Eddie and



When asked about his surgeries, Rey talks about how he regrets not stretching out before wrestling and how that would have added a few more years to his career. He said that he also never listened to the old-timers who would tell him to cut down on the big moves.



Rob asks Rey if it was true that Chris Benoit was never the same after Eddie passed away. Rey said he traveled with Chris after Eddie passed and although he didn't speak much if you knew him you could tell he was hurting. Rey does not believe that Chris had brain damage prior to killing his wife and son as says that Chris and Eddie are together now. Rey thinks Chris should be remembered as a great performer and the best way to do so is the photo of him and Eddie celebrating with the confetti at the end of WrestleMania XX. He said his first match with the Undertaker was intimidating but after that he soaked it all in and enjoyed working with him. Rey says he is an incredible person away from the ring.



He talks about moving to RAW in 2009. He said that the only difference from Smackdown is that it was on Monday. He feuded with Kane and calls him a great guy.



Rey believes that Dolph Ziggler is one of the best workers in the WWE. He said that CM Punk was very dedicated to his craft while completely ignoring the question on how he acted backstage. He then wont say anything about Punk walking out of the WWE as he just says he did what he felt was best for him. He was excited to see Alberto Del Rio perform as he was not familiar with him and said their feud got better as it progressed. On his firing, he said that he was surprised that he got fired after slapping an employee. As a follow up question he is asked about experiencing racism while in the WWE. Rey said not directly but unsure if it was directed to him backstage.



Rob asks him about several other guys in rapid fashion, trying to get something out of Rey, but he says nothing at all except that he likes Cody Rhodes.



Now, Rey is asked about failing a Wellness Policy test while sitting at home and what they were testing for as Rey gave some generic answer about how they were given routine tests and that he failed due to not having "proof and validation." Mind you, he never said what he tested positive for or why he failed. He said the tough thing about the policy is its how the company sees things regarding prescriptions.



He is asked about Sin Cara and how he failed to succeed in the WWE and what happened there. Rey said that his main problem was that he did not speak English and did not know the WWE style. He also said that he had a reputation as a hothead and tried to help him but it didnt work.



Rey thinks the Shield was awesome and Seth is the best out of the three. On whether or not Reigns is the next big thing and if they should have him win at Mania instead of Daniel Bryan as Rey does not understand why the WWE does not go all the way with Bryan as the fans have been going nuts about him for three years. He says getting booed at the Royal Rumble in 2014 as #30, Rey said it shocked him initially but while out there is realized what was going on as he said he told Konnan later on if he saw Bryan in the gorilla position he would have dragged him out in front of the crowd to take his place.



He is asked about HHH and Vince McMahon regarding politics backstage as he gives more generic, non-threatening answers.



Rob now talks about the rumors about his WWE contract and if he was not getting paid. Rey claimed to have always gotten paid by the WWE. He then said he spoke with HHH when he contract was renewed and it went well as he was explained that they had to tack on time due to injury, which was explained in his original contract. He denies any blowup with Vince and that the doors are open for a return in the future.



Rey said he never heard any rumblings about the WWE being upset over him attending the Lucha Underground tapings but thinks they might have been suspicious. He also talks about cutting a promo that aired on TV for the AAA promotion in Mexico (where Rey said "see you soon" at the end) and claimed he did it because the WWE was going to tour Mexico soon and thought it would help promote the shows, not to say that he was going to wrestle for AAA. Rey also claimed he thought he was going on that WWE tour.



When asked about the rumor of HHH was going to release him early from his contract but got overruled by Vince, Rey just talked about how HHH explained his contract to him, not answering the question at all.



He says he is happy to be a free agent now after 13 years of the WWE. Rey also said he left on good terms as he wants to leave the doors open for a potential return. On why the WWE never announced his release, Rey said he had no idea but was aware of his release date.



On the rumors that he is heading to Lucha Underground, Rey said that he wants to wrestle a lot of guys in that company and would like to head into the company.



Rey said he loved returning to AAA for the Rey de Reyes event. He also puts over working with Konnan, who he has known since age 11. He puts over Pentagon and Fenix as being unbelievable workers.



He says his ladder match against Eddie Guerrero was the one he was the most proud of in the WWE as it was the last time they faced off and finishes off the interview by thanking his fans and that he will still be around for a while.



Final Thoughts: Rey might be a nice guy and I have not heard much bad said about him but this was one of the worst shoot interviews I have ever listened to and that was all due to himself. I understand not wanting to go off on people or burn bridges but Rey would not even attempt to answer even a slightly controversial question. And I felt he came off as very insincere and even full of shit when explaining how he left the company. I think he flat out lied about the promo from AAA being a way to promote the WWE Mexico house shows too as he had been off of TV for close to a year at that point with no sign of a return.

I give Feinstein credit for trying to get Rey to say something interesting. However, Rey was unwilling to play the game. He would avoid questions and give generic answers. I actually learned nothing from this interview to be honest and wanted to shut it off halfway through when it was apparent this was going nowhere.

I strongly recommend that you do not listen to this interview. WWE.com articles have more bite than this did and are easier to stomach. You would think filming a shoot a few days after getting released by the WWE would be interesting but that was not the case.


If you are still interested in getting this shoot, you can purchase the DVD for $20 by clicking on the links below:

http://www.rfvideo.com/reymysteriojr2015shootinterview.aspx

Comments

  1. Marvgaret HoulihanJuly 2, 2015 at 10:13 AM

    "You
    would think filming a shoot a few days before getting released by the
    WWE would be interesting but that was not the case."

    I thought you said it was a few days after?

    Either way this all sounds terrifically boring, Rey's one of the best of all time but there's a reason he only cut like ten interviews in 20 years.

    Now get us some more Bunkhouse, Brian!

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  2. Joey Jo-Jo Junior ShabbadooJuly 2, 2015 at 10:14 AM

    I think it's safe to say that shoot interviews have jumped the shark. It's doubtful we'll ever get a real interesting one again, because everyone's too worried about screwing up a potential WWE gig in the future.

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  3. I feel sorry for Bayless for having to transcribe this thing. I've heard other Rey interviews and he's never one to say anything forceful or give a strong opinion. I do like that he's not a political person and really made it in wrestling because he was amazingly talented.

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  4. Was Rey injured during the filming of this shoot?

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  5. My mistake, it was afterwards

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  6. MaffewOfBotchamaniaJuly 2, 2015 at 10:18 AM

    ''Rey was sad when their feud ended but loved their ladder match. He tells a story of Eddie getting pissed as the finish was not going as planned so he started to swear in English and Spanish.''

    WHERE THE FUCK WAS VICKIE? GODDAMIT.

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  7. Eddie probably hate-banged her that night

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  8. Kinda lame, but I figured he's the kind of person who keep shit to himself and not stir the pot

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  9. I thought the Ricardo one were good

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  10. I guess Rey is angling for that Hall of Fame spot.

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  11. Curt Hawkins too

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  12. Shoot interviews is always about the personality. More controversial/don't give a fuck personalities always make for better interviews.

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  13. What I liked about those two shoots is that they didn't come across as bitter but more upset and sad that things within the company turned out the way it did

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  14. Case in point, C.M. Punk

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  15. Marvgaret HoulihanJuly 2, 2015 at 11:02 AM

    This already looks more interesting than any Sting match.

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  16. I never want to see a shoot just based off of star power. Is rather hear interesting stories and insight from all sorts of characters

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  17. "On WWE wanting him to go back to using the mask, Rey said he liked that but at the time was working on a new character and had a gladiator look, complete with shoulder pads, but when he got to OVW they told him they wanted the mask. "
    Jim Herd would have LOVED Rey...

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  18. That's why I like shoots by midcarders because while they weren't on top they have a lot of stories and could provide insights that you wouldn't get from someone who was in the thick of it.

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  19. Rey Mysterio has the personality of a dead mouse.

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  20. Palmer Cannon, now there's a character I had completely forgotten, even though I guess he kind of introduced Johnny Nitro to us.

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  21. Funny enough, I had the exact opposite reaction when reading the recap.

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  22. To be fair it would be a pretty bad travesty if he didn't get one.

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  23. Rey does not believe that Chris had brain damage prior to killing his wife



    That's.......not debatable.......

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  24. It must be one awesome dead mouse

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  25. Very few in the business seem to have bad things to say about Rey (I know Bret praised him and the rest of the luchadores in the book). My guess is that's why this shoot interview wasn't great; it's probably not in his DNA to shoot as hard as others in this series have.

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  26. Rey is universally hailed as a nice guy.

    I've always loved that he's one of the few guys who doesn't have bad things to say about WCW. They treated him well, paid him a bunch, gave him exposure to millions of people, and he appreciates it.

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  27. The only negative thing to happen to Rey in WCW was unmasking him in a joke match with Kevin Nash. WWE made MILLIONS off Rey's mask merchandise. "Filthy Animal" Rey wasn't really Rey.

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  28. You mean Brickhouse

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  29. Nash and his friends were jealous of Rey Mysterio.

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  30. Nash and his friends were jealous of Mysterio.

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  31. Yeah, I was going to say I think Rey is trying to be nice to Chris, but this would actually make what happened worse...

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  32. Then watch Benoit fans whine about the Perro incident...

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  33. CM Punk has the gift of the gab. His ROH shoots ruled

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  34. Adam "Colorado" CurryJuly 2, 2015 at 2:13 PM

    You would know.

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  35. Strained vocal cord one minute into the interview

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  36. Great read if you're having trouble sleeping.

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  37. Last night my stupid cat wouldn't leave the bedroom. I had to push him across the floor the whole way out. He wouldn't even stand up.
    Why are you cats such dicks?

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  38. Nice one Bayless - you suffer so we don't have to. You're a more patient man than I. I love your WWE magazine analogy - some of the shoots I've seen/listened to have certainyl fit that mold.

    It's understandable that people wouldn't want to offload on the employees of the only real gig in town, but really, it's always kinda pitiful to see these guys so desperate for a job in future they just lie through their teeth about the most basic things.

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  39. Indeed, that would suggest he killed his wife and son in cold blood in the course of a normal day.

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  40. He's also just a bit dim.

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  41. Part of that is there being just the one game in town. Now that there aren't any credible alternative feds to jump to, you'll never get someone shitting on WWE until they're approaching death bed stage.

    This said, Nova's most recent RF was interesting. Admittedly, he mainly shat on people who are either totally off WWE's radar (Doring & Roadkill, Pritchard), or outright dead (Benoit), but he didn't seem to hold back.

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  42. That's how you bury someone, brother!

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  43. Can someone explain Palmer Canon to me?

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  44. His character was an ad-exec that supposedly quit while on the European tour due to hazing that was brought on by JBL.

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  45. Was he ever on tv?

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  46. On Smackdown. He was the guy behind the "New Talent Initiative."

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  47. I must have completely zoned out on that time period. No recollection of any of this.

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  48. Very brief. Like the Summer of 2005 to early 2006.

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  49. That explains it. Seems like they would put anyone on tv during that time period. Probably a strong correlation between that and me not watching.

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  50. Rey is terrible at interviews. It doesn't help when he says shit like this to keep the carny going:

    On "Eddie is in hell" promo by Randy Orton (days after he is found dead):

    "Rey said that he was talking about it with Randy and they both felt that
    line was too strong but thought of Eddie and said he was always about
    the business" - UGH

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  51. You're not missing anything. He was the Brad Madox of 2005--characters that mean zilch. JBL was a damn bully; regardless of what Rey says.

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  52. They should learn that WWE basically forgives anything. Look at the New Age Outlaws. Both shat all over HHH, both were hired back and given a big push. Isn't Gunn still a trainer?

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  53. He did not disappoint in that Rey de Reyes tag match! That stupid PPV got delayed three times,and started at midnight,but it was so damn good. I love AAA.

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  54. I guess this shoot made you reconsider putting shoot recaps up for a vote.

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  55. Considering that he's been wrestling since he was 14 that's not surprising.

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  56. What's even more astonishing about such a boneheaded comment is that he follows it up by saying that he should be remembered as a great performer. And that thought is preceded with him basically saying he's a cold-blooded murderer.


    Fuck you, Rey Mysterio.

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  57. Yea I hate the horns and those stupid overalls

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  58. Man that sounds awful a 5"2 gladiator

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  59. Ha. Actually, I am going to review episodes of Brickhouse TV every other Saturday so I want to start the original shoot to get readers familiar. And the next week with the 1994 WCW Timeline with Bischoff coming out I figured everyone would want to see that.

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  60. I don't know how they can justify the 15-20 dollar price tag on these when people give comparable interviews on the Austin podcast for free. Don't get the point of them being video and not audio either. I'd pay 4.99 for an mp3 download of these but they're pirate all the way at the ridiculous price tag they're at. Especially with duds like this one.

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  61. I can't even imagine the mental gymnastics you'd have to do to blame Rey for Perro, so of course tons of people do on the internet.

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  62. They had a big storyline behind the Rey/Nash feud and it wasn't a throwaway or joke, but unmasking him was dumb.

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  63. I thought Bischoff introduced Nitro in 2004.

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  64. It was a storyline, but doing it with Nash was the joke part. Like he needed a win over a 5'3" wrestler

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  65. Hm, you're right. For some reason I had a false memory of that being Palmer. Which is odd since I had forgotten Palmer. Ok so I really don't remember anything about Palmer other than the Juniors division.

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  66. EVEN MORE astonishing than any of those comments, is the idea that "Chris and Eddie are together now".......as if Benoit is in Heaven. As a Christian, I would guess its pretty safe to say Chris Benoit would probably not get in.

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