WWE Star Addresses Not Being Included In World Heavyweight Championship #1 Contender’s Tournament

WWE

WWE star and AAA General Manager Rey Mysterio has addressed being left out of the World Heavyweight Championship #1 contender’s tournament.

Following Rey Mysterio approaching Roman Reigns backstage on the August 3 Raw episode, the legendary luchador announced a tournament two days later set to determine the OTC’s World Heavyweight Championship opponent for the September 14 Raw episode in Mexico City.

Mysterio announced that the best luchadores from Raw, SmackDown and AAA will compete in the tournament.

The official lineup was revealed soon after, with Penta, Laredo Kid, Psycho Clown, La Parka, Dragon Lee, El Hijo De Dr Wagner Jr, Rey Fenix and El Fiscal announced for the tournament.

During an interview on WWE Now, Sam Roberts asked Rey Mysterio if there was any part of him that wanted to compete for the title shot.

Explaining why he stepped aside, Mysterio said:

“Oh, 100%. There’s a side of me that battles to a certain extent. I could be part of this, but I cannot be selfish. I’ve got to think about the young up-and-coming talent and what they have to display.

“I would love to see all of their futures shine bright like mine has. The only way to do that, I believe, is stepping aside as well and giving opportunities to those who deserve it.

“We have talent from Raw, talent from SmackDown, and also talent, of course, from AAA. It’s time to make those wrestlers stand out, and give them an opportunity to shine and to show what they’re all about, and represent lucha libre at its fullest.

“This is a pretty stacked tournament, and at the end of the day, we’re going to know who the best luchador out of these men is.”

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Mysterio isn’t totally stepping away from championship wrestling, with the veteran offered an Intercontinental Championship match by Chad Gable on the August 10 Raw episode.

With Mysterio sitting this one out, we are guaranteed to have a first-time-ever championship match on September 14, with no competitor in the tournament having faced Reigns in singles action.

Regardless of if they take home the World Heavyweight Championship, September 14 will be a huge showcase for the tournament winner.

The first match of the tournament has already taken place, with Penta defeating Laredo Kid to advance on WWE Raw.

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• wwe
• Roman Reigns
• rey mysterio
• tournament

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