WWE Hall of Famer and former WCW President Eric Bischoff discussed various topics, including fellow WWE Hall of Famer Rey Mysterio, on an episode of his podcast, 83 Weeks.
Bischoff said, “I’ve said it before on this show and on others. I think Rey Mysterio is as close to being a cultural icon as you can be. I give this example — I mean, I think Rey Mysterio. Not just Rey. I want to be clear about this, but Rey is the face of the luchadors, and what the luchador influence has had on American professional wrestling and American culture. It’s not just wrestling. You know, when I refer to Rey as in a sort, a cultural icon, I’m sure people that are outside of wrestling right now would roll their eyes, go, ‘What are you talking about?’”
On Lucha Libre:
“Well, if you look at the influence on film in television of lucha libre, it’s seeped into our culture. And not just because of Rey. But without question, that whole the lucha influence in the United States owes a debt of gratitude to Rey Mysterio. Because he was such a phenomenal performer that it was easy to shine a spotlight on that style of wrestling. Rey Mysterio. Eddie Guerrero, Dean Malenko, Chris Benoit. A lot of the luchadors that we brought in from Mexico, a lot of the Japanese that we brought over on a regular basis to compete in that cruiserweight division, I think, shaped this industry, led by Rey Mysterio, in many ways. [It] shapes this industry, and will have shaped it for decades to come. The lucha influence — if you really look at how not just in the lucha style matches or in the smaller… faster guys and gals, that style will always be there. And it will continue to evolve. But it would not ever have gotten started if it weren’t for guys like Rey Mysterio and Eddie and Dean and Chris bringing it to the forefront and making it cool.”
You can check out the complete podcast in the video below.
(H/T to 411Mania.com for transcribing the above quotes)
