He may be one of the most beloved wrestlers in history, but Rey Mysterio is also responsible for gifting the world one of the most despised heels of the modern era. So just how did Dominik Mysterio so naturally become about as likeable as a bout of norovirus in a busy elevator that just got stuck between floors?
Dominik may have spent his formative years in WWE by his father’s side, but since the summer of 2022 Mysterio senior and junior have been on opposite ends of a rivalry that has now encompassed two WrestleManias. With Rey emerging victorious both times.
As a father-son duo, the Mysterios lifted the SmackDown Tag Team Titles together, but three years removed from that historic success, Rey and Dominik remain embroiled in an almost two-year long feud that has shown no signs of abating. Yet, even positioned alongside his ‘Mami’, Women’s World Champion Rhea Ripley in The Judgement Day – a character who has emerged as one of the most popular in modern day professional wrestling, despite her alignment as a heel – Dom remains a natural at soaking in the hatred from capacity crowds across the globe.
It is a far cry from the constant adulation his father has enjoyed for almost his entire career (a brief heel turn was attempted and quickly aborted during the dying days of WCW). So it is puzzling as to how ‘Dirty’ Dom has shifted so effortlessly to the dark side. And not only shifted, but thrived there.
Ahead of the pair’s second WrestleMania showdown, in Philadelphia at ‘Mania 40 earlier this month, I caught up with Mysterio sr, exclusively for SPORF and simply asked “what happened with Dom?”
“I dunno,” Mysterio begins “my wife was mom and dad five days out of seven every week. So when I came back from being on the road, the thing that I did the most was spoil him.
“So that’s what probably happened to Dominik. I spoiled him way too much and he turned out the way he did.”
With this in mind, and with the old cliché citing how hindsight is a wonderful thing, does the Hall of Famer ever regret winning that infamous ‘Custody of Dominik’ ladder match against Eddie Guerrero at SummerSlam 2005?
“Now I do,” begins the former World Heavyweight Champion, a smile beaming across his face, “Now I have regrets. I shouldn’t have even been in that match” he continues, laughing, perhaps partly because of how exceptionally his son has adjusted to becoming one of the business’s premier villains and partly because of just how brilliantly ludicrous that match stipulation was.
While Rey and the recently returned Andrade reigned supreme over ‘Dirty’ Dom and Santos Escobar at WrestleMania, there remains a lingering suspicion that we have still not reached the end of the road with this family feud. Maybe a trilogy of WrestleMania bouts will be neccessary to bring the Mysterio saga to a final conclusion. Which gives us even more time to bear witness to ‘Dirty’ Dom’s continued evolution as one of the great on-screen arseholes of our time.
WrestleMania 40 is available to stream now only on Peacock and WWE Network
Featured Image Credit: WWE
