Chad Gable defends lucha libre in WWE Raw angle

Bayley Chad Gable
Bayley and Chad Gable at AAA Noche de Los Grandes. (Image credit: Bayley)

Attempting to capitalize on his momentum, WWE had Chad Gable play a big part on Monday’s episode of Raw in Paris.

Gable, no longer able to be El Grande Americano after his loss to Ludwig Kaiser, is now unmasked and involved in a storyline where he’s attempting to make up for his past actions. He apologized to Rey Fenix on SmackDown last Friday for how he disrespected lucha libre as Americano. Gable then tried to make amends with Penta, Dragon Lee, and Rey Mysterio on Raw.

Though he praised the Americano mask match from Lucha Libre AAA, Mysterio told Gable that he would need to dig deep into his past if he truly wanted to redeem himself. An Intercontinental title match took place later in the night with Penta retaining against Mysterio. Following the bout, Rusev and Ethan Page launched an attack on both competitors and unmasked Mysterio. This led to Gable running down, laying out Rusev and Page, and giving Mysterio his mask back before his face was exposed to the audience.

Michael Cole put over on commentary that Gable has learned to respect lucha libre and now understands what it’s like when you lose a mask.

Originally introduced as a fictitious lucha libre legend, the Americano character became something more when Gable had a shoulder injury last year and was forced out of action. Kaiser took over the gimmick until they began feuding upon Gable’s return. In one of the most highly praised matches of the year so far, Kaiser defeated Gable at Noche de Los Grandes on May 30, earning the right to wear the Americano mask going forward.

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Joseph Currier
Joseph Currier

Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.

In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated's wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.