WATCH: This John Cena Rival Just Went From 70,000 Fans and WWE Champion to Near-Empty High School Gym

We may have come across many rags-to-riches stories in the wrestling business. From Dwayne Johnson’s $7 to $800 million to Cody Rhodes’ rise to stardom are all well-established examples of it. But now, we may have come across a fall-from-grace story for a former WWE Champion.

Former WWE Champion Alberto Del Rio, who once performed in front of over 70,000 wrestling fans at WrestleMania XXVII, has seemingly fallen from his pedestal. He once challenged WWE Champion Edge after winning the Royal Rumble earlier in the year but was unsuccessful in winning the match. Now, in his latest video, he was seen performing in front of only a handful of people.

Unfortunate fall from grace for John Cena’s rival and former WWE Champion

Popular wrestling publication, Ringside News posted a clip from a high school gym on X on December 13th. In the video, the former WWE Champion could be seen walking down the ramp towards the ring. The caption for the post read, “Ex #WWE Star Alberto Del Rio Performs at High School Gym with Disappointing Crowd.”

José Alberto Rodríguez Chucuan aka Alberto Del Rio won the 2011 Royal Rumble and 2011 Money in the Bank ladder match. To date, he is the only WWE superstar to achieve this feat within the same year.

During his WWE days, he portrayed the gimmick of a rich spoiled Mexican brat who would show off his financial strength, possibly taken from his family’s history as pro-wrestlers. Most WWE fans of the early PG era would remember him for his white muffler, which would signify his “aristocracy”. He particularly made a name for himself after feuding against WWE legend John Cena.

Read more: Kurt Angle Is Not a Fan of a John Cena Innovation That Helped WWE Earn Loads Through Merchandising: “I’m More of a Traditional Guy”

With the video surfacing, it seems that the wrestler is not doing as well as he used to. This is indeed a tough phase in the life of the former WWE Champion’s life, especially following his firing from WWE in the mid-2010s and subsequent controversies in other promotions.

Alberto Del Rio loses a lot after parting ways with WWE

Since parting ways with WWE, he has been restricted to using the gimmick he was known for. As of now, he is performing under the ring name Alberto El Patron as his WWE name Alberto Del Rio was under the trademark of WWE.

After losing his WWE contract, Del Rio returned to AAA wrestling promotion. He wrestled there on multiple occasions before settling for a free-agent contract. He had another brief stint at WWE up until 2016, whereafter he quit and decided to perform independently as he did not want to limit himself to 60 dates per year. Most recently, on May 2nd, he announced through X that his ex-wife had passed away on April 30, 2022.

Which is your favorite memory of Alberto Del Rio?

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