Ricardo Rodriguez
Alberto Del Rio's riches have bought him many envied possessions, including a countless car collection, several palatial
estates and extravagant watches. The Mexican arisocrat's impressive bank account also pays the way for his own personal ring
announcer, Ricardo Rodriguez.
Prior to Del Rio making his way to the ring in one of his custom Lamborghinis or Maybachs, the arrogant Superstar is
always introduced by the distinctive voice of the well-dressed Rodriguez. Clad in a black tuxedo and sporting a
perfectly-parted head of hair, the custom ring announcer always adds a little punch when pronouncing his boss' name,
complete with an emphasis on rolling the Rs in "Rio."
Unlike most ring announcers, whose job inevitably takes a break between the bells, Rodriguez is equally as busy during
Del Rio's matches. If the referee's attention is distracted, you can bet he'll find a way to interfere in the match on
Del Rio's behalf.
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Check out Ricardo Rodriguez's entrance video
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Following his departure from WWE two weeks ago, Ricardo Rodriguez is the latest wrestler to publicly resent Triple H.
As announced today by WWE, the sports-entertainment organization has come to terms with independent wrestling standout
Kevin Steen, who was ranked 10th on Pro Wrestling Illustrated's annual list of the world's top 500 wrestlers last
year. Enclosed in the company's announcement is this photo
of Triple H shaking Steen's hand at Full Sail University. In response to the news surfacing on Twitter, Rodriguez, who was
released from his contract with WWE on July 30, took the opportunity to air out some grievances on Paul "Triple H" Levesque,
WWE's Executive Vice President, Talent, Live Events and Creative.
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Rodriguez wrote to Steen on the social media platform, "Congrats.. I hope he at least looked at you while shaking hands
at one point and did call you fat as fuck. #OhMemories."
Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter reported last week that Rodriguez's weight was a problem with
WWE officials and likely factored in his departure from the organization.
It remains unclear whether WWE opted to release Rodriguez from his contract as part of budget cuts or if he asked to be
released from his contract. Those close to Rodriguez told Meltzer that he requested to be let go due to his frustration with
not being utilized as a wrestler -- he stopped being used as a wrestler after competing as the masked El Local at
NXT Takeover. However, in the same report, Meltzer says he was cut two weeks before his contract was set to expire
due to a talent purge that also included developmental wrestlers. Whatever the case may be, his excess weight hindered his
chances of success as a wrestler in WWE. It was reported by Meltzer that officials in the organization did not feel his
body met company standards, even when largely covered in a costume. The WWE set a weight loss goal for him, and he was
having issues achieving and maintaining it. According to independent wrestler and friend Leva Bates, Rodriguez was
suspended last year for a violation of WWE's drug testing policy due to fat burning supplements.
The former personal ring announcer of Alberto Del Rio also revealed that Triple H never referred to him by name, but as
"Bumblebee Man." Bumblebee Man is an over-the-top Hispanic cartoon character on The Simpsons
who dresses in a bumblebee costume and performs slapstick comedy. It's also a caricature of a character from an old Mexican
television comedy series.
"#BumbleBee was his name for me... Don't even think he ever knew my real name," Rodriguez stated.
Both messages have since been deleted.
Rodriguez may be joining Del Rio in AAA (Asistencia Asesoria y Administracion) in the near future. Late last night on
Twitter, he teased appearing for the promotion once his 90-day no-compete clause with WWE expires.
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