Former WWE Superstar Fandango has a rare accolade that few others can boast – he won his first match and last match in the company.
While he wrestled under many different names and characters (like Johnny Curtis on the NXT Game show), but it was as Fandango that he found true success.
The ballroom dancer character originally seemed like a practical joke on him (it was, but not on Fandango), but he made it work and excelled in the role.
Since his first match in WWE, Fandango has proven the doubters wrong, and even won his last match in the WWE, eight years later.
Fandango’s First WWE Match
Fandango’s first match in the WWE was at the biggest event of the year – WrestleMania.
He was debuted weeks before WrestleMania 29, interrupting Chris Jericho and starting a feud with the legend.
Jericho responded by calling him the wrong name over and over, as the pairs’ rivalry boiled over until it got physical.
Fandango’s first match in WWE was against Chris Jericho at WrestleMania 29, one of the highest-profile debuts of all time.
In a huge shock, Fandango beat Chris Jericho in his first match, rolling him up and stealing a victory.
This was said to be a “rib” on Chris Jericho by Vince McMahon, who mocked the future AEW Champion’s appearance on Dancing with the stars.
However, Jericho later revealed it was the biggest WrestleMania payday he ever had.
In a recent interview with WrestlingNews.co, Fandango spoke about his debut match in the WWE, which was against Chris Jericho at WrestleMania 29.
“Chris and I were always really cool. He’s a legend in our business and he’s done a lot. He was one of the reasons why I got into wrestling. I remember when he came over to WWF in I think ‘99, I was just getting in the business at the time.
I think he was under the impression that he might have been working someone else going into WrestleMania 29. I believe it was Ryback and then that got switched up and Ryan ended up, I think he worked with Mark Henry or Kalisto or something like that.
I think February or March, Mr McMahon goes, ‘Hey we’re gonna have you work with the kid with the dancing gimmick. You have five to six weeks to build this angle to Mania and he’s gonna go over on you.”
“I can understand him being a little irked about the situation. I kind of felt like I was in the crossfire.
I’m debuting on the main roster after being developmental for 25 years and I’m working with a guy that I looked up to, a legend, and I’m Vince’s pet at the time.
He’s producing the vignettes and stuff. So I feel like I’m kind of stuck in the middle here where Chris, I think, personally likes me, but he’s not too excited about wrestling a ballroom dancer at WrestleMania, which I can understand.”
Fandango’s Last WWE Match
Fandango’s last match in the WWE was a tag team victory over one of the top teams in the WWE.
At the time, Fandango was teaming with Tyler Breeze in NXT. Known as “Breezango”, the pair were one-time NXT Tag Team Champions and one of the most popular teams in the company.
The match in question took place on June 15, 2021 episode of NXT. Breezango opened the show, taking on the duo of Fabian Aichner and Marcel Barthel, better known as Imperium.
Nowadays, they are a part of the most dominant stable in WWE, wrestling alongside Gunther on the main roster. However, you’d be shocked to find out Imperium actually lost to Breezango, in Fandango’s last match.
Imperium dominated the bulk of the match, but it was Fandango’s partner, Tyler Breeze, who stole the victory for his side.
While he was about to hit by a brainbuster, Breeze quickly rolled up Marcel Barthel with an inside cradle, pinning him for the win in shocking fashion.
After the match, Imperium threw Fandango out to the floor, attacking Breeze and blanketing him in their flag, signifying their displeasure with the night’s result.
This would be both Tyler Breeze and Fandango’s last matches in WWE. They were released on June 25th, 2021, ending 15-years with the company (11 for Tyler Breeze).
Fandango went on to wrestle for NWA and Impact Wrestling, while Tyler Breeze took a two-year hiatus from the business following his release.