WWE recently brought themselves to Puerto Rico, for the first PPV in the area since 2005.
They put on a fantastic show, with some five-star matches from the top talent in the company, as well as some surprise from some of Puerto Rico’s greatest ever wrestlers.
Backlash 2023 could be the start of a wrestling boom in the territory, which a number of legends being remembered from over the years.
In this article, we’ll look at the greatest wrestlers to come from Puerto Rico, although we’ll have to look at one honourable mention before we get to that…
Honourable Mention – Bad Bunny
While not strictly a wrestler, Bad Bunny has to be included on this list due to his incredible performances inside the ring.
He showed at Backlash 2023 that he can hang in the ring with any WWE superstar, despite being a world-renowned hip hop artist.
However, he has only wrestled three matches in his career. While he was fantastic in all of them, it’s hard to put him on any greatest wrestler list with so few reps under his belt.
He is, however, one of the greatest celebrity wrestlers of all time.
Amazing Red
Despite being one of the most influential wrestlers of his generation, the name Amazing Red is scarcely mentioned nowadays.
This is sad, because Amazing Red is one of the greatest Puerto Rican wrestlers of all time, and one of the best to never wrestle in the WWE.
Born in Puerto Rico, Amazing Red would start his career there in 1998 in the International Wrestling Association.
In the beginning, he was simply known as Red before fellow Puerto Rico legend Savio Vega decided to expand it and add the ‘Amazing’ part to it.
He spent time in TNA and ROH, and despite having a try-out in the WWE, never managed to get a contract with the company.
He retired in 2019, only to come out of retirement for a match against Will Ospreay that kickstarted his career again.
Carlito
Despite not becoming a world champion as expected, Carlito will go down as one of Puerto Rico’s finest WWE Superstars.
He came into the WWE in the mid 200s as one of the hottest prospects in the company. With an innate charisma, fun in-ring style and a catchy theme song and catchphrase, Carlito seemed destined for greatness.
He beat John Cena for the United States Championship on his debut, and even picked up the WWE Tag Team Titles alongside his brother Primo.
However, he never fulfilled his immense potential in the WWE, and faded into obscurity after being released by the company.
Nevertheless, his run in WWE was enough to make him one of Puerto Rico’s finest. Carlito also won 7 WWC Universal Heavyweight Championships, making him a legend on the island of Puerto Rico.
Savio Vega
While never the top guy in the WWE, Savio Vega was an instrumental part of the WWE during the Attitude Era, and remains a legend of the ring to this day.
As a part of two legendary stables, in Los Boricuas and The Nation of Domination, Vega excelled not just through his excellent character work, but also his in-ring skills.
He was a valuable part of WWE’s midcard for nearly a decade, and almost won the King of the Ring in 1995 – losing to Mabel, who some call the worst King of the Ring winner ever.
His enduring popularity was evident at Backlash 2023 when, over 20 years his last appearance in WWE, he helped Bad Bunny in his match against Damien Priest, garnering one of the biggest pops of the night.
Carlos Colon
While he has a somewhat controversial past (he was said to have murdered Bruiser Brody backstage), there is no doubting that Carlos Colon is among the greats in Puerto Rico.
The WWE Hall of Famer is the father not just of Carlito and Primo, but also the father of wrestling on his island.
As the promoter and founder of the World Wrestling Council, he helped shape wrestling in Puerto Rico, as well as starring as the top star in the area.
He won their world title a record 26 times, something that nobody will ever come close to equalling. He is an icon in his hometown, and despite his alleged crimes, has to be one of Puerto Rico’s greatest wrestlers.
Pedro Morales
When you look at Puerto Rican wrestlers who have been stars in the United States, you cannot look any further than WWE Hall of Famer Pedro Morales.
After Bruno Sammartino was the hero for Italians in New York, Pedro Morales took over as the hero for the Latino community in America.
Representing the island of Puerto Rico, he won the WWE Championship amid a host of other titles. He was the first ever WWE Triple Crown champion, showing just how incredible Pedro Morales truly was.
As beloved as he was in the United States, the Puerto Rican fans loved him even more. He was to them what Hulk Hogan was to the United States, or what Big Daddy was to the UK.
He is, without a doubt, the greatest wrestler in Puerto Rican history, carrying the flag proudly as the top wrestler in the entire world, at one stage.
Who do you think is the Puerto Ric
