American professional wrestler Emanuel Alejandro Rodriguez is best known by his current ring name, Kalisto. For WWE, he presently performs under the “Raw” brand. Before coming to the United States, he first dominated the wrestling scene in Mexico. He was born in Chicago and reared in Mexico City. He has appeared in matches for Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW), Independent Wrestling Association Mid-South (IWA-MS), National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), and Pro Wrestling Guerrilla in addition to Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (PWG). He used the ring name Samuray del Sol during this period. He needed a few years to gain attention, after which he was added to WWE’s NXT developmental arena. He was given the new moniker Kalisto in this place. With Sin Cara, he formed the tag team “Lucha Dragons,” which debuted in the division and set a mark for the longest championship run. After a few years, he was moved to the WWE’s main roster, where he won the WWE Cruiserweight Title and the United States Championship. Before returning to Raw, he also served on the SmackDown brand. His allure is in the dramatic masks, costumes, and flourishes, which keeps attracting more watchers.
Early Youth & Life
On November 14, 1986, in Pilsen, Chicago, Kalisto was born. He was born in the United States but grew up in Mexico City. The Curie Metropolitan High School was where he studied. He is of Mexican-American ancestry and has always been fascinated by Mexican professional wrestling (Lucha Libre). His interest was captured by the fighters’ masks, styles, and physiques.
He used to buy Tinieblas and Octagon imitation masks when he was younger. He became interested in viewing World Wrestling Foundation, World Championship Wrestling, and Extreme Championship Wrestling after his family immigrated to the United States.
Sabu, Rey Mysterio, and Rob Van Dam all had a big impact on him. He began to observe a lot of independent advertisements. He had a natural affinity for sports and frequently competed in football, Jiu-Jitsu, gymnastics, and amateur wrestling.
Kalisto’s Career
He started his training in 2006 at the Windy City Pro Wrestling Academy in Chicago, where he learned both Lucha Libre and American professional wrestling. Within three weeks of preparation, he quickly made his debut. His ring moniker became “Samuray del Sol.”
He began wrestling while wearing a mask because he was greatly inspired by this style of wrestling as a child. He quickly established himself as a well-known figure in the Midwest scene. Around 2010, he began to develop his career by making his starts for East Coast Lucha Libre (ECLL) and International Wrestling Cartel (IWC). In the same year, he embarked on his first wrestling trip to Mexico.
He sustained a severe injury during his second tour of Mexico in 2011 when he fell and hit his head against a guardrail while landing on the concrete floor. He suffered excruciating depression and post-concussion syndrome as a consequence. Before getting a call from WWE, he had thought about quitting.
Rodriguez received a job opportunity from WWE for a three-day tryout camp. Even though there was no contract, he was aware that any association with WWE would be positive for his spirit and business. Soon after that, he went back to the independent tour. In 2011, he was given a place in the TV series Lucha Libre AAA. During this time, he received instruction from seasoned luchadors, most notably Gran Apache.
In 2012, he participated in Dragon Gate USA. Additionally, he made his Evolve debut, a campaign strongly associated with Dragon Gate USA. Genki Horiguchi and Ryo Saito were defeated by him and El Generico in a tag team match, and they kept winning until they earned a spot in the Evolve Championship competition. They didn’t move forward.
He competed against Johnny Gargano for the Open the Freedom Gate Title at Evolve 22. He was exposed by Gargano after this defeat. He made his AAA main début in a tag team match against Joe Lider and Juventud Guerrera in August 2012. He participated in several multi-tag team bouts against Los Inferno Rockers later in the year.
In October 2012, he received a regular position on the AAA squad. The plot that revealed his entrance featured a pairing between him and Octagon. He soon received a new disguise from Octagon, who also adopted him as his protege. “Octagon Jr.” was the name assigned to him.
In December 2012, he registered for the Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup. He eventually prevailed over Eddie Rios, Jonathan Gresham, Jon Davison, and AR Fox to become the tournament’s victor. He took part in the 2013 Canadian debut of the Hart Legacy Wrestling (HLW) company. He joined forces with El Generico to triumph in the fight. They won a place in the main competition but lost.
When he made his Full Impact Pro début, he unsuccessfully contested Jon Davis for the FIP World Heavyweight Championship (FIP). Later, he and AR Fox made their Pro Wrestling Guerrilla (PWG) debuts in Southern California.
He won a single-elimination competition against Ricochet, AR Fox, and Paul London to become the King of Flying in 2013.
He saw a rise in his work at this point. In 2013, he agreed to a training contract with WWE. On August 29, 2013, he revealed his ring name, Kalisto. When he triumphed over Baron Corbin, he made his NXT debut. When he formed the squad with El Local, he made his television debut in the tag team competition. Sin Cara took the position of El Local. In 2014, a team known as “The Lucha Dragons” claimed the Tag Team Championship.
In February 2015, he made his main roster début when Curtis Axel and Heath Slater were defeated by The Lucha Dragons. He made an effort to compete for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship but was defeated early on.
When Kalisto defeated 2015 United States Champion Alberto Del Rio, it was his major moment. His first main-event triumph came on Raw when he beat Del Rio to claim the United States Championship. He later won it back, making him a two-time champion of the United States.
In 2016, he was given the SmackDown brand, and at the Survivor Series, he tried to win the WWE Cruiserweight Title. The result of the contest was a disqualification to Kendrick’s advantage.
He was then transferred to Raw in order to take part in the Superstar Shake-up. He became the newest member of the cruiserweight class at this point.
He then went on to face WWE Cruiserweight Champion Enzo Amore in 2017. He prevailed over Amore in the battle to become the new cruiserweight champion. Within a few days, Amore won back the championship at TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs from him.
Recognition & Accomplishments
In 2012, he took home the Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup, and in 2013, he claimed the King of Flight competition.
In 2015, he took home the Slammy for OMG Astonishing Moment of the Year.
He was named No. 25 in Pro Wrestling Illustrated’s 2016 list of the 500 best singles wrestlers.
Personal Influence & Life
In addition to two dogs and a cat, Kalisto and Abigail Rodriguez presently reside in Orlando, Florida.
Estimated Net Worth
One of the wealthiest and most well-known wrestlers is Kalisto. Our study of Kalisto’s net worth from Forbes, Wikipedia, and Business Insider revealed a $5 million figure.