Sin Cara (now known as Cinta de Oro) recently spoke with WrestleZone and looked back on the infamous ‘Sin Cara vs. Sin Cara’ feud in WWE. The feud itself was not without its problems, but the backstory was even more interesting considering how much history the two men actually shared.
Sin Cara II started in Mexico as Mistico in 1999, but he was forced to change his name to “Incognito” due to a legal issue with CMLL, who won the rights to the Mistico name. Mistico II was then played by Luis Alvirde, who would ultimately debut in WWE as the original Sin Cara. In July 2011, Sin Cara (Alvirde) was suspended by WWE for a violation of the company’s Wellness Policy, which opened the door for Cinta de Oro wearing the Sin Cara mask.
Cinta de Oro says WWE didn’t plan a feud between the two Sin Caras, and explained how he first pitched the idea to Triple H.
“When I got to WWE, I was there in FCW for like a year and then they hired him as this new star from Mexico and they made this press conference in Mexico and all the lights with him and he was gonna be the next Rey Mysterio or whatever. So, during that time, I had a meeting with Hunter in FCW where I told him the story about the Misticos. It wasn’t something that came into their mind, like ‘oh, we’re gonna do this story’ or that they invented that story. No, it was I told them what had happened in Mexico, so when he got suspended,” Cinta de Oro said, “They got the idea of bringing me in as the imposter and actually continuing like the real-life story from Mexico and making it into a feud over here in WWE.
“So, that’s why when he got suspended, I got the call and they told me ‘hey, we want you to come up’ but they didn’t tell me exactly what they wanted me to do until the story like—I was there for a month and when he got back from suspension, that’s when they told me that they wanted to do a feud with me and him. But, I think the feud culminated very soon, it wasn’t for me, it was to build him up,” he said. “That’s why we ended it off in Mexico City and on SmackDown television.
He says he knew the feud was designed to build the original Sin Cara up, but he’d heard backstage talk that they took the mask off of the wrong wrestler.
“I’m not gonna say names but there was a couple of meetings during that day where one of the agents told them that they were making the wrong decision, about taking the mask off me. He said they were taking the mask off the wrong wrestler, the one who should be losing the mask is the other guy. I’m not gonna say names out of respect but he was the one that actually told me that and I’m very grateful because he believed in me all that time that I was in WWE. He’s a legend also, he’s a legend in the business and he told me that he was sorry and said ‘I fought for you, they don’t wanna listen and that’s it.’
Cinta de Oro ultimately left the name and mask behind, but spent some time on the shelf due to an ACL injury. He was back for about three weeks before he got the call that WWE wanted him to take over the Sin Cara gimmick full-time after the original performer was released, and he explained how it was a wild twist to the story that had started with ‘Mistico’ in Mexico.
“I get a call at home on a Thursday from the office asking me if I wanted to take over Sin Cara and I was in shock, I couldn’t believe it. I was like ‘what are you talking about? Yeah!’ They were done with this guy, they didn’t want him anymore and asked if I was willing to take over the character and I was like ‘let’s do it!’ Because of everything that had happened in Mexico and the names and now it was going to be the opposite way, something that was taken away from me, God has given me divine justice in a sense. So, it was pretty crazy, man, it was pretty crazy how everything came about but I wouldn’t change anything, to be honest,” he said. “Everything in my life has built the person that I am and to be able to talk to people and appreciate what I have now, you know? If everything would have been like roses, you wouldn’t be able to appreciate anything and I appreciate what I have, my kids, my friends everybody that’s around me that I love and I think that has taught me a lot.”
Our full interview with Sin Cara can be viewed at the top of this page. You can also check out more of our new interviews at this link, and watch the full-length Sin Cara vs. Sin Cara ‘Mask vs. Mask’ match below:
