Dominik Mysterio wants to set the record straight: his rise in WWE wasn’t a product of nepotism - it was years in the making.
In a candid interview on the Intoxicados Podcast, the Intercontinental Champion addressed one of the biggest misconceptions about his career: that he simply inherited his place in WWE because of his legendary father, Rey Mysterio.
People think I just walked into WWE overnight,” Dominik explained. “But I trained for almost three years. I lived in Tampa and trained with Jay Lethal, then moved to Canada to train with Lance Storm. My first match was in 2020, but I’d been training since 2017.
He even documented parts of his journey.
\"I did post my progress—like my first 619 or stuff I’d do in the ring. It wasn’t sudden...
I’ve missed birthdays, my first wedding anniversary. My dad missed my birthdays too. But now as an adult in the business, I understand—you make sacrifices to succeed.
Stepping Out of His Father\'s Shadow
The shadow of his father’s Hall of Fame legacy loomed large, but Dominik has steadily emerged as a standout in his own right.
Everyone was saying like, you know, I wasn’t going to be able to do it or like I was never going to be able to fill Rey’s shoes or I’d never get out of his shadow,” he said. “But it’s like - I did it in less than five years.
Breakout Babyface
That breakout moment came at WrestleMania 41, when years of boos gave way to cheers.
That reaction… was definitely a surreal moment,” Dominik recalled. “It felt different for sure.
For Dominik, the journey hasn’t just been about proving others wrong - it’s been about proving he\'s a bonafide star on his own merits. Five years in, it\'s safe to say he\'s succeeding.
