Ricochet and Angelico Were on WWE's Radar

WWE wanted it some Ricochet, but he's engaged already
Photo Credit: Devin Chen

WWE is always looking for new talent to cycle through the Performance Center and into NXT, so it should come as no surprise that the front office has turned its gaze towards Lucha Underground. The revolutionary television series/wrestling promotion has taken the hearts and minds of many of the most passionate and hardcore wrestling fans out there, so it should follow that the talent scouts would turn their gazes towards The Temple for the next big thing. According to Big Dave Meltzer in the latest Wrestling Observer newsletter (transcribed via WrestleChat), three wrestlers in particular drew interest, although only two were named in the actual text: Angelico and Prince Puma (whom you may know better as Ricochet).

It entirely makes sense that those two wrestlers especially are on WWE's radar because the company is always seemingly looking for the next big high flyer, and it has a track record of scooping those guys up, even if their usage rates are suboptimal once they get to the big time. Matt Sydal/Evan Bourne, PAC/Neville, Samuray del Sol/Kalisto, and Rich Swann have all been given looks over the past few years. Ricochet can do things in the air that all the aforementioned wrestlers haven't shown they can do, and Angelico has a death wish that makes Seth Rollins and Dolph Ziggler look like Timothy Thatcher and Drew Gulak. However, with the announcement of Lucha Underground's second season, both wrestlers are off-limits, thanks to contractual obligations. Ricochet himself has a seven year deal with the show, which shows that its ambition shot way beyond the one season that most feared it would only get.

The juiciest note, however, was that Ricochet lives in Orlando, rooms with his former Dragon Gate running buddy Apollo Crews, and was rumored to have been put on the fast track to feuding with Finn Bálor over the NXT Championship. That note, if true, shows that WWE officials, especially Triple H, know the score when it comes to talents not already signed by the company. Obviously, if AJ Styles or the Young Bucks got a deal, they'd be fast-tracked to big feuds in NXT or even the main roster no doubt, but Ricochet is fast becoming a name on par with those two, whether it be his dalliances with the top in the New Japan juniors division or his feature role in Lucha Underground. Either way, neither wrestler will be in NXT anytime soon it seems, but WWE seems to be angling for the right fish.