Rey Mysterio Compares Dominik Mysterio To Eddie Guerrero In Emotional Letter

Thursday marks 20 years since former WWE Hall of Famer and former WWE Champion Eddie Guerrero died, and his greatest friend and rival paid him an emotional tribute.

Fellow WWE Hall of Famer Rey Mysterio, whose trajectory Guerrero was an integral part of throughout the first decade of his career, knew "Latino Heat" better than most. Their show-stealing match at WCW Halloween Havoc 1997 positioned both of them to be major players in North America at the time, and one of Guerrero's final major feuds was with Mysterio in the summer of 2005 over the custody of a young "Dirty" Dominik Mysterio.

To honor Guerrero's passing, Mysterio penned a lengthy piece in The Players' Tribune on Thursday. In it, he notes that one of his greatest regrets is Guerrero not being able to see Dominik's wrestling career, which he admitted saw some early struggles until he tapped into Guerrero's brilliance.

"Dominik wasn’t fully clicking as 'Rey Mysterio’s baby boy'......... so he did what I’m 100% sure you would’ve told him to do. He turned heel, and basically became “Eddie Guerrero’s demon boy.” And that changed everything," Mysterio said in the piece.

"When I say you would approve of who Dom has become, Eddie — it’s an understatement. You would love it."

"Dirty" Dom's Rise to WWE Fame

Dominik Mysterio as the AAA Mega Champion. | WWE

Dominik had his first TV match ever at WWE SummerSlam 2020, forgoing the WWE Performance Center and debuting straight on TV alongside his Hall of Fame father. While his squeaky-clean babyface presentation may not have had much staying power, he would eventually join The Judgment Day stable, tapping into a character heavily inspired by Guerrero.

MORE: Former WWE Superstar Re-Signs With The Company

"Because the wrestler he is now, it feels like a love letter to so many of the things that made YOU so special," Rey said in the letter. "He has the presentation down perfect: the sleazy (no offense) stache, the terrible (no offense) mullet, the ugly (no offense) jewelry and clothes. He’s got the s***-eating grin. He’s got that innate ability to play off different people (like you did with me, Batista, Chyna and so many others)."

"Dirty" Dom would go on to become WWE Intercontinental Champion at WrestleMania 41, and pick up the AAA Mega Championship along the way. He even played an integral role in John Cena's retirement tour, dropping the Intercontinental Championship to him at Cena's final homecoming in Boston this past week.

The 50-year-old Mysterio would admit, though, that even as Dom has leaned into being as "sleazy" as he can be, it has only endeared him more to the crowds, just as it did for Guerrero.

"And I’ll tell you the number one trait of Dom’s that’s a love letter to you, Eddie — and I bet you already can guess what I’m about to say here, too. THE WORSE HE BEHAVES??? THE MORE THEY CHEER," he said. "As you know, it’s harder to pull this off than it looks: To be a bastard (no offense) who the fans want to embrace, flaws and all … because even at your worst, they can see something human at the center. But that’s what Dom has been able to achieve."

The Mysterios seem destined for a clash at WWE Survivor Series in San Diego, their home territory, in a bout that will no doubt pay tribute to Guerrero.

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