Former NXT Cruiserweight Champion Angel Garza has made his way up to the main roster, finally making his WWE Raw debut. Garza looks to be the replacement for United States Champion Andrade, who is out due to a 30-day suspension for violating the company's wellness policy, in the feud with Humberto Carrillo.
While Carrillo was in the ring, Zelina Vega came out with Garza, letting the viewers know that Garza was his cousin. Garza ended up attacking Carrillo, but Rey Mysterio came out to make the save.
Garza, whose real name is Humberto Garza Solano, made his pro wrestling debut when he was just 16 years old in his hometown of Monterrey, Mexico back in 2009. Garza has competed in Mexico throughout most of his pro wrestling tenure, starting off under the name of El Hijo de Ninja before getting more national exposure in 2015 while competing for AAA.
In 2017, Garza made an American presence by debuting for the Impact Wrestling brand as Garza Jr., often in a tag team with Laredo Kid.
Garza suffered a shoulder injury, which caused him to wear Kinesio tape and delay a potential opportunity to compete for WWE. I had a chance to interview Garza during WrestleMania 34 weekend, and he teased a possible WWE future. He stated that he would make an announcement in three-to-four months.
A little over a year later, Garza would finally join the WWE brand via NXT.
What's Next for Angel Garza?
Currently, the plan is for Garza to be a part of both NXT and Raw for the time being, making him a person who does not have to adhere to the integrity of the roster split. The only other WWE superstar who is currently appearing on another brand is Charlotte Flair, who won the Women's Royal Rumble match and appeared on the recent WWE NXT episode.
Following his appearance on Raw, Garza returned to NXT, defeating Isaiah "Swerve" Scott. WWE does not have a guaranteed title match clause anymore after someone loses their respective championship, but there is always the chance of a random rematch announced.
The lucha star made it to the semifinals of the NXT Breakout Tournament in June 2019, losing to Jordan Myles (ACH) after defeating Joaquin Wilde in the first round. Garza remained competing for NXT and WWE 205 Live before getting a break in November 2019 by defeating Tony Nese to become the No. 1 contender for the NXT Cruiserweight Championship.
Garza capitalized on this opportunity, defeating Lio Rush on the December 11, 2019 episode of NXT. Garza lost the Cruiserweight title at the Worlds Collide event to Jordan Devlin in a Fatal Four Way match, which also included Isaiah Scott and Travis Banks.
