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WWE: Making The Case For Andrade ‘Cien’ Almas As US Champion

By Kevin Parvizi

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Next week on WWE SmackDown Live, Andrade “Cien” Almas will make his highly-anticipated main roster debut in London with Zelina Vega by his side. Even though Jeff Hardy may not necessarily be his first feud, El Idolo needs to be in a rivalry with the Charismatic Enigma in the near future.

Andrade “Cien” Almas was booked as an underachiever, consistently disappointing in the big matches. He wasn’t focused on winning, but rather partying. It wasn’t until he was paired up with Zelina Vega when his character started to regain focus, as Vega paved the way for Almas to realize his potential. Almas would become the WWE NXT Champion at NXT TakeOver: WarGames, defeating Drew McIntyre in surprising fashion.

Although Almas’s title reign lasted just 140 days, he had arguably the best match quality of any NXT champion. Almas had a legitimate five-star performance against Johnny Gargano at NXT TakeOver: Philadelphia, and his title bouts against both McIntyre at WarGames and Aleister Black in New Orleans were nearly as exceptional.

A strong, quick, and acrobatic athlete, Almas carried himself like a champion both in and out of the ring. He has a certain charm about him that is both magnetic and repelling. You can’t help but become enraptured by the conviction in his voice and his arrogant strut, but it is that same arrogance and blatant disrespect for his peers that causes him to be loathed by the average fan. But at the same time, the fans who dislike him are forced to recognize his talent; it’s just too massive to ignore.

In London next week on May 15, El Idolo will make his main roster debut with Zelina Vega still by his side, as the WWE has wisely avoided breaking up a duo that is simply able to work magic when operating as a unit. Vega adds so much to Almas’s character, in addition to helping him during matches as a brilliant manager and above-average wrestler.

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Most fans seem to be interested in Almas feuding with Jeff Hardy, and I believe it would make the utmost sense for him to take the United States Championship off of “Brother Nero” at SummerSlam. Maybe Almas doesn’t feud with Jeff right away, but it would make perfect sense for the two to clash during the summer.

Almas needs to feel special, and I could easily see him qualifying for the Money in the Bank ladder match. He probably wouldn’t win, but it wouldn’t exactly be impossible to envision he and Vega stealing away the briefcases. Wouldn’t it be hilarious if Vega helped Almas win the briefcase a year after James Ellsworth helped Carmella?

Since it is unlikely for Almas to become a Money in the Bank winner, the United States Championship is a more realistic goal for him. We saw Bobby Roode win the mid-card title after being called up to SmackDown Live, but he quickly dropped the belt after being a dud as a babyface champion.

If Almas were to win the United States Championship off of Hardy at, say, SummerSlam, he wouldn’t be a dud as a champion. Firstly, Almas is considerably better in the ring than Roode. That’s no knock on Roode, but if you compare their best matches as NXT Champions, you’ll see that Almas’s resume stands out. And it’s not like Roode faced chumps either, because he got to feud with McIntyre, Roderick Strong, and Shinsuke Nakamura (two of those are common opponents between them).

On top of that, Almas is a heel, and it’s easier for a heel champion to generate strong reactions from the crowd, especially if they are comfortable being a heel.

A babyface champion like Roode who is at his best as a heel isn’t necessarily a recipe for success. Beyond that, any worries the WWE have with Almas as a promo or a character can be erased by Vega, who is tremendous. Vince McMahon is rumored to dislike managers, but, well, Vega is one of the few people so good that she qualifies as an exception to this alleged rule.

It’s difficult to think of many other wrestlers on SmackDown Live who would do a better job of representing the United States Championship than Almas. Jeff Hardy is doing a good job of restoring the US Title’s value, and Almas would be able to take that oft-overlooked mid-card title to the next level as a champion.

There’s something transcendent about Almas in the ring, and there’s something lustrous about him when he’s walking with his head held high as the champion. Plus, a shiny title gives more legitimacy to his manager, Vega, who can continue to tout her success, boost up her client verbally, and do whatever it takes to make sure El Idolo never lets go of said title.

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Almas’s journey to a championship should start almost as soon as he joins the main roster. The fact that he received a significant amount of Royal Rumble time and the fact that the WWE has tried to keep his main roster debut special are signs that Almas is indeed poised for something big this summer.