Former WWE champion to be presented as a babyface for the first time on the main roster - Reports
A former WWE champion, who has been a heel for most of his career, is reportedly set to appear as a babyface for the first time on the Stamford-based company's main roster. The superstar in question is Andrade.
The man formerly known as Andrade El Idolo made a surprise return at Royal Rumble 2024. The 34-year-old entered the Men's Rumble at No. 4 and spent nearly 23 minutes inside the squared circle before getting eliminated by Bronson Reed. Interestingly, he failed to eliminate any contestant even after being a part of the match for so long.
On the January 22 edition of Monday Night RAW, Andrade signed a contract with the red brand during a backstage segment with General Manager Adam Pearce as SmackDown GM Nick Aldis also showed up and claimed to have a "handsome" offer for the former NXT Champion if he were to join the blue brand.
According to recent reports from PWInsider, Andrade is set to have his first babyface run on the main roster. Throughout his previous run, the third-generation Luchador portrayed a heel character. The only time he was presented as a babyface within WWE was during his initial days in NXT.
"The current plan is for Andrade to be a babyface on the WWE RAW brand" - PWInsider Elite. [H/T: Ringside News]
Konnan knew Andrade would move from AEW to WWE
Andrade was released from his WWE contract in March 2021 upon his request. He signed with AEW the same year, making his debut in June.
After two years of being All Elite, he did not re-sign with the company. His last match in AEW was a loss to Miro at the Worlds End pay-per-view on December 30, and his contract expired at the end of 2023.
On the latest episode of his Keepin' It 100 podcast, Konnan stated he knew about Andrade's move to the Stamford-based company in advance. The 60-year-old revealed that the latter had conveyed to him about a potential exit from AEW to go back to his older promotion:
"When I asked him, 'Hey man, are you going to WWE or are you gonna stay in AEW? He kind of told me to read between the lines that he was leaving. So I knew for a very long time that he was leaving, but I didn't wanna say anything," said Konnan.
Having made the switch back, Andrade will hope to get a better run on the main roster this time around. With RAW having several heel characters, it will be interesting to see who faces the former AEW star in his first match after returning to the company.
Are you excited to see Andrade portray a babyface character? Sound off in the comments section below.