This would be duplicated two years later when then-World Tag Team Champions John Cena and Shawn Michaels faced each other in the main event for the former's WWE Championship. The Betrayal: Eddie and Rey's match at WrestleMania 21, which I watched on PPV, marked the first time that reigning co-holders of the Tag Team Championship faced off against each other at WrestleMania. Apparently, Chavo's words got to Eddie, as he decided to challenge Rey to a match at WrestleMania-a complete 180 from the assumption that the duo would defend the tag titles at the grand stage. When it came to Rey, Chavo told him that Eddie likes to "keep his friends close and his enemies even closer." However, Chavo saves his deepest blows for his own uncle, reminding Eddie that he was once WWE Champion, and he went from that to becoming tag champs with someone who defeated him twice in singles action a few months ago. The cause of the cracks during March of 2005 was Eddie's nephew, Chavo Guerrero, who played both sides and pretty much planted seeds in both of them. However, even the closest of friendships have cracks, and a month into their tag title run, they started to show. This was a dream team, not only because of Eddie and Rey's in-ring abilities, but also due to their closeness this was a very, very tight friendship.
He would find the perfect one in Eddie Guerrero, and it was at No Way Out on Februthat the duo, the longtime friends, defeated the Bashams to capture the tag titles. The Origin: Rey wanted to regain the tag titles back, but needed a partner to replace the injured RVD. However, that title run was very short-lived, as Rey and RVD were dethroned by the Basham Brothers in January 2005, and it was later that month that Rey had an impressive showing in the annual Royal Rumble match. The end of 2004 saw Rey in a tag team with Rob Van Dam, which led to the pair capturing the WWE Tag Team Championship by defeating Kenzo Suzuki and Rene Dupree. Rey Mysterio: Rey Mysterio, at that time, had held WWE's Cruiserweight Championship three times in 2004, while engaging in feuds with Chavo Guerrero and Spike Dudley. Eddie's run at the top lasted five months until he was dethroned at The Great American Bash by John "Bradshaw" Layfield, and the rest of 2004 would see him continue his feud with Angle before returning to the title picture once more at Armageddon. On February 15, 2004, Eddie defeated Brock Lesnar at No Way Out to capture the WWE Championship and complete WWE's Grand Slam, and he successfully defended the title against Kurt Angle at WrestleMania XX. Without further ado, the players.Įddie Guerrero: Eddie Guerrero was about a year removed from his run as WWE Champion at the time this angle began. I remember that WWE filled a void for me that was left by the absence of the NHL, as a lockout canceled the entire 2004-05 season, so stories like this ended up making up for that missing piece. 2005 was a wild year in WWE, without question.
I've watched every bit of this feud so many times so much that I can pretty much describe it all, bit by bit. I'll just open with this: one of the best feuds I watched in the last near 20 years was the 2005 angle involving Eddie Guerrero and Rey Mysterio. Originally, this story was going to be the one that broke my trend, and I'll explain why it wasn't later on. Until recently, the wrestling related stories I've written here on Vocal solely centered on women's wrestling.