It feels like a lifetime ago that Alberto Del Rio was driving luxury cars into WWE arenas while a personal ring announcer screamed his name. He was the "Mexican Aristocrat," a guy who won the Royal Rumble and the WWE Championship in the same year. He had it all. And then, basically, everything vanished.
If you haven't kept up with the wrestling world's most chaotic timeline, you're probably wondering what happened to Alberto Del Rio. One minute he’s a main eventer, the next he’s a fixture in courthouse headlines. It wasn't just one thing that sidelined him; it was a cascading series of high-profile legal disasters, backstage friction, and a reputation that eventually became too heavy for even a massive company like WWE to carry.
Honestly, the story is messier than most people realize.
The San Antonio Arrest and the Charges That Nearly Ended Everything
The biggest "what happened" moment for Del Rio—whose real name is Jose Rodriguez Chucuan—went down in May 2020. This wasn't some minor scuffle or a "pro wrestling" misunderstanding. He was arrested in San Antonio, Texas, and hit with some of the most serious charges a person can face: aggravated kidnapping and sexual assault.
The details in the arrest affidavit were genuinely grim. A woman accused him of a brutal assault that allegedly lasted for hours. According to the police reports at the time, there were allegations of him tying her hands, gagging her, and even threatening to leave her son in the middle of a road if she didn't stop crying.
💡 You might also like: Navy Notre Dame Football: Why This Rivalry Still Hits Different
He was facing a potential life sentence.
For about a year and a half, Del Rio was a ghost in the industry. No major promotion would touch him. He was a "PR radioactive" asset. Most of us figured his career was dead and buried. Then, in December 2021, the case took a sharp turn. The charges were abruptly dropped by the Bexar County District Attorney’s Office.
Why? It mostly came down to a "missing witness." Without the primary accuser willing or able to testify, the prosecution's case basically fell apart. Del Rio has maintained his innocence since day one, often claiming he was the victim of a frame-up, but the stain of those headlines didn't just wash away because of a legal dismissal.
That Rocky Relationship with Saraya (Paige)
Before the 2020 arrest, Del Rio was already a tabloid fixture because of his relationship with WWE star Saraya (formerly known as Paige). It was the kind of relationship that played out in real-time on social media and Total Divas, and it was toxic.
📖 Related: LeBron James Without Beard: Why the King Rarely Goes Clean Shaven Anymore
They got engaged in the middle of a ring in Puerto Rico. They got matching tattoos. They also had public blowups at airports. After they split in 2017, the aftermath was ugly. Both sides eventually made serious allegations of abuse against the other. In the eyes of many fans and wrestling executives, the drama surrounding that couple was the beginning of the end for Del Rio’s "top guy" status. It created a perception that wherever Alberto went, chaos followed.
Where Is He Now? The 2026 Wrestling Reality
Fast forward to right now. It is 2026, and the landscape has changed.
The biggest news recently has been WWE’s aggressive move into the Mexican market, including their acquisition of Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide earlier this year. Because Del Rio was a top star and the Mega Champion for AAA at the time of the deal, everyone assumed he was finally going to get his "in" back to WWE.
It hasn't been that simple.
👉 See also: When is Georgia's next game: The 2026 Bulldog schedule and what to expect
In mid-2025, Del Rio lost a "Loser Leaves Town" match to El Mesias in AAA. In the wrestling world, that’s usually a way to write someone off TV because their contract is up or because the office wants them gone. Since WWE now owns the keys to AAA, that loss felt like a definitive "No Thanks" from Triple H and the new management.
The Current Rumor Mill
- The WWE Stance: Despite Del Rio claiming in interviews that he’s "in talks" and just "setting the table" for a return, the word from inside WWE (via outlets like Fightful) is that there are zero plans to bring him back.
- The Fan Reaction: He still has a massive following in Mexico. When WWE runs shows there, you can still hear fans chanting his name. But for a public company like TKO, the risk of the "Discover" feed being filled with his 2020 mugshot again is a huge deterrent.
- Recent Outbursts: Just last year, he got into a physical fight on a Mexican morning talk show, Venga La Alegría, where he attacked the father of wrestler El Hijo del Vikingo. It might have been "kayfabe" (scripted), but it looked real enough to make corporate sponsors very nervous.
Can He Ever Actually Go Back?
Is a return impossible? In wrestling, we say "never say never." But Alberto Del Rio is 48 years old now. He isn't the same athlete who could go 30 minutes with Christian or John Cena back in 2011.
He’s currently working independent dates and occasionally popping up in MMA commentary roles. He’s a free agent, but he’s a free agent with a lot of baggage. While he keeps the door open in every interview—praising Vince McMahon or saying he’s "ready for the call"—the reality is that the industry has moved on to a new generation of stars like Bron Breakker and Dragon Lee who don't come with a 50-page legal file.
The truth is that Alberto Del Rio’s career is a cautionary tale. He had the look, the pedigree, and the talent to be a first-ballot Hall of Famer. Instead, his legacy is tied to police reports and "what could have been."
If you are following his career today, the best thing to do is keep an eye on the smaller Mexican promotions or his social media. He’s still active, he’s still "El Patron," but the bright lights of WrestleMania seem further away than ever. To stay updated on his actual match schedule, check the official AAA archives or independent wrestling databases like Cagematch, as "rumors" of his WWE return are usually just that—rumors.