Rey Mysterio has revealed the process he and his son Dominik go through after every match to ensure the younger Mysterio improves in the ring week after week.
Dominik Mysterio has been something of a revelation since starting full-time on the WWE roster in August 2020. The Mysterios made history when they became the first father and son team to hold WWE tag team gold when they defeated The Dirty Dawgs of Bobby Roode and Dolph Ziggler for the WWE SmackDown Tag Team Championship at WrestleMania Backlash.
Speaking to Ryan Satin on the Out Of Character podcast, Rey Mysterio explained that he sits down with Dominik after each match for some tape study.
Mysterio stated:
“Every time he wrestles, we sit down and critique the match. I told him, ‘You have to pick up your speed on the 619, you’re going too slow.’ He said, ‘I’m going at your speed.’ ‘You’re not going at my speed.’ I believe I was slowing down because I didn’t think he would go as fast as I would. During training, he runs fast when he hits the ropes, but still, no one like his pops.”
“We critique the match and I tell him what’s good and what he needs to improve on. I tell him what he did really good on because you have to boost his morale too. I’m shooting with him and being straight. A lot of things, like kick-outs, I’ll tell him, ‘You have to make sure you throw your body. The fans need to see you’re kicking out.’ I nitpick a lot and am a perfectionist. I try to make sure I point every single thing out to make sure he improves. When he does better the next time, I tell him, ‘way better than last time.’ That’s our process.”
Coming from a wrestling dynasty such as the Mysterio family, comparisons will be made between Dominik and his father. For Rey though, his message to his son is to be his own man.
Mysterio said:
“I tell him, ‘Don’t try to be your old man. I’ve done my career and done my path. Don’t worry about the haters. They will compare you to me, but block that out of your mind and do you. Create your own path. My fans, if they want to, they will convert into your fans. On top of that, you’ll gain fans on your own for who you are and how you’ve been grinding. They will respect that. Be yourself, don’t try to fill my shoes.'”
Dominik Mysterio recently defended the SmackDown Tag Team Title on his own in a handicap match against Roode and Ziggler. The 24-year-old rookie was able to overcome his opponent’s experience, defeating both men to retain the championship.