Quotes from Rey Mysterio

Growing up in wrestling, I would see my uncle put on his mask before he walked into auditoriums. The kids would run up to him and ask for autographs and pictures, and seeing him lacing up his boots in the locker room and putting on his mask before heading to the ring, that was all so real to me. That was the modern day superhero to me.

That's really what drew me into wrestling. To see my own uncle put on the mask every Friday to go into the ring, and me putting on his masks to play wrestle with him. It was a whole different world when it came down to sports.

When you talk about Mexican culture, it's wrestling and soccer.

It is a privilege to be able to represent this sport and have a chance to share my love of Lucha with passionate wrestling fans around the globe.

I always said when I was younger that I want to wrestle until I'm 40 or even in the 50s as long as I can still keep doing the same style of wrestling that I do.

My body had given up on me at one point. And as many injuries as I've had over the years, I truly believed that my body needed to rest and not be on the grind like it's been for the last 15 years.

I would never intend to hurt anyone I'm in the ring with. It's entertainment, it's a performance, it's a sport.

I made good money at WWE and traveled the world and interacted with my fans, but I missed a lot of family time. That really hits me.

Competition is always good, but I truly believe that 'Lucha Underground' has nothing to do with WWE or their programming. We are completely different, you know. And, in a way, we have more to offer.

I do recall at one point being part of WWE and other guys taking the risk of stepping away, and a lot of guys don't do it because of the fear that it's not going to be the same.

That's one of the reasons why I left WWE: not to feel tied up or pressured into fulfilling a certain number of work dates throughout the week or month - because of my injuries.

It was a big man's sport at one time. Maybe I had something to do with breaking that barrier and having WWE open up their eyes so they can sign younger, lighter talent.

When you're in WWE, it's a part of that contract signing, that grind. You're on-call 24-7. That's why you become the star that you are.

Being part of WWE is beautiful. You're on the biggest stage of them all. You're living well; you're making good money, and the only flipside to that is that you're on the grind, and you've got to be committed. You've got to make sure to understand what being on the grind is.

There's a huge fan base behind NXT, which is cool because that opens up the door to younger talent that maybe at one point thought that it was impossible to ever get into WWE, but now, there it is.

My main reason for leaving WWE was to heal up my body - to give it a rest - and to spend time with my wife and my kids.

There's definitely no hard feelings with WWE. I'm very thankful to them for the opportunity that was given to me.

At one point, I left Mexico to continue my career globally, and a new star came about. He is known now as Myzteziz, but back then he was known as Mistico, and then Sin Cara when he joined WWE. I would have to say the fans, in their eyes, see a lot of similarities between us.

I always think to myself that if I was able to transition from lucha libre style to American style, then I can always go back. You never lose your roots.

A lot of people have doubted me because of my size. They think someone like me doesn't deserve to be in the main event, but I think if they knew me, and knew what I've been through in my career, they would respect me.

When you're young, you don't really think about what's going on. At least, in my case, I was always so hooked on being so innovative and didn't worry about what happened yesterday. I just wanted to focus on today and make it better. I was like that every day. I just made sure that every night I was at my best, at the best level I could be.

Even when I was a young kid, I always told my uncle that, when I became a wrestler, I wanted to be Rey Mysterio, Jr. and I wanted to wear the mask. I always pictured myself wearing a mask. I dreamed about it for so long. I wanted to be one of those luchadores who wore the mask, the cape, and the fancy outfits.

I literally wear a mask. When I take it off, I'm a father. I'm a husband. I like to come home, and I like to spend time with family, and I like to travel, and I like to have a good time. And I like to be a kid every now and giggle and play with my kids.

As you get older, your body doesn't hold up as much.