10 Things Fans Should Know About WWE SmackDown Superstar Santos Escobar

Signing with WWE in 2019, Santos Escobar would not make his debut in WWE NXT until the following spring after suffering an injury at the Performance Center. Having spent much of his career in Mexico and Lucha-based promotions, his arrival in NXT would signal a new era for the famous Luchador's career, though he would unmask and become the Santos that fans know today.

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Having just made his main roster debut for WWE, alongside his Legado Del Fantasma faction and Zelina Vega, Santos Escobar should be poised as a potential marquee star for the blue brand moving into 2023. For wrestling fans still wanting to learn more about him, there is plenty to learn!

10 He Has Been Wrestling For Over 20 Years

Finally making it to the biggest stage in wrestling, Santos Escobar is now a full-time WWE Superstar as a part of the SmackDown roster. What fans may not be aware of however is just how long the man has been wrestling. Debuting in 2000, Escobar has been wrestling full-time for 22 years.

For WWE fans that want to see more of Santos' work prior to his time with the sports-entertainment giant, he has an extensive catalog of matches taking place across Mexico in both AAA and CMLL, while also having stints in Impact Wrestling and Lucha Underground over the past 20 years!

9 He Has Acted In A Series Of El Fantasma Movies

He was named El Hijo Del Fantasma in wrestling, which translates to "The Son of The Phantom". This would be due to his father wrestling as El Fantasma in Mexico prior to Santos.

Starring in a series of movies based on their El Fantasma characters, the two would face off against The Curse of The Pyramid, The Village of Zombies, and The Secret of The Cursed Urn in a trilogy of films starring the father and son luchador duo. For those looking to watch these movies outside of Mexico, the films do seem a bit hard to find, though they do exist!

8 His NXT Faction Began As A Mystery

During the COVID-19, no-crowd era of shows for NXT, in the early days of this period, a series of kidnappings would take place in the infamous NXT parking lot, with masked luchadors capturing Joaquin Wilde and Raul Mendoza while attacking El Hijo Del Fantasma. Fantasma would be taking part in the ongoing NXT Cruiserweight Championship Tournament as one of the hot new stars of the brand. This mystery would add a level of intrigue to NXT TV, as it seemed to be teasing a new faction.

Eventually, Fantasma would make it to the finals of the Cruiserweight Championship Tournament, where he would defeat Drake Maverick. Following this, the masked luchadors and Fantasma would align with one another for a bit of a swerve, with Fantasma unmasking and becoming Santos Escobar, as Raul Mendoza and Joaquin Wilde would be revealed to be his new partners.

7 He Is A Former Champion In Lucha Underground

Being one of the standout stars early on in Lucha Underground, the future Santos Escobar would wrestle not under the El Hijo Del Fantasma name, but instead as a new character called King Cuerno. With big matches against the likes of Mil Muertes, Johnny Mundo, Fenix, Drago, and Pentagon Dark, Cuerno was always a featured player in the company.

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Despite being a popular character in Lucha Underground, King Cuerno would only hold one championship during his run; The Gift of The Gods Championship. Cuerno would only hold the belt briefly as well, as he would defeat Rey Fenix for the title before dropping it back to him a week later in a Ladder Match.

6 Santos Is Almost 40 Years Old

While Triple H has flip-flopped on whether NXT is or is not a developmental brand, for a number of reasons, most wrestling fans do see it as such in its current incarnation. With that in mind, it may come as a surprise to learn that Santos Escobar is almost 40 years old, on top of his 22-year career in wrestling.

Despite being kept in WWE NXT 2.0 for longer than needed, Santos Escobar would find major success on the brand, becoming regarded as one of the best stars in NXT and getting massively over with the fanbase.

5 Zelina Vega Is Not His Original Valet In WWE

Prior to her replacement, Elektra Lopez would be introduced as the first female member of Legado Del Fantasma. She not only wrestled but served as the valet for her male counterparts during the group's time in WWE NXT.

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Coming as a bit of a surprise, upon their call-up to the WWE main roster as a part of SmackDown, Legado Del Fantasma would trade their female valet for another, with Lopez being replaced by the already established, Zelina Vega. Sporting a brand new look, with striking blonde hair, Vega appears to be a better mouthpiece for Legado right off the bat, though for longtime fans, it is a bit of a shock.

4 He Debuted In NXT As A Luchador

While most WWE fans know Santos Escobar for his current look, which sometimes has featured him wearing a Luchador mask during his entrance, his time under the mask in-ring for the company would be forgotten about fairly quickly.

After debuting in the first half of 2020 during the aforementioned NXT Cruiserweight Championship Tournament as El Hijo Del Fantasma, it would only be a matter of weeks before the famed Lucha star would unmask for good. Despite having wrestled most of his WWE career without a mask, his first few TV bouts would see Escobar wrestle fully as a masked luchador.

3 He Spent A Year In Impact Wrestling

Thanks to Impact Wrestling's continuous partnership with the AAA Mexican wrestling promotion, wrestling as El Hijo Del Fantasma, Santos would take part in Impact Wrestling events from 2017 into 2018.

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During his time in Impact Wrestling, the Mexican wrestling sensation would take part in a number of high-profile matches including teaming with Drago in a match for the Impact Tag Team Titles against Santana & Ortiz, wrestling with Pentagon Jr., representing AAA in a number of tag-team matches, and even challenging Eddie Edwards for the GHC Heavyweight Championship.

2 Santos Is One Of The Longest Reigning NXT Cruiserweight Champions

Winning the NXT Cruiserweight Championship Tournament during his debut in WWE NXT, Santos Escobar would capture gold right out of the gates after joining the black and gold brand. Defending his belt against names like Jake Atlas, Gran Metalik, and Swerve Scott, Escobar would go on to have one of the longest reigns with the belt.

Following a non-title feud with Karrion Kross, Escobar would have to face off against a returning Jordan Devlin, who was the Cruiserweight Champion at the time Santos won the belt, though due to the uncertainty of COVID-19, they crowned a new champion for safety. Escobar would become the Undisputed Cruiserweight Champion before losing his belt to KUSHIDA, ending a 321-day reign with the belt.

1 He Is An Extremely Decorated Superstar In Mexico

Prior to breaking out in the United States thanks to Lucha Underground and Impact Wrestling, El Hijo Del Fantasma would be quite the name in Mexico. Wrestling first for CMLL, he would capture the CMLL World Trios Championship twice, while also winning the company's World Middleweight Championship and multiple tournaments as well.

Eventually jumping ship to CMLL's rival promotion, AAA, Fantasma would once again find major success in his new home. Capturing the AAA Fusion, AAA Latin American, and AAA World Cruiserweight Championships, the masked man would hold a number of belts across both of Mexico's biggest promotions before heading to the United States.