Dominik Mysterio On Being Critical Of His Matches, Carrying On His Family Legacy

At a time of uncertainty, Dominik Mysterio received the opportunity of a lifetime when he made his WWE in-ring debut this year. Though different than how most premiere, he mentioned in his interview with Chasing Glory just how historic it was to launch his third-generation legacy among thousands watching at home and in the ThunderDome.

"I love that feeling of the crowd, feeding off of them, but I think that things happen for a reason," Dominik noted on his debut just before the pandemic. "I mean, what's more historic than debuting in the ThunderDome with, like, 400 virtual screens? I think that's going to be remembered, as well, forever. It's such a weird time that we're living in, so, I'm just grateful for the opportunity and feel truly blessed that I was able to, you know, have that debut match at SummerSlam."

His father, Rey, mentions just how nervous he was for his son to make such a huge leap from training across the nation to ending up on the biggest card of the summer, Summerslam.

"We weren't expecting this opportunity so quickly," Rey said about Dominik's SummerSlam debut. "As a parent, the last thing I wanted for him to do is to fail on his first try. All eyes are on you. This ain't an indie show; you're live worldwide. He had been training for almost three years by then. I was really nervous."

As many generational wrestlers mention, the pressure to fulfill their family's legacies fall on their shoulders. For Dominik, he agrees that he has quite the shoes to fill, especially when facing the former "Monday Night Messiah," Seth Rollins.

"I knew the pressure as soon as I told them, 'Yeah, I'm good. I'm ready,'" Dominik stated. "I usually train about three to four days a week. I started training five days a week in the ring. I wanted to make sure I put in the work. But yeah, I knew the pressure going into it, not only because of the situation I was being put in but the name I carry as far as, you know, the Mysterio name, the legacy. It was a lot to soak in."

Not only do those in WWE see the potential Dominik has in the ring, but even well renowned and respected talents like Konnan call him an "osmosis" prodigy.

"Now, I talked to Konnan about this. He says that he has 'osmosis', which means that he's been around wrestling his whole life and he has the instinct to know where to be and what to do. It's already programmed in his brain and in his heart that he has a feel for it," Rey explained to Garcia. "So when people have 'osmosis,' it comes naturally to them."

Although there's a stalemate as to whether Dominik/Rollins' feud will continue following their SmackDown debuts, Rey is grateful that his son has had the opportunity to face one of the biggest draws in WWE

"I know I've always said that it takes two of us to be able to perform, and Seth did an incredible job," Rey complimented. "I told Seth that I couldn't have picked a better opponent for him. Seth has been incredible with guiding him and teaching him the basics and fundamentals of this business."

Dominik admits that even though he's put in a lot of elbow grease to make it in the business, he still has a lot to learn. One way he learns is through watching his matches back the moment they're uploaded.

"I watch them immediately back. I pick what I could do better and see how I could do better," Dominik replied right away. "I'm constantly trying to learn and see what I can do better, or how I could have, you know, timed it better. I'm always critiquing myself."

You can watch Rey & Dominik Mysterio's full interview here. If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit Lilian Garcia -Chasing Glory with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.