Sin Cara: Has WWE Lost Confidence in Exciting Luchador as Top-Level Guy?

Gallo Images/Getty Images

When Sin Cara made his WWE debut more than a year ago, it seemed as though there were big plans for the high-flying luchador who famously wrestled as Mistico in his native Mexico. A suspension, an injury and in-ring struggles have seemingly knocked him from his perch, though.
Sin Cara entered the company to much fanfare in April 2011, and it looked like he was going to be a staple on WWE programming. Things went south in July, however, as Sin Cara was written off with a storyline injury due to a 30-day suspension for violating the talent wellness policy.

He would return and have a fun feud with an impostor Sin Cara, but it wasn't long before Sin Cara was on the shelf once again as he suffered a patellar tendon rupture during a 10-man tag match at Survivor Series. That injury would keep him out of action for more than six months.
Sin Cara has now been back in action for more than three months, and although he has cleaned up some of his in-ring mistakes by wrestling a more technical, WWE style, he seems to have lost some of his edge as well. Cara isn't as explosive as he once was, and while he is used quite often on television, he doesn't appear to be a top guy any longer.
That could mean that the WWE brass has lost confidence in him, but I'm inclined to believe that Sin Cara is being seen for what he is. He is certainly an exciting competitor that the fans tend to get behind, but there are several limitations that prevent Sin Cara from being a main-event guy.
The biggest thing holding him back is his gimmick. That doesn't mean that I would change it, but having your entire face covered by a mask and being unable to speak English are two tough things to get past in the WWE. Being able to speak is nearly as important as being able to wrestle in the business today, so that is a huge limitation for Sin Cara.
While entertaining, his wrestling style can be considered a drawback as well. There are only a select few wrestlers capable of working a competent match with Sin Cara, but a main eventer needs to be able to adapt to anyone. Outside of smaller, athletic guys like Dolph Ziggler and Cody Rhodes, there aren't many good dance partners for the Mexican superstar.

What is the most Sin Cara will accomplish in the WWE?

World champion Main-event contender Mid-card champion Mid-card contender He has already reached his high point Submit Vote vote to see results

That doesn't mean that the WWE is down on him or that he has been a failure, though. Sin Cara has had to deal with some hardships over the past year and has struggled at times, but it seems to me like he is coming into his own. The inability to deliver promos is always going to be a problem, but his character still works on some level and his cleaned-up wrestling style makes him much easier to watch.
There is no reason why Sin Cara can't excel as a top midcard face on his own and go on to have fruitful reigns with either the Intercontinental or United States title. Sin Cara gets a favorable crowd reaction every time he comes down to the ring, so he would be a fairly safe guy to put those titles on.
Failing that, I could see him forming a tag team with Rey Mysterio. I have been calling for them to team up for quite some time, and they have been helping each other out as of late.
Mysterio is everything people are wishing and hoping Sin Cara will be. He is the preeminent luchador in American wrestling history and has an incredible connection with the fans.
Not only would teaming with Mysterio give Sin Cara purpose now as they can chase the tag titles and legitimize a struggling division, but perhaps it can eventually lead to a rivalry between the two masked marvels, culminating in a pass-the-torch moment at WrestleMania.
I'm not going to say that Sin Cara will never be a world champion in the WWE, since you never know for sure. However, I never considered him a candidate to be one, even when he was at his high point last year.
I do think that he can be an elite midcarder and a very important asset to the company, however, so there's no reason to worry about Sin Cara's future.