Sin Cara

Sin Cara
Arias as Sin Cara in April 2014
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)	Sin Cara (I) Sin Cara (II)
Billed height	5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) (as Luis Urive) 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) (as Jorge Arias)
Billed weight	180 lb (82 kg) (as Luis Urive) 205 lb (93 kg) (as Jorge Arias)
Billed from	Mexico City, Mexico
Debut	March 25, 2011

Sin Cara is a professional wrestling character used by WWE, currently portrayed by Jorge Arias, also known as Hunico.

Originally used by Mexican lucha libre star Luis Urive, it is currently used by Mexican-American wrestler Jorge Arias. Spanish for "Without Face" or "Faceless", Sin Cara wears a lucha-style mask that completely covers his face, much like when Urive wrestled for the Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) as Místico. This is in stark contrast to other lucha stars who would at least have eye sockets and a mouth area open, such as when Arias wrestled for the Asistencia Asesoría y Administración (AAA) as Incognito, as well as Rey Mysterio, with whom the Sin Cara character has had an on-off alliance during his WWE stint. Additionally, the lights at ringside dim to a yellow shade during the Sin Cara character's matches.

While the Sin Cara character always speaks Spanish, whether or not the character also speaks English has varied based on whoever portrays the Sin Cara character. Arias's portrayal of Sin Cara is bilingual due to Jorge Arias having grown up in the United States near the Mexico–United States border, and thus speaks either Spanish or English, depending on the intended audience. However, Urive legitimately does not know English, and during his time in WWE often required a translator during promos.

Urive wrestled as Sin Cara in WWE from 2011–2013 and afterwards on the independent circuit in 2014, claiming ownership of the gimmick. His first international move afterwards was joining the World Wrestling League (WWL) of Puerto Rico. Arias wrestled as Sin Cara in WWE briefly in 2011 during a feud with Urive, and has since been portraying the character subsequently after Urive's departure from WWE in 2013.

History

Urive debuts (2011)

Main article: Místico

Sin Cara teaming with John Cena at the WWE Raw tapings on April 18, 2011, in London, England

On January 30, 2011 SuperLuchas Magazine confirmed that Mexican star Luis Urive (Místico) had signed a contract with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). On February 24, WWE held a press conference in Mexico City to introduce Urive under his new name, Sin Cara. On March 25, Sin Cara made his WWE debut at a Raw live event at Assembly Hall in Champaign, Illinois, defeating Primo in a singles match. On the April 4 episode of Raw, Sin Cara debuted, saving Daniel Bryan from an attack by then United States Champion Sheamus, and establishing himself as a face. On that week's SmackDown, Sin Cara similarly appeared, this time attacking Jack Swagger and cementing his face status. Sin Cara made his televised in-ring debut on April 11, defeating Primo. The next week in London, Sin Cara teamed with John Cena to defeat the then WWE Champion, The Miz and Alex Riley.

In the 2011 WWE draft, Sin Cara was drafted to SmackDown, making his first appearance as part of the roster on the April 29 episode with a win over Jack Swagger. Sin Cara then started a storyline with Chavo Guerrero, who began guest commentating his matches and, much to Sin Cara's dismay, even helped him win matches by interfering in them. Sin Cara made his pay-per-view debut on May 22 at Over the Limit, defeating Chavo Guerrero. Afterward, Sin Cara moved on to feuding with Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase, while teaming with Daniel Bryan, with the two saving each other from two–on–one attacks on the June 3 and 10 episodes of SmackDown. Sin Cara's undefeated streak came to an end on the July 1 episode of SmackDown, when he was defeated by Christian.

On July 17, Sin Cara participated in the Money in the Bank ladder match at the eponymous pay-per-view, but failed to earn a World Heavyweight Championship match after being taken out of the match with a storyline injury. The following day, WWE announced that it had suspended Sin Cara for 30 days for his first violation of its Wellness program. Urive later claimed in an interview that he did not know what he had tested positive for and that he had received a routine injection for an injured knee in Mexico.

Two Sin Caras (2011–2012)

The Sin Cara character returned on the August 12 episode of SmackDown, defeating Tyson Kidd; however, with Místico still serving his suspension, for this appearance Sin Cara was portrayed by WWE developmental wrestler Jorge Arias. After another week of Arias portraying Sin Cara, Urive returned under the mask on August 20 at a live event in Tacoma, Washington. On August 26 it was reported that Urive had been sent home from the week's SmackDown tapings, with Arias once again appearing on TV under the Sin Cara mask. During Urive's time away from WWE, the Sin Cara character seemingly turned heel by attacking Daniel Bryan.

The original Sin Cara (Luis Urive) often prevailed over Hunico (front), who later became the second Sin Cara

At the tapings of the September 16 episode of SmackDown, Urive returned as the original Sin Cara, confronting the impostor version of the character. On September 19, on Raw, the original Sin Cara was booked to face Cody Rhodes, but was attacked by the impostor character prior to the match starting. On the September 23 episode of SmackDown, the impostor Sin Cara attacked the original version during his match with Daniel Bryan, then took his place in the match and pinned Bryan for the win. The following week the impostor revealed new black attire to distinguish himself from the original version, while also explaining that he was going to steal the Sin Cara identity from Místico, just as Místico had stolen the Místico identity from him, leading to a match between the two Sin Caras at Hell in a Cell. To further distinguish the two characters, WWE began referring to the original as Sin Cara "Azul" (Blue) and the impostor as Sin Cara "Negro" (Black). At the pay-per-view on October 2, Sin Cara Azul defeated Sin Cara Negro in a singles match. Following Hell in a Cell, Sin Cara Azul was again attacked by Sin Cara Negro. The rivalry culminated in a Mask vs. Mask match at the October 16 taping of SmackDown in Mexico City, where Sin Cara Azul was victorious, unmasking Sin Cara Negro by force after the match. Afterward, the unmasked Sin Cara Negro changed his ring name to Hunico, aligned himself with Camacho and continued his rivalry with Sin Cara. Sin Cara was attacked by Hunico and Camacho on the November 4 episode of SmackDown. On November 20, at Survivor Series, Sin Cara and Hunico were on opposite sides of a ten-man tag match. Sin Cara was eliminated after he suffered a legitimate patellar tendon rupture while diving out of the ring. He underwent surgery and was sidelined for over six months.

Sin Cara returned on May 19, 2012, at a house show in Florence, South Carolina, defeating Hunico in the opening match. On the June 1 episode of SmackDown, Sin Cara returned to television in new red and white attire, defeating Heath Slater. Three days later, Sin Cara returned to Raw, defeating old rival Hunico in a singles match. This rekindled their feud, and on June 17 at No Way Out, Sin Cara defeated Hunico. On the July 9 episode of Raw, Sin Cara defeated Heath Slater to qualify for the World Heavyweight Championship Money in the Bank ladder match at the Money in the Bank pay-per-view, but was unsuccessful in the match itself, which was won by Dolph Ziggler.

Teaming with Rey Mysterio (2012–2013)

Sin Cara signing autographs

In August, Sin Cara rekindled a feud with Cody Rhodes, who claimed that he was wearing a mask to cover his ugly face. Sin Cara scored pinfall wins over Rhodes in consecutive matches on SmackDown and Raw, both times taking advantage of Rhodes trying to remove his mask. He then also saved fellow masked wrestler Rey Mysterio from being unmasked by Rhodes and afterward teamed up with Mysterio to put one of his masks on Rhodes. After defeating Intercontinental Champion The Miz in a non-title match, Sin Cara was granted an opportunity to win the title at Night of Champions in a four-way match, which also included Rhodes and Mysterio and saw The Miz retain the title. The following day on Raw, Sin Cara and Mysterio teamed up to defeat Epico and Primo in a tag team match. Sin Cara and Mysterio entered a tournament to determine the number one contenders to the WWE Tag Team Championship, defeating Epico and Primo and the Prime Time Players (Titus O'Neil and Darren Young) to advance to the final. Sin Cara and Mysterio lost the final of the tournament to the Rhodes Scholars (Cody Rhodes and Damien Sandow) on the October 22 episode of Raw. At Survivor Series on November 19, Sin Cara and Mysterio were victorious in a 10-man elimination tag team match alongside Brodus Clay, Justin Gabriel, and Tyson Kidd against the Prime Time Players, Epico, Primo, and Tensai. On December 16 at TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs, Sin Cara and Mysterio were defeated by Team Rhodes Scholars in a number one contenders Tables match for the WWE Tag Team Championship. Two days later on SmackDown, Sin Cara suffered a legitimate knee injury and was written off television following an attack by The Shield.

Sin Cara returned on January 27, 2013, at the Royal Rumble, entering the Royal Rumble at number twenty-nine but was eliminated by Ryback. On the following episode of SmackDown, Sin Cara and Rey Mysterio defeated then WWE Tag Team Champions Team Hell No (Daniel Bryan and Kane) in a non-title match. After spending two months off television due to further injuries, Sin Cara returned at a WWE house show on May 10 in Shreveport, Louisiana, teaming up with Adrian Neville and Bo Dallas in a winning effort against Michael McGillicutty and the Prime Time Players. Sin Cara returned to television on the May 15 episode of Main Event, defeating Intercontinental Champion Wade Barrett in a non-title match. During the August 19 episode of Raw, Sin Cara dislocated his ring finger during a match with Alberto Del Rio. Urive last wrestled as Sin Cara against Alberto Del Rio at a house show in Monterrey, Mexico on October 19.

In late January 2014, Místico announced that he would return to wrestling in Mexico on February 1. A shoot interview that aired days later confirmed Místico's departure from WWE. Místico also claimed that he owned the Sin Cara character, and blamed WWE for not allowing him to wrestle the style he used in Mexico. Despite the claims, Hunico continues to wrestle with the Sin Cara gimmick in WWE.

Urive's first post-WWE match as Sin Cara took place at his self-produced independent event on February 1, which featured wrestlers from both Asistencia Asesoría y Administración (AAA) and CMLL. In the main event, Urive teamed with his brother Argenis and La Sombra to defeat another one of his brothers, Argos, Black Warrior and El Oriental, submitting Warrior for the win with La Mística. On March 1, Urive, still in the Sin Cara gimmick, defeated Black Warrior to win the vacant Baja Star's Wrestling (BSW) Intercontinental Middleweight Championship.

Urive was officially released by WWE on March 26, 2014. After signing with the Asistencia Asesoría y Administración (AAA) in February, Though Urive later adopted the new ring name Myzteziz, he also announced that he would continue to work as Sin Cara outside of AAA.

Arias permanence (2013–present)

Main article: Hunico

On the December 2, 2013, the Sin Cara character returned to Raw, with Arias reprising the character and defeated Alberto Del Rio, and the character experienced a resurgence as he embarked on a winning streak throughout the month. Sin Cara's streak was ended by Del Rio on the January 6, 2014 episode of Raw. As 2014 progressed, Sin Cara was unsuccessful in winning four battle royals: the André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania XXX, a battle royal for the United States Championship in May, and a Money in the Bank qualifying battle royal in June and a battle royal for the WWE Intercontinental Championship at Battleground. Also, Sin Cara was sent to NXT, where he made a tag team with Kalisto known as "The Lucha Dragons". At NXT TakeOver: Fatal 4-Way, Sin Cara and Kalisto defeated The Ascension to win the NXT Tag Team Championship, and Arias' first title in WWE.

After defeating then Intercontinental Champion Bad News Barrett in a non-title match on the January 9, 2015 episode of SmackDown, Sin Cara was awarded a title shot against Barrett on the taped episode of SmackDown which aired on January 15, but lost the match. At the NXT tapings on January 15, the Lucha Dragons lost the NXT Tag Team Championship to Buddy Murphy and Wesley Blake. Arias would also enter the Royal Rumble match, but would be quickly eliminated. Sin Cara participated in the 2nd Annual André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania 31, but failed to win the match. The following night on Raw, the Lucha Dragons made their main roster debut as a team in an 8-man tag team match, teaming with The New Day (Big E and Kofi Kingston) to defeat Tyson Kidd and Cesaro and the Ascension (Konnor and Viktor). At Elimination Chamber in May, the Lucha Dragons competed in the first ever tag team Elimination Chamber match for the WWE Tag Team Championship, however they failed to capture the titles. In late June, The Lucha Dragons took a small part in the ongoing feud between the New Day and the Prime Time Players on the 25 June episode of Smackdown, when they teamed with PTP in a winning effort against the New Day and Bo Dallas. The Lucha Dragons and PTP teamed up again on the next episode of Raw, and defeated Dallas and New Day for a second time. At SummerSlam (2015), The Lucha Dragons competed in a Fatal 4-Way tag team match for the WWE Tag Team Championship which was won by The New Day. At Night of Champions (2015), The Lucha Dragons and Neville were defeated by The Cosmic Wasteland (Stardust and The Ascension). At TLC, The Lucha Dragons, The Usos and the New Day competed in a triple threat tag team ladder match for the WWE Tag Team Championship which was won by The New Day, who retained their titles. The next night on Raw, the New Day called out both the Lucha Dragons and the Usos and shook hands with each other. When the Dragons and the Usos left the ring, the New Day, in bragging fashion, started to celebrate their win at TLC, which prompted the Dragons and The Usos to attack the New Day. The following week, on a live episode of Smackdown, the Lucha Dragons received another tag team title shot, but they were once again defeated by the New Day. On the December 28, 2015 episode of Raw, Sin Cara dislocated his shoulder in a match with Big E, leaving him out of action. On February 6, Sin Cara returned from injury, teaming with Kalisto in a winning effort against Los Matadores. On the March 21 episode of Raw, Sin Cara faced Stardust and Zack Ryder in a triple threat match to determine the number one contender for the WWE Intercontinental Championship, which ended in no contest, after Intercontinental Champion Kevin Owens interfered in the match. Afterwards, it was announced that Sin Cara would compete in a 7-man ladder match for the title at WrestleMania 32 against Owens, Stardust, Ryder, Sami Zayn, The Miz and Dolph Ziggler. On the May 9 episode of "Raw", Sin Cara faced his partner Kalisto's Extreme Rules rival Rusev with Kalisto outside the ring. Rusev had the advantage until a distraction from the official allowed Kalisto to interfere and kick Rusev in the head, gaining an advantage for Sin Cara who pinned Rusev for the win.

Other media

An animated version of Sin Cara appeared in Scooby-Doo! WrestleMania Mystery in a non-speaking role. To promote the film, Sin Cara was accompanied by Scooby-Doo (portrayed by a costume) and went to defeat Damien Sandow on the March 24, 2014, episode of Raw.

Sin Cara appears as a playable character in WWE '12, WWE '13, WWE 2K14 and WWE 2K16.

In wrestling

Sin Cara trampolining into the ring

• Finishing moves
  • High-angle senton bomb – 2011–present
  • La Mistica (Tilt-a-whirl headscissors transitioned into a facebuster, sometimes floated over into a Fujiwara armbar) – 2011 –2013
  • Moonsault slam – 2011 used rarely thereafter
  • Springboard senton bomb followed by a springboard moonsault – 2011
  • Sunset flip powerbomb – 2014–present
• Signature moves
  • Corkscrew plancha
  • Diving crossbody
  • Diving headbutt to a standing opponent, sometimes while springboarding
  • Handspring back elbow
  • Hurricanrana, sometimes while springboarding
  • Moonsault, sometimes while springboarding
  • Multiple arm drag variations
    • Japanese
    • Springboard
    • Tilt-a-whirl
    • Top rope, sometimes preceded by a tilt-a-whirl headscissors takedown
  • Multiple kick variations
    • Back heel
    • Drop, sometimes from the top rope
    • Enzuigiri from the ring apron
    • Super
  • Schoolboy transitioned into a powerbomb
  • Suicide dive
  • Tornado DDT, sometimes while standing
• Nicknames
  • "The International Sensation"
• Entrance themes
  • "Ancient Spirit" by Jim Johnston (WWE; April 4, 2011 – January 25, 2015)
  • "Lucha Lucha" by CFO$ (NXT/WWE; used while teaming with Kalisto)

Wrestlers who have portrayed Sin Cara

• List
  • Luis Urive (also portrayed Sin Cara Azul)
  • Jorge Arias (also portrayed Sin Cara Negro)

Championships and accomplishments

• WWE
  • Slammy Award for Double Vision Moment of the Year (2011)
• WWE NXT
  • NXT Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Kalisto

Luchas de Apuestas record

See also: Luchas de Apuestas

Winner (wager)	Loser (wager)	Location	Event	Date	Notes
Sin Cara Azul (mask)	Sin Cara Negro (mask)	Mexico City, Distrito Federal	SmackDown	October 16, 2011

See also

• Doink the Clown
• Kendo Nagasaki
• Manik
• Tiger Mask

External links

• Sin Cara at the Internet Movie Database
• Sin Cara's profile on WWE.com
• Sin Cara on Facebook
• Sin Cara on Twitter

• Luis Urive's 2013 WWE matches, from WrestlingData.com