The inclusion of Sombra in WWE can be a double-edged sword.

On one hand, he is one of the most skilled Mexican wrestlers to have been signed by the company.

On the other hand, his success or failure will depend on how he is managed.

We have seen what happened with Sami Callihan, who got desperate when he wasn't being used and preferred to resign. It doesn't seem likely that it will be the case with Sombra, but even if he reaches the main cast, what are his chances of success?

Dave Meltzer, the journalist, wrote about it in the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer:

"In reality, his greatest potential would be to present him as a masked superhero because he could be a modern Mil Máscaras/Solitario/Santo/Canek if promoted correctly. Without the mask, despite being good-looking, he couldn't be the superhero for the ethnic group his signing is focused on.

"Trying to fit him into their parameters is a basic example of how WWE doesn't understand the Mexican culture of masks. Rey Mysterio's key was that he wrestled with and without a mask in WCW and had more success with the audience while masked. Also, he looked like a young boy, so WWE understood that it was better to keep him masked.

"With Sombra, the issue is that they see a good-looking guy and think, 'Why should he wear a mask?' The funny thing is, they thought the same thing about Hijo del Santo in the 90s, which is why Santo cut ties with them.

"They took Alberto del Rio's mask away, and he, at first, was against it, but the difference is that Alberto doesn't show much charisma under the mask, while Sombra has proven that he can show it.

"That mindset could have destroyed many of the Mexican stars who worked in the United States for years and were successful, including Mysterio, the person they are trying to replicate with a younger version. Sombra doesn't have the disadvantages of Carístico/first Sin Cara in the sense that he doesn't behave like a superstar (which should have been a good thing, but it was a disaster), but it is not known how open he will be to studying English (Sin Cara earned a bad reputation for not caring about that) or to changing his style (that meant a mental block for Sin Cara, and with Sombra one never knows how people who have succeeded as main eventers react when they are told, 'we don't want you to do what works for you to get the crowd excited).

"The reason why Mexican stars from the 50s, 60s, and 70s could succeed in the United States is that speaking hot promos in Spanish worked because that was the group they were focused on, and many had the natural charisma and body language to excite as technicians in front of the audience (Sombra isn't good at promos in Spanish, but he has had Rush by his side, so it hasn't been a problem so far). And in those days, if the Latin stars could make money, the American rudos adapted to them since at that time, you adapted to the style of the guy who generated money, which is the opposite of WWE, where they try to make everyone work the same style. It is a huge difference, and the key for Sombra is his ability to accept that what he liked to do and what worked for him is now in the past, and that he must start from scratch, like a rookie, which is very difficult for a star."