Andrade (wrestler)

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This article uses Spanish naming customs: the first or paternal family
name is Andrade and the second or maternal family name is Oropeza.

Andrade

Andrade in July 2018

Birth name Manuel Alfonso Andrade Oropeza[1]

Born 3 November 1989 (age 30)[2]

Gómez Palacio, Durango, Mexico[3]

Residence Orlando, Florida, United States

Professional wrestling career

Ring name(s) Andrade[4]

Andrade "Cien" Almas

 Brillante

Brillante Jr.

Guerrero Azteca

La Sombra

Manny Andrade[5]

Rey Azteca

Billed height 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)[4]

Billed weight 210 lb (95 kg)[4]

Billed from Gómez Palacio, Durango, Mexico[4][6]

Trained by Moro III[3]

Brillante Sr.[3]

El Satánico[3]

Stuka[3]

Franco Colombo[3]

Debut October 3, 2003[3]

Manuel Alfonso Andrade Oropeza (born November 3, 1989) is a

Mexican professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where he performs on
the Raw brand under the ring name Andrade.[4]
A third-generation wrestler, Andrade made his professional wrestling debut a
month before his 14th birthday and worked under the name Brillante Jr. (in
reference to his father Brillante). He is perhaps best known for his near eight year
tenure working for Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) under the ring
name La Sombra (Spanish for "The Shadow"). In CMLL, he won the 2007 Torneo
Gran Alternativa tournament, the 2011 Universal Championship and at one point
he was a triple champion; holding the Mexican National Trios Championship, NWA
World Historic Welterweight Championship and CMLL World Tag Team
Championship at the same time. He also made appearances for New Japan Pro-
Wrestling, where he is a former IWGP Intercontinental Champion. While working
as La Sombra, Andrade was one of the founding members of the Los
Ingobernables ("The Ungovernables") wrestling group, and won the masks of El
Felino, Olímpico and Volador Jr. by defeating them in Lucha de Apuestas matches
before losing his own mask to Atlantis.
 He signed with WWE in 2015 and was assigned to the NXT brand, wrestled under
the ring name Andrade "Cien" Almas, where he was a one-time NXT Champion.
He was promoted to the main roster in 2018, where he won the United States
Championship (once).

Contents

 1Early life
 2Professional wrestling career
o 2.1Early career (2003–2007)
o 2.2Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre
 2.2.1Técnico (2007–2014)
 2.2.2Los Ingobernables (2014–2015)
o 2.3New Japan Pro-Wrestling (2010–2015)
o 2.4WWE
 2.4.1Debut and various feuds (2015–2017)
 2.4.2NXT Champion (2017–2018)
 2.4.3Main roster beginnings (2018–2019)
 2.4.4United States Champion (2019–2020)
 2.4.5Teaming with Angel Garza (2020-present)
 3Professional wrestling persona
 4Other media
 5Personal life
 6Championships and accomplishments
 7Luchas de Apuestas record
 8Notes
 9References
 10External links

Early life
Manuel Alfonso Andrade Oropeza was born on November 3, 1989 in Gómez
Palacio, Durango, Mexico, the son of Jose Andrade Salas, who is better known as
the wrestler Brillante. He became part of the third-generation of the Andrade family
to compete in lucha libre. His grandfather, José Andrade, wrestled under the ring
name "El Moro", his father works as Brillante, his uncles wrestle or wrestled under
the names Diamante/Moro III (Sergio Andrade), Zafiro/Pentagoncito (real name
unrevealed), Kevin (Juan Andrade), Espanto Jr./Pentagón (Jesús Andrade),
Espiritu Magico (Juan Andrade) and one of his cousins works as the
current Espanto Jr. (real name unrevealed)[a] Due to the secretive nature of lucha
libre, where the real names of masked wrestlers are often not revealed, it is
possible that some more of Andrade's siblings or cousins are also professional
wrestlers.[8]

Professional wrestling career

Early career (2003–2007)
With his father, uncles and grandfather being involved in running a local lucha
libre promotion and school in Durango Andrade began training for a professional
career from an early age, initially by playing around with his father and uncles, but
later began to train seriously for a career in the wrestling ring. He made his
professional wrestling debut on October 3, 2003, a month before his 14th birthday,
but only after his father signed a waiver for the local boxing and wrestling
commission to issue him a license.[9] He began working under the ring name
Brillante Jr. in honor of his father.[9]
Working for his family's wrestling promotion Andrade used the name "Brillante Jr."
from 2003 through early 2007. During that period of time, he got involved in a
storyline rivalry with his uncle who wrestled as "Zafio", leading to his first
ever Lucha de Apuestas, or bet match. By defeating Zafiro he won his first
headline match, forcing Zafiro to have all his hair shaved off after the match
per lucha libre traditions.[10] He later won another Lucha de Apuestas match, forcing
the masked wrestler Camorra to unmask in the middle of the ring and reveal his
real name.[b][10] During this time period Andrade also competed as
the enmascarado (masked) characters "Guerrero Azteca" ("Aztec Warrior") and
"Rey Azteca" ("Aztec King") on occasion.[10]
Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre
Técnico (2007–2014)

The long-time team of La Sombra (left) and Volador Jr. (right) during a match

In 2007 he signed with Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre ("World Wrestling

Council"; CMLL), and began training under CMLL head trainer El Satánico. He
made his CMLL in-ring debut on February 27, working as "Brillante" just like his
father had.[11] In June CMLL changed his name, rechristening him La Sombra ("The
Shadow"). CMLL previously had other people work under the name "La Sombra" in
the 1980s and 1990s; CMLL did not promote the most recent La Sombra as having
any relation to the previous incarnations at all, although it was later subtly
acknowledged relationship was acknowledged when La Sombra began wrestling in
a black and silver version of his father's mask.[11]
La Sombra quickly moved up the ranks of CMLL in the months after his debut. The
first sign of CMLL putting their faith in La Sombra came when the promoters him
teamed up with CMLL's main good guy (known as a técnico in Spanish) Místico for
their annual Torneo Gran Alternativa ("Great Alternative Tournament") where a
rookie and a veteran team up. La Sombra and Místico defeated Heavy
Metal and Super Nova in the first round, Dr. Wagner Jr. and Mascara Purpura in
the semi-final and the team of Último Guerrero and Euforia in the finals to win the
2007 Tornero Gran Alternativa.[12] The following month, La Sombra teamed up
with El Sagrado and Volador Jr. to defeat Mr. Águila, Damián 666, and Halloween,
collectively known as Los Perros del Mal ("The Bad Dogs"), to win the Mexican
National Trios Championship.[11] On November 27, 2007, La Sombra added
the NWA World Welterweight Championship to his collection when he
defeated Hajime Ohara to win the title; his victory made him the youngest wrestler
to hold the championship, winning it at the age of 18. [11] Throughout 2008 La
Sombra was busy defending both championships on several occasions. On
January 16, 2009, La Sombra became a triple champion as he teamed up with
Volador Jr. to defeat Averno and Mephisto, winning the CMLL World Tag Team
Championship.[13] La Sombra's time as a triple champion lasted just over two
weeks, until February 3, when Sangre Azteca, Black Warrior, and Dragón Rojo Jr.,
collectively known as Poder Mexica ("Mexican Power") defeated La Sombra,
Volador, and Sagrado to win the Mexican National Trios Championship. On May
27, 2009 La Sombra lost the NWA World Welterweight Championship to Mephisto.
[14]

In early 2010 La Sombra began a storyline feud with El Felino. The feud began on
February 2, 2010, during a singles match between El Felino and La Sombra; when
tied at one fall each, Puma King, El Felino's son, showed up wearing an El Felino
outfit and mask, distracting both the referee and La Sombra long enough for El
Felino to land a low blow on La Sombra to win the match. [15] The two met in
a Lighting match (a one fall, 10 minute time limit match) on the February 19 CMLL
Super Viernes show. Once again Puma King tried to help his uncle, but this time
the referee disqualified El Felino for the transgression. [16] La Sombra and El Felino
continued to feud, both interfering in a match between Volador Jr. and Místico. The
storyline led to Místico, Volador Jr., La Sombra and El Felino being booked in a
four-way Lucha de Apuestas match as the main event of the 2010 2010 Homenaje
a Dos Leyendas ("Homage to Two Legends") show. La Sombra was the first man
pinned at Dos Leyendas and El Felino was the second, forcing the two to compete
with their masks on the line. La Sombra pinned El Felino, forcing him to unmask
and reveal his real name.[17]
On May 14, 2010, La Sombra teamed up with Máscara Dorada and La Máscara to
defeat the then CMLL World Trios Champions La Ola Amarilla ("The Yellow
Wave"; Hiroshi Tanahashi, Okumura, and Taichi) in a non-title match to earn a
shot at the Championship the following week. One week later the trio defeated Ola
Amarilla again, ending the Japanese trios title reign after just two weeks. [18] On July
12, 2010, at the Promociones Gutiérrez 1st Anniversary Show La Sombra
participated in a match where 10 men put their mask on the line in a match that
featured five pareja incredibles ("Incredible Pairs") teams, with the losing team
being forced to wrestle each other with their mask on the line. His partner in the
match was Histeria, facing off against the teams of Atlantis and Olímpico, Místico
and El Oriental, El Alebrije and Volador Jr., Último Guerrero and Averno.[19] La
Sombra and Histeria were the first team to escape the match and retain their
masks.[20] While La Sombra had traveled to Japan to participate in the 2010 Best of
the Super Juniors (BOSJ) tournament Volador Jr. had begun showing rudo signs,
but when La Sombra returned the two teamed back up without any signs of
problems between the two

La Sombra posing at an outdoor event in 2010

Sombra and Volador Jr. lost the CMLL World Tag Team Championship to the Los
Invasores team of Mr. Águila and Héctor Garza on July 23, 2010, again without
any signs of dissension between the two.[21] During a later show Volador Jr. finally
turned fully rudo when he attacked La Sombra and tore La Sombra's mask off,
provoking a feud between the two longtime partners. [22] La Sombra entered
the 2010 Universal Championship tournament and qualified for the finals when he
won "Block A" on the July 30, 2010 Super Viernes show by defeating Mephisto, El
Texano Jr., and Último Guerrero.[23] In the finals Jyushin Thunder Liger, with help
from Okumura at ringside, defeated La Sombra to claim the tournament trophy.
[24]
 The unresolved issues between La Sombra and Volador Jr., as well as the
storyline between La Sombra and Jyushin Thunder Liger, led to all three wrestlers
being booked in the main event of the CMLL 77th Anniversary Show, a 14-
man steel cage Lucha de Apuestas, mask vs. mask match.[25] The match came
down to Olímpico and La Sombra after the other 12 men had escaped the cage; La
Sombra pinned Olímpico to force him to unmask.[26]
On March 13, 2011, La Sombra defeated Mephisto to win the NWA World Historic
Welterweight Championship.[27] On July 15, La Generación Dorada lost the CMLL
World Trios Championship to Los Hijos del Averno (Averno, Ephesto and
Mephisto).[28] On September 2, La Sombra entered CMLL's annual tournament of
champions, the Universal Championship tournament. After defeating Mexican
National Trios Champions Ángel de Oro and Diamante in his first two matches, La
Sombra defeated NWA World Historic Light Heavyweight Champion Rey
Bucanero in his block's finals to advance to the tournament finals. [29] On September
16, La Sombra defeated Averno to become the 2011 Universal Champion. [30] On
February 13, 2012, La Sombra lost the NWA World Historic Welterweight
Championship to Negro Casas, ending his reign at 337 days.[31] On November 28,
2012 La Sombra won the advanced category in CMLL's
annual bodybuilding contest.[32] On December 14, La Sombra defeated Tama
Tonga to win the 2012 La Copa Junior Tournament in the main event of CMLL's
2012 Sin Piedad ("No Mercy") show.[33]
On February 15, 2013, La Sombra defeated Volador Jr. to win the 2013 Reyes del
Aire tournament.[34][35] Following their clash over the Reyes del Aire trophy Volador
Jr. and La Sombra were teamed up for the 2013 Torneo Nacional de Parejas
Increibles tournament, the same tournament that in 2010 was the impetus for
Volador Jr.'s rudo turn. The rivals put their issues aside for the tournament,
defeating the teams of Guerrero Maya Jr. and Negro Casas, La Máscara and
Averno, and Shocker and Mr. Niebla to qualify for the finals of the tournament. [36]
[37]
 On March 15, at the 2013 Homenaje a Dos Leyendas show, Volador Jr. and La
Sombra defeated Altantis and Último Guerrero to win the Torneo Nacional de
Parejas Increibles.[38] The truce between La Sombra and Volador Jr. that allowed
them to win the tag team tournament only lasted until the next time the two rivals
were in the same ring. On February 17, 2013 La Sombra teamed up with Marco
Corleone and Místico II against Volador Jr., Euforia and Último Guerrero. During
the match Volador Jr. attacked both La Sombra and the referee, causing a
disqualification before leaving the ring and his confused partners behind. [39] On
September 13 at CMLL's 80th Anniversary Show, La Sombra and Volador Jr.
defeated Atlantis and Último Guerrero in a Relevos Suicidas match and thus
advanced to a Mask vs. Mask Lucha de Apuestas against each other. In the end,
La Sombra was victorious, forcing his rival to unmask. [40][41]
Los Ingobernables (2014–2015)
Main article: Los Ingobernables
The main event of the 80th Anniversary show was not well received by the fans as
they had been expecting a match between Atlantis and Último Guerrero, loudly
chanting "fraud" during the main event. [41] After the match the fans rallied behind
Volador Jr., giving him the crowd support that made CMLL return him to
the técnico side. Conversely the fans began to boo and heckle La Sombra, the
supposed técnico, leading to a change in how La Sombra was booked and
presented by CMLL. La Sombra formed a partnership with Rush and effectively
began working as a rudo, though the two refused to acknowledge themselves as
such, instead referring to themselves as técnicos diferentes ("a different kind of
good guy").[42][43] On June 6, La Sombra defeated Volador Jr. with help from Rush
and La Máscara to win the NWA World Historic Welterweight Championship in a
match, where La Sombra's Historic Middleweight Championship was also on the
line.[44][45] The trio of Sombra, Rush and La Máscara was eventually named Los
Ingobernables ("The Ungovernables").[46][47] On August 1 at El Juicio Final, La
Sombra lost the NWA World Historic Welterweight Championship back to Volador
Jr.[48] Later in August, La Sombra made it to the finals of the 2014 Universal
Championship tournament, before losing to Último Guerrero. [49] On May 1, 2015, La
Sombra won the 2015 Reyes del Aire tournament ("Kings of the Air").[50]
On July 21, La Sombra and Rush were involved in an incident in Guadalajara,
where they attacked fans who were throwing beers at them during a match. [51] The
following day, Jalisco's Boxing and Wrestling Commission suspended the two from
wrestling in the state for three months.[52] While the commission only suspended
them from wrestling in Jalisco, CMLL decided to pull both La Sombra and Rush
from their Super Viernes show three days later. CMLL did not offer an official
explanation for the change.[53] Over the summer of 2015 Los Ingobernables started
to wrestle against tecnico teams instead of generally facing rudo teams as they
had been up to that point. By August 2015, Los Ingobernables found themselves
facing off against Atlantis on multiple occasions, often with La Sombra going out of
his way to attack Atlantis, tearing Atlantis' mask apart during matches to show his
disdain for the veteran tecnico. On August 31, La Sombra lost the NWA World
Historic Middleweight Championship to Último Guerrero, ending his two and a half
year reign.[54] In the main event of the CMLL 82nd Anniversary Show on September
18, 2015, La Sombra, the winner of the main event of the 80th Anniversary, put his
mask on the line against the winner of the main event of the 81st Anniversary
Show, Atlantis.[55] Atlantis won the Lucha de Apuestas match and, as a result, La
Sombra was forced to unmask and reveal his real name. [1] In early November, La
Sombra and Rush began having issues with each other, which led to a match
between the two on November 13, where Rush was victorious. After the match,
which turned out to be La Sombra's final with CMLL, [56] the two founding members
of Los Ingobernables made peace with each other.[57]
New Japan Pro-Wrestling (2010–2015)
In 2010 La Sombra was selected to be the CMLL representative for New Japan
Pro-Wrestling's (NJPW) Best of the Super Juniors XVII (BOSJ) tournament that
took place from May 30 to June 16, 2010, in Japan. The tournament marked the
first time that La Sombra toured Japan.[58] On May 30, 2010 La Sombra wrestled his
first match in the tournament, defeating Tiger Mask.[59] On the final day of the
tournament he defeated the junior heavyweight wrestling innovator, Jyushin
Thunder Liger. With just three wins in the tournament and a total of six points, he
did not advance to the semi-finals.[60] In November 2010 La Sombra and Máscara
Dorada took part in New Japan's five-day-long Super J Tag League. After winning
two out of their four matches in the group stage, La Sombra and Dorada finished
third in their block, missing the finals of the tournament. [61]

La Sombra wrestling Mephisto in 2011

La Sombra and Dorada returned to New Japan on January 4, 2011, at Wrestle
Kingdom V in Tokyo Dome, where they defeated Jyushin Thunder Liger and
Héctor Garza in a tag team match, when Sombra pinned Liger. As a result of his
victory he was granted a match for Liger's CMLL World Middleweight
Championship in the process.[62][63] La Sombra received his match for the
championship on January 22, 2011, at Fantastica Mania 2011, but lost to Liger.
[64]
 La Sombra returned to NJPW in August 2011 to take part in the 2011 G1 Climax.
La Sombra started the tournament by picking up wins over Wataru Inoue and
fellow CMLL worker Strong Man, but then went on to lose his remaining seven
matches in the tournament, finishing eighth out of the ten wrestlers in his block. [65][66]
[67]
 La Sombra returned to Japan in January 2012 to take part in the Fantastica
Mania 2012 events. In the main event of the second night of the tour, La Sombra
successfully defended the NWA World Historic Welterweight Championship
against Volador Jr.[68] La Sombra returned to New Japan in April 2012 to take part in
the 2012 New Japan Cup. After defeating Yoshi-Hashi in his first round match, he
was eliminated from the tournament in the second round by Hirooki Goto.[69][70]
In January 2013, La Sombra took part in the three-day Fantastica Mania
2013 event. During the second night of the tour, La Sombra unsuccessfully
challenged Nakamura for the IWGP Intercontinental Championship.[71] During the
third and final night, La Sombra defeated Dragón Rojo Jr. to win the NWA World
Historic Middleweight Championship.[72][73] On May 31, 2013, La Sombra defeated
Nakamura in a rematch in Mexico City to win the IWGP Intercontinental Champion,
becoming the first Mexican to hold that championship. [74][74][75][76] On July 20, he lost the
IWGP Intercontinental Championship back to Nakamura during a tour of Japan.
[77]
 From November 23 to December 6, La Sombra took part in the 2013 World Tag
League, where he and Tetsuya Naito finished with a record of three wins and three
losses, failing to advance to the semifinals. [78][79] In January 2014, La Sombra took
part in the five-day Fantastica Mania 2014 tour.[80] La Sombra returned to New
Japan in November to take part in the 2014 World Tag League, teaming with
Tetsuya Naito once more.[81] The team finished in the middle of their block with four
wins and three losses.[82] In January 2015, La Sombra returned to Japan to take
part in the Fantastica Mania 2015 tour, during which he feuded with Máscara
Dorada, culminating in a singles match between the two on January 19, where La
Sombra was victorious.[83]
WWE
Debut and various feuds (2015–2017)
On November 19, 2015, Andrade signed a developmental contract with WWE.[84] He
later reported to the WWE Performance Center to begin his WWE career, focusing
initially on improving his English language skills with the help of Sarah Stock, a
WWE trainer who worked for CMLL for almost a decade. [85] He made his WWE in-
ring debut at an NXT house show in Tampa, Florida on January 8, 2016, wrestling
under the name "Manny Andrade" and defeating Riddick Moss.[5] He made his NXT
TakeOver debut at NXT TakeOver: Dallas on April 1, where he
defeated Christopher Girard during a dark match.[86]
The following month, Andrade was given the new ring name Andrade "Cien"
Almas.[87][88] At NXT TakeOver: The End on June 8, Almas defeated Tye Dillinger.
[89]
 At NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn II on August 20, Almas was defeated by the
debutant Bobby Roode.[90] On October 5 episode of NXT, after losing to The
Revival in the first round of the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic, Almas took out
his frustrations by attacking his tag team partner Cedric Alexander, thus
turning heel in the process.[91] By defeating No Way Jose on December 14 episode
of NXT, Almas qualified for a fatal four-way match to determine a new number one
contender to the NXT Championship but was eliminated by Roderick Strong.[92]
[93]
 At NXT TakeOver: San Antonio on January 28, 2017, Almas was defeated by
Roderick Strong.[94]
NXT Champion (2017–2018)

Almas (right) as the NXT Champion alongside his manager Zelina Vega at NXT TakeOver: New

Orleans in April 2018

On the July 19 episode of NXT, Almas appeared with an unidentified woman and
attacked Cezar Bononi before threatening No Way Jose, though Almas ran away
when Jose ran back into the ring.[95] After being absent from in-ring competition,
Almas returned being accompanied by the woman who turned out to be his
new manager Zelina Vega, defeating Jose on the August 9 episode of NXT and
pacting a match at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn III against Johnny Gargano on August
19,[96] which Almas won.[97] Almas returned on the October 11 episode of NXT,
where he once again defeated Gargano.[98] On the November 1 episode of NXT,
Almas signed a contract where he pacted a match against Drew McIntyre for the
NXT Championship, before attacking him later that night. [99] On November 18
at NXT TakeOver: WarGames, Almas defeated McIntyre to become the new NXT
Champion.[100]
On January 27, 2018, at NXT TakeOver: Philadelphia, Almas successfully
defended the title against Johnny Gargano.[101] Almas's match with Gargano at
TakeOver: Philadelphia was highly acclaimed, earning five stars from Wrestling
Observer Newsletter journalist Dave Meltzer, making it the first match in NXT
history to receive a five-star rating.[102] On January 28, at the Royal Rumble, Almas
made his first main roster appearance entering as a surprise entrant at number 7
during the Royal Rumble match, in which he eliminated Kofi Kingston before being
eliminated by Randy Orton.[103] On February 3 during an NXT house show, Almas
teamed with Zelina Vega in her first match as part of the company, in which they
were defeated by Johnny Gargano and Candice LeRae.[104] On February 21 episode
of NXT, Almas retained the title against Gargano after interference from Tommaso
Ciampa.[105] At NXT TakeOver: New Orleans on April 7, Almas lost the NXT
Championship to Aleister Black, ending his reign at 140 days.[106] On April 18
episode of NXT, Almas accompanied Zelina Vega during her first televised match
against Candice LeRae, in which she was defeated and this turned out to be
Almas' and Vega's last appearances in NXT. [107]
Main roster beginnings (2018–2019)

Almas, accompanied by Zelina Vega, prior to a match in July 2019

On April 17, 2018, Almas, alongside Zelina Vega, was drafted

to SmackDown brand as part of the Superstar Shake–up.[108] A month later, in his in-
ring debut, Almas defeated a local wrestler on the May 15 episode of SmackDown
Live.[109][110] Shortly after his debut, Almas was placed in his first feud with Sin Cara,
who tried to convince him to "reconnect" again only for Almas to attack him. [111][112]
[113]
 Almas defeated Sin Cara on July 10 episode of SmackDown Live[114] and again
five days later in a rematch at the Extreme Rules Kickoff Show to end their feud.
[115]
 On July 17 episode of SmackDown Live, Almas suffered his first loss as part of
main roster by then–WWE Champion AJ Styles in a non–title match.[116] Throughout
August, Almas and Vega started a feud with Rusev and Lana whom they would
defeat in various singles matches.[117][118][119] This led to a mixed tag team
match between the two teams on the Kickoff Show for SummerSlam on August 19,
where Almas and Vega were victorious.[120] Two days later on SmackDown Live,
Almas and Vega lost to Rusev and Lana in a rematch, ending their feud in the
process.[121][122] Throughout the rest of the year, Almas continued to perform in
various singles[123][124][125] and tag team matches, most of which he would go on to lose.
[126][127][128][129][130]

On January 15, 2019, his ring name was shortened to Andrade, [131][132] and he was
announced as an entrant for the Royal Rumble match, where he was one of the
final four, before being eliminated by Braun Strowman.[133][134] A match between
Andrade and Rey Mysterio was scheduled for the Fastlane pay-per-view, but it was
cancelled in favor of both men competing in a fatal four-way match for the United
States Championship, where Samoa Joe retained in a match also involving R-
Truth.[135] At WrestleMania 35, Andrade competed in the André the Giant Memorial
Battle Royal, but failed to win after he accidentally eliminated himself, when he
eliminated Apollo Crews.[136] On April 15, both Andrade and Vega were drafted
to Raw brand as part of Superstar Shake-up.[137] However, on April 23, Andrade and
Vega were moved back to the SmackDown brand.[138] At the Money in the Bank,
Andrade competed in the ladder match,[139] which he failed to win.[140] At Super
ShowDown, Andrade failed to capture the Intercontinental Championship from Finn
Bálor.[141][142] In August, Andrade competed in the King of the Ring tournament, where
he defeated Apollo Crews in the first round,[143] but lost to Chad Gable in the
quarterfinals.[144]
United States Champion (2019–2020)
As part of the 2019 draft, Andrade and Vega were drafted to Raw.[145] On December
26, during a house show at Madison Square Garden, Andrade defeated Rey
Mysterio to win the United States Championship for the first time. [146] Andrade
successfully retained the title against Mysterio on the January 6, 2020 [147] and
January 20 episodes of Raw.[148] At the Royal Rumble on January 26, Andrade
defeated Humberto Carrillo to retain his championship.[149] The next day, Andrade
was suspended for 30 days, for violating WWE's Wellness Policy. [150] To write him
off television, an angle took place on Raw, where Carrillo delivered a Hammerlock
DDT on Andrade onto cement.[151] With Andrade absent over the next month, Zelina
Vega brought up her new associate, Angel Garza, who is Carrillo's cousin, and the
two then feuded.[152] Andrade returned at Super ShowDown, competing in
the gauntlet match for the Tuwaiq Trophy, but was eliminated by R-Truth. [153]
[154]
 At Elimination Chamber, Andrade retained his title against Carrillo once again.
[155]
 Andrade was scheduled to team with Garza to face The Street Profits (Angelo
Dawkins and Montez Ford) for the Raw Tag Team Championship at WrestleMania
36, but Andrade was removed from that match due to an injury and was replaced
by Austin Theory.[156] On the April 13 episode of Raw, Andrade, Garza and Theory
attacked Akira Tozawa, creating a new faction.[157] However, this would be short-
lived, as Theory was kicked out of the faction on the May 18 episode of Raw.[158]
On the May 25 episode of Raw, Andrade lost the United States Championship to
Apollo Crews, ending his reign at 151 days.[159][160] He failed to regain the title from
Crews at Backlash, after failed interference from Garza.[161]
Teaming with Angel Garza (2020-present)
On the June 22 episode of Raw, Andrade and Garza attacked Street Profits after
their match with The Viking Raiders making their intentions known for the Raw Tag
Team Titles.[162] Over the next few weeks, Andrade and Garza would feud with The
Viking Raiders defeating them in a Tag Team Elimination match but struggled to
get on the same page as a tag team. [163] Andrade and Garza would start to coexist
as a tag team as they defeated The Viking Raiders and Cedric Alexander
and Ricochet to earn a Raw Tag Team Title shot against Street Profits
at SummerSlam, where they were unsuccessful.[164] On the September 14 episode
of Raw, Vega ended her association with Andrade and Garza having had enough
of them constantly arguing and fighting with each other. The following week on
Raw, Andrade and Garza (without Vega) defeated Seth
Rollins and Murphy and Dominik Mysterio and Humberto Carrillo to once again
become #1 Contenders for the Raw Tag Team Titles against the Street Profits
at Clash of Champions. At the event, they were unsuccessful once again.

Professional wrestling persona

Almas performs a hammerlock DDT on Aleister Black

Throughout his career, Andrade has portrayed two main characters, "La Sombra"
and "Andrade ('Cien' Almas)", with both of those characters having phases of being
a face (a "good guy") as well as a heel (a "bad guy").
From 2007 through 2014, he portrayed the masked character "La Sombra" as a
face, a young, high-flying wrestler who used a lot of high-flying lucha libre moves,
especially dives off the top rope and occasionally out of the ring to the floor. [165] At
the time, he often used a split-legged corkscrew senton dive off the top rope to
finish his matches.[165]
When he transitioned from a face to a heel character in 2014, he developed a more
individual personality, acting cockier and more laid back in the ring, acting
unimpressed with his opponents by adopting a more arrogant, Tranquillo attitude
that became synonymous with all the Los Ingobernables members. As a heel, he
began using the Sombra Driver (sometimes referred to as the Shadow Driver),
a Schoolboy suplex, that illustrated his transition from high-flyer to a more power
based wrestler.[166]
Initially, the Andrade "Cien" Almas character was portrayed as a face, although
without much depth to the character. His heel turn in 2016 saw a return of the
arrogant Tranquilo character he had used with success while working as "La
Sombra", now bolstered by the presence of Zelina Vega, who helped him win
matches by unfair means.[96] After his heel turn, Almas often uses running double
knee smash against an opponent sitting in the corner of the ring, or on occasion on
an opponent leaned against the ring post on the outside of the ring to make the
move look more dangerous.[100][101][167] After his heel turn, Almas often won his matches
by using a hammerlock DDT (which he named La Sombra), including his NXT
Championship victory over Drew McIntyre.