Armando Estrada
(born Hazem Ali; December 20, 1978)
is a
Palestinian American
Palestinian Americans ( ar, فلسطينيو أمريكا) are Americans who are of full or partial Palestinian descent. It is unclear when the first Palestinian immigrants arrived in the United States, but it is believed that they arrived dur ...
professional wrestler
Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...
and
manager
Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business.
Management includes the activities o ...
best known by his
ring name
A ring name is a type of stage name used by an athlete such as a professional wrestler, mixed martial artist, or boxer whose real name is considered unattractive, dull, difficult to pronounce or spell, amusing for the wrong reasons, or projecting ...
Armando Alejandro Estrada.
Professional wrestling career
World Wrestling Entertainment
Ohio Valley Wrestling (2004–2006)
Ali began his
WWE
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...
career wrestling in their
developmental territory
In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team, feeder club, or nursery club is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a higher ...
,
Ohio Valley Wrestling
Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW) is an American professional wrestling promotion and former developmental promotion based in Louisville, Kentucky. The company is currently run by Al Snow and Matt Jones and Louisville mayor elect, Craig Greenberg.
O ...
, making his OVW television debut as a
bodyguard
A bodyguard (or close protection officer/operative) is a type of security guard, government law enforcement officer, or servicemember who protects a person or a group of people — usually witnesses, high-ranking public officials or officers, w ...
named "Osama" in
Muhammad Hassan's entourage. When Hassan and
Daivari were called up to the main roster, Ali remained in OVW wrestling with an
Arab
The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...
, anti-American
character
Character or Characters may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Literature
* ''Character'' (novel), a 1936 Dutch novel by Ferdinand Bordewijk
* ''Characters'' (Theophrastus), a classical Greek set of character sketches attributed to The ...
, similar to that of
The Iron Sheik
Hossein Khosrow Ali Vaziri ( fa, حسین خسرو علی وزیری, romanized: Hossein Xosrô 'Ali Vaziri; born March 15, 1942), better known by his ring name the Iron Sheik, is an Iranian retired professional wrestler, amateur wrestler and a ...
, and began wrestling in a
tag team
Tag team wrestling is a type of professional wrestling in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. Tag teams may be made up of wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of establish ...
with
Da Beast.
When
Paul Heyman began
booking
Booking may refer to:
* Making an appointment for a meeting or gathering, as part of event planning/scheduling
* The intake or admission process into a prison or psychiatric facility.
* ''Booking'' (manhwa), a Korean comics anthology magazine pub ...
OVW, he expanded Osama's name to "Osama Rodriguez Alejandro", revealing him to actually be half
Cuban
Cuban may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Cuba, a country in the Caribbean
* Cubans, people from Cuba, or of Cuban descent
** Cuban exile, a person who left Cuba for political reasons, or a descendant thereof
* Cuban citizen, a perso ...
and half
Palestinian.
Along with being an active wrestler he became a backstage interviewer, conducting
interviews with wrestler Robbie Dawber as a sidekick, for his own
storyline Spanish language
Spanish ( or , Castilian) is a Romance languages, Romance language of the Indo-European language family that evolved from colloquial Latin spoken on the Iberian peninsula. Today, it is a world language, global language with more than 500 millio ...
version of OVW's television show.
At the same time, he began a storyline campaign to be elected "Dictator of
Kentucky
Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...
", which he intended to rename "Los Kentuckos",
often coming to the ring with a placard reading "Bote for Lalo", purposely misspelling "Vote", based on his pronunciation and utilizing his nickname at the time: "Big Lalo".
[
]
Managing Umaga (2006–2007)
In April 2006, Ali was called up to the main WWE
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...
roster and placed on the Raw
Raw is an adjective usually describing:
* Raw materials, basic materials from which products are manufactured or made
* Raw food, uncooked food
Raw or RAW may also refer to:
Computing and electronics
* .RAW, a proprietary mass spectrometry dat ...
brand
A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create an ...
. He debuted on the April 3, 2006 edition of ''Raw'' as "Armando Alejandro Estrada", a Cuban businessman, and the heel
The heel is the prominence at the posterior end of the foot. It is based on the projection of one bone, the calcaneus or heel bone, behind the articulation of the bones of the lower Human leg, leg.
Structure
To distribute the compressive for ...
manager
Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business.
Management includes the activities o ...
for the also debuting Umaga. Estrada was given a backstory where his immediate family exploited its ties with Fidel Castro
Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (; ; 13 August 1926 – 25 November 2016) was a Cuban revolutionary and politician who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and president from 1976 to 200 ...
to live in commodity, while the rest of Havana (and even his uncle Manuel) lived in poverty. His debut saw him mocking Ric Flair
Richard Morgan Fliehr (born February 25, 1949), known professionally as Ric Flair, is an American professional wrestler. Regarded by multiple peers and journalists as the greatest professional wrestler of all time, Flair has had a career spanni ...
, saying he was too old to still be in the business and promising to bring about a new hero (Umaga). Estrada led Umaga in a feud
A feud , referred to in more extreme cases as a blood feud, vendetta, faida, clan war, gang war, or private war, is a long-running argument or fight, often between social groups of people, especially families or clans. Feuds begin because one part ...
against Flair until the Backlash
Backlash may refer to:
Literature
* '' Backlash: The Undeclared War Against American Women'', a 1991 book by Susan Faludi
* ''Backlash'' (Star Wars novel), a 2010 novel by Aaron Allston
* Backlash (Marc Slayton), comic book character
* ''Backla ...
pay-per-view at the end of the month, where Umaga dispatched Flair.
Following the feud with Flair, Umaga began a period of squashing jobbers, before and after which Estrada would cut promos about his charge's greatness. During this time, he stopped introducing himself before promos, as his use of long rolling r's and a short "ha ha" laugh was beginning to get him cheered instead of booed. On top of this, his name was simplified to Armando Estrada.
At August's SummerSlam, Estrada offered the undefeated Umaga's services to The McMahons ( Vince and Shane
Shane may refer to:
People
* Shane (actress) (born 1969), American pornographic actress
* Shane (New Zealand singer) (born 1946)
* iamnotshane (born 1995), formerly known as Shane, American singer
* Shane (name), a masculine given name and a sur ...
) to "take out" their D-Generation X (Shawn Michaels
Michael Shawn Hickenbottom (born July 22, 1965), better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American retired professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE as Senior Vice President of Talent Development Creative. Widely regarded as one of ...
and Triple H
Paul Michael Levesque (born July 27, 1969), better known by the ring name Triple H, is an American business executive, actor, and retired professional wrestler currently serving as the chief content officer for WWE. He is widely regarded as on ...
) opponents during their tag team
Tag team wrestling is a type of professional wrestling in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. Tag teams may be made up of wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of establish ...
match. As Umaga attempted to deliver on Estrada's promise, however, he was attacked by Kane. Kane and Umaga feuded for two months, with Kane attacking Estrada on at least one occasion. The feud seemingly came to an end when, on the October 9, 2006 ''Raw'', Estrada's interference helped Umaga defeat Kane in a Loser Leaves ''Raw'' match.
During December, Umaga, and thus Estrada, began a feud with John Cena over the WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a world heavyweight championship created and promoted by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE, representing the Raw brand division. It is one of two world titles on WWE's main roster, alongside SmackDown' ...
. In the opening stages Estrada inserted himself into matches and confrontations with the two, leading to Vince McMahon's executive assistant Jonathan Coachman signing a match between Estrada and Cena. Before the match Estrada attempted to buy Cena off (offering him a box of Cohibas, his watch, and finally cash) only to have him refuse. The resulting match was a squash, with Cena winning with his signature FU (later called "Attitude Adjustment").
In February 2007, he managed Umaga to his first title, the Intercontinental Championship, and stood beside him during his partnership with Vince McMahon
Vincent Kennedy McMahon (; born August 24, 1945) is an American media proprietor and retired professional wrestling promoter, executive, and performer. From 1982 to 2022, he served as the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of WWE, the w ...
and feud with Bobby Lashley. As the Umaga and Lashley feud intensified, Lashley targeted Estrada after being banned from putting his hands on Umaga, Vince, or Shane McMahon outside of official matches; on the May 8 episode of '' ECW on Sci Fi'', Lashley shoved a wheelchair-using Estrada down a ramp into a collection of garbage cans, in what turned out to be Estrada's last appearance (except for one cameo) for months. Estrada was written off television after the WWE creative team decided that there was too many people at ringside for the Umaga-Lashley match at WrestleMania 23
WrestleMania 23 was the 23rd annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw, SmackDown!, and ECW brand divisions. The event ...
.
ECW (2007–2008)
On August 14, 2007, Estrada was announced as the General Manager
A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...
of the ECW ECW may refer to:
Professional wrestling
* Extreme Championship Wrestling (originally Eastern Championship Wrestling), a professional wrestling promotion that operated from 1992 to 2001
* The Alliance (professional wrestling) (originally the WCW/E ...
brand
A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create an ...
, giving him (kayfabe) power to book
A book is a medium for recording information in the form of writing or images, typically composed of many pages (made of papyrus, parchment, vellum, or paper) bound together and protected by a cover. The technical term for this physical arr ...
matches and make arrangements for the brand. In early 2008, he was placed into a feud with Colin Delaney
Colin Matthew Delaney (born September 7, 1986) is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his time with WWE on its ECW brand, All Elite Wrestling (AEW), and has performed extensively on the independent circuit for promotio ...
—an independent wrestler wrestling on the brand without a contract, offering him a WWE contract if he could beat the likes of the Big Show
Paul Donald Wight II (born February 8, 1972) is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) as an in-ring performer, and as a commentator for its web television show, '' AEW Dark: Elevation,'' under ...
or, the then ECW Champion, Chavo Guerrero Jr.
Salvador Guerrero IV (born October 20, 1970) better known by his ring names Chavo Guerrero and Chavo Guerrero Jr., is an American professional wrestler. He has previously worked for World Championship Wrestling (WCW), WWE, World Wrestling Feder ...
Delaney was finally awarded a contract after defeating Estrada himself on the May 6 episode of ''ECW on SciFi''. The next week, he signed himself onto the roster, putting himself into his first match against Delaney, picking up the victory. He was removed from his position as General Manager of the ''ECW'' brand on June 3 and replaced by Theodore Long
Theodore Robert Rufus Long (born September 15, 1947) is an American former professional referee and manager known for his work for WWE and WCW serving as an on-screen authority figure. Long began his career in the National Wrestling Alliance and ...
, as the WWE Board of Directors (kayfabe) decided that paying Estrada as both a General Manager and an active wrestler was too much of an expense.
Estrada was then primarily used as a jobber, losing to both established stars (including Delaney) and debuting stars alike whilst attempting to earn a contract in storyline, mirroring the predicament Estrada himself had put Delaney in. Despite this, Delaney aided Estrada in defeating Tommy Dreamer on the August 5 edition of ''ECW'', allowing Estrada to win his contract. His last television appearance was on the August 12, 2008 edition of ECW, losing to Finlay. On November 18, 2008, Estrada was released from his WWE contract after months of inactivity.
Independent circuit and semi-retirement (2008–2012)
Following his WWE release, Ali returned to the independent circuit
In professional wrestling, the independent circuit or indie circuit is the collective noun, collective name of independent professional wrestling promotions which are smaller than major televised promotions. It is roughly analogous to a minor lea ...
. On January 3, 2009, Ali, wrestling under his Armando Alejandro Estrada ring name, teamed with Elijah Burke in a losing effort against Thunder and Lightning for the World Tag Team Championship at the World Wrestling Council's event Euphoria. Before this, he also managed Team 3D in a match for the titles, which Thunder and Lightning won. On March 21 at Great Lakes Championship Wrestling's event, Two Worlds...Two Sweet, Ali, under the ring name "Mr. AE", defeated Al Snow for the GLCW Heavyweight Championship.[ On October 12, 2012 at a PWS Event, Estrada faced Jim Duggan in a losing effort. On October 20, 2012 at a Great Lakes Championship Wrestling's event, AE lost the GLCW Heavyweight Championship to Robbie E in a 3-way match. on December 1, 2012 at a Great Lakes Championship Wrestling's event, AE teamed with Billy Gunn and ]Jay Bradley
Bradley Thomas Jay (born November 17, 1980) is an American professional wrestler, best known for his time in Impact Wrestling under the ring names of Jay Bradley and Aiden O'Shea, and WWE as Ryan Braddock.
Professional wrestling career Early ...
to face Too Cool
Too Cool, originally known as Too Much, was an American professional wrestling tag team and group active in the World Wrestling Federation (later World Wrestling Entertainment) between 1998 and 2001 and for a short time in 2004 and 2014. The group ...
( Scotty 2 Hotty, Grand Master Sexay
Brian Christopher Lawler (January 10, 1972 – July 29, 2018) was an American professional wrestler. He is best remembered for his career in the World Wrestling Federation (now WWE), where he performed as "Too Sexy" Brian Christopher and Grand M ...
) and Rikishi in a six-man tag team match in a losing effort.
Return to WWE (2010–2012)
Estrada re-signed with WWE in December 2010, but wouldn't be used until the May 26, 2011 episode of '' WWE Superstars'', when he returned as the manager of Tyson Kidd. Estrada had shed his previous image (including the Estrada character's previous accent), instead being presented as more of a professional businessman. The union proved to be brief, as Kidd's hunt for the right manager continued the following week.
Although he was not seen on television again, Estrada actually remained contracted until June 26, 2012, before being let go by WWE, officially on July 2, 2012. In 2013, Estrada announced his retirement.
All American Wrestling (2019)
In March 2019, Estrada made his return to professional wrestling with a role as manager of Jacob Fatu, nephew of former client Umaga.
Personal life
After his first departure from WWE, Estrada opened a restaurant, "Baby's Steak and Lemonade," in Glendale, Arizona
Glendale () is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, located approximately northwest of Downtown Phoenix. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it had a population of 248,325.
History
In the la ...
. The restaurant has since closed.
He appeared in a Cypress Hill
Cypress Hill is an American hip hop group from South Gate, California. They have sold over 20 million albums worldwide and have multi-platinum and platinum albums. They are considered to be among the main progenitors of West Coast and 1990 ...
music video in 2010. He speaks fluent Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...
.
Championships and accomplishments
*Great Lakes Championship Wrestling
**GLCW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
* Pro Wrestling Illustrated
**Ranked No. 407 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the '' PWI 500'' in 2008
References
External links
Archived WWE profile
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Estrada, Armando
1978 births
American male professional wrestlers
Living people
American people of Palestinian descent
Palestinian businesspeople
Professional wrestling authority figures
Sportspeople from Chicago
Professional wrestling managers and valets
21st-century professional wrestlers