Alberto El Presidente Takes Combate Americas Reigns, Talks TV Azteca Deal | MMAWeekly.com

While he has been known by many other names throughout his pro wrestling and MMA careers, the man most famously known as Alberto Del Rio in the WWE now has a new moniker since joining Combate Americas: Alberto El Patron.

In October in New York City, Alberto was named President of Combate Americas, and not too long after was on hand in Mexico City to announce the partnership between the company and the venerable TV Azteca in Mexico.

Speaking to MMAWeekly.com shortly after the press conference announcing the new partnership, Alberto spoke about his involvement with Combate Americas, his own MMA career, and what could be his final years in pro wrestling.

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MMAWeekly.com: Firstly, Alberto, tell us how you got involved with Combate Americas.

Alberto El Patron: I used to be a fighter about 10 to 14 years ago. I was competing in Korea and Japan. And because of that, Campbell McLaren reached out to me almost three years ago when he was creating Combate Americas because he wanted to have me as one of his fighters.

He made me a really good offer, and I actually went back to the gym to get ready for a fight, but then I decided not to do it because now I’m 37, I’m a father of three. So I called Campbell back and told him that I wasn’t hungry anymore and I didn’t want to fight, but if he could find another role for me at Combate, I would be happy to join him.

Almost three years after that conversation, he called me and said, “Alberto, I have the perfect part for you. You’ll be the president of the company. We have new business partners in TV Azteca in Mexico, and they are super-excited to have you on board.” The rest is history.

MMAWeekly.com: As president, are you involved with the day-to-day operations of Combate Americas or is it a more ceremonial position?

Alberto El Patron: What Dana White does for the UFC is exactly what I’m doing here for Combate Americas. I get involved with the meetings to decide the places we are going to go. I’m reaching out to other countries to see if we can go there and show those places what Combate Americas is all about. I’m finding new talent. And once I find new talent, I want to develop that new talent to make them superstars.

Something I really want here at Combate is to not only have great fighters, but also have great entertainers. You have to be an amazing fighter, because at the end of the day it’s fighting what you’re going to be doing, but we also want to entertain the crowd. Because if you entertain the crowd, you put more people in those seats, you get more sponsors, you get more money, and if you do that, everybody is happy.

MMAWeekly.com: What does it mean to Combate Americas to have this partnership with TV Azteca?

Alberto El Patron: It’s amazing not only to bring Combate Americas to TV Azteca, but to different places in the United States and all other places around the world. For me, being Mexican, this new business relationship makes me really happy. Especially because I know the power TV Azteca has and the places where it reaches. This union, we’re going to have people watching Combate Americas in over 40 countries all over the world.

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MMAWeekly.com: Looking back on your own MMA career. What do you think of your time overall in our sport as a fighter?

Alberto El Patron: Back in the day, I was young and was really hungry. I was not Alberto the pro wrestling superstar. Of course, I was just working in Mexico, and I was making a good living from being a pro wrestler, but the moment I decided to jump into the MMA world, I started to make more money and meeting different people.

It was a time in my life where I was very happy. I was also very hungry for success, very hungry for money and very happy for fame, and I gave it all. I decided to leave my country for the first time and train with Marco Ruas in Laguna Niguel, Calif. I gained a lot of fame and a lot of respect. I went from being just a pro wrestler into a real fighter.

From there, I got the opportunity to compete in Japan, Korea and even South America. It was a really nice time in my life. But like everything else, you have to move on and find other experiences on your road to success to the right place.

MMAWeekly.com: Would Alberto the MMA fighter fit in with the new crop of athletes you have at Combate Americas?

Alberto El Patron: Definitely. When I was younger I was really crazy. I had no fear. All I wanted to do was succeed. I was hungry. That’s what these guys are in Combate Americas. You can see their faces and how hungry they are, and passionate they are about what they do. That’s the same I was 15 years ago.

MMAWeekly.com: Hearing what people have been saying about you having seen you at shows and during media events is that you are in great shape and seem happier than you have in a long time. How do you feel?

Alberto El Patron: Yeah, I’m completely happy right now. I’m doing what I really want to do. There was a time in my life what I thought was the right thing to do, but I forgot that money is not everything in this life. I was in a place where I was not completely happy. I was making really good money, but my happiness was on the side.

I will always be completely grateful to what (the WWE) did for me. They gave me the opportunity; they put me out there so I could show my talent to the world. But when Campbell sent me this project, I knew we could take this company to a different level. I could help a lot of Latin fighters to be successful men and women. So I’m really happy and am having the time of my life at the moment.

MMAWeekly.com: Let’s talk about your pro wrestling career. Can you tell us about what you have coming up in the next few months or next year?

Alberto El Patron: I haven’t stopped since I left that other company. My schedule has been crazy. I started doing some shows in Texas, and then I went to London and Manchester, fly to Puerto Rico, fly to New York, from New York to Puerto Rico, back to Mexico, so my schedule has been crazy.

Again, I’m happy because now I am my own boss. I make the decisions. I pick out where I want to go and what I’m going to do. I’m going to continue wrestling. My priority is Combate Americas, but I want to continue doing shows for all the fans out there, and for myself. Pro wrestling is one of my passions, and I’m not ready to give up on that.

The fans are going to be able to see me pretty much everywhere. Next year I’m going to be doing a lot of stuff with different companies. I finally might be doing something with TNA. We’re in conversations back and forth. I have (connections) with Ring of Honor, New Japan Pro Wrestling, and I’m going to come back to Mexico to wrestle for any organization that wants to have Alberto – El Patron, El Patron – however, they want me.

MMAWeekly.com: Your father, Dos Caras, has wrestled into his 60’s; your uncle, Mil Mascaras, has wrestled into his 70’s. Will you still be wrestling when you are their age?

Alberto El Patron: Oh, not at all. You can write this in stone: I’m planning on retiring in 2018. I’m going to wrestle for whatever we have in 2016, all of 2017, and do my “Alberto El Patron See You Later Tour” in 2018. I want to do shows in every major city in Mexico, and if they want to see me in major cities in the United States in 2018. That will be the year Alberto will be saying goodbye to all the wrestling fans.

MMAWeekly.com: Getting outside of sports for a minute, your girlfriend, WWE wrestler Paige, recently had neck surgery. Can you give us an update on her recovery?

Alberto El Patron: She’s doing fantastic. She has an amazing doctor, and he did a really amazing job. She’s doing fine at the moment. She says she feels better. All the pain she was feeling in her left arm, it’s pretty much gone. If everything goes well and everything goes as expected, she’ll be returning to the WWE ring in five, six months from now.

MMAWeekly.com: Thanks for taking time out for us, Alberto. Is there anything you’d like to add in closing?

Alberto El Patron: I just want to say thanks to you and all the fans for always supporting Alberto El Patron’s career. Thank you so much for from the bottom of my heart. Thank you for supporting this new amazing project (with Combate Americas). We’re going to do amazing things, and if you continue to support us, we will continue doing amazing things for all of you.

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