Former WWE star Santos Escobar, identified in recent comments as Romeo Malverde, has reflected warmly on his involvement with the revived Latino World Order while also offering a measured view of what remains to be done for Latino representation in professional wrestling.
The LWO revival gave WWE a vehicle to bring several Latino talents together under one recognizable banner, combining the legacy of the original group with a newer generation of performers. Escobar was a significant part of that presentation during his time alongside Rey Mysterio, and he believes the faction’s return carried personal meaning well beyond its place in weekly WWE storylines.
Speaking with Denise Salcedo, Escobar described his experience in the group in unequivocally positive terms.
“Oh, it was the best, it was the best,” Escobar said.
For more background on this topic, read Brandi Rhodes Reveals She Trained at WWE Performance Center Before Choosing Not to Return Full-Time.
For Escobar, the LWO was not merely an assignment that arrived after WWE had already decided to relaunch an established name. He recalled raising the idea himself when he first arrived in NXT, only to receive an immediate rejection from Triple H before he could finish saying the group’s initials.
“I remember, when I first came to NXT, I suggested that to Triple H and I didn't even finish the ‘LWO’ when I was in the ‘w’ he was like, ‘No. That's not going to happen,’” Escobar recalled.
That early response did not end the idea’s importance to him. Instead, Escobar felt the landscape changed after he had established greater value within WWE and ultimately found himself sharing a segment with Mysterio. The eventual reintroduction of the LWO, in his view, became especially meaningful because of who had helped make it possible and because of the influence Mysterio had long held over him.
A Full-Circle Moment Alongside Rey Mysterio
Rey Mysterio has been one of the most influential Latino performers in modern wrestling history. His career has crossed generations, promotions, and wrestling styles, while his image has been embraced by audiences around the world. For a wrestler who grew up inspired by Mysterio, working directly with him represented a full-circle career moment.
Escobar said the chance to help bring back the LWO while interacting with Mysterio allowed him to inspire figures who had first inspired him. That uncommon reversal is what he identified as one of the defining aspects of his WWE tenure.
“I think that's one of the best moments because I got to inspire the people who inspired me – if that makes any sense, you know?” Escobar said.
He further pointed to the significance of the opportunity coming from both Triple H and Shawn Michaels. While the original rejection of the concept stood out in his memory, the eventual shift showed him that ideas can gain momentum when a performer builds trust, delivers consistently, and reaches a position where their voice carries more weight creatively.
Escobar said that the teachings, the opportunities, and the time he spent in the environment are what he will continue to carry forward. His time traveling and working with Mysterio also helped create a lasting kinship with the former WWE Champion.
That relationship matters in the broader context of the LWO. The group has always been attached to the idea of heritage, community, and performers being able to represent themselves with a degree of cultural specificity. It can be easy for a wrestling faction to be assessed solely through wins, losses, title pursuits, or its position on a show. Escobar’s comments frame the LWO differently: as an opportunity for performers to connect their work to a personal history and to the audience that sees itself in them.
The LWO’s Present And Its Remaining Potential
The Latino World Order remains active in WWE, led by Mysterio alongside Raul Mendoza, Joaquin Wilde, and Dragon Lee. The group’s lineup continues to place established names and high-level younger talent in a shared unit, giving each member a recognizable association on WWE programming.
Escobar said he is pleased to see the talents involved receiving chances to show what they can do. At the same time, he did not suggest that the mere existence of a group such as the LWO resolves every issue surrounding representation or opportunity. His assessment was supportive, but candid.
“First of all, I'm really happy that all of those talents are getting the opportunity to showcase what they got. Is there work to be done? Yes. A lot. A lot,” Escobar said.
His emphasis was on wrestling as an industry that changes constantly. Talent roles, audience expectations, creative priorities, and business strategies can all shift rapidly. Because of that, Escobar believes a positive trend toward broader opportunities needs to continue developing rather than being treated as a finished accomplishment.
“Why? Because this is a business that evolves with every passing minute, with every passing week, with every passing month, with every passing quarter, and I think that if this tendency keeps, you know, growing? There's more on the horizon,” he said.
That view gives the current LWO a significance beyond nostalgia. The faction’s name carries a strong legacy, but its ongoing value depends on whether it provides meaningful space for the people under its banner. Escobar’s remarks suggest that he sees the group as a platform with room to grow, not a final answer to the larger need for Latino performers to be given prominent, layered, and authentic roles.
Why Authenticity Matters To Escobar
The central point in Escobar’s comments was not simply that Latino wrestlers should be visible. He stressed that representation is most effective when the people telling a community’s stories understand the cultural details that make those stories feel real.
Escobar argued that there are elements of Latino experience that cannot be replicated accurately without the input of people from that community. He explained that a Latino writer should not be expected to write for White America, and that the same principle applies in the opposite direction. In his view, perspective matters because particular details, mannerisms, references, values, and emotional touchstones can either form a strong foundation or make a presentation feel fundamentally off base.
“There needs to be certain elements there that only you and I know how to reproduce; if that makes any sense,” Escobar said. “There's things that, if done properly, become important things, (...) and there's things where, if you don't do it properly, it's a foundation that's wrong.”
His point does not reduce representation to a checklist of visual symbols or a single faction. Rather, it centers on the importance of genuine participation in the creative process. A wrestler’s culture can inform character work, presentation, dialogue, rivalries, music, fashion, and the way a performer connects with live crowds. But those ingredients need to be used thoughtfully. Without that care, a promotion may have the appearance of representation without delivering the depth that makes it resonate.
That is why Escobar repeatedly returned to the idea that it has to be organic. He said it was never his place to instruct promotions on what to do, but he tried to offer his perspective while he was in WWE. His comments recognize the balance between performers advocating for authentic material and a promotion having the ultimate power to shape its television product.
“It's one of those things where it's organic. It needs to be organic,” Escobar said.
He also gave credit to WWE for the work being done through the current LWO presentation. Yet his praise came with a reminder that progress must remain active. Opportunities can expand, but they can also narrow unexpectedly in an industry where roster positions and creative directions are never guaranteed.
A Message To Latino Fans And Wrestlers
Escobar closed his thoughts with encouragement for Latino people, particularly Mexicans, who are pursuing growth in wrestling and beyond it. His message was rooted in the reality that opportunities may arrive without warning and may not last forever. The response, he believes, should be continued development and readiness.
“I think they're doing it, props to them, and to my Latino people – to my Mexicans out there – just keep growing,” Escobar said. “Because these opportunities are going to keep coming, and the one thing is that you never know when they're going to stop.”
Escobar’s perspective on the Latino World Order is therefore both celebratory and challenging. He remembers the faction as one of the best experiences of his career, particularly because it connected him with Mysterio and helped turn an idea he once pitched into a reality. At the same time, he sees the current LWO and the broader wrestling landscape as works in progress.
The revived group remains a visible WWE platform for Mysterio, Mendoza, Wilde, and Dragon Lee. Escobar’s comments underline why that visibility carries weight: it creates an opportunity for performers to display their abilities while presenting cultural identity in a way that feels personal rather than imposed. For the former LWO member, that process has value—but it requires continued work, continued growth, and an insistence on authenticity from everyone involved.
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Darryl Polo
Darryl Polo is a passionate wrestling fan covering WWE, AEW, TNA and beyond. He loves great rivalries, breakout stars and the moments that keep fans talking long after the bell. How we work.