WWE’s South American tour has included an important talent-identification stop in Bogotá, Colombia, where the company recently staged tryouts led by William Regal and Matt Bloom. The session has put several potential recruits on WWE’s radar, with four Chilean names standing out from the group: Ignacia Cifuentes Guzman, Cipriano Riquelme, Sammis Reyes and independent wrestler Roma Luchador, also known as Angelica Riadi.
None of the prospects has been announced as a WWE signing, and a tryout is only one step in a lengthy evaluation process. Still, the mix of athletic backgrounds represented by the group fits a familiar WWE recruiting pattern. The company has repeatedly looked beyond traditional wrestling pipelines for people with high-level sporting experience, public-facing confidence, distinctive presentation and the physical upside to develop for the ring.
The Bogotá session also reflects WWE’s continued interest in expanding its talent search throughout South America. With the company expected to scout the South American Games this week as well, the tryouts could be part of a broader push to find athletes capable of eventually joining its developmental system.
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William Regal and Matt Bloom lead the Bogotá evaluation
Regal and Bloom conducting the tryouts places two experienced talent evaluators at the center of the process. In WWE, a scouting session is not simply about identifying the person with the most polished in-ring skills on day one. Athletic movement, coachability, presence, communication, conditioning and the ability to absorb instruction can all be meaningful factors for prospects who are new to professional wrestling.
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That framework is particularly relevant to the names identified from the Bogotá tryout. Only one of the four, Roma Luchador, comes from an independent wrestling background. The others arrive with experience in elite athletics, media and competition outside the wrestling business. WWE has long made that type of conversion a major part of its recruiting strategy, particularly when a prospect already has a track record of performing under pressure.
South America has produced wrestlers who have earned international recognition, and WWE’s current roster includes Chilean star Stephanie Vaquer. A tryout in Colombia gives the company an opportunity to assess regional athletes directly rather than relying solely on video, resumes or outside recommendations. It also gives invited participants a chance to demonstrate whether their skills can translate into WWE’s training environment.
Ignacia Cifuentes Guzman brings a rare combination of athletics and media experience
Ignacia Cifuentes Guzman has one of the most varied backgrounds among the prospects identified from the session. She is a member of Chile’s national fencing team, competed in connection with Miss Universe in 2024, is a medical student and has television experience.
Fencing is a discipline that requires timing, balance, footwork, reactions and composure. Those skills do not automatically create a professional wrestler, but they can offer a strong athletic base for the physical demands of training. The sport’s emphasis on movement and spatial awareness may be especially valuable in a setting where prospects are asked to learn unfamiliar drills quickly.
Her pageant and television work could be equally notable from a presentation standpoint. WWE performers need more than athletic credentials; they are expected to communicate on camera, connect with an audience and develop a recognizable identity. Cifuentes Guzman’s existing experience in competitive and public-facing environments gives her a profile that is different from a prospect whose résumé is built strictly around sports.
Her medical studies add another dimension to an already broad résumé. WWE has not indicated what stage she has reached in its evaluation of her, but Cifuentes Guzman is clearly the kind of multidimensional candidate whose background can attract attention during an international tryout.
Cipriano Riquelme’s hammer-throwing background offers obvious physical upside
Cipriano Riquelme enters the conversation as a championship hammer thrower. Strength events have historically been a natural area for professional wrestling scouting because they often produce athletes with power, explosiveness, competitive discipline and experience training for peak physical performance.
The hammer throw is a highly technical event despite its reputation as a display of sheer strength. It demands rotational control, coordination and the ability to generate force through the entire body. In wrestling terms, those athletic traits could provide a foundation for learning lifts, throws and other power-based elements of ring training, although the transition would still require extensive work.
A hammer-throw background also gives Riquelme a potentially distinctive starting point should he advance in wrestling. WWE has often drawn on an athlete’s genuine history when building a presentation for television. The precedent goes back decades, including Kerry Von Erich’s discus experience, which became part of the wider image of an athlete whose family legacy was central to his wrestling career.
Riquelme would not need to follow any previous formula for his own identity, and there is no indication that WWE has mapped out a character direction for him. But his championship credentials supply an authentic detail that could be useful if he proves capable of making the shift from track and field to sports entertainment.
Sammis Reyes has a familiar crossover route into wrestling
Sammis Reyes is another prospect with a background that will be recognizable to wrestling fans. He played in the NFL, and he also has college basketball experience. His football career was affected by knee issues, and he previously turned down a WWE tryout in Orlando while he remained focused on his NFL ambitions.
That earlier decision makes the Bogotá opportunity notable. Reyes now appears to be at a point where a pivot toward wrestling could be more realistic. NFL and college basketball experience can bring valuable physical tools, including size, coordination, contact-sport familiarity and a background in structured team environments. At the same time, wrestling training presents a separate set of challenges, from ring positioning and timing to safely working with a partner in front of a live audience.
WWE has successfully recruited athletes from football backgrounds in the past, making Reyes’ résumé an understandable fit for a tryout environment. His experience in more than one major sport also suggests that he has already navigated demanding competitive settings. Whether that translates to a developmental opportunity will depend on the evaluation that follows, not simply the sports listed on his résumé.
The fact that Reyes once declined an Orlando tryout is also a reminder that timing matters in recruitment. A prospect can be intriguing to WWE for years without becoming available or ready to fully commit to the demanding transition. The Bogotá session may offer Reyes a chance to explore that possibility under different circumstances.
Roma Luchador arrives with direct wrestling experience and a key connection
Angelica Riadi, who performs as Roma Luchador, has a different starting point from the other three prospects. She is already an independent wrestler, meaning she brings some existing experience in the profession rather than beginning exclusively as an athlete from another field.
That experience can be valuable at a tryout because wrestling fundamentals, ring awareness and familiarity with the rhythm of performing may already be present to some degree. WWE’s developmental process can still require substantial adjustment for an independent wrestler, but an active background can allow evaluators to focus on how a performer might adapt to the company’s particular expectations.
Roma Luchador also has an established connection within WWE through Stephanie Vaquer, who has been advocating for her. Vaquer’s support does not guarantee a contract or a place in WWE’s system, but it can help place a talented wrestler in front of the right people. A recommendation carries the most weight when the performer being recommended is then able to show the qualities that justify it in person.
For Riadi, the Bogotá tryout provides an opportunity to combine that existing wrestling background with a major platform for evaluation. It also further underscores the Chilean presence within this group of prospects.
South American Games scouting could widen WWE’s search
WWE is also expected to scout the South American Games this week, potentially widening the pool beyond the athletes who were already invited to Bogotá. Multi-sport events can be productive recruiting grounds because they assemble competitors from a range of disciplines in one place, including sports that emphasize speed, strength, agility, combat readiness and individual performance.
The most important distinction is that scouting does not equal signing. WWE may identify prospects, conduct follow-up conversations or invite athletes to future sessions without making immediate public commitments. For Cifuentes Guzman, Riquelme, Reyes and Roma Luchador, being highlighted after the Bogotá tryouts suggests that each made enough of an impression to be viewed as a name worth watching.
The next steps remain uncertain. What is clear is that WWE’s South American trip has created a meaningful showcase for athletes and performers from the region, with Chilean talent particularly prominent among the early names to emerge. As the company continues its search through Colombia and at the South American Games, the Bogotá tryout could prove to be the beginning of a larger recruiting effort rather than a standalone event.
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.