El Clon is new to AEW, but fans might recognize his work from another wrestling promotion.
Saturday’s episode of AEW Collision marked the debut of “El Clon,” who made their presence felt during Hologram’s match with Jay Lethal. Hologram picked up the win over Lethal, but his celebration was short-lived, however, as the lights began to flicker in the arena.
Web coding appeared on the screen, followed by a thumbs-up emoji and the words, ‘ACCESS GRANTED’ underneath it. The last part is notable, as a similar message was advertised during the ROH Death Before Dishonor pay-per-view.
Now, Luchablog is reporting that Arez is the wrestler behind the El Clon gimmick. Arez is best-known to domestic fans for his work in MLW between 2021-2022. He has also worked for Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide, where he is a former AAA World Tag Team Champion and a former Mixed World Tag Team Champion. Additionally, Arez has appeared for TNA/IMPACT Wrestling (due to the partnership with AAA) and has recently worked for GCW.
The connection with Hologram is noteworthy. The man who portrays that character, Aramis, has often been linked to Arez in Mexico and MLW. The pair enjoyed a lengthy feud several years ago, and they also held the GALLI Lucha Libre Tag Team Championship together.
AEW has had plans for El Clon for some time
AEW first applied to trademark “El Clon” in September 2024. According to Luchablog, AEW was interested in working with Arez then, but “nothing really came from it.” However, it’s believed that Arez’s participation in May’s ROH and ACTION DEAN~!!!2 event allowed him to get scouted more closely by wrestling in front of AEW people running that show. Arez & Gringo Loco, competing as Los Desperados, defeated The Coven Of The Goat’s Jaden Newman & Tank on the show.
WWE also showed interest in Arez, and Arez ultimately chose to sign with AEW. It’s unclear what other plans AEW has for Arez. One thing that might complicate things is a foot injury he suffered this weekend. Luchablog noted that Arez suffered a foot injury Saturday night for RIOT, just hours after El Clon’s debut vignette. However, it was noted that while the injury included swelling, the severity of the injury was downplayed. Arez believes he’ll only miss a few days.
ROH Death Before Dishonor is available to stream for free on YouTube. The event was released as a free option due to the streaming issues that plagued the live broadcast of the event.
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