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During the final years of WWE's ECW brand, it was clear that the brand was less about showcasing ECW's hardcore lineage and more about showcasing the new stars of the next generation. Superstars like CM Punk, John Morrison, The Miz, Sheamus, and many more got the platform to showcase their potential on WWE's ECW. However, other wrestlers got showcased on ECW and didn't amount to much. Even though some people thought they could have gone to bigger things, their fifteen minutes of fame were over sooner than expected. Among the best examples of this is the forgotten talent of Ricky Ortiz, a former professional football player who transitioned into the world of professional wrestling.
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WWE's ECW Was A Launching Pad For Next Generation Superstars
ECW may not have taken off the way WWE hoped it would when the company relaunched it as a brand in 2006. However, the one thing that fans and critics can agree on is that ECW allowed certain superstars to make a name for themselves in the business. Although ECW was a lower-level brand than Raw and SmackDown, it was still the main roster as it allowed WWE fans to get familiar with the potential stars of Monday Night Raw and Friday Night SmackDown in the future.
If it wasn't for ECW, it's hard to imagine that superstars like CM Punk would have been able to succeed at the level that he did on his main roster runs on Raw or SmackDown, as he fit right in with ECW when first debuting on the brand in 2006. Superstars like The Miz, who was on the SmackDown brand before arriving in ECW, managed to capture tag team gold with John Morrison as the two became a successful tag team unit in ECW. And who can forget the former ECW Champion and one of the most prominent WWE superstars in today's generation, Bobby Lashley, who instantly rose to main event stardom when he moved to ECW in late 2006, even going as far as taking part in the highly-promoted Battle of the Billionaires match at WrestleMania 23.
There's no doubt that ECW became a launching pad for many WWE superstars. However, not every superstar on ECW could get launched into WWE stardom. For instance, one superstar who debuted on the ECW brand that didn't amount to success was Ricky Ortiz, as many fans probably don't remember his WWE run.
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WWE ECW's Forgotten Superstar, Ricky Ortiz
For those who don't know much about Ricky Ortiz, or Richard Young as his real name, he played professional football for almost a decade before signing with WWE. As he technically played in the NFL when he joined the Kansas City Chiefs' practice squad in 1998, Ortiz played for many professional organizations, including the Arena Football League and even Vince McMahon's original XFL league in 2001. Ortiz played his final season in the AFL before moving on to professional wrestling.
Not long after retiring from professional football, Ricky Ortiz went into professional wrestling by signing with WWE, joining the company's Ohio Valley Wrestling developmental system in late 2006. Ortiz may not have had much experience when first signing with WWE, but considering his impressive 6"4 and 240-pound physical build, it's no surprise that WWE tried to push him as a big deal on the main roster.
In mid-2008, Ricky Ortiz made his main roster debut on the ECW brand as Atlas Ortiz, defeating Armando Estrada in his first match. He quickly changed his name to Ricky Ortiz a week later, soon establishing himself as the Latin Assassin. As Ricky Ortiz spent the rest of 2008 and early 2009 on ECW, it initially appeared that he would be pushed when he racked up a bit of an undefeated streak after debuting.
The Downfall Of Ricky Ortiz In ECW
However, as Ricky Ortiz didn't receive much creativity regarding his character, there was only so much he could do. Less than a year after debuting, it was clear that Ricky Ortiz's momentum started losing steam. And when he got drafted to SmackDown in mid-2009 and turned heel, that was the final nail in the coffin for Ricky Ortiz's WWE career.
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Ricky Ortiz may be one of the most forgotten superstars of the 21st century, but he did get a chance to perform for the biggest wrestling company in the world despite lacking experience. After getting released in 2009, he continued his wrestling career on the independent circuit, and he's now involved in producing wrestling shows after retiring from the ring.
