Remembering Eddie Guerrero 15 years on...

I mean it sincerely when I say I think about him absolutely every single time I watch wrestling. He was honestly so unique, talented and charismatic and the void he left hasn't been filled yet. He and HBK are tied for my favourite of all time.

The match against Brock is one of the all time greats. Seeing it when I was younger, it was just magic. Rewatching it today I can't help get caught up in the emotion all over again.

Didn’t start watching until WrestleMania 21 when the Friday before everyone in my class was talking about

I made my parents order it and the opening match was Rey vs Eddie. I had never watched wrestling so I didn’t know who to root for but I was instantly drawn more to Rey.

I always was and I sadly had only 7 months to become aquatinted with Eddie but my little kid brain was too busy soaking up Rey as he was the face.

When Eddie became heel I did love his theme though lol I know how great he is but I have trouble looking at old footage of him as it makes me sad.

I still remember reading the article and calling over my mom to help me understand it because it said he was “survived by” so I thought he was alive until the she explained the wording and everything properly and that he didn’t actually survive 😞

Eddie is undoubtably one of the best ever. I started watching regularly in February 2000 so the Radicalz had just come on the scene but I remember one of the first storylines that stuck with me and had me keeping my eye on Eddie was his storyline with Chyna. I remember how charismatic and likeable (and unlikeable) he was throughout that time. He was such an entertaining character and wrestler that proved to be a solid upper-mid card hand in the early 2000's. I was naive to think that was his only place in WWE.

Seeing him rise the ranks from where he was in 2000 to seeing him winning the WWE Championship from Brock Lesnar in 2004 was almost surreal. It was one of those moments that stayed true to the "anything can happen in WWE" saying. Up until that point I always thought guys like Eddie had a ceiling over them that they wouldn't be able to break through so when he won the title it felt like a changing of the guard so to speak. I was so disappointed when his reign was cut short a few months later.

When Eddie was slated to take on Batista for the World Championship shortly before his death I remember having such a distinct feeling that Eddie was going to win the title again. Then as a lot of other fans discovered on WWE.com, Eddie had passed away. I can't say I was necessarily devastated since it's difficult for me to feel that level anguish over a TV personality I've never met (to each their own on how people process this kind of event), but I do remember feeling shocked and sad that he would no longer be around. Then I watched the Raw tribute and that's really when it sunk in. Seeing his family, friends, and colleagues share their memories was tough. Especially when Stephanie McMahon more or less confirmed Eddie was going to win back the World Championship.

I remember both tribute shows being really sad but really entertaining, seeing dream matches like Rey Mysterio vs. Shawn Michaels. For those two nights all storylines were put aside and the primary focus was paying tribute to Eddie with some really great matches in his honour. To this day it seems WWE is still looking for a Hispanic talent on-par with Eddie Guerrero, but I think at this point it's clear there will have only ever been one Latino Heat.

I loved his Lie Cheat Steal gimmick. That was the most fun I had watching Eddie. If it was loosening his boots to get out of an ankle lock, or hitting the chair on the mat to get a win over Mr. Kennedy. Great Times!!