WWE had huge expectations for Carlito when he signed a developmental contract early in his career. Carlito had a lot of hype for his natural charisma, impressive athleticism, and pedigree as the second-generation son of Carlos Colon. Fans reacted well to Carlito, and things appeared to be moving forward in a great manner for the promising talent due to Vince McMahon's support.
However, things never panned out as expected with WWE releasing him in his prime. Carlito couldn’t move into a top spot or contend for a world title and eventually wore out his welcome. WWE fans seemed excited at the potential of him coming back in 2021, but that didn’t even work out. Carlito may just be WWE’s biggest missed opportunity when looking at what could have been and how it went wrong.
Carlito Had An Amazing WWE Debut
WWE did Carlito right in the early stages with a great introduction. Carlito was established as a heel following months of vignettes of him on a beach being jerks to others. The first night in a WWE ring for Carlito featured him defeating John Cena in Cena’s hometown of Boston to win the United States Championship. Cena was hot at the time with his rapping gimmick, so Carlito beating him for a title on night one gave him instant credibility.
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The first few months of Carlito’s WWE run featured him going unbeaten after winning the gold. Carlito became a respected United States Champion for victories over Eddie Guerrero, Rob Van Dam and Rey Mysterio before dropping it back to Cena. Fans enjoyed the natural heel charisma of Carlito that added to matches and delivered strong promos.
WWE used Carlito’s first WrestleMania to have him interrupt Roddy Piper and Steve Austin at WrestleMania 21 to gain more heat. The momentum continued with Carlito getting the better of Big Show in a feud before moving to Raw where he once again won the Intercontinental Championship on his first night moving in the brand split draft. Things appeared to be ascending for Carlito having momentum and getting sent to the bigger show, but that’s where the struggles began.
Carlito Reportedly Ruined His Own WWE Career
The push of Carlito continued on Raw with him even challenging for the WWE Championship and making it to the final two in an Elimination Chamber match. WWE treated Carlito and Chris Masters as the next two main eventers when placing them together against bigger names. Unfortunately, the time as a tag team started to hurt their respective ascensions.
Carlito ending his time teaming with Masters to turn face created a character shift that just never connected with fans the same. WWE began to stop and start their use of Carlito with reports backstage painting Carlito as lazy. A wrestler can make or break their career by how they perform in major opportunities, and Carlito witnessed things trending downhill.
Forgotten storylines like romances with Trish Stratus and Torrie Wilson ended his face run in disappointment. The rumor that WWE felt Carlito was lazy and unmotivated seemed to be confirmed during a program with Ric Flair when dropping the Intercontinental Championship to the legend. Carlito responded by publicly criticizing WWE’s use of him in interviews to completely lose any support he had from creative.
Carlito's Potential Surpassed His WWE Success
Carlito’s final major feud in WWE as a singles star came in a disappointing effort against Triple H. The matches and promos never created the feel of Carlito having a chance. WWE essentially gave up on the original plans of Carlito becoming a major singles star by placing him in a tag with his brother Primo Colon after calling him up.
The Colons did get a solid push unifying the WWE Tag Team Championship and World Tag Team Championship. However, Carlito continued to add to his negative reputation backstage and eventually violated the wellness policy to get suspended. WWE gave him the ultimatum of going to rehab or losing his job, and Carlito opted to get his release.
Unlike many other relevant names, Carlito was absent from major promotions for over a decade until his 2021 Royal Rumble surprise appearance. Fans had hopes of Carlito re-signing with a tag match on Raw the following night, but his real chance ended over ten years ago. The once-promising superstar had the tools to become the next major success story. WWE couldn’t figure out how to motivate and progress Carlito, and it caused him to become an all-time disappointment.
