WWE Forced To Change Plans Following Popular Star’s Injury

An injury led to a change in plans for a veteran WWE superstar.

At the AAA Noche De Los Grandes event on May 30th, the Original El Grande Americano faced El Grande Americano in an intense Mask vs. Mask Match. El Grande Americano got the win over the Original, who was then unmasked as WWE veteran Chad Gable.

Most WWE viewers already knew that Chad Gable was the Original El Grande Americano, and they know that Ludwig Kaiser has done a great job as the current El Grande Americano, but it was still treated as a big deal when Gable was unmasked.

Since being unmasked, Chad Gable has become more popular than ever during his decade-plus-long WWE career. This past Monday on WWE Raw, Gable tried to apologize to Alpha Academy’s Otis, Maxxine Dupri, and Akira Tozawa, but the trio wasn’t very receptive, especially Dupri. Gable’s apology tour will likely continue in the weeks ahead.

The El Grande Americano story took some twists and turns along the way after Chad Gable suffered a shoulder injury in June 2025 and missed about six months following surgery. Gable returned in early 2026, and the story between Original and current Americano was off and running.

In an interview with Good Karma Wrestling, Gable spoke about the El Grande Americano story becoming a big deal and if he expected it.

“Not a chance. You know, no way. I mean, that’s one of the best things, I think, about wrestling, right? You just never know. You never know what it is that’s going to land, what it is that the audience is going to latch onto, or why, really.”

Chad Gable’s Injury Actually Helped WWE’s El Grande Americano Story

As he continued, Chad Gable talked about the injury that sidelined him and led to the story changing, with Ludwig Kaiser taking over the El Grande Americano role. Gable also teased that there could have been another direction for the story if he hadn’t been injured.

“When you really think about the path that we had to go on to get to that point, it would have never happened if it weren’t for so many different variables there. Someday, I think everyone will become privy to how many there actually were.

There’s a lot more than people even know about. But something as obvious as my injury, right, and me having to go away — if I hadn’t gotten injured, none of this would have ever taken the route that it did. It changed the direction.”

“And it’s just magic, man. That’s what wrestling is. That’s part of what makes it so special. The story isn’t written from the beginning. The ending isn’t determined from the beginning. We can go a million different directions, and sometimes it creates magic.”

As for his current WWE role, Gable is a babyface on the Raw brand with a new theme song and the hope is that the fans will continue to support him in the weeks and months ahead.

Also Read: Chad Gable Named Best Wrestler In The World By WWE Hall Of Famer