Santos Escobar was a part of the latest post-WrestleMania releases in WWE and it seems that he was close to joining Mexican promotion CMLL before re-signing with WWE last year.

Escobar was a free agent last year after his deal with WWE expired, but the TKO-owned promotion offered him a great deal to keep him in the promotion, as per “Fightful Select.” The report claimed that the former “WWE NXT” star was eager to join CMLL after his WWE contract expired. If he had joined CMLL, the report added, Escobar could’ve featured in AEW thanks to the close ties between the two promotions. The former NXT Cruiserweight Champion had featured in CMLL over a decade ago before becoming a key fixture in AAA and Lucha Underground.

Escobar featured in AAA since re-signing with WWE, but hadn’t wrestled on the main roster. The Mexican star was reportedly backstage at a WWE main roster show but wasn’t used, with WWE instead choosing to feature him in AAA. His last match came at a AAA show in March, where he aggravated the injury that later required surgery.

The report by “Fightful” also added that WWE has allowed Escobar to use its Performance Center to rehab his injury, and it is believed that he will recover by the time his 90-day no-compete clause expires. Reports from a few weeks ago had stated that Escobar was unhappy at how he was being used by WWE, just months after he had signed a lucrative deal with them.