Ludwig most likely will defeat Chad. And would become one and only.. .

Somehow, El Grande Americano has become one of the most popular wrestlers in the world. What started out as a horrible gimmick played by Chad Gable on WWE TV became something different when Ludwig Kaiser (real name Marcel Barthel) went under the mask. With WWE now owning Mexico's Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide, Kaiser as El Grande Americano is one of their biggest stars. He's so good, in fact, that although Kaiser had some success and plenty of potential, there is no way Barthel can ever be Ludwig Kaiser again. He is no more. El Grande Americano is where his future lies.

Ludwig Kaiser Was Part of Gunther's Imperium Faction

Kaiser wrestled in NXT UK under his real name of Marcel Barthel.

Kaiser and Giovanni Vinci were Gunther's henchmen in Imperium.

The end of Imperium gave Kaiser a chance to become a singles star.

German wrestler Marcel Barthel joined WWE in 2017 under the NXT banner. He actually went by his real name for a few years, and was in Walter's Imperium faction with Fabian Aichner in NXT UK. Bit by bit, all three superstars would undergo a name change. Aichner became Giovanni Vinci, Walter became Gunther, and Barthel turned into Ludwig Kaiser.

Guther's two henchmen were two-time NXT Tag Team Champions, but on the main roster, they were the background supporters to Gunther, with Imperium being all about his dominance, especially his record-setting Intercontinental Championship reign. Vinci, sadly, had a ceiling, and was never going to go very far in WWE. When he was released, it wasn't much of a surprise. Kaiser, however, was a different story. Having spent too long in the shadows, the end of Imperium meant he could finally break out as a singles star. He has done just that, but in a way no one could have ever expected.

Ludwig Kaiser Became El Grande Americano When Chad Gable Got Injured

Chad Gable's version of El Grande Americano on Raw was a comedy gimmick.

Kaiser's version of the character leads a faction called Los Americanos with the former Pete Dunne and Tyler Bate.

El Grande Americano started working in AAA.

Chad Gable's entire WWE career has seen him right on the cusp of greatness many times. After achieving success as part of American Alpha with Jason Jordan, Gable's time as a singles star crashed with the absolutely awful Shorty G gimmick. However, rather than wilting, Gable gave the horrible character his all and was rewarded for it. He became the leader of the fun Alpha Academy, but a building feud with Otis went nowhere for some reason. He almost became the Intercontinental Champion as well, only to fall short there too.

Gable then began a storyline which saw him trying to learn from lucha libre. This led to the debut of El Grande Americano. It was a comedy character, like the worst of Vince McMahon creative, and everyone knew Gable was under the mask. Still, Gable tried his best and the character began to grow on fans. Then Gable got hurt.

This should have been the end of El Grande Americano, but WWE kept the gimmick going by putting Ludwig Kaiser under the mask, the joke being that he was supposed to act like he was the same character even though he looked much different. The gimmick started to work a little bit on Raw, even leading to a faction, with Pete Dunne and Tyler Bate going under masks as well to become Los Americanos. There was only so far this gimmick could go though if not for AAA.

El Grande Americano Has Become AAA's Biggest Babyface

WWE announced that they had bought AAA during WrestleMania 41.

El Grande Americano won the Rey De Reyes tournament.

Kaiser is playing the character so well that he can't go back to his former name.

AAA had been a prestigious Mexican lucha libre wrestling promotion for decades. In 2025, during WrestleMania 41, it was announced that WWE had bought the company. A lot of hardcore fans weren't happy, justifiably worried TKO would ruin it. For the most part, although it has some WWE touches now, AAA still has the fun matches they were known for and respects the art. It was so easy for El Grande Americano to be a heel as a German wrestler presented as a luchador in Mexico. But the man behind the mask, Ludwig Kaiser, is such a great in-ring talent that fans took to him. He is now arguably the most loved wrestler in the company.

This month, Americano beat Chad Gable's original version of the character to win the Rey De Reyes tournament. Fans roared, and whether it was scripted or not, the new El Grande Americano got emotional in the ring. He's no longer portrayed as a joke. He's a full-on luchador who respects the Mexican audience. There was even a photo recently of him holding a baby at an event. Ludwig Kaiser is giving his all to the character. For the likes of Chad Gable, Pete Dunne, and Tyler Bate, hopefully their masks can come off, and they can return to their former names one day. As the weeks go by, the same scenario is becoming impossible for El Grande Americano. Ludwig Kaiser is done. This is who Marcel Barthel is now. And that's a good thing.