Corey Graves just dropped a wild behind-the-scenes detail about one of AAA’s biggest matches of 2026 — he wasn’t even in Mexico when he called it. The WWE commentator revealed that he called the bloody El Grande Americano vs. “Original” El Grande Americano Mask vs. Mask main event live from a conference room in Turin, Italy at 4 A.M.
The match took place on May 30, 2026 at AAA Noche de Los Grandes inside Arena Monterrey in Monterrey, Mexico. Ludwig Kaiser’s El Grande Americano faced Chad Gable’s “Original” El Grande Americano after a rivalry that had stretched for roughly a year and turned Gable into a full-blown villain with the Mexican audience.
During his September 9 appearance on the Mark Hoke Show, Graves first explained just how much the story had grown and credited JBL, who worked alongside him on commentary.
“I appreciate that. I love working with John. It’s an honor. We’ve become friends over the years. I get to work with him back, you know, as a three-man booth a handful of times. Um, so John’s been invaluable to me as my broadcast partner. But to go back to the mask versus mask thing, that was really the culmination of basically a year-long story, if not a little longer, that I truly think the reality behind the story is more intriguing than what played out on screen.”
Graves said the story itself had become a classic lucha libre hero-versus-villain battle, with the Original El Grande Americano becoming hated while Kaiser’s version was embraced by the Mexican audience.
“On screen was very much a classic good guy versus bad guy or in lucha libre rudo versus technico, villain versus hero story. Original El Grande Americano became a full-blown villain to the Mexican people, whereas the one and only El Grande Americano now really embraced Mexican culture and Lucha Libre is so deeply ingrained in Mexican culture that it sounds silly to say something like pro wrestling can reach these heights and have this outreach to fans to where the El Grande Americano now, the one and only, is basically like a Mexican national hero, at least in the confines of the wrestling world.”
Then Graves dropped the part fans watching at home would have never known. While the action was unfolding in Monterrey, he was thousands of miles away preparing for WWE Clash in Italy, which took place the following day, May 31, at Turin’s Inalpi Arena.
“I don’t think anybody could have predicted what an insane success it turned out to be. But at the end of the day, here’s the irony. I don’t think I’ve ever actually told anybody this publicly. I called that match live as it happened from Turin, Italy because I was in Italy for a PLE, our Clash in Italy, which was taking place the next morning.”
That meant Graves was sitting in a conference room in the middle of the night calling one of AAA’s most emotional matches of the year.
“So, we went live at 4:00 a.m. in Italy. In the middle of the night, I was in a conference room calling that match as it took place. And that to me speaks volumes for how magical it truly was because here I am on the other side of the globe, literally at 4:00 in the morning, I barely know which way is up.”
Graves said the distance, lack of sleep and unusual setup didn’t matter once the match got going. He became completely wrapped up in what Gable and Kaiser were doing.
“And I got so captivated and so caught up in that matchup that what those two did was absolute magic. And I think that will live on as one of the greatest lucha matches in history, as well as one of the most important moments and matches as pertains to WWE’s partnership with Triple A.”
Graves also opened up about the reality of WWE working with AAA, admitting there had been some issues behind the scenes as both sides adjusted to working together.
“Obviously WWE acquired them prior to WrestleMania last year and there’s been a lot of trial and error. It’s a very different culture. Their production side of things is very different than how we do things. So, there have been a lot of growing pains, a lot of communication struggles and difficulties, but for Mask versus Mask to play out as it did on that stage at the right possible moment, I think we’re going to look back and say that’s what really lit the fuse on the rocket that has become Triple A since then.”
When Hoke asked how Graves managed to capture the atmosphere while sitting in another country, Graves explained that remote commentary isn’t new to him. WWE’s production team was able to set everything up despite him already being booked for Clash in Italy.
“I have the ability to call basically any show at any place on earth at any given time. I’ve got a setup upstairs in my house. But again, I was on the road. We had Clash in Italy, which had already been booked for months. I was already booked for it and the mask versus mask Noche de los Grandes event’s happening. And somebody said to me, ‘How are you planning on doing this?’”
Graves said WWE’s production crew got him connected, but admitted calling lucha libre remotely can be difficult because he has to imagine what the atmosphere feels like inside the venue. This time, he didn’t have to imagine anything.
“So I made a few phone calls to our production team, which obviously is world class, and they got me all set up. And again, it’s tricky because I call a lot of these lucha events remotely. TripleMania obviously I’ll be there physically, which that makes a world of difference even from my job, from my perspective.”
The match itself turned into a brutal fight featuring weapons, blood, torn masks and interference. Kaiser ultimately survived Gable’s Chaos Theory, then caught Gable after he crashed shoulder-first into the ring post and nailed him with a running headbutt for the three-count. Gable was forced to unmask afterward, officially revealing himself as Chad Gable and acknowledging Kaiser as the true El Grande Americano.
For Graves, however, the biggest compliment he could give the two men was that they managed to make a veteran who has spent almost three decades around wrestling forget that he was sitting in a conference room on the other side of the world.
“What played out, I didn’t have to pretend. I didn’t have to ask myself, ‘What would I be feeling in this moment?’ I felt it, and that is the highest compliment I can give for someone who — I’ve been in this industry, I mean, God, I had my first match when I was 14 years old. So, pushing on 30 years in this industry in some way, shape, or form. So, for two guys to go out and put on a performance like they did, that’s the highest compliment I can give them is they made this grizzled old man feel something right here in my heart.”
Fans watching Noche de Los Grandes had no clue Graves was calling the chaos from Italy at four in the morning, and that’s probably the best testament to how locked in he was. Months later, Graves still sees the match as a turning point for AAA under WWE and one of the greatest lucha matches he’s ever witnessed — even if he witnessed it from thousands of miles away.
What did you think of El Grande Americano vs. Chad Gable at AAA Noche de Los Grandes, and does knowing Corey Graves called the match from Italy at 4 A.M. make his performance even more impressive? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
This transcript was produced exclusively for Ringside News from the original recording. Republishing the transcription in full is prohibited. When using excerpts, provide prominent credit and a link to this article.
