Chad Gable’s redemption story is one of WWE’s best storylines in recent months.
At least on paper.
After getting beaten by Penta in Penta’s WWE debut in January 2025, Gable took on the persona of El Grande Americano, a faux luchador who mocked Mexican culture and lucha libre. After a year of this charade, he was humbled by a second El Grande Americano, who represented the people and traditions Gable railed against.
That defeat led Gable to see the error of his ways, and he has since tried to make amends
with everyone he offended.
As he embarked on an apology tour, he got no pushback from the luchadores. Instead, they happily forgave him — all within a span of just seven weeks.
While Gable did rescue stars like Rey Mysterio, that’s still not a lot of time to suddenly become a changed man, especially without more people holding Gable accountable for his past sins.
But even if you accept WWE’s accelerated redemption timeline, the final chapter of this fairy tale represents a major problem: Penta.
Gable is poised to complete his journey against Penta at SummerSlam, which takes place in Gable’s hometown of Minneapolis. It’s also for the Intercontinental Championship, a title that has eluded Gable for years.
Besides being one of WWE’s most popular stars, Penta is a fighting champion. Since winning the gold in February from Dominik Mysterio, he has defended it eight times on TV and streaming specials. In that time, Penta has arguably become the face of lucha libre to WWE’s general audience.
And that’s where this story misses.
Gable’s redemption should come against someone who represents his former self, not someone who embodies the ideals he’s come to respect.
What’s so feel-good about that?
