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WWE star Ludwig Kaiser arrested in Florida
By Ryan Gaydos
Published May 21, 2026
WWE star Marcel Barthel, who performs under the names Ludwig Kaiser and El Grande Americano, was arrested in Florida this week.
Barthel, 35, was arrested on a misdemeanor battery charge on Wednesday, according to an arrest affidavit obtained by Fox News Digital.
He was reportedly booked into the Orange County Jail before he was released on $1,000 bond, the New York Post reported.
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Ludwig Kaiser speaks into a microphone during WWE Friday Night SmackDown at Uber Arena in Berlin, Germany, on Aug. 30, 2024. (WWE/Getty Images)
The wrestler was allegedly involved in an altercation with another man before he was arrested, Fightful reported.
Fox News Digital reached out to WWE for comment.
Barthel’s attorneys filed a motion Wednesday to allow the wrestler to travel outside the country for work purposes, according to multiple reports. He flew back to Florida to turn himself in.
Barthel, who was born in Germany, joined the company in 2017 after time in Westside Xtreme Wrestling and Progress Wrestling. He was a part of the Imperium faction with Gunther as the leader and Fabian Aichner, who was later rebranded as Giovanni Vinci before he was released.
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Ludwig Kaiser makes his way to the ring during WWE Survivor Series: War Games at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, Canada, on Nov. 30, 2024. (WWE/Getty Images)
"Kaiser established himself as one of the German independent wrestling scene’s brightest prospects," his WWE profile read. "He joined the WWE Performance Center in summer 2017 and made his WWE Network debut a year later on NXT.
"Kaiser has since proven to be a true mat magician, as well as a no-nonsense competitor. With the posture of a steel pole and a facial expression that rarely deviates from the stern setting, Kaiser is practically unflappable — though on the rare occasion that he does lose his cool, he’s quick to let his opponents know by defiantly screaming ‘nein’ in their face. His ring excellence soon led to him aligning with the imposing Imperium faction with two NXT Tag Team Championship reigns under his belt."
He performed as Ludwig Kaiser before his character was repackaged as El Grande Americano when Chad Gable was injured. Since Gable returned, he was repackaged as the Original El Grande Americano and started to feud with Barthel’s El Grande Americano gimmick.
El Grande Americano faces off against El Grande Americano during WWE's Royal Rumble at Riyadh Season Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Jan. 31, 2026. (Joe Maher/WWE)
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Since then, he’s performed at Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide. El Grande Americano and Original El Grande Americano are set for an end to their heated rivalry with a mask vs. mask match at Noche de Los Grandes on May 30.
https://www.foxnews.com/sports/wwe-star-ludwig-kaiser-arrested-florida