Carly Colón - Professional Wrestling Career - World Wrestling Entertainment (2003–2010) - Raw; Intercontinental Champion (2005–2008)

Raw; Intercontinental Champion (2005–2008)

Carlito was drafted to the Raw brand in the 2005 WWE Draft Lottery, where he defeated Shelton Benjamin for the Intercontinental Championship in his debut match for the brand. He then lost the Intercontinental title to Ric Flair at Unforgiven. Towards the end of 2005, Carlito was involved in a brand rivalry which led to him discontinuing Carlito's Cabana. The angle concluded with Carlito wrestling for Team Raw against Team SmackDown! in a ten man tag team match at the Survivor Series.

In late 2005, Carlito was added to angles involving the WWE Championship. After defeating Shelton Benjamin in a qualifying match, Carlito was added to the main event at New Year's Revolution in early 2006, the Elimination Chamber match. He was one of the final two wrestlers remaining, after eliminating Kane, Chris Masters and Shawn Michaels. He then lost the match to John Cena.

Carlito appeared in another World Wrestling Council show that took place on March 15, 2006 in Carolina, Puerto Rico. He defeated Tyson Tomko, and he hosted an edition of Carlito's Cabana with Victor Jovica and Carlos Colón.

Following New Year's Revolution, Carlito and Chris Masters joined forces as a tag team. Together they competed against Big Show and Kane for the World Tag Team Championship at WrestleMania 22. Carlito and Masters lost when Masters accidentally attacked Carlito. Following the match, Carlito confronted Masters, igniting a feud between them. Carlito then turned face when he attacked Chris Masters after his "Masterlock Challenge" the next night on Raw. This storyline came to a conclusion at Backlash, where Carlito defeated Masters via an illegal assist from the ropes.

At Vengeance, Carlito fought in a Triple Threat match against Shelton Benjamin and Johnny Nitro for Benjamin's Intercontinental title. Nitro won the match after pulling Carlito outside of the ring and pinning him. Following Vengeance, Carlito began an on-screen relationship with Trish Stratus, turning face as a result. He also engaged in a short feud with Johnny Nitro and Melina, which ended after Carlito and Stratus defeated Nitro and Melina in a mixed tag team match at Saturday Night's Main Event. Carlito next feuded with Randy Orton, following a spot where Orton attempted to attack Stratus during a backstage segment. The two wrestlers were booked for a match at Unforgiven and a rematch on Raw; Orton won both matches. The feud concluded in a match at WWE’s annual Tribute to the Troops event, where Carlito won by pinfall. The angle involving Carlito's relationship with Trish Stratus lasted until Stratus' retirement from wrestling following Unforgiven.

In the final months of 2006, Carlito competed in several matches involving the Intercontinental Championship. His involvement in this angle ended at Cyber Sunday 2006, after being elected by the fans to face Jeff Hardy for the championship. Carlito, however, lost the match. During this time period Carlito's gimmick underwent a slight change and was sold as a "ladies man", eventually getting involved in another fictional relationship with Torrie Wilson. During this time, Colón was present at "Lockout", a special event presented by the World Wrestling Council that took place on December 16, 2006. At this event, he defeated Jon Heidenreich to become Universal Heavyweight Champion, but was stripped of the championship minutes later. Carlito participated in the 2007 Royal Rumble, where he was eliminated by The Great Khali. Following the Royal Rumble, Carlito started a feud with Ric Flair, in which Flair insulted Carlito for leaving a show early by claiming that he had no heart, no passion and was undeserving of his spot on the roster. After Carlito challenged and lost to Flair in a match, they were booked as a tag team, with Flair serving as a mentor to Carlito. The team was involved in a Money in the Bank qualifying match which was declared a "no contest" after The Great Khali interfered. This led to a triple threat match the following week which included and was won by Randy Orton.

Prior to the WrestleMania 23, Colón expressed dissatisfaction with WWE management in an interview for not having plans to book him to appear at the pay-per-view and criticized their methods for selecting performers to push, making reference to backstage politics. Carlito, however, did participate in a dark match at WrestleMania, winning in a tag team match with Flair as his partner against the team of Chavo Guerrero and Gregory Helms. The team also lost a number one contender's match for the World Tag Team Championship against Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch. Carlito turned on Flair after the loss, which turned him heel again. Their feud ended with a match at Judgment Day, where Carlito lost to Flair by submission. Colón appeared in the World Wrestling Council's Aniversario 2007 event where he faced Razor Ramon. As a way to promote the match, Ramon claimed that his character was an imitation of him, dubbing Carlito Mini Razor. Colón defeated Ramon with his Back Stabber finisher, in a match that included interference by the then-Universal Heavyweight Champion Apollo.

Following his feud with Flair he was involved in angles with The Sandman and Triple H. He then lost to Triple H at Unforgiven 2007 in a no disqualification match where the no disqualification rule only applied to Carlito. In late 2007, Colón requested his release from the WWE as he was unhappy with the direction of his character. Following a meeting with Vince McMahon, however, he was convinced to stay. On December 10, 2007, he was featured in a ladder match at the Raw 15th Anniversary against Jeff Hardy for the WWE Intercontinental Championship, which Hardy won. Carlito defeated Cody Rhodes to qualify for the money in the bank ladder match at Wrestlemania 24. He failed to win at the event. Carlito then formed a tag team with Santino Marella. The team was placed in several matches involving the World Tag Team Championship, twice being named the number one contenders; however, they lost the relevant championship matches.