 Juan Echanove (qv) left the series to act in some movie projects.  His character was not removed from the script, but instead was  played by El Gran Wyoming (qv). As Wyoming is not physically  similar to Echanove, the writers included a plot where the character  has an accident and undergoes intense surgery, totally changing his  appearance (thou Wyoming jokingly has explained in interviews that  he was selected because of his supposed resemblance to Echanove).  Although Echanove was clearly overweight and Wyoming wasnt, the  character kept his nickname "Gordi" (Spanish for "Fatty").