Brian Adams (wrestler)
Encyclopedia
Brian Keith Adams was an American professional wrestler
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...

. Adams gained fame in the 1990s while performing for the World Wrestling Federation
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...

 (WWF), under the name Crush, and for World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. was an American professional wrestling promotion which existed from 1988 to 2001. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it began as a regional promotion affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance , named Jim Crockett Promotions until November 1988, when Ted Turner and...

 (WCW) under his given name.

Trained in Japan by Antonio Inoki
Antonio Inoki
is a Japanese professional wrestling promoter and retired professional wrestler and mixed martial artist who now resides between New York City and Tokyo. He was also the founder and former owner of New Japan Pro Wrestling before selling his controlling share in the promotion to Yukes...

, Adams was a two time WCW World Tag Team Champion
WCW World Tag Team Championship
The World Championship Wrestling Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling world tag team championship in World Championship Wrestling...

, as well as a one time holder of both the WWF World Tag Team Championship and the All Japan Pro Wrestling World Tag Team Championship
AJPW Unified World Tag Team Championship
The All Japan Pro Wrestling Unified World Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling tag team title in Japanese promotion All Japan Pro Wrestling...

, among other titles and accomplishments. In 2002, Adams briefly tried a career in boxing
Boxing
Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...

 until he was forced to retire due to back and shoulder injuries. Even though his cause of death was never officially confirmed, it was assumed he died from a drug overdose in 2007.

Early life

Brian Adams was born in Kona, Hawaii
Kailua-Kona, Hawai'i
Kailua is a census-designated place in Hawaii County, Hawaii, United States, in the North Kona District of the Island of Hawaii. The population was 11,975 at the 2010 census. It is the center of commerce and of the tourist industry on West Hawaii...

 and was raised in Kealakekua, Hawai'i
Kealakekua, Hawai'i
Kealakekua is a census-designated place in Hawaii County, Hawaii, United States. The population was 1,645 at the 2000 census.It was the subject of the 1933 popular song, "My Little Grass Shack in Kealakekua, Hawaii" by Bill Cogswell, Tommy Harrison and Johnny Noble which became a Hawaiian Music...

 and attended Konawaena High School
Konawaena High School
Konawaena High School is a public school located in the community of Kealakekua, Kona District, Hawaii County, Hawaii, United States. Konawaena means "the center of the leeward side" in the Hawaiian Language.-History:...

. After graduating from high school, Adams joined the military, where he began boxing. It was during his time in the military, while stationed in Japan, that he was also exposed to wrestling. Adams was trained in wrestling by famed Japanese wrestler and mixed martial artist Antonio Inoki
Antonio Inoki
is a Japanese professional wrestling promoter and retired professional wrestler and mixed martial artist who now resides between New York City and Tokyo. He was also the founder and former owner of New Japan Pro Wrestling before selling his controlling share in the promotion to Yukes...

. In 1986, after training in Japan, Adams came to the United States and began working in Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...

's Pacific Northwest Wrestling
Pacific Northwest Wrestling
Pacific Northwest Wrestling is the common name used to refer to several different professional wrestling companies, both past and present, based in Portland, Oregon, United States. The first such company was founded by Herb Owen in 1925...

 (PNW).

Pacific Northwest Wrestling (1986–1990)

In the Pacific Northwest Wrestling (PNW) promotion, he was given the nickname The American Ninja and was put in a tag team
Tag team
Tag team professional wrestling is a variation in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. A tag team may comprise two wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of established teams who wrestle regularly as a unit and have a team name...

 called "The Wrecking Crew" with Len Denton
Len Denton
Len Denton is a semi-retired professional wrestler, best known by his ring name The Grappler.While wrestling as The Grappler in Pacific Northwest Wrestling , his gimmick was a loaded boot, and later a loaded mask, which he had started wearing earlier in his career after losing a hair match and...

, who wrestled under a mask, billed as "The Grappler." Adams and Denton were the Pacific Northwest Tag Team Champions
NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship
The NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling championship sanctioned by the National Wrestling Alliance and defended in its member promotion Pacific Northwest Wrestling, which promoted shows in the U.S...

 for a time and worked a feud with the Southern Rockers, Steve Doll
Steve Doll
Steve Doll was an American professional wrestler, best known for his tenure in the World Wrestling Federation as Steven Dunn in the tag team Well Dunn.-Professional wrestling career:...

 and Rex King
Timothy Well
Timothy A. Smith is a retired American professional wrestler, better known by the ring names Rex King and Timothy Well. He wrestled in several promotions, including the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling . Much of his career was spent wrestling as a tag team with Steve...

. In 1990, he won the Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship
NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship
The NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship sanctioned by the National Wrestling Alliance and defended in its member promotion Pacific Northwest Wrestling, which promoted shows in the U.S...

 after winning a tournament final match against Larry Oliver in Portland on April 21, 1990 for the vacant title. He lost the title to Scott Norton
Scott Norton
Scott Michael Norton is an American semi-retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenures in World Championship Wrestling and New Japan Pro Wrestling.-Before wrestling:...

 on May 12, 1990 in Portland.

World Wrestling Federation (1990–1991)

In April 1990, while still working for the PNW, Adams debuted in the World Wrestling Federation
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...

 (WWF) as Crush, the third member of the WWF World Tag Team Championship team Demolition
Demolition (professional wrestling)
Demolition is a professional wrestling tag team most prominent during the late 1980s / early 1990s in the World Wrestling Federation made up of Ax , Smash , and later Crush . In WWF, Demolition were three-time Tag Team Champions, and hold the records for both the single longest tag title reign...

. With Adams joining Demolition, the stable exercised the Freebird Rule allowing any combination of the three to defend the tag team title, which allowed Crush to become a World Tag Team Champion without being involved in the match where the team won the title. At the SummerSlam
SummerSlam (1990)
SummerSlam was the third annual SummerSlam professional wrestling pay-per-view produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It took place on August 27, 1990 at The Spectrum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The card featured ten televised matches, including two main events...

 pay-per-view
Pay-per-view
Pay-per-view provides a service by which a television audience can purchase events to view via private telecast. The broadcaster shows the event at the same time to everyone ordering it...

 in 1990, Demolition, with new member Adams, lost the Tag Team title to The Hart Foundation
The Hart Foundation
The Hart Foundation referred to several teams or stables in the World Wrestling Federation , usually consisted of members or close friends of the Hart wrestling family from Canada....

 in a two out of three falls match with Adams getting pinned for the final fall to lose the title. After SummerSlam, Demolition resumed an earlier feud with The Legion of Doom
Road Warriors
The Road Warriors were a professional wrestling tag team composed of Michael "Hawk" Hegstrand and Joseph "Animal" Laurinaitis. They performed under the name "Road Warriors" in the American Wrestling Association, the National Wrestling Alliance, and World Championship Wrestling, and the name Legion...

. Adams continued to perform as part of Demolition until after WrestleMania VII
WrestleMania VII
WrestleMania VII was the seventh annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It took place on March 24, 1991 at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena in Los Angeles, California...

 where he and Smash lost to Genichiro Tenryu
Genichiro Tenryu
Genichiro Tenryu , real name Genichiro Shimada , is a Japanese professional wrestler. At age 13, he entered sumo wrestling and stayed there for 13 years, after which he turned to Western-style professional wrestling...

 and Koji Kitao
Koji Kitao
Kōji Kitao is a former sumo wrestler and professional wrestler, born in Mie, Japan. He was sumo's 60th Yokozuna, and the only yokozuna in sumo history not to win a top division tournament championship...

. After WrestleMania, the WWF decided to disband Demolition as a team.

Return to PNW (1991–1992)

Upon his departure from the WWF, Adams, who continued to use the Demolition Crush gimmick, returned to PNW. He was portrayed as a dominant wrestler, winning both the Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship and the Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship. Adams received the first of these two championships during this stint in the PNW while teaming with previous rival Steve Doll
Steve Doll
Steve Doll was an American professional wrestler, best known for his tenure in the World Wrestling Federation as Steven Dunn in the tag team Well Dunn.-Professional wrestling career:...

 and defeating The Bruise Brothers for the Tag Team Championship on July 27, 1991 in Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...

. They remained the champions until September 1, 1991 when they lost the title to The Grappler
Len Denton
Len Denton is a semi-retired professional wrestler, best known by his ring name The Grappler.While wrestling as The Grappler in Pacific Northwest Wrestling , his gimmick was a loaded boot, and later a loaded mask, which he had started wearing earlier in his career after losing a hair match and...

 and Don Harris. A little more than a month later, Adams received his second Pacific Northwest Heavyweight title, on October 12, 1991, in Portland after he defeated Rip Oliver via submission to the Full Nelson hold. Adams was the champion for just over three months, losing the title to Ron Harris at a show in Portland, on January 18, 1992.

Kona Crush (1992–1993)

Adams went back to work for the WWF in 1992 and was given a new fan favorite
Face (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a babyface or face or in simple words, a fan favorite is a character who is portrayed as a heroic relative to the heel wrestlers, who are analogous to villains...

 character: an easygoing surfing
Surfing
Surfing' is a surface water sport in which the surfer rides a surfboard on the crest and face of a wave which is carrying the surfer towards the shore...

 Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...

an, occasionally referred to as Kona Crush, who wore bright neon tights and utilized a new two-handed skull vice finisher called the Coconut Crush. Crush made his televised debut in WWF under his new character on May 9, 1992 episode of Superstars
WWF Superstars of Wrestling
WWF Superstars of Wrestling is a professional wrestling television program produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It debuted on September 6, 1986...

, defeating Kato. He feuded
Feud (professional wrestling)
A professional wrestling feud is a staged rivalry between multiple wrestlers or alliances of wrestlers. They are integrated into ongoing storylines, particularly in events which are televised...

 early on with his former tag team partner Barry Darsow (Smash) who was now known as Repo Man. Two years after losing the tag team title, the two clashed at SummerSlam
SummerSlam (1992)
SummerSlam was the fifth annual SummerSlam professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It took place on August 29, 1992 at Wembley Stadium, London, England but was aired in the United States on August 31...

, where Crush was victorious. Crush then engaged in a feud with Doink the Clown
Doink the Clown
Doink the Clown is a professional wrestling gimmick, originally used by Matt Osborne in the World Wrestling Federation from 1993 to 1995. Since Osborne's departure from the WWF, the character has been played by several wrestlers, primarily on the independent circuit, as well as in sporadic special...

, after he was attacked with a loaded prosthetic arm while confronting the clown about his cruel pranks on children at ringside, which caused Crush to miss the Royal Rumble. The feud culminated at WrestleMania IX
WrestleMania IX
WrestleMania IX was the ninth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation. The event took place at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada on April 4, 1993 and was the first WrestleMania event held outdoors...

, where Crush lost after a second, identical Doink (played by Steve Keirn
Steve Keirn
Stephen "Steve" Paul Keirn is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for being part of the tag team The Fabulous Ones, with Stan Lane, and later for a run in the World Wrestling Federation as Skinner, a gimmick that portrayed him as a tobacco spitting alligator hunter from...

) appeared from underneath the ring and struck Crush with the prosthetic arm. At the first King of the Ring
King of the Ring (1993)
King of the Ring was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation . This was the first of 10 King of the Ring events that was produced as a pay-per-view. The event resulted from the WWF's decision to make its annual King of the Ring tournament into a...

 pay-per-view, Crush challenged Shawn Michaels
Shawn Michaels
Michael Shawn Hickenbottom , better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American television host and retired professional wrestler. He presents the Outdoor Channel show MacMillan River Adventures, and is currently signed to WWE, where he has served in an ambassadorial role since December...

 for the Intercontinental Championship
WWE Intercontinental Championship
The WWE Intercontinental Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It is the original secondary title of the promotion. Currently, it is the secondary championship exclusive to the SmackDown brand...

, but lost the match after a distraction by Doink.

On July 4, 1993, Crush injured his back in the stars and stripes challenge trying to bodyslam WWF Champion
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...

  Yokozuna
Rodney Anoa'i
Rodney Agatupu Anoa'i was an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his time with the World Wrestling Federation where he wrestled under the ring name Yokozuna. The term yokozuna refers to the highest rank in professional sumo wrestling in Japan...

. On the July 12 edition of Monday Night RAW, Crush faced Yokozuna for the WWF Championship in a losing effort. To send a message to Lex Luger
Lex Luger
Lawrence Wendell "Larry" Pfohl , better known by his ring name Lex Luger, is an American former professional wrestler and football player currently working with WWE on their wellness policy...

, Yokozuna performed several Banzai Drops to Crush, leaving him off TV for several months.

Heel Turn (1993–1995)

Crush returned in the fall of 1993 and attacked his on-screen friend Randy Savage
Randy Savage
Randall Mario Poffo , better known by his ring name "Macho Man" Randy Savage, was an American professional wrestler, best known for his time with the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling .Savage held twenty championships during his professional wrestling career and was a...

, because Savage had encouraged him to enter the Body Slam Challenge, and had failed to contact him during recuperation. Crush then allied himself with Yokozuna and Mr. Fuji
Harry Fujiwara
Harry Fujiwara is an American former professional wrestler and manager, best known by his ring name Mr. Fuji. He was infamous for often throwing salt in the eyes of face wrestlers...

, becoming a villain
Heel (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a heel is a villain character. In non-wrestling jargon, heels are the "bad guys" in professional wrestling; the term heel coming from the term take to you heels, which means to run away which heel champions tend to do to avoid losing their titles.storylines...

. Adams adopted a "Japanese sympathizer" gimmick to go with his new attitude, including growing a beard, using face paint, and wearing darker colours (black, purple and silver). This rivalry led to a falls count anywhere match against Savage at WrestleMania X
WrestleMania X
WrestleMania X was the tenth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation. It took place at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York on March 20, 1994. The central focus of the pay-per-view was the WWF Championship, which was defended...

, which he lost when Savage hogtied him to a metal rack and returned to the ring before a 60 second count. The match with Savage is notable for being Savage's final Wrestlemania appearance.

In January 1995, Adams took part in the 1995 Royal Rumble
Royal Rumble
The Royal Rumble is a professional wrestling pay-per-view event, produced every January by WWE, a professional wrestling promotion based in Connecticut. The event was created in 1988, with its inaugural event taking place on January 24, 1988 at the Copps Coliseum in Hamilton, Ontario...

 match as the 30th entrant in the elimination match. He eliminated Billy Gunn
Billy Gunn
William Gunn or Bill Gunn may refer to:*Bill Gunn , Australian rules footballer*Bill Gunn , member of Australian parliament...

, Bart Gunn, Brian Clark
Brian Clark
Brian Clark is one of the survivors of the attacks on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. A Canadian, Clark worked for the international brokerage firm Euro Brokers, which lost 61 employees that day, nearly a fifth of its New York branch....

, and Fatu before being eliminated by Davey Boy Smith
Davey Boy Smith
Davey Boy Smith was a British professional wrestler, better known as "The British Bulldog" Davey Boy Smith, who was born in Golborne in North West England, United Kingdom. Smith is known for his appearances with Stampede Wrestling, the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling...

. Shortly after he was arrested, and subsequently jailed, for purchasing steroid
Steroid
A steroid is a type of organic compound that contains a characteristic arrangement of four cycloalkane rings that are joined to each other. Examples of steroids include the dietary fat cholesterol, the sex hormones estradiol and testosterone, and the anti-inflammatory drug dexamethasone.The core...

s and possessing an illegal hand gun, while home in Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...

. After a brief stint in jail, Adams was brought back to the WWF with a new biker look at the beginning of the Monday Night Wars
Monday Night Wars
Monday Night Wars is the common term describing the period of mainstream televised American professional wrestling from September 4, 1995, to March 26, 2001. During this time, the World Wrestling Federation's Monday Night Raw went head-to-head with World Championship Wrestling's Monday Nitro in a...

 in 1996, with his real-life incarceration being referenced as part of a storyline on Monday Night Raw
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...

. Upon his return, the WWF gave Adams Clarence Mason
Clarence Mason
Herman Stevens, Jr. is an American attorney and former professional wrestling manager, best known for his attorney gimmicks as Clarence Mason in the World Wrestling Federation and as J. Biggs in World Championship Wrestling from 1996–1999.-Early life:As a child, Stevens had always wanted...

, who portrayed a lawyer-like character on-screen, as a manager.

Nation of Domination, Disciples of Apocalypse and departure (1996–1997)

Shortly after his return to the WWF he was made a member of the Nation of Domination
Nation of Domination
The Nation of Domination was a professional wrestling stable in World Wrestling Federation from November 18, 1996 to November 28, 1998. The Rock was a 1 time Intercontinental Champion and D'Lo Brown was a 2 time European Champion while in the group.-United States Wrestling Association :The...

 (NOD) along with Faarooq
Ron Simmons
Ronald "Ron" Simmons is an American semi-retired professional wrestler and retired American football player. He is recognised as being the first Black world heavyweight champion in professional wrestling and the first of only two African Americans to win the WCW World Heavyweight Championship,...

 and Savio Vega
Savio Vega
Juan Rivera is a professional wrestler best known under the name Savio Vega. During the mid-late 1990s, he was an active wrestler in the World Wrestling Federation...

. Adams was later kicked out of the group, and subsequently formed and led a wrestling biker gang stable called the Disciples of Apocalypse
Disciples of Apocalypse
The Disciples of Apocalypse were a biker-themed professional wrestling stable in the World Wrestling Federation in the late 1990s. The group came together from the demise of the Nation of Domination stable in June 1997 and consisted of four main members: Crush, Chainz, Skull and...

 (DOA). The DOA feuded with Faarooq's NOD and Vega's new stable, Los Boricuas
Los Boricuas
Los Boricuas was a Hispanic professional wrestling heel stable in the World Wrestling Federation in the late 1990s. The name was derived from a popular nickname for Puerto Rican people, as all the stable's members were from Puerto Rico.-History:...

. Adams later left the WWF in 1997, partially in protest to the Montreal Screwjob
Montreal Screwjob
The Montreal Screwjob was a controversial, purportedly real life professional wrestling event in which the owner of the World Wrestling Federation, Vince McMahon, double-crossed the defending WWF Champion, Bret Hart, during the main event match of the professional wrestling pay-per-view event...

.

World Championship Wrestling (1998–2001)

Adams signed with World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. was an American professional wrestling promotion which existed from 1988 to 2001. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it began as a regional promotion affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance , named Jim Crockett Promotions until November 1988, when Ted Turner and...

 (WCW) in 1998 and debuted as part of the New World Order
New World Order (professional wrestling)
The New World Order was a professional wrestling stable that originally wrestled for World Championship Wrestling . The group later appeared in the World Wrestling Federation after the purchase of WCW by the WWF...

. As a lower card performer, he often tag teamed with the likes of Scott Norton
Scott Norton
Scott Michael Norton is an American semi-retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenures in World Championship Wrestling and New Japan Pro Wrestling.-Before wrestling:...

 and Stevie Ray
Lane Huffman
Lane Steven Huffman is a retired American professional wrestler who is better known as Stevie Ray. He is best known as being part of the tag team Harlem Heat with his younger brother Booker T...

, occasionally losing matches against smaller and lesser known wrestlers. However, he also gained squash victories over jobbers in singles competition. During his time with the promotion, he was involved in a tag team tournament steel cage match on WCW Thunder
WCW Thunder
WCW Thunder was a professional wrestling show produced by World Championship Wrestling which aired on TBS from January 8, 1998 to March 21, 2001...

in February 1999, in which he and Horace Hogan
Horace Hogan
Michael Bollea is an American professional wrestler. In wrestling, he is best known by his ring name, Horace Hogan. He is the nephew of professional wrestler Hulk Hogan and cousin of the late Mike Awesome....

 lost to Chris Benoit
Chris Benoit
Christopher Michael "Chris" Benoit was a Canadian professional wrestler whose career and life ended in a murder–suicide...

 and Dean Malenko
Dean Malenko
Dean Simon is a retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Dean Malenko. He is currently signed to WWE working as a road agent. He is best known for his time with Extreme Championship Wrestling , New Japan Pro Wrestling and World Championship Wrestling...

.

Later, he formed a team with Bryan Clark
Bryan Clark
Bryan Emmeth Clark, Jr. is a American former professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling.-Early career:...

 called KroniK
KroniK
KroniK was an American professional wrestling tag team composed of Brian Adams and Bryan Clark. Their name was based on the word "chronic", a slang term for marijuana.-World Championship Wrestling :...

, which won the WCW World Tag Team Championship
WCW World Tag Team Championship
The World Championship Wrestling Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling world tag team championship in World Championship Wrestling...

 twice.

Later career (2001–2002)

After the WWF's purchase of WCW, KroniK appeared in WWF as part of the Alliance storyline. During their time in WWF, they were managed by Steven Richards
Stevie Richards
Michael Manna is an American professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Stevie Richards. Also known by his ring names, Steven Richards and Dr...

 and were placed in a short feud with the Brothers of Destruction
Brothers of Destruction
The Brothers of Destruction was a professional wrestling tag team consisting of The Undertaker and Kane, both currently wrestling for World Wrestling Entertainment on its SmackDown roster.-History:...

 (The Undertaker and Kane). Adams and Clark faced, and lost to, the duo at the 2001 Unforgiven pay-per-view. Both men were accosted by the Undertaker in the locker room after the match for their lackluster performance. Clark was then released from his WWF contract, and Adams was sent to the then WWF developmental territory Heartland Wrestling Association
Heartland Wrestling Association
The Heartland Wrestling Association is a Midwestern independent professional wrestling promotion based in Cincinnati, Ohio. A former developmental territory for both World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation during the 1990s, it was listed as one of the top independent...

 in Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...

 where he performed until he, too, was released from his WWF contract in November 2001.

Adams and Clark briefly worked for World Wrestling All-Stars
World Wrestling All-Stars
The World Wrestling All-Stars was a professional wrestling promotion founded by Australian concert promoter Andrew McManus in 2001. The promotion was operated by McManus' International Touring Company. WWA was one of several promotions to come into existence shortly after the closings of Extreme...

 in early 2002. They then traveled to Japan to work for All Japan Pro Wrestling
All Japan Pro Wrestling
is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion established in 1972. All Japan Pro Wrestling still remains one of the most popular puroresu promotions still in operation.-The Giant Baba Era :...

 (AJPW). On July 17, 2002, at an AJPW pay-per-view, Adams and Clark defeated Keiji Mutoh
Keiji Mutoh
is a Japanese professional wrestler who first gained international fame in the National Wrestling Alliance. He is mostly known for his work as The Great Muta in New Japan Pro Wrestling during the 1990s, but he has also competed in United States, Puerto Rico, Mexico, and Taiwan...

 and Taiyō Kea
Taiyo Kea
Maunakea Mossman is an American professional wrestler, better known under his stage name Taiyō Kea . Although he was born in Hawaii, he has spent nearly his entire career as a member of the Japan-based All Japan Pro Wrestling promotion...

 for the AJPW Unified World Tag Team Championship
AJPW Unified World Tag Team Championship
The All Japan Pro Wrestling Unified World Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling tag team title in Japanese promotion All Japan Pro Wrestling...

. Adams and Clark remained champions until 2002 when AJPW declared the title vacant, because Adams had left the promotion to pursue a boxing career.

Adams was scheduled to have his first boxing match, against Rick Zufal, on November 16, 2002 at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino
Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino
Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino is a 44-story luxury hotel casino on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. It is owned by MGM Resorts International. Five floors of the main hotel building are occupied by the five-star and AAA Five-Diamond Four Seasons Hotel Las Vegas...

 in Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...

 with professional wrestler Randy Savage
Randy Savage
Randall Mario Poffo , better known by his ring name "Macho Man" Randy Savage, was an American professional wrestler, best known for his time with the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling .Savage held twenty championships during his professional wrestling career and was a...

 in his corner. This bout was to air on the Never Surrender boxing pay-per-view, but during his training for the bout, Adams injured his shoulder and was unable to fight. After recovering from his shoulder injury, Adams returned to wrestling for "Wrestle 1", a pay-per-view for the Japanese promotion W-1, which was held at the Tokyo Dome in Japan. In January 2003, he made his last in-ring performance, teaming with Bryan Clark, and facing Bill Goldberg
Bill Goldberg
Goldberg earned a scholarship to play for the University of Georgia Bulldogs football team where he served as a defensive tackle. He was taken in the 11th round, with the 302nd overall selection, in the 1990 NFL Draft....

 and Keiji Mutoh in a losing effort. He suffered a spinal injury in this match that forced him into retirement.

Personal life

In 1996, Adams had an uncredited role in the Bollywood
Bollywood
Bollywood is the informal term popularly used for the Hindi-language film industry based in Mumbai , Maharashtra, India. The term is often incorrectly used to refer to the whole of Indian cinema; it is only a part of the total Indian film industry, which includes other production centers producing...

 movie Khiladiyon Ka Khiladi
Khiladiyon Ka Khiladi
Khiladiyon Ka Khiladi is a 1996 Bollywood action thriller starring Rekha in her first villain role, Akshay Kumar, Raveena Tandon and former WWE wrestler Brian Lee. The film went on to do very well at the box office...

. In the movie, he played "Crush" and was killed by "The Undertaker" (played by Brian Lee
Brian Lee
Brian Lee Harris is a retired American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name "Prime Time" Brian Lee...

) in a wrestling match.

After retiring from professional wrestling, Adams had surgery to attempt to correct his spinal injury, but it left him unfit to continue to wrestle. Following his retirement, Adams became a bodyguard for his longtime friend, wrestler-turned-rapper
Rapping
Rapping refers to "spoken or chanted rhyming lyrics". The art form can be broken down into different components, as in the book How to Rap where it is separated into “content”, “flow” , and “delivery”...

 Randy Savage, who was touring to promote his CD, Be a Man. It was reported that Adams was living on income from a Lloyd's of London
Lloyd's of London
Lloyd's, also known as Lloyd's of London, is a British insurance and reinsurance market. It serves as a partially mutualised marketplace where multiple financial backers, underwriters, or members, whether individuals or corporations, come together to pool and spread risk...

 insurance policy
Insurance contract
In insurance, the insurance policy is a contract between the insurer and the insured, known as the policyholder, which determines the claims which the insurer is legally required to pay. In exchange for payment, known as the premium, the insurer pays for damages to the insured which are caused by...

. Adams expressed interest in opening a health club
Health club
A health club is a place which houses exercise equipment for the purpose of physical exercise.-Main workout area:...

 in Tampa, Florida
Tampa, Florida
Tampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....

, which was to be a franchise of fellow wrestler Marc Mero
Marc Mero
Marc Mero is an American retired amateur boxer and professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation as Marc Mero and with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling and World Championship Wrestling under the ring name Johnny B. Badd...

's "Body Slam" training center.

Death

On August 13, 2007, Adams was found unconscious in his bed by his wife at their Tampa, Florida
Tampa, Florida
Tampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....

 home. She called 911, but he was pronounced dead by paramedics after they arrived. He was 44 years old. Adams reportedly received illegal steroids in February 2006, including nandrolone
Nandrolone
Nandrolone is an anabolic steroid that may be present naturally in the human body, albeit in minute quantities of less than 0.4 ng/ml. Nandrolone is most commonly sold commercially as its decanoate ester and less commonly as a phenylpropionate ester...

, testosterone
Testosterone
Testosterone is a steroid hormone from the androgen group and is found in mammals, reptiles, birds, and other vertebrates. In mammals, testosterone is primarily secreted in the testes of males and the ovaries of females, although small amounts are also secreted by the adrenal glands...

 and HGH. These drugs were speculated to have played a role in his death.

In wrestling

  • Finishing moves

    • Chokeslam
      Chokeslam
      A chokeslam refers to a type of body slam in professional wrestling in which the wrestler grasps their opponent's neck, lifts them up, and slams them to the mat. It is common in televised wrestling because it is simple and relatively safe, yet looks powerful on camera...

       – WCW
      World Championship Wrestling
      World Championship Wrestling, Inc. was an American professional wrestling promotion which existed from 1988 to 2001. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it began as a regional promotion affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance , named Jim Crockett Promotions until November 1988, when Ted Turner and...

    • Heart punch – 1994–1997
    • Kona Clutch (Two-handed clawhold) – 1992–1994

  • Signature moves

    • Backbreaker
    • Bearhug
    • Bow and arrow hold
    • Cuts Like a Knife (Full nelson slam)
    • Dropkick
      Dropkick
      A dropkick is an attacking maneuver in professional wrestling. It is defined as an attack where the wrestler jumps up and kicks the opponent with the soles of both feet; this sees the wrestler twist as he or she jumps so that when the feet connect with the opponent one foot is raised higher than...

    • Fireman's carry DDT
    • Flying shoulder block
    • Gorilla press into either a gutbuster or a slam
    • Headbutt
    • Inverted atomic drop
    • Multiple suplex
      Suplex
      A suplex is an offensive move used in professional sport wrestling . The move consists of one wrestler picking up his or her opponent off the ground and then using a large portion of his or her own body weight to drive the opponent down on the mat. Nearly all suplexes have the attacker going down...

       variations
      • Delayed
      • Super
      • Ura-nage
      • Vertical
    • Piledriver
    • Superkick
    • Tour of the Islands (Tilt-a-whirl into either a backbreaker or a mat slam)

  • With Ax
    Bill Eadie
    Bill Eadie is a professional wrestler who has competed under the names of Ax as part of Demolition and The Masked Superstar...

     or Smash
    Barry Darsow
    Barry Darsow is a former American professional wrestler who is known as Smash, one half of the tag team Demolition, and as Krusher Kruschev, Repo Man, and The Blacktop Bully...

    • Demolition Decapitation (Backbreaker hold / Diving elbow drop combination)

  • With Bryan Clark
    Bryan Clark
    Bryan Emmeth Clark, Jr. is a American former professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling.-Early career:...

    • High Times (Double chokeslam)
    • Total Meltdown (Powerbomb (Clark) / Diving clothesline (Adams) combination)

  • Managers
    Manager (professional wrestling)
    In professional wrestling, a manager is a secondary character paired with a wrestler for a variety of reasons. The manager is often either a non-wrestler, an occasional wrestler, an older wrestler who has retired or is nearing retirement or, in some cases, a new wrestler who is breaking into the...

    • Paul Ellering
      Paul Ellering
      Paul Ellering is a retired professional wrestling manager.-Professional wrestling career:Before entering the wrestling business, Ellering was an accomplished weightlifter...

    • Mr. Fuji
      Harry Fujiwara
      Harry Fujiwara is an American former professional wrestler and manager, best known by his ring name Mr. Fuji. He was infamous for often throwing salt in the eyes of face wrestlers...

    • Clarence Mason
      Clarence Mason
      Herman Stevens, Jr. is an American attorney and former professional wrestling manager, best known for his attorney gimmicks as Clarence Mason in the World Wrestling Federation and as J. Biggs in World Championship Wrestling from 1996–1999.-Early life:As a child, Stevens had always wanted...

    • Steven Richards
      Stevie Richards
      Michael Manna is an American professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Stevie Richards. Also known by his ring names, Steven Richards and Dr...

    • Vincent
      Mike Jones (wrestler)
      Mike Jones is an American professional wrestler, who most recently performed for World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring name Virgil, where he appeared on its Raw brand as Ted DiBiase, Jr.'s personal assistant...


  • Nickname
    Nickname
    A nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....

    s
    • "Big" Bryan Adams (PNW)
    • "B.A." Brian Adams

  • Entrance themes
    Music in professional wrestling
    Music in professional wrestling serves a variety of purposes. The most common uses of music in professional wrestling is that of the entrance theme, a song or piece of instrumental music which plays as a performer approaches the ring...

    • "Demolition Daze" by J.Hart, J.J.Maguire, and Rick Derringer (WWF; 1990–1991)
    • "Nation of Domination" by J.Johnston (WWF; used while part of the Nation of Domination
      Nation of Domination
      The Nation of Domination was a professional wrestling stable in World Wrestling Federation from November 18, 1996 to November 28, 1998. The Rock was a 1 time Intercontinental Champion and D'Lo Brown was a 2 time European Champion while in the group.-United States Wrestling Association :The...

      ; 1996–1997)
    • "Rockhouse" by J.Hart
      Jimmy Hart
      James "Jimmy" Ray Hart is a professional wrestling manager, executive, composer, and musician currently signed with WWE. He is best known for his work in the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling under his nickname "The Mouth of the South." He has managed many professional...

       and H.Helm (WCW; used while a part of the New World Order
      New World Order (professional wrestling)
      The New World Order was a professional wrestling stable that originally wrestled for World Championship Wrestling . The group later appeared in the World Wrestling Federation after the purchase of WCW by the WWF...

      ; 1998–1999)
    • "Kronik theme" by WCW
    • "Cold Crush" by Paul Waterman


Championships and accomplishments

  • All Japan Pro Wrestling
    All Japan Pro Wrestling
    is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion established in 1972. All Japan Pro Wrestling still remains one of the most popular puroresu promotions still in operation.-The Giant Baba Era :...

    • AJPW Unified World Tag Team Championship
      AJPW Unified World Tag Team Championship
      The All Japan Pro Wrestling Unified World Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling tag team title in Japanese promotion All Japan Pro Wrestling...

       (1 time) – with Bryan Clark
      Bryan Clark
      Bryan Emmeth Clark, Jr. is a American former professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling.-Early career:...


  • Oregon Wrestling Federation
    • OWF Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Mike Miller

  • Pacific Northwest Wrestling
    • NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship
      NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship
      The NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship sanctioned by the National Wrestling Alliance and defended in its member promotion Pacific Northwest Wrestling, which promoted shows in the U.S...

       (2 times)
    • NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship
      NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship
      The NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling championship sanctioned by the National Wrestling Alliance and defended in its member promotion Pacific Northwest Wrestling, which promoted shows in the U.S...

       (2 times) – with The Grappler
      Len Denton
      Len Denton is a semi-retired professional wrestler, best known by his ring name The Grappler.While wrestling as The Grappler in Pacific Northwest Wrestling , his gimmick was a loaded boot, and later a loaded mask, which he had started wearing earlier in his career after losing a hair match and...

       (1) and Steve Doll
      Steve Doll
      Steve Doll was an American professional wrestler, best known for his tenure in the World Wrestling Federation as Steven Dunn in the tag team Well Dunn.-Professional wrestling career:...

       (1)

  • Pro Wrestling Illustrated
    Pro Wrestling Illustrated
    Pro Wrestling Illustrated is a professional wrestling magazine. PWI is currently based in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania and published by Kappa Publishing Group.-History:The first issue of Pro Wrestling Illustrated was released in 1979...

    • PWI ranked him #59 of the 100 best tag teams during the PWI Years with Smash
      Barry Darsow
      Barry Darsow is a former American professional wrestler who is known as Smash, one half of the tag team Demolition, and as Krusher Kruschev, Repo Man, and The Blacktop Bully...

       and Ax
      Bill Eadie
      Bill Eadie is a professional wrestler who has competed under the names of Ax as part of Demolition and The Masked Superstar...

       in 2003

  • World Championship Wrestling
    World Championship Wrestling
    World Championship Wrestling, Inc. was an American professional wrestling promotion which existed from 1988 to 2001. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it began as a regional promotion affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance , named Jim Crockett Promotions until November 1988, when Ted Turner and...

    • WCW World Tag Team Championship
      WCW World Tag Team Championship
      The World Championship Wrestling Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling world tag team championship in World Championship Wrestling...

       (2 times) – with Bryan Clark

  • World Wrestling Federation
    World Wrestling Entertainment
    World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...

    • WWF World Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Smash and Ax
      Demolition (professional wrestling)
      Demolition is a professional wrestling tag team most prominent during the late 1980s / early 1990s in the World Wrestling Federation made up of Ax , Smash , and later Crush . In WWF, Demolition were three-time Tag Team Champions, and hold the records for both the single longest tag title reign...

      1

  • Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards
    • Worst Worked Match of the Year (2001) with Bryan Clark vs. The Undertaker and Kane at Unforgiven
    • Worst Feud of the Year (1997) vs. Los Boricuas
      Los Boricuas
      Los Boricuas was a Hispanic professional wrestling heel stable in the World Wrestling Federation in the late 1990s. The name was derived from a popular nickname for Puerto Rican people, as all the stable's members were from Puerto Rico.-History:...

    • Worst Tag Team (2000, 2001) with Bryan Clark


1Demolition, after Crush became a member, defended the titles via the Freebird Rule
Fabulous Freebirds
The Fabulous Freebirds were a professional wrestling tag team that attained fame in the 1980s, performing into the 1990s. The team usually consisted of three wrestlers, although in different situations and points in its history, just two performed under the Freebirds name.-History:The Fabulous...


External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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