David Taylor (wrestler)
Encyclopedia
David Taylor is an English
professional wrestler
best known for his time in World Championship Wrestling
(WCW) and World Wrestling Entertainment
(WWE). He also worked as a trainer for the Deep South Wrestling (DSW) promotion
, a subsidiary of WWE.
, Taylor made his professional debut in 1978 under the ring name
Dave "Rocky" Taylor.
Taylor eventually joined All Star Wrestling
, making his terrestrial TV debut in 1987 when the company gained a share of ITV's wrestling coverage. In early 1988, he was tangentially involved in the falling out of Kendo Nagasaki
and Rollerball Rocco
when he and 'Ironfist' Clive Myers faced the duo in a televised contest in Croydon. Taylor was attempting, mid-match, to unmask Nagasaki and had nearly succeeded when Rocco intervened. Rocco attempted to pull the mask back down, but Taylor forearm-smashed Rocco, causing the mask to come off in his hands. As Taylor and Myers celebrated, Kendo fled to the dressing room and returned with another mask. Kendo's manager George Gillette blamed Rocco for the unmasking, igniting a major feud that would run on into the early 1990s.
Taylor defeated Dave Finlay
for the All-Star British Heavyweight Championship in King's Lynn
on 4 June 1991. He held the title for two years before losing to Tony St. Clair on 4 May 1993 in Croydon
. After St. Claire vacated the title in 1995, Taylor entered a tournament for the belt, and defeated Marty Jones
in the tournament final in August 1995 in Croydon. His second reign lasted until 1996, when he was defeated by Jones in Croydon.
In the early 1990s, Taylor began wrestling for the German
Catch Wrestling Association
. On 21 December 1991 in Bremen, he and Chris Benoit
defeated Franz Schumann and Miles Zrno for the CWA World Tag Team Championship
. They vacated the titles in June 1992 after Taylor suffered an injury and Benoit left the CWA to compete in New Japan Pro Wrestling
. Taylor won the CWA Tag Team Championship on a second occasion on July 18, 1993, teaming
with Miles Zrno to defeat Larry Cameron and Mad Bull Buster. Cameron and Buster regained the titles on 24 October 1993 in Hanover
.
promotion. Taylor, renamed Squire David Taylor, formed a stable with Lord Steven Regal
and Earl Robert Eaton
known as The Blue Bloods. After Eaton (an American) left the group, Taylor and Regal feuded
with him. Taylor continued to team with Regal until Regal was fired from WCW in 2000, at which point Taylor also left the promotion.
In 2001, Taylor joined the World Wrestling Federation
(WWF), acting as a trainer and wrestler in Ohio Valley Wrestling
, a subsidiary of the WWF. Taylor eventually left the WWF after they asked him to relocate to Cincinnati, Ohio, where the Heartland Wrestling Association was located.
In May 2002, Taylor, William (formerly Steven) Regal and Dave Finlay
opened the Atlantan "Blue Bloods Wrestling Academy", a professional wrestling school.
On 7 April 2004 Taylor made an appearance in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
as a mentor/coach of Team Britain
during the TNA 2004 America's X-Cup Tournament.
In February 2005, Taylor came back to the UK for a three weeks with Brian Dixon's All Star Wrestling
where he responded to some comments made by "The Highlander From Hell" Drew McDonald
.
(WWE) in January 2006 to train wrestling students at Deep South Wrestling (DSW) in McDonough, Georgia
. On 23 March 2006, Taylor returned to the ring in DSW to once again team with William Regal.
On 20 October 2006 episode of SmackDown!, Regal announced that Taylor would be joining him on the brand. The two debuted the same night, get a dominating victory over Scotty 2 Hotty and Funaki
. Though the pair reformed their previous tag team, Regal and Taylor would not reuse the Blue Bloods gimmick, instead portraying themselves as sadistic fighters. The team was quickly put into jeopardy in their second match together when Taylor suffered a torn meniscus
in his left knee. Taylor took a more relaxed role for a couple of weeks as a corner man for Regal and only wrestled a few short house show
matches. Taylor would quickly heal from his injury and the pair went on to feud with Paul London and Brian Kendrick
in the hunt for the WWE Tag Team Championship
. After defeating London and Kendrick on several occasions, they earned a Tag Team Championship match at Armageddon
in December. The match was changed into a fatal-four way ladder match
also involving MNM
and The Hardys
, and London and Kendrick retained their titles. In a subsequent regular tag rematch on SmackDown! Regal and Taylor came up short of winning the titles.
After WrestleMania 23
, Regal and Taylor began a feud with Kane when after a match between Kane and Taylor, Taylor and Regal attacked Kane. The Boogeyman
soon joined the feud as Kane's tag team partner, but the feud ended after Kane defeated Regal in a singles match. On the 25 May edition of SmackDown!, Regal and Taylor competed in a number one contenders match for the WWE Tag Team Championship against Kendrick and London which they lost when Deuce 'n Domino
interfered, making both teams the number one contenders. This led to a triple threat match the next week on SmackDown!, where Deuce 'n Domino retained. Taylor and Regal's tag team would come to an end on 17 June when Regal was drafted to Raw during the Supplemental Draft.
Following Regal's departure, Taylor was absent from SmackDown! for several weeks and began teaming with Paul Burchill
at house shows and dark matches. Since then, Taylor had only competed on SmackDown! sparingly, competing in a 20-Man Battle Royal for the then-vacant World Heavyweight Championship
and losing a match to former rival Kane. Taylor brought Drew McIntyre to SmackDown! in October 2007 and acted as his mentor, but McIntyre would only make a few appearances before moving to the Raw brand in January 2008. Following McIntyre's move, Taylor went on a leave of absence from WWE television. He was released by WWE on 28 April 2008.
. He defeated Tracy Smothers
in the first round, but lost out to Claudio Castagnoli
in the quarter finals.
On 24 January 2009, Taylor failed to show for an event by Superstar Wrestling at the Journal Tyne Theatre in Newcastle upon Tyne
, leading to a number of spectators leaving the arena upon finding out the news.
From 27–29 March 2009, he competed in Chikara's King of Trios Tournament as a member of Team Uppercut, along with Claudio Castagnoli and Bryan Danielson
. The team made it all the way to the finals before losing to F.I.S.T. of Gran Akuma
, Icarus
and Chuck Taylor
.
On 4 April 2009, Taylor lost a fourway match for the HPW Heavyweight Championship against HPW heavyweight champion Vito "the Violator" Toscani, Anthony Zeus and Eddy De La Combe in Eindhoven, Holland.
In March 2010 Taylor received a tryout as an agent for TNA Wrestling.
On April 2, 2011, Taylor appeared at the Ring of Honor
pay-per-view Honor Takes Center Stage
as the newest member of Prince Nana
's The Embassy
stable, facing Colt Cabana in a losing effort.
On September 9 2011, Taylor made his debut for small British promotion New Generation Wrestling (NGW) in a winning effort against Jack Gallagher
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
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...
best known for his time in 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) and World Wrestling Entertainment
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...
(WWE). He also worked as a trainer for the Deep South Wrestling (DSW) promotion
Professional wrestling promotion
A professional wrestling promotion is a company or business that regularly performs shows involving professional wrestling. Promotion also describes a role which entails management, advertising and logistics of running a wrestling event...
, a subsidiary of WWE.
Early Career
A third-generation wrestler, Taylor was trained by his father Eric Taylor (who held the British Heavy-Middleweight title for 14 years 1953-1967) and grandfather Jack. After winning several awards as an amateur wrestlerAmateur wrestling
Amateur wrestling is the most widespread form of sport wrestling. There are two international wrestling styles performed in the Olympic Games under the supervision of FILA : Greco-Roman and freestyle. Freestyle is possibly derived from the English Lancashire style...
, Taylor made his professional debut in 1978 under the ring name
Ring name
A ring name is a stage name used by a professional wrestler, martial artist, or boxer. While some ring names may have a fictitious first name and surname, others may simply be a nickname, such as The Undertaker.-Wrestling:...
Dave "Rocky" Taylor.
Taylor eventually joined All Star Wrestling
All Star Wrestling
All Star Wrestling is a British Professional wrestling promotion also known as All Star Promotions, Superslam Wrestling and Big Time Wrestling and originally known as Wrestling Enterprises , run by Brian Dixon and based in Liverpool, England...
, making his terrestrial TV debut in 1987 when the company gained a share of ITV's wrestling coverage. In early 1988, he was tangentially involved in the falling out of Kendo Nagasaki
Peter Thornley
Peter Thornley is a British professional wrestler known as Kendo Nagasaki. He was one of the biggest draws of all time in British Wrestling, especially in the mid-1970s and the turn of the 1980s/1990s....
and Rollerball Rocco
Mark Rocco
Mark Hussey is a retired English professional wrestler who competed for All-Star Wrestling as Mark "Rollerball" Rocco and as the original masked Black Tiger in New Japan Pro Wrestling during the 1970s and 80s...
when he and 'Ironfist' Clive Myers faced the duo in a televised contest in Croydon. Taylor was attempting, mid-match, to unmask Nagasaki and had nearly succeeded when Rocco intervened. Rocco attempted to pull the mask back down, but Taylor forearm-smashed Rocco, causing the mask to come off in his hands. As Taylor and Myers celebrated, Kendo fled to the dressing room and returned with another mask. Kendo's manager George Gillette blamed Rocco for the unmasking, igniting a major feud that would run on into the early 1990s.
Taylor defeated Dave Finlay
Dave Finlay
David John "Fit" Finlay Jr. is a Northern Irish professional wrestler and road agent. He is perhaps best known for his time in World Championship Wrestling and WWE as an active wrestler and later as a road agent...
for the All-Star British Heavyweight Championship in King's Lynn
King's Lynn
King's Lynn is a sea port and market town in the ceremonial county of Norfolk in the East of England. It is situated north of London and west of Norwich. The population of the town is 42,800....
on 4 June 1991. He held the title for two years before losing to Tony St. Clair on 4 May 1993 in Croydon
Croydon
Croydon is a town in South London, England, located within the London Borough of Croydon to which it gives its name. It is situated south of Charing Cross...
. After St. Claire vacated the title in 1995, Taylor entered a tournament for the belt, and defeated Marty Jones
Marty Jones
Marty Jones is a retired English professional wrestler best known for his work in All Star Promotions throughout the 1980s and 90s. Jones was also responsible for training Darren Matthews. Jones was trained by Billy Robinson....
in the tournament final in August 1995 in Croydon. His second reign lasted until 1996, when he was defeated by Jones in Croydon.
In the early 1990s, Taylor began wrestling for the German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
Catch Wrestling Association
Catch Wrestling Association
The Catch Wrestling Association was a professional wrestling organization based in Austria and Germany and was founded in 1973. It was formerly run by famous AWA champion Otto Wanz. The CWA featured a traditional brand of mat wrestling mixed with various “Strong Man” competitions...
. On 21 December 1991 in Bremen, he and Chris Benoit
Chris Benoit
Christopher Michael "Chris" Benoit was a Canadian professional wrestler whose career and life ended in a murder–suicide...
defeated Franz Schumann and Miles Zrno for the CWA World Tag Team Championship
CWA World Tag Team Championship (Germany)
The CWA World Tag Team Championship was the tag team professional wrestling title in the German professional wrestling promotion the Catch Wrestling Association. It was established in 1988, and lasted until the promotion's 2000 closing.-Title history:...
. They vacated the titles in June 1992 after Taylor suffered an injury and Benoit left the CWA to compete in New Japan Pro Wrestling
New Japan Pro Wrestling
is a major professional wrestling promotion in Japan, founded by Antonio Inoki in June 1972 and owned by Yuke's since 2005, when Inoki sold the promotion. Naoki Sugabayashi is the current President of the promotion and has held that position from 2007. Owing to its TV program aired on TV Asahi, it...
. Taylor won the CWA Tag Team Championship on a second occasion on July 18, 1993, teaming
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...
with Miles Zrno to defeat Larry Cameron and Mad Bull Buster. Cameron and Buster regained the titles on 24 October 1993 in Hanover
Hanover
Hanover or Hannover, on the river Leine, is the capital of the federal state of Lower Saxony , Germany and was once by personal union the family seat of the Hanoverian Kings of Great Britain, under their title as the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg...
.
World Championship Wrestling
In the mid 1990s, Taylor travelled to the United States of America and joined the Atlanta-based World Championship WrestlingWorld 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...
promotion. Taylor, renamed Squire David Taylor, formed a stable with Lord Steven Regal
Darren Matthews
Darren Kenneth Matthews , is an English professional wrestler, author and color commentator currently signed to WWE and competing on the SmackDown brand under the ring name William Regal. He is also known for his time in World Championship Wrestling under the ring name Steven Regal...
and Earl Robert Eaton
Bobby Eaton
Robert Lee "Bobby" Eaton is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, who made his debut in 1976. Eaton is most famous for his work in tag teams, especially his days as one-half of the team the Midnight Express. Under the management of Jim Cornette, Eaton originally teamed with Dennis...
known as The Blue Bloods. After Eaton (an American) left the group, Taylor and Regal 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...
with him. Taylor continued to team with Regal until Regal was fired from WCW in 2000, at which point Taylor also left the promotion.
In 2001, Taylor joined 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), acting as a trainer and wrestler in Ohio Valley Wrestling
Ohio Valley Wrestling
Ohio Valley Wrestling is an American independent professional wrestling promotion based in Louisville, Kentucky. OVW is run by owner Danny Davis and was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance from 1997 until 2000...
, a subsidiary of the WWF. Taylor eventually left the WWF after they asked him to relocate to Cincinnati, Ohio, where the Heartland Wrestling Association was located.
In May 2002, Taylor, William (formerly Steven) Regal and Dave Finlay
Dave Finlay
David John "Fit" Finlay Jr. is a Northern Irish professional wrestler and road agent. He is perhaps best known for his time in World Championship Wrestling and WWE as an active wrestler and later as a road agent...
opened the Atlantan "Blue Bloods Wrestling Academy", a professional wrestling school.
On 7 April 2004 Taylor made an appearance in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling is a privately held professional wrestling promotion founded by Jeff Jarrett and Jerry Jarrett. The company broadcasts its events on television and the Internet fifty two weeks a year with over a million weekly viewers on its primary television program, Impact...
as a mentor/coach of Team Britain
Team Britain
Team Britain, or Team UK, was a professional wrestling stable brought together to compete in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling's 2004 America's X-Cup Tournament.-2004:...
during the TNA 2004 America's X-Cup Tournament.
In February 2005, Taylor came back to the UK for a three weeks with Brian Dixon's All Star Wrestling
All Star Wrestling
All Star Wrestling is a British Professional wrestling promotion also known as All Star Promotions, Superslam Wrestling and Big Time Wrestling and originally known as Wrestling Enterprises , run by Brian Dixon and based in Liverpool, England...
where he responded to some comments made by "The Highlander From Hell" Drew McDonald
Drew McDonald
Drew McDonald changed his name by deed poll to Drew McDonald is a Scottish professional wrestler. He is best known for wrestling on the independent circuit in the United Kingdom since the 1980s.-Professional wrestling career:...
.
World Wrestling Entertainment (2006–2008)
Taylor was hired by World Wrestling EntertainmentWorld 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...
(WWE) in January 2006 to train wrestling students at Deep South Wrestling (DSW) in McDonough, Georgia
McDonough, Georgia
McDonough is a city in Henry County, Georgia, United States. The population was 22084 at the 2010 census. Inclusion of the unincorporated neighborhoods surrounding McDonough, which are not part of a town/city, raises the population to approximately 30,000 from an estimate in 2008. The city is the...
. On 23 March 2006, Taylor returned to the ring in DSW to once again team with William Regal.
On 20 October 2006 episode of SmackDown!, Regal announced that Taylor would be joining him on the brand. The two debuted the same night, get a dominating victory over Scotty 2 Hotty and Funaki
Shoichi Funaki
is a Japanese/American professional wrestler best known for his time in World Wrestling Entertainment, where he was a one-time Cruiserweight Champion and a one-time Hardcore Champion.-Early years :...
. Though the pair reformed their previous tag team, Regal and Taylor would not reuse the Blue Bloods gimmick, instead portraying themselves as sadistic fighters. The team was quickly put into jeopardy in their second match together when Taylor suffered a torn meniscus
Meniscus (anatomy)
In anatomy, a meniscus is a crescent-shaped fibrocartilaginous structure that, in contrast to articular disks, only partly divides a joint cavity. In humans it is present in the knee, acromioclavicular, sternoclavicular, and temporomandibular joints; in other organisms they may be present in other...
in his left knee. Taylor took a more relaxed role for a couple of weeks as a corner man for Regal and only wrestled a few short house show
House show
A house show is a professional wrestling show run by a major promotion that is not televised, though they can be recorded. Promotions use house shows mainly to cash in on the exposure that they and their wrestlers receive during televised events, as well as test reactions to matches, wrestlers, and...
matches. Taylor would quickly heal from his injury and the pair went on to feud with Paul London and Brian Kendrick
Paul London and Brian Kendrick
Paul London and Brian Kendrick are a professional wrestling tag team best known for their time together in World Wrestling Entertainment . The team never had an official team name, but were just referred to as "the tag team of London and Kendrick." In 2006 London and Kendrick put the tag team name...
in the hunt for the WWE Tag Team Championship
WWE Tag Team Championship
The WWE Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship in WWE. It was established as a second title for tag teams in WWE in 2002 to complement the original World Tag Team Championship...
. After defeating London and Kendrick on several occasions, they earned a Tag Team Championship match at Armageddon
Armageddon (2006)
Armageddon was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on December 17, 2006 at the Richmond Coliseum in Richmond, Virginia. The event starred wrestlers from the SmackDown! brand.The main event was a tag team match, in which the team...
in December. The match was changed into a fatal-four way ladder match
Ladder match
A ladder match is a type of match in professional wrestling that is most commonly used to describe a match where an item is hung above the ring, and the winner is the contestant who climbs a ladder and retrieves the item...
also involving MNM
MNM
MNM was a villainous professional wrestling stable in World Wrestling Entertainment and Ohio Valley Wrestling that consisted of Joey Mercury , Johnny Nitro, and their manager Melina Perez....
and The Hardys
Hardy Boyz
The Hardy Boyz are a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of real-life brothers Matt and Jeff Hardy...
, and London and Kendrick retained their titles. In a subsequent regular tag rematch on SmackDown! Regal and Taylor came up short of winning the titles.
After WrestleMania 23
WrestleMania 23
WrestleMania 23 was the twenty-third annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on April 1, 2007 at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan...
, Regal and Taylor began a feud with Kane when after a match between Kane and Taylor, Taylor and Regal attacked Kane. The Boogeyman
Marty Wright
Martin "Marty" Wright is an American professional wrestler and actor best known for his time with World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring name The Boogeyman.-Tough Enough:...
soon joined the feud as Kane's tag team partner, but the feud ended after Kane defeated Regal in a singles match. On the 25 May edition of SmackDown!, Regal and Taylor competed in a number one contenders match for the WWE Tag Team Championship against Kendrick and London which they lost when Deuce 'n Domino
Deuce 'n Domino
Deuce 'n Domino was the name of a professional wrestling tag team consisting of Deuce Shade and Dice Domino, who were managed for the majority of their run by Cherry Pie and briefly by Maryse. The pair teamed together in World Wrestling Entertainment and Ohio Valley Wrestling from 2006 through 2008...
interfered, making both teams the number one contenders. This led to a triple threat match the next week on SmackDown!, where Deuce 'n Domino retained. Taylor and Regal's tag team would come to an end on 17 June when Regal was drafted to Raw during the Supplemental Draft.
Following Regal's departure, Taylor was absent from SmackDown! for several weeks and began teaming with Paul Burchill
Paul Burchill
Paul Birchill , better known by his ring name Paul Burchill, is an English professional wrestler. He is best known for his time with World Wrestling Entertainment , where he signed after training and debuting for the Frontier Wrestling Alliance in his home country.-Frontier Wrestling Alliance...
at house shows and dark matches. Since then, Taylor had only competed on SmackDown! sparingly, competing in a 20-Man Battle Royal for the then-vacant World Heavyweight Championship
World Heavyweight Championship (WWE)
The World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the SmackDown brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the WWE Championship of the Raw brand...
and losing a match to former rival Kane. Taylor brought Drew McIntyre to SmackDown! in October 2007 and acted as his mentor, but McIntyre would only make a few appearances before moving to the Raw brand in January 2008. Following McIntyre's move, Taylor went on a leave of absence from WWE television. He was released by WWE on 28 April 2008.
Independent circuit
On 26 and 27 September Taylor took part in the 2008 Ted Petty Invitational held by IWA Mid-South in Joliet, IllinoisJoliet, Illinois
Joliet is a city in Will and Kendall Counties in the U.S. state of Illinois, located southwest of Chicago. It is the county seat of Will County. As of the 2010 census, the city was the fourth-most populated in Illinois, with a population of 147,433. It continues to be Illinois' fastest growing...
. He defeated Tracy Smothers
Tracy Smothers
Tracy Smothers is an American professional wrestler.-Early career:Tracy started his career in the Memphis promotion on Saturday morning TV. Steve Armstrong and Tracy Smothers started teaming as The Southern Boys in Florida Championship Wrestling in 1987 where they feuded with The New Breed...
in the first round, but lost out to Claudio Castagnoli
Claudio Castagnoli
Claudio Castagnoli is a Swiss professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, working in its developmental territory Florida Championship Wrestling under the ring name Antonio Cesaro...
in the quarter finals.
On 24 January 2009, Taylor failed to show for an event by Superstar Wrestling at the Journal Tyne Theatre in Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...
, leading to a number of spectators leaving the arena upon finding out the news.
From 27–29 March 2009, he competed in Chikara's King of Trios Tournament as a member of Team Uppercut, along with Claudio Castagnoli and Bryan Danielson
Bryan Danielson
Bryan Danielson is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE where he wrestles on its SmackDown brand as Daniel Bryan, and currently holds the SmackDown Money in the Bank briefcase, which enables him to have a World Heavyweight Championship match at any time of his choosing...
. The team made it all the way to the finals before losing to F.I.S.T. of Gran Akuma
Gran Akuma
Gran Akuma is a professional wrestler who currently works for Chikara and Combat Zone Wrestling, where he uses the ring name AKUMA. He has also worked for the Florida based Full Impact Pro. In Chikara, he was a member of the Kings of Wrestling stable, while also being a part of Team F.I.S.T. with...
, Icarus
Icarus (wrestler)
Icarus is a professional wrestler, who performs primarily in the Chikara professional wrestling promotion, where he is a former Campeon de Parejas and King of Trios winner...
and Chuck Taylor
Chuck Taylor (wrestler)
Dustin Howard is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Chuck Taylor. He is currently competing most notably in Chikara, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla, Evolve Wrestling and Dragon Gate USA...
.
On 4 April 2009, Taylor lost a fourway match for the HPW Heavyweight Championship against HPW heavyweight champion Vito "the Violator" Toscani, Anthony Zeus and Eddy De La Combe in Eindhoven, Holland.
In March 2010 Taylor received a tryout as an agent for TNA Wrestling.
On April 2, 2011, Taylor appeared at the Ring of Honor
Ring of Honor
Ring of Honor ' is an American professional wrestling promotion, founded in 2002 by Rob Feinstein and Gabe Sapolsky. From 2004 to 2011, the promotion was under the ownership of Cary Silkin before being sold to the Sinclair Broadcast Group in May 2011...
pay-per-view Honor Takes Center Stage
Honor Takes Center Stage
Honor Takes Center Stage was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by Ring of Honor . It took place over two consecutive days, on 1 and 2 April, 2011, at the Center Stage Theatre in Atlanta, with the 1 April show at 8pm ET/5pm PT, and the 2 April show at a special matinee time of 1pm...
as the newest member of Prince Nana
Prince Nana
Prince Nana Osei Bandoh is an American professional wrestler of Ghanaian extraction, better known by his ring name, Prince Nana. He has stated that he is an Ashanti prince.-Professional wrestling career:...
's The Embassy
The Embassy
The Embassy may refer to:* The Embassy , a professional wrestling faction in Ring of Honor.* World Professional Darts Championship, a championship previously referred to as The Embassy.* The Embassy, a Swedish music group....
stable, facing Colt Cabana in a losing effort.
On September 9 2011, Taylor made his debut for small British promotion New Generation Wrestling (NGW) in a winning effort against Jack Gallagher
In wrestling
- Finishing moves
- British Suplex (Floatover bridging double underhook suplex)
- Floatover bridging fallaway slam
- Signature moves
- Abdominal stretch
- Chinlock
- Delayed vertical suplex, sometimes transitioned into a powerslam
- Diving crossbody
- Double knee lift
- European uppercut
- Leg dropLeg dropA leg drop or legdrop refers to an attack used in professional wrestling in which an attacking wrestler will jump and land his leg across a fallen opponent's chest, throat, face or head or in some cases, the groin/lower-abdominal area...
- Military press drop
- Modified wrist lock
- Short-arm clothesline
- Sleeper hold
- ManagersManager (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...
- Jeeves
- Fit FinlayDave FinlayDavid John "Fit" Finlay Jr. is a Northern Irish professional wrestler and road agent. He is perhaps best known for his time in World Championship Wrestling and WWE as an active wrestler and later as a road agent...
- William RegalDarren MatthewsDarren Kenneth Matthews , is an English professional wrestler, author and color commentator currently signed to WWE and competing on the SmackDown brand under the ring name William Regal. He is also known for his time in World Championship Wrestling under the ring name Steven Regal...
- NicknameNicknameA 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- "Rocky"
- "Squire"
- Entrance themesMusic in professional wrestlingMusic 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...
- "Villian" by James A. Johnston (2006–2008)
Championships and accomplishments
- All Star PromotionsAll Star WrestlingAll Star Wrestling is a British Professional wrestling promotion also known as All Star Promotions, Superslam Wrestling and Big Time Wrestling and originally known as Wrestling Enterprises , run by Brian Dixon and based in Liverpool, England...
- British Heavyweight ChampionshipBritish Heavyweight ChampionshipThe British Heavyweight Championship is a top British wrestling championship found throughout the country's circuit.Many versions of the British Heavyweight Championship exist in the independent circuit of the United Kingdom at any given time but the scene is usually dominated by one companies...
(2 times)
- British Heavyweight Championship
- Catch Wrestling AssociationCatch Wrestling AssociationThe Catch Wrestling Association was a professional wrestling organization based in Austria and Germany and was founded in 1973. It was formerly run by famous AWA champion Otto Wanz. The CWA featured a traditional brand of mat wrestling mixed with various “Strong Man” competitions...
- CWA World Tag Team ChampionshipCWA World Tag Team Championship (Germany)The CWA World Tag Team Championship was the tag team professional wrestling title in the German professional wrestling promotion the Catch Wrestling Association. It was established in 1988, and lasted until the promotion's 2000 closing.-Title history:...
(2 times) – with Chris BenoitChris BenoitChristopher Michael "Chris" Benoit was a Canadian professional wrestler whose career and life ended in a murder–suicide...
(1), and Miles Zrno (1)
- CWA World Tag Team Championship
- Other titles
- CWF Mid Atlantic Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- European Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- Pro Wrestling IllustratedPro Wrestling IllustratedPro 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 #214 in the PWI 500 in 2007