Vin Gerard
Encyclopedia
Vince "Vin" Gerard Durling (born February 4, 1986) is an American
professional wrestler
currently competing in the American-based promotion Chikara.
masked wrestler Equinox
, a student
of Mexican masked wrestler and Chikara alumnus Skayde
. Equinox soon began to show an impressive run early on and even made it past experienced Chikara wrestlers in an unsuccessful attempt to win the Young Lions Cup
. However, he suffered a concussion
at the Negative Balance event at the hands of Team F.I.S.T. (Gran Akuma
and Icarus
), which put him on the injured list for a while. Upon his return, Equinox began to occasionally team with fellow masked wrestler Angel de Fuego and they became known as Pareja Solar ("Solar Partners" in Spanish
).
At the 2005 Tag World Grand Prix, Angel no-showed the event, an occurrence that would later become a running joke, leaving Equinox alone for the tournament. To compensate for his partner's absence, Hydra was named as a replacement partner for Equinox, though they lost in the first round to the Grand Prix's eventual winners Chris Hero and Claudio Castagnoli. After the Grand Prix, Pareja Solar split and Equinox returned to singles competition, including an unsuccessful attempt at winning the Young Lions Cup from then champion Arik Cannon
, during which he suffered a second concussion near the end 2006.
The first half of 2007 was fairly uneventful for Equinox until he scored an upset over the much larger Brodie Lee
in Lee's Chikara debut, although Lee returned a couple of months later and easily defeated Equinox in a rematch. Equinox rebounded and scored another major upset, this time by pinning Chris Hero
in a tag team match during Invaders weekend. Hero then began feuding
with Equinox, which culminated in a hair vs. mask match that Hero won. After the match, Hero exposed Equinox as a Wrestle Factory drop-out who donned a mask and conned Skayde to get ahead in the wrestling business. After his unmasking, Equinox began using his real name (Vin Gerard) and became a villain
while also adopting both a new wrestling style and an entirely new attire consisting of black tights with slight variations of the fire and ice symbols from his Equinox attire and a bandanna
. Gerard later elaborated on his situation with Skayde, noting that he had threatened to report Skayde to the border patrol
if he did not pretend Gerard was his student. Soon after his unmasking, Gerard was banished from the locker room, robbing him of any entrance music
and forcing him to enter the arena though the back door of every venue Chikara ran in.
. At the Young Lions Cup tournament on June 15, Fire Ant of The Colony defeated Gerard for the Cup in a match that garnered significant praise from both the company and fans. However, the following month on July 13, Gerard gained revenge by defeating Fire Ant in a rematch for the Cup after utilizing the cup itself as a weapon, giving Gerard his first championship. During his run as champion, Gerard utilized the cup as a piggy bank
of sorts to collect money from fans. In addition, Gerard successfully managed to manipulate former fan favorite Shane Storm
into aligning with him, effectively renaming him STIGMA and changing his mask from its usual comedic design to a more evil and twisted version. Gerard and STIGMA would feud with The Colony until September 7, when the two aligned with the returning Colin Delaney
to form the UnStable, and thus evening the numbers of both groups. At the 2008 Tag World Grand Prix, Gerard and STIGMA represented the UnStable and defeated Swi$$ Money Holding
(Claudio Castagnoli
and Marc Roudin) in the first round before falling to their rivals The Colony in the semi-finals. The Colony would then go on to win the Grand Prix.
On December 14, Gerard's reign as champion came to halt as a controversial match with Jimmy Olsen
, who was wrestling under Gerard's own Equinox mask and gimmick in an attempt to play mind game
s with him, resulted in the Cup being held up by Chikara Director of Fun Leonard Chikarason. In the beginning of 2009, Gerard faced Olsen once again but this time in a ladder match
to determine the Young Lions Cup champion, which Olsen won to become the official champion. The UnStable entered the 2009 King of Trios, where they advanced to the semifinals, before losing to Team Uppercut (Bryan Danielson
, Claudio Castagnoli
and Dave Taylor).
In the latter half of 2009 The UnStable started a long losing streak, which included a first round loss in the 2010 King of Trios, during which Gerard and STIGMA began showing signs of a face turn by making sure that Amasis
was fine after their match against him and Ophidian
on March 20. Gerard faced Amasis again, this time in a singles match, on May 23 and managed to score his first victory in six months only to learn later that Colin Delaney had interfered in the match. In a blog entry on Chikara's official website Gerard attacked Delaney, calling him selfish and warned him not to interfere in his and STIGMA's deciding match against The Osirian Portal on June 27. On June 27 at Faded Scars and Lines Delaney interfered in the match and helped Gerard and STIGMA defeat the Osirian Portal. After teasing dissension, all three members of the UnStable united and attacked Amasis and Ophidian. On July 26 at Chikarasaurus Rex: King of Show the Osirian Portal gained a measure of revenge on the UnStable, when they teamed with Drake Younger
, who also had a history with Gerard and STIGMA, and defeated Gerard, STIGMA and Delaney in a six man tag team match. Even though the UnStable had seemingly reunited, tension rose again during the Young Lions Cup VIII weekend, when Delaney eliminated STIGMA from a 30 Man Countdown Showdown match
. On September 19, 2010, at Through Savage Progress Cuts the Jungle Line the UnStable faced the Future is Now (Equinox, Helios
and Jigsaw) in a six man tag team match. During the match Delaney turned on the UnStable and re–formed his tag team with Olsen, after which Gerard got his team disqualified by low blowing the former Olsen Twins. On October 24, in the first match between the UnStable and the Olsen Twins, Gerard picked up the victory for his team by forcing Delaney Olsen to submit. The following week Gerard and STIGMA made their first tour of Japan with Osaka Pro Wrestling
. The UnStable had a rematch with the Olsen Twins on November 21, this time with the Olsens coming out victorious. At the season nine finale on December 12, Delaney Olsen defeated Gerard in a singles match. In February 2011, the UnStable began feuding with 3.0
(Scott Parker and Shane Matthews). The feud ended on May 21, when 3.0 defeated the UnStable in a tag team match, where the losing team had to split up. After going solo, Gerard entered the 12 Large: Summit to determine the first ever Chikara Grand Champion
. After one win and two losses, Gerard was eliminated from contention in the tournament as Eddie Kingston
won four straight matches, winning the block. This led to Gerard forfeiting his match with UltraMantis Black
so he could concentrate on Kingston, and on October 30, Gerard defeated the previously undefeated Kingston via submission in the final round-robin
match of the tournament. After the match Gerard hit Kingston in the knee with a steel chair, putting his spot in the finals into question. To further the storyline, Gerard's profile was removed from Chikara's official website following the event.
, a fellow member of the Chikara roster.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
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...
currently competing in the American-based promotion Chikara.
Equinox
After training in Chikara's Wrestle Factory school, Durling made his debut on May 20, 2005, as the fan favoriteFace (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...
masked wrestler Equinox
Equinox
An equinox occurs twice a year, when the tilt of the Earth's axis is inclined neither away from nor towards the Sun, the center of the Sun being in the same plane as the Earth's equator...
, a student
Kayfabe
In professional wrestling, kayfabe is the portrayal of events within the industry as "real" or "true". Specifically, the portrayal of professional wrestling, in particular the competition and rivalries between participants, as being genuine or not of a worked nature...
of Mexican masked wrestler and Chikara alumnus Skayde
Skayde
Jorge Rivera Serrano is a Mexican professional wrestler who is best known for Lucha Libre. He has been a tecnico throughout his wrestling career. He is currently training wrestlers at Arena Xalapa.-Professional wrestling career:...
. Equinox soon began to show an impressive run early on and even made it past experienced Chikara wrestlers in an unsuccessful attempt to win the Young Lions Cup
Chikara Young Lions Cup
The Young Lions Cup is a professional wrestling championship contested for in the American professional wrestling promotion Chikara.-History:...
. However, he suffered a concussion
Kayfabe
In professional wrestling, kayfabe is the portrayal of events within the industry as "real" or "true". Specifically, the portrayal of professional wrestling, in particular the competition and rivalries between participants, as being genuine or not of a worked nature...
at the Negative Balance event at the hands of Team F.I.S.T. (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...
and 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...
), which put him on the injured list for a while. Upon his return, Equinox began to occasionally team with fellow masked wrestler Angel de Fuego and they became known as Pareja Solar ("Solar Partners" in Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
).
At the 2005 Tag World Grand Prix, Angel no-showed the event, an occurrence that would later become a running joke, leaving Equinox alone for the tournament. To compensate for his partner's absence, Hydra was named as a replacement partner for Equinox, though they lost in the first round to the Grand Prix's eventual winners Chris Hero and Claudio Castagnoli. After the Grand Prix, Pareja Solar split and Equinox returned to singles competition, including an unsuccessful attempt at winning the Young Lions Cup from then champion Arik Cannon
Arik Cannon
Arik Cannon is a professional wrestler known for competing in companies such as Chikara, Dragon Gate USA, IWA Mid-South, All American Wrestling and Wrestling Society X.-Career:...
, during which he suffered a second concussion near the end 2006.
The first half of 2007 was fairly uneventful for Equinox until he scored an upset over the much larger Brodie Lee
Brodie Lee
Jon Huber is an American professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Brodie Lee, who performs primarily in the Chikara, Dragon Gate, Dragon Gate USA, Evolve Wrestling and Jersey All Pro Wrestling professional wrestling promotions...
in Lee's Chikara debut, although Lee returned a couple of months later and easily defeated Equinox in a rematch. Equinox rebounded and scored another major upset, this time by pinning Chris Hero
Chris Hero
Chris Spradlin is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Chris Hero. He is a mainstay of many independent wrestling promotions, including Ring of Honor, and Pro Wrestling Guerrilla as well as Pro Wrestling Noah in Japan...
in a tag team match during Invaders weekend. Hero then began feuding
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 Equinox, which culminated in a hair vs. mask match that Hero won. After the match, Hero exposed Equinox as a Wrestle Factory drop-out who donned a mask and conned Skayde to get ahead in the wrestling business. After his unmasking, Equinox began using his real name (Vin Gerard) and became 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...
while also adopting both a new wrestling style and an entirely new attire consisting of black tights with slight variations of the fire and ice symbols from his Equinox attire and a bandanna
Kerchief
A kerchief is a triangular or square piece of cloth tied around the head or around the neck for protective or decorative purposes...
. Gerard later elaborated on his situation with Skayde, noting that he had threatened to report Skayde to the border patrol
United States Border Patrol
The United States Border Patrol is a federal law enforcement agency within U.S. Customs and Border Protection , a component of the Department of Homeland Security . It is an agency in the Department of Homeland Security that enforces laws and regulations for the admission of foreign-born persons to...
if he did not pretend Gerard was his student. Soon after his unmasking, Gerard was banished from the locker room, robbing him of any entrance music
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...
and forcing him to enter the arena though the back door of every venue Chikara ran in.
Young Lions Cup and the UnStable
In 2008, Gerard gained significant success early on with several high profile wins before beginning a heated feud with The ColonyThe Colony (professional wrestling)
The Colony is a professional wrestling stable wrestling for Chikara. Their gimmick is, as their name suggests, a colony of ants.-Debut:After being trained by both Mike Quackenbush and Chris Hero, Fire Ant and Soldier Ant debuted as Team Colony at the 2006 Tag World Grand Prix, where they lost in...
. At the Young Lions Cup tournament on June 15, Fire Ant of The Colony defeated Gerard for the Cup in a match that garnered significant praise from both the company and fans. However, the following month on July 13, Gerard gained revenge by defeating Fire Ant in a rematch for the Cup after utilizing the cup itself as a weapon, giving Gerard his first championship. During his run as champion, Gerard utilized the cup as a piggy bank
Piggy bank
Piggy bank is the traditional name of a coin accumulation and storage receptacle; it is most often, but not exclusively, used by children. The piggy bank is known to collectors as a "still bank" as opposed to the "mechanical banks" popular in the early 20th century. These items are also often used...
of sorts to collect money from fans. In addition, Gerard successfully managed to manipulate former fan favorite Shane Storm
Stigma (wrestler)
Stigma is an American professional wrestler, best known for his work in the Chikara professional wrestling promotion, where he is a former Young Lions Cup Champion and King of Trios winner...
into aligning with him, effectively renaming him STIGMA and changing his mask from its usual comedic design to a more evil and twisted version. Gerard and STIGMA would feud with The Colony until September 7, when the two aligned with the returning Colin Delaney
Colin Delaney
Colin Matthew Delaney is a American professional wrestler, best known for wrestling for World Wrestling Entertainment. He has also wrestled for promotions such as 2CW Squared Circle Wrestling, Chikara, NWA Upstate, Pier 6 Wrestling, Buffalo Championship Wrestling, NWA Empire, LakeShore Wrestling,...
to form the UnStable, and thus evening the numbers of both groups. At the 2008 Tag World Grand Prix, Gerard and STIGMA represented the UnStable and defeated Swi$$ Money Holding
Swiss Money Holding
The Swiss Money Holding is a professional wrestling tag team originally composed of Ares and Claudio Castagnoli, and later joined by Marc Roudin in late-2004. Their in-ring personas parodied Swiss bankers from the United Bank of Switzerland...
(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...
and Marc Roudin) in the first round before falling to their rivals The Colony in the semi-finals. The Colony would then go on to win the Grand Prix.
On December 14, Gerard's reign as champion came to halt as a controversial match with Jimmy Olsen
Jimmy Olsen (wrestler)
Jimmy Olsen , also known by his ring name Equinox, is an American professional wrestler, who is best known for his work in the American-based promotion Chikara.-Chikara :...
, who was wrestling under Gerard's own Equinox mask and gimmick in an attempt to play mind game
Mind game
The term mind games refers to three main categories:* a largely conscious struggle for psychological one-upmanship, often employing passive–aggressive behavior to specifically demoralize or empower the thinking subject, making the aggressor look superior - 'mind games or power games'.* 'the...
s with him, resulted in the Cup being held up by Chikara Director of Fun Leonard Chikarason. In the beginning of 2009, Gerard faced Olsen once again but this time in a 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...
to determine the Young Lions Cup champion, which Olsen won to become the official champion. The UnStable entered the 2009 King of Trios, where they advanced to the semifinals, before losing to Team Uppercut (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...
, 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...
and Dave Taylor).
In the latter half of 2009 The UnStable started a long losing streak, which included a first round loss in the 2010 King of Trios, during which Gerard and STIGMA began showing signs of a face turn by making sure that Amasis
The Osirian Portal
The Osirian Portal was a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of Amasis and Ophidian. The team mainly competed in Chikara, where they held the Campeonatos de Parejas, and Combat Zone Wrestling . They have also made appearances in Ring of Honor and several other independent promotions based...
was fine after their match against him and Ophidian
The Osirian Portal
The Osirian Portal was a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of Amasis and Ophidian. The team mainly competed in Chikara, where they held the Campeonatos de Parejas, and Combat Zone Wrestling . They have also made appearances in Ring of Honor and several other independent promotions based...
on March 20. Gerard faced Amasis again, this time in a singles match, on May 23 and managed to score his first victory in six months only to learn later that Colin Delaney had interfered in the match. In a blog entry on Chikara's official website Gerard attacked Delaney, calling him selfish and warned him not to interfere in his and STIGMA's deciding match against The Osirian Portal on June 27. On June 27 at Faded Scars and Lines Delaney interfered in the match and helped Gerard and STIGMA defeat the Osirian Portal. After teasing dissension, all three members of the UnStable united and attacked Amasis and Ophidian. On July 26 at Chikarasaurus Rex: King of Show the Osirian Portal gained a measure of revenge on the UnStable, when they teamed with Drake Younger
Drake Younger
Drake Wuertz is an American professional wrestler known by his ring name Drake Younger. He has worked for a number of major independent promotions including Combat Zone Wrestling, IWA Mid-South and Chikara...
, who also had a history with Gerard and STIGMA, and defeated Gerard, STIGMA and Delaney in a six man tag team match. Even though the UnStable had seemingly reunited, tension rose again during the Young Lions Cup VIII weekend, when Delaney eliminated STIGMA from a 30 Man Countdown Showdown match
Battle royal (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a battle royal is a multi-competitor match type in which wrestlers are eliminated until one is left and declared winner...
. On September 19, 2010, at Through Savage Progress Cuts the Jungle Line the UnStable faced the Future is Now (Equinox, Helios
Ricochet (wrestler)
Trevor Mann is an American professional wrestler better known by the ring name Ricochet. He currently performs mainly for the American promotion Dragon Gate USA and its parent promotion, Japanese Dragon Gate. In both promotions he is a member of the Blood Warriors stable...
and Jigsaw) in a six man tag team match. During the match Delaney turned on the UnStable and re–formed his tag team with Olsen, after which Gerard got his team disqualified by low blowing the former Olsen Twins. On October 24, in the first match between the UnStable and the Olsen Twins, Gerard picked up the victory for his team by forcing Delaney Olsen to submit. The following week Gerard and STIGMA made their first tour of Japan with Osaka Pro Wrestling
Osaka Pro Wrestling
Osaka Pro Wrestling is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion, founded in 1998 by Super Delfin.-Current champions:-External links:**...
. The UnStable had a rematch with the Olsen Twins on November 21, this time with the Olsens coming out victorious. At the season nine finale on December 12, Delaney Olsen defeated Gerard in a singles match. In February 2011, the UnStable began feuding with 3.0
2.0 (professional wrestling)
2.0 is a Canadian professional wrestling tag team, consisting of Scott "Jagged" Parker and Shane Matthews . The team is best known for working for Chikara, where they are currently using the name 3.0, and International Wrestling Syndicate...
(Scott Parker and Shane Matthews). The feud ended on May 21, when 3.0 defeated the UnStable in a tag team match, where the losing team had to split up. After going solo, Gerard entered the 12 Large: Summit to determine the first ever Chikara Grand Champion
Chikara Grand Championship
The Chikara Grand Championship is a professional wrestling championship owned by the Chikara promotion. The first champion was crowned on November 13, 2011, at the High Noon pay-per-view, when Eddie Kingston defeated Mike Quackenbush at the conclusion of a six-month long, twelve-person...
. After one win and two losses, Gerard was eliminated from contention in the tournament as Eddie Kingston
Eddie Kingston
Edward "Eddie" Moore is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Eddie Kingston. He is best known for competing in Chikara, Combat Zone Wrestling, Independent Wrestling Association Mid-South and Ring of Honor...
won four straight matches, winning the block. This led to Gerard forfeiting his match with UltraMantis Black
UltraMantis Black
UltraMantis Black is a professional wrestler, who performs primarily in the Chikara professional wrestling promotion, where he is the leader of the Order of the Neo–Solar Temple, while also regularly commentating on matches in which he is not competing...
so he could concentrate on Kingston, and on October 30, Gerard defeated the previously undefeated Kingston via submission in the final round-robin
Round-robin tournament
A round-robin tournament is a competition "in which each contestant meets all other contestants in turn".-Terminology:...
match of the tournament. After the match Gerard hit Kingston in the knee with a steel chair, putting his spot in the finals into question. To further the storyline, Gerard's profile was removed from Chikara's official website following the event.
Personal life
Durling is the second cousin of Chuck TaylorChuck 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...
, a fellow member of the Chikara roster.
In wrestling
- As Vin Gerard
- Finishing moves
- 2K1 Bomb (Cross–legged fisherman buster)
- STF, sometimes preceded by a legmare
- Signature moves
- Chokehold STO
- Double underhook suplex
- Hangman's neckbreaker
- PowerbombPowerbombA powerbomb is a professional wrestling throw in which an opponent is lifted up and then slammed back-first down to the mat. The standard powerbomb sees an opponent first placed in a standing headscissors position...
- Running high knee
- Senton
- Standing inverted Indian deathlock surfboard followed into a head stomp
- Finishing moves
- As Equinox
- Finishing moves
- Standing shooting star press
- Signature moves
- Flying forearm smash
- Suicide dive transitioned into an arm drag
- Tilt-a-whirl into either a headscissors takedown or an inverted DDT
- Finishing moves
- 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...
- "Migra" by SantanaCarlos SantanaCarlos Augusto Alves Santana is a Mexican rock guitarist. Santana became famous in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band, Santana, which pioneered rock, salsa and jazz fusion...
(as Equinox) - "UnStable" by Jay Preston and Joe Loftus (as Vin Gerard)
Championships and accomplishments
- Chikara
- Young Lions CupChikara Young Lions CupThe Young Lions Cup is a professional wrestling championship contested for in the American professional wrestling promotion Chikara.-History:...
(1 time)
Lucha de Apuesta record
| Wager | Winner | Loser | Location | Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mask | Chris Hero Chris Hero Chris Spradlin is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Chris Hero. He is a mainstay of many independent wrestling promotions, including Ring of Honor, and Pro Wrestling Guerrilla as well as Pro Wrestling Noah in Japan... |
Equinox | Hellertown, Pennsylvania Hellertown, Pennsylvania Hellertown is a borough in Northampton County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. Hellertown is located in the Lehigh Valley region of the state, and geographically in the Saucon Valley.The population of Hellertown was 5,606 at the 2000 census.-Geography:... |
Mask vs. Hair match |