WWE has released details on nine new wrestlers training at the WWE Performance Center, including one former NFL star and several huge names from around the independent wrestling scene. The new recruits are listed by their real names and not their wrestling names in the press release (featured below) sent out this morning.
- Alvin Abitz (Fond du Lac, Wisconsin) – Standing 6 feet 6 inches and weighing 285 pounds, Abitz is an Army veteran with a rugby and kickboxing background.
- Theophilus Agbi (Brooklyn, New York) – At 6 feet 5 inches and 270 pounds, Agbi attended Amherst College where he wrestled and was named to the NCWA All-American team in 2013 and 2015. Agbi graduated from Amherst College with a Bachelor of Arts degree, majoring in French, as well as Law, Jurisprudence and Social Thought (LJST).
- Sarah Bridges (Sellersburg, Indiana) – Also known as “Crazy Mary Dobson,” Bridges trained out of the Kaientai Dojo in Japan. With four years of wrestling experience, Bridges has worked for Insane Championship Wrestling (ICW) in Scotland, HXC Wrestling in England, westside Extreme Wrestling (wXw) in Germany, and multiple companies in Japan. She was named to Pro Wrestling Illustrated’s Top 50 Female Wrestlers list in 2014 and 2015.
- Demitrius Bronson (Gilbert, Arizona) – Standing 5 feet 11 inches and weighing 215 pounds, Bronson played running back for the Seattle Seahawks and Miami Dolphins. Prior to his NFL experience, he attended Eastern Washington University where he played football and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology.
- Tom Budgen (Amsterdam, Holland) – Also known as “Tommy End,” Budgen has extensive experience wrestling in the UK, Japan and U.S for Insane Championship Wrestling (ICW), Progress Wrestling, westside Xtreme wrestling (wXw), Evolve, Pro Wrestling Guerilla (PWG) and Big Japan Pro Wrestling (BJW) where he has held multiple titles throughout his career.
- Taynara Melo de Carvalho (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) – At 5 feet 6 inches and 125 pounds, Carvalho has a black belt in Judo and participated in the 2016 Olympic trials in Rio de Janeiro. She is fluent in Portuguese.
- Victoria Gonzalez (Harlingen, Texas) – Standing 6 feet and weighing 175 pounds, Gonzalez trained out of the Gulf Coast Wrestling Alliance (GCWA) in Corpus Christi, Texas. Her father, Ricky Gonzalez, worked with WWE Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels at Texas Wrestling Academy (TWA) and made appearances for a variety of independent wrestling circuits. She is fluent in Spanish.
- Chris Lindsey (Tampa, Florida) – Also known as “Roderick Strong,” Lindsey has trained with WWE Legend Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart and has more than 13 years of experience on the independent wrestling circuits with Ring of Honor (ROH), New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW), TNA, Dragon Gate, Pro Wrestling Guerilla (PWG) and Evolve. Strong has held multiple titles throughout his career including World Champion (ROH & PWG) and Tag Team Champion (ROH & PWG).
- Damian Mackle (Belfast, Ireland) – Also known as “Big Damo,” Mackle has trained with WWE Superstar Finn Bálor, WWE trainer Robbie Brookside, and Johnny Moss of National Wrestling Alliance UK Hammerlock (NWA). He has had stints at Insane Championship Wrestling (ICW), Scottish Wrestling Alliance, New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) and TNA holding multiple titles throughout his career.
Recommended viewing:
Here are a few recommended matches for those unfamiliar with some of the bigger independent names on this list.
ROH The Big Bang! (4/3/2010)
Roderick Strong vs. Tyler Black (Seth Rollins) vs. Austin Aries
ICW Shug’s House Party 3 (7/31/2016)
Big Damo vs. Joe Coffey
PWG Battle of Los Angeles Night 2 (9/3/2016)
Tommy End & Chris Hero vs. Fenix & Pentagon Jr.
PWG Battle of Los Angeles Night 1 (8/28/2015)
Roderick Strong & The Young Bucks vs. Tommy End, Marty Scurll & Zack Sabre Jr.
