Mid 20th Century
222-513: Victoria Elizabeth Crawford (born June 30, 1986) is an American professional wrestler currently performing on the independent circuit under the ring name Vix Crow . She is best known for her tenure in WWE , where she performed under the ring name Alicia Fox . Crawford debuted on SmackDown on June 13, 2008, using the Alicia Fox name and the gimmick of a wedding planner. In November, she moved to
444-483: A fiann , a type of mythical Irish warrior. Having attended an Irish-speaking school , he was aware of the four cycles of Irish mythology and, inspired by the artwork of Jim Fitzpatrick , incorporated sword- and axe-wielding imagery into his gimmick . This included the design of his own pendant, the crossos, which combines the Celtic cross with a Celtic War sword to illustrate his character's "indigenous origins with
666-482: A fan favorite role. Their on-screen association was explained by WWE claiming that Fox had moved her wedding planning business to England during her hiatus from WWE television, where she had met Gabriel. Gabriel and Fox began feuding with the Burchill siblings ( Paul and Katie Lea ) in late December 2008. Fox made her ECW in-ring debut on January 6, 2009, in a loss to Katie Lea. The following week, Gabriel and Fox defeated
888-519: A heel on the April 30 episode of WWE Superstars , teaming with Michelle McCool to defeat Maria and Gail Kim . After winning her debut match, Fox aligned herself with Michelle McCool, with the pair teaming together in tag team matches as well as accompanying each other to the ring for singles matches. Fox was in the corner of McCool when McCool won the WWE Women's Championship at The Bash . On June 29 it
1110-495: A mixed tag team match . In December, Crawford teamed with Tommy Taylor in a loss to Brianna and Robert Anthony . The feud continued into 2008, with the Bellas defeating Crawford and Maryse Ouellet on January 8, and Crawford and Neidhart on January 19 and 29. Following the completion of the feud, Crawford began competing regularly against her former tag team partner, Neidhart. Neidhart won their first singles encounter on February 5 and
1332-412: A villain under the shortened ring name of Sheamus, quickly defeating local competitor Oliver John. Sheamus soon entered into a critically well-received rivalry with Goldust after defeating him on 29 July. After exchanging victories in the following weeks they competed in a no disqualification match on 1 September which was won by Sheamus. Sheamus then began a feud with Shelton Benjamin which
1554-446: A " gimmick " consisting of a specific persona , stage name , entrance theme , and other distinguishing traits. Matches are the primary vehicle for advancing storylines, which typically center on interpersonal conflicts, or feuds , between heroic " faces " and villainous " heels ". A wrestling ring , akin to the platform used in boxing , serves as the main stage ; additional scenes may be recorded for television in backstage areas of
1776-509: A "revolution" in the WWE Divas Division by introducing the debuting Charlotte and Becky Lynch as Paige's allies, and NXT Women's Champion Sasha Banks aligning with Naomi and Tamina, leading to a brawl between the three teams. The three teams would ultimately face off, on August 23, at SummerSlam in a three team elimination match . Team Bella would first eliminate Team B.A.D. when Brie Bella pinned Tamina, however Team PCB would win
1998-537: A Cell on 2 October, Vengeance on 23 October, and on SmackDown . He then went on a twelve match winning streak building towards winning the Royal Rumble on 29 January 2012. He entered the match twenty-second and won by last eliminating Chris Jericho to earn a main event championship match at WrestleMania XXVIII . On 19 February at Elimination Chamber , Sheamus attacked World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan after Bryan retained his title, thus challenging Bryan
2220-573: A Cell , Sheamus lost the World Heavyweight Championship to Big Show , ending his reign, which was the third longest in the title's history, at 210 days. Sheamus faced Big Show for the World Heavyweight Championship on November at Survivor Series , defeating Big Show by disqualification, failing to win the title. Afterward, Sheamus repeatedly hit Big Show with a steel chair. This led to a Chairs match on 16 December at TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs , where Sheamus again failed to regain
2442-507: A Tables match. On 3 June episode of SmackDown , Sheamus lost a World Heavyweight Championship match to Randy Orton due to biased refereeing from Christian . Two weeks later, he lost a match to Christian, ending his chance to compete in the World Heavyweight Championship match at Capitol Punishment on 19 June. At Money in the Bank on 17 July, he competed in the Money in the Bank ladder match for
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#17329099513242664-466: A World Heavyweight Championship match contract, but lost. On 29 July episode of SmackDown , Sheamus started a feud with Mark Henry over Henry being a bully, turning face in the process. At SummerSlam on 14 August, he lost to Henry via countout. Sheamus went on a fourteen match winning streak that ended after interference from Christian, with whom he had been feuding. During this time, Sheamus defeated Christian in three consecutive matches at Hell in
2886-413: A background in authentic wrestling no longer mattered. After this time, matches became more outlandish and gimmicky and any semblance professional wrestling had to catch wrestling faded. The personas of the wrestlers likewise grew more outlandish. Gorgeous George , who performed throughout the 1940s and 1950s, was the first wrestler whose entrance into the arena was accompanied by a theme song played over
3108-431: A backstage argument with Big Show, causing him to break away from the team. At TLC on 16 December, they successfully defended the championship against The Usos and The New Day in a triple threat tag team match . On 8 January episode of SmackDown , they accepted a challenge from The Miz and Shane McMahon , which would lead to a tag team title match at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view on 27 January 2019, where they lost
3330-438: A backstage fit after Alexander severed ties with her on 205 Live , following her interference during his match with Dar, which eventually costed him the match. Subsequently, Fox became Dar's new valet. During this time, she began receiving gifts during matches on 205 Live, which Dar passed off as his. On one occasion, Fox was seen eating the flowers gifted to her at ringside, slowly displaying traits of her "crazy" gimmick again. It
3552-408: A backstage segment being welcomed back by Bayley . Two weeks later, in her first match back, Fox teamed with Dana Brooke in a match against Sasha Banks and Bayley, however, the match ended in a no contest after a brawl started outside the ring between the two duos. In July, Fox started an alliance with Alexa Bliss , who helped her defeat Natalya . After a post-match attack on Ronda Rousey , who
3774-521: A battle royal. Following a handful of appearances, including appearances as a referee, Crow made her wrestling return in 2024 at Starrcast 's HER event in Ballarat , Australia on 12 April, defeating Mickie James with an Implant Buster, marking her first singles match since 2019. She continued to compete in the independent circuit through the summer of 2024 against the likes of Hyan and Seleziya Sparx. In 2013, Crawford (as Alicia Fox) made an appearance on
3996-477: A body contest. Her FCW in-ring debut came on September 25, where she and Nattie Neidhart defeated The Bella Twins (Brianna and Nicole) in a tag team match. She quickly began feuding with The Bella Twins, while allying herself with Neidhart. The Bella Twins defeated Crawford and Neidhart on two consecutive occasions, and on October 23, Crawford lost to Nicole in a singles match. A week later, she and Sheamus O'Shaunessy were defeated by Brianna and Kofi Kingston in
4218-520: A carny term for a shooting gallery gun whose sights were not deliberately misaligned. Wrestling in the United States blossomed in popularity after the Civil War , with catch wrestling eventually becoming the most popular style. At first, professional wrestlers were genuine competitive fighters, but they struggled to draw audiences because Americans did not find real wrestling to be very entertaining, so
4440-513: A central authority. Nor could any of them stomach the idea of leaving the NWA themselves to compete directly with McMahon, for that would mean their territories would become fair game for the other NWA members. McMahon also had a creative flair for TV that his rivals lacked. For instance, the AWA's TV productions during the 1980s were amateurish, low-budget, and out-of-touch with contemporary culture, which lead to
4662-574: A champion that Curley put forth: Dick Shikat . The National Wrestling Association shut down in 1980. In 1948, a number of promoters from across the country came together to form the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). The NWA recognized one "world champion", voted on by its members, but allowed member promoters to crown their own local champions in their territories. If a member poached wrestlers from another member, or held matches in another member's territory, they risked being ejected from
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#17329099513244884-445: A clean sweep. Sheamus eliminated Seth Rollins after a Brogue Kick to score the first elimination. In November, Sheamus began a storyline with Drew McIntyre where their real-life friendship was acknowledged. On 30 November episode of Raw , Sheamus was a guest on Miz TV, where The Miz and John Morrison berated him for his friendship with McIntyre to which Sheamus defended McIntyre from the accusations, and attempted to attack Miz, but
5106-466: A commentary-bound Henry during a match, Henry whipped Sheamus with a belt, prompting a strap match on 19 May at Extreme Rules , where Sheamus emerged victorious. Sheamus then began feuding with Damien Sandow , when Sandow hosted a series of mental challenges on SmackDown , and Sheamus repeatedly interrupted and tried to solve the challenges. However, when Sheamus failed to solve the puzzles, he instead resorted to physical violence. On 16 June, during
5328-410: A concussion a week before their match at No Way Out and was subsequently replaced by Dolph Ziggler ; Sheamus retained the title in their match at the event on 17 June. Sheamus went on to retain the title against Del Rio and Ziggler over the next few months, including at Money in the Bank on 15 July, SummerSlam on 19 August, and Night of Champions on 16 September. On 28 October at Hell in
5550-435: A degree. Vince Russo, the boss of WCW in 2000, completely disregarded kayfabe by routinely discussing business matters and office politics in public, which alienated fans. I watch championship wrestling from Florida with wrestling commentator Gordon Solie . Is this all "fake"? If so, they deserve an Oscar . Sheamus O%27Shaunessy Stephen Farrelly (born 28 January 1978) is an Irish professional wrestler . He
5772-571: A developmental contract with WWE, at which point he relocated to the United States . O'Shaunessy debuted for the WWE developmental territory Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW) on 2 October in a double-debut match with a win over Bryan Kelly . While wrestling regularly, he was not part of any long feuds but did wrestle with a number of short-term tag teams alongside Hade Vansen and Jake Hager before teaming with Kafu (and managed by Dave Taylor ) in
5994-528: A distraction provided by Lana . After this match, Team Bella quietly disbanded and both Fox and Brie transitioned into fan favorites . On the March 22 episode of Main Event , she and Natalya accompanied Paige to her match against Naomi, where Paige was defeated following a distraction provided by Summer Rae and a returning Emma . The following week, Fox, Brie, and Natalya accompanied Paige to her rematch against Emma on
6216-613: A draw after interference from the lumberjacks. The next night on Raw , Sheamus retained the United States Championship against Bryan in a rematch. In the 2011 Supplemental Draft , Sheamus was drafted to the SmackDown brand , and made his SmackDown debut on 29 April by attacking Kofi Kingston. He brought the United States Championship to SmackDown, but lost it back to the Raw brand at Extreme Rules on 1 May when Kingston defeated him in
6438-668: A fatal four-way match, following interference from The Nexus that allowed him to pin John Cena, winning the WWE Championship for the second time and being named the one-hundredth WWE Champion in history. He defeated Cena in a steel cage match to retain the championship on 18 July at the Money in the Bank pay-per-view, after The Nexus interfered again. He retained the title against Randy Orton on 15 August at SummerSlam by disqualification. On 19 September at Night of Champions , Sheamus lost
6660-410: A fee, a visitor could challenge the wrestler to a quick match. If the challenger defeated the champion in a short time frame, usually 15 minutes, he won a prize. To encourage challenges, the carnival operators staged rigged matches in which an accomplice posing as a visitor challenged the champion and won, giving the audience the impression that the champion was easy to beat. This practice taught wrestlers
6882-514: A feud with Jeff Hardy insulting him for his various addiction problems, but was defeated by him in the first round of the Intercontinental Championship tournament on 22 May episode of SmackDown . On 29 May, episode of SmackDown , Hardy was " arrested " after crashing his car into Elias , however later in the episode, Hardy would cause a distraction for Sheamus, costing him a match against Daniel Bryan , and attacked Sheamus after
Alicia Fox - Misplaced Pages Continue
7104-515: A feud with Nikki Bella after being appointed by Stephanie McMahon to berate her in a series of handicap matches. Meanwhile, Fox continued to throw temper tantrums during her matches throughout the summer, and even tormented Tom Phillips in a number of backstage segments on the WWE App. After a hiatus, Fox returned to WWE television, on the September 29 episode of Raw , where she defeated AJ Lee, with
7326-449: A few local athletes, but still did not seem to be seeing eye to eye. Sheamus and Cesaro defeated The New Day on 24 October episode of Raw and defeated them by disqualification at Hell in a Cell on 30 October. On 7 November episode of Raw , Sheamus and Cesaro were announced as part of Team Raw for the 10–on–10 Survivor Series Tag Team Elimination match at Survivor Series on 20 November, which Team Raw won with Sheamus and Cesaro being
7548-414: A genuine sport, and the phrase "professional wrestling" therefore has a more literal meaning in those places. A notable example is India's Pro Wrestling League . In numerous American states, professional wrestling is legally defined as a non-sport. For instance, New York defines professional wrestling as: Professional wrestling means an activity in which participants struggle hand-in-hand primarily for
7770-483: A hybrid of warrior strength matched with a strong ethical centre". In May 2004, still using the ring name Sheamus O'Shaunessy, Farrelly returned to wrestling at the newly opened Irish Whip Wrestling (IWW) school in Dublin . He then made his debut match for the promotion at their Mount Temple show on 9 July, facing Mark Burns in a winning effort. He went on to win a battle royal the following month. O'Shaunessy spent
7992-405: A legitimate sport. Firstly, wrestling was more entertaining when it was faked, whereas fakery did not make boxing any more entertaining. Secondly, in a rigged boxing match, the designated loser must take a real beating for his "defeat" to be convincing, but wrestling holds can be faked convincingly without inflicting injury. This meant that boxers were less willing to "take dives"; they wanted to have
8214-560: A losing effort against Chris Raaber, Michael Kovac, and Robert Ray Kreuzer at the European Wrestling Association's Night of Gladiators. As well as making top contender appearances based on his growing reputation, O'Shaunessy also brought with him to Britain his long-standing rivalry with Galloway. He had already wrestled in Galloway's home promotion, British Championship Wrestling (BCW), twice in 2005, losing to Jay Phoenix on
8436-448: A lower-level position, sometimes comedic, sometimes in a tag team but never presented or treated as the threat-in-waiting for the champion on a consistent basis". On 30 March episode of Raw , Sheamus returned from injury, having drastically changed his look, including a mohawk and braided beard, appearing to save Daniel Bryan and Dolph Ziggler from an attack by Bad News Barrett, but then attacked Bryan and Ziggler instead, turning heel in
8658-702: A match against Gus Sonnenberg in January 1929. Bowser then broke away from the trust to form his own cartel, the American Wrestling Association (AWA), in September 1930, and he declared Sonnenberg to be the AWA champion. This AWA should not be confused with Wally Kadbo's AWA founded in 1960. Curley reacted to this move by convincing the National Boxing Association to form the National Wrestling Association , which in turn crowned
8880-462: A match at WrestleMania XXVI on 28 March where Sheamus lost. At Extreme Rules on 25 April, Sheamus attacked Triple H at the beginning of the show and later defeated him in a Street Fight . After a series of kicks to the head to win, he continued his assault after the match finished resulting in Triple H being written off television for ten months. On 20 June at Fatal 4-Way pay-per-view, Sheamus won
9102-437: A match between Sheamus and Cesaro for the title at Payback on 1 June, which Sheamus won. On 9 June, Sheamus defeated Bad News Barrett to qualify for the Money in the Bank ladder match for the vacant WWE World Heavyweight Championship; the match was won by John Cena on 29 June. Sheamus was in the Intercontinental Championship battle royal at Battleground on 20 July; the match was won by The Miz . Sheamus successfully defended
Alicia Fox - Misplaced Pages Continue
9324-566: A mixed tag team match. After the match, Fox attacked Ryder in order to collect a "bounty" from the Raw guest host , Ashton Kutcher . On June 20, 2010, at the Fatal 4-Way pay-per-view, Fox competed in a fatal four-way match for the WWE Divas Championship , which also involved Gail Kim , Eve Torres , and Maryse . Fox pinned Maryse to win the championship for the first time, and as a result became
9546-440: A new city, attendance was high because there was a waiting fanbase cultivated in advance by the cable TV shows. The NWA's traditional anti-competitive tricks were no match for this. The NWA attempted to centralize and create their own national cable television shows to counter McMahon's rogue promotion, but it failed in part because the members of the NWA, ever protective of their territories, could not stomach submitting themselves to
9768-581: A new feud with rising Scottish wrestling star "Thee" Drew Galloway , whom he later admitted was his toughest opponent. On 28 January 2006, he received his first championship match, evolving their rivalry from previous non-title contests. The rivalry quickly took on a patriotic flavour, with Galloway's blue colours of Scotland clashing O'Shaunnesy's green colours of Ireland, mirroring the Old Firm football derby between Rangers and Celtic , respectively. This football allusion became particularly prominent when
9990-470: A place against Alex Shane in a guest match for the Frontier Wrestling Alliance (FWA) British Heavyweight Championship . Although he put on a proficient exhibit and came close to win, his friend Red Vinny interfered in the match and cost him the championship. In March 2005, he avenged this loss by teaming with Raven to defeat Shane and Vinny. This victory was part of a winning streak over
10212-426: A rematch the following night on Raw for the title with the stipulation that Reigns would be fired should he lose. Despite interference from chairman Mr. McMahon , Sheamus lost the title, ending his reign at 22 days. On 4 January 2016 episode of Raw , he failed to regain the title from Reigns with McMahon as special guest referee . On 24 January 2016, Sheamus entered the Royal Rumble at number 29, where he made to
10434-460: A rematch. At Elimination Chamber on 31 May, Sheamus participated in the Elimination Chamber match for the vacant Intercontinental Championship , but was unsuccessful as the match was won by Ryback . At Money in the Bank on 14 June, Sheamus won the Money in the Bank ladder match to earn a WWE World Heavyweight Championship contract. Sheamus then began a feud with Randy Orton , who
10656-482: A short feud with The New Day losing to them and failing to qualify for the Money in the Bank ladder match . After going on a hiatus, the duo returned in late July to take part in a number one contendership tournament for the SmackDown Tag Team Championship and beat The Usos to advance to the finals, where they lost to The New Day. After failing to become number one contenders again, the duo finally
10878-547: A six-man tag team match at Elimination Chamber , where the Shield emerged victorious. In late February, Sheamus aligned himself with Randy Orton to feud with The Shield. Over the next weeks, Sheamus and Orton saved each other from attacks by The Shield and Big Show. On 15 March episode of SmackDown , Sheamus and Orton were then allowed to pick a third partner to face the Shield in a six-man tag team match at WrestleMania 29 and chose Ryback. Three days later on Raw , however, Ryback
11100-448: A tag team battle royale to determine the number one contenders for their tag titles at WrestleMania 34 although he lacked a partner, Raw General Manager Kurt Angle still allowed Strowman to wrestle for the titles, under the provision that he reveal his mystery partner at the event. At the event on 8 April, Strowman revealed his partner to be a 10 year old fan called Nicholas . The Bar was defeated by Strowman and Nicholas, therefore losing
11322-409: A tag team match. This resulted in "bullshit", " AEW " and " CM Punk " chants from the crowd, voicing their displeasure in the match they were given instead. The next day on SmackDown Live , Sheamus reportedly suffered a concussion in a six-man tag team match with The New Day. Cesaro was drafted to Raw a few weeks later, and later confirmed in an interview that The Bar was over. On 19 September, it
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#173290995132411544-504: A team at four. Earlier in the Royal Rumble match, Sheamus entered at number 11 and was quickly eliminated by Heath Slater , lasting just one second in the match. Following consecutive losses to Titus Worldwide (Apollo Crews and Titus O'Neil ) on Raw , they defended their title against the two at Elimination Chamber , retaining successfully at the event on 25 February. On 12 March episode of Raw , after Braun Strowman single-handedly won
11766-475: A torn labrum in his shoulder that would require surgery, and was expected to miss between four and six months of ring action. On 26 January 2014, at the Royal Rumble , Sheamus returned as a surprise entrant in the Royal Rumble match; he was eliminated by Roman Reigns in the final three. The following night on Raw , Sheamus, Daniel Bryan, and John Cena qualified for the Elimination Chamber match for
11988-457: A two out-of-three falls match. Sheamus then returned to his feud with Del Rio which eventually began to include Chris Jericho and Randy Orton. The rivalry between them culminated in a fatal-four-way match for the World Heavyweight Championship on 20 May at Over the Limit , where Sheamus pinned Jericho to retain the title. Del Rio earned another title shot on 25 May episode of SmackDown , but suffered
12210-497: A typical American household only received four national channels by antenna, and ten to twelve local channels via UHF broadcasting . But cable television could carry a much larger selection of channels and therefore had room for niche interests. The WWF started with a show called All-American Wrestling airing on the USA Network in September 1983. McMahon's TV shows made his wrestlers national celebrities, so when he held matches in
12432-575: A victory for all the pain to which they subjected themselves. In the 1910s, promotional cartels for professional wrestling emerged in the East Coast (outside its traditional heartland in the Midwest ). These promoters sought to make long-term plans with their wrestlers, and to ensure their more charismatic and crowd-pleasing wrestlers received championships, further entrenching the desire for worked matches. The primary rationale for shoot matches at this point
12654-409: A year of inactivity, Fox was advertised as a legend for the January 4, 2021, episode of Raw Legends Night where she was seen backstage with Angel Garza and wrestling legend Mickie James and later at the main event as a spectator with several other Legends. A few weeks later, she made a surprise return at the number 21 entry at the Royal Rumble , where she also pinned an interfering R-Truth to win
12876-410: Is a true sport. Wrestlers would at all times flatly deny allegations that they fixed their matches, and they often remained in-character in public even when not performing. When in public, wrestlers would sometimes say the word kayfabe to each other as a coded signal that there were fans present and they needed to be in character. Professional wrestlers in the past strongly believed that if they admitted
13098-470: Is also a three-time United States Champion and a five-time tag team champion ( four Raw and SmackDown WWE ) with his tag team partner Cesaro . In addition to these championships, he also won the 2010 King of the Ring tournament , the 2012 Royal Rumble match , and the 2015 Money in the Bank ladder match , making him the second wrestler (after Edge ) to achieve all three accomplishments. Stephen Farrelly
13320-428: Is distinguished by its scripted outcomes and emphasis on entertainment and showmanship . The staged nature of matches is an open secret , with both wrestlers and spectators nonetheless maintaining the pretense that performances are bona fide competitions, which is likened to the suspension of disbelief employed when engaging with fiction . Professional wrestlers perform as characters and usually maintain
13542-490: Is no longer working for WWE in her social media accounts ending her 17-year tenure with the company. In May 2023, Crawford confirmed in an interview that she intended to make a return to pro-wrestling, denying retirement rumors. She made her first wrestling appearance outside of WWE at Booker T 's promotion, Reality of Wrestling at the July 15 Summer of Champions show, using the ring name Vix Crow, confronting Promise Braxton who won
SECTION 60
#173290995132413764-533: Is signed to WWE , where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Sheamus . Prior to joining WWE, he wrestled on the European independent circuit . After becoming part of WWE's main roster in 2009, he went on to become a four-time world champion , having held the WWE Championship three times and WWE's World Heavyweight Championship once . He is the first Irish world champion in WWE history, and
13986-515: The 2020 Draft in October, Sheamus was drafted to the Raw brand . On 26 October episode of Raw , Sheamus defeated Riddle to qualify for Team Raw at Survivor Series. Later on, he was involved in a triple threat match against Keith Lee and Braun Strowman for the latter's qualification. He also competed in a tag team match with Strowman against Lee and Riddle in a losing effort. At Survivor Series on 22 November, Team Raw defeated Team SmackDown in
14208-489: The 24/7 Championship , becoming the first-ever female African American 24/7 Champion as well as the third Superstar, after Triple H and Ric Flair , to win a Championship during a Royal Rumble match. Truth immediately won the title back from Fox after she was eliminated by Mandy Rose , and was subsequently chased by her and other male superstars, who were in pursuit of the Championship. In April, she appeared on stage, during
14430-500: The Day 1 event on 1 January 2022, he and Holland teamed up to defeat Cesaro and Ricochet . At Royal Rumble on 29 January, Sheamus entered at No. 17 but was eliminated by Bad Bunny . In March, they entered a feud with The New Day , where on the 11 March episode of SmackDown , Sheamus and Holland would introduce Butch as part of their stable. On the second night of WrestleMania 38 on April 3, Sheamus and Holland defeated The New Day in
14652-553: The ECW brand, where she managed DJ Gabriel . The following year, Fox began challenging for the WWE Divas Championship , which she won in June 2010, holding the title for two months, becoming the only African American Divas Champion. In October 2014, she began starring in the reality television series Total Divas on E! as part of the main cast. In 2006, Crawford signed a developmental contract with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and
14874-536: The Florida Heavyweight Championship . He defended the title against Hager on 23 October and took on a number of competitors, with Eric Escobar and Joe Hennig consistently earning themselves into contention. Eventually, on 11 December, O'Shaunessy lost the title to Escobar in a four-way match also involving Hennig and Drew McIntyre (formerly Drew Galloway). O'Shaunessy spent 2009 continuing to chase gold, earning two shots in January and February at
15096-564: The Irish Sea when the two wrestled for the umbrella promotion Real Quality Wrestling (RQW) the following year. The two first met during April's Taking On The World show which ended in a double countout. The lack of a decision led to a rematch in June, and one of O'Shaunessy's last on the independent circuit, where Galloway picked up the victory in a No Holds Barred match ahead of an RQW Heavyweight Championship match. On 13 November 2006, O'Shaunessy and English wrestler Stu Sanders appeared on
15318-609: The New Jersey State Athletic Control Board that professional wrestling is not a real sport because its matches have predetermined outcomes. Shortly thereafter, New Jersey deregulated professional wrestling. The WWF then rebranded itself as a " sports entertainment " company. In the early years of the 20th century, the style of wrestling used in professional wrestling matches was catch wrestling . Promoters wanted their matches to look realistic and so preferred to recruit wrestlers with real grappling skills. In
15540-579: The Payback pre-show, Sheamus defeated Sandow in a singles match. The following night on Raw , Sheamus was defeated by Sandow and Cody Rhodes in a handicap match after Sandow pinned him with a roll-up. The rivalry culminated in a Dublin Street Fight on 28 June episode of SmackDown , where Sheamus emerged victorious. On 14 July at Money in the Bank , Sheamus competed in the WWE Championship Money in
15762-454: The Queen of FCW tournament between December 2008 and February 2009, defeating Jenny Quinn and Tiffany en route to the final, where she lost to Angela Fong . Crawford debuted on WWE's main roster on the June 13, 2008, episode of SmackDown , as Alicia Fox, in a backstage segment with Vickie Guerrero , which saw her portraying Guerrero and Edge 's wedding planner. During their wedding reception
15984-492: The SummerSlam kick-off show, which Sheamus won. Sheamus would defeat Cesaro in the second and third matches, but lost to Cesaro in the fourth, fifth and sixth matches. At Clash of Champions on 25 September, the match ended in a no contest, leaving their series tied at 3-3. The next night on Raw , Mick Foley decided to make the two partners to receive a future Raw Tag Team Championship opportunity. Later that night, they defeated
16206-707: The United States , Mexico , Japan , and northwest Europe (the United Kingdom , Germany/Austria and France ), which have each developed distinct styles, traditions, and subgenres within professional wrestling. Professional wrestling has developed its own culture and community , including a distinct vernacular . It has achieved mainstream success and influence within popular culture , with many terms, tropes , and concepts being referenced in everyday language as well as in film , music , television , and video games . Likewise, numerous professional wrestlers have become national or international icons with recognition by
16428-557: The WWE Divas Champion AJ Lee's team which feuded with the cast of the Total Divas reality television show, which led to a traditional seven-on-seven Survivor Series match , in which Fox was the first to be eliminated, courtesy of Naomi . Since January 2014, Fox formed a tag team with Aksana , later dubbed "Foxsana". On April 6, Fox competed at WrestleMania XXX in the 14- Diva " Vickie Guerrero Invitational match" for
16650-416: The WWE Divas Championship , which was won by the defending champion AJ Lee . After that, Fox started a feud with the newly crowned WWE Divas Champion Paige , losing to her in a series of matches on Raw , Main Event , and WWE Superstars . Her losses provoked a storyline, in which she lost her temper after matches, taunting the ring announcers , ringside crew, and crowd and defacing the ringside area. Fox
16872-638: The WWE World Heavyweight Championship ; he was eliminated by Christian in the match. This began a brief feud leading up to WrestleMania, in which Sheamus consistently was victorious. He was part of the final four in the André the Giant Memorial battle royal at WrestleMania XXX on 6 April, before he and Alberto Del Rio eliminated each other. On 14 April, Sheamus participated in the Intercontinental Championship number one contender tournament, which
17094-494: The World Heavyweight Championship on 1 April at WrestleMania XXVIII , which Sheamus won in a record 18 seconds. On 6 April episode of SmackDown , Sheamus lost to Alberto Del Rio in a non-title match by disqualification, thus earning Del Rio a future title match and starting a feud between the two. On 29 April at Extreme Rules , Sheamus successfully defended the World Heavyweight Championship against Bryan in
17316-730: The World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) show Raw at the Manchester Evening News Arena , as part of the security team ejecting D-Generation X (DX) from ringside, only for O'Shaunessy to later receive a Pedigree from Triple H . The following day, he and Drew Galloway had a tryout match against each other. In April 2007, he received another set of tryout matches in Milan and London against Galloway, as well as Sanders, WWE talent Jimmy Wang Yang , and Monster Factory alumnus Domino . This led to an offer and signing of
17538-562: The ring for matches against Chet The Jet. At the OVW television tapings on October 18, having reverted to her real name, Crawford challenged Beth Phoenix for the OVW Women's Championship , but lost following interference from Serena Deeb . Two days later, on October 20, Crawford won a gauntlet match at an OVW house show to win the OVW Women's Championship. The following night, however, Crawford lost
17760-438: The "Miss OVW" contest, which was won by ODB. Crawford had a series of matches with Milena Roucka in April, before moving onto a feud with Maryse Ouellet . Her final appearance in OVW was on July 21, when she participated in a three-way match for the OVW Women's Championship, which was won by ODB. Crawford debuted for WWE's new developmental territory Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW) on September 2, 2007, participating in
17982-465: The "weak link" and attacked him, ejecting him from the group, before the rest of the team was attacked by The Wyatt Family . The feud was suspended within a month as Bray Wyatt suffered an injury, which led to Alberto Del Rio saying that The League might split soon in result. On 28 April episode of SmackDown , The League of Nations would compete in a six-man tag match against Sami Zayn , Cesaro and Kalisto, however, Del Rio and Rusev walked out during
18204-577: The 1920s, a group of wrestlers and promoters known as the Gold Dust Trio introduced moves which have since become staples of the mock combat of professional wrestling, such as body slams, suplexes , punches, finishing moves, and out-of-ring count-outs. By the early 1930s, most wrestlers had adopted personas to generate public interest. These personas could broadly be characterized as either faces (likeable) or heels (villainous). Native Americans, cowboys, and English aristocrats were staple characters in
18426-400: The 1930s and 1940s. Before the age of television, some wrestlers played different personas depending on the region they were performing in. This eventually came to an end in the age of national television wrestling shows, which forced wrestlers to stick to one persona. Wrestlers also often used some sort of gimmick, such as a finishing move, eccentric mannerisms, or out-of-control behavior (in
18648-506: The 1990s, WCW became a credible rival to the WWF, but by end it suffered from a series of creative missteps that led to its failure and purchase by the WWF. One of its mistakes was that it diminished the glamor of its World Heavyweight Championship . Between January 2000 and March 2001, the title changed hands eighteen times, which sapped fan enthusiasm, particularly for the climactic pay-per-view matches. In professional wrestling, two factors decide
18870-411: The 19th century, who later sought to make matches shorter, more entertaining, and less physically taxing. As the public gradually realized and accepted that matches were predetermined, wrestlers responded by increasingly adding melodrama, gimmickry, and outlandish stunt work to their performances to further enhance the spectacle . By at least the early 20th century, professional wrestling had diverged from
19092-641: The Atlantic Athletic Corporation (AAC). The AAC shut down in 1960. In 1958, Omaha promoter and NWA member Joe Dusek recognized Verne Gagne as the world champion without the approval of the NWA. Gagne asked for a match against the recognized NWA champion Pat O'Connor. The NWA refused to honor the request, so Gagne and Minneapolis promoter Wally Karbo established the American Wrestling Association in 1960. This AWA should not be confused with Paul Bowser's AWA, which ceased operations just two months prior. Gagne's AWA operated out of Minnesota . Unlike
19314-403: The Bank contract and defeated newly crowned champion Roman Reigns , after he refused to shake hands with Triple H , to win the title, thus aligning with Triple H and The Authority . On 30 November episode of Raw , Sheamus announced that he had formed his own stable called The League of Nations with Alberto Del Rio , Rusev and King Barrett , with the members of which having been born outside
19536-428: The Bank ladder match , but was unsuccessful as the match was won by Randy Orton. During the match, Sheamus suffered a hematoma on his left thigh after being thrown into a horizontal ladder, which prevented him from competing that week. Sheamus returned to in-ring action on 22 July episode of Raw , losing to World Heavyweight Champion Alberto Del Rio in a non-title match. On 7 August, WWE confirmed Sheamus had suffered
19758-520: The Burchill siblings in a mixed tag team match, giving Fox her first win as part of the brand . In March, Fox and Gabriel feuded with Tyson Kidd and Natalya , with Natalya defeating Fox on March 3 episode of ECW . Fox competed in the 25 Diva battle royal at WrestleMania XXV on April 5, which was ultimately won by Santina Marella . Fox was drafted to the SmackDown brand as a part of the 2009 Supplemental Draft on April 15. She made her in-ring debut as
19980-465: The December 6 episode of 205 Live , Fox started an on-screen relationship with Cedric Alexander by kissing him before his match against Noam Dar , in which Alexander was defeated. Dar dedicated his victory to Fox. Two weeks later on Raw , Fox accompanied Alexander in a rematch against Dar, where he was victorious. Dar attempted to seduce her again afterwards. On January 10, 2017, an incensed Fox threw
20202-519: The Erin's Isle team, where he was once proclaimed "sports star of the month". He also played rugby union for the National College of Ireland , where he gained a National Diploma . He is a former IT technician and also worked as security for a nightclub, which led to him occasionally working as a bodyguard for Bono and Larry Mullen, Jr. of U2 , as well as actress Denise van Outen . Farrelly
20424-617: The Florida Heavyweight Championship in November. On 22 July 2008, O'Shaunessy worked a dark match at a SmackDown taping, losing to R-Truth . The following year in May, O'Shaunessy began appearing at the Raw brand's house shows, and on both 8 and 9 May he defeated Jamie Noble along with another dark match victory over Noble before an episode of Raw . On 30 June 2009 episode of ECW , Farrelly made his unannounced debut as
20646-650: The Florida Tag Team Champions Johnny Curtis and Tyler Reks , but he and Ryback were unsuccessful in both attempts. In March he challenged the two for the titles again, this time with McIntyre as his partner, but could not defeat them, nor could he defeat McIntyre for the Florida Heavyweight Championship the following month. He received a series of chances throughout the rest of the year, but could not win any more titles before being called up to WWE television, unsuccessfully challenging Justin Angel for
20868-536: The July 20 episode of Raw . On the August 10 episode of Raw , Fox was involved in a fatal four-way match to determine the number one contender for the WWE Divas Championship , but was unsuccessful. The following month, on September 14, she defeated Gail Kim to become the number one contender to the Divas Championship. She received a match for the championship at Hell in a Cell against Mickie James on October 4, but
21090-496: The March 28 episode of Raw . After the match, she along her allies were attacked by Team B.A.D., before they were saved by a returning Eva Marie . As a result, a 10-Diva tag team match between Team Total Divas (Bella, Fox, Natalya, Eva Marie and Paige) and the newly dubbed Team B.A.D. and Blonde (Naomi, Tamina, Lana, Emma, and Summer Rae) was announced for the WrestleMania 32 pre-show. On April 3, Fox's team emerged victorious at
21312-408: The NWA, at which point his territory became fair game for everyone. The NWA would blacklist wrestlers who worked for independent promoters or who publicly criticized an NWA promoter or who did not throw a match on command. If an independent promoter tried to establish himself in a certain area, the NWA would send their star performers to perform for the local NWA promoter to draw the customers away from
21534-477: The NWA, which only allowed faces to be champions, Gagne occasionally allowed heels to win the AWA championship so that they could serve as foils for him. In August 1983, the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), a promotion in the north-east , withdrew from the NWA. Vince K. McMahon then took over as its boss. No longer bound by the territorial pact of the NWA, McMahon began expanding his promotion into
21756-416: The November 4 episode of Superstars . On the November 7 episode of Raw , Fox was announced as one of the participants in the 5-on-5 Traditional Survivor Series Women's Elimination match at Survivor Series from her brand's team, before winning a six-woman tag team match along with her fellow team partners. At the event on November 20, Fox's team emerged victorious after Bayley pinned Becky Lynch . On
21978-533: The Raw Reunion episode on July 22, 2019, where she was billed as a WWE Legend amongst other former Superstars. After months of inactivity, her WWE.com profile was moved to the alumni section on October 17, and she was no longer listed as a full-time competitor with the company, having been moved to a legends contract. Her last advertised appearance on behalf of the company was at a pre-Wrestlemania fan event on November 13, 2019, before she went on hiatus. After more than
22200-524: The Raw Tag Team Championship, marking Sheamus' first tag team championship in both his WWE and entire wrestling career. On 29 January on the Royal Rumble kickoff show, Sheamus and Cesaro lost the Raw Tag Team Championship to Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson , and failed to regain them after The Hardy Boyz won the title at WrestleMania 33 on 2 April. The following night on Raw , Sheamus and Cesaro defeated Enzo Amore and Big Cass to become
22422-499: The Ring , after receiving a bye through the second round. As "King Sheamus", he faced Morrison again on 19 December at the TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs pay-per-view for a future WWE Championship match, but lost in a ladder match. Going into 2011, he continued to lose to Morrison in a mixture of singles and tag team matches. Triple H returned on 28 February and took revenge for his scripted ten-month injury by putting Sheamus through
22644-426: The September 5 episode of Raw , Fox was involved in a backstage confrontation with Nia Jax , resulting in a match between the two on the September 12 episode of Raw , which would end in a no contest after Jax speared Fox through the ringside barricade. On September 25, a rematch took place at Clash of Champions , where Fox was defeated. After suffering a streak of losses, Fox scored a victory over Dana Brooke on
22866-507: The U.S., while remaining associated with the Authority. In addition, he proclaimed his championship reign as "Sheamus 5:15", a play on Austin 3:16 and Reigns' short-lived title reign of five minutes and 15 seconds. At TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs on 13 December, Sheamus defeated Reigns in a Tables, Ladders and Chairs match after interference from The League of Nations. After the match, Reigns attacked Sheamus and Triple H. This resulted in
23088-399: The WWE Championship to Randy Orton in a six-pack elimination challenge, which also included Chris Jericho , Edge , John Cena, and Wade Barrett . Sheamus received his rematch for the title on 3 October at Hell in a Cell , but was again defeated by Orton in a Hell in a Cell match. He bounced back on 29 November, with wins over Kofi Kingston and John Morrison to become the 2010 King of
23310-420: The WWE Championship, following interference from Orton's teammate Cody Rhodes . On 21 February, Sheamus lost the WWE Championship at the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view in the Elimination Chamber match after he was eliminated by Triple H . During the match, Sheamus suffered a concussion and as a result did not attend Raw the following night. Upon his return, he attacked Triple H in revenge, setting up
23532-521: The WWE Divas Championship, but was unsuccessful, and the match was won by Eve Torres. In May 2010, Fox began a storyline with Zack Ryder , after he requested that she and Gail Kim be ringside on several occasions to watch his matches, so he could impress them and find a new valet. During his match with Evan Bourne on May 10, Fox interfered on Ryder's behalf, but was stopped by Gail Kim. The following week, Bourne and Kim defeated Ryder and Fox in
23754-404: The announce table. On 7 March, after losing a match against Daniel Bryan , Sheamus challenged him to a rematch with his WWE career on the line against Bryan's United States Championship . He won his match against Bryan the following week, winning his first United States title. The rematch between Sheamus and Bryan took place on 3 April, during the pre-show of WrestleMania XXVII , and ended in
23976-401: The arena's loudspeakers, his being Pomp and Circumstance . He also wore a costume: a robe and hairnet, which he removed after getting in the ring. He also had a pre-match ritual where his "butler" would spray the ring with perfume. In the 1980s, Vince McMahon made entrance songs, costumes, and rituals standard for his star wrestlers. For instance, McMahon's top star Hulk Hogan would delight
24198-418: The art of staging rigged matches and fostered a mentality that spectators were marks to be duped. The term kayfabe comes from carny slang. By the turn of the 20th century, most professional wrestling matches were "worked" and some journalists exposed the practice: American wrestlers are notorious for the amount of faking they do. It is because of this fact that suspicion attaches to so many bouts that
24420-550: The audience by tearing his shirt off before each match. The first major promoter cartel emerged on the East Coast, although up to that point, wrestling's heartland had been in the Midwest. Notable members of this cartel included Jack Curley , Lou Daro, Paul Bowser and Tom and Tony Packs. The promoters colluded to solve a number of problems that hurt their profits. Firstly, they could force their wrestlers to perform for less money. As
24642-412: The broader public. In the United States, wrestling is generally practiced in an amateur context. No professional league for competitive wrestling exists due to a lack of popularity. For example, Real Pro Wrestling , an American professional freestyle wrestling league, dissolved in 2007 after just two seasons. In other countries, such as Iran and India , wrestling enjoys widespread popularity as
24864-424: The cartel grew, there were fewer independent promoters where independent wrestlers could find work, and many were forced to sign a contract with the cartel to receive steady work. The contracts forbade them from performing at independent venues. A wrestler who refused to play by the cartel's rules was barred from performing at its venues. A second goal of the wrestling cartels was to establish an authority to decide who
25086-418: The case of heels). The matches could also be gimmicky sometimes, with wrestlers fighting in mud and piles of tomatoes and so forth. The most successful and enduring gimmick to emerge from the 1930s were tag-team matches. Promoters noticed that matches slowed down as the wrestlers in the ring tired, so they gave them partners to relieve them. It also gave heels another way to misbehave by double-teaming. Towards
25308-433: The championship back to Phoenix, who won an eight-woman elimination match . Crawford's championship win is unrecognized by OVW, and the promotion considers Phoenix's two reigns as champion as a single, uninterrupted reign. Crawford continued to feud with Phoenix in early 2007, facing her in several tag team matches, in which Phoenix teamed with ODB and Crawford teamed with Lea or Deeb. Simultaneously, Crawford participated in
25530-423: The character in shows must be considered fictional, wholly separate from the life of the performer. This is similar to other entertainers who perform with a persona that shares their own name. Some wrestlers also incorporate elements of their real-life personalities into their characters, even if they and their in-ring persona have different names. Kayfabe is the practice of pretending that professional wrestling
25752-461: The commission. The Commission did on very rare occasions hand out such authorizations, such as for a championship match between Jim Londos and Jim Browning in June 1934. This decree did not apply to amateur wrestling, which the commission had no authority over. Wrestling fans widely suspected that professional wrestling was fake, but they did not care as long as it entertained. In 1933, a wrestling promoter named Jack Pfefer started talking about
25974-468: The competitive sport to become an artform and genre of sports entertainment . Professional wrestling is performed around the world through various " promotions ", which are roughly analogous to production companies or sports leagues . Promotions vary considerably in size, scope, and creative approach, ranging from local shows on the independent circuit , to internationally broadcast events at major arenas. The largest and most influential promotions are in
26196-540: The current fashion of wrestling is the universal discussion as to the honesty of the matches. And certainly the most interesting phrase of this discussion is the unanimous agreement: "Who cares if they're fixed or not—the show is good." Newspapers tended to shun professional wrestling, as journalists saw its theatrical pretense to being a legitimate sport as untruthful. Eventually promoters resorted to publishing their own magazines in order to get press coverage and communicate with fans. The first professional wrestling magazine
26418-530: The day before Phoenix lost to Galloway in March, and returning in September to defeat one of BCW's top stars, Wolfgang, via countout . In the middle of their IWW feud the following year, O'Shaunessy went back to Scotland to take part in BCW's Path To Glory tour, defeating Galloway on the first night but conceding a loss to him the next night in May. Though their feud finished in Ireland in August 2006, it continued on across
26640-473: The debuting Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville . Fox was scheduled to participate in the first women's royal rumble match at Royal Rumble on January 28, 2018, but was pulled off the event following an injury and replaced by Kairi Sane . She was also replaced by Mandy Rose in the Mixed Match Challenge . Six months after being off television, on the June 25, 2018, episode of Raw , Fox appeared in
26862-549: The end of March where O'Shaunessy wrestled twice a day on 24, 25, 26 – including an 11-man Rumble win – and 27 March with a standard tag match and a ten-man tag team match. This series of victories, aside from one loss by disqualification to Vain, put him to a good form for the one-day tournament held in County Kildare to crown the inaugural IWW International Heavyweight Champion . On 28 March, O'Shaunessy put an end to his main rivalries when he defeated Vinny and then Vain in
27084-405: The end of the 1930s, faced with declining revenues, promoters chose to focus on grooming charismatic wrestlers with no regard for their skill because it was charisma that drew the crowds, and wrestlers who were both skilled at grappling and charismatic were hard to come by. Since most of the public by this time knew and accepted that professional wrestling was fake, realism was no longer paramount and
27306-508: The event after Naomi submitted to Bella. Later that month, Fox became the first female performer in WWE history to appear in front of a live crowd in the Middle-East, where she kicked off the show in Dubai . After being drafted to Raw as part of the 2016 WWE draft which took place on July 19, Fox made her first appearance for the brand on August 15, where she was defeated by Charlotte Flair . On
27528-518: The event, Fox and James lost to Stratus and Lita after Stratus pinned James. In December, Fox and Jinder Mahal defeated Ember Moon and Curt Hawkins in the quarterfinals and Bayley and Apollo Crews in the semi-finals to qualify to the finals of the tournament. At the TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs pay-per-view, Fox and Mahal lost to Carmella and R-Truth in the finals of the Mixed Match Challenge after Carmella submitted Fox. Throughout
27750-597: The facade of kayfabe as best as they could. In 1989, Vince McMahon testified before the New Jersey government that professional wrestling was not a true sport and therefore should be exempted from sports-related taxes. Many wrestlers and fans resented McMahon for this, but Lou Thesz accepted it as the smart move as it gave the industry more freedom to do as it pleased, and because by that point professional wrestling no longer attempted to appear real. The demise of WCW in 2001 provided some evidence that kayfabe still mattered to
27972-461: The family. In November 2018, she also disclosed via her social media accounts that she suffered from blindness in one eye for nearly three years during high school. Later in 2019, Crawford revealed that she had been battling alcoholism and had gone into recovery following her hiatus from professional wrestling. While being away from the wrestling limelight, it was revealed by Brie Bella on the July 15, 2020, episode of The Bellas Podcast , that Crawford
28194-470: The feud. On 22 March episode of Raw , Sheamus would face WWE Champion Bobby Lashley in a losing effort and backstage, attacked United States Champion Riddle . The following week, Sheamus defeated Riddle in a non-title match to earn a championship opportunity at WrestleMania 37 . On the second night of the event on 11 April, Sheamus defeated Riddle to win the United States Championship for
28416-631: The final four, before being eliminated by Reigns. At Fastlane on 21 February, WWE Tag Team Champions The New Day began mocking The League of Nations, calling them the "league of booty". They continued to mock The League of Nations in various segments and skits while simultaneously feuding with other teams. At Roadblock on 12 March, Sheamus and Barrett unsuccessfully challenged for the WWE Tag Team Championship. The next night on Raw , The New Day defeated Del Rio and Rusev, prompting all four members of The League to attack The New Day after
28638-445: The first half of 2012, with Fox losing tag team and singles matches to Phoenix and Natalya. Fox spent the remainder of 2012 and early 2013 competing in sporadic matches, usually on the losing side. In mid–2013, Fox appeared on the rebooted NXT , entering a tournament to determine the inaugural NXT Women's Champion , where she defeated Bayley in the first round, but lost to Paige in the semi-finals. In September, Fox took part of
28860-470: The first place. "Double-crosses", where a wrestler agreed to lose a match but nevertheless fought to win, remained a problem in the early cartel days. At times a promoter would even award a victorious double-crosser the title of champion to preserve the facade of sport. But promoters punished such wrestlers by blacklisting them, making it quite challenging to find work. Double-crossers could also be sued for breach of contract, such as Dick Shikat in 1936. In
29082-477: The following month, Triple H revealed Edge kissing Fox the day before the wedding on camera. Fox involved herself in the WWE Championship match at The Great American Bash when she attempted to help Edge, but she was stopped by Guerrero. The confusion surrounding her interference caused Edge to accidentally spear Guerrero. After a three-month hiatus from television, Fox resurfaced on the November 18 episode of ECW , managing English wrestler DJ Gabriel , in
29304-610: The game is not popular here. Nine out of ten bouts, it has been said, are pre-arranged affairs, and it would be no surprise if the ratio of fixed matches to honest ones was really so high. The wrestler Lou Thesz recalled that between 1915 and 1920, a series of exposés in the newspapers about the integrity of professional wrestling alienated a lot of fans, sending the industry "into a tailspin". But rather than perform more shoot matches, professional wrestlers instead committed themselves wholesale to fakery. Several reasons explain why professional wrestling became fake whereas boxing endured as
29526-455: The government. They pledged to stop allocating exclusive territories to its promoters, to stop blacklisting wrestlers who worked for outsider promoters, and to admit any promoter into the Alliance. The NWA would flout many of these promises, but its power was nonetheless weakened by the lawsuit. Paul Bowser's AWA joined the NWA in 1949. The AWA withdrew from the Alliance in 1957 and renamed itself
29748-522: The help of her former rival Paige and subsequently, formed an alliance with her, and went on to pick up another win over AJ on October 20. However, when Fox inadvertently cost Paige a title match at Hell in a Cell , Paige dissolved the alliance by attacking her the following night on Raw . This prompted a traditional four-on-four elimination tag team match , with each captaining a side, at the Survivor Series pay-per-view in November, where Fox's team won
29970-513: The independent. By 1956, the NWA controlled 38 promotions within the United States, with more in Canada, Mexico, Australia and New Zealand. The NWA's monopolistic practices became so stifling that the independents appealed to the government for help. In October 1956 the US Attorney General's office filed an antitrust lawsuit against the NWA in an Iowa federal district court. The NWA settled with
30192-492: The individual wrestlers are paid or have been paid for their performance in a professional wrestling exhibition. All engagements of professional wrestling shall be referred to as exhibitions, and not as matches. In the industry's slang, a fixed match is referred to as a worked match, derived from the slang word for manipulation, as in "working the crowd". A shoot match is a genuine contest where both wrestlers fight to win and are therefore "straight shooters", which comes from
30414-471: The industry was anything but a competitive sport. The first wrestling promoter to publicly admit to routinely fixing matches was Jack Pfefer . In 1933, he started talking about the industry's inner workings to the New York Daily Mirror , resulting in a huge exposé. The exposé neither surprised nor alienated most wrestling fans, although some promoters like Jack Curley were furious and tried to restore
30636-487: The industry's inner workings to the New York Daily Mirror , maintaining no pretense that wrestling was real and passing on planned results just before the matches took place. While fans were neither surprised nor alienated, traditionalists like Jack Curley were furious, and most promoters tried to maintain the facade of kayfabe as best they could. Not the least interesting of all the minor phenomena produced by
30858-448: The latter declared herself to be undefeatable and the greatest champion in history. After defeating Fox in a non-title match on Raw , Melina was granted a title shot, on August 15, at SummerSlam , which she won, ending Fox's reign at 56 days. On August 31, Fox was announced as the mentor of Maxine for the all-female third season of NXT but Maxine failed to win the competition, and was the second rookie Diva to be eliminated. Later in
31080-643: The main cast of the program for the second half of the third season, which began airing in January 2015, and continued until 2017. Crawford made her acting debut by guest starring in two episodes of Syfy series Dominion that aired in July 2015. Crawford (as Alicia Fox) has appeared in nine WWE video games. She made her in-game debut in WWE SmackDown vs Raw 2011 and appears in WWE '12 ( DLC ), WWE 13 , WWE 2K16 , WWE 2K17 , WWE 2K18 , WWE 2K19 , WWE 2K20 and WWE 2K Battlegrounds . In July 2017, it
31302-516: The major title in just 166 days since his WWE debut, making it the third shortest time to capture a title since his WWE/ECW debut. The following night on Raw , Sheamus was awarded the 2009 Breakout Superstar of the Year Slammy Award . He would make his first title defense on the final Raw of 2009, getting disqualified in a rematch against Cena. On 31 January 2010 at the Royal Rumble , Sheamus defeated Randy Orton by disqualification to retain
31524-483: The match after Brie was pinned by Becky Lynch. On the August 25 episode of Tough Enough , Fox made a special appearance on the finale of the sixth season , wrestling finalists Amanda and eventual winner Sara Lee . While Nikki Bella was off television with an injury, Fox spent the remainder of 2015 competing occasionally in singles matches and tag team matches with Brie Bella. On the March 14, 2016, episode of Raw , Fox and Brie were defeated by Team B.A.D. following
31746-434: The match ended in a no contest after Big Show interfered. Sheamus and Orton then defeated Big Show in two handicap matches on SmackDown and Raw . Later that month, Sheamus re-entered a feud with Mark Henry after the two repeatedly attacked each other backstage. Sheamus and Henry then challenged each other in tests of strength, but with Sheamus unable to best Henry, he resorted to attacking Henry. After Sheamus attacked
31968-431: The match with a clean sweep. In January 2015, Fox developed a rivalry with Naomi, during which she formed a brief alliance with The Miz and Damien Mizdow, and the trio went on to defeat Naomi and The Usos in a series of mixed tag team matches. On the April 13 episode of Raw , Fox competed in a number one contender's battle royal for Nikki Bella 's WWE Divas Championship, which would be won by Paige. On June 15, 2015, Fox
32190-553: The match. During his time overseas he worked for Brian Dixon's All Star Wrestling , which gave him a taste of large audiences that he had not experienced in Ireland, as well as wrestling English veteran Robbie Brookside and other British wrestlers, including Nigel McGuinness and Doug Williams . He also represented the UK in a Battle of the Nations tag team match between the UK and Austria alongside Drew McDonald and The Celtic Warrior in
32412-502: The match. The feud led to a match at Backlash on 14 June, which Sheamus won. On 24 July episode of SmackDown Sheamus lost to Hardy in a Bar Fight, ending their feud. Sheamus then started a short feud with Big E after he wanted help from the SmackDown wrestlers against Retribution 's attacks, but Sheamus denied and mocked him. Sheamus lost to Big E on 21 August episode of SmackDown , at Payback on 30 August and on 9 October episode of SmackDown , ending their feud. As part of
32634-465: The match. Sheamus, who would do the same, confronted Del Rio and Rusev during a brawl, and said that the league is finished, confirming the end of the group. Del Rio would also confirm in an interview that the group was finished. At Money in the Bank on 19 June, he lost to Apollo Crews . On 19 July at the 2016 WWE draft , Sheamus was drafted to Raw. Sheamus would then begin a rivalry with Cesaro , after losing to Cesaro on 1 August episode of Raw ,
32856-481: The match. The League of Nations then challenged and defeated The New Day in a six-man tag team match at WrestleMania 32 on 3 April. After the match, they were confronted and attacked by Mick Foley , Stone Cold Steve Austin , and Shawn Michaels . The next night on Raw , Barrett and Sheamus faced The New Day in another tag team title match, in a losing effort. After the match, the League of Nations blamed Barrett for being
33078-498: The members of wrestling cartels as the champion drew big crowds wherever he performed, and this would occasionally lead to schisms. By 1925, this cartel had divided the country up into territories which were the exclusive domains of specific promoters. This system of territories endured until Vince McMahon drove the fragmented cartels out of the market in the 1980s. This cartel fractured in 1929 after one of its members, Paul Bowser , bribed Ed "Strangler" Lewis to lose his championship in
33300-555: The name Sheamus O'Shaunessy . After hitting an opponent in the groin , he gained the nickname of the "Irish Curse" (a reference to a slang term supposedly denoting a man's inability to perform sexually after consuming an excessive amount of whiskey). He soon suffered a serious neck injury after botching a hip toss , sidetracking his career for two years. Farrelly developed his wrestling character by drawing on Celtic mythology , moving away from Irish stereotypes of lucky charms , leprechauns , and alcoholism while aiming to portray
33522-423: The new champion in early January 2010. Fox defeated Kelly Kelly in the first round of the tournament, but later lost to Gail Kim in the semi-finals. Fox was on the winning team in a 10-Diva tag team match at WrestleMania XXVI , but on the losing side the following night in a rematch on Raw . On the April 5 episode of Raw , Fox was involved in a "Dress to Impress" battle royal to determine the number one contender to
33744-444: The next day produced the same result in a match O'Shaunessy claimed was his best on the independent circuit . With Galloway briefly answered, O'Shaunessy took on the newcomer Pierre Marcaeu and defeated him in two successive title matches only to find Galloway had earned another shot. With their rivalry intensifying, Galloway's next challenge to O'Shaunnesy was given the stipulation of a Last Man Standing match . O'Shaunessy retained
33966-441: The number one contender to John Cena 's WWE Championship . At the contract signing immediately afterward, Sheamus put Cena through the table, and the Raw guest host, Jesse Ventura , announced it would be a Tables match . On 13 December at TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs pay-per-view, Sheamus defeated Cena to win the WWE Championship, his first championship in WWE, making him the first Irish-born WWE Champion. He also captured
34188-435: The number one contender's for the Raw Tag Team Championship at Payback . At Payback on 30 April, after failing to regain the title, both Sheamus and Cesaro turned heel by attacking The Hardy Boyz. From there, now known as "The Bar", their entrances became further synchronized as they wore the same attire into the ring. They then won a tag team turmoil to earn another opportunity for the tag title at Extreme Rules . The match
34410-425: The only African American wrestler to win the title. In her first title defence, on the July 5 episode of Raw , Fox successfully defended the championship against Eve after feigning an ankle injury and as a result, Eve was granted a rematch at Money in the Bank by Raw's anonymous General Manager , where Fox was again able to retain the championship. In August, Melina returned from an injury and attacked Fox, after
34632-454: The opening of WrestleMania 37 alongside the rest of the active roster. Fox returned once again at the number 21 spot the following year in the 2022 Royal Rumble as a surprise entry, lasting over six minutes. She was eliminated, following a brief Team Bella reunion, by Nikki Bella . During an interview with Athletes Voices in early 2023, Crawford stated that she was still signed with WWE, however on May 1, 2023, Crawford confirmed that she
34854-498: The process for the first time since 2011. Sheamus then explained his heel turn and new attitude by claiming that "the era of underdogs is over", resulting in a feud with Ziggler. On 16 April episode of SmackDown , Sheamus announced that he would face Ziggler in a Kiss Me Arse match at Extreme Rules on 26 April, which he lost. However, Sheamus refused to follow the stipulation, and instead made Ziggler kiss his arse, despite losing. At Payback on 17 May, Sheamus defeated Ziggler in
35076-714: The promotion's closing in 1991. In the spring of 1984, the WWF purchased Georgia Championship Wrestling (GCW), which had been ailing for some time due to financial mismanagement and internal squabbles. In the deal, the WWF acquired the GCW's timeslot on TBS . McMahon agreed to keep showing Georgia wrestling matches in that timeslot, but he was unable to get his staff to Atlanta every Saturday to fulfill this obligation, so he sold GCW and its TBS timeslot to Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP). JCP started informally calling itself World Championship Wrestling (WCW). In 1988, Ted Turner bought JCP and formally renamed it World Championship Wrestling. During
35298-439: The purpose of providing entertainment to spectators and which does not comprise a bona fide athletic contest or competition. Professional wrestling is not a combative sport. Wrestling constituting bona fide athletic contests and competitions, which may be professional or amateur combative sport, shall not be deemed professional wrestling under this Part. Professional wrestling as used in this Part shall not depend on whether
35520-492: The quarter and semi finals, respectively. He met Darren Burridge in the final match and won to become IWW's first champion, but had to compete again in an evening show in Dublin, defeating Burridge and Vinny once more in a tag match alongside Vain. O'Shaunessy's first successful title defence came against Burridge the following month but Burridge would not let his grudge rest, continuing to attack O'Shaunessy and finally costing him
35742-410: The rest of 2018, with Bliss out of in-ring competition, Fox was paired with Mickie James as the two continued to team up in various matches. It was reported on February 10, 2019, that Fox showed up to a live event intoxicated. The producer for the match, Arn Anderson , was blamed for allowing her to perform in her condition. Following this, and other backstage issues he had with management, Anderson
35964-429: The rest of the year engaged in a rivalry with Vid Vain after losing to his tag team partner Joey Cabray the same night he won the battle royal. On 22 and 23 October they traded wins, leading to O'Shaunessy recruiting help from CJ Summers to help defeat the tag team on 24 October. O'Shaunessy was still unsuccessful to defeat Vain in singles action the following day. Despite these losses, his impressive showings earned him
36186-467: The second to last man eliminated in the match by Styles. Following the event, Sheamus would continue to feud with McIntyre and the two faced each other on 1 March episode of Raw where Sheamus was defeated. The two had a rematch the following week in a No Disqualification match where Sheamus would once again lose to McIntyre. Sheamus and McIntyre would fight once more in a No Holds Barred match at Fastlane on 21 March, with McIntyre defeating Sheamus, ending
36408-458: The sole survivors of their team. The next night on Raw , Sheamus and Cesaro again failed to capture Raw Tag Team Championship from The New Day. After hinting at a break-up, the pair got into a bar brawl with men who offended them and finally began to cooperate with each other, thus turning Sheamus into a face. On 18 December at Roadblock: End of the Line , Sheamus and Cesaro defeated The New Day to win
36630-440: The stamina for an hours-long fight. Audiences also preferred short matches. Worked matches also carried less risk of injury, which meant shorter recovery. Altogether, worked matches proved more profitable than shoots. By the end of the 19th century, nearly all professional wrestling matches were worked. A major influence on professional wrestling was carnival culture. Wrestlers in the late 19th century worked in carnival shows. For
36852-571: The summer, Fox and Eve Torres were the first ever female performers in WWE to wrestle a match in China , during WWE's first ever live-event in the country, which was held in Shanghai . Fox later received a rematch for the Divas Championship against Melina on the September 6 episode of Raw , which she lost. In December, Fox competed in a battle royal to determine the winner of the "Diva of the Year" Slammy Award , but
37074-483: The summer, Fox competed in different matches in all of which she ended up being on the losing side. In October, Fox reignited her feud with Sasha Banks , after she lost to Banks on Raw and attacked her backstage afterwards. This led to a rematch between the two, that took place at the TLC kickoff show, in which Banks once again defeated Fox via submission. The following night on Raw , Fox defeated Banks and Bayley to become
37296-482: The tag team title and in turn making Nicholas the youngest champion of any kind in WWE history. On 17 April, Sheamus and Cesaro were both drafted to SmackDown as part of the Superstar Shake-up . Despite the trade, they still had an opportunity to win the Raw Tag Team Championship as they faced Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt at Greatest Royal Rumble event on 27 April, but failed to win the titles. The Bar entered
37518-414: The team captain of the Raw women's team for Survivor Series . During the five-on-five elimination tag team match , Fox was eliminated by Naomi , however, her team was victorious. In December, Fox faced off with the recently debuted Asuka whom she was unsuccessful in defeating. Fox and the rest of the women's roster soon entered into a feud with Absolution which included the returning Paige , as well as
37740-415: The team of Kaitlyn and AJ Lee , which later transitioned into a feud between the two sets of Divas, with Fox and Tamina regularly winning tag team matches and allying with Rosa Mendes . The alliance between Fox and Tamina ended on the August 11 episode of WWE Superstars , when Fox defeated Tamina in a singles match. After a tag team match, which they lost, on the August 19 episode of SmackDown , Fox
37962-461: The television series Cupcake Wars , as a guest judge along with Layla . The following year, she and The Miz presented an award at Cartoon Network 's Hall of Game Awards . She made guest appearances for the reality television show Total Divas produced by WWE and E! during the first two seasons, which began airing in July 2013 and as a co-host with Renee Young on the post-show YouTube series, After Total Divas . In October 2014, she joined
38184-426: The territories of his former NWA peers, now his rivals. By the end of the 1980s, the WWF would become the sole national wrestling promotion in the U.S. This was in part made possible by the rapid spread of cable television in the 1980s. The national broadcast networks generally regarded professional wrestling as too niche an interest, and had not broadcast any national wrestling shows since the 1950s. Before cable TV,
38406-474: The third time. He would go on to defend the title against the likes of Humberto Carrillo and Ricochet over the next several months. At SummerSlam on 21 August, Sheamus dropped the title to Damian Priest , ending his third reign at 132 days. As part of the 2021 Draft , Sheamus was drafted to the SmackDown brand . In November, Sheamus formed an alliance with Ridge Holland , after Holland would refer to him as his idol and help Sheamus win his matches. At
38628-485: The title against Cesaro at Night of Champions on 21 September, and The Miz at Hell in a Cell on 26 October. He lost the title to Rusev on 3 November, in a match which aired exclusively on the WWE Network ending his reign at 182 days. Following this, Sheamus was written off television when he and Big Show were attacked by Rusev and Mark Henry, allowing Sheamus time off for surgery. "For months, Sheamus had been in
38850-512: The title against The Hardy Boyz on 12 June episode of Raw in a two out of three falls match where the two teams tied at 1-1 after being counted out. They defended their title against The Hardy Boyz at the Great Balls of Fire pay-per-view on 9 July in a 30-minute Iron Man tag team match by the score 4–3. The Bar lost the Raw Tag Team Championship to Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose at SummerSlam on 20 August. The Bar lost their rematch for
39072-749: The title during a match against D'Lo Brown on 29 May. O'Shaunessy earned revenge in July by defeating Burridge in a grudge match, though lost to him in an arm wrestling contest the following day. Still, he continued on his quest to regain the title by winning a contendership three-way match against Vinny and Red Viper in August setting him up to regain the International Heavyweight Championship in October from Brown in Newcastle upon Tyne in England . After defending his title against Vampiro and Viper, O'Shaunessy found himself embroiled in
39294-463: The title for the third time. At Survivor Series on 19 November, SmackDown Tag Team Champions they were defeated by The Usos in an interbrand Champion vs Champion match . The Bar later lost the tag team titles to the team of Seth Rollins and Jason Jordan on the Christmas episode of Raw . On 28 January 2018, The Bar won back the title at Royal Rumble , setting the record for the most reigns as
39516-437: The title to Rollins and Ambrose at No Mercy on 24 September. They teamed with The Miz , Braun Strowman and Kane against reunited The Shield and Kurt Angle who replaced Roman Reigns after he wasn't medically cleared to compete in a five-on-three TLC match at TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs on 22 October in a losing effort. On 6 November episode of Raw , the duo regained their titles from Rollins and Ambrose, winning
39738-536: The title, as he also did in June with the same stipulation. Finally, on 28 August, O'Shaunessy lost the IWW International Heavyweight Championship in a singles match to Galloway in what would be his last appearance with the promotion. As well as wrestling in Ireland, O'Shaunessy occasionally traveled to Great Britain to make appearances on the British independent circuit . In April 2006 he
39960-429: The title. On 24 December episode of Raw , Sheamus defeated Big Show in a non-title lumberjack match. On 27 January 2013, at the Royal Rumble , Sheamus entered the Royal Rumble at number eleven, eliminating five other superstars before Ryback eliminated him. After being a frequent target of The Shield , Sheamus gained vengeance on the stable when he united with John Cena and Ryback to attack them. This culminated in
40182-529: The titles. The following SmackDown Live , they lost a number one contenders match to The Usos. The Bar defeated Kofi Kingston in a handicap match at Fastlane on 10 March. At WrestleMania 35 on 7 April, The Bar lost to The Usos in a fatal four-way tag team match for the SmackDown Tag Team Championship. At the Raw following WrestleMania, The Bar interrupted a Winner Takes All match between Seth Rollins and Kofi Kingston, resulting in
40404-440: The tournament to crown the inaugural FCW Florida Tag Team Champions . They advanced past the first round after defeating The British Lions ("Thee Superstar" Christopher Gray and "The Rascal" Tommy Taylor), but lost to Brad Allen and Nick Nemeth in the second round. By September, O'Shaunessy had focused his attention on singles competition and wrestled his way to the top of the card, successfully defeating former partner Hager for
40626-505: The trial, witnesses testified that most of the "big matches" and all of the championship bouts were fixed. By the 1930s, with the exception of the occasional double-cross or business dispute, shoot matches were essentially nonexistent. In April 1930, the New York State Athletic Commission decreed that all professional wrestling matches held in the state had to be advertised as exhibitions unless certified as contests by
40848-471: The truth, their audiences would desert them. Today's performers don't "protect" the industry like we did, but that's primarily because they've already exposed it by relying on silly or downright ludicrous characters and gimmicks to gain popularity with the fans. It was different in my day, when our product was presented as an authentic, competitive sport. We protected it because we believed it would collapse if we ever so much as implied publicly that it
41070-423: The two met again at Verona Football Club again for the title, though the match changed into a Lumberjack match , the result and champion remained the same. With Galloway defeated, O'Shaunessy continued to dominate by again defending his title against Vampiro on 17 March. Galloway earned himself a two out of three falls match against the champion the following day, however, which O'Shaunessy won two falls to one;
41292-443: The two would continue to brawl after the match with match officials having to pull them apart. On 8 August episode of Raw , after losing to Cesaro in a rematch, he would later cost Cesaro the United States Championship after interfering in his main event impromptu match against Rusev. The following week, Raw General Manager Mick Foley booked Sheamus and Cesaro in a Best of Seven Series, with the first match taking place on 21 August on
41514-434: The upcoming season 2 of Mixed Match Challenge . James and Bliss were supposed to face Stratus and Lita at WWE Evolution , the first ever all women's pay-per-view. However, just three days before the event, on October 25, it was announced that Bliss was pulled off the match due to a concussion she suffered beforehand and Fox will replace her, in which an emotional Fox claimed was the most important match of her entire career. At
41736-405: The venue, in a format similar to reality television . Performers generally integrate authentic wrestling techniques and fighting styles with choreography , stunts , improvisation , and dramatic conventions designed to maximize entertainment value and audience engagement. Professional wrestling as a performing art evolved from the common practice of match-fixing among American wrestlers in
41958-535: The way of proceedings: the "in-show" happenings, presented through the shows; and real-life happenings outside the work that have implications, such as performer contracts, legitimate injuries, etc. Because actual life events are often co-opted by writers for incorporation into storylines of performers, the lines between real life and fictional life are often blurred and become confused. Special discern must be taken with people who perform under their own name (such as Kurt Angle and his fictional persona ). The actions of
42180-420: The wrestlers quietly began faking their matches so that they could give their audiences a satisfying spectacle. Fixing matches was also convenient for scheduling. A real ("shoot") match could sometimes last hours, whereas a fixed ("worked") match can be made short, which was convenient for wrestlers on tour who needed to keep appointments or share venues. It also suited wrestlers who were aging and therefore lacked
42402-425: Was Wrestling As You Like It , which printed its first issue in 1946. These magazines were faithful to kayfabe . Before the advent of television, professional wrestling's fanbase largely consisted of children, the elderly, blue-collar workers and minorities. When television arose in the 1940s, professional wrestling got national exposure on prime-time television and gained widespread popularity. Professional wrestling
42624-523: Was hot-shot into a deciding match on 27 October which Sheamus won. His rivalry with Benjamin ended prematurely when Sheamus was moved to the Raw brand. He made his Raw debut by defeating Jamie Noble on 26 October. In the following weeks, he continued to attack Noble causing him to retire, and, in lieu of competition, assaulted the timekeeper and commentator Jerry Lawler on 16 November. The following week Sheamus appeared on his first WWE pay-per-view event, Survivor Series , on 22 November, when he
42846-531: Was a model and signed with WWE after being seen in a fashion catalogue along with Kelly Kelly , by John Laurinaitis . Between 2010 and 2012, Crawford was in a relationship with English wrestler Stu Bennett , who she remained friends with after their split. In October 2022, Crawford announced that she is engaged to be married to musician Michael Fitzgerald. In 2017, during an interview on Lilian Garcia 's podcast, Chasing Glory , Crawford explained that she suffered from anxiety due to alcohol abuse-related issues in
43068-468: Was a part of the Divas that Paige tried to rally on Raw in an attempt to take a stand against The Bella Twins and join her, but no one accepted the offer. Three days later on SmackDown , Fox assisted Brie Bella in her match against Paige, and thus aligning herself with The Bella Twins and formed "Team Bella". After weeks of Team Bella outnumbering Paige, Naomi , and Tamina , Stephanie McMahon called for
43290-424: Was also part of the ladder match, with both men attacking each other and facing off in tag-team matches. Sheamus lost to Orton at Battleground on 19 July, but defeated Orton at SummerSlam on 23 August. In November, Sheamus competed in the tournament for the vacant WWE World Heavyweight Championship, being eliminated in the first round by Cesaro. At Survivor Series on 22 November, Sheamus cashed in his Money in
43512-413: Was announced that Fox had been traded to the Raw brand. The following week, she made her Raw debut in a tag team match, teaming with Maryse against Gail Kim and Mickie James in a losing effort. She gained her first victory on Raw on July 13, when Fox, Maryse, and Rosa Mendes won a six-Diva tag team match. Fox picked up her first pinfall victory by defeating Kelly Kelly during a tag team match on
43734-599: Was assigned to Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW), WWE's then- developmental territory . She debuted on July 1, 2006, as a special guest referee , under her real name, in a match between Shelly Martinez and ODB . On September 6, Crawford made her in-ring debut, under the new ring name Tori , in an OVW women's battle royal , in which she was eliminated by ODB. She spent the following month competing regularly in both singles and tag team matches , against opponents including Mickie James , ODB, and Katie Lea . In late September, she began managing Elijah Burke , accompanying him to
43956-447: Was at ringside for Natalya, Fox was announced to be Rousey's first singles opponent. A week later, Fox competed against Rousey in a losing effort, which served as the main event of Raw , marking Fox's first main event match of her career. In October, while Alexa Bliss and Mickie James started a feud with WWE Hall of Famers Trish Stratus and Lita , Fox began teaming up with Jinder Mahal as they were announced as participants in
44178-479: Was attacked by Natalya, which provoked a feud between the two. She began acting as a face while wrestling alongside several different Divas to face Natalya and Beth Phoenix , collectively known as The Divas of Doom , in tag team matches, and also regularly competing against them in singles matches. As part of the storyline , Fox also prevented Natalya and Phoenix from attacking other Divas, including Kelly Kelly and AJ. The storyline continued sporadically throughout
44400-414: Was beat down by Miz and Morrison. Sheamus teamed with McIntyre to defeat Miz and Morrison in a tag team match later on in the night. At the Royal Rumble on 31 January 2021, Sheamus entered at number 27 but was eliminated by Braun Strowman. On 1 February 2021 episode of Raw , Sheamus delivered a Brogue Kick to McIntyre after shortly confronting then Royal Rumble winner, Edge . He bemoaned the fact that he
44622-425: Was booked for another match at WrestleMania, leaving the spot open. Later that night, Big Show saved the two from an attack by The Shield and was recruited as their partner. On 7 April at WrestleMania 29, Sheamus, Orton and Big Show were defeated by The Shield, after which both men were knocked out by Big Show. The following night on Raw , Sheamus and Orton faced off in a match to earn a match with Big Show, however,
44844-732: Was born in the Cabra suburb of Dublin on 28 January 1978. He was raised on North Great George's Street in Dublin. He speaks fluent Irish , having attended Scoil Caoimhin Primary and the Gaelscoil Coláiste Mhuire Secondary School. During his school years, he sang in the Palestrina Choir until the age of 13; during this time, he appeared on the Irish shows The Late Late Show and Live at 3 . He played Gaelic football for
45066-438: Was brought into Wales ' Celtic Wrestling promotion as a contender for their top title but was defeated by the champion, Chris Recall. Later that year in November, he was employed by London 's LDN Wrestling to appear on their Capital TV show where, after quickly defeating William Hill, he gained an LDN Championship match against Tex Benedict which ended with Benedict winning by disqualification and O'Shaunessy attacking him after
45288-488: Was challenges from independent wrestlers. But a cartelized wrestler, if challenged, could credibly use his contractual obligations to his promoter as an excuse to refuse the challenge. Promotions would sometimes respond to challenges with "policemen": powerful wrestlers who lacked the charisma to become stars, but could defeat and often seriously injure any challenger in a shoot match. As the industry trend continued, there were fewer independent wrestlers to make such challenges in
45510-470: Was eliminated by Natalya and also took part of a triple-threat number one contender's match, which was won by Melina. On April 26, 2011, Fox was drafted back to the SmackDown brand as part of the 2011 supplemental draft and in her first match back for the brand she was defeated by Layla and suffered a shoulder injury after being attacked by Kharma , following the loss. On the May 27 episode of SmackDown , in her return, Fox and Tamina Snuka defeated
45732-417: Was eventually able to defeat Paige on Raw on May 19 in a non-title match and celebrated by taking Jerry Lawler 's crown afterwards. Her victory set up a title match between the two at Payback , on June 1, which Fox lost. Following a further loss to Paige on June 9, Fox attacked tag team partner Aksana, before defeating her in a match on SmackDown , officially disbanding Foxsana. Fox subsequently entered into
45954-482: Was eventually revealed that the sender of these gifts was Rich Swann , who subsequently turned down Fox as an act of revenge against her for Cedric Alexander, as she threw another fit. On June 4, Fox and Dar were defeated by Rich Swann and Sasha Banks in a mixed tag team match at Extreme Rules . Fox would continue to manage Dar as their relationship On the July 11 episode of 205 Live , Dar broke up with Fox after he lost to Alexander in an "I Quit" match . Throughout
46176-448: Was gifted a title match. At Super Show-Down event on 6 October, The Bar failed to win the titles. At SmackDown 1000 , The Bar won the titles from The New Day with the help of Big Show . They retained against The New Day in a rematch at Crown Jewel on 2 November. The Bar lost to Raw Tag Team Champions AOP in an interbrand Champion vs Champion match at Survivor Series on 18 November. On 27 November episode of SmackDown , they had
46398-407: Was held on Raw . He advanced to the next round by defeating Jack Swagger , before losing to Bad News Barrett in the semi-finals on 21 April. On 5 May episode of Raw , Sheamus won a 20-man battle royal to win the United States Championship for the second time, last eliminating previous champion Dean Ambrose . Sheamus then began feuding with Cesaro and his manager Paul Heyman , culminating in
46620-449: Was inspired to become a professional wrestler by watching British wrestling on World of Sport and American wrestling via the WWF . Following advice given to him by Bret Hart , he began training at Larry Sharpe 's Monster Factory wrestling school in April 2002, alongside Tank Toland and Cliff Compton . Six weeks later, he officially debuted as a fan favorite against Robert Pigeon under
46842-403: Was made a steel cage match after Matt Hardy defeated Sheamus on 22 May episode of Raw in a match where the winner chose the stipulation for their Extreme Rules bout. At the event on 4 June, The Bar defeated The Hardy Boyz to win the Raw Tag Team Championship for the second time, making Cesaro a three-time champion and Sheamus a two-time champion. The duo made their first televised defence of
47064-464: Was now in school. In April 2022, Jim Ross revealed that Crawford has been sober for three years. Professional wrestling 1970s and 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s and 2020s Professional wrestling (often referred to as pro wrestling , or simply, wrestling ) is a form of athletic theater that combines mock combat with drama , with the premise that the performers are competitive wrestlers. Professional wrestling
47286-451: Was on the winning side of a tag team match on February 23, before Crawford won a singles match against her on February 26. Following her debut on SmackDown , Crawford changed her ring name to Alicia Fox . She began managing Jack Gabriel in September, and teamed with Gabriel in mixed tag team matches against Mike Kruel and Wesley Holiday and Gabe Tuft and Melina , while continuing to compete in singles competition as well. Fox competed in
47508-521: Was only acknowledged as just "Drew McIntyre's friend", implying that he was overshadowed by his success as the WWE Champion. As a result, he terminated his friendship with McIntyre, and vowed to take the WWE Championship away from him. At the Elimination Chamber on 21 February, Sheamus faced McIntyre, AJ Styles , Jeff Hardy, Kofi Kingston, and Randy Orton in an Elimination Chamber match for the WWE Championship. Sheamus would eliminate Kingston but would be
47730-472: Was part of The Miz 's team in a traditional five-on-five elimination tag team match . He eliminated fellow Irishman Finlay and made the final pinfall to eliminate the opposing captain John Morrison and survive along with The Miz and longtime former rival Drew McIntyre. The following night on Raw , Sheamus won a "break-through" battle royal for wrestlers who had never won a world championship , to become
47952-636: Was previously considered a niche interest, but the TV networks at the time were short on content and thus were willing to try some wrestling shows. In the 1960s, however, the networks moved on to more mainstream interests such as baseball, and professional wrestling was dropped. The core audience then shrunk back to a profile similar to that of the 1930s. In 1989, Vince McMahon was looking to exempt his promotion (the World Wrestling Federation ) from sports licensing fees. To achieve this, he testified before
48174-546: Was released from his contract. Fox's first appearance since was at WrestleMania 35 's WrestleMania Axxess in April, however she was not announced as a participant at the event. In her return to in-ring action, Fox competed against Becky Lynch on the April 22 episode of Raw and alongside Tamina against Billie Kay and Peyton Royce the following week on Main Event on May 2, 2019, respectively, both resulting in losses. The two matches would end up being Fox's final in WWE as an active performer. She made an on-screen appearance on
48396-540: Was reported that Sheamus was healed and ready to return to the ring. On 29 November episode of SmackDown , Sheamus, with his old hairstyle, appeared in a vignette announcing that he will return soon. On 3 January 2020 episode of SmackDown , Sheamus returned from injury, appearing to save Shorty G from an attack by The Revival ( Dash Wilder and Scott Dawson ), but then delivered a Brogue Kick to Shorty G. Sheamus then defeated Shorty G at Royal Rumble on 26 January, and on 31 January episode of SmackDown . He began
48618-402: Was revealed that Fox would feature in the debut line of WWE fashion dolls by toy brand Mattel . In October, WWE launched Alicia Fox apparel in the form of t-shirts on their website. Crawford has a younger sister named Christina , who was also a professional wrestler and Tampa Bay Buccaneers cheerleader, and now works as a real estate broker. Prior to becoming a professional wrestler, Crawford
48840-415: Was something other than what it appeared to be. I'm not sure now the fear was ever justified given the fact that the industry is still in existence today, but the point is no one questioned the need then. "Protecting the business" in the face of criticism and skepticism was the first and most important rule a pro wrestler learned. No matter how aggressive or informed the questioner, you never admitted
49062-417: Was the "world champion". Before the cartels, there were multiple wrestlers in the U.S. simultaneously calling themselves the "world champion", and this sapped public enthusiasm for professional wrestling. Likewise, the cartel could agree on a common set of match rules that the fans could keep track of. The issue over who got to be the champion and who controlled said champion was a major point of contention among
49284-405: Was unsuccessful. Fox became the number one contender to the Divas Championship again on the November 2 episode of Raw , by winning a battle royal which involved The Bella Twins , Eve Torres , Gail Kim, and Kelly Kelly. She challenged Melina two weeks later for the championship, but was unsuccessful. Melina then vacated the Divas Championship due to injury, and a tournament was set up to determine
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