Falcon Coperis
Encyclopedia
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
professional wrestler
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
.
Early career
Louis Velazquez grew up in the Bronx in New York City until the age of 13 when his family relocated to the borough of QueensQueens
Queens is the easternmost of the five boroughs of New York City. The largest borough in area and the second-largest in population, it is coextensive with Queens County, an administrative division of New York state, in the United States....
. In 1984, Velazquez trained in martial arts with Louis Rebollo of Rebollo Martial Arts until Rebollo's death in 1991.
In 1988, Velazquez began to train as a professional wrestler under the tutelage of Bobby Boldeagle. Velazquez wrestled in small venues, anywhere from a local Moose Lodge to bars in New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
and Delaware
Delaware
Delaware is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered to the south and west by Maryland, and to the north by Pennsylvania...
. Following a shoulder injury in 1994 he was forced to leave wrestling for a year.
Ultimate Championship Wrestling
In 1995, Velazquez returned with Ultimate Championship Wrestling (UCW), a wrestling promotion forged by a group of professional wrestlers who were looking to create something special. After several weeks of brainstorming with his fellow wrestlers, Velazquez developed the trademarked ring name "Falcon Coperis". FalconFalcon
A falcon is any species of raptor in the genus Falco. The genus contains 37 species, widely distributed throughout Europe, Asia, and North America....
s are top predators in the world and "Coperis" was derived from the name of the astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus
Nicolaus Copernicus
Nicolaus Copernicus was a Renaissance astronomer and the first person to formulate a comprehensive heliocentric cosmology which displaced the Earth from the center of the universe....
. Velazquez was intrigued by the universe, hence the creation of Coperis.
From 1995 until 1998, he wrestled for UCW, fighting with Bruce Hart
Bruce Hart (wrestler)
Bruce Dennis Luis Hart is a retired Canadian professional wrestler. The second son of Stu Hart, Hart is a member of the large Hart wrestling family.Hart substitute teaches for the Calgary Board of Education.-Career:...
, Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart
Jim Neidhart
James Henry "Jim" Neidhart is an American professional wrestler, best known for his appearances in the 1980s and 1990s in the World Wrestling Federation as Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart. Jim is the father of WWE Diva Natalya...
, Chris Chavis
Chris Chavis
Christopher "Chris" Chavis , is a Native American professional wrestler best known for his work with World Wrestling Entertainment as Tatanka from 1991 to 1996 and from 2005 to 2007...
"Tatanka", Marty Jannetty
Marty Jannetty
Frederick Marty Jannetty is an American professional wrestler, best known for his time in the World Wrestling Federation as part of tag team The Rockers with partner Shawn Michaels, and later as a singles competitor. While in the WWF, he became a one time Intercontinental Champion and a one time...
, King Kong Bundy
King Kong Bundy
Christopher Alan "Chris" Pallies is an American professional wrestler, stand-up comedian and actor, better known by his ring name, King Kong Bundy.-Personal:...
, Bam Bam Bigelow, Tiger Khan, Tommy Cairo
Tommy Cairo
Thomas "Tommy" Cairo is an American retired professional wrestler. He is perhaps best known for his 1994 feud with The Sandman in Extreme Championship Wrestling. He is the former co-owner of the New Jersey-based Force One Pro Wrestling promotion and school.-Career:Cairo was a bodybuilder before...
and Teddy Reade. Some of the last matches that were being arranged but never came to fruition included top names such as The Ultimate Warrior and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.
Bruce Hart, son of Stu Hart
Stu Hart
Stewart Edward "Stu" Hart, CM was a Canadian amateur wrestler, professional wrestler, promoter and trainer. Hart founded Stampede Wrestling, a promotion based in Calgary, Alberta, and was the father of famous wrestlers Bret and Owen Hart...
and Helen Hart, comes from the most prestigious family in professional wrestling which produced such great talent as Bret Hart
Bret Hart
Bret Hart is a Canadian on-screen personality, writer, actor and Semi-retired professional wrestler. Like others in the Hart wrestling family, Hart has an amateur wrestling background, including wrestling at Ernest Manning High School and Mount Royal College...
, Davey Boy Smith
Davey Boy Smith
Davey Boy Smith was a British professional wrestler, better known as "The British Bulldog" Davey Boy Smith, who was born in Golborne in North West England, United Kingdom. Smith is known for his appearances with Stampede Wrestling, the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling...
, Chris Benoit
Chris Benoit
Christopher Michael "Chris" Benoit was a Canadian professional wrestler whose career and life ended in a murder–suicide...
, Chris Jericho
Chris Jericho
Christopher Keith Irvine , better known by his ring name Chris Jericho, is an inactive Canadian-American professional wrestler, musician, songwriter, radio personality, television host, actor, author, and dancer...
, Owen Hart
Owen Hart
Owen James Hart was a Canadian professional and amateur wrestler who worked for several promotions including Stampede Wrestling, New Japan Pro Wrestling , World Championship Wrestling , and most notably, the World Wrestling Federation , where he wrestled under both his own name, and ring name The...
, The Honky Tonk Man
The Honky Tonk Man
Roy Wayne Farris , better known by his ring name The Honky Tonk Man, is an American professional wrestler. A 1975 graduate from University of Memphis with a B.S. degree in Education. Coached high school football 2 seasons at Munford High School in Munford, Tennessee...
, Brian Pillman
Brian Pillman
Brian William Pillman was an American football player and professional wrestler best known for his appearances in the World Wrestling Federation, Extreme Championship Wrestling, and World Championship Wrestling....
, Dynamite Kid
Dynamite Kid
Thomas Wilton Billington , best known by the ring name Dynamite Kid, is a retired British professional wrestler who competed in the World Wrestling Federation, Stampede Wrestling, All Japan Pro Wrestling and New Japan Pro Wrestling in the mid- to late-1980s...
, Nikolai Volkoff
Nikolai Volkoff
Josip Nikolai Peruzović , better known by his ring name of Nikolai Volkoff, is a professional wrestler who is best known for his performances for the World Wrestling Federation...
, Edge
Adam Copeland
Adam Joseph Copeland is a retired Canadian professional wrestler and actor, better known by his ring name Edge. He is currently signed to WWE under a Legends contract....
and many others. Bruce Hart added the missing element in the UCW organization which helped elevate the young talent to new heights, including Falcon Coperis, Marlon Kalkai (aka "Tiger Khan") and "Ironman" Tommy Cairo from Extreme Championship Wrestling
Extreme Championship Wrestling
Extreme Championship Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion that was founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1992 by Tod Gordon and closed when his successor, Paul Heyman, declared bankruptcy in April 2001...
(ECW). He was the driving force within Stampede Wrestling
Stampede Wrestling
Stampede Wrestling is a Canadian professional wrestling promotion based in Calgary, Alberta and was for nearly 50 years one of the main promotions in western Canada and the Canadian Prairies...
and continues to be one of the most outspoken personalities in professional wrestling today.
Jim Neidhart
James Henry "Jim" Neidhart is an American professional wrestler, best known for his appearances in the 1980s and 1990s in the World Wrestling Federation as Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart. Jim is the father of WWE Diva Natalya...
and Chavis, former partner of one time WWE Champions Shawn Michaels
Shawn Michaels
Michael Shawn Hickenbottom , better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American television host and retired professional wrestler. He presents the Outdoor Channel show MacMillan River Adventures, and is currently signed to WWE, where he has served in an ambassadorial role since December...
and Marty Jannetty.
There was no rematch for the title as Coperis had sustained a back injury which forced him to withdraw from various other scheduled matches.
Although he has not ruled out a return to the ring, even in a non-wrestling capacity, this has not been a priority in his life. He continues to do positive things for children, using his time in the ring as a foundation for connecting with youth and providing them with positive messages in life when possible.
Film, radio and music
In 2005, Coperis worked on some music videos projects, including both the filming and subsequent editing process for two modern rock/pop songs.From July 2009, Coperis hosted UCW RADIO, an entertainment radio show that features interviews with music artists, actors, models, authors, professional wrestlers and behind-the-scenes figures.
In 2009, he was working with a team to create a television version of his radio show as well as on two film projects and various music related projects, including the development of new talent.
Personal life
He is currently involved in the financial industry and works with various charitable organizations assisting with fundraising projects. He is a strong supporter of the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation, due to the circumstances that paralyzed his older brother and lead to his death in 2003.In wrestling
- Finishing moves
- Press slam
- Running PowerslamPowerslamA powerslam is a professional wrestling body slam move in which the wrestler performing the slam falls face-down on top of his/her opponent. The use of the term "powerslam" usually refers to the front powerslam and the scoop powerslam.-Emerald Flowsion:...
- STF
- Signature moves
- Clothesline
- Flying Forearm
- Shoulder block