Matt Cross
Encyclopedia
Matthew "Matt" Capiccioni (born December 31, 1980) is an American
professional wrestler
, better known by his ring name
s M-Dogg 20 and Matt Cross. In addition to performing on the independent circuit
, Capiccioni has also worked for prominent promotions such as Ring of Honor
, Chikara and the short-lived Wrestling Society X
. His main character is that of an adherent of the straight edge
lifestyle, a culture which he follows in real life. In 2011, Capiccioni joined the cast of the fifth season of WWE Tough Enough
.
for ten years. In 1999, he won gold medal
s in both the rings
and the vault
at the AAU Junior Olympic Games
.
before enrolling at the Cleveland Pro Wrestling training school under the tutelage of J.T. Lightning. Upon completing his training, he took on the ring name M-Dogg 20, and began competing on the independent circuit
.
to win the vacant UIPW Championship on October 11, 2003. He formed a regular tag team
with Piscura (who wrestled as Josh Prohibition) known as Youthanazia, and the pair won Cleveland All-Pro Wrestling (CAPW)'s North American Tag Team Championship twice, Xtreme Pro Wrestling
's World Tag Team Championship
twice, the International Wrestling Cartel's Tag Team Championship twice, and the NWA Upstate Tag Team Championship once. M-Dogg 20 also won the CAPW Junior Heavyweight Championship on November 9, 2003, by defeating H8 Pac. Youthanzia also wrestled for the Independent Wrestling Association Mid-South
and Jersey All Pro Wrestling
in 2004.
In 2006 he made his debut for Hawaii based promotion Action Zone Wrestling at their one year anniversary show in a match against another indy star in Super Hentai in 2006. The two would later return and team up at AZW's "Battleclash 2" in December. Matt returned to Hawaii and AZW in June of 2011 for Anniversary Annihilation 6 where Matt took on AZW Heavyweight Champion (and 2004 Olympian) "Mr. Athletic" Jeff Cobb.
Capiccioni also wrestled for UWA Hardcore Wrestling as M-Dogg 20. He debuted as part of the company's second show. On February 16, 2007, M-Dogg unsuccessfully challenged Josh Prohibition for the UWA Canadian Championship, in a three-match also involving Sonjay Dutt. He defeated PUMA to win the UWA Canadian Championship at the Return of the Dragon show on July 28, 2007. Although he missed night one of UWA Hardcore's annual GP tournament, he made a surprise return on the second night of the tournament during the main event steel cage match. M-Dogg 20's return ultimately helped Osiris and Jerry Lynn
win the match over the Prohibition Wrestling Alliance, a stable led by his former tag team partner Josh Prohibition. As a stipulation of the match, control of the company reverted from Prohibition back to Osiris, the original owner of the company. One month later at UWA's Return of the Phoenix event, M-Dogg 20 lost the Canadian Championship to Prohibition in a gauntlet match also featuring Rip Impact.
During November 2009, Capiccioni participated in the Hulkamania tour of Australia, using the ring name Spartan 3000 and took part in a best of three match series for a prize of US$25,000 with Shannon Moore
. Spartan won the first match on November 21, and Moore won the second on November 24. The rubber match
ended in a draw on November 26, resulting in a ladder match for the final match of the tour two days later, which Spartan won.
On April 24, 2010, Capiccioni, under his Matt Cross ring name, made his debut for Philadelphia-based Chikara. In his first match, a four-way elimination match in the Rey de Voladores (King of the Fliers) tournament, Cross defeated Flip Kendrick, Malachi Jackson and Amasis
to advance to the finals. The following day Cross was defeated in the finals by Ophidian
.
On July 22, 2011, Matt Cross won the Firestorm Pro Heavyweight Championship by defeating Patrick Hayes
. Immediately following the match John McChesney came out and challenged Cross for the title and played a video of Capiccioni being eliminated from Tough Enough. Cross accepted the match which he lost, losing the Firestorm Pro Championship in the process.
(CZW) debut in 2002, appearing at Process of Elimination in April, and defeating Prohibition to qualify for the annual Best of the Best
tournament. At the tournament itself on June 8, M-Dogg 20 made it to the second round, where he was defeated by Trent Acid
, the eventual winner of the tournament. M-Dogg returned to CZW that September, and defeated Prohibition in a Tables and Ladders match at Ultraviolent Freedom Of Expression. At Night Of Infamy in November, a tag team match
between the team of M-Dogg 20 and Nick Mondo
and the team of Acid and Johnny Kashmere
ended in a no contest. The following month, M-Dogg faced Sonjay Dutt
and Ruckus
in a three-way match to determine the number one contender to the CZW World Junior Heavyweight Championship
, but the match was won by Dutt.
At Best of the Best 4 on July 10, 2004, M-Dogg 20 returned to CZW, attacking CZW Junior Heavyweight Champion Donjay Dutt and stealing his championship belt. He attacked Dutt again at Possession in August, before he teamed with Jimmy Rave
to defeat Dutt and Amazing Red
at High Stakes 2: Always Bet On Black. At Night of Infamy 3 in November, Dutt defeated both M-Dogg 20 and Rave in a thre-way match. At Cage of Death
6, M-Dogg lost to Dutt in a match for the World Junior Heavyweight Championship, forcing M-Dogg to leave the company per the pre-match stipulation.
(ROH) on October 7, 2006 at Motor City Madness in a six-man mayhem match, which was won by Pelle Primeau and also involved Jimmy Rave, Shane Hagadorn, and Dave and Jake Crist. His second appearance came the following month, when he lost to Christopher Daniels
at The Bitter End. He faced Daniels again at The Chicago Spectacular Night 1 on December 8, in a four-corner survival match, which was won by BJ Whitmer and also included Davey Richards
. The following night, Cross and Daniels teamed together in a loss to Austin Aries and Roderick Strong
. He returned to ROH in February 2007, losing a six-man mayhem match at Fifth Year Festival: Dayton.
The following night at Fifth Year Festival: Chicago however, Cross won his first match in ROH when he was victorious in a four-corner survival match, defeating Shingo
, CJ Otis, and Trik Davis. Following the match, Cross was approached by Austin Aries
, who asked Cross to team with him later night against the No Remorse Corps (NRC) to which Cross agreed. The pair were then attacked by NRC members Roderick Strong
and Davey Richards. Cross and Aries won the tag team encounter, but during the match Cross performed a springboard dive outside the ring, landing on the guardrail and sustaining several cuts. The team of Aries and Cross were later joined by Erick Stevens
, with the three being named 'The Resilience'. At This Means War II in April, The Resilience lost a six-man elimination match to the NRC (Strong, Richards, and Rocky Romero
). At Reborn Again in May, Cross and Stevens teamed with Bryan Danielson
in a loss to the NRC in a six-man tag team match. In June, Cross, Stevens, and Delirious
defeated the NRC in a six-man tag team match, before Cross lost the Richards in a singles match the following night at Domination. Cross appeared at the Driven pay-per-view
on June 22, when he, Stevens, and Delirious lost to the NRC. At Death Before Dishonor V: Night 2 in August, The Resilience and Delirious lost a Philadelphia Street Fight to the NRC and Matt Sydal
. The Resilience went on to defeat Richards, Jason Blade, and Eddie Edwards
, before Cross and Stevens defeated Mike Quackenbush and Jigsaw
at Manhattan Mayhem II. At Motor City Madness 2007 on September 14, Cross and Aries unsuccessfully challenged the Briscoe Brothers
(Jay and Mark) for the ROH World Tag Team Championship
. At the Man Up
pay-per-view taping the following night, Cross lost to NRC member Romero in a singles match. The next month, at the taping of Undeniable
, Cross and Stevens lost a tag team match to Romero and Richards. The match carried the stipulation that whoever was pinned would be suspended, and since Cross was pinned, he was suspended from ROH for two months.
Cross returned at Rising Above on December 29, where he competed in a four-way match won by the Necro Butcher
. The following night at Final Battle
2007, Cross and Bobby Fish
lost to Ruckus
and Jigsaw in a tag team match. At Breakout on January 25, 2008, Cross and Jigsaw lost to the Briscoe Brothers. The next Cross appeared in ROH was at Steel City Clash on March 20, 2009, when he teamed with Stevens in a loss to Rhett Titus
and Kenny King
. At A Cut Above the following month, he competed in a four-corner survival match won by Claudio Castagnoli
, which was his final appearance in ROH.
launched its new wrestling program Wrestling Society X
, Capiccioni was signed to the project under his Matt Cross ring name, and he formed a tag team with Teddy Hart called The Filth and The Fury. As part of the television tapings, The Filth and The Fury defeated The Trailer Park Boyz (Nate Webb
and Josh Raymond) and Team Dragon Gate
(Yoshino
and Horiguchi
) before losing to Los Pochos Guapos (Kaos
and Aguilera
).
, where he wrestled for the Irish Whip Wrestling
promotion, competing against Jonny Storm
, Jody Fleisch
, Darren Burridge
, and Red Vinny. In May 2007, Capiccioni returned to Europe when he was booked by the Queens of Chaos
promotion in France
. He wrestled in front of 72,000 people, which is the 2007 record for a wrestling show. As Matt Cross, he debuted in German Stampede Wrestling in 2007, and was part of a four-way for the Breakthrough Championshi against Germany's Thumbtack Jack
, Steve Douglas and X-Dream, who eventually won the match. In April 2010, Cross was a surprise guests (along with Chris Hero
, Claudio Castagnoli
, Douglas Williams
and Ares) for GSW's final show. He lost another Breakthrough Chmapionship match in a three-way against Emil Sitoci
and X-Dream on Saturday and teamed with X-Dream in a GSW Tag Team Championship scramble match on Sunday, but couldn't win that either. When GSW reopened with a new structure a few months later, Cross received another match for the Breakthrough Championship, and won by defeating Sitoci. He held the championship through the next three television tapings and successfully defended it against Zack Sabre, Jr.. At Unstoppable, an internet pay-per-view, he lost the championship to X-Dream. In 2008, Capiccioni began competing for the Italy
-based Nu-Wrestling Evolution
as "Spartan 3000 b.C.", a Sparta
n warrior inspired by the popular movie 300
.
In 2008, Capiccioni began and continues to wrestle for Pro Wrestling Noah
under a masked gimmick known as "The Raptor".
and Curt Hawkins
) on an edition of WWE Superstars
, which they lost when Canseco was pinned by Archer.
In 2011, Capiccioni joined the cast of the revived WWE Tough Enough
series, which premiered on April 4. That same day Capiccioni, along with the rest of the cast, appeared on WWE Raw
in a segment with Tough Enough host Stone Cold Steve Austin
. He was eliminated from the competition in the second week for not "showing enough" of his in ring skills which was extremely controversial due to his well known, and well documented abilities and accomplishments.
, where he earned his Bachelor of Arts
in communications. He also follows the straight edge
lifestyle.
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...
, better known by his ring name
Ring name
A ring name is a stage name used by a professional wrestler, martial artist, or boxer. While some ring names may have a fictitious first name and surname, others may simply be a nickname, such as The Undertaker.-Wrestling:...
s M-Dogg 20 and Matt Cross. In addition to performing on the independent circuit
Independent circuit
In professional wrestling, the independent circuit or indy circuit refers to the many independent promotions which are much smaller than major televised promotions. They are roughly analagous to a minor league for pro wrestling, or community or regional theatre.Specific promotions on the...
, Capiccioni has also worked for prominent promotions such as Ring of Honor
Ring of Honor
Ring of Honor ' is an American professional wrestling promotion, founded in 2002 by Rob Feinstein and Gabe Sapolsky. From 2004 to 2011, the promotion was under the ownership of Cary Silkin before being sold to the Sinclair Broadcast Group in May 2011...
, Chikara and the short-lived Wrestling Society X
Wrestling Society X
Wrestling Society X was a short-lived professional wrestling-based television series produced in 2006 by Big Vision Entertainment. The weekly television series formerly aired on MTV, MTV2, MTV Tr3s, and over a dozen other MTV outlets throughout the world...
. His main character is that of an adherent of the straight edge
Straight edge
Straight edge is a subculture of hardcore punk whose adherents refrain from using alcohol, tobacco, and other recreational drugs. It was a direct reaction to the sexual revolution, hedonism, and excess associated with punk rock. For some, this extends to not engaging in promiscuous sex, following a...
lifestyle, a culture which he follows in real life. In 2011, Capiccioni joined the cast of the fifth season of WWE Tough Enough
WWE Tough Enough
WWE Tough Enough is a professional wrestling reality television program produced by WWE wherein participants undergo professional wrestling training and compete for a contract with WWE. There were two winners per season for the first three seasons, all of which aired on MTV...
.
Early life
Capiccioni participated in competitive gymnasticsGymnastics
Gymnastics is a sport involving performance of exercises requiring physical strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, and balance. Internationally, all of the gymnastic sports are governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique with each country having its own national governing body...
for ten years. In 1999, he won gold medal
Gold medal
A gold medal is typically the medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture...
s in both the rings
Rings (gymnastics)
The rings, also known as still rings , is an artistic gymnastics apparatus and the event that uses it. It is traditionally used only by male gymnasts, due to its extreme upper-body strength requirements...
and the vault
Vault (gymnastics)
The vault is an artistic gymnastics apparatus, as well as the skill performed using that apparatus. Vaulting is also the action of performing a vault. Both male and female gymnasts perform the vault...
at the AAU Junior Olympic Games
AAU Junior Olympic Games
The AAU Junior Olympic Games are the pinnacle competition held annually by the US Amateur Athletic Union.-Sports currently held:The following is a list of sports that currently take place at the Junior Olympic Games.* Aquatics - Diving and Swimming...
.
Debut (1999–2001)
Capiccioni was involved in backyard wrestlingBackyard wrestling
Backyard wrestling , and also referred to as yarding or backyarding is a controversial underground recreation based on the usually untrained practice of professional-style wrestling in a typically low budget environment between predominantly 12 to 30 year old males. Some practitioners have attended...
before enrolling at the Cleveland Pro Wrestling training school under the tutelage of J.T. Lightning. Upon completing his training, he took on the ring name M-Dogg 20, and began competing on the independent circuit
Independent circuit
In professional wrestling, the independent circuit or indy circuit refers to the many independent promotions which are much smaller than major televised promotions. They are roughly analagous to a minor league for pro wrestling, or community or regional theatre.Specific promotions on the...
.
Independent circuit (2001–2010)
He wrestled for promotions including the Union of Independent Professional Wrestlers, where he defeated Jerry LynnJerry Lynn
Jeremy "Jerry" Lynn is an American professional wrestler who is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
to win the vacant UIPW Championship on October 11, 2003. He formed a regular tag team
Tag team
Tag team professional wrestling is a variation in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. A tag team may comprise two wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of established teams who wrestle regularly as a unit and have a team name...
with Piscura (who wrestled as Josh Prohibition) known as Youthanazia, and the pair won Cleveland All-Pro Wrestling (CAPW)'s North American Tag Team Championship twice, Xtreme Pro Wrestling
Xtreme Pro Wrestling
Xtreme Pro Wrestling is an independent professional wrestling promotion formerly owned by Extreme Associates CEO and director Rob Zicari, who appeared on shows under the name Rob Black. Zicari appeared on-camera as owner alongside his wife Lizzy Borden. The promotion focuses on hardcore wrestling,...
's World Tag Team Championship
XPW World Tag Team Championship
The XPW World Tag Team Championship was introduced at Baptized in Blood III in 2002 by Xtreme Pro Wrestling and the championship was decided in a 4-Way Elimination Tag Team match that featured Mexico's Most Wanted , The New Panthers The XPW World Tag Team Championship was introduced at Baptized in...
twice, the International Wrestling Cartel's Tag Team Championship twice, and the NWA Upstate Tag Team Championship once. M-Dogg 20 also won the CAPW Junior Heavyweight Championship on November 9, 2003, by defeating H8 Pac. Youthanzia also wrestled for the Independent Wrestling Association Mid-South
Independent Wrestling Association Mid-South
Independent Wrestling Association Mid-South is an independent professional wrestling promotion based in Louisville, Kentucky.- History :...
and Jersey All Pro Wrestling
Jersey All Pro Wrestling
Jersey All Pro Wrestling is an independent wrestling promotion based in New Jersey.-1997:Jersey All Pro Wrestling is an independent wrestling promotion that was founded by "Fat" Frank Iadeavia on April 19, 1997. This promotion was born out of a dream of "Fat" Frank. He wanted to take the promotion...
in 2004.
In 2006 he made his debut for Hawaii based promotion Action Zone Wrestling at their one year anniversary show in a match against another indy star in Super Hentai in 2006. The two would later return and team up at AZW's "Battleclash 2" in December. Matt returned to Hawaii and AZW in June of 2011 for Anniversary Annihilation 6 where Matt took on AZW Heavyweight Champion (and 2004 Olympian) "Mr. Athletic" Jeff Cobb.
Capiccioni also wrestled for UWA Hardcore Wrestling as M-Dogg 20. He debuted as part of the company's second show. On February 16, 2007, M-Dogg unsuccessfully challenged Josh Prohibition for the UWA Canadian Championship, in a three-match also involving Sonjay Dutt. He defeated PUMA to win the UWA Canadian Championship at the Return of the Dragon show on July 28, 2007. Although he missed night one of UWA Hardcore's annual GP tournament, he made a surprise return on the second night of the tournament during the main event steel cage match. M-Dogg 20's return ultimately helped Osiris and Jerry Lynn
Jerry Lynn
Jeremy "Jerry" Lynn is an American professional wrestler who is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
win the match over the Prohibition Wrestling Alliance, a stable led by his former tag team partner Josh Prohibition. As a stipulation of the match, control of the company reverted from Prohibition back to Osiris, the original owner of the company. One month later at UWA's Return of the Phoenix event, M-Dogg 20 lost the Canadian Championship to Prohibition in a gauntlet match also featuring Rip Impact.
During November 2009, Capiccioni participated in the Hulkamania tour of Australia, using the ring name Spartan 3000 and took part in a best of three match series for a prize of US$25,000 with Shannon Moore
Shannon Moore
Shannon Moore is an American professional wrestler, who is signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . He is best known for his work with World Championship Wrestling between 1999 and 2001 and with World Wrestling Entertainment for several years in the 2000s.Moore befriended Matt and Jeff Hardy...
. Spartan won the first match on November 21, and Moore won the second on November 24. The rubber match
Rubber match
According to Paul Dickson's The New Dickson's Baseball Dictionary , a "rubber game" is "The last and deciding game of a series when the previous games have been split; e.g., the seventh game of the World Series." This tie-breaking sense of "rubber" apparently originated in the English game of...
ended in a draw on November 26, resulting in a ladder match for the final match of the tour two days later, which Spartan won.
On April 24, 2010, Capiccioni, under his Matt Cross ring name, made his debut for Philadelphia-based Chikara. In his first match, a four-way elimination match in the Rey de Voladores (King of the Fliers) tournament, Cross defeated Flip Kendrick, Malachi Jackson and Amasis
The Osirian Portal
The Osirian Portal was a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of Amasis and Ophidian. The team mainly competed in Chikara, where they held the Campeonatos de Parejas, and Combat Zone Wrestling . They have also made appearances in Ring of Honor and several other independent promotions based...
to advance to the finals. The following day Cross was defeated in the finals by Ophidian
The Osirian Portal
The Osirian Portal was a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of Amasis and Ophidian. The team mainly competed in Chikara, where they held the Campeonatos de Parejas, and Combat Zone Wrestling . They have also made appearances in Ring of Honor and several other independent promotions based...
.
On July 22, 2011, Matt Cross won the Firestorm Pro Heavyweight Championship by defeating Patrick Hayes
Patrick Hayes
Patrick Hayes may refer to:*Patrick Michael Hayes, Canadian politician, Ontario New Democratic Party*Patrick Joseph Hayes , Cardinal Archbishop of New York 1924*Patrick J. Hayes , British computer scientist...
. Immediately following the match John McChesney came out and challenged Cross for the title and played a video of Capiccioni being eliminated from Tough Enough. Cross accepted the match which he lost, losing the Firestorm Pro Championship in the process.
Combat Zone Wrestling (2002-2004)
He made his Combat Zone WrestlingCombat Zone Wrestling
Combat Zone Wrestling is a independent wrestling promotion. In 1999, John Zandig and four of his students, Ric Blade, Lobo, Nick Gage and Justice Pain began to run backyard wrestling shows in New Jersey and Delaware, showcasing a brand of hardcore wrestling dubbed as "ultraviolence"...
(CZW) debut in 2002, appearing at Process of Elimination in April, and defeating Prohibition to qualify for the annual Best of the Best
CZW Best of the Best
Combat Zone Wrestling's Best of the Best is a professional wrestling tournament and supershow held in the CZW promotion. The annual Best of The Best was originally a junior heavyweight tournament, which in 2005 was repurposed as an all weight tournament....
tournament. At the tournament itself on June 8, M-Dogg 20 made it to the second round, where he was defeated by Trent Acid
Trent Acid
Michael Verdi was an American professional wrestler best known by his ring name Trent Acid. Verdi had worked as a tag team wrestler for most of his career, primarily as part of The Backseat Boyz with Johnny Kashmere, in several independent promotions in America, including Combat Zone Wrestling,...
, the eventual winner of the tournament. M-Dogg returned to CZW that September, and defeated Prohibition in a Tables and Ladders match at Ultraviolent Freedom Of Expression. At Night Of Infamy in November, a tag team match
Professional wrestling tag team match types
Much like singles matches, tag team professional wrestling matches can and have taken many forms. Just about any singles or melee match type can be adapted to tag teams; for example, hardcore tag team matches are commonplace...
between the team of M-Dogg 20 and Nick Mondo
Nick Mondo
Matthew "Matt" Burns better known by his ring name "Sick" Nick Mondo is a retired American professional wrestler. Burns is best known for his appearances with Combat Zone Wrestling...
and the team of Acid and Johnny Kashmere
Johnny Kashmere
Johnny Kashmere is an American professional wrestler, best known as one half of The Backseat Boyz, along with the late Trent Acid...
ended in a no contest. The following month, M-Dogg faced Sonjay Dutt
Sonjay Dutt
Retesh Bhalla is an American professional wrestler of Indian Punjabi descent, better known by his ring name, Sonjay Dutt. He is best known working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, and is also known for his stints with Combat Zone Wrestling, Major League Wrestling, and other various independent...
and Ruckus
Claude Marrow
Claude Marrow is an American independent professional wrestler better known by his ring name Ruckus. Marrow current performs in Combat Zone Wrestling, Ring of Honor, Maryland Championship Wrestling, Chikara and Jersey All Pro Wrestling...
in a three-way match to determine the number one contender to the CZW World Junior Heavyweight Championship
CZW World Junior Heavyweight Championship
The CZW World Junior Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling title in the Philadelphia-based promotion Combat Zone Wrestling , designed for junior heavyweights; wrestlers under . It was established in 1999 at CZW's first show, Opening Night with The Sensational One as the first champion...
, but the match was won by Dutt.
At Best of the Best 4 on July 10, 2004, M-Dogg 20 returned to CZW, attacking CZW Junior Heavyweight Champion Donjay Dutt and stealing his championship belt. He attacked Dutt again at Possession in August, before he teamed with Jimmy Rave
Jimmy Rave
James Guffey is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Jimmy Rave. He is best known for working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
to defeat Dutt and Amazing Red
Amazing Red
Jonathan Figueroa is a professional wrestler better known by his ring name, Amazing Red, or simply Red for short. He is best known for working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is a former three-time X Division Champion, while also working on the American independent circuit...
at High Stakes 2: Always Bet On Black. At Night of Infamy 3 in November, Dutt defeated both M-Dogg 20 and Rave in a thre-way match. At Cage of Death
CZW Cage of Death
The Cage of Death is Combat Zone Wrestling 's biggest show since 1999. It always features the Cage of Death match, a steel cage with various weapons and objects. Electrified cage walls, cacti, tables, light tubes, glass, thumbtacks, baseball bats, and barbed wire have been used in it. The Cage of...
6, M-Dogg lost to Dutt in a match for the World Junior Heavyweight Championship, forcing M-Dogg to leave the company per the pre-match stipulation.
Ring of Honor (2006–2009)
Capiccioni, as 'Matt Cross', made his debut in Ring of HonorRing of Honor
Ring of Honor ' is an American professional wrestling promotion, founded in 2002 by Rob Feinstein and Gabe Sapolsky. From 2004 to 2011, the promotion was under the ownership of Cary Silkin before being sold to the Sinclair Broadcast Group in May 2011...
(ROH) on October 7, 2006 at Motor City Madness in a six-man mayhem match, which was won by Pelle Primeau and also involved Jimmy Rave, Shane Hagadorn, and Dave and Jake Crist. His second appearance came the following month, when he lost to Christopher Daniels
Christopher Daniels
Daniel Christopher Covell is an American professional wrestler, best known in the United States by his ring name "The Fallen Angel" Christopher Daniels. He is also known for performing under the ring name Curry Man. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , while also...
at The Bitter End. He faced Daniels again at The Chicago Spectacular Night 1 on December 8, in a four-corner survival match, which was won by BJ Whitmer and also included Davey Richards
Davey Richards
Wesley David Richards is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Davey Richards.Richards is currently under contract with Ring of Honor, where he is the current ROH World Champion, but also wrestles for several companies on the independent circuit, including Pro Wrestling...
. The following night, Cross and Daniels teamed together in a loss to Austin Aries and Roderick Strong
Generation Next
Generation Next was a professional wrestling stable in the Ring of Honor promotion. Formed in Philadelphia, PA at the event Generation Next, on May 22, 2004, by Alex Shelley, the original Generation Next consisted of Shelley, Austin Aries, Roderick Strong and Jack Evans...
. He returned to ROH in February 2007, losing a six-man mayhem match at Fifth Year Festival: Dayton.
The following night at Fifth Year Festival: Chicago however, Cross won his first match in ROH when he was victorious in a four-corner survival match, defeating Shingo
Shingo Takagi
Shingo Takagi is a former Japanese bodybuilder, turned professional wrestler. Shingo is currently competing for the Japanese promotion Dragon Gate and American promotion Dragon Gate USA...
, CJ Otis, and Trik Davis. Following the match, Cross was approached by Austin Aries
Austin Aries
Daniel Healy "Dan" Solwold, Jr. better known by his ring name Austin Aries, is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where he is the current X Division Champion...
, who asked Cross to team with him later night against the No Remorse Corps (NRC) to which Cross agreed. The pair were then attacked by NRC members Roderick Strong
Roderick Strong
Chris Lindsey is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Roderick Strong. Strong currently competes in several independent promotions, most notably Ring of Honor , Full Impact Pro , and Pro Wrestling Guerrilla .He initially debuted as The Jester on the Floridian...
and Davey Richards. Cross and Aries won the tag team encounter, but during the match Cross performed a springboard dive outside the ring, landing on the guardrail and sustaining several cuts. The team of Aries and Cross were later joined by Erick Stevens
Erick Stevens
Erick Stevens is an American professional wrestler. Stevens wrestles for many independent promotions, most notably Ring of Honor and Full Impact Pro where he is a former 2 time World Heavyweight Champion.-NWA Florida:...
, with the three being named 'The Resilience'. At This Means War II in April, The Resilience lost a six-man elimination match to the NRC (Strong, Richards, and Rocky Romero
Rocky Romero
John R. Rivera is a Cuban American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Rocky Romero and as the fourth incarnation of Black Tiger. As Romero he was one half of the tag team The Havana Pitbulls , along with Ricky Reyes...
). At Reborn Again in May, Cross and Stevens teamed with Bryan Danielson
Bryan Danielson
Bryan Danielson is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE where he wrestles on its SmackDown brand as Daniel Bryan, and currently holds the SmackDown Money in the Bank briefcase, which enables him to have a World Heavyweight Championship match at any time of his choosing...
in a loss to the NRC in a six-man tag team match. In June, Cross, Stevens, and Delirious
Delirious (wrestler)
Hunter Johnston is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Delirious. He is currently wrestling for Ring of Honor, International Wrestling Cartel, Chikara, Pro Wrestling Noah, and Jersey All Pro Wrestling...
defeated the NRC in a six-man tag team match, before Cross lost the Richards in a singles match the following night at Domination. Cross appeared at the Driven pay-per-view
Pay-per-view
Pay-per-view provides a service by which a television audience can purchase events to view via private telecast. The broadcaster shows the event at the same time to everyone ordering it...
on June 22, when he, Stevens, and Delirious lost to the NRC. At Death Before Dishonor V: Night 2 in August, The Resilience and Delirious lost a Philadelphia Street Fight to the NRC and Matt Sydal
Matt Sydal
Matthew Joseph Korklan is an American professional wrestler, also known as Matt Sydal and Evan Bourne. He is signed with WWE and wrestles on its Raw brand under the ring name Evan Bourne, where he is currently one half of the WWE Tag Team Champions with Kofi Kingston as Air Boom.Before signing...
. The Resilience went on to defeat Richards, Jason Blade, and Eddie Edwards
Eddie Edwards (wrestler)
Eddie Edwards is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for wrestling with Ring of Honor , where he is a former ROH World Champion. He also had previous reigns as a former ROH World Tag Team Champion with his partner Davey Richards as The American Wolves and as the inaugural ROH World...
, before Cross and Stevens defeated Mike Quackenbush and Jigsaw
Jigsaw (wrestler)
Jigsaw is an American professional wrestler currently competing in the Chikara and Dragon Gate USA professional wrestling promotions...
at Manhattan Mayhem II. At Motor City Madness 2007 on September 14, Cross and Aries unsuccessfully challenged the Briscoe Brothers
Briscoe Brothers
The Briscoe Brothers are the professional wrestling tag team of Jay and Mark Briscoe. They are currently wrestling for the American promotions Ring of Honor, Full Impact Pro, Combat Zone Wrestling, as well as occasionally for the Japanese promotion Pro Wrestling Noah.Their wrestling careers have...
(Jay and Mark) for the ROH World Tag Team Championship
ROH World Tag Team Championship
The Ring of Honor World Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship contested for in the American professional wrestling promotion Ring of Honor. The championship is generally contested in professional wrestling matches, in which participants usually execute...
. At the Man Up
ROH Man Up
Man Up was a professional wrestling pay-per-view promoted by Ring of Honor. It took place on September 15, 2007 at the Frontier Fieldhouse in Chicago Ridge, Illinois, the site of the second Pay-per-view taping Driven, and first aired on November 30...
pay-per-view taping the following night, Cross lost to NRC member Romero in a singles match. The next month, at the taping of Undeniable
ROH Undeniable
Undeniable was a professional wrestling pay-per-view promoted by Ring of Honor. It took place on October 6, 2007 from the Inman Sports Club in Edison, New Jersey and aired on PPV on January 18, 2008.-Results:-References:*-External links:**...
, Cross and Stevens lost a tag team match to Romero and Richards. The match carried the stipulation that whoever was pinned would be suspended, and since Cross was pinned, he was suspended from ROH for two months.
Cross returned at Rising Above on December 29, where he competed in a four-way match won by the Necro Butcher
Necro Butcher
Dylan Keith Summers is an American professional wrestler best known by his ring name Necro Butcher. Throughout the years he has worked for various promotions, including Beyond Wrestling, Firestormpro, Ring of Honor, Full Impact Pro, IWA-Mid South, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla, Big Japan Pro Wrestling,...
. The following night at Final Battle
ROH Final Battle
Final Battle is a professional wrestling event, held annually by the Ring of Honor promotion. The event was initially held in 2002, and is traditionally ROH's last show in the calendar year. The 2009 edition of the show was ROH's first live pay-per-view, broadcast on the internet...
2007, Cross and Bobby Fish
Bobby Fish
Bobby Fish is an American professional wrestler, who is best known for wrestling with Ring of Honor, Evolve Wrestling, and Pro Wrestling Noah in Japan. Pro Wrestling Illustrated ranked him #280 of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the PWI 500 in 2009, up from number #303 the previous year...
lost to Ruckus
Claude Marrow
Claude Marrow is an American independent professional wrestler better known by his ring name Ruckus. Marrow current performs in Combat Zone Wrestling, Ring of Honor, Maryland Championship Wrestling, Chikara and Jersey All Pro Wrestling...
and Jigsaw in a tag team match. At Breakout on January 25, 2008, Cross and Jigsaw lost to the Briscoe Brothers. The next Cross appeared in ROH was at Steel City Clash on March 20, 2009, when he teamed with Stevens in a loss to Rhett Titus
Rhett Titus
Everett Lawrence Titus is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Rhett Titus. A student of the ROH Wrestling Academy, Titus has been competing for Ring of Honor , as well as various independent promotions, since 2006.-Career:Titus began training at the ROH Wrestling...
and Kenny King
Kenny Layne
Kenny Layne is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Kenny King. King currently wrestles for Ring of Honor. He was a contestant in the second season of WWF Tough Enough.-Early life:...
. At A Cut Above the following month, he competed in a four-corner survival match won by Claudio Castagnoli
Claudio Castagnoli
Claudio Castagnoli is a Swiss professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, working in its developmental territory Florida Championship Wrestling under the ring name Antonio Cesaro...
, which was his final appearance in ROH.
Wrestling Society X (2007)
In 2007, when MTVMTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
launched its new wrestling program Wrestling Society X
Wrestling Society X
Wrestling Society X was a short-lived professional wrestling-based television series produced in 2006 by Big Vision Entertainment. The weekly television series formerly aired on MTV, MTV2, MTV Tr3s, and over a dozen other MTV outlets throughout the world...
, Capiccioni was signed to the project under his Matt Cross ring name, and he formed a tag team with Teddy Hart called The Filth and The Fury. As part of the television tapings, The Filth and The Fury defeated The Trailer Park Boyz (Nate Webb
Nate Webb
Nathan "Nate" Webb is an American professional wrestler and semi-pro football player, best known for his appearances in Combat Zone Wrestling, Independent Wrestling Association Mid-South, Ring of Honor and MTV's Wrestling Society X. On April 22, 2008, Webb was notified that he had made the roster...
and Josh Raymond) and Team Dragon Gate
Dragon Gate
is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion formerly known as Toryumon Japan. Most of Dragon Gate's wrestlers are graduates from Último Dragón's Toryumon Gym, and thus the promotion is based on a Junior Heavyweight style with varying emphasis on high flying maneuvers, flashy technical grappling,...
(Yoshino
Masato Yoshino
Masato Yoshino is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently working for the Dragon Gate wrestling promotion.-Toryumon:...
and Horiguchi
Genki Horiguchi
, is a Japanese professional wrestler. He is currently a full time wrestler and booker for Dragon Gate, where he is currently a member of the Blood Warriors stable. He has also competed in Wrestling Society X and Ring of Honor....
) before losing to Los Pochos Guapos (Kaos
Joey Munoz
Joseph "Joey" Muñoz is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Kaos...
and Aguilera
Aaron Aguilera
Aaron Aguilera , is a Mexican American professional wrestler and actor best known as Jesús and Uno on World Wrestling Entertainment and MTV's Wrestling Society X...
).
Foreign excursion (2005–present)
In March 2005, M-Dogg 20 travelled to IrelandIreland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, where he wrestled for the Irish Whip Wrestling
Irish Whip Wrestling
Irish Whip Wrestling is an Irish owned independent professional wrestling promotion established in 2002. The company was named in tribute to Irish professional wrestler Danno O'Mahony, who is credited as the inventor of the "Irish Whip" wrestling maneuver. IWW runs shows throughout the whole of...
promotion, competing against Jonny Storm
Jonny Storm
Jonathan Whitcombe is an English professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Jonny Storm. He has worked for many independent promotions across the United Kingdom, including the Frontier Wrestling Alliance, Real Quality Wrestling and One Pro Wrestling...
, Jody Fleisch
Jody Fleisch
Jerome Fleisch is an English professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Jody Fleisch. He is best known for his work with the Frontier Wrestling Alliance, One Pro Wrestling and Real Quality Wrestling...
, Darren Burridge
Darren Burridge
Greg Burridge is a semi-retired British professional wrestler. He is best known for his work on the independent circuit throughout the United Kingdom.-Professional wrestling career:...
, and Red Vinny. In May 2007, Capiccioni returned to Europe when he was booked by the Queens of Chaos
Queens of Chaos
Queens of Chaos is a French based female independent professional wrestling promotion created in 2005. Queens of Chaos promotes its own shows but also showcases matches on its parent promotion Fighting Spirit Federation, which mainly deals with the male side of professional wrestling...
promotion in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. He wrestled in front of 72,000 people, which is the 2007 record for a wrestling show. As Matt Cross, he debuted in German Stampede Wrestling in 2007, and was part of a four-way for the Breakthrough Championshi against Germany's Thumbtack Jack
Thumbtack Jack
Alexander Bedranowsky , better known by his ring name Thumbtack Jack and its abbreviation TJ, is a retired German professional wrestler, best known for his work in westside Xtreme wrestling, Combat Zone Wrestling and IWA East Coast. He is well known for his hardcore style of wrestling.He held the...
, Steve Douglas and X-Dream, who eventually won the match. In April 2010, Cross was a surprise guests (along with Chris Hero
Chris Hero
Chris Spradlin is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Chris Hero. He is a mainstay of many independent wrestling promotions, including Ring of Honor, and Pro Wrestling Guerrilla as well as Pro Wrestling Noah in Japan...
, Claudio Castagnoli
Claudio Castagnoli
Claudio Castagnoli is a Swiss professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, working in its developmental territory Florida Championship Wrestling under the ring name Antonio Cesaro...
, Douglas Williams
Doug Williams (wrestler)
Douglas Clayton Durdle is an English professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Doug Williams. He is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Douglas Williams...
and Ares) for GSW's final show. He lost another Breakthrough Chmapionship match in a three-way against Emil Sitoci
Emil Sitoci
Emil Sitoci is a Dutch professional wrestler and television personality.- Wrestling career :Sitoci started his career in 2001, wrestling under a mask, in mainland European wrestling promotions. In 2003 he travelled to America as an exchange student, which enabled him to stay for a full year and...
and X-Dream on Saturday and teamed with X-Dream in a GSW Tag Team Championship scramble match on Sunday, but couldn't win that either. When GSW reopened with a new structure a few months later, Cross received another match for the Breakthrough Championship, and won by defeating Sitoci. He held the championship through the next three television tapings and successfully defended it against Zack Sabre, Jr.. At Unstoppable, an internet pay-per-view, he lost the championship to X-Dream. In 2008, Capiccioni began competing for the Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
-based Nu-Wrestling Evolution
Nu-Wrestling Evolution
Nu-Wrestling Evolution is an Italian professional wrestling promotion, owned by MAGNUMGROUP srl. The promotion's slogan is "Nu-Wrestling Evolution/NWE the place to be!"-History:...
as "Spartan 3000 b.C.", a Sparta
Sparta
Sparta or Lacedaemon, was a prominent city-state in ancient Greece, situated on the banks of the River Eurotas in Laconia, in south-eastern Peloponnese. It emerged as a political entity around the 10th century BC, when the invading Dorians subjugated the local, non-Dorian population. From c...
n warrior inspired by the popular movie 300
300 (film)
300 is a 2007 American fantasy action film based on the 1998 comic series of the same name by Frank Miller. It is a fictionalized retelling of the Battle of Thermopylae. The film was directed by Zack Snyder, while Miller served as executive producer and consultant...
.
In 2008, Capiccioni began and continues to wrestle for Pro Wrestling Noah
Pro Wrestling Noah
is a major Japanese professional wrestling promotion, founded in 2000 by former All Japan Pro Wrestling ace Mitsuharu Misawa. NOAH is broadcast weekly in Japan...
under a masked gimmick known as "The Raptor".
World Wrestling Entertainment (2010–2011)
On July 15, 2010, Capiccioni, under his Matt Cross ring name, had a try out match teaming with Jamen Canseco against The Gatecrashers (Vance ArcherLance Hoyt
Lance Hoyt is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to New Japan Pro Wrestling as Lance Archer. He is best known for his work in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is a two time NWA World Tag Team Champion with Kid Kash while the title was under the TNA banner...
and Curt Hawkins
Curt Hawkins
Brian Joseph Myers is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Curt Hawkins. He is currently signed to WWE working on its Raw brand...
) on an edition of WWE Superstars
WWE Superstars
WWE Superstars is a professional wrestling television program produced by World Wrestling Entertainment that originally aired on WGN America in the United States. It debuted on April 16, 2009 and ended its domestic broadcasting on April 7, 2011...
, which they lost when Canseco was pinned by Archer.
In 2011, Capiccioni joined the cast of the revived WWE Tough Enough
WWE Tough Enough
WWE Tough Enough is a professional wrestling reality television program produced by WWE wherein participants undergo professional wrestling training and compete for a contract with WWE. There were two winners per season for the first three seasons, all of which aired on MTV...
series, which premiered on April 4. That same day Capiccioni, along with the rest of the cast, appeared on WWE Raw
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...
in a segment with Tough Enough host Stone Cold Steve Austin
Stone Cold Steve Austin
Steve Austin , better known by his ring name "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, is an American film and television actor and retired professional wrestler...
. He was eliminated from the competition in the second week for not "showing enough" of his in ring skills which was extremely controversial due to his well known, and well documented abilities and accomplishments.
Personal life
Capiccioni attended Cleveland State UniversityCleveland State University
Cleveland State University is a public university located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. It was established in 1964 when the state of Ohio assumed control of Fenn College, and it absorbed the Cleveland-Marshall College of Law in 1969...
, where he earned his Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in communications. He also follows the straight edge
Straight edge
Straight edge is a subculture of hardcore punk whose adherents refrain from using alcohol, tobacco, and other recreational drugs. It was a direct reaction to the sexual revolution, hedonism, and excess associated with punk rock. For some, this extends to not engaging in promiscuous sex, following a...
lifestyle.
In wrestling
- Finishing moves
- Death From Above (Shooting star press)
- Phoenix splash
- Signature moves
- CartwheelCartwheel (gymnastics)In gymnastics, a cartwheel is a sideways rotary movement performed by bringing the hands to the ground while the body inverts and the legs travel over the body, coming down to a standing position.-Terminology:...
into an over the top rope corkscrew suicide senton or a suicide plancha - Death Star DDT (Shooting star DDT)
- Fireman's carry neckbreaker
- Japanese arm drag
- MoonsaultMoonsaultA moonsault, moonsault press, or back flip splash is a professional wrestling aerial technique. Much of its popularity in American wrestling is attributed to The Great Muta, despite it being used in North America by "Leaping" Lanny Poffo years before Muta came from Japan.In a standard moonsault,...
, sometimes while performing a split-legged corkscrew - Senton
- Shooting star leg drop
- Cartwheel
- NicknameNicknameA nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....
s- "Iron" Matt Cross
- Entrance themesMusic in professional wrestlingMusic in professional wrestling serves a variety of purposes. The most common uses of music in professional wrestling is that of the entrance theme, a song or piece of instrumental music which plays as a performer approaches the ring...
- "O FortunaO Fortuna"O Fortuna" is a medieval Latin Goliardic poem written early in the thirteenth century, part of the collection known as the Carmina Burana. It is a complaint about fate, and Fortuna, a goddess in Roman mythology and personification of luck....
" from Carmina BuranaCarmina Burana (Orff)Carmina Burana is a scenic cantata composed by Carl Orff in 1935 and 1936. It is based on 24 of the poems found in the medieval collection Carmina Burana...
by Carl OrffCarl OrffCarl Orff was a 20th-century German composer, best known for his cantata Carmina Burana . In addition to his career as a composer, Orff developed an influential method of music education for children.-Early life:...
(NWE)
- "O Fortuna
Championships and accomplishments
- Cleveland All Pro Wrestling
- CAPW Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- CAPW North American Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Josh Prohibition
- Far North Wrestling
- FNW Cruiserweight Championship (1 time)
- Firestorm Pro Wrestling
- Firestorm Pro Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- German Stampede Wrestling
- GSW Breakthrough Championship (1 time)
- Independent Wrestling Association Mid-SouthIndependent Wrestling Association Mid-SouthIndependent Wrestling Association Mid-South is an independent professional wrestling promotion based in Louisville, Kentucky.- History :...
- IWA Mid-South Heavyweight ChampionshipIWA Mid-South Heavyweight ChampionshipThe IWA Mid-South Heavyweight Championship was the major title in the Independent Wrestling Association Mid-South based in Louisville, Kentucky...
(1 time)
- IWA Mid-South Heavyweight Championship
- International Wrestling Cartel
- IWC Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Josh Prohibition
- Mid-Ohio Wrestling
- MOW Cruiserweight Championship (1 time)
- NWA UpstateNational Wrestling AllianceThe National Wrestling Alliance is a wrestling promotion company and sanctions various NWA championships in the United States. The NWA has been in operation since 1948...
- NWA Upstate Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Josh Prohibition
- New Era Pro Wrestling
- NEPW Cruiserweight Championship (1 time)
- NEPW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Josh Prohibition
- Pro Wrestling IllustratedPro Wrestling IllustratedPro Wrestling Illustrated is a professional wrestling magazine. PWI is currently based in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania and published by Kappa Publishing Group.-History:The first issue of Pro Wrestling Illustrated was released in 1979...
- PWI ranked him #177 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2009
- Pro Wrestling Ohio
- PWO Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- Union of Independent Professional Wrestlers
- UNION Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- UWA Hardcore Wrestling
- UWA Canadian Championship (2 times)
- Xtreme Pro WrestlingXtreme Pro WrestlingXtreme Pro Wrestling is an independent professional wrestling promotion formerly owned by Extreme Associates CEO and director Rob Zicari, who appeared on shows under the name Rob Black. Zicari appeared on-camera as owner alongside his wife Lizzy Borden. The promotion focuses on hardcore wrestling,...
- XPW World Tag Team ChampionshipXPW World Tag Team ChampionshipThe XPW World Tag Team Championship was introduced at Baptized in Blood III in 2002 by Xtreme Pro Wrestling and the championship was decided in a 4-Way Elimination Tag Team match that featured Mexico's Most Wanted , The New Panthers The XPW World Tag Team Championship was introduced at Baptized in...
(2 times) – with Josh Prohibition
- XPW World Tag Team Championship