Cheeseburger (wrestler)

Cheeseburger
Cheeseburger posing in July 2016
Birth name Brandel Littlejohn[1]
Born Trenton, New Jersey, U.S.[2]
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s) Cheeseburger
Leech Landa[3]
Billed height 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)[4]
Billed weight 136 lb (62 kg)[4]
Trained by Daizee Haze[4]
Delirious[2]
Lance Storm[4]
Les Thatcher[4]
Mike Quackenbush[4]
Tom Prichard[4]
Debut April 5, 2012[4]

Brandel Littlejohn is an American professional wrestler. He is currently working for Ring of Honor, where he performs under the ring name Cheeseburger. He also works as an assistant trainer at the ROH Dojo.[5] Despite mostly being used as a jobber due to his small stature, he is a perennial fan favorite among ROH fans.[6]

Personal life

Littlejohn grew up in Trenton, New Jersey and attended Trenton Catholic Academy in nearby Hamilton Township, where his interest in sports was limited to some basketball. He studied digital film at Mercer County Community College.[6]

Professional wrestling career

Early career (2012–2013)

Littlejohn began wrestling with the promotion Beyond Wrestling, where he competed as Leech Landa in a match in Philadelphia in September 2012. In 2013, he appeared in two matches with the promotion Wrestling Is...Respect! in Boonton, New Jersey.[3]

Ring of Honor (2013–present)

Littlejohn debuted in Ring of Honor on July 11, 2013, at the promotion's A Night of Hoopla event in Chicago.[2] Wrestling as Cheeseburger, (a name he was given when he was bullied in a segment by Charlie Haas)[7] he teamed with Roderick Strong to challenge reDRagon (Bobby Fish and Kyle O'Reilly) for the ROH World Tag Team Championship, unsuccessfully.[8]

In 2014, Cheeseburger twice unsuccessfully challenged Jay Lethal for the ROH World Television Championship: at the promotion's Second to None event in Baltimore[9] and its Road to Best in the World '14 show in Carbondale, Illinois.[10]

Cheeseburger was a part of a tag team called Brutal Burgers, teaming with "Brutal" Bob Evans. The two wrestlers feuded after the tag team split, culminating in the Final Battle kickoff, where Cheeseburger defeated Evans.[11]

In January 2016, Cheeseburger made another challenge to the World Television Championship, this time falling short against Roderick Strong in Collinsville, Illinois during ROH's Winter Warriors Tour.[12]

New Japan Pro-Wrestling (2016–present)

On January 4, 2016, Cheeseburger made his surprise debut for New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) by taking part in the New Japan Rumble in the pre-show of Wrestle Kingdom 10 in Tokyo Dome. He was eliminated from the match by Yoshi-Hashi.[13] Cheeseburger formed an on-screen friendship with NJPW wrestler Jushin Liger, which led to him adopting Liger's Shotei palm strike as a finishing move.[1]

Cheeseburger returned to NJPW on January 4, 2017, again taking part in the New Japan Rumble on the pre-show of Wrestle Kingdom 11 in Tokyo Dome. During the match, Cheeseburger scored an elimination over Bone Soldier and lasted until the end of the match, before being the final man eliminated by Michael Elgin.[14] The following day, Cheeseburger teamed up with Hiro Saito, Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Satoshi Kojima and Scott Norton in a ten-man tag team, where they defeated Bullet Club (Bad Luck Fale, Bone Soldier, Kenny Omega, Tama Tonga and Tanga Loa).[15]

At Wrestle Kingdom 12 in Tokyo Dome on January 4, 2018, Cheeseburger once again was the last competitor eliminated from the New Japan Rumble. He was pinned by Masahito Kakihara to end the match.[16] At New Year Dash !! the next night, he teamed with Roppongi 3K in a losing effort against Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks.[17]

Championships and accomplishments

References

  1. 1 2 "IS 2016 THE "YEAR OF THE BURGER"?". Ring of Honor. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 "CHEESEBURGER - ROH Wrestling". Ring of Honor. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
  3. 1 2 "Cheeseburger: Profile & Match Listing". Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Cheeseburger". CageMatch.net. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
  5. ↑ Caldwell, James (July 14, 2016). "ROH re-opening wrestling school as "ROH Dojo"". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved July 14, 2016.
  6. 1 2 Varsallone, Jim (April 30, 2016). "Ring of Honor fans enjoy making Cheeseburger a top seller". Miami Herald. Retrieved January 4, 2018.
  7. ↑ Berenstein, Ari (February 23, 2013). "Column of Honor Special Comment 2.23.13: Ring of HaasTube". 411Mania.com. Retrieved February 26, 2016.
  8. ↑ "ROH Unauthorized Presents: A Night of Hoopla". The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
  9. ↑ "ROH Second to None". The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
  10. ↑ "ROH Road to Best in the World '14 - Night 1". The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
  11. ↑ "Brutal Bob Vs Cheeseburger Kicks Off Final Battle!". Ring of Honor. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
  12. ↑ "ROH Winter Warriors Tour 2016". The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
  13. ↑ Meltzer, Dave (January 3, 2016). "Wrestle Kingdom 10 live results: Kazuchika Okada vs Hiroshi Tanahashi". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved February 18, 2016.
  14. ↑ Rose, Bryan; Currier, Joseph (January 3, 2017). "NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 11 live results: Kazuchika Okada vs. Kenny Omega". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved January 5, 2017.
  15. ↑ 戦国炎舞 -Kizna- Presents New Year Dash !!. New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved January 5, 2017.
  16. ↑ "Click Here to Join 411's LIVE NJPW WrestleKingdom 12 Coverage". 411Mania.com. Retrieved January 4, 2018.
  17. ↑ "Everything cool that happened at NJPW New Year Dash!! today". Cageside Seats. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
  18. ↑ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2016". The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved September 1, 2016.
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