Keith Lee (wrestler)

Keith Lee
Keith Lee in August 2017
Born (1984-11-08) November 8, 1984
Wichita Falls, Texas, U.S.[1]
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s) Keith Lee
Billed height 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)[2]
Billed weight 295 lb (134 kg)[2]
Trained by Killer Tim Brooks
WWE Performance Center
Debut February 2005

Keith Lee (born November 8, 1984) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE where he performs on their developmental territory NXT. He is known for his work on the American independent circuit, where he competed for promotions such as Evolve, All American Wrestling (AAW), and Pro Wrestling Guerrilla (PWG). He is a one-time PWG World Champion and one-time WWN Champion.

Early life

Lee was introduced to professional wrestling at a young age by his grandmother, who was a fan herself, and credits her with inspiring him to pursue a career in professional wrestling. Lee played college football, but quit to become a professional wrestler.[3][4]

Professional wrestling career

Evolve (2017–2018)

After leaving Ring Of Honor, Lee signed with Evolve Wrestling in January 2017, and made his debut on January 27, losing to Chris Hero.[5] He made his return in February at Evolve 78, defeating Zack Sabre Jr.[6] The following night, he defeated Tracy Williams.[7] Lee received his first championship opportunity in Evolve at Evolve 87 in June, when he unsuccessfully challenged Matt Riddle for the WWN Championship.[8] On October 14, 2017, Lee defeated Riddle to win the WWN Championship. He lost the title at EVOLVE 103 against Austin Theory.

Pro Wrestling Guerrilla (2017–2018)

Lee made his Pro Wrestling Guerrilla (PWG) debut on March 18, 2017 at Nice Boys (Don't Play Rock N' Roll), competing in a triple threat match against Sami Callihan and Brian Cage, won by Cage.[9] He returned in April at Game Over, Man, losing to Jeff Cobb.[10] On May 19 at Head Like A Cole, he won his first match in PWG, defeating Trevor Lee.[11] He followed this up by defeating Lio Rush and Trent? at Pushin Forward Back on July 7.[12] In September, Lee made it to the finals of the 2017 Battle of Los Angeles, where he was defeated by Ricochet.[13] Lee's quarterfinal match against Donovan Dijak was awarded a five-star rating by Dave Meltzer.[14]

At Time Is a Flat Circle on March 23, 2018, Lee defeated Chuck Taylor to become the PWG World Champion. During the subsequent month's All Star Weekend 14, Lee went on to lose the championship to WALTER in a three-way title defense, also involving Jonah Rock.

WWE (2018–present)

On April 5, 2018, during WrestleMania Axxess weekend, Lee made an appearance for NXT defeating Kassius Ohno. On May 1, it was announced that Lee had signed a contract with WWE.[15] On June 16 at NXT TakeOver: Chicago II, Lee would be shown in attendance. On the July 18 taping of NXT, Lee would make his in-ring debut as a face, defeating Marcel Barthel.[16] He appeared again on the August 30 edition of NXT to defeat Luke Menzies.[17]

Championships and accomplishments

References

  1. ↑ "Keith Lee – Online World of Wrestling". onlineworldofwrestling.com. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  2. 1 2 Wood, Donald. "Keith Lee Is Making Major Waves In Pro Wrestling Industry".
  3. ↑ "Interview – Keith Lee – The British Wrestling Revival Blog". thebritishwrestlingrevival.wordpress.com. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  4. ↑ "Keith Lee helping to change the game for big men in wrestling". Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  5. ↑ Kreikenbohm, Philip. "EVOLVE 76: A Hero's Exit - Tag 1 « Events Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling Database". www.cagematch.net. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  6. ↑ Kreikenbohm, Philip. "EVOLVE 78 « Events Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling Database". www.cagematch.net. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  7. ↑ Kreikenbohm, Philip. "EVOLVE 79 « Events Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling Database". www.cagematch.net. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  8. ↑ Kreikenbohm, Philip. "EVOLVE 87 « Events Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling Database". www.cagematch.net. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  9. ↑ Kreikenbohm, Philip. "PWG Nice Boys (Don't Play Rock N' Roll) « Events Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling Database". www.cagematch.net. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  10. ↑ Kreikenbohm, Philip. "PWG Game Over, Man « Events Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling Database". www.cagematch.net. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  11. ↑ Kreikenbohm, Philip. "PWG Head Like A Cole « Events Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling Database". www.cagematch.net. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  12. ↑ Kreikenbohm, Philip. "PWG Pushin Forward Back « Events Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling Database". www.cagematch.net. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  13. ↑ Meltzer, Dave (4 September 2017). "PWG BOLA night three results: The winner is crowned". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved 24 September 2017.
  14. ↑ Meltzer, Dave (December 26, 2017). "Dave Meltzer's top-rated matches of 2017: Donovan Dijak vs. Keith Lee". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved December 27, 2017.
  15. ↑ "Keith Lee signs WWE deal, update on WALTER and WWE, Danny Burch signs with WWE -". 2 May 2018.
  16. ↑ Davis, Paul. "SPOILER: Top independent wrestling star makes his debut at WWE NXT TV tapings". wrestlingnews.co. WrestlingNews.Co. Retrieved 19 July 2018.
  17. ↑ "NXT results, live blog (Aug. 29, 2018): Undisputed ERA vs. Ricochet & Pete Dunne". Cageside Seats. Retrieved 2018-08-30.
  18. ↑ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2018". cagematch.net. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  19. ↑ Kreikenbohm, Philip. "VIP Heavyweight Championship « Titles Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling Database". www.cagematch.net.
  20. ↑ Williams, JJ (October 15, 2017). "Evolve 94 results: Matt Riddle vs. Keith Lee last man standing match". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved October 15, 2017.
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