Before forming the APA, Faarooq and Bradshaw were known simply asThe Acolytes and went on to become a part ofThe Undertaker'sMinistry of Darkness.[3] As The Acolytes, they won twoWorld Tag Team Championships in 1999, while feuding withX-Pac andKane and theHardy Boyz. After renaming themselves the Acolytes Protection Agency in 2000, they adopted the gimmick of bodyguards-for-hire to other wrestlers, and won a third tag team championship in 2001.[4]
In 2002, thebrand split also split the duo as the2002 draft sent Faarooq toSmackDown and Bradshaw toRaw.[5] As a singles competitor, Bradshaw had an extensivehardcore wrestling career, winning theHardcore Championship on various occasions. The two reunited as a tag team inOhio Valley Wrestling and then onSmackDown in 2003. The team again split in 2004 when Simmons was getting ready to retire, and as part of Bradshaw's heel turn Simmons was on-screen released by WWE; Bradshaw continued his singles career before retiring in 2009, and the group has made sporadic appearances afterwards, mostly in a non-competing capacity.
As single competitors in theWorld Wrestling Federation, Bradshaw and Faarooq's careers had stalled. WWF management then placed them in a tag team called The Hell's Henchmen managed byThe Jackyl.[6][7] Both men made their first appearance on TV as a team on the November 15, 1998, episode ofSunday Night Heat attacking8-Ball,Skull andPaul Ellering as theD.O.A. came down to the ring for a match. The following week onSunday Night Heat, The Jackyl came down to the ring as the duo interrupted a match and proclaimed Bradshaw and Faarooq to be his Acolytes. Both men made their official tag team debut on the November 30, 1998, episode ofRaw is War, when they attackedTiger Ali Singh and his manager,Babu, after Singh's match againstVal Venis.[8][9] The team was notorious for theirintense and brutal beatings done during the ensuing matches. Afterwards, they won tag team matches against the team of Venis andThe Godfather and the team of TheJ.O.B. Squad.[10][11]
When The Jackyl left the WWF, the duo joinedThe Undertaker's newheelstable, theMinistry of Darkness.[3][12] They debuted in Undertaker's Ministry on the January 11, 1999, episode ofRaw, recruitedDennis Knight into the Ministry, giving him the name Mideon.[13][14] After Undertaker's Ministry merged withThe Corporation to form theCorporate Ministry, the Acolytes began a feud withX-Pac andKane over theWWF World Tag Team Championship. The feud began on the May 30, 1999, episode ofSunday Night Heat with the Acolytes attacking X-Pac after his match againstBig Boss Man.[15][16] Their attack was to no avail, however, as Kane, X-Pac's tag team partner, came down to the ring to attack the Acolytes.[15][16] Later that night, the Acolytes challenged X-Pac and Kane for a WWF Tag Team Championship match on the followingRaw broadcast.[15][16] The following night onRaw, X-Pac and Kane accepted the challenge. During the match, however,Shane McMahon, who was also a member of the Corporate Ministry, interfered in the match, causing Kane to chase McMahon to the backstage area.[17][18] The situation allowed Bradshaw to hit X-Pac with aClothesline from Hell into a pinfall, allowing the Acolytes to win their first WWF Tag Team Championship.[17][19]
The Acolytes then began a feud with theHardy Boyz, who had defeatedThe Brood atKing of the Ring to become the number one contenders to the Acolytes' WWF Tag Team Championship.[20][21] The feud intensified on the July 3, 1999, episode ofShotgun Saturday Night, when the Acolytes attacked the Hardy Boyz during asegment.[22] On the July 5, 1999, episode ofRaw, however, the Acolytes lost the WWF Tag Team Championship to the Hardy Boyz, afterJeff attacked Bradshaw withMichael Hayes's, the Hardy Boyz'smanager, cane, and Matt delivered aTornado DDT on Bradshaw into a pinfall.[23][24] The Acolytes regained the WWF Tag Team Championship atFully Loaded in aNo DisqualificationHandicap match against the Hardy Boyz and Hayes.[25][26]
After regaining the championship, the Acolytes began another feud with Kane with various partners. On the August 8, 1999, episode ofSunday Night Heat, Kane teamed up withRoad Dogg to face the Acolytes for the WWF Tag Team Championship, in a losing effort.[27][28] The following night onRaw, Kane then teamed up with X-Pac to face the Acolytes in another championship match, in which X-Pac delivered anX-Factor to Faarooq into the pinfall, which meant that the Acolytes lost the title.[29][30] The following week, they lost a rematch for the WWF Tag Team Championship.[31] After losing their rematch, they won aTag Team Turmoil match atSummerSlam to become number one contenders for the WWF Tag Team Championship[32][33] but their title match against TheBig Show andThe Undertaker ended in ano-contest.[34][35] After this, they feuded with theDudley Boyz and defeated them atUnforgiven.[36][37] The Acolytes then developed agimmick ascard players andbeer drinkers,hustling many wrestlers and WWF employees out of their money.[38]
According to Layfield, he got drunk during a party for his birthday in Baltimore, and Vince and Shane McMahon saw him. They found it funny, so they asked both of them to portray a similar, beer drinking character on TV, just sitting around, playing cards, drinking beer and getting into fights backstage and in bars. Upon being told this, Simmons said it was “the best idea I’ve ever heard”, as both Layfield and Simmons liked to participate in the APA's social activities in real life, so both talents felt at home.[43][44] On the January 31, 2000, episode ofRaw, theMean Street Posse asked the Acolytes to protect them, which they refused to do, until the Posse offered to pay them. When they did, Bradshaw started the Acolytes Protection Agency (APA).[45][46] Behind the scenes, thegimmick of the tag team was also created by John Layfield.[47] To further enhance their mercenary gimmick, the APA began to appear weekly backstage in an "office," dubbed theAPA Office.[12][48] The office was a free-standing door and frame, with the letters 'A.P.A.' written in magic marker on a piece of typing paper. A running gag consisted of Faarooq and Bradshaw seated at a table playing cards with the door open. When a wrestler would appear to hire their services, they would admonish the potential customer for either not knocking on the door, walking around the door frame, or not closing the door on the way out. The APA would only accept cash or beer in payment for protection work. After protecting many WWF superstars, the APA began a feud withBull Buchanan andBig Bossman. On the April 10, 2000, episode ofRaw, the APA protectedKai En Tai during a match, when they were attacked by Buchanan and Bossman.[49] The APA, however, was unsuccessful in winning a tag team match against them atBacklash.[50][51] On the May 18, 2000, episode ofSmackDown!, the APA were hired to protectCrash Holly for an hour, to prevent him from losing hisWWF Hardcore Championship. After the hour was up, the APA left, allowingGerald Brisco to pin Holly for the Hardcore Championship.[52][53] The situation resulted in Holly challenging Bradshaw in aHardcore match, which Bradshaw won.[54] Later that week onSmackDown!, Faarooq defeated Holly in a Hardcore match.[55][56]
The A.P.A. logo
On the June 26, 2000, episode ofRaw, the APA won a Tag-Team Battle Royal against seven other teams to earn an opportunity at the WWF Tag Team Championship.[57] During the weeks leading up toFully Loaded,Edge and Christian avoided defending the Tag Team Championship against the APA by challenging their opponents to one-on-one matches: on the July 10, 2000, episode ofRaw, Edge defeated Bradshaw,[58] while onSmackDown! later that week, Christian was defeated by Faarooq.[59] At Fully Loaded, the APA defeated Edge and Christian bydisqualification but due to WWF rules, Edge and Christian retained the Tag Team Championship.[60][61]
On the September 7, 2000, episode ofSmackDown!, theDudley Boyz and the APA formed an alliance.[62][63] The following week onRaw, the APA facedRight to Censor (Bull Buchanan andThe Goodfather) in a losing effort.[64] Then, on the September 18, 2000, episode ofRaw, the APA come out to help the Dudley Boyz against an assault by all the members of the Right to Censor.[65][66] AtUnforgiven, The Dudley Boyz and the APA lost anEight-man Tag Team match against Right to Censor.[67][68]
After sporadic feuds through midway 2001, the APA were awarded a WWF Tag Team Championship match against the Dudley Boyz. On the July 9, 2001, episode ofRaw, Bradshaw pinnedD-Von to win their third WWF Tag Team Championship.[4][69] The following month onSmackDown!, however, the APA lost the WWF Tag Team Championship toKanyon andDiamond Dallas Page, one of the invading WCW wrestlers inThe Alliance stable.[70][71] After losing the Tag Team Championship, Faarooq was briefly absent, while Bradshaw pursued singles championships: on the September 27, 2001, episode ofSmackDown!, Bradshaw lost aWWF Intercontinental Championship match against Christian.[72][73] On the October 22, 2001, episode ofRaw, Bradshaw defeatedThe Hurricane to win theWWF European Championship.[74][75] When Faarooq returned, Bradshaw lost the European Championship toChristian on the November 1, 2001, episode ofSmackDown!.[76][77] AtNo Way Out, the APA won a Tag Team Turmoil match to win a WWF Tag Team Championship match atWrestleMania X8.[78][79] The APA were unsuccessful in winning the Tag Team Championship on two occasions: on the February 28, 2002, episode ofSmackDown! and at WrestleMania X8.[80][81][82][83]
On March 25, 2002, the APA were split up when theWWF roster was divided into theRaw andSmackDown! brands.[5][84][85] Bradshaw was drafted to Raw, while Faarooq was drafted to SmackDown!.[84][85] On the Raw brand, Bradshaw won theWWF Hardcore Championshipeighteen times,[86] and went back to his Blackjack Texan gimmick, while Faarooq – now wrestling under his real name – had a brief stint with the SmackDown! brand, teaming withReverend D-Von in a tournament to determine the newly createdWWE Tag Team Champions.[87] In September 2002, Bradshaw was injured and was inactive for six months.
After their brief single careers, Bradshaw and Simmons reunited in WWE's former farm territory,Ohio Valley Wrestling in March 2003, winning theOVW Southern Tag Team Championship on April 10, 2003.[88][89] They vacated the OVW title when they returned to WWE television on the June 19, 2003, episode ofSmackDown! to assistThe Undertaker in an ambush from theF.B.I.[90][91] During their return, they revived their former gimmick of beer drinking and card playing segments in backstage areas. Bradshaw had a new look as he had a shorter hair style, debuted a clean shaven look and went to his natural hair color. AtVengeance, the APA hosted aBar Room Brawl, which Bradshaw won.[92][93] On the September 4, 2003, episode ofSmackDown!, the APA were booked in aWWE Tag Team Championship match against the defending champions,Charlie Haas and Shelton Benjamin, which the APA lost.[94][95] After sporadic tag team matches, the APA was once again booked in a WWE Tag Team Championship match atWrestleMania XX, in aFatal-Four way tag team match also involving Haas and Benjamin,Rikishi and Scotty 2 Hotty, and theBasham Brothers, which Rikishi and Scotty won to retain the Tag Team Championship.[96][97] On March 18, 2004, the APA angered SmackDown!general managerPaul Heyman by mocking his beingStunned byStone Cold Steve Austin the previous week; Heyman ordered them to face Rikishi and Scotty 2 Hotty with the APA's jobs on the line.[98] After the APA was defeated, Heyman only fired Faarooq and told Bradshaw to worry about his own career, calling him a valued asset to the company and noting his role as a published author and aFoxfinancial analyst. While Bradshaw stayed, Faarooq left in disgust.[98] The angle covered Simmons' real-life retirement from professional wrestling.
Two years later in 2006, Layfield was injured and became acommentator for SmackDown. Bradshaw returned to wrestling in 2007, on the Raw brand, while Simmons began cuttingpromos with his trademark catchphrase, "Damn!".[87][99]
Simmons and Layfield reunited forRaw 1000 on July 23, 2012, when they provided protection forLita during her brief match withHeath Slater. Layfield attacked Slater with a Clothesline from Hell, and after the match, Simmons simply said his trademark catchphrase, "Damn."[102]
The APA again reunited on the January 19, 2015, episode ofRaw (dubbedRaw Reunion due to numerous special appearances by variousWWE Hall of Famers andLegends), alongside theNew Age Outlaws, saving theNew World Order (nWo) members fromThe Ascension, during which Layfield attacked Ascension memberViktor with aClothesline from Hell.
On April 2, 2016, the APA inductedThe Godfather into theWWE Hall of Fame. They returned the following year, on March 31, 2017, to inductTheodore Long into the WWE Hall of Fame.
On January 22, 2018, the APA appeared backstage hosting apoker game duringWWE Raw 25 Years.
On the October 23, 2020, episode ofSmackDown, both Simmons and Layfield, along with Hall of FamerTheodore Long appeared in a court-like segment namedLaw and Otis wherein debates are tackled betweenOtis andThe Miz for the Money In The Bank contract.
Since October 17, 2022, Layfield, now a manager forBaron Corbin, had been frequently shown doing poker matches backstage withAkira Tozawa.[103]
On January 23, 2023, Layfield and Simmons once again appeared backstage forRaw is XXX to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Monday Night Raw, the pair once again hosted poker matches.[104]
On the 2023 WWE Hall of Fame ceremony, Layfield and Simmons appeared to award Tim White with the Warrior Award. White's brothers, Tom and Pat, accepted the award.
Layfield and Simmons reunited again on Night 2 of the 2024 WWE Draft, with Layfield selecting draft picks for theRaw brand, and Simmons selecting draft picks for theSmackDown brand.
^ab"Ron Simmons OWoW Profile". Online World of Wrestling.Archived from the original on 6 April 2008. Retrieved2008-03-24.October 3, 2002 – SmackDown: D-Von & Ron Simmons defeatedBilly and Chuck in the 1st Round of the Tag Team Title Tournament! October 17, 2002 – SmackDown:Rey Mysterio &Edge defeated D-Von & Ron Simmons in the 2nd round of the Tournament.
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