 Anoaʻi in 2009 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1984-10-06)October 6, 1984 (age 41)[2] Hamden, Connecticut, U.S.[2] |
| Alma mater | University of Connecticut |
| Parent | Afa Anoa'i (father) |
| Family | Anoaʻi |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Afa Afa Jr. Mai Tai Anoaʻi Manu |
| Billed height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)[1] |
| Billed weight | 290 lb (130 kg)[1] |
| Billed from | Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania[1] |
| Trained by | Afa Anoaʻi[1] Lloyd Anoaʻi[2] Samula Anoaʻi[2] |
| Debut | August 28, 1998[2] |
Afa Anoaʻi Jr. (born October 6, 1984) is an Americanprofessional wrestler. He is best known for his work with theprofessional wrestling promotionWorld Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) in the late 2000s with thering nameManu. He owns BattleField Pro Wrestling, a promotion based in Pennsylvania.[1][2]
Anoaʻi attendedFreedom High School inBethlehem Township, Pennsylvania, where he competed in theEastern Pennsylvania Conference, known for producing top athletic talent infootball,wrestling, and other sports. Anoai's high school football coach Jim Morgans described him as "the bestdefensive lineman I've coached." As a senior, Anoaʻi was named one of the 100 best football players in the United States by analystTom Lemming.[2]
Following graduation from Freedom High School, Anoaʻi attendedFork Union Military Academy as apostgraduate to study and play football. In 2003, he played in theAll-American Bowl.[2] Upon graduating, Anoaʻi played football at theUniversity of Connecticut for a year.[1][2][3]
He began training as aprofessional wrestler under his father,Afa, and brothers,Lloyd andSamula. He made his debut on August 28, 1998, at the age of 14, winning abattle royal inAustria.[4]
In 1998, Anoa'i joined the familyprofessional wrestling promotionWorld Xtreme Wrestling, where he formed astable with his brothers,Samu andLloyd Anoa'i, known as Sons of Samoa. Anoa'i went on to win numerouschampionships.
In October 2006, Anoa'i received a try-out withWorld Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), held at theDeep South Wrestlingdevelopmental territory. Later that month, Anoa'i signed with WWE, going under his father's ring name, "Afa". He went on to wrestle for Deep South Wrestling.[5] He initially was introduced as part of the stable Urban Assault, organized bySonny Siaki,Eric Pérez, andTyrus. They later lost to theShane Twins, after which Afa replaced him. Urban Assault dissolved after Afa and Siaki abandoned Perez during a match againstDoc Gallows and Tyrus.
Siaki and Afa reorganized as the Samoan Fight Club. Anoa'i then wrestled for WWE's new developmental territory,Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW), where he continued teaming with Siaki under their Samoan Fight Club name. In 2007, however, their team was disbanded when Siaki was released from his contract following family issues. In October 2007, Afa Jr. defeatedDavey Boy Smith Jr. by countout in theUnited Kingdom to become the newFCW Southern Heavyweight Champion.[6] In September, Afa Jr. began to work matches inOhio Valley Wrestling, forming a tag team with fellow Samoan family memberMatt Anoa'i. Their team was dubbed Sons of Samoa, which also was a stable that Afa Jr. formed when he was wrestling inWorld Xtreme Wrestling.
On November 19, 2007, Anoa'i made his debut onWWE under the name Mai Tai Anoa'i in a losing effort againstJim Duggan atWWE Heat.[7] Anoa'i was later suspended by WWE for 30 days, on March 20, 2008, for violating WWE's Wellness Policy.[8]
AtUnforgiven in September 2008, Anoa'i made his debut on the full-time roster under the name "Manu".[9] He aligned himself withCody Rhodes andTed DiBiase, attackingCryme Tyme after theirWorld Tag Team Championship match.[9] Later that night, the three helpedRandy Orton attack theWorld Heavyweight ChampionCM Punk andKofi Kingston.[9] On the September 8, 2008 edition ofWWE Raw, Manu, Rhodes, and DiBiase defeated Cryme Tyme and Kofi Kingston in a six-man tag team match.[10] On the November 17 episode ofRaw, Anoaʻi made his singles debut in a losing effort againstDave Bautista.[11]
Rhodes, DiBiase, and Manu entered a storyline with Randy Orton in which Orton was constantly criticizing and insulting them, with Orton attacking DiBiase on the November 3 episode ofRaw.[12] Manu and Rhodes accepted Orton's offer for an alliance in the following weeks, and the trio dubbed themselvesThe Legacy.[13]
After Orton grew tired of The Legacy losing matches, he scheduled a test for each member on the December 29 episode ofRaw. Manu failed to pass his test after losing toECW ChampionMatt Hardy and was subsequently kicked out of the group, as his former companions Rhodes andSim Snuka turned their backs on him.[14] Later, Snuka also got kicked out of the group, and the two quickly reunited.[15] They sought revenge against Orton and Rhodes on the January 12, 2009 episode ofRaw with the aid of returning Ted DiBiase. DiBiase betrayed them, however, and joined The Legacy with Orton and Rhodes.[16]
Anoa'i was released from his WWE contract on February 23, 2009.[17]
On April 18, 2009, two months after being released byWWE, Anoa'i returned to theindependent circuit at aWorld Xtreme Wrestling (WXW) show. He reformed the Sons of Samoa tag team with Samu, and the pair competed as a tag team throughout the rest of 2009.[2] In 2010, Anoa'i competed for the Belgian Catch Wrestling Federation andNWA Dawg Pound.
On February 9, 2013, Afa Jr. and L. A. Smooth, as The Sons of Samoa, won theWWC World Tag Team Championship. They lost their titles at Camino a la Gloria on March 30, 2013. However, they won them back on June 29, 2013 at Summer Madness. They lost the title atWWC 40 Aniversario to Chicano and Abbad. They regained them again on November 16, 2013 at Crossfire.[18] However, they lost the title at Euphoria Day 2 against Xix Xavant and Chicano.[19]
At the Regional Championship Wrestling event Rumblemania 9 inReading, Pennsylvania on March 15, 2014, Manu and RC beat Rob Noxious in a respect match. This was a hardcore match that ended up going all over the building; after the match, Manu shook hands with Noxious and beat up RC, his manager.
Since 2014, Afa has been attached to Pennsylvania Premiere Wrestling (PPW) inHazleton, Pennsylvania, capturing the promotions Heavyweight Championship and its No Limits Championship. Afa captured the PPW Title from his nephew Lance Anoaʻi and retained the title against contenders, includingDan Maff and Samoa Joe. Afa defeatedAl Snow at the December PPW Event to retain the PPW No Limits Title. In July 2017, he appeared on an NWA card inMorgan City, Louisiana, where he was defeated by NWA North American heavyweight champion Mustang Mike.
Anoaʻi is a member of theAnoaʻi family, aSamoan family of wrestlers.[1] He is the son ofAfa Anoaʻi and the younger brother of Samu and L.A. Smooth.[1] He is related toRoman Reigns,The Rock,The Usos,Yokozuna,Umaga,Rikishi, and others. He has Samoan tattoos on his arms.[1]
Anoa'i appeared in WWE'sMost Wanted Treasures episode Samoan Dynasty in 2023 which was filmed in Pennsylvania in fall of 2022.
On September 23, 2023, Anoa'i was hospitalized for a "complex cardiac issue."[20]
In August 2003, Anoaʻi was implicated as thegetaway driver of a duo who committed anarmed robbery inBethlehem Township, Pennsylvania, stealing money and jewellery worth over $150,000 and stabbing an elderly female resident. Anoaʻi pleadedno contest to the charge ofreceipt of stolen property and was sentenced to two yearsprobation.[21]
,Wrestlingdata,Internet Wrestling Database| First generation | |
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| Related articles | |
