Joseph Curtis Hennig (born October 1, 1979) is an Americanprofessional wrestler. He is best known for his time inWWE, where he performed under thering nameCurtis Axel.
Joseph Curtis Hennig was born on October 1, 1979, inChamplin, Minnesota, the son of Leonice Hennig and professional wrestler"Mr. Perfect" Curt Hennig. He is the grandson of professional wrestlerLarry "The Axe" Hennig.[6] He has a younger brother named Hank, and two younger sisters named Katie and Amy, who is also a professional wrestler.[7] He graduated fromNorth Hennepin Community College with an Associates of Science degree in business computer systems and management.[3]
On March 31, 2007, Hennig, along with his family, represented his father "Mr. Perfect" Curt Hennig at theWWE Hall of Fame ceremony by accepting the award on his behalf.[8] On the October 26, 2007, episode ofSmackDown, Hennig teamed with Steve Fender in a loss toJesse and Festus.[9]
Hennig then signed a contract withWorld Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and was assigned to itsdevelopmental territoryFlorida Championship Wrestling (FCW).[10] On September 11, 2008, Hennig andSebastian Slater defeatedNic Nemeth andGavin Spears to win theFlorida Tag Team Championship.[11] On October 30, Hennig and Slater lost the Tag Team Championship toThe New Hart Foundation (DH Smith andTJ Wilson).[12] On November 20, Hennig challengedSheamus O'Shaunessy for theFCW Florida Heavyweight Championship, but the match ended in a double disqualification, and a rematch was made, but Hennig was again disqualified.[13] Hennig had another chance to win the title on December 11 when he participated in afatal four-way match for the championship, butEric Escobar won the match.[13] On February 26, 2009, Hennig defeated Escobar to win the FCW Florida Heavyweight Championship.[14] On April 5, it was announced that Hennig had suffered a serious injury and therefore he had surrendered the Florida Heavyweight Championship.[15] Hennig returned from injury and formed atag team withBrett DiBiase, known as The Fortunate Sons.[16] On January 14, 2010, The Fortunate Sons won the FCW Florida Tag Team Championship by defeating The Dudebusters (Caylen Croft andTrent Barreta).[17] On March 13, The Fortunate Sons lost the championship toThe Uso Brothers (Jimmy and Jules).[18] On April 8, Hennig blamed DiBiase for the loss, and the two fought in a match to a double disqualification.[19] At an FCW event on April 29, Hennig faced DiBiase, but DiBiase suffered a knee injury during the match, ending their storyline.[20][21] On July 15, now using thering nameMichael McGillicutty, teamed withKaval to win the FCW Florida Tag Team Championship from Los Aviadores (Epico andHunico), becoming a four-time tag team champion.[22] The following day, theydropped the championships back to Los Aviadores.[23]
McGillicutty then took part in thesecond season ofNXT, withKofi Kingston as his pro.[24] He made hisNXT debut on the June 8 episode, but did not compete in a match.[25] He made his in-ring debut on the following edition ofNXT, teaming with Kingston to defeatMark Henry andLucky Cannon.[26] In the firstpoll on June 29, McGillicutty was ranked third, behind Kaval andPercy Watson.[27] On the July 20 episode ofNXT, McGillicutty earned immunity from elimination in the next poll by completing an obstacle course in the fastest time.[28][29] On the following episode ofNXT, he moved up to first place in the second poll.[30] After six consecutive victories, McGillicutty suffered his first loss on the August 3 episode ofNXT, when he was defeated by proThe Miz.[31] On the August 9 episode ofRaw, the rookies appeared in a six-man tag team match, in which McGillicutty teamed withAlex Riley andHusky Harris to defeat Kaval, Lucky Cannon, and Percy Watson.[32] The following night onNXT, his team lost a rematch, when McGillicutty was pinned by Kaval, and in the next poll later that night, McGillicutty relinquished the first place ranking back to Kaval, slipping to second place.[33] In the season finale on August 31, McGillicutty ended the competition in second place, being beaten by Kaval, and at the end of the show, McGillicutty attacked Kaval with the other eliminated rookies, turningheel in the process.[34]
McGillicutty (far left) as part ofThe Nexus in November 2010
On October 3, 2010, at theHell in a Cellpay-per-view, a disguised McGillicutty and Husky Harris interfered in a match betweenJohn Cena andWade Barrett, and helped Barrett win, forcing Cena to joinThe Nexus per the pre-match stipulation.[35] On the following day's episode ofRaw, McGillicutty and Harris' identities were revealed, though Barrett claimed he had not asked for their help and refused to make them full-time members of The Nexus.[36] The following week onRaw, McGillicutty and Harris cost Cena a match against The Miz, prompting Barrett to give them the opportunity to win membership in The Nexus.[37] On the October 18 episode ofRaw, McGillicutty and Harris failed to earn a place in The Nexus when they lost to Cena andRandy Orton in a tag team match.[38] On the followingRaw, in spite of their loss, Harris and McGillicutty were inducted into The Nexus.[39]
In January 2011,CM Punk took over The Nexus and had each of its members put through an initiation, and McGillicutty passed his initiation, a beatdown from the rest of the group, and was allowed to remain a member of Nexus, alongside Punk, Harris andDavid Otunga.[40] The following month, Punk was announced as theWrestleMania XXVII opponent for Randy Orton, and as a result, each member of The Nexus was scheduled to face Orton in the month prior to WrestleMania, with McGillicutty lost to Orton on the February 28 episode ofRaw, and after the match Ortonpunted McGillicutty in the head.[41] McGillicutty returned on the April 11 episode ofRaw with the other Nexus members, preventing Orton from earning aWWE Championship match.[42][43] On the May 23 episode ofRaw, McGillicutty teamed with fellow Nexus member David Otunga to win theWWE Tag Team Championship fromBig Show and Kane, with the help interference from fellow Nexus members Punk andMason Ryan.[44][45] On the July 29 episode ofSmackDown, they made their only successful title defense againstThe Usos (Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso).[46] After CM Punk left The Nexus when his WWE contract expired on July 17, McGillicutty and Otunga competed againstSantino Marella andZack Ryder on the August 1 episode ofRaw without any Nexus gear or armbands, and with all Nexus logos removed from their TitanTron, effectively signaling the end of The Nexus.[47][48] On the August 22 episode ofRaw, McGillicutty and Otunga lost the WWE Tag Team Championship to Air Boom (Evan Bourne andKofi Kingston), ending their reign at 91 days.[49]
After his dissociation with Otunga, he would largely be confined to wrestling onSuperstars andNXT from late 2011.[50][51][52] On the October 20 episode ofSuperstars, McGillicutty andDrew McIntyre lost a non-title match to the WWE Tag Team Champions Air Boom.[53] In late 2011, McGillicutty and Alex Riley had a series of matches onSuperstars, which Riley won 2–1.[50] On the February 23, 2012, episode ofSuperstars, McGillicutty defeated Riley,[54] which would be his last televised win on a non-NXT show until he was repackaged as Curtis Axel in May 2013, resulting in McGillicutty losing more than twenty non-NXT matches in a row, mostly onSuperstars, but also onMain Event andSaturday Morning Slam.[51][52][55]
McGillicutty made his return toNXT, appearing from January 2012 on the fifth seasonNXT Redemption, but not as a rookie.[56] In February, McGillicutty mockedTyson Kidd's lack of wrestling heritage, starting a feud onNXT Redemption.[57] McGillicutty then beat Kidd on the February 29 episode ofNXT Redemption.[58] McGillicutty continued to insult Kidd by claiming that Kidd would never be a true 'Hart',[59] and Kidd received a rematch on the March 21 episode ofNXT Redemption, where he defeated McGillicutty.[60] McGillicutty and Kidd faced off in a third match on the April 11 episode ofNXT, resulting in Kidd triumphant over McGillicutty.[61] McGillicutty then formed an occasional team withJohnny Curtis for the rest of 2012.[51] On the final episode of the fifth season ofNXT on June 13, McGillicutty and Curtis lost to The Usos.[62]
After the conclusion ofNXT Redemption, NXT transitioned into the renamed Florida Championship Wrestling developmental territory.[63] McGillicutty continued appearing on the rebootedNXT, losing to Tyson Kidd on the first episode on June 20.[64] On the August 8 episode ofNXT, McGillicutty was inserted into the Gold Rush Tournament to crown the firstNXT Champion, where he defeatedJustin Gabriel in the quarter-finals.[65] McGillicutty was eliminated in the semi-finals on August 15, when he lost to eventual tournament winnerSeth Rollins.[66][67] On the next episode, Tyson Kidd heaped more misery on McGillicutty as he and Justin Gabriel defeated McGillicutty and Johnny Curtis,[68] but on the September 12 episode ofNXT, McGillicutty gained revenge by defeating Kidd to become the number one contender for the NXT Championship.[69] On the October 10 episode ofNXT, McGillicutty failed to win the NXT Championship from Seth Rollins.[70] On the November 28 episode ofNXT, Johnny Curtis cashed in his promised tag title shot from winning season four ofNXT, with McGillicutty as his partner againstTeam Hell No (Daniel Bryan andKane), but Team Hell No won the match.[71] On January 2, 2013, episode ofNXT, McGillicutty turnedface (but only within NXT)[72] after savingBo Dallas from a beating at the hands ofPrimo and Epico.[73] On the next episode, Primo and Epico defeated McGillicutty and Dallas,[74] though McGillicutty and Dallas would gain revenge when they defeated Primo and Epico in the first round of theNXT Tag Team Championship tournament to crown the inaugural champions on the January 30 episode ofNXT.[75] On the February 6 episode ofNXT, McGillicutty and Dallas were eliminated in the semi-finals, when they lost toThe Wyatt Family (Luke Harper andErick Rowan).[76]
On the May 20, 2013, episode ofRaw, he was repackaged under thering nameCurtis Axel (the name is a derivative of his father's first name, Curt, and his grandfatherLarry's nickname "The Axe"), withPaul Heyman as his new manager, and later that night, Axel facedTriple H in his re-debut match, winning by knockout after Triple H suffered concussion-like symptoms and collapsed outside the ring.[77] On the May 24 episode ofSmackDown, Axel defeatedSin Cara.[78] Over the next two weeks onRaw, Axel scored back-to-back non-title count-out wins over WWE Champion John Cena, due to distractions and interference byRyback.[79][80] On the June 7 episode ofSmackDown, Axel defeatedChris Jericho, after Jericho was distracted by CM Punk, who was, at the time another client of Paul Heyman's.[81] Three days later onRaw, Axel defeated Triple H twice, first by disqualification and second by forfeit.[82] AtPayback, Axel defeated Wade Barrett and The Miz in atriple threat match to win theIntercontinental Championship, joining his father as the only father-son pair to have won the WWE Intercontinental Championship.[83] Axel made his first televised title defense on the following episode ofSmackDown, defeating Barrett in a rematch.[84]
On the June 24 episode ofRaw, Axel saved CM Punk from an assault byThe Prime Time Players (Darren Young andTitus O'Neil), at the request of Heyman and to the dismay of Punk.[85] This led to a tag team match the following week onRaw, where Axel won the match for his team after he tagged himself in following Punk delivering the Go To Sleep on Darren Young and pinned him for the victory.[86] Axel suffered his first loss since becoming Heyman's client on the July 8 episode ofRaw, when he was pinned by Chris Jericho in a non-title match.[87] AtMoney in the Bank, Axel defeated The Miz to retain the Intercontinental Championship, and later that night, Heyman turned on CM Punk.[88] Axel was set to team with Heyman in an elimination handicap match against Punk atNight of Champions, and during the pay-per-view, Heyman begged Triple H to cancel the match, but Triple H refused, not only confirming the match, but making Axel defend the Intercontinental Championship against Kofi Kingston, and Axel retained the title against Kingston.[89] Later in the event, Axel was eliminated by Punk, but Heyman won the match after interference from Ryback.[90] On the September 30 episode ofRaw, Axel was defeated byR-Truth in a non-title match, which gave R-Truth a title match.[91] AtBattleground, Axel defeated R-Truth to retain the Intercontinental Championship.[92] AtHell in a Cell, Axel was scheduled to defend his title againstBig E Langston, however, the match was cancelled due to Axel's legitimate hip injury.[93] On the November 15 episode ofSmackDown, Heyman ended his association with Axel.[94] On the November 18 episode ofRaw, Axel lost the title to Langston, ending his reign at 155 days.[95] AtSurvivor Series, Axel failed to regain the championship from Langston.[96]
Axel (left) andRyback became a tag team in December 2013
On the December 6 episode ofSmackDown, Axel and Ryback defeated WWE Tag Team ChampionsCody Rhodes and Goldust in a non-title match, earning themselves a shot at the title.[97] AtTLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs, they would compete in a fatal four-way tag team elimination match for the WWE Tag Team Championship, but they were eliminated by Cody Rhodes and Goldust.[98] AtWrestleMania XXX on April 6, 2014, they failed to win the WWE Tag Team Championship in a fatal four-way tag team elimination match.[99] Axel and Ryback would continue their brief feud with Cody Rhodes and Goldust from earlier in the year atPayback[100] which they won, before losing the rematch atMoney in the Bank.[101] Ryback then took time off for surgery and returned as a singles competitor later that year, ending the team.[102]
At theRoyal Rumble on January 25, 2015, Axel was set to enter theRoyal Rumble match at number 6, but was attacked by Erick Rowan on the entrance ramp, rendering him unable to compete.[103] As a result of not being eliminated (having never officially entered the match), Axel trended onTwitter following the event,[104][105][106] and also received supportive tweets from former WWE wrestlersLance Storm[107] andTommy Dreamer[108] and then later from current WWE wrestlersXavier Woods,[109]Zack Ryder,[110] and David Otunga, the latter offering his legal services.[111] Axel was defeated by Rowan on the following week's episode ofMain Event.[112] Axel then began anangle where he began referring to himself as "the true winner of the Royal Rumble", claiming that he still hadn't been eliminated from the match and that he deserved a shot atWrestleMania 31 for theWWE World Heavyweight Championship as a result.[113][114][115][116] This involved Axel interrupting segments involving the likes ofDean Ambrose, John Cena, andRusev to protest his cause, and also led to Axel starting his ownhashtag, #AxelMania.[117] AtWrestleMania 31, Axel participated in theAndré the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, but was eliminated by multiple wrestlers.[118]
On the May 11 episode ofRaw, Axel turned face when he shook hands withDamien Sandow (who was impersonatingRandy Savage as "Macho Mandow"), similar to the handshake ofThe Mega Powers, when they formed a tag team.[119] After this, Axel began impersonatingHulk Hogan, while teaming with Sandow.[120][121] The two were dubbed The Meta Powers.[122][123][124] The Meta Powers were defeated byThe Ascension atPayback (Konnor andViktor).[121][125] Axel and Sandow ceased their AxelMania and Macho Mandow imitations on July 24, after WWE fired Hulk Hogan and severed all ties with him.[126]
The Social Outcasts in April 2016
On the January 4, 2016, episode ofRaw, Axel turned heel, when he along withHeath Slater,Adam Rose and Bo Dallas, debuted a new stable and assisted Slater in defeatingDolph Ziggler, calling themselves "The Social Outcasts".[127] AtRoyal Rumble, Axel would enter the Royal Rumble match at number 5, before being eliminated byAJ Styles.[128] On February 21 atFastlane, Axel defeated R-Truth, with interference from fellow The Social Outcasts members.[129] AtWrestleMania 32, Axel participated in the André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, which was won byBaron Corbin.[130] In May, The Social Outcasts took time out to filmThe Marine 5: Battleground.[131] The Social Outcasts returned on the June 27 episode ofRaw, confrontingEnzo Amore and Big Cass.[132] The following week onRaw, The Social Outcasts were defeated by Enzo and Cass.[133]
As part of thedraft, Axel was drafted to theRawbrand as its last draft pick, earning him the nicknameMr. Irrelevant.[134] After losing to the returningNeville,[135][136] Axel then joined forces with former Social Outcasts member Bo Dallas, and they were defeated by Neville andSami Zayn on the October 10 episode ofRaw.[137] The following week onRaw, Axel was attacked by Dallas after his match with Neville, thus turning face in the process.[138] A week later, Axel received apop from the crowd in his home state ofMinnesota, before losing to Dallas.[139] AtWrestleMania 33 on April 2, 2017, Axel participated in theAndré the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, which was won byMojo Rawley.[140]
On the June 19 episode ofRaw, Intercontinental Champion The Miz approached Axel andBo Dallas, offering to make them "the stars [they] deserve to be" if they become his entourage, and later that night, Axel and Dallas appeared in bear costumes during an in ring segment between Miz and his wifeMaryse, attacking Dean Ambrose, thus turning heel once again.[141] Axel and Dallas, now dubbedThe Miztourage, began helping Miz in his matches and occasionally teamed him with him, including winning efforts against Dean Ambrose,Heath Slater andRhyno on June 26 episode ofRaw[142] andJason Jordan andThe Hardy Boyz (Jeff Hardy andMatt Hardy) atSummerSlam.[143][144] AtNo Mercy, they also helped Miz to defeat Jason Jordan to retain his title.[145][146] AtWrestleMania 34 on April 8, 2018, Axel participated in the André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, but was eliminated by Kane.[147] As part of theSuperstar Shake-Up, Miz was moved to theSmackDown brand, while Axel and Dallas remained on Raw.[148] On the April 16 episode ofRaw, during a tag team match, Axel and Dallas turned on Miz, ending their alliance.[149]
On the May 14 episode ofRaw, the duo adopted the new team name "The B-Team" and defeated Breezango (Tyler Breeze andFandango), their first win as a team since August 2017.[150] On the June 4 episode ofRaw, The B-Team won a tag team battle royal to determine the number one contenders for theRaw Tag Team Championships.[151] AtExtreme Rules, The B-Team defeatedBray Wyatt and Matt Hardy to win the Raw Tag Team Championship.[152] On the July 23 episode ofRaw, they successfully retained their title against Wyatt and Hardy.[153] AtSummerSlam on August 19, The B-Team successfully retained their title againstThe Revival (Dash Wilder andScott Dawson).[154] On the September 3 episode ofRaw, The B-Team lost the championships to Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre, ending their reign at 50 days.[155]
AtSurvivor Series, The B-Team made up part of Team Raw as they took on Team SmackDown in a10-on-10 Survivor Series tag team elimination match and Team Raw would go on to lose the match.[156] AtWrestleMania 35 on April 7, 2019, Axel competed in the André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, but failed to win the match.[157] As part of theSuperstar Shake-up, both Axel and Dallas were moved to the SmackDown brand.[158] On the February 28, 2020, edition ofSmackDown, Axel was defeated by Daniel Bryan, in what would be his final appearance in WWE.[159] On April 30, he was released from his WWE contract due to budget cuts stemming from theCOVID-19 pandemic, ending his 13-year tenure with the company.[160]
In April 2022, Hennig was rehired byWWE as aproducer.[161][162] On the May 30, 2022, episode ofRaw, Hennig was seen as a security team member, breaking up the brawl betweenCody Rhodes andSeth Rollins.[163] Hennig was released 3 months later.[164]
On May 16, 2025, Hennig made his in-ring return at the Extreme Measures 2 event held by Midwest All-Star Wrestling, teaming withCal Bloom to defeat The Gentlemen's Club (Aaron Arsenal and Lennox Leone) in his first match in five years.[165][166]
Hennig also makes regular appearances on fellow WWE wrestlerXavier Woods'sYouTube channelUpUpDownDown, under the nickname "Cold Beer".[175] In 2017, Hennig starred in theWWE Studios filmThe Marine 5: Battleground, playing the role of a gang member named Deacon.[176]
^"WWE Raw Results – September 30, 2013".PWMania - Wrestling News - WWE News, Payback 2023, Spoilers, Results, Rumors, AEW. September 30, 2013. RetrievedApril 30, 2020.
^Wortman, James (February 2, 2015)."Raw Five-Point Preview: Feb. 2, 2015".WWE. RetrievedFebruary 2, 2015.Heck, will Curtis Axel have a chance for Rumble redemption after Erick Rowan ambushed him on the entrance ramp, preventing the former Intercontinental Champion from officially entering the fray?
^"Curtis Axel reacts to his confrontation with Dean Ambrose – Raw Fallout – February 2, 2015". February 2, 2015.Archived from the original on November 17, 2021. RetrievedFebruary 2, 2015 – viaYouTube.I still wasn't eliminated, no matter what Dean Ambrose did, I still was not eliminated from the Royal Rumble match, and regardless of what The Authority said tonight, I still deserve a shot at Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship!
^Benigno, Anthony (February 2, 2015)."WWE Raw results, February 2, 2015: Curtis Axel demanded a WrestleMania title match".WWE. RetrievedFebruary 2, 2015.... the non-exit of Curtis Axel, who was jumped before he could officially enter the over-the-top-rope fracas and was therefore never eliminated and therefore has grounds to demand a WWE World Heavyweight Title Match at WrestleMania.
^"8 controversial Royal Rumble Match exits".WWE. February 6, 2015. RetrievedFebruary 6, 2015.Though the rules say the only way to lose a Royal Rumble Match is an ignominious exit over the top rope...
^"8 controversial Royal Rumble Match exits (Page 8)".WWE. February 6, 2015. RetrievedFebruary 6, 2015.... the Internet helpfully pointed out that means Axel was never technically eliminated and Roman Reigns' victory therefore does not stand.
^Parks, Greg (May 21, 2015)."PARKS'S WWE SMACKDOWN REPORT 5/21".PWtorch.com. RetrievedMay 25, 2015.Axel came out to Hulk Hogan's theme. Both were dressed up as the men they were imitating.
^abCaldwell, James (May 17, 2015)."CALDWELL'S WWE PAYBACK PPV REPORT 5/17 (pre-show)".PWTorch.com. RetrievedMay 25, 2015.Hulk Hogan's music then played to bring out Curtis Axel dressed in all red & yellow with the bandana, fake mustache, sunglasses, boa, and red & yellow trunks and shirt
^Benigno, Anthony (January 4, 2016)."Heath Slater def. Dolph Ziggler".WWE.com.The trio all assisted in helping Slater upset The Showoff moments before announcing that the four "social outcasts" would collectively be pooling their efforts ~ The outcasts sound off on Raw
^Powers, Kevin."Curtis Axel def. R-Truth". WWE. RetrievedFebruary 22, 2016.Axel seized the opportunity of the scenario and rolled up the rapping Superstar for the win.
