| Danny Limelight | |
|---|---|
 Limelight in April 2024 | |
| Birth name | Daniel Luis Rivera |
| Born | (1991-09-02)September 2, 1991 (age 33) Brooklyn, New York, United States[1] |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Danny Limelight Danny Rivera Rivera |
| Billed height | 172 cm (5 ft 8 in)[2] |
| Billed weight | 79 kg (174 lb)[2] |
| Billed from | Brooklyn, New York[3][4] |
| Trained by |
|
| Debut | October 11, 2014[2] |
| Military service | |
| Service |  United States Marines Corps |
| Years of service | 2009–2019 |
| Rank |  Staff Sergeant |
Daniel Luis Rivera[6] (born September 2, 1991) is aPuerto Rican-Americanprofessional wrestler, currently performing forUnited Wrestling Network'sChampionship Wrestling from Hollywood under thering nameDanny Limelight and is the currentUWN World Champion. He also performs on theindependent circuit and makes sporadic appearances forNew Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). Limelight has also had notable runs inMajor League Wrestling, andAll Elite Wrestling.
Rivera was a fan of the thenWorld Wrestling Federation'sAttitude Era, specifically ofThe Rock, theD-Generation Xstable, and theHell in a Cell match fromBadd Blood: In Your House in 1997.[7]
In 2009, Rivera entered theUnited States Marines Corps at the age of 17. He achieved the rank ofStaff sergeant and worked as aDrill instructor before retiring in 2019.[8]
Rivera was inspired to be a wrestler after speaking with Joe Gamble, a wrestler and acquaintance from Rivera's time in the Marines at aWWElive event inSan Diego.[7] After initial training with and competing in matches for SoCal Pro Wrestling, Rivera would start wrestling for promotions inSouthern California andTijuana specifically for Championship Wrestling from Hollywood andThe Crash Lucha Libre.[7] Rivera would be in the Los Primos Rivera tag team with Gino Rivera in 2016.
In 2019, Limelight would begin to feature more prominently on Championship Wrestling from Hollywood. He would be on the losing end againstRoyce Isaacs for theUWN Television Championship[9][10] and compete in aFatal Four-Way match withBrandon Cutler, Adrian Quest, and Fidel Bravo at the 2019Coastline Clash.[11] Limelight was one of a group of wrestlers from Championship Wrestling to compete atImpact Wrestling'sUnbreakable event in 2019.
In 2020, Limelight would begin teaming with Papo Esco to form the tag team, the Bodega,[12] becomingUWN Tag Team Champions.[13] In 2021, Limelight and Esco would add Slice Boogie to their group.[14] Together, the trio invokedFreebird Rule to defend the titles until their defeat against the Midnight Heat.[15]
In 2022, Limelight focused more on singles competition. After defeatingWillie Mack and Tyler Bateman in the finals of the Golden Opportunity Tournament, Limelight would go on to defeatJordan Clearwater for theUWN World Championship.[16][17] Before Championship Wrestling went onhiatus due to theWGA andSAG-AFTRA sticks in 2023, Danny Limelight had successfully defended the World Championship againstClark Connors,Zicky Dice,Tom Lawlor, andMoose. In another defense, he foughtEddie Kingston to ano contest.[18]
Danny Limelight debuted atNew Japan Pro-Wrestling'sLion's Break Collision event and was one of the first mainstays onNJPW Strong. Limelight was an entrant in Strong'sLion's Break Crown tournament where he defeated Barrett Brown in the first round andBlake Christian in the semi-finals. Limelight would lose in the finals of the tournament toClark Connors.[19] Not long after his loss, Limelight would attackRocky Romero after his match withRust Taylor and align withTeam Filthy.[20] Limelight would feud on and off with Romero, often being on the opposite side of him in tag team matches. Limelight would also faceHomicide atDetonation 2022.
On October 21, 2020, Danny Limelight made hisAll Elite Wrestling debut onAEW Dark on the losing end of a six-man tag team match with Steve Gibki & Tony Vincita againstJurassic Express (Jungle Boy,Luchasaurus, andMarko Stunt).[21] During his time in the promotion, he would be a main stay onDark andAEW Dark: Elevation, obtaining victories overFuego Del Sol,Sean Maluta, and Baron Black in singles matches.[22][23][24] His fist and only televised AEW match came on the January 6, 2021 edition ofAEW Dynamite as he and the Varsity Blondes (Griff Garrison andBrian Pillman Jr.) facedKenny Omega and theGood Brothers.[25]
On July 10, 2021, Danny Rivera, Slice Boogie, and Julius Smokes were introduced byKonnan as members of LAX atMajor League Wrestling'sBattle Riot III. Eventually, the team would be known as 5150. Rivera and Boogie defeatedMyron Reed andJordan Oliver ofInjustice.[26] After feuding withL.A. Park Jr. andEl Hijo de L.A. Park, Rivera and Boogie defeated them for theMLW World Tag Team Championships on November 6, 2021.[27] 5150 would defeated for the MLW tag titles againstE. J. Nduka andCalvin Tankman (Hustle and Power).[28] Rivera and Boogie would feud withMarshall and Ross Von Erich around this time. OnceHernandez joined 5150, he and Rivera would compete against Hustle and Power and the Von Erichs for the MLW tag titles. Hustle and Power would retain with Rivera taking the pin.[29]
As part of an agreement with MLW, Danny Rivera wrestled forInternational Wrestling Association during theirChristmas in PR 2021. Teaming up withSavio Vega, Rivera faced The Owners of Time (Nick Mercer & Leinord White) to a no contest. On January 15, 2022, Rivera and Slice Boogie defeated Mercer and Manny Freno (replacing White) for theIWA World Tag Team Championships in a match where the MLW tag team titles were on the line.[30] 5150 would hold the titles until February 26, 2022, when they would be defeated by Lightning & Mr. Big.
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | NCIS[31] | SRT #2 | "Pledge of Allegiance" |
| 2024 | The Brothers Sun[31] | SWAT Cop | "Gymkata" |