 Delirious in 2009 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | Hunter Johnston (1980-12-19)December 19, 1980 (age 45) Cairo, Illinois, U.S. |
Spouse | |
| Children | 1[3] |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name | Delirious |
| Billed height | 5 ft 10 in (178 cm)[1] |
| Billed weight | 201 lb (91 kg)[2] |
| Billed from | "Dante's Inferno" "The Edge of Sanity"[2] "The Swamps ofFlorida" |
| Trained by | Gateway Championship Wrestling[1] |
| Debut | July 19, 2001[1] |
Hunter Johnston[1] (born December 19, 1980) is an Americanprofessional wrestler, better known by hisring nameDelirious, he is currently signed toTotal Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) as anexecutive producer/head booker.[4] He is known for his outrageous antics, such as running around aimlessly and screaming wildly when the opening ring bell sounds, and speaking in a rambling and mostly incoherent fashion. Delirious has competed internationally in Japan, Mexico, Austria, Germany and the United Kingdom. He is a formerhead booker ofRing of Honor and was anexecutive producer ofthe company's flagship television program, producing and writing over 500 episodes of weekly television along with producing and writing hundreds of live events in the 2010s. He also started as the head trainer for the company's wrestling school, theROH Dojo in 2007.
Delirious started his career in Gateway Championship Wrestling, an independent wrestling promotion based out ofSt. Louis, Missouri while also working at his localBest Buy. He trainedDaizee Haze as a wrestler while they were both inSoutheast Missouri State University.
Delirious started working forIan Rotten andIWA Mid-South during the latter part of 2003. In November, he wrestledMatt Sydal, a fellow St. Louis wrestler, in Sydal's first IWA match. The two quickly developed a rivalry, wrestling several times over the next few months. Eventually, Delirious was able to beat Sydal at the second night of the 2004 King of the Death Match Tournament and won the IWA-MS Light Heavyweight Championship.
After that, Delirious began a feud withJimmy Jacobs. The two exchanged in several matches with the title trading hands. Jimmy won the belt in early August on a Coliseum Championship Wrestling event inEvansville, Indiana. Two weeks later inHighland, Indiana, they wrestled to a double pin for the title. The belt was declared vacant. On the first night of the 2004Ted Petty Invitational weekend, Jacobs won aLadder match to win the vacant title. After that, Delirious went to Japan for a tour. When he returned, he won the belt on December 12. Delirious then finished the feud with a win in a Steel Cage match inValparaiso, Indiana, on February 4, 2005.
Delirious held the Light Heavyweight title until June 11, when he lost it toJosh Abercrombie inPhiladelphia. Delirious then wrestled several matches over the fall, against the likes ofRoderick Strong,Ace Steel, and Brandon Thomaselli. He also formed a team with old rival Sydal. They challengedThe Iron Saints for the IWA-MS Tag Team Championships on a couple of occasions, but could not win the belts.
Delirious started to appear less in 2006, but he defeated fellow masked wrestlerEl Generico in April.
Delirious made his debut on TNA (while TNA was associated with NWA) on the February 22, 2003, episode of TNA Xplosion losing to Shark Boy in a singles match. On the September 24 episode of TNA Xplosion, Delirious and Curt Daniels lost toAbyss in a Handicap match. On the October 8 episode of TNA Xplosion, Delirious and Sebastian lost to The Gathering (CM Punk andJulio Dinero). On the December 3 episode of TNA Xplosion, Delirious lost to Shark Boy. On the January 14, 2004, episode of TNA Xplosion, Delirious, Dylan Kage and Vordell Walker lost to3Live Kru. On the January 21 episode of TNA Xplosion, Delirious, Jared Steele and Masada lost to 3Live Kru. On the February 4 episode of TNA Xplosion, Delirious and Shadow lost toAmerica's Most Wanted (Chris Harris andJames Storm). On the July 14 episode of TNA Xplosion, Delirious and Sebastian lost to D-Ray 3000 and Shark Boy. On September 8. 2004, NWATNA, Delirious and Jerrelle Clark competed in a Six Way X-Division Dominance Tag Team Elimination Battle Royal which was won by Kazarian and Mikey Batts. AtSlammiversary, Delirious competed in a X Division Six-way match which was won byShark Boy. His last match in the promotion was in a losing effort toSamoa Joe on the June 24, 2005, episode of iMPACT!.
Delirious debuted in the Philadelphia-based promotionRing of Honor atReborn: Stage One on April 23, 2004, in a losing effort against rival Matt Sydal.[2][5] Delirious continued to work for Ring of Honor sporadically throughout the next few years, gaining a cult following despite never winning a match. AtBetter Than Our Best on April 1, 2006, ROH's commissionerJim Cornette said that he would face a wrestler of his choosing and if he did not win, he would be dropped from the roster. Delirious chose and defeatedRicky Reyes with the Cobra Stretch, retaining his spot on the roster.[6]
The following show, Delirious defeatedJimmy Rave,Jimmy Yang andJimmy Jacobs in aFour Corner Survival.[7] Later in the show,Bryan Danielson granted Delirious a shot at theROH World Championship after Danielson had retained it in five minutes againstColt Cabana. Danielson retained the belt when the referee stopped the match; Delirious' hand was also sliced on the ring post and his mask was torn by Danielson during the match.[7]
Delirious would get a second shot at the ROH World Championship in a losing effort against Bryan Danielson on May 13. Delirious went on to earn a shot at theROH Pure Championship againstNigel McGuinness, but subsequently lost. Throughout the rest of the year, Delirious continued to impress with matches against Matt Sydal and McGuinness. On October 6, Delirious defeatedJimmy Rave, qualifying for the2006 Survival of the Fittest final later on in the evening.Austin Aries was the first eliminated in the finals leavingThe Briscoe Brothers (Jay and Mark), Delirious and Matt Sydal. Sydal and Delirious worked together to eliminate the Briscoes. They put on a tough performance, with Delirious eventually coming out on top.[8]
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His victory meant he'd receive his third shot at the ROH World Championship against Bryan Danielson. On November 3 the match took place, and once again Danielson retained despite Delirious' best efforts.[9]
Delirious then teamed withDavey Richards, challenging eventualTag Team Champions Matt Sydal andChristopher Daniels in a Number One Contenders match.
Following his loss, Sydal and Daniels went on to feud withAdam Pearce. Pearce defeated Delirious earlier on in the year with help from Shane Hagadorn. His first match in this new feud saw Delirious team withAce Steel to take on Hagadorn and Pearce, Delirious and Steel came out on top, but this feud was far from over. The following night, Delirious put his problems with Pearce aside to challenge Danielson. The two captains put a team of four together for aneight-man elimination tag match. Delirious chose Nigel McGuinness,Colt Cabana andB. J. Whitmer as his partners to face the team of Danielson, Jimmy Rave, Jimmy Jacobs andShingo. Delirious was the sole survivor for his team, winning the match when he made Danielson tap to the Cobra Stretch.
Delirious lost to Adam Pearce on December 22,[10] as well as losing the following night in a Dragon Gate rules match againstCIMA, Shingo and Matt Sydal.[11] Delirious continued his feud with Pearce into 2007, defeating him in the first of sixFifth Year Festival events. He won via pinfall after placing brass knuckles in his mask andheadbutting Pearce.[12] The following night, the newly turnedheelRoderick Strong destroyed Delirious after shoving him off the ropes. Delirious' head smacked against the mat and he appeared to be unconscious. Strong took advantage of Delirious' condition, hitting him with aGibson Driver both in the ring and on a barricade at ringside. Strong looked to do more damage but Roderick's former tag team partner Austin Aries ran him off.[13]
On August 3, 2007, Delirious was announced as the new head trainer of theROH Wrestling Academy.[14]
Delirious became more peculiar during his feud with Adam Pearce's stable, The Hangmen 3. After they stapled his mask to his face back in 2007, he began using violent tactics to defeat them such as using weapons and spittingmist into their faces. He also changed his usual green and black attire to "Red Poison", a red and black version, atRising Above on December 29, 2007, to reflect his newly violent tactics.
Delirious later attempted to gain the attention of Daizee Haze only to be interrupted and overshadowed byRhett Titus. After seeing footage of Titus and Haze together, he turned heel and joined up with Jimmy Jacobs and hisAge of the Fall stable and began wearing a black version of his attire. On March 13 in Collinsville, Illinois, after Jacobs hit Haze with his spike, Delirious turned on him and broke away from the Age of the Fall. Delirious then started a feud withSonjay Dutt, which ended rather quickly. Delirious later feuded withAustin Aries, starting on the May 3, 2010, edition ofRing of Honor Wrestling, when Aries kicked Delirious in the throat mid-match, causing a disqualification, followed by a beat down of both Delirious and his valet, Daizee Haze by Aries,Kenny King, and Rhett Titus. He teamed with Jerry Lynn to feud with them.
On August 15, 2010, Johnston replaced Adam Pearce as the head booker of Ring of Honor.[15] Since this change, Delirious has wrestled only sporadically for the promotion, when he ended his feud with Aries by defeating him in a steel cage match on the September 20 episode ofRing of Honor Wrestling.[16] Delirious made his return to a Ring of Honor ring on May 7 in Toronto, when he wrestled Colt Cabana in aLarry Sweeney tribute match.[17]
In 2014, he began to increase his appearances in Ring of Honor more, mainly in their Illinois-based shows. On May 19, 2018, he became one of the trainers at the Baltimore Dojo.[18]
Delirious and Matt Sydal debuted atNo Excuses 2005 against each other with Delirious picking up the victory with the Chemical Imbalance II. He won IWC's biggest event of the year, the Super Indy 5 tournament, when he defeated Glen Spectre in the first round, Matt Sydal in the second and "Balls Hott" Troy Lords in the finals. He then went on to successfully defend his Super Indy title against Lords by making him tap out to aleglock submission atSummer Sizzler 3.
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He then started to be accompanied by women's wrestler Daizee Haze at ring side. He successfully defended his title against "The Fallen Angel" Christopher Daniels atUncaged Fury. AtNo Excuses 2, Delirious began a feud with "The Fabulous" John McChesney. Haze distracted McChesney enough for Delirious to roll him up and grab his tights for the win to retain his title. AtReveangence 3 Delirious defeated McChesney again with some help from Daizee Haze. AtNovember Pain 2, Delirious faced McChesney once again, but this time Haze was barred from ringside. Daizee disguised herself as a wrestling fan but McChesney caught on before she could intervene, resulting in McChesneypowerbombing Daizee onto Delirious to get the win. AtNew Beginning 2, Delirious facedSterling James Keenan to try to stop Keenan's road to the title. He was not successful, as Keenan hit theMK Ultra for the victory. He then took a break from IWC and did not return until several months later. He returned atNovember Pain 3 as he was scheduled to be partners with Super Hentai to face "The Shooter"Brent Albright and Sebastian Dark but it ended up being a 6-man tag team match after Shirly Doe and Delirious' rival John McChesney was added to the match. Shirly Doe picked up the victory by pinning Sebastian Dark after anover the shoulder back to belly piledriver to pick up the win for himself, Delirious, and Super Hentai. Delirious appeared at IWC's 100th showCall to Arms 4 on December 8, 2007, and defeatedEric Young. Throughout the spring and summer of 2008, he unsuccessfully went for the Super Indy title against Larry Sweeney and the IWC Championship against Dennis Gregory. Along with this, Gregory began making chauvinistic threats to Daizee Haze. This eventually climaxed with Delirious and Haze defeating Gregory andSara Del Rey atBoiling Point 3. Two months later, atPromotional Consideration Paid For By the Following: Day 2, Delirious finally regained the Super Indy title, pinning Jason Gory in a Fatal Four Way match that also involved Super HENTAI andLarry Sweeney.
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InChikara, Delirious teamed withHallowicked throughout 2006 under the team moniker Incoherence (also nicknamed Halirious by the fans). The team came about at Chikara'sTag World Grand Prix in 2006 when Hallowicked's original partner,UltraMantis Black, was unable to compete due to injury. A random draw to determine Hallowicked's partner took place and Delirious was the first chosen wrestler to be present, after The Rockin' Rebel and Roderick Strong. After defeating the team of Rorschach and Crossbones,Up in Smoke (Cheech and Cloudy), and Team DDT (KUDO and MIKAMI), the team went on to the semi-finals in the tournament, where they lost toThe Kings of Wrestling (Chris Hero andClaudio Castagnoli).[19] The team won theChikara Campeonatos de Parejas on October 26 atBruised. Delirious and Hallowicked have also taken to teaming with Cheech and Cloudy (aliases: Deliriouscito and Hallowickedcito) in 3 and 4-man tag team matches. The duo set a record for the most number of successful title defenses of the Campeonatos De Parejas, including a rematch against the former champions, F.I.S.T. On September 21, 2008, Incoherence lost the titles to the Super Smash Bros. (Player Uno andPlayer Dos) in Cleveland, Ohio atLaying in the Gutter, Looking at the Stars.
In March 2009, Incoherence was expanded to a three man stable with the addition ofFrightmare. Incoherence continued to team together until April 2009.
In May 2009, Delirious was revealed as the new third member of therudo (heel) stable The Order of the Neo-Solar Temple, joining UltraMantis Black and Crossbones, after having been abducted by them a month earlier. He was under the influence of UltraMantis' Eye of Tyr, a mysterious jewel that had the ability to control the mind of anyone, so long as it was touched on their foreheads. He came out wearing the colors of the Order and did not run around and scream at the opening bell. He defeated Arik Cannon that night, using UltraMantis Black's Praying Mantis Bomb finisher. The next night, he and the Order defeated the Super Smash Bros. andCreate-A-Wrestler, Delirious again using the Praying Mantis Bomb to pick up the win. On November 22, 2009, at Season 8 finaleThree-Fisted Tales Delirious and UltraMantis Black defeated Delirious' former team mates Hallowicked andFrightmare to earn their third point, which means that they can now challenge for the Campeonatos de Parejas.[20] However, that same night UltraMantis lost possession of the Eye of Tyr toTim Donst and therudo stableBruderschaft des Kreuzes, led byAres and Claudio Castagnoli.[21] Delirious and UltraMantis Black used their three points to get a match for the Campeonatos de Parejas on February 28, 2010, atA World of Comforting Illusions, but were defeated by the defending championsThe Colony (Fire Ant and Soldier Ant), after Ares came out and used the Eye of Tyr to release Delirious from under the influence of UltraMantis, at which point he went crazy and ran out of the arena.[22]
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Delirious returned to Chikara in May 2010 atAniversario Zehn, revealing himself as the newest member of Bruderschaft des Kreuzes and helping Ares defeat UltraMantis Black in a singles match.[23] The following day atAniversario Elf Delirious was instrumental in helping Castagnoli and Ares retain the Campeonatos de Parejas against his former Incoherence team mates Hallowicked and Frightmare.[24] At the following show,We Must Eat Michigan's Brain, on June 26, Delirious was defeated by UltraMantis Black in a singles match.[25] On October 23 Delirious represented BDK in thetorneo cibernetico match, where they faced a team composed of Chikara originals. He was eliminated from the match by UltraMantis Black.[26] In April 2011, Delirious represented BDK in the2011 King of Trios, alongside Tim Donst and Jakob Hammermeier. After defeatingDa Soul Touchaz in the first round, the team was eliminated from the tournament in the quarterfinals by The Colony (Fire Ant, Green Ant and Soldier Ant).[27] During the tournament the BDK representatives were confronted by Delirious' former partners Hallowicked, Frightmare and UltraMantis Black, the last of whom had announced his intention of righting his past wrongs, namely his manipulation of Delirious. Delirious, seemingly remembering his past, ran out of the arena, while the rest of BDK began brawling with the trio also known as the Spectral Envoy.[28][29] UltraMantis Black eventually recovered the Eye of Tyr on November 13, 2011, atHigh Noon and in January 2012 used it to release Delirious from BDK.[30] However, on February 25, 2012, Delirious attacked UltraMantis in the middle of Spectral Envoy's match against F.I.S.T. for the Campeonatos de Parejas, resulting in F.I.S.T. retaining their title.[31] The next night, Delirious, now able to speak in a coherent, intelligible manner due to smashing the Eye of Tyr, cut a promo stating that he remembered everything he had suffered while under the control of the Eye of Tyr and its holders, and he vowed to make UltraMantis suffer until 2014 as revenge for the two years that he had lost since UltraMantis first used the Eye of Tyr on him.[32] On June 2 atChikarasaurus Rex: How to Hatch a Dinosaur, Delirious formed a new alliance with Kobald, Kodama and Obariyon ofThe Batiri.[33] At the following pay-per-view,Under the Hood on December 2, Delirious, Kobald, Kodama, Obariyon andOphidian were defeated in a ten-man tag team match by UltraMantis Black, Frightmare, Hallowicked, Blind Rage and Crossbones, with Delirious being pinned by UltraMantis for the win.[34]
After Chikara's one-year hiatus, Delirious returned to the promotion, re-joining BDK on October 26, 2014.[35] On December 6 atTomorrow Never Dies, Delirious was defeated by UltraMantis Black and was, as a result, forced to leave the promotion. After the match, Delirious used the Eye of Tyr to turn Hallowicked and Frightmare against UltraMantis.[36]
In late 2009 Delirious began working for Japanese wrestling promotionPro Wrestling Noah, making his debut on October 15 in a tag team match, where he andKeith Walker defeatedMakoto Hashi andYoshinari Ogawa.[37] The following day he entered the round robin stage of the2009 Junior Heavyweight League, losing toKatsuhiko Nakajima in his first match in the tournament.[38] On October 18 Delirious scored a major upset victory in his second match in the tournament, by defeating former three-timeGHC Junior Heavyweight ChampionKenta and followed that up with another victory overRicky Marvin on October 22.[39][40] Despite losing his fourth match in the tournament toKotaro Suzuki, Delirious made it to the semifinals of the tournament, where he was defeated byJushin Thunder Liger on October 31.[41][42] Delirious returned to Noah in April 2010 and on April 25 he received a shot at the GHC Junior Heavyweight Championship, but was defeated by the defending championYoshinobu Kanemaru.[43] In July 2011, Delirious and fellow ROH performer,Eddie Edwards, took part in Noah's2011 Nippon TV Cup Jr. Heavyweight Tag League. After two wins and two losses, Delirious and Edwards finished third in their block, missing the finals of the tournament.[44]
On September 23, 2022, Delirious made his return atVictory Road, where he was defeated byMike Bailey for theImpact X Division Championship.[45] on the September 29, 2022 episode of the Impact Wrestling, Delirious lost toBlack Taurus. on the November 24, 2022 episode of Impact Wrestling Before The Impact, Delirious andYuya Uemura lost toRaj Singh (wrestler), andMahabali Shera. on the December 15 episode of the Impact Wrestling, Delirious lost toEddie Edwards. AtHard To Kill, Delirious competed in a Six-way match which was won byKushida. On the January 19 episode of Impact Wrestling Before The Impact, Delirious and Yuya Uemura lost toViolent by Design (Kon andAngels).
On October 30, 2022, Delirious made hisMajor League Wrestling Debut atFightland, teaming withMini Abismo Negro he was defeated byMicroman andLince Dorado.[46]
On November 14, 2023, Johnston married former ROHWomen of Honor competitorMandy Leon.[47] On July 18, 2024 it was announced that Delirious & his wife Mandy Leon are expecting ababy.[3]
1This was a "gimmick" title that was defended under the "24/7 rule" byLarry Sweeney in a number of independent and regional promotions. Both Delirious andColt Cabana held the title multiple times during a 3-Way Dance against Sweeney at an IWA Mid-South show on December 30, 2005.
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