 Rush in 2024 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | Lionel Gerard Green[6] (1994-11-11)November 11, 1994 (age 31)[7] |
Spouse | |
| Children | 3 |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring names | |
| Billed height | 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)[2][3][4] |
| Billed weight | 160 lb (73 kg)[2] |
| Billed from | Washington, D.C. |
| Debut | November 2014[5] |
Lionel Gerard Green (born November 11, 1994), better known by thering nameLio Rush, is an Americanprofessional wrestler andrapper. He is signed toAll Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he is one-half of CRU withAction Andretti. He also performs in its sister promotionRing of Honor (ROH), and makes sporadic appearances forNew Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). He has also performed forMajor League Wrestling (MLW), andImpact Wrestling, where he was a formerImpact X Division Champion and formerMLW World Middleweight Champion, as well as forLucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA), where he performed asAracno.
Rush additionally worked forWWE, where he was the youngestNXT Cruiserweight Champion, served as themanager ofBobby Lashley, and was the winner of the 2018WWE United Kingdom Championship Invitational. He is also known for his time inRing of Honor (ROH), where he won the2016 Top Prospect Tournament, and inCombat Zone Wrestling (CZW), where he won theCZW World Heavyweight Championship once and theCZW Wired Championship twice.
Lionel Gerald Green was born inLanham, Maryland to twogospel singers. His childhood bedroom sat above his father's recording studio. He remembered wanting to be aprofessional wrestler since he was five years old. In his youth, Green struggled with mental health, leading to a brief hospital stay during his teens.[8]
Rush debuted under thering name "LI Green", but after a negative response to the name from promoters, he changed it to "Lennon Duffy".[1] He learned to wrestle during 2014 withMCW Training Center. He debuted at the 2014 Tribute to the Legends and created a tag team named "Sudden Impact" withPatrick Clark, who would go on to work forWWE as Velveteen Dream.[4] On July 18, he won the Shane Shamrock Memorial Cup XV, defeating Brandon Scott, Drolix,Eddie Edwards,Matt Cross andShane Strickland in a six-way elimination match.[9] On October 3, he and his teammate Patrick Clark won the MCW Tag Team Championship, defeating The Hell Cats and The Ecktourage.[10] They lost the title thirteen days later to The Ecktourage.[11] He also competed forEvolve Wrestling where he defeatedFred Yehi on November 6.[12] He lost his match against Ethan Page the following day.[13] Lucha Libre Elite announced Rush as a participant in the Elite World Championship. On Thursday June 23, 2016, Rush defeated David Tita in the first day of the Elite World Championship to make the quarter final. On Saturday June 25, 2016, he was defeated byMichael Elgin. On February 18, 2017, Rush made his debut forPro Wrestling Guerrilla at "Only Kings Understand Each Other", where he was defeated byRicochet. On May 27, 2017, Rush defeated Ken Broadway atHouse of Glory's "Adrenaline" to capture the HOG Crown Jewel Championship, ending Broadway's almost year long reign. Rush lost the title to HOG World Heavyweight ChampionAnthony Gangone in a title for title match at House of Glory's "Never Trust a Snake" on July 1.
Green, as Lennon Duffy, made his debut forCombat Zone Wrestling (CZW) on December 31, 2014, defeatingSlugger Clark.[14] He and Clark began to compete together as known as Sudden Impact. On September 12, he changed his name to "Lio Rush" and started a feud withJoey Janela, where he faced him,Trevor Lee andCaleb Konley at Down With the Sickness 2015; the match was won by Janela.[15] At Night of Infamy, on November 21, he wrestled Joey Janela for theCZW Wired Championship on a losing effort.[16] On December 12, duringCage of Death XVII, he won the CZW Wired TV Championship, defeating Janela for the title.[17] He made his first successful defense against Kevin Bennett on January 16.[18] He lost his title against Joey Janela on February 13 at CZW Seventeen.[19] On March 26, 2016, at CZW Proving Ground, Rush defeated Joey Janela, Dave Crist and David Starr to win the CZW Wired Championship. Rush lost the Wired title back to Janela in a Ladder Match at Down with The Sickness on September 10, 2016, After his feud with Janela was over he stepped out of the Wired Championship picture and started a feud with Sami Callihan becoming a heel in the process for the first time in his career and adopted a darker gimmick.[20]
On May 13, 2017, Rush beat Joe Gacy for theCZW World Heavyweight Championship. He lost the belt toDavey Richards at a non-CZW (DEFY Wrestling) show, ending his reign at only 17 days. On July 8, Rush announced that he would be making his final CZW appearance on August 5.[21] Rush defeated Janela at CZW Once in a Lifetime for his last match in CZW and against Janela.[22]
Six months after his professional wrestling debut, Rush took part in aRing of Honor (ROH) training camp. He, however, was not signed due to his limited experience.[1] After getting more experience wrestling on the independent circuit, Rush took part in another training camp and, now with the backing ofKevin Kelly,Steve Corino,Adam Cole,Jay Lethal andKyle O'Reilly, was signed as a participant in the2016 Top Prospect Tournament.[1] Rush made his debut in ROH on December 19, 2015, beatingVinny Marseglia in a dark match.[23] Rush went on to compete in the 2016 Top Prospect Tournament, defeatingJason Kincaid on January 9,[24][25] going on to defeat Brian Fury on February 6 to win the tournament.[26] On March 31, ROH announced that Rush had signed a contract with the promotion.[27] OnSupercard of Honor X Night 1 at April 1, 2016, Rush unsuccessfully challengedJay Lethal forROH World Championship. AtSurvival of the Fittest night one Rush defeatedMisterioso Jr.,Hangman Page andSho in a Four corner survival match to be in the Survival of the Fittest tournament final. The Next night Rush was in the Survival of the Fittest match where he was the last to before he was eliminated byBobby Fish. AtFinal Battle Rush replacedA. C. H. in the Six-man tag team tournament final to determine the firstROH World Six-Man Tag Team Champions where he teamed withKushida andJay White and was defeated byThe Kingdom (Matt Taven,T. K. O'Ryan andVinny Marseglia). In March 2017, it was reported that Rush had given his notice to ROH.[28]
On July 9, 2017, it was reported that Rush had been offered aNXT contract and that his signing was imminent.[21] WWE confirmed the signing on August 21.[29][30] Rush made his first televised appearance on the October 4 episode ofNXT, where he was attacked byVelveteen Dream (his former tag team partner Patrick Clark). On the October 11 episode ofNXT, Rush was defeated by Dream in a match.[31] On October 29, Rush joked on Twitter aboutEmma following her release from WWE; he received criticism from WWE wrestlers and issued an apology.[32] The tweet resulted in Rush being pulled from all NXT events until November 30.[33][34] He would make one additional appearance on NXT television, losing a squash match toLars Sullivan. He was then off television again until April 2018.[35]
In June 2018, Rush was moved to WWE's main roster as part of the cruiserweight division, appearing on205 Live.[36] He also established himself as a heel on 205 Live. Upon his debut, he went on a winning streak, defeatingNoam Dar,Akira Tozawa and three jobbers. He suffered his first loss in a 5-way number one contendership match for theWWE Cruiserweight Championship, that was won byTony Nese. He suffered his first pinfall loss toCedric Alexander a few weeks later.[37]
.jpg)
On the September 17 episode ofRaw, Rush became the hype man and manager ofBobby Lashley[38] and was responsible for turning Lashley heel when he encouraged him to attackKevin Owens multiple times after their match on October 8.[39] Rush then would later help Bobby Lashley capture his firstIntercontinental Championship in a triple threat match againstSeth Rollins and defending championDean Ambrose, when Rush distracted Rollins, allowing Lashley to spear Ambrose and pin him for the title.
Following theRoyal Rumble, Rush and Lashley began feuding withFinn Bálor. His last match on 205 Live would be a number one contendership fatal four way on February 5, 2019, that was won by Akira Tozowa.[37] Lashley's feud with Balor lead to a 2-on-1 handicap match atElimination Chamber for Lashley's title, where Rush was ultimately pinned by Bálor, resulting in Lashley losing the Intercontinental Championship. After the match Lashley attacked Rush, leaving him laying in the ring.[40] The next day, Rush and Lashley were defeated by Finn Balor and the debutingRicochet. The next week, Rush unsuccessfully challenged Balor for the Intercontinental Championship. However, on the March 11 episode of Raw, Rush helped Lashley to regain the Intercontinental Championship from Balor. The following week,Braun Strowman and Balor defeated Lashley and Rush in a tag team match. Near the end of the match, Lashley fled the ring, leaving Rush to be pinned by Strowman.[41] Following that, he did not wrestle for the company and stopped appearing alongside Lashley afterWrestleMania 35 in April.[42][43] Following the April 15Raw, Rush started an imposed sabbatical away from WWE.[8]
Amidst reports in May that Rush has backstage "heat" over issues regarding his attitude, including reports that he was disrespecting veterans, on May 15, Rush removed all mentions of WWE on his social media and replaced it with an email for booking inquiries.[44] The problem has been chalked up to be a possible misunderstanding, due to Rush not adhering by the unwritten rules of the professional wrestling industry.[8] In June, he started posting vignettes on Twitter seemingly promoting a return, whilePWInsider reported that he was headed back to NXT.[45]
Rush made his return toNXT on the September 18 episode as a face and defeatedOney Lorcan to become the No. 1 Contender forDrew Gulak'sCruiserweight Championship.[46] Rush successfully captured the title (which was now renamed to NXT Cruiserweight Championship) on October 9 episode ofNXT.[47] On November 8 episode of205 Live, Rush went toe to toe with Raul Mendoza in a non-title match that received high praise for its athletic competition and hard-hitting combat. AtSurvivor Series, Rush successfully defended his NXT Cruiserweight Championship in an InterbrandTriple Threat match that featuredAkira Tozawa andKalisto. This is also the first match to give Team NXT their first point of the night against Team Raw and Team SmackDown. On November 27 episode of NXT, Rush retained his NXT Cruiserweight Championship in a gruesome fast-paced battle againstAkira Tozawa. On the December 11 episode of NXT, Rush lost his title toAngel Garza, ending his reign at 63 days. On the January 15 episode of NXT, Rush defeatedTyler Breeze andIsaiah "Swerve" Scott in a triple treat match to compete in a No. 1 Contenders Match for the Cruiserweight Championship against then winner of his No. 1 Contenders MatchAngel Garza. He later on defeated Garza on the February 12 episode of NXT and went on to faceJordan Devlin for the NXT Cruiserweight Championship on February 19 episode of NXT, in which he failed to capture the Cruiserweight title.[48]
On April 15, 2020, Rush was released from his WWE contract as part of budget cuts stemming from theCOVID-19 pandemic.[49]
After leaving WWE, Rush began to work with many independent promotions, most notablyGame Changer Wrestling, where he had several matches.[50][51][52] In November, he signed a contract with the Major League Wrestling promotion. Also in November, he was announced forNew Japan Pro-Wrestling'sSuper J-Cup tournament, which took place on USA. After failing to win the Super J-Cup, he was defeated byEl Phantasmo at New Japan's The New Beginning USA.[53] Rush first match with MLW took place atKings of Colosseum on January 6, 2021, where he defeatedMyron Reed to win theWorld Middleweight Championship. One month later, due to MLW relationship withLucha Libre AAA Worldwide, Rush defeatedLaredo Kid to win theAAA World Cruiserweight Championship and became a double champion. However this reign was not recognized in Mexico by AAA, with AAA bookerKonnan stating that Lio lost the title to Laredo during an untelevised event.[54]
On May 30, 2021, Rush made an appearance forAll Elite Wrestling at theDouble or Nothing pay-per-view during theCasino Battle Royale match as the "Joker", where he was eliminated byMatt Hardy with help fromPrivate Party. On June 9, Rush announced he had suffered a shoulder injury during the Casino Battle Royale match and that while AEW had offered him a contract, he was choosing to retire from professional wrestling once his injury healed and he had fulfilled his contractual obligations with NJPW.[55] On September 29, Rush— who had decided not to go through with his original plans to retire— officially signed with AEW.[56] He made hisAEWDynamite debut on November 10, 2021 (along with his new tag team partner,Dante Martin) in a winning effort against the team ofMatt Sydal and Lee Moriarty.[57] On January 22, 2022, Rush revealed that his AEW contract was set to expire February 14, 2022, and became a free agent on that date.[58]
Lio Rush made hisNew Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) debut at theSuper J-Cup. After that, he went on to suffer a few losses fromEl Phantasmo. After a victory overRocky Romero, Rush qualified for the New Japan Cup USA 2021 before making headlines once he andYoh went on to win theSuper Junior Tag League the following year and will face theIWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions,TJP andFrancesco Akira atWrestle Kingdom 17.
At Wrestle Kingdom 17 on January 4, 2023 Rush and Yoh were unsuccessful at winning the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions fromCatch 2/2.[59] On March 21, Rush unsuccessfully challengedHiromu Takahashi for theIWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship.[60] On April 27, Rush was announced as an entrant in theBest of the Super Juniors 30 tournament, competing in the A block.[61] Rush finished the tournament with 12 points, narrowly missing out on advancing to the semi-finals, although avenging a loss against Takahashi.[62] In a December 2023 interview withWrestlePurists, Rush revealed that a deal with NJPW had fallen through and he was still a free agent.[63]
On March 30, 2023, Rush made hisImpact Wrestling debut againstKushida in a one-on-one match at Impact WrestlingMultiverse United of year 2023 in a very impressive matchup but was not successful as he lost via submission.[64] On June 23, Rush returned to Impact Wrestling to teamNick Aldis to defeatThe Motor City Machine Guns,Alex Shelley andChris Sabin for the Summer Sizzler event.[65][66][67] Afterwards on the June 29, 2023 episode ofImpact! Lio and Aldis dominated and attacked The Motor City Machine Guns during a segment (This segment was filmed, taped and aired before the tag team match), thus establishing himself as a heel in the process.[68] On June 30, it was announced that Rush will challenge Sabin for theImpact X Division Championship atSlammiversary.[69][70] During this match Rush was victorious and became the Impact X Division Champion for the first time in his career.[71] AtVictory Road, Rush defeatedKushida to retain the title. AtImpact 1000, Rush lost the title toChris Sabin, thus marking his final appearance for the company.
On the May 29, 2024 episode ofDynamite, Rush returned to AEW for the first time since 2021, as a participant in the Casino Gauntlet Match to earn anAEW World Championship match atForbidden Door, which was won byWill Ospreay.[72] On the June 1 episode ofAEW Collision, Rush was defeated byRoderick Strong.[73] On the June 15 episode ofCollision, Rush approached Dante Martin as a call back to their previous alliance, but would be pushed away by Martin's brotherDarius Martin (who form the tag team of Top Flight together) andAction Andretti. Later in the show, Rush appeared to save Top Flight and Andretti from a post-match attack fromShane Taylor Promotions (Shane Taylor,Lee Moriarty andAnthony Ogogo).[74] On June 21, it was reported that Rush would be an AEW regular going forward.[75] On the same day episode ofAEW Rampage, Rush defeated Andretti to qualify for the vacantAEW TNT Championship ladder match at Forbidden Door, but failed to win the title at the event.[76] Going forward, Rush remained aligned with Top Flight and Andretti. On the July 20, 2024 tapings ofRing of Honor Wrestling Lio Rush returned to ROH, now the sister promotion of AEW, after 7 years and teamed withROH World Television ChampionAtlantis Jr., in a losing effort againstShane Taylor andJohnny TV .[77] On July 26, 2024 atDeath Before Dishonor Lio faced Shane Taylor, Johnny TV,Lee Johnson,Brian Cage and Atlantis Jr. in a Six-ManSurvival of the FittestElimination Match for theROH World Television Championship but was unsuccessful as he was eliminated by Lee Johnson.[78] On October 12, Rush officially announced that he was now signed to AEW.[79] On the December 4 episode ofDynamite, Rush and Andretti eliminated Top Flight during theDynamite Dozen Battle Royale, teasing a split in the alliance.[80] On December 14 at theWinter is Coming special ofCollision, Rush and Andretti defeated Top Flight, earning a futureAEW World Tag Team Championship opportunity.[81]
On the January 4, 2025 episode ofCollision, Rush and Andretti failed to capture the titles fromPrivate Party (Isiah Kassidy and Marq Quen).[82] On January 18 at theMaximum Carnage special episode ofCollision, Rush and Andretti attacked Top Flight, cementing their heel turn.[83] On the February 22 episode ofCollision, Rush and Andretti revealed their team name to be "CRU" as an acronym for "crazy, ruthless, and unhinged".[84][85][86] On April 6 atDynasty Zero Hour, CRU teamed withNick Wayne to defeatAR Fox and Top Flight.[87]
On June 17, 2025, CRU made theirConsejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) debut at Martes de Arena Mexico event where they unsuccessfully challengedLos Nuevos Ingobernables (Ángel de Oro andNiebla Roja) for theCMLL World Tag Team Championship.[88]
In July 2019, Rush released his debut single as a rapper titled, "Scenic Lullaby".[89] According to Rush, the song is a "first-person account of [his] darkest days and the pain he continues to carry."[8] Rush released his second single, "I Wonder", on August 19.[90] On his 25th birthday, Rush released his debut extended play,11:11.[91] On May 11, 2020, Rush released his debut studio album, titledEver After.[92] On July 20, 2020, Rush released his second studio album,The Final Match.[93]
On September 28, 2021, Rush released his second EP, titledNot Found.[94]
Rush is known for his fast-pacedhigh-flying style. He is nicknamed the "Man of the Hour" and the "Piece of Gold" (also mentioning his age depending on how old he is). During Rush's early days inWWE's main roster, he became a heel manager forBobby Lashley, a role he was praised for due to hisspeaking skills.[8] He cited actor and comedianKevin Hart as his influence to his work as manager.[95]
Rush made his video game debut as part of theRising Stars Pack of downloadable content created forWWE 2K19.[96]
In 2020, Rush was announced as a contestant on thethirty-sixth season of MTV's reality competition seriesThe Challenge and was initially paired withLove Island alumna Gabby Allen. He left the show on his own accord in episode 6, citing mental health reasons and the stress of the house triggering his childhood feelings of living in a group home.[97][98]
Green resides inLos Angeles, California.[99] He has three sons.[8][100] He married Sarah Lai Wah on December 21, 2018 inLas Vegas.[101] Green has numerous tattoos; he stated that one of the tattoos he has on his stomach is a poem that was written by his mother for his late brother Lorenzo, who died at a young age. Green also stated that he did not know about his brother until he was told about him by his mother on his first day of high school.[102]
| Title | Album details |
|---|---|
| Ever After | |
| The Final Match |
|
| Title | EP details |
|---|---|
| 11:11 |
|
| Not Found |
|
| Title | Year | Album |
|---|---|---|
| "Scenic Lullaby"[89] | 2019 | Non-album single |
| "I Wonder"[90] | Ever After | |
| "Har Gow"[103] (featuring J-Reyez) | 2020 | Non-album singles |
| "On My Own"[104] (featuring Marlon Ponce) | ||
| "Mask Off"[105] (with Marlon Ponce) | ||
| "Heat" (Remix)[106] (featuringReal1) | ||
| "Do You Remember"[107] | ||
| "Candle Lights"[108] (with Lvndie) | 2021 | |
| "Off the Top"[109] | ||
| "Best Thing Out"[110] |
| Title | Year | Album |
|---|---|---|
| "Money Money"[111] (DRETT1 featuring Lio) | 2018 | Non-album singles |
| "Feel the Rush"[112] (Wrestle and Flow featuring Lio) | 2020 | |
| "Shine"[113] (DRETT1 featuring Lio and K001) | ||
| "Stone Cold"[114] (Jay Starrett featuring Joseph Allen, Lio and imSwervy) | 2021 | |
| "Higher"[115] (James Kennedy featuring Lio) |
| Title | Year | Director(s) | Ref. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| As lead artist | ||||
| "Scenic Lullaby" | 2019 | David Daudin | [116] | |
| "I Wonder" | [117] | |||
| "The Cypher" (withBriana Brandy and Josiah Williams) | Unknown | [118] | ||
| "Lost" | 2020 | Xavier the Filmmaker | [119] | |
| "Never Hitting the Ground" | [120] | |||
| "IDEK" | [121] | |||
| "Craved For Blood" | [122] | |||
| "Oh My Freestyle" | [123] | |||
| "Do You Remember" | VisualOPM | [124] | ||
| "Off the Top" | 2021 | YoungOneStudio | [125] | |
| "Best Thing Out" | [126] | |||
| As featured artist | ||||
| "Money Money" (DRETT1 featuring Lio) | 2018 | David Daudin | [127] | |
| "Feel the Rush" (Wrestle and Flow featuring Lio) | 2020 | Xavier the Filmmaker | [128] | |
| "Stone Cold" (Jay Starrett featuring Joseph Allen, Lio and imSwervy) | 2021 | Parker Donaldson | [129] | |
{{cite web}}:Cite uses generic title (help)Non-loginwalled link at bibliogram.pussthecat.org[permanent dead link]
,Cagematch,Wrestlingdata,Internet Wrestling Database