Alexander worked for ROH from 2010 until 2016. He started as part of C&C Factory, a tag team withCaprice Coleman. They worked together until 2014, then he worked as a singles wrestler. He left ROH in 2016, when he was invited to WWE'sCruiserweight Classic tournament. After that, Alexander would sign a contract with WWE after an impressive performance at the tournament despite losing, which gained critical and fan praise, and would begin performing in their newcruiserweight division. AtWrestleMania 34, Alexander won a tournament to win theWWE Cruiserweight Championship. He would then be drafted to theRawbrand, later becoming part ofThe Hurt Business in 2020, and went on to win theWWE Raw Tag Team Championship alongsideShelton Benjamin. Alexander was released by WWE in February 2025.
Over the course of 2010, Alexander mostly wrestleddark matches forRing of Honor (ROH). In 2011 he started performing for ROH on a regular basis after he formed the tag team called the C&C Wrestle Factory withCaprice Coleman.
Alexander (right) withCaprice Coleman as the C&C Wrestle Factory in 2011
On January 25 atWrestling's Finest, he defeated Andrew Everett. On February 8 at State Of The Art, he was defeated by Jimmy Jacobs. On February 21 at the12th Anniversary Show he teamed with Mark Briscoe andAdam Page in a losing effort againstThe Decade (Roderick Strong,B. J. Whitmer and Jimmy Jacobs).[12] On March 7 atRaising The Bar – Day 1, he teamed with Adam Page in a tag team match against The Decade where they lost. The next day atRaising The Bar – Day 2 he was defeated byKevin Steen. On March 22 atFlyin' High he was defeated byMichael Elgin. On April 4 atSupercard of Honor VIII, he lost a match against Roderick Strong. On April 19 atSecond To None, he teamed with Andrew Everett in a losing effort against reDRagon. AtGlobal Wars on May 10, he defeated Roderick Strong. After the match he was attacked by Roderick Strong and the rest of The Decade and was put through chairs and his shoulder was separated. Alexander made an appearance atWar of the Worlds attacking The Decade from behind. This led to asubmission match against Roderick Strong atBest in the World, in which he came out victorious. On August 9, during the Summer Heat Tour, he unsuccessfully challenged Michael Elgin for theROH World Championship.[13] On September 6 atAll Star Extravaganza VI he was scheduled to faceSilas Young, but when Young broke his leg and ACH did not show up for the event he challenged Jay Lethal for the ROH World Television Championship where he was defeated. On October 11 atChampions vs. All Stars, he was defeated byChristopher Daniels.[14] On November 7 atSurvival Of The Fittest- Day 1, he was defeated by Adam Page in a2014 Survival of the Fittest qualifying match. The next day atSurvival Of The Fittest- Day 2, he was defeated by Jay Lethal.[15] On November 22 atTag Wars, he was defeated by Tommaso Ciampa inNo Disqualification Grudge Match.[16] On December 7 atFinal Battle 2014, he teamed withThe Addiction (Christopher Daniels andFrankie Kazarian), but ultimately lost to The Young Bucks and ACH following a Meltzer Driver and an ACH 450 splash.[17]
On May 16, 2015, atGlobal Wars '15, Alexander endedMoose's undefeated streak after hitting him with a wrench, turningheel.[18] On June 19 atBest in the World 2015, Alexander reunited with Caprice Coleman, but ultimately broke off the partnership for good, when Coleman refused to allow Alexander to use the wrench again in a match againstWar Machine (Hanson andRaymond Rowe). Later that same event, he attacked Moose and aligned himself with Moose's former managerVeda Scott, confirming his heel turn.[19]
On May 14, 2016, Alexander announced his departure from ROH.[20]
On June 13, 2016, Alexander was announced as a participant inWWE'sCruiserweight Classic tournament.[21] The tournament began on June 23 with Alexander defeatingClement Petiot in his first round match.[22] On July 14, Alexander was eliminated from the tournament byKota Ibushi.[23] The match received high praise, with the fans in attendance chanting "please sign Cedric" and earned a4+1⁄2-star rating fromDave Meltzer of theWrestling Observer Newsletter.[24][25]
On the August 29 episode ofRaw, Alexander was announced as part of the upcoming cruiserweight division.[26] Alexander made his debut on the September 19 episode ofRaw as aface, submitting toThe Brian Kendrick in afatal four-way match that includedGran Metalik andRich Swann to determine the number one contender for theWWE Cruiserweight Championship.[27] On the September 26 episode ofRaw, Alexander would get his first win, teaming with Rich Swann to defeatLince Dorado andDrew Gulak.[28] On the December 6 episode of205 Live, Alexander started anon-screen relationship withAlicia Fox.[29] Later that night, he was defeated byNoam Dar, and after the match, Dar dedicated his victory to Fox, igniting a feud between the two.[30] On the December 19 episode ofRaw, Alexander defeated Dar, but Dar attempted to seduce Fox again afterwards.[31] On the January 10, 2017 episode of205 Live, Alexander decided to break-up with Fox, after she cost him a match.[32][33] In March, it was announced that Alexander would be out of action for 3–5 months with a knee injury.[34] He returned from injury on the May 23 episode of205 Live, defeating Johnny Boone.[35][36] On the July 11 episode of205 Live, Alexander defeated Dar in an"I quit" match to end their feud.[37]
On the December 11 episode ofRaw, Alexander won a fatal four-way match to face Drew Gulak the following week, with the winner earning a match againstEnzo Amore for theCruiserweight Championship.[38] Alexander defeated Gulak the following week onRaw to become the number one contender to the championship.[39] On the January 8, 2018 episode ofRaw, he faced Amore for the title, which Amore lost by countout, therefore retaining.[40] Alexander was scheduled to face Amore for the Cruiserweight Championship at theRoyal Rumble pay-per-view, but the match was cancelled and the title was vacated when Amore was released from WWE.[41]
In the following weeks, atournament to determine a new champion was arranged, in which Alexander defeated Gran Metalik in the first round,[42]TJP in the quarterfinals,[43] and Roderick Strong in the semi-finals to advance to the final.[44] AtWrestleMania 34 on April 8, Alexander defeatedMustafa Ali to win the Cruiserweight Championship. During the weeks building up to the match, Alexander and Ali referred to themselves as the "Soul" and the "Heart" of 205 Live respectively.[45][46] On the following episode of205 Live, Alexander was attacked byBuddy Murphy during his championship celebration.[47] At theGreatest Royal Rumble event, Alexander made his first successful title defense againstKalisto.[48][49] Alexander then retained his title against Murphy on the May 29 episode of205 Live and againstHideo Itami on the July 10 episode of205 Live.[50] AtSummerSlam, Alexander successfully retained his title against Drew Gulak.[51][52] On the September 19 episode of205 Live, Alexander defeated Gulak in a SummerSlam rematch to retain the Cruiserweight Championship.[53] AtSuper Show-Down on October 6, Alexander lost the Cruiserweight Championship against Buddy Murphy, ending his reign at 181 days, and also marking his first televised loss in 2018.[54][55]
On the November 28 episode of205 Live, Alexander teamed with Mustafa Ali to defeat Murphy andTony Nese after Alexander pinned Murphy, this would earn him a title shot against Murphy.[56] AtTLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs, Alexander received his title rematch but failed to regain the title.[57]
In early 2019, Alexander competed in a tournament for a match for the title atWrestleMania 35, where Alexander lasted until the finals of the tournament, where he lost to Tony Nese.[58] On the March 26 episode of205 Live, he lost the match toAriya Daivari whenOney Lorcan cost his match.[59] On the April 16 episode of205 Live, Alexander lost his final match on 205 Live against Lorcan, and after the match, the two shook hands as a sign of respect, thus ending their brief feud.[60]
As part of the2019 WWE Superstar Shake-up, Alexander was drafted to theRawbrand.[61] On the April 22 episode ofRaw, Alexander would lose his debut match againstCesaro.[62] On the June 24 episode ofRaw, Alexander briefly won the24/7 Championship fromR-Truth before immediately losing it againstEC3 during a flurry of title changes.[63] On the July 8 episode ofRaw, Alexander, disguised as Gary Garbutt (originally played by the formerAAF'sMemphis Express president Kosha Irby), teamed withRoman Reigns in a losing effort againstDrew McIntyre andShane McMahon.[64] A week later onRaw, Alexander scored an upset victory over McIntyre, achieving his first victory on the brand.[65]
On the April 6, 2020 episode ofRaw, Alexander formed a tag team withRicochet as they defeated Oney Lorcan andDanny Burch.[72] In the following weeks, Alexander and Ricochet began feuding withThe Hurt Business (MVP,Bobby Lashley, andShelton Benjamin) after they injuredApollo Crews.[73] On the July 6 episode of Raw, after Alexander and Ricochet lost to MVP and Lashley, MVP approached Alexander and attempted to convince him to join his group with Lashley rather than being Ricochet's "sidekick".[74]On the August 13 episode of Raw, Alexander pinned Benjamin to win the 24/7 title for a second time only to lose it back to Benjamin later on in the night.
On the September 7 episode of Raw, Alexander attacked his tag team partners Ricochet and Apollo Crews during a six-man tag team match against The Hurt Business, thus joining The Hurt Business and turningheel for the first time in WWE.[73] Alexander began teaming with Benjamin as they feuded withThe New Day (Kofi Kingston andXavier Woods) for theWWE Raw Tag Team Championship. AtTLC, Alexander and Benjamin defeated New Day to win the WWE Raw Tag Team Championship,[75] only to lose them back to The New Day on the March 15, 2021 episode ofRaw.
On the March 29 episode ofRaw, Lashley lambasted Alexander and Benjamin due to them losing the Raw Tag Team Championships and losing to Drew McIntyre in a 2-on-1 handicap match, a loss that meant they'd be barred from ringside at Lashley'sWWE Championship match atWrestleMania 37 against McIntyre. This led to Lashley attacking Alexander and Benjamin, thus kicking them out of the faction in the process.[76] On the April 5 episode ofRaw, Alexander lost to Lashley in singles competition. In the following weeks, Alexander and Benjamin began a losing streak against teams such asThe Viking Raiders (Erik andIvar) twice, and toRK-Bro (Riddle andRandy Orton) once. On the May 3 episode of Raw, after losing toLucha House Party (Gran Metalik and Lince Dorado), Alexander insulted Benjamin and said that the team is done.
On the September 27 episode ofRaw, Alexander and Benjamin helped Lashley fight off The New Day and in the process, reuniting The Hurt Business.[77] On the November 22 episode ofRaw, Alexander defeatedReggie to win the 24/7 title for a third time, only to lose it toDana Brooke moments later.[78]Months later in January 2022, after not being seen together, Benjamin and Alexander approached Lashley under the assumption they were still a unit, only to be dismissed. This would cause the pair to launch a sneak attack that evening, but they were easily dealt with.[79]
After his tag team partner Shelton Benjamin got injured, Alexander would be involved in segments where he tried to get in on MVP andOmos' good side during their feud with Bobby Lashley, up untilHell in a Cell when Alexander distracted MVP and Omos during their 2-on-1 Handicap Match which allowed Lashley to pick up the victory. Later on, Lashley would confront Alexander backstage, questioning his motive behind the involvement, with Alexander saying that the distraction was for himself, and that he's "getting sick of being treated like an unwanted twerp", and is going to start standing on his own two feet, to which Lashley commended and both ended up shaking hands, therefore turning Alexanderface for the first time since 2020.[80] On August 8, 2022, Alexander defeated Benjamin in theMain Event tapings, effectively signaling the end of The Hurt Business.
On the January 9, 2023 episode ofRaw, Alexander and Benjamin reunited to take part in a Tag Team Turmoil match. Earlier during the show, Lashley and MVP teased an alliance, with MVP crediting himself for reuniting Benjamin and Alexander, and getting Lashley reinstated on Raw after being suspended.[81] On the February 6 edition ofRaw, Alexander and Benjamin defeatedAlpha Academy (Chad Gable andOtis) with MVP in their corner further hinting at a possible reunion. However, the reunion angle was quietly dropped shortly after although Alexander and Benjamin would continue teaming together until Benjamin's release on September 21, 2023, effectively disbanding the team.[82]
Following Benjamin's release,[83] Alexander subsequently returned to singles competition[84] and was quietly moved to theSmackDown brand in November. On the December 8 episode ofSmackDown, Alexander teamed up withAshante "Thee" Adonis in a dark match accompanied byB-Fab, where they would score a victory overPretty Deadly, with Adonis picking up the win.[85] On February 9, 2024 episode ofSmackDown, Alexander and Adonis appeared in a promo together, officially cementing their status as a tag team.[86][87]
On the July 9 episode ofNXT, Alexander and Adonis joined theNXT brand.[88] In his NXT debut match on the July 23 episode ofNXT, Alexander was defeated byTrick Williams.[89] AtNXT: The Great American Bash on July 30, Alexander defeatedBrooks Jensen to pick up his first win in NXT and his first singles match win since 2021.[90] Around September, Alexander quietly split from Adonis and formed an alliance withJe'Von Evans while acting as a mentor to Evans.[91] On the October 29 episode ofNXT, Alexander and Evans failed to defeatNXT Tag Team ChampionsNathan Frazer andAxiom for the titles after Evans was lured to the back byWes Lee, leaving Alexander to fend for himself at the closing stages of the match.[92] On the December 31 episode ofNXT, Alexander facedEthan Page, who had (kayfabe) crushed Evans' jaw two weeks ago. After losing the match, Page crushed Alexander's hand in a toolbox.[93] He then faced Page again on the January 28, 2025 episode ofNXT in a losing effort in what would be his final match for WWE.[94] On February 7, Alexander was released from WWE, ending his nine-year tenure with the company.[95][96]
In June 2018, Johnson married fellow professional wrestlerAerial Hull, who previously competed inAll Elite Wrestling under the ring name "Big Swole". They have one daughter.[100]
