| Hornswoggle | |
|---|---|
 Hornswoggle in 2019 | |
| Birth name | Dylan Mark Postl[1] |
| Born | (1986-05-29)May 29, 1986 (age 38)[2] Oshkosh, Wisconsin, U.S. |
| Children | 1 |
| Website | www |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Hornswoggle[2] Hornswoggle McMahon[2] Little Bastard[2] Mini Delirious[3] Mini-Gator[4] Shortstack[2] Swoggle[4] La Vaca[5] La Vaquita[6] The Big Deal[7] Hardcore Wonder[citation needed] AJ Swoggle[8] |
| Billed height | 4 ft 5 in (135 cm)[9][10] |
| Billed weight | 142 lb (64 kg)[10] |
| Billed from | Dublin,Ireland |
| Trained by | Ken Anderson[11] |
| Debut | 2004 |
YouTube information | |
| Channel | |
| Years active | 2006–present |
| Genre | Professional wrestling |
| Subscribers | 9.57 thousand[12] |
| Total views | 562 thousand[12] |
Dylan Mark Postl (born May 29, 1986) is an Americanprofessional wrestler andYouTuber. He is best known under thering nameHornswoggle. He is signed toWWE under a legends contract and performs on theindependent circuit, sometimes under the tweaked nameSwoggle. He is also known for his tenure inImpact Wrestling.
He debuted in WWE in 2006, allied withFinlay. Hornswoggle won theCruiserweight Championship and was the final champion in its first stint. He was then revealed, inkayfabe, to beVince McMahon'sbastard son, and was exposed as theAnonymous Raw General Manager who had controlled theRaw brand from June 21, 2010, to July 18, 2011. He left WWE in 2016. He also competed inImpact Wrestling from 2016 to 2020.
Postl started his career in the Fox Valley Wrestling Alliance (FVWA), under the ring name Hardcore Wonder.[citation needed] In 2005, Postl appeared withNational Wrestling Alliance territory NWA Wisconsin as"The World's Sexiest Midget" Shortstack, where he won the NWA Wisconsin X Division Championship.[2] He also won the SSW Tag Team Championship with Devin Diamond, from The Pretty Hott Thangs (Ryan Kross and Josh Maxim) on May 19, 2006, in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. He relinquished the title after signing a contract withWorld Wrestling Entertainment.
On May 26, 2006, Postl made his televised debut inBakersfield, California onSmackDown! as the characterLittle Bastard, theleprechaun partner of Northern Irish wrestlerFinlay.[2] After Finlay's victory overPaul Burchill, an extremely hyper, dirty, mysterious little man (Postl) in a leprechaun costume scurried out from under the ring and jumped on Burchill, laughing maniacally.[2] Finlay pulled him off, only to slam him back down onto Burchill again and again.[13] For the next few weeks, Postl continued to appear from under the ring after matches and attack Finlay's opponents.[2] He soon became more and more aggressive and started attacking Finlay's opponents during matches, much to Finlay's dismay.[2] At one point, he attacked Finlay, biting him when Finlay tried to stop him from attackingGunner Scott.[14] Little Bastard helped Finlay win theWWE United States Championship on the July 14 episode ofSmackDown! when he tossed him ashillelagh to knock out the championBobby Lashley and pick up the win.[15]
On February 23, 2007, the character's name was changed toHornswoggle on WWE's website and all references to the name "Little Bastard" were removed. The meaning of “hornswoggle” is to swindle, cheat, hoodwink, or hoax.[16] On the March 2 episode ofSmackDown!, Hornswoggle attackedJohn "Bradshaw" Layfield (JBL) andMichael Cole. Afterward, Finlay intimidated Cole, warning him to refer to Little Bastard as "Hornswoggle."[17] On the March 30 episode ofSmackDown!, Hornswoggle helped Finlay beatMr. Kennedy by performing asenton bomb off a stepladder onto Kennedy, essentially copying Kennedy's move, the Kenton Bomb.[2]SmackDown! announcers Michael Cole and JBL immediately referred to the move as the "Lepreton Bomb".[18] During theMoney in the Bank ladder match atWrestleMania 23 on April 1, Kennedy hit Hornswoggle with a Green Bay Plunge off of a ladder when Hornswoggle tried to interfere on the behalf on Finlay.[19] On the April 6 episode ofSmackDown!, Finlay attacked Kennedy after his match and challenged him to ahandicap match with Hornswoggle as Finlay's partner.[20] Before the match, Kennedy apologized for hurting Hornswoggle. Finlay accepted his apology and formed a team with Kennedy.[21]
Hornswoggle won theWWE Cruiserweight Championship after he pinnedJamie Noble in aCruiserweight Open atThe Great American Bash on July 22. The other participants and commentators were unaware that he was a participant in the match until thereferee counted thepin and awarded him the belt.[22] Hornswoggle then began a storylinefeud with Noble over the belt. The next week onSmackDown!, Hornswoggle retained the title when he defeated Noble bycountout.[23] He attacked Noble in the following weeks by shoving a pie in his face,[24] spraying him with afire extinguisher, pushing him intoKane and causing him to getchokeslammed, and locking him in a large box.[25]
On the September 10 episode ofRaw, the storyline involvingMr. McMahon'sillegitimate son culminated with the reveal that Hornswoggle was the illegitimate son. Hornswoggle's feud with Noble ended on the September 28 episode ofSmackDown! whenActing General ManagerVickie Guerrero forced Hornswoggle to surrender the Cruiserweight Championship (which was later retired), citing that his status as Mr. McMahon's son and his diminutive stature would eventually jeopardize his well-being.[26] Mr. McMahon began giving Hornswoggle matches against competitors that were much larger than him to show his son "tough love." Hornswoggle was placed into a match againstThe Great Khali atSurvivor Series on November 18. At Survivor Series, Khali defeated Hornswoggle bydisqualification when Finlay attacked Khali on Hornswoggle's behalf, turning both Hornswoggle and Finlayface.[27] This was the first time that Finlay appeared together with Hornswoggle since the beginning of the Hornswoggle and Mr. McMahon storyline. AtArmageddon on December 16, Finlay defeated Khali with the help of Hornswoggle.[28]
On the February 18, 2008 episode ofRaw, Hornswoggle had a scheduledsteel cage match against his father, Mr. McMahon.[29] During this match, Hornswoggle was whipped with a leather belt by Mr. McMahon. Finlay tried to get involved, but was attacked and handcuffed to the ring ropes by JBL.[29] Mr. McMahon left the ring and allowed JBL to beat up Hornswoggle while an enraged Finlay watched.[29] Following the attack, as a part of the storyline, WWE.com announced that Hornswoggle had suffered internal injuries, including bleeding of the brain and spinal trauma.[30] On the February 25 episode ofRaw, JBL claimed that Hornswoggle was not McMahon's son, but "in reality [was] the son of Finlay".[31] The next week onRaw, Finlay confirmed Hornswoggle was indeed his son, then was forced to watch helplessly as JBL assaulted Hornswoggle in his hospital bed.[32] Hornswoggle returned to live television atWrestleMania XXIV on March 30, accompanying Finlay to the ring for hisBelfast Brawl with JBL, once interfering by hitting JBL with a kendo stick, allowing Finlay to get the shot in with the shillelagh.[33] JBL won the match by hitting Finlay with the kendo stick in the shins and following up with theClothesline from Hell.[33] Original plans, however, were then revealed by Postl during an interview withChris Van Vliet in May 2024, that Finlay was planned to face McMahon for a championship, but plans were scrapped before the feud between the two men had ended.[34]
He made his in-ring return on the April 18 episode ofSmackDown, defeatingMatt Striker after aTadpole Splash.[35] As part of the2008 WWE Supplemental Draft, Hornswoggle was drafted to theECW brand along with Finlay.[36] AtNight of Champions on June 29, Hornswoggle and Finlay challengedJohn MorrisonandThe Miz for theWWE Tag Team Championship, but failed to win.
On April 15, 2009, Hornswoggle was drafted to the Raw brand, without Finlay, as part of the2009 Supplemental Draft.[37] Hornswoggle then entered into a feud withChavo Guerrero, in which they competed in a series of comedygimmick matches each week determined by the weekly Guest Host forRaw (Texas Bullrope Match, Blindfold Match, Falls Count Anywhere, etc.). The program began on the July 7 episode ofSuperstars and continued on toRaw. Hornswoggle won every match in this feud.
Hornswoggle's next storyline began the October 26 episode ofRaw, when after several weeks of wearingD-Generation X (DX) clothing, Hornswoggle received legal notification that he was no longer allowed to wear it. Later on in the night, he got his revenge by helping theRaw guest hosts,Kyle Busch andJoey Logano, put DX against each other andJohn Cena for theWWE Championship atSurvivor Series on November 22. On the December 21 episode ofRaw, Hornswoggle tried pressing charges against DX for assault on him, but later dropped them when DX agreed to make him DX's official mascot. On the January 18, 2010, episode ofRaw backstage, Hornswoggle and Triple H confrontedBig Show, The Miz andJon Heder. Triple H made the match a six-man tag team match: DX and Hornswoggle against Big Show, The Miz and Heder which ended after Hornswoggle pinned Heder.
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As part of the2010 WWE Supplemental Draft on WWE.com, Hornswoggle was drafted back to the SmackDown brand. On October 8 episode ofSmackDown, Hornswoggle was named the official mascot for the SmackDown team atBragging Rights. On the July 9, 2012, episode ofRaw, Hornswoggle was revealed as theAnonymous Raw General Manager, who previously ran the brand from June 2010 to July 2011.
On the season premiere ofNXT Redemption, Hornswoggle was revealed as the pro forTitus O'Neil.[38][39] After their tag team victory overDarren Young and Chavo Guerrero, Young attacked O'Neil. They later had a match against each other which Hornswoggle won. Hornswoggle was later confronted by O'Neil's previous NXT mentor,Zack Ryder. Ryder lured Titus out of the ring by pretending to attack Hornswoggle, but he quickly re-entered the ring and ambushed Titus as he climbed back in, cementing the victory. Weeks later, Hornswoggle was sent gifts from a secret admirer, assuming it to beMaryse. He responded by giving her gifts, only to be shot down. On July 26,AJ Lee revealed herself as the admirer by kissing him. AJ then accompanied Hornswoggle on bothNXT andSmackDown. Sometime later, Hornswoggle became jealous of O'Neil hugging AJ and eventually sent her a letter ending their relationship, as he no longer wanted to be onNXT and preferred to stay onSmackDown.
On November 29, 2011, holiday edition ofSmackDown, Hornswoggle won a battle royal, by lastly eliminatingSheamus, to receive a wish from Santa Claus (Mick Foley). With help from Sheamus, Hornswoggle wished for the ability to verbally communicate. With this ability, Hornswoggle became the special guest ring announcer for theDavid Otunga and Sheamus match on the following week'sSmackDown. On January 6, 2012, episode ofSmackDown he defeatedHeath Slater in an Over-the-Top Rope Challenge. Later that month, Hornswoggle formed an alliance withJustin Gabriel, feuding with the former Intercontinental ChampionCody Rhodes and Heath Slater, he also accompanied Gabriel to the ring at theElimination Chamber pay-per-view in a losing effort againstUnited States ChampionJack Swagger. On March 23 episode ofSmackDown, Hornswoggle was added toTheodore Long'sWrestleMania XXVIII team as its personal mascot.[40]
He made a return on October 12, 2012, when he was found with aRandy Orton doll.Ricardo Rodriguez wrecked it and continued looking for the real Orton. After a period of inactivity, he returned toRaw in November, associating himself withThe Great Khali andNatalya. He was injured (storyline) byBig E Langston on January 11, 2013, episode ofSmackDown, after Khali and Natalya lost toDolph Ziggler andAJ Lee. He returned on March 17 episode ofRaw, to celebrateSt. Patrick's Day, only to be interrupted byBad News Barrett.
On the April 15, 2014, episode ofMain Event, Hornswoggle turnedheel for the first time since 2007 after revealing himself as the mascot for3MB (Heath Slater,Drew McIntyre andJinder Mahal). In the following months, he facedEl Torito numerous times, losing aWeeLC match atExtreme Rules (Postl says this was the best match of his career[41]) and ahair match atPayback, resulting in his head being shaved. On June 12, 2014, McIntyre and Mahal were released by WWE, and ending 3MB. In July onSuperstars, Hornswoggle accompanied Slater for his match withAdam Rose, and was kidnapped by the Rosebuds, who transformed him into a mini-Rose. On August 19 episode ofMain Event, Hornswoggle turned face once again when he joined his former rivals,Los Matadores (including El Torito), as their second valet. He donned a cow suit and was referred to asLa Vaquita (meaning "the little cow"), to complement El Torito, who was dressed as a tiny bull. Los Matadores went on to be defeated by Heath Slater and Titus O'Neil.[42] That same week, onSuperstars, his name was tweaked toLa Vaca (meaning "the cow"), when he teamed with El Torito to defeat Slater and O'Neil. On September 29 episode ofRaw, Hornswoggle reverted back to a heel and became Slater and O'Neil's (Slater-Gator) mascot,the Mini-Gator. After the breakup of Slater-Gator, Hornswoggle took time off from WWE television to undergo arthroscopic shoulder decompression surgery in March 2015.
On September 28, 2015, WWE announced Hornswoggle's thirty-day suspension for violating the company's Wellness policy.[43] After not having made any appearances in WWE since then, Hornswoggle was released from WWE on May 6, 2016.[44]
On April 27, 2018, Postl returned in theGreatest Royal Rumble event, eliminatingDash Wilder, before being eliminated himself byTony Nese.[45] On January 27, 2019, Postl made an appearance atRoyal Rumble, chasingZelina Vega during the Women's Rumble match. WWE contacted him to appear at Backlash 2020 in a pre-taped match between The Street Profits and Viking Raiders. Despite taping his part, his segment wasn't aired.[46]
Following his release from WWE, Postl returned to his hometown promotion ACW.[47] Postl also signed to appear at a show co-promoted byGlobal Force Wrestling and WrestlePro under the ring name Swoggle and debuted for the promotion on June 11, facingBrian Myers.[48] Swoggle won after Myers knocked down the referee and while the ref was down, Grim fromGrim's Toy Show interfered against Myers with a full nelson slam. Swoggle did a tadpole splash on the incapacitated Myers and won by pinfall. On July 6,Chikara announced that Postl would be debuting for the promotion on July 23 under the ring name The Big Deal.[7] On March 30 atWrestleCon, Postl, under the Swoggle ring name, defeatedGrado.
On the December 15, 2016, episode ofImpact Wrestling, titledTotal Nonstop Deletion, Swoggle made an appearance as the partner ofRockstar Spud in the Tag Team Apocalypto match. After turning on Spud in the Tag Team Apocalypto, Swoggle would square off withLashley and knocked himself out when he attempted a spear on Lashley. He would then appear on January 5, 2017, episode ofImpact Wrestling, where he would defeat Rockstar Spud, causing Spud to quit. On January 19, episode ofImpact Wrestling, he would then team up withRobbie E in a losing effort againstAron Rex and Spud. On April 27 episode ofImpact Wrestling, Swoggle was paying Rockstar Spud some attention and ruffled Spud's hair in what was intended to be an amusing gimmick with the fans - however Spud took exception to this and as he was chasing Swoggle, the situation concluded with Swoggle running up the entrance ramp, after losing his trousers (pants). Later that same show, Swoggle would viciously attack Spud using a hammer, causing unknown leg injuries. On June 1, Spud returned toImpact, entering through the crowd and attacking Swoggle with a hammer, like Swoggle had done to him. On November 13, 2017, his profile was officially removed from Impact Wrestling's website confirming his departure from the company.
Swoggle returned to Impact Wrestling atBound for Glory 2019 where Swoggle competed in theBound for Gold gauntlet match which was won byEddie Edwards.[49][50]
On October 24, 2020, Swoggle made another surprise return to Impact Wrestling atBound for Glory 2020, where he competed in the Call Your Shot Gauntlet Battle Royal, which was won by Rhyno. On the October 27 episode ofImpact, Swoggle helpedTommy Dreamer in defeatingBrian Myers in ahardcore match by hitting Myers with a low blow. Later, it was announced that Myers would face Swoggle in a match atTurning Point. At the event he lost against Myers.
On November 24, 2020, Swoggle appeared asAJ Swoggle, a parody of wrestlerAJ Styles, and defeatedEthan Page with the help ofKarl Anderson.[51]
Swoggle competed November 3 at ROH Unauthorized, disguised as "Mini Delirious", the tag partner ofDelirious. He unmasked after they lost toEl Jefe Cobbo andEl Villainisto, based on the match's stipulation.[3] This was broadcast on TV on December 16.
Swoggle made a cameo on the November 18, 2020, episode ofAEW Dynamite duringThe Inner Circle's trip to Las Vegas.[52]
Postl made his boxing debut on April 24, 2021, at Rough n Rowdy’s event. He was defeated by Jeremy Smith.[53]
On May 1, 2018, it was announced that Postl was working on an autobiography with Ross Owen Williams, the writer ofBob Holly andAl Snow's autobiographies, and Ian Douglass, the writer ofDan Severn andBugsy McGraw's autobiographies. It was advertised that the book would "delve into the physical and emotional challenges of being a little person in both a big person's world and, often, a large person's industry, as well as charting Dylan's emotional path to parenthood, and varied relationships within his own family." The bookLife Is Short And So Am I was officially released byECW Press on September 10, 2019, and it included forewords by Postl's close friendsKofi Kingston andCurt Hawkins.[54]
WWE executiveStephanie McMahon posted her support for the book on Twitter on the day of its release.[55] The book also received a public endorsement fromDolph Ziggler.[56]
Postl starred in the filmLeprechaun: Origins, a reboot of theLeprechaun film series. Hornswoggle regularly appeared in the WWEweb seriesThe JBL and Cole Show, until its cancellation in 2015.
In a 2022 interview regarding the controversy stemming fromPeter Dinklage's statements towards theupcoming live-action remake ofSnow White and the Seven Dwarfs where he denouncedDisney for perpetuating stereotypes associated with people with dwarfism, Postl voiced his disagreement with Dinklage where he, along with other dwarf actors, accused Dinklage ofvirtue signaling and opined that Dinklage's condemnation of the Seven Dwarfs' portrayal, and Disney's replacement of them with anonymous "magical creatures" and portrayed byvoice actors, would have deprived dwarf actors of a possible starring role in a film based on an established property, denouncing Dinklage as "hypocritical" and "selfish".[57][58][59]
| Year | Title | Roles | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Muppets Most Wanted | Russian Prisoner | |
| 2014 | Leprechaun: Origins | Tuatha Dé Danann/Leprechaun | credited as Dylan "Hornswoggle" Postl |
| Year | Title | Roles | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Wreckless Eating | Himself | 1 episode |
| 2013–2015 | The JBL and Renee Show | Himself, The Bear | recurring role |
| 2015 | Swerved | Himself | 3 episodes |
| 2018 | Where Are They Now? | Hornswoggle | 1 episode |
Postl is a single father and has a son, named Landon.[60][61]
Postl made hisvideo game debut asFinlay'smanager inWWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009 and subsequently last appeared inWWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2011.
| Winner (wager) | Loser (wager) | Location | Event | Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| El Torito (mask) | Hornswoggle (hair) | Chicago, Illinois | Payback | June 1, 2014 |
The mysterious luchadors scored the win after Cobbo hit a standing moonsault on Mini Delirious. Per the match stipulation, which stated that the loser of the fall must unmask and shag his wife, Mini Delirious revealed himself to be Swoggle
,Wrestlingdata.com,Internet Wrestling Database| International | |
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