Matt Morgan | |
|---|---|
.jpg) | |
| Deputy Mayor ofLongwood, Florida | |
| Assumed office November 20, 2023 | |
| Preceded by | Mark Weller |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Matthew Thomas Morgan[1] (1976-09-10)September 10, 1976 (age 49)[1] Fairfield, Connecticut, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 1 |
| Education | Monmouth University Chaminade University |
| Occupation |
|
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Gomora[2] Matt Morgan[2] The Blueprint[2] |
| Billed height | 6 ft 10 in (208 cm)[3] |
| Billed weight | 320 lb (145 kg)[3] |
| Billed from | Fairfield, Connecticut[4] |
| Trained by | Al Snow Hardcore Holly |
| Debut | October 2, 2002[2] |
| Retired | March 16, 2019[5] |
Matthew Thomas Morgan[1] (born September 10, 1976)[1] is an American politician and retiredprofessional wrestler. He is known for his time inWorld Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), where he performed on theSmackDownbrand, andTotal Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), where he is a two-timeTNA World Tag Team Champion. He is the formermayor and current deputy mayor of the city ofLongwood, Florida. Morgan also appeared onAmerican Gladiators.
Matthew Thomas Morgan was born inFairfield, Connecticut, on September 10, 1976.[1]
After a successful high school basketball career at Fairfield High School in Connecticut, Morgan playedDivision Icollege basketball forMonmouth University at center position.[6] During Morgan's freshman year at the university, the Monmouth Hawks defeatedRider University to become theNortheast Conference champions. By winning the conference tournament, Monmouth received an automatic bid to the 1996 NCAA tournament.
Of his trip to the tournament, Morgan said, "it was fun to be able to say that you actually played in the NCAA tournament and actually got some minutes. I didn’t score, but at least I got in as a freshman, which was cool."[7] Monmouth lost toMarquette University in the first round of the tournament by a final score of 68–44.[8]
Following a coaching change at Monmouth, Morgan transferred toChaminade University in Hawaii, where he finished his college basketball career and graduated inpublic speaking.[9][10] While at Chaminade, Morgan played in theMaui Invitational against the number one rankedDuke Blue Devils.
Morgan participated in tryouts for the NBA teamsIndiana Pacers andToronto Raptors, but he was not offered a contract by either team.
Morgan was first introduced to the World Wrestling Federation when he entered as part of itsTough Enough II program but left the show early due to an injury. In April 2002, Morgan signed a developmental deal with World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and was assigned toOhio Valley Wrestling (OVW). He made his OVW debut on October 2, 2002, at the OVW TV Tapings as "The Blueprint" Matt Morgan teaming withMark Jindrak, defeatingTravis Bane andLance Cade.[11] He wrestled there sporadically (usually winning handicap matches)[12][13] until October 2003 when he was called up to theSmackDown brand.
Prior to his WWE main roster debut, Morgan was originally earmarked to becomeKane'sstoryline brother named "Abel" wearing a mask even though the plans were scrapped and a similar role was given toDrew Hankinson years later.[14]
Morgan then made his debut on the October 30, 2003, episode ofSmackDown! and was chosen with the returningNathan Jones by thenGeneral Manager of SmackDown!,Paul Heyman, to join Team Lesnar, which consisted of Morgan, Jones,Brock Lesnar,Big Show andA-Train.[15] It was hinted that Morgan and Jones would be a tag team, but their only tag team match was at theSurvivor Series pay-per-view on November 16, when they took on Team Angle (not the stable introduced one year earlier, but a one-off combination of five wrestlers). They lost to Team Angle in a ten-personelimination tag team match at Survivor Series; Morgan was eliminated from the match byKurt Angle after Angle gave Morgan anAngle Slam.[16] Morgan was then used to makerun-ins along with the other members of Team Lesnar, helping Lesnar against his opponents.
Soon thereafter, Jones quit WWE, so Morgan occasionally teamed with Lesnar. He teamed up with Lesnar, Big Show, andRhyno in a four-on-two Handicap match againstChris Benoit andJohn Cena on the January 22, 2004, episode ofSmackDown!, in a losing effort.[17] On January 25, he competed in the2004 Royal Rumble match, in which the winner would get a title shot against their brand's champion atWrestleMania XX; he eliminatedThe Hurricane but was eliminated by Chris Benoit.
After Brock Lesnar quit WWE, Morgan was written off television with an unmentioned injury and sent back to OVW for further development and experience, wrestling again as "The Blueprint" Matt Morgan and on April 14, 2004, he defeatedNick Dinsmore to become theOVW Heavyweight Champion.[18][19] He held the title for almost six months before losing it to Chris Cage on October 13, 2004.[19] Since the stipulation was that if Morgan lost he would "never show his face again" in OVW, he began wearing a mask to the ring and tweaked his name to simply The Blueprint. He would regain the OVW Heavyweight Championship on April 13, 2005, at an OVW live event after defeatingElijah Burke, but lost the title 17 days later toBrent Albright on April 30 after Albright hit Morgan with acrowbar.[2]
Morgan returned to WWE on the April 21, 2005, episode ofSmackDown!, with a newgimmick as astuttering big-man who was defensive over hisspeech disorder, andquickly defeated a then-unknownjobber,Brett Matthews.[20] On the May 19 episode ofSmackDown!, he allied himself withCarlito and became his"backup".[21] Morgan helped Carlito defeat Big Show atJudgment Day on May 22, using Lesnar's former finisher, theF-5.[22][23] This partnership ended when Carlito was drafted toRaw,[24] and Morgan was subsequently released by WWE on July 5, 2005.[25][26] His last match in WWE was on the July 7 episode ofSmackDown! againstWilliam Regal, although technically the match never took place as Morgan was attacked by TheMexicools before Regal ever got to the ring.[27]
Morgan toured withNew Japan Pro-Wrestling in late 2005, defeatingYuji Nagata in his debut match. He was being pushed as a "monster gaijin" and along with Brock Lesnar, was expected to become one of NJPW's top foreign wrestlers, but plans for this were abandoned when he decided to leave NJPW to go toAll Japan Pro Wrestling. Morgan debuted in All Japan Pro Wrestling as a member ofTaka Michinoku's foreigner-orientedRO&D faction. He andMark Jindrak wrestled forHUSTLE as a tag team under the names of Sodom and Gomora.
Morgan also worked for NWE Wrestling in Italy and Rings of Europe in Austria, where he participated as the Monster Heel in a 20 Men Rumble Match. He andJoe Legend became allies but were unable to defeat Austrian HeroBig van Walter in the end.
Morgan debuted inTotal Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) on the August 7, 2007, episode ofTNA Today, appearing briefly in the background of a segment featuringEric Young andJeremy Borash.[2] On the August 9 episode ofTNA Impact!, Morgan appeared alongside formerTNA Management DirectorJim Cornette, with TNA later identifying him as Cornette's "backup".[28] Morgan was theSpecial Enforcer in theSamoa Joe andChristian Cage match atBound for Glory on October 14, preventingChristian's Coalition from interfering as Joe gave Cage his first true defeat in TNA.[29] Morgan had to restrainTomko andA.J. Styles on the edition of October 18 ofImpact! when they tried interfering in the main event helping Christian defeat Samoa Joe in a Fight For The Right Qualifying match.[2]
On the April 3, 2008, edition ofTNA Impact!, it was revealed that Morgan allowed Team Tomko to addJames Storm to their team, giving them a five-to-four advantage heading intoLockdown; however, at the end of the program, it was revealed that Morgan himself had joined Team Cage.[30] The next week, Jim Cornette relieved Morgan of his assistant duties to become a full-time wrestler. With Morgan joiningTeam Cage, he established himself as aface, and went back to his old OVW nickname, "The Blueprint". Morgan teamed up withKip James atSacrifice on May 11 as a result of theDeuces Wild Tag Team Tournament draw.[31] They failed to win the tag titles as James and Morgan could not get along long enough.[31] He then began to feud withThe Rock 'n Rave Infection after defeatingJimmy Rave in less than two minutes on July 17.[32]Lance Rock immediately challenged Morgan to a match right there, and Morgansquashed him.[32]
In August, Morgan entered a tag team up withAbyss. The storyline was an additional chapter in the "Abyss' humanisation" storyline. Since his return to television, Abyss had portrayed an emotionally vulnerable character, exaggerating the meaning behind every gesture he received. Abyss saw Morgan as his best friend and was desperate not to displease him. But Abyss' new sensitivity made him more naive, thus causing him to make simple errors that cost the team matches. Through time, Morgan would go from understanding to frustrated over Abyss' errors. They feuded briefly withTeam 3D. The duo defeated Team 3D atNo Surrender, but lost atBound for Glory IV on October 12 in a Monster's Ball match for theTNA World Tag Team Championship, whichBeer Money, Inc. won.[33][34] AtFinal Resolution on December 7, Morgan and Abyss lost again when Storm hit Abyss with brass knuckles when the referee was distracted.[35][36] They gained a third opportunity at the belts atGenesis on January 11, 2009, in a three-way match against Beer Money, Inc. and then-championsJay Lethal andConsequences Creed. During the match, Abyss accidentally knocked Morgan out with one of the championship belts, causing him to be pinned by Beer Money.[37]
On the followingImpact!, the team fought against Lethal and Creed in a number one contenders match for the tag team championship, which ended with Morgan once again being pinned because of Abyss.[38] On the January 23 episode ofImpact!, Morgan and Abyss battled Beer Money, Inc. in a non-title first blood match. Towards the end of the match, Morgan turned on Abyss after hitting him with a steel chair, causing him to bleed, giving Storm and Roode the win and turningheel in the process.[39] Morgan was defeated atAgainst All Odds on February 8 in a standard match,[2] but defeated Abyss in a Match of 10,000 Tacks atDestination X on March 15.[2] The feud ended atLockdown on April 19, in a Doomsday Chamber of Blood Match, in which neither wrestler could be legally pinned were he not bleeding. Morgan won after interference by Abyss' psychiatrist, Dr. Stevie, by hitting Abyss with a back low blow and then achokebomb onto a pile of tacks.[2]
The following weeks Morgan began a campaign to convince the heel stableThe Main Event Mafia to allow him to join them and become a member. He was aware that the current members of the Mafia were all former World Champions, but realizing that Team 3D,Kip James andAl Snow had been invited into the Mafia (Team 3D refused, and James and Snow were rejected), Morgan felt he should have been invited too. He facedSting atSlammiversary on June 21, but was unable to defeat him and was thus barred from joining the Mafia.[40] AtVictory Road on July 19 he defeatedDaniels to regain the Mafia's favor.[41] On the August 13 episode ofImpact!, Morgan defeated A.J. Styles in the deciding match of a "Best of Three Series" to secure his place in a triple threat match for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship atHard Justice on August 16 also involving Sting andKurt Angle.[42] He lost at Hard Justice after Angle hit him with a steel chair.[43] AtNo Surrender on September 20, Morgan competed in a re-match that also featured A.J. Styles andHernandez, who used his "Feast or Fired" contract to include himself in the match, but was removed after a few minutes when he sustained an injury at the hands of Eric Young. During the match, Styles attempted a front flip senton from the apron onto Morgan outside of the ring, at the same moment Angle attempted to attack Morgan, but accidentally got struck by Styles instead. Morgan seemingly took this as a friendly gesture and agreed to assist Angle for the remainder of the match. But when Angle seemed set to win, Morgan turned on Angle and cost him theTNA World Heavyweight Championship, turning into aface in the process.[44] On the September 24 episode ofImpact!, Morgan cemented his newfound disinterest in the Main Event Mafia when he teamed with Hernandez to defeat Kurt Angle and Eric Young, which also solidified his status as a face.[45] Later that night, Morgan teamed with former rival Abyss to defeat Kurt Angle andMick Foley. Another week later, on the October 1 episode ofImpact!, Matt Morgan defeated Eric Young. On October 5 Morgan announced on hisTwitter page that he had signed a new 5-year deal with TNA.[46] Morgan's feud with Angle culminated in a singles match atBound for Glory on October 18, where despite Morgan's loss, he managed to gain Angle's respect.[47] This match practically ended the Main Event Mafia.
Morgan then teamed up with Hernandez andD'Angelo Dinero and moved on to feuding withRhino and Team 3D, who accused TNA of favoring the younger talent of the company.[48] AtTurning Point on November 15, Rhino and Team 3D defeated Morgan, Hernandez and Dinero in a street fight.[49] The next night, the two teams had a re-match which ended the same way afterJesse Neal returned and attacked Hernandez with a steel chair. It was announced that the two teams would face of atFinal Resolution on December 20 in an elimination match, but both teams were required to have four members. Team 3D immediately enlisted Neal, while Dinero pursuedSuicide's help. Both teams fought in a regular tag match to determine an additional stipulation on the forthcoming match at Final Resolution. The match at Final Resolution would begin as a 4-on-1 handicap match, but if the disadvantaged wrestler survived the first 5 minutes his partners would then join the match, turning it into an eight-man elimination tag team match. Neal pinned Hernandez, meaning that Hernandez and his team would be disadvantaged at Final Resolution. At the pay-per-view Morgan, Hernandez (who survived), Dinero and Suicide defeated Jesse Neal, Team 3D and Rhino, with Morgan scoring the deciding fall onBrother Ray.[50]
On the January 4, 2010, live, three-hour, Monday night episode ofImpact! Morgan and Hernandez defeated Dr. Stevie andRaven to become the number one contenders to the TNA World Tag Team ChampionsBritish Invasion (Brutus Magnus andDoug Williams) atGenesis on January 17.[51] At Genesis, Morgan and Hernandez defeated the British Invasion to win the TNA World Tag Team Championship, his first major championship.[52] AtAgainst All Odds on February 14, as part of the8 Card Stud Tournament, Morgan and Hernandez were forced to face each other in the first round. Morgan defeated Hernandez by taking advantage of his injured shoulder and pinning him, while grabbing a hold of his trunks. However, in the semifinals Morgan was defeated by the eventual winner of the entire tournament, D'Angelo Dinero.[53] AtDestination X on March 21, Morgan and Hernandez retained the Tag Team Titles in a match against Beer Money despite plenty of miscommunication between the two champions. After the match Morgan nailed Hernandez with the Carbon Footprint and left with both title belts, turningheel in the process.[54] The following day onImpact! Morgan defeated Hernandez via referee stoppage after sandwiching his head between his boot and the ring post, putting him out of action indefinitely.[55] With Hernandez scheduled to miss months of action, Morgan declared himself the sole World Tag Team Champion on the edition of April 5 ofImpact! and TNA went along with this and recognized him as the sole Champion.[56] Morgan then went on to successfully defend the World Tag Team Title while teaming with the likes ofAmazing Red,Shark Boy and Jesse Neal as his substitute partners, attacking each of them after the matches.[57][58][59] On the May 3 episode ofImpact! it was announced that Morgan would defend the World Tag Team Championship atSacrifice on May 16 against Jesse Neal andShannon Moore, both of whom he had attacked in the two previous weeks, and thatHulk Hogan would decide his partner for the match.[60] On the May 13 episode ofImpact! Morgan demanded to find out who his partner would be and when he did not get an answer, threatened to turn his match againstGeneration Me (Jeremy and Max Buck) into a bloodbath. However, Samoa Joe came to the ring to put a stop to this and hit Morgan with aMuscle Buster. This led toThe Band coming out andKevin Nash cashing in his "Feast or Fired" contract, after which he pinned Morgan to make himself andScott Hall the new World Tag Team Champions.[61] On the June 3 episode ofImpact!, Morgan was distracted by somebody in the crowd which cost him a four-way match with Samoa Joe, Sting, and the winner of the match, TNA World Heavyweight ChampionRob Van Dam. The camera's immediately showed what was distracting Morgan, but nobody could clearly see who it was, althoughTaz andMike Tenay believed it to be Hernandez.[62] The following week, Hernandez made his official return by attacking Morgan. After the attack The Band gave the injured Morgan the rematch he had wanted for the World Tag Team Championship and easily defeated him to retain the title.[63] AtSlammiversary VIII on June 13, Morgan defeated Hernandez via disqualification, when Hernandez was disqualified for shoving the referee, when he had gotten enough of him reprimanding him for going after Morgan.[64] The following month atVictory Road on July 11, Morgan was defeated by Hernandez in aSteel Cage match.[65]
On the August 12 episode ofImpact! Morgan joinedRic Flair'sFortune (originally spelled Fourtune) stable, as he, A.J. Styles,Kazarian,Robert Roode, James Storm and Douglas Williams attackedEV 2.0, a stable consisting of formerExtreme Championship Wrestling performers.[66] AtBound for Glory on October 10, Morgan, Styles, Kazarian, Roode and Storm were defeated in aLethal Lockdown match by EV 2.0 membersTommy Dreamer, Raven, Rhino,Sabu andStevie Richards.[67] On the following edition ofImpact! Fortune formed an alliance with Hulk Hogan's andEric Bischoff's new stable,Immortal.[68] However, Morgan would be kicked out of Fortune after he faced Jeff Hardy for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship, turning him into a face.[69] He would have two titles matches atTurning Point on November 7 andFinal Resolution on December 5, but he lost both times.[70][71][72]
AtGenesis on January 9, 2011, Morgan was defeated by Mr. Anderson in a number one contender's match.[73] On the February 10 episode ofImpact!, Morgan received a shot at Anderson's TNA World Heavyweight Championship, but was defeated following interference from the returning Hernandez, who made his first TNA appearance in over six months.[74] On the March 3 episode ofImpact! Morgan defeated Hernandez via disqualification.[75] On March 13 atVictory Road, Hernandez defeated Morgan in a First Blood match, after using fake blood on him, following a distraction from aplanted fan, later identified asAnarquia, the newest member of Hernandez'sMexican America stable.[76] On April 17 atLockdown, Morgan defeated Hernandez in a steel cage match to win the feud.[77] With his feud with Hernandez behind him, Morgan announced his intention of going for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship on the following edition ofImpact!, but was interrupted byScott Steiner who claimed to be next in line for the shot, before laying Morgan out with a low blow.[78] On June 12 atSlammiversary IX, Morgan defeated Steiner in a singles match.[79] Later that month, Morgan entered theBound for Glory Series to determine a number one contender for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship. On the July 21 episode ofImpact Wrestling, Morgan won a four-man ladder match to climb to number three spot in the tournament's rankings, however, just four days later it was reported that Morgan had torn his pectoral muscle, which would sideline him for six weeks, ending his participation in the tournament.[80][81][82] Over the following weeks, Morgan was on commentary for the Bound for Glory Series matches.[83][84] On August 29 it was reported that Morgan had been cleared to return to the ring.[85]
Heading to Bound for Glory, Morgan started a feud with Samoa Joe, who had vowed to ruin the Bound for Glory Series.[86] On September 11 atNo Surrender, Morgan defeated Joe in a grudge match,[87] but lost against him on the following edition ofImpact Wrestling in a submission match.[88] AtBound for Glory, they would have a triple threat match also including the eventual winnerCrimson.[89] On November 13 atTurning Point, Morgan wrestled Crimson to a double disqualification.[90] On the following edition ofImpact Wrestling, Morgan and Crimson defeated Mexican America to win the TNA World Tag Team Championship.[91] They would defend the titles against Mexican America,[92] D'Angelo Dinero andDevon,[93] and Magnus and Samoa Joe,[94] until February 12, where they lost the championship atAgainst All Odds against Magnus and Joe in a rematch.[95] They would try to regain the titles two times, but failed.[96] After their second match atVictory Road, when Crimson turned on Morgan.[97] On April 15 atLockdown, Morgan was defeated by Crimson in a steel cage match.[98] On the edition of May 10 ofImpact Wrestling, Morgan and Crimson were set to face each other in what was billed as their "final confrontation", however, before the match could start, Morgan was attacked byBully Ray. After Morgan was stretchered away, Crimson was given a countout victory.[99] In an interview on June 14, Morgan expressed frustration with TNA management and confirmed that his contract with the promotion would be up soon.[100] Working exclusively onhouse shows for his last month with TNA, Morgan finished his commitments with the promotion on June 16.[101]
Morgan made a surprise return to TNA at a house show inBethlehem, Pennsylvania, on September 15, entering through the crowd in street clothes, hopping a guardrail and attacking Robbie E.[102][103] The following night at another house show inWilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, Morgan entered the ring after a match between James Storm and Jeff Hardy, delivering a Carbon Footprint to referee Brian Stiffler.[104] The second appearance was later broadcast on the October 4 episode ofImpact Wrestling, whereBruce Prichard was lecturingD'Lo Brown about the incident.[105] Morgan returned to pay-per-view on October 14 atBound for Glory, helpingJoey Ryan defeat Al Snow to earn a TNA contract thus establishing himself as aheel.[106] The followingImpact Wrestling, Morgan explained his actions, claiming that Hulk Hogan had not delivered on his promises; Hogan in turn blamed the TNA creative about Morgan's treatment.[107] While Morgan continued to vilify Hogan, it was insinuated that Hogan was just trying to rile him up, while secretly backing him.[107][108] Morgan competed in his return match on the November 29 episode ofImpact Wrestling, defeating Douglas Williams.[109] On December 9 atFinal Resolution, Morgan and Ryan unsuccessfully challengedChavo Guerrero Jr. and Hernandez for the TNA World Tag Team Championship, after losing to them via disqualification.[110] Morgan and Ryan challenged Guerrero and Hernandez again on January 13, 2013, atGenesis, but were again unsuccessful in winning their titles.[111] In March, Morgan began "cleaning up the messes" that Hulk Hogan had made, beginning with attacks on World Heavyweight Champion Jeff Hardy andJoseph Park.[112][113] The attack on Park resulted in a singles match on the March 21 episode ofImpact Wrestling, where Morgan emerged victorious.[114] On the April 25 episode ofImpact Wrestling, Morgan confronted Hogan and offered his services to take out theAces & Eights, in exchange for being named the number one contender for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship atSlammiversary, but was firmly denied.[115] The following week, Morgan faced Sting in a number one contenders match for the World Heavyweight Championship, which Sting won after locking Morgan in theScorpion Deathlock and making him pass out.[116] Morgan's last appearance for the company was on the June 13 episode ofImpact Wrestling, where he was defeated by Magnus in a four-way2013 Bound for Glory Series qualifying match, which also includedKenny King andRob Terry.[117] After initially asking that same month, TNA granted Morgan his release from the company on July 9.[118]
Morgan debuted forAAA on June 16, 2013, atTriplemanía XXI, where he, Jeff Jarrett, andMonster Pain defeatedAAA World Trios ChampionsLos Psycho Circus (Monster Clown,Murder Clown andPsycho Clown) in a non-title match.[119]
Morgan made his first wrestling appearance since departing from TNA on August 31, 2013, atNWAFlorida Underground Wrestling'sThrowdown 6, defeatingKenneth Cameron.[120] Morgan returned to NWA-FUW on October 26, defeating The Grease to win theNWA Florida Heavyweight Championship.[121] In November, Morgan made successful title defenses against Leo Gold,[122] Deimos,[123] and The Titan.[124]
Morgan made his debut forFamily Wrestling Entertainment on October 12, 2013, at their Grand Prix iPPV, unsuccessfully challengingJohn Hennigan for the FWE Heavyweight Championship.[125] Morgan returned to FWE on December 7 for their one-night tournament, losing toTed DiBiase Jr. via count-out in the opening round.[126]
In January 2014, Morgan announced his retirement from professional wrestling full-time[127] in order to be with his wife and new born son, as well as begin a career as a regional manager for a "big-timemedical device company". Morgan has stated that while he has a great love for professional wrestling and all the opportunities it afforded him, that his biggest dream in life was to be a father and so he had to take a job that allowed him to be home every night with his son, something he would not be able to do as a full-time wrestler.[128] In an interview withChris Van Vliet in February 2023, Morgan also spoke he was intended to return to WWE in the2014 Royal Rumble event using The Blueprint gimmick he used in TNA but his son was born on January 7, days before the event and plans for it were then shelved.[129]
On June 24, 2015, Morgan returned to TNA as a face, after saving the returningVader from an attack fromBram. It was soon announced that Morgan would face Bram atSlammiversary. At Slammiversary, Bram defeated Morgan after performingThe Brighter Side of Suffering onto a steel chair.[130] Morgan later confirmed that the match was a one-time deal only in order to give his son the chance to see him wrestle.[131]
On the April 6, 2017 edition of Impact, Morgan made his return as the third pick on TeamJeremy Borash, joiningChris Adonis,Magnus andAlberto El Patrón.[132] The foursome would defeat TeamJosh Mathews (Bram,Eli Drake,Lashley andTyrus) the following week.[133] Morgan's next match was for theGFW Global Championship on Impact's May 4 episode; he would lose after suffering a low blow followed by aMichinoku Driver from then champion Magnus, solidifying the latter's heel turn.[134] This would be Morgan's final appearance as he was granted his release request on July 24 by GFW, which was now Impact Wrestling renamed following its merger with Jarrett's promotion on April 20.[135] Morgan says he had only agreed to return because Impact was close to his home, only taped on the weekends and did not tour, and therefore would not interfere with his other 9 to 5 career. This changed when GFW started taping its shows on weekdays and planning to travel, and so Morgan wanted out of the promotion.[136]
On March 16, 2019, Morgan returned to theindependent circuit where he wrestled the final match of his career, teaming with Deon James to defeat Braydon Knight and Chico Adams with Eric Christopher as their manager in a tag team match.[137][138]
On the June 9, 2022, episode ofImpact!, Morgan made a one night return and was interviewed byGia Miller to talk about his career with the company until being interrupted byVincent.[139][140]
In 2017, Morgan ran for public office, defeating incumbent Mark Weller as District 4 City Commissioner ofLongwood, Florida.[141] He changed his political affiliation from Democrat to Republican the same month he filed to run for office in the majority Republican county.[142][143] He served as mayor of Longwood from May 7, 2019, until September 2020.[144][145] Morgan ran forSeminole County Commission in 2020 and lost to incumbent Bob Dallari, who received 60.1% of the vote to Morgan's 39.9%.[146] He serves as District 4 City Commissioner of Longwood, Florida after his defeat.[145]
Morgan was linked to formertax collector of Seminole CountyJoel Greenberg, via payments that Greenberg's office made to Morgan's company, Blueprint Enterprises, for consulting jobs. However, auditors wrote that they could find "no evidence of work product". Morgan was charged with no crimes.[147] Seminole County commissioners agreed to hire a law firm to attempt to recoup public money misspent by Joel Greenberg.[148][149]
In May 2022, Longwood city commission meeting, Morgan's fellow city commissioners elected Morgan to become the city's new mayor. He served as mayor until May 2023, and his term on the Longwood city commission concluded November 2024.[150]
Morgan announced on a 2008 episode ofTNA Impact! during the TNA Webography segment where TNA Superstars give an insight into their life that he has been married to his college sweetheart, a Hawaiian/Filipino woman named Larissa Vasper from Hawaii for four years.[151] During that Webography, he also announced that when he was five, he was diagnosed withattention-deficit disorder (ADD),[151] which led to him getting involved with CHADD (Children and Adults with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder), a non-profit organization based out ofLandover, Maryland.[152][153]
In August 2008, it was announced that Morgan would contribute a sample of hisDNA to be launched into space as part of game designerRichard Garriott's "Operation Immortality" project.[154]
In 2014, Morgan's wife, Larissa, gave birth to their first child.[128]
Since 2016, Morgan has become a regular guest onThe Wrestling Inc. podcast, reviewing the week's latest edition ofRaw while also covering all WWE's pay-per-views andNXT'sTakeOver events. In 2019, Morgan also started reviewingSmackDown,AEW Dynamite,NXT, and both WWE andAEW pay-per-views for Wrestling Inc.[5]
In 2008, Morgan accepted an offer to appear on the third series ofAmerican Gladiators as one of the Gladiators. Morgan, under the name Beast, made his Gladiator debut during the first night of the semifinals in the joust. He defeated each of his two opponents in less than eight seconds.[155][156] On September 24, 2010, Morgan appeared onFox television showThe Good Guys, playing the role of a Russian mobster on an episode titledVacation.[157][158] In November 2010 Morgan was a contestant on an all TNA week ofFamily Feud, teaming withJay Lethal,Mick Foley,Mr. Anderson andRob Van Dam againstAngelina Love,Christy Hemme,Lacey Von Erich,Tara andVelvet Sky.[159] On June 30, 2011, Morgan was announced as being a part of the new season ofCMT Made 101.[160]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | American Gladiators | Beast | |
| 2010 | The Good Guys | Sasha Tsalka | Season 1, Episode 10 |
| 2010 | Family Feud | Himself | 5 Episodes, TNA Wrestling Special |
| 2011 | Death from Above | Animal | |
| 2011 | CMT Made 101 | Himself | Season 1, Episode 1[161] |
TNA newcomer Matt Morgan appeared alongside Jim Cornette throughout the broadcast, apparently serving as the TNA management director's backup!
But the real reason2come back after not wrestling for 2years? To have this little guy get chance 2C me live one time
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