| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | Skylor Clinton (1999-01-15)January 15, 1999 (age 26) Prescott, Arizona, United States |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Billed height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
| Billed weight | 240 lb (110 kg) |
| Billed from | Prescott, Arizona |
| Trained by | WWE Performance Center |
| Debut | May 13, 2023 |
Skylor Clinton (born January 15, 1999) is an American professional wrestler signed toWWE, performing on theNXT brand under the ring nameNiko Vance and is a member ofThe Cullingstable.
Skylor Clinton was born on January 15, 1999, inPrescott, Arizona. He attendedPrescott High School, where he excelled in football as a running back. During his senior year, Clinton rushed for 1,440 yards and 21 touchdowns on 188 carries and also threw four touchdown passes. His outstanding performance earned him All-Division III Honorable Mention and First Team All-Division III Section IV honors. Notably, he became the first player from Prescott to earn anFBS scholarship.[1]
Clinton joined theWyoming Cowboys as a defensive end but did not record any playing time.[2]
Clinton would then transfer toMesa Community College where he transitioned to wide receiver, catching 23 passes for 441 yards and four touchdowns. He notably had a three-catch, 100-yard game in the season finale, theValley of the Sun Bowl againstLackawanna College.[3]
Clinton would then spend three seasons with theUAB Blazers football team, appearing in nine games across the 2018 and 2019 seasons.[4]
Clinton would then play as a tight end forNorthern Arizona University, appearing in five games during the season.[1]
Throughout his academic career, Clinton was recognised as a Golden Eagle Scholar-Athlete Award recipient in 2021.[5]
Clinton signed a trainee deal withWWE in late 2022.[6] He made his in-ring debut at anNXT live event on May 13, 2023, teaming with Kale Dixon in a losing effort againstBoa andDante Chen.[7] He made his televised debut on the September 5, 2024, episode ofMain Event under his real name, facing Dante Chen in a losing effort.[8] Shortly after, he began appearing onNXT Level Up, debuting on the September 13, 2024, episode againstLuca Crusifino.[9]
On November 12, 2024, Clinton, under thering nameNiko Vance, made his debut on NXT aligning himself withShawn Spears andBrooks Jensen, establishing himself as aheel in the process.[10] Vance would have his first bout inNXT on January 21, 2025, teaming with Jensen to defeatThe D'Angelo Family (Luca Crusifino andChanning "Stacks" Lorenzo).[11] On the July 22 episode ofNXT,The Culling (Spears, Vance,Izzi Dame andTatum Paxley) defeatedNXT Tag Team Champions Hank and Tank (Hank Walker andTank Ledger),Zaria, andWWE Speed Women's andNXT Women's North American ChampionSol Ruca in aneight-person mixed tag team match in The Culling's first match as a whole stable.[12]