Rezar | |
|---|---|
 Rezar in 2024 | |
| Born | Gzim Selmani (1994-06-16)16 June 1994 (age 30) Amsterdam, Netherlands |
| Ring name(s) | Gzim Selmani[1] Rezar[2] |
| Billed height | 6 ft 4 in (193 cm)[2] |
| Billed weight | 330 lb (150 kg)[2] |
| Trained by | WWE Performance Center[1] |
| Debut | 30 January 2016[1] |
| Mixed martial arts careerMartial arts career | |
| Other names | The Albanian Psycho |
| Nationality | Dutch |
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
| Weight | 265 lb (120 kg; 18 st 13 lb) |
| Division | Heavyweight |
| Style | Judo,kickboxing |
| Team | Golden Glory |
| Trainer | Martijn De Jong |
| Years active | 2012–2014 (MMA} |
| Mixed martial arts record | |
| Total | 8 |
| Wins | 6 |
| By knockout | 1 |
| By submission | 3 |
| Losses | 2 |
| By knockout | 2 |
| Amateur record | |
| Total | 2 |
| Wins | 2 |
| By knockout | 1 |
| By submission | 1 |
| Other information | |
| Mixed martial arts record fromSherdog | |
Last updated on: 9 June 2016 (2016-06-09) | |
Gzim Selmani (born 16 June 1994) is a Dutchprofessional wrestler and formermixed martial artist. He is best known for his time inWWE, where he performed under thering nameRezar.
After signing with WWE in 2015, Rezar has since teamed withAkam as part ofThe Authors of Pain, with whom he has held theNXT Tag Team Championship andWWE Raw Tag Team Championship once, and they also won the2016 Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic tournament. To date, Selmani is the first and onlyKosovo Albanian to ever wrestle in the WWE.
Gzim Selmani was born on 16 June 1994 inAmsterdam,Netherlands, and grew up inHuizen.[3] He is an ethnicKosovo Albanian, with roots fromMitrovicë.[4] He began practicingjudo from the age of four, took upkickboxing at age 12 and began training inmixed martial arts alongside his brother Egzon, at the age of 15. Selmani became Professional Kickboxing Heavyweight Champion, after an 8-man tournament in one night, that took place inBremerhaven,Germany.[3]
Selmani joinedGolden Glory management team and began to compete in amateur mixed martial artsShooto competitions in the Netherlands in 2012.[5] His first professional fight was on 8 July 2012 against Kaan Postaci inThe HagueThe Netherlands. He ended up knocking him out with a knee left hook combo. He won his second fight at Shooto Europe against Jorrit Leeman. On 24 November 2012 Selmani Fought Anatoli Ciumac inBrașov, Romania, which he won.[6] He faced Ante Delija atFinal Fight Championship 05 and lost by TKO. Selmani defeated Mario Milosavljevic in November 2013 to record his second professional victory, and beat Tomaž Simonič atFFC 10 inSkopje,Macedonia. Selmani defeatedOli Thompson in 18 seconds in the main event ofBAMMA 15 on 5 April 2014 inLondon.[7] Selmani competed forBellator MMA atBellator 130 in October 2014, losing via TKO toDaniel Gallemore.[8]
| 8 matches | 6 wins | 2 losses |
| By knockout | 2 | 2 |
| By submission | 4 | 0 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 6–2 | Daniel Gallemore | TKO (punches) | Bellator 130 | 24 October 2014 | 2 | 4:33 | Mulvane, Kansas, United States | |
| Win | 6–1 | Oli Thompson | Technical Submission (guillotine choke) | BAMMA 15 | 5 April 2014 | 1 | 0:18 | London, United Kingdom | |
| Win | 5–1 | Tomaz Simonic | Technical Submission (arm-triangle choke) | Final Fight Championship 10 | 13 December 2013 | 1 | 1:54 | Skopje, Macedonia | |
| Win | 4–1 | Mario Milosavljevic | Technical Submission (standing guillotine choke) | Bosnia Fight Championship 1 | 9 November 2013 | 1 | 0:35 | Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina | |
| Loss | 3–1 | Ante Delija | TKO (punches) | Final Fight Championship 5 | 24 May 2013 | 1 | 3:09 | Osijek,Croatia | |
| Win | 3–0 | Anatoli Ciumac | TKO (retirement) | Klash Champions Battlefield 4 – Road to Glory | 24 November 2012 | 2 | 5:00 | Brașov,Romania | |
| Win | 2–0 | Jorrit Leeman | Submission (armbar) | Shooto Europe Pro | 13 October 2012 | 2 | 2:58 | Deventer,The Netherlands | |
| Win | 1–0 | Kaan Postaci | KO (punch) | Fight Club Den Haag | 8 July 2012 | 1 | 2:10 | The Netherlands,The Hague |
Selmani got invited for a tryout inDubai, and it wasWilliam Regal’s choice to get him to sign a contract forWWE. In May 2015, it was reported that Selmani had signed a contract with WWE and would begin training to become a professional wrestler at theWWE Performance Center.[9] In October 2015, WWE confirmed that Selmani was a WWE developmental recruit already training at the Performance Center.[10] He made his in-ring debut at aNXThouse show inVenice, Florida on 30 January 2016, losing to Josh Woods.[11] By February 2016, Selmani had formed a tag team withSunny Dhinsa,[12] and they became known as The Authors of Pain by April 2016.[13]
Selmani and Dhinsa made their televisedNXT debuts on 8 June 2016 atNXT TakeOver: The End;[14] following theNXT Tag Team Championship match, they attacked championsAmerican Alpha (Chad Gable andJason Jordan) before leaving backstage withPaul Ellering.[15] On 15 June episode ofNXT, the Authors of Pain won their first televised match and were managed by Ellering.[16] On 24 August episode ofNXT Selmani's ring name was revealed to be Rezar,[17] while Dhinsa was billed as Akam.[18] The duo won the 2016Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic, defeatingTM61 in the tournament final atNXT TakeOver: Toronto. AtNXT TakeOver: San Antonio, the Authors of Pain defeated#DIY to win the NXT Tag Team Championship. They retained the title atNXT TakeOver: Orlando by defeating #DIY andThe Revival in a Triple Threat Tag Team Elimination match by eliminating both teams. AtNXT TakeOver: Chicago, the duo participated in the first NXT Takeover main event for the NXT Tag Team Championship by defeating #DIY in a ladder match to retain the title. AtNXT TakeOver: Brooklyn III, the Authors of Pain lost the titles toSAnitY. atNXT TakeOver: WarGames, Authors of Pain andRoderick Strong competed in a 3 teamWarGames match which was won byThe Undisputed Era. On 20 December episode ofNXT, Authors of Pain lost the NXT Tag Team Championship toBobby FishandKyle O'Reilly. AtNXT TakeOver: Philadelphia, Authors of Pain got a rematch but were unsuccessful. AtNXT TakeOver: New Orleans, Authors of Pain competed in a Triple threat tag team match for the NXT Tag Team Championship and Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic trophy which was won by The Undisputed Era (Adam Cole and Kyle O'Reilly).
On 9 April episode ofRaw, The Authors of Pain, along with Ellering, made their main roster debut, defeatingHeath Slater and Rhyno. After the match, Akam and Rezar ended their partnership with Ellering by pushing him away and leaving him ringside as they returned backstage.[19] On 3 September episode ofRaw, The Authors of Pain, now under the shortened name of "AOP", were accompanied to the ring by the205 Live General Manager,Drake Maverick, who announced himself as their new manager.[20]
On 5 November episode of Raw, The Authors of Pain defeatedSeth Rollins in a handicap match to win theRaw Tag Team Championship for the first time. They went on to defeatSmackDown's Tag Team ChampionsCesaro and Sheamus in an interbrand Champion vs Champion match atSurvivor Series. They lost the titles toBobby Roode and Chad Gable on 10 December episode ofRaw. In January 2019 Akam suffered an undisclosed leg injury that reportedly would keep him out for “at least a few months”. He and Akam returned to action atSuper ShowDown on 7 June 2019.[21]
In September 2019, AOP began appearing in vignettes, warning of their return. During the2019 WWE Draft in October, AOP went undrafted, becoming free agents and able to choose which brand to sign with. Three days after the draft's conclusion, AOP signed withRaw, remaining on the brand.[22] Rezar started to show up with Akam as Seth Rollins' disciples. In March 2020, it was reported that Rezar suffered a bicep injury and the injury would sideline him for six to eight months.[23] On 4 September 2020, AOP were released from their WWE contracts.[24][25]
In May 2022, Gzim Selmani and Sunny Dhinsa, now known asLegion of Pain, have announced the launch of their professional wrestling promotion, Wrestling Entertainment Series (WES).[26]
According to a report from Sean Ross Sapp ofFightful on 30 August 2023, the Authors of Pain had been re-signed with the WWE in 2022 prior to the return ofVince McMahon as chairman in January 2023 and they were on the internal travel list as of May 2023.[27][28]
During the 22 December, episode ofSmackDown, Rezar along with Akam were shown in vignettes byKarrion Kross andScarlett that they will be returning as part of an alliance.[29] OnSmackDown: New Year's Revolution, Rezar, alongside Akam and Paul Ellering made their televised return to WWE, assisting Karrion Kross and Scarlett in attackingBobby Lashley and theStreet Profits, confirming their alliance in the process.[30] AOP made their return to the ring on 16 February edition ofSmackDown where they faced NXT talents Beau Morris and Javier Bernal in a squash match.[31] At Night 2 ofWrestleMania XL, the stable lost against The Pride in aPhiladelphia Street Fight.[32] On the following episode ofNXT, The Final Testament made theirNXT return with AOP attackingAxiom andNathan Frazer, who have just won theNXT Tag Team Championships fromBaron Corbin andBron Breakker.[33]
During night 2 of theWWE Draft, which occurred on 29 April 2024, Rezar was drafted toWWE Raw, with the rest of The Final Testament.[34] At Week 2 ofSpring Breakin', Rezar and Akam was unsuccessful at winning the NXT Tag Team Champions from Axiom and Nathan Frazer after interference fromNew Catch Republic.[35] Both members of the Authors of Pain and their manager Paul Ellering were released from their contracts on 7 February 2025.[36]
Rezar made hisvideo game debut as a playable character inWWE 2K18 and has since appeared inWWE 2K19,WWE 2K20, andWWE 2K Battlegrounds.[37]
