| Jerry Lynn | |
|---|---|
 Lynn in 2012 | |
| Birth name | Jeremy Lynn |
| Born | (1963-06-12)June 12, 1963 (age 61) Duluth, Minnesota, U.S. |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Golgotha Cross[1] Jerry Lynn[1] Jerry the Ram J. L. Mr. J. L.[2] Sultan Gargola |
| Billed height | 5 ft 11 in (180 cm)[3] |
| Billed weight | 212 lb (96 kg)[3] |
| Billed from | Minneapolis, Minnesota[3] |
| Trained by | Francisco Abarca Brad Rheingans[2][4] Eddie Sharkey |
| Debut | March 23, 1988[1] |
| Retired | March 23, 2013[5] |
Jeremy Lynn[6] (born June 12, 1963), better known by thering nameJerry Lynn, is an American retiredprofessional wrestler signed withAll Elite Wrestling as a producer and coach.[7]
Lynn has worked forpromotions such asWorld Championship Wrestling (WCW),Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), theWorld Wrestling Federation (WWF),NWA Total Nonstop Action (NWA TNA), andRing of Honor (ROH). He is a two timeworld heavyweight champion, having held theECW World Heavyweight Championshiponce and theROH World Championshiponce. Other championships held by Lynn in his career include theGWF Light Heavyweight Championship (once),WWF Light Heavyweight Championship (once), theTNA X Division Championship (twice), theNWA World Tag Team Championship (twice) and theWWA International Cruiserweight Championship (once).
Lynn retired as an active wrestler on March 23, 2013, exactly 25 years after his career began.[5]
Lynn started wrestling in March 1988 in variousindependentpromotions in theMinnesota andMichigan areas, one being Pro Wrestling America, where he won both their Heavyweight and Light Heavyweight championships. Lynn first joined theWorld Wrestling Federation in May 1989 as enhancement talent, losing toRick Martel, and teaming with Ray Brown in a loss toBig Boss Man andAkeem later that night. In 1989, he began wrestling forVerne Gagne'sAmerican Wrestling Association, where by the end of 1990, he became the last challenger for theAWA World Heavyweight Championship, held byLarry Zbyszko, before Zbyszko left forWorld Championship Wrestling. In 1990, he made his first overseas trip to Japan, wrestling forUniversal Lucha Libre. In January 1991, he wrestled for theUnited States Wrestling Association in Memphis and took part in a tournament for theUSWA Southern Heavyweight Championship; he lost toTony Anthony in the first round.
In June 1991, Lynn wrestled for theGlobal Wrestling Federation (GWF) based in Dallas, Texas. While in GWF, Lynn captured theGWF Light Heavyweight Championship. Lynn also engaged in a two-yearfeud withThe Lightning Kid which gave both men considerable exposure in North America.[2][6] In February 1992, he had a brief stop withSmoky Mountain Wrestling in Knoxville. In 1992, Lynn would take a role as an unnamed high school senior and as a stuntman in the movieCrossing the Bridge; to prepare for the role, he did an angle with the Lightning Kid, where Kid cut Lynn's hair and sold it in small bags at $4 a bag, making a total $80. In December 1993, he returned to Japan for a tour withMichinoku Pro Wrestling. In July 1994, he went to Mexico under the masked alter-ego, Sultan Gargola forConsejo Mundial de Lucha Libre. In July 1995, Lynn returned to Michinoku Pro under the masked alter-ego Golgotha Cross, a villain from theTiger Mask manga. Less than a month later, he would lose his mask toGran Naniwa. In April 1995, Lynn returned to the WWF in a singles loss toRad Radford and teamed up withLenny Lane in a loss toThe Heavenly Bodies the next night.
In September 1995, Lynn joinedWorld Championship Wrestling, alternating between wrestling under his real name and under themasked alter-ego Mr. J.L.[6] He joined WCW'scruiserweight division, where he competed against theMexicanluchadores and a variety of wrestlers from around the world such asChris Benoit,Dean Malenko,Eddie Guerrero,Sabu,Chris Jericho andAlex Wright. Lynn suffered a broken arm on December 18, 1995, in a match against Dean Malenko that would air one week later onNitro on Christmas night.
In May 1996, Lynn as Mr. J.L. went toNew Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), representing WCW for their annualBest of the Super Juniors league; he placed fifth on Block A with two confirmed points.
One of his last major matches took place at theClash of the Champions XXXIV, where he suffered a six-man tag team loss while teaming withKonnan andLa Parka against Chris Jericho,Super Calo andChavo Guerrero Jr. While he was injured,Eric Bischoff fired him from WCW in July 1997.[2]
After leaving WCW, Lynn appeared with the WWF in August 1997 in their light heavyweight division, wrestling only two matches. He lost toTaka Michinoku on Friday Night Main Event and defeated Steve Casey onWWF Shotgun Saturday Night.
After leaving WWF, Lynn joinedExtreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), where he debuted as afan favorite atAs Good as It Gets at theECW Arena on September 20, 1997, and immediate began a "respect" feud withJustin Credible, who debuted against Lynn that same evening.[8] Lynn formed a team withTommy Rogers as the two began a rivalry with the team ofChris Candido andLance Storm, losing to them in a match atUltimate Jeopardy.[9] Lynn made his pay-per-view debut in ECW atNovember to Remember, where he rescued Rogers from a double-team assault by Candido and Storm, leading to animmediate rematch between the two teams, which Rogers and Lynn lost again.[10] Lynn defeatedChris Candido at the1998 House Party. He then formed a tag team withChris Chetti to feud withThe Full Blooded Italians (Little Guido andTracy Smothers), whom Lynn and Chetti defeated in matches atHostile City Showdown andLiving Dangerously.[11][12]
Lynn was nextbooked in a series of matches against his fellow debutant Justin Credible, which saw Credible winning the last match in the feud at theHeat Wavepay-per-view. After this, Lynn was involved in a feud withLance Storm andMikey Whipwreck, a feud that was shortened when Whipwreck left for WCW.
Once the feud with Lance Storm was ended, Lynn was booked in a match for theECW World Television Championship withRob Van Dam atLiving Dangerously in 1999. The finish saw Lynn win the title from Van Dam (the time limit expired and Lynn was awarded the title by referee decision instead of by pinfall or submission). Despite this win, he asked for a five-minute time extension, in which he was pinned by Van Dam after aFive-Star Frog splash. Though Lynn did not win the match, he from then on referred to himself as "The New F'N Show", mocking Van Dam's nickname, "The Whole F'N Show", as well as claiming he would be the wrestler to deprive Van Dam of the title. Though Lynn received several more title opportunities with Van Dam, he was not successful in winning the World Television Title before Van Dam was stripped of the title after suffering alegitimate broken ankle. Around the same time, Lynn also suffered a broken ankle, taking him out of action.[13] On his return to ECW TV, Lynn challenged Van Dam to one more match atHardcore Heaven, which Lynn won due to interference byScotty Anton.[6]
On October 1, 2000, at theAnarchy Rulz, Lynn defeated Justin Credible for theECW World Heavyweight Championship.[6] He held the title for one month, making a successful title defense againstSteve Corino, to whom he lost the title to in a re-match. Lynn blamed the fans and ECW management for putting him in an unfair situation at the November To Remember, claiming they intentionally screwed him out of the championship for their new golden boy Corino. Lynn subsequently aligned with former rivalCyrus, who would serve as his manager following November To Remember and claimed that Cyrus was the only one in ECW who recognized his greatness. At the last ECW pay-per-view,Guilty as Charged in 2001, Lynn was in the main event, losing to Rob Van Dam via aVan Terminator.[6]
Following thebankruptcy of ECW in April 2001, Lynn was hired by the WWF. Lynn made his TV debut on the April 29, 2001, episode ofSunday Night Heat, where he defeatedCrash Holly for theLight Heavyweight Championship in his debut match.[6] He would hold the championship for 37 days and would successfully retain over former champions Crash Holly,Taka Michinoku,Dean Malenko andEssa Rios, as well asChristopher Daniels,Grandmaster Sexay and others.[14] He eventually lost the title toJeff Hardy and had a notable match with Rob Van Dam for theWWF Hardcore Championship on an episode ofSunday Night Heat[15] before being released in February 2002, following a knee injury.[6]
After leaving the WWF, he joined theWorld Wrestling All-Stars promotion and debuted on the Revolution PPV, confrontingEddie Guerrero, who had just won theWWA International Cruiserweight Championship fromPsicosis in a three-way match which includedJuventud Guerrera. However, nothing came of this, as Guerrero left to return to the WWF. Lynn would take part in a tournament to determine a new International Cruiserweight champion, but lost toAJ Styles in the finals on the Eruption PPV.
In May 2003, Lynn entered another tournament to determine a new International Cruiserweight Champion, and won the vacant title by defeatingChris Sabin in the finals. However, four days later, he lost the title to Sabin, who unified the title with theTNA X-Division Championship, in a four-way match which includedJohnny Swinger andFrankie Kazarian on the Reckoning PPV.
In early June 2002 (shortly after release from the WWF), Lynn signed withTotal Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), taking part in the first ever TNA match as part of a six-man tag match against the Flying Elvises. He won theTNA X Division Championship twice, as well as theNWA World Tag Team Championship twice (once with A.J. Styles, once withAmazing Red).[6] He feuded withA.J. Styles[16] andDon Callis, and was anX Division mainstay.In the late spring of 2003, he joined the newly formed All World Wrestling League/Big Time Wrestling. However, in February 2004 he suffered a severe shoulder injury, tearing thetendon from the bone in hisrotator cuff, whenJuventud Guerrerabotched aJuvi Driver. Lynn became a TNAroad agent, planning matches and coaching younger talent.[6]
Lynn made his return to the ring on June 10, 2005, when he facedJustin Credible atHardcore Homecoming, an ECW reunion show organized by ECW alumnusShane Douglas. On July 17 atNo Surrender, Lynn refereed a match betweenSean Waltman and A.J. Styles, refusing to allow Waltman to cheat in the course of the match. This led to a match between Lynn and Waltman atSacrifice on August 14, which Lynn won. After the match, Waltman initially celebrated with Lynn before attacking his former partner. The following week onImpact!, it was announced that Lynn had re-injured his shoulder. (This was believed to be anangle designed to fuel the feud between Lynn and Waltman rather than a legitimate aggravation of the existing injury. The length of his absence would seem to contradict this; however, the angle was likely dropped when Sean Waltman no-showedUnbreakable a month later, as TNA would not work with Waltman on a regular basis again for over four years).
In January 2006, he began making on-screen appearances once more as a road agent. He came out atFinal Resolution to watch a match which wasChris Sabin,Sonjay Dutt andMatt Bentley taking on the team ofAlex Shelley,Roderick Strong andAustin Aries. Lynn continued to make several other appearances throughout the rest of 2006, and even facedBobby Roode in a losing effort during TNA's firsthouse show in Detroit.
On January 14, 2007, Lynn made his return to regular in ring competition returning to TNA to compete for the TNA X Division Championship against Chris Sabin and then-championChristopher Daniels atFinal Resolution, in which he delivered his trademarkcradle piledriver to Daniels and subsequently got pinned by Chris Sabin. Lynn carried on to feud with Sabin over the X Division title. On an episode ofImpact!, Lynn won aladder match to become the number one contender for the TNA X Division Championship. AtDestination X, Lynn was defeated by Chris Sabin in atwo out of three falls match. After the match, a masked man (later revealed to be Christopher Daniels) performedthe Angel's Wings on Sabin, but also hit Lynn with the title belt. AtLockdown, Daniels defeated Lynn in aSix Sides of Steel match. AtSacrifice, Jerry Lynn won a four-way X-Division battle between himself, Alex Shelley, Senshi, andTiger Mask (New Japan Pro-Wrestling star also making his TNA debut). On June 17, 2007, atSlammiversary, Jerry Lynn teamed up with former NFLtight endFrank Wycheck to defeat the team ofJames Storm andRon Killings. Wycheck pinned Storm after using Lynn's signature move, the cradle piledriver. AtVictory Road in July, Jerry Lynn teamed up with formerWWF World Heavyweight ChampionBob Backlund against the tag team ofThe Motor City Machine Guns, Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin, withKevin Nash in their corner. Lynn wrestled the majority of the match and was knocked out cold by an interfering Kevin Nash, followed by a pinfall by Chris Sabin. In August 2007, Lynn asked for and received his release from TNA.[6]
Lynn made several appearances for Ring of Honor, prior to becoming a full-time roster member. Lynn made an appearance forRing of Honor, where he wrestled ROH World ChampionNigel McGuinness in a non-title match, which he lost.[17] He has also wrestled in ROH's sister promotionFull Impact Pro on two occasions, wrestlingAustin Aries andRoderick Strong in a Three Way Dance, before taking on Aries the next night in a singles match. Lynn has wrestled on ROH's PPV taping on September 19, 2008, in a losing effort toChris Hero. Then next night Lynn returned to theECW Arena for ROH'sGlory By Honor VII by defeating Kenny King. On September 22, 2008, Lynn was named a full-time member of the ROH roster.[18] Soon after, Lynn was a participant in the inaugural match of TV showRing of Honor Wrestling onHDNet, pinningDelirious for the win.
AtSupercard of Honor IV, he defeated Nigel McGuinness to win his first ROH world title.[19] AtManhattan Mayhem III, Lynn lost the ROH World Title to Austin Aries in a Three Way Dance, which also involvedTyler Black, on June 13, 2009. He would later enter in a rivalry with Austin Aries, Kenny King and Rhett Titus, leading to an alliance with Delirious.[19] Lynn received thePro Wrestling Illustrated award for "Comeback of the Year" for 2009 for his stint in ROH.
Lynn returned to ROH on December 16, 2012, atFinal Battle 2012: Doomsday, where he was defeated byMike Bennett in his final match with the promotion.[20]
Lynn returned to TNA on the August 5, 2010, edition ofImpact!, announcing that he would take on Rob Van Dam one more time at the ECW reunion show,Hardcore Justice, on August 8.[21] However, on August 7 it was reported that Lynn was forced to pull out of the event due to a back injury and was replaced bySabu.[22] Lynn reappeared onImpact Wrestling on June 23, 2011, again confronting Van Dam, after which it was announced that the two would face each other on July 10 atDestination X.[23] Lynn wrestled his TNA return match on the July 7 edition ofImpact Wrestling, losing to Van Dam in a four-way match, which also included A.J. Styles and Christopher Daniels.[24] At Destination X, Lynn was defeated by Van Dam in a singles match.[25] Lynn made his next appearance on August 7 atHardcore Justice, where accompanied Van Dam to the ring for his match withCrimson. After Van Dam was hit with Crimson's finishing maneuver, Lynn entered the ring and broke up the following pin, causing the referee to disqualify Van Dam.[26] On the August 18 edition ofImpact Wrestling, Lynn cost Van Dam anotherBound for Glory Series match against A.J. Styles in similar fashion.[27] On the September 1 edition ofImpact Wrestling, Lynn turned on Van Dam, costing him his match withGunner and, in the process, eliminating him from the finals of the Bound for Glory Series and turning heel.[28] The following week Lynn explained his turn by claiming that he was tired of being in Van Dam's shadow and mentioned thatEric Bischoff had helped him realize it.[29] On October 16 atBound for Glory, Van Dam defeated Lynn in aFull Metal Mayhem match.[30]
As part of his retirement tour, Lynn returned to TNA on January 12, 2013, as part of the tapings of the One Night Only: X-Travaganza PPV, losing to Rob Van Dam in aNo Disqualification match.[31] This would be Lynn and Van Dam's final match together.
Lynn worked for the All World Wrestling League presents Big Time Wrestling from late 2003 to early 2004.
Lynn participated in theEast Coast Wrestling Association's eleventh-annualSuper 8 Tournament, which he won after defeatingSonjay Dutt in the finals on November 10, 2007, inNewark, Delaware.
In June 2007, Lynn debuted for Anarchy Championship Wrestling (ACW), based in Austin, Texas. Lynn won the ACW Heavyweight Championship in his first match by defeating Scot Summers. Lynn would hold the title for six months and after two time limit draws, Lynn lost the title back to Summers in a no time limit match in January 2008. Lynn continued wrestling for ACW through 2008 and in November, he won the ACW tag team titles with Scot Summers. Lynn and Summers remained tag team champions for over a year before losing the titles to the Submission Squad in January 2010. Lynn returned to ACW for a match in August 2011 and then again at the start of 2012. After announcing that he would be retiring at the end of the year, the rest of Lynn's appearances became known as the retirement tour for the Godfather of Anarchy.
One of Amarillo's independent promotions, West-Texas Wrestling Association, announced January 12, 2008, at their second anniversary show that Jerry Lynn would face Kaos "The Rock Superstar" at WWA's Collision Course 3 on April 12, 2008, at The Nat "Brawl Room", hyping the fact they have two nationally known names facing off in a one-on-one match for Indy supremacy. Lynn would face local star, Mark Wilson, instead, due to an injury sustained by Joey Munoz. Jerry Lynn would return to WWA frequently to face local Amarillo stars. He would also face, and defeat,Justin Credible andRaven, in separate matches in WWA.
Lynn participated in Pro Wrestling Syndicate's Majestic Twelve Tournament on March 22, 2008, in Yonkers, New York. Lynn teamed with Kenny Omega in the first round defeating Tommy Suede and Kevin Matthews. Omega eliminated Lynn in Round 2. Lynn's most recent PWS match was on May 8, 2010, when he defeated Vampiro in White Plains, New York.
On April 25, 2008, Lynn defeated Jason Gory,Shiima Xion, andDavey Richards to win the Super Indy VII Tournament that is held by International Wrestling Cartel. Traditionally, the winner of the tournament is awarded the IWC Super Indy Championship. However, Lynn refused to accept the belt and instead challenged the championLarry Sweeney to a title match at the next show. On May 17, 2008, Lynn defeated Sweeney to officially become IWC Super Indy Champion. On September 13, 2008, Lynn lost the Super Indy title tokayfabe apprenticeJohnny Gargano in a 3 Way Dance, which also included Super HENTAI.
On March 10, 2012, Lynn announced that he would retire from professional wrestling at the end of the year.[32]
On April 28, 2012, Lynn defeatedDevon Storm at Extreme Reunion inPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania.
On September 14, 2012, Lynn made his debut forChikara, when he,Too Cold Scorpio andTommy Dreamer entered the2012 King of Trios as "The Extreme Trio", defeating Team WWF (1-2-3 Kid, Aldo Montoya andTatanka) in their first round match.[33][34] The following day, The Extreme Trio was eliminated from the tournament by Team ROH (Mike Bennett,Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson).[33][35]
On November 10, 2012, Lynn wrestled for MPX in Bedford, Texas where he won a fatal four way to become the MPX Champion. Lynn immediately vacated the title due to his impending retirement and the match marked his final appearance in the Dallas/Fort Worth area where he spent much of his early career with the GWF.[citation needed] On February 9, 2013, Lynn defeated Lance Storm in his final match in Pro Wrestling Syndicate in the Main Event of the show.[36]
Lynn wrestled his retirement match at theMinneapolis Convention Center on March 23, 2013, which was the 25th anniversary of his debut as a professional wrestler. The event was promoted by Dave Sabick along with his promotion Heavy On Wrestling. He faced Horace the Psychopath, JB Trask andSean Waltman in a four-way match, in which he was victorious. After the match, the locker room came out to celebrate Lynn's career and he was presented with a trophy.[5]
Lynn was backstage at Ring of Honor'sBest in the World 2014 pay-per-view inNashville,Tennessee, where he now lives. Sporting a new shorter haircut, this was the first wrestling show he's attended since retiring in 2013.[37] In December 2015, Lynn returned to Ring of Honor where he had a confrontation withROH World ChampionJay Lethal. AtFinal Battle 2015, Lynn would be on commentary during the main event between Lethal andAJ Styles alongsideKevin Kelly andNigel McGuinness. In 2016, Lynn began work for the company as a backstage agent/producer.[38]
In 2019, Lynn signed withAll Elite Wrestling (AEW) as a coach and producer. On January 19, 2021, episode of Impact Wrestling, Jerry Lynn and Tony Khan debuted by watching Private Party wrestle against Chris Sabin and James Storm in a match when Private Party defeated Sabin and Storm. Lynn interfered in the match, allowing Private Party to win.[39] He made an appearance inPhiladelphia followingRampage on October 8, 2021, whenTony Khan called him out alongsideDean Malenko,Taz andChris Jericho to thank them for inspiring him.[40]
On the September 7, 2022, episode ofAEW Dynamite, he was a judge forROH Pure Championship. On December 10, 2022, he was also a judge during the ROH Pure Championship match atFinal Battle, and also celebrated withClaudio Castagnoli following his ROH Championship win.[41]
On the June 8, 2023 episode ofROH TV, Lynn andStokely Hathaway were announced by Tony Khan as the new ROH Board of Directors.[42]
Lynn uses theCradle Piledriver as his finishing move. According to him, he used the move after a recommendation fromNova, who was inspired byDynamite Kid.[43]
Former wrestlerLance Storm described Lynn as "Academy Award winning supporting actor. One of the greatest actors of all time, who was just never cast in that lead role",[44] while sports journalistDave Meltzer described him as "one of the most underrated workers of the last quarter century".
In ECW, I couldn't think of a finisher. Nova was very innovative and coming up with cool stuff, so I asked Nova one day, 'Can you help me come up with a finisher?' He said, 'Sure.' The next week, he says, 'Remember Dynamite Kid in Japan would do the cradle piledriver? Why don't you try that?'
,Internet Wrestling Database