| Karl Fredericks | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Karl Fredericks |
| Born | (1990-07-15)July 15, 1990 (age 34) Reno, Nevada, U.S. |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Eddy Thorpe Karl Fredericks |
| Billed height | 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)[1] |
| Billed weight | 222 lb (101 kg)[1] |
| Billed from | "Sacred indigenous land" |
| Trained by | |
| Debut | May 17, 2015[2] |
Karl Fredericks (born July 15, 1990) is an Americanprofessional wrestler. He is signed toWWE, where he performs on theNXTbrand under thering nameEddy Thorpe.
Fredericks is also known for his stint inNew Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), where he was the winner of the 2019Young Lion Cup.
Fredericks debuted on May 17, 2015.[2] In 2018, Fredericks entered theNew Japan Pro-Wrestling LA Dojo, along withClark Connors andAlex Coughlin. He visited Japan for the first time as a representative of the LA Dojo at the2019 Young Lion Cup and won the tournament with 12 points.[3][4] Fredericks teamed withHirooki Goto for theWorld Tag League in the same year, finishing with 3 wins and 12 losses.[5] On January 4, 2020, atWrestle Kingdom 14, Fredericks, Connors, Coughlin andToa Henare defeatedTencozy (Satoshi Kojima andHiroyoshi Tenzan), Yota Tsuji and Yuya Uemura in an eight-man tag-team match.[6]
In August 2020, Fredericks competed in the inauguralNew Japan Cup USA tournament, with the winner receiving a match for theIWGP United States Championship. He lost toKenta in the first round.[7] From this time on, he changed the colors of his shorts from black to red. At the main event of Ignition on June 25, 2021, Fredericks challengedTom Lawlor for theStrong Openweight Championship and lost.[8] On August 1, 2022, Fredericks' contract with NJPW expired and he announced he would not renew it.[9]
In January 2023, it was reported Fredericks signed a contract withWWE.[10] In February, he was assigned the ring nameEddy Thorpe and he debuted as aface on the February 17 show ofNXT Level Up, defeatingDante Chen.[11] On the March 23 episode ofNXT, Thorpe would make his TV debut defeatingMyles Borne. In the next weeks, vignettes would air of Thorpe exploring hisNative-American background. Thorpe would soon begin a feud withDamon Kemp which led to Thorpe enlisting the help ofGable Steveson (Kemp's real life brother) to train for hisNXT Underground match with Kemp on the July 4 episode ofNXT, which Thorpe won.[12][13]
Soon after, Thorpe would begin feuding withDijak, who took offense to Thorpe being referred to as the toughest man in NXT and attacked him in a match withOro Mensah. On the September 26 episode ofNXT, Thorpe beat Dijak in a strap match but was attacked after the match by Dijak who struck him repeatedly with the leather strap.[14] On the November 28 episode ofNXT, Thorpe foughtBron Breakker for a spot in the Iron Survivor Challenge atNXT Deadline but was defeated and once again attacked post match by Dijak. At NXT Deadline on December 9, Thorpe attacked Dijak during the Iron Survivor Challenge and cost him the match. On the December 26 episode ofNXT, Thorpe defeated Dijak in the second NXT Underground match to end the feud.[15][16][17]
On the November 19, 2024 episode ofNXT, Thorpe participated in the Iron Survivor Challenge qualifier where he lost toNXT Tag Team ChampionNathan Frazer after being distracted by the NXT tag team division brawling outside the ring.[18] Two weeks later, he won afatal four-waylast chance match to qualify for the Iron Survivor Challenge atNXT Deadline. However, he was later found attacked backstage[19] and was ruled out for NXT Deadline.[20] Two days after NXT Deadline on the December 10 episode ofNXT, Thorpe confrontedNXT ChampionTrick Williams and demanded a title shot, which Williams agreed. Upon signing the title match contract, Thorpe revealed toNXT general managerAva that he staged his own attack to ease his way into an NXT Championship match, turningheel in the process.[21] The title match on the following week ended in a double pinfall and Williams retained his title.[22][23] After failing to win the NXT Championship again on separate occasions, Thorpe continued his feud with Williams, who had since lost the NXT Championship. The feud culminated in astrap match atNXT Vengeance Day on February 15, 2025, where Thorpe won in his firstNXT PLE appearance.[24] On the March 18 episode ofNXT, Williams defeated Thorpe in an NXT Underground match to end their feud.[25]
Fredericks is aNative American and his WWE ring name is a reference to athlete and fellow Native AmericanJim Thorpe. Fredericks also incorporates his Native American heritage into his character by doing the Native American war dance in his entrance and by wearing tassels on his ring gear.[26][27]
Fredricks is currently in a relationship with New Zealand professional wrestler Cheree Crowley, who is best known under the ring nameDakota Kai.[28]
Eddy Thorpe making his debut against Dante Chen... Thorpe is an intriguing newcomer who has competed all over the world and has a chance to turn heads if he can defeat his fellow veteran, Chen.