Brian "the Blade" Gamble (born April 24, 1970) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

martial art Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; and the pres ...

ist and

professional wrestler Professional wrestling, often shortened to either pro wrestling or wrestling,The term "wrestling" is most often widely used to specifically refer to modern scripted professional wrestling, though it is also used to refer to real-life wrest ...

Early life and education

He was born in the state of

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

, raised in

Franklin Square, New York Franklin Square is a Hamlet (New York), hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the Hempstead (town), New York, Town of Hempstead in Nassau County, New York, Nassau County, on Long Island, New York (state), New York, United States. The popul ...

. Gamble holds a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

from the

State University of New York The State University of New York (SUNY ) is a system of Public education, public colleges and universities in the New York (state), State of New York. It is one of the List of largest universities and university networks by enrollment, larges ...

and an

MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA) is a professional degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration; elective courses may allow further study in a particular a ...

from

Clarkson University Clarkson University is a private research university with its main campus in Potsdam, New York. Clarkson has additional graduate programs and research facilities in the New York Capital District. It was established in 1896 and enrolled over 4 ...

. While attending school in the town of Potsdam, Brian became a member of the Fraternity Phi Chi Epsilon.

Television appearances

Gamble is a

Ninjutsu , and are terms for the techniques and skills used by spies and scouts in pre-modern Japan known as ninja. Some of these techniques are recorded in ninja scrolls, some which have been published and translated. The study of these scrolls have c ...

expert, having studied the technique for nine years. He is also proficient in

amateur wrestling Amateur wrestling is a variant of wrestling practiced at Olympic Games, Olympic, Collegiate wrestling, collegiate, Scholastic wrestling, scholastic, and other levels. There are two international wrestling styles performed at the Olympic Games, fr ...

, Seishin Teki Kyoko,

Aikido Aikido ( , , , ) is a gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art which is split into many different styles including Iwama Ryu, Iwama Shin Shin Aiki Shuren Kai, Shodokan Aikido, Yoshinkan, Renshinkai, Aikikai, and Ki Aikido. Aikido is now practic ...

Taekwondo Taekwondo (; ; ) is a Korean martial art and combat sport involving primarily kicking techniques and punching. "Taekwondo" can be translated as ''tae'' ("strike with foot"), ''kwon'' ("strike with hand"), and ''do'' ("the art or way"). In ad ...

Tang Soo Do Tang Soo Do (; ) is a Korean martial arts, Korean martial art based on karate which can include fighting principles from taekkyeon, subak, as well as northern Chinese martial arts. From its beginnings in 1944 to today, Tang Soo Do is used by ...

(tangsudo) and

kickboxing Kickboxing ( ) is a full-contact hybrid Martial arts, martial art and Boxing (disambiguation), boxing type based on punch (combat), punching and kicking. Kickboxing originated in the 1950s to 1970s. The fight takes place in a boxing ring, norma ...

, and is trained in the usage of a variety of

mêlée A melee ( or ) is a confused hand-to-hand fight among several people. The English term ''melee'' originated circa 1648 from the French word ' (), derived from the Old French ''mesler'', from which '' medley'' and ''meddle'' were also derived. T ...

and ranged weapons. His fighting skills led to him appearing on '' Mortal Kombat: Conquest'' as an

extra Extra, Xtra, or The Extra may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Film * The Extra (1962 film), ''The Extra'' (1962 film), a Mexican film * The Extra (2005 film), ''The Extra'' (2005 film), an Australian film Literature * Extra (newspaper), ...

and taking part in an episode of '' American Gladiators'' in which he set the

world record A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organizatio ...

in the "Wall" contest. In addition, Gamble also served as a

bodyguard A bodyguard (or close protection officer/operative) is a type of security guard, government law enforcement officer, or servicemember who protects an very important person, important person or group of people, such as high-ranking public offic ...

for the singer

Alice Cooper Vincent Damon Furnier (born February 4, 1948), known by his stage name Alice Cooper, is an American rock singer and songwriter whose career spans sixty years. With a raspy voice and a stage show that features numerous props and stage illusion ...

and the band

Queens of the Stone Age Queens of the Stone Age (commonly abbreviated as QOTSA or QotSA) is an American rock band formed in Seattle in 1996. The band was founded by vocalist and guitarist Josh Homme shortly before he returned to his native Palm Desert, California. ...

. Between 1999 and 2001, Gamble appeared on ''

RollerJam ''RollerJam'' is an American television series featuring roller derby that aired on The Nashville Network (TNN, now Paramount Network) from 1999 to 2001. It was the first attempt to bring roller derby to TV since '' RollerGames''. ''RollerJam'' ...

'' as a skater. He competed for the New York Enforcers, the Texas Rustlers and Illinois Riot. Following the cancellation of ''RollerJam'', he returned to his study of

Professional wrestling career

Gamble trained as a wrestler under Dory Funk Jr. He appeared on the December 22, 2001 episode of ''

WWF Jakked ''WWF Jakked'' and ''WWF Metal'' are American professional wrestling television programs that were produced by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now known as WWE). Both programs aired in broadcast syndication weekly from August 28, 1999 until M ...

'', losing to

Perry Saturn Perry Arthur Satullo (born October 25, 1966) is an American retired Professional wrestling, professional wrestler known by his ring name, Perry Saturn. Since debuting in 1990, Saturn wrestled for Professional wrestling promotion, promotions inclu ...

. This match was infamous for taking place in Gamble's hometown. Gamble, not wanting look bad in defeat in front of his friends and family, began no-selling Saturn's offense. Saturn would retaliate by legitimately striking Gamble and locking him in a shoot arm lock to make him submit. Also that same night he lost to Sean Hill in a dark match. In 2003, Gamble began wrestling on the

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

independent circuit In professional wrestling, the independent circuit (often shortened to the indie circuit or the indies) is the collective name of independently owned promotions which are deemed to be smaller and more regionalized than major national promotions. ...

, achieving his greatest successes in Southern Championship Wrestling. On July 13, 2003, Gamble defeated David Mercury in the finals of a tournament held to crown the first ever SCW Heavyweight Champion. He held the title until August 16, when he lost to Thump Dupree in Mount Dora. His next title win came on December 12 of that year, when he defeated Jason Hexx to win the SCW Southern Heavyweight Championship in DeBary. He lost the title to "Classy" Chris Nelson on February 21, 2004, but regained the title on April 17 in Altamonte Springs. His second and final reign ended on May 22 when he lost to Hexx. Gamble has made several televised appearances with

Total Nonstop Action Wrestling Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (abbreviated as TNA Wrestling or TNA) is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment, a Canadian media company owned by busines ...

as a jobber. On the October 1, 2004, episode of ''Impact!'', Gamble was defeated by the then-

NWA World Heavyweight Champion The NWA World's Heavyweight Championship is a men's professional wrestling Professional wrestling championship#World championships, world heavyweight championship owned and promoted by the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), an American professiona ...

Jeff Jarrett Jeffrey Leonard Jarrett (born July 14, 1967) is an American professional wrestler and professional wrestling promoter. He is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he both wrestles and serves as Director of Business Development. He is also ...

. Two weeks later, Gamble was scheduled to face

Abyss Abyss may refer to: Religion * Abyss (religion), a bottomless pit, or a passage to the underworld * Abyss (Thelema), a spiritual principle within the system of Thelema Film and television * ''The Abyss'' (1910 film), a Danish silent film s ...

, but

Raven A raven is any of several large-bodied passerine bird species in the genus '' Corvus''. These species do not form a single taxonomic group within the genus. There is no consistent distinction between crows and ravens; the two names are assigne ...

hit him from behind with a chair and took his place in the match. He returned to TNA thirteen months later on the November 3, 2005 episode of ''Impact!'', losing to "The Alpha Male" Monty Brown in a

squash match Professional wrestling has accrued a considerable amount of jargon throughout its existence. Much of it stems from the industry's origins in the days of carnival Carnival (known as Shrovetide in certain localities) is a festive season that o ...

. In July 2006, he wrestled Big Tilly in Coastal Championship Wrestling (CCW), but lost the match. In February 2007, he was defeated by Dantastic in CCW. He retired from wrestling in 2008.

Personal life

He resides in

Orlando, Florida Orlando ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Orange County, Florida, United States. The city proper had a population of 307,573 at the 2020 census, making it the fourth-most populous city in Florida behind Jacksonville, Florida, Jacksonville ...

Championships and accomplishments

*Southern Championship Wrestling **SCW Florida Heavyweight Championship (1 time) **SCW Southern Heavyweight Championship (2 times) *Oxford International **CNC Champion of the World 2015

References

External links

*
Brian Gamble at Online World of Wrestling
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gamble, Brian 1970 births American aikidoka American male professional wrestlers American male sport wrestlers American male taekwondo practitioners American ninjutsu practitioners American tang soo do practitioners Living people People from Franklin Square, New York Professional wrestlers from Ohio Professional wrestlers from Orlando, Florida Sportspeople from Queens, New York Sportspeople from Toledo, Ohio 20th-century American sportsmen