Alpha Academy is a

professional wrestling 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, real- ...

stable A stable is a building in which working animals are kept, especially horses or oxen. The building is usually divided into stalls, and may include storage for equipment and feed. Styles There are many different types of stables in use tod ...

performing in

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is an American professional wrestling promotion. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority-owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. A global integrated media and entertainment company, ...

on the Raw

brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's goods or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create and ...

composed of Otis, Maxxine Dupri and

Akira Tozawa Akira Tozawa (戸澤陽, ''Tozawa Akira'', born July 22, 1985) is a Japanese professional wrestler. As of 2016, he is signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw (WWE brand), Raw WWE brand extension, brand and is a member of the Alpha Academy St ...

. Otis and

Chad Gable Charles Edward Betts (born March 8, 1986) is an American professional wrestler and former amateur wrestler. He has been signed to WWE where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Chad Gable and also portrays the masked luchador El G ...

, are former one-time

WWE Raw Tag Team Champions The World Tag Team Championship is a men's professional wrestling world tag team championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE, defended on the Raw brand division. It is one of two male tag team championships for WWE's main ...

. Formed as a tag team, Gable and Otis are longtime best friends in real life, with their friendship dating back to 2011, where they trained for the

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a Multi-s ...

together in Colorado Springs. The two are now neighbors on the same street.

History

Formation and Raw Tag Team Champions (2020–2023)

On November 13, 2020 episode of ''

SmackDown ''WWE SmackDown'', also known as ''Friday Night SmackDown'' or simply ''SmackDown'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE. It airs live every Friday at 8 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on USA Network in the United ...

'',

opened the "Alpha Academy" (a nod to his former tag team of

American Alpha American Alpha was a professional wrestling tag team, composed of former amateur wrestlers Jason Jordan and Chad Gable. The team performed on WWE's developmental brand NXT before being moved up to the main roster on the SmackDown brand. The tea ...

with

Jason Jordan Nathan Everhart (born September 28, 1988), better known by the ring name Jason Jordan, is an American retired professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he works as the lead producer for '' Raw'' and '' SmackDown''. Jordan signed a contr ...

) and recruited Otis as his client. The team made their debut on the December 11 episode of ''SmackDown'' in a defeat to the team of Cesaro and

Shinsuke Nakamura is a Japanese professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand. Nakamura is known for his time in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), where he is a former 3-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion, with his first rei ...

. At TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs, Gable and Otis teamed with

Big E Big E may refer to: * Capital letter "E" People * Big E (wrestler) (born 1986), American professional wrestler, born Ettore Ewen, formerly known as "Big E Langston" * Elvin Hayes (born 1945; nicknamed "Big E"), American basketball player and rad ...

and

Daniel Bryan Bryan Lloyd Danielson (born May 22, 1981) is an American semi-retired professional wrestler. He is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he performs on a part time basis. He is also known for his tenure in WWE, where he performed under t ...

to defeat Cesaro, Nakamura, King Corbin, and

Intercontinental Champion A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the victor in a challenge, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional/provincial/state, national, continental and world championships, and ...

Sami Zayn Rami Sebei (born July 12, 1984) is a Canadian professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Sami Zayn. Sebei made his professional wrestling debut in 2002 under the ring name Stevie McFly. Pr ...

in an

eight-man tag team match Much like the singles match, tag team professional wrestling matches can and have taken many forms. Just about any singles or melee match type can be adapted to tag teams; for example, hardcore tag team matches are commonplace. Tag team ladder m ...

. On the February 19, 2021 episode of ''SmackDown'', Gable ordered Otis to attack

Rey Mysterio Óscar Gutiérrez Rubio (born December 11, 1974), better known by his ring name Rey Mysterio, is an American professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand. Widely regarded as both one of the greatest '' luch ...

after their

tag team match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a storyline. ...

, thus turning them into

heels High-heeled shoes, also known as high heels (colloquially shortened to heels), are a type of shoe with an upward-angled sole. The heel in such shoes is raised above the ball of the foot. High heels cause the legs to appear longer, make the wea ...

. file:Alpha Academy (professional wrestling).jpg, 200px, Founding members

(left) and Otis (right) As part of the 2021 WWE Draft, 2021 Draft in October, Alpha Academy were drafted to the Raw

. On the January 10, 2022 episode of '' Raw'', Alpha Academy defeated

RK-Bro RK-Bro was an American professional wrestling tag team composed of Randy Orton and Matt Riddle. They were known for their time in WWE, where they performed on the Raw brand. The team's name was derived from Orton's initials and finisher "RKO" and ...

(

Randy Orton Randal Keith Orton (born April 1, 1980) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He has been signed to WWE since 2000, where he performs on the SmackDown (WWE brand), SmackDown brand. Orton is widely regarded as one of t ...

and

Riddle A riddle is a :wikt:statement, statement, question, or phrase having a double or veiled meaning, put forth as a puzzle to be solved. Riddles are of two types: ''enigmas'', which are problems generally expressed in metaphorical or Allegory, alleg ...

) to win the

Raw Tag Team Championship The World Tag Team Championship is a men's professional wrestling world tag team championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE, defended on the Raw brand division. It is one of two male tag team championships for WWE's main r ...

. They would both enter in the

Royal Rumble match The Royal Rumble match is a professional wrestling match based on the classic battle royal match in which a number of wrestlers (traditionally 30) aim at eliminating their competitors by tossing them over the top rope, with both feet touching the ...

but failed to win. On the March 7 episode of ''Raw'', Alpha Academy dropped the titles back to RK-Bro, ending their reign at 55 days. On Day 2 of

WrestleMania 38 WrestleMania 38 was a 2022 professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming List of WWE pay-per-view and livestreaming supercards, event produced by WWE. It was the 38th annual WrestleMania and took place as a two-night event on Saturda ...

on April 3, Alpha Academy failed to regain the titles from RK-Bro in a triple-threat match also involving the

Street Profits The Street Profits are an American professional wrestling tag team consisting of Angelo Dawkins and Montez Ford. They are signed to WWE, where they perform on the SmackDown brand, and are the current WWE Tag Team Champions in their second rei ...

(

Angelo Dawkins Gary Gordon (born July 24, 1990) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown (WWE brand), SmackDown WWE brand extension, brand under the ring name Angelo Dawkins. He is one- ...

and

Montez Ford Kenneth Crawford (born May 31, 1990) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown (WWE brand), SmackDown WWE brand extension, brand under the ring name Montez Ford. He is one ...

Addition of Maxxine Dupri and Akira Tozawa (2023–2024)

On the March 13, 2023 episode of ''Raw'', Gable found Otis backstage taking part in a photo shoot with

Maximum Male Models MxM Collection (or simply MxM) is a professional wrestling tag team consisting of Mansoor and Mason Madden. They are signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) and its sister promotion Ring of Honor (ROH), while also making appearances on the independen ...

(the team of ma.çé and mån.sôör, managed by Maxxine Dupri). Otis then decided to leave with Maximum Male Models instead of Gable. This would start a series of segments between Dupri and Gable where they both wanted Otis to be on their respective teams. Dupri joined Alpha Academy on the May 15 episode of ''Raw'' when she cheered on Otis and Gable eliminating ma.çé and mån.sôör in the Intercontinental Championship number one contenders' battle royal match. In the weeks that followed, Alpha Academy began to slowly turn face with their crowd reactions growing louder and louder. After weeks of training, Dupri made her in-ring debut on the July 3 episode of ''Raw'' in a mixed six-person tag team match with Gable and Otis against The Viking Raiders (

Erik The given name Eric, Erich, Erikk, Erik, Erick, Eirik, or Eiríkur is derived from the Old Norse name ''Eiríkr'' (or ''Eríkr'' in Old East Norse due to monophthongization). The first element, ''ei-'' may be derived from the older Proto-Nor ...

Ivar Ivar (Old Norse ''Ívarr'') is a Scandinavian masculine given name. Another variant of the name is Iver, which is more common in Norway. The Old Norse name has several possible etymologies. In North Germanic phonology, several of the elements c ...

and

Valhalla In Norse mythology, Valhalla ( , ; , )Orchard (1997:171–172) is described as a majestic hall located in Asgard and presided over by the god Odin. There were five possible realms the soul could travel to after death. The first was Fólkvang ...

). Dupri pinned Valhalla after performing a ''sunset flip'' on her. On the July 10 episode of ''Raw'', Alpha Academy held a graduation ceremony for Dupri. At the end of the ceremony, Gable presented Dupri with her own Alpha Academy letterman's jacket. As Dupri was about to put on the jacket, The Viking Raiders appeared on the ramp to distract the team. Valhalla then attacked Dupri from behind and stole her jacket. In the following episode of ''Raw'', Gable and Otis fought Erik and Ivar in a "Viking Rules" match. Despite dominating the match, Gable and Otis lost but Dupri managed to take back her jacket. On the July 31 episode of ''Raw'', Dupri defeated Valhalla with a ''Japanese Ocean Cyclone Suplex'' in her debut singles match. As the team was celebrating backstage,

Imperium In ancient Rome, ''imperium'' was a form of authority held by a citizen to control a military or governmental entity. It is distinct from '' auctoritas'' and '' potestas'', different and generally inferior types of power in the Roman Republic a ...

Gunther Gundaharius or Gundahar (died 437), better known by his legendary names Gunther () or Gunnar (), was a historical King of the Burgundians in the early 5th century. Gundahar is attested as ruling his people shortly after they crossed the Rhine ...

took offense to Dupri's match win and mocked the team.

Ludwig Kaiser Marcel Barthel (born 8 July 1990) is a German professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Ludwig Kaiser and is a member of Imperium alongside Gunther. He previously wrestled under the ring n ...

then challenged Gable to last five minutes in the ring with Gunther, which Gable accepted. Despite Gable beating the clock, Gunther demanded the match to continue and defeated Gable. On the August 7 episode of ''Raw'', Gable defeated

Tommaso Ciampa Tommaso Whitney (born May 8, 1985) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown (WWE brand), SmackDown WWE brand extension, brand under the ring name Tommaso Ciampa () and ...

Matt Riddle Matthew Fredrick Riddle (born January 14, 1986) is an American professional wrestler and former mixed martial artist. He is signed to Major League Wrestling (MLW), where he is the reigning MLW World Heavyweight Champion in his first reign. He ...

, and

Ricochet A ricochet ( ; ) is a rebound, bounce, or skip off a surface, particularly in the case of a projectile. Most ricochets are caused by accident and while the force of the deflection decelerates the projectile, it can still be energetic and almost ...

in a fatal four-way match to be the number one contender to Gunther's Intercontinental Championship. Later that night, Otis lost to Kaiser after an interference from Imperium. Two weeks later on ''Raw'', Gable challenged Gunther for the Intercontinental Championship and won by countout. However, as championships do not change hands by countout or disqualification, Gunther remained champion. The group expanded with

joining the stable and being assigned as a "junior member" on the October 23 episode of ''Raw''. In a bid to prove himself to the stable, Tozawa challenged

Bronson Reed Jermaine Haley (born 25 August 1988) is an Australian professional wrestler. , he is signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Bronson Reed. In WWE, he is a former NXT North American Champion and the winner of the ...

to a match but lost. The following day, Tozawa appeared on Night 1 of ''NXT'': Halloween Havoc and stole

Noam Dar Noam Dar (; born 28 July 1993) is an Israeli and Scottish professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE where he perfroms on the NXT brand and is the current NXT Heritage Cup champion in his record-setting fourth reign. He is also known for his ti ...

NXT Heritage Cup The NXT Heritage Cup is a men's professional wrestling championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE. It is a specialized championship for NXT, the promotion's developmental brand, defended exclusively under British Rounds Rul ...

. Tozawa would return the Cup to Dar on Night 2 before managing to spook Dar into a match for the Cup on the following week's '' NXT'' but lost the match 2-1 under British Round Rules. On the November 20 episode of ''Raw'', Dupri teamed up with

Diamond Mine There are a limited number of commercially available diamond mines currently operating in the world, with the 50 largest mines accounting for approximately 90% of global supply. Diamonds are also mined alluvially over disperse areas, where dia ...

's Ivy Nile in a fatal four-way tag team match for a

WWE Women's Tag Team Championship The WWE Women's Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling Women's Tag Team Championship, women's tag team Professional wrestling, championship created and promoted by the American professional wrestling promotion, promotion WWE. It is th ...

opportunity but was not successful. On the December 11 episode of ''Raw'', Nile accompanied Dupri in her non-title match against Women's World Champion

Rhea Ripley Demi Bennett (born 11 October 1996) is an Australian professional wrestler. As of July 2017, she is signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw (WWE brand), Raw WWE brand extension, brand under the ring name Rhea Ripley. She is a List of Women ...

. Ripley won by submission but did not release the hold until Nile entered the ring to save Dupri. Dupri made her

debut at the titular event on January 27, 2024, entering as the 18th entrant. She lasted over six minutes and was eliminated by eventual winner Bayley.

Dissension and split from Gable (2024–present)

During the buildup to

WrestleMania XL WrestleMania XL was a 2024 professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming List of WWE pay-per-view and livestreaming supercards, event produced by WWE. It was the 40th annual WrestleMania and took place as a two-night event on Saturd ...

, Gable was involved in a storyline where he trained Sami Zayn for his Intercontinental Championship match against Gunther, which Zayn won. As a token of appreciation, Zayn gave Gable a title match on the April 15 episode of ''Raw'' but Gable was unsuccessful in winning the title. After the match, Gable turned heel and attacked Zayn as he was celebrating with his wife at ringside. On the following week, Gable said that he had spent too much time training "losers" such as Zayn and his stablemates. He then declared that the stable's focus will now be on Gable winning the Intercontinental Championship. On the April 29 episode of ''Raw,'' Zayn defended his title against Bronson Reed, which he won by disqualification after Gable attacked him. One week later, Zayn attacked Gable during his match with Reed, causing another disqualification. It was then announced that Zayn will defend the Intercontinental Championship in a

triple threat match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called " gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a storyline. ...

against Gable and Reed at

King and Queen of the Ring King and Queen of the Ring, formerly and still commonly known as simply King of the Ring, was a professional wrestling event produced by WWE, a Connecticut-based professional wrestling promotion. The event was established in 1993 and originally c ...

. In a

live event A house show (also commonly called a live event) is a professional wrestling event produced by a major Professional wrestling promotion, promotion that is not televised, though they can be recorded. Promotions use house shows mainly to cash in o ...

on May 13, Dupri lost to

Shayna Baszler Shayna Andrea Baszler ( ; born August 8, 1980) is an American professional wrestler and a former kickboxer and mixed martial artist. She is best known for her time in WWE, where she became a former List of NXT Women's Champions, two-time and lon ...

in the first round of the Queen of the Ring tournament, with Dupri replacing

Latino World Order The Latino World Order (abbreviated lWo or LWO) is a professional wrestling stable primarily consisting of wrestlers with Latin American backgrounds performing in WWE on the Raw brand. The stable consists of Rey Mysterio, Cruz Del Toro, Joaquin ...

Zelina Vega Thea Megan Trinidad Büdgen (born December 27, 1990) is an American professional wrestler. She is signed to WWE, where she performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Zelina Vega and is the current Women's United States Champion in he ...

who was not medically cleared to compete. At King and Queen of the Ring on May 25, Zayn successfully retained his title against Gable and Reed. At Clash at the Castle: Scotland on June 15, Gable failed to win the title from Zayn, ending their feud, after Otis and Dupri refused to interfere on Gable's behalf. Two days later on ''Raw'', Otis, Dupri and Tozawa walked out on Gable, who in turn left Alpha Academy. At the end of the night, Gable was attacked by the debuting Wyatt Sicks led by Uncle Howdy. Gable attempted to reunite with Otis numerous times but was ultimately rebuffed. On the July 15 episode of ''Raw'', Otis, Dupri and Tozawa agreed to team up with The New Day's

Xavier Woods Austin Watson (born September 4, 1986) is an American professional wrestler and YouTuber. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Xavier Woods and is part of The New Day and is one-half of the current World ...

in his feud against

The Final Testament Kevin Robert Kesar (born July 19, 1985) is an American professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Karrion Kross. Prior to his time at WWE, Kesar performed for Impact Wrestling, Lucha Libre ...

. On the following week, the team of Otis, Tozawa and Woods were defeated by The Final Testatement's

Karrion Kross Kevin Robert Kesar (born July 19, 1985) is an American professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Karrion Kross. Prior to his time at WWE, Kesar performed for Impact Wrestling, Lucha Libre ...

and

The Authors of Pain ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...

( Akam and

Rezar } Gzim Selmani (born 16 June 1994) is a Dutch professional wrestler and former mixed martial artist. He is best known for his time in WWE, where he performed under the ring name Rezar. After signing with WWE in 2015, Rezar has since teamed with ...

) in a six-man tag team match. After the match, Gable, together with the newly-aligned

Creed Brothers The Creed Brothers are an American professional wrestling tag team consisting of brothers Brutus Creed (Drew Kasper; born May 13, 1996) and Julius Creed (Jacob Kasper; born October 3, 1994). they are signed to the professional wrestling promotion ...

(Julius and Brutus), continued to convince Otis, Tozawa and Dupri to reunite. Otis refused and were beaten down by Gable and The Creed Brothers. On the November 25 episode of ''Raw'', Otis and Tozawa defeated The New Day, seemingly triggering a massive breakdown regarding Xavier Woods and Kofi Kingston's near ten year friendship. On the April 21 episode of ''Raw'', Otis and Akira were set to play the

WWE World Tag Team Champions World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is an American professional wrestling promotion. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority-owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. A global integrated media and entertainment company, ...

The New Day in a non-title match. Right when the match was about to start a returning Rusev attacked Otis and Akira while The New Day was out of the ring.

Members

File:Otis 042025 (cropped).jpg, Otis File:Maxxine Dupri 042025 (cropped).jpg, Maxxine Dupri File:Akira Tozawa 042025 (cropped).jpg,

{, class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;" , - !Member !Joined , - , {{sortname, Otis , {{dts, 2020, 11, 13 * , - , Maxxine Dupri , {{dts, 2023, 05, 15 , - ,

, {{dts, 2023, 10, 23

Former

{, class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;" , - !Member !Joined !Left , - , {{sortname,

(L) , {{dts, 2020, 11, 13 * , {{dts, 2024, 06, 17

Timeline

{{#tag:timeline, ImageSize = width:800 height:auto barincrement:20 PlotArea = left:100 bottom:100 top:05 right:15 Alignbars = justify DateFormat = mm/dd/yyyy Period = from:12/11/2020 till:{{#time:m/d/Y TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy Legend = orientation:vertical position:bottom columns:3 ScaleMajor = increment:1 gridcolor:black start:2021 unit:year Colors = id:leader value:red legend:Leader id:member value:black legend:Member id:tag value:yellow legend:Tag_Team BarData = bar:Gable text:Chad Gable bar:Otis text:Otis bar:Dupri text:Maxxine Dupri bar:Tozawa text:Akira Tozawa PlotData = width:11 bar:Gable from:12/11/2020 till:{{#time:06/17/2024 color:leader bar:Gable from:12/11/2020 till:10/23/2023 color:tag width:3 bar:Otis from:12/11/2020 till:{{#time:m/d/Y color:Member bar:Otis from:12/11/2020 till:10/23/2023 color:tag width:3 bar:Dupri from:05/23/2023 till:{{#time:m/d/Y color:member bar:Tozawa from:10/23/2023 till:{{#time:m/d/Y color:member

Championships and accomplishments

* ''

Pro Wrestling Illustrated ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publishing Group. The maga ...

'' ** Ranked No. 69 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the ''

PWI 500 ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publishing Group. The maga ...

'' in 2020 (Otis){{Cite web, url=http://www.profightdb.com/pwi-500/2020.html, title = Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2020 - the Internet Wrestling Database ** Ranked No. 123 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the ''

'' in 2020 (Gable) *

WWE Raw Tag Team Championship The World Tag Team Championship is a men's professional wrestling world tag team championship created and promoted by the United States, American professional wrestling promotion, promotion WWE, defended on the Raw (WWE brand), Raw WWE brand exte ...

( 1 time) – Gable and Otis{{cite web, url=https://www.wwe.com/titlehistory/raw-tag-team-championship, title=WWE Raw Tag Team Championship history, publisher=

* ''

Wrestling Observer Newsletter The ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' (''WON'') is a newsletter that covers professional wrestling and mixed martial arts. Founded in print in 1982 by Dave Meltzer, the ''Wrestling Observer'' website merged with Bryan Alvarez's ''Figure Four Wee ...

'' ** Most Underrated (2023) – Gable{{cite web , last1=Meltzer , first1=Dave , title=February 26, 2024 Observer Newsletter: 2023 Observer Awards issue , url=https://www.f4wonline.com/newsletters/wrestling-observer-newsletter/february-26-2024-observer-newsletter-2023-observer-awards-issue , work=Wrestling Observer Newsletter , date=23 February 2024 , access-date=February 23, 2024

References

{{reflist

External links

* {{professional wrestling profiles * {{wwe superstar, chad-gable, Chad Gable * {{wwe superstar, otis, Otis * {{wwe superstar, maxxine-dupri, Maxxine Dupri * {{wwe superstar, akira-tozawa, Akira Tozawa {{WWE personnel {{World Tag Team Championship (WWE, 2024–present) {{DEFAULTSORT:Alpha Academy WWE teams and stables