Vincent Rubio (born 5 November 1985), better known by the ring name Eddie Ryan, is a British

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 ...

currently active in the United Kingdom. Rubio, originally from

Plymouth Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tamar, Tamar, about southwest of Exeter and ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, started his in ring career in 2008 at the

4 Front Wrestling British Kingdom Pro-Wrestling previously 4 Front Wrestling (Sometimes acronymed as 4FW) is a pro wrestling company based in the South West of England, established in 2004 by Dave Sharp. Since 2004, the company has promoted a range of shows; utilis ...

(4FW) training school. His first match was in January of the following year for 4FW under the ring name Eddie Reyes, being given the

gimmick A gimmick is a novel device or idea designed primarily to attract attention or increase appeal, often with little intrinsic value. When applied to retail marketing, it is a unique or quirky feature designed to make a product or service "stand out ...

of a

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

wrestler. Before representing England overseas in

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

and the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, Rubio changed his ring name to Eddie Ryan, with an English gimmick. In 2018, Rubio first appeared on national television channel

FreeSports Viaplay Xtra was a British sports television channel operated and owned by Viaplay Group. History Viaplay Xtra launched as FreeSports on 31 August 2017 and was closed down on 25 January 2024 with the aim to provide free-to-air sports covera ...

for

5 Star Wrestling 5 Star Wrestling (stylised as 5★ Wrestling) was a professional wrestling promotion based in Scotland. The company operated from 2015 to 2018 and promoted events throughout the United Kingdom and Ireland. They also produced a television series w ...

, and later as a part of the

NXT UK ''NXT UK'' was a professional wrestling television programme that was produced exclusively in the United Kingdom by the American promotion WWE. It aired on BT Sport and 5Action (previously known as Paramount Network). In the United States, the ...

brand of

World Wrestling Entertainment 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, ...

. Ryan is a twenty-time heavyweight champion, and held eight tag team championships with his partner Jason Larusso, as a part of ''The Lionhearts'', Charlie Sterling as a part of "Crazy Teacups", & Joel Redman.

Early life

Rubio grew up in Plymouth, England. As a teenager, Rubio played

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

until his final year of university and watched professional wrestling. He graduated from

Plymouth University The University of Plymouth is a public research university based predominantly in Plymouth, England, where the main campus is located, but the university has campuses and affiliated colleges across South West England. With students, it is the ...

with a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

in business administration in 2008. Afterward, he moved to

Swindon Swindon () is a town in Wiltshire, England. At the time of the 2021 Census the population of the built-up area was 183,638, making it the largest settlement in the county. Located at the northeastern edge of the South West England region, Swi ...

to train to become a professional wrestler.

Professional wrestling career

Early career (2008–2011)

Rubio started his professional wrestling career in 2008 by training at the

(4FW) Training School. He had his first professional match in January of the following year at ''4FW New Year’s Wrestlution'' under the name of Eddie Reyes, with the gimmick of a Spanish wrestler. Rubio competed in a five-way ladder match Money in the bank, featuring Mark Sloan,

Wade Fitzgerald Wade, WADE, or Wades may refer to: Places in the United States * Wade, Maine, a town * Wade, Mississippi, a census-designated place * Wade, North Carolina, a town * Wade, Ohio, an unincorporated community * Wade Township, Clinton County, Il ...

Mark Haskins Mark Haskins (born June 25, 1988), is an English professional wrestler. He is known internationally for his time in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, as well as his appearances in Ring of Honor, Progress Wrestling, Revolution Pro Wrestling, Drag ...

and won by Dave Sharp. Rubio wrestled predominantly for 4FW during his first year, but made his debut for Pro Evolution Wrestling (Pro EVW) in July with a loss to Jack Dynamo. He gained his first championship match by the end of the year in a battle royale at the 4FW Halloween Spectacular 2009, but lost the match for the 4FW Heavyweight Championship again to Jack Dynamo a full year after his debut in January 2010. Rubio continued with his work in 4FW and Pro EVW, but also branched out into new territories in 2010, with matches in Welsh Wrestling and XWA. He made his first appearance outside of the UK, wrestling for the Nordic Championship Wrestling Cruiser weight Championship in

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. Rubio had his final match as "The Spanish Sensation" Eddie Reyes in June 2011 at ''4FW Steel Cage Warfare'', in a loss to

Joel Redman Joel Pettyfer (born 21 February 1987), is an English professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Joel Redman. Pettyfer is best known for his work on the independent circuit in the United Kingdom, where he is a former Unified British Ta ...

. So he could represent England, Rubio changed his gimmick to being English, and his ring-name to Eddie Ryan. Rubio competed in six matches in the United States, including a losing effort for the vacant

Power League Wrestling Power League Wrestling (PLW) was an American independent professional wrestling promotion based in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. It was founded in Swansea, Massachusetts by Bob Evans and Mark Amaral in 1991, and later taken over by Amaral, Carlos Aren ...

Heavyweight Championship. Rubio also competed in the

Korakuen Hall is a sports arena in Bunkyo, Tokyo, Japan, which has hosted boxing, professional wrestling, kickboxing, mixed martial arts and Lethwei matches. History On April 16, 1962, the Korakuen Hall was officially opened with a capacity of approximat ...

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

, Japan, where he won a tag team match for

Pro Wrestling Zero1 , often referred to simply as Zero1 and sometimes referred to as Pro Wrestling Zero1 Catch as Catch Can (stylized as ZERO1 and PRO WRESTLING ZERO1 CATCH AS CATCH CAN, respectively), is a Professional wrestling in Japan, Japanese professional wre ...

The Lionhearts and 4FW Champion (2012–2015)

In February 2012, Rubio returned to England from Japan, and won his first professional championship in a ten-man

ladder match A ladder match is a type of match in professional wrestling, most commonly one in which an item (usually a title belt) is hung above the ring, and the winner is the contestant who climbs a ladder and retrieves the item. The ladder itself become ...

. He defended the championship against the likes of

Sha Samuels Shaaheen Hosseinpour (born 27 February 1985), better known by the ring name Sha Samuels, is an English professional wrestler, currently performing for Revolution Pro Wrestling (RevPro). He is also known for his time in WWE where he performed on t ...

, Benham Ali and Dave Mastiff before losing the championship to Samuels in March 2013; holding the championship for over a year. During this time, he also returned to his home town of Plymouth for the Plymouth Wrestling Alliance (PWA). Before the end of 2013, Ryan won the 4FW Championship back in a

2-on-1 Handicap 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. ...

. Ryan start tagging with Jason Larusso, creating the tag team "The Lionhearts". Throughout 2013, the team received four tag team championship matches, for the Pro EVW, Alternate Wrestling World,

Pro Wrestling Pride ''Pro Wrestling Pride'' (Sometimes referred to as ''Pride Promotions'', or simply PWP) was a pro wrestling company based in the South West of England, established in 2012 by professional wrestler Darren 'Saviour' Ferguson. Since its inception in 20 ...

(PWP) and

Michinoko Pro Wrestling (originally known as North Eastern Wrestling) is a Japanese professional wrestling professional wrestling promotion, promotion founded by The Great Sasuke on October 1, 1992. It was the first independent circuit, independent wrestling promotion i ...

tag team championships, however they lost all of them. In late 2014, they won the 4FW Tag Team Championship by defeating The Hunter Brothers. Whilst holding the 4FW Heavyweight Championship, Ryan become the number one contender for the PWA Heavyweight Championship, and on 5 March 2014 Ryan won the PWA Heavyweight Championship from Chris Marvel on the company's 5th anniversary show. He defended the championship multiple times, defeating John Harding, Danny Walsh, and

Robbie E Robert Strauss (born October 1, 1983) is an American professional wrestler and Manager (professional wrestling), manager. He is signed to WWE, where he is a Producer (wrestling), producer, the on-screen assistant to the NXT general manager Ava (w ...

. Ryan held the championship for an entire year, before losing at the 6th anniversary show, to Danny Walsh. Focusing on both tag team and singles wrestling, The Lionhearts won their second tag team championship, this time the Pro Wrestling Pride Tag Team Championship, besting old nemesis Danny Walsh, and brother Mark Walsh. They became double champions after winning a four-team

gauntlet match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "Glossary of professional wrestling terms#Gimmick, gimmick matches" in the Glossary of professional wrestling terms, jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick m ...

to regain the 4FW Tag Team Championship. The team lost the Pride Tag Team Championship two months after winning them back to Mark Walsh, and his new partner, Tyler Hawke.

Singles success and TNA Heavyweight Championship match (2016)

Ryan started 2016 by competing in a tournament to crown the first 4FW South East Champion, where he lost to JD Knight in the final. In February, he lost the 4FW Tag Championship with partner Jason Larusso, effectively ending the team. Ryan then focused primarily on singles competition and received wins against Chris Dickinson, Kelly Sixx and Joshua Knott, before winning the 3rd Annual '' PWP Prizefighters Tournament'', defeating Lomaxx in the final and gaining a

PWP Heavyweight Championship The PWP Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling Championship (professional wrestling), championship owned by Pro Wrestling Pride. It was the second championship incorporated by Pro Wrestling Pride; behind the PWP Catch Division Cha ...

opportunity. He was unsuccessful at ''PWP Pride & Glory 2016'', but he won the championship at the next show, ''PWP One of a kind'', besting Steve Griffiths in

Taunton Taunton () is the county town of Somerset, England. It is a market town and has a Minster (church), minster church. Its population in 2011 was 64,621. Its thousand-year history includes a 10th-century priory, monastic foundation, owned by the ...

. As champion, Ryan successfully defended the championship against

Hardcore Holly Robert William Howard (born January 29, 1963) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenure in WWE, where he performed under the ring name Hardcore Holly. After debuting in 1987, Holly worked for ...

at ''PWP Heroes and Legends 3'', as well as wins over Chris Andrews, Danny Jones and Chuck Cyrus. He lost the championship in an elimination six-pack challenge to

Bram Bram may refer to: People * Bram (given name) * Bram (surname) * Thom Latimer (born 1986), English professional wrestler better known as his former ring name ″Bram″ * Bram Tchaikovsky (born 1950), stage name of British musician Peter Bramall * ...

, due to interference from the "House of Bones" tag team, Gideon and Lomaxx. Ryan got revenge by winning a tag team match against the House of Bones, partnering

James Storm James Allen Cox (born June 1, 1977) is an American professional wrestler better known by the ring name James Storm. He currently competes on the independent circuit. He is best known for his time in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA). He sta ...

. In August, Ryan won his fourth heavyweight championship, defeating JD Knight for the South East Professional Wrestling Heavyweight Championship in

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

. Ryan continued working for Plymouth Wrestling Association, and on 17 April he won a number one contenders match for the

TNA TNA may refer to: Organisations * Tamil National Alliance, a political coalition in Sri Lanka * The National Alliance, a political party in Kenya * The National Archives (United Kingdom), a UK public body * Tonga Nurses' Association, a trade union ...

Heavyweight Championship against

Drew Galloway Andrew McLean Galloway IV (born 6 June, 1985) is a Scottish professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Drew McIntyre. Galloway began his career in 2001 in the United Kingdom wit ...

. Ryan lost the championship match at the company's 7th anniversary show. Ryan also challenged for the PWA Heavyweight Championship against Tyler Hawke, but did not successfully win the championship.

Heavyweight and tournament success (2017)

In January, Ryan had his first Ultimate Pro Wrestling championship opportunity, where he lost to Lestyn Rees. He also challenged for new championships, including the Pro Wrestling

PWP Catch Division Championship The PWP Catch Division Championship is a professional wrestling championship owned by Pro Wrestling Pride. It was the first championship incorporated by Pro Wrestling Pride, and the company's second-tier championship behind the PWP Heavyweight C ...

against Joshua Knott, and the King Of Chaos Championship, in a seven-man match, losing on both occasions. He won the ''Pride Prizefighters tournament'' for the second time in a row, however, he lost the corresponding championship match again, losing in a fatal-4-way to

. Ryan had success in Pro Wrestling Chaos during the year, with wins over

Rampage Brown Oliver Biney (born 8 August 1983) is an English professional wrestler best known for his time in WWE, performing under the ring name Rampage Brown. He is also known for his work throughout the European and British independent wrestling circu ...

, Dick Riley,

Mikey Whiplash Michael John Gilbert (born 16 July 1980) is a professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Mikey Whiplash. He currently resides in Glasgow, Scotland and wrestled for numerous promotions in the British Independent circuit. Gilbert was t ...

, and wrestled

Tommy Dreamer Thomas James Laughlin (born February 13, 1971) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler and professional wrestling promotion, promoter better known by the ring name Tommy Dreamer. He is signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestli ...

and

Paul London Paul Michael London (born April 16, 1980) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He is currently signed to Major League Wrestling (MLW), where he performs as a wrestler and a producer. He is best known for his tenure in WW ...

. In July, Ryan unsuccessfully challenged for the Ironfist Wrestling Heavyweight Championship, losing to

. He returned to the company in September, to attempt the ''Mount Olympus Challenge'', a seven-man match, won by Max Alexander. In March, Ryan won his second one-night tournament, where he won the Plymouth Wrestling Association ''Trail to Prevail tournament''. This led to him besting Robin Lekime for the PWA Heavyweight championship on 30 April. He then defended the championship against Lekime twice more, winning the final encounter 3–2 in a 30-minute Iron Man match at Heat Wave II. Ryan twice battled for the Ultimate Pro Wrestling championship number one contendership; on 9 September 2017 he lost a triple threat match to Josh Bodom (also including Ryan Smile), and also lost a singles match to Bodom on 20 October. On 28 October Ryan had his first singles match for the Pro Wrestling Chaos championship, losing to Eddie Dennis. Ryan finished out the year wrestling for Ultimate Pro Wrestling, and in Big League Wrestling, losing to Chris Andrews.

5 Star Wrestling (2018)

In late 2017, Ryan was named a member of the roster for the ''

'' tour in 2018, also featuring

Rob Van Dam Robert Szatkowski (born December 18, 1970) better known by his ring name Rob Van Dam (frequently abbreviated to RVD) is an American professional wrestler. Known for his unique ring style—which includes his variety of kicks, acrobatic movemen ...

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 ...

and Jack Hager, that was broadcast on ''

''. Following this Rubio announced that he was to be wrestling full-time, quitting his job as a Data Analyst. During a press conference before the tour, a

kayfabe In professional wrestling, kayfabe (pronounced ) is the portrayal of staged events within the industry as "real" or "true", specifically competition, rivalries, and relationships between participants. The term has evolved to become a code word ...

fight between Hager and Ryan occurred over Hager's disrespectful attitude against British wrestlers, where Hager stated that British wrestlers "don’t matter. Ryan was defeated by Hager in the

Echo Arena Liverpool Arena, known for sponsorship reasons as the M&S Bank Arena and previously the Echo Arena, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the city centre of Liverpool, England. The venue hosts live music, comedy performances and sporting events, ...

, on the first night of the tour in the main event on 1 February 2018, on 5 Star Wrestling's debut on FreeSports. On 22 February Ryan made a public challenge to Hager, who was now the 5 Star Champion, for a championship match. The event saw Ryan's challenge be met by Hager, but only if Ryan could win a "five-star gauntlet match", winning against five wrestlers in a row. Ryan defeated Markus Burke, and then HT Drake, before defeating Tim Wyde by disqualification, after interference from Hager. Ryan was then forced to take on Dave Mastiff and old rival "Big Grizzly" Steve Griffiths in a two-on-one handicap match, which he also won. After the match, Ryan was rewarded a championship match against Hager in that evening's main event, which he lost after outside interference from

. In March 2018, 5 Star Wrestling folded, however, on the last broadcast, Ryan won the newly created 5 Star Wrestling: Real Championship from

Zack Gibson Jack Rea (born 8 August 1990), better known by the ring name Zack Gibson, is an English professional wrestler and promoter. He is making appearances on the independent circuit, where he also make appearances to All Elite Wrestling (AEW). He has ...

, in

Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...

NXT UK (2018)

Ryan made his debut for

under the

brand on 13 October 2018, where he competed and won in the

Plymouth Pavilions Plymouth Pavilions is an entertainment and sports complex in Plymouth, Devon, England. The arena is used as an entertainment venue and also for corporate hire. The Pavilions is built on the site of the former Millbay railway station that is ...

. The following night, Ryan competed in a losing effort against

Fabian Aichner Fabian Aichner (born 21 July 1990) is an Italian professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenure in WWE, where he performed under the ring name Giovanni Vinci. Aichner signed with WWE in 2017 and joined the group Imperium, becoming a two-t ...

Personal life

Rubio is a supporter of Plymouth Argyle FC.

Professional wrestling persona

Originally portraying as a Spanish

, Rubio wrestled under the name of ''Eddie Reyes'', using a sitout scoop slam piledriver to win matches, known as the ''España Slam''. Later, after his character changed nationality, Rubio utilised a

superkick Strikes can be offensive moves in professional wrestling, that can sometimes be used to set up an opponent for a hold or for a throw. There are a wide variety of strikes in pro wrestling, and many are known by several different names. Professional ...

to win matches; being referred to as "The English Lion". Along with his name, Ryan would often wear a gladiatorial cape to the ring; or if wrestling in Plymouth, a

Plymouth Argyle Plymouth Argyle Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Plymouth, Devon, England. The team currently competes in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system. The club has played ...

football shirt. In 2018, for

, Rubio used a running crucifix powerbomb known as the ''George Cross'' to finish matches, a move name designed to utilise his place as a

babyface Babyface or Baby Face can refer to: Nicknames * Lester Joseph Gillis a.k.a. Baby Face Nelson, an infamous 1930s bank robber * Roosevelt "Baby Face" Willette (1933–1971), an American hard bop and soul-jazz musician * "Baby Face", Jimmy McLarnin ...

representing the country.

Championships and accomplishments

** 5 Star Wrestling: Real Championship (1 time, inaugural, final) **5 Star Wrestling: Real Championship Tournament (2018) *

** 4FW Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Jason Larusso ** 4FW Heavyweight Championship (2 times) * Alternative Wrestling World ** AWW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Jason Larusso * British Kingdom Pro-Wrestling ** Brit King Pro Championship (1 time, current) *Combat Sports Federation **CSF All-Nations Heavyweight Championship (1 time) * Elite Wrestling Entertainment ** EWE Heavyweight Championship (1 time) ** EWE Heavyweight Title Tournament (2019) * Full Force Wrestling ** FFW British Heavyweight Championship (2 time) * Plymouth Wrestling Alliance/Association ** PWA Heavyweight Championship (3 times, Final) ** PWA Trail to Prevail Tournament (1 time) * Pro Wrestling Chaos ** PWC Knights of Chaos Championship (2 times) - with Charlie Sterling *

(1 time) ** Prizefighters Champion (2 times) – 2016, 2017 ** PWP Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Jason Larusso * Reach Wrestling ** Reach Heavyweight Championship (2 time) * South East Professional Wrestling ** SEPW Heavyweight Championship (1 time) * Strike Wrestling ** Strike Heavyweight Championship (2 times) * South West Wrestling ** SWW Heavyweight Championship (2 time) ** SWW Tag Team Championship (2 time, current) - with

*Ultimate Pro Wrestling **UPW World Heavyweight Championship (1 time) **UPW Undisputed Heavyweight Championship (1 time)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ryan, Eddie 1986 births English male professional wrestlers Living people Sportspeople from Plymouth, Devon 21st-century English sportsmen