Robert Anthony (born June 11, 1982) is an American

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 ...

, better known by his

ring name A ring name is a type of stage name or nickname used by an athlete such as a professional wrestler, mixed martial artist, or boxer whose real name is considered unattractive, dull, difficult to pronounce or spell, amusing for the wrong reasons ...

Egotistico Fantastico, known for his time with the

National Wrestling Alliance The National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) is an American professional wrestling professional wrestling promotion, promotion and governing body owned by Billy Corgan and operated by its parent company Lightning One, Inc. Founded in 1948, the NWA be ...

(NWA), where he competed under the

Cyon and was a former NWA National Champion. He has worked for

All Elite Wrestling All Elite Wrestling (AEW) is an American professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida. It is owned and operated by Shahid Khan, Shahid and Tony Khan, with the latter serving as President (corporate title), president an ...

(AEW), as well as for various

independent promotions 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. ...

, most notably

Combat Zone Wrestling Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW) is an American independent professional wrestling promotion founded in 1999 by John Zandig. Commonly associated with the 2000s hardcore wrestling genre, early CZW shows showcased a brand of wrestling dubbed by the p ...

(CZW) where he is a former CZW World Heavyweight Champion, as well as a former World Junior Heavyweight Champion. He is also a one-time CZW Iron Man Champion, and was the last person to hold the championship.

Professional wrestling career

Early career (2001–2006)

Anthony debuted in 2001 under the ring name Egotistico Fantastico, a

luchador ''Lucha libre'' (, meaning "freestyle wrestling" or literally translated as "free fight") is the term for the style of professional wrestling originating in Mexico. Since its introduction to Mexico in the early 20th century, it has develope ...

gimmick, and began competing for Pro Championship Wrestling. While in PCW, he captured the promotion's Heavyweight Championship. He would also take the gimmick to various promotions, most notably

Ring of Honor Ring of Honor (ROH) is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Jacksonville, Florida. The promotion was founded by Rob Feinstein on February 23, 2002, and was operated by Cary Silkin from 2004 until 2011; the promotion was subs ...

, ROH's sister promotion

Full Impact Pro Full Impact Pro (FIP) is an American professional wrestling promotion. It is currently part of the World Wrestling Network (WWN) along with Shine Wrestling. Sal Hamaoui founded the company and serves as the president, while Trevin Adams is the ...

, and

World Wrestling Entertainment (2006–2008, 2017)

In November 2006, Anthony was signed to a developmental contract by

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, ...

before being assigned to the developmental territory

Deep South Wrestling Deep South Wrestling (DSW) is a professional wrestling promotion in the state of Georgia. Deep South worked in tandem with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) as a developmental territory from September 1, 2005, until April 18, 2007. Deep South w ...

. While in DSW, he began competing under his real name instead of the Egotistico Fantastico gimmick. When DSW was shut down, Anthony was transferred over to

Florida Championship Wrestling Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW) was a professional wrestling professional wrestling promotion, promotion based on the former National Wrestling Alliance member promotion, Championship Wrestling from Florida, which operated from 1961 until ...

, where he continued to train until he was released from his developmental contract in February 2008. In May 2017 he wrestled with

Velveteen Dream Patrick Clark Jr. (born August 19, 1995) is an American professional wrestler. He is performing on the independent circuit under his real name and the ring name Velveteen Man. He is best known for his time in WWE, where he performed under the ri ...

, where he lost to him on NXT.

Return to the independent circuit (2008–present)

Following his release from WWE, Anthony returned to wrestling in the independent circuit for promotions such as

All American Wrestling AAW: Professional Wrestling Redefined or simply AAW Wrestling (AAW), an initialism of its original name, All American Wrestling, is an American independent professional wrestling Professional wrestling, often shortened to either pro w ...

Independent Wrestling Association Mid-South Independent Wrestling Association (IWA) Mid-South (also known as IWA Mid-South, IWA-MS, and IWA Mid South Wrestling) was an American Independent circuit, independent professional wrestling professional wrestling promotion, promotion based in J ...

and

. As Egotistico Fantastico, he made his debut for IWA-MS in April soon became a mainstay for the promotion after a series of high-profile matches during the

Ted Petty Invitational The Ted Petty Invitational tournament (the TPI) is an independent wrestling tournament in North America, run and promoted by Independent Wrestling Association Mid-South. Created as the Sweet Science Sixteen in 2000 by Ian Rotten, the tournament wa ...

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

. On May 26, 2012, Anthony Was defeated by Ryan Slade in a Pro Wrestling Blitz event. On February 6, 2015, Anthony made his debut for Freelance Wrestling Where he was defeated by Craig Mitchell. On February 28, 2015, Anthony defeated Mr Flores at Pro Wrestling Blitz event.

Combat Zone Wrestling (2009–2012)

Later on in 2008, Egotistico Fantastico joined CZW. In June 2009 he won CZW's the Best Of The Best 9 tournament. On October 9, 2010, Anthony returned to CZW unmasked, using the ring name "The Ego" Robert Anthony. In December 2010 he became number one contender for a major title for the first time in his career: the

CZW World Heavyweight Championship The CZW World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship owned and promoted by the professional wrestling promotion Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW). It debuted on March 27, 1999 at CZW's The Staple Gun event ...

, by winning a match at

CZW Cage of Death The Cage of Death is Combat Zone Wrestling's biggest show since 1999. It always features the Cage of Death match, a steel cage with various weapons littered in the cage. Electrified cage walls, cacti, tables, light tubes, glass, thumbtacks, base ...

XII. On February 13, 2011, at ''CZW Twelve: The Twelfth Anniversary Event'', he defeated

Jon Moxley Jonathan David Good (born December 7, 1985) is an American professional wrestler. He is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he performs under the ring name Jon Moxley and is the current AEW World Championship, AEW World Champion in his ...

for the CZW World Heavyweight title. Anthony lost the title on April 9, 2011, to Devon Moore. As of 2012, Anthony is not part of CZW Roster.

Resistance Pro (2012–present)

He is currently wrestling in Resistance Pro. He wrestled for months before getting a number one contenders match against Jay Bradley at Taken By Force on June 15, 2012, and also appeared at the previous four Resistance Pro events. On October 20, 2012, he defeated Bradley and

Bobby Lashley Franklin Roberto Lashley (born July 16, 1976) is an American professional wrestler and former mixed martial artist. He is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he is a member of The Hurt Syndicate and is one-half of the AEW World Tag Team C ...

to win the RPW Heavyweight Championship. He would hold the title for 399 days, before losing it to Jocephus on November 23, 2013. On May 16, 2014, Anthony and Jocephus defeated Da Soul Touchaz (Acid Jaz & Willie Richardson) for the RPW Tag Team Championship.

Juggalo Championship Wrestling (2014)

Anthony made his debut for JCW as his Ego Fantastico character on May 11, 2014, where he was defeated by The Weedman at the JCW Road to the Gathering Tour.

All Elite Wrestling (2020–2022)

Anthony made his

AEW All Elite Wrestling (AEW) is an American professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida. It is owned and operated by Shahid and Tony Khan, with the latter serving as president and chief executive officer. AEW was foun ...

in-ring debut under his real name on the March 24, 2020 edition of

AEW Dark ''AEW Dark'', or simply ''Dark'', is an American professional wrestling streaming television program that was produced by the American promotion All Elite Wrestling (AEW), running from October 8, 2019, to April 25, 2023, on AEW's YouTube channel. ...

. Anthony appeared in a

tag team Tag team wrestling is a type of professional wrestling in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. Tag teams may be made up of wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of establis ...

with

Shawn Spears Ronnie William Arneill (born February 19, 1981), better known by his ring name Shawn Spears, is a Canadian Professional wrestling, professional wrestler and trainer. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the WWE NXT, NXT WWE brand extension, ...

and his manager

Tully Blanchard Tully Arthur Blanchard (born January 22, 1954) is a Canadian-American professional wrestler and manager. He is best known for his appearances with Jim Crockett Promotions and the World Wrestling Federation in the mid-to-late 1980s as a member of ...

against the team of

SoCal Uncensored SoCal Uncensored (SCU) was an American professional wrestling stable that consisted of Christopher Daniels, Frankie Kazarian, and Scorpio Sky. Daniels and Kazarian formed a tag team during their time in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA). Desc ...

. Upon being abandoned during the match by

Spears A spear is a polearm consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a pointed head. The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with fire hardened spears, or it may be made of a more durable material fastened to t ...

, he was pinned by

Frankie Kazarian Frank Benedict Gerdelman (born August 4, 1977) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler and musician signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), performing under the ring name Frankie Kazarian. He is also known for his wo ...

. This led to his rejection as a permanent tag team partner of Spears, who gave him a after the match. Anthony appeared again on the June 9, 2020 edition of AEW Dark, losing to

AEW World Champion The AEW World Championship is a men's professional wrestling world championship created and promoted by the American promotion All Elite Wrestling (AEW). Unveiled on May 25, 2019, it is the promotion's top championship and is presented as being ...

in a non-title match. He would then lose a one-sided match against

Brian Cage Brian Christopher Joseph ButtonDarby Allin Samuel Ratsch (born January 7, 1993), better known by the ring name Darby Allin, is an American professional wrestler. He is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW). He is a former two-time AEW TNT Championship, AEW TNT Champion and a former AEW Wo ...

in a losing effort on the July 21, 2020 edition of Dark. After the match, both Anthony and Allin were attacked by Brian Cage and

Ricky Starks Richard Starks (born February 21, 1990) is an American professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT (WWE brand), NXT WWE brand extension, brand under the ring name Ricky Saints. Starks is known for his time in All El ...

National Wrestling Alliance (2021–2023)

Anthony debuted on NWA Powerrr as a Masked Mystery Man, subsequently being named Cyon. At Hard Times 2, he unsuccessfully challenged Tyrus for the NWA Television Title. On night one of the NWA 74th Anniversary Show, Cyon defeated Jax Dane to win the NWA National Championship. On April 7, 2023, at NWA 312, Cyon would lose the title against EC3.

Championships and accomplishments

*3X Wrestling **3XW Heavyweight Championship (2 times) **Gauntlet for the Gold (2006) **Most Popular Wrestler of the Year (2005) *

AAW Heavyweight Championship The AAW Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling Professional wrestling championship#World championships, world heavyweight championship owned and promoted by AAW Wrestling. There have been a total of 35 reigns and one Glossary of prof ...

( 1 time) ** AAW Heritage Championship (1 time, current) *

** CZW New Horror Championship ( 1 time) **

CZW World Junior Heavyweight Championship The CZW World Junior Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling junior heavyweight championship owned by the Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW) promotion. The championship was created and debuted on February 19, 1999, at CZW's Opening Night e ...

( 1 time) **

( 1 time) ** Best of the Best 9 *Freelance Wrestling **Freelance Legacy Championship (1 time) **Freelance World Championship (2 times) **Freelance World Title Tournament (2021) *Insane Championship Wrestling USA **ICW Heavyweight Championship (1 time) **ICW Midwest Championship (1 time) **ICW Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Justin Dredd **Best of the Midwest II (2008) *

International Wrestling Cartel International Wrestling Cartel is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It is owned and operated by Justin Plummer, has become the longest tenured owner. Norm Connors ran the promotion for ...

** IWC Super Indy Championship (1 time) ** Super Indy X (2011) *Lancashire Wrestling Federation **LWF Independent Championship (1 time) *POWW Entertainment **POWW Regional Television Championship (1 time) *Mercury-1 Wrestling **Mercury-1 Heavyweight Championship (1 time) *

** NWA National Championship ( 1 time) ** Champions Series (2021) – with Jax Dane, Trevor Murdoch,

Colby Corino Colby Steven Corino (born August 28, 1996) is an American professional wrestler performing for the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), where he is a former NWA World Junior Heavyweight Champion, and also appears on the independent circuit. He is ...

and Jennacide *

NWA Midwest The National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) is an American professional wrestling promotion and governing body owned by Billy Corgan and operated by its parent company Lightning One, Inc. Founded in 1948, the NWA began as the governing body for a gr ...

** NWA Midwest X Division Championship (1 time) *Pro Championship Wrestling **PCW Cruiserweight Championship (1 time) **PCW Heavyweight Championship (1 time) *Pro Wrestling Blitz **PWB King of Blitz Championship (1 time) *

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 ...

**PWI ranked him #193 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 2012 *

Resistance Pro Wrestling Resistance Pro Wrestling was an American professional wrestling promotion, founded by musician Billy Corgan, alongside brothers Jacques and Gabe Baron. The promotion held monthly events around Chicago, attracting "between 300 and 600 people per eve ...

** RPW Heavyweight Championship (1 time) ** RPW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Jocephus **Lethal Lottery Tournament (2014)

References

External links

Online World of Wrestling profile
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Egotistico Fantastico 1982 births American male professional wrestlers Living people Masked wrestlers Professional wrestlers from Chicago People from Romeoville, Illinois 21st-century male professional wrestlers 21st-century American professional wrestlers CZW World Heavyweight Champions NWA National Heavyweight Champions CZW Iron Man Champions AAW Heavyweight Champions AAW Heritage Champions