Joshua Bruns (born March 5, 1993) 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 Josh Briggs. He is signed to

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, ...

where he performs on the NXT

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 ...

. He was a one-time and the final NXT UK Tag Team Champion. Bruns previously performed for the original Evolve promotion, where he was a one-time and the final Evolve Champion at the time of the original promotion's closure.

Early life

Bruns played football at UMass after two years at Glendale Community College in Arizona.

Professional wrestling career

WWE (2020–present)

Teaming with Brooks Jensen (2020–2023)

On August 31, 2020, it was reported that Briggs had signed a contract with

, following the company's purchase of Evolve in July. On October 7, WWE announced that he had reported for training at the Performance Center, alongside five other professional wrestlers from Evolve. On July 6, 2021, Briggs was announced to be a part of the 2021 NXT Breakout Tournament. On the July 27 episode of ''NXT'', Briggs was defeated by

Carmelo Hayes Christian Brigham (born August 1, 1994) 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 Carmelo Hayes. He ...

in the first round. On the ''NXT 2.0'' premiere on September 14, Briggs formed a tag team with the debuting

Brooks Jensen Benjamin Buchanan (born August 21, 2001) is an American professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE where he performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Brooks Jensen. He is a former one-time and the final NXT UK Tag Team Champion. Buchanan ...

and faced

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 ...

( Fabian Aichner and Marcel Barthel) in a losing effort, establishing themselves as

faces The face is the front of the head that features the eyes, nose and mouth, and through which animals express many of their emotions. The face is crucial for human identity, and damage such as scarring or developmental deformities may affect the ...

. On the January 18, 2022 episode of ''NXT'', Briggs and Jensen competed in the Dusty Rhodes Men's Tag Team Classic, but were eliminated by eventual winners the Creed Brothers (Brutus and Julius) in the first round. On the April 12 episode of ''NXT'', they took part in a five-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 ...

for the vacant

NXT Tag Team Championship The NXT Tag Team Championship is a men's Professional wrestling championship, professional wrestling tag team championship created and promoted by the United States, American professional wrestling promotion, promotion WWE. It is defended on NXT ...

, but failed to win. On the June 22 episode of ''

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 ...

'', Briggs and Jensen defeated

Dave Mastiff David Minton (born 21 July 1984) is an English professional wrestler. He is most known for his time in WWE, where he performed on its NXT UK brand under the ring name "Bomber" Dave Mastiff. Professional wrestling career Mastiff debuted in 200 ...

and Jack Starz, Mark Andrews and

Wild Boar The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a Suidae, suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The speci ...

, and Die Familie ( Teoman and Rohan Raja) in a Fatal 4-Way elimination match to win the vacant NXT UK Tag Team Championship, making them the first and only non-European tag team to win the titles.

Singles competition (2023–2024)

On the December 27, 2023 episode of ''NXT'', Briggs, Brooks Jensen and Fallon Henley agree to go their separate ways splitting up the team. On the January 16, 2024 episode of ''NXT'', Briggs received an endorsement from

John "Bradshaw" Layfield John Charles Layfield (born November 29, 1966), better known by the ring name John "Bradshaw" Layfield, is an American professional wrestling color commentator, retired professional wrestler and former American football, football player. He is s ...

in a backstage segment. The following week, Briggs took on

Trick Williams Matrick Mondre Belton (born May 26, 1994) is an American professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on its NXT brand, under the ring name Trick Williams. He also makes appearances in WWE's partner promotion Total Nonstop Acti ...

in a losing effort. After the match, Briggs attacked Williams with a clothesline, thus turning

heel The heel is the prominence at the posterior end of the foot. It is based on the projection of one bone, the calcaneus or heel bone, behind the articulation of the bones of the lower leg. Structure To distribute the compressive forces exerted ...

for the first time in his WWE career. On the February 6 episode of ''NXT'', Briggs seemingly consoled his former partner Jensen about having to work alone, only to then badmouth him and tell him to grow up, thus cementing his heel turn. On the February 20 episode of ''NXT'', Briggs defeated Jensen in a singles match and consoled him after by saying "I did this for you, I love you man", turning back into a face once again. At NXT Roadblock, Briggs would try to talk Jensen out of taking a match with

Oba Femi Isaac Odugbesan (born April 22, 1998) is a Nigerian professional wrestler and former shot putter. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT (WWE brand), NXT WWE brand extension, brand under the ring name Oba Femi and is the current NXT C ...

but Jensen was persistent on facing Femi and would be ultimately defeated the following week with Briggs watching at ringside. At NXT Stand & Deliver on April 6, Briggs failed to win the

NXT North American Championship The NXT North American Championship is a professional wrestling championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE. It is defended as the secondary men's championship of NXT, the promotion's developmental brand. The current champi ...

from Femi 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. ...

which also include Dijak. On the July 9 episode of ''NXT'', Briggs reunited with Jensen after Briggs vouched for Jensen, who had been trespassing the WWE Performance Center on tapings of ''NXT'' after being (

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 ...

) released from WWE, to get his job back. Moments later, Jensen was seen attacking

Je'Von Evans Malachi Jeffers (born April 28, 2004) is an American professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he performs under the ring name Je'Von Evans on the NXT brand. He was previously known under the ring name Jay Malachi on the independent cir ...

backstage. On the following week, Jensen was defeated by Evans. After the match, Jensen attacked Evans and was stopped by Briggs, to which Jensen challenged Briggs to a

No Disqualification 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. ...

where Jensen won after interference from

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, ...

Teaming with Yoshiki Inamura (2024–present)

After his excursion to Pro Wrestling Noah, Briggs formed a tag team with Noah's

Yoshiki Inamura is a Japanese Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He is signed to Pro Wrestling Noah. He is also making appearances for WWE on their NXT (WWE brand), NXT WWE brand extension, brand. Professional wrestling career Independent circuit (2 ...

. On the November 12 episode of ''NXT'', Briggs and Inamura entered a

battle royal Battle royal (, also battle royale) traditionally refers to a fight involving many combatants, usually conducted under either boxing or wrestling rules, where the winner is the one who registers the most wins. In recent times, the term has been ...

for a

match opportunity but they failed to win the match. On the February 11, 2025 episode of ''NXT'', Briggs and Inamura defeated

No Quarter Catch Crew No Quarter Catch Crew (NQCC) is an American professional wrestling stable that performs in WWE on the NXT brand. The group currently consists of Charlie Dempsey, Tavion Heights, and Wren Sinclair. Dempsey is a former two-time NXT Heritage Cup ...

(

Myles Borne David Bostian III (born May 25, 1999) is an American professional wrestler signed to WWE, where he performs under the ring name Myles Borne on the NXT brand. He is the only partially deaf wrestler to be employed by WWE. Early life Bostian ...

and Tavion Heights) and Hank and Tank (

Hank Walker Joseph Sculthorpe (born June 11, 1998) is an American professional wrestling, professional wrestler and former American football, football player. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT (WWE brand), NXT WWE brand extension, brand under ...

and

Tank Ledger Joseph Spivak (born October 11, 1999) is an American professional wrestling, professional wrestler and former American football, football player. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT (WWE brand), NXT WWE brand extension, brand under ...

) in a triple threat tag team match for a NXT Tag Team Championship match at NXT Vengeance Day but failed to win the titles. On the May 6 episode of ''NXT'', Inamura inadvertently eliminated Briggs in the 25-man battle royal to determine the #1 contender for the

NXT Championship The NXT Championship is a men's professional wrestling championship created and promoted by the American professional wrestling promotion, promotion WWE, defended as the top men's championship of NXT (WWE brand), NXT, the promotion's Farm team, de ...

and was eliminated as well. After the match, Inamura announced that he would be returning to Japan, disbanding his tag team with Briggs and ending his excursion in WWE. At NXT Battleground on May 25, Briggs and Hank and Tank defeated The Culling (

, Niko Vance,

) in a six-man tag team match. After the match, The Culling attacked Briggs and Hank and Tank. They were saved by a returning Inamura, who reunites with Briggs in the process.

Pro Wrestling Noah (2024)

In July 2024, it was announced that Bruns, as Josh Briggs, would be one of two NXT representatives (the other being Tavion Heights) to enter Pro Wrestling Noah's N-1 Victory tournament.

Championships and accomplishments

Alpha-1 Wrestling Alpha-1 Wrestling (A1) is a Canadian independent professional wrestling promotion based out of Hamilton, Ontario. The promotion was founded by Ethan Page in 2010 after he grew tired of inviting his family to see him in bars commenting "I just ...

** A1 Zero Gravity Championship (1 time) *

Chaotic Wrestling Chaotic Wrestling, stylized as CHAOTIC, is an American independent wrestling promotion, which has been operating throughout New England since 2000; with its current home base in North Andover, Massachusetts. Chaotic Wrestling is known for p ...

** Chaotic Wrestling New England Championship ( 1 time) **Chaotic Wrestling New England Title Tournament (2017) * Evolve ** Evolve Championship ( 1 time, final) *Monster Factory Pro Wrestling **MFPW Network Championship (1 time) *Northeast Championship Wrestling **Ox Baker Memorial Cup (2017) *''

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. 175 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 *UFO Wrestling **UFO Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Beau Douglas *

** NXT UK Tag Team Championship ( 1 time, final) – with

** NXT Year-End Award (1 time) *** Match of the Year (

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

) – vs.

and Dijak at NXT Stand & Deliver

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Briggs, Josh 1993 births Living people 21st-century male professional wrestlers 21st-century American professional wrestlers American male professional wrestlers Glendale Gauchos football players Evolve Champions NXT UK Tag Team Champions Professional wrestlers from Massachusetts UMass Minutemen football players Professional wrestlers from Arizona