Marcel Barthel (born 8 July 1990) is a German
professional wrestler
Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...
currently signed to
WWE
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and var ...
,
where he performs on the
SmackDown
''WWE SmackDown'', also known as ''Friday Night SmackDown'' or simply ''SmackDown'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that as of currently airs live every Friday at 8 p.m. ET on Fox. Fox Deportes si ...
brand
A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create a ...
under the
ring name
A ring name is a type of stage name 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, or projectin ...
Ludwig Kaiser. He is a member of
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 ...
.
Before coming to WWE, Barthel wrestled primarily in his native Germany under the ring name Axel Dieter Jr, most notably for
Westside Xtreme Wrestling
Westside Xtreme Wrestling, commonly shortened to wXw, is a German professional wrestling promotion based in Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia. wXw has been one of the leading professional wrestling promotions in Germany, and most of its even ...
(wXw). He also wrestled in the United Kingdom for
Progress Wrestling
Progress Wrestling (stylized as PROGRESS) is a British professional wrestling promotion that was established in 2011 by comedian Jim Smallman, events and comedy promoter Jon Briley, and later, actor Glen Robinson (professionally known as Glen J ...
. In wXw, Dieter was a two-time
World Tag Team Champion and a one-time
Unified World Wrestling Champion.
Professional wrestling career
Westside Xtreme Wrestling (2009–2017)
Dieter made his debut for
Westside Xtreme Wrestling
Westside Xtreme Wrestling, commonly shortened to wXw, is a German professional wrestling promotion based in Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia. wXw has been one of the leading professional wrestling promotions in Germany, and most of its even ...
(wXw) in January 2009, losing to Dan Marshall. Dieter's next match in wXw wouldn't be until July 2012, when he and Da Mack defeated
Walter and Michael Isotov. Dieter and Da Mack would go on to form a regular team, dubbing themselves Hot And Spicy. On 16 November 2013, they defeated The Autsiders (Walter and Robert Dreissker) to win the
wXw World Tag Team Championship
The wXw World Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship contested for in the German professional wrestling promotion, Westside Xtreme Wrestling (wXw). The inaugural champions was Swi$$ Money Holding (Claudio C ...
. Dieter and Da Mack made 7 successful defences of the championship, defeating the likes of The Sumerian Death Squad (
Tommy End and Michael Dante), Forever Hooligans (
Rocky Romero
John R. Rivera (born October 28, 1982) is a Puerto Rican-American professional wrestler and former mixed martial artist. He is currently signed non-exclusively to New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), better known by his ring name Rocky Romero (ロ� ...
and
Alex Koslov
Alex Sherman (born January 21, 1984) is a Moldovan-born retired professional wrestler and color commentator, currently working for New Japan Pro-Wrestling under the ring name Alex Koslov.
Koslov has mainly worked in Mexico from 2005 until 2008 f ...
) and Kazuki Hashimoto and Ryuichi Kawakami. They eventually lost the championships to
Matt Striker
Matthew Kaye (born June 26, 1974) is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling commentator, actor and former high school teacher, using the ring name Matt Striker. During his career he has worked for WWE, Impact Wrestling, Lu ...
and
Trent on 15 March 2014, but won the championships back in a rematch one day later. On 6 April 2014, Dieter received his first opportunity at the
wXw Shotgun Championship
The wXw Shotgun Championship is a professional wrestling championship created and promoted by the German promotion Westside Xtreme Wrestling. All title matches are broadcast on YouTube. The first champion was crowned on August 18, 2013. Ilja Drag ...
, losing to
Axel Tischer
Axel Tischer (born 5 November 1986), is a German professional wrestler. He is best known for his time in WWE, where he performed under the ring name, Alexander Wolfe.
Under his real name, Tischer competed on the European independent circuit. D ...
. After over a combined year as wXw World Tag Team Champions, Dieter and Da Mack were defeated by French Flavour (Lucas Di Leo and Peter Fischer) on 18 October 2014, bringing their reign to an end. On 22 November, he unsuccessfully challenged Walter for the
wXw Unified World Wrestling Championship
The wXw Unified World Wrestling Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship, contested in the German professional wrestling promotion, Westside Xtreme Wrestling. The championship was established in 2001 as the wXw Worl ...
. In February 2015, Dieter took part in the Four Nations Cup, defeating
Timothy Thatcher
{{Infobox professional wrestler
, name = Timothy Thatcher
, image = ThatcherMLW2019.jpg
, image_size =
, alt =
, caption = Thatcher at MLW Saturday Night SuperFight
, birth_name = Timothy Andrew Moura{{cite web, u ...
in the final to win the tournament. In March, Dieter took part in the 16 Carat Gold Tournament, defeating
Zack Sabre Jr. in the semi-final to advance to the final, where he lost to Tommy End. In October, after a short break, Hot And Spicy teamed together once again, taking part in the 2015 World Tag Team Tournament, making it to the semi-finals where they lost to
reDRagon (
Kyle O'Reilly
Kyle Edward Greenwood (born March 1, 1987) is a Canadian professional wrestler currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) where he performs under the ring name Kyle O'Reilly. He is also known for his time in Ring of Honor (ROH) from 2009 to 201 ...
and
Bobby Fish
Robert Anthony Fish (born October 27, 1976) is an American professional wrestler currently appearing on the independent circuit. He is best known for his tenure with WWE, where he performed on the NXT brand and was a member of The Undisputed ...
). In March 2016, Dieter once again took part in the 16 Carat Gold Tournament, defeating
Drew Galloway
Andrew McLean Galloway IV (born 6 June 1985) is a Scottish professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Drew McIntyre.
McIntyre is a two-time WWE Champion, one-time WWE Int ...
in the semi-final to advance to the final, where he lost to Zack Sabre Jr, the man he defeated to advance to the final in the previous year's tournament. On 2 September, Dieter and Da Mack faced off against each other, with Da Mack coming out on top and retaining his wXw Shotgun Championship. In late 2016, Dieter joined Ringkampf, and on 10 December, he defeated
Marty Scurll
Martin Scurll (born 26 July 1988) is an English professional wrestler. He is best known for his work in Ring of Honor (ROH) as the leader of the stable Villain Enterprises, where he was a one-time ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Championship and a o ...
to win the wXw Unified World Wrestling Title. Dieter held the championship until March 2017, when he was defeated by Jurn Simmons. In April, Dieter announced that he would be leaving wXw to pursue further opportunities outside of Germany. On 30 April, wXw held a farewell show for Dieter, titled ''"wXw Die Matte Ist Heilig: Farewell To Axel Dieter Jr"''. In his final match, he teamed with Ringkampf stablemate Walter to defeat longtime partner Da Mack and longtime rival Jurn Simmons.
On 30 October 2018, it was confirmed that Barthel, under the Axel Dieter Jr name, will return to wXw as a part of their 18th Anniversary Show on 22 December.
Progress Wrestling (2017)
Representing wXw and
Ringkampf, Dieter made his debut for
Progress Wrestling
Progress Wrestling (stylized as PROGRESS) is a British professional wrestling promotion that was established in 2011 by comedian Jim Smallman, events and comedy promoter Jon Briley, and later, actor Glen Robinson (professionally known as Glen J ...
in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
on 15 January 2017, alongside Walter, defeating The London Riots (James Davis and Rob Lynch). They returned to the promotion on 29 January 2017, losing to The South Pacific Power Trip (TK Cooper and Travis Banks). They once again returned on 19 March, defeating The Hunter Brothers (Jim and Lee Hunter). In his first singles match, Dieter lost to
Mark Haskins
Mark Haskins (born 25 June 1988), is an English professional wrestler currently signed with Ring of Honor. He is known internationally for his time in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, as well as his appearances in Progress Wrestling, Revolution ...
. On 23 April, Dieter, Walter and Timothy Thatcher unsuccessfully challenged
British Strong Style
British Strong Style was a professional wrestling stable made up of Pete Dunne, Trent Seven and Tyler Bate, best known for their tenure together in WWE. Dunne currently competes on the SmackDown brand (now under the ring name "Butch") and Bate ...
(
Pete Dunne
Peter Thomas England (born 9 November 1993) is an English professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Butch. He is a former WWE United Kingdom Champion and also a former NX ...
,
Trent Seven
Benjamin Maurice Webb (born 21 August 1981), better known by the ring name Trent Seven, is an English professional wrestler, wrestling promoter, and actor. He was signed to WWE on their NXT UK brand, where he is a former NXT UK Tag Team Champio ...
and
Tyler Bate
Tyler Bate (born 7 March 1997) is an English professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE where he performs on the NXT brand.
In 2017, he became the inaugural WWE United Kingdom Champion (later renamed NXT United Kingdom Championshi ...
) in a six-man tag team match for all of British Strong Style's championships.
WWE (2017–present)
In 2017, after leaving wXw, Dieter signed with
WWE
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and var ...
, under his real name Marcel Barthel, where he was assigned to WWE's
developmental territory
In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team, feeder club, or nursery club is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a highe ...
that June, losing to
Roderick Strong
Christopher Lindsey (born July 26, 1983), better known by his name Roderick Strong, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT brand, as the leader of Diamond Mine, but is currently inactive due ...
at a
live event
A house show or live event is a professional wrestling event produced by a major promotion that is not televised, though they can be recorded. Promotions use house shows mainly to cash in on the exposure that they and their wrestlers receive du ...
.
On the 8 August, 2018 episode of ''
NXT'', Barthel made his television debut, where he was defeated by
Keith Lee. That December, Barthel would form a team with
Fabian Aichner, where they would compete on both the NXT and
NXT UK
''NXT UK'' is 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 s ...
brands. They would later align themselves with
Walter and
Alexander Wolfe, forming the stable
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 ...
. On the 13 May, 2020 episode of ''NXT'', Barthel and Aichner would defeat
Matt Riddle
Matthew Fredrick Riddle (born January 14, 1986, in Allentown, Pennsylvania) is an American professional wrestler and former mixed martial artist. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand, but is currently inactive du ...
and
Timothy Thatcher
{{Infobox professional wrestler
, name = Timothy Thatcher
, image = ThatcherMLW2019.jpg
, image_size =
, alt =
, caption = Thatcher at MLW Saturday Night SuperFight
, birth_name = Timothy Andrew Moura{{cite web, u ...
, a substitute for Riddle's original partner
Pete Dunne
Peter Thomas England (born 9 November 1993) is an English professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Butch. He is a former WWE United Kingdom Champion and also a former NX ...
, winning the
NXT Tag Team Championship
The NXT Tag Team Championship is a men's professional wrestling tag team championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE. It is defended on the NXT brand division, the promotion's developmental territory. Introduced on Januar ...
. After successful title defenses against teams like
Oney Lorcan
Christopher Girard (born December 21, 1985) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE as a coach at their Performance Center. Previously he performed on the NXT brand under the ring name Oney Lorcan. He is a former NXT Tag Tea ...
and
Danny Burch
Martin Harris (born 31 December 1981) is an English professional wrestler best known for his time with WWE, where he performed on the NXT brand under the ring name Danny Burch. He is a former one time NXT Tag Team Champion with Oney Lorcan. He ...
and
The Undisputed Era
The Undisputed Era was a professional wrestling stable from WWE's NXT brand. It formed on August 19, 2017 at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn III shortly after Adam Cole, Bobby Fish, and Kyle O'Reilly signed with WWE, although Fish and O'Reilly had alre ...
, on the 26 August episode of ''NXT'', Imperium would lose the titles to
Tyler Breeze
Matthew Clement (born January 19, 1988) is a Canadian professional wrestler and professional wrestling trainer. He is currently signed to WWE under the ring name Tyler Breeze as a trainer at the WWE Performance Center.
From 2010 to 2012, he p ...
and
Fandango
Fandango is a lively partner dance originating from Portugal and Spain, usually in triple meter, traditionally accompanied by guitars, castanets, or hand-clapping. Fandango can both be sung and danced. Sung fandango is usually bipartite: it has ...
, ending their reign at 105 days.
On the 26 October, 2021 special episode of
NXT: Halloween Havoc, Barthel and Aichner would defeat
MSK in a
Lumberjack match
Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "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 ...
to win the NXT Tag Team Championship for the second time. On 5 December at
NXT WarGames, they would successfully defend their titles against
Kyle O'Reilly
Kyle Edward Greenwood (born March 1, 1987) is a Canadian professional wrestler currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) where he performs under the ring name Kyle O'Reilly. He is also known for his time in Ring of Honor (ROH) from 2009 to 201 ...
and Von Wagner. On 2 April 2022 at
NXT Stand & Deliver, they would lose the titles back to MSK in a triple threat tag team match also involving The
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 currently working for the professional wrestlin ...
, ending their reign at 158 days. Barthel's final NXT appearance was on the April 5 episode of ''NXT'', when he and Aichner faced the Creed brothers in a losing effort, with Aichner walking out of their match.
On the April 8, 2022 episode of ''
SmackDown
''WWE SmackDown'', also known as ''Friday Night SmackDown'' or simply ''SmackDown'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that as of currently airs live every Friday at 8 p.m. ET on Fox. Fox Deportes si ...
'', Barthel, under the new ring name Ludwig Kaiser, debuted with
Gunther
Gundaharius or Gundahar (died 437), better known by his legendary names Gunther ( gmh, Gunther) or Gunnar ( non, Gunnarr), was a historical king of Burgundy in the early 5th century. Gundahar is attested as ruling his people shortly after they ...
, accompanying him in his match against a local competitor. On the May 27, 2022 episode of SmackDown Kaiser had his first match on the main roster teaming with Gunther to defeat
Drew Gulak
Drew Gulak (born April 28, 1987) is an American professional wrestler and professional wrestling trainer. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT brand. He is a former one-time WWE Cruiserweight Champion and an eight-time ...
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, a ...
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 ...
. A feud with the Brawling Brutes ensued for several months, which also resulted in two Intercontinental Champion matches between Gunther and Sheamus.
Other media
Barthel made his
video game
Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device to gener ...
debut as a playable character in ''
WWE 2K22''.
Championships and accomplishments
*Catch Wrestling Norddeutschland
**Tag Team Tournament (2009) - with
Da Mack
Mac Yeboah (born 4 May 1987), better known by his ring name Da Mack, is a German professional wrestler. He is best known for his work in Westside Xtreme Wrestling (wXw).
Professional wrestling career Early career (2008–2013)
Da Mack made his d ...
*European Wrestling Promotion
**EWP Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Da Mack
*Great Bear Promotions
**Great Bear Grand Championship (1 time)
*German Stampede Wrestling
**GSW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Da Mack
*Nordic Championship Wrestling
**NFC First Fighter Championship (1 time)
**International NCW Cruiserweight Championship (1 time)
**First Fighter Tournament (2010)
*Pro Wrestling Fighters
**PWF North-European Championship (1 time)
*''
Pro Wrestling Illustrated
''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American internationally sold professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publi ...
''
**Ranked No. 240 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the ''
PWI 500
''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American internationally sold professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publis ...
'' in 2020
*
Westside Xtreme Wrestling
Westside Xtreme Wrestling, commonly shortened to wXw, is a German professional wrestling promotion based in Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia. wXw has been one of the leading professional wrestling promotions in Germany, and most of its even ...
**
wXw Unified World Wrestling Championship
The wXw Unified World Wrestling Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship, contested in the German professional wrestling promotion, Westside Xtreme Wrestling. The championship was established in 2001 as the wXw Worl ...
(1 time)
**
wXw World Tag Team Championship
The wXw World Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship contested for in the German professional wrestling promotion, Westside Xtreme Wrestling (wXw). The inaugural champions was Swi$$ Money Holding (Claudio C ...
(2 times) – with Da Mack
**
Mitteldeutschland Cup (2014)
**
Four Nations Cup (2015)
*
WWE
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and var ...
**
NXT Tag Team Championship
The NXT Tag Team Championship is a men's professional wrestling tag team championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE. It is defended on the NXT brand division, the promotion's developmental territory. Introduced on Januar ...
(
2 times
"2 Times" is a song co-written and recorded by British Italian-based singer Ann Lee. It was released in 1999 as the lead single from her debut album, ''Dreams'' (1999). The single entered and peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart. Outsid ...
) – with
Fabian Aichner
References
External links
*
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barthel, Marcel
1990 births
Living people
German male professional wrestlers
People from Pinneberg
NXT Tag Team Champions
21st-century professional wrestlers