Akira (American wrestler)

Last updated

Akira
Birth nameAlexander James Atkisson
Born (1993-10-19) October 19, 1993 (age 30)
Bringhurst, Indiana
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)
  • Akira
  • Akira Tsurugi
  • The Great Akira
Billed height5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Billed weight190 lb (86 kg)
Trained by
DebutJanuary 4, 2018

Alexander James Atkisson (born October 19, 1993), known by his ring name Akira (stylised in all caps as AKIRA), is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to Major League Wrestling, where he is a former MLW World Tag Team Champion and a former MLW World Middleweight Champion.

Contents

Professional wrestling career

Game Changer Wrestling (2021–present)

On October 9, 2021, at GCW Fight Club, Akira teamed up with Alex Colon and G-Raver and faced The Second Gear Crew (AJ Gray, Mance Warner and Matthew Justice) in a losing effort. [1] On May 1, 2022, at GCW Life Goes On, he and John Wayne Murdoch faced Allie Katch and Effy for the GCW Tag Team Championship but lost. [2] On June 5, at Cage of Survival, Akira competed in the Seven Way Scramble match for the AJ Gray's GCW Extreme Championship, the latter in whom successfully defended the title. [3] On July 10, at Settlement Series Part 1, Akira would win his first match in GCW when he defeated Janai Kai. [4]

Major League Wrestling (2023–present)

On January 14, 2023, Akira signed a contract with Major League Wrestling. [5] [6] In the weeks that followed, various members of the MLW roster would be mysteriously assaulted in the backstage area, with the only sign of the attacker(s) being a calling card with the initials "AO." On the February 28 episode of MLW Underground Wrestling , the mysterious attackers would make their first in-person appearance, attacking Lince Dorado, Microman, and Mister Saint Laurent. [7] [8] The following week, a video package aired revealing Akira as one of the attackers, as part of The Calling, a stable which include leader Raven and Rickey Shane Page. [9] [10] On the March 21 episode of Underground Wrestling, after MLW World Heavyweight Champion Alexander Hammerstone successfully defended his title against Jacob Fatu, The Calling attacked Hammerstone in which Akira took part. [11] On the March 28 episode of Underground Wrestling, Akira made his MLW in-ring debut, defeating Mike Law in a hardcore match. [12] [13]

At War Chamber, Akira defeated Dorado and Lio Rush to win the MLW World Middleweight Championship in a triple threat match. [14] He also took part in the War Chamber match as part of The Calling who defeated Hammerstone and The Second Gear Crew. [14] On July 8, at Never Say Never, Akira and Page defeated The Samoan SWAT Team (Lance Anoa'i and Juicy Finau) to win the MLW World Tag Team Championship. [15] On October 14, at Slaughterhouse, After lost the middleweight title to NWA World Historic Welterweight Champion Rocky Romero, after which he began to butt heads with Page. [16] [17]

Still feuding with the Second Gear Crew, the SGC's Matthew Justice and 1 Called Manders challenged Akira and Page for the MLW World Tag Team Championship in a tables match. However, that ended in a no contest when Justice and Akira went through a stack of tables at the same time. [18] The two teams continued to brawl afterward, with Mance Warner and The Calling's minions joining in. The SGC challenged Akira and Page to a ladder match for the titles at Fightland, which was accepted and made official by MLW on November 6. [19] On that event, with tensions mounting between Akira and Page, they lost the World Tag Team Championship to the SGC. After the match, Page and the rest of The Calling attacked Akira, kicking him out of the group. [20] On the season finale of Fusion, Akira challenged Page for the latter's MLW National Openweight Championship, but quickly lost the match, after which he was attacked by The Calling in a post-match assault. [21]

On January 6, 2024, Akira faced Page for the National Openweight Championship once again, this time in a Taipei Deathmatch, but lost the match when Sami Callihan interfered. [22] After the match, an irate Akira challenged Callihan to a match at SuperFight, albeit under "Death Machine Rules." [23] [24]

Championships and accomplishments

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