Luca Crusifino

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Luca Crusifino
Luca.Crusifino.jpeg
Macek in 2024
Birth nameRoman Macek
Born (2000-11-16) November 16, 2000 (age 23) [1]
McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Alma mater Duquesne University [2]
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s) Luca Crusifino
Billed height6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Billed weight246 lb (112 kg)
Billed from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Trained by WWE Performance Center [3]
DebutFebruary 21, 2023

Roman Macek (born November 16, 2000) is an American professional wrestler and former American football player. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Luca Crusifino. He is a member of The D'Angelo Family stable as the "consigliere" of the stable.

Contents

Early life and football career

Macek was born in McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania. He attended Montour High School in McKees Rocks, where he played football. He was a first team all-Northwest Nine Conference pick on both the offensive and defensive lines for two-straight years. He also participated as four-year letterman and three-year captain for the wrestling team. [2]

After graduating from high school, Macek went on to study at Duquesne University, majoring in sociology. While attending Duquesne, Macek played football for the Duquesne Dukes. As a freshman in 2017, he played special teams and defense; in 2018, he appeared in all 13 games for the Dukes; in 2019 he moved to offense as a left guard; In 2020–2021 season, he started all five games at left guard for the Dukes in first season on the offensive line and played major role in success of Dukes’ offense. In 2021, he started all 10 games at left guard for the Dukes and was a part of an offensive front which paced the NEC and ranked 17th in the FCS in fewest sacks allowed per game (1.2). [2] . After graduating with a B.A. from Duquesne University, Macek continued his education at Duquesne, enrolling in the law school. However, he took a leave of absence to pursue professional wrestling. Macek is still enrolled in law school at Duquesne. [4]

Professional wrestling career

On April 6, 2022, it was reported that Macek had signed with WWE after undergoing a tryout at the WWE Performance Center. [5] He was later assigned the name Luca Crusifino and on the March 3, 2023 episode of NXT Level Up, Crusifino would debut with the gimmick of a lawyer, losing to Dante Chen. [6] On April 4, Crusifino would appear in a dark segment during a promo by Ivy Nile, offering his services and business card to fans. [7] In early 2023 before his debut, Crusifino made his own website called crusifinolaw.com for his gimmick of a lawyer. The website includes “ongoing trials” in NXT, testimonials from The D'Angelo Family's Channing "Stacks" Lorenzo and an anonymous client, and a paragraph about himself and his “Law firm” and how to contact him, as well as “video evidence” about various assault charges in NXT. [8]

On December 12, Crusifino was announced as one of the competitors for the NXT men's breakout tournament. [9] On the December 16 episode of NXT, Crusifino would be defeated by Tavion Heights in the first round of the tournament. On February 1, 2024, Crusifino would make his WWE Main Event debut, losing to Julius Creed. [10] On February 27, Crusifino faced Dijak in a losing effort. After the match, Crusifino would hit Dijak with his own crowbar, setting up Joe Gacy to attack him, turning face in the process for the first time in his WWE career. Crusifino would then slip Dijak's crowbar behind the steel steps. Impressed by Crusifino’s match, Tony D’Angelo would tell Channing "Stacks" Lorenzo to “remember that” and “go get ‘em.” [11] At NXT: Roadblock on March 5, D'Angelo welcomed Crusifino as the new "consigliere" of The D'Angelo Family stable, cementing his face turn. [12] [13] On the April 16 episode of NXT, D'Angelo revealed that his Family were hired by No Quarter Catch Crew (NQCC; Charlie Dempsey, Damon Kemp, and Myles Borne) to (kayfabe) eliminate their leader Drew Gulak. D'Angelo demanded payment for the job but NQCC refused, causing a brawl between the two factions [14] and resulting in a six-man tag team match between the two factions at Week 1 of Spring Breakin' , which was won by The D'Angelo Family. [15]

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References

  1. ↑ "Luca Crusifino - Pro Wrestlers Database - The SmackDown Hotel". TheSmackDownHotel.com. Retrieved August 8, 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 "Roman Macek - Football - Duquesne University Athletics". Duquesne University Athletics. Retrieved August 8, 2023.
  3. ↑ "Luca Crusifino « Wrestlers Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling Database". Cagematch.com. Retrieved August 8, 2023.
  4. ↑ Benz, Tim (2022-04-06). "Duquesne football player Roman Macek gets offer to pursue pro wrestling dream at WWE performance center". TribLIVE.com. Retrieved 2024-01-09.
  5. ↑ "Duquesne football player Roman Macek accepts WWE contract offer". f4w.com. April 6, 2022. Archived from the original on April 4, 2023. Retrieved July 29, 2022.
  6. ↑ "WWE NXT Level Up Results: March 3, 2023". WWE.com.
  7. ↑ Taylor, Sanchez (2023-04-05). "Watch: Unseen Segment Accidentally Aired On WWE NXT". WrestleTalk. Retrieved 2024-03-18.
  8. ↑ Rumsey, Connel (2023-04-20). "WWE Creates Hilarious Website For Upcoming New Gimmick". WrestleTalk. Retrieved 2024-03-18.
  9. ↑ "Brackets Revealed For WWE NXT Men's Breakout Tournament". wrestlinginc.com. Retrieved 2024-01-06.
  10. ↑ Cox, James (2024-02-04). "WWE Main Event results: Julius Creed vs. Luca Crusifino". WON/F4W - WWE news, Pro Wrestling News, WWE Results, AEW News, AEW results. Retrieved 2024-04-02.
  11. ↑ "WWE NXT Results: Winners, Live Grades, Reaction and Highlights From Feb. 27". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 2024-03-17.
  12. ↑ Defelice, Robert (March 5, 2024). "Luca Crusifino Named The Consigliere Of Tony D'Angelo's Family At NXT Roadblock 2024 | Fightful News". Fightful. Retrieved March 6, 2024.
  13. ↑ Powell, Jason (March 5, 2024). "NXT TV results (3/5): Moore's review of NXT Roadblock with Carmelo Hayes vs. Tony D'Angelo for a shot at the NXT Title, Kabuki Warriors vs. Lyra Valkyria and Tatum Paxley for the WWE Women's Tag Titles". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved March 6, 2024.
  14. ↑ Moore, John (April 16, 2024). "NXT TV results (4/16): Moore's review of Carmelo Hayes vs. Trick Williams in a steel cage match, Ridge Holland vs. Joaquin Wilde, Sol Ruca vs. Lola Vice, Noam Dar vs. Dijak". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved April 16, 2024.
  15. ↑ "NXT Spring Breakin' 2024 Week One results". WWE . April 23, 2024. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
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