Trick Williams | |
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![]() Williams in 2024 | |
Birth name | Matrick Mondre Belton [1] [2] |
Born | [1] | May 26, 1994
Partner | Lash Legend |
Professional wrestling career | |
Ring name(s) | Sweet Daddy Trick [3] Trick Williams [4] |
Billed height | 6 ft 4 in (193 cm) [4] |
Billed weight | 240 lb (109 kg) [4] |
Billed from | Columbia, South Carolina [4] |
Trained by | CZW Academy [5] KnokX Academy [3] WWE Performance Center [6] |
Debut | 2020 [6] |
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 Action Wrestling (TNA), where he is the TNA World Champion in his first reign.
After playing gridiron football in college, Belton began his professional wrestling career in 2018 under the ring name Sweet Daddy Trick when he trained in Philadelphia with his uncle. Belton then signed a developmental contract with WWE in February 2021 and debuted in September of the same year under the Trick Williams ring name. Since then, he has become a two-time NXT Champion, a one-time NXT North American Champion, and was the winner of the 2023 Men's Iron Survivor Challenge. He won the TNA World Championship, his first world championship, in May 2025 and became the first WWE-contracted wrestler to win a TNA championship.
Belton excelled in athletics since childhood and played college football on a full scholarship for the Hampton Pirates in 2012 and 2013, the latter season cut short due to a pulled hamstring. Feeling he could do more, he abandoned his scholarship to walk on to the South Carolina Gamecocks team, his father's alma mater, from 2014 to 2016. [3] There, he also played alongside his brothers, André and Hassan. He caught 11 passes for 121 yards during his college career, all of which came in 2015. [7] At South Carolina, he graduated in physical education. [3] He went undrafted in 2017 and spent time as an assistant coach and student-teacher intern at Airport High School in West Columbia, South Carolina in the fall of 2017. He then played in The Spring League in 2018 and attended the Philadelphia Eagles rookie minicamp on a tryout basis in May 2018. [8]
When he realized his football career was going nowhere, he made a last ditch attempt by sending a tape to WWE in order to make the XFL, a quickly defunct football league also ran by Vince McMahon. While he didn't make the XFL, WWE reached out to him via e-mail to encourage him to try out wrestling. [3]
He moved in with his uncle to train and perform for Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW) in Philadelphia. He worked as a fitness coach for Orangetheory Fitness by day and attended wrestling school at night. To honor his uncle and black roots, he created a Dolemite-inspired character named after his uncle's nickname "Sweet Daddy Trick" and even created a short film to develop his new persona. [3] When the COVID pandemic hit, he decided to move out of his elderly uncle's house and relocated to Los Angeles, where he worked odd jobs while trying to make it as an actor. While there, he trained and performed at KnokX Pro Wrestling Academy, until he was signed by WWE. [3]
On February 24, 2021, Belton signed a developmental contract with WWE, reporting to the WWE Performance Center and subsequently the NXT brand. [2] He made his on-screen debut as an unnamed "Elite Guard" of Apollo Crews on the March 5 episode of SmackDown . [9] On the September 14 episode of NXT , Belton made his first NXT appearance as a friend of Carmelo Hayes under the ring name Trick Williams, attacking Duke Hudson before his match, establishing himself as a heel and forming an alliance known as the Trick Melo Gang. [10] Williams made his in-ring debut on the October 5 episode of NXT, teaming with Hayes in a fatal four-way elimination tag team match for the NXT Tag Team Championship, which was won by MSK (Nash Carter and Wes Lee). [11] In mid-2022, Williams feuded with Lee, defeating him at NXT: The Great American Bash on July 5, before losing to Lee in a rounds match on the August 9 episode of NXT. [12] [13]
Williams and Hayes turned face on the April 4, 2023 episode of NXT, after Bron Breakker turned heel by attacking them. [14] On the August 1 episode of NXT, Williams told Hayes that they needed to part ways so he could achieve his own accomplishments, amicably breaking up the Trick Melo Gang. [15] At NXT: Heatwave on August 22, Williams lost to Ilja Dragunov. [16] On the September 26 episode of NXT, Williams defeated Axiom, Dragon Lee and Tyler Bate in a fatal four-way match became the number one contender to the NXT North American Championship, [17] which he won from "Dirty" Dominik Mysterio four days later at NXT No Mercy. [18] However, on the October 3 episode of NXT, Williams lost the title back to Mysterio after interference from Mysterio's Judgment Day stablemates, ending his reign at three days, marking the shortest reign in the title's history. [19]
On the October 17 episode of NXT, Williams was slotted into the triple threat match between Hayes, Dijak and Baron Corbin to make it a fatal four-way match for a NXT Championship opportunity against Dragunov at NXT: Halloween Havoc, causing a rift between Williams and Hayes. Before the match started, Williams was found attacked backstage and taken to a hospital. Hayes then defeated Dijak and Corbin for the title opportunity. [20] On Night 2 of Halloween Havoc on October 31, Williams returned and cost Hayes the NXT Championship match. [21] At NXT Deadline on December 9, Williams won the men's Iron Survivor Challenge to earn an NXT Championship match against Dragunov at NXT: New Year's Evil on January 2, 2024. [22] At the event, it was announced that Dragunov was not medically cleared to wrestle. Instead, Hayes placed Williams in a match against Grayson Waller with his title shot on the line, which he won after interference from Kevin Owens. [23] On the January 16 episode of NXT, Dragunov returned from injury and informed Williams that their title match would take place at NXT Vengeance Day. [24]
At the same time, Williams and Hayes competed in the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic tournament, [24] [25] losing to Corbin and Breakker in the finals at NXT Vengeance Day on February 4. Later that night, Williams failed to win the NXT Championship from Dragunov. After the match, Hayes attacked Williams with a steel chair, ending their partnership. [26] On the following episode of NXT, Hayes revealed that he was the one who attacked Williams back in October 2023. [27] After Tony D'Angelo defeated Hayes at NXT: Roadblock, Williams made his return and attacked Hayes. [28] At NXT Stand & Deliver on April 6, Williams defeated Hayes. [29] The following week on NXT, Williams called out Dragunov to challenge him for the NXT Championship. Dragunov agreed to a title match at Spring Breakin' on the condition that Williams leave NXT if he loses, which Williams accepted. [30] In a NXT Stand & Deliver rematch on the April 16 episode of NXT, Williams defeated Hayes in a steel cage match, despite interference from Hayes' security team, ending their feud. [31] On Week 1 of Spring Breakin', Williams defeated Dragunov to capture the NXT Championship for the first time in his career. [32]
Williams began feuding with the debuting Ethan Page, who signed a contract that contained an NXT Championship match at NXT Battleground on June 9, [33] [34] where Williams retained the title. [35] At NXT Heatwave on July 7, Williams lost the title to Page in a fatal four-way match also involving Je'Von Evans and Shawn Spears, the former of whom Page pinned, ending his reign at 75 days. [36] Following the loss, he feuded with Pete Dunne, who derided Williams for seeking advice to recapture the NXT Championship. [37] At Week 2 of NXT: The Great American Bash on August 6, Williams lost to Dunne. [38] He retaliated by costing Dunne a triple threat match against Joe Hendry and Wes Lee for a NXT Championship match at NXT No Mercy, where Williams served as the special guest referee for the NXT Championship match between Page and Hendry, after which he was attacked by Dunne. [39] [40] On the September 10 episode of NXT, Williams defeated Dunne in a Last Man Standing match to end their feud and earn an NXT Championship match at NXT's CW premiere on October 1, [41] where he defeated Page (with CM Punk as the special guest referee) to win his second NXT Championship. [42] At NXT Halloween Havoc on October 27, Williams successfully defended the title against Page in a Devil's Playground match. After the match, he was attacked by Page and Ridge Holland, before being saved by Bubba Ray Dudley. [43] This led to a tag team match at NXT 2300 on November 6, which Williams and Bubba Ray lost after Holland pinned Williams. [44] At NXT Deadline on December 7, Williams defeated Holland to retain the title, ending their feud. [45]
On the December 17 episode of NXT, Williams' title match against Eddy Thorpe ended in controversial fashion, as two referees counted two separate pins. After the show went off the air, NXT General Manager Ava confirmed that both Williams and Thorpe's shoulders were down, resulting in a double pinfall, thus Williams retained the title. [46] At NXT: New Year's Evil on January 7, 2025, Williams lost the NXT Championship to Oba Femi in a triple threat match also involving Thorpe, ending his second reign at 98 days. [47] Williams continued his feud with Thorpe, whom he lost to in a strap match at NXT Vengeance Day on February 15. [48] On the March 18 episode of NXT, he defeated Thorpe in an NXT Underground match to end their feud. [49] At NXT Stand and Deliver on April 19, Williams failed to regain the title from Femi in a triple threat match also involving Evans. [50]
On the April 22 episode of NXT, Williams began to tease a heel turn, as his character shifted to become more selfish and entitled as he whined for another title opportunity from Femi. Afterwards, Williams would insult TNA World Champion Joe Hendry following his surprise appearance and quick loss to Randy Orton at WrestleMania 41. Williams solidified his heel turn by attacking Hendry at Rebellion and later helping DarkState win their match against Hendry and Hank and Tank (Hank Walker and Tank Ledger) on the May 6 episode of NXT. At NXT Battleground on May 25, Williams defeated Hendry to win the title. On the June 3 episode of NXT, Williams successfully defended the title against Mike Santana in his first title defense after interference from First Class (A. J. Francis and KC Navarro). [51]
Trick Williams made his Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) debut at Rebellion on April 27, 2025, attacking Joe Hendry following his successful TNA World Championship defense against Frankie Kazarian and Ethan Page. [52]
On May 25, Williams defeated Hendry to win the TNA World Championship at NXT Battleground. This marked the first world championship in his career and the first time a contracted WWE wrestler won a TNA title. [53] Williams successfully defended the title against Elijah at Against All Odds on June 6, [54] Hendry and Mike Santana at Slammiversary on July 20, [55] and Moose at Emergence on August 15. [56]
Belton, as Trick Williams, made his video game debut as a playable character in WWE 2K23 as a DLC [57] and has since appeared in WWE 2K24 [58] and WWE 2K25 . [59]
Belton worked as an extra in the third season of the TV series All American . He also appeared as a guest star in the finale of the show's seventh season, portraying the character of Eddie Blair. [60]
Title | Year | Album |
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"Good Lookin' Wrassla" [61] | 2023 | Non-album singles |
"The Realest" [62] | 2024 | |
"Game Over" [63] | ||
"Tricky Whoopin'" [64] | ||
"Pronto" [65] (featuring Kevo) | 2025 | |
"Average Joe" [66] | ||
"Mike Who?" [67] |
Belton is currently in a relationship with fellow female American professional wrestler Anriel Howard, who currently competes under the ring name Lash Legend. [68]