Baron Corbin
Pestock was an offensive lineman for the Indianapolis Colts and Arizona Cardinals of the NFL, as well as reaching the quarter-finals of the 2008 Golden Gloves boxing tournament.He signed with WWE in 2012 and was assigned to their developmental brand NXT under the ring name Baron Corbin, portraying a villainous character nicknamed the "Lone Wolf".[6] He participated in the 2008 Golden Gloves National Tournament of Champions in the super heavyweight division, defeating Chaen Chess in the preliminaries and losing to Andrae Cathron in the quarter-finals.[7][8] Pestock attended NCAA Division II college Northwest Missouri State University,[2] where he played offensive guard, and he became a starter his junior year in 2007.[14] While with the Colts, he was roommates with future All-Pro punter and professional wrestler Pat McAfee, a fact that was central to a feud between the two of them in WWE 13 years later.[21] Using the ring name Baron Corbin, he made his in-ring debut on October 18 at a house show, losing to Dante Dash.[41] At NXT TakeOver: Respect on October 7, Corbin and Rhyno defeated Chad Gable and Jason Jordan to advance to the finals of the tournament, where they lost to Finn Bálor and Samoa Joe.[46][47] Corbin made his main roster debut at WrestleMania 32, winning the André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal by last eliminating Kane.[68] On the December 20 episode of SmackDown, Corbin confronted Dolph Ziggler, who had just earned a title match against WWE Champion AJ Styles.[76] On the April 17 episode of SmackDown, Corbin failed to win a title opportunity for the United States Championship in a triple threat match against AJ Styles and Sami Zayn.[92] At Clash of Champions on December 17, Corbin lost his title to Dolph Ziggler in a triple threat match also involving Bobby Roode, ending his reign at 70 days.[94] On the February 13 episode of SmackDown, Corbin defeated Kevin Owens to earn a spot in the six-pack challenge for the WWE Championship.[96] Corbin competed in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal on the WrestleMania 34 pre-show on April 8; he made it to the final two before being eliminated by Matt Hardy.[105] On November 2 at Crown Jewel, Corbin cost Braun Strowman the Universal Championship in a match against Brock Lesnar, starting a feud between the two.[107] Strowman enlisted the help of Apollo Crews, Bobby Roode, Chad Gable, Finn Bálor, and former Raw general manager Kurt Angle to defeat Corbin.However, Triple H added Apollo Crews, Bobby Roode, and Chad Gable to make it a 4-on-1 handicap match that Corbin lost, definitively ruling him out of the position.[111] At Elimination Chamber on February 17, Corbin defeated Strowman in a no disqualification match, following interference from Bobby Lashley and Drew McIntyre.[137] On the April 24 episode of SmackDown, Corbin defeated Drew Gulak with the help of Cesaro and Shinsuke Nakamura to qualify for the Money in the Bank ladder match.[138] At Money in the Bank on May 10, Corbin failed to win the contract after he and AJ Styles tussled over the briefcase and dropped it to Otis unintentionally.[147] On the July 16 episode of SmackDown, Corbin stopped shaving his head and began sporting dirty clothes and an unkempt beard, giving him a disheveled look.[152] On the August 27 episode of SmackDown, after turning his misfortunes around in Las Vegas, he drove into the arena in a Bentley, declaring himself "filthy rich" and demanding to be called "Happy Corbin".[172] During the 2023 WWE Draft in May, it was announced that Corbin was one of the selected superstars who signed a free agent contract which in turn allows him to appear on Raw, SmackDown, and NXT as an active roster member whenever he desired.[189] On January 23 in an interview with Chris Van Vliet, Pestock announced that his new ring name will be “Bishop Dyer” with the moniker the "Nomad", which will pay tribute to his "Lone Wolf" character in WWE.Upon moving to the main roster in 2017, he retained his Lone Wolf gimmick, but dropped the outlaw biker aspect of it after debuting a new entrance music titled "I Bring the Darkness", sung by Tommy Vext.After leaving WWE, he adopted the ring name "Bishop Dyer" with the moniker the "Nomad", which is a tribute gimmick to the "Lone Wolf".[197] Pestock has credited Bill DeMott, Corey Graves, Billy Gunn, Kane, and Dusty Rhodes with helping him develop his wrestling gimmick.[198] He is close friends with fellow wrestlers Tyler Breeze and Shawn Spears, singer Tommy Vext (who performed the "I Bring the Darkness" entrance music used by the Baron Corbin character from 2017 until 2021),[199] and WWE commentator Pat McAfee (with the two previously being teammates on the Indianapolis Colts as rookies, during which time they roomed together and bonded over their love of wrestling).[204] In November 2024, just weeks after not having his contract renewed by WWE, Pestock won a gold medal in the IBJJF Tampa International Open 2024.
Lenexa, KansasProfessional wrestling careerRing name(s)Kansas CityBilly GunnJohnny StamboliNorman SmileyWWE Performance CenterOffensive guardNorthwest Missouri StateIndianapolis ColtsArizona CardinalsPro Football Referenceprofessional wrestlerfootballamateur boxerindependent circuitring nameWWE United States ChampionNXT Tag Team ChampionMoney in the BankKing of the Ringoffensive linemanGolden GlovesWrestleMania 32André the Giant Memorial Battle RoyalKurt AngleWrestleMania 352019 King of the Ring tournamentMadcap MossBron BreakkerDusty Rhodes Tag Team Classicboxingsuper heavyweightDivision IINorthwest Missouri State UniversityDivision II National Championships2009 NFL draftPat McAfeefutures contracthouse showCJ ParkerBull DempseyAdrian NevilleSamoa Joetag teamThe AscensionJohnny GarganoTommaso CiampaChad GableJason JordanApollo CrewsSami Zaynsubmission holdsWilliam RegalAustin AriesTucker KnightDolph ZigglerPaybackExtreme Rules2016 WWE draftSmackDownIntercontinental ChampionshipKalistopinnedkayfabeBacklashNo MercyJack SwaggerSurvivor SeriesCruiserweight ChampionshipWWE ChampionAJ StylesRoyal RumbleRoyal Rumble matchBraun StrowmanThe UndertakerElimination Chambernamesake matchDean AmbroseRandy OrtonWrestleMania 33Shane McMahonShinsuke NakamuraBattlegroundJohn CenaJinder MahalSummerSlamKevin OwensUnited States ChampionTye DillingerHell in a CellThe MizChampion vs Champion matchClash of ChampionsBobby RoodeFastlaneWrestleMania 34Matt HardySeth RollinsSuperstar Shake-upStephanie McMahonFinn BálorRoman ReignsUniversal ChampionshipCrown JewelBrock LesnarTLC matchVince McMahonTriple HBobby LashleyDrew McIntyretables matchSuper ShowDownJohn ConeStomping GroundsLacey EvansBecky LynchRaw Women's Championship2019 King of the RingRicochetCedric Alexander2019 draftMustafa AliThe RevivalDash Wilder