Samoa Joe
At Slammiversary in June 2005, he joined Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), where he embarked on a 19-month-long undefeated streak that ended in a critically acclaimed feud with Kurt Angle.[12] Seanoa attended the United Independent Wrestling Alliance (UIWA) West Coast Dojo, where he trained under Cincinnati Red, Johnny Hemp and, occasionally, John Delayo.[12][14][18] In March 2001, Joe defeated Christopher Daniels to win the UPW Heavyweight Championship; he held the title for a record 258 days before losing to Mikey Henderson in November 2001.[24] Joe returned to Pro Wrestling Zero-One in January 2002, where Masato Tanaka and Shinjiro Otani defeated him and Tom Howard to win the vacant Intercontinental Tag Team Championship.Joe took part in the 2002 Fire Festival, finishing last in his block with two points after defeating Kintaro Kanemura but losing to TAKA Michinoku, Masato Tanaka, and eventual overall winner Shinjiro Otani.[31] In 2002, Samoa Joe joined the ranks of the nascent Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-based promotion Ring of Honor (ROH), which had been impressed by his work in Japan and on the United States independent circuit.[34] During this time, he had a critically acclaimed trilogy of title defenses against CM Punk (the second of which received a "five star" rating from veteran journalist Dave Meltzer, the first match in the United States in seven years to do so).In June 2004, Joe successfully defended the ROH World Championship against Shinya Makabe in a bout promoted by New Japan Pro-Wrestling at the Inoki Dojo in Santa Monica, California.[6][47] After defeating Kyle O'Reilly, ACH, and Michael Elgin in successive matches, Joe unsuccessfully challenged ROH World Champion Jay Briscoe in the main event of Supercard of Honor IX on March 27.[72] In February 2007, Joe won a Gauntlet for the Gold match to become the number one contender for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship; the following month at Destination X he unsuccessfully challenged champion Christian Cage.[75] At Against All Odds in February 2008, Joe served as the special enforcer for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship match between champion Kurt Angle and challenger Christian Cage.[62] Writing in 2015, the Wrestling Observer Newsletter described the bout between Angle and Joe as "arguably the company's peak in terms of creative, match quality, business, and production coming together".[78] At Slammiversary the following month, Joe successfully defended the title against Booker T, Christian Cage, Rhino, and Robert Roode in a King of the Mountain match.[43] Writing for the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Kyle Johnson stated "Joe’s standing as a main event star in the company entered a downward spiral from 2009 on and never recovered.His TNA World Heavyweight Championship run was almost completely unmemorable, ending at Bound for Glory 2008 in a match where he attempted a dropkick from a press box onto concrete stairs to horrifying effect."[80] On the October 30, 2008 episode of Impact, Joe and AJ Styles formed a faction of younger wrestlers called the "Front Line", to oppose the Main Event Mafia of Kurt Angle, Sting, Kevin Nash, Booker T, and Scott Steiner.[82] On the January 29, 2009 episode of Impact, a video aired in which Joe – sporting a buzz cut, face paint, and a much heavier frame – stated he wanted to introduce the Main Event Mafia to his "Nation of Violence".[95] In November 2009 at Turning Point, Joe unsuccessfully challenged TNA World Heavyweight Champion AJ Styles in a three-way match that also involved Christopher Daniels.Joe lost the match after being abandoned by Jarrett; subsequently, it was revealed that Hogan's injury had been a ruse as he helped Jeff Hardy win the vacant TNA World Heavyweight Championship and formed a new villainous stable, Immortal.[131] In the final week of the Bound for Glory Series, Joe attempted to interfere in a match between Gunner and Rob Van Dam, but was stopped by guest color commentator Matt Morgan.[135][136] In November 2011, Joe won the Maximum Impact Tournament; he subsequently received a title shot against TNA World Heavyweight Champion Bobby Roode in the MEN Arena in Manchester, England, but was unsuccessful.[169] At One Night Only:#OldSchool (which was recorded in December 2013, but aired in February 2014) Joe unsuccessfully challenged Magnus for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship following interference from Ethan Carter III.[181][182] Joe made his final appearance with Pro Wrestling Noah several months later on October 8, when he and Magnus lost the GHC Tag Team Championship to No Mercy (Kenta and Maybach Taniguchi) in Yokohama.[14][21] On May 20, 2015, during the main event of NXT TakeOver: Unstoppable, he made what was his first appearance with WWE since February 2001, stopping Kevin Owens from attacking an injured Sami Zayn with a chair.[195] Writing for the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Kyle Johnson described Joe as "leaner, focused, motivated, and completely revitalized [...] as hungry as he had been in 2003-05 when he was still making his name in Ring of Honor and TNA.[209] On the July 17 episode of Raw, Joe faced Reigns to determine the next number one contender for the Universal Championship; the match ended in a no contest after Braun Strowman interfered and attacked both men.[216] On the March 5, 2019 episode of SmackDown Live, Joe defeated R-Truth, Rey Mysterio, and Andrade in a fatal four way match to win the WWE United States Championship.[34][246] Joe defeated Johnny Elite in the quarter-finals and Kyle O'Reilly in the semi-finals of the Owen Hart Foundation Tournament before losing to Adam Cole in the final at Double or Nothing due to interference by Bobby Fish.[256] Throughout mid-2023, Joe successfully defended the ROH World Television Championship against challengers such as Mark Briscoe, Colt Cabana, Blake Christian, Matt Sydal, and Dalton Castle.[274] After a short feud with the Premier Athletes, Joe, Hook, and Katsuyori Shibata defeated Chris Jericho's Learning Tree stable in a trios match at Forbidden Door in June 2024.
King Joe (Ultra monster)Samoan JoeOrange County, CaliforniaProfessional wrestling careerRing name(s)Huntington Beach, CaliforniaIsle of SamoaCincinnati RedInoki Dojoring nameprofessional wrestlervoice actorAll Elite WrestlingAEW TNT ChampionAEW World ChampionRing of HonorROH World ChampionshipROH Pure ChampionshipSlammiversaryTotal Nonstop Action WrestlingKurt AngleTNA World Heavyweight ChampionshipTNA X Division Championshipfive timesTNA World Tag Team ChampionshipTNA Television ChampionshipNXT ChampionshipWWE United States ChampionshipWWE pay-per-views and livestreaming supercardscolor commentatorROH Hall of FameTony KhanROH World Television ChampionshipSweet ToothTwisted MetalKing SharkPolynesian dance troupe1984 Summer OlympicsLos Angeles Memorial ColiseumfootballOcean View High Schoolmortgage brokerJiu-Jitsuprofessional wrestling schoolUltimate Pro WrestlingWorld Wrestling FederationfeudedJohn CenaUPW No Holds Barred ChampionshipSouthern CaliforniaWWF JakkedEssa RiosChristopher DanielsUPW Heavyweight ChampionshipAll Pro WrestlingAmerican DragonShinya HashimotoPro Wrestling Zero-Onepay-per-viewKeiji SakodaKatsumi UsudaYuki IshikawaIntercontinental Tag Team ChampionsMike RapadaSteve Corino2001 Fire FestivalGeorge TakanoMasato TanakaKohei SatoShinjiro OtaniTom HowardSamoan Savage2002 Fire FestivalKintaro KanemuraTAKA Michinokutag team matchessix-man tag team matchesHirotaka YokoiAll Asia Tag Team Championshipindependent promotionsIWA Mid-SouthPro Wrestling GuerrillaJersey All Pro WrestlingUnited Wrestling FederationFull Impact ProMajor League WrestlingBallpark BrawlPhiladelphia, PennsylvaniaGlory By HonorLow Kimixed martial artsROH ChampionXavierThe Zebra KidLondonCM PunkDave MeltzerBad SchwalbachLennestadtShinya MakabeNew Japan Pro-WrestlingSanta Monica, CaliforniaAustin AriesFinal BattleROH Pure ChampionJay LethalNigel McGuinnessKenta KobashiWrestling Observer NewsletterMatch of the YearMost Outstanding WrestlerCombat Zone WrestlingChris Heromuscle busterBryan DanielsonHomicidePro Wrestling NoahTakeshi MorishimaBriscoescage matchLiverpool OlympiaLiverpoolRising AboveTyler Blackdark matchKyle O'Reilly