Vic Grimes
Encyclopedia
Victor "Vic" Grimes is an American
professional wrestler
. He is best known for his appearances with Extreme Championship Wrestling
, Xtreme Pro Wrestling
and the World Wrestling Federation
.
promotion, where he had a series of matches against Erin O'Grady
. This "little man vs. big man" feud
between the two even escalated to the point of O'Grady running into Grimes with a car
.
saw a tape of Grimes and O'Grady's feud in All Pro Wrestling
and scheduled them for a dark match before an edition of Monday Night Raw
. WWF officials were so impressed by the match that they signed both men to contracts on the spot. Grimes would be moved to the Memphis developmental territories before being brought up to television under the ring name
Key. He made his televised WWF debut on the July 26, 1999 episode of Raw
. As Key, Grimes formed a short-lived drug dealer character along with Droz
and Prince Albert
and feuded with The Godfather
. The Godfather suffered an injury, however, just as the feud between the two was developing, which led to Grimes being taken off TV.
promotion to further develop his skills. There, Grimes joined Tony DeVito
and Spanish Angel, replacing P.N. News
, in Da Baldies. The highlights of his ECW tenure were a fast-paced match against Kid Kash, an ECW World Heavyweight Title shot against Mike Awesome
, and a Danbury Street Fight
with Tommy Dreamer
.
During Living Dangerously in March 2000, a breakdown in communication between New Jack
and Grimes led to both men tumbling off a 20-foot high scaffolding rig onto concrete. New Jack suffered brain damage
and was temporarily blinded in his right eye, which kept him out of wrestling for several months. Grimes would depart ECW not long after this incident.
, and his feud with Grimes would be re-ignited when Grimes surprisingly attacked New Jack from behind with a guitar at Payback's a Bitch event; New Jack was involved in a verbal dispute with XPW CEO Rob Black
when Grimes appeared through the mat from under the ring and attacked New Jack, aligning himself with Black's faction, "The Black Army". The beginning of the newly-ignited feud featured both men in an infamous tag match, with Grimes teaming with The Messiah
and New Jack aligning himself with Supreme; the match's infamy came from a freak accident where New Jack was powerbombed by Grimes through a flaming table, and New Jack was on fire for over 10 seconds. Other major points of the feud featured New Jack diving off the Los Angeles Grand Olympic Auditorium balcony over 30 feet onto two tables, with Grimes on top of both, at Redemption in May 2001, as well as Grimes throwing New Jack off the same balcony through many tables stacked below at New Year's Revolution in January 2002.
The feud culminated in February 2002 in a scaffold match, as towards the end of the match, Jack broke from the script
and legitimately shocked Grimes with a taser
before throwing Grimes from the scaffold and sending him crashing to the ring 40 feet below; there were over 12 tables stacked on top of each other to break the fall, but Grimes missed all but two of them and came within less than a foot of missing the ring completely. Grimes broke his fall on the top rope, dislocating his ankle and suffering multiple other injuries in the process. In the 2005 documentary Forever Hardcore, New Jack claimed that his intentions were to throw Grimes so hard that he would fall head-first onto the steel turnbuckle and die, as retaliation for the now infamous Danbury Fall. The scaffold was moved a couple of feet back, however, which caused Grimes to hit the tables instead of the turnbuckle.
When Shane Douglas
took control of XPW following Baptized in Blood 3, Grimes would remain with the promotion and engage in feuds with Douglas and Snuff
. One memorable incident from his feud with Douglas occurred during a tag match between Douglas and Lizzy Borden against Grimes and Lucy, which saw Grimes botch a superbomb on Borden through a table on the outside of the ring, as Borden missed the table completely and landed head first on the floor. Grimes would also wrestle against several cruiserweights such as Psicosis, Little Guido
, and Altar Boy Luke
.
before he took part in MTV
's new wrestling show, Wrestling Society X
. He made his debut for the WSX dubbed as "Vicious" Vic Grimes on March 14, 2007 alongside Arik Cannon
in a 3-on-2 handicap match against The Cartel, who Cannon had been attacked by a couple of weeks ago. However, Grimes and Cannon lost to The Cartel.
Two episodes later, Cannon and Grimes competed against Luke Hawx
and Al Katrazz
, during which Grimes missed a spear on Katrazz and landed into some light tubes at ringside, allowing Cannon to be pinned by Katrazz. Grimes would remain with the promotion until its closure.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
professional wrestler
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
. He is best known for his appearances with Extreme Championship Wrestling
Extreme Championship Wrestling
Extreme Championship Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion that was founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1992 by Tod Gordon and closed when his successor, Paul Heyman, declared bankruptcy in April 2001...
, Xtreme Pro Wrestling
Xtreme Pro Wrestling
Xtreme Pro Wrestling is an independent professional wrestling promotion formerly owned by Extreme Associates CEO and director Rob Zicari, who appeared on shows under the name Rob Black. Zicari appeared on-camera as owner alongside his wife Lizzy Borden. The promotion focuses on hardcore wrestling,...
and the World Wrestling Federation
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
.
All Pro Wrestling
Grimes began his career in California's All Pro WrestlingAll Pro Wrestling
All Pro Wrestling Gym Wars is a professional wrestling television program produced by APW which originally aired weekly on Saturday mornings on KFTY Channel 50 in the San Francisco Bay Area, beginning December 5, 2009. The series features the professional wrestlers of All Pro Wrestling competing in...
promotion, where he had a series of matches against Erin O'Grady
Mike Lockwood
Michael John "Mike" Lockwood was an American professional wrestler best known for his time with World Wrestling Federation / Entertainment under the ring name Crash Holly....
. This "little man vs. big man" feud
Feud (professional wrestling)
A professional wrestling feud is a staged rivalry between multiple wrestlers or alliances of wrestlers. They are integrated into ongoing storylines, particularly in events which are televised...
between the two even escalated to the point of O'Grady running into Grimes with a car
Čar
Čar is a village in the municipality of Bujanovac, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the town has a population of 296 people.-References:...
.
World Wrestling Federation
Jim CornetteJim Cornette
James Mark "Jim" Cornette is an American professional wrestling manager, commentator, promoter, and booker. As a manager, he has worked for Jim Crockett Promotions, World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Federation and from 1991 to 1995, was the owner of Smoky Mountain Wrestling...
saw a tape of Grimes and O'Grady's feud in All Pro Wrestling
All Pro Wrestling
All Pro Wrestling Gym Wars is a professional wrestling television program produced by APW which originally aired weekly on Saturday mornings on KFTY Channel 50 in the San Francisco Bay Area, beginning December 5, 2009. The series features the professional wrestlers of All Pro Wrestling competing in...
and scheduled them for a dark match before an edition of Monday Night Raw
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...
. WWF officials were so impressed by the match that they signed both men to contracts on the spot. Grimes would be moved to the Memphis developmental territories before being brought up to television under the ring name
Ring name
A ring name is a stage name used by a professional wrestler, martial artist, or boxer. While some ring names may have a fictitious first name and surname, others may simply be a nickname, such as The Undertaker.-Wrestling:...
Key. He made his televised WWF debut on the July 26, 1999 episode of Raw
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...
. As Key, Grimes formed a short-lived drug dealer character along with Droz
Droz
Droz:* Darren Drozdov, WWE superstar* Joseph Droz* Numa Droz* Pierre Jaquet-Droz** Jaquet-Droz automata* Daniela Droz* Antoine Gustave Droz* Jules Humbert-Droz...
and Prince Albert
Matthew Bloom
Matthew Jason "Matt" Bloom is an American professional wrestler, currently wrestling for New Japan Pro Wrestling under the ring name Giant Bernard. He is currently one half of the IWGP and GHC Tag Team Champions with partner Karl Anderson...
and feuded with The Godfather
Charles Wright (wrestler)
Charles Wright is an American businessman and former professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenure with the World Wrestling Federation throughout the 1990s and early 2000s under the ring names Papa Shango, Kama, Kama Mustafa, The Godfather, and The Goodfather .After leaving the wrestling...
. The Godfather suffered an injury, however, just as the feud between the two was developing, which led to Grimes being taken off TV.
Extreme Championship Wrestling
The WWF encouraged Grimes to work for the Extreme Championship WrestlingExtreme Championship Wrestling
Extreme Championship Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion that was founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1992 by Tod Gordon and closed when his successor, Paul Heyman, declared bankruptcy in April 2001...
promotion to further develop his skills. There, Grimes joined Tony DeVito
Tony DeVito
Anthony "Tony" DeVito is an American professional wrestler, best known for working in Extreme Championship Wrestling and Ring of Honor...
and Spanish Angel, replacing P.N. News
Paul Neu
Paul Neu is an American professional wrestler. He is perhaps best known under the ring name PN News and for his stints in Extreme Championship Wrestling and World Championship Wrestling...
, in Da Baldies. The highlights of his ECW tenure were a fast-paced match against Kid Kash, an ECW World Heavyweight Title shot against Mike Awesome
Mike Awesome
Michael Lee Alfonso , better known by his ring name Mike Awesome, was an American professional wrestler best known in America for his work in Extreme Championship Wrestling, World Championship Wrestling, and in World Wrestling Federation and also in Japan for his work with Frontier Martial-Arts...
, and a Danbury Street Fight
Street fighting
Street fighting is a colloquial term used to denote unsanctioned, illegal in some countries, hand-to-hand fighting in public places, between individuals or groups of people....
with Tommy Dreamer
Tommy Dreamer
Thomas James "Tom" Laughlin is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Tommy Dreamer. He is currently working for various promotions on the independent circuit. He is best known for his time spent with Extreme Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment...
.
During Living Dangerously in March 2000, a breakdown in communication between New Jack
New Jack
Jerome Young is an American professional wrestler, better known by his stage name New Jack in ECW.He is known for his willingness to take dangerous bumps and his stiff hardcore wrestling style, often taking high risks and "shooting" on opponents, though he is only known to shoot on opponents who...
and Grimes led to both men tumbling off a 20-foot high scaffolding rig onto concrete. New Jack suffered brain damage
Brain damage
"Brain damage" or "brain injury" is the destruction or degeneration of brain cells. Brain injuries occur due to a wide range of internal and external factors...
and was temporarily blinded in his right eye, which kept him out of wrestling for several months. Grimes would depart ECW not long after this incident.
Xtreme Pro Wrestling
Following ECW's closing, New Jack would come to Xtreme Pro WrestlingXtreme Pro Wrestling
Xtreme Pro Wrestling is an independent professional wrestling promotion formerly owned by Extreme Associates CEO and director Rob Zicari, who appeared on shows under the name Rob Black. Zicari appeared on-camera as owner alongside his wife Lizzy Borden. The promotion focuses on hardcore wrestling,...
, and his feud with Grimes would be re-ignited when Grimes surprisingly attacked New Jack from behind with a guitar at Payback's a Bitch event; New Jack was involved in a verbal dispute with XPW CEO Rob Black
Rob Zicari
Robert D. Zicari a.k.a. Rob Black is an American pornographer and former professional wrestling promoter. Together with his wife Janet Romano he owns the porn company Extreme Associates....
when Grimes appeared through the mat from under the ring and attacked New Jack, aligning himself with Black's faction, "The Black Army". The beginning of the newly-ignited feud featured both men in an infamous tag match, with Grimes teaming with The Messiah
William Welch
William C. Welch is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name The Messiah.-Professional wrestling career:...
and New Jack aligning himself with Supreme; the match's infamy came from a freak accident where New Jack was powerbombed by Grimes through a flaming table, and New Jack was on fire for over 10 seconds. Other major points of the feud featured New Jack diving off the Los Angeles Grand Olympic Auditorium balcony over 30 feet onto two tables, with Grimes on top of both, at Redemption in May 2001, as well as Grimes throwing New Jack off the same balcony through many tables stacked below at New Year's Revolution in January 2002.
The feud culminated in February 2002 in a scaffold match, as towards the end of the match, Jack broke from the script
Shoot (professional wrestling)
A shoot in professional wrestling is a term that refers to any unplanned, unscripted or real-life occurrence within a wrestling event. Contrary to popular belief, the name does not originate from "shooting in" for a takedown, as in amateur wrestling - rather it is a carny term shortened from...
and legitimately shocked Grimes with a taser
Taser
A Taser is an electroshock weapon that uses electrical current to disrupt voluntary control of muscles. Its manufacturer, Taser International, calls the effects "neuromuscular incapacitation" and the devices' mechanism "Electro-Muscular Disruption technology"...
before throwing Grimes from the scaffold and sending him crashing to the ring 40 feet below; there were over 12 tables stacked on top of each other to break the fall, but Grimes missed all but two of them and came within less than a foot of missing the ring completely. Grimes broke his fall on the top rope, dislocating his ankle and suffering multiple other injuries in the process. In the 2005 documentary Forever Hardcore, New Jack claimed that his intentions were to throw Grimes so hard that he would fall head-first onto the steel turnbuckle and die, as retaliation for the now infamous Danbury Fall. The scaffold was moved a couple of feet back, however, which caused Grimes to hit the tables instead of the turnbuckle.
When Shane Douglas
Shane Douglas
Troy Alan Martin is an American professional wrestler and promoter, better known by his ring name "The Franchise" Shane Douglas. In the course of his career, which has spanned nearly three decades, Douglas has wrestled in Extreme Championship Wrestling and World Championship Wrestling and briefly...
took control of XPW following Baptized in Blood 3, Grimes would remain with the promotion and engage in feuds with Douglas and Snuff
Jerry Tuite
Jerry Tuite was an American professional wrestler best known by his ring names, The Wall in World Championship Wrestling and Malice while performing for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling.-Career:...
. One memorable incident from his feud with Douglas occurred during a tag match between Douglas and Lizzy Borden against Grimes and Lucy, which saw Grimes botch a superbomb on Borden through a table on the outside of the ring, as Borden missed the table completely and landed head first on the floor. Grimes would also wrestle against several cruiserweights such as Psicosis, Little Guido
James Maritato
James Maritato is an American professional wrestler, of Italian origin, currently working on the independent circuit. He is best known for his work in World Wrestling Entertainment and Extreme Championship Wrestling under the ring names Little Guido Maritato and Nunzio.-Starting out:While...
, and Altar Boy Luke
Oren Hawxhurst
Oren Hawxhurst is an American professional wrestler, actor and stuntman. He is best known as Luke Hawx and is also known for his time in Xtreme Pro Wrestling under the ring name Altar Boy Luke.-Professional wrestling career:...
.
Wrestling Society X
After XPW folded, Grimes went on to work for various Californian independent promotionsIndependent circuit
In professional wrestling, the independent circuit or indy circuit refers to the many independent promotions which are much smaller than major televised promotions. They are roughly analagous to a minor league for pro wrestling, or community or regional theatre.Specific promotions on the...
before he took part in MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
's new wrestling show, Wrestling Society X
Wrestling Society X
Wrestling Society X was a short-lived professional wrestling-based television series produced in 2006 by Big Vision Entertainment. The weekly television series formerly aired on MTV, MTV2, MTV Tr3s, and over a dozen other MTV outlets throughout the world...
. He made his debut for the WSX dubbed as "Vicious" Vic Grimes on March 14, 2007 alongside Arik Cannon
Arik Cannon
Arik Cannon is a professional wrestler known for competing in companies such as Chikara, Dragon Gate USA, IWA Mid-South, All American Wrestling and Wrestling Society X.-Career:...
in a 3-on-2 handicap match against The Cartel, who Cannon had been attacked by a couple of weeks ago. However, Grimes and Cannon lost to The Cartel.
Two episodes later, Cannon and Grimes competed against Luke Hawx
Oren Hawxhurst
Oren Hawxhurst is an American professional wrestler, actor and stuntman. He is best known as Luke Hawx and is also known for his time in Xtreme Pro Wrestling under the ring name Altar Boy Luke.-Professional wrestling career:...
and Al Katrazz
Alkatrazz
Brian Fleming is an American professional wrestler. He is best known by his ring name Al Katrazz, which is a word play on the name of Alcatraz Prison...
, during which Grimes missed a spear on Katrazz and landed into some light tubes at ringside, allowing Cannon to be pinned by Katrazz. Grimes would remain with the promotion until its closure.
In wrestling
- Finishing moves
- Grimes Clash (Belly to back inverted mat slam, sometimes from the second rope)
- Grimes Cutter / Grimes Spike (Spinning fireman's carry cutter)
- Grimes You Up (Alley Oop)
- Signature moves
- Arm twist ropewalk leg dropLeg dropA leg drop or legdrop refers to an attack used in professional wrestling in which an attacking wrestler will jump and land his leg across a fallen opponent's chest, throat, face or head or in some cases, the groin/lower-abdominal area...
to the opponent's arm - Fallaway slam
- Frog splash landed into knee drop
- Grimes Bomb (Superbomb)
- Grimes Time (Second rope crucifix hold flipped into piledriver)
- Standing Iconoclasm – WWF
- JAV – Just Another Victim (Cobra clutch into Chokebomb)
- Multiple facebusterFacebusterA facebuster, also known as a faceplant, is generally a takedown move in professional wrestling in which an attacking wrestler forces his/her opponent down to the mat face-first without involving a headlock or facelock...
variations:- Electric chair
- Scoop lift
- Wheelbarrow
- Suplex lift
- PowerbombPowerbombA powerbomb is a professional wrestling throw in which an opponent is lifted up and then slammed back-first down to the mat. The standard powerbomb sees an opponent first placed in a standing headscissors position...
- Running high knee strike to the head of an opponent seated and leaning against the bottom turnbuckle
- Senton bomb, sometimes while performing a corkscrew
- Sitout crucifix powerbomb
- Victimizer (Reverse piledriver, sometimes from the second rope)
- Arm twist ropewalk leg drop
- NicknameNicknameA nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....
s- "Vicious"
Championships and accomplishments
- All Pro WrestlingAll Pro WrestlingAll Pro Wrestling Gym Wars is a professional wrestling television program produced by APW which originally aired weekly on Saturday mornings on KFTY Channel 50 in the San Francisco Bay Area, beginning December 5, 2009. The series features the professional wrestlers of All Pro Wrestling competing in...
- APW Tag Team ChampionshipAPW Tag Team ChampionshipThe APW Tag Team Championships were introduced on November 20, 1996 when Michael Modest and Steve Rizzono became the first to win the titles. They defeated Frank Dalton and Joe Applebaumer in the finals of an eight team tournament to win the titles. The last known champions were the Border Patrol...
(2 times) – with Little Dic Grimes (1) and Frank Murdoch (1) - APW Universal Heavyweight ChampionshipAPW Universal Heavyweight ChampionshipThe APW Universal Heavyweight Championship is a title contested in All Pro Wrestling. It was introduced on October 12, 1996 when Robert Thompson became the first champion...
(1 time)
- APW Tag Team Championship
- Power Pro Wrestling
- PPW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- PPW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Erin O'GradyMike LockwoodMichael John "Mike" Lockwood was an American professional wrestler best known for his time with World Wrestling Federation / Entertainment under the ring name Crash Holly....
- PPW Young Guns Championship (2 times)
- Pro Wrestling IllustratedPro Wrestling IllustratedPro Wrestling Illustrated is a professional wrestling magazine. PWI is currently based in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania and published by Kappa Publishing Group.-History:The first issue of Pro Wrestling Illustrated was released in 1979...
- PWI ranked him #270 of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the year in the PWI 500 in 2001
- Xtreme Pro WrestlingXtreme Pro WrestlingXtreme Pro Wrestling is an independent professional wrestling promotion formerly owned by Extreme Associates CEO and director Rob Zicari, who appeared on shows under the name Rob Black. Zicari appeared on-camera as owner alongside his wife Lizzy Borden. The promotion focuses on hardcore wrestling,...
- King of the Deathmatch TournamentXPW King of the Deathmatch ChampionshipThe XPW King of the Deathmatch Championship was one of Xtreme Pro Wrestling's championships. Originally, the championship existed as a trophy that was at stake in the first-ever Baptized in Blood event, which featured a Japanese-style 8-Man King of the Deathmatch tournament.The XPW King of the...
(2001)
- King of the Deathmatch Tournament