| Waylon Kenney | |
|---|---|
| |
| Details | |
| Ring name(s) | Waylon Kenney |
| Height | 6'0" |
| Weight | 229 lbs |
| Born | November 30, 1984 (Oakland, California) |
| Resides | Oakland, California |
| Billed From | Oakland, California |
| Debut | November 30, 2002 |
| Retired | June 28, 2015 |
Waylon Joseph Kenney (born November 30, 1984 in Oakland, California) is a retired American professional wrestler, best known for his time in Soul Wrestling Incorporated. Kenney is a one-time SWI World Champion, a two-time SWI World Tag Team Champion (once with Kelsey Phoenix and once with Frankie Starr) and a two-time SWI North American Champion, making him the tenth SWI Triple Crown Champion. Waylon was inducted into the SWI Hall of Fame in 2017.
Early life and career[]
Waylon was born in Oakland to Ronald and Diane Kenney. Waylon graduated from Oakland High School in 2002, and played on their football team. Waylon developed an interest in pro wrestling when he was 16, and eventually began training. Waylon made his pro wrestling debut on his 18th birthday, competing on the west coast indies.
Soul Wrestling Incorporated[]
Debut and Tag Team Champion (2007 - 2008)[]
Waylon was signed to Soul Wrestling Incorporated in April 2007. He made his debut a month later at Renewal, teaming with Christopher Evans and Soulmaster to defeat the C.A.R. and Shorty Drinkin. Waylon made his Apocalypse debut that same week, qualifying for the Showcase of the Souls Battle Royal at Independence. Waylon made it to the final six in the match before being eliminated by Rainmaster. In July, Waylon began an on-screen relationship with Kelsey Phoenix, saving her from a brutal attack by Survivor. The couple began competing as a tag team, with their first match being a loss to Survivor and Austin Wildside at Disasterpiece. Waylon ended his feud with Survivor by defeating him in a No DQ match on the following episode of Apocalypse. At Unholy Confessions, Waylon was defeated by Ken Davids in a match to determine the #1 Contender for the SWI World Championship.
On the September 1 episode of Apocalypse, Waylon and Kelsey began feuding with Trinity after the group made disparraging remarks about Kelsey's father Darren. This led to the two facing Trinity in a 15-minute non-title challenge, which they won when Waylon pinned Frankie Starr with two seconds remaining. At Betrayal, Waylon and Kelsey defeated Trinity to win the SWI World Tag Team Championship. They defended the titles against Trinity on the following episode of Apocalypse and against Ken Williams and Jason Daniels at Kill or Be Killed. The two lost the titles to Williams and Daniels at Broken Chains. During SWI's Underground Era, Waylon often teamed with Kelsey while also competing in a handful of singles matches.
North American Champion and departure (2009 - 2010)[]
Waylon and Kelsey resumed teaming together with SWI's return to the mainstream, competing for the SWI World Tag Team Championship in losing efforts at Beginning Anew and Challenging Adversity. On the March 7 episode, Waylon and Kelsey ended their on-screen relationship. Waylon soon turned his attention to the SWI North American Championship, feuding with Darren and Kelsey over the title. The alliance between the trio dissolved in the weeks leading up to their triple threat match at Rise of the Forces, where Darren pinned Kelsey after Waylon accidentally delivered a roundhouse kick to her. Waylon then defeated Darren at Questions Unanswered to win the title. He defended the title against Kelsey at Renewal and Jotun at Independence.
In July, Waylon began feuding with Monty James, who claimed to be a better North American than Waylon. This led to a match at Disasterpiece, where Waylon lost the title to Monty. Waylon received a rematch against Monty at Unholy Confessions under Canadian Street Fight rules, but again lost to Monty. On the following episode, Waylon and Kelsey reunited to take out Monty and Kennedy after Waylon was mocked for his losses. This led to one more title shot in an intergender tag match, but Waylon was once again beaten by Monty. Waylon soon entered a series of low-profile feuds and matches, although he did team with Frankie to defeat Damage Inc. at Broken Chains. Following his appearance in the Golden Opportunity battle royal at Challenging Adversity, Waylon announced his departure from SWI.
North American Champion (2012)[]
Waylon returned to SWI on the June 30, 2012 episode of Apocalypse, wishing Nicholai Ivanov luck in his title defense against Frankie Starr. The following week, Waylon saved Nicholai from a post-match attack from Frankie, only to attack Nicholai with the belt, turning heel. He later explained that nobody cared about him during his last run with the company, viewing Nicholai as a representative of the people that turned on him. Waylon returned to the ring on July 21, defeating Kellen Sampson. Waylon challenged Nicholai for the SWI North American Championship at Disasterpiece, originally winning the title before the match had to be restarted due to Nicholai's foot being on the bottom rope; Nicholai subsequently won the rematch. Waylon managed to defeat Nicholai for the title on August 11, then successfully defended the title against him at Unholy Confessions.
After defending the title against Jeffy at Betrayal, Waylon was entered into a tournament to determine the #1 Contender to the SWI World Championship at Destiny Fulfilled. Waylon defeated Gene Van Tyler in the first round, before being drawn up against Jeffy in the semifinals at Kill or Be Killed. Waylon was goaded into defending his title before the match, but wound up losing the match and the title. Waylon challenged for the title at Broken Chains in a four-way contest including Nicholai and GVT, but lost when Jeffy pinned GVT.
Starrway Enterprises and World Champion (2013 - 2015)[]
After being left off of the card for Destiny Fulfilled, Waylon and Frankie joined forces to create Starrway Enterprises, feuding with Tannark Fisher and XS3. The duo were defeated by Tannark and XS3 at Beginning Anew, but soon added Carter Starr to their ranks, naming them their leader. The group feuded with The Unrest for several months while adding Daniel Ness and Jeffy to their ranks. Waylon received an SWI World Championship match on June 22, but was defeated by JR Stone. Waylon entered the Destiny Fulfilled Tournament, but lost to XS3 in the quarterfinals. Waylon's rivalry with Nicholai Ivanov resumed when the European Union returned at Kill or Be Killed. Waylon then lost to Nicholai in a Tables match at Destiny Fulfilled.
At Beginning Anew, Starrway Enterprises kicked Carter out of the group, with Frankie and Waylon both taking leadership of the group. At Questions Unanswered, Waylon and Frankie defeated Team England to win the SWI World Tag Team Championship. Starrway Enterprises then lost the titles to Worldwide Truth & Freedom at Independence 9. Waylon remained in the background of Starrway's affairs, until Unholy Confessions. where he defeated JR Stone to deny him a right to have a rematch with his brother Mikey Stone. Two weeks later on Apocalypse, Waylon was the final entrant into the Starrway Enterprises gauntlet match, where he defeated Monty James to win the SWI World Championship. In the process, Waylon became the tenth SWI Triple Crown winner and the first African American wrestler to hold the title. It was then revealed that Starrway blackmailed assistant commissioner Alfred King into giving them the gauntlet match by kidnapping his daughter.
Waylon retained the title against Tannark at Betrayal, then defeated Monty in a 2/3 Tables match at Kill or Be Killed. Waylon then defeated both Tannark and Monty in a triple threat match at Broken Chains. At Destiny Fulfilled, Waylon barely defeated Nicholai to retain his title. During the match, he constantly called off interference from Starrway for fear of being disqualified and losing his title, a decree made by Alfred King the night before. Waylon then lost the title to Nicholai at Beginning Anew in a triple threat match involving Blackwolf.
End of Starrway and departure (2015)[]
After losing his title rematch at Challenging Adversity, Waylon turned on Frankie and Ness (who had lost a "Losing Team Disbands" Ladder match to The Stones earlier in the night) and left on his own, turning face for the first time since 2010. He faced Frankie at Rise of the Forces, but lost due to interference from Ness. Waylon then cost Frankie the World title in a Fatal Four Way at Questions Unanswered. Waylon's feud with Frankie concluded at Independence 10, when he and former rival Nicholai teamed to defeat Frankie and Ness in a Steel Cage match. This would be Waylon's last night with SWI, as his contract was up at the end of the month and he announced his retirement after the event to spend time with his family.
Waylon made several appearances in 2017. He and Kelsey teamed up at Destiny Fulfilled on the pre-show, answering a challenge by Fair Verona Connection and promptly defeating them. In June, Waylon was inducted into the SWI Hall of Fame. He then teamed with Kelsey, Ben Drinkin, and Selina Taylor to defeat the Monstourage at RewindMania.
Personal life[]
Waylon and his girlfriend Rebecca Patrick welcomed their first son Jamarcus on August 10, 2011. The couple were then married on May 2, 2012. In 2017, the couple filed for divorce, citing irreconcilable differences.
In wrestling[]
- Finishing moves
- The Way It Is (Diving moonsault, sometimes to standing opponent)
- Trademark moves
- Backflip into back suplex
- Diving sunset flip from the second rope
- Hurracanrana
- Jumping lariat
- Jumping shoulder block
- Kneeling facebuster
- Lungblower
- Roundhouse kick
- Running calf kick
- Running knee drop
- Russian leg sweep
- Snap belly-to-belly suplex
- Springboard crossbody
- Springboard leg drop
- Tiger suplex
- Managers
- Nicknames
- "The Blue Chipper"
- Entrance themes
- "Peace Sells" by Megadeth (May 27, 2007 - February 28, 2010; January 1, 2017; December 29, 2017)
- "He's A Mental Giant" by Tech N9ne (July 21, 2012 - January 27, 2013; March 7, 2015 - June 28, 2015)
- "Mainlining Murder" by Lars Frederiksen and the Bastards (February 2, 2013 - March 1, 2015)
Championships and accomplishments[]
- Soul Wrestling Incorporated
- SWI World Championship (1 time)
- SWI World Tag Team Championship (2 times) - with Kelsey Phoenix (1) and Frankie Starr (1)
- SWI North American Championship (2 times)
- SWI Hall of Fame (Class of 2017)
- Tenth Triple Crown Champion
- Feud of the Year 2013 - Starrway Enterprises vs. The Unrest