Alexander Rusev

Alexander Rusev

Rusev in March 2015
Birth name Miroslav Barnyashev[1]
(Bulgarian: Мирослав Барняшев)
Born (1985-12-25) December 25, 1985
Plovdiv, Plovdiv,
Bulgaria
Residence Nashville, Tennessee,
United States[2]
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s) Alexander Rusev[1]
Miroslav[3]
Miroslav Makarov[3]
Rusev[4]
Billed height 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)[4][5]
Billed weight 138 kg (304 lb)[4]
Billed from Bulgaria[6]
Russia[7]
Trained by Florida Championship Wrestling[1]
Gangrel[1][5]
Rikishi[5]
WWE NXT[4]
Debut November 22, 2008[8]

Miroslav Barnyashev (Bulgarian: Мирослав Барняшев; born December 25, 1985), known by his former ring name Alexander Rusev and currently performing as Rusev (Bulgarian: Русев), is a Bulgarian professional wrestler and former powerlifter and rower. He works for the American professional wrestling promotion WWE, where he is a former United States Champion.[4][5] Barnyashev is the first Bulgarian to have wrestled for WWE.[3]

Early life

Rusev was born on Christmas Day, 1985 in Bulgaria.[5] He attended a sports school while growing up and competed in rowing and powerlifting as an adult.[5]

Professional wrestling career

Early career (2008–2010)

In the mid-2000s, Barnyashev emigrated from Bulgaria to the United States with the ambition of becoming a professional wrestler. He originally lived in Virginia,[5] before relocating to Torrance, California, where he began training as a wrestler under Gangrel and Rikishi at the Knokx Pro Wrestling Academy.[1][3][5] Barnyashev debuted in the San Diego, California-based independent promotion New Wave Pro Wrestling on November 22, 2008, under the ring name Miroslav Makaraov, defeating Aerial Star.[8] In 2010, Barnyashev joined the Santa Maria, California-based independent promotion Vendetta Pro Wrestling (VPW), shortening his ring name to Miroslav. While wrestling for VPW, he was managed by Markus Mac.[9]

World Wrestling Entertainment/WWE

Florida Championship Wrestling (2010–2012)

Rusev at WrestleMania Axxess in April 2013 in his Muay Thai-inspired ring attire

In September 2010, Barnyashev was signed to a contract by the professional wrestling promotion World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE).[3] He was assigned to the WWE's Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW) developmental territory in Tampa, Florida, where he adopted the ring name Alexander Rusev.[1] He wrestled his first televised match on the July 17, 2011, episode of FCW, defeating Mike Dalton while being managed by Raquel Diaz.[10][11] Shortly after debuting in FCW, Rusev tore both his anterior cruciate ligament and his meniscus and spent six months rehabilitating.[5]

Rusev returned to FCW in March 2012 with Nick Rogers as his manager.[12] In the summer of 2012, Rusev suffered a broken neck, temporarily paralyzing his arm. While rehabilitating, Barnyashev travelled to Thailand, where he studied the martial art Muay Thai.[5] In August 2012, WWE rebranded FCW as NXT.[13]

NXT (2013–2014)

After his neck healed, Rusev made his NXT television debut on the May 30, 2013, episode, competing in a battle royal to determine the number one contender to the NXT Championship that was won by Bo Dallas.[14] Rusev's first singles match on NXT came about on August 21, losing to Dolph Ziggler.[15] Shortly thereafter, Rusev adopted Sylvester Lefort as his manager and formed a short-lived tag team with Scott Dawson named the "Fighting Legionnaires"; they feuded with the team of Enzo Amore and Colin Cassady.[5][16][17][18] On the October 30 episode of NXT, Rusev ended his affiliation with Lefort by attacking him during a tag team bout.[19]

Rusev proceeded to adopt Lana as his "social ambassador",[20] a pairing compared by WWE to Ivan and Ludmilla Drago from the 1985 film Rocky IV.[21] In matches taped before his main roster debut,[22][23] Rusev defeated main roster wrestlers Kofi Kingston, Xavier Woods, and Sin Cara in singles matches, which aired on NXT in January and February.[24][25][26] Rusev continued to appear sporadically on NXT after joining the main roster in April 2014, making his final appearance on July 24, getting disqualified against NXT Champion Adrian Neville in a non-title match.[27]

United States Champion (2014–2015)

Rusev (right) celebrating a win with Lana in April 2014

Rusev made his main roster debut at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view on January 26, 2014. The sixth entrant in the titular match, Rusev was eliminated by the joint effort of four wrestlers.[28][29] After months of self-promotional videos and speeches by Rusev and his manager Lana,[30][31][32] Rusev's return match on the main roster came on the April 7 episode of Raw, where he squashed Zack Ryder.[33] In May, Rusev adopted a Russophillic, anti-American gimmick that saw him announced as having relocated to Russia,[34][35][36] and as having been named "Hero of the Russian Federation".[37] In the same month, his ring name was shortened to simply Rusev.[38] Over the next several months, Rusev feuded with Xavier Woods and R-Truth (whom Rusev defeated at Extreme Rules in a two-on-one handicap match) and Big E (whom he defeated at Payback and at Money in the Bank),[39][40][41] Jack Swagger (whom he defeated at Battleground and again at SummerSlam),[42][43] Mark Henry (whom he defeated at Night of Champions)[44] and Big Show (whom he defeated at Hell in a Cell).[45] Lana dedicated Rusev's string of victories to President of Russia Vladimir Putin, drawing attention from the mainstream press – including The Washington Post and The Daily Beast – and criticism after she was interpreted as having referred to the crash of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 before Rusev's match at Battleground in an attempt to generate heat.[34][46] On the October 6 episode of Raw, Rusev and Lana were confronted by The Rock in a surprise appearance, with The Rock driving Rusev from the ring after a verbal exchange.[47]

Rusev displaying the United States Championship and Russian flag in February 2015

On November 3, Rusev gained his first professional wrestling championship and became the first Bulgarian-born champion in WWE history when he won the United States Championship from Sheamus in a post-Raw match that aired on the WWE Network.[48] On November 23 at Survivor Series, Rusev competed in a 10-man Survivor Series match as part of Team Authority. Rusev was eliminated from the match by countout after crashing through the Spanish announce table.[49] Rusev and Jack Swagger once again feuded in December, leading to Rusev successfully defending the United States Championship against Swagger at TLC. On January 25, 2015, at the Royal Rumble, Rusev entered the Rumble match at number 15, eliminating six other contestants and placing second overall.[50] At Fastlane on February 22, Rusev successfully defended the United States Championship in a bout with John Cena.[51][52] He lost the United States Championship to Cena in a rematch at WrestleMania 31 on March 29 after a miscommunication with Lana, ending his reign at 146 days and marking his first pinfall loss on WWE's main roster.[53] He failed to regain the championship the following month at Extreme Rules in a Russian Chain match; during the match, Lana garnered a positive reaction from the crowd, leading to Rusev banishing her from ringside and causing dissension between the two.[54] Rusev lost to Cena once more at Payback on May 17, 2015 in an "I Quit" match after Lana conceded the match on his behalf.[55]

Various storylines; League of Nations (2015–present)

"It was six minutes of Rusev being punished on live national television for getting engaged to his longtime girlfriend... [After] the cleanest job Rusev has ever done... [Summer Rae] cut Vince McMahon's promo for him... totally castrated [Rusev]... How they get Rusev back on track as a killer after this segment is beyond me, which may have been the intent".

Wrestling Observer analyst Jeff Hamlin describes the storyline breakup of Rusev and Summer Rae in 2015[56]

On the post-Payback episode of Raw on May 18, 2015, Rusev ended his affiliation with Lana, who slapped him in response.[57] On the May 25 episode of Raw, Rusev reverted to being billed from Bulgaria and began carrying the flag of Bulgaria to ringside. Later that same evening, Rusev unsuccessfully attempted to reconcile with Lana.[58] Three days later on SmackDown, Rusev suffered a fractured foot in a bout with Ryback, rendering him unable to compete in the Elimination Chamber match for the vacant Intercontinental Championship at Elimination Chamber.[59] Despite his injury, Rusev still appeared on television and made further attempts to reconcile with Lana. Lana then began a storyline relationship with Dolph Ziggler, while Summer Rae began an alliance with Rusev. On the June 29 episode of Raw, Rusev and Rae confronted Lana and Ziggler, leading to a fight between Rae and Lana.[60] On the July 6 episode of Raw, Rusev and Rae once again confronted the couple, which turned out to be a ruse, as Rusev viciously attacked Ziggler after hitting him with his crutch and removed his ankle brace, revealing that his foot injury had healed. The attack resulted in Ziggler sustaining a bruised trachea in storyline and out of action indefinitely.[61][62]

Rusev made his in-ring return on the following SmackDown, wrestling in shoes to avoid further foot injury, defeating Fandango.[63] On the July 13 episode of Raw, Rusev answered John Cena's United States Championship open challenge. Rusev was then interrupted by both Kevin Owens and Cesaro, who also demanded a shot at the title. This resulted in a triple threat match, where the winner would face Cena, which Rusev won after pinning Cesaro, as Owens had left the match early on. Afterwards, Rusev defeated Cena by disqualification, when Owens assaulted Rusev.[64] On the July 16 episode of SmackDown, Rusev suffered his second loss by pinfall during his tenure on the WWE main roster when he was defeated by Cesaro in a singles match.[65] On the August 17 episode of Raw, Ziggler returned and attacked Rusev.[66] This altercation prompted a match between Rusev and Ziggler at SummerSlam, which ended in a double count–out due to interference from Lana and Rae. After the match, Rusev and Rae brawled with Ziggler and Lana.[67] On the October 5 episode of Raw, Rae proposed to Rusev in the storyline, but said he would not marry her until he had won another championship.[68] However, on October 11, TMZ reported that Rusev had gotten engaged to Lana in real life.[69] Lana then confirmed the engagement[70] and it began being used in the storyline on television, which resulted in Rae breaking up with him on the October 12 episode of Raw.[71] The entire storyline circulating around the break-up of Rusev and Lana received extremely negative reviews, with many claiming the storyline damaged Rusev's gimmick.[72] On the October 31 episode of Main Event, Rusev injured his bicep in a match with Neville, resulting in Neville winning the match via referee stoppage and Rusev being out of action.[73]

Rusev returned on the November 23 episode of Raw, when he attacked Roman Reigns, and later lost to him, in the main event, via disqualification after Sheamus and King Barrett attacked Reigns.[74] A week later, on the 30 November episode of Raw, Lana returned to the WWE, once again as a villainess, and reconciled with Rusev, during a Miz TV segment, and later in the same night, the two joined Sheamus' new stable League of Nations.[75] Throughout December, Rusev started a feud with Ryback, with Lana faking injuries to distract Ryback and help Rusev gain advantage. Rusev eventually defeated Ryback to end the feud at TLC, following a faked injury by Lana that allowed Rusev to make Ryback to pass out to the accolade following a roundhouse kick.[76][77] On November 30, 2015 Rusev joined forces with Sheamus, King Barrett and Alberto Del Rio forming The League of Nations. The faction aligned themselves with Mr. McMahon and would continue to target WWE World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns. Rusev would enter the Royal Rumble match at the #2 spot but would be eliminated by Roman Reigns in one and a half minutes.

Other media

Barnyashev, along with other VPW wrestlers, appeared in the music video for the song The Whole F'n Show by Kushinator (the entrance music of wrestler Rob Van Dam).[78]

As Rusev, he made his video game debut as a playable character in WWE 2K15, and has his own path in the "Who Got NXT" mode. He appears in the next game in the 2K series as well, WWE 2K16.[79]

Personal life

Barnyashev is currently engaged to CJ Perry, who performs for WWE under the ring name Lana.[80] They reside in Nashville, Tennessee.[81][81] He is a supporter of Lokomotiv Plovdiv and Spanish La Liga football club Real Madrid.[82]

In wrestling

Rusev (right) applying The Accolade on Zack Ryder (bottom) in April 2014 while being watched by his manager, Lana

Championships and accomplishments

Rusev is a former United States Champion

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Byer, Matthew (October 21, 2011). "Gangrel still a force at 42". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved September 14, 2013.
  2. ↑ "WWE Stars Lana and Rusev: in Russia we buy house together...before marriage". TMZ. Time Warner. March 1, 2015. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "World Wrestling Entertainment Signs 'The Bashing Bulgarian'". Novinite.com (Sofia News Agency). One Click Media Group. September 30, 2010. Retrieved September 15, 2013.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Rusev". WWE. 2013. Retrieved January 18, 2014.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Saxton, Byron (August 29, 2013). "Alexander Rusev: NXT's brewing storm". WWE. Retrieved September 14, 2013.
  6. 1 2 "Alexander Rusev – FCW Profile". Florida Championship Wrestling. Archived from the original on April 29, 2012. Retrieved January 3, 2014. Finishing move: Bulplex
  7. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ebLU-SSnMKs
  8. 1 2 "Alexander Rusev". Gerweck.net. Retrieved January 26, 2014.
  9. 1 2 "Vendetta Pro Wrestling results – Winter Wonder Slam (Jan. 2010)". Vendetta Pro Wrestling. Retrieved December 30, 2013.
  10. 1 2 Trionfo, Richard (July 17, 2011). "Florida Championship Wrestling television report". PWInsider. Retrieved September 21, 2013.
  11. 1 2 3 Pendry, Ryan (July 9, 2011). "7/8 FCW results in Gainesville, Fla.". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved September 15, 2013.
  12. 1 2 Parry, Josh (March 4, 2012). "3/2 FCW results Kissimmee, Fla.". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved September 15, 2013. Rusev and Rogers are a very impressive tandem. Rusev, the big man, stomped out to the ring as Rogers joined him in jeans and a bedazzled jacket, loudly blowing a whistle.
  13. ↑ "WWE News: FCW name being phased out". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved August 14, 2012.
  14. ↑ Witner, Emerson (May 30, 2013). "WWE NXT TV report". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved September 21, 2013.
  15. 1 2 James, Justin (September 5, 2013). "James's WWE NXT Results 8/21 & 8/28 & 9/4". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved September 14, 2013.
  16. 1 2 Saxton, Byron (September 12, 2013). "Making money: Sylvester Lefort's lucrative path to NXT". WWE. Retrieved September 15, 2013.
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  19. ↑ James, Justin (November 1, 2013). "James's WWE NXT Report 10/30". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved November 3, 2013. 'Lefort comes into the ring and Rusev knocks him to the mat with a belly splash for no obvious reason. [Rusev] goes to the back without Lefort.'
  20. 1 2 James, Justin (November 21, 2013). "James's WWE NXT Report 11/20". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved November 21, 2013. The Mysterious Blonde announces Alexander Rusev. Apparently, she is "Lana" his social ambassador.
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  26. 1 2 James, Justin. "James's WWE NXT report 2/5 – Week 84: Triple H makes an announcement, Neville/Pac vs. Graves, Sin Cara, Kidd, Rusev, Emma, more; Overall Reax". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved March 28, 2014.
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  41. ↑ Caldwell, James (June 29, 2014). "Caldwell's WWE MITB PPV Results 6/29". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
  42. ↑ Caldwell, James (July 20, 2014). "Caldwell's WWE Battleground PPV Results 7/20". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved July 24, 2014.
  43. ↑ Caldwell, James (August 17, 2014). "Caldwell's WWE SummerSlam PPV Results 8/17: Complete "virtual-time" coverage of Cena vs. Lesnar". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved August 18, 2014.
  44. ↑ Caldwell, James (September 21, 2014). "Caldwell's WWE NoC PPV Report 9/21". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved September 21, 2014.
  45. ↑ "Rusev def. Big Show via submission".
  46. ↑ Payne, Marissa (July 21, 2014). "WWE alludes to Malaysian Airlines Flight 17 during ‘Battleground’ and it did not go over so well". The Washington Post. Katharine Weymouth. Retrieved July 23, 2014.
  47. ↑ Caldwell, James. "Raw News: Rock surprise return, Reigns non-live return, Edge back on TV, Lesnar MIA, next week's Raw guest star, more". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved October 7, 2014.
  48. ↑ Caldwell, James. "Raw News: Rusev captures U.S. Title on WWE Network, Vince McMahon returns, Orton gone from Authority?, no Cena, IC Title match, Xavier Woods re-packaged, Ambrose-Wyatt, more". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved November 5, 2014.
  49. ↑ Kapur, Bob (November 24, 2014). "WWE Survivor Series: The Authority feels the Sting of defeat". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved November 24, 2014. Rusev crashed hard through the table. Ziggler got back into the ring, but even with help from HHH's minions, Rusev wasn't able to get there before the ref counted to 10 and he was counted out.
  50. ↑ Caldwell, James (January 25, 2015). "Caldwell;s Royal Rumble PPV Report 1/25". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved January 25, 2015.
  51. ↑ Clapp, John. "WWE United States Champion Rusev vs. John cena". WWE. Retrieved January 27, 2015.
  52. ↑ Caldwell, James (February 22, 2015). "Caldwell's WWE Fast Lane PPV results 2/22: Ongoing "virtual-time" coverage of Bryan vs. Reigns, Cena vs. Rusev, Sting-Hunter confrontation, final PPV before WM31". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved February 22, 2015.
  53. ↑ Caldwell, James (March 29, 2015). "CALDWELL'S WM31 PPV RESULTS 3/29: Ongoing "virtual-time" coverage of WWE World Title match, Taker's return, Sting vs. Triple H, Cena vs. Rusev, more big matches". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved March 29, 2015.
  54. ↑ Caldwell, James (April 26, 2015). "CALDWELL'S EXTREME RULES PPV REPORT 4/26: Ongoing "virtual-time" coverage of live PPV - Rollins vs. Orton steel cage, Cena vs. Rusev, Last Man Standing, more". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved April 26, 2015.
  55. ↑ Melok, Bobby. "United States Champion John Cena def. Rusev ("I Quit" Match)". WWE. Retrieved 17 May 2015.
  56. ↑ Hamlin, Jeff. "WWE Raw Live Results 10-12". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved 21 October 2015.
  57. 1 2 Caldwell, James (May 18, 2015). "CALDWELL'S WWE RAW RESULTS 5/18: Ongoing "virtual-time" coverage of live Raw - Payback PPV fall-out, three title matches advertised, more". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved May 18, 2015.
  58. ↑ Caldwell, James (May 24, 2015). "Caldwell's WWE Raw Results 5/25". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved May 26, 2015.
  59. ↑ "Rusev not medically cleared to compete tonight at Elimination Chamber 2015". WWE. May 31, 2015. Retrieved May 31, 2015.
  60. ↑ Benigno, Anthony (June 29, 2015). "Dolph Ziggler and Lana went public as a couple". WWE. Retrieved June 29, 2015.
  61. ↑ Benigno, Anthony (July 6, 2015). "Rusev attacked Dolph Ziggler". WWE. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
  62. ↑ http://www.wwe.com/shows/raw/2015-07-06/dolph-ziggler-suffers-throat-injury-on-raw-27610556
  63. ↑ Doughman, Sean (July 7, 2015). "WWE NEWS: Smackdown SPOILERS 7/9 - full results for Thursday's show". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
  64. ↑ Caldwell, James (July 13, 2015). "CALDWELL'S WWE RAW RESULTS 7/13: Ongoing "virtual-time" coverage of live Raw - Brock Smash, final Battleground PPV hype, more". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved July 13, 2015.
  65. ↑ Burdick, Michael (July 16, 2015). "Cesaro def. Rusev". WWE.com. Retrieved July 16, 2015.
  66. ↑ Caldwell, James (August 17, 2015). "CALDWELL'S WWE RAW RESULTS 8/17: Ongoing "virtual-time" coverage of live Raw - Final Summerslam hype, Lesnar & Undertaker, Cena returns from injury, more". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved August 17, 2015.
  67. ↑ Caldwell, James (August 23, 2015). "CALDWELL'S SUMMERSLAM REPORT 8/23: Ongoing "virtual-time" coverage of Lesnar vs. Taker, Title vs. Title, more big matches". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  68. ↑ Caldwell, James (October 5, 2015). "CALDWELL'S WWE RAW RESULTS 10/5: Complete "virtual-time" coverage of live Raw - Lesnar returns, Cena's Open Challenge, more". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  69. ↑ "WWE Stars Lana and Rusev Are Getting Married!!". TMZ. October 11, 2015. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
  70. ↑ "WWE.com Exclusive: Lana confirms engagement to Rusev". WWE. October 12, 2015. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
  71. ↑ Caldwell, James (October 12, 2015). "CALDWELL'S WWE RAW RESULTS 10/12: Complete "virtual-time" coverage of live Chicago Raw - Cena's U.S. Title Open Challenge, WWE Champ loses in main event, more". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
  72. ↑ "Everything That's Wrong With The Dolph Ziggler/Lana/Rusev Storyline". The Armbar Express. Retrieved 2016-01-11.
  73. ↑ "Rusev injured during WWE Main Event tapings". WWE. October 29, 2015. Retrieved October 29, 2015.
  74. ↑ Caldwell, James (November 23, 2015). "11/23 WWE Raw Results – CALDWELL’S Complete Live Report". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved November 24, 2015.
  75. ↑ Trionfo, Richard (November 30, 2015). "WWE RAW REPORT: A NEW GROUP IS FORMED, IS THE QUEEN OF THE JUNGLE SHOWING HER TRUE STRIPES?, ARE THE NEW DAY TURNING INTO J&J SECURITY FOR SHEAMUS?, A FEW RETURNS, AND MORE". PWInsider. Retrieved November 30, 2015.
  76. ↑ Caldwell, James (December 7, 2015). "12/7 WWE Raw Results – CALDWELL’S Complete live report". PWTorch. Retrieved December 7, 2015.
  77. ↑ Johnson, Mike (December 13, 2015). "COMPLETE WWE TLC PPV COVERAGE". PWInsider. Retrieved December 13, 2015.
  78. ↑ "Vendetta Pro superstars appear in Rob Van Dam's Theme Song Video by Kushinator". Vendetta Pro Wrestling. October 27, 2010. Retrieved September 21, 2013.
  79. ↑ Sirani, Jordan (October 24, 2014). "WWE 2K15 who got NXT mode announced and detailed". IGN. Retrieved December 6, 2014.
  80. ↑ Johnson, Mike (October 11, 2015). "WWE STARS ENGAGED". PWInsider. Retrieved October 12, 2015.
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  82. ↑ "Rusev visit Santiago Bernabeu"
  83. ↑ James, Justin (October 25, 2013). "James's WWE NReport 10/23". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved October 31, 2013. Rusev puts Parker in The Accolade (Camel Clutch) for a quick tap-out victory.
  84. 1 2 3 Trionfo, Richard. "Post WWE Raw match coverage: United States Title match: Rusev versus Sheamus". PWInsider. Retrieved November 5, 2014.
  85. ↑ Trinonfo, Richard (June 10, 2011). "Florida Championship Wrestling spoilers for July 3, July 10 and July 17 shows". PWInsider. Retrieved February 1, 2014. Alexander Rusev defeated Mike Dalton with an Oklahoma Roll into a German suplex for the three count.
  86. ↑ Parks, Greg. "Parks's WWE SmackDown report 4/18: Ongoing "virtual time" coverage of Friday show, including Batista vs. Sheamus". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved May 9, 2014.
  87. ↑ Trionfo, Richard. "WWE NXT Report: A Voice From The Past Returns; NXT Title Match Set For 2/27; The Airplane Spin Gets Grounded; And More". PWInsider. Retrieved May 9, 2014.
  88. ↑ "WWE Battleground: Weekend rivals Rusev and Jack Swagger have plenty in common". Sky Sports. Retrieved November 5, 2014.
  89. ↑ Taylor, Scott (November 21, 2014). "Rusev def. Dolph Ziggler". WWE. Retrieved November 23, 2014. [I]t was an explosive Superkick from the United States Champion that left the bleached-blond Superstar down for the three-count.
  90. 1 2 3 Trionfo, Richard. "WWE NXT Report: Zayn Versus Cesaro Two Out Of Three Falls; Divas Title Match; Dolph Ziggler In Action; A Tough Enough Alumnus In Action; The Ascension; CJ Parker And Tyler Breeze; And More". PWInsider. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  91. 1 2 Trionfo, Richard. "WWE NXT Report: Beat The Clock Challenge; Bo Dallas Slideshow; Bayley Vows Revenge; New Interviewers". PWInsider. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  92. 1 2 3 Trionfo, Richard. "WWE NXT Report: Sing Off; A Big Return; Two Out Of Three Falls Match; Number One Contender Match; And More". PWInsider. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  93. 1 2 3 4 Trionfo, Richard. "WWE NXT Report: Women's Title Status; Tag Champs Versus Tag Champs In Six Man Action; And More". PWInsider. Retrieved May 9, 2014.
  94. ↑ Tedesco, Mike (July 13, 2015). "WWE RAW RESULTS - 7/13/15 (WWE TITLE CONTRACT SIGNING)". WrestleView. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  95. ↑ Trionfo, Richard (October 3, 2015). "COMPLETE WWE AT MADISON SQUARE GARDEN COVERAGE: US TITLE CAGE MATCH, LESNAR VERSUS SHOW, WHEN IS ONE CHOKE SLAM GREATER THAN THREE?, 25 YEARS OF JERICHO, SIX DIVA TAG MATCH, AND MORE". PWInsider. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  96. ↑ James, Justin (January 9, 2014). "James's WWE NXT Report 1/8". PWTorch.com. Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved January 26, 2014. Rusev hits a Samoan Drop on the running Woods for one.
  97. ↑ James, Justin (January 16, 2014). "James's WWE NXT Report 1/15". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved January 26, 2014.
  98. ↑ Oliver, Greg. "Rusev wins U.S. title on WWE Network". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved February 23, 2015.
  99. ↑ Parks, Greg (January 2, 2015). "Parks's WWE SmackDown report 1/2: Ongoing "virtual time" coverage of Friday show, including Roman Reigns vs. Rusev, Big Show vs. Ryback". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved February 23, 2015.
  100. ↑ Parks, Greg (December 26, 2015). "Parks's WWE SmackDown report 12/26: Ongoing "virtual time" coverage of Friday show, including Hulk Hogan appearance, U.S. Title match, Kane vs. Ryback, more". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved February 23, 2015.
  101. 1 2 Trionfo, Richard (April 18, 2014). "WWE SmackDown Report". PWInsider. Retrieved April 27, 2014. Rusev puts Truth on the top rope and he connects with a series of knees to the ribs...Lana gives Rusev the signal and he hits a uranage slam.
  102. ↑ Parks, Greg (July 19, 2013). "Show results – 7/18 NXT in Tampa, Fla.". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved September 14, 2013.
  103. ↑ Caldwell, James (May 5, 2014). "Caldwell's WWE Raw results 5/5: Complete "virtual-time" coverage of live Raw – PPV fall-out, U.S. Title battle royal, IC Title re-match, Shield vs. Wyatts, more". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved May 9, 2014.
  104. ↑ Bishop, Matt (April 7, 2014). "Raw: A night of new beginnings". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved November 5, 2014.
  105. ↑ Saxton, Byron (December 11, 2013). "Mistress of destruction: The true life story of Lana". WWE. Retrieved January 3, 2014. As Social Ambassador to Alexander Rusev, Lana has declared herself the prime orchestrator of "The Bulgarian Brute's" path of destruction.
  106. ↑ "Rusev promises to crush The Champ at WWE Payback". WWE. Plus, royal disorder, dominant Divas action and the fierce rumblings of a Russian Tank.
  107. ↑ "Ryback def. Rusev via Count-out". 30 November 2015. For all of Rusev’s promises to break his opponents’ bodies, The Big Guy proved to be a bit too smash-mouth for The Super Athlete.
  108. ↑ "Dolph Ziggler weighs in on Summer Rae's apology to Rusev: Raw, September 7, 2015". YouTube. Ru Ru! Oh my god thank you so much for understanding!
  109. ↑ Benigno, Anthony. "WWE Raw results, Sept. 7, 2015: Sting torments Rollins and Charlotte rains on Nikki's 'Bellabration' – Summer Rae apologized to Rusev". WWE. Ziggler surprises "Ru Ru"
  110. ↑ Night of Champions Kickoff 20 September 2015
  111. ↑ Gutteridge, Darren (September 6, 2013). "9/5 Gutteridge's WWE NXT Review: Sami Zayn vs. Jack Swagger, Corey Graves vs. Rick Victor, Alexander Rusev vs. Mason Ryan, and Bayley and Charlotte vs. Alicia Fox and Aksana". ProWrestling.net. Retrieved January 25, 2014. Rusev came out to the Bulgarian national anthem.
  112. ↑ "Рев на лъвът (Roar of the Lion) Alexander Rusev". iTunes. February 28, 2014. Retrieved February 28, 2014.
  113. ↑ "The music of WWE NXT". WWE. March 5, 2014. Retrieved March 15, 2014.
  114. ↑ "WWE: Hellfire (Sheamus) - Single".
  115. ↑ "WWE:"A League of Their Own (The League of Nations) - Single"".
  116. ↑ "Most Improved Wrestler of the Year". Pro Wrestling Illustrated 36 (2): 16–17. 2015.
  117. ↑ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2015". Pro Wrestling Illustrated. Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved October 5, 2015.
  118. ↑ "WWE Wrestler of the Year (So Far)". Rolling Stone. Retrieved July 1, 2015.
  119. ↑ "WWE Wrestler(s) of the Year". Rolling Stone. Retrieved December 14, 2015.
  120. 1 2 Meltzer, Dave (January 26, 2015). "Jan. 26, 2015 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: 2014 awards issue w/ results & Dave’s commentary, Conor McGregor, and much more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter (Campbell, California): 9–33. ISSN 1083-9593.
  121. ↑ "Rusev's first United States Championship reign". WWE. Retrieved November 4, 2014.

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