Jay Lethal

At 38 years old, Jay Lethal has this physical status:

Jamar Shipman (born April 29, 1985), better known by the ring name Jay Lethal, is an American professional wrestler who is currently signed to Ring of Honor (ROH), where he is currently one-half of the ROH World Tag Team Champions with Jonathan Gresham. Lethal, nicknamed "The Franchise" of Ring of Honor, is a two-time ROH World Champion and holds the record for the most consecutive days with the ROH World Championship in company history.

He is the first (and so far only) African-American to win the ROH World Championship.

He was also a record-breaking two-time and longest reigning ROH World Television Champion, defending the title for 567 days, and the first man to hold both the World Television Championship and the World Championship at the same time.

Lethal, the only man to have won the ROH World Tag Team, World Television, and ROH Pure titles since winning the ROH World Tag Team Championships. He is also known for his wrestling in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), where he was a six-time X Division champion and a one-time World Tag Team Champion with Consequences Creed.

Lethal has won 13 total championships between ROH and TNA.

Early life

Jamar Shipman was born in Elizabeth, New Jersey, on April 29, 1985. He is Ronald and Shirley Shipman's middle child, with two brothers and two sisters. Shipman, 16, of Jersey All Pro Wrestling (JAPW), won a competition that gained the winner a lifetime of free instruction in the JAPW professional wrestling academy in July 2001. He spent six months there, but the school closed down at the end of which the institution had closed down. Mikey Whipwreck and Dan Maff, who competed in Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), then began training.

Source

Professional wrestling career

In a match where he defeated Dixie, the shipman made his wrestling debut under the ring name Jay Lethal on October 26, 2001 at JAPW's "Class Of 2001 Student Show." On September 13, 2002, in Bayonne, New Jersey, he captured his first Championship, the JAPW Television Championship, defeating the champion, Ghost Shadow, and Rain in a three-way match. Lethal's reign lasted an unprecedented and unreplicated eleven months, with Lethal losing to Crazy Ivan on August 22, 2003, in Rahway, New Jersey, at Counter-Strike. Lethal defeated Azriel, Insane Dragon, and Jack Evans in a four-way match on February 28, 2004, in a four-way match. Azriel attempted to regain the title for eight months but Lethal defeated him on several occasions. Azrieal took one more shot at the JAPW Light Heavyweight Championship on December 10, 2004, a loss that will see Azrieal leave JAPW if he lost. Azrieal was able to win the game, putting an end to the long feud.

Lethal had established himself as a key member of the JAPW roster by 2005, and he began competing for the JAPW Heavyweight Championship, which had been contested by Dan Maff since December 2003. Lethal pinned Maff in a title match on January 29, 2005, but the decision was overturned by crooked referee Sean Hanson. Following an altercation with Homicide, Maff resigned from wrestling and dropped out of wrestling, effectively ending the JAPW Heavyweight Championship. On March 26, Lethal was awarded the Heavyweight Championship at Caged Fury 2 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but he refused to accept it because he wanted to "earn" the honor. Homicide, the JAPW mainstay, later challenged Lethal to an impromptu fight for the vacant title, which Homicide won. Following a diving headbutt, Lethal eventually won the JAPW Heavyweight Championship in Braintree, Massachusetts, defeating Homicide, Kevin Steen, and Samoa Joe in a four-way match at Braintree Invasion.

On June 4 at HomeComing, Lethal defeated Steve Corino in his father's corner, but Corino and Ricky Landell handcuffed Lethal to the top rope and assaulted him with Corino placing him in a crossface. On July 16, Gored pitting Lethal and his father against Corino, Landell, and Landell's boss, Rick Silver, culminated in a six-man tag match. Lethal and his father were outnumbered, but they were able to win at the last minute after Lethal's mother introduced their child, returning Charlie Haas. Following Haas' match against Lethal during the match's, Haas and Lethal's championship match for Haas of Pain, which was won by Lethal, was scheduled between Haas and Lethal on September 10. Show Lethal ended his feud with Corino by defeating him for the title in a Dog Collar match with Tommy Dreamer on October 22.

Lethal's next feud would be with Rhino of The D-Factor, who was assaulted in 2005 at Fall Out following his triumphant title defense against B-Boy. Lethal defeated Rhino, who beat Lethal in the JAPW Heavyweight Championship after giving him a Rhino Driver through a table from the top rope on January 7, 2006. Lethal tried twice to regain his glory, first on February 18, 2006, when Teddy Hart was also included in a three-way match, then on May 20, 2006, but both attempts at regaining the title were unsuccessful. After struggling to recover from Frankie Kazarian's Lethal, former Azrieal, and former rival Azrieal, the JAPW Tag Team Championship was won by the champions The Outcast Killaz (Oman Tortuga and Diablo Santiago) and The S.A.T. (Jose and Joel Maximo) in a three-way dance at the 9th Year Anniversary Show in Rahway, New Jersey, on October 28, 2006. The Latin American Xchange of Homicide and Hernandez defeated Lethal and Azrieal for the titles on June 9, 2007, at Back to Business.

Lethal proclaimed at the start of 2009 that it was his destiny to regain the JAPW Heavyweight Championship, which had been ruled by Kenny Omega. On February 28, 2009, Rumble Lethal, a 21-person Jersey City Rumble in Jersey City, defeated Omega City Rumble Lethal to be eligible to challenge for Omega's title the same night. After Omega's companion Dan Maff turned on Omega to win the JAPW Heavyweight Championship for the second time, Lethal pinned Omega with the flipping dragon suplex. During the game, Maff had also assaulted Lethal, which culminated in a Championship match between the two teams on March 28, which Lethal managed to keep his title. On April 18, Lethal defeated Maff at International Invasion, but only after Trent Acid interfered in the match. When Maff defeated Lethal in the title inside a steel cage, their feud came to an end in Jersey City, at Caged Destiny on June 27. Lethal hasn't appeared for JAPW since.

On January 11, 2003, a shipman made his Ring of Honor (ROH) debut as Hydro, a member of Special K on Revenge on the Prophecy held in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania. In a singles match against Alex Shelley on May 22, 2004, he defeated him at Generation Next. Shelley knew his inherent wrestling talent and offered him membership in Shelley's stable of future actors, even though he lost. Hydro decided not to participate in Special K. Hydro's four corner survival match at the World Championship Classic on June 12, which earned him the Pure Wrestling tournament later this year. At Survival of the Fittest, he and Dixie competed in a four-way tag match for the Tag Team Championship on June 24, defeating the game for his tag team partner and co-champion Colt Cabana for his match later that evening. Punk was then challenged by Hydro to an impromptu match that Punk also won. During the match, Hydro shook hands, thus following the "Code of Honor" (which Special K rarely ignored).

Hydro participated in the Pure Wrestling tournament in Reborn, 2004. At the start of the game, World Champion Samoa Joe urged Hydro to change his name and be more serious. Hydro left Special K and went back to calling himself Jay Lethal after acting on Joe's recommendations. After Doug Williams pinned him in a four-way match using the Chaos Theory, he was disqualified from the tournament.

Lethal competed in a four-way match against Alex Shelley, Ace Steel, and 2 Cold Scorpios at Testing the Limit on August 7, 2006. Despite the moral support of his parents, who were in the audience, Lethal suffered his second defeat to Shelley. Lethal requested Shelley's invitation to a place in Generation Next for a second time, asking Shelley for a singles match. On August 28, Lethal and Shelley met together for the third time, with Shelley cheating to win a third time. Lethal was forced to face Matt Stryker at Glory by Honor III on September 11, putting his ROH career on the line after losing every match for months. Lethal won, snapping his losing streak. At The Midnight Express Reunion on October 2, Low Ki, who had been rivalring with Samoa Joe for many months, confronted Lethal as Joe's protege. Low Ki's boss, Julius Smokes, insulted Lethal's parents (once more viewing the match from the audience) and Low Ki spat at Lethal's mother. Low Ki beat Lethal on a straight track and then mocked him after the match.

On October 15, Lethal lost to Chad Collyer at Gold on October 15, but the team beat Delirious the next day. Punk II. He worked with his mentor, Samoa Joe, and lost to R. J. At Weekend Of Thunder: On Sunday, Brewer and Nigel McGuinness attended a single night of Thunder: Night One on November 5, before losing another to Embassy employee Jimmy Rave the next evening. Lethal assaulted Prince Nana, the Embassy's chief, after his match with Rave. Nana later recruited several masked mercenaries (also known as the "Weapons of Masked Destruction") in an attempt to end Lethal's career. Both WMDs were defeated at All-Star Extravaganza 2 on December 4 and Final Battle 2004, respectively, with both cases ending the match with his signature flipping dragon suplex.

Lethal's feud with The Embassy lasted into 2005, but it was Part One that pinned Embassy employee Jimmy Rave to the top of the Pure Championship on February 19: Part One. R. J., the Pure Champion and Embassy worker. Brewer, who had control over when to face his championship matches, decided to defend his title right away after Lethal's match, defeating the tenacious Lethal to keep his title after a trifecta of Lung Blowers. Lethal was supposed to face Walters for the championship in a re-match at Trios Tournament 2005 in Philadelphia, but an unknown assassination backstage had the eye swelling shut down, resulting in Lethal's eye swelling. Despite the injury, Lethal went on to win the Pure Championship later that night, his first appearance in ROH.

Back to Basics, Lethal and Samoa Joe met CM Punk and Spanky with Lethal pinning Spanky. On April 2, Lethal and Joe faced Jimmy Jacobs and B. J. Whitmer for the vacant Tag Team Championship but were disqualified. Lethal won the Pure Championship in a match against Spanky at Stalemate on April 16, but it was lost to his mentor Samoa Joe on May 7 in Manhattan Mayhem. Both men were beaten after the match, after The Rottweilers announced that Low Ki was the one who struck Lethal at the Trios Tournament 2005. On the same night, Lethal and Joe were pitted against Low Ki and fellow Rottweiler Homicide. Homicide killed Lethal Da Cop Killa, but Low Ki launched a Ghetto Stomp, throwing Lethal's neck into the ground, which led to the match's conclusion. Lethal was stretchered from the arena wearing a neck brace, ostensibly injured.

Lethal recovered at The Future Is Now to save James Gibson from a beating at The Rottweilers after being out "injured" for a month. On June 18th at Death Before Dishonor III, where he met Low Ki in a grudge match that was declared a no contest after both men were disqualified. Lethal, a former Special K member, was defeated by the Heartbreak Express on July 8, who joined us at Sign of Dishonor. Mick Foley, a World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and had been attempting to leave ROH with the World Championships, fought his title against Lethal later that evening. Punk retained his status with a muscle buster/rear naked choke combination that had often been used by Samoa Joe, who had turned ringside to cheer Lethal on.

Lethal attempted Homicide at Escape from New York on July 9, but the chain was lost due to Homicide using a chain. He joined forces with Samoa Joe and James Gibson to face the Rottweilers on July 23 (Homicide, Low Ki, and Ricky Reyes) but lost again, this time on Gibson. Low Ki was defeated by the Rottweilers once more on August 12 at Redemption as part of his continuing rivalry with the Rottweilers. Since the opponents fought outside the ring and were counted out, the match came to a draw. Homicide came to the ring to lethal but was halted by his opponent for the night, Matt Hardy. Punk, August 13: After Homicide's elbow drop to the referee, Lethal and Joe defeated Low Ki and Homicide by disqualification. Low Ki Ghetto Stomping Lethal screamed all over the arena, culminating with him handing Lethal the Ki Krusher in the middle of the fight.

In a "Fight Without Honor" at Glory, Lethal lost to Low Ki on September 17, Lethal to Low Ki. He went on to defeat Low Ki later that night, but it was in a singles match to bring an end to their feud. On September 24, Roderick Strong defeated Sal Rinauro to advance to the finals of the 2005 Survival of the Fittest tournament, but was disqualified by Roderick Strong.

After unsuccessfully battling Nigel McGuinness for the Pure Championship on October 1, Lethal and Samoa Joe went undefeated until November 19, 2005, when he and Samoa Joe lost to Austin Aries and Roderick Strong in a number one contender's match for the Tag Team Championship, defeating them in a number one contender's match for the Tag Team Championship. Lethal defeated Joe in an exhibition match on December 3, 2005 at Steel Cage Warfare. Lethal turned heel by smashing Joe's knee with a chair and pinned him with the flipping dragon suplex during the fight.

Lethal and Bryan Danielson lost to Austin Aries and Roderick Strong in a match for the Tag Team Championship on January 27, 2006. Lethal lost cleanly to Samoa Joe at Edison, New Jersey, on February 25, 2006, putting an end to their brief-lived feud. Following this, he departed from the league, but Nigel McGuinness, a losing proposition against Jimmy Rave and Sal Rinauro on June 15, and losing a four-way survival match against Claudio Castagnoli, Christopher Daniels, and match winner Nigel McGuinness on August 5, 2006.

Lethal, a wrestler for JAPW, caught Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) producer and announcer Jeremy Borash, who was offered a spot in the TNA roster, while wrestling for JAPW. Lethal debuted in TNA on December 17, 2005, losing to X Division Champion and fellow ROH alum Samoa Joe. He had signed to TNA's employment in January 2006. He made his pay-per-view debut at Against All Odds in 2006, defeating Matt Bentley, Alex Shelley, and Petey Williams in a four-way match versus pinning Williams.

Lethal defeated Roderick Strong and Shannon Moore on February 18, 2006's episode of Impact!, the defending champions of the 2006 World X Cup. Chris Sabin, Sonjay Dutt, and Alex Shelley were among the team's others. On April 23, 2006, Team USA lost their first match in Lockdown (Black Tiger, Minoru Tanaka, and Hirooki Goto) after Lethal pinned Lethal with a Black Tiger suplex. Lethal unsuccessfully challenged Samoa Joe for the X Division Championship on April 27, 2006 episode of Impact! Sacrifice Lethal participated in the World X Cup Gauntlet tournament on May 14 but ended up being the second to last man eliminated from the match by Team Mexico's Puma. On the following episode of Impact, the tournament came to an end. Team USA's Chris Sabin defeated Team Canada's Petey Williams to win the World X Cup for Team USA.

Lethal scored a victory over Alex Shelley in the episode of Impact! on June 1, 2006, but it was after his colleague Kevin Nash declared a war on the X Division following Team USA's World X Cup victory that night. Lethal beat Team Canada in an eight-man "All or Nothing" tag team match, where he teamed with Rhino and Brother Devon against Team Canada on July 13, 2006 (Petey Williams, Bobby Roode, Eric Young, and A1). Lethal was competing for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship next week, but was disqualified due to Scott Steiner's interference. Lethal was ranked the top contender for the title two weeks later during a five-way X Division match to determine the number one contender for the title. Although Petey Williams won the tournament, Lethal was later added to the match, making it a three-way match for the X Division championship at Hard Justice involving Lethal, Williams, and defending champion Senshi. Senshi had Lethal pinned after Williams struck him with his Canadian Destroyer.

Lethal and Sonjay Dutt pushed fellow X Division superstar Chris Sabin ready for his match at No Surrender by watching clips of Jackass Number Two, which had been heavily promoted by TNA at the time. Shelley's partner Johnny Devine was shoved in a shopping cart and rammed into the steel post, enabling Sabin to pin Shelley for a night one night on Impact. Lethal was able to defeat Petey Williams after Sabin and Dutt distracted the referee, allowing Lethal to roll a bowling ball into Petey's groin. Following Williams' suspected laxatives supply to him, Lethal beat Williams again on September 24, 2006 at the No Surrender pay-per-view, rendering him unable to do the majority of his moves and giving Lethal the victory when Williams could no longer "hold it" after this storyline. He and Dutt were also present in Sabin's match later in the evening with similar antics involving a blow-up doll, but it was not to late as Sabin would lose the game despite the interference. These, as well as other events for Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, were intended as advertisements for Jackass Number Two.

Kevin Nash recruited Lethal, Senshi, Austin Starr, Sonjay Dutt, and Alex Shelley in December 2006 to compete in a tournament referred to as the Paparazzi Championship Series. The tournament featured a push-up competition, musical chairs, Limbo competition, Texas Hold'em, and a few others, although Lethal did not win the competition. Lethal and Dutt appeared in Paparazzi segments with Nash and PCS champion Alex Shelley, with Nash promising to give Lethal and Dutt Extreme Makeovers to help with their careers after the tournament, which ended in January 2007.

The February 15 episode of Impact!

"Paparazzi Idol," a parody of American Idol, was included in a segment. Judge Kevin Nash ordered Lethal to do an impression, to which Lethal responded with a spot-on picture of wrestling legend Randy Savage.

The April 5, 2007 episode of Impact!

Lethal and Dutt were given their latest lethal gimmicks; Lethal's latest gimmick was impersonating Savage. Nash introduced Lethal, who was accompanied by a reimagined version of Savage's entrance theme "Pomp and Circumstance" and dressed in full "Macho Man" clothing, as "Black Machismo" Jay Lethal. "Oh yeah!" Savage's trademark catchphrase was imitated. Using several of Savage's signature in-ring tactics and demeanors, most notable his diving elbow drop finisher, was able to defeat X Division Champion Chris Sabin.Lethal nearly won the X Division title from Sabin in a five-person Xscape match on April 15, 2007 (five others start the match; the first three eliminations are done by pinfall or submission; the last two must then attempt to flee the cage, with the first one being declared the champion). Lethal and Sabin were both climbing over the same side of the cage, battling as they went, and Sabin kicked Lethal's leg so that his leg went through the cage's bars, trapping him there while Sabin stepped down and won the match.

On the April 26 episode of Impact!

Sonjay Dutt, Lethal's lethal and tag teammate who had rejected Nash's proposal for his new gimmick, took a shot at Sacrifice's X Division Championship hosted by Chris Sabin. The pinfall of Dutt at Lethal, however, was dissatisfied. Both Dutt and Lethal started screaming until Kevin Nash came out and separated the two teams until Dutt kicked Nash and yelled out of the ring. Randy Savage himself called Jay Lethal and said that he loved the "Black Machismo" character while speaking on the phone for several minutes on May 8. However, Lethal, who had later doubted whether he had actually spoken with Savage, was misled as the Macho Man's trademark voice is quickly imitated. Lethal defeated Chris Sabin in a singles match for the X Division Championship, his first appearance in TNA. However, he lost the title to Samoa Joe after Chris Sabin was pinned in a Match of Champions three-way qualifying match just days later, on Impact!

After Christopher Daniels recovered the X, they defeated Victory Road Lethal in an Ultimate X gauntlet match. In a three-way tag match, Hard Justice Lethal and Sonjay Dutt, who had made peace with Lethal after coming up with the gimmick of a genius, defeated Triple X's Christopher Daniels and Senshi and The Motor City Machineguns (Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin) defeated Daniels and Senshi, Lethal pinned Daniels. On the August 16 episode of Impact, Jim Cornette won a match! Daniels faces Lethal, with the winner emerging as the top contender to the X Division crown, which Lethal will hope to win. Lethal will face Triple Crown champion Kurt Angle for the X Division title at No Surrender, where Lethal will roar in the X Division Championships for the second time.

Sonjay Dutt, his best friend, who appeared to be annoyance toward Lethal and his demeanors, defended his X Division Championship at Genesis Lethal. However, after the match, Dutt made peace with Lethal, he welcomed SoCal Val, TNA's Ring Girl, to the ring to celebrate the victory. Team 3D (Brother Ray and Brother Devon), who were at the time feuding with the fan favorite-turned Motor City Machineguns, defeated both Lethal and Dutt and left the game with Lethal's Championship belt, was cut short. The 3D later declared war on the entire X Division, claiming that its wrestlers were just "little boys" and that they needed to be toughened up. Johnny Devine joined Team 3D, often carrying Lethal's stolen belt around before winning the game in a Street Fight on January 24, 2008, the first episode of Impact! The feud came to an end on February 10 at Against All Odds, where Lethal, Shelley, and Sabin defeated Team 3D and Devine in a six-man street brawl, with Lethal winning the X Division Championship. Lethal's X Division crown shot was lost after Petey Williams came from behind after a match and cashed in his "Feast or Fired" briefcase for his X Division title shot on April 17, 2008.

Lethal proposed to his on-screen girlfriend SoCal Val on the next episode of Impact!, which she accepted. Sonjay Dutt, a month of teasing, recovered by disrupting the wedding reception and announcing his love for Val and hurling her to Lethal and his wedding guests.

On the next two Impact!

When Dutt claimed that Val adored him, Lethal hit Dutt out of rage.

On the next Impact!

So Cal Val said she wanted to postpone the wedding. Dutt and Lethal met at Victory Road in a one-on-one contest that Dutt won after Val pleaded with Lethal to avoid hurting Dutt, which allowed Dutt to profit and roll up Lethal. Lethal suggested Valent again but discovered that her ring had been missing because Dutt had stolen it. Lethal and Dutt will clash again in a Black Tie Brawl and Chain match at Hard Justice, which Lethal won despite Val distracting him by leaving early in the game because he would not avoid hurting Dutt. Dutt confronted Val and tried to seduce her until Lethal charged him, and during the combat, she mistakenly elbowed Val in the chest. Val revealed this week that she would bring the wedding ring up for auction in a "Ladder of Love" match at No Surrender on September 14 at No Surrender. Val Dutt put Lethal on Lethal by giving him a low blow, allowing Dutt to scale the ladder and get the wedding ring.

Lethal, a member of Glory IV, defeated Lethal in the Steel Asylum match to progress to the number one X Division champion. Impact's live broadcasting of October 23. Sheik Abdul Bashir defeated Lethal to keep the championship. Lethal and A.J. were on the same week as a pair of A.J. Samoa Joe, Consequences Creed, Petey Williams, O.D.B. The Motor City Machineguns formed the TNA Frontline to oppose The Main Event Mafia.

Lethal, who appeared in his briefcase, formed a team with Consequences Creed and defeated Beer Money, Inc., the current TNA World Tag Team Champions, on January 8, 2009. However, at the Genesis pay-per-view on January 11, the company then lost the titles back to Beer Money, Inc.

Lethal and Creed defeated Abyss and Matt Morgan on January 15 to earn another shot at the Tag Team Championship. After becoming the frontline's dissatisfaction with the Guns, Lethal and Creed formed Lethal Consequences (a mixture of their ring names) and began a feud with The Motor City Machineguns. On February 5, they had been arranged for a match with the Guns, but Beer Money intervened in Creed's entry, injuring his left shoulder. Eric Young, a frontline member, was swapped for Creed after winning the match with a Death Valley driver to both Shelley and Sabin. Due to Creed's shoulder injury, Beer Money was able to keep the title at Against All Odds. Lethal Consequences' feud with the Motor City Machineguns continued after their title match, with both teams winning a match apiece over the next two weeks. Lethal competed in the Ultimate X Championship for the X Division Championship, alongside Consequences Creed, Chris Sabin, Alex Shelley, and Suicide, who finished the game and the Championship.

Lethal had signed a new multi-year contract with the organization on April 24, 2009.

Impact on November 5, 2009. Jay Lethal has announced an open invitational challenge. Due to the news that Hulk Hogan will be joining TNA, Lethal challenged wrestling legends are compelled to join him. Jim Neidhart answered the challenge and defeated Lethal the following week. On the December 17 episode of Impact!, Tatanka replied and defeated Lethal in a singles match. Lethal's partnership with Consequences Creed came to an end on March 29, 2010, when Creed was released from service.

Lethal appeared on Impact's March 29 episode after spending the majority of early 2010 off TV. By approaching Hulk Hogan, reminiscing about their time as "The Mega Powers" (Hogan's old team with Randy Savage). Hogan, who was lethal's antics, took responsibility of the show after he missed one week due to a business trip. Bischoff pitted Lethal against Beer Money, Inc. in a two-on-one handicap match; Lethal, on the other hand, stunned Robert Roode with a roll-up; raising the ire of Hogan's business partner Eric Bischoff with his comedic booking schemes; however, Lethal was able to win the match. On the May 3 episode of Impact!, Hogan told Lethal Ric Flair's Hall of Fame that Abyss received from him the week before. When Lethal, now imitating Flair, was confronted by Flair, he said he meant no disrespect and admiration toward Flair. However, this wasn't enough for Flair, who was stabbed alongside A.J. Before being saved by Abyss, Team 3D, and TNA World Heavyweight Champion Rob Van Dam, Desmond Wolfe, Inc., he was saved by Styles, Desmond Wolfe, Inc. Lethal died at Sacrifice during the TNA World Heavyweight Championship match between champion Rob Van Dam and challenger A.J. Styles, as well as a lock Ric Flair in a Figure-four leglock in order to discourage him from participating in the match. Lethal played in his first match after dropping the Black Machismo gimmick and partnering with Rob Van Dam to defeat Beer Money, Inc. in a tag team match on May 20. Lethal brawled with Flair after the match. Lethal defeated Flair's protégé A.J. at Slammiversary VIII. In a singles match, the styles are similar. Hogan granted him a match with Flair at Victory Road after defeating Desmond Wolfe, another one of Flair's allies on the June 17 episode of Impact! Lethal beat Flair with his own move, the figure-four leglock, on July 11 at Victory Road. On the 5th episode of Impact!, Lethal met Flair in a rematch this time under Street Fight rules, this time with A.J. Styles, Kazarian, Robert Roode, and James Storm of Flair's Fortune stable have been barred from entering the Ringside. After being dominated by X Division Champion Douglas Williams, who would officially join Fortune the following week, Flair managed to win the match. Lethal defeated Williams for the fourth time on September 6, the X Division Championship was on tapings of the September 16 episode of Impact!. Lethal lost the X Division Championship to Amazing Red on September 23, during a live event in New York City. Lethal recovered the crown two days later at a live event in Rahway, New Jersey. Lethal defended the X Division Championship against Douglas Williams at Bound for Glory.

Lethal was branded a disgrace to New Jersey by Robbie E, who said he was a disgrace to New Jersey and promised to bring some class to the X Division Championship himself after his championship match at Bound for Glory. Robbie E defeated Lethal in a non-title Street Fight on October 28 on Impact!, after his boss Cookie intervened to earn the right to challenge for the X Division Championship. Lethal lost the X Division Championship to Robbie E. after another attempt at Cookie. On the following episode of Impact, Robbie and Cookie suffered another setback! Lethal came to the conclusion that he had to find someone who could negate Cookie the next time he went for the X Division Championship, after he teamed with Taylor Wilde. Lethal met Robbie E in a match for the X Division Championship during which Cookie was banned above the ring in a shark cage at Final Resolution. When Lethal was caught using Cookie's hairspray on him, Robbie retained the title by disqualification. Lethal defeated Robbie E, after Christy Hemme came out to defeat Cookie for the sixth time, and Lethal has now tied for most reigns as the X Division Champion for the sixth time. Lethal lost the X Division Championship to Fortune member Kazarian on January 9, 2011 at Genesis. Lethal had left TNA on April 21, 2011. It was his last match for the promotion, an eight-man Xscape match, which took place on April 17 at Lockdown. In a three-way match against Sangriento and Chris Sabin, his last televised match was broadcast on Xplosion's April 19 episode. Lethal's retirement from TNA was later used to ignite a storyline feud between the X Division and Eric Bischoff, as well as fueling the ongoing conflict between the now-face Fortune and Bischoff's Immortal empire, with both Robert Roode and Brian Kendrick naming him on the May 5 episode of Impact!

ROH revealed on May 2, 2011, that Lethal would be returning to the action on June 26 at the World's Best in the World 2011 internet pay-per-view rate. In his ROH return match Lethal, a face defeated Mike Bennett. ROH reported on August 8 that Lethal had signed a deal with ROH. Lethal defeated El Generico to win the ROH World Television Championship on August 13, the first Ring of Honor Wrestling tapings under the Sinclair Broadcast Group banner. Lethal teamed up with fellow TNA alum Homicide in a tag team fight on September 17 in which Embassy's Rhino and Tommaso Ciampa defeated them. Lethal defeated nineteen other men in the Honor Rumble on December 3 to earn a shot at the ROH World Championship in 2012. In a three-way match against El Generico and Mike Bennett, Lethal successfully defended the ROH World Television Championship on December 23 in Final Battle 2011. Lethal successfully defended the title against Bennett in a No Time Limit match against Bennett on January 7, 2012. Lethal unsuccessfully challenged Davey Richards for the ROH World Championship on January 20, 2012. Lethal's ROH World Television Championship match with Tommaso Ciampa ended in a fifteen-minute time limit draw on March 4 at the 10th Anniversary Show. Lethal lost the World Television Championship to Roderick Strong after being outside interference from Ciampa on March 31 at Showdown in the Sun. Border Wars took place in a singles match on May 12, putting an end to his undefeated streak at the following pay-per-view. Lethal failed in his bid to regain the World Television Championship from Strong in a three-way elimination match, also involving Ciampa on June 24. The feud between Lethal and Ciampa culminated on August 11 at Boiling Point, where Lethal defeated Ciampa in a two-out-of-three-falls match. Lethal won the 2012 Survival of the Fittest tournament on September 22, giving him another shot at the ROH World Championship. Lethal fired his title shot in Rahway, New Jersey, on October 6, but the match with Kevin Steen ended in a no contest.

ROH had a shot at Lethal's parents at ringside, where Steen spat at their children at ringside, resulting in Lethal snapping and attacking many ROH officials, including Jim Cornette. Lethal had figured out his "killer instinct" on the following internet pay-per-view, Glory By Honor XI: The Unbreakable Hope on October 13, a submission win over Davey Richards. After defeating Rhino on December 16 at Final Battle 2012: Doomsday, Lethal petitioned for a shot at the ROH World Championship, which was turned down by matchmaker Nigel McGuinness, resulting in Lethal spitting in his face and the two brawling together. Lethal, one of Ring of Honor Wrestling's founders, coerced Steen into signing a championship match with him, prompting McGuinness to call it off and make the match official. On March 2nd at the 11th Anniversary Show, Lethal fired his title shot but was disqualified by Steen. Lethal, who was defeated by Michael Elgin in a number one contender's match on April 5 at Supercard of Honor VII, failed to earn another shot at the ROH World Championship. After the ROH World Championship was postponed, Lethal entered a tournament to determine the next champion, defeating Sonjay Dutt in his first round match on July 27. Adam Cole barred Lethal from the tournament in the second round on August 3.

For the first time in nearly a decade, Lethal turned heel, defeating Tommaso Ciampa to regain the World Television Championship for the first two-time holder of the title. Lethal revealed that there was a house in ROH, "The House of Truth," marking the return of the stable with Lethal as the figurehead. Lethal's reigning World Television Champion in ROH history will be honored over the next year, with strong championship defenses against Matt Taven, Caprice Coleman, A. C. H., Matt Sydal on the last PPV of the year and again against Alberto el Patrón. Lethal became the most popular World Television Champion of all time in March 2015, despite defeating Matt Taven's previous record of two weeks as champion. Lethal completed his reign in a full year on April 4, effectively making him the holder of all records related to the World Television Championships.

Lethal began posing as "the" ROH champion in April 2015, claiming that his World Television Championship was now the only top title in ROH (over the World Championship). Lethal introduced a new World Television Championship belt in May 2015, which skipped the word "television" and instead read "ROH Champion." As a result, matchmaker Nigel McGuinness revealed that Lethal would face Jay Briscoe in a winner-takes-all match at Best in the World 2015, with both ROH's World Championship and World Television Championships on the line. Lethal defeated Briscoe after he first struck Briscoe with a Jay Driller and then a Lethal Injection to keep his title and win the World Championship, making him the first African-American to win the championship and making him the first African-American to win the championship. Since he is also a former ROH Pure Champion, he became Ring of Honor's third Triple Crown Champion. At the Ring of Honor's Field of Honor function on August 22, Lethal teamed with Shinsuke Nakamura to beat reDRagon. Lethal lost the Television Championship to Roderick Strong on October 23 at Glory By Honor XIV, snaping his reign to an end at 567 days and 36 successful championship defenses.

Lethal retained the ROH World Championship in three individual defenses over Noam Dar, Doug Williams, and Joey Hayes as part of Preston City Wrestling's "supershow" series in 2015. Lethal made his ROH debut in Japan in January 4, 2016, where he successfully defended the ROH World Championship against Michael Elgin in a working relationship with New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). Lethal returned to the United Kingdom to defend the ROH World Championship, this time defeating Mark Haskins at a sold-out show in York Hall, London, for Revolution Pro Wrestling. On February 20, Lethal main evented the second night of the ROH and NJPW's Honor Rising: Japan 2016 festival in Tokyo, Japan, winning the ROH World Championship against Tomoaki Honma. Lethal and Truth Martini then joined Los Ingobernables de Japón in Tetsuya Naito. Lethal and Naito knew each other from being in TNA together. Lethal defended his title against Hirooki Goto on March 26 of ROH tapings. Donovan Dijak came out with Prince Nana and assaulted Truth Martini later that night, triggering a rare double-turn. Lethal would then begin a feud with Colt Cabana, who had penned his sights on the ROH World Championship. After The Bullet Club interfered and assaulted everyone in the ringside area, including Lethal, at Global Wars, Lethal and Cabana fought to a no-contest. Lethal was zip tied to the ring ropes and repeatedly praised by new Bullet Club member Adam Cole during the assault.

Lethal defended his title after defeating Jay Briscoe at Best in the World 16 on July 24, defeating Jay Briscoe. After that, the two shook hands. Cole and Bullet Club shaved Lethal Lethal the next day, balding him. Lethal returned to NJPW in the following month, successfully defending the ROH World Championship against Satoshi Kojima on August 14. Lethal lost the ROH World Championship to Adam Cole on August 19 at Death Before Dishonor XIV, putting his reign to a halt in 427 days. Adam Cole was the champion of a four-corn survival match at Field of Honor Lethal.

Los Ingobernables de Japón beat Lethal in a six-man tag team match on August 20, 2016. Lethal defeated Tetsuya Naito in All Star Extravaganza VIII. Cody had a low blow and Lethal was defeated in Final Battle Lethal, then proceeded to attack Lethal. In the first round of the Decade of Excellence, Lethal defeated Thunder Liger. In the second round, he was defeated by Jay Briscoe. In a Texas Bullrope match, he defeated Cody on April 1st. Lethal defeated Silas Young, Jay White & Hangman Page in a four-way match on ROH TV, becoming the top contender for the ROH World Championship. Lethal defeated Christopher Daniels in the ROH World Championship in a three-way match, as well as Cody.

Ring of Honor Wrestling's second ROH World Championship, on June 30, 2018, Lethal defeated Dalton Castle for his second ROH World Championship, as well as the first time the ROH World Championship changed hands at a non-pay-per-view event, a television taping, and a tape delay. On April 6, 2019, he would drop the title to Matt Taven in a triple threat ladder match (with Marty Scurll also involved) at G1 Supercard, bringing an end to his second tenure at 280 days. After beating The Briscoe Brothers in Final Battle Lethal on December 13, 2019, the ROH World Tag Team Championship champions defeated Jonathan Gresham and Jonathan Gresham won the ROH World Tag Team Championship for the first time. Lethal appeared on Ring of Honor Wrestling's November 28, 2020 episode (Jonathan Gresham, Rhett Titus & Tracy Williams), a newly formed group of the Foundation. Lethal will continue with ROH until October 2021, when the company announced that they would go into hiatus until 2022. Lethal joined All Elite Wrestling just shy of being banned from the Final Battle Card. However, after ROH World Champion Bandido was hospitalized with COVID-19, it was announced that Lethal would be recalled before his Final Battle match against Jonathan Gresham. Gresham defeated Lethal at the game.

Lethal, who is now owned by Tony Khan, returned to Ring of Honor on April 1, 2022, where he defeated Supercard of Honor XV. Lethal came back to defeat Lee Moriarty after using a low blow to stun Lethal, and then hit crutch-donning Matt Sydal. After Joe won the ROH Television Championship, he will reunite with Sonjay Dutt, who shamed him as he was attacking Sydal, and the two will engage in a feud with Samoa Joe.

On May 28, Lethal made his first solo appearance since being released from TNA, working for Lucha Libre USA. Lethal, who had died just a week before, appeared in his Black Machismo gimmick in a tag-team match where he and Magno were defeated by The Right (Jon Rekon and Petey Williams). He defeated Medianoche in a singles match in Lethal's second appearance for Lucha Libre USA on June 18. On June 19, it was announced that Lethal would compete in the pilot tapings of All Wheels Wrestling, a wrestling name J.R. Lethal. His ring name was changed to RPM at the pilot tapings. He first defeated Dubai, the former Sheik Abdul Bashir, in a five-minute Iron Man match, but then was dismantled by Schwagg Dutt, the former Sonjay Dutt, in an Ultimate X match that also included Dubai and Aaron Aguilera.

Lethal defeated Damien Darling at a Family Wrestling Entertainment (FWE) contest on February 25, 2012, defeating him in the FWE Tri-Borough Championship. On March 24, he lost the championship to Darling, but FWE Rumble and then defeated Eric Young for the FWE Heavyweight Championship later that day. In a four-way elimination match that also included Brian Kendrick and Carlito, Lethal lost the title to Tommy Dreamer on July 28. Lethal made his Pro Wrestling Guerrilla (PWG) debut on March 22, 2013, losing to Eddie Edwards in a singles match. Lethal defeated Willie Mack at another PWG function the next day. Lethal won the tournament and became the new SWE Speed King Champion in England on May 25, beating Dean Allmark, El Ligero, Martin Kirby, Marty Scurll, and MK McKinnan in a six-way final on May 25, becoming the current SWE Speed King champion.

Lethal defended the ROH World Championship against Denis Rivera for CWA in Puerto Rico, where the CWA Heavyweight Championship was also on the line on July 30, 2016. Lethal was victorious, winning the CWA Championship and keeping his ROH World Championship while still winning the CWA championship.

On the second episode of WCPW Loaded, Lethal made his What Culture Pro Wrestling (WCPW) debut, defeating El Ligero in a match against Lethal's ROH Championship. The two guys (both being babyfaces) displayed a great deal of love to each other during the match; however, the match came to a conclusion as Martin Kirby interfered and assaulted both men. Lethal said after the match that he would need to obtain authorization from the Ring of Honor officials who were not present, but that Ligero would have a shot at the title. On the episode of WCPW: Built to Destroy, where Lethal won, Lethal was against Noam Darfur for his ROH World Championship on July 25, 2016. On October 6, 2016, Lethal was scheduled to face El Ligero at WCPW Refuse To Lose. The match was supposed to be for the ROH World Championship, but it would now be for the WCPW Internet Championship, due to Lethal's inability to be ROH World Champion. Lethal will not be eligible for the promotion for the first time due to contractual issues, which was revealed in August. Alberto El Patron would be Lethal's replacement on WCPW Loaded episode 10.

On January 29, 2017, Lethal returned to ROH World Championships, where he lost in a Triple Threat Match. El Ligero was also present in the tournament, and Adam Cole was the champion. Lethal would then defeat former ROH World Champion Davey Richards on June 16 at the WCPW Build to Destroy 2017 event. Lethal was struck by Drake after the match, but he was able to fend off the assault.

On August 17, 2019, Lethal made his debut for High Impact Wrestling Canada at Battle Arts VI in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Bobby Sharp was unsuccessfully defeated for the HIW Wildside Provincial Championship.

On November 13, 2021, Lethal made his All Elite Wrestling (AEW) debut at the Full Gear pay-per-view, facing Sammy Guevara for the AEW TNT Championship on November 17, which Guevara accepted. Lethal would finish the game but was raised by the Inner Circle post-match as a sign of respect. Lethal would then enter a feud with Team Taz in January 2022, which eventually culminated in him facing Ricky Starks for the FTW Championship on February 4, 2022; he eventually lost the match against Starks. Lethal, his sonjay Dutt, was now his boss, appeared on film on April 6, 2022, and the two promised a gift to Samoa Joe. Satnam Singh assaulted Joe and linked himself with Lethal and Dutt for the next week. On the May 6, 2022 episode of Rampage, Jay Lethal will defeat Konoshita and have Dutt and Singh assist in attacking him, but not for Best Friends (Orange Cassidy and Chuck Taylor) and Samoa Joe to save.

Ric Flair’s Last Match

Ric Flair's Last Match was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event and supershow that took place in Nashville, Tennessee, on July 31, 2022, and aired on FITE and In Demand. The festival was produced and promoted by Conrad Thompson and David Crockett as part of Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP), and it was the first card to be sold under the JCP banner since 1988. In the final match of his 50-year career, Ric Flair dominated the competition, working with son-in-law Andrade El Idolo to defeat Jay Lethal and Jeff Jarrett.

Source