Tyler Fullington

Tyler Fullington

Fullington at the Atomic Championship Wrestling show in Stevens, Pennsylvania on November 7, 2015
Birth name Tyler Fullington
Born January 2, 1989 (age 27)
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, US
Residence Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, US
Family The Sandman (father)
Lori Fullington (mother)
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s) Tyler Fullington[1]
Debut June 22, 1996[2]

Tyler Fullington is an American professional wrestler and former manager. He is the son of wrestler Jim "The Sandman" Fullington and valet Lori "Peaches" Fullington.

He is best known for his childhood appearances with the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-based professional wrestling promotion Extreme Championship Wrestling in 1996 and 1997 as part of the feud between The Sandman and Raven, described by WWE as "one of the most emotional rivalries in sports-entertainment's history".[3]

Professional wrestling career

Extreme Championship Wrestling (1996-1997)

Tyler Fullington and his mother were at the center of the heated feud between his father, The Sandman (left), and Raven (right) from 1996 to 1997
“ Daddy, you're a drunk! I worship Raven now! ”
— Tyler Fullington, June 1996[4]

Fullington entered the world in professional wrestling in June 1996 at the age of six. He was brought into Extreme Championship Wrestling by booker Paul Heyman, who wanted to experiment with more soap operaesque storylines.[5]

Tyler's father, The Sandman, had begun feuding with Raven over the ECW World Heavyweight Championship earlier that year. In the course of the feud, Raven attempted to play mind games with The Sandman by brainwashing his ex-wife, Lori, to become part of his entourage Raven's Nest.[6] At Hardcore Heaven on June 22, 1996, Raven revealed that Tyler had also joined his side. Dressed in Raven's signature outfit of leather jacket, t-shirt and jean shorts, Tyler accused The Sandman of being "a drunk" and stated that he "worshipped" Raven, leaving The Sandman tearful.[2][4]

Tyler subsequently began accompanying Raven to ringside for his matches, with Raven using him to wage psychological warfare against The Sandman. A series of vignettes aired on ECW Hardcore TV, including one in which Tyler blamed The Sandman for his parents' divorce and one in which Raven and his lackeys held a birthday party for Tyler.[7][8][9]

At Heat Wave on July 13, 1996, The Sandman teamed with Terry Gordy and Tommy Dreamer to face Raven and his allies Brian Lee and Stevie Richards in a cage match. After Dreamer handcuffed Raven to the cage, Tyler entered the ring and stood between Raven and The Sandman, preventing The Sandman from hitting Raven and allowing Raven's lackey, Super Nova, to free him. Despite Tyler's involvement, The Sandman was ultimately able to pin Raven and win the match. At "The Doctor is In" on August 3, 1996, Tyler again placed himself in front of Raven during his ECW World Heavyweight Championship title match with The Sandman, helping Raven pin The Sandman and retain the title. At "Natural Born Killaz" on August 24, 1996, The Sandman and Pitbull #2 defeated Raven and Shane Douglas in a dog collar match. Following the match, Tyler demanded that The Sandman give him his Singapore cane. After The Sandman acquiesced, Tyler and Raven each caned The Sandman.[10]

At "High Incident" on October 26, 1996, Tyler was involved in one of ECW's most controversial angles, with Raven's Nest "crucifying" The Sandman by tying him to a cross and placing a crown made of barbed wire on his head. The angle, which was widely criticised as being in poor taste, led to Olympic gold medalist Kurt Angle severing his links with ECW and delayed the promotion's debut on pay-per-view.[8][11][12][13]

On October 5, 1996 at Ultimate Jeopardy, The Sandman and Dreamer faced Lee and Richards in a tag team bout with Raven's ECW World Heavyweight Championship on the line (Raven was unable to compete). The Sandman pinned Richards to win the title. At November to Remember on November 16, 1995, Raven faced The Sandman in a rematch but was unable to defeat him, despite assistance from Lori and Tyler. At Holiday Hell on December 7, 1996, Raven regained the title from The Sandman in a barbed wire match.[13][14][15]

In late December 1996, Raven's longtime lackey Stevie Richards turned on him.[15] On February 1, 1997 at "Crossing the Line Again", Tyler and Lori left Raven and joined Richards' Blue World Order. At CyberSlam on February 22, 1997, Richards, Tyler and Lori came to the ring to berate Raven and Lee, who had given a concussion to Terry Funk. After Lee chokeslammed Richards and Raven DDT'ed Lori, Tyler ran backstage and reemerged with The Sandman, who entered the ring and fought off Raven and Lee. Tyler then hugged The Sandman, bringing the eight-month-long storyline to a conclusion.[16]

Independent circuit (2008-present)

Fullington returned to professional wrestling in 2008, and made his debut on August 23, 2008 for Pro Wrestling Unplugged, an independent promotion based in his hometown. Wrestling as "Twisted Sand" Tyler Fullington, his first match was a street fight with The King of Queens actor Kevin James.[1]

On June 27, 2009, Fullington was one of numerous ECW alumni to appear at "Legends of the Arena", a show held at the ECW Arena to raise money for the American Cancer Society. Tyler and his younger brother Oliver interfered in the main event, helping The Sandman and Sabu defeat Raven and Justin Credible.[17][18]

Personal life

Fullington is the son of wrestler Jim "The Sandman" Fullington and valet Lori "Peaches" Fullington. He has two siblings: an older sister, Kelly, and a younger brother, Oliver.

In wrestling

References

  1. 1 2 3 Beeby, Scott (July 13, 2009). "Hardcore Wrestling lives on: the son of The Sandman". Bleacher Report. Turner Broadcasting System. Retrieved January 31, 2015.
  2. 1 2 Scott E. Williams (13 December 2013). Hardcore History: The Extremely Unauthorized Story of ECW. Skyhorse Publishing Company, Incorporated. pp. 76–77. ISBN 978-1-61321-582-1.
  3. ↑ "The Sandman". WWE.com. WWE. Retrieved February 1, 2015.
  4. 1 2 "Raven results match archive: June 1996". TheRavenEffect.com. Retrieved February 1, 2015.
  5. ↑ Thom Loverro (22 May 2007). The Rise & Fall of ECW: Extreme Championship Wrestling. Simon and Schuster. pp. 151–. ISBN 978-1-4165-6156-9.
  6. ↑ John Chattman; Rich Tarantino (11 June 2014). Time Heels: Cheating, Stealing, Spandex and the Most Villainous Moments in the History of Pro Wrestling. Pitch Publishing. pp. 43–. ISBN 978-1-909626-82-9.
  7. 1 2 John Lister (November 2005). Slamthology: Collected Wrestling Writings 1991-2004. Lulu.com. pp. 17–. ISBN 978-1-4116-5329-0.
  8. 1 2 Mike Rickard (1 December 2008). Wrestling's Greatest Moments. ECW Press. pp. 132–. ISBN 978-1-55490-331-3.
  9. ↑ "Raven results match archive: September 1996". TheRavenEffect.com. Retrieved February 1, 2015.
  10. 1 2 "Raven results match archive: August 1996". TheRavenEffect.com. Retrieved February 1, 2015.
  11. ↑ Thom Loverro (22 May 2007). The Rise & Fall of ECW: Extreme Championship Wrestling. Simon and Schuster. pp. 172–. ISBN 978-1-4165-6156-9.
  12. ↑ Scott E. Williams (13 December 2013). Hardcore History: The Extremely Unauthorized Story of ECW. Skyhorse Publishing Company, Incorporated. pp. 135–. ISBN 978-1-61321-582-1.
  13. 1 2 "Raven results match archive: October 1996". TheRavenEffect.com. Retrieved February 1, 2015.
  14. ↑ "Raven results match archive: November 1996". TheRavenEffect.com. Retrieved February 1, 2015.
  15. 1 2 "Raven results match archive: December 1996". TheRavenEffect.com. Retrieved February 1, 2015.
  16. ↑ "Raven results match archive: February 1997". TheRavenEffect.com. Retrieved February 1, 2015.
  17. ↑ Johnson, Mike (June 28, 2009). "Legends of the Arena 'ECW' reunion live report". PWInsider.com. Retrieved January 31, 2015.
  18. ↑ Kapur, Bob (June 28, 2009). "Extreme reunion show a family affair". Canoe.ca. Québecor Média. Retrieved January 31, 2015.
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