Anthony Bowens (born December 18, 1990) is an American
professional wrestler
Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...
, currently signed to
All Elite Wrestling
All Elite Wrestling (AEW) is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Jacksonville, Florida. It is considered the second largest wrestling promotion in the United States behind WWE.
AEW is owned by Shahid Khan and his son Tony, w ...
(AEW) where he teams with
Max Caster
Max Caster (born July 31, 1989) is an American professional wrestler and rapper, currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he teams with Anthony Bowens as The Acclaimed. They are former one-time AEW World Tag Team Champions.
He began ...
as
The Acclaimed. They are former one-time
AEW World Tag Team Champions
The AEW World Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship created and promoted by the American promotion All Elite Wrestling (AEW). It is a standard tag team championship, being contested by teams of two wrestlers. ...
.
Early life
Bowens was born in
Nutley, New Jersey
Nutley is a township in Essex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 30,143.
What is now Nutley was originally incorporated as Franklin Township by an act of the New Jersey Legisla ...
.
He attended
Nutley High School
Nutley High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school in the Township of Nutley, in Essex County, New Jersey, United States, serving students in ninth through twelfth grades as the lone secondary school of the Nutley Public Schoo ...
and
Montclair State University
Montclair State University (MSU) is a Public university, public research university in Montclair, New Jersey, with parts of the campus extending into Little Falls, New Jersey, Little Falls. As of fall 2018, Montclair State was, by enrollment, ...
.
He played baseball "for eleven years",
including at Montclair State and
Seton Hall University
Seton Hall University (SHU) is a private Catholic research university in South Orange, New Jersey. Founded in 1856 by then-Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley and named after his aunt, Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, Seton Hall is the oldest diocesan un ...
, playing two seasons each for the Pirates and Red Hawks.
He was discovered by professional wrestler
Santino Marella
Anthony Carelli (born March 14, 1974) is a Canadian judoka and semi-retired professional wrestler. He is known for his 11-year tenure with WWE where he wrestled under the ring name Santino Marella. He is the founder of and instructor at Battle Art ...
, who asked him whether he had ever thought about professional wrestling.
He went on to train under
Pat Buck
Patrick Buckridge (born December 24, 1984), better known by the ring name Pat Buck, is an American professional wrestler and promoter, currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) as the Vice President of Talent Development and as a coach. He wa ...
.
Professional wrestling career
Bowens started training in 2012 and made his professional wrestling debut in 2013.
In November 2016, he suffered a concussion during a match on ''
WWE NXT
''WWE NXT'', also known as ''NXT'', is an American professional wrestling television program. It is produced by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE, featuring performers from the promotion's NXT brand division. The show currently ...
''.
Once back from injury, Bowens would work prolifically for tristate and New England independent wrestling promotions like
Combat Zone Wrestling
Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW) is an American independent wrestling promotion. In 1998, John Zandig and five of his students, Ric Blade, T.C.K, Lobo, Nick Gage and Justice Pain, along with trainer Jon Dahmer, began to run professional wrestling sh ...
and Beyond Wrestling while also making appearances for
Global Force Wrestling
Global Force Wrestling was an American professional wrestling promotion founded in 2014 by Jeff Jarrett, the co-founder and former President of Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (now known as Impact Wrestling), and his wife Karen Jarrett. It is ow ...
and
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
Impact Wrestling (stylized as ''IMPACT! Wrestling''), is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment.
Founded by Jeff and Jerry Jarrett in 2002, the promot ...
. He captured the WrestlePro Heavyweight Championship twice between 2016 and 2017. On January 21, 2017, Bowens challenged
Drew Galloway
Andrew McLean Galloway IV (born 6 June 1985) is a Scottish professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Drew McIntyre.
McIntyre is a two-time WWE Champion, one-time WWE Int ...
unsuccessfully for the WCPW World Heavyweight Championship at Battle Club Pro's Fight Forever event, which marked the first time the title had been defended outside of the UK.
In November 2020,
All Elite Wrestling
All Elite Wrestling (AEW) is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Jacksonville, Florida. It is considered the second largest wrestling promotion in the United States behind WWE.
AEW is owned by Shahid Khan and his son Tony, w ...
President
Tony Khan
Antony Rafiq Khan (born October 10, 1982) is an American businessman, promoter, and sports executive. He is known for his involvement in American football, professional wrestling and soccer. He is best known as the founder and co-owner of All E ...
announced that Bowens, alongside
Max Caster
Max Caster (born July 31, 1989) is an American professional wrestler and rapper, currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he teams with Anthony Bowens as The Acclaimed. They are former one-time AEW World Tag Team Champions.
He began ...
, had been signed to a five-year contract with the promotion. The announcement also stated that Bowens and Caster would compete as a tag team named The Acclaimed.
In May 2022, Bowens underwent knee surgery, sidelining him for several months. During this time Bowens still attended AEW shows and performed his regular promos, although did not wrestle and was confined to a wheelchair; Caster would subsequently team increasingly with the Gunns, with whom they had forged an alliance. Bowens returned from injury at the ''
Blood and Guts'' edition of ''Dynamite''.
At
AEW Grand Slam 2022, The Acclaimed would win their first AEW tag team championship. This made Bowens the first openly gay wrestler to become an AEW champion.
Personal life
Bowens is openly gay. He is a fan of the
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yor ...
, and previously worked in the production department of the
MLB Network
The MLB Network is an American television sports channel dedicated to baseball. It is primarily owned by Major League Baseball, with Warner Bros. Discovery through its sports unit, Comcast's NBC Sports Group, Charter Communications, and Cox Com ...
studio.
Championships and accomplishments
*
All Elite Wrestling
All Elite Wrestling (AEW) is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Jacksonville, Florida. It is considered the second largest wrestling promotion in the United States behind WWE.
AEW is owned by Shahid Khan and his son Tony, w ...
**
AEW World Tag Team Championship
The AEW World Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship created and promoted by the American promotion All Elite Wrestling (AEW). It is a standard tag team championship, being contested by teams of two wrestlers. ...
(
1 time) - with
Max Caster
Max Caster (born July 31, 1989) is an American professional wrestler and rapper, currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he teams with Anthony Bowens as The Acclaimed. They are former one-time AEW World Tag Team Champions.
He began ...
*Battle Club Pro
**BCP Franchise Championship (1 time)
*
Independent Wrestling Federation
The Independent Wrestling Federation (IWF) is a professional wrestling promotion based in Nutley, New Jersey. The IWF features upcoming talent, in some cases, which have made it to the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). Along with producing liv ...
**
IWF Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
*''
Pro Wrestling Illustrated
''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American internationally sold professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publish ...
''
**Ranked No. 304 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the ''
PWI 500
''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American internationally sold professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publishi ...
'' in 2021
*WrestlePro
**WrestlePro Gold Championship (3 times, current)
**Dream 16 (2019)
References
External links
*
Montclair State bio*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bowens, Anthony
1990 births
Living people
AEW World Tag Team Champions
African-American male professional wrestlers
All Elite Wrestling personnel
American male professional wrestlers
American YouTubers
Gay sportsmen
LGBT people from New Jersey
LGBT professional wrestlers
American LGBT sportspeople
Montclair State Red Hawks baseball players
Montclair State University alumni
Nutley High School alumni
People from Nutley, New Jersey
Professional wrestlers from New Jersey
Seton Hall Pirates baseball players
Sportspeople from Essex County, New Jersey
21st-century African-American sportspeople
21st-century American LGBT people
LGBT baseball players
21st-century professional wrestlers