Kimberly Benson (born 6 May 1991) is a Scottish professional wrestler. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the

Raw Raw is an adjective usually describing: * Raw materials, basic materials from which products are manufactured or made * Raw food, uncooked food Raw or RAW may also refer to: Computing and electronics * .RAW, a proprietary mass spectrometry dat ...

brand under the

ring name A ring name is a type of stage name used by an athlete such as a professional wrestler, mixed martial artist, or boxer whose real name is considered unattractive, dull, difficult to pronounce or spell, amusing for the wrong reasons, or projecting ...

Doudrop. Benson began her career on the

independent circuit In professional wrestling, the independent circuit or indie circuit is the collective noun, collective name of independent professional wrestling promotions which are smaller than major televised promotions. It is roughly analogous to a minor lea ...

under the name Viper; after joining WWE, she originally performed on its NXT UK brand as Piper Niven. She is a former two-time

ICW Women's Champion The ICW Women's World Championship is a women's professional wrestling championship owned by Scotland's Insane Championship Wrestling promotion. Molly Spartan is the current champion in her first reign. She won the title by defeating Angel Hayze ...

, one-time Artist of Stardom Champion, one-time SWA World Champion, and two-time WWE 24/7 Champion.

Early life

Kimberly Benson was born on 6 May 1991, in Kilbirnie, Scotland.

Professional wrestling career

Independent circuit (2007–2019)

Before turning into a wrestler, she kept her love for professional wrestling as a secret due to being worried that her female friends thought she was "weird" as they believed that was only a sport for men. It wasn't until she was 15, and when her oldest nephew began to watch wrestling, that Benson's passion was rekindled and she was open about enjoying wrestling. She was introduced to this sport at a training school near her Ayrshire home and, according to her, she debuted at age 16 one year after beginning her training; making accounts with her age, this was in 2007. About her training, she said: "I got beat up, totally beat up. I remember lying in bed the next day, being so sore and in absolute agony, but I just loved it, I had to go back." She was part of the special program of ITV

World of Sport Wrestling ''World of Sport Wrestling'' (frequently shortened to ''WOS Wrestling'') was a British professional wrestling television series and occasional promotion. It was promoted as a re-launch of the popular wrestling segment of the '' World of Sport'' ...

celebrated on New Year's Eve 2016, and until April of that year, she was programmed to appear on a revival of the series. However, a month later before filming was set to begin, the project was postponed indefinitely. Although not long after, she received a phone call from WWE, one of the largest wrestling companies in the world, asking her to be part of the women's tournament, Mae Young Classic 2017. The event took place in 2017 and was an all-women tournament. Benson asked World of Sport Wrestling to release her from her contract to participate in the competition. She competed as Piper Niven since the name she was using was Viper and that was already the name of a WWE star inside the company, deciding to choose that name because she played bagpipes as a child, and Niven is her dad's first name. She defeated Santana Garrett in the first round and Serena Deeb in the round two, before being defeated by Toni Storm in the quarterfinals.

World Wonder Ring Stardom (2016–2019)

Also in 2017, she worked in Japan as Viper for the company World Wonder Ring Stardom. On 7 January of that year, at the event Stardom New Years Stars 2017 – Tag 2, she was part of the team "Oedo Tai" with

Kagetsu (born on June 24, 1992), better known by his ring name , is a Japanese retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his time in Stardom, JWP, Sendai Girls and various independent promotions. Professional wrestling career Independe ...

and

Kyoko Kimura is a retired Japanese professional wrestler and mixed martial artist. Throughout her 14-year career, she competed in Big Japan Pro Wrestling, Ibuki, Ice Ribbon, JWP Joshi Puroresu, NEO Japan Ladies Pro-Wrestling and World Wonder Ring Stardom, amo ...

as a replacement for Hana Kimura who was injured, where she tried to help the team to retain the Artist of Stardom Championship against "Queen's Quest" a team integrated by HZK, Io Shirai and Momo Watanabe, in which they were defeated and they lost the title. On 13 August, she joined Queen's Quest along with Shirai and HZK to face the team "Team Jungle" integrated by Hiroyo Matsumoto, Jungle Kyona and Kaori Yoneyama in a match for the Artist of Stardom Championship at the event Midsummer Champions 2017, in which they achieved to win the title and Viper crown herself champion. On 16 September, Viper participated at the event 5★Star Grand Prix 2017 of Stardom, where she draw with Mayu Iwatani both with 10 points. Along with Queen's Quest, managed to defend and retain the Artistic Championship three times before they left it vacant on 15 April 2018 after a draft executed by Stardom, ending their reign with 245. One month before that same year, on 28 March, she faced Toni Storm at the Stardom Dream Slam in Tokyo event in a match for her SWA World Championship, in which the ICW Women's Championship of Viper was also in the line, where she defeated Storm to capture the title, emerging victorious with both championships. Defended and retained the championship twice before losing it in a match against Utami Hayashishita at the Stardom 8th Anniversary event held on 14 January 2019, in which she also put her EVE International Championship at stake, where she was defeated and lost both titles, ending her reign with the SWA Championship in 292 days and with the EVE Championship in 92 days.

WWE

NXT UK (2019–2021)

In early 2019, a rumour started spreading in which it was said and expected that Niven signed with WWE, which came out to be true when she appeared and debuted on 27 March episode of '' NXT UK'' that year, where she confronted Rhea Ripley. Niven had her first televised match with WWE after being signed on a special program entitled

WWE Worlds Collide WWE Worlds Collide, also known as NXT Worlds Collide, is a professional wrestling event series produced by WWE, an American-based professional wrestling promotion. Established in 2019, the concept is interbrand competition between WWE's various ...

on 24 April, which consisted on various matches that involved wrestlers from all the brands; Raw, SmackDown, NXT, 205 Live and NXT UK, this last one was the brand that she belonged to and represented, defeating Zelina Vega of SmackDown. On 19 June episode of ''NXT UK'', Niven competed in a battle royal to determine who would have a future opportunity to face the

NXT UK Women's Champion The NXT UK Women's Championship was a women's professional wrestling championship that was created and promoted by the American promotion WWE. It was defended on the NXT UK brand division, a sister brand of WWE's developmental territory NXT base ...

Toni Storm. In the match, Niven was eliminated by Xia Brookside. On 12 January 2020 at the NXT UK TakeOver: Blackpool II event, Niven competed in a triple threat match against Toni Storm and Kay Lee Ray for the NXT UK Women's Championship, where Niven was defeated and pinned by Kay Lee. Niven returned to ''NXT UK'' television on 24 September of that year, where she challenged Kay Lee Ray in a match for the NXT UK Women's Championship, where she was defeated. On 19 November, Niven challenged Ray in a Falls Count Anywhere match for the NXT UK Women's Championship. Niven was again defeated by Kay Lee due to an interference made by Jinny. Niven lost to Jinny in a No. 1 contenders match for the NXT UK Women's Championship on episode 7 January 2021 of ''NXT UK''. On 11 March, Niven and Jack Starz defeated Jinny and

Joseph Conners Joseph Conners (born 28 May 1987) is an English professional wrestler. Conners competed in many British wrestling promotions, most notably New Generation Wrestling (NGW) and What Culture Pro Wrestling (WCPW), where he was a one-time WCPW Champ ...

in the NXT UK's first-ever mixed tag team match.

Eva Marie's protégé and championship pursuits (2021–2022)

On 14 June 2021 episode of ''

'', Niven was traded to the brand as Eva Marie's unnamed

protégé Mentorship is the influence, guidance, or direction given by a mentor. A mentor is someone who teaches or gives help and advice to a less experienced and often younger person. In an organizational setting, a mentor influences the personal and p ...

, defeating Naomi in her debut match. The following week on ''Raw'', Marie introduced her as "Doudrop". Later that night, she and Marie were defeated in a tag team match by

Asuka Asuka may refer to: People * Asuka (name), a list of people * Asuka (wrestler), professional wrestler * Asuka (wrestler, born 1998), professional wrestler also known as Veny outside of Japan Places In Japan * , an area in Yamato Province (now N ...

and Naomi. At SummerSlam, Doudrop turned against Marie, and on the following episode of ''Raw'', Marie attacked Doudrop during an interview; starting a feud between them. After defeating Marie twice on 13 and 20 September episodes of ''Raw'', on the next episode, Doudrop challenged Charlotte Flair for the Raw Women's Championship in a losing effort due to a distraction by Marie. In October, Doudrop entered the

Queen's Crown tournament The Queen's Crown tournament is a women's professional wrestling single-elimination tournament held by WWE, a Connecticut-based professional wrestling promotion. Established in 2021, the prize for winning the tournament is earning the moniker of ...

, where she defeated Natalya in the first round and Shayna Baszler in the semi-finals, but lost to Zelina Vega in the finals at Crown Jewel. In 2022, after winning a triple threat No. 1 contendership match against Bianca Belair and Liv Morgan on an episode of ''Raw'', Doudrop challenged Raw Women's Champion Becky Lynch for the title at Royal Rumble in a losing effort. At

Elimination Chamber The Elimination Chamber is a professional wrestling elimination-based match held in the WWE. The match was founded by Chris Jericho , created and introduced by Eric Bischoff in November 2002. It features a large chain-linked circular steel st ...

, she entered the

Elimination Chamber match The Elimination Chamber is a professional wrestling elimination-based match held in the WWE. The match was founded by Chris Jericho , created and introduced by Eric Bischoff in November 2002. It features a large chain-linked circular steel st ...

for a Raw Women's Championship match at WrestleMania 38, but was eliminated by Liv Morgan. Since June, she would chase the WWE 24/7 Championship, winning the title twice.

Teaming with Nikki A. S. H. (2022–present)

On 2 May episode of ''Raw'', Doudrop approached Nikki A. S. H. backstage, suggesting to align together, which A. S. H. accepted. The following week on ''Raw'', Doudrop alongside A. S. H. challenged the

WWE Women's Tag Team Champions The WWE Women's Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling women's tag team championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE. It is the only women's tag team championship for WWE's main roster, thus is defended across ...

Naomi and Sasha Banks in a non-title match, but they were unsuccessful. After the Women's Tag Team Championship was vacated on May, A. S. H. and Doudrop entered a tournament to crown a new champions which beguned at August. They lost in the first round to Alexa Bliss and Asuka. On 26 August episode of '' SmackDown'', A. S. H. and Doudrop entered a second chance four-way match to return to the tournament among other thee teams, which was won by Natalya and

Sonya Deville Daria Rae Berenato (born September 24, 1993) is an American professional wrestler and mixed martial artist. She is currently signed to WWE where she performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Sonya Deville. She is also a former on-scree ...

. On 30 August episode of '' NXT 2.0'', A. S. H. and Doudrop made a surprise appearance as they challenged the

NXT Women's Tag Team Champions The NXT Women's Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling women's tag team championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE. It is defended on the NXT brand division, the promotion's developmental territory. The current cha ...

Katana Chance Kacy Esther Catanzaro (born January 14, 1990) is an American professional wrestler, gymnast and athletics-based television personality. She is currently signed with WWE on the NXT brand under the ring name Katana Chance. She competed at ...

and

Kayden Carter Allyssa Lyn "Lacey" Lane (born May 20, 1988) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE under the ring name Kayden Carter, performing on the NXT brand. She is a one-time NXT Women's Tag Team Champion with Katana Chance. Early l ...

for their titles at Worlds Collide. At the event, they failed to win the titles following interference from

Toxic Attraction Toxic Attraction was a professional wrestling stable in WWE on the NXT brand. The group originally consisted of Mandy Rose, Gigi Dolin, and Jacy Jayne. After Rose was released from her WWE contract in December 2022, Toxic Attraction became a tag ...

Other media

Benson is the subject of the episode ''Fight Like a Girl'' of the documentary series ''Our Lives'' by BBC. The episode is about her life as a professional wrestler. Benson made her video game debut in the ''Clowning Around Pack'' DLC for ''

WWE 2K22 ''WWE 2K22'' is a 2022 professional wrestling sports video games, sports video game developed by Visual Concepts and published by 2K Sports. It is the twenty-second overall installment of the video game series based on WWE, the ninth game under ...

''.

Personal life

On Celebrate Bisexuality Day 2019, Benson came out as

bisexual Bisexuality is a romantic or sexual attraction or behavior toward both males and females, or to more than one gender. It may also be defined to include romantic or sexual attraction to people regardless of their sex or gender identity, whi ...

. Benson shared that she has

Bell's palsy Bell's palsy is a type of facial paralysis that results in a temporary inability to control the facial muscles on the affected side of the face. In most cases, the weakness is temporary and significantly improves over weeks. Symptoms can vary fr ...

. Benson got married in September 2021.

Championships and accomplishments

* Alpha Omega Wrestling ** AOW Women's Championship (1 time) * Association Biterroise de Catch ** ABC Women's Championship (1 time) * Fierce Females ** Fierce Females Championship (1 time) *

Insane Championship Wrestling Insane Championship Wrestling (ICW) is a professional wrestling promotion based in Glasgow, Scotland, founded by Mark Dallas in 2006. It mixes elements of traditional sports entertainment with hardcore wrestling; thus admittance is restricted ...

** ICW Women's Championship (

2 times "2 Times" is a song co-written and recorded by British Italian-based singer Ann Lee. It was released in 1999 as the lead single from her debut album, ''Dreams'' (1999). The single entered and peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart. Outside ...

) ** ICW Women's Championship Tournament (2015) * Preston City Wrestling ** PCW Women's Championship (1 time) * Pro-Wrestling: EVE ** Pro-Wrestling: EVE Championship ( 1 time) ** Pro-Wrestling: EVE International Championship ( 1 time) ** Pro Wrestling: EVE International Championship Tournament (2018) * '' Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' ** Ranked No. 37 of the top 50 female wrestlers in the '' PWI Female 50'' in 2017 * Scottish Wrestling Entertainment ** SWE Future Division Championship (1 time) * Showcase Pro Wrestling ** Caledonian Cup (2014) *

** WOS Women's Championship (2 times) * World Wide Wrestling League ** W3L Women's Championship (1 time) * World Wonder Ring Stardom ** Artist of Stardom Championship ( 1 time) – with HZK and Io Shirai ** SWA World Championship ( 1 time) ** Trios Tag Team Tournament (2019) – with Utami Hayashishita and Bea Priestley * WWE ** WWE 24/7 Championship (

) * Wrestlers Reunion Scotland ** The George Kidd Scottish Wrestling Hall of Fame (2018)https://ecstasyofgoldwrestling.wordpress.com/2022/11/01/new-phenom-the-icw-world-heavyweight-championship-reign-of-drew-galloway/

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Doudrop 1991 births Living people Bisexual sportspeople Bisexual women LGBT professional wrestlers LGBT sportspeople from Scotland People from Ayrshire Scottish female professional wrestlers Scottish expatriates in Japan Expatriate professional wrestlers in Japan 21st-century LGBT people WWE 24/7 Champions 21st-century professional wrestlers SWA World Champions