William Hobson (born January 23, 1991), better known by the ring name Powerhouse Hobbs, 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 o ...

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, ...

(AEW).

Early life

Hobson attended Sequoia High School in

Redwood City, California Redwood City is a city on the San Francisco Peninsula in Northern California's Bay Area, approximately south of San Francisco, and northwest of San Jose. Redwood City's history spans its earliest inhabitation by the Ohlone people to being a ...

, where he played football and other sports. As a youth, he attended professional wrestling events, including SuperBrawl VIII in the

Cow Palace The Cow Palace (originally the California State Livestock Pavilion) is an indoor arena located in Daly City, California, situated on the city's northern border with neighboring San Francisco. Because the border passes through the property, a por ...

San Francisco, California San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

Professional wrestling career

Independent circuit (2009–2020)

After graduating from high school, Hobson attended the

All Pro Wrestling All Pro Wrestling is an American professional wrestling promotion and training school, based in Hayward, California. The company was founded by Roland Alexander and managed by him until his death on November 5, 2013. It is located 45 miles so ...

(APW)

professional wrestling school Professional wrestling has accrued a considerable amount of jargon throughout its existence. Much of it stems from the industry's origins in the days of carnivals and circuses. In the past, professional wrestlers used such terms in the presence o ...

in Hayward, California. He made his professional wrestling debut on July 18, 2009 at APW's "Gym Wars" event under the ring name "Will Rood". Hobson wrestled for APW over the following decade, during which time he held the

APW Worldwide Internet Championship The APW Worldwide Internet Championship is a professional wrestling championship created and promoted by the independent professional wrestling promotion All Pro Wrestling. Title history As of , , there have been 53 reigns between 39 champions ...

three times. He also held the

APW Tag Team Championship The APW Tag Team Championships were introduced on November 20, 1996, when Michael Modest and Steve Rizzono became the first to win the titles. They defeated Frank Dalton and Joe Applebaumer in the finals of an eight team tournament to win the tit ...

thrice, teaming with Marcus Lewis as "Lion Power". In 2014 he briefly used the ring name "Will.I.IS"; in 2016 he changed his ring name to "Will Hobbs". Between 2011 and 2020 Hobson also appeared with multiple

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

promotions, principally in the

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Go ...

. These included

Championship Wrestling from Hollywood Championship Wrestling from Hollywood (CWFH) is an American professional wrestling promotion and television program that airs on KDOC-TV Los Angeles and carried in first-run syndication in the United States. The television series premiered ...

(where he held the

UWN Tag Team Championship The UWN Tag Team Championship is the top tag team championship sanctioned and governed by the United Wrestling Network and used in Championship Wrestling from Hollywood. It was awarded to Timothy Thatcher and Drew Gulak as they were the reigni ...

with Damien Grundy as "Cold Cold War"), Gold Rush Pro Wrestling (where he held the GRPW Dynamite Division Championship), and Pro Championship Wrestling (where he held the PCW Tag Team Championship with Mitch Valentine as "The Dream Team"). In 2016, Hobson made a one-off appearance for

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vari ...

, losing to

Baron Corbin Thomas Pestock (born September 13, 1984) is an American professional wrestler and former professional football player. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Baron Corbin. Pestock is a former off ...

in a

dark match Professional wrestling has accrued a considerable amount of jargon throughout its existence. Much of it stems from the industry's origins in the days of carnivals and circuses. In the past, professional wrestlers used such terms in the presence o ...

in the

SAP Center The SAP Center at San Jose (originally known as San Jose Arena and the HP Pavilion at San Jose) is an indoor arena located in San Jose, California. Its primary tenant is the San Jose Sharks of the National Hockey League, for which the arena h ...

San Jose, California San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popu ...

All Elite Wrestling (2020–present)

In July 2020, Hobson began to work for

(AEW) as "Will Hobbs", wrestling on its

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...

show ''

AEW Dark AEW or aew may refer to: * Airborne early warning, airborne radar system for detecting aircraft * Aerosvit Airlines, an airline based in Kyiv, Ukraine (ICAO airline designator: AEW) * AEW Capital Management, a property investment management company ...

''. On September 5, 2020, Hobbs competed in a 21-man

Casino Battle Royale The Casino Battle Royale, with its tag team variant being the Casino Tag Team Royale, is a professional wrestling match utilized by All Elite Wrestling (AEW). Both variations are modified rumble rules battle royals. The Casino Battle Royale featu ...

at the All Out pay-per-view, which was won by

Lance Archer Lance Hoyt (born February 28, 1977) is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) under the ring name Lance Archer. He also makes sporadic appearance for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). He is also known for ...

. His performance in the match impressed AEW 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 ...

, and he was signed to a contract with AEW. On the September 16, 2020 episode of '' Dynamite'', Hobbs saved AEW World Champion

Jon Moxley Jonathan David Good (born December 7, 1985) is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he performs under the ring name Jon Moxley. He also makes appearances for New Japan Pro-Wr ...

from an attack by

Brian Cage Brian Christopher Button

and

Ricky Starks Richard Starks (born February 21, 1990), is an American professional wrestler currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW). He also serves on the commentary team for AEW's sister streaming television program, ''Elevation''. Starks is also known ...

. On the October 7 episode of ''Dynamite'', Hobbs unsuccessfully challenged Cage for the FTW Championship. On the November 18 episode of ''Dynamite'', Hobbs turned heel by aligning himself with

Team Taz Team Taz, alternately called Team FTW, was an American professional wrestling stable signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW). They were named after Taz, the leader and manager of the group. History On the July 21, 2020 episode of ''AEW Dark'', R ...

( Taz,

Brian Cage Brian Christopher Button

, and

), joining them in an attack on

Cody Rhodes Cody Garrett Runnels Rhodes (''né'' Runnels; born June 30, 1985) is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand. Rhodes is also known for his time in All Elite Wrestling (AE ...

and

Darby Allin Samuel Ratsch (born January 7, 1993), better known by the ring name Darby Allin, is an American professional wrestler signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he is a former and longest-reigning AEW TNT Champion. He is also known for his appe ...

. Later that month, his ring name was tweaked to "Powerhouse Hobbs". At the December 2, 2020 television special ''

Winter Is Coming "Winter Is Coming" is the series premiere of the HBO medieval fantasy television series ''Game of Thrones''. The first episode of the first season, it was written by series creators David Benioff and D. B. Weiss, in an adaptation of the first ...

'', Hobbs and Starks lost to Rhodes and Allin. Throughout early 2021, Hobbs scored a series of singles and tag team victories on episodes of ''AEW Dark'' and '' AEW Dark: Elevation''. At the

Double or Nothing Double or nothing (UK often double or quits) is a gamble to decide whether a loss or debt should be doubled. The result of a "double or nothing" bet is either the subject doubled to twice the amount as the original ''or'' the doubling of a debt. It ...

pay-per-view in May 2021, Hobbs competed in a

that was won by Jungle Boy. On July 14, 2021 on the ''

Fyter Fest AEW Fyter Fest is an annual professional wrestling event produced by All Elite Wrestling (AEW). The event was established by the promotion in 2019 and is held during the summer; the first event was held in June but moved to July in 2020. The name, ...

'' television special, Hobbs aided stablemate Ricky Starks in an FTW Championship victory over Brian Cage, thus expelling Cage from Team Taz; Hobbs went on to defeat Cage on the September 1 episode of ''Dynamite''. On the September 15, 2021 episode of ''Dynamite'', Team Taz attacked CM Punk while he was on commentary, resulting in a match between Hobbs and Punk at the '' AEW Grand Slam'' television special (Punk's first televised match in over seven years), which was won by Punk. For the remainder of the year, Hobbs wrestled primarily on ''AEW Dark''. In March 2022 at

Revolution In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...

, Hobbs competed in a "Face of the Revolution" ladder match that was won by Wardlow. Throughout mid-2022, he largely competed in tag team matches alongside Starks; at

in May 2022 they unsuccessfully challenged Jurassic Express for the

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 ...

in a

triple threat match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or " gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

that also featured Keith Lee and

Swerve Strickland Stephon Strickland (born September 30, 1990) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he performs under the ring name Swerve Strickland and is a former AEW World Tag Team Champion (with Keith Lee ...

. At '' Dynamite: Fight for the Fallen'' on July 27, 2022, Hobbs turned on Starks after Starks lost the FTW Championship, delivering a

clothesline A clothes line or washing line is any type of rope, cord, or twine that has been stretched between two points (e.g. two sticks), outside or indoors, above the level of the ground. Clothing that has recently been washed is hung along the line t ...

to the back of Starks' neck followed by a

spinebuster Professional wrestling throws are the application of professional wrestling techniques that involve lifting the opponent up and throwing or slamming them down. They are sometimes also called "power" maneuvers, as they are meant to emphasize a wrest ...

. The following week, Taz formally disbanded Team Taz. At All Out in September 2022, Hobbs defeated Starks; later that month, on ''

Grand Slam Grand Slam most often refers to: * Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category te ...

'', Starks defeated Hobbs in a

lights out match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

. At Full Gear in November 2022, Hobbs faced

Samoa Joe Nuufolau Joel Seanoa (born March 17, 1979), is an American professional wrestler better known by the ring name Samoa Joe who is currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW). Joe is currently a double champion - in his first reign both as AE ...

and Wardlow in a

three-way dance Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

for the

AEW TNT Championship The AEW TNT Championship is a men’s professional wrestling television championship created and promoted by the American promotion All Elite Wrestling (AEW). Established on March 30, 2020, it is named after the TNT television network, which curr ...

that was won by Samoa Joe.

Professional wrestling style and persona

Hobbs wrestles in a "powerhouse" style. His finishing moves have included a falling powerslam, a

, an

Oklahoma Stampede A Powerslam or simply Slam is a professional wrestling body slam move in which the wrestler performing the slam falls face-down on top of the opponent. The use of the term "powerslam" usually refers to the front powerslam or the scoop powerslam ...

, a

frog splash Aerial techniques, also known as "high-flying moves" are maneuvers in professional wrestling using the ring's posts and ropes as aids, in many cases to demonstrate the speed and agility of smaller, nimble and acrobatically inclined wrestlers prefer ...

, a torture rack, and an emerald flowsion named the ''Town Business''.

Personal life

Hobson was raised by his grandparents, and he states that his love of professional wrestling came through his grandparents who regularly watched and attended wrestling shows at the

. When Hobson was 21, his older brother was killed by gunfire; they had aspirations of being a manager-wrestler duo in professional wrestling. Hobson was also injured in the shooting, taking a bullet in his forearm. Hobson has two sons and one daughter.

Championships and accomplishments

(3 times) – with Marcus Lewis **

(3 times) *

(1 time) – with Damien Grundy *Gold Rush Pro Wrestling **GRPW Dynamite Division Championship (1 time) **GRPW Dynamite Division Championship Tournament (2013) *Pro Championship Wrestling **PCW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Mitch Valentine * ''

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 Publi ...

'' ** Ranked #93 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 Publi ...

'' in 2021

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hobbs, Powerhouse 1991 births African-American male professional wrestlers American male professional wrestlers All Elite Wrestling personnel Living people People from San Mateo County, California Professional wrestlers from California Sportspeople from the San Francisco Bay Area 21st-century African-American sportspeople People from Redwood City, California 21st-century professional wrestlers American shooting survivors