Michael Carter Rallis (born October 10, 1989) is an American

professional wrestler Professional wrestling, often shortened to either pro wrestling or wrestling,The term "wrestling" is most often widely used to specifically refer to modern scripted professional wrestling, though it is also used to refer to real-life wrest ...

and former college football player. He currently performs on the

independent circuit In professional wrestling, the independent circuit (often shortened to the indie circuit or the indies) is the collective name of independently owned promotions which are deemed to be smaller and more regionalized than major national promotions. ...

. Rallis is best known for his tenure in

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is an American professional wrestling promotion. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority-owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. A global integrated media and entertainment company, ...

under the

ring name A ring name is a type of stage name or nickname 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 ...

s Riddick Moss and Madcap Moss, where he is a former

WWE 24/7 Champion The WWE 24/7 Championship was a professional wrestling Professional wrestling championship, championship created and promoted by the American professional wrestling promotion, promotion WWE. It was a tertiary championship open to anyone—regard ...

, and won the André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal in

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

Early life

Rallis was born and raised in

Edina, Minnesota Edina ( , ) is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States and a first-ring suburb of Minneapolis. The population was 53,494 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the 18th most populous ci ...

. He attended the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota Twin Cities (historically known as University of Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint ...

, where he played for the

Minnesota Golden Gophers football The Minnesota Golden Gophers football team represents the University of Minnesota in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. Founded in 1882, Minnesota has been a member of the Big Ten Conference since its incept ...

team between 2008 and 2012. He played outside linebacker for the Golden Gophers and finished third on the team in tackles during his junior year. After graduation, he attended a tryout camp with the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team ...

but was not signed to a contract. In October 2013, Rallis attended a

tryout after contacting

Jim Ross James William Ross (born January 3, 1952) is an American professional wrestling commentator, sports announcer, and podcaster, better known by the ring name Jim Ross (often shortened to JR). He is signed with All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he ...

Professional wrestling career

WWE

NXT (2014–2019)

Rallis signed a developmental contract with WWE in early 2014 and began training at the

WWE Performance Center WWE Performance Center (WWE PC) is a group of professional wrestling schools owned by American company WWE. They serve as tryout and training facilities for WWE, and also contain sports science and medical facilities as well as live events and ...

. He made his professional wrestling debut on December 18 at a ''NXT'' live event in

Tampa, Florida Tampa ( ) is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. Tampa's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and t ...

under the ring name Digg Rawlis. He made his televised debut on the May 27, 2015, episode of '' NXT'', working as an enhancement talent alongside Elias Samson in a defeat to Blake and Murphy. Rawlis made further occasional televised appearances as an enhancement talent during 2015, losing to the Hype Bros and

Samoa Joe Nuufolau Joel Seanoa (born March 17, 1979), better known by the ring name Samoa Joe, is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he is a member of the Opps, and is one-third of the AEW Worl ...

. In August 2015, he adopted the new ring name Riddick Moss, a tribute to former NFL player

Randy Moss Randy Gene Moss (born February 13, 1977) is an American former professional football wide receiver who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons with the Minnesota Vikings, Oakland Raiders, New England Patriots, Tennessee Tit ...

. In October 2016, Moss began teaming with Tino Sabbatelli as the God Gifted Athletes; the two competed in the 2016

Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic The Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic is an annual professional wrestling tag team tournament held by the American promotion WWE, and is featured on its NXT brand, having first been established in 2015. In subsequent years, wrestlers from the NXT U ...

, where they lost in the first round to TM61 on the October 12 episode of ''NXT''. Moss made a further appearance on the January 4, 2017, episode of ''NXT'', again teaming with Sabbatelli and losing to The Revival ( Dash Wilder and Scott Dawson). The duo had their first televised victory on the October 25 episode of ''NXT'', defeating Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch; they began performing as heels during this time. In early 2018, Moss and Sabbatelli entered the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic, losing to

Sanity Sanity (from ) refers to the soundness, rationality, and health of the human mind, as opposed to insanity. A person is sane if they are rational. In modern society, the term has become exclusively synonymous with ''compos mentis'' ( and ). The ...

in the first round. On the April 25 episode of ''NXT'', during a match with Heavy Machinery, Sabbatelli ditched Moss, thus ending their alliance. In May, he tore his

Achilles tendon The Achilles tendon or heel cord, also known as the calcaneal tendon, is a tendon at the back of the lower leg, and is the thickest in the human body. It serves to attach the plantaris, gastrocnemius (calf) and soleus muscles to the calcane ...

, which would require several months to recuperate. Moss returned from injury at a live event on November 30, losing to Matt Riddle after a surprise appearance. In March 2019, he started being managed by Robert Strauss at live events.

24/7 Champion and alliance with Happy Corbin (2020–2022)

On the January 27, 2020 episode of '' Raw'', Moss made his main roster debut, accompanying Mojo Rawley to the ring for his WWE 24/7 Championship match against No Way Jose, where Moss was billed as Rawley's

offensive lineman In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line (OL), while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line ( ...

; Rawley lost the title to

R-Truth Ronnie Aaron Killings (born January 19, 1972) is an American professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he performs under his real name, stylized as Ron Killings and R-Truth. Killings worked for World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) ...

right after defeating Jose, however, Moss assisted Rawley in regaining the title seconds later. On the February 10 episode of ''Raw'', after they lost to the

Street Profits The Street Profits are an American professional wrestling tag team consisting of Angelo Dawkins and Montez Ford. They are signed to WWE, where they perform on the SmackDown brand, and are the current WWE Tag Team Champions in their second rei ...

, Moss turned on Rawley and pinned him to win the 24/7 Championship. Moss retained his title against the likes of Rawley, Truth,

Cedric Alexander Cedric Alexander Johnson (born August 16, 1989) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He is performing on the independent circuit. He is best known for his tenures in WWE and Ring of Honor (ROH). Alexander worked for ROH ...

, and

Ricochet A ricochet ( ; ) is a rebound, bounce, or skip off a surface, particularly in the case of a projectile. Most ricochets are caused by accident and while the force of the deflection decelerates the projectile, it can still be energetic and almost ...

. On the March 23 episode of ''Raw'', Moss lost the title to Truth while out for a jog, ending his reign at 41 days. On the August 10 episode of ''Raw'', Moss returned in a Raw Underground segment, an underground fight club hosted by

Shane McMahon Shane Brandon McMahon ( ; born January 15, 1970) is an American businessman and retired Professional wrestling, professional wrestler best known for his tenures in WWE. The son of Vince McMahon, he is a fourth-generation wrestling promoter as a ...

, defeating Cal Bloom by knockout. In October, Moss revealed he had been performing with a torn ACL two months prior. After a year out of action, 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 carnival Carnival (known as Shrovetide in certain localities) is a festive season that o ...

before the September 17, 2021 episode of '' SmackDown'', Moss returned from injury by defeating Odyssey Jones''.'' The following week on ''SmackDown'', Moss made his televised return, attacking Kevin Owens and aligning with Happy Corbin. The following week, his ring name was changed to Madcap Moss and he began adopting a

comic a medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically the form of a sequence of panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, captions, and onomatopoeia can indicat ...

persona. They entered into a feud with

Drew McIntyre Andrew McLean Galloway IV (born 6 June, 1985) is a Scottish Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown (WWE brand), SmackDown brand under the ring name Drew McIntyre. Galloway began ...

, mocking him and making jokes at his expense, leading to a match between the two at Day 1 on January 1, 2022, which Moss lost. Moss entered the Royal Rumble match at the namesake event on January 29, entering at #19 and eliminating

AJ Styles Allen Neal Jones (born June 2, 1977), better known by his ring name AJ Styles (or A.J. Styles), is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw (WWE brand), Raw WWE brand extension, ...

, but was eliminated by McIntyre. At

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

on February 19, Moss lost to McIntyre in a

Falls Count Anywhere match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called " 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 storyline. ...

. During the match, he took an inverted Alabama Slam, resulting in him landing directly on top of his head, but was able to continue the match. On the April 1 episode of ''SmackDown'', Moss won the 2022 André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, last eliminating Finn Bálor. On the first night of

WrestleMania 38 WrestleMania 38 was a 2022 professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming List of WWE pay-per-view and livestreaming supercards, event produced by WWE. It was the 38th annual WrestleMania and took place as a two-night event on Saturda ...

on April 2, Moss accompanied Corbin to the ring for his match against McIntyre, which he lost.

Singles competition (2022–2023)

On the April 8 episode of ''SmackDown,'' Corbin blamed Moss for his loss against McIntyre and attacked him, ending their alliance and turning Moss

face The face is the front of the head that features the eyes, nose and mouth, and through which animals express many of their emotions. The face is crucial for human identity, and damage such as scarring or developmental deformities may affect th ...

for the first time in his WWE career. At WrestleMania Backlash on May 8, Moss defeated Corbin. On the May 13 episode of ''SmackDown'', Corbin attacked Moss with the André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal trophy and injured his neck, which left Moss having to be stretchered out of the arena. Moss returned on the June 3 episode of ''SmackDown'' with a more serious persona, new entrance music and in-ring attire. At

Hell in a Cell Hell in a Cell is a professional wrestling steel cage-based match which originated in 1997 in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE). It features a large cell structure, a four-sided cuboid made from open-weave steel mesh chain-link f ...

on June 5, Moss defeated Corbin in a No Holds Barred match. On the June 17 episode of ''SmackDown'', Moss defeated Corbin for a third time in a Last Laugh match to end their feud. On the July 1 episode of ''SmackDown'', Moss defeated Corbin,

Ezekiel Ezekiel, also spelled Ezechiel (; ; ), was an Israelite priest. The Book of Ezekiel, relating his visions and acts, is named after him. The Abrahamic religions acknowledge Ezekiel as a prophet. According to the narrative, Ezekiel prophesied ...

, and

The Miz Michael Gregory Mizanin (born October 8, 1980) is an American professional wrestler, actor, and television personality. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name The Miz. Mizanin first gained fame a ...

in a fatal four-way match to qualify for the

Money in the Bank ladder match The Money in the Bank ladder match is a multi-person ladder match held by the professional wrestling promotion WWE. First performed at WWE's annual WrestleMania event beginning in 2005, a separate WWE Money in the Bank, Money in the Bank event w ...

. At the eponymous event on July 2, he failed to win the match. On the August 19 episode of ''SmackDown'', Moss competed in a fatal five way match to determine the #1 contender for the Intercontinental Championship, which was won by

Sheamus Stephen Farrelly (born 28 January 1978) is an Irish Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw (WWE brand), Raw brand under the ring name Sheamus. Prior to joining WWE, he wrestled on th ...

. At the Clash at the Castle pre-show on September 3, Moss and the Street Profits defeated

Alpha Academy Alpha Academy is a professional wrestling Stable (wrestling), stable performing in WWE on the Raw (WWE brand), Raw WWE brand extension, brand composed of Otis (wrestler), Otis, Maxxine Dupri and Akira Tozawa. Otis and Chad Gable, are former List ...

( Chad Gable and Otis) and

Austin Theory Austin Tyler White (born August 2, 1997) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler and Bodybuilding, bodybuilder. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw (WWE brand), Raw WWE brand extension, brand under the ring nam ...

. On the September 16 episode of ''SmackDown'', Moss challenged Solo Sikoa for the NXT North American Championship in a losing effort. On the February 10 episode of ''SmackDown,'' Moss defeated Karrion Kross, Santos Escobar, and

Rey Mysterio Óscar Gutiérrez Rubio (born December 11, 1974), better known by his ring name Rey Mysterio, is an American professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand. Widely regarded as both one of the greatest '' luch ...

, who Moss pinned, in a fatal four-way match to become the #1 contender for

Gunther Gundaharius or Gundahar (died 437), better known by his legendary names Gunther () or Gunnar (), was a historical King of the Burgundians in the early 5th century. Gundahar is attested as ruling his people shortly after they crossed the Rhine ...

's Intercontinental Championship. The following week, Moss failed to win the title due to the fans starting to disrespect him during the match, turning tweener in the process. On the April 14 episode of SmackDown, after losing to

Shinsuke Nakamura is a Japanese professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand. Nakamura is known for his time in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), where he is a former 3-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion, with his first rei ...

, Moss attempted to attack him but Nakamura fended off, fully reverting him into a heel. As part of the 2023 WWE Draft, Moss, now reverting back to Riddick Moss, was drafted to the Raw

brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's goods or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create and ...

. On September 21, 2023, Moss was released from WWE along with a host of other superstars (including real-life partner Emma).

Independent circuit (2024–present)

Six months after his WWE release, Rallis made his debut on the

on April 13, 2024, where he faced Chris Masters for the Stu Hart Heritage Championship in a losing effort.

Personal life

Rallis' brother,

Nick Nick may refer to: People and fictional characters * Nick (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Désirée Nick, German actress and writer Places * Nick, Hungary, a village * Nick, Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, Poland, a ...

, is the defensive coordinator for the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The ...

. On August 4, 2022, Rallis revealed that he is dating Australian professional wrestler Tenille Dashwood. On June 3, 2023, Rallis and Dashwood announced their engagement on Instagram. The couple married on March 8, 2024. On September 6, 2024, Dashwood announced that she is expecting her first child with Rallis in 2025. Their son, Leo Austin, was born on March 4.

Championships and accomplishments

*''

Pro Wrestling Illustrated ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publishing Group. The maga ...

'' **Ranked No. 244 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the ''

PWI 500 ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publishing Group. The maga ...

'' in 2022 *

** WWE 24/7 Championship ( 1 time) ** André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal (

)

References

External links

* * *
Minnesota Golden Gophers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Moss, Riddick 1989 births Living people American people of Greek descent 21st-century male professional wrestlers 21st-century American professional wrestlers American football defensive linemen American football linebackers American male professional wrestlers Minnesota Golden Gophers football players Players of American football from Minnesota Sportspeople from Edina, Minnesota WWE 24/7 Champions André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal winners