Tommy Dragon

Tommy Dragon
Statistics
Real name	Thomas Driver
Ring Names	{{{names}}}
Height	6 ft. 4in. (194 cm)
Weight	251 lbs (114 kg)
Date of birth	21st November, 1980
Place of birth	New York, New York
Date of death
Place of death
Resides	New York, New York
Billed from	New York, New York
Trainer	King Volcano, Tom Tyco
Current; federation(s)	Pojo Wrestling Alliance (2004-Present)
Previous; federation(s)	Online Wrestling Federation (2002-2003); American Wrestling Alliance (2003-2004); Pelican Wrestling Federation: Xtreme (2004); Xtreme Sports Entertainment (2004); Insane Wrestling Association (2005
Handled by
Win/Loss Record	{{{winloss_record}}}
Debut	2002
Retired	{{{retired}}}

From the eWrestling Encyclopedia.

Thomas A. Driver (born November 21, 1984 in New York, New York) is a wrestler currently working for the Pojo Wrestling Alliance, where he is the current PWA World Champion under the stage names Tommy Dragon and The Patron Saint.

Early life and training:

Thomas Anthony Driver was born in New York, New York to Thomas Francis - a Coast Guard veteran and former amateur wrestling - and Elizabeth Ann Driver - a medical biller at the prestigious Lenox Hill Hospital on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. His uncle had already begun establishing himself in the Pelican Wrestling Federation as the monster King Volcano, but his family seemed reluctant in allowing their son to follow in the footsteps of his father’s eldest brother. He first became involved in wrestling following his enrollment in New York University, specifically when his parents refused to finance their seventeen-year-old son’s education. He began to rise in the local independent scene as Tommy Hollywood, attending a seminar presented by several established superstars in the business: specifically lectures given by Bret Hart and Chris Benoit in late-2001. Their words - and styles - would have a profound impact on the young athlete and would help shape his career as a technician.

Online Wrestling Federation, American Wrestling Alliance (2002 - 2003):

After continuing success in his hometown, Tommy would eventually be asked to join the Online Wrestling Federation. Though the company did not have a contract with any television stations, they were able to broadcast his matches on their website. As the fan favorite Tommy Hollywood, he would enter in the OWF Tag Team Grand Prix along with a fellow rookie Anthony Martin. The tandem were christened The Neo-Generation and defeated the Blaze Brothers, the favorites to win, to become the OWF National Tag Team Champions in a phenomenal ladder match. The match would later be awarded the tag match of the year, but their success was cut short early in 2003, when Anthony was severally injured in rematch against the Blaze Brothers. In order to avenge his loss, Tommy teams with the seemingly insane luchador - the Masked Maniac. At the same time, the company had allotted enough funds to hold it’s first Pay-Per-View event, OWF: In The House, and Tommy captured the titles for a second time. His second reign was much more successful than his first, even retaining the championships with Masked Maniac in the second OWF Tag Team Grand Prix. However, at the following show their reign would end when his cohort turned to join the partner-less Johnny Blaze to form the Kontrol Phreaks. His last run with the belts would come almost a year afterwards when he and Anthony Martin, as the reunited Neo-Generation defeated their arch-rivals the Blaze Brothers for a third and final reign. Within a month of being crowned champions, they lost to the current AWA Tag Team Champions, The Dark Church, in an extremely violent street fight. After losing, the Online Wrestling Federation and it’s titles were officially absorbed into the still-growing American Wrestling Alliance.

Before the merger, Tommy had already made the trip over to the American Wresting Alliance, but as the American Crippler instead of his Hollywood-themed gimmick . While still employed under Online Wrestling, he would also made trips around the country as a member of the AWA roster. One of his first major moments with the organization came in mid-2003, when he would win the American Wrestling Alliance National Tournament that crowned him as the first-ever AWA National Champion. Only six months later, he would capture the AWA Heavyweight in the main event at All-Americana 2. In order to obtain contendership, the Crippler would enter first in the twenty person AWA Royal Rumble, eliminating five superstars while competing in the match. Also adding to this win was the fact he would pin then-current champion and growing adversary "Pure Heat" Antonio Blaze. His reign at the top would last a record breaking five months before Johnny Blaze, the previous champion’s brother, would capture the belt in a surprise challenge. The stress of being heavyweight champion had taken their toll on the young athlete and the loss would eventually make him snap, becoming a sinister heel whose mission was to injure everyone in his path. Around this time, he recruited the retired Masked Maniac’s partner Replay and re-christened him as Mike Hollywood. Together, the team would put an up-and-coming tandem called the Speed Demons on the shelf, as well as torment champion Johnny Blaze. Although they would win the AWA Tag Team Championships, the Crippler was focused solely on holding the primary title in the company. After two failed attempts at regaining his title, the American Crippler was humiliated when his own apprentice captured the title at Americana 3 - one year to the day from his own reign. The month previously, the Crippler had won his second AWA Royal Rumble and planned on facing the weakened Blaze following his match with Hollywood. He attempted to go through with his plan, but was defeated by the newly-crowned resilient champion. Mike’s reign was a short one, at the following month’s event the Crippler rolled-up his partner to begin his second run with the title. He once again ready to carry the company on his shoulders, but support fell through and the American Wrestling Alliance folded. At the final show, the American Crippler outlasted nineteen other superstars in a special battle royal in his first, last and only defense. At the end of the night, he laid the belt down in the center of the squared circle before walking away to join a rather unorthodox organization.

Xtreme Sports Entertainment, Pelican Wrestling and controversy (2004):

For weeks, Xtreme Sports Entertainment television had been interrupted by segments featuring an unknown warrior who claimed he wanted to bring real wrestling to the hardcore-based company. The man turned out to be Tommy, under the name Bionic Wolverine, and he would constantly attack representatives of other sporting federations in an attempt to prove himself the greatest athlete in the world. After two months with the company, he would be granted a shot at XSE World Heavyweight Title at the very first show of 2004. The Bionic Wolverine would defeat “Awesome” Mark Constantine in a barbed-wire ladder match following a suicide headbutt from the outside into the ring. Not only would this award him the championship, but show that the technically-trained wrestler could compete in unfamiliar environments like the rest of his extreme peers. During his first reign, the Bionic Wolverine would unify the heavyweight belt with the XSE World Television Championship - then held by the record-breaking champion Nitro Boy. He would defend the title seven times in a period of four months before losing to the newly-returned Mark Constantine in a sixty-minute iron man match. It wasn’t long before his second reign began, with Mark leaving once again - this time permanently due to injury - and forcing a special tournament. After competing in four brutal rounds, including a Brawl of the Year winning semi-final bout with Nitro Boy, the Wolverine defeated Andre Hawk to win back the strap. Shortly after winning, he was contacted by an affiliate of Constantine’s, who persuaded him to join the recently reincarnated promotion Pelican Wrestling Federation - longtime rival of Pojo Wrestling. Tommy would hold the belt for a month before losing to Nitro Boy in their third and final match, competing until multiple incidents in PWF caused the superstar to put his young career on hold.

With his uncle King Volcano a veteran of the company, Tommy would settle in quickly in order to fill the athlete’s rather large shoes. His success in Pelican was much different than his previous endeavors, as he would remain titleless for the majority of his stay with the company. While beating several of the organization’s notable contenders, he was consistently denied shots at the championships due to the reluctance of the established champions to defend. When he was finally awarded a shot at the World Heavyweight Title, booking decided that his win would only come about through a disqualification. Following this controversy, another match was booked and this time Tommy, whose gimmick was that of a masked half-Irish, half-Asian (despite lacking any blood from this line) known as the Genex Dragon, defeated Matt Van Dam. The next night, the referee determined that Van Dam’s foot was under the rope and so the title would be vacated. In the championship tournament for the belt, Tommy was eliminated in the first round when he walked out on opponent Ron “Big Bad” Gambino. Disenfranchised with the business, Tommy took a break for several months and focused on school work. After achieving his bachelors degree in an intensive program, he came across an ad for the Pojo Wrestling Alliance and decided to look into the prospect of competing there.

[edit] Trademarks

[edit] Finishing and signature moves

As The Patron Saint
Not Safe for Wrestling (NSFW) (Cutthroat crossface)
Throat Slasher (Arm-trap cutter [usually elevated])
Blitzkrieg Bop (Double-knee backbreaker)
Various lariats
Various uppercuts
Exploder suplex
Fireman's Carry facebreaker
Air raid crash
Arm-trap neckbreaker
Hangman's neckbreaker
High-knee charge to the corner [often followed by an enzuigiri]

As The Hotshot
Dragonlock (Grapevine anklelock)
Hotshot Slash (Back suplex side slam)
Dragon Key (Key lock)
Frog splash
Irish Hammer (Polish hammer from second rope)
Double-arm suplex
Frog splash
German suplex [sometimes rolling]
Hotshot Combination [Snap suplex, fisherman suplex, brainbuster]