Apollo Crews

Apollo Crews
Sesugh Uhaa (born August 22, 1987) is a Nigerian-American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Apollo Crews.
He started his career in 2009, originally working under the ring name Uhaa Nation, and made his breakthrough in 2011, when he was signed by the Dragon Gate USA promotion, which also led to him making his first trip to Japan to work for Dragon Gate. Standing at and weighing , Uhaa is known both as a high-flyer and a power wrestler.
He signed with WWE in 2015 and was assigned to the NXT brand, where he was given his current ring name. He was promoted to WWE's main roster in April 2016, where he won the United States Championship in May 2020 and later won the Intercontinental Championship at WrestleMania 37.
Early life
Sesugh Uhaa was born on August 22, 1987, in Sacramento, California and was raised in Atlanta, Georgia and early on fell in love with professional wrestling, becoming a fan of performers such as "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, The Rock, and Kurt Angle. He went to a military high school and began practicing various sports, including amateur wrestling, soccer, football, and track and field, as both an outlet and a way to "get away from the military life". While weight training in high school, he was given the nickname "Uhaa Nation", when his coach noted that he was "as strong as a single nation".
Professional wrestling career
Early career (2009–2011)
After finishing college, Uhaa quickly got a job in order to pay for his professional wrestling training. He began training at the age of 21 under Mr. Hughes at his World Wrestling Alliance 4 (WWA4) promotion's training school in Atlanta. After making his wrestling debut under the ring name Uhaa Nation on August 17, 2009, he spent over a year working mainly for small promotions on the Georgian independent circuit, but also made trips to Houston, Texas-based Pro Wrestling Alliance (PWA) and Phenix City, Alabama-based Great Championship Wrestling (GCW), often working with fellow WWA4 trainee AR Fox.
Dragon Gate and affiliates (2011–2015)
On September 9, 2011, Uhaa took part in a tryout seminar held by the Dragon Gate USA promotion. He was immediately signed for appearances for not only Dragon Gate USA, but also its parent promotion, Dragon Gate, and close affiliates Evolve and Full Impact Pro (FIP). He made his wrestling debut for Dragon Gate USA later that same day, defeating Aaron Draven in a squash match. Uhaa made his pay-per-view debut the following day at Untouchable 2011, where he answered Brodie Lee's open challenge and dominated him, before Lee left the ringside area. The following day at Way of the Ronin, Uhaa defeated Facade, Flip Kendrick and Sugar Dunkerton in a four-way match. On October 29, Uhaa made his first appearance for Full Impact Pro, when he defeated Jake Manning for FIP Florida Heritage Championship. Uhaa then entered a storyline, where different Dragon Gate USA stables tried to recruit him to join them. On November 30, Uhaa made his Japanese debut for Dragon Gate, during an event produced by the villainous Blood Warriors stable. Uhaa defeated Kotoka in a match that lasted 99 seconds, establishing himself as the newest member of Blood Warriors in the process. For the rest of the tour, which lasted through December 25, Uhaa worked alongside the Blood Warriors stable, winning every one of his matches. At the end of 2011, Dragon Gate USA named Uhaa the Best Newcomer of the year. He also finished second behind Daichi Hashimoto in Wrestling Observer Newsletters award category for Rookie of the Year.
Upon his return to the United States, Uhaa made his debut for Evolve on January 14, 2012, with a win over Pinkie Sanchez. When Akira Tozawa took over the leadership of Blood Warriors from Cima and renamed the group Mad Blankey, Uhaa Nation followed along to the renamed stable. Uhaa made his first appearance representing Mad Blankey at a DGUSA event on March 29, when he and stablemates Akira Tozawa and BxB Hulk defeated Ronin (Chuck Taylor, Johnny Gargano and Rich Swann) and D.U.F. (Arik Cannon, Pinkie Sanchez, and Sami Callihan) in a three-way trios match. However, during the match, Uhaa suffered a knee injury, which sidelined him for a year. Uhaa returned to the ring on February 1, 2013, at Full Impact Pro's Everything Burns iPPV, where he successfully defended the FIP Florida Heritage Championship against Chasyn Rance. On March 2, Uhaa returned to Japan and Dragon Gate, when he and BxB Hulk defeated Don Fujii and Masaaki Mochizuki for the Open the Twin Gate Championship. They lost the title to Shingo Takagi and Yamato on May 5. On May 11, Uhaa was pinned for the first time in a Dragon Gate ring, when he was eliminated by Jimmy Susumu in the first round of the 2013 King of Gate tournament. On July 28 at Enter the Dragon 2013, Dragon Gate USA's fourth anniversary event, Uhaa suffered his first pinfall loss in the promotion, when he was defeated by Anthony Nese. On August 9, Uhaa lost the FIP Florida Heritage Championship to Gran Akuma. Back in Dragon Gate, Mad Blankey turned on Uhaa Nation on August 30, after he refused to wrestle Akira Tozawa, who had recently been kicked out of the group. Uhaa then formed a new partnership with Tozawa and Shingo Takagi. On September 12, the three were joined by Masato Yoshino, Ricochet, and Shachihoko Boy to form a new stable, which was on October 6 named Monster Express. On January 12, 2014, Uhaa received his first shot at Dragon Gate USA's top title, the Open the Freedom Gate Championship, but was defeated by the defending champion, Johnny Gargano. On March 6, Uhaa also received his first shot at Dragon Gate's top title, the Open the Dream Gate Championship, but was defeated by the defending champion, Monster Express stablemate Ricochet. On May 23, it was reported that Uhaa had signed a new contract with Dragon Gate USA.
On February 5, 2015, Uhaa made his return to Dragon Gate as Akira Tozawa's surprise partner in a tag team match, where they defeated Cyber Kong and Don Fujii. On March 1, Uhaa failed to win the Open the Dream Gate Championship from BxB Hulk in his final match for Dragon Gate. Uhaa worked his final Evolve events later that month during WWNLive's WrestleMania week.
WWE
NXT (2014–2016)
In October 2014, Uhaa took part in a WWE tryout camp, resulting in a developmental contract offer. Starting on December 31, 2014, multiple sources reported that Uhaa had come to terms on a contract with WWE. Uhaa reported to the WWE Performance Center, the home of its NXT developmental brand, on April 6, 2015. WWE officially announced Uhaa as part of a new class of NXT recruits in an April 13 press release. Uhaa made his first televised appearance on the May 6 episode of NXT, signing an NXT contract in a segment with William Regal. Uhaa started working NXT house shows the following month, retaining the Uhaa Nation ring name.
On August 5, it was announced that Uhaa, now working under the new ring name Apollo Crews, would be making his televised NXT in-ring debut on August 22 at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn, where he defeated Tye Dillinger. Crews made his NXT debut on the September 2 episode of NXT, defeating Martin Stone. At NXT TakeOver: Respect on October 7, Crews defeated Tyler Breeze. On the October 14 episode of NXT, Crews won a battle royal to become the number one contender to the NXT Championship. Crews received his title shot against Finn Bálor on the November 4 episode of NXT, winning the match by disqualification, when he was attacked by Baron Corbin, who held a grudge against Crews for eliminating him from the number one contender's battle royal. The rivalry between Crews and Corbin led to a match on December 16 at NXT TakeOver: London, which Corbin won. Crews then started a feud with Elias Samson, after Crews saved Johnny Gargano from Samson's assault on the March 23, 2016, episode of NXT. On the April 6 episode of NXT, Crews defeated Samson.
Main roster beginnings (2016–2017)
On the April 4, 2016, episode of Raw, Crews made his main roster debut, defeating Tyler Breeze. He remained undefeated over the following weeks, defeating the likes of Curtis Axel, Adam Rose, Heath Slater and Stardust. However, on the May 23 episode of Raw, Crews lost to Chris Jericho in a Money in the Bank qualifying match, after Sheamus attacked Crews before the match. Crews and Sheamus faced off on June 19 at the Money in the Bank pay-per-view, where Crews was victorious.
As part of the draft on July 19, Crews was drafted to the SmackDown brand. On the August 2 episode of SmackDown, Crews defeated Kalisto and Baron Corbin in a triple threat match to become the number one contender to the Intercontinental Championship. Crews received his title shot on August 21 at SummerSlam, but was defeated by The Miz. Crews lost to Corbin on September 11 during the Backlash pre-show. At TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs on December 4, Crews teamed with American Alpha (Chad Gable and Jason Jordan) and The Hype Bros (Mojo Rawley and Zack Ryder) in a win over Curt Hawkins, The Vaudevillains (Aiden English and Simon Gotch), and The Ascension (Konnor and Viktor) in a 10-man tag team match.
At the Royal Rumble on January 29, 2017, Crews took part in his first Royal Rumble match, entering at #22, but was eliminated by Luke Harper. Crews then teamed up with Kalisto to feud with Dolph Ziggler, culminating in a two-on-one handicap match on February 12 at Elimination Chamber, where Crews and Kalisto defeated Ziggler in a two-on-one handicap match. Following the match, Ziggler attacked the two, injuring Crews' ankle, which was trapped in a chair. On the February 28 episode of SmackDown, Crews lost to Ziggler in a chairs match.
Titus Worldwide (2017–2019)
As part of the Superstar Shake-up, Crews was moved to the Raw brand. Shortly thereafter, a storyline began with Titus O'Neil offering Crews his managerial services. After becoming affiliated with "The Titus Brand", Crews started displaying attitude and cockiness. On June 4 at Extreme Rules, Crews was defeated by Kalisto. During that period, Akira Tozawa joined the Titus Brand, turning it into "Titus Worldwide". Crews would then enter a short feud with Elias, losing to him on September 24 at No Mercy, the following night on Raw and on the October 9 episode of Raw. During this time, Dana Brooke joined Titus Worldwide as their manager, and Tozawa quietly left the faction.
On the January 8, 2018 and January 15 episodes of Raw, Crews and O'Neil defeated Raw Tag Team Champions Cesaro and Sheamus in upset victories. At Royal Rumble on January 28, Crews entered the Royal Rumble at #13 but was eliminated by Cesaro. On February 19, his ring name was shortened to simply "Apollo". At Elimination Chamber on February 25, Apollo and O'Neil failed to capture the titles, and were again unsuccessful in a rematch the following night on Raw. At WrestleMania 34 on April 8, he failed to win the André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal. On the April 16 episode of Raw, his ring name was reverted to Apollo Crews. On the September 3 episode of Raw, Dana Brooke parted ways with Titus Worldwide after mid-match coaching backfired, causing Brooke to lose her match.
On the October 15 episode of Raw, Crews returned as a singles competitor when he interrupted Elias during his performance, thus disbanding Titus Worldwide. The following week, he lost to Elias. On the December 31 episode of Raw, Crews won a battle royal by eliminating eight wrestlers to become the number one contender for the Intercontinental Championship against Dean Ambrose. That same night, he was defeated by Ambrose. On January 27, 2019, at the Royal Rumble, Crews entered the Royal Rumble match at #20 but was eliminated by Baron Corbin. On April 7, 2019, at WrestleMania 35, Crews competed in the André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, but was eliminated by Andrade.
United States Champion (2019–2020)
As part of the Superstar Shake-up, Crews was drafted back to the SmackDown brand. At SummerSlam on August 11, Crews lost to Buddy Murphy by disqualification after interference from Erick Rowan. In August, Crews competed in the King of the Ring tournament, where was defeated by Andrade in the first round. On the April 6, 2020, episode of Raw, Crews was traded to the Raw brand, and lost to Aleister Black in his first match back as a Raw superstar.
On the April 20 episode of Raw, Crews defeated MVP to qualify for the Money in the Bank ladder match, however, he injured his knee in a WWE United States Championship match against Andrade the following week, ruling him out of the ladder match. Shortly after his return, off the back of a winning streak, on the May 25 episode of Raw, Crews defeated Andrade to win the United States Championship, his first title in WWE. At Backlash on June 14, Crews retained the title against Andrade in a rematch. In June, he began a feud with The Hurt Business after Crews rejected an offer to join the stable. A title defense was set up between Crews and The Hurt Business' leader MVP on July 19 at The Horror Show at Extreme Rules, however, Crews was absent at the event, and MVP declared himself as the new champion. In reality, Crews had tested positive for COVID-19, though in storyline, he suffered a bulging disc as a result from an attack by Bobby Lashley. Crews returned on the August 3 episode of Raw and retained the title against MVP, as well as in a rematch on August 23 at SummerSlam. Seven days later at Payback on August 30, Crews lost the United States Championship to Lashley. On September 27 at Clash of Champions, Crews failed to regain the title from Lashley.
Intercontinental Champion (2020–2021)
As part of the 2020 Draft in October, Crews was drafted back to the SmackDown brand. On the January 8, 2021, episode of SmackDown, Big E issued an open challenge for the WWE Intercontinental Championship, which Crews immediately accepted and lost. On the February 19 episode of SmackDown, after losing to Shinsuke Nakamura, Crews attacked Big E, who was at ringside, turning heel for the first time in his career.
Crews would then debut a new character where he declared himself Nigerian royalty, began to speak with a Nigerian accent in his promos in order to "embrace who he really is" and began coming to the ring with a spear. On March 21 at Fastlane, Crews failed to win the Intercontinental Championship from Big E. On the April 2 episode of SmackDown, Crews challenged Big E at WrestleMania 37 in a Nigerian Drum Fight for the title, which Big E accepted. On the second night of the event on April 11, he defeated Big E with the help of Commander Azeez to win the Intercontinental Championship. Crews then successfully retained his title against Kevin Owens on the April 23 episode of SmackDown, against Owens, Big E, and Sami Zayn in a fatal four-way match on the May 21 episode of SmackDown, and against Owens again on the June 4 episode of SmackDown. On the August 13 episode of SmackDown, Crews lost the title to King Nakamura, ending his reign at 124 days. He failed to win the title in a rematch on the September 24 episode of SmackDown.
As part of the 2021 Draft, both Crews and Azeez were drafted to the Raw brand. He participated in a battle royal at Survivor Series on November 21 and challenged Damian Priest for the United States Championship on the November 29 episode of Raw, but failed to win both.
Brand switches (2022–present)
After spending most of the year relegated to Main Event, Crews and Azeez were sent to NXT 2.0, making his return without Azeez on the June 7, 2022 episode of NXT 2.0 as a face, confronting NXT Champion Bron Breakker. He made his in ring return to the brand on the same night, where he and Solo Sikoa defeated Carmelo Hayes and Grayson Waller. On July 5 at The Great American Bash, Crews cut a promo on who he should face in NXT, but was interrupted by Giovanni Vinci. This led to a match between the two on the following episode of NXT, which Crews lost. Crews soon began a feud with Grayson Waller, and on the August 30 episode of NXT, Crews lost to Waller after he was poked in the eye. On the October 11 episode of NXT, a casket match between the two was made official for Halloween Havoc. At the event on October 22, Crews defeated Waller. On December 10 at Deadline, Crews challenged Breakker for the NXT Championship in a losing effort. He then engaged in a feud with Carmelo Hayes, leading to a two out of three falls match on February 4, 2023, at Vengeance Day, where Crews lost to Hayes in two straight falls. After the match, he was attacked by his former ally Dabba-Kato, originally Commander Azeez, who defeated Crews on the March 14 episode of NXT. On April 18, Crews wrestled his final match in NXT, where he was defeated by Dijak.
As part of the 2023 WWE Draft, Crews was drafted back to the Raw brand.
Other media
Uhaa, as Apollo Crews, has appeared in the video games as a playable character in WWE 2K17 (as a downloadable character), WWE 2K18, WWE 2K19, WWE 2K20, WWE 2K22 and WWE 2K23.
Personal life
Uhaa is of Nigerian descent. His father is originally from Vandeikya, Benue State in the middle belt region of Nigeria. His mother is also from Benue State. Uhaa's sister is in the United States Army and stationed in San Antonio, Texas.
Uhaa is married to Linda Palonen. They have two children.
Championships and accomplishments
Dragon Gate
Open the Twin Gate Championship (1 time) – with BxB Hulk
Dragon Gate USA
Best Newcomer (2011)
Full Impact Pro
FIP Florida Heritage Championship (1 time)
Great Championship Wrestling
GCW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
Preston City Wrestling
PCW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
Pro Wrestling Illustrated
Ranked No. 65 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2021
World Wrestling Alliance 4
WW4A Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Magic
WW4A Internet Championship (1 time)
WWE
WWE Intercontinental Championship (1 time)
WWE United States Championship (1 time)
References
External links
Dragon Gate profile
1987 births
African-American male professional wrestlers
American male professional wrestlers
American sportspeople of Nigerian descent
Living people
NWA/WCW/WWE United States Heavyweight Champions
Phi Beta Sigma Brothers
Professional wrestlers from California
Sportspeople from Sacramento, California
WWF/WWE Intercontinental Champions
21st-century professional wrestlers
Open the Twin Gate Champions