Balls Mahoney Jonathan Rechner ( April 11 , 1972 - April 12 , 2016 ) better known by his ring name Balls Mahoney , was an American professional wrestler . Mahoney is perhaps best known for his appearances with Extreme Championship Wrestling in the late 1990s and early 2000s , as well as working for World Wrestling Entertainment wrestling on its " ECW " brand . Professional wrestling career . World Wrestling Council ( 1987 – 1990 ) . Jon Rechner trained at the Monster Factory and debuted in 1987 , at age 15 , as Abbudah Singh . He originally wrestled in the independent circuit and for Stu Hart ' s Stampede Wrestling on a few occasions . He also wrestled for Puerto Rico - based World Wrestling Council , where he formed a tag team with Rip Rogers and the two won the WWC World Tag Team Championship twice . Smoky Mountain Wrestling ( 1994 – 1995 ) . He made a small name for himself as the villainous Boo Bradley Jr . ( a take - off of the character Boo Radley from " To Kill a Mockingbird " ) in 1994 in Smoky Mountain Wrestling ( SMW ) where he had a long rivalry with his kayfabe childhood friend , Chris Candido . He was originally allied with Candido and managed by Tammy Sytch , who abused him for months , but they eventually turned on him , killing his pet cat , and turning him into a fan favorite in the process . During this time , Bradley won the SMW Beat the Champ Television Championship twice . He briefly formed a team with Cactus Jack who convinced him to be his own person . World Wrestling Federation ( 1995 – 1996 ) . In 1995 , he briefly appeared in the World Wrestling Federation as Xanta Klaus . At in December , while Savio Vega and " Santa Claus " were at ringside handing out presents and playing to the fans , villainous manager " Million Dollar Man " Ted DiBiase appeared . DiBiase proclaimed that everyone had a price , even Santa . As Vega argued with DiBiase , " Santa " jumped him from behind and attacked him . DiBiase laughed his trademark laugh and introduced this warped Santa as Xanta Klaus , Santa ' s evil brother from the South Pole who steals presents . As Xanta , Rechner made only a couple more appearances ( one on the following night ' s " Monday Night Raw " ) , before never being mentioned again . Extreme Championship Wrestling . Hardcore Chair Swingin ' Freaks ( 1997 – 1999 ) . In 1997 , Rechner signed with Extreme Championship Wrestling ( ECW ) and found success as Balls Mahoney . Capitalizing on the ECW crowd ' s lust for violence and the hardcore attitude Rechner was never seen without his signature steel chair , usually with some kind of writing or sign placed on it , which he would use to bash any opponent at any time . He would come to the ring to the AC / DC song " Big Balls " and lead the crowd in singing the chorus before or after his matches . While in ECW he teamed with Axl Rotten , a similar hardcore and violent wrestler , and the duo became informally known as " The Hardcore Chair Swingin ' Freaks " . They feuded with the Dudley Boyz ( Buh Buh Ray and D - Von ) during their tenure . Mahoney made his pay - per - view debut at November to Remember , participating in a Four - Way Dance match for the Tag Team Championship , along with his partner Rotten ; The F . B . I . ( Tracy Smothers and Little Guido ) retained the titles . At Living Dangerously , they participated in a three way dance , along with the Dudleyz in a losing effort to Spike Dudley and New Jack . Mahoney and Rotten got another chance at the titles at Wrestlepalooza against Chris Candido and Lance Storm , but lost . After failing to win the titles with Rotten , Mahoney found a new partner in Masato Tanaka . At November to Remember , the two defeated Dudley Boyz to win the ECW World Tag Team Championship — Mahoney ' s first reign as tag champion . Five days later , Mahoney and Tanaka dropped the title back to the Dudleyz in a rematch . At Guilty as Charged , Mahoney and Rotten defeated the F . B . I . and Danny Doring and Roadkill in a three - way dance . Tag team with Spike Dudley ( 1999 ) . Mahoney ' s first singles match at a pay - per - view was a victory over Steve Corino at Living Dangerously . Shortly after , Mahoney formed a tag team with Spike Dudley . At Hardcore Heaven , the two faced the Dudleyz in a championship match but failed to win the title . The two teams faced in a rematch at Heat Wave , and this time , Mahoney and Dudley won the match and the ECW Tag Team Championship , marking Mahoney ' s second individual reign . At a show in August , the duo lost the title back to the Dudleyz . On the August 14 edition of " ECW on TNN " , they defeated the Dudleyz in another rematch to win back the ECW Tag Team Championship . On the August 26 edition of " ECW on TNN " , they lost the titles to the Dudleyz again . At Anarchy Rulz , ECW World Television Champion Rob Van Dam was scheduled to defend his title against Johnny Smith but before the match , Mahoney , Rotten , and Dudley attacked Smith and took him out of the match . Mahoney challenged RVD for the title but lost the match . At November to Remember , Mahoney and Rotten lost to Da Baldies ( Spanish Angel , Tony DeVito , Vito LoGrasso , and P . N . News ) in a 4 - on - 2 handicap match . Final days of ECW ( 2000 – 2001 ) . During an exchange of blows , ECW fans would often chant " Balls ! " when Rechner landed a punch or kick on an opponent , and " Nuts ! " when his opponent retaliated . This gimmick was inherited from Hack Meyers . At Living Dangerously , he defeated Kintaro Kanemura . He met his former tag team partner , Masato Tanaka in the first match at Hardcore Heaven , which Tanaka won . At Heat Wave , he lost a match to F . B . I . member Sal E . Graziano . He formed a tag team with Chilly Willy and the duo feuded with Da Baldies . After losing a match to Da Baldies at Anarchy Rulz , Mahoney and Willy defeated them in a Flaming Tables match at November to Remember . At Massacre on 34th Street , Mahoney lost to EZ Money . Mahoney ' s final ECW appearance was at ECW ' s final pay - per - view Guilty as Charged where Mahoney and Chilly Willy ' s match with Simon Diamond and Johnny Swinger ended in a no contest . Independent circuit ( 2001 – 2006 ) . After ECW folded , Rechner spent time in a number of independent federations across America , most notably USA Pro Wrestling ( UXW ) as well as Juggalo Championship Wrestling where he united with The Dead Pool ( Violent J , Shaggy 2 Dope , and Raven ) to become The Dead Pool 2000 . He also had a brief run in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ( TNA ) , teaming with The Sandman to face off against The Gathering . World Wrestling Entertainment ( 2005 – 2008 ) . In 2005 , Mahoney made a non - wrestling appearance at the World Wrestling Entertainment ( WWE ) promoted ECW One Night Stand reunion show , taking part — alongside Axl Rotten — in a brawl with Kid Kash , Tommy Dreamer , The Sandman , the Dudley Boyz , and the Blue World Order ( bWo ) before the main event . After the main event , Mahoney and Rotten returned to the ring to brawl with the " invading " Raw and SmackDown ! wrestlers . In 2006 , when WWE relaunched ECW as their own brand , one of the first announcements was the signing of Balls Mahoney . His signing was announced with that of Axl Rotten , but when Rotten missed some WWE dates and was released , Balls was left to start a singles career . During the " cross promotion " hype , Balls appeared on the June 5 edition of " Raw " with other ECW wrestlers who proceeded to attack WWE Champion John Cena . He appeared again as a part of the ECW team in the " WWE vs . ECW team battle royal " at the " WWE vs . ECW Head to Head " event on June 7 . At One Night Stand , Balls defeated Masato Tanaka in a match following a chair shot ( denting the chair ) to Tanaka ' s head . When " ECW on Sci Fi " debuted , Balls started off with a small role in the company , having sporadic matches and little else . Once the show got going he started to appear in vignettes talking about how tough he was , elevating his role on the show . On the September 5 edition of " ECW on Sci Fi " Mahoney entered a feud with Kevin Thorn after Thorn and his valet Ariel cost him a match against Stevie Richards and the next week , René Duprée . The following week , he brought Francine to ringside with him , marking her first televised appearance at the revived ECW ring , where she proceeded to get into a catfight with Ariel . That pairing , however , was short lived as Francine was released shortly after . At December to Dismember , Mahoney defeated Matt Striker in a Striker ' s Rules match . On the January 2 , 2007 edition of " ECW on Sci Fi " , Mahoney had one of his front teeth legitimately knocked out during a match with Kevin Thorn . Shortly after , Balls began a short feud with Snitsky . On the June 5 edition of " ECW " , Balls , Tommy Dreamer , and the Sandman faced Bobby Lashley in a 3 on 1 Hardcore Handicap match for the ECW Championship , in which they were defeated . On the August 7 , 2007 episode of " ECW " , Balls went against The Miz in a losing effort . During and after the match , it appeared that Kelly Kelly was concerned about him . Over the weeks that followed , he attempted to ask her out and flirted with her backstage , but was interrupted by The Miz , Brooke , and Layla before Kelly could get a word in . Regardless , Kelly still showed interest in him each week , wishing him good luck before his match and cheering him on during his match . He asked if she would go out with him to which she could not respond due to The Miz taking her backstage . Weeks later , however , Kelly asked him out , starting an on - screen relationship . On February 29 , 2008 , Balls made his return to television on " SmackDown ! " , taking on Big Daddy V . The match went to a no contest after The Undertaker chokeslam med Mahoney . Mahoney was released from his WWE contract on April 28 , 2008 . Return to Independent circuit ( 2008 – 2016 ) . On December 13 , 2008 he returned to wrestling in World Wrestling Council his re - debut match against Abdullah the Butcher in Bayamon Puerto Rico in the annual event WWC Lockout , Abdullah the Butcher ' s final match in WWC . On April 16 , he and Brother Runt appeared on " TNA Impact ! " to wish Team 3D luck in their match at Lockdown . They later were attacked by Beer Money , Inc . . He has also started competing for ISPW . Mahoney made an appearance for Insane Clown Posse ' s Juggalo Championship Wrestling at the 10th Annual Gathering Of The Juggalos on August 8 , 2009 , interfering in a " Loser Leaves JCW " match between 2 Tuff Tony and Viscera , which also featured WWE Hall of Famer Terry Funk as a special guest referee . After Viscera won the match , he , Mahoney , and Funk all attacked Tony . Also , as of late - 2009 , Mahoney has become a regular competitor for National Wrestling Superstars . On April 30 , 2010 and May 1 , 2010 , Mahoney competed in Perth , WA for New Horizons Pro Wrestling in their Global Conflict tournament . He made it to the finals before being beaten by Colt Cabana . On May 8 , 2010 , Mahoney made his debut for Ring of Honor , saving Grizzly Redwood from Erick Stevens and The Embassy . On July 29 , 2010 , it was confirmed that Mahoney would take part in TNA ' s ECW reunion show Hardcore Justice on August 8 . However , his name was later pulled from the event ' s official website . On August 8 it was revealed that this was done due to WWE owning the name Balls Mahoney . At the event Rechner , using the ring name Kahoneys , teamed with Axl Rotten in a South Philadelphia Street Fight , where they were defeated by Team 3D . After the match Rechner vented his frustrations on Axl Rotten , proclaiming that he would never again team with him . On September 11 , 2010 , Rechner returned to Ring of Honor at Glory By Honor IX , where he , competing under the ring name Ballz Mahoney , teamed with Grizzly Redwood in a losing effort against Erick Stevens and Necro Butcher . On October 23 , 2010 , Mahoney and Axl Rotten reunited at a Jersey All Pro Wrestling , where they unsuccessfully challenged Monsta Mack and Havok for the JAPW Tag Team Championship , in a three – way match , which was won by Sami Callihan and Chris Dickinson . On March 5 , 2011 , Mahoney teamed up with Homicide at an FTW Wrestling show in Ronkonkoma , NY , to unsuccessfully challenge the reigning World Tag Team Champions , Jay Lover and Tommy Buddz , in a No Holds Barred match . On August 20 , 2011 , Mahoney no - showed an event in Ottawa , IL against Mad Man Pondo . This show was to be the last for the promotion and was a benefit show for the American Cancer Society . The promoters apologized and said that he had missed his flight . They said that they had gotten him a ticket for a later flight , but due to the severe weather that had gone through the Chicago area earlier in the day , he was not going to be able to make it . After his match , his scheduled opponent , Mad Man Pondo , said that Mahoney had the plane ticket , but chose not to use it . Other media . On April 26 , 2007 it was announced that Mahoney would be an adviser to the cast of the reality show " Who Wants to Be a Superhero ? " . During the season finale , he taught the superheroes how to fight . Personal life . Rechner and his girlfriend have a son named Christopher , who was born on November 15 , 2007 . Rechner has numerous tattoos , including two tribal pieces , a dragon and inverted pentagram on his arm , and a tattoo dedicated to Chris Candido . On August 21 , 2010 Rechner was charged with disorderly conduct after brandishing a knife during a staged fight with another wrestler , ring name Calypso Jim Zaccone in South Brunswick , New Jersey . The fight was meant to drum up publicity for an upcoming match in Perth Amboy , New Jersey . Death . On April 12 , 2016 , one day after his 44th birthday , Rechner died suddenly at his home in Spring Lake Heights , New Jersey . He was watching " Jeopardy ! " and answering trivia questions before laying on his side to get more comfortable . Moments later , his wife noticed he was unconscious and called 911 before attempting CPR . However , he had already passed before medics arrived . His death was first reported via Twitter by Johnny Candido . Other sources later confirmed his death .