Lance Cade Lance Kurtis McNaught ( March 2 , 1981 – August 13 , 2010 ) was an American professional wrestler . He was best known for his time in World Wrestling Entertainment ( WWE ) where he performed under the ring names Garrison Cade and Lance Cade . After being trained by Shawn Michaels , Cade made his debut in 1999 , and worked in Japan before being signed to a developmental contract by WWE . He was assigned to Memphis Championship Wrestling , and later Heartland Wrestling Association , before ending up in Ohio Valley Wrestling ( OVW ) in 2003 . In OVW , he formed a tag team with Mark Jindrak , and they were promoted to the " Raw " brand in June 2003 . In 2004 the team split up , and Cade took time off after a knee injury , before returning to " Raw " with a new tag partner in Trevor Murdoch . The pair teamed together for almost three years , before they broke up in May 2008 . Cade then entered a storyline with Chris Jericho and Michaels , however , he was released on October 14 , 2008 . Cade was a three - time World Tag Team Champion with Murdoch in WWE , and has also held the HWA Heavyweight Championship and HWA Tag Team Championship with both Steve Bradley and Mike Sanders . He was a former one - time TWA Television Champion in the Texas Wrestling Alliance . Professional wrestling career . Cade started his wrestling career by becoming a student of Shawn Michaels at the Shawn Michaels Wrestling Academy in San Antonio , Texas in 1999 . Japan ( 1999 - 2000 ) . Cade and fellow wrestler Bryan Danielson went to Japan on December 1 , 1999 . They competed in Frontier Martial - Arts Wrestling ( FMW ) . Cade and Danielson worked as a tag team for a while before they went their separate ways ; Cade stayed in FMW and faced off against Extreme Championship Wrestling wrestler Balls Mahoney in tag team matches and a three way dance against another FMW wrestler . Cade left FMW after he was defeated by Mahoney in a three way dance on February 25 , 2000 , also involving Crazy Boy . Heartland Wrestling Association ( 2001 – 2002 ) . After Cade signed with the World Wrestling Federation ( WWF ) , he was sent to Memphis Championship Wrestling in 2001 . During the summer of that same year , he was moved to Les Thatcher ' s Heartland Wrestling Association ( HWA ) . Cade quickly formed a tag - team with Surfer Cody Hawk , but the team split after only a few months when Cade joined the World Championship Wrestling camp in HWA ' s Invasion angle . Cade aligned with Mike Sanders , a former WCW wrestler . The downfall of the team came on February 13 , 2002 , when Lance Cade and Mike Sanders defeated Val Venis and Steve Bradley to win the HWA Tag - Team titles . Cade and Sanders broke up that very day , and the titles were vacated . The next week , Cade faced Sanders and defeated him in a singles match , giving Cade the belts . Cade then chose Steve Bradley to be his new partner . However , Cade and Bradley had problems defeating WWF competition , as Hugh Morrus and Raven defeated on March 12 , 2002 for the titles . Cade and Bradley , however , won the HWA Tag Titles three days later . In April 2002 , Cade ' s first HWA tag - team partner returned , as Cody Hawk and the Ice Cream Man defeated Cade and Bradley for the tag - team titles . Cade and Bradley tried for the next month to get the titles back , even winning a tag team championship contendership match to get another shot , but never managed to get the titles back . On May 19 , 2002 , Cade defeated Johnny the Bull to become the HWA Heavyweight Champion . Cade defended the title for 2 months before Johnny the Bull won the title back on July 20 . On the same night , however , Cade defeated Johnny in a second match , becoming the 2 - time Heavyweight Champion . This reign lasted only one day , as Cade , lost his title to Cody Hawk . Ohio Valley Wrestling ( 2003 – 2004 ) . During the summer of 2002 , the HWA was dropped as a developmental territory by the renamed World Wrestling Entertainment ( WWE ) , but Cade was transferred over to WWE ' s main developmental company , Ohio Valley Wrestling when he signed a developmental contract in 2003 . Cade continued to search for a strong tag - team partner to work with . He found René Duprée and both joined Kenny Bolin ' s Bolin Services . The two worked as a tag - team throughout most of their stay in OVW . In the OVW Tag Team Championship Tournament contested in February / March 2003 , Cade and Duprée defeated Matt Morgan and BJ Payne , but could not beat the Disciples of Synn in the finals . Cade and Duprée had another shot at Spring Break - Out 2003 , but the current champions at the time were WWE regulars The APA , and Cade and Duprée could not overcome the odds . Mark Jindrak later joined Bolin Services . Duprée appeared in WWE only a few weeks after their title shot . Cade continued tagging with Mark Jindrak , but was promoted to the Raw brand in June 2003 under the name , Garrison Cade . Debut and teaming with Mark Jindrak ( 2003 - 2004 ) . Cade debuted on an episode of Sunday Night Heat against Lance Storm , who forced him to submit to the Sharpshooter . The next night on Raw , he faced Storm in a re - match . Stone Cold Steve Austin came out interrupted , chanting the word " Boring " , and Storm became distracted , allowing Cade to sneak in and get the victory . Soon afterwards , Cade again found a tag - team partner , Mark Jindrak , to ally himself with , and began to challenge for the tag - team titles . The belts were being held by former Cade ally René Duprée and his new partner Sylvain Grenier , a unit collectively known as La Résistance . Over the next few months , Cade and Jindrak fought against many different teams , from La Resistance and the face gimmicks of the Dudley Boyz to battles against the top heels on " Raw " , Evolution . The duo also formed a semi - partnership with then babyface , Maven , helping each other out on occasion . Cade and Jindrak soon began to be known more for their cheating ways , however , rather than their abilities . This led them to turn heel and be entered into the Tag - Team Turmoil Match at Armageddon 2003 for the World Tag Team Titles . They came in from the crowd when their turn hit and quickly rolled up The Hurricane to eliminate him and Rosey . Cade and Jindrak next faced a face gimmick of Lance Storm and Val Venis , and Cade tripped up Venis from the outside on a suplex attempt , then held onto Venis ' legs while Jindrak made the pinfall . The next team to come down were the Dudley Boyz , who eventually took out Jindrak with the 3 - D to eliminate the boys . The duo got some revenge , though , attacking the Dudleys after the match before leaving , making it harder for the Dudley Boyz to come out victorious ( which they did not , losing at the end to then heels , Ric Flair and Batista ) . Going into 2004 , Cade and Jindrak continued to work together as a team , firmly entrenched in the mid - card ranks . The team got a win in March 2004 , when they defeated Hurricane and Rosey to earn a shot at the World Tag Team Championship at WrestleMania XX . Cade and Jindrak entered a four - way tag match against the champions , then babyface , Booker T and Rob Van Dam , and the other two competing teams , La Résistance and the Dudley Boyz . Cade and Jindrak lost the match though , after Rob Van Dam pinned Rob Conway . After Jindrak was drafted to " SmackDown " , Cade briefly associated himself with Jonathan Coachman , helping Coachman get a win over Tajiri at Backlash . Cade later teamed up with Coachman at Vengeance to take on the debuting team of Rhyno and Tajiri . Cade and Coachman lost the match , and Cade was taken off WWE TV after an injury in July 2004 . Return to Ohio Valley Wrestling ( 2005 ) . Cade was off WWE television for quite some time , due to the knee injury ( which was said to be a dislocated knee ) . In 2005 , Cade reappeared in OVW as his former self , Lance Cade , shedding the ring rust . Cade sided with The Blueprint Matt Morgan and Vengeance against the OVW Heavyweight Champion Elijah Burke . In February 2005 , Cade took on Burke in a $ 5 , 000 Bounty Match ( Morgan had put a bounty on Burke ' s head ) , but was defeated . Cade faded into the background for the next few weeks , eventually making his return to the ring at the June 3 OVW Summer Sizzler Series 2005 show , taking on Al Snow . While Cade brought his cowboy hat with him , Snow brought Head , routinely turning to the mannequin head for guidance . During the match , when Cade was knocked to the outside , Snow destroyed Cade ' s hat , stomping on it . This made the match more personal to Cade , but in the end , Snow knocked out Cade with Head , getting the victory . Later on that night , Cade interfered in the Brent Albright / Elijah Burke OVW Heavyweight Title match , with Cade attacking the champion , Albright . The two foes had a No Disqualification , Loser Must Tap Out Match at the OVW Summer Sizzler Series 2005 show on June 17 , 2005 . Cade tried to pin Albright early in the match . The ref did not allow it , causing a shoving match between the two . Later in the match , Albright got his Crowbar submission on Cade , but Cade escaped , then appeared to be leaving , with Albright chasing him down . Albright got the Crowbar applied on Cade again , right on the ramp . With nowhere to go , Cade was forced to tap , losing to Albright . Teaming with Trevor Murdoch ( 2005 – 2008 ) . On August 22 , 2005 a promo was shown on " Raw " showcasing a long haired Cade , who was soon to be returning with tag team partner Trevor Murdoch . The promo showed Cade and Murdoch portraying rednecks . Cade ( who dropped the stage name Garrison and started to wrestle under his real first name ) was playing the role of a smooth - talking cowboy , while Murdoch was depicted as an angry Southern trucker . Cade and Murdoch debuted as a team on " Raw " on September 5 , 2005 . They defeated the World Tag Team Champion s , Hurricane and Rosey in a non - title match . This earned them a World Tag Team title shot at Unforgiven 2005 . During the title match , Murdoch delivered an elevated DDT on The Hurricane to the outside . The DDT caused Hurricane to suffer a kayfabe stinger . It also allowed Cade and Murdoch to defeat Hurricane and Rosey for the World Tag Team championships . They defended against random teams on " Raw " for the next month before losing the titles to Big Show and Kane at Taboo Tuesday . After losing in a rematch the next night on " Raw " , Cade and Murdoch began to be squashed by other tag teams , before wrestling singles matches . On the November 28 edition of " Raw " , it was announced that Cade and Murdoch had parted ways as a tag team . The next week , Cade debuted with the gimmick of a " Refined Southern Gentleman , " wearing new tights with rhinestones on them as well as his new jacket he wore to the ring . Cade was relegated to Heat , making very few appearances on Raw at the end of 2005 . He had a chance to get into the 2006 Royal Rumble , competing with Rob Conway and Gregory Helms against the Big Show in a Second Chance Battle Royal . However , The Big Show won the spot in the Rumble . Eventually , the Cade and Murdoch tandem reformed as they were seen helping Chris Masters and Carlito attack Kane . On the April 14 edition of " Heat " , it was announced that Cade and Murdoch were reuniting as a tag team after Murdoch helped Cade defeat Goldust . Cade also debuted another slight change with wet hair and shorter tights with a design similar to when he was teaming with Murdoch . On the May 19 edition of " Heat " Cade and Murdoch officially reformed their tag team by facing and defeating Charlie Haas and Viscera . Cade and Murdoch next entered a short - lived feud against D - Generation X ( Triple H and Shawn Michaels ) . It started when Cade and Murdoch ambushed Shawn Michaels and Triple H , before Triple H ' s match with Vince McMahon on the September 11 episode of " Raw " . Cade and Murdoch continued to battle DX , until they were defeated in a street fight , ending the feud on October 9 . After biding much of their time on " Raw ' s " sister show " Heat " , Cade and Murdoch began a feud in April with World Tag Team Champions The Hardys , leading to their title match at Backlash 2007 , which The Hardys won . In the storyline , Cade and Murdoch suddenly gained a great deal of respect for The Hardys and began to praise their abilities . The Hardys then began an alliance with Cade and Murdoch . Despite the alliance , Cade and Murdoch faced The Hardys in a rematch at Judgment Day which The Hardys won . On the June 4 edition of " Raw " , Cade and Murdoch were given another shot at the World Tag Team Championship against The Hardys and were successful , becoming two time World Tag Team Champions . When Cade made the pin on Jeff Hardy , Hardy ' s foot was on the ropes but was pushed off by Murdoch . After the match , when Matt Hardy argued with Cade and Murdoch , they attacked Matt and Jeff with the tag belts , becoming heels again . At , Cade and Murdoch defeated the Hardys to retain the gold after Cade pinned Jeff . Cade along with Murdoch lost the titles at a house show on September 5 to Paul London and Brian Kendrick on a South Africa tour . Later on , in that same tour , Cade and Murdoch won the titles back . After 93 days , their third reign came to an end on December 10 at the Raw XV anniversary , when they lost the championship to the team of Hardcore Holly and Cody Rhodes . On December 28 , Cade separated his shoulder at a house show in Atlanta , and was inactive for the next month . Cade made his return , teaming with Murdoch , on February 4 , in a losing effort to Holly and Rhodes . Late in April 2008 , Murdoch began to develop a country singing gimmick . On the May 12 episode of " Raw " , Cade turned on Murdoch following a " victory song , " punching Murdoch in the face twice , ending the partnership . The two faced off on the June 2 , 2008 edition of " Raw " , with Cade getting the victory to end their feud . Alliance with Chris Jericho and departure ( 2008 ) . Cade formed an alliance with Chris Jericho on the June 16 airing of " Raw " when he assisted Jericho in laying out John Cena and Triple H . In the following weeks , Cade began accompanying Jericho to the ring for his matches , becoming a protégé of sorts and aiding him in his feud with Shawn Michaels . Cade claimed that , being a former protégé of Michaels , he was not going to wait for him to turn on him like Michaels did several past partners . At a Raw house show in early August , Cade suffered a broken nose in a match against Paul London , who was also busted open as a result of a botched move . Cade would return to in - ring action on " Raw " on September 22 in a handicap match with Jericho and John " Bradshaw " Layfield , defeating Michaels and Batista , with Cade pinning his former mentor . Michaels would then defeat Cade one - on - one in a no disqualification match on the October 6 episode , in what was Cade ' s last appearance . On October 14 , 2008 , Cade was released from his WWE contract . Jim Ross later stated that " he made a major league mistake while utilizing bad judgment " and that it was instrumental to his departure . Ross referenced Cade having a seizure on a plane and needing emergency medical care as a part of this . Independent circuit and Japan ( 2008 – 2010 ) . Less than a week after Cade ' s release , he began accepting bookings with Trevor Murdoch as a team on the independent circuit , including Independent Wrestling Association Mid - South as well as NWA Showcase . Cade returned to Japan in December 2008 teaming with his former tag team partner René Duprée for Hustle on December 24 and 25 . They appeared as masked wrestlers , Dyna and Might Sharpe , a parody of the Sharpe Brothers . The team defeated Tenyru and Koshinaka both nights . Five nights later they had their third and final match with Tenyru and Koshinaka and HUSTLEMANIA in a losing effort . Cade returned as " Cowboy " Cade , his former WWE character , on February 19 at Korukuen Hall to defeat the tag team of Tajiri and Akebono when Cade pinned Tajiri . On February 22 , Cade defeated Akebono in a singles match in the main event of Hustle ' s debut show in Chiba , Japan . Cade was scheduled to face NWA North American Heavyweight Champion Apollo in an " NWA On Fire " event on August 22 , 2009 , but was unable to attend due to a family emergency . He wrestled Trevor Murdoch at a World Stars of Wrestling event in September 2009 . In September 2009 , Cade was re - signed by WWE , appearing in its developmental territory Florida Championship Wrestling , but was released in April 2010 without returning to the main roster . He later began wrestling for All Japan Pro Wrestling in June 2010 , and at the time of his death had been scheduled to challenge for the AJPW Unified World Tag Team Championship teaming with René Duprée from the Voodoo Murders stable . Personal life . McNaught married Tanya R . Gonzalez on June 14 , 2000 , but they divorced on May 16 , 2006 . The couple had a daughter called Natallye ( born 2003 ) . Cade later remarried Tanya , and had another daughter called Laryssa ( born 2008 ) . Cade also had a stepson named Brian . He was the son - in - law of wrestler Black Gordman . In January 2010 , McNaught attended rehabilitation , and completed a 30 - day program in February . Cade was close friends with his tag team partner Trevor Murdoch , as well as his trainer Shawn Michaels , Charlie Haas , and WWE referee Marty Elias . Death . McNaught died on August 13 , 2010 at the age of 29 of apparent heart failure in San Antonio , Texas . McNaught ' s wife Tanya had noticed that Lance was not looking well in the week prior to his death , and he was taken to a hospital on August 10 with difficulty breathing , but discharged himself the next day . Two months later on October 13 , the medical examiner in San Antonio ruled his death as " accidental , " stating that intoxication from mixed drugs complicated a cardiomyopathy and caused his death . A Lance Cade Tribute Show took place on Saturday , March 5 , 2011 at the Texas Wrestling Academy Gym in San Antonio , Texas .