Steve Corino Steven Eugene ( Steve ) Corino ( May 29 , 1973 ) is a Canadian professional wrestler , currently working for Ring of Honor and numerous independent promotions . Corino is a former NWA World Heavyweight Champion , ECW World Heavyweight Champion , AWA World Heavyweight Champion . Corino has held 50 titles in his career . Steve Cornio was officially retired at the end of 2007 , but came out of retirement in February 2008 . Professional Wrestling Career . Early years ( 1994 – 1998 ) . Corino began wrestling in 1994 and spent four years working on the independent circuit . During this time , he was a part of the Organization of Modern Extreme Grappling Arts , a promotion run by Matt and Jeff Hardy . Corino began an anti - hardcore gimmick on the independent circuit , because he felt he would have more chance of getting work if he did not work hardcore matches . He gained experience , working in Puerto Rico for the WWC , working under the ring name Lightning Kid ( which had been a gimmick previously used by Sean Waltman ) and also made some appearances for the WWF as a jobber . Extreme Championship Wrestling ( 1998 – 2001 ) . In 1998 , Corino debuted in Extreme Championship Wrestling as a heel manager . He stood out in ECW as a result of his " King of Old School " gimmick , where he would deride hardcore wrestlers , at one point invading a Limp Bizkit concert and protesting the immoral conduct . In late 1999 , Corino took Jack Victory on as a manager , and became an advisor for Tajiri and Rhino . He then began feuding with Dusty Rhodes , who defeated him in a gory Bullrope match at Living Dangerously 2000 . At Heat Wave 2000 , he lost to Jerry Lynn . Corino went on to win the ECW World Heavyweight Championship on November 5 , 2000 at November to Remember by defeating Justin Credible , Sandman and Champion Jerry Lynn in a Double Jeopardy match ; then to successfully defend it at Massacre on 34th Street in December against Jerry Lynn and Justin Credible in a 3 way dance . Due to repeated failures of ECW paying Corino his salary , he left the company on January 7 , 2001 , the night he lost the ECW World Title at Guilty as Charged 2001 to Sandman . His friend Dustin Rhodes got him a contract in World Championship Wrestling , but he never got to make an appearance despite being due to debut at the company ' s third to last PPV Sin . When World Wrestling Entertainment took over WCW in March 2001 , they released Corino from his contract . He went on to wrestle for many of the National Wrestling Alliance regional promotions . On April 24 , he won the NWA World Heavyweight title . Independent circuit ( 2001 – 2006 ) . Corino continued his feud with Rhodes in his Turnbuckle Championship Wrestling promotion as well as Southern Championship Wrestling and was part of the Extreme Horsemen with C . W . Anderson and Barry Windham . He was also part of the Extreme Horsemen in Major League Wrestling with C . W . Anderson , Justin Credible and Simon Diamond . They were briefly managed by the legendary James J . Dillon before MLW folded . Also , Corino went on to win the MLW World Heavyweight Championship before the promotion was folded . In 2004 Corino made a number of appearances for Frontier Wrestling Alliance in the United Kingdom , where he entered a short rivalry with Alex Shane . The feud culminated in the main event match of Hotwired , where Corino defeated Shane with the assistance of then FWA Heavyweight Champion , Doug Williams . As Steve Corino was a major part of ECW towards the end of its run , rumors swirled surrounding Corino possibly signing with World Wrestling Entertainment and returning to his ECW roots as a part of the new version of ECW , but he squashed those rumors in a posting on his LiveJournal . Instead of signing with WWE , Corino worked in various independent promotions , including Zero - One , Hustle in Japan , Ring of Honor in the United States and both One Pro Wrestling and Celtic Wrestling in the United Kingdom . He was also president of World - 1 Fighting Arts , which runs shows in Michigan , Pennsylvania and Georgia . Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ( 2002 , 2003 ) . Corino also worked for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling during its early days . Corino had matches with Low Ki and many other stars before leaving the promotion some time later . Ring of Honor ( 2002 – 2006 ) . Responding to a challenge from The Backseat Boyz , Homicide invited anyone in the locker room to be his partner . Steve Corino made his ROH debut and responded to his offer , resulting in the two facing the Backseat Boys later that night . In the course of the match , Corino turned on Homicide after Homicide accidentally hit him , Old School Kicking his partner and leaving the ring , enabling the Backseat Boyz to easily defeat Homicide . Homicide and Corino would then begin a four - year rivalry , with Corino criticizing Homicide ' s lifestyle and somewhat checkered past . The feud culminated in a match at the One Year Anniversary Show on February 8 , 2003 in Queens , New York , New York . Homicide was the hometown favorite , but lost to Corino following interference from The Group ( Samoa Joe , Michael Shane , C . W . Anderson and Simply Luscious ) , Corino ' s entourage . After the match , Corino applied a cobra clutch to Homicide , while the rest of The Group mocked New York City , instigating a worked riot . Corino and Homicide had a rematch August 16 , 2003 , at " Bitter Friends , Stiffer Enemies " which saw Corino defeated . After twenty minutes of fighting which saw both men bleeding and carrying injuries , Homicide trapped Corino in a modified STF , prompting Corino ' s corner man , Guillotine LeGrande , to throw in the towel , awarding the match to Homicide . In the course of the match , Corino suffered a legitimate ruptured eardrum , and permanently lost most of the hearing in his left ear following a stiff slap to the side of the head from Homicide . Homicide has since stated in a shoot interview that he is not sorry for costing Corino his hearing , claiming Corino had been stiff with him the whole match . Homicide faced Corino for a third time on November 29 , 2003 , at " War of the Wire " in a barbed wire match . This time however , Julius Smokes threw in the towel for Homicide after Corino throttled him with a length of barbed wire . Corino offered Homicide a handshake after the match , indicating that he finally respected Homicide , but Homicide refused to shake his hand . On October 14 , 2005 , at " Enter the Dragon " , Corino returned to ROH in a tag team match that saw him team with Colt Cabana to defeat Low Ki and Homicide . On December 3 in New York City at " Steel Cage Warfare " , Homicide lost to Corino in a rematch from their feud of 2003 after Colt Cabana , under a mask , interfered in the match . During the match , Homicide separated his shoulder , but opted not to have surgery . As a result of his injury , Homicide was unable to compete at the following show , " Final Battle 2005 " . He did show up , however , but with the intent on killing Steve Corino . Following Corino ' s match , Homicide ran down to the ring and attacked him . Colt Cabana ran down to the ring to save Corino , only to have Homicide pour Drano down his throat . He returned to ROH in August 2006 after a long absence , reigniting his feud with Homicide . The feud culminated on November 4 in Philadelphia , at " The Bitter End " when Homicide beat Corino in a Fight Without Honor . Although the two still hated each other , they shook hands after the match and Corino allowed Homicide to shave his head .