Xavier

John Jirus (December 28, 1977 –August 16, 2020) was an American professional wrestler, best known for his appearances with Ring of Honor between 2002 and 2004 as Xavier.
==Career==
Jirus trained under Tony DeVito before debuting in 1997. He wrestled for various independent promotions in New York City, adopting the ring name "Xavier", before joining Ring of Honor in 2002.
===Ring of Honor===
Xavier appeared on the first ever Ring of Honor (ROH) show, The Era of Honor Begins, on February 23, 2002, defeating Scoot Andrews. Throughout the following months, Xavier feuded with Andrews and James Maritato. He took part in the Road to the Title tournament, attempting to become the number one contender to the ROH Championship, but was eliminated in the first round by The Amazing Red. After decisively defeating Andrews on several occasions, Xavier requested, and was granted, a shot at the ROH Championship. He faced the incumbent, Low-Ki, on September 21, 2002, and defeated Low-Ki in a match which saw extensive cheating on the part of Xavier and interference from Christopher Daniels. Following his victory, the newly crowned champion joined Daniels' heel stable, The Prophecy. With the help of The Prophecy, Xavier successfully defended his title against Jay Briscoe, A.J. Styles and, on two occasions, Paul London, before losing to Samoa Joe at Night of Champions on March 22, 2003.
Following his defeat, Xavier was absent for several months. He returned to ROH at Death Before Dishonor on July 19, 2003, and subsequently turned his back on The Prophecy. He lost to his former partner, Christopher Daniels, in a match for the number one contendership on August 16 at Bitter Friends, Stiffer Enemies. Throughout the remainder of the year, Xavier took part in the Field of Honor tournament, losing to Matt Stryker in the semi-finals, and feuded with John Walters, culminating in a "fight without honor" at Final Battle 2003 on December 27 which was won by Walters.
In 2004, Xavier joined The Embassy, a heel stable led by Prince Nana. He remained in The Embassy until April 2004, when he was sidelined for six months with a shoulder injury. He recovered from his injury in December 2004 and returned to the independent circuit.
Xavier returned to ROH on February 11, 2006, challenging Bryan Danielson for the ROH World Championship after Embassy member Alex Shelley missed the event due to weather conditions. He lost to Danielson by disqualification following interference from Jimmy Rave, another member of The Embassy. On February 16, 2007 Xavier returned to ROH to replace an injured Davey Richards in a "four way fray" match involving SHINGO, Jack Evans and Jimmy Jacobs. He was eliminated first.
===World Wrestling Entertainment===
Xavier first appeared in World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) on January 18, 2003, losing to Chuck Palumbo on an episode of WWE Velocity. He made further appearances on Velocity on March 8 and June 28 of that year, losing to Bill DeMott and Spanky respectively. Over the following two years, Xavier made several appearances with WWE as an extra in angles. On the December 31, 2005 Velocity, he lost to Paul Burchill in a match that saw him use the name "John Xavier". On May 11, 2007, Xavier teamed up with Scotty Charisma to take on Eugene and Jim Duggan.
==In wrestling==
*Finishing moves
**450 Degrees of Fear (450° splash)
**Kiss Your X Goodbye (Pumphandle sitout facebuster)
**X Breaker (Straight jacket hangman's neckbreaker)
*Signature moves
**Cobra clutch, sometimes transitioned into a suplex
**High knee
**Sitout suplex slam
**Springboard moonsault to an opponent on the outside
**Superkick
**X Slam (Backbreaker rack flipped into an inverted Samoan drop)
*Managers
**Simply Luscious
**Allison Danger
**Lollipop
**Prince Nana
*Teams and stables
**The Embassy
**Nana Corp with Papadon
**The Prophecy
==Championships and accomplishments==
*East Coast Wrestling Association
**ECWA Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
*Impact Championship Wrestling
**ICW Heavyweight Championship (3 times)
**ICW North Eastern Championship (1 time)
**ICW Tag Team Championship (1 time) with Christopher Daniels (1)
*Jersey All Pro Wrestling
**JAPW Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
*New Age Wrestling Federation
**NAWF Connecticut Cup Championship (1 time)
*New York Wrestling Connection
**NYWC Interstate Championship (1 time)
*Northeast Wrestling
**NEW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
*Ring of Honor
**ROH Championship (1 time)
*USA Pro Wrestling
**USA Pro Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
**USA Pro United States Championship (1 time)
**USA Pro Tag Team Championship (1 time) with Low Ki (1)
**USA Pro Xtreme Championship (2 times)
*Wrestling Superstars Unleashed
**WSU Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
==External links==
* Profile
* Profile
zh:Xavier
Category:American wrestlers
Category:ROH World Champions
Category:New York wrestlers
Category:1997 debuts
Category:Big Time Wrestling alumni
Category:Chaotic Wrestling alumni
Category:East Coast Wrestling Association alumni
Category:Full Throttle Wrestling alumni
Category:Impact Championship Wrestling alumni
Category:Irish Whip Wrestling alumni
Category:Jersey All Pro Wrestling alumni
Category:Jersey Championship Wrestling alumni
Category:Maryland Championship Wrestling alumni
Category:New England Championship Wrestling alumni
Category:New York Wrestling Connection alumni
Category:Northeast Wrestling alumni
Category:NWA Cyberspace alumni
Category:NWA Shockwave alumni
Category:Pro Pain Pro Wrestling alumni
Category:Pro Wrestling Elite alumni
Category:Pro Wrestling IRON alumni
Category:Pro Wrestling Syndicate alumni
Category:Pro Wrestling Xpress alumni
Category:Ring of Honor alumni
Category:Total Nonstop Action Wrestling alumni
Category:Urban Empire Wrestling alumni
Category:USA Pro Wrestling alumni
Category:USA Xtreme Wrestling alumni
Category:Victory Pro Wrestling alumni
Category:World Wrestling Entertainment alumni
Category:Male wrestlers
Category:2020 deaths
Category:Wrestlers who have died
Category:1977 births