Devon Hughes

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Devon Hughes


Statistics
Ring name(s)	A-Train Brother Devon Deadly D-Von Dudley Reverend D-Von Brother Devon
Height	1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)
Weight	270lbs.
Billed height	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Billed weight	280 lb (130 kg/20 st)
Born	August 1, 1972 (1972-08-01) (age 35) New Rochelle, New York
Resides	Melbourne, Florida
Billed from	The Southside of Dudleyville New York City, New York
Trained by	Johnny Rodz^[1]
Debut	December 1991

Devon Hughes (born August 1, 1972) is an American professional wrestler, best known for his appearances with Extreme Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment as D-Von Dudley. He currently wrestles for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name "Brother Devon".

Along with his tag team partnerMark "Brother Ray" LoMonaco, Hughes is one-half of Team 3D, a tag team formerly known as the Dudley Boyz. Characterised by their unorthodox ring apparel and usage of tables in their matches, Team 3D are one of the most successful tag teams in the history of professional wrestling, having held over twenty world tag team championships. Team 3D is also occasionally a stable, when Ray and Devon's kayfabe half-brother Runt is included.

1 Career
2 In wrestling
3 Personal life
4 Championships and accomplishments
5 References
6 External links

[edit] Career

Hughes was trained by Johnny Rodz and began wrestling in December 1991 on the East Coast independent circuit as A-Train. He engaged in a feud with Latin Lover that was continued in many different promotions. Hughes is scheduled to return on April 5, 2008 to his hometown of New Rochelle, NY for a homecoming wrestling appearance for the New York State Wrestling Federation.

[edit] Extreme Championship Wrestling

On April 13, 1996, Hughes debuted in Extreme Championship Wrestling as D-Von Dudley (sometimes spelled "D'Von" or "Devon"). He feuded with the other members of the Dudley family (his kayfabe half-brothers), claiming that their comedic antics were not the way true Dudleys should act. Hughes eliminated Dances With Dudley, Dudley Dudley, and Chubby Dudley before joining forces with Buh Buh Ray Dudley, Big Dick Dudley, Sign Guy Dudley, and Joel Gertner. Known collectively as the Dudley Boys, D-Von and Buh Buh Ray dominated the ECW tag team division, winning the ECW Tag Team Championship a record eight times and defeating teams such as The Eliminators and The Gangstas. D-Von, Buh Buh Ray, and Gertner all achieved a degree of infamy for their vitriolic interviews, which antagonized audiences to a point of near riot.

[edit] World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment

In 1999, D-Von and Buh Buh Ray left ECW following a pay dispute and joined the World Wrestling Federation, where Buh Buh Ray was renamed "Bubba Ray". Throughout 2000 and 2001, the Dudley Boyz engaged in a three way feud for the WWF Tag Team Championship with The Hardy Boyz and Edge and Christian. The feud incorporated two critically acclaimed Tables, Ladders, and Chairs matches, the first at SummerSlam 2000 and the second at WrestleMania X-Seven. While they were initially heels, and were known for Bubba Ray's penchant for driving women (including Terri Runnels and Mae Young) through tables, the fans still cheered for them and the Dudley Boyz were turned face in mid-2000. In early 2001, they were joined in the WWF by Spike Dudley.

In late 2001, the Dudley Boyz turned heel once again by joining The Alliance, a large stable of former ECW and WCW wrestlers led by Shane McMahon and Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley who attempted to take over the WWF (Spike, along with several other ECW alumni, did not join The Alliance). The Invasion ended at the 2001 Survivor Series, when five WWF wrestlers defeated five Alliance wrestlers in a match to determine the ownership of the WWF. The Alliance disbanded and its members left the WWF, but the Dudley Boyz retained their jobs due to their possession of the WWF World Tag Team Championship, which they had unified with the WCW World Tag Team Championship at the Survivor Series. They became faces once again shortly thereafter.

Following WrestleMania X8 in March 2002, the WWF was renamed "World Wrestling Entertainment" (WWE) and the roster was divided into two brands, RAW and SmackDown!. The Dudley Boyz were separated when Bubba Ray was drafted to RAW and Hughes to SmackDown!. On SmackDown!, D-Von adopted the character of Reverend D-Von, a corrupt preacher who was frequently accompanied by his enforcer, Deacon Bautista. The character failed to get over,[1] and D-Von was reunited with Bubba Ray and Spike at the Survivor Series on November 17 when he returned to the RAW brand.

The Dudley Boyz became a stable in the RAW tag team division over the next sixteen months, feuding with teams such as Three Minute Warning, La Résistance, and various combinations of The Un-Americans. They held the WWF World Tag Team Championship several more times before being traded (along with Booker T) to SmackDown! on March 22, 2004 in exchange for Triple H.

Shortly after arriving on SmackDown!, the Dudley Boyz turned heel once again, siding with Paul Heyman and feuding with Rob Van Dam and Rey Mysterio. The Dudley Boyz kidnapped Paul Bearer, the manager of Heyman's enemy The Undertaker on May 27. On June 27 at The Great American Bash, The Undertaker defeated the Dudley Boyz in a handicap match. They beat Charlie Haas and Rico in June for the WWE Tag Team Championship but lost them the next month to Billy Kidman and Paul London the next month. In July, the Dudley Boyz reunited with Spike. For the remainder of the year, they assisted Spike in his matches for the WWE Cruiserweight Championship. In early 2005, the Dudley Boyz were removed from WWE television and sent to Ohio Valley Wrestling while the WWE creative team attempted to devise an angle for them.

The Dudley Boyz returned to WWE television in June 2005 in order to promote ECW One Night Stand, an ECW reunion show. In the weeks preceding One Night Stand they, along with several other ECW alumni, vied with former WCW President Eric Bischoff and his "anti-hardcore crusaders". At One Night Stand on June 12, the Dudley Boyz defeated Tommy Dreamer and The Sandman in the main event of the night after powerbombing Dreamer through a flaming table.

On July 5, WWE announced that it had opted not to continue contract renewal negotiations with the Dudley Boyz. In addition, fifteen other wrestlers (including Spike,Bubba ray and Dvon) were released by WWE, which was decreasing its spending as a result of a fall in projected revenue. In August 2005, all three former Dudleys were issued with legal notices instructing them not to use the (WWE trademarked) name "Dudley". This led to a degree of acrimony between the former Dudleys and their erstwhile employers, as they had used the names since 1996, several years before all ECW intellectual property was acquired by WWE as a result of bankruptcy proceedings. Soon after, Hughes and LoMonaco (Bubba Ray) announced that they intended to pursue legal action against WWE.

[edit] Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (2005-Present)

Team 3D: Brother Devon and Brother Ray at Lockdown

No longer able to use the ring name "D-Von Dudley", Hughes adopted (and trademarked) the ring name Brother Devon Deadly, while LoMonaco became "Brother Ray Deadly". The team also trademarked "The Deadly Brothers" and "Deadly Death Drop". In August and September 2005, Devon and Ray made several appearances on the independent circuit, most notably Hardcore Homecoming, an unofficial ECW reunion show organized by ECW alumnus Shane Douglas, a frequent critic of WWE and Chairman Vince McMahon. On September 21, Hughes (together with LoMonaco) signed with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, under the name of "Brother Devon", with the suffix "Deadly" never actually being used.

Devon and Ray debuted in TNA on the October 1 episode of TNA Impact! - the first episode of Impact! to be aired on Spike TV and in a prime time slot. Team 3D quickly established themselves as faces by confronting the then heel NWA World Heavyweight Champion Jeff Jarrett and his allies, the NWA World Tag Team Champions, America's Most Wanted. Team 3D defeated AMW at pay-per-view events in November and December, but failed to defeat them in a title match at Final Resolution on January 15, 2006 due to the interference of Team Canada.

Devon and Ray continued to feud with America's Most Wanted and Team Canada over the following months. On the April 13 episode of Impact!, an attempted ambush by Team Canada was foiled by the debuting Spike Dudley, identified as "Brother Runt".

Devon and Ray then took time off to tour Japan, before returning to compete in tag team matches on Impact! and soon began feuding with NWA World Tag Team Champions LAX.

At Final Resolution 2007, they beat LAX, but by disqualification. Subsequently, they lost to LAX in a "Little Italy Street Fight" at Against All Odds, and a "Ghetto Brawl" at Destination X.

At Lockdown, Team 3D defeated LAX in a Steel Cage match to win the NWA World Tag Team Championship. This makes Team 3D the first and only tag team to win the ECW, both the WWE World Tag Team Championship and WWE Tag Team Championship, WCW, NWA, and TNA World Tag Team Championship. They feuded with several tag teams before losing the belts to Samoa Joe at Victory Road. They soon turned heel. Currently, he and Brother Ray have been in a huge feud with the X Division, mainly the Motor City Machine Guns and "Black Machismo" Jay Lethal.

At Final Resolution, they teamed with Johnny Devine and took part in an Ultimate X match against the MCMG and "Black Machismo". They won by taking the X Division belt down with a ladder while the referee wasn't looking. At Against All Odds, a rematch took place in a Hardcore Street Fight. Early in the match, the Motor City Machine Guns were 'taken out' with two 3-Ds, leaving Jay Lethal to singlehandedly save the X-Division.

As a result of their loss at AAO, both Devon and Ray were subjected to weigh-ins prior to their matches. If they weighed in over 275 pounds, they would be unable to compete. During this time, they engaged in a feud with Christopher Daniels under his Curry Man gimmick, and Shark Boy. At Destination X, Team 3D was given an ultimatum by Jim Cornette - if they weighed in OVER 275 pounds, the duo would be fired; but if they weighed in under, they would never again be subjected to the weigh-ins. They were able to weigh in under the mark, but Team 3D would end up losing to Curry Man and Shark Boy after a blinded Ray accidentally helped Curry Man hit Devon with the 3-D.

Team 3D competed at Lockdown in the annual Lethal LockDown match alongside Tomko (the team captain), AJ Styles, and James Storm, against Christian Cage (the opposing team captain), Kevin Nash, Rhino, Sting, and Matt Morgan.

[edit] In wrestling

Finishing and signature moves
- Saving Grace (WWE) / Devonstator (Lifting Falling Reverse DDT) (TNA)
- Time to Testify (Rope hung neckbreaker)
- Diving headbutt
- Powerbomb
- Reverse DDT
- Corkscrew back elbow smash
- Piledriver
- Thesz press followed by multiple punches
- Sidewalk slam
- Delayed vertical suplex
- Russian legsweep
Signature foreign object
- Table
- Studded belt
- Kendo stick

Managers

[edit] Personal life

Hughes and his high-school sweetheart and wife, Yessi, have 3 boys, twins Terrence & Terrell (born in 1995) and another son Matthew (born in 2002). ^[2] Their names are tattooed on his upper biceps. He is also a talented singer as shown when he sang The Star-Spangled Banner in the WWE on an episode of RAW. He recently opened a smoothie shop, 3D Smoothies, in Melbourne, Florida, and with Brother Ray, opened Team 3D Academy of Professional Wrestling and Sports Entertainment in Kissimmee, Fl.