Bryan Clark

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This article is about the professional wrestler. For the baseball player, see Bryan Clark (baseball). For the quarterback, see Bryan Clark (American football). For the actor, see Bryan Clark (actor).

Bryan Clark
Clark as Adam Bomb in 1995
Birth nameBryan Emmett Clark
Born (1964-03-14) March 14, 1964 (age 60)[1]
Tallahassee, Florida, U.S.[2]
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)Adam Bomb[3]
Bryan Clark[1]
The Nightstalker[1]
Wrath[1]
Billed height6 ft 6 in (198 cm)[3]
Billed weight290 lb (132 kg)[3]
Billed fromThree Mile Island[3]
Devil's Island
Trained byJody Hamilton[1]
DeWayne Bruce[1]
Debut1989[4]
Retired2003

Bryan Emmett Clark (born March 14, 1964)[1] is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling (WCW), the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), and All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) under the ring names The Nightstalker, Adam Bomb, Wrath and his real name. He is a former two-time WCW World Tag Team Champion and one-time AJPW World Tag Team Champion with his KroniK teammate, Brian Adams.[3]

Professional wrestling career

American Wrestling Association (1989–1990)

Clark made his wrestling debut in 1989 under the ring name The Nightstalker and quickly rose to a main event status wrestler. Clark competed in the Minnesota-based American Wrestling Association. He appeared at live AWA house and television events, mainly in the mid-west area of The United States. Some of these matches were broadcast on the ESPN, AWA Championship Wrestling show. (ESPN Classic continues to air re-runs of the show). Wrestling legend Ox Baker began to manage Clark during this time, providing for some classic promotional segments with Baker on the mic. The Nightstalker had a heated feud with The Trooper (Del Wilkes, later to be known as The Patriot). This began as The Nightstalker appeared during a Trooper match versus W.T. Jones on April 13, 1990, at an ESPN televised show in Rochester, Minnesota. Ox Baker began to challenge any and all wrestlers to include Larry Zbyszko, even telling The Trooper that he "couldn't even join the boy scouts". Clark's in ring look included black and white face paint, while gripping an over-sized hatchet.

World Championship Wrestling (1990–1991)

As the AWA went into dormancy in the fall of 1990, Clark made the jump to

Starrcade. Clark would miss the pay-per-view and be replaced by The Motor City Madman.[6]

Clark would be absent from WCW until October 1991, when he made an appearance as a masked "ghoul" at

Starrcade to team with Rick Steiner in a losing effort to Vader and Mr. Hughes.[7]

Universal Wrestling Federation (1992)

Clark moved to Herb Abrams' Universal Wrestling Federation, making his first appearance on June 19, 1992, at a TV taping in Spartanburg, SC. He had three matches, defeating Johnny Kid and Jake Steele while losing by disqualification to Death Row 3260.[8][9]

Smoky Mountain Wrestling (1992–1993)

Clark joined Smoky Mountain Wrestling in October 1992 and made his debut on a show in Knoxville, TN, losing to SMW Champion Brian Lee by countout.[10] He later defeated Tracy Smothers to become the promotion's second-ever "Beat The Champ" Television Champion on February 2, 1993. He lost the title to Tim Horner six days later.[11]

World Wrestling Federation (1993–1995)

On March 8, 1993, Clark received a tryout match for the

Harvey Wippleman replaced Polo as Bomb's manager because Polo wanted to focus on managing WWF Tag Team Champions The Quebecers. The Adam Bomb concept and costume was designed and created by Tom Fleming.[14]

Bomb in May 1994

Bomb made his

Razor Ramon, The 1-2-3 Kid, Marty Jannetty and "The Macho Man" Randy Savage
in an elimination match. His team went on to lose the match, though he was the last remaining wrestler for his team before being pinned by Jannetty after a roll-up.

Following this, he participated in the

turned face after his manager Harvey Wippleman turned on him and helped new client Kwang attack him. As a face, he would throw rubber nuclear missiles into the audience as he walked to the ring and after he won a match. After briefly feuding with Kwang and Bam Bam Bigelow, Bomb was moved down the card and began competing exclusively on WWF Superstars before leaving the promotion in August 1995. Adams cited unhappiness with pay and the rigorous WWF travel schedule as his reasons for leaving. Adams also claims that a promised run with the WWF Intercontinental Championship which was not followed through on was a big part of why he left.[15]

Independent Circuit and England (1995-1996)

After leaving WWF, Clark continued using the Adam Bomb name in the independent circuit and England in 1996 where he worked for Hammerlock Bomb Alert Tour with Andre Baker.

Return to WCW

Blood Runs Cold (1997–1999)

At Uncensored on March 16, 1997, Clark rejoined WCW as Wrath, a helmeted martial artist, who joined Mortis to attack Glacier after Glacier defeated Mortis. Wrath would then team with Mortis as the two were managed by James Vanderberg to feud with Glacier. Wrath's first televised match occurred on the May 12 episode of Nitro, in which he defeated Scotty Riggs. At Slamboree, Wrath attacked Glacier during a rematch between Glacier and Mortis, and then Wrath and Mortis double-teamed Glacier until the debuting Ernest Miller made the save. Miller began teaming with Glacier to feud with Wrath and Mortis. The four characters, collectively known as "Blood Runs Cold", was WCW's attempt to tap into the popularity of the Mortal Kombat video games. Wrath would then compete in his first pay-per-view match at The Great American Bash against Glacier, which Wrath lost. At Bash at the Beach, Wrath and Mortis defeated Glacier and Miller to hand Glacier, his first pinfall loss in WCW.

Wrath and Mortis would then feud with

angle
continued until 1998 when Clark suffered an injury.

After recovery, he returned to singles action later in the year as a face, debuting both a new attire and finishing move called the Meltdown while all Blood Runs Cold references were phased out. Wrath had a lengthy undefeated streak on WCW television, defeating various wrestlers including Meng at Halloween Havoc and Glacier at World War 3. Due to the impressive win record, Clark was rumored to be slated to become a future challenger to Bill Goldberg but had his momentum stopped on the November 23 episode of Nitro in a big loss to Kevin Nash. Wrath would continue to gain many victories into 1999 and entered a feud with Bam Bam Bigelow, leading to a match between the two at Souled Out, which Wrath lost. Clark tore his ACL in a match against Jerry Flynn on April 15, 1999, and spent a year recuperating.[16]

KroniK (2000–2001)

Main article: KroniK

Clark returned to the ring in April 2000, now using his real name. He formed a tag team with

The Filthy Animals, and eventually helped their former enemies the Natural Born Thrillers before turning face once again in January 2001 by siding with Ernest Miller
.

KroniK was sidelined when Clark needed stitches for a wound from a

chair shot while Adams was hospitalized with appendicitis. While they were injured, WCW was purchased by the World Wrestling Federation
in March 2001.

Return to World Wrestling Federation (2001)

Clark and Adams returned to the WWF on the September 4, 2001, episode of

The Brothers of Destruction at Unforgiven 2001 in a match for the WCW Tag Team Championship, which Clark and Adams lost. After two dark matches and a pay-per-view appearance that WWF officials were unhappy with, Clark was asked to go in developmental and he left the meeting on the spot, getting released from his contract while Adams began working for the Heartland Wrestling Association
, which served as WWF's developmental territory.

Late career and retirement (2001–2003)

After Adams & Clark were released from the WWF in November 2001, as KroniK they made a number of appearances on the

Keiji Mutoh.[18]
Shortly afterwards, both Adams and Clark retired from wrestling due to injuries.

Personal life

In February 2006, Clark had surgery on his lower back for injuries sustained during his in-ring career.[19] He owns the Trademarks to the KroniK, Adam Bomb and Wrath gimmicks from his time in WCW and the WWF. [citation needed] Following the death of his partner Brian Adams, Clark considered their time together as part of KroniK to be the highlight of his career. He occasionally trains other wrestlers and appears at conventions.

In July 2016, Clark was named part of a class action lawsuit filed against WWE which alleged that wrestlers incurred traumatic brain injuries during their tenure and that the company concealed the risks of injury. The suit was litigated by attorney Konstantine Kyros, who has been involved in a number of other lawsuits against WWE.[20] The lawsuit was dismissed by US District Judge Vanessa Lynne Bryant in September 2018.[21] The lawsuit is now being heard by the Supreme Court in the fall of 2021.

In February 2020, Clark was indicted in

conspiracy, drug possession, illegal control of enterprise, transporting or selling narcotics, and possessing a weapon during a drug offense. He pleaded not guilty to all charges.[22] On June 18, 2021, all charges were “dismissed by prosecution motion” [1] in the Superior Court of Maricopa County.[23]
thus causing Clark's entire case to be thrown out.

Clark is a United States Air Force veteran.[24]

Championships and accomplishments

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h "Bryan Clarke". Online World of Wrestling.
  2. ^ "Bryan Clark Profile & Match Listing". www.profightdb.com.
  3. ^ a b c d e "Adam Bomb". WWE.com. WWE. Retrieved April 1, 2018.
  4. ^ a b "Pro Wrestling Illustrated 500 – 1995: 47 Adam Bomb". Pro Wrestling Illustrated. Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, United States: Sports and Entertainment publications LLC. September 21, 1995. p. 32. October 1995.
  5. ^ PWI Staff (2007). "Pro Wrestling Illustrated presents: 2007 Wrestling almanac & book of facts". Wrestling's historical cards. Kappa Publishing. pp. 136–137.
  6. ^ "WCW 90". The History of WWE. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  7. ^ "WCW 91". The History of WWE. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  8. ^ "Herb Abram's Universal Wrestling Federation Cards". www.prowrestlinghistory.com.
  9. ^ "411MANIA". 411's UWF on ESPN Classic Report 01.09.08.
  10. ^ "SMW 91-92". The History of WWE. Retrieved February 7, 2021.
  11. ^ a b "SMW Television Championship history".
  12. ^ "93". The History of WWE. Retrieved February 7, 2021.
  13. ^
    ISBN 978-0-7566-4190-0
    .
  14. ^ "Never-before-seen Superstar sketches from the WWE Vault". WWE.com. Retrieved February 8, 2016.
  15. ^ "Bryan Clark of Kronik aka Adam Bomb & Wrath IYH Wrestling Shoot Interview". YouTube. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  16. ^
    ISBN 978-1499656343
    .
  17. ^ "Online World of Wrestling". www.onlineworldofwrestling.com.
  18. ^ "WRESTLE-1 2nd WRESTLE-1". The Internet Wrestling Database. January 19, 2003. Retrieved December 14, 2018.
  19. ^ "Bryan Clark". www.accelerator3359.com. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  20. ^ "WWE sued in wrestler class action lawsuit featuring Jimmy 'Superfly' Snuka, Paul 'Mr Wonderful' Orndorff". FoxSports.com. Fox Entertainment Group (21st Century Fox). July 18, 2015. Retrieved July 20, 2016.
  21. ^ Robinson, Byron (September 22, 2018). "Piledriver: WWE uses 'Hell in a Cell' as springboard to future shows". Montgomery Advertiser. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
  22. ^ Johnson, Mike (February 7, 2020). "FORMER WWE & WCW STAR BRYAN CLARK FACING DRUG CHARGES IN ARIZONA | PWInsider.com". www.pwinsider.com. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  23. ^ "Criminal Court Case Information - Case History". www.superiorcourt.maricopa.gov. Retrieved June 16, 2021.
  24. ^ "Former WWE/WCW Star Adam Bomb/Wrath Full Shoot Interview!". YouTube. Hannibal TV. Retrieved May 29, 2023.
  25. ^ "AJPW Unified World Tag Team Championship history".
  26. ^ "Wrestling Information Archive - Pro Wrestling Illustrated's Top 500 Wrestlers of the PWI Years". June 16, 2008. Archived from the original on June 16, 2008.
  27. ^ "10 totally awesome tag teams you completely forgot about". WWE.com. WWE. Retrieved June 1, 2014. They later won the WCW Tag Team Titles on two occasions.

External links

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