KRONIC
| Brian Clarke Real Name: Bryan Clarke Also Known As: The Nightstalker, Adam Bomb, Wrath Date of Birth: March 14, 1964 From: ... Height: 6'6" Weight: 290 pounds Finishing Move: The Meltdown Famous Quote: ... Brian Adams Real Name: Brian Adams Also Known As: Crush, Kona Crush, The Demon (original) Date of Birth: ... From: ... Height: 6'5" Weight: 280 pounds Finishing Move: Full Nelson Slam Famous Quote: ... |
Brian Clarke
He's one of the biggest powerhouses in the wrestling business, and comprises one of the most dominating tag teams in the industry, Kronic, with partner Brian Adams. What a lot of people don't realize is that Bryan Clarke has been wrestling for a decade.
Clarke started out in 1991 as The Nightstalker, and appeared with Jim Cornette's Smoky Mountain Wrestling (SMW) promotion in Tennessee. Clarke also wrestled briefly in WCW under the same moniker, with his highest profile match there being on December 29, 1991 as part of the Starrcade PPV in Norfolk, Virginia. The Nightstalker was the Diamond Stud (Scott Hall)'s replacement, and teamed with Rick Steiner in the Battle Bowl: Lethal Lottery event against Vader and Mr. Hughes. Unfortunately for the green rookie Clarke, he was defeated only moments after he tagged himself into the match.
In 1993, Bryan made his way to the WWF, and became an impressive looking young heel named Adam Bomb. He was managed originally by Johnny "Raven" Polo and later by Harvey Whippleman, and displayed some impressive aerial abilities, not to mention raw power. However, Adam Bomb never excelled in the WWF, and at one point was put on jobber duty to preliminary wrestler-turned-rising star, The 1-2-3 Kid (X-Pac). Adam Bomb later split from Whippleman and turned face, with his first big feud as a popular character being against Kwang, aka Savio Vega. Just as before, Adam Bomb was unable to achieve a significant level of success, and eventually left the WWF.
In 1997, Clarke returned to WCW. He wrestled under a mask and became known as Wrath, and teamed up with Mortis (aka Kanyon) under the guidance of James Vandenburg. The duo saw only mediocre success. Wrath was then shelved in 1998 due to injury, and eventually returned under the same name but without the mask and now in the singles ranks, since Mortis had unmasked and started wrestling as Kanyon in his absence. The new Wrath dominated the competition and was chugging along into 1999 when a knee injury put him on the sidelines again. This time around, WCW chose not to renew his contract.
In the Spring of 2000, a healthy Clarke returned one more time to WCW, this time along with Brian Adams as a tag team. Known as Kronic, the team has been tearing through their competition in the WCW tag division ever since. They won their first WCW tag team championship on May 15, 2000 by defeating Shane Douglas and The Wall on Nitro. And there appears to be no end in sight to their dominance in the ranks of World Championship Wrestling.
Major Titles Won:
WCW Tag Team Championship (2)
Brian AdamsOne of the toughest and most powerful wrestlers in WCW, Brian Adams first gained worldwide recognition in the WWF in 1990 when he was introduced as Crush, the third member of Demolition. Crush's real role in Demolition was that of a replacement for Bill Eadie (Ax), who was slowing down due to health problems, and his age. By the Spring of 1991, Crush and Smash were the key components of the team, but they never came close to achieving the same success that Ax and Smash had previously.
Adams' level of success went up a notch when he re-debuted in the WWF in 1992 as a face wrestler billed as being from Kona, Hawaii. Initially called Kona Crush and later back to just Crush, he was basically marketed to kids and utilized a finishing move that would see him grab an opponent's head in his hands and squeeze until they submitted. Things for Crush began to fall apart when he engaged in a feud with Doink the Clown, a silly character that did nothing for Crush's career. Crush lost to Doink at Wrestlemania 9, and never regained the fan interest that was with him when he initially debuted under this persona.
In 1993, Crush lost a match to Yokozuna on Monday Night Raw, and blamed "Macho Man" Randy Savage (who was doing commentary) for not coming to his assistance. Crush ultimately turned heel and aligned with Mr. Fuji. This new Crush had the look of a potentially monster heel, but at Wrestlemania 10 he lost a "Falls Count Anywhere" match to the older Savage, a loss that hurt Crush's career, and he eventually disappeared from the WWF.
During his absence from wrestling, Brian ran into problems with the law and it was reported that he was briefly jailed on charges of drug and weapons possession. But he cleaned up his act and returned to the WWF once again in 1996. This time he had longer hair and a fake tattoo on his face. His real-life problems were used in storylines to make him look like an unpredictable, renegade-type character. He took on Clarence Mason as his manager, and eventually joined forces with Faarooq and Savio Vega to form the original Nation of Domination. Tension formed within the group that subsequently led to Faarooq firing both Crush and Vega. Not one to take things lightly, Crush swore revenge, and put together a stable of his own. Consisting of Chainz (Brian Lee) and Skull and 8-Ball (Ron and Don Harris), the four became known as Disciples of Apocalypse, a biker gang that would regularly drive their Titan motorcycles to ringside before matches. The DOA became engaged in the "gang warfare" that ran rampant over the WWF in 1997, and feuded with the Nation as well as Savio's new stable, Los Boricuas.
Following the 1997 Survivor Series, Brian Adams reportedly became bitter with the WWF for orchestrating the "double cross" on Bret Hart. He remained on the roster, but during a segment on Raw, Adams was tombstoned rather sloppily by Kane and luckily avoided serious injury. He received his release from the company after that.
On February 16, 1998, Brian Adams debuted in WCW on Monday Nitro. In his first segment, he offered his friendship to Bret Hart, only to turn on him and subsequently join the New World Order. Initially his stint with WCW in the nWo angle was very promising, as he teamed with the likes of Curt Hennig and The Giant (Big Show) and enjoyed some success. But Adams eventually found himself among the nWo's "B Group", referred to as nWo Black and White, while the upper card nWo members were part of nWo Wolfpac. He eventually drifted from the nWo, and then disappeared from WCW television.
In August of 1999, Adams returned. With a new clean shaven look, he waged war on the nWo, and went on to become the first Demon, the character inspired by the legendary band, KISS. The gimmick never took off, and Adams eventually ditched the role (to later be revived by Dale Torborg). He then found himself jobbing to other wrestlers, and was gone again by the end of 1999.
On April 16, 2000, Brian returned to WCW at the Spring Stampede 2000 PPV. Along with Bryan Clarke and known as Kronic, the team cost Ric Flair and Lex Luger the tag team titles in a match against Buff Bagwell and Shane Douglas. Kronic went on to turn face and have completely dominated the WCW tag team division every week, winning the titles shortly after their debut.
Major Titles Won:
WCW Tag Team Championship (2)