Mason Ryan
Griffiths in November 2011
Birth nameBarri Griffiths
Born (1982-01-13) 13 January 1982
Tremadog, Wales
Spouse(s)
Julie Rolfe
​
​
(m. 2015)​
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)Barri Griffiths[1]
[2][3]
Gladiator Goliath
Mason Ryan[2]
Mason Williams[4]
Smackdown Warrior[3]
Billed height6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)[4]
Billed weight297 lb (135 kg)[4]
Billed fromCardiff, Wales[5]
Trained byOrig Williams[2]
Florida Championship Wrestling[1]
Debut2007
Retired2015

Barri Griffiths (born 13 January 1982) is a Welsh stunt performer, actor, and former professional wrestler. He is best known for his time with WWE, where he performed under the ring name Mason Ryan from 2009 to 2014. He joined Cirque du Soleil in 2016.

Griffiths played as a centre back for Porthmadog FC, but a knee injury curtailed his career. He appeared as Goliath on Gladiators in 2009. He began training to be a professional wrestler in 2006, and competed around Europe for the next three years. In 2009, he signed a contract with WWE, debuting in Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW) and becoming a one-time FCW Florida Heavyweight Champion. He made his main roster debut in 2011 and joined The New Nexus. In 2013, he started working on WWE's NXT brand until his release the following year.

Early life

Griffiths was born in Tremadog,[2][4][6] the son of Carys and Malcolm Griffiths.[7] He has a sister named Catrin.[7][8] He attended Ysgol y Gorlan primary school in Tremadog and Ysgol Eifionydd secondary school in Porthmadog, before studying construction management at Cardiff University for 18 months.[8][9] He worked as a trainee carpenter and in his family's funeral home prior to becoming a wrestler.[2][3] Griffiths played football as a centre back for Porthmadog FC, but had to curtail his career due to a knee injury.[10]

Professional wrestling career

Training and early career (2006–2009)

Griffiths began training to be a professional wrestler in 2006 after attending a wrestling show with a friend where the promoter and referee Orig Williams recommended he start wrestling.[3][11][8][12] He trained at a professional wrestling school in Birkenhead.[3][11]

Prior to appearing on Gladiators, Griffiths had wrestled under the names "Celtic Warrior" and "Smackdown Warrior" since 2007, and had competed in almost 100 matches in countries including Egypt and Venezuela.[3] He represented the UK in a 'Battle of the Nations' tag team match between the UK and Austria, teaming with Drew McDonald and Sheamus O'Shaunessy in a losing effort to Chris Raaber, Michael Kovac, and Robert Ray Kreuzer at the European Wrestling Association's Night of Gladiators show in June 2007.[13] After signing with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), Griffiths had his final show in Wales in October 2008 in Porthmadog, when he won a singles match and battle royal.[14]

World Wrestling Entertainment / WWE (2009-2014)

Florida Championship Wrestling (2009–2011)

Ryan as the FCW Florida Heavyweight Champion in 2010

In 2009, Griffiths signed a five-year contract with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE).[15] When he received his work visa, he debuted in their developmental territory, Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW) in January 2010.[2] Under the name Mason Ryan, he competed against wrestlers including Johnny Curtis, Tyler Reks, Johnny Prime, and Hunico in his first matches.[1]

On 22 July, Ryan won a triple threat match against defending champion Alex Riley and Johnny Curtis by pinning Riley to win the FCW Florida Heavyweight Championship for the first time.[2][11][16]

Over the next few months, Ryan successfully defended the championship against wrestlers including Bo Rotundo, Richie Steamboat, and Eli Cottonwood.[17] At the tapings of FCW television on 2 September, Ryan successfully defended the championship against Johnny Curtis when FCW commentator Byron Saxton interfered and aided him.[17] The following week, Saxton became aligned with Ryan, accompanying him to the ring and acting as his manager.[17]

In November 2010, Ryan toured Europe with the SmackDown brand, defeating Chavo Guerrero in Belfast on 4 November and again in Liverpool on 6 November.[18][19] On 3 February 2011, Ryan lost the Florida Heavyweight Championship to Bo Rotundo, ending a six-and-a-half month reign.[20]

Raw (2011-2012)

Ryan with The New Nexus in 2011

Griffiths, as Mason Ryan, made his WWE television debut on 17 January 2011 episode of Raw by interfering in a match between CM Punk and John Cena. Following his interference, Punk presented him with a 'Nexus' armband, inducting him into the group.[15][21] Ryan then participated in the 2011 Royal Rumble match.[22] On 7 February 2011, he had his debut match on Raw, losing to R-Truth via disqualification.[23] In late February, it was announced that Punk would face Randy Orton at WrestleMania XXVII, with each member of The Nexus facing Orton to win the right to accompany Punk to the ring in the weeks leading up to WrestleMania.[24] Ryan was the final member to face Orton, but lost on 14 March episode of Raw. Following the match, Orton punted Ryan in the head.[25] He was absent from television for nearly a month, making his return on 11 April on Raw with the other New Nexus members, attacking Orton and preventing him from earning a WWE Championship match.[26] On 2 May, Ryan lost to Kane by disqualification following interference from Punk, and went on to attack both Kane and Big Show.[27] At the Over the Limit pay-per-view on 22 May, Ryan and Punk challenged Big Show and Kane for the WWE Tag Team Championship, but were unsuccessful.[28] The following month, Ryan suffered an injury and was absent from television to recuperate.[29]

Ryan returned from injury at a house show in Jackson, Mississippi in late August.[30] He made his television return on 8 September episode of WWE Superstars, defeating JTG.[31] On 26 September, on Raw, Ryan was chosen by Vickie Guerrero as the partner for Jack Swagger and Dolph Ziggler in a six-man tag team match against Zack Ryder and Air Boom (Evan Bourne and Kofi Kingston), but Ryan turned on Swagger and Ziggler turning Ryan face, allowing Ryder to pick up the victory for his team.[32]

The following week on Raw, Ryan teamed with Air Boom, Sheamus, CM Punk, and John Cena in a 12-man tag team match to defeat the team of Alberto Del Rio, Christian, Cody Rhodes, David Otunga, Ziggler, and Swagger.[33] Ryan began feuding with Ziggler, with the pair trading wins via disqualification.[34][35] Ryan was part of Team Orton at the Survivor Series pay-per-view in November, where he was eliminated by Cody Rhodes.[36]

For 2012, Ryan worked in house shows and WWE Superstars TV appearances until June of that year. He was sent back to Florida Championship Wrestling.

NXT (2012–2014)

He appeared only sporadically on television throughout 2012, and he then rejoined the rebranded developmental system NXT.[37] He returned to the ring in November for house shows and debuted on the rebooted WWE NXT show and began his singles winning streak on 30 January 2013, by defeating Sakamoto.[38]

Ryan then entered into a feud against Enzo Amore and Colin Cassady; although he easily defeated them in singles matches,[39] he lost to them in a handicap match.[40] Mason was then rarely used on WWE television until he had his final televised match on 24 April 2014 episode of NXT, in a losing effort to number one contender for the NXT Championship. On 30 April 2014, it was reported that Ryan had been released by WWE.[41]

Independent circuit (2014–2015)

After his release from WWE, Griffiths began wrestling on the independent circuit, still using his WWE name. His first appearance was for the American Pro Wrestling Alliance promotion, where he became the new APWA Tri State Champion on 31 May.[42] Mason made his debut for the WrestleSport promotion on 16 August where he defeated Adam Pearce to become the first WrestleSport Heavyweight Champion.[43] On 5 September, at Full Impact Pro's Fallout, Ryan along with Michael Tarver and Shaun Ricker participated in a trios tournament, but were defeated by the Full Impact Puerto Ricans (Lince Dorado, Jay Cruz, and Jay Rios).[44] On 5 June 2015, Ryan was defeated by then-Full Impact Pro Heavyweight Champion, Rich Swann.[45] This was his final appearance for the promotion.

On 11 October 2014, Ryan won the UPWA Heavyweight Championship in Shallotte, North Carolina.[46] On 16 February 2015, Ryan took part in a dark match before the TNA One Night Only's Gut check event defeating Shaun Ricker.[47] His last wrestling appearance to date, was in the United Kingdom for Pro Wrestling Pride on 1 November 2015, he was on the losing team in an 8-man tag team match.[48]

Inoki Genome Federation (2015)

On 20 February 2015, Griffiths, working under the ring name Mason Williams, made his debut for the Japanese Inoki Genome Federation (IGF) promotion, losing to Shogun Okamoto.[49]

Cirque du Soleil career

In January 2016, Ryan announced on his Twitter account that he is now working at Cirque du Soleil, as the chief archer of Kà.[50][51]

Other media

Griffiths appeared in the second series of the revived Gladiators television show in 2009, and competed under the name "Goliath".[6] When he was working on a television show in Wales about being a wrestler, he was told that producers were looking for new gladiators, and he applied with the encouragement of his trainer, Orig Williams.[3][10] He began filming the first show approximately a month later and had to grow a beard especially for the role.[3][8]

Griffiths has appeared on The Paul O'Grady Show.[52] Barri Griffiths: Y Reslar, a Welsh language documentary about Griffiths' life in the months before he moved to the United States, aired in September 2010 on S4C.[53]

In December 2011, Griffiths appeared on the TV documentary Orig, where he was interviewed by Tara Bethan, the daughter of his first trainer Orig Williams.[54]

Personal life

Griffiths married American football player Julie Rolfe in 2015.[55][56] They reside in Tampa, Florida.[57]

Griffiths speaks Welsh fluently.[3][58] He is an avid weightlifter[59] and once set a world record for holding 20 kg (approx. 44 lbs) of weight with his arms straight for just over one minute.[60] He often trains with professional bodybuilder and powerlifter Stan Efferding.

Championships and accomplishments

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Mason Ryan". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 11 August 2010.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Trewyn, Hywel (2 August 2010). "North Wales man crowned heavyweight champion wrestler of Florida". North Wales Daily Post. Retrieved 11 August 2010.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Williams, Andrew (8 January 2009). "Gladiator in hot pants trouble". Metro. Retrieved 11 August 2010.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Mason Williams". Inoki Genome Federation (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 21 February 2015.
  5. ↑ "Mason Ryan". Retrieved 7 June 2012.
  6. 1 2 "Goliath, Barri Griffiths". Gladiator Zone. Retrieved 11 August 2010.
  7. 1 2 Gaksell, Simon. "WWE star Mason Ryan ditched undertaker's life for wrestling stardom". Wales Online. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  8. 1 2 3 4 Trewyn, Hywel (27 November 2008). "Meet North Wales' very own Gladiators". North Wales Daily Post. Retrieved 11 August 2010.
  9. ↑ Hughes, Owen R (26 January 2011). "Gwynedd WWE star Barri Griffiths billed as from Cardiff". North Wales Daily Post. Retrieved 30 January 2011.
  10. 1 2 Devine, Darren (4 January 2009). "Welsh duo are TV gladiators". Wales Online. Retrieved 11 August 2010.
  11. 1 2 3 4 Jones, Geraint (5 August 2010). "Barri wrestles with rise to fame". North Wales Chronicle. Archived from the original on 23 July 2011. Retrieved 11 August 2010.
  12. ↑ "Orig Williams: How Army Boxing Ignited His Love For Wrestling - Atletifo". 24 March 2023. Retrieved 27 March 2023.
  13. ↑ "EWA Results". European Wrestling Association. Archived from the original on 11 June 2009. Retrieved 9 November 2010.
  14. ↑ Kreikenbohm, Philip (27 October 2009). "OWP Event 27.10.2009". CAGEMATCH – The Internet Wrestling Database. Archived from the original on 6 March 2023. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
  15. 1 2 "Welsh wrestler Mason Ryan is a stateside hit". BBC. 20 January 2011. Retrieved 20 January 2011.
  16. ↑ "Florida Championship Wrestling roster". Florida Championship Wrestling. Archived from the original on 13 December 2010. Retrieved 11 August 2010.
  17. 1 2 3 "Florida Championship Wrestling (2010)". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 23 January 2011.
  18. ↑ Gerweck, Steve (5 November 2010). "11/4 WWE Results: Belfast, Northern Ireland". WrestleView. Retrieved 5 November 2010.
  19. ↑ Martin, Adam (7 November 2010). "11/6 WWE Results: Liverpool, England". WrestleView. Retrieved 8 November 2010.
  20. ↑ "Champions Roll Call". Florida Championship Wrestling. Archived from the original on 8 February 2012. Retrieved 20 February 2011.
  21. ↑ Plummer, Dale (17 January 2011). "RAW: The Rumble and The Nexus grow". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Archived from the original on 30 June 2012. Retrieved 22 January 2011.
  22. ↑ Plummer, Dale; Tylwalk, Nick (30 January 2011). "Super-size Royal Rumble saves biggest surprise for last". Slam Wrestling. Archived from the original on 13 February 2023. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
  23. ↑ Plummer, Dale (7 February 2011). "RAW: Punk, Nexus battle Elimination Chamber entrants". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Archived from the original on 18 July 2012. Retrieved 13 February 2011.
  24. ↑ Plummer, Dale (28 February 2011). "RAW: Triple H talks Wrestlemania; The Miz loses an ally". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Archived from the original on 18 July 2012. Retrieved 2 April 2011.
  25. ↑ Plummer, Dale (14 March 2011). "RAW: Cena wrecked on the Road to Wrestlemania". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Archived from the original on 3 July 2014. Retrieved 18 March 2011.
  26. ↑ Plummer, Dale (11 April 2011). "RAW: Edge calls it a career". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Archived from the original on 14 October 2014. Retrieved 12 April 2011.
  27. ↑ Plummer, Dale (2 May 2011). "RAW: Happy Birthday Rock". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Archived from the original on 14 July 2012. Retrieved 8 May 2011.
  28. ↑ Hillhouse, Dave (22 May 2011). "Over the Limit: Unpredictability makes for a good show". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Archived from the original on 14 July 2012. Retrieved 23 May 2011.
  29. ↑ Martin, Adam (10 July 2011). "Update on Mason Ryan and his WWE status". WrestleView. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
  30. ↑ Tedesco, Mike (27 August 2011). "Injured WWE star makes his return". WrestleView. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
  31. ↑ Caldwell, James (8 September 2011). "Caldwell's WWE Superstars Report 9/8: Bryan dominates main event, Fox vs. Tamina, returns & TV debuts & squash matches". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
  32. ↑ Waldman, Jon (26 September 2011). "Raw: Building to the Cell". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Archived from the original on 18 July 2012. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
  33. ↑ Waldman, Jon (3 October 2011). "Raw: WWE roster walks out on HHH". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
  34. ↑ Bishop, Matt (18 October 2011). "Raw: JR gains measure of revenge, makes Cole tap". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Archived from the original on 16 July 2012. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
  35. ↑ Tylwalk, Nick (14 November 2011). "Raw: The Rock (and The Sock) return to electrify Boston". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
  36. ↑ Tylwalk, Nick (21 November 2011). "No swerves but plenty of Rock and Punk at Survivor Series". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Archived from the original on 16 July 2012. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
  37. ↑ "Back on track: Mason Ryan's road to redemption". WWE. Retrieved 26 July 2013.
  38. ↑ James, Justin. "James's WWE NXT results 1/30: Tournament continues, Bo Dallas in main event, returns of Bateman, A-Ry & Mason Ryan". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved 3 June 2013.
  39. ↑ James, Justin. "James's WWE NXT Report 7/3 – week 53: Bo Dallas defends NXT Title, Women's Tourney continues, Mason Ryan". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved 9 August 2013.
  40. ↑ James, Justin. "James's WWE NXT Report 7/10: Wyatts vs. Team Regal six-man main event, NXT Women's Title tourney continues, Generico (Zayn), Mason Ryan, set-up for Charlotte's debut". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved 14 July 2013.
  41. ↑ "Former Nexus Member, Second Generation Diva and more released by WWE". PWInsider. Retrieved 30 April 2014.
  42. 1 2 "American Pro Wrestling Alliance June 1st 2014 Match Card". American Pro Wrestling Alliance Facebook. 1 June 2014. Retrieved 1 June 2014.
  43. 1 2 "WrestleSport News". Archived from the original on 3 September 2014.
  44. ↑ "FIP FALLOUT 2014 iPPV REPORT: WHICH TEAM WOULD SURVIVE THE TOURNAMENT OF SIX MAN TAG TEAMS? - PWInsider.com". www.pwinsider.com.
  45. ↑ "FIP ACCELERATE REPORT: RICH SWANN DEFENDS THE FIP WORLD TITLE AGAINST MASON RYAN, WHO IS THE NUMBER ONE CONTENDER FOR THE TAG TITLES?, CAN CHICAGO WIN AGAIN IN TAMPA?, AND MORE - PWInsider.com". www.pwinsider.com.
  46. ↑ "UNITED PRO WRESTLING ASSOCIATION". www.theupwa.com. Retrieved 4 June 2015.
  47. ↑ "Former WWE Talents Work TNA Dark Match, Drew Galloway Gets New Tag Team Partner In TNA?".
  48. ↑ "Matches « Mason Ryan « Wrestlers Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling Database". www.cagematch.net.
  49. ↑ "Genome32". Inoki Genome Federation (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 7 February 2015. Retrieved 21 February 2015.
  50. ↑ Ryan, Mason. "@MasonTheManiac". Retrieved 2 January 2016 – via Twitter.
  51. ↑ "Where Are They Now? Mason Ryan". WWE. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  52. ↑ Jones, Dion (19 October 2009). "Tremadog wrestler is off to the US to join WWE". Caernarfon Herald. Retrieved 11 August 2010.
  53. ↑ White, Kevin (26 August 2010). "Big Barri's preparations for stardom". Caernarfon Herald. Retrieved 8 November 2010.
  54. ↑ "Sharing memories about Orig, with a smile and tears". S4C. Retrieved 26 April 2012.
  55. ↑ Wyn-Williams, Gareth (27 October 2015). "Wrestler Barri Griffiths weds bride in Porthmadog". Daily Post. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
  56. ↑ "Mason Ryan And LFL Lingerie Football League Player Julie Rolfe". Wrestling Inc. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
  57. ↑ Wyn-Williams, Gareth (18 May 2015). "Watch: Barri Griffiths wrestling in Gwynedd again". North Wales Daily Post. Retrieved 18 May 2015.
  58. ↑ Evans, Dafydd (19 April 2012). "Mason Ryan yn perfformio yn ôl adre'". Newyddion. BBC Cymru. Retrieved 26 April 2012. (in Welsh)
  59. ↑ Greenhouse, Debra (23 January 2009). "Goliath making waves on Gladiators". North Wales Daily Post. Archived from the original on 29 September 2012. Retrieved 11 August 2010.
  60. ↑ "Back on track: Mason Ryan's road to redemption, Hungrier than ever". WWE. Retrieved 26 July 2013.
  61. ↑ ""PWI 500": 101–200". Pro Wrestling Illustrated. 8 August 2011. Retrieved 8 August 2011.
  62. ↑ "UNITED PROFESSIONAL WRESTLING ASSOCIATION". www.theupwa.com.
  63. ↑ "WrestleSport". www.facebook.com.
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