Otis (wrestler)
Otis | |
---|---|
![]() Otis in June 2018 | |
Birth name | Nikola Bogojević |
Born | Duluth, Minnesota, United States | December 21, 1991
Professional wrestling career | |
Ring name(s) | Dozer El Gran Gordo Niko Bogojevic Otis[1] Otis Dozovic[2] |
Billed height | 5 ft 10 in (178 cm)[1] |
Billed weight | 330 lb (150 kg)[1] |
Trained by | Mercury Pro Wrestling Academy[3] WWE Performance Center[4] |
Debut | 2015 |
Nikola Bogojevic (born December 21, 1991) is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Otis.
After signing with WWE in 2016, he was assigned to their developmental brand NXT, teaming with Tucker Knight as part of Heavy Machinery. They were promoted to WWE's main roster in 2018. During his time on the main roster, Otis won the 2020 men's Money in the Bank ladder match and won the Raw Tag Team Championship as part of Alpha Academy with Chad Gable in 2022.
Prior to his professional wrestling career, Bogojevic was an amateur wrestler, winning the 2008 Greco-Roman junior Nationals in his weight class, the national title in the 2018 Junior Pan-American Games, and a bronze medal in Greco-Roman wrestling at the Pan-American Games, and was a prospect for the 2018 Olympic Games team, but was not chosen. In 2018, he was named the Rookie of the Year by Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI).
Early life
Nikola Bogojevic was born on December 21, 1991, in Duluth, Minnesota.[5] He is a Christian and is of Serbian descent.
Otis grew up in Superior, WI and was a top amateur wrestler in high school.
Amateur wrestling career
Competition record | ||
---|---|---|
Greco-Roman wrestling | ||
Representing ![]() | ||
2014 Pan-American Championships[6] | ||
3rd | 2010 | 130kg |
Bogojevic attended Superior High School, where he was a successful amateur wrestler; he was the 2010 285lb undefeated WIAA State Champion. He was a champion at the 2009 Greco-Roman junior Nationals.[7] He placed third at the 2009 Junior Freestyle championships.[7] Originally committed to the University of Wisconsin,[7] he wrestled at collegiate level for Augsburg College and Colorado State University-Pueblo. He won the national title in Greco-Roman wrestling at the Junior Pan-American Games in 2011 and a Greco-Roman bronze at the 2014 Pan-American Games.[8] He was at one point considered a prospect for the U.S. Greco-Roman wrestling team at the 2012 Summer Olympics and spent some time training at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado.[9]
Professional wrestling career
Early career (2015–2016)
In 2015, Bogojevic trained to become a professional wrestler at the Mercury Pro Wrestling Academy in Arvada, Colorado.[3] He wrestled under the ring name Dozer for several regional promotions in Colorado and Utah, including Ultra Championship Wrestling-Zero (UCW-Zero) and New Revolution Wrestling, where he won the NRW Charged Championship.[10]
WWE
Heavy Machinery (2016–2020)
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/45/Dozovic%26Knight_TakeOver-_New_Orleans_%28cropped%29.jpg/300px-Dozovic%26Knight_TakeOver-_New_Orleans_%28cropped%29.jpg)
Bogojevic was scouted by WWE scout Gerald Brisco, who specialized in scouting award-winning amateur wrestlers.[11] On April 12, 2016, Bogojevic signed a contract with WWE and was assigned to the WWE Performance Center.[12] He made his debut at a NXT house show on July 8, 2016, teaming with Adrian Jaoude in a loss to The Authors of Pain (Akam and Rezar).[13]
During this time, he formed a tag team with Tucker Knight, calling themselves Heavy Machinery.[14] In October, with he now renamed Otis Dozovic, the duo participated in the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic tournament, and they made their television debut on the October 19 episode of NXT, losing to the team of Austin Aries and Roderick Strong.[2][15] The duo returned and had their first televised victory on the March 29, 2017 episode of NXT, defeating the team of Jonathan Ortagun and Q. T. Marshall.[16] On the July 12 episode of NXT, Heavy Machinery unsuccessfully challenged The Authors of Pain for the NXT Tag Team Championship.[17] In March 2018, Heavy Machinery once again participated in the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic tournament, but were eliminated by The Street Profits (Angelo Dawkins and Montez Ford) in the first round.[18] On the December 19 episode of NXT, Heavy Machinery wrestled their final match on NXT, defeating Blake Howell and Danny D'Accardo.[19]
On December 17, 2018, it was announced that Heavy Machinery would be debuting on the main roster.[20] They debuted on the January 14, 2019 episode of Raw, interrupting an interview between Alexa Bliss and Paul Heyman.[21] The following week on Raw, they defeated The Ascension (Konnor and Viktor) in their in-ring debut.[22] In February, his ring name was shortened to Otis, while Knight's ring name was shortened to Tucker.[23] The duo made their pay-per-view debut at WrestleMania 35 on April 7, where they both competed in the André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, but neither would win the match.[24] As part of the Superstar Shake-Up, Heavy Machinery was moved to the SmackDown brand.[25] At Stomping Grounds on June 23, Heavy Machinery faced Daniel Bryan and Rowan for the SmackDown Tag Team Championship in a losing effort.[26] At Extreme Rules on July 14, Heavy Machinery again competed for the titles in a triple threat tag team match involving Bryan and Rowan, and The New Day (Big E and Xavier Woods), which The New Day won.[27] At Crown Jewel on October 31, Heavy Machinery competed in a tag team turmoil match, but were eliminated by The New Day.[28] At Survivor Series on November 24, Heavy Machinery participated in an interbrand tag team battle royal, which was won by Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode.[29]
By the end of 2019, Otis entered a romantic storyline with Mandy Rose.[30][31] On the February 14, 2020 episode of SmackDown, Otis went on a date with Rose, but Dolph Ziggler appeared in Otis's place during the date.[32] The storyline evolved into a love triangle involving a feud between Otis and Ziggler over Rose.[33] On the April 3 episode of SmackDown, it was revealed that Sonya Deville was working with Ziggler to keep Otis from Rose.[34] On the second night of WrestleMania 36 on April 5, Otis defeated Ziggler with Rose's help, who kissed him after the match.[35] On the May 1 episode of SmackDown, Otis defeated Ziggler to qualify for the Money in the Bank ladder match.[36] At Money in the Bank on May 10, Otis won the Money in the Bank ladder match, earning him a world title match at the time of his choosing.[37][38] On the September 11 episode of SmackDown, Otis and Tucker began a feud with John Morrison and the Miz after they stole the Money in the Bank briefcase from Otis, which was actually inside Otis' lunchbox.[39] On the September 18 episode of SmackDown, Otis was sued by Miz and Morrison and was told to relinquish the contract, but Otis refused and opted to go to court instead.[40]
As part of the 2020 Draft in October, Otis remained on SmackDown, while Tucker was drafted to the Raw brand, disbanding Heavy Machinery.[41] However, on the October 19 episode of Raw, Otis tagged with Tucker but disguised under a mask and using the name El Gran Gordo.[42] At Hell in a Cell on October 25, Otis lost his Money in the Bank briefcase to the Miz after Tucker betrayed him, hitting him with the briefcase.[43]
Alpha Academy (2020–present)
On the November 6 episode of SmackDown, Otis lost to Seth Rollins in a Survivor Series qualifying match. After Otis defeated Dolph Ziggler on the November 13 episode of SmackDown, he was confronted by Chad Gable, who proposed to Otis that he would help him discover his "Inner Alpha". On the November 20 episode of SmackDown, WWE Official Adam Pearce announced Otis as the final member of the Men's SmackDown Survivor Series team.[44] At Survivor Series on November 22, Otis was eliminated by Braun Strowman, and Team SmackDown lost the match in a clean sweep.[45] At TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs on December 20, Otis, Gable, Big E and Daniel Bryan defeated Shinsuke Nakamura, Cesaro, King Corbin and Intercontinental Champion Sami Zayn in an eight-man tag team match during the pre-show.[46] At Royal Rumble on January 31, 2021, Otis competed in his first rumble match but was quickly eliminated by King Corbin.[47]
On the February 19 episode of SmackDown, Otis attacked Rey Mysterio at the orders of Gable after their tag team match, turning heel for the first time in his career.[48] At WrestleMania SmackDown on April 8, Alpha Academy challenged for the SmackDown Tag Team Championship in a fatal four-way match involving Rey & Dominik Mysterio and The Street Profits in a fatal four-way match, which saw the champions Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode retain the titles.[49] As part of the 2021 Draft, both Otis and Gable were drafted to the Raw brand.[50] On the January 10, 2022, episode of Raw, Alpha Academy defeated RK-Bro (Randy Orton and Riddle) to win the Raw Tag Team Championship, marking Otis's first championship in his WWE career.[51] On the March 7 episode of Raw, Alpha Academy dropped the titles back to RK-Bro in a triple threat match also involving Seth Rollins and Kevin Owens, ending their reign at 55 days.[52] On the second night of WrestleMania 38 on April 3, Alpha Academy failed to regain the titles from RK-Bro in a triple threat match also involving The Street Profits.[53]
Professional wrestling style and persona
During his storyline with Mandy Rose in 2020, Otis was shown as a shy man with problems when he talks to women, which Bogojevic admits is based on his real life personality.[54]
Otis used The Caterpillar as a finishing maneuver during his matches when he was a babyface, which is very similar to Scotty 2 Hotty's finishing maneuver, The Worm.[55]
Other media
Bogojevic made his video game debut as a playable character in WWE 2K19,[56] and has since appeared in WWE 2K20,[57] WWE 2K Battlegrounds, and WWE 2K22.[58]
Filmography
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2020 | The Main Event | Stinkface |
Championships and accomplishments
- New Revolution Wrestling
- NRW Charged Championship (1 time)[10]
- Pro Wrestling Illustrated
- WWE
References
- ^ a b c "Otis". WWE. Retrieved June 15, 2019.
- ^ a b Wytner, Arya (October 19, 2016). "WWE NXT results: Roderick Strong makes his debut". Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online. Retrieved June 16, 2019.
- ^ a b Clark, Ryan (April 16, 2016). "WWE Signs Nikola 'Dozer' Bogojevic - Details - ProWrestling.com".
- ^ "Otis Dozovic". Cagematch. Retrieved December 27, 2016.
- ^ "Nikola Bogojevic". teamusa.org. August 15, 2005. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
- ^ "Cubans roll at Pan Am Championships, but U.S. wins Greco title - The Open Mat". news.theopenmat.com. July 18, 2014. Retrieved June 15, 2019.
- ^ a b c "Class of four signs with UW wrestling". University of Wisconsin. December 4, 2009. Retrieved June 15, 2019.
- ^ "'Niko' among new recruits at WWE Performance Center". Superior Telegram. April 15, 2016. Archived from the original on April 19, 2016. Retrieved June 15, 2019.
- ^ "Former Superior wrestler aims for London Olympic Games". Duluth News Tribune. January 18, 2012. Retrieved June 15, 2019.
- ^ a b "NRW Champions". nrwprowrestling.com. Retrieved September 4, 2016.
- ^ "How One Question Changed The Career Trajectory Of Wwe'S Otis Forever". PWInsider.com. May 7, 2020. Retrieved May 13, 2022.
- ^ "Which independent stars just signed with WWE?". WWE. April 12, 2016. Retrieved June 15, 2019.
- ^ "WWE NXT Live on July 8, 2016". July 8, 2016. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
- ^ Namako, Jason (October 13, 2016). "WWE NXT Results – 10/12/16 (SAnitY debuts with a returning Eric Young, Nakamura gets revenge on Samoa Joe)". WrestleView. Retrieved October 13, 2016.
- ^ "Team Aries vs. Otis Dozovic & Tucker Knight (Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic First Round Match)". WWE. October 17, 2016. Retrieved June 15, 2019.
- ^ "3/29 Moore's NXT TV Review: Kassius Ohno vs. Elias Samson in a Loser Leaves NXT Match, Johnny Gargano vs. Dash Wilder vs. Akam, Heavy Machinery in action, Ember Moon and Asuka contract signing for NXT Takeover: Orlando". Pro Wrestling dot Net. March 29, 2017. Retrieved June 15, 2019.
- ^ "NXT Tag Team Champions The Authors of Pain def. Heavy Machinery". WWE. July 12, 2017. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
- ^ James, Justin (March 14, 2018). "3/14 NXT TV Report: Tomasso Ciampa returns, Adam Cole vs. Pete Dunne, Almas-Black contract signing, Sanity vs. Moss & Sabbatelli". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved March 29, 2018.
- ^ "Heavy Machinery def. Blake Howell & Danny D'Accardo". WWE. December 19, 2018. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
- ^ "WWE announces six NXT stars coming to the main roster|". www.pwinsider.com. Retrieved December 18, 2018.
- ^ Powell, Jason (January 14, 2019). "1/14 Powell's WWE Raw TV Review: Dean Ambrose vs. Bobby Lashley vs. Seth Rollins in a Triple Threat for the Intercontinental Championship, Ronda Rousey and Sasha Banks vs. Nia Jax and Tamina, the Royal Rumble build continues". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
- ^ "Heavy Machinery def. The Ascension". WWE. January 21, 2019. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
- ^ Quarrinton, Norm (February 5, 2019). "Otis Dozovic And Tucker Knight Undergo Slight Name Changes". Pro Wrestling Sheet. Retrieved January 27, 2020.
- ^ Powell, Jason (April 7, 2019). "WrestleMania 35 Kickoff Show results: Powell's live review of the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, WWE Women's Battle Royal, Buddy Murphy vs. Tony Nese for the WWE Cruiserweight Championship". Pro Wreslting Dot Net. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
- ^ F4W Staff (April 16, 2019). "Full list of WWE Superstar Shake-Up night two roster changes". Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online. Retrieved June 16, 2019.
- ^ Bristout, Ralph. "SmackDown Tag Team Champions Daniel Bryan & Rowan def. Heavy Machinery". WWE. Retrieved June 23, 2019.
- ^ Benigno, Anthony. "The New Day def. Daniel Bryan & Rowan and Heavy Machinery to become the new SmackDown Tag Team Champions (Triple Threat Match)". WWE. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
- ^ Powell, Jason (October 31, 2019). "WWE Crown Jewel results: Powell's live review of Brock Lesnar vs. Cain Velasquez for the WWE Championship, Seth Rollins vs. Bray Wyatt in a Falls Count Anywhere match for the WWE Universal Championship, Braun Strowman vs. Tyson Fury, Lacey Evans vs. Natalya". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved October 31, 2019.
- ^ Benigno, Anthony (November 24, 2019). "Dolph Ziggler & Robert Roode won a cross-brand Tag Team Battle Royal (Kickoff Match)". WWE. Retrieved November 24, 2019.
- ^ Powell, Jason (December 20, 2019). "12/20 WWE Friday Night Smackdown results: Powell's review Big E and Kofi Kingston vs. Shinsuke Nakamura and Cesaro in a non-title match, Bayley vs. Dana Brooke in a non-title match". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved December 22, 2019.
- ^ Rose, Bryan (January 31, 2020). "Otis & Mandy Rose date set for Valentine's Day WWE SmackDown". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
- ^ Lamber, Jeremy (April 3, 2020). "The Truth Is Heard: Sonya Deville Behind Mandy Rose And Dolph Ziggler Relationship". Fightful. Retrieved April 6, 2020.
- ^ DeFelice, Robert (March 27, 2020). "Dolph Ziggler Challenges Otis To Passion-Driven Bout At WrestleMania 36". Fightful. Retrieved March 28, 2020.
- ^ Satin, Ryan (April 3, 2020). "Hacker Behind Glitches On SmackDown Speaks, Reveals Sonya/Dolph Ziggler Plot". Pro Wrestling Sheet. Retrieved April 6, 2020.
- ^ Clapp, John (April 5, 2020). "Otis def. Dolph Ziggler". WWE. Retrieved April 5, 2020.
- ^ Barnett, Jake (May 1, 2020). "5/1 WWE Friday Night Smackdown results: Barnett's review of Otis vs. Dolph Ziggler and Mandy Rose vs. Carmella in Money in the Bank qualifiers, Daniel Bryan vs. King Corbin, Big E and Kofi Kingston vs. The Forgotten Sons". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
- ^ a b Garretson, Jordan (May 10, 2020). "Otis won the Men's Money in the Bank Ladder Match". WWE. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
- ^ Powell, Jason (May 10, 2020). "WWE Money in the Bank results: Powell's review of the Climb The Corporate Ladder MITB matches, Drew McIntyre vs. Seth Rollins for the WWE Championship, Braun Strowman vs. Bray Wyatt for the WWE Universal Championship, Bayley vs. Tamina for the Smackdown Women's Championship". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
- ^ Powell, Jason (September 11, 2020). "9/11 WWE Friday Night Smackdown results: Powell's review of Jeff Hardy vs. AJ Styles for the Intercontinental Championship, Bayley addresses her attack on Sasha Banks, Bray Wyatt unveils his newest creation on the Firefly Funhouse". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
- ^ Powell, Jason (September 18, 2020). "9/18 WWE Friday Night Smackdown results: Barnett's review of Roman Reigns and Jey Uso vs. Sheamus and King Corbin in a Samoan Street Fight, Sasha Banks returns, Sami Zayn vs. AJ Styles, Nikki Cross on A Moment of Bliss". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
- ^ WWE.com Staff (October 9, 2020). "See all the results from the 2020 Draft". WWE. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
- ^ Powell, Jason (October 19, 2020). "10/19 WWE Raw Results: Powell's live review of the season premiere featuring Keith Lee vs. Braun Strowman, Asuka vs. Lana for the Raw Women's Championship, AJ Styles vs. Matt Riddle, Hurt Business vs. Retribution, Kofi Kingston vs. Sheamus, the final push for WWE Hell in a Cell". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
- ^ Powell, Jason (October 25, 2020). "WWE Hell in a Cell results: Powell's review of Drew McIntyre vs. Randy Orton in a Hell in a Cell match for the WWE Championship, Roman Reigns vs. Jey Uso in an I Quit Hell in a Cell match for the WWE Universal Championship, Bayley vs. Sasha Banks in a Hell in a Cell match for the Smackdown Women's Title". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
- ^ "Otis Gets The Final Spot On Team SmackDown For WWE Survivor Series". Wrestling Inc. November 20, 2020. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
- ^ "WWE Survivor Series: Team Raw Wins Men's Elimination Match". WWE. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
- ^ Powell, Jason (December 20, 2020). "WWE TLC Kickoff Show results: Powell's review of Big E, Daniel Bryan, Otis, and Chad Gable vs. Sami Zayn, King Corbin, Shinsuke Nakamura, and Cesaro in an eight-man tag match". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
- ^ Powell, Jason (January 31, 2021). "WWE Royal Rumble results: Powell's live review of the Royal Rumble matches, Drew McIntyre vs. Goldberg for the WWE Championship, Roman Reigns vs. Kevin Owens in a Last Man Standing match for the WWE Universal Championship, Sasha Banks vs. Carmella for the Smackdown Women's Championship". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
- ^ AGUILAR, MATTHEW (February 19, 2021). "WWE's Otis Turns Heel and Knocks Out Rey Mysterio on SmackDown". comicbook. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
- ^ Powell, Jason (April 9, 2021). "4/9 WWE Friday Night Smackdown results: Powell's review of the WrestleMania 37 go-home show, final comments from Roman Reigns, Edge, and Daniel Bryan, Andre the Giant Battle Royal, Robert Roode and Dolph Ziggler vs. Rey Mysterio and Dominik Mysterio vs. The Street Profits vs. Alpha Academy in a four-way for the Smackdown Tag Titles". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
- ^ "See all the results from the 2021 Draft".
- ^ Powell, Jason (January 11, 2022). "1/10 WWE Raw Results: Powell's live review of WWE Champion Brock Lesnar and Bobby Lashley meeting face to face, Randy Orton and Riddle vs. Chad Gable and Otis for the Raw Tag Titles, Bianca Belair vs. Doudrop vs. Liv Morgan for a shot at the Raw Women's Championship at the Royal Rumble, Alexa Bliss's journey back to Raw". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
- ^ Powell, Jason (March 7, 2022). "3/7 WWE Raw Results: Powell's live review of Chad Gable and Otis vs. Randy Orton and Riddle vs. Seth Rollins and Kevin Owens in a Triple Threat for the Raw Tag Titles, Edge explains his attack on AJ Styles, Jerry Lawler appears, Logan Paul and Miz hold a Homecoming Party". Pro Wrestling Do Net. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
- ^ Clapp, John (April 3, 2022). "Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro def. Alpha Academy and The Street Profits (Triple Threat Match)". WWE. Retrieved April 3, 2022.
- ^ Chase, Stephanie (May 4, 2020). "WWE's Otis started doing Caterpillar move because "no girls would dance" with him". WWE. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
- ^ Harris, Jeffrey (May 5, 2020). "Otis on Telling Scotty 2 Hotty He Wanted to Bring 'The Caterpillar' Into WWE". WWE. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
- ^ Cole, Caitlin (December 19, 2018). "Complete WWE 2K19". Rumble Ramble. Retrieved April 23, 2019.
- ^ "WWE 2K20 roster art: photos". WWE. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
- ^ "WWE's Chyna, Otis, and More Added to Battlegrounds Roster". GAMING. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
- ^ "PWI 500 2021 List In Full". Wrestling Travel. September 21, 2021. Retrieved January 11, 2022.
- ^ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2020". Retrieved August 29, 2020.
- ^ "Full List Of Pro Wrestling Illustrated's 2017 Award Winners". Wrestling Inc. January 12, 2018.
- ^ "Raw Tag Team Championship". World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE).
External links
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