The Casino Battle Royale, which took place at Double or Nothing 2019, was an opportunity for one of 21 participants, including Hangman Page. The last man standing would punch their ticket toward an AEW World Championship match.
Following an elimination over Maxwell Jacob Friedman, “Hangman” Adam Page stood triumphant. With the upstart promotion’s world title in his sights, Page is determined to win the biggest prize of his career.
Before this happens, however, it’s important to look back at the career of the Virginia native himself. In this week’s AEW talent preview, we will cover Page’s career, from his earliest days in the business to one of the rising talents in AEW.
Page made his debut in 2008, but the first promotion where he made his mark was Carolina Wrestling Federation Mid-Atlantic, based out of Burlington, in 2009. It was in CWF Mid-Atlantic that he worked with such talents as Joey Silva, Jimmy Parker, and Jason Miller, the latter of whom helped train Page.
In September of 2010, Adam Page challenged for the CWF Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Championship in a four-way match alongside Jason Blade but was unsuccessful. Page and Blade would form the tag team known as The VA Bombers.
Hangman Page: The VA Bombers
In January of 2011, The VA Bombers defeated Ty Dillinger and Ray Kandrack to win the CWF Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Championship. During the same month, Page wrestled a dark match for Ring of Honor, creating the foundation for his work with said promotion down the road.
Meanwhile, in CWF Mid-Atlantic, The VA Bombers continued to defend their championship until September, when they would lose to Walter Eaton and Roy Wilkins, known collectively as Coach Gemini’s All-Stars.
In January of 2012, Adam Page won the CWF Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship at New Year’s Knockout. During the former half of the year, Page successfully defended the title against the likes of Cecil Scott and Xsiris. In May, at Homecoming, he would drop the title in a 14-man elimination match, which was ultimately won by Kamakazi Kid.
Page challenged Trevor Lee for the CWF Mid-Atlantic Television Championship in December at Road to Battlecade XIII but fell short. The future Hangman’s luck would turn around the following year as he set his sights on Ring of Honor.
Though Page originally wrestled for ROH two years prior, as mentioned earlier, he made his official debut for the promotion in the 2013 Top Prospect Tournament. In January, he lost to Silas Young, though he had a good showing.
Adam Page made his pay-per-view debut for ROH at the 11th Anniversary Show, in March, in a Six Man Mayhem match; ACH would come away victorious. Page won his first singles match in ROH, in June, by defeating Young.
Following bouts against such opponents as KUSHIDA, RD Evans, and Eddie Edwards, Page challenged Matt Taven for the ROH World Television Championship in November; Taven would retain.
Feud of The…Decade?
In 2014, Page found himself embroiled in a feud with The Decade, a stable comprised of established talent like Jimmy Jacobs and BJ Whitmer. However, in March Page turned heel by joining The Decade as the stable’s young boy.
In November, Page took part in the annual ROH Survival of the Fittest tournament. He defeated former ally, Cedric Alexander, in a qualifying match but lost the final six-way elimination match, which took place the day after, to Adam Cole.
Page started off 2015 by challenging for the ROH World Tag Team Championship, in January, alongside Whitmer. However, the champions known as reDRagon, Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish, emerged victorious.
From there, Page would continue to face off against various challengers as The Decade’s young boy.
At Best in the World, in June, Page and Whitmer defeated Matt Sydal and ACH, the latter of whom Page was feuding with. One month later, at Death Before Dishonor XIII, Page defeated ACH in a no-disqualification match.
Though Page proved himself as a member of The Decade, his affiliation with the group would soon come to an end.
In February, at the ROH 14th Anniversary Show, Page faced former stablemate Whitmer in a losing effort. Page’s time as a lone wolf wouldn’t last; he joined the nefarious Bullet Club during a ten-man tag team match at War of the Worlds in May. Following an attack on his tag team partners, Page hanged Chris Sabin with a noose; this was where the “Hangman” persona of Page was born.
Debut with New Japan Pro Wrestling
In June, Page made his debut for New Japan Pro Wrestling, wrestling primarily in tag team matches. In August, Page and fellow Bullet Club member Yujiro Takahashi unsuccessfully challenged The Briscoe Brothers for the IWGP Tag Team Championship.
During the fall, alongside Takahashi, Page participated in the NJPW World Tag League 2016 tournament.
In January of 2017, Page competed in the Tokyo Dome for the first time at Wrestle Kingdom 11. He teamed with Takahashi and Bad Luck Fale to challenge for the NEVER Openweight Six-Man Tag Team Championship but came away unsuccessful. In the months to follow, Page challenged for various championships in both ROH and NJPW.
In July, for example, he competed in the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship tournament but was eliminated by Jay Lethal in the first round. However, in August, Page won gold in ROH by teaming with The Young Bucks to defeat Dalton Castle and The Boys for the World Six-Man Tag Team Championship.
Page would team with Takahashi once more to compete in that year’s World Tag League tournament. They finished third in block A with 8 points.
The Hung Bucks featuring Hangman Page
From late 2017 to early 2018, Hangman Page and The Young Bucks successfully defended the ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Championship. In March, they dropped the championship to SoCal Uncensored at ROH’s 16th Anniversary Show. Later that month, at NJPW Strong Style Evolved, Page unsuccessfully challenged Jay White for the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship.
It was during this time that the Bullet Club experienced internal conflict. With the stable taking different directions, Page supported Cody. This led to Wrestling Dontaku, in May, where Page lost to Kenny Omega.
Page went on to feud with Punishment Martinez for the ROH World Television Championship, which resulted in a losing effort for the “Hangman” at Best in the World in June. The following month, Hangman Page competed in his first G1 Climax, finishing ninth in block A with 6 points.
Hangman Page is All-In
Page’s work with AEW seemed to begin at All In, an independent wrestling event that took place in September. During this event, Page defeated Joey Janela in a Chicago Street Fight.
In November, alongside Takahashi, Page competed in his final World Tag League tournament, finishing with 10 points. Hangman Page concluded 2018 with an ROH World Television Championship match at Final Battle, against Jeff Cobb, which he lost.
Page competed in his final Tokyo Dome match at Wrestle Kingdom 12 in January of 2019, teaming with Bullet Club comrades Takahashi and Marty Scurll in a gauntlet match to determine the next contenders for the NEVER Openweight Six-Man Tag Team Championship.
The match was ultimately won by the trio of Makabe, Toru Yano, and Ryusuke Taguchi. During that same month, it was announced that Page would be working with AEW, the new wrestling promotion headed by The Elite. During the initial rally, Page was interrupted by PAC, who doubted that the “Hangman” could become champion.
This led to a match being scheduled between the two at Double or Nothing, AEW’s first pay-per-view in May. However, due to various circumstances, the match was called off, and Page was left without a spot.
Lucky Number 21
Entering as the final participant, at number 21, Page eliminated Luchasaurus and Maxwell Jacob Friedman before winning the match in question. This victory entitled Page to a future match for the AEW World Championship.
By the end of the night, his opponent was revealed to be Chris Jericho, who defeated Omega in the main event. At All Out, which will take place in August, Hangman Page and Jericho will square off for the AEW World Championship.
If there is one wrestler that can be declared the “future” of All Elite Wrestling, able to carry the promotion years down the road, Adam Page would arguably be the safest bet. Since the birth of the “Hangman” persona, Page has proven himself as a determined competitor. He is one of the fastest-rising stars in the industry.
At All Out, he will prove himself against a legend in Chris Jericho. Perhaps more importantly, though, he will have the opportunity to etch his name in history as the first AEW World Champion.
