AEW crowned “Hangman” Adam Page as the new face of the company after he won the AEW World Championship from Kenny Omega. Page became the organic fan favorite in the early stages of AEW after getting over as a flawed character trying to live up to his expectations. The audience’s connection to Hangman created what felt like the crowning moment of AEW’s storytelling.
Page has an interesting backstory when it comes to both his career before AEW and life outside of the ring. AEW fans have elevated Adam due to his natural likable nature and ability to remind us about the magic of storytelling in wrestling. Everything about his demeanor led to that success with the following tidbits providing a new insight towards Hangman.
10 The Young Bucks Picked Him For Bullet Club
The career-changing move of getting to join the Bullet Club gave Adam Page a much bigger platform. Ring of Honor wanted one of their regulars in the popular faction when the working relationship with New Japan took off.
The Young Bucks fought for Page to be the newest member due to his potential and struggles while trying to break out in ROH. Hangman may not have had the eventual rise of fans noticing his talent if the Bucks picked another star over him.
9 Former High School Teacher
The background of Adam Page saw him working as a high school teacher for most of his wrestling career before AEW. Hangman taught multiple subjects with journalism and graphic design at the top of his strong suits.
The week after Page joined the Bullet Club featured him taking a fun picture with his class celebrating the news by not giving them exams. Hangman loved teaching, but he stepped away to become a full-time wrestler after the Bullet Club success made wrestling his full-time job.
8 Wrote A Children's Book
One of the unique little tidbits about Adam Page’s career is that he wrote a children’s book. The popularity of The Elite saw the Young Bucks and Cody Rhodes approached with the idea of writing their own books to relative success.
Page would be next in line to get the noteworthy opportunity outside of the ring. “Adam and the Golden Horseshoe” is a story about a younger Page finding courage to chase his dreams. The book has a five-star rating on Amazon from those who purchased it out of support for Hangman.
7 Trained By Jimmy Valiant
There are many big wrestling names who train talents, but Adam Page went the old school route of learning from a journeyman. Jimmy Valiant wrestled for decades across various territories and even worked in the early WWE stages of WWWF.
The post-wrestling career of Valiant saw him training many young stars. Hangman will be the most successful unless someone else can break out to his level. Valiant has worked closely with the Highspots Network to deliver entertaining shoot interviews, as another fun aspect to his personality.
6 Struggled With First ROH Push
Adam Page was viewed as an important talent for Ring of Honor long before he was a popular performer. The early stages of Page’s ROH career saw him feuding with Silas Young after they had a great match in the Top Prospect Tournament.
ROH tried to go with an old-school generic face character for Hangman that sadly didn’t connect. Fans of ROH were more against the grain than WWE fans and that act wouldn’t have even worked there. Page felt out of place for a while by playing the good guy with lackluster crowd responses.
5 Was In Another Faction Before Bullet Club
The first big character change for Adam Page in ROH came when he turned heel to join a faction. BJ Whitmer, Jimmy Jacobs, and Roderick Strong formed a stable known as The Decade celebrating their long history in ROH.
Page turned heel for the first time in ROH to become a protégé of the veterans. The matches of Hangman started to have more importance in the upper mid-card act. Jacobs and Strong eventually joined WWE as part of the list of names to make that jump.
4 Was "Team Cody" During Bullet Club Feud
ROH had one of their biggest storylines when Cody Rhodes was a heel in the Bullet Club. The clashing between Cody and the generally beloved Kenny Omega turned into a Bullet Club civil war angle with the members having to choose sides.
Adam Page was one of the ROH stars to remain united with Cody due to feeling disrespected by Omega. The Young Bucks aligning with Omega would see the other U.S. stars on Rhodes’ side to even out the odds before they eventually all reunited.
3 Turned Down NXT Contract
WWE clearly took note of AEW when signing a lot of the free agents on the market before the company started. All five major members of The Elite were on WWE’s radar. Cody Rhodes was the only one to not listen to the WWE offers.
Adam Page may have been the most unique case since he wasn’t as big as Cody Rhodes, Kenny Omega, or The Young Bucks at the time. The members outside of Cody agreed to make their next move together, and Hangman opted to turn down an NXT contract.
2 Asked Tony Khan For Paternal Leave During Biggest Push
The disappearance of Adam Page from AEW television after getting a beatdown from the Young Bucks and Kenny Omega had fans upset. Many felt that Hangman was going to end Kenny Omega’s AEW World Championship reign at All Out 2021.
Page instead put his priorities in check by requesting paternal leave for the birth of his first child, which was granted by Tony Khan. Things ended up working out for the best as Hangman winning at the original time may have been lost in the shuffle of CM Punk and Bryan Danielson getting signed. Page had the stage to himself at Full Gear 2021 to win the big one.
1 AEW World Championship Is First Major Singles Title
The most interesting fun fact about Adam Page’s big AEW World Championship win is the lack of singles titles beforehand. Page has the unique story of his first major singles title coming in a world championship spot for a national wrestling company.
The previous title reigns for Hangman featured him winning the AEW Tag Team Championship with Kenny Omega and the ROH Six-Man Tag Team Championship with The Young Bucks. Page is entering new territory for the biggest opportunity of his career.