AEW has a new phenom in the six-foot, 201 pounds, Team Taz member who looks like he just rolled out of bed while subsequently having the wrestling world eating out of the palm of his hand, Hook. Hook debuted on the December 16th episode of AEW Rampage after months of wrestling fans all over the world clamoring to see his in-ring debut.
Hook went up against Fuego Del Sol in a quick, close to three and a half minute match that left wrestling fans who just thought that the young star was a meme thoroughly impressed. With the internet in constant praise for the young talent, here are some things fans should know about him.
Updated on March 1st, 2022, by Andrew Kelly: Hook is quickly becoming a huge rising star in AEW. Though he has yet to wrestle on Dynamite, Rampage has slowly become “The Hook Show”, which sees him bulldozing his way through opponents on the Friday Night show, in addition to building a feud with QT Marshall. Hook’s popularity has remained strong, though it will be interesting to see where he goes after a feud with Marshall, as he can’t live on Rampage forever, especially with how naturally he has connected with the audience to this point. With Hook being the age he is, there is still quite a lot unknown about him, even though he is a second-generation professional wrestler. That being said, there are still some fun and important facts and tidbits to know about AEW’s newest breakout performer, Hook.
10 * He Is Only 22 Years Old
AEW prides itself on highlighting and pushing new and young talent, or else grooming them to break out in the future. Amongst giants of the industry such as CM Punk, Sting, and Bryan Danielson, sit the likes of MJF, Darby Allin, and Sammy Guevara, who remain to be some of the hottest acts in the company despite their age, which shows just how much AEW puts into the talent of tomorrow.
Hook is another young name who looks primed to become something special, even with his inexperience. Hook is only 22 years old, making him one of the youngest names on the entire roster, and he already looks like a polished and sound performer. Of course, his style of matches thus far has made him look great, and he will no doubt be challenged soon to put on a higher caliber performance, but with how smooth he moves in the ring, and the aura he carries, expect big things to come.
9 * He Is Undefeated In AEW
Hook has only wrestled a handful of matches in AEW, so perhaps being undefeated doesn’t seem like too major of an achievement, however, when looking at the few other names in AEW who share that undefeated title, Hook is in strong company. The likes of Kyle O’Reilly and Keith Lee are still undefeated, but they’ve only wrestled one or two times in AEW, but aside from them, the only other wrestlers with a clean record after wrestling are Paul Wight, Jade Cargill, and Sting.
Having Hook accompanied by names of that caliber, with Wight and Sting being legends of the business and Cargill being the reigning TBS Champion, it feels like a big deal for him to have not lost yet, and it will feel even more significant when he does pick up that first loss.
8 Taz Is His Father
Getting the most known and obvious out of the way quickly, Hook is the son of former ECW legend Taz. The Human Suplex Machine made his name known in Extreme Championship Wrestling, becoming a two-time ECW Heavyweight Champion and the inaugural FTW Heavyweight Champion.
After wrestling in the WWE, Taz retired and plied his trade in commentary, forming an iconic commentary duo with Michael Cole on SmackDown. Now, Taz does commentary with AEW and is the leader and manager of Team Taz, a group consisting of Ricky Starks, Powerhouse Hobbs, and now, his own son, Hook.
7 Trained With The Nightmare Factory
Hook is getting some of the best wrestling training there is, being trained at The Nightmare Factory, with the likes of Cody Rhodes, Glacier, and QT Marshall as coaches. The Nightmare Factory is a training facility in Atlanta that helps build wrestlers.
However, this fact became a topic in AEW, when Taz ran down the way that Cody Rhodes ran things and Rhodes replied, "Your son Hook, he's training to be a pro wrestler right? Why the hell is he not training with you, but training with me?" This infuriated Taz, as he hooked in the Tazmission on Rhodes before being chased out of the ring.
6 Money Maker
Hook's debut on AEW Rampage caused a rapid shift in the leaderboard on Prowrestlingtees.com. Pro Wrestling Tees is a famous site selling many wrestling T-shirts from wrestlers worldwide, commonly not associated with the WWE. The wrestling T-shirt conglomerate's number one spot was being held by fellow AEW wrestler CM Punk.
However, after just one match, and the internet buzz around him, Hook was able to dethrone the Straight Edge Superstar to be the top seller with his new white T-shirt simply reading "Hook" in black lettering. There's no doubt that Tony Khan can easily see, if he hadn't already, now that Hook is an absolute moneymaker.
5 Began Training With Brock Anderson
Hook wasn't the only rookie training with The Nightmare Factory. Brock Anderson, son of the legendary wrestler Arn Anderson, began training right around the same time as Hook. Brock Anderson would compete against Hook in videotaped matches, and the trainers could watch the video and give the two ways to improve.
However, Anderson's in-ring debut was much sooner than Hook's, as he debuted in June, teaming with Cody Rhodes against QT Marshall and Aaron Solo. Anderson and Rhodes won the match, with his father Arn in attendance. Anderson has since wrestled 14 matches with the company, typically competing on Dark and Elevation.
4 CM Punk Started The Send Hook Meme
Of course, it was CM Punk himself that helped gain more buzz for a future star. Fans of AEW had been begging for months to see Hook do anything. He was just known as the guy that stood with Team Taz and looked cool. However, when Punk was asking the Cincinnati crowd what they wanted to see next, it was Taz that was annoyed and answered Punk.
Taz warned Punk to never say that he wanted to face a Team Taz member, to which Powerhouse Hobbs and Hook came out for backup. Punk then said, "Send Starks, send Hook," and fans all over social media began getting excited at the realization that they may finally see Hook wrestle. And when they finally did, he did not disappoint.
3 Lacrosse Player
Hook has always had an athletic background, playing for the Bucknell Bison's men's lacrosse team in college. Hook was a long-stick midfielder for the Bison's but only played in four games. The Bison's did go undefeated in that span, but his college lacrosse career would not garner the same buzz that he has in wrestling, obviously having more of a career in AEW.
Though he did not have a long college lacrosse career, he was a high school lacrosse legend. Hook, real name Tyler Senerchia holds the Plainedge High School record for most ground balls in a season (157) and most turnovers forced in a season (114).
2 His Theme Song Describes His Character
When talking in an interview with Pitchfork, Hook revealed that he was the one that came up with the idea to have Action Bronson's music be his theme song. Hook said he had been a fan of Bronson since he was in the sixth grade, and felt like this song, "The Chairman's Intent," off of Bronson's latest album, Blue Chips 7000, was the perfect song for it.
Obviously, Hook thought this one over, and it was terrifically calculated, as the chorus rings "You don't even know me" and is a perfect representation of Hook's character in AEW. The mysterious wrestler still hasn't revealed much of who he is to the fans or to wrestlers.
1 Tazz Was ECW Champion When Hook Was Born
Taz is not most famously remembered for his time as ECW Heavyweight Champion, back when it wasn't owned by WWE. He is more known for holding the FTW Heavyweight Championship, a championship made by Taz himself. The championship can be seen being defended by Ricky Starks in AEW. However, during Taz's reign as ECW Heavyweight Champion (unified with the FTW Championship at the time), his son Hook was born.
Two weeks after the birth of Hook, Taz successfully defended the ECW Championship against Chris Candido and Bubba Ray Dudley on the same night at Hardcore Heaven 1999.