The Rik

Richard Davis (born February 21, 1985), better known by his ring name The Rik, was an English professional e-wrestler that most notably competed in Lords of Pain Wrestling (LPW). He currently serves as the play-by-play announcer on the Pyromania brand.

He began his career in the United Kingdom Wrestling Federation (UKWF) at the age of 16, where he would gain fame as a five-time UKWF Tag Team Champion and UKWF National Champion. In July 2006, The Rik signed with the Psychotic Wrestling Alliance (PWA), which would later become Lords of Pain Wrestling (LPW). Signed to its Inferno brand, he began an unprecedented winning streak while forming Public Enemy #1 with Damion Kross, which would lead to winning the LPW World Tag Team Championship.

In 2008, The Rik also went on to become the third man in LPW history to win the coveted Owner's Cup. He would use that momentum to win the LPW United States Championship, which he unified with the UKWF National Championship to create the LPW Transatlantic Championship. Months later, he would be stripped of the title before his unannounced retirement.

Early face run
The Rik rose from being just another 16-year-old rookie to being the top babyface in Britain's United Kingdom Wrestling Federation (UKWF), and arguably their top draw in just four and a half years. A mixture of solid booking, positive fan reaction, and natural talent were enough to get him so far so quickly. In his debut match he lost to Konrad, the UKWF's obligatory Eastern European heel. But the 10-minute match the two had was enough to earn the rookie the respect of the fans, who were taken in by some of his flashier moves.

Dangerz0ne
At this point, the UKWF Lightweight Championship had not been established, so The Rik was put together with fellow young gun, and real-life best friend, Alan, to form the tag team "Dangerz0ne". With clean-cut good looks and some innovative double-team moves, the two were able to get over with the crowds while still learning the basics of in-ring psychology from more experienced teams such as the European Union and The Renegades.

At the age of 17, Dangerz0ne defeated the European Union at Bullet Point to win their first UKWF Tag Team Championship. They dropped the titles a week and a half later in Brimingham on one of the UKWF's unfilmed weekly shows, but remained in contention, leading to the Triple Threat Tag Team Tornado match at Endgame in March of 2003. Again, Dangerz0ne walked out with the belts after an enjoyable encounter.

After dropping the titles to the makeshift team of "Ice Man" Marty D and Evil Nick, the duo had a rematch at Overload in June. Although Dangerz0ne won the match, they had to defend the titles against the Renegades later in the show. In storyline terms, this was because The Renegades had an "anytime anyplace" rematch clause, but in reality it was to cover for the cancelled match between Justin Time and The Nutcracker which was thrown off the card when both men got injured earlier that day.

A broken arm sustained by Alan left The Rik wrestling solo for six months in and around the midcard, before his tag team partner returned, and the two went for the gold once again. This time they met The Renegades at Origin 2004, winning their fourth Tag Team Championship on The Rik's 19th birthday. This time they managed a longer title reign, of five months, before dropping the belts to the Bacon Brothers in a No Holds Barred Tag Team match with tornado rules.

The Bacon Brothers reign was ended by Dangerz0ne at November 2004's EPICentre pay-per-view, the UKWF's foremost event, in a ladder match which was ended with a ladder-mounted variation of the "Highway to the Dangerz0ne", the pair's primary double team finisher.

This title reign was ended by a resurgent European Union at Endgame 2005, and would be the last time that The Rik would see tag team gold.

UKWF National Champion
The split of Dangerz0ne was amicable, with the two not undergoing the normal rivalry between ex-tag partners. Instead they both hit the upper midcard, looking to become the number one contender to the UKWF National Championship. It would be The Rik who would win this accolade, ironically in a triple threat contenders match with Alan, as well as Phil "The Pill" Jamieson. The match was thus set: The Rik vs. Evil Nick for the UKWF National Championship at 2005's August pay-per-view, Downfall.

The Rik pulled off what many would consider to be a surpirse win when he pinned the champion at the first time of asking. Perhaps more surprisingly, he held the title for close to a year, even defending against company legend, the semi-reitred "Process of Elimination" Big Nige. The most notable defense during this period, however, was the match between The Rik and "Ice Man" Marty D at EPICentre 2005 in a Steel Cage match. The match is viewed by some as the match of the card, by others as Match of the Year, and by some few as the greatest match the small British federation ever put on. A handful, including a couple of vocal pundits feel it is an overrated match, especially with the gimmicked ending, but it was enough to win over many fans for the UKWF.

PWA debut and injury
The Rik remained UKWF National Champion when he was signed by the Psychotic Wrestling Alliance (PWA) in July of 2006, being part of a "rookie invasaion" from a large talent pool, a loose checkbook, and serious expansion from PWA management. Instead of having him desecrate said title however, PWA creative used it to create an interesting heel character, as The Rik would be seen on many broadcasts boasting of his "legacy" to the largely indifferent fans.

The Rik quickly established his own legacy of sorts in the PWA. In his debut match, he claimed victory over Samyi Song at Vertigo 1.1, during which he sustained a four-month injury that split his patella following a botched hurracanrana (although he still managaed to finish the match).

Public Enemy #1 and Young Lions Tournament
The Rik returned from injury in November 2006, forming Public Enemy #1 with Damion Kross. At Altered Reality III, they won a five-team Tag Team Gauntlet after Rik pinned The Sublime. The Rik and Kross would be drafted to the Pyromania brand at the Homecoming Draft. The Rik would continue his winning ways, defeating both PWA Tag Team Champions in singles action, first Styxx at Homecoming and then Red Dragon at Pyromania 9.1.

Hoping to achieve singles success as well, The Rik and Kross were entered in a rookie tournament called the Young Lion's Tournament, where the victor would be declared the number one contender to the PWA International Heavyweight Championship. The Rik advanced steadily in the Young Lion's Tournament, sending off RaTo in the first round, followed by The Sublime in the second. Still undefeated, he made his way past Latimer Morven to get to the final of the tournament where he was scheduled to face Public Enemy partner, Damion Kross. In addition, the two would team together to face PWA Tag Team Champions, Styxx and Red Dragon, in a championship match at The Rising.

At The Rising, the Public Enemy #1 partners squared off against each other for a chance to win the Young Lions Tournament. In a show of respect and strategy, Kross laid down to allow The Rik to win the tournament. Fresh for their PWA Tag Team Championship opportunity, Public Enemy #1 defeated Styxx and Red Dragon to claim tag team gold.

Winning streak ends
In April of 2007, due to creative differences on how the promotion should be operated, the Psychotic Wrestling Alliance came under new management and was immediately renamed Lords of Pain Wrestling to coincide with the broadcasting website's name. Pyromania was renamed to Inferno as a result.

Having attained a 9-0 record during his time in LPW, The Rik made sure the entire locker room knew it. In Public Enemy's first LPW World Tag Team Championship defense, the two were pit against the underdog MWA (Tromboner Man and RaTo at Inferno 10.2. But in a major upset, the MWA were victorious, thus ending The Rik's win streak.

With his winning streak snapped, The Rik was granted his LPW International Heavyweight Championship opportunity against D. Hammond Samuels at Inferno 10.3: Night of Champions. Despite an impressive display of athleticism on The Rik's part, the experience and strength of Samuels was too much.

Shortly after, Public Enemy #1 began to refocus its intentions. With Kross having won the LPW United States Championship, the young entrepreneurs decided to expand its operations and launched Public Enemy Multimedia. In addition, Kross and The Rik recruited the legendary X into its fold, a former LPW World Heavyweight Champion. At Sacrament however, The Rik and X forced Kross out of the stable on advice from Inferno general manager Spectre. Allowing Peter Saint to defeat Kross the U.S. Championship, Saint was choosen as Kross' replacement.

Owner's Cup
In 2007, the Owner's Cup took place in Anaheim, California. The tournament kicked off with a 36-man Royal Rumble, where the top 15 competitors remaining in the ring advanced to the tournament portion. The winner of the Royal Rumble match was Tromboner Man, who received a next round bye.

Due to the California wildfires, the semifinals were postponed and merged with the finals. In a fatal four-way match to determine the winner, The Rik defeated Tromboner Man, N'itomniskittel, and Peter Saint to become the 2007 Owner's Cup champion. The Rik was awarded the opportunity to be Inferno general manager for one night, though he never took up on the offer.

Transatlantic Championship
In addition to winning the Owner's Cup, The Rik defeated Public Enemy stable-mate Peter Saint and RaTo in a triple threat match to win the LPW United States Championship at Dead Reckoning. The Rik unified the U.S. Championship with his UKWF Championship during the Inferno 12.1 telecast, renaming the title the LPW Transatlantic Championship. At Altered Reality IV in a Champion vs. Champion match, The Rik would lose to the LPW Cleansed Champion, White Falcon.

At Homecoming, The Rik was drafted to Insanity brand with the 21st overall pick by General Manager, Little Red. Due to several absences during a LPW house show tour, The Rik was stripped of the Transatlantic Championship. He currently serves as the play-by-play announcer on the Inferno brand.

In wrestling

 * Finishing and signature moves
 * The Slice (Reverse DDT)
 * Rik-ochet (Leaping Sit-out Facebuster)
 * Twisted Nightmare (Anklelock, with a Scissor Sweep Leg Lace)
 * Snapdragon (Corkscrew Senton Bomb)
 * Leg Lariat
 * Flying Elbow Drop
 * Springboard clothesline/back elbow/dropkick
 * Handspring Splash
 * European Uppercut
 * DDT
 * Neckbreaker
 * Snap suplex
 * Back suplex
 * T-Bone suplex
 * Texas Cloverleaf
 * Double Armbar
 * Sleeper hold & body scissors


 * Managers
 * Kallisto


 * Nickname
 * The Ambassador of Wrestling


 * Theme music
 * "Pay the Man" by The Offspring

Championships and accomplishments

 * Lords of Pain Wrestling
 * Owner's Cup (2007)
 * LPW Transatlantic Championship
 * LPW World Tag Team Championship - with Damion Kross
 * Young Lion's Tournament (2007)
 * Decade Apex of Tag Teams ranked them #8 of all-time with Damion Kross as Public Enemy #1
 * Apex 25 ranked him #5 (July 2008)
 * United Kingdom Wrestling Federation
 * UKWF National Championship
 * UKWF Tag Team Championship (5 times) - with Alan

Match history

 * &dagger;Promo score is a rating which ranges from 0.0 to 5.0, the latter being the highest. Promos are judged to determine the better promo between e-wrestling competitors.