Connor MacManus

This is an article about the Irish wrestler, Connor MacManus (born March 17th, 1984). MacManus has wrestled in five of seven continents, and is most known for his feud with "Millionaire" Miles Marion.

=Vitals=

Connor MacManus is known for his agility, brawler's mentality, and his surprising strength. Connor peaked at a weight of 245 in 2004, but is currently at an in-ring weight of about 235 lbs.

His nickname is "The Cobra," which is a play on MacManus' venture in to the film industry.

He is currently represented by sports super-agent, McKenas Derevko.

=Biography=

Childhood
Connor MacManus was born in Dublin, Ireland, in March of 1984. He grew up an above-average student, eventually dropping out at 15 and attending college (where he carried a steady 4.0 GPA) by the end of that year. In college, Connor became an avid fan of track & field. He gained a reputation for being one of the most agile, but unfocussed athletes on campus. Before graduating, Connor’s friends signed him up for a semester at one of the world’s most prestigious wrestling schools – that of Angus MacFayden, in Dublin.

Training
Connor joined MacFayden’s academy without hopes or dreams of becoming a wrestler. Instead, he searched to become a writer. However, in training he met two people that would change his life – Rebecca Borrail and Miles Marion. Miles and Connor met on the first day of training, before the other rookies showed up. Connor had showed up an hour early and was in the midst of getting the feel for a wrestling ring when Miles took it upon himself to critique Connor, suggesting that MacManus give up before embarrassing himself.

The two developed a sharp rivalry, until Angus MacFayden himself intervened and attempted to pool their rage into productivity. MacFayden paired Marion and MacManus as sparring partners, and before long, the two began outshining the other students.

In one practice match, Connor faced a man named Chris Geehan, who had, himself, developed a reputation for being underhanded and one who would do anything for a win. Geehan removed the turnbuckle pad from one of the corners and eventually rammed Connor’s bare forehead into the metal, drawing blood and nearly blinding Connor. It was then when Connor MacManus would (quite literally) fall into the arms of Rebecca Borrail.

Rebbecca Borrail
Rebecca intrigued Connor, as she was a tall, gorgeous, redheaded lass who wanted nothing more than to make a living in the bloody-knuckle industry of professional wrestling. The two began dating, and before long, they had fallen hopelessly in love. Between Marion, Geehan, Borrail and MacManus, MacFayden’s training camp of 2002 appeared to be more promising than any other, and validated a special finale to the semester. The two were the golden couple of the training camp, and fellow wrestlers began seeing wedding bells in their future.

The MacFayden Challenge
At the end of the year, MacFayden announced the formation of a unique tournament that would involve all of his students in a single-elimination format. The winner of this tournament would gain a spot in one of Ireland’s most prestigious promotions. It was around this time that Connor’s life would change forever.

Connor, a naïve and ambitious lad, had felt the wrath of Chris Geehan’s will to win, but he had never acted on his impulses for revenge. He came to regret this decision by the end of the first match of MacFayden’s tournament, when Geehan faced Rebecca Borrail in the opening bout. Geehan lived up to his reputation, cheating and beating Rebecca into submission. After the match, Connor vowed revenge on Geehan, demanding that his next match in the tournament be with Chris. Unfortunately, the way the brackets were established brought an end to this dream, and the second round would pit Connor’s best friend, Miles Marion, against Chris instead.

Connor was determined to win this tournament and defend the honor of his girlfriend, but his determination began to overwhelm him. Connor pushed himself further than he had ever gone before, and in doing so, he neglected the affection of Rebecca. Ignoring the signs, Connor continued to train, relentlessly, and within days of his next match, Rebecca threatened to break up with him. Connor desperately repaired their relationship, and promised to spend the night with Rebecca after a quick sparring session with Miles.

That night, Connor’s next round opponent challenged MacManus to a brawl, prior to their tournament bout. Connor, crumbling under peer pressure, accepted the fight, and would spend that night bloodying himself in a bar brawl that would make the greatest of Irish combat seem like a bad game of marbles. Connor left the bar a winner, but soon realized that he had mistakenly skipped his date with Rebecca.

The Affair & Chris Geehan
Connor returned to find Rebecca somewhat distraught, but seemingly happy. She nursed him back to manageable health, and soon Connor was prepared for round two of MacFayden’s tournament. Realizing how close he had come to losing the woman who meant the most to him, Connor proposed to Rebecca the morning of his second clash. It was then that Rebecca let Connor know that she had had an affair during his period of neglect.

Connor’s live changed forever on that day. Broken by the betrayal, Connor found Miles, and the two worked on figuring out whom Rebecca had had the affair with. Miles put forth a stream of logic that fit perfectly, suggesting that Chris had been the man she had slept with. Connor accepted the notion, and demanded that MacFayden change his match that night so that he would face Chris, to settle their score.

That night, Connor and Chris had a fight that would live in infamy. Filled to the brim with hatred, with rage, unadulterated bitterness, Connor beat Chris beyond all sense of reason, and accidentally took things beyond the point of no return. By the end of the night, Connor had hit the “move heard around the nation,” when he landed a guillotine neckbreaker across the ropes that would paralyze Chris for life. Connor looked at Chris’ limp body with a sense of guilt, shame and fear – paralyzed in his own way – and as he looked out upon the surrounding crowd, he saw the face of his love, Rebecca. Her face was one of shock, but also one of disappointment. Rebecca would leave Dublin that night, and Connor wouldn’t see her again for years.

The tournament stalled, and Connor was put under the magnifying glass. By the end of a thorough investigation, Connor was cleared of any intentional wrong doing, and the tournament would continue. In the final round, it would be Connor and Miles who would fight for the championship.

A New Life
After the tournament was completed, Connor and Miles went their separate ways. Miles traveled to America, where he would scour the country for the right federation with which to make his name, and Connor remained in Western Europe. Connor entered the pros first, and before a year had gone by, Connor rose to the top of European wrestling. Connor won the World Championships in a handful of federations, and with his victories he brought a sense of pride and prestige to the titles previously unseen. Connor’s high flying style was a breath of fresh air in a culture so riddled with technical experts, and his will to win was nearly unmatched on a competitive scale that reached from London to Moscow.

By 2004, Connor had become a legend. He posted one of the greatest singles records of all time, and became one of the most over athletes in Europe since Beckham and Lewis. With this new found fame, Connor decided to join the trend of wrestlers who had migrated to film.

Film Career
MacManus began writing scripts in his spare time, and before he knew it, his agent was even receiving acting offers. Connor began acting in bit parts, then playing a co-star, and within half a year, rose to starring in an experimental series codenamed “The Cobra.” This series would revolve around a martial artist, and, because of the heavy Italian influence in the writing/directing, the genre of film was referred to as “Spaghetti Eastern.”

The Cobra series revolved around martial arts, and as Connor knew little about them, the producers of his film demanded he find a suitable stunt double. Connor insisted that he could learn Karate before filming began, and the producers presented him with a three-month time table. Connor began immediately, searching the world for the greatest Martial Art teachers, and ended up in Toyko with a zen master referred to him by his friend, Vic. Connor virtually disappeared from the face of the earth for three months, and when he returned to filming in Sicily, Connor wowed critics and fans alike with his newfound Karate acuteness.

While being a large success in the Western European market, Connor’s films never achieved box office warmth across the pond. By October of 2005, Connor tired of the film industry, and he returned to wrestling.

Return to Wrestling
Connor incorporated his newfound martial arts into his high flying style, and what came out of this amalgam was dubbed “Cobra,” after the movie which set the hybrid in motion. Connor was again a victorious contender, winning back a majority of his World Championships before the spring of 2006. Sadly, it was around this time that the Irish Wrestling market was raided by the American promotions. It was at this time that Connor’s drive to outdo the competition (which had been narrowed as a result of American raiding) began to sour. In March of 2006, Connor announced his retirement – at 22.

Connor revealed in an exclusive interview with a Dublin magazine that one of the most valuable techniques he learned from his teacher in Tokyo was the ability to “go inside,” which essentially refers to meditation. While “inside,” Connor gains access to roughly 80% of his brain, and is able to interact with his subconscious. It is while “inside” that Connor put his scouting of opponents to use, playing out what he has seen from video footage and using this to create a reflection of his opponent’s style with which to practice against. Unfortunately for Connor, as a result of his three month time table, he never exactly mastered the art of turning this ability off.

The result of this inequity meant that Connor’s dreams were replaced by hours of solitude, where his subconscious would fill the void of time with things to keep Connor busy – while he was acting, this would mean his subconscious would give Connor new methods of practicing lines, and while wrestling, it would force Connor to practice and keep himself in fit shape for his opponent. However, now that Connor was retired, one can only wonder what his subconscious forced upon him in the hours of solidarity.

Connor made various public appearances at movie premiers, operas, and he even made various cameo appearances as special referees or as a TV Guest Star. None of this particularly satisfied Connor.

The Millionaire's Mark
In September of 2006, Connor attended the opening of an opera in Dublin. It was here that Miles Marion tracked him down, and the two stars of Angus MacFayden’s prided training class reunited.

Miles had changed a lot since Connor had last seen him; he had become the main attraction at an American promotion called the World Wide Wrestling Alliance, and he had gained a reputation for abusing his money and power to get what he wanted. Connor, however, took this with a grain of salt – interpreting this to be jealous slander.

Miles told Connor about igniting a fire under professional wrestling, and suggested that the American market had resulted in the failings of Connor’s Irish promotions, as well as the financial failures of his films. Miles told Connor that the only way to truly become a legend was to prove himself within the confines of a market that believed itself to be the single most important – that of the United States. After a night of selling him, Connor finally accepted Miles’ offer, and the ball was set in motion.

World Wide Wrestling Alliance
Connor returned to wrestling at 3WA’s flagship fall event – Rage in a Cage. Connor debuted alongside Miles, saving him from the clutches of the monstrous Hyde with a steel chair in hand. At the same time, Connor entered 3WA’s “sister” federation, the Athletic Wrestling Alliance.

In 3WA, Miles and Connor formed an alliance with then-3WA Champion Shaun Stetson, and the three men named their stable “the Upper Echelon.” The three men would dominate 3WA, holding the World and Tag Team Championships, and at their peak, Connor would win the World Championship in AWA.

Although the three men seemed to be on top of the world, things began to change behind the scenes. A mysterious stalker began haunting Connor, leaving him notes about him being a traitor, a villain in the eyes of the world. This stalker would evade police and investigators, leaving Connor always looking over his shoulder.

In November of 3WA, Miles Marion decided that his time with Shaun Stetson was not paying dividends, and he challenged Stetson to defend his place amongst the best – more specifically, he challenged him to a match for the 3WA Championship at 3WA: Blood Feud.

In their time working together, Connor and Stetson had developed a brotherly loyalty, and it came as a shock to Connor when Miles demanded that Connor help Marion turn on Stetson to take the 3WA Championship from him. That night, Connor found himself standing in between Miles Marion and Shaun Stetson with a steel chair in hand. Miles’ new associates, Kyko and Robert Lunde, stood at Marion’s side, and would watch as Connor sold his soul to Miles Marion, beating Shaun Stetson within an inch of his life with that chair. Connor would watch as Stetson’s blood coated his hands, grabbing Miles’ hand, and raising it into the air – proclaiming the new alliance the second step of the evolution of the Upper Echelon.

The following month, Connor entered a steep depression; his stalker would up the stakes, attempting to murder MacManus with a poisoned bottle of scotch. Connor began going mad, investigating to find the identity of his stalker, but at the same time, trying to sustain the might of the Echelon. Connor noticed that things within the Echelon were stalling, and MacManus realized that he and Miles could never co-exist in a steady unit without settling their friendly rivalry from MacFayden’s camp. Although the two were like brothers, the fact that they stood dead even with one win, loss and draw a piece, ate at both MacManus and Marion. In an attempt to end this, Connor offered the AWA Title as a sacrifice in order to gain a match with Miles Marion at 3WA’s final event of 2006, Mob Mentality. The two men would spend all of that month preparing for their brawl.

The week before Connor and Miles would duel, MacManus made the long trip back to Dublin, making his trip known only to 3WA Consultant Quentin LeBeau. Connor made his way through the old town, searching out the man he thought was responsible for his stalking – Chris Geehan. Connor and Geehan had a long argument, but afterward, Connor was left without a culprit. MacManus left Geehan’s depressed, knowing that he was in an impossible situation. It was then that he got a phone call from his stalker, voice masked, tone blank. His stalker told him that he had made a mistake in harassing Chris Geehan, and to prevent the pain of other innocents, they would make themselves known to Connor that Sunday, the night of Mob Mentality.

The Revelation
Connor arrived in Toronto, the site of Mob Mentality, cautiously. His full focus was on his stalker, and he allowed his match with Miles Marion to take a backseat in comparison. Waiting feverishly in his locker room, the time finally came for Connor to meet his stalker.

Connor entered the 3WA parking lot that night prepared, calling out his stalker. After months of build up, they would reveal themselves, when Rebecca Borrail emerged from the shadows. Rebecca told Connor that she had stalked Connor in an effort to remind him who he was; to keep him free of Miles’ dark influence, and when Miles had sunk his claws into Connor, forcing him to turn on Stetson, she had seen no other real option than to attempt to salvage his soul through killing him. Failing, Rebecca realized that she had made a mistake, and instead dedicated her efforts to getting Connor to defeat Miles, vanquishing him forever.

When Connor asked her why she had left him, Rebecca replied “not because you paralyzed your man in a blind rage, but because you paralyzed the wrong man.” After four years of deception, Connor finally found full disclosure when Rebecca uttered the phrase that would hit 3WA like a nuclear shell – “It wasn’t Chris I slept with. It was Miles.”

Again filled with rage, the last four years of his life being a lie, Connor entered the 3WA ring with his mind set on destroying Miles Marion and stealing what meant most to him – the World Championship. Connor nearly succeeded, but Robert Lunde and Kyko would intervene, preventing Connor’s victory, and ending the match in a no contest. The Upper Echelon performed a monumental beat down on Connor to ring in 2007, and disowned MacManus from the clique.

Integration with AWA
In February of 2007, the feud between Miles Marion and Connor MacManus reached a boiling point. 3WA management begged Connor to cease his war with Miles Marion, as it was tearing the fed apart, but MacManus refused. Knowing that he could not stay in the same fed as Marion, without gunning for Miles' head, Connor left the 3WA and re-joined the Athletic Wrestling Alliance full-time.

Connor instantly got a #1 contender's match for the AWA title; he faced Wayne Don and Il Cognito in a triple threat match. The match had one of the most shocking and memorable endings of all time, when Miles Marion interfered in the match, taking Connor MacManus out with his patented finisher - the Millionaire's Mark.

Their rivalry restored, Connor and Miles are currently preparing for their "final encounter," a match at AWA's April 11th PPV - Blood for Gold.