Chris Sabin
Joshua Harter, better known by the ring name Chris Sabin, is an American professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand.
After being trained by Scott D'Amore, Sabin debuted in 2000 for Border City Wrestling, and quickly began competing for numerous other independent promotions. In 2003, Sabin joined NWA: Total Nonstop Action, and quickly won the TNA X Division Championship, which he later unified with the WWA International Cruiserweight Championship. Throughout the next few years, Sabin competed mainly in TNA's X Division, until forming the Motor City Machine Guns with Shelley in mid-2007. Sabin won 14 total championships while with TNA, including one reign as TNA World Heavyweight Champion, a record 10 reigns as TNA X Division Champion, and three reigns as TNA World Tag Team Champion. Sabin is also known for his appearances with New Japan Pro-Wrestling, where he was a one-time IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champion and one-time Strong Openweight Tag Team Champion, and Ring of Honor, where he was a one-time ROH World Tag Team Champion.
Professional wrestling career
Training; early career (2000–2003)
Harter began training as a wrestler in Michigan at the NWA Great Lakes Pro wrestling school. After the school began experiencing difficulties, he travelled to Windsor, Ontario and completed his training under Scott D'Amore and "Amazing" N8 Mattson at the Can-Am Wrestling School. He debuted in 2000 after four months training as "Chris Sabin", and began working for D'Amore's Border City Wrestling promotion and for independent promotions in Michigan.NWA Total Nonstop Action / Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (2003–2014)
X Division Champion (2003–2007)
Sabin joined NWA Total Nonstop Action in April 2003. He won the TNA X Division Championship on May 14 by defeating champion Amazing Red and Jerry Lynn in a three-way dance, after an assist from Triple X. After the match Sabin turned heel and joined Triple X in Sports Entertainment Xtreme. His reign ended after three months when he lost to Michael Shane in the first ever Ultimate X match on August 20.On September 3, 2003, Sabin, now a face, won the TNA 2003 Super X Cup Tournament, thus becoming the number one contender to the X Division Championship. He regained the X Division Championship on January 7, 2004, defeating Shane, Christopher Daniels and Low Ki in the second Ultimate X match. He was stripped of the title on March 31, 2004, after a knee injury left him unable to defend it.
After returning from injury, Sabin took part in the TNA 2004 World X Cup Tournament in May 2004, forming Team TNA with Jerry Lynn, Christopher Daniels and Elix Skipper. On May 26, Team USA defeated Team Mexico, Team Canada and Team Japan in a two-hour pay-per-view event which saw the teams fight one another in a variety of matches. The finals saw Sabin wrestle the Canadian Petey Williams and the Mexican Héctor Garza in an Ultimate X match, which Sabin won when he retrieved a large red "X" which had been suspended above the ring on steel cables.
For the remainder of 2004, Sabin contended for the X Division Championship. He won another Ultimate X match on November 9 to win a title shot at Petey Williams. At Turning Point 2004 on December 5, however, Williams was able to secure a victory with the help of a pair of brass knuckles. Sabin got another shot at the title at Final Resolution on January 16, 2005, in an Ultimate X match with Williams and A.J. Styles, but the match and title were won by Styles.
Throughout 2005, Sabin feuded with Michael Shane, by now wrestling as Matt Bentley. In September 2005 he began a feud with Shocker that abruptly ended when Shocker was unable to return from Mexico for their scheduled match at Unbreakable on September 11. Instead, Sabin faced Petey Williams and won after hitting the Cradle Shock
In 2006, Sabin mostly teamed up with Sonjay Dutt, to great effect, beating Team Canada in a number one contenders tag team tournament on TNA Impact!. At the Against All Odds pay-per-view event Sabin and Dutt were beaten by Chris Harris and James Storm in a bout for the NWA World Tag Team Championships. On March 11, Chris Sabin defeated Alex Shelley and Sonjay Dutt in a 3-way match to represent both the US in the "International X Division Showcase" at Destination X 2006 as well as joining Jay Lethal on Team TNA in the upcoming World X Cup Tournament. Later that month, Sabin was hospitalized with a severe concussion after taking four blows to the head during a show for the Northeast Wrestling promotion on March 25 in Bristol, Connecticut. He was released after undergoing a CAT scan. Sabin acted as the captain of Team USA at World X Cup 2006, defeating Puma of Team Mexico, earning 3 points, and on May 18, defeating Petey Williams in a sudden death tiebreaker singles match, winning the World X Cup for Team USA.
On the June 1, 2006 episode of TNA Impact!, Sabin rushed to the ring to clear out Alex Shelley and Kevin Nash, who were attacking Jay Lethal in another of Nash's X Division beatdowns. Nash would avoid a physical confrontation with Sabin, only to be challenged to a match by Sabin at Slammiversary 2006 which Nash was able to win.
Sabin later became the number one contender for the TNA X Division Championship by defeating Alex Shelley at Hard Justice 2006. Sabin would enter into an angle with fellow X-Division wrestlers to promote the Jackass: Number Two movie by imitating stunts performed on the film to display the lighter side of the X-Division, something then champion Senshi disapproved of. Since then, Sabin would attempt to take Senshi's title on several occasions. On October 22, 2006, Sabin defeated Senshi after using an inside cradle to become a 3 time X Division Champion at Bound for Glory 2006. On the November 2, 2006 episode of TNA Impact!, he lost the title to A.J. Styles in the Fight for the Right tournament.
Prior to the match, Sabin showed signs of turning heel when he expressed his disdain for X-Division pioneer, and face, Jerry Lynn for doubting his focus in an interview with Christy Hemme. Sabin completed his heel turn two weeks later when he refused to help fellow X-Division star Sonjay Dutt from an assault from Samoa Joe. Sabin went on to challenge Christopher Daniels at Genesis for the X Division Championship but failed. After winning a three-way match against former allies Sonjay Dutt and Jay Lethal for a number one contender's match, he once again challenged Daniels at Turning Point but lost.
At Final Resolution 2007, Sabin won the X Division Championship from then champion Christopher Daniels in a three-way match which also involved Jerry Lynn. Sabin went on to feud with Lynn over the title; defeating him at Against All Odds 2007 by using the ring ropes for leverage. At Destination X, Sabin defeated Lynn in a two out of three falls match to retain the X Division Championship. After the match, however, a masked man, who was later revealed to be Christopher Daniels, attacked both Sabin and Lynn. At Lockdown Sabin retained his title against Alex Shelley, Sonjay Dutt, Jay Lethal, and Shark Boy in a Six Sides of Steel Xscape match. At Sacrifice he retained his title against Sonjay Dutt, and Jay Lethal, by pinning Dutt. Sabin lost his title at Slammiversary, however, to Lethal. Sabin received a rematch on Impact! against Lethal and Samoa Joe, but Sabin was pinned after Joe hit a Muscle Buster.
Motor City Machine Guns (2007–2012)
In the summer of 2007, Sabin formed a tag team with Alex Shelley, known as the Motor City Machine Guns. The two had been teaming in several independent promotions prior to their formation as a team in TNA. Sabin and Shelley started a feud with Team 3D, turning face, which stemmed from Team 3D constantly attacking the X Division every week. They defeated Team 3D at Genesis. Motor City Machine Guns later competed in TNA's World X Cup as a part of Team USA/TNA and went undefeated, winning two tag team matches and the 12 man elimination tag team match.Sabin and Shelley turned heel when, after a match with B.G. James and Eric Young, Sabin slapped James in the face. Sabin and Shelley lost a TNA World Tag Team Championship match at Turning Point to Beer Money, Inc.
Sabin and Shelley turned face then joined the TNA Frontline. In December 2008, Sabin qualified for the finals in the X Division title tournament after defeating Sonjay Dutt and Kiyoshi. On January 11, 2009, at Genesis, Sabin was defeated by his tag team partner Alex Shelley for the X Division title. Sabin and Shelley then floated began competing in minor matches. The two eventually began popping up in the crowd with various signs, such as "Yes, we still work here." They would then be given their own broadcast table and would occasionally do commentary for various matches. On the October 22 episode of Impact!, Sabin and Shelley won an Ultimate X match against Lethal Consequences to become the number one contenders for the TNA World Tag Team Championship. On the October 29 episode of Impact!, Sabin suffered a concussion during a match with Team 3D after landing on his head. At Turning Point, The British Invasion defeated Sabin and Shelley and Beer Money, Inc. in a three-way match to retain the TNA Tag Team titles. The following month at Final Resolution, British Invasion defeated Sabin and Shelley to once again retain their titles.
At Destination X, Sabin and Shelley defeated Generation Me in an Ultimate X match to earn another shot at the TNA World Tag Team Championship. Sabin and Shelley received their title shot on the April 12 episode of Impact!, but were defeated by World Tag Team Champion Matt Morgan and Amazing Red, who replaced the injured Hernandez in the match. The following month at Sacrifice, the Motor City Machine Guns defeated Beer Money, Inc. and Team 3D in a three-way match to earn another shot at the Tag Team Championship. On July 11 at Victory Road, the Motor City Machine Guns defeated Beer Money, Inc. to win the vacant TNA World Tag Team Championship for the first time.
After Victory Road, the Motor City Machine Guns entered a Best of Five Series with Beer Money, Inc. for the TNA World Tag Team Championship. Beer Money won the first two matches, a ladder match and a Street Fight, after knocking out Sabin and Shelley with beer bottles. However, Sabin and Shelley came back to win the two following matches, a steel cage match and an Ultimate X match, to even the score to 2–2 and set up a deciding match for the August 12 episode of Impact!. On the August 12 episode of Impact! the Motor City Machine Guns defeated Beer Money, Inc. in a Two Out of Three Falls match to win the Best of Five Series and retain the TNA World Tag Team Championship.
At both No Surrender and Bound for Glory, the Motor City Machine Guns retained their titles in matches against Generation Me, who turned heel at the former event. Also at Bound for Glory, Team 3D announced their retirement from professional wrestling, but requested one final match against the Motor City Machine Guns, whom they called the best tag team in wrestling. The Motor City Machine Guns accepted and the match took place on November 7, 2010, at Turning Point, where they defeated Team 3D to retain the TNA World Tag Team Championship. Sabin also became one of only 2 people to kick out of the Dudley's 3D finisher, along with Masato Tanaka.
After Jeremy Buck pinned Sabin in an eight-person tag team match, where the Motor City Machine Guns teamed with Jay Lethal and Velvet Sky and Generation Me with Robbie E and Cookie, on the November 18 episode of Impact!, the Motor City Machine Guns challenged Generation Me to an Empty Arena match. The match took place later that same night on Reaction with the Motor City Machine Guns coming out victorious. On December 5 at Final Resolution the Motor City Machine Guns defeated Generation Me in a Full Metal Mayhem match to retain the World Tag Team Championship. The following month at Genesis, Sabin and Shelley lost the World Tag Team Championship to Beer Money, Inc., after Robert Roode rolled up Sabin following a miscommunication between the Machine Guns. Sabin and Shelley received their rematch for the title on the following episode of Impact!, but lost again due to a miscommunication. For the next three months, the Motor City Machine Guns went inactive, as Shelley suffered a collarbone injury and Sabin returned to the X Division.
On the April 28 episode of Impact!, Shelley made his return, saving Sabin from a beatdown at the hands of Mexican America. Ironically, the same day Shelley made his return, Sabin suffered a knee injury in his match with Anarquia. Sabin underwent surgery on his right knee in early May. On the June 2 episode of Impact Wrestling, Shelley announced that Sabin had torn his ACL and MCL and would be out for the rest of 2011.
On March 18, 2012, at Victory Road, TNA started promoting the returns of Sabin and the Motor City Machine Guns. On March 27, TNA president Dixie Carter announced that Sabin had been cleared to return to the ring. Sabin returned on the April 5 episode of Impact Wrestling, where he and Shelley defeated Mexican America in a tag team match, before announcing their intention of going for the TNA World Tag Team Championship, held by Magnus and Samoa Joe. On April 15 at Lockdown, The Motor City Machine Guns unsuccessfully challenged Magnus and Joe for the TNA World Tag Team Championship in a steel cage match. On May 21, it was reported that Shelley had left TNA, disbanding the Motor City Machine Guns.