Brian Keith Adams (April 14, 1964 – August 13, 2007) was an American professional wrestler. Adams is known for his time with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), under the name Crush, and for World Championship Wrestling (WCW) under his real name Brian Adams. Trained in Japan by Antonio Inoki, he was a two-time WCW World Tag Team Champion, a one-time WWF Tag Team Champion and a one-time AJPW World Tag Team Champion, among other accomplishments. He was a challenger for various singles titles in the WWF and WCW, including the WWF Championship. In 2002, he briefly tried a career in boxing until retiring due to back and shoulder injuries.
Early life Brian Adams was born in Kona, Hawaii and was raised in Kealakekua, Hawaii and attended Konawaena High School. After graduating from high school, Adams joined the US Air Force, where he began boxing. It was during his time in the USAF, while stationed in Japan, that he was also exposed to wrestling. Adams was trained in wrestling by famed Japanese wrestler and mixed martial artist Antonio Inoki.
Professional wrestling career
New Japan Pro-Wrestling (1986–1987) Brian Adams made his debut for New Japan Pro-Wrestling in 1986. However, his work visa expired after a tour in September 1987, forcing him to return to the United States.
Pacific Northwest Wrestling and return to NJPW (1987–1988) In November 1987, Adams joined the NWA Pacific Northwest Wrestling (PNW) promotion, where he was given the nickname "the American Ninja". Upon arrival, he feuded with Super Ninja, which culminated in a loser-leaves-town match, which Adams won. Adams left PNW in February 1988 to return to NJPW for a tour, this time under the masked persona, The Midnight Soldier. The NJPW tour lasted from February 29 to March 19.
Continental Wrestling Association and All Japan Pro Wrestling (1988–1989) Upon returning to Portland, he did not return to PNW, but instead joined Billy Jack Haynes' short-lived Oregon Wrestling Federation. After OWF quickly folded, Adams wrestled throughout the independent circuit in Portland, until November 1988, when he joined Mike Miller in Memphis, to wrestle for Continental Wrestling Association. Later that same month, he wrestled a match for World Championship Wrestling teaming with Jerry Price losing to Lex Luger and Sting. In January 1989, Adams and Miller went to wrestle a tour for All Japan Pro Wrestling. The AJPW tour lasted from January 2 to 28.
Return to PNW (1989–1990) In March 1989, Adams finally returned to PNW, where he aligned with Lord Jonathan Boyd and Carl Styles, feuding with The Grappler, The Barbarian, and Buddy Rose. In April 1989, Adams revived the masked Midnight Soldier persona, which led to The Grappler to offer a $5000 bounty for the mask. In September 1989, Adams unmasked and turned heel, and joined forces with The Grappler in a tag team called "The Wrecking Crew". Adams and Grappler were the Pacific Northwest Tag Team Champions for a time and worked a feud with the Southern Rockers, Steve Doll and Rex King. In May 1988, he took part in Billy Jack Haynes' short-lived Oregon Wrestling Federation. In 1990, he won the Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship after winning a tournament final match against Larry Oliver in Portland on April 21, 1990, for the vacant title. He lost the title to Scott Norton on May 12, 1990, in Portland.
World Wrestling Federation (1989, 1990–1991)
Adams appeared in a dark match on August 9, 1989, defeating Barry Horowitz on WWF Wrestling Challenge.
In June 1990, while still working for the PNW, Adams debuted in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) as "Crush", the third member of the Tag Team Champions Demolition. With Adams joining Demolition, the trio exercised the Freebird Rule allowing any combination of the three to defend the tag team title, which allowed Crush to become a Tag Team Champion. He was brought in as a substitute for Ax to defend the titles with Smash. Crush debuted at a live event on June 5, where he and Smash successfully defended the titles against The Rockers. Crush made his televised debut with Demolition on the June 23 episode of Superstars, teaming with Smash in a quick victory over Paul Diamond and Joe Champ. On the July 28 episode of Saturday Night's Main Event XXVII, Crush and Smash retained the titles against The Rockers, after Ax (who was the illegal man) clotheslined and pinned Shawn Michaels. At the SummerSlam pay-per-view, Demolition lost the titles to The Hart Foundation in a two out of three falls match with Crush getting pinned for the final fall to lose the titles. After SummerSlam, Demolition shifted focus from the belts to their already incipient feud with The Legion of Doom, which had intensified after the latter team interfered in the title change match. Adams continued to perform as part of Demolition until after WrestleMania VII where he and Smash lost to Genichiro Tenryu and Koji Kitao. After that WrestleMania, in March 1991, the WWF decided to disband Demolition as a team, although Demolition continue to team until September of that year.
Second return to PNW (1991–1992) Upon his departure from the WWF, Adams, who continued to use the Crush gimmick, returned to PNW. He quickly turned fan favorite upon his return and was portrayed as a dominant wrestler, winning both the Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship and the Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship. Adams received the first of these two championships during this stint in the PNW while teaming with previous rival Steve Doll and defeating The Bruise Brothers for the Tag Team Championship on July 27, 1991, in Portland, Oregon. They remained the champions until September 1, 1991, when they lost the title to The Grappler and Don Harris. A little more than a month later, Adams received his second Pacific Northwest Heavyweight title, on October 12, 1991, in Portland after he defeated Rip Oliver via submission to the Full Nelson hold. Adams was the champion for just over three months, losing the title to Ron Harris at a show in Portland, on January 18, 1992.
Return to WWF Kona Crush (1992–1993) On the back of his success in PNW, Adams went back to work for the WWF in 1992, retaining the Crush name and still a fan favorite, but using a new character of an easygoing surfing Hawaiian who wore bright neon tights and utilized a new two-handed skull vice finisher called the Cranium Crunch. Crush made his televised debut in WWF as his new character on the May 9, 1992, episode of Superstars, defeating Kato. The two would continue to work at house shows that month. Crush made his first pay-per-view appearance under the gimmick with a win over Repo Man (Barry Darsow, who also played Crush's former Demolition partner, Smash) at SummerSlam. Crush then engaged in a feud with Doink the Clown, after he was attacked with a loaded prosthetic arm while confronting the clown about his cruel pranks on children at ringside, which caused Crush to miss the 1993 Royal Rumble. The feud culminated at WrestleMania IX, where Crush lost after a second, identical Doink appeared from underneath the ring and struck Crush with the prosthetic arm. At the first King of the Ring pay-per-view, Crush challenged Shawn Michaels for the Intercontinental Championship, but lost the match after a distraction by Doink.
On July 4, Crush injured his back in the Stars and Stripes Challenge trying to bodyslam the WWF Champion Yokozuna, who at the time had a billed weight of . The bodyslam challenge took place on the US Navy Aircraft carrier USS Intrepid. Crush, generally considered to have the best chance of those present, was the first wrestler to actually get Yokozuna off his feet, but his back gave out, forcing him to stop. Lex Luger won the challenge. On the July 12 episode of Monday Night Raw, Crush unsuccessfully challenged Yokozuna for the WWF Championship. After the match, Yokozuna sent a message to Luger by performing several Banzai Drops to Crush. This angle was used to write Crush off television to recover from his back injury; he returned that following October.
Alliance with Mr. Fuji and Tribal Crush (1993–1995) Crush returned to WWF on the October 18, 1993 episode of Monday Night Raw and attacked his on-screen friend Randy Savage because Savage had encouraged him to enter the Body Slam Challenge and had failed to contact him during his recuperation. He lacerated Randy’s tongue by dropping him face first onto a guardrail. Crush then allied himself with Yokozuna and Mr. Fuji, becoming a villain. Gorilla Monsoon called the gimmick the 'Native Hawaiian'. The new Native Chief/Polynesian Warrior gimmick included: growing a goatee, using a new face paint design different from his Demolition character, and utilizing a darker color scheme with a mix of Polynesian Blood for his ring attire. He also was billed as being from Kona, Hawaii (Hometown), Polynesia, and sometimes Japan. At Survivor Series, Crush headlined the event as part of Foreign Fanatics (Yokozuna, Ludvig Borga and Quebecer Jacques) against All-Americans (Lex Luger, The Undertaker and The Steiner Brothers). This rivalry led to a falls count anywhere match against Savage at WrestleMania X, which he lost.
Crush would become a hired gun for his manager Mr. Fuji, helping Jeff Jarrett win a King of the Ring qualifying match against Lex Luger on the May 21 episode of Superstars by attacking Luger outside the ring, causing him to lose by count-out. In retaliation, Luger cost Crush a King of the Ring qualifying lumberjack match against Tatanka on the June 6 episode of Raw. As a result, the pair began a short program. During the rivalry, Crush formed a tag team with Fuji's client Yokozuna, challenging The Headshrinkers for the Tag Team Championship at King of the Ring. They lost the match after Luger distracted Crush. In mid-July 1994, Crush parted ways with Yokozuna and Mr. Fuji but continued his feud with Luger. Their rivalry culminated in a match on the August 21 episode of Sunday Night Slam, which Luger won after Ted DiBiase distracted Crush. Afterwards, Crush lost a series of non-televised matches to The Undertaker in Europe in early September, and then subsequently left the WWF.
In 1995, Crush returned to the WWF at Royal Rumble and took part in the Royal Rumble match as the 30th entrant. He played a large role near the end of the match by eliminating Billy Gunn, Bart Gunn, Adam Bomb, and Headshrinker Fatu. Crush was one of the final four wrestlers in the ring alongside Lex Luger, Shawn Michaels and British Bulldog. After eliminating Luger via Michaels' aid, he tried to hit his body press slam on Shawn. However, Michaels raked his eyes and the Bulldog clotheslined him out of the ring. The Royal Rumble was the only wrestling appearance for Adams in 1995 for the WWF. On March 13, while home in Hawaii, he was arrested and subsequently jailed for purchasing steroids and possessing an illegal hand gun. Following this, Todd Pettengill announced on the March 25, 1995, episode of WWF Mania that Crush was arrested and fired (a public termination from WWF)
Nation of Domination and Disciples of Apocalypse (1996–1997)