Wes Lee facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Wes Lee |
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Lee in 2019
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| Birth name | Deveon Everhart Aikens |
| Born | November 2, 1988 Dayton, Ohio, U.S. |
| Spouse(s) |
Erica Marie
(m. 2020) |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Dez Dezmond X Dezmond Xavier Wes Lee |
| Billed height | 5 ft 9 in (175 cm) |
| Billed weight | 190 lb (86 kg) |
| Billed from | Dayton, Ohio |
| Debut | 2011 |
Wes Lee, whose real name is Deveon Everhart Aikens, is an American professional wrestler born on November 2, 1988. He is currently signed with WWE, where he performs on the NXT brand. He uses the ring name Wes Lee and is the leader of a wrestling group called The High Ryze.
Wes Lee has achieved significant success in WWE. He is a former one-time NXT North American Champion and a two-time NXT Tag Team Champion. Before joining WWE, he was well-known as a co-founder of a wrestling group called The Rascalz. He also wrestled for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (now known as Impact Wrestling) as Dezmond Xavier, and for other independent wrestling companies like Pro Wrestling Guerrilla (PWG). In PWG, he was a Tag Team Champion with Zachary Wentz and held the title for a very long time.
Contents
- Wes Lee's Wrestling Journey
- Personal Life
- Video Games
- Championships and Achievements
- See also
Wes Lee's Wrestling Journey
Early Career and Tag Team Success (2011–2021)
Deveon Aikens started his professional wrestling career in 2011, using the name Dezmond Xavier. Early in his career, he won the WC Sideshow Championship at WrestleCircus and the DTU Alto Impacto Championship in Desastre Total Ultraviolento.
In 2015, Dezmond Xavier teamed up with Zachary Wentz to form a tag team called Scarlet and Graves. They became very successful, winning the Combat Zone Wrestling World Tag Team Championships twice. They also won the AAW World Tag Team Championships in 2017.
In 2018, Dezmond Xavier and Zachary Wentz continued their winning streak. They won the PWR Tag Team Championships and the One Night Tag Team Tournament at The Wrestling Revolver. They also captured the PWG World Tag Team Championships in Pro Wrestling Guerrilla. Their reign as PWG Tag Team Champions lasted an impressive 1025 days, which is the longest in the company's history.
Time in Impact Wrestling (2017–2020)
X Division Challenges (2017–2018)
In 2017, Dezmond Xavier joined Impact Wrestling. He quickly made an impact, competing in a six-way match for the X Division Championship. He also won the GFW Super X Cup tournament, defeating tough opponents like Drago and Taiji Ishimori.
Despite his success in the tournament, Xavier faced challenges in winning the X Division Championship. He competed in several title matches against wrestlers like Trevor Lee, Taiji Ishimori, and Brian Cage, but he was unable to win the championship during this period.
The Rascalz Group (2018–2020)
In late 2018, Dezmond Xavier, Trey Miguel, and Zachary Wentz formed a popular group called The Rascalz. They quickly became fan favorites. Xavier shortened his ring name to Dez, while Trey Miguel and Zachary Wentz became Trey and Wentz.
The Rascalz competed in many tag team matches. Dez and Wentz challenged for the World Tag Team Championship multiple times but were unsuccessful. They also had notable matches against teams like The North and The Motor City Machine Guns.
In November 2020, it was announced that The Rascalz would be leaving Impact Wrestling. Dez and Wentz later signed with WWE, while Trey Miguel returned to Impact Wrestling, which meant the end of The Rascalz as a trio.
Joining WWE and MSK (2020–2022)
Becoming MSK and Tag Team Champion
On December 2, 2020, Dezmond Xavier and Zachary Wentz officially signed with WWE. They were sent to the WWE Performance Center to train. On January 13, 2021, they debuted on NXT with new names: Dezmond Xavier became Wes Lee, and Zachary Wentz became Nash Carter. Their new tag team name was MSK.
MSK quickly made a name for themselves by winning the Men's Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic tournament. This victory earned them a shot at the vacant NXT Tag Team Championship. At NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver Night One, MSK won the titles in a triple threat match. They successfully defended their titles against various teams, including Legado Del Fantasma and Timothy Thatcher and Tommaso Ciampa.
At NXT Halloween Havoc, MSK lost their titles to Imperium. However, they managed to reclaim the championships at NXT Stand & Deliver in 2022. Just a few days later, on April 5, 2022, WWE released Nash Carter due to serious off-ring issues, and the NXT Tag Team Championships were officially vacated. This ended Wes Lee's second reign and led to the end of the MSK team in WWE.
NXT North American Champion (2022–2023)
After the end of MSK, Wes Lee returned to NXT 2.0 on April 19, 2022. He faced some tough matches, including losses to Xyon Quinn and Sanga, but he eventually started winning.
On October 22, at NXT Halloween Havoc, Wes Lee achieved a major milestone. He won the vacant NXT North American Championship in a five-man ladder match. This was his first singles championship in WWE and his third overall singles title in his career.
Wes Lee successfully defended his NXT North American Championship against many challengers, including Tony D'Angelo, Dijak, Nathan Frazer, and Von Wagner. He broke the record for the most successful title defenses at NXT Stand & Deliver by winning a Fatal Five-Way match. He continued to defend the title, tying Keith Lee's record for most defenses.
At NXT Battleground, Wes Lee retained his championship against Tyler Bate and Joe Gacy. This victory made him the longest-reigning NXT North American Champion, surpassing Velveteen Dream's record. His reign lasted an impressive 269 days. However, on July 18, 2023, Lee lost the NXT North American Championship to "Dirty" Dominik Mysterio due to interference from The Judgment Day. He tried to regain the title at NXT The Great American Bash but was unsuccessful.
Championship Pursuits and Injury (2023–2024)
In August 2023, Wes Lee defeated Dijak to become the number one contender for the NXT Championship. He challenged Carmelo Hayes for the title at NXT Heatwave but lost. He later lost another NXT Championship contender match to Ilja Dragunov.
Lee then took a break from NXT, hinting that he was "done." However, he made a surprise return in October 2023, attacking Dominik Mysterio. He earned another title match against Mysterio for the NXT North American Championship at NXT Deadline. Unfortunately, a week before the event, Lee announced he needed back surgery and would be out of action for several months. He had been dealing with the injury for some time and had even considered retirement due to losing feeling in his legs.
Wes Lee made a surprise return from his injury on April 30, 2024, at Spring Breakin', confronting NXT North American Champion Oba Femi. He quickly returned to action, defeating Josh Briggs in his first match back. Lee then competed in a triple threat match for the NXT North American Championship at NXT Battleground on June 9, but Oba Femi retained the title. Lee challenged Femi again at NXT Heatwave on July 7, with the stipulation that if he lost, he could not challenge Femi for the title again as long as Femi was champion. Lee lost the match.
The High Ryze (2024–Present)
After his loss at Heatwave, Wes Lee was about to announce his departure from NXT. However, he was interrupted by his former Rascalz teammates, Trey Miguel and Zachary Wentz (who returned to WWE). They convinced Lee to stay, and the trio reunited. They defeated Gallus in a six-man tag team match.
At NXT: The Great American Bash on August 6, Wentz and Lee (as MSK) challenged for the NXT Tag Team Championships but lost. After the match, Wes Lee turned on Miguel and Wentz, becoming a "heel" (a bad guy in wrestling) for the first time in his career. He was upset with Wentz for leaving him in 2022.
Lee then began a rivalry with Wentz, leading to a match at NXT No Mercy on September 1, which Lee lost. However, Lee defeated Wentz in a Street Fight on October 1. In December 2024, it was hinted that Lee would form a new alliance with Tyriek Igwe and Tyson Dupont. On December 31, Lee teamed with Igwe and Dupont for the first time, winning a six-man tag team match. In May 2025, their team was officially named The High Ryze. Wes Lee has also stated that he is the "gatekeeper of NXT."
Return to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (2024; 2025)
Wes Lee made a surprise return to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) on July 20, 2024, at Slammiversary. He reunited with The Rascalz to defeat No Quarter Catch Crew in a six-man tag team match. However, Lee later turned on The Rascalz in NXT.
On January 23, 2025, Lee and his new NXT allies, Tyriek Igwe and Tyson Dupont, interfered in a TNA Tag Team Championship match, helping the champions retain and restarting his feud with The Rascalz. Lee defeated Ace Austin in his first TNA singles match since 2020. At Sacrifice on March 14, Lee, Igwe, and Dupont lost to The Rascalz and Ace Austin in a "Lucha Rules" six-man tag team match, ending their rivalry for now.
Personal Life
Deveon Aikens, known as Wes Lee, is married to Erica Marie.
Video Games
Wes Lee has appeared as a playable character in several WWE video games. He made his debut in WWE 2K22 as downloadable content and is also featured in WWE 2K23, WWE 2K24, WWE 2K25, and WWE SuperCard.
Championships and Achievements
Wes Lee has won many championships and received various honors throughout his wrestling career:
- All American Wrestling
- AAW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Zachary Wentz
- Combat Zone Wrestling
- CZW World Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Zachary Wentz
- Desastre Total Ultraviolento
- DTU Alto Impacto Championship (1 time)
- ESPN
- Ranked No. 14 of the 30 best Pro Wrestlers Under 30 in 2023
- Impact Wrestling
- GFW Super X Cup (2017)
- Impact Turkey Bowl (2018) – with Alisha Edwards, Kikutaro, KM, and Fallah Bahh
- Pro Wrestling Guerrilla
- PWG World Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Zachary Wentz
- Pro Wrestling Illustrated
- Ranked No. 66 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2023
- WrestleCircus
- WC Sideshow Championship (1 time)
- The Wrestling Revolver
- PWR Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Zachary Wentz
- One Night Tag Team Tournament (2018) – with Zachary Wentz
- WWE
- NXT North American Championship (1 time)
- NXT Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Nash Carter
- Men's Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic (2021) – with Nash Carter
- Xtreme Intense Championship Wrestling
- XICW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Aaron Williams, Dave Crist, Kyle Maverick, Trey Miguel, and Zachary Wentz
See also
In Spanish: Wes Lee para niños
- The Rascalz
