Austin Jenkins

American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Adam Cole. He competed for several independent promotions, including Combat Zone Wrestling, Maryland Championship Wrestling, Northeast Wrestling and Ring of Honor. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs in their developmental territory NXT. In NXT, Cole is a one-time NXT Champion, a former one-time North American Champion and former one-time Tag Team Champion. According to a podcast interview held by former WWE superstars Edge and Christian, Jenkins states he became a fan of professional wrestling "late" in life at age 9. He credits his upbringing in a conservative Pennsylvania town as the reason for not viewing professional wrestling for a long time. According to Jenkins, he watched his first WWE pay-per-view on video through his karate instructor who was an avid pro wrestling fan. After securing a signature of permission from his mother, Jenkins was loaned his instructor's video tape of WrestleMania XV. Jenkins also credited the main event match between Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock at WrestleMania X-Seven as his prime inspiration for entering professional wrestling. Growing up, his favorite WWE superstars included Stone Cold Steve Austin, Shawn Michaels, Kurt Angle, the teams of Edge & Christian and The Hardy Boyz. He also stated the first live pay-per-view he watched was WrestleMania XX. Jenkins also states he attended a WWE event during the period of the WWF vs. The Alliance storyline, describing his attendance on the night during which The Rock returned in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to save the WWF. Jenkins also stated he competed in amateur wrestling during junior high and high school, in preparation for his dream of becoming a professional wrestling.