Brendan Vink (born 8 February 1990) is an Australian professional wrestler signed to WWE where he performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Duke Hudson. He is a former one-time NXT Tag Team Champion. He is also known for his time in Melbourne City Wrestling where he was a part of The Mighty Don't Kneel.[4]

Duke Hudson
Duke Hudson in 2023
Birth nameBrendan Vink
Born (1990-02-08) 8 February 1990 (age 34)[1]
Adelaide, South Australia[2]
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)Brendan Vink
Duke Hudson
Elliot Sexton[3]
Tony Modra
Billed height6 ft 5 in (196 cm)[2]
Billed weight260 lb (118 kg)[2]
Billed fromAdelaide, Australia
Trained byDamian Slater
Hartley Jackson[2]
Debut28 April 2006[2]

Professional wrestling career

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Independent circuit (2006–2019)

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Brendan Vink made his professional wrestling debut on 28 April 2006 under the ring name Elliot Sexton. Wrestling primarily in Australia, Sexton appeared in independent promotions including Melbourne City Wrestling (MCW) and Wrestle Rampage. During his time in both promotions, Sexton became a one-time MCW Heavyweight Champion and a one-time WrestleRock Champion. In 2018, he made his international debut in matches for the Japanese promotion New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) and the British promotion Progress Wrestling.

WWE (2019–present)

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Early appearances (2019–2021)

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On 11 February 2019, it was announced that Vink had signed a contract with WWE and that he would report to the WWE Performance Center.[5] Vink debuted under his real name at an NXT house show on 15 March 2019, defeating Nick Comoroto. He went on to spend the remainder of March and the following month of April wrestling on house shows. Vink made his televised debut on the 25 March 2020 episode of NXT, teaming with his former TMDK stablemate Shane Thorne in a losing effort against Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch.[6]

Vink made his debut for EVOLVE in 2019 as part of EVOLVE's business relationship with WWE at EVOLVE 141 where he defeated Colby Corino in his first singles match.[7] Vink would then go on a winning streak in EVOLVE, defeating the likes of A. R. Fox, Stephen Wolf, JD Drake and Leon Ruff.[8][9][10][11]

In March 2020, Vink began appearing on Raw alongside Shane Thorne where they faced teams such as the Street Profits and Cedric Alexander and Ricochet but were defeated.[12][13] On the April 27 episode of Raw, Thorne and Vink became MVP’s newest associates as he challenged Alexander and Ricochet to a match the next week on their behalf. On the May 4 episode of Raw, Thorne and Vink defeated Alexander and Ricochet earning their first victory.[14] However, their alliance with MVP ended after they were both traded back to NXT and Thorne and Vink would quietly disband as a team soon after.[15]

NXT (2021–present)

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In July 2021, Vink, under the new ring name Duke Hudson was announced to be a part of the 2021 NXT Breakout Tournament. On the 13 July episode of NXT, Hudson defeated Ikemen Jiro in the first round. On the 17 August episode of NXT, Hudson was eliminated in the semi-finals by Carmelo Hayes. Hudson would then confront Kyle O'Reilly and a brawl would ensue leading to a match being made between the two on next weeks episode of NXT.[16] On 5 December, at NXT WarGames, Hudson lost to Cameron Grimes in a Hair vs. Hair match, and therefore had to shave his hair per the match's stipulation.[17]

On the 1 November 2022 episode of NXT, Hudson accompanied Thea Hail and Andre Chase as Chase University's flag bearer. On 24 October 2023 on Night 1 of NXT: Halloween Havoc, Hudson and Chase defeated The D'Angelo Family (Tony D'Angelo and Channing "Stacks" Lorenzo) to become the NXT Tag Team Champions, winning his first championship in WWE.[18] Chase and Hudson later lost the titles to D'Angelo and Stacks on the 14 November edition of NXT, ending their reign at 21 days.[19]

In early May 2024, Ridge Holland started associating himself with Chase U. On the 21 May episode of NXT, Fallon Henley defeated Hail to qualify for a spot at the six-woman ladder match to crown the inaugural NXT Women's North American Championship at NXT Battleground. Backstage, Riley Osborne got into an argument with Holland for costing Hail the match, to which Chase proposed that both men settle their differences in the ring[20] where Holland defeated Osborne. After the match, Osborne still do not approve of Chase U working with Holland, with Hudson agreeing with Osborne.[21] The stable would eventually accept Holland as an official member.[22] On the 25 June episode of NXT, Chase and Hudson won a tag team turmoil match for a NXT Tag Team Championship title match at NXT Heatwave on 7 July but they failed to defeat Nathan Frazer and Axiom for the titles.[23][24] On the 17 July episode of NXT, Hudson failed to defeat Oba Femi for the NXT North American Championship after Holland arranged for the match the previous week.[25] At NXT No Mercy on September 1, Chase and Holland, who had defeated Frazer and Axiom for the NXT Tag Team Championship two weeks before, lost the titles back to Frazer and Axiom. After the match, Holland viciously attacked the group, defecting from Chase U and reverted back to a heel in the process.[26][27] After his defection, Holland vowed to take down Chase U. On the September 10 episode of NXT, Holland defeated Hudson and took out Hudson with the barricade after the match.[28] On the November 19 episode of NXT, Holland defeated Chase with the future of Chase U on the line, causing Chase U to disband.[29]

In other media

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Vink made his WWE video game debut in WWE 2K24.

Championships and accomplishments

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Luchas de Apuestas record

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Winner (wager) Loser (wager) Location Event Date Notes
Cameron Grimes (hair) Duke Hudson (hair) Orlando, Florida NXT WarGames December 5, 2021

References

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  1. ^ @WWENXT (8 February 2022). "Happy birthday, @sixftfiiiiive!!! 🎂🥳Cc: @persiawwe 👀" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  2. ^ a b c d e Duke Hudson's profile at Cagematch.net, Wrestlingdata.com, Internet Wrestling Database
  3. ^ "Elliot Sexton". Cagematch.
  4. ^ "Melbourne City Wrestling".
  5. ^ "WWE ANNOUNCES NEW CLASS OF DEVELOPMENTAL SIGNINGS". PW Insider.
  6. ^ "WWE NXT Results for 3/25/20 Matt Riddle Victorious, New NXT Superstars Make Their Mark". Fightful.
  7. ^ "EVOLVE 141 Results (12/6): Briggs vs. Drake, WALTER vs. Thatcher, More". Fightful.
  8. ^ "EVOLVE 143 Results (1/17): Josh Briggs Takes On Anthony Greene In A No DQ Match". Fightful.
  9. ^ "EVOLVE 144 Results (1/18): Josh Briggs Defends EVOLVE Title Against Dexter Lumis". Fightful.
  10. ^ "EVOLVE 145 Stream, Results, And Discussion (2/29)". Fightful.
  11. ^ "EVOLVE 146 Results (3/1): Josh Briggs Faces AR Fox, Mansoor In Action". Fightful.
  12. ^ "WWE Raw 3/23/20 Results: Randy Orton Responds To Edge, Tag Team Action & Becky Lynch Attacks". Fightful.
  13. ^ "WWE Raw 4/20/20 Results: 3 MITB Qualifying Matches, Bobby Lashley Lifts Tires & Morgan vs. Riott". Fightful.
  14. ^ "WWE Raw 5/4/20 Results: AJ Styles Returns, A Gauntlet Match & Drew McIntyre vs. Murphy". Fightful.
  15. ^ "WWE Sends Two Superstars Back to NXT". Súper Luchas. 1 August 2020.
  16. ^ "Kyle O'Reilly looks to humble Duke Hudson in the ring". WWE. Retrieved 29 August 2021.
  17. ^ Moore, John (5 December 2021). "NXT WarGames results: Moore's live review of two WarGames matches, Roderick Strong vs. Joe Gacy for the NXT Cruiserweight Championship, Fabian Aichner and Marcel Barthel vs. Kyle O'Reilly and Von Wagner for the NXT Tag Titles, Cameron Grimes vs. Duke Hudson in a hair vs. hair match". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved 5 December 2021.
  18. ^ Berge, Kevin (25 October 2023). "WWE NXT Halloween Havoc 2023 Results: Winners, Live Grades, Reaction and Highlights". Bleacher Report.
  19. ^ Elizabeth, Claire (14 November 2023). "Iron Survivor Qualifiers, Alpha Academy". Cageside Seats. Retrieved 14 November 2023.
  20. ^ Moore, John (21 May 2024). "NXT TV results (5/21): Moore's review of Joe Coffey vs. Wes Lee vs. Josh Briggs for a shot at the NXT NA Title, Thea Hail vs. Fallon Henley, and Brinley Reece vs. Jaida Parker in NXT Women's NA Title qualifiers". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved 5 June 2024.
  21. ^ Moore, John (28 May 2024). "NXT TV results (5/28): Moore's review of Trick Williams and Je'Von Evans vs. Mark Coffey and Wolfgang, Michin vs. Tatum Paxley and Kelani Jordan vs. Wren Sinclair in NXT Women's NA Title ladder match qualifiers". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved 5 June 2024.
  22. ^ Moore, John (18 June 2024). "NXT TV results (6/18): Moore's review of the 25-man battle royal for a shot at the NXT Championship at NXT Heatwave, Kelani Jordan vs. Michin for the North American Championship". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved 19 June 2024.
  23. ^ Moore, John (25 June 2024). "NXT TV results (6/25): Moore's review of Tag Team Turmoil for a shot at the NXT Tag Titles, NXT Champion Trick Williams vs. Shawn Spears in a non-title match, Tony D'Angelo vs. Nathan Frazer for the NXT Heritage Cup". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
  24. ^ Powell, Jason (7 July 2024). "NXT Heatwave results: Moore's live review of Trick Williams vs. Ethan Page vs. Je'Von Evans vs. Shawn Spears for the NXT Championship, Roxanne Perez vs. Lola Vice for the NXT Women's Championship". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved 8 July 2024.
  25. ^ Moore, John (16 July 2024). "NXT TV results (7/16): Moore's review of The Rascalz vs. Gallus, Oba Femi vs. Duke Hudson for the NXT North American Title, Je'Von Evans vs. Brooks Jensen". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
  26. ^ Aguilar, Matthew (14 August 2024). "WWE's Chase U Becomes NXT Tag Team Champions in Epic Win". ComicBook. Retrieved 14 August 2024.
  27. ^ Moore, John (1 September 2024). "NXT No Mercy results: Moore's live review of Ethan Page vs. Joe Hendry for the NXT Championship with Trick Williams as special referee, Roxanne Perez vs. Jaida Parker for the NXT Women's Championship". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
  28. ^ Moore, John (10 September 2024). "NXT TV results (9/10): Moore's review of Trick Williams vs. Pete Dunne in a Last Man Standing match for a shot at the NXT Title, Nathan Frazer and Axiom vs. The Street Profits for the NXT Tag Titles, Giulia vs. Chelsea Green". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved 11 September 2024.
  29. ^ Tessier, Colin (19 November 2024). "Chase University Forced To Disband After Andre Chase's Loss On WWE NXT | Fightful News". Fightful. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
  30. ^ "AWA Champions League - Tag 2". CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  31. ^ "MCW Heavyweight Championship « Titles Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling Database". Archived from the original on 8 July 2014.
  32. ^ "Internet Wrestling Database - Brendan Vink: Pro Wrestling Illustrated Ratings".
  33. ^ "WrestleRock Championship". CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
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