Jason Ayers
| Jason Ayers | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Jason Ayers |
| Born |
January 13, 1982 Havelock, North Carolina, United States |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) |
Jason Ayers Jason Harding |
| Billed height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) |
| Billed weight | 170 lb (77 kg) |
| Debut | 1998 |
Jason Ayers (born January 13, 1982) is an American professional wrestling referee. He is working for WWE refereeing matches on the main roster.
Professional wrestling career
Early career (1998–2012)
Ayers started refereeing independent wrestling matches in 1998, with Hoosier Pro Wrestling in Columbus, Indiana, under the name Jason Harding.[1]
Ayers began as a referee for Ring of Honor in May 2005 at Nowhere to Run, officiating the match between James Gibson and B.J. Whitmer.[2] Ayers left Ring of Honor in September 2007. In July 2006, Ayers made his Japanese debut with Dragon Gate Pro Wrestling during their WrestleJAM tour. The tour featured several Ring of Honor stars, including Austin Aries, Matt Sydal, and more.[3] After leaving ROH in 2007, Jason toured nationally with Micro Wrestling Federation.
In January 2010, Jason began with both Dragon Gate USA and Evolve, refereeing the Davey Richards vs Kota Ibushi main event at the debut EVOLVE event.[4] He traveled with both companies, serving as head referee on all events until November 2011.
WWE (2012–present)
In February 2012, Ayers signed a contract with WWE,[5] and started in Florida Championship Wrestling in early March. In mid-2012, FCW was rebranded as WWE NXT,[6] and Ayers became head referee shortly thereafter.[7]
Ayers refereed the finals of the NXT Tag Team Championship tournament, crowning the first champions, Adrian Neville and Oliver Grey on January 31, 2013. On May 2, Ayers refereed the match between Luke Harper and Erick Rowan vs Neville and Bo Dallas where Harper and Rowan became NXT Tag Team Champions. Ayers debuted on Raw on August 6, refereeing the match between Kaitlyn and Layla.
Jason refereed at Wrestlemania XXX for the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royale and WrestleMania XXXI for both the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royale and the Intercontinental Championship Ladder Match.
References
- ↑ "10-Falls With Referee Jason Harding". Retrieved May 11, 2013.
- ↑ "ROH Nowhere To Run DVD: Amazon.co.uk: Film & TV". Retrieved May 11, 2013.
- ↑ "Dragon Gate WrestleJAM Matches Announced". Retrieved May 11, 2013.
- ↑ "EVOLVE 1: Ibushi vs Richards DVD". Retrieved May 11, 2013.
- ↑ "WWE Hires DGUSA Talent". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved May 11, 2013.
- ↑ "WWE News: Florida Championship Wrestling Officially Becomes NXT Wrestling". Retrieved May 11, 2013.
- ↑ "NXT Wrestling". Retrieved May 11, 2013.