AJPW Champion Carnival Edition 2019 - Get to know all 18 competitors

#15 Jake Lee

Jake Lee.

This technical wrestler of Korean roots started his career in 2011, being trained by Keiji Mutoh. Lee then began to train mixed martial arts and returned to pro wrestling in 2015. Since then, he has been a member of the AJPW roster. He is a very popular wrestler among AJPW fans and a candidate to win Champion Carnival this year.

Kento Miyahara is one of his biggest rivals. Lee and Miyahara have faced six times in singles matches and Lee has lost all six matches.

Beyond losing all six matches, the performance of both Lee and Miyahara was growing over time and seeing these matches is really essential as an introduction to AJPW.

Jake Lee was All Asia Tag Team Champion with Koji Iwamoto and has also been AJPW World Tag Team Champion with Naoya Nomura. He also won the Nemuro Shokudo Cup 6-Man Tag Tournament with Kento Miyahara and Yuma Aoyagi.

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#16 Sam Adonis

Sam Adonis.

This controversial wrestler was hired by WWE in 2011 after three years in the American independent circuit. He was sent to Florida Championship Wrestling but was released from his contract shortly afterward.

After passing through the European independent circuit, Adonis arrived in Mexico in 2016 with a pro-Trump gimmick. Quickly, Adonis became Mexico's most hated heel.

Despite the controversy that involves using a gimmick like this in Mexico, Adonis has won many Mexican fans for his talent in the mic. In addition to making the vast majority of his promos in Spanish, something really appreciated by Mexican fans.

Adonis has been working mainly for CMLL for the last three years. However, he has not achieved any title until now. His greatest achievements are having once been WAW World Heavyweight Champion and ASW British Heavyweight Champion, both in the United Kingdom.

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#17 Joel Redman

Joel Redman.

After seven years in the European independent circuit, Redman was hired by WWE in 2012 and became known as Oliver Gray. He and Neville were the first NXT Tag Team Champions. However, Redman left WWE in 2014 and returned to the European independent circuit.

Redman has an excellent physical condition and his talent in the ring is above average. The only thing he needs to take the step to the next level is to improve his mic and develop a gimmick that is as attractive as it is unique.

Redman has appeared mainly in British promotions and gained notoriety for his work as Tag Team wrestler at IPW: UK and RevPro. He was once IPW: UK Tag Team Champion and three times RevPro Undisputed British Tag Team Champion.

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#18 Joe Doering

Joe Doering.

Undoubtedly, Joseph "Joe" Doering is the most important gaijin of the AJPW roster. After passing through TNA between 2005 and 2006, Doering came to AJPW in 2007, won the Real World Tag League in 2007 and the AJPW World Tag Team Championship (both with Keiji Mutoh) before his departure in February 2010 to WWE.

Doering was released from his contract seven months later and returned to AJPW in November. Since then he has worked full time for AJPW with a brief intermission in 2016 because he was operated on by a brain tumor.

It's difficult to choose only one great match involving Joe Doering because his clashes with Go Shiozaki, Daisuke Sekimoto, Kento Miyahara, Zeus, KAI and Kengo Mashimo have been among the best that AJPW has been able to offer in recent years.

The operation was a success and Doering returned to AJPW on January 2, 2017. He was twice Triple Crown Champion.

This has been the greatest achievement of his career. He also won the Real World Tag League again in 2013 (with Suwama) and in 2018 (with Dylan James) and won the AJPW World Tag Team Championship another three times more (with Masayuki Kono, Sanada and Dylan James).