Orlando Tito Colón Nieves (born March 24, 1982) is a Puerto Rican professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenure in WWE, where he performed under the ring name Epico Colón, or simply Epico. He is currently signed to World Wrestling Council (WWC) under his real name, where he is a former WWC Universal Heavyweight Champion.
Early life
Colón attended Western Michigan University, graduating with a bachelor's degree in accounting. While attending, he played baseball for the Western Michigan Broncos.
Professional wrestling career
Early career (2004–2006) Colon began his training at Dan "The Beast" Severn's, Michigan Sports Camps and competing in Price of Glory Wrestling (Coldwater, MI) in 2004. Colón began wrestling in the independent circuit of the United States, performing in Hybrid Pro Wrestling, a promotion based in Schoolcraft, Michigan. He was given a villainous persona, which noted his lineage as a member of the Colón family, as well as a gimmick of "winning by any means necessary", emphasizing his heel character. It was in this promotion that he first used his finisher move, a swinging half nelson with leg capture dubbed "Orlando's Magic". Concurrently, he worked three dates for Price Of Glory Wrestling and eight for Independent Wrestling Association Mid-South. Colón participated in the tournament to crown the first Hybrid Pro Wrestling Champion. In the first round, he was booked against CJ Otis, being eliminated after losing the contest by pinfall due to interference. Subsequently, Colón created a tag team with independent wrestler Jack Thriller, from Honolulu, Hawaii. The team began a feud with Jayson Quick and Josh Abercrombie, which was scheduled to conclude at a special event titled Phase: One. However, Colón was included in an angle where he provoked Quick, engaging in a public fight. As part of the storyline, Colón and Quick were banned from participating at Phase: One by the HPW Championship Committee. He was said to be cleared to return, but as part of the angle Colón refused to wrestle in the promotion until the company compensated him. This storyline was used to explain Colón's departure from the company due to moving back to Puerto Rico.
World Wrestling Council (2006–2011) In 2006, Colón joined the World Wrestling Council, a promotion owned by his uncle, Carlos Colón, Sr. He debuted as the mystery opponent in a stipulation match that promoted the debut of "another member of the Colón family". Shortly afterwards, he made his return to the company under a masked gimmick named "Fireblaze". Under this ring name he won his first title in the promotion, the WWC Puerto Rico Heavyweight Championship, being booked to defeat "El Bronco" Ramón Álvarez. During the following six months, Colón dropped and recovered the title twice, before dropping it a final time on March 24, 2007. He continued using the pseudonism and was included in a feud with Bronco. The storyline concluded at Aniversario 2007, where he dropped a retirement & mask vs. retirement match between them, revealing his identity. During the first half of 2008, WWC organized a tournament for the vacant WWC Universal Heavyweight Championship. The event presented a purported points system, in which Colón gained an early and decisive lead. Concurrent to this tournament, he entered in a feud with El Condor, a masked character played by Ray González. After defeating El Condor one week before Honor vs. Traicion, a stipulation match was scheduled for that event, in which El Condor would receive the same number of points held by Colón. At the event, Colón was booked to lose the match. The angle between both wrestlers continued, before serving as a transition to a feud between an unmasked González and the other members of the Colón family. Subsequently, Colón continued his involvement in the tournament, entering a feud with the second seed, Noriega. The finals were held at Aniversario 2008, with Noriega defeating Colón to win the Universal Heavyweight Championship. He continued performing in contests against both González and Noriega, who assaulted him in a backstage segment. After Noriega abandoned the company, Colón moved on to feud with González, exchanging victories with him. On September 6, 2008, Colón defeated Steve Corino. Following this, Colón suffered an injury that kept him out of being booked in matches, while participating in backstage segments.