James Storm

James Allen Cox (born June 1, 1977) is an American professional wrestler better known by the ring name James Storm.

He is best known for his time in TNA Wrestling.

Cox's professional wrestling career began when he was trained by Wolfie D, a veteran tag team wrestler, in 1995.

His training was hampered by a broken shoulder, and Cox eventually dropped out of Slash's training school.

He resumed training with Shane Morton after his shoulder had healed.

He started his career in 1997 and after working on several independent promotions, he began to wrestle for the newly created NWA Total Nonstop Action promotion.

Storm participated in TNA's first event and became a tag team with Chris Harris, America's Most Wanted (AMW).

AMW became one of the best tag teams in the promotion, winning 6 times the NWA World Tag Team Championship.

He also won the NWA World Tag Team Championship one more time with Christopher Daniels.

Cox toured the south-east independent circuit before being signed to a World Championship Wrestling (WCW) developmental deal in 2000.

Cox made several appearances for World Championship Wrestling on WCW Worldwide and WCW Saturday Night in 2000 as an enhancement talent, where he assumed the ring name "James Storm".

Storm returned to the independent circuit after WCW was sold to the World Wrestling Federation in March 2001.

Storm wrestled his future tag team partner, Chris Harris, on a "Legends Night" show on June 1, 2002.

As a result of the match, both wrestlers were hired by the upstart Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) promotion.

The pair were expected to wrestle as singles wrestlers, but were instead placed into a tag team.

They named themselves "America's Most Wanted" (AMW) because, according to Storm the name was a reference to his "little trouble with the law".

On the inaugural TNA pay-per-view on June 19, 2002, Storm and Harris were in two different matches in their TNA debuts (Storm teamed up with Psicosis against The Johnsons, while Harris took part in the Gauntlet for the Gold battle royal for the vacant NWA World Heavyweight Championship).

The pair wrestled together for the first time on the second ever TNA pay-per-view a week later.

Storm and Harris quickly became mainstays of the promotion and teamed regularly over the next few years.

Splits were teased in early 2003 and again in 2004, but nothing came of them.

America's Most Wanted turned heel in late 2005 by helping Jeff Jarrett defeat Raven for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship.

They went on to join Jarrett's Army, acquiring the managerial skills of Gail Kim in the process.

At Bound for Glory, AMW successfully retained their titles against The Naturals.

Storm's penchant for wearing cowboy hats resulted in the team often being jeered as "Brokeback Mountain", a reference to the movie about homosexual cowboys, during their heel run.

After the team disbanded in 2006, Storm started a singles career, crowning himself as the TNA World Beer Drinking Champion.

In mid-2006, they again teased their split due to miscommunication during their matches, most notably when Harris accidentally hit Storm with a garbage can during a No Disqualification match against Team 3D (Brother Ray and Brother Devon).

During their run as a team, the duo won the NWA World Tag Team Championship six times.

On the December 14, 2006 episode of Impact!, America's Most Wanted came to an end after a feud-ending match with The Latin American Xchange (Homicide and Hernandez) when Storm hit Harris with a beer bottle, temporarily "blinding" Harris's right eye.

Storm went on to feud with Petey Williams before turning on Gail Kim and aligning himself with the returning Jacqueline Moore.

He then went on a huge winning streak, coming out victorious in matches against Petey Williams, Eric Young, and former partner Chris Harris in his return match, among several others.

At the Sacrifice pay-per view, Storm was defeated by Harris in a Texas Death Match, which ended his long-running winning streak.

In 2008, Storm formed Beer Money, Inc. with Bobby Roode.

Together they became 4 time TNA World Tag Team Champions and joined the Fortune stable.

In 2011, Storm defeated Kurt Angle to win the TNA World Heavyweight Championship, his first world title.

During the following years, Storm won the TNA World Tag Team Championship two more times with Gunner in 2013 and Abyss in 2014, as well as the TNA King of the Mountain Championship once.

He would leave TNA in 2015.

Storm returned in 2016, winning the TNA World Tag Team Championship one more time with Bobby Roode as Beer Money.

After leaving TNA in 2018, Storm worked for several independent promotions, most notably National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), where he won the NWA World Tag Team Championship once (with Eli Drake), and NWA National Championship once.

James Allen Cox was an amateur wrestler while in high school.

In addition, he was a talented basketball player, and was awarded a scholarship to Austin Peay State University (which he was forced to relinquish after injuring his shoulder).