WWE NXT has been producing some of the best tag teams that the fans have ever seen, Enzo and Cass being the foremost. One of them is the Authors of Pain, comprising of Gzim Selmani and Sunny Dhinsa, who have made an impact by attacking American Alpha during NXT TakeOver: The End earlier today.
The NXT Universe was shocked by the sudden and feral attack, not to mention that legendary manager and WWE Hall Of Famer Paul Ellering was behind them.
On that note, here are five things that you need to know about the Authors of Pain.
#1 Gzim Selmani fought in MMA promotion Bellator
One-half of the Authors of Pain hails from a martial arts background. Selmani is Kosovo-Albanian who has been training in Judo since the age of four and also began practicing Kickboxing at the age of 8.
Many wrestlers these days come from a martial arts background and jump to pro-wrestling after a period of time. He also began training in mixed martial arts alongside his brother since the age of 15.
Selmani began his MMA career by participating in amateur matches in Netherlands. He has an MMA record of 4 wins and two losses. He won his first professional fight against Anatoli Ciumac back in 2012.
He faced Ante Delija in a losing effort at Final Fight Championship 10. Selmani Later went on to face Mario Milosavljevic who he defeated. He had another match at Final Fighting Championship at FFC 10 where he beat Tomaz Simonic.
He continued his MMA career, obtaining an impressive victory in 18 seconds when he defeated Oli Thomspon at BAMMA 15. He also fought in Bellator MMA when he faced Daniel Gallemore in a losing effort at Bellator 130. This was his last MMA match before making it to the WWE NXT.
#2 Sunny Dhinsa has Punjabi roots
His surname, Dhinsa, suggests Punjabi lineage, ie, his ancestors were possibly from the Indian state of Punjab. He had an Indian partner Lovepreet Sangha during his WWE NXT debut.
#3 Gzim Selmani is of Kosovo Albanian descent
Selmani is from Netherlands and of Kosovo Albanian descent. He later moved to the states to carry on with his MMA and pro-wrestling career.
#4 Paul Ellering is their manager
Paul Ellering is a WWE Hall of Famer who managed the Road Warriors, Animal and Hawk or more relevantly, the Legion Of Doom. He was also inducted into both the Professional Wrestling Hall Of Fame. Prior to his wrestling career, he was also a weight lifter and had set a record for doing a deadlift of 745 pounds.
#5 Sunny Dhinsa was an amateur wrestler
Sunny Dhinsa is also an amateur wrestler. He also participated in the 2013 Senior National Championship and lost the 120kg gold medal match against Korey Jarvis.
Honorable Mention: The Authors of Pain had an Indian World Kabbadi League Champion as their partner
The duo made their debut along with another NXT wrestler, Lovepreet Sangha at a non-televised NXT live event on October 29, 2015. Lovepreet Sangha is an Indian who is also a former world Kabbadi League Champion who signed with the WWE last year. Kabaddi is a very popular Indian grassroots sport.
Together, they called themselves the Tribe and cut a heel promo that involved them telling the crowd to bow down and respect them.
