Luke Harper: A profile of Randy Orton's Elimination Chamber rival
Harper is gold on Twitter and rated highly by Bray Wyatt...
Wednesday 8 February 2017 16:06, UK
Randy Orton will be in for one heck of a fight at Elimination Chamber on Sunday night.
That's because he will be taking on bearded brawler Luke Harper, who up until recently was his stablemate in Bray Wyatt's Family but is now his sworn enemy.
Here's some key things you need to know about Orton's Elimination Chamber foe…
Birth name: Jon Huber
Twitter handle: @LukeHarperWWE
Finishing Move: Discus clothesline
WWE main roster debut: July 2013
Brand: Smackdown Live
He is superb on Twitter!
Okay, not superb in that he posts comic, thought-provoking or poignant tweets but superb in that he has found his niche and stuck to it - religiously! Each of his entries since October 31, 2016 - and he's done this EVERY DAY, by the way - have been thus: the day of the week in question followed by the words: 'You know what that means." Here is an example:
If nothing else, you have to admire the commitment. Harper's Twitter game wasn't always this one-dimensional, though, even if it has always been abrupt. A few of the best include this gem from July 3 last year - "I really like Duran, Duran" - and May 23's unforgettable: "Ever think about dinosaurs?" It's not just extinct creatures that Harper thinks about, however…
Bray Wyatt is a huge fan of his
Harper and his long-time leader Wyatt are currently at odds - the latter may still be rearranging his teeth after being clocked by the former's discus clothesline on Tuesday's Smackdown Live - stemming from when Wyatt planted Harper with a Sister Abigail ahead of the Royal Rumble.
Yet, The Eater of Worlds was gushing in his praise of the bearded New Yorker when he spoke to Sky Sports recently: "[Harper is one of the most underrated wrestlers] - in the world. He is 6ft 7in and 275lb but moves like a ballerina. He is a bona fide star and I cannot say enough about him."
He honed his craft on the independent scene
Much like a man we profiled last week, new Cruiserweight Champion Neville, Harper spent a lengthy time on the independent scene before signing for WWE. The 37-year-old, formerly known as Huberboy #2 - Huberboy #1 was his brother, obviously - and Brodie Lee, can list Chikara, Ring of Honor, Squared Circle Wrestling, Evolve, and Dragon Gate as his ex-promotions.
During those days, Harper faced the likes of Claudio Castagnoli, Jon Moxley and Kevin Steen, now performing in WWE as Cesaro, Dean Ambrose and Kevin Owens respectively, and won a host of titles, including the World of Hurt Wrestling United States Championship on three occasions and the 2CW Heavyweight Championship in Squared Circle Wrestling twice.
He doesn't mince his words
Harper is far from WWE's most talkative soul but when he does open his mouth he doesn't hold back. While he recovered from a knee injury in 2016, WWE.com posted an article on the top 10 wrestling free agents that Raw and Smackdown may consider signing following the draft in July. Harper was not among the 10, but Cryme Tyme's JTG and Shad Gaspard were…
Speaking to The Chad Dukes Wrestling Show, Harper said: "When Cryme Tyme ranks above you, it makes you question your career choices. They couldn't be more irrelevant to today's wrestling scene. I believe I will be WWE Champion one day - if I were to go away without accomplishing that I would feel unfulfilled, to be honest. So for Cryme Tyme to rank above me when I think that of myself becomes a bit of an issue inside my own brain."
He doesn't need The Wyatt Family
Wyatt has been in The Wyatt Family more often than not since inking a deal with WWE in March 2012, winning the NXT Tag Team Titles with Erick Rowan as well being a staunch ally of Bray Wyatt in the Wyatt Family leader's memorable tussles with John Cena, The Undertaker, Daniel Bryan and Roman Reigns. Harper also held the Smackdown Tag Team Titles with Orton and Wyatt briefly in late 2016 under the Freebird Rule, after Orton and Wyatt had won them from Heath Slater and Rhyno.
Yet, he has also encountered brief singles success, most notably when he beat Dolph Ziggler to win the Intercontinental Title in November 2014, before shipping it back to The Show-Off the following month in a Ladder Match. Harper is back on his own now, though, and, after facing Orton at Elimination Chamber, will be intent on getting himself in the world-title picture to prove that, you know, he is in fact better than Cryme Tyme!
Watch Harper face Orton at Elimination Chamber, live on Sky Sports Box Office on Sunday night - a text blog of the event will also run on skysports.com and the Sky Sports app.
WWE Elimination Chamber booking details
WWE Elimination Chamber will be shown on Sky Sports Box Office (channel 491) and Sky Sports HD Box Office (channel 492) at 1am, Sunday, February 12 (Monday morning).
WWE Elimination Chamber will repeated on Sky Sports Box Office (channel 491) BUT NOT Sky Sports HD Box Office (channel 492) between 10am on Monday, February 13 and 10pm on Thursday, February 16.
The pay-per-view will cost £14.95 for viewers in the United Kingdom and €21.95 for customers in the Republic of Ireland.
You can order the show online by visiting this link: https://my.sky.com/orderboxoffice/?DCMP=WWEEliminationChamber
You can also book the event over the phone: UK viewers should call 03442 410 888, while customers in the Republic of Ireland should call 0818 220 225. (There may be an additional charge for telephone bookings).
You can also order the show via your Sky remote:
Sky+: Press the box office button on your remote, then click the sports tab followed by WWE Elimination Chamber.
Sky Q: Press Home on your Sky Q remote, select TV guide, then Box Office and then WWE Elimination Chamber. Enter your TV Pin if prompted. (Only bookings via Sky TV remote are recordable using Sky Plus).
Sky TV residential customers only. Commercial customers contact Sky for price and to order. Sky Box Office terms apply. Cable customers should contact their local cable operator.
