Before the journey began for a number of WWE talent, their skills were being honed in gymnasiums, auditoriums and in front of crowds of a few hundred people. They never wavered in the pursuit of their goals, and those roads they traveled helped them achieve the success they have today. This is the newest series to be found here on Pro Wrestling Post, titled “Before the E”. ‘The E’ is inspired by a common nickname for WWE. In order to understand where talent is today, it is important to understand how they came to be part of the Entertainment side of World Wrestling Entertainment. This week we present Isaiah ‘Swerve’ Scott.

A man of many names throughout his young career, Isaiah ‘Swerve’ Scott has been an in-ring performer for over ten years now. A native of Tacoma, Washington, Scott’s father was a Sergeant in the U.S Army. At one point while his father was part of the military his entire family moved to Germany living on a U.S military base while there. Scott lived in Germany until he was seven years old. Their family then relocated back to the United States after that. The athlete we see today isn’t by accident. In fact his interest in sports included track and field, basketball and football. Each sport takes a great deal of focus, strength and endurance.

Isaiah ‘Swerve’ Scott: Enlists in the U.S Reserve

Scott’s pursuit of wrestling wasn’t going to be immediate as he was first decided to enlist in the U.S reserve.

When Scott first decided to pursue a career in the ring he did so at the age of eighteen. His early training and development began roughly eleven years ago, roughly a year before he began his in-ring career. While he was doing this, Scott was still committed to the military. His early training was with Ground Xero Wrestling. Scott was immediately turning heads. It would be roughly three years before he would be seen on a grander scale as part of the National Wrestling Alliance.

Scott’s growth saw him first compete for some promotions in 2012. His time with the promotion remained until he left independent wrestling altogether. His matches with some of today’s independent stars such as Dezmond Xavier and AR Fox truly standout as matches fans first began to take notice of him. He was able to expand his growth and compete in multiple companies throughout the United States. During his time in EVOLVE, Scott faced other notable NXT superstars such as Kassius Ohno, Matt Riddle, and Adam Cole.

Isaiah ‘Swerve’ Scott: A Return to Germany

What would happen next for Scott was an opportunity to go back to a place he called home for the first seven years of his life.

A few years back, Strickland competed for Westside Xtreme Wrestling in Germany. He never appeared to rest on his laurels either. A year later, Scott competed for AAA as part of TripleMania XXVI where he teamed with former NXT talent ACH.

Throughout his time competing on the independent circuit, one promotion appeared to be the most special to him. From its inception DEFY Wrestling was the house that Swerve built. He held the title for several years, in fact, helping to elevate its value and relevance. When he left the company he left it better than it began. Scott emerged as a key to the promotion’s success. They were in-fact his hometown promotion. He was as invested in providing the fans of Washington a quality product as DEFY was as well.

He has competed for notable television programs such Lucha Underground under the character name Killshot. The character’s role continued to evolve during his four seasons on the program. He originally competed as Lt. Jermaine Strickland but as time passed he went under a mask.

The Unmasking in Lucha Underground

It wasn’t until his loss to Son of Havoc where he surrendered his mask and showed his true identity.

Scott’s departure from Lucha Underground also led to other opportunities for him as well. He competed for Major League Wrestling briefly as well. Between his time in DEFY Wrestling, PCW ULTRA, EVOLVE, and Ground Zero Wrestling, Shane ‘Isaiah ‘Swerve’ Scott Strickland was in the midst of a journey to get to where he is today. It wouldn’t have happened for him if it wasn’t for his time…before the e.