Batten Twins

The Batten Twins
Tag team
MembersBart Batten
Brad Batten
Downtown Bruno (manager)
Scotty Ace (manager)
Name(s)The Batten Brothers
U.S. Express
The Wild Angels
Billed heightsBart:
5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Brad:
5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Combined
billed weight		453 lb (205 kg)
HometownMount Hope, West Virginia, United States[1]
Billed fromCharleston, West Virginia (CWA)
Kansas City, Missouri (WCCW)
Former
member(s)		Brent Batten
DebutMay 12, 1983[1]
DisbandedMay 21, 2005[1]
Years active1983–2005

The Batten Twins were a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of twin brothers Bart and Brad Batten.[2][3] They performed under the "Batten Twins" name in Central States Wrestling, Continental Wrestling Association, International Championship Wrestling, Jim Crockett Promotions, Southern Championship Wrestling, Texas All-Star Wrestling, World Championship Wrestling, and the World Wrestling Council, and the name U.S. Express in World Class Championship Wrestling. The team also appeared in various independent promotions during the 1990s including, most notably, Atlantic Coast Championship Wrestling, IWA Mid-South, Smoky Mountain Wrestling and Southern States Wrestling.[4]

A popular tag team in the Southern United States during the 1980s,[5] the Battens faced off against some of the top tag teams of the era.[6] They began their wrestling career working for the Poffo family in 1983. As identical twins, the brothers were a rarity in pro wrestling at the time of their debut.[6] Their tenure in the NWA's Central States territory saw them engaged in a long feud with Sheik Abdullah.[7] They held the NWA Central States Tag Team Championship a record four times, defeating The Midnight Express, the Midnight Rockers, Sheik Abdullah and Akio Sato, and Bobby Jaggers (in a singles match) for the title.[8]

The Battens were also major stars in Puerto Rico during the late-1980s where they won WWC Tag Team Championship four times and the WWC Caribbean Tag Team Championship twice.[1][4][9] Their unexpected "heel turn" made them one of the most hated wrestlers in the country.[6] After returning to the U.S., the Battens continued wrestling on the Southern independent circuit until the early-2000s. In April 2005, The Batten Twins ended their 23-year career with a retirement tour of their home state.[10]

  1. ^ a b c d "Batten Twins Profile". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2015-06-27.
  2. ^ Hornbaker, Tim; Grosspietsch, Ronald. "Families in Professional Wrestling". LegacyofWrestling.com.
  3. ^ Baldridge, Terry; Duggan, Rick; Simicich, Nick. "Wrestling Relations". WrestlingMuseum.com. Archived from the original on 2018-10-01. Retrieved 2015-07-04.
  4. ^ a b "Former pro wrestler passes away". Galion Inquirer. Galion, Ohio: Ohio Community Media. November 21, 2014.[permanent dead link‍]
  5. ^ Pope, Kristian; Whebbe, Ray (2003). The Encyclopedia of Professional Wrestling: 100 Years of History, Headlines & Hitmakers (2nd ed.). Iola, Wisconsin: Krause Publications. pp. 111, 161. ISBN 0-87349-625-6.
  6. ^ a b c Simms, Terry Garvin (21 January 2015). "World Domination with Terry Garvin Simms welcomes guest Bart Batten". BlogTalkRadio (Podcast). Event occurs at 10:00. Retrieved 1 July 2015.
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference KM1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference Titles was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Csonka, Larry (November 19, 2014). "1980s Tag Team Star Brad Batten Passes Away". 411mania.com.
  10. ^ Johnson, Mike; Perez, Jose (November 19, 2014). "BRAD BATTEN PASSES AWAY". PWInsider.com.