Eli Cottonwood

American professional wrestler

Eli Cottonwood
Birth name	Kipp Christianson
Born	(1974-09-30) September 30, 1974 (age 49) River Falls, Wisconsin, U.S.
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)	Eli Cottonwood Kip Christianson
Billed height	7 ft 1 in (2.16 m)
Billed weight	330 lb (150 kg)
Trained by	Steve Keirn
Debut	2008
Retired	2016

Kipp Christianson (born September 30, 1974) is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his time in WWE's developmental territory FCW, where he wrestled under the ring name Eli Cottonwood from 2009 to 2012.

Early life

Kipp Christianson was born in River Falls, Wisconsin, on September 30, 1974.^[1]

Professional wrestling career

Trained by Steve Keirn, Christianson began competing under his real name in WWE's developmental territory FCW in 2008.^[1] On July 15, 2009, he had his debut match as a heel under the new ring name Eli Cottonwood, a man who had recently been reintroduced to society after a stint at the Battle Creek Sanitarium.^[2] He defeated Fred Rosser in the match.^[1] Aksana began managing him in November 2009 and he soon turned face.^[3] On June 1, 2010, John Morrison announced that he would be mentoring Cottonwood in the second season of NXT.^[4]^[5] Cottonwood was eliminated from the competition on the July 27 episode of NXT, becoming the second competitor to be eliminated after Titus O'Neil.^[6]

Cottonwood returned to FCW on November 4, 2010, and lost to Big E Langston in a match that ended his undefeated FCW streak.^[7] On December 5, 2011, he had a one-off appearance on WWE's main roster, losing a dark match to Dolph Ziggler on Raw.^[8] In April 2012, he turned heel and aligned himself with Bray Wyatt.^[9]^[10] He requested his release from WWE two months later and retired in 2016.^[11] He later owned a yoga studio in Las Vegas called Kipp's Life Flip from 2016 to 2018 and co-owned Florida Hardcore Wrestling from 2016 to 2017.^[12]

Personal life

As of 2024, Christianson resides in Wyoming with his wife and their two children.^[13] He is active on Twitter, where he often voices his support for figures such as Donald Trump and Robert F. Kennedy Jr.^[13] while spreading conspiracy theories from sources such as QAnon.^[13]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c "Wrestlers Database - Eli Cottonwood". CAGEMATCH.
^ Shields, Brian; Sullivan, Kevin (2012). WWE Encyclopedia: Updated & Expanded. DK. p. 118. ISBN 978-0-7566-9159-2.
^ "Florida Championship Wrestling (2009)". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved April 17, 2018.
^ Bishop, Matt (June 1, 2010). "WWE NXT: Barrett wins show's first season". Slam! Sports. Canoe.com. Archived from the original on June 29, 2012. Retrieved June 2, 2010.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
^ Caldwell, James (June 1, 2010). "WWE News: NXT Results – Season Two announced, Pro & Rookie pairings revealed". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved June 1, 2010.
^ Bishop, Matt (July 27, 2010). "WWE NXT: Second rookie goes home; New No. 1". Slam! Sports. Canoe.com. Archived from the original on July 19, 2012. Retrieved July 28, 2010.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
^ "Events Database - FCW TV #113". CAGEMATCH.
^ http://www.profightdb.com/wrestlers/eli-cottonwood-6288.html%20Eli%20Cottonwood:%20Profile%20&%20Match%20Listing%20-%20Internet%20Wrestling%20Database%20(IWD). {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
^ Namako, Jason (April 27, 2012). "FCW Results – 4/22/12". WrestleView. Archived from the original on September 21, 2013. Retrieved May 1, 2012.
^ Namako, Jason (April 11, 2012). "FCW Results – 4/8/12". WrestleView. Archived from the original on September 21, 2013. Retrieved May 1, 2012.
^ "WWE Releases A Former NXT Contestant?, Dreamer Now Alumni". PWMania. July 6, 2012. Retrieved March 30, 2023.
^ "11 Forgotten WWE NXT Wrestlers: Where Are They Now?". The Sportster. February 21, 2022. Retrieved March 31, 2023.
^ ^a ^b ^c https://x.com/elinxt